Secretary Dix sent a report to the House of Representatives, in answer to
Mr. Sickles' resolution of inquiry, showing the following state of facts:
First.--The impediments to commerce by usurping control of the ports of Mobile, Charleston, Pensacola and New Orleans.
Second.--The control of commerce of the Mississippi Valley, by requiring the duties on all goods entered at New Orleans for delivery at St. Louis, Nashville, Louisville, and Cincinnati, to be paid to the State of Louisiana.
Third.--The seizure by Louisiana of all United States moneys, as well as those of private depositors in the mint and sub-treasury at New Orleans and other places.
Fourth.-The seizure of revenue cutters, by arrangement between their commanders and the collectors of Mobile, New Orleans and Charleston.
Fifth.--The expulsion of the sick and invalid patients at the United States Hospital at New Orleans, in order to provide accommodation for Louisiana troops.
Mr. Dix says it is believed that duties on imports continue to be collected in the ports of entry established in
South Carolina,
Georgia,
Alabama,
Louisiana and
Florida, and that vessels are entered and cleared in the usual manner; but so far as the department has been advised, the collectors assume to perform their duties under the authority of the States in which they reside, and hold and reserve the duties, subject to the same authority.
Speaking of the general subject,
Mr. Dix says:
Throughout the whole course of encroachment and aggression, the Federal Government has borne itself with a spirit of paternal forbearance, of which there is no example in the history of public society; waiting in patient hope that the empire of reason would resume its sway over those whom the excitement of passion has thus fair blinded, and trusting that the friends of good order, wearied with submission to proceedings which they disapproved, would at no distant day rally under the banner of the Union, and exert themselves with vigor and success against the prevailing recklessness and violence.
T. Hemphill Jones, the special agent appointed to secure the revenue cutters
McClelland and
Lewis Cass from seizure by the
Louisiana secessionists, reports to the Treasury Department that he arrived in New Orleans in pursuance of his instructions on the 26th January.
He found
Captain Breshwood, of the
McClelland, after a long search, and handed him the following order:
Sir:--You are hereby directed to get the
United States revenue cutter
McClelland, now lying here, under way immediately, and proceed with her to New York, where you will await the further instructions of the
Secretary of the Treasury.
For my authority to make this order you are referred to the letter of the
Secretary, dated the 19th inst., and handed you personally by me.
Very respectfully,
Breshwood conferred with Collector
Hatch of New Orleans, and then returned the following answer, flatly refusing to obey the order:
U. S. Revenue cutter Robert McClelland, New Orleans, January 29, 1861.
Sir: Your letter, with one of the 19th of January from the Hon. Secretary of the Treasury, I have duly received, and in reply refuse to obey the order.
I am, Sir, your obedient servant,
Mr. Jones's report continues:
Believing that
Captain Breshwood would not have ventured upon this most positive act of insubordination and disobedience of his own volition, I waited upon the
Collector at the
Custom House, and had, with him a full and free conversation upon the whole subject.
In the course of it,
Mr. Hatch admitted to me that he had caused the cutter to be brought to the city of
New Orleans by an order of his own, dated January 15, so that she might be secured to the
State of Louisiana, although at that time the
State had not only not seceded, but the
Convention had not met, and in fact did not meet until eight days afterwards.
This, I must confess, seemed to me a singular confession for one who at that very time had sworn to do his duty faithfully as an officer of the
United States; and on intimating as much to
Mr. Hatch, he excused himself on the ground that in these revolutions all other things must give way to the force of circumstances.
Mr. Hatch likewise informed me that the officers of the cutter had long since determined to abandon their allegiance to the
United States, and cast their fortunes with the independent
State of Louisiana.
In order to test the correctness of this statement, I addressed another communication to
Captain Breshwood, of the following tenor:
Sir: By your note of this date I am informed that you refuse to obey the orders of the
honorable Secretary of the Treasury.
As, on accepting your commission, you took and subscribed an oath faithfully to discharge your duties to the
Government, and as you well know, the law has placed the revenue cutters and their officers under the entire control of the
Secretary of the Treasury, I request you to advise me whether you consider yourself at this time an officer in the service of the
United States.
Very respectfully,
To this letter I never received any reply.
I then repaired again on board the cutter, and asked for the order of the
Collector bringing her to New Orleans.
The original was placed in my possession, of which the following is a copy.
And here it may be proper to observe, that the order is written and signed by the
Collector himself:
Custom House, New Orleans, Collector's office, Jan. 15, 1861.
Sir: You are hereby directed to proceed forthwith
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under sail to this city, and anchor the vessel under your command opposite the United States Marine Hospital, above
Algiers.
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
Defeated at New Orleans,
Mr. Jones then took his way to
Mobile, to look after the
Lewis Cass.
Her
Captain (
Morrison) could not be found, but
Mr. Jones discovered in the cabin the following letter, which explains the surrender of that vessel:
Sir: In obedience to an ordinance recently adopted by a convention of the people of
Alabama, I have to require you to surrender into my hands, for the use of the
State, the revenue cutter
Lewis Cass, now under your command, together with her armaments, properties and provisions on board the same.
I am instructed also to notify you, that you have the option to continue in command of the said revenue cutter, under the authority of the
State of Alabama, in the exercise of the same duties that you have hitherto rendered to the
United States, and at the same compensation, reporting to this office and to the
Governor of the
State.
In surrendering the vessel to the
State, you will furnish me with a detailed inventory of its armaments, provisions and properties of every description.
You will receive special instructions from this office in regard to the duties you will be required to perform.
I await your immediate reply.
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
Mr. Jones concludes his report with the statement, that he made a final and unsuccessful effort to recover the
McClelland, but, failing in the attempt, he retraced his steps to
Washington.--
Evening Post, Feb. 22.