A Slave Murder
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APRIL 13, 1861.] HARPER'S WEEKLY. 231 Comes rarely. Tho' I know that you will mourn The little maiden helpmate you must miss, Thanks be to God, I leave you not forlorn. There should be comfort in this dying kiss. Let Barbara keep my colors for herself. I'm sorry that Lucia went away In some unkindness. 'Twas a cheerful elf! Send her my scarlet ribbons, mother; say I thought of her. My pallet's on the shelf, Surprised, no doubt, at such long holiday, in the south window, on the easel, stands My picture for the Empress Eleanore, Still wanting some few touches, these weak hands
Must leave to others. Yet there's
time before
You'll find in writing. Barbara's brush is more Like mine than Anna's; let her finish it. Oh, . . . and there's 'Maso our poor fisherman! You'll find my work done for him: something fit To hang among his nets: you liked the plan By fancy took to please our friend's dull wit, Scarce brighter than his old tin fishing can. . . St. Margaret, stately as a ship full sail, Leading a dragon by an azure band; The ribbon flutters gayly in the gale: The monster follows the Saint's guiding hand, Wrinkled to one grim smile from head to tail: For in his horny hide his heart grows bland. — Where are you, dear ones? . . . 'Tis the dull, faint chill, Which soon will shrivel into burning pain! Dear brother, sisters, father, mother—still Stand near me ! While your faces fixt remain Within my sense, vague fears of unknown ill Are softly crowded out, . . . and yet, 'tis vain! Greet Giulio Banzi; greet Antonio; greet Bartolomeo, kindly. When I'm gone, And in the school-room, as of old, you meet, — Ah, yes: you'll miss a certain merry tone, A cheerful face, a smile that should complete The vague place in the household picture grown To an aspect on familiar, it seems strange That aught should alter there. Mere life, at least, Could not have brought the shadow of a change Across it. Safely the warm years increast Among us. I have never sought to range From our small table at earth's general feast, To higher places; never loved but you, Dear family of friends, except my art: Nor any form save those my pencil drew E'er quiver'd in the quiet of my heart. I die a maiden to Madonna true, And would have so continued.... There, the smart, The pang, the faintness !.. . Ever, as I lie Here, with the autumn sunset on my face, And heavy in my curls (while it, and I, Together, slipping softly from the place We play'd in, pensively prepare to die), A low warm humming simmers in my ears, —Old summer afternoons! faint fragments rise Out of my broken life . . . at times appears Madonna-like a moon in mellow skies : The three Fates with the spindle and the shears: The Grand Duke Cosine with the Destinies: St. Margaret with her dragon: fitful cheers Along the Via Urbana come and go : Bologna with her towers! ... Then all grows dim, And shapes itself anew, softly and slow, To cloister'd glooms thro' which the silver hymn Eludes the sensitive silence ; while below The southwest window, just one single, slim, And sleepy sunbeam, powders with waved gold A lane of gleamy mist along the gloom, Whereby to find its way, thro' manifold Magnificence, to Guido Reni's tomb, Which set in steadfast splendor, I behold. And all the while, I scent the incense fume, Till dizzy grows the brain, and dark the eye Beneath the eyelid. When the end is come, There, by his tomb (our master's) let me lie, Somewhere, not too far off; beneath the dome Of our own Lady of the Rosary: Safe, where old friends will pass; and still near home! OWEN MEREDITH. DOMESTIC INTELLIGENCE.ELECTIONS DURING THE WEEK.THE election for State officers and members of Congress in Rhode Island took place on 3d, and resulted in the complete overthrow of the Republicans. The Opposition gain two members of Congress. We are yet without full returns from Connecticut, but the Republican majority for Governor will not probably fall short of 1800. Last year it was 541, a gain of over 1100. At the city election in Cincinnati, on 3d, the Unionists are reported to have carried their ticket by 2000 majority. The Brooklyn charter election, on 1st, resulted in the success of Martin Kalbfleisch, the Democratic candidate for Mayor, by a majority of 5037, or 1002 less than the Democratic majority at the last spring election. The vote of the city for President, last fall, was: Lincoln, 15,137; Fusion, 19,505, giving a Fusion majority of 4368. The Democracy have an apparent gain in their majority upon last fall of 669. At the municipal election in Richmond, Virginia, on 3d, the Union candidate for Mayor was defeated by about 1000 majority. The city of Portland, on 21, elected William W. Thomas Mayor by 175 majority over his Democratic competitor. Last year the Democrats carried Portland by 31 majority. The City Council is also largely Republican. A LETTER FROM GENERAL SCOTT.Some noise having been made in Virginia about the delivery of guns from the Bellona Arsenal to the Government, General Scott writes as follows: " WASHINGTON, March 21, 1851. "DEAR SIR,—On inquiry here, at the Ordnance Department, I learn that the guns at the Bellona Arsenal, about which you write, are by contract to be delivered at Rocketts, on board (I believe) of some vessel, to avoid the double expense of landing and reshipping before being paid for. If seized before this period, the loss would fall wholly on the foundery. The guns are only sent to Fort Monroe as a safe place of deposit—being as little wanted there for the defense of that work as for the defense of Richmond. This subject was yesterday before the Secretary of War, on an inquiry from some quarter unknown to me, and I have not time to learn the character of the reply. The only urgency in the case results from the founders' want of the contract money. "I write as a mere outsider in respect to such matters, for my position happily exempts me from the handling of money—from all contracts and disbursements. " With great respect, your obedient servant, " WINFIELD SCOTT." THE NEW CONFEDERATE LOAN.According to the Montgomery correspondence of the Charleston Mercury, the moneyed men, both North and South, are so eager to take the Confederate Loan that they can not wait for the opening of bids. " When the announcement was first made that Congress had authorized a loan, and before proposals were solicited, a Mississippian placed $5000 in the hands of his bankers, made subject to the draft of the Treasurer of the Confederacy. This gentleman was not alone in his patriotic tender of money at the time it was supposed the Government was in need of it, for similar offers came from other States. I learn today that one man has offered $200,000, and another $80,000, to Mr. Memminger, for which sum no interest is required. It is well known here that offers of money have been received from New York, Philadelphia, New Orleans, and other cities in the United States and in the Confederate States, to an amount that would cover the entire authorized loan. Mr. Memminger has concluded — and very wisely too—that the citizens of the Confederate States are entitled to the preference in this investment, and the bonds will be scattered among them as equally as possible." AFFAIRS AT FORT PICKENS.Lieutenant Gilman, one of the officers at Fort Pickens, arrived at Washington on 3d from Pensacola, having left there on the 31st of March. He states that no reinforcements had been landed from the Brooklyn or any other vessel, but that she had gone to Key West for supplies. He states that the Confederate troops were arriving there in large numbers, and in a few days they would have five thousand, well provisioned. He says it is impossible for the Government to land troops at Fort Pickens without the Confederate authorities knowing it, and whenever they attempt it hostilities will at once commence. He says he met large numbers of troops on the route for Pensacola; that General Bragg will not wait the action of the Washington Government much longer before they commence operations. He says the impression there was that Fort Pickens was to be abandoned. Such assurances were given out there. A LETTER FROM THE " SABINE."The Times publishes a letter written on board the frigate Sabine, stationed off Pensacola, which gives an insight into the condition of affairs at that point, both on ship and shore, on the 25th of March. At that time the vessels on that station were short of provisions, and the men on account of the apparent neglect of the authorities at Washington, were somewhat disheartened; but since then the supplies which have been dispatched from this port have doubtless reached their destination. The letter says nothing relative to the reinforcement of Fort Pickens, except to exhibit the difficulty of such an enterprise. ANOTHER VESSEL FIRED INTO.Important intelligence reaches us from Charleston. The soldiers on Morris Island, unable probably to restrain longer their martial ardor, and burning once more to signalize their bravery, on Wednesday evening, during the prevalence of a severe gale, fired into a schooner which was attempting to enter the harbor. The schooner being struck by a shot, which went through her, immediately turned and went to sea again in the midst of the gale. It was subsequently ascertained that she was from New Jersey, loaded with ice. The excuse for firing into her was that she carried no colors—which it is quite likely she had not on board. Major Anderson immediately dispatched a messenger to Governor Pickens for an explanation, but the result of the interview is not known. Thursday morning, however, Lieutenants Snyder and Talbot came off from Fort Sumter and had another interview with the Governor ; and in the evening Lieutenant Talbot left with dispatches for Washington, while Lieutenant Snyder returned to the fort. Whether the schooner which was fired into subsequently entered the harbor is not stated. Report, prevailed, both in Charleston and Washington, that supplies and mail communication had been cut off from Fort Sumter, by order of Jefferson Davis. THE GARRISON AT FORT MORGAN.The Mobile Tribune of the 27th has the following: " The garrison at Fort Morgan, we understand, is to be raised to a thousand men. At present we suppose there are at least seven or eight hundred already there, and we learn that they are rapidly being instructed in all the garrison duties. They will leave that place good soldiers, unless' Old Abe' should put them through what is vulgarly termed a course of sprouts: That he does not intend to do ; and, if he did, he would find it a very difficult feat." RUMORED MEXICAN FORAY UPON TEXAS.We have important news from the Rio Grande. General Ampudia, with three thousand Mexicans, was at last accounts within sixty miles of Brownsville. The Texans report that his object was to plunder Brownsville and Matamoros, and pillage generally. It is also reported that Ampudia has aroused the Mexicans with the design of re-annexing Texas to Mexico. He announces that as the Federal Government no longer supports Texas, now is the time to retake her. The Texans were preparing to repel the invaders. HOW ARKANSAS STANDS.A letter dated Little Rock, March 22, says : '' Our Convention has adjourned, and we are still in the Union. We laid down what we consider our grievances—a plan for adjustment—joined Virginia in her call for a Convention at Frankfort on the 27th day of May next, and elected five delegates to represent us in that Convention. And on the first Monday in August next, we take the vote of the people for co-operation' or secession,' and that vote will determine our action. We had all odds to contend against. Every influence was brought to bear upon no. Disappointed politicians and aspiring ones crowded the Convention to sway its action, but to no purpose. I think we have done well." A NEW CUSTOM-HOUSE REGULATION.To guard against the taking of foreign merchandise out of bond for the purposes of transportation to States which do not acknowledge the authority of the Federal Government, thus defrauding the Government of its proper revenues, the Secretary of the Treasury has issued the following order to the Collectors of Customs at the various Atlantic ports. The practice of withdrawing goods from bond in order to introduce them into Southern ports under their "more favorable" tariff dues, or without the inconvenience of paying duties at all, was getting to be quite too common to be longer tolerated. The following is a copy of the order: " TREASURY DEPARTMENT, March, 30, 1861 "The control of the warehouses of the Government in the several ports in the States of South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida, and Texas having been usurped under the alleged authority of those States, and the officers of the warehouses acting under the authority of the United States having been forcibly excluded from their proper functions in the custody of merchandise, and superintendence of the entries for warehousing and withdrawal, it has become impracticable to continue the privilege of bonding for transportation to those ports. "Collectors of the Customs are accordingly hereby instructed that no entries for transportation in bond to those ports can be permitted until otherwise directed by the Department. Very respectfully your obedient servant, " S. P. CHASE, Secretary of the Treasury. " A. SCHELL., Esq , Collector of the Customs, New York." ACTIVITY IN OUR NAVY-YARD.The greatest activity prevails at the Navy-yard and forts in our harbor. There are movements of troops, transfers of crews, and speedy preparations on board of vessels of war, which seem to indicate that some movement of importance is on foot. Whether it relates to our domestic affairs, or to the recent demonstrations on the part of Spain, is left to conjecture. WHAT SECESSION HAS COST SOUTH CAROLINA.A Message from Governor Pickens to the Convention of South Carolina contains many details respecting the military affairs of that State. He informs them that 600 men will be required to garrison the forts in Charleston Harbor, and that the expenditures of the State have been $640,317. FUGITIVE SLAVE CASE AT CHICAGO.A colored man named Harris, with his wife and two children, were arrested at Chicago on 3d, on a warrant issued by United States Commissioner Conneau, and sent by special train to Springfield, to be examined. The man is claimed by Mr. Patterson, of St. Louis County, Missouri, and the woman and children by Mr. Vail, of the same county, whence they escaped. As it was almost entirely unknown that warrants were issued, they were executed with little difficulty; but after the affair became known the most intense excitement prevailed among the colored portion of the community, and large numbers gathered at the depot at the time the regular morning train left, the crowd supposing the fugitives to be on board. One or two shots were fired at the train. Beyond this there was no disturbance. A TERRIBLE OUTRAGE.The Nashville Union of 26th March says : " We have the particulars of a most deplorable outrage committed by a negro man in Sumner County, and his summary execution by the citizens of the neighborhood. The facts, as we are informed, are as follows: Mr. W. C. Moore, who resides at Saundersville, in Sumner County, on the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, had recently purchased a plantation in Alabama, and was preparing to remove to it. All of his negroes except one expressed entire willingness to go, and it became necessary to use force with that one. Mr. Moore was handcuffing him for the purpose of sending him off with the rest of the negroes. The boy, it appears, had prepared himself for a murderous assault upon his master, as he had a knife concealed in his right sleeve, and while the handcuff was being fastened upon his left arm he made a lunge at Mr. Moore's throat, inflicting a terrible but not fatal wound, which he followed up with another stroke, cutting a deep gash upon his chin. By this time Mr. Saunders and the father of Mr. Moore came to his rescue, when the negro turned upon the former and commenced cutting him, and then upon the latter, cutting his throat from ear to ear, almost severing his head from his body, and killing him instantly. The alarm having been given, the people in the vicinity hastened to the bloody scene, and it was found necessary to shoot the negro three times before the knife could be got from him. He was then taken and hung immediately. It is thought the wound of the younger Moore will not prove fatal." A SENSIBLE LETTER.Hon. C. B. Sedgwick has written the appended reply to a note which he received from a clergyman asking his influence to obtain a subordinate clerkship in the New York Custom-house for his son, a youth he " had never had occasion to punish, and never knew of his being guilty of a falsehood:" "SYRACUSE, March, 18. "REV. MR. P.—My dear Sir: If you have a son who won't lie nor steal, don't, for God's sake, put him in the New York Custom-house ; he would soon lose those qualities there, and get other habits not half so virtuous. Still, if you are inclined to put temptation in his way, instead of being careful and prayerful that it be removed from him, I will give him a letter, provided any friend of mine is appointed collector. "Very truly your friend and the friend of your boy, " C. B. SEDGWICK." A DI VERNON IN WISCONSIN.The Wisconsin State Journal, of the 26th ult., says : "About two o'clock this afternoon the people along King and Pinkney streets were startled by a horse, with a young lady on his back, running at furious speed in the direction of the American House. She had evidently lost control of him, and every one expected to see her dashed to the ground and seriously hurt, if not killed outright. Turning down Washington Avenue, he shot through the crowd of wood wagons and other vehicles, and dashed directly into the livery stable just below the American. A great rush of people immediately filled the stable, fearful that the girl was killed; but with the exception of some rents in her riding dress, she was unhurt. She had kept her seat, and appeared perfectly cool and collected. All that troubled her, she declared, during the runaway was the disarrangement of her dress, and she proposed to try the horse again without delay. It proved to be a fast horse, owned by John D. Welch, that few men cared to ride, he is so wild and unmanageable, but which the girl, Miss Ellen Dennison, of this city, had determined to ride at the State Fair. She was practicing with him on Third Lake ridge, near Governor Farwell's house, when she lost control of the bridle, and he ran with her to the stable, a distance of about a mile. The horse was very much excited, and some of the by-standers attempted to dissuade her front mounting him again. She very coolly replied that 'she proposed to ride that horse or die in the at-tempt.' Remounting the horse, she rode out in the street, when he acted so badly that Ben Reed got him by the bits, and led him into the stable, where, after some stroking down and ' horse talk,' his nerves were partially quieted, and Miss Dennison rode him away in triumph. Miss Dennison is a young lady apparently about twenty, with a keen black eye and rosy cheeks, and withal very pretty, besides being ' as brave as Julius Caesar."' PERSONAL.Judge McLean, of the United States Supreme Court, died at Cincinnati on 4th, in the seventy-seventh year of his age. There are now two vacancies in the Supreme Bench, caused by the death of Judges Daniel of Virginia, and McLean of Ohio. Judge McLean entered Congress from Cincinnati in 1812, was made Postmaster-General by President Monroe in 1823, was continued in that office by J. Q. Adams, but displaced in 1829 by General Jackson, who made him Judge of the Supreme Court, which office he has filled for more than thirty years. Cassius M. Clay has advertised to sell at auction on the 10th of April, his stock and farm and household appointments, preparatory to leaving to serve his country at the Court of St. Petersburg. Mr. Clay has long been a distinguished breeder and importer of stock. Governor Houston has sent a message to the Legislature protesting against the Convention, appealing to the Legislature to sustain him, and claiming still to be Governor. The Legislature took not the slightest notice of it. A Washington correspondent says that G. W. Lane, recently confirmed as Judge for the Northern and Southern Districts of Alabama, will, it is said, endeavor to hold his Court at Athens, in the Union part of that State. Captain Berryman, Commander of the United States sloop Wyandotte, died at Pensacola, on Tuesday, of brain fever. The three Confederate States envoys to the European courts are now en route. Mr. Dudley Mann sailed from this port on Saturday, on board the Arago, while Messrs. Yancey and Rost sailed from New Orleans yesterday for Havana, where they will embark on board the British West India mail steamer for Europe. The United States Embassadors will be dispatched abroad with as little delay as possible.
FOREIGN NEWS.
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