VIGILANCE COMMITTEE AND COURT-MARTIAL.
The election of Delegates to determine the status of Mississippi--The
Vigilance Committee--Description of its
members--Charges--Phonography--No formal verdict--Danger of
Assassination--Passports--Escape to Rienzi--Union sentiment--The
Conscript Law--Summons to attend Court-Martial--Evacuation of
Corinth--Destruction of Cotton--Suffering poor--Relieved by General
Halleck.
Soon after this sermon was preached, the election was held. Approaching
the polls, I asked for a Union ticket, and was informed that none had been
printed, and that it would be advisable to vote the secession ticket. I
thought otherwise, and going to a desk, wrote out a Union ticket, and
voted it amidst the frowns and suppressed murmurs of the judges and
bystanders, and, as the result proved, I had the honour of depositing the
only vote in favour of the Union which was polled in that precinct. I knew
of many who were in favour of the Union, who were intimidated by threats,
and by the odium attending it from voting at all. A majority of secession
candidates were elected. The convention assembled, and on the 9th of
January, 1861, Mississippi had the unenviable reputation of being the
first to follow her twin sister, South Carolina, into the maelstrom of
secession and treason. Being the only States in which the slaves were more
numerous than the whites, it became them to lead the van in the
slave-holders' rebellion. Before the 4th of March, Florida, Alabama,
Georgia, Louisiana and Texas had followed in the wake, and were engulfed
in the whirlpool of secession.
It was now dangerous to utter a word in favour of the Union. Many
suspected of Union sentiments were lynched. An old gentleman in Winston
county was arrested for an act committed twenty years before, which was
construed as a proof of his abolition proclivities. The old gentleman had
several daughters, and his mother-in-law had given him a negro girl.
Observing that his daughters were becoming lazy, and were imposing all the
labour upon the slave, he sent her back to the donor, with a statement of
the cause for returning her. This was now the ground of his arrest, but
escaping from their clutches, a precipitate flight alone saved his life.
Self-constituted vigilance committees sprang up all over the country, and
a reign of terror began; all who had been Union men, and who had not given
in their adhesion to the new order of things by some public proclamation,
were supposed to be disaffected. The so-called Confederate States, the new
power, organized for the avowed purpose of extending and perpetuating
African slavery, was now in full blast. These _soi-disant_ vigilance
committees professed to carry out the will of Jeff. Davis. All who were
considered disaffected were regarded as being tinctured with abolitionism.
My opposition to the disruption of the Union being notorious, I was
summoned to appear before one of these august tribunals to answer the
charge of being an abolitionist. My wife was very much alarmed, knowing
that were I found guilty of the charge, there was no hope for mercy.
Flight was impossible, and I deemed it the safest plan to appear before
the committee. I found it to consist of twelve persons, five of whom I
knew, viz., Parson Locke, Armstrong, Cartledge, Simpson, and Wilbanks.
Parson Locke, the chief speaker, or rather the inquisitor-general, was a
Methodist minister, though he had fallen into disrepute among his
brethren, and was engaged in a tedious strife with the church which he
left in Holmes county. The parson was a real Nimrod. He boasted that in
five months he had killed forty-eight raccoons, two hundred squirrels, and
ten deer; he had followed the bloodhounds, and assisted in the capture of
twelve runaway negroes. W. H. Simpson was a ruling elder in my church.
Wilbanks was a clever sort of old gentleman, who had little to say in the
matter. Armstrong was a monocular Hard-shell-Baptist. Cartledge was an
illiterate, conceited individual. The rest were a motley crew, not one of
whom, I feel confident, knew a letter in the alphabet. The committee
assembled in an old carriage-shop. Parson Locke acted, as chairman, and
conducted the trial, as follows.
"Parson Aughey, you have been reported to us as holding abolition
sentiments, and as being disloyal to the Confederate States."
"Who reported me, and where are your witnesses?"
"Any one has a right to report, and it is optional whether he confronts
the accused or not. The proceedings of vigilance committees are somewhat
informal."
"Proceed, then, with the trial, in your own way."
"We propose to ask you a few questions, and in your answers you may defend
yourself, or admit your guilt. In the first place, did you ever say that
you did not believe that God ordained the institution of slavery?"
