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The Reported Outrage at Alton.
Under the head of "An Infamous Abolition Outrage at Alton," the Register of yesterday morning copied from the Alton Democrat, a highly colored and inflamatory account of an outrage perpetrated by some unknown persons upon Capt. James W. Davis of Alton. The object of the Alton Democrat and its Copperhead cotemporary here is to make the impression that General Curtis or some other military officer is, in some way, responsible for the outrage. The following from the Alton Telegraph, with the accompanying statement of Capt. Davis himself will show how utterly unfounded is the whole impression sought to be created by the Democrat and the Register.
There was a report yesterday circulated on the street and in the afternoon it was published in the Democrat, to this effect. It was stated that two persons, representing themselves as acting under authority from General Curtis, and as being from St. Louis, presented themselves at the resistence of Captain James W. Davis in this city, and stated that they were authorized to arrest George Francis Train, and on being informed by Mr. Davis that Train was not in his house, they seized him, and dragged him off to an obscure part of the city. There they knocked him around a while and then stripped him of his overcoat, vest, &c., and left him. This report appeared so unaccountable and strange that it did not gain general credence, therefore, we made no revision to it yesterday.
This morning, the Captain sent us the following very creditable letter in reference to the matter, which we take great pleasure in laying before our readers. We fully agree with him, that no Federal officer would ever be guilty of perpetrating such an infamous outrage as was attributed to the ruffians who maltreated and robbed the worthy Captain:
ALTON, Feb. 10th, 1863.
To the Editor of the Alton Telegraph:
I desire to say in connection with the cowardly attack upon me the other evening, by two midnight ruffians, that I am entirely satisfied that it was an attempt at robbery, of which no agent of the Federal Government had any knowledge. Their presentations made by them to myself while in their custody, that they were clothed with authority from Major General Curtis, to arrest Mr. Train, were in my opinion but a subterfuge, resorted to for the purpose of facilitating a speculating enterprise under the cloak of federal sanction! While I feel deeply their ill treatment, and would gladly arrest the offenders, if known, I am willing to allow upon a merit suspicion any intimation that any Government officer would in so clandestine a manner, perform a duty imposed upon them! Being entirely ignorant of the persons or their residences, their motives or designs upon either myself or Mr. Train, I regard it as a simple duty to say that neither the Federal Government nor its agents were in any manner concerned with the disgraceful affair! any attempt to create hostility against the Government in consequence thereof, would, in the absence of any evidence be not only injurious but criminal to the extreme. In this trying time of our national perils, it becomes the duty of all loyal citizens to discourage any undue excitement. I can bear in patience the inconvenience to which I have been subjected.
Yours, respectfully,
JAMES W. DAVIS