| From the Richmond Examiner |
| |
| November 25, 1862 |
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| Fredericksburg |
| ***** |
| It is stated in the
Examiner of Saturday that the Abolitionists had, on the day before,
demanded the surrender of Fredericksburg, and threatened to shell it
unless given up by nine o'clock that morning -- This announcement was
confirmed by a telegram to the Mayor of Richmond, from the authorities
of Fredericksburg, stating that the removal of all non-combatants had
been ordered, and requesting that trains might be sent up to convey them
to this city. Finding, on enquiry, that all the available cars on the
{Virginia} Central and Fredericksburg
{Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac}
railroads had been sent up on the night before, the Mayor of Richmond
set himself about preparing places of reception for the whole population
of Fredericksburg, which he felt confident must be precipitated upon him
in a few hours. He wrotet(?) the pastors of the different churches of
the city requesting the use of the basement of those buildings for the
refugees prepared the City Hall for the same purpose and applied to the
Governor for funds to feed them. The Governor put at his disposal the
sum of three thousand dollars. Some of the preachers offered their
basements and lecture rooms with alacrity, whilst others refused,
suggesting that the churches should not have been called upon until the
theatres and all other buildings had been filled. About eleven o'clock,
a. m. whilst the Mayor was in the midst of his preparations, Colonel
Lacy, a citizen of Fredericksburg, who had been sent to him by General
Smith with the telegram already mentioned, informed him that
intelligence had just been received that the Abolitionists had,
after a conference with a deputation of citizens, either abandoned their
design of shelling the town, or indefinitely postponed it. Upon the
authority of this information the Mayor countermanded all of his orders
and dismissed the citizens who had volunteered to assist him in his
labours, and up to yesterday morning had heard no more from the
authorities at Fredericksburg. |
| During the day (Saturday)
nothing was known by our citizens generally except what they had seen in
the morning papers. About noon it was rumored on the streets that a
deputation of citizens of Fredericksburg had crossed the Rappahannock
for some purpose, but that the Abolition General had refused to receive
them because they were attended by a military officer, General Kershaw.
Later in the evening it was reported that the Abolitionists had not, up
to that time, opened fire upon the town, and that they had given our
people until eleven o'clock yesterday to remove the women and children.
Towards night great numbers of citizens crowded about the Fredericksburg
depot, with the hope of hearing some news or to render assistance to any
refugees who might arrive; but night closing in, and there appearing no
prospect of an arrival, the citizens dispersed. |
| About seven o'clock, p. m.,
unannounced and unexpected, a train of sixteen cars, which had left
Fredericksburg at eleven, a. m, loaded with refugees, arrived at the
Central depot. Most of the refugees had gotten off at different points
by the way, but those who had remained on the train, being unexpected as
we have said, and arriving at an out of the way and little frequented
part of the city, were, for a time, utterly unattended to. |
| At eleven o'clock another
train, with yet a smaller number of refugees, reached the Fredericksburg
depot in this city and such of the passengers as had not made other
arrangements were taken to the residences of our citizens. Two other
trains arrived yesterday morning, but nearly all who came by them had
friends in the city and at once repaired to their houses. |
| The first train we have
mentioned was fired upon by the Abolitionists as it left Fredericksburg,
one of the shells passing within a few feet of one of the cars. As this
train consisted mostly of box cars, the doors of which looking towards
the enemy were closed, it is presumed the Yankees though we were
attempting to move Government stores from the town. |
| The passengers brought a great
number of conflicting accounts as to what passed between our authorities
and General Patrick on the occasion of the visit of the latter to demand
the surrender. Among others they say he gave as a ground for demanding
our evacuation, that our troops were being supplied from the mills of
Fredericksburg, and that General Lee thereupon agreed to stop the mills
if the Abolitionists would abandon their idea of shelling the town or
forcibly occupying it. |
| The distress in Fredericksburg
on Friday evening when Mayor Slaughters announced that the women should
be removed, is said to have been heartrending, and the next day when the
hour of removal actually arrived, the confusion and uproar was
unparalleled. -- The population being mostly women and children, had no
means of transporting their trunks to the depot, and had not a number of
ambulances been sent in at a late hour from our army, the most of them
must have left their homes with nothing but the clothes they were
wearing. A lady told us she had offered a man with a furniture wagon ten
dollars to carry her trunk three squares. With the assistance of the
ambulances the people brought away their clothing, but nothing else.
Most of them locked up their houses and left them with all their worldly
goods to the chance of war and the mercy of the contending armies. Many
of the poorest people refused to move at all, but determined o remain,
at least until the threatened shelling should begin. Others moved from
two to three miles in the country and are now encamped along the roads
with such of their furniture as they have been able to bring out piece
meal. They say if the shelling is not begun very soon they will return
and resume possession of their houses. |
| By the last train that
arrived, at five o'clock, p. m., yesterday, the report was brought that
terms had been agreed upon by which the town should not be bombarded.
General Lee, so the story goes, was not to occupy the town and the
Abolitionists were not to attempt to cross the river in its immediate
vicinity. |
| By the same train we learned
that the enemy had thrown a number of shells into Port Royal, a village
of six hundred inhabitants, twenty-two miles down the Rappahannock from
Fredericksburg. Four of the shells struck a house belonging to a person
named Gibbs, which for a week past has been occupied by our pickets. |
| At eight o'clock last night a
telegram was received here from Fredericksburg, stating that up to that
time the enemy had not fired upon the town. |
|