ALABAMA. 



crop, and, indeed, this may be said of any or 

 all crops. 



With the amount of capital and enterprise 

 now being applied to agriculture, these im- 

 proved results will become patent to all opera- 

 tors : and let us hope that with the present 

 generation will die out the last vestige of that 

 dogged resistance to agricultural progress from 

 which the cause has already suffered so severe- 

 ly. An increase of one inch in the depth of 

 ploughing, throughout the land, will do more 

 to increase the national wealth than can the 

 mines of California, and if we mistake not, this 

 inch of soil, which would be a far richer ac- 

 quisition than a new territory, will be enabled 

 to yield up its treasure before many generations 

 shall have passed away. 



During the past year the United States Gov- 

 ernment has, more than ever before, recognized 

 the great national importance of affording the 

 largest facilities towards agricultural improve- 

 ment, and the community are at present eager- 

 ly awaiting some tangible expression of that 

 recognition in the formation of an Agricultural 

 Department at Washington, with a secretary at 

 its head, holding even rank with the Secreta- 

 ries of State, of'War, etc. The farmers of our 

 country own more than half the wealth, pay 

 more than half the taxes, and the principal 

 business of our large cities is acting as their 

 factors by importing their supplies and export- 

 ing their products. It is but proper that they 

 should be fairly represented by a distinct de- 

 partment. 



ALABAMA, one of the Southern States, is 

 bounded on the north by Tennessee, east by 

 Georgia, south by Florida and the Gulf of Mex- 

 ico, and west by Mississippi. It is 330 miles in its 

 extreme length from north to south, and 300 

 miles in its greatest breadth. The population of 

 the State in 1860 was 960.296, of which 2,630 

 were free colored, and 435. 132 were slaves. The 

 Governor is elected for t wo years by the people. 

 The Senate consists of thirty-three members 

 elected for four years, and the House of Repre- 

 sentatives of one hundred members elected for 

 two years. The Legislature meets on the second 

 Monday in November, biennially. (See XEW 

 AMERICAN CYCLOPEDIA.) 



The southern portion of the State was strongly 

 in favor of secession from the United States. 

 Early in December, 1860. State Commissioners 

 were sent to the authorities and people of the 

 other slaveholding States, to urge forward a 

 movement in favor of secession, and a union of 

 these States in a separate Confederacy. All rep- 

 resented that the purpose of Alabama was fixed 

 to secede, even if no other State did. The an- 

 nouncement of the secession of South Carolina 

 was hailed with great joy in Mobile. One 

 hundred guns were fired. Bells were rung. 

 The streets were crowded by hundreds express- 

 ing their joy, and many impromptu speeches 

 were made. A military parade ensued. 



The first official movement in Alabama tow- 

 ards secession was the announcement by Gov- 



ernor Moore of his intention to order an elec- 

 tion of Delegates to a State Convention. He 

 advised the people to prepare for secession. 

 This election was held on the 24th of Decem- 

 ber, 1860, and the Convention subsequently 

 assembled on January 7th. At the election, the 

 counties in North Alabama selected " coopera- 

 tion " members. The members throughout the 

 State were classed as immediate secessionists, 

 and cooperationists. The cooperationists were 

 divided into those who were for secession in 

 cooperation with other cotton States, those 

 who required the cooperation of a majority, 

 and those who required the cooperation of all 

 the slave States. Montgomery Connty, which 

 polled 2,719 votes on the Presidential election, 

 now gave less than 1,200 votes. The inference 

 drawn from this at the time was, that the 

 county was largely in favor of conservative 

 action. The vote reported from all but ten 

 counties of the State was, for secession, 24.445 ; 

 for cooperation, 33,685. Of the ten counties, 

 some were for secession, others for cooperation. 



The popular vote at the Presidential election 

 in November was : Douglas, 13,651 ; Breckin- 

 ridge, 48,831 ; Bell, 27,875. Bell was the can- 

 didate of the American and Union party, Doug- 

 las, of the non-intervention Democrats, and 

 Breckinridge of the Southern States. 



The Convention met at Montgomery on the 

 7th of January. All the counties of the State 

 were represented. Wm. M. Brooks was chosen 

 President. 



A strong Union sentiment was soon found to 

 exist in the Convention. On the day on which 

 it assembled, the Representatives from the 

 State in Washington met, and resolved to tele- 

 graph to the Convention, advising immediate 

 secession, stating that in their opinion there 

 was no prospect of a satisfactory adjustment. 



On the 9th the following resolutions were 

 offered and referred to a committee of thir- 

 teen: 



Rezolttd, That separate State action would be un- 

 wise and impolitic. 



Begolcfd, That Alabama should invite the Southern 

 States to hold a Convention as early as practicable, to 

 consider and agree upon a statement of grievances and 

 the manner of obtaining redress, whether in the Union 

 or in independence out of it. 



Mr. Baker, of Russell, offered a resolution re- 

 questing the Governor to furnish information 

 of the number of arms, their character and de- 

 scription, and the number of military compa- 

 nies etc., in the State, which was adopted. 



Also the following was offered and discussed : 



Besolred, by the people of Alabama, That all the 

 powers of this State are hereby pledged to resist any 

 attempt on the part of the Federal Government to 

 coerce any seceding State. 



After a lively discussion of some days, a brief 

 preamble and resolution refusing to submit to 

 the Republican Administration, were proposed 

 in such a form as to command the unanimous 

 vote of the Convention. It was in these words : 



Whereas the only bond of union between the several 



