Today in History:

674 Series I Volume XVI-I Serial 22 - Morgan's First Kentucky Raid, Perryville Campaign Part I

Page 674 KY., M. AND E.TENN.,N.ALA., AND SW.VA. Chapter XXVIII.

Question. State what you know of the resources of East Tennessee in reference to the wants of an army and what was the condition of the corps in the summer of 1862.

I could not say anything definite as to the corps of 1862. They put me in jail, and my information was therefore derived from hearsay and from newspapers. From these and from refugees I learn they were not so favorable as in former years. They started me out, before the crops were pitched or planted, on the 3rd of March, and I cannot therefore say anything about the crops of 1862 of my own knowledge. The crops were not so good and the laborers not so abundant. The rebels had gone into the Southern army, and the Union men had absconded and broke over the mountains and joined the Federal army. There were not a great many slaves in East Tennessee-never were; the farming was chiefly done by white folks. I would not be surprised if not half the ground was occupied in 1862 that there was in 1861.

Question. State what you know of the resources of East Tennessee in the summer of 1862 as made up from the crops of 1861.

In 1861 I recorded as a journalist, on the authority of my correspondents from the various counties, unusually fine and abundant crops. We hardly ever had such a crop year. The corn was never so abundant; hay, timothy, and clover were abundant; so were oats; and wheat, the great staple of the country, was very fine, and reached and average crop. The rebels were engaged the latter part of the summer and fall and early winter of 1861 in gathering up the corn and wheat. The wheat they ran down to Atlanta, Ga., to the steam-mills. They boasted of salting down half a million of hogs. They said they had depots at Chattanooga, Athens, Sweet-water, Knoxville, and clear up to the Virginia line. Of hog-killing the largest was at Knoxville. We used to look out of our jail window upon the river, where they were killing hogs for weeks together, and as a matter of punishment they forced us to send our buckets and dip up our water below where they threw all their above, but he refused us the privilege. The rebels were alarmed at the result of the Fishing Creek fight, and, in expectation of the Federal army, threatened to burn the large stores of meat and grain in Knoxville; at least so they said. It was an abundant country for hogs and corn.

Question. If it had been possible for the army of the Government to seize and hold Chattanooga in the summer of 1862 what reliance could be placed upon East Tennessee for supplies?

That would depend entirely upon the extent of the crop, and I have no knowledge of that except from hearsay and from newspapers. The inhabitants, the owners of farms, were five to one on the side of the Union in the thirty-two counties of East Tennessee, and as long as they had anything they would have contributed it to the Government army. It could have had what there was, but to what extent they could have supplied the army I do not know. I was not there; I was in the North during the whole summer and fall. I was absent for thirteen months.

Question. State what opportunity you had of judging of the effects of the different policies exercised by our Government toward the disaffected districts and places. What, so far as you have observed, is the result of a kind and conciliatory policy?

In the winter and spring I was a good deal in Kentucky and Tennessee, at Murfreesborough and Nashville, and I saw and conversed with gentlemen from all parts of Tennessee-East, West, and Middle-and I consider-that is the impression made upon my mind-that a conciliatory forbearance would not work advantageously for the Union cause. It is proper to quality that by stating that I am an ultra; that I would have ultra, stringent, measures used against them.

Question. So far as you have observed has not the effect of the policy that makes was upon the rebel in arms and gives the same protection to the man who sympathizes openly with the rebellion that it does to the good citizen been to convince the rebels that it arose rather from our weakness than from our sense of justice?

Yes, sir; this has been the result of my observation. They attribute our forbearance toward them to cowardice and think that we are afraid of them. It disheartens and discourages the Unionists. I heard them complain at Nashville even of Government Johnson's forbearing and conciliatory course toward the rebels.


Page 674 KY., M. AND E.TENN.,N.ALA., AND SW.VA. Chapter XXVIII.