I do not know, nor any man, I believe. He will do, as we
will, what he believes to be his duty, and that duty, I suppose, will
be discharged in full view of the consequences following any line of
action that may be determined on. But I think that, as long as Cobb
and Thompson retain seats in the Cabinet, you may feel confident that
no action has been taken which seriously affects the position of any
Southern State.

I think that I may safely rely upon my knowledge of what will be done,
and you may rely upon my resignation as soon as that knowledge
satisfies me of any move in a direction positively injurious to us, or
altering the present condition of things to our disadvantage. When you
pass through on Wednesday, however, I will speak to you more fully.

Yours,

W.H.T.

[Sidenote] Ibid.

THOS. F. DRAYTON TO GOVERNOR GIST.
WASHINGTON, 19th Nov., 1860.

Mr. Buchanan, while he can discover no authority under the
Constitution to justify secession by a State, on the other hand he can
find no power to coerce one to return after the right of secession has
been exercised. He will not allow entry or clearance of a vessel
except through the Custom-house, to be established as soon as
secession is declared, upon the deck of a man-of-war off the harbor of
Charleston. He will enforce the collection of duties, not by navy, but
by a revenue cutter, as our collector now would do if his authority
was resisted. I will write to you more fully when I return from New
York, where I go to-morrow at daylight, at the suggestion of the
Secretary of War, who deems it important that I should go there to
make arrangements for shipping the arms (should you still want them)
from that point instead of this city ... Do send a copy of the list of
arms at the arsenals to H.R. Lawton, Milledgeville, Ga. I am getting
some smooth-bored muskets for Georgia, like the specimen I sent you.

[Sidenote] MS. Confederate Archives.

THOS. F. DRAYTON TO GOVERNOR GIST.
WASHINGTON, 23d Nov., 1860.

I arrived here at 6 A.M. from New York, where I had gone at the
suggestion of Mr. Floyd to engage Mr. G.B. Lamar, President of the
Bank of the Republic, to make an offer to the Secretary for such a
number of muskets as we might require. The Secretary at War was
reluctant to dispose of them to me, preferring the intermediate
agency. Mr. Lamar has consented to act accordingly, and to-day the
Secretary has written to the commanding officer [at] Watervliet
Arsen