"I believe that God did not ordain the institution of slavery."
"Did not God command the Israelites to buy slaves from the Canaanitish
nations, and to hold them as their property for ever?"
"The Canaanites had filled their cup of iniquity to overflowing, and God
commanded the Israelites to exterminate them; this, in violation of God's
command, they failed to do. God afterwards permitted the Hebrews to reduce
them to a state of servitude; but the punishment visited upon those seven
wicked nations by the command of God, does not justify war or the
slave-trade."
"Did you say that you were opposed to the slavery which existed in the
time of Christ?"
"I did, because the system of slavery prevailing in Christ's day was cruel
in the extreme; it conferred the power of life and death upon the master,
and was attended with innumerable evils. The slave had the same complexion
as his master; and by changing his servile garb for the citizen dress, he
could not be recognised as a slave. You yourself profess to be opposed to
white slavery."
"Did you state that you believed Paul, when he sent Onesimus back to
Philemon, had no idea that he would be regarded as a slave, and treated as
such after his return?"
"I did. My proof is in Philemon, verses 15 and 16, where the apostle asks
that Onesimus be received, not as a servant, but as a brother beloved?"
"Did you tell Mr. Creath that you knew some negroes who were better, in
every respect, than some white men?"
"I said that I knew some negroes who were better classical scholars than
any white men I had as yet met with in Choctaw county, and that I had
known some who were pre-eminent for virtue and holiness. As to natural
rights, I made no comparison; nor did I say anything about superiority or
inferiority of race; I also stated my belief in the unity of the races."
"Have you any abolition works in your library, and a poem in your
scrap-book, entitled 'The Fugitive Slave,' with this couplet as a refrain,
'The hounds are baying on my track;
Christian, will you send me back?'"
"I have not Mrs. Stowe's nor Helper's work; they are contraband in this
region, and I could not get them if I wished. I have many works in my
library containing sentiments adverse to the institution of slavery. All
the works in common use amongst us, on law, physic, and divinity, all the
text-books in our schools--in a word, all the works on every subject read
and studied by us, were, almost without exception, written by men opposed
to the peculiar institution. I am not alone in this matter."
"Parson, I saw Cowper's works in your library, and Cowper says:
'I would not have a slave to fan me when I sleep,
And tremble when I wake, for all the wealth
That sinews bought and sold have ever earned.'"
"You have Wesley's writings, and Wesley says that 'Human slavery is the
sum of all villany.' You have a work which has this couplet:
'Two deep, dark stains, mar all our country's bliss:
Foul slavery one, and one, loathed drunkenness.'
You have the work of an English writer of high repute, who says, 'Forty
years ago, some in England doubted whether slavery were a sin, and
regarded adultery as a venial offence; but behold the progress of truth!
Who now doubts that he who enslaves his fellow-man is guilty of a fearful
crime, and that he who violates the seventh commandment is a great sinner
in the sight of God?'"
"You are known to be an adept in Phonography, and you are reported to be a
correspondent of an abolition Phonographic journal."
"I understand the science of Phonography, and I am a correspondent of a
Phonographic journal, but the journal eschews politics."
Another member of the committee then interrogated me.
"Parson Aughey, what is Funnyography?"
"Phonography, sir, is a system of writing by means of a philosophic
alphabet, composed of the simplest geometrical signs, in which one mark is
used to represent one and invariably the same sound."
"Kin you talk Funnyography? and where does them folks live what talks it?"
"Yes, sir, I converse fluently in Phonography, and those who speak the
language live in Columbia."
"In the Destrict?"
"No, sir, in the poetical Columbia."
I was next interrogated by another member of the committee.
"Parson Aughey, is Phonography a Abolition fixin?"
"No, sir; Phonography, abstractly considered, has no political complexion;
it may be used to promote either side of any question, sacred or profane,
mental, moral, physical, or political."
"Well, you ought to write and talk plain English, what common folks can
understand, or we'll have to say of you, what Agrippa said of Paul, 'Much
learning hath made thee mad.' Suppose you was to preach in Phonography,
who'd understand it?--who'd know what was piped or harped? I'll bet high
some Yankee invented it to spread his abolition notions underhandedly. I,
for one, would be in favour of makin' the parson promise to write and talk
no more in Phonography. I'll bet Phonography is agin slavery, tho' I never
hearn tell of it before. I'm agin all secret societies. I'm agin the
Odd-fellers, Free-masons, Sons of Temperance, Good Templars and
Phonography. I want to know what's writ and what's talked. You can't throw
dust in my eyes. Phonography, from what I've found out about it to-day, is
agin the Confederate States, and we ought to be agin it."
