第45章

LIEUTENANT—GENERALGRANT：

ThePresidentdirectsmetosaytoyouthathewishesyoutohavenoconferencewithGeneralLeeunlessitbeforthecapitulationofGeneralLee’sarmy，oronsomeminorandpurelymilitarymatter。Heinstructsmetosaythatyouarenottodecide，discuss，orconferuponanypoliticalquestion。SuchquestionsthePresidentholdsinhisownhands，andwillsubmitthemtonomilitaryconferencesorconventions。Meantimeyouaretopresstotheutmostyourmilitaryadvantages。

EDWINM。STANTON，SecretaryofWar。

SECONDINAUGURALADDRESS，MARCH4，1865。

FELLOW—COUNTRYMEN：——Atthissecondappearingtotaketheoathofthepresidentialofficethereislessoccasionforanextendedaddressthantherewasatthefirst。Thenastatementsomewhatindetailofacoursetobepursuedseemedfittingandproper。Now，attheexpirationoffouryears，duringwhichpublicdeclarationshavebeenconstantlycalledforthoneverypointandphaseofthegreatcontestwhichstillabsorbstheattentionandengrossestheenergiesofthenation，littlethatisnewcouldbepresented。Theprogressofourarms，uponwhichallelsechieflydepends，isaswellknowntothepublicastomyself，anditis，Itrust，reasonablysatisfactoryandencouragingtoall。Withhighhopeforthefuture，nopredictioninregardtoitisventured。

Ontheoccasioncorrespondingtothisfouryearsagoallthoughtswereanxiouslydirectedtoanimpendingcivilwar。Alldreadedit，allsoughttoavertit。Whiletheinauguraladdresswasbeingdeliveredfromthisplace，devotedaltogethertosavingtheUnionwithoutwar，insurgentagentswereinthecityseekingtodestroyitwithoutwarseekingtodissolvetheUnionanddivideeffectsbynegotiation。Bothpartiesdeprecatedwar，butoneofthemwouldmakewarratherthanletthenationsurvive，andtheotherwouldacceptwarratherthanletitperish，andthewarcame。

Oneeighthofthewholepopulationwascoloredslaves，notdistributedgenerallyovertheUnion，butlocalizedinthesouthernpartofit。Theseslavesconstitutedapeculiarandpowerfulinterest。Allknewthatthisinterestwassomehowthecauseofthewar。Tostrengthen，perpetuate，andextendthisinterestwastheobjectforwhichtheinsurgentswouldrendtheUnionevenbywar，whiletheGovernmentclaimednorighttodomorethantorestricttheterritorialenlargementofit。Neitherpartyexpectedforthewarthemagnitudeorthedurationwhichithasalreadyattained。Neitheranticipatedthatthecauseoftheconflictmightceasewithorevenbeforetheconflictitselfshouldcease。Eachlookedforaneasiertriumph，andaresultlessfundamentalandastounding。BothreadthesameBibleandpraytothesameGod，andeachinvokesHisaidagainsttheother。ItmayseemstrangethatanymenshoulddaretoaskajustGod’sassistanceinwringingtheirbreadfromthesweatofothermen’sfaces，butletusjudgenot，thatwebenotjudged。Theprayersofbothcouldnotbeanswered。Thatofneitherhasbeenansweredfully。TheAlmightyhasHisownpurposes。"Woeuntotheworldbecauseofoffenses；foritmustneedsbethatoffensescome，butwoetothatmanbywhomtheoffensecometh。"IfweshallsupposethatAmericanslaveryisoneofthoseoffenseswhich，intheprovidenceofGod，mustneedscome，butwhich，havingcontinuedthroughHisappointedtime，Henowwillstoremove，andthatHegivestobothNorthandSouththisterriblewarasthewoeduetothosebywhomtheoffensecame，shallwediscernthereinanydeparturefromthosedivineattributeswhichthebelieversinalivingGodalwaysascribetoHim？Fondlydowehope，ferventlydowepray，thatthismightyscourgeofwarmayspeedilypassaway。Yet，ifGodwillsthatitcontinueuntilallthewealthpiledbythebondsman’stwohundredandfiftyyearsofunrequitedtoilshallbesunk，anduntileverydropofblooddrawnwiththelashshallbepaidbyanotherdrawnwiththesword，aswassaidthreethousandyearsago，sostillitmustbesaid，"ThejudgmentsoftheLordaretrueandrighteousaltogether。"

