Confederate Military History. Robert White

      On August 7th the legislature passed more eloquent resolutions, protesting against the unconstitutional and illegal acts of President Lincoln, but they are not worth the room it would take to record them. The time for ‘protests’ was past, if it ever had existed, and as the scolding of the Maryland legislature became annoying to the authorities, they determined to suppress the one and thus silence the other. On September 12, 1861, Major-General Dix, commanding in Baltimore, ordered the arrest of the members of the legislature from Baltimore City and the mayor and other obnoxious persons who annoyed him with talk, to-wit: George William Brown, Coleman Yellott, Senator Stephen P. Dennis, Charles H. Pitts, Andrew A. Lynch, Lawrence Langston, H M. Morfit, Ross Winans, J. Hanson Thomas, W. G. Harrison, John C. Brune, Robert M. Denison, Leonard D. Quinlan, Thomas W. Renshaw, Henry May, member of Congress from the Fourth congressional district, Frank Key Howard, editor of the ‘Baltimore Exchange,’ and Thomas W. Hall, editor of the ‘South.’ The arrests were made with great secrecy, and it was intended to send them to the Dry Tortugas, but there being no steamer fit for the voyage in Hampton Roads, they were dispatched to Fort Warren in Boston harbor. Liberty of the press as well as free speech had gone after the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus.

      On the 11th of September Simon Cameron, secretary of war, had issued an order to General Banks that the passage of an ordinance of secession by the legislature, which was to assemble at Frederick on September 17th, must be prevented, even if the arrest of the legislature was necessary to accomplish this end. Maj.-Gen. George B. McClellan, then commanding the army of the Potomac, issued his order to General Banks to have everything prepared to arrest the whole party when they assembled. General Banks sent his aide, R. Morris Copeland, to attend to this business, and he accomplished it very successfully, ‘greatly assisted by several citizens of the place,’ says the chronicler. Both houses were called to order on the 17th, at 1 p. m., but no quorum appearing, they adjourned until the next day. The climate of Frederick was disagreeable to many of the protesters at that particular season. But Major Copeland was equal to the emergency. He closely picketed the town and held everybody in who was in, and took everybody in who wanted to go out. On the 18th he arrested Milton Y. Kidd, the chief clerk of the house, and his assistant, Thomas H. Moore; William Kilgour, secretary of the senate, and his assistant, L. P. Carmark, and John M. Brewer, reading clerk of the senate, and William E. Salmon, Elbridge G. Kilbourne, Thomas J. Claggett, Philip F. Raisin, Andrew Kessler, Josiah H. Gordon, James W. Maxwell, R. C. McCubbin, George W. Landing, Dr. Bernard Mills, William R. Miller, Clark J. Durant, John I. Heckart and J. Lawrence Jones, members of the house; E. Riley, printer of the house and editor of the ‘Annapolis Republican,’ and a number of citizens of Frederick pointed out by the ‘citizens of the place who were greatly assisting.’