Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 28.djvu/291

 neu R. /.'. CM. IN:,

as Secretary of the Navy was continued alter a simple. His sound- ness on the secession question uas doubted.

March 5. The President appealed to me again to go to Arkansas but I positively refused. This morning he and Mrs. Davis took their se.it s by me at the breakfast table and were very affable.

A telegram from Washington City just received says the universal feeling there since Lincoln's inaugural is that war must come. I don't believe it yet, though I confess the document is a bolder an- nouncement of coercion than I had expected. Well, I am not afraid of the issue. Last night we passed a bill raising a regular army of 10,000 men and authorizing the President to receive into the service of the Confederate States 100,000 volunters.

Montgomery, Ala., March 5, 1861. The Texas members here are a very conceited crowd with very little of statesmanship among them. The weakest delegation here is from Mississippi, Wiley P. Harris is the only man of talent among them.

March 6. I found out yesterday why George N. Sanders was here. He is an agent from Douglas and is working to keep out of the Con- stitution any clause which will exclude " Free States." The game now is to reconstruct under our Constitution. There will be a hard fight on this question when we reach it. Stephens and Toombs are both for leaving the door open. Wright goes with them and Hill also we fear. Kenan is with us and thus gives Howell, Nisbet, Bar- tow and me a majority in our delegation. Confidentially and to be kept a secret from the public, Mr. Davis is opposed to us on this point also and wants to keep the door open. The Mississippi dele- gation are wax in his hands. I am much afraid of the result. I struggled hard this morning to place in the Constitution a provision which would stop Sunday mails but failed.

His work in the Presidential Congress having been concluded, Mr. Cobb returned to his home in Athens, Georgia. The capture of Fort Sumter, the wild excitement which followed the organiza- tion of volunteers and preparations for war filled the interval until the re-assembling of Congress at Montgomery in April.

Montgomery, April 19, i86t. The atmosphere of this place is positively tainted with selfish ambitious schemes for personal aggran- disement. I see it, hear it, feel it, and am disgusted with it. But I would rather tell you of my journey here. At Maxey's, George Lumpkin's company was drawn up, and would have a speech from me. At Union Point we met the "Young Guards," and again I had to make a little speech. At Greensboro Oscar Dawson told