Withmalicetowardnone，withcharityforall，withfirmnessintherightasGodgivesustoseetheright，letusstriveontofinishtheworkwearein，tobindupthenation’swounds，tocareforhimwhoshallhavebornethebattleandforhiswidowandhisorphan，todoallwhichmayachieveandcherishajustandlastingpeaceamongourselvesandwithallnations。

TELEGRAMTOGENERALJOHNPOPE。

EXECUTIVEMANSION，WASHINGTON，March7，1865

MAJOR—GENERALPOPE，St。Louis，Missouri：

Pleasestatebriefly，bytelegraph，whatyouconcludedabouttheassessmentsinSt。LouisCounty。EarlyinthewaroneSamuelB。

ChurchillwassentfromSt。LouistoLouisville，whereIhavequitesatisfactoryevidencethathehasnotmisbehaved。StillIamtoldhispropertyatSt。Louisissubjectedtotheassessment，whichI

thinkitoughtnottobe。StillIwishtoknowwhatyouthink。

A。LINCOLN。

TOGENERALU。S。GRANT。

WASHINGTON，D。C。，March8，1865。

LIEUTENANT—GENERALGRANT，CityPoint，Va：

YourtwodespatchestotheSecretaryofWar，onerelatingtosuppliesfortheenemygoingbytheBlackwater，andtheothertoGeneralSingletonandJudgeHughes，havebeenlaidbeforemebyhim。AstoSingletonandHughes，IthinktheyarenotinRichmondbyanyauthority，unlessitbefromyou。Iremembernothingfrommewhichcouldaidthemingettingthere，exceptalettertoyou，asfollows，towit：

EXECUTIVEMANSION，WASHINGTONCITY，February7，1865。

LIEUTENANT—GENERALGRANT，CityPoint，Va。：

GeneralSingleton，whobearsyouthis，claimsthathealreadyhasarrangementsmade，ifyouconsent，tobringalargeamountofSouthernproducethroughyourlines。Foritsbearingonourfinances，Iwouldbegladforthistobedone，ifitcanbe，withoutinjuriouslydisturbingyourmilitaryoperations，orsupplyingtheenemy。Iwishyoutobejudgeandmasteronthesepoints。Pleaseseeandhearhimfully，anddecidewhetheranything，and，ifanything，what，canbedoneinthepremises。

Yourstruly，A。LINCOLN。

IbelieveIgaveHughesacardputtinghimwithSingletononthesameletter。Howeverthismaybe，InowauthorizeyoutogetSingletonandHughesawayfromRichmond，ifyouchoose，andcan。Ialsoauthorizeyou，byanorder，orinwhatformyouchoose，tosuspendalloperationsontheTreasurytradepermits，inallplacessoutheastwardoftheAlleghenies。Ifyoumakesuchorder，notifymeofit，givingacopy，sothatIcangivecorrespondingdirectiontotheNavy。

A。LINCOLN。

PROCLAMATIONOFFERINGPARDONTODESERTERS，MARCH11，1865

BYTHEPRESIDENTOFTHEUNITEDSTATES

OFAMERICA

AProclamationWhereas，thetwenty—firstsectionoftheactofCongress，approvedonthe3dinstant，entitled"AnActtoamendtheseveralactsheretoforepassedtoprovidefortheenrollingandcallingoutthenationalforcesandforotherpurposes，"requiresthatinadditiontotheotherlawfulpenaltiesofthecrimeofdesertionfromthemilitaryornavalservice，allpersonswhohavedesertedthemilitaryornavalserviceoftheUnitedStateswhoshallnotreturntosaidserviceorreportthemselvestoaprovost—marshalwithinsixtydaysaftertheproclamationhereinaftermentioned，shallbedeemedandtakentohavevoluntarilyrelinquishedandforfeitedtheircitizenshipandtheirrighttobecomecitizens，andsuchdesertersshallbeforeverincapableofholdinganyofficeoftrustorprofitundertheUnitedStates，orofexercisinganyrightsofcitizensthereof；andallpersonswhoshallhereafterdesertthemilitaryornavalservice，andallpersonswho，beingdulyenrolled，shalldepartthejurisdictionofthedistrictinwhichtheyareenrolled，orgobeyondthelimitsoftheUnitedStateswithintenttoavoidanydraftintothemilitaryornavalservicedulyordered，shallbeliabletothepenaltiesofthissection；andthePresidentisherebyauthorizedandrequiredforthwith，onthepassageofthisact，toissuehisproclamationsettingforththeprovisionsofthissection，inwhichproclamationthePresidentisrequestedtonotifyalldesertersreturningwithinsixtydaysasaforesaidthattheyshallbepardonedonconditionofreturningtotheirregimentsandcompanies，ortosuchotherorganizationsastheymaybeassignedto，untiltheyshallhaveservedforaperiodoftimeequaltotheiroriginaltermofenlistment：

Now，therefore，beitknownthatI，AbrahamLincoln，PresidentoftheUnitedStates，doissuethismyproclamationasrequiredbysaidact，orderingandrequiringalldeserterstoreturntotheirproperposts；

andIdoherebynotifythemthatalldeserterswhoshallwithinsixtydaysfromthedateofthisproclamation，viz。，onorbeforethe10thdayofMay，1865，returntoserviceorreportthemselvestoaprovost—marshal，shallbepardonedonconditionthattheyreturntotheirregimentsorcompaniesortosuchotherorganizationastheymaybeassignedto，andservetheremainderoftheiroriginaltermsofenlistment，andinadditiontheretoaperiodequaltothetimelostbydesertion。

Intestimonywhereof，IhavehereuntosetmyhandandcausedthesealoftheUnitedStatestobeaffixed……

ABRAHAMLINCOLN。

BythePresident：

WILLIAMH。SEWARD，SecretaryofStateTELEGRAMTOH。T。BLOW。

WASHINGTON，March13，1865。

HON。HENRYT。BLOW，SaintLouis，Mo。：

AMissE。Snodgrass，whowasbanishedfromSaintLouisinMay，1863，wishestotaketheoathandreturnhome。Whatsayyou？

A。LINCOLN。

LETTERTOTHURLOWWEED，MARCH15，1865。

EXECUTIVEMANSION，WASHINGTON，D。C。

DEARMr。WEED：

Everyonelikesacompliment。Thankyouforyoursonmylittlenotificationspeechandontherecentinauguraladdress。Iexpectthelattertowearaswellasperhapsbetterthan——anythingIhaveproduced；butIbelieveitisnotimmediatelypopular。MenarenotflatteredbybeingshownthattherehasbeenadifferenceofpurposebetweentheAlmightyandthem。Todenyit，however，inthiscase，istodenythatthereisaGodgoverningtheworld。ItisatruthwhichIthoughtneededtobetold，and，aswhateverofhumiliationthereisinitfallsmostdirectlyonmyself，Ithoughtothersmightaffordformetotellit。

Trulyyours，A。LINCOLN。

TELEGRAMTOCOLONELROUGHANDOTHERS。

WARDEPARTMENT，WASHINGTON，D。C。，March17，1865。

COL。R。M。ROUGHANDOTHERS，Chicago，Ill。：

Yoursreceived。ThebestIcandowithitis，toreferittotheWarDepartment。TheRockIslandcasereferredto，wasmyindividualenterprise；anditcausedsomuchdifficultyinsomanywaysthatI

promisedtoneverundertakeanother。

A。LINCOLN。

ADDRESSTOANINDIANAREGIMENT，MARCH17，1865。

FELLOW—CITIZENS：——ItwillbebutaveryfewwordsthatIshallundertaketosay。IwasborninKentucky，raisedinIndiana，andlivedinIllinois；andnowIamhere，whereitismybusinesstocareequallyforthegoodpeopleofalltheStates。IamgladtoseeanIndianaregimentonthisdayabletopresentthecapturedflagtotheGovernorofIndiana。Iamnotdisposed，insayingthis，tomakeadistinctionbetweentheStates，forallhavedoneequallywell。

TherearebutfewviewsoraspectsofthisgreatwaruponwhichI

havenotsaidorwrittensomethingwherebymyownopinionsmightbeknown。Butthereisone——therecentattemptofourerringbrethren，astheyaresometimescalled，toemploythenegrotofightforthem。

Ihaveneitherwrittennormadeaspeechonthatsubject，becausethatwastheirbusiness，notmine，andifIhadawishonthesubject，Ihadnotthepowertointroduceit，ormakeiteffective。

Thegreatquestionwiththemwaswhetherthenegro，beingputintothearmy，willfightforthem。Idonotknow，andthereforecannotdecide。Theyoughttoknowbetterthanme。Ihaveinmylifetimeheardmanyargumentswhythenegroesoughttobeslaves；butiftheyfightforthosewhowouldkeeptheminslavery，itwillbeabetterargumentthananyIhaveyetheard。Hewhowillfightforthat，oughttobeaslave。Theyhaveconcluded，atlast，totakeoneoutoffouroftheslavesandputtheminthearmy，andthatoneoutofthefourwhowillfighttokeeptheothersinslavery，oughttobeaslavehimself，unlessheiskilledinafight。WhileIhaveoftensaidthatallmenoughttobefree，yetwouldIallowthosecoloredpersonstobeslaveswhowanttobe，andnexttothemthosewhitepeoplewhoargueinfavorofmakingotherpeopleslaves。Iaminfavorofgivinganappointmenttosuchwhitementotryitonfortheseslaves。Iwillsayonethinginregardtothenegroesbeingemployedtofightforthem。Idoknowhecannotfightandstayathomeandmakebreadtoo。Andasoneisaboutasimportantastheothertothem，Idon’tcarewhichtheydo。Iamratherinfavorofhavingthemtrythemassoldiers。Theylackonevoteofdoingthat，andIwishIcouldsendmyvoteovertheriversothatImightcastitinfavorofallowingthenegrotofight。Buttheycannotfightandworkboth。Wemustnowseethebottomoftheenemy’sresources。

Theywillstandoutaslongastheycan，andifthenegrowillfightforthemtheymustallowhimtofight。Theyhavedrawnupontheirlastbranchofresources，andwecannowseethebottom。Iamgladtoseetheendsonearathand。IhavesaidnowmorethanI

intended，andwillthereforebidyougood—by。

PROCLAMATIONCONCERNINGINDIANS，MARCH17，1865。

BYTHEPRESIDENTOFTHEUNITEDSTATESOFAMERICA：

AProclamation。

WhereasreliableinformationhasbeenreceivedthathostileIndians，withinthelimitsoftheUnitedStates，havebeenfurnishedwitharmsandmunitionsofwarbypersonsdwellinginconterminousforeignterritory，andaretherebyenabledtoprosecutetheirsavagewarfareupontheexposedandsparsesettlementsofthefrontier；

Now，therefore，beitknownthatI，AbrahamLincoln，PresidentoftheUnitedStatesofAmerica，doherebyproclaimanddirectthatallpersonsdetectedinthatnefarioustrafficshallbearrestedandtriedbycourt—martialatthenearestmilitarypost，andifconvicted，shallreceivethepunishmentduetotheirdeserts。

Inwitnesswhereof，Ihavehereuntosetmyhand，aridcausedthesealoftheUnitedStatestobeaffixed……

ABRAHAMLINCOLN。

BythePresident：

WILLIAMH。SEWARD，SecretaryofState。

ORDERANNULLINGTHESENTENCEAGAINST

BENJAMING。SMITHANDFRANKLINW。SMITH，MARCH18，1865。

Iamunwillingforthesentencetostand，andbeexecuted，toanyextentinthiscase。Intheabsenceofamoreadequatemotivethantheevidencediscloses，Iamwhollyunabletobelieveintheexistenceofcriminalorfraudulentintentonthepartofmenofsuchwellestablishedgoodcharacter。Iftheevidencewentasfartoestablishaguiltyprofitofoneortwohundredthousanddollars，asitdoesofoneortwohundreddollars，thecasewould，onthequestionofguilt，bearafardifferentaspect。Thatonthiscontract，involvingsometwelvehundredthousanddollars，thecontractorswouldplan，andattempttoexecuteafraudwhich，atthemost，couldprofitthemonlyoneortwohundred，orevenonethousanddollars，istomymindbeyondthepowerofrationalbelief。Thattheydidnot，insuchacase，makefargreatergains，provesthattheydidnot，withguiltyorfraudulentintent，makeatall。Thejudgmentandsentencearedisapproved，anddeclarednull，andthedefendantsarefullydischarged。

A。LINCOLN

March18，1865。

TELEGRAMTOGENERALJ。POPE。

EXECUTIVEMANSION，WASHINGTON，March19，1865。

MAJOR—GENERALPOPE，St。Louis，Missouri：

UnderstandingthattheplanofactionforMissouricontainedinyourlettertