_Arming the Young Men of the South_
At last I came again into contact with the President. Late in August I
arrived in Vicksburg, Mississippi, and visited the headquarters of
Major-General Slocum, who commanded the Department of the Mississippi.
I found the General in a puzzled state of mind about a proclamation
recently issued by Mr. W. L. Sharkey, whom President Johnson had
appointed provisional governor of that State, calling "upon the
people, and especially upon such as are liable to perform military
duty and are familiar with military discipline," and more especially
"the young men of the State who have so distinguished themselves for
gallantry," to organize as speedily as possible volunteer companies in
every county of the State, at least one company of cavalry and one of
infantry, for the protection of life, property, and good order in the
State. This meant no more nor less than the organization under the
authority of one of the "States lately in rebellion" of a large armed
military force consisting of men who had but recently surrendered
their arms as Confederate soldiers.
Two days before my arrival at Vicksburg, General Slocum had issued a
"general order" in which he directed the district commanders under him
not to permit within their districts the organization of such military
forces as were contemplated by Governor Sharkey's proclamation. The
reasons for such action, given by General Slocum in the order itself,
were conclusive. While the military forces of the United States sent
to the State of Mississippi for the purpose of maintaining order and
of executing the laws of Congress and the orders of the War Department
had performed their duties in a spirit of conciliation and forbearance
and with remarkable success, the provisional governor, on the alleged
ground that this had not been done to his satisfaction, and without
consulting the department commander, had called upon the late
Confederate soldiers, fresh from the war against the national
government, to organize a military force intended to be "independent
of the military authority now present, and superior in strength to the
United States powers on duty in the States." The execution of this
scheme would bring on collisions at once, especially when the United
States forces consisted of colored troops. The crimes and disorder the
occurrence of which the provisional governor adduced as his reason for
organizing his State volunteers had been committed or connived at, as
the record showed, by people of the same class as that to which the
governor's volunteers would belong. The commanding general, as well as
every good citizen, earnestly desired to hasten the day when the
troops of the United States could with safety be withdrawn, but that
day would "not be hastened by arming at this time the young men of the
South."
[Illustration: SENATOR WILLIAM LEWIS SHARKEY