Parson Locke then resumed:
"I must stop this digression. Parson Aughey, are you in favour of the
South?"
"I am in favour of the South, and have always endeavoured to promote the
best interests of the South. However, I never deemed it for the best
interests of the South to secede. I talked against secession, and voted
against secession, because I thought that the best interests of the South
would be put in jeopardy by the secession of the Southern States. I was
honest in my convictions, and acted accordingly. Could the sacrifice of my
life have stayed the swelling tide of secession, it would gladly have been
made."
"It is said that you have never prayed for the Southern Confederacy."
"I have prayed for the whole world, though it is true that I have never
named the Confederate States in prayer."
"You may retire."
After I had retired, the committee held a long consultation. My answers
were not satisfactory. I never learned all that transpired. They brought
in no formal verdict. The majority considered me a dangerous man, but
feared to take my life, as they were, with one exception, adherents of
other denominations, and they knew that my people were devotedly attached
to me before the secession movement. Some of the secessionists swore that
they would go to my house and murder me, when they learned that the
committee had not hanged me. My friends provided me secretly with arms,
and I determined to defend myself to the last. I slept with a
double-barrelled shot-gun at my head, and was prepared to defend myself
against a dozen at least.
Learning that I was not acceptable to many of the members of my church,
whilst my life was in continual jeopardy, and my family in a state of
constant alarm, I abandoned my field of labour, and sought for safety in a
more congenial clime. I intended to go North. Jeff. Davis and his Congress
had granted permission to all who so desired, to leave the South. Several
Union men of my acquaintance applied for passports, but were refused. The
proclamation to grant permits was an act of perfidy; all those, so far as
I am informed, who made application for them, were refused. The design in
thus acting was to get Union men to declare themselves as such, and
afterwards to punish them for their sentiments by forcing them into the
army, confining them in prison, shooting them, or lynching them by mob
violence. Finding that were I to demand a passport to go north, I would be
placed on the proscribed list, and my life endangered still more, I
declared my intention of going back to Tishomingo county, in which I owned
property, and which was the home of many of my relatives. I knew that I
would be safer there, for this county had elected Union delegates by a
majority of over fourteen hundred, and a strong Union sentiment had always
prevailed.
On my arrival in Tishomingo, I found that the great heart of the county
still beat true to the music of the Union. Being thrown out of employment
I deemed it my duty, in every possible way, to sustain the Union cause and
the enforcement of the laws. It was impossible to go north. Union
sentiments could be expressed with safety in many localities. Corinth,
Iuka, and Rienzi had, from the commencement of the war, been camps of
instruction for the training of Confederate soldiers. These three towns in
the county being thus occupied, Union men found it necessary to be more
cautious, as the cavalry frequently made raids through the county,
arresting and maltreating those suspected of disaffection. After the
reduction of Forts Henry and Donelson, and the surrender of Nashville, the
Confederates made the Memphis and Charleston railroad the base of their
operations, their armies extending from Memphis to Chattanooga. Soon,
however, they were all concentrated at Corinth, a town in Tishomingo
county, at the junction of the Memphis and Charleston railroad with the
Mobile and Ohio. After the battle of Shiloh, which was fought on the 6th
and 7th of April, the Federal troops held their advance at Farmington,
four miles from Corinth, while the Confederates occupied Corinth, their
rear guard holding Rienzi, twelve miles south, on the Mobile and Ohio
railroad.
Thus there were two vast armies encamped in Tishomingo county. Being
within the Confederate lines, I, in common with many others, found it
difficult to evade the conscript law. Knowing that in a multitude of
counsellors there is wisdom, we held secret meetings, in order to devise
the best method of resisting the law. We met at night, and had our
countersigns to prevent detection. Often our wives, sisters, and daughters
met with us. Our meeting-place was some ravine, or secluded glen, as far
as possible from the haunts of the secessionists; all were armed; even the
ladies had revolvers, and could use them too. The crime of treason we were
resolved not to commit. Our counsels were somewhat divided, some
advocating, as a matter of policy, the propriety of attending the militia
musters, others opposing it for conscience' sake, and for the purpose of
avoiding every appearance of evil. Many who would not muster as
conscripts, resolved to escape to the Federal lines; and making the
attempt two or three at a time, succeeded in crossing the Tennessee river,
and reaching the Union army, enlisted under the old flag, and have since
done good service as patriot warriors. Some who were willing to muster as
conscripts, were impressed into the Confederate service, and I know not
whether they ever found an opportunity to desert. Others, myself among the
number, were saved by the timely arrival of the Federal troops, and the
occupation of the county by them, after Beauregard's evacuation of
Corinth. I had received three citations to attend muster, but disregarding
them, I was summoned to attend a court-martial on the first day of June,
at the house of Mr. Jim Mock. The following is a copy of the citation.
Ma the 22d. 1862
_Parson Awhay_, You havent tended nun of our mustters as a konskrip.
Now you is her bi sumenzd to attend a kort marshal on Jun the fust at
Jim Mock.
When I received the summons, I resolved to attempt reaching the Union
lines at Farmington. Two of my friends, who had received a similar
summons, expected to accompany me. On the 29th of May, I left for Rienzi,
where my two friends were to meet me. I had not been many hours in Rienzi
when it became evident that the Confederates were evacuating Corinth. On
the 1st of June, (the day the court-martial was to convene,) I had the
pleasure of once more beholding the star-spangled banner as it was borne
in front of General Granger's command, which led the van of the pursuing
army. Had I remained and attended the court-martial, I would have been
forced into the army. Were I then to declare that I would not take up arms
against the United States, I would have been shot, as many have been, for
their refusal thus to act. General Rosecrans, on his arrival, made his
head-quarters at my brother's house, where I had the pleasure of forming
his acquaintance, together with that of Generals Smith, Granger, and Pope.
As this county was now occupied by the Federal army, I returned to my
father-in-law's, within five miles of which place the court-martial had
been ordered to convene, considering myself comparatively safe. I learned
that the court-martial never met, as Colonel Elliott, in his successful
raid upon Boonville, had passed Jim Mock's, scaring him to such a degree,
that he did not venture to sleep in his house for two weeks. The Union
cavalry scoured the country in all directions, daily, and we were
rejoicing at the prospect of continuous safety, and freedom from outrage.
The Rebels, during their retreat, had burned all the cotton which was
accessible to their cavalry, on their route. At night, the flames of the
burning cotton lighted up the horizon for miles around. These baleful
pyres, with their lurid glare, bore sad testimony to the horrors of war.
In this wanton destruction of the great southern staple, many poor
families lost their whole staff of bread, and starvation stared them in
the face. Many would have perished, had it not been for the liberal
contributions of the North; for, learning the sufferings of the poor of
the South, whose whole labour had been destroyed by pretended friends,
they sent provisions and money, and thus many who were left in utter
destitution, were saved by this timely succor. I have heard the rejoicings
of the poor, who, abandoned by their supposed friends, were saved, with
their children, from death, by the beneficence of those whom they had been
taught to regard as enemies the most bitter, implacable, unmerciful, and
persistent. Their prayer may well be, Save us from our friends, whose
tender mercies are cruel! I have never known a man to burn his own cotton,
but I have heard their bitter anathemas hurled against those who thus
robbed them, and their denunciations were loud and deep against the
government which authorized such cruelty. It is true that those who thus
lose their cotton, if secessionists, receive a "promise to pay," which all
regard as not worth the paper on which it is written. Ere pay-day, those
who are dependent on their cotton for the necessaries of life, would have
passed the bourne whence no traveller returns. 'Tis like the Confederate
bonds--at first they were made payable two years after date, and printed
upon paper which would be worn out entirely in six months, and would have
become illegible in half that time. The succeeding issues were made
payable six months after the ratification of a treaty of peace between the
United States and the Confederate States. Though not a prophet, nor a
prophet's son, I venture the prediction that those bonds will never be
due. The war of elements, the wreck of matter, and the crush of worlds,
announcing the end of all things, will be heard sooner.