Timeline of West Virginia: Civil War and Statehood
March 10, 1863

Sherrard Clemens - How He Got Along At Middlebourne. - Sherrard Clemens was advertised to speak at Middlebourne, Tyler county on Tuesday. He made his appearance there and after he had attempted to empty himself of an harangue against the New State, somebody threw a rotten egg at him. The egg missed the speaker, but striking against the wall behind it be-splattered his clothing. Sherrard pulled out a revolver which he laid down beside him and intimated that he might be compelled to shoot somebody. This act only had a tendency to increase the anger of a few disorderly persons who had made up their minds not to allow Clemens to speak and the assault upon him was about to be so vigoriously [sic] resumed that he abandoned the field. The persons who thus interrupted Clemens are said to have followed him when he left Middlebourne and it was feared that some personal injury would be inflicted upon him, though nothing of the kind occurred.

Coffee Town, Ohio Co., Va.,
March 10th, 1863.

Editors Intelligencer:

At a new State meeting held at the Coffee Town Schoolhouse, Wm. Hand was called to the chair and Samuel McDaid elected secretary. The meeting was addressed by Jas. Campbell, Esq., and others, after which the following preamble and resolutions were reported and unanimously adopted:

Whereas, A Convention at the city of Richmond, in which the Thugs and Copperheads, by instituting terror and thereby intimidating loyal men from giving expression to their sentiments, did succeed in passing an infamous ordinance declaring the State of Virginia out of the Union and a member of the would-be C. S. A. And,

Whereas, The western part of the Old Dominion considered the said ordinance null and void, because unconstitutional, and without warrant in any sense whatever. Therefore,

Resolved, 1st, That we as loyal citizens of Virginia, glory in the patriotism manifested in the restoring of the Government as set forth at Wheeling

2d. That we have a firm and abiding faith in the constitutionality; and in the propriety of separating from our Eastern task-masters, and forming a new State known as West Virginia.

3d. That it is the duty of every man regarding his own interest or that of his fellow-citizens to vote for the new State and to influence others to do so.

4th. That all persons having voted for the ordinance of secession, and not repenting of the deed, have thereby rendered themselves aliens from, and enemies to the Government of Virginia and the U. S. Government, and are not entitled to the right of suffrage.

5th. That it is not in our power to set forth the condemnation of John S. Carlile in the bitterness which his treachery to loyal Virginians demands.

6th. That we commend to the consideration of loyal Virginians the high minded and straightforward course of the Hon. W. T. Willey in the U. S. Senate, as contrasted with that of the Coperhead proprietor of the Wheeling Press (Carlile).

7th. That the Wheeling Press is unworthy the patronage of loyal men, and that we denounce as traitors all persons endorsing the principles therein set forth.

8th. That it is the duty of the Government, State and Federal, to suppress all newspapers publishing articles derogatory to the U. S. Government, or calculated to intercept the means made use of to suppress treason and rebellion.

9th. That we hail the President's emancipation proclamation as an efficient means of destroying the prime cause and backbone of the present malignant and unholy rebellion now in force against the best Government ever instituted by man.

10th. That a copy of the above be sent to the Intelligencer for publication, requesting all West Virginia papers endorsing the spirit of the resolutions to copy.

Wm. Hand, Chairman.
Samuel McDaid, Sec'y.

Timeline of West Virginia: Civil War and Statehood: March 1863