Summary:
In this October, 1864, dispatch, Union Colonel and Assistant Inspector General
for the Department of the Susquehanna T. S. Mather reports in detail to John
Schultze at Chambersburg concerning an inspecting trip to Pottsville. Mather
discusses the sentiments of the people of Schuylkill County, the Irish miners in
particular. He describes the many riots and incidents of violence occasioned by
the draft, as well as army attempts to pacify the area and deal with resisters
and deserters. Mather also expresses fear for the public order during the
impending election of 1864.
Maj. JOHN S. SCHULTZE, Asst. Adjt. Gen., Chambersburg, Pa.:
OFFICE OF CHIEF OF ARTILLERY, Harrisburg, Pa.,
October 27, 1864.
MAJ.:
I have the honor to report that during my late tour of inspection to Pottsville, Pa., I took the opportunity to inform myself, as fully as time and circumstances would permit, as to the general condition of affairs in the Tenth and Twelfth Districts of the Eastern Division of Pennsylvania. I saw Capt. Bowen, provost-marshal of the Tenth District, Mr. Parry and Mr. Green, of Pottsville, Mr. Levi C. Leib, chief burgess of the borough of Ashland, and Mr. A. P. Spinney, of the same place, who are reliable men, and inquired particularly as to the state of the public feeling in the county of Schuylkill and in the district. Capt. Bowen informed me that the Irish throughout the country are disposed to give trouble, and are only restrained from a general outbreak by the presence of the military. In Ashland Township the Irish have broken into houses, destroyed furniture, insulted women, beaten wounded soldiers, and committed other outrages. A few evenings since they turned out in a body and paraded the streets, breaking the windows and doors of the houses. Mr. Green, superintendent of the shops at Ashland, had his house broken into and furniture destroyed. At Mahanoy City the rioters entered a house last week and wounded a man by a pistol shot, without the least provocation, insulted an old lady and her daughter, and beat a wounded soldier severely. There is also a go deal of trouble at Heckscherville. Meetings have been broken up, the election interfered with, and several families driven out of the place. Three Scotchmen came into Pottsville the day I left who have been driven from their homes by the rioters. A large number of the persons who commit these outrages are men who have been drafted and who have not reported, joined with laborers at the mines. It is very difficult to catch them, as on the first appearance of the troops they flee to the hills. The cavalry at Pottsville are out in detachments of six and eight almost every night, and have, so far as I am informed by the provost-marshal, been quite successful in arresting deserters. They are fired upon quite often by parties of men who secrete themselves near the roadside or among the rocks on the sides of the hills. The feeling against the Government is growing stronger as the time for the election approaches, and the leading men of the district apprehend trouble unless there is a small military force stationed in the worst localities until the election is over. Several gentlemen called to see me, during my stay, from the different townships, and Capt. Leib and Mr. Spinnney informed me that he people of Ashland, had erected quarters sufficient to accommodate a small detachment of troops, in hopes that some may be sent there. While it is no doubt true that the law-abiding people in that region are to some extent, perhaps unnecessarily, frightened, I am still of the opinion that there is some foundation for their fears, as the men who have given me information are known to be reliable citizens and have been themselves witnesses of the outrages. They informed me that within the last three weeks seven or eight persons have been killed, or died of their wounds, in the county. These rioters, to a very considerable extent, control the localities where they reside and dictate terms to the better classes.
I understand that there is a probability that, as the price of coal has fallen, the coal operators will attempt a reduction of wages; and if so, there will fresh cause of trouble. The worst localities in Schulylkill County are Mahanoy, Cass, Ashland, Reilly, Rush, and New Castle Townships. A good many deserters are scattered throughout these districts. It is estimated that in the county there are between 400 and 500 deserters and drafted men who have not reported. In order to arrest these men, cavalry are necessary, as, if they are taken at all, it must be done in the night, and the detachments ordered out for that purpose have to go and come under cover of darkness in orders to escape observation. It is, in my opinion, necessary that at least twenty cavalry should remain in Pottsville. Infantry cannot move with rapidity enough to do much service in following these deserters among the mountains, but can be of valuable service if scattered in small detachments through the district. Their presence will have a tendency to hold the rioters in check, and they can make arrests in the immediate vicinity where they are located through information obtained from parties who know these deserters, but who, unless they are sure of protection by the presence of troops, are afraid to point them out. It is very important that officers in charge of troops sent into these localities should exercise the greatest possible care over their men, and see that nothing is done or said to injure or destroy property or inflame the passions of the people. The political excitement runs high in the mining districts; and the fact cannot be disguised that there are imprudent men belonging to both parties. The lower classes are given to understand by their leaders that the triumph of one political party will be the signal for a revolution at the North. The men who have committed the riotous acts are mostly Irish laborers. The Welsh, German, and English are generally peaceful, and when drafted have generally reported either in person or by substitutes.
I was informed while in Pottsville, by responsible parties, that Capt. Bradford, the provost-marshal of the Twelfth District, in the Eastern Division of Pennsylvania, has a brother who is in the bounty-broker business. It was from this district that a large number of the recruits that I inspected at Philadelphia, and which were mostly found unfit for service, came. Mr. Siliman, a large coal operator in Hazleton, and a reliable man, says that the provost-marshal of the Twelfth District has been advised as to the large number of deserters in that township, an has paid no attention to the fact nor attempted to have them arrested. Very few of the men drafted from Luzerne, Wyoming, and Bradford Counties have reported. Many of these deserters are working out, and are well known and can be arrested, especially in Luzerne County. No arrests have been made, I was informed, in Mauch Chunk township, though it abounds whit deserters. The commanding officer of the detachment of cavalry on duty at Hazleton says that he has not been called upon to arrest deserters, though there are a large number in the township.
I give you the names of a few reliable men in Ashland and Mahanoy Townships, which I have obtained form the provost-marshal of the Elevenths District. It is respectfully recommended that small detachments of troops be stationed in the townships of Ashland, Mahanoy, Reilly, and New Castle until after the election. I think given you the fact as obtained from men who are considered reliable. I am of the opinion that the interests of the service would be enhanced if a competent officer be ordered to take command of the region included in the Tenth and Twelfth Districts, and think that, with proper effort, he might be enabled to have the deserters arrested and the riotous demonstrations quelled.
I am, major, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
T. S. MATHER,
Col. and Actg. Asst. Insp. Gen., Dept., of the
Susquehanna.
Bibliographic Information : Letter Reproduced from The War of The Rebellion: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series 1, Volume 43, Serial No. 91, Pages 480-482, Broadfoot Publishing Company, Wilmington, NC, 1997.
