An effort was then made to dispose of them at private sale for the fixed price of $2.50. So low was the estimate in which they were held that this price could not be obtained, except for thirty-one thousand six hundred and ten of them in parcels. It is a curious fact that, although the State of Louisiana had purchased five thousand of them at $2.50, she refused to take more than two thousand five hundred. On the 5th of July, 1859, Mr. H. G. Fant purchased a large lot of them at $2.50 each, payable in ninety days, but in the mean time he thought better of it, and, like the State of Louisiana, failed to comply with his contract; and Mr. Belknap, whose bid at $2.15 for one hundred thousand of them, intended for the Sardinian government, had been accepted by the Secretary, under the impression that it was $2.50, refused to take them at this price after the mistake had been corrected. Colonel Craig, in speaking of these muskets generally, both those which had and those which had not been condemned, testified that "It is certainly advisable to get rid of that kind of arms whenever we have a sufficient number of others to supply their places, and to have all our small-arms of one caliber. The new gun is rifled. A great many of those guns (flintlocks), altered to percussion, are not strong enough to rifle, and, therefore, they are an inferior gun. They are of a different caliber from those now manufactured by the Government."

"Had the cotton States at the time determined upon rebellion what an opportunity they lost of supplying themselves with these condemned 'extra muskets and rifles,' of General Scott!"

Before dismissing this subject, the space devoted to which, I trust, will not be deemed unreasonable, since there has been so much doubt about it in the public mind, it may not be out of place to say that I took occasion, about three years ago, to examine the records in the Ordnance Office, particularly as to the quantity of arms, accoutrements, etc.,

distributed to the Southern States in advance for 1861, and it appeared that the whole quantity to Virginia was equal to four hundred and fifty muskets; South Carolina, three hundred and thirty-five; Georgia, five hundred and seventysix; Florida, one hundred; Alabama, four hundred and ten; Louisiana, two hundred and seventy-three, for W. T. Sherman's military school; Mississippi, two hundred and twelve; Arkansas, one hundred and eighty-two; and to Maryland, one hundred; total, two thousand six hundred and thirty-eight. Pennsylvania also received a supply equal to nine hundred and five in advance for that year. It should be observed here that all ordnance stores, including accoutrements as well as muskets, were charged as so many muskets at thirteen dollars each; therefore, in the above aggregate of two thousand six hundred and thirty-eight, for instance, there may have been, and probably was, actually less than two thousand muskets and rifles altogether. Neither of the States of Delaware, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, nor Missouri received any ordnance stores in advance for 1861, for the reason, no doubt, that they did not apply for them. The yearly quota for each State was very small, and the orders for distribution were made from time to time, in the ordinary course of business, as the applications were received.

These applications, I understand, if correct as to quantity of stores, were never declined; but for years before the war some of the States, either from having no suitable place for the storage of arms, or from apprehension of their seizure by the negroes, to be used in a servile insurrection, omitted to apply for their quotas, and did not, therefore, receive them. I did not take time to make a very thorough examination, or to compare one year with another; but, while some of the States south may have been a little earlier or a little more prompt than formerly in securing their quotas for 1860 and 1861, I am bound to say that I have seen no evidence to show that the report of the Com

mittee on Military Affairs is not substantially correct. It may be that, so far as the small number of arms distributed in advance for 1861 are concerned, had the Secretary of War sympathized with the free instead of the slave States, he would have withheld those supplies; although it might have done more harm than good thus early to have indicated in this manner a want of confidence in the honor and loyalty of the States applying. Be that as it may, however, there was nothing whatever in these transactions touching small-arms which could in the remotest degree reflect on either the patriotism or the watchfulness of President Buchanan; and, as to Secretary Floyd, it is quite apparent that, leaving muskets and rifles out of sight, he had enough to answer for simply in regard to the one hundred and thirteen columbiads and the eleven 32-pounders, about which there never has been any dispute. He was no doubt greatly chagrined at the revocation of his extraordinary order by his successor.

August 19, 1874.

PART II.

CHAPTER I.

UNPUBLISHED LETTERS OF JAMES BUCHANAN.

The Author's Appointment as Commissioner to Free the Slaves in the District of Columbia-General Scott and Mr. Holt-F. P. BlairJudge Woodbury-General Cameron's Bank-Politics in Pennsylvania-General Dix.

WHEATLAND, NEAR LANCASTER, 1st May, 1862. MY DEAR SIR,-I have received your favor of the 27th inst. With my opinions steadily maintained for more than a quarter of a century, I could not have advised you to accept the appointment of appraiser of the negroes [of the District of Columbia] under the late Emancipation Act [of April 16, 1862, the wisdom of which was doubted by many at the time], yet I feel much gratified with the token of friendly regard manifested by your letter. If you have done wrong by accepting, you shall never be upbraided by me for it. On the contrary, I ardently hope you may never have occasion to regret it.

We lately had a visit from our friend, Dr. Blake, of Washington. It was quite refreshing to us to learn so much news and so many things relating to our friends in that city.

I sincerely trust that your daughter enjoys good health and is happy.

I have a debt due me in Maryland of a highly meritorious character; but the debtor, after years of delay, now says he cannot be touched on account of an act of the

Legislature suspending all proceedings against debtors in that State up till November next. If convenient, I would thank you to send me a copy of this act (of course not certified) or the substance of it.

With my kind regards to Mrs. King, I remain

Very respectfully,

HON. HORATIO KING.

Your friend,

JAMES BUCHANAN.

WHEATLAND, 5th October, 1865.

MY DEAR SIR,-I have received your favor of the 26th ultimo with the two copies in pamphlet of Mr. Holt's reply to Montgomery Blair, and, although I had read this before in the newspapers, I received it with pleasure as a token of your friendly regard.

If Mr. Holt had appreciated General Scott as I did upon my first interview with him after I had unfortunately invited him to Washington, he would not have addressed him the letter of the 31st August, 1865, though every fact stated therein, and more, is literally true. He ought to have known that the general would not frankly admit them, notwithstanding the preface of praises to his "great name." He ought to have stated the well-known fact, which could not be denied, without any such reference, and thus escaped the evasive and unsatisfactory answer. By the bye, as I was not perfectly certain who the person was that induced General Scott to substitute the Star of the West for the Brooklyn, then prepared for the occasion, I have not named him in my book.

I know and have long known the Blairs perfectly well, or, rather, old Francis P. Blair, for Montgomery had not the ability to make a respectable advocate of the Government in the Court of Claims. If President Johnson should fall into their hands, which some think probable, I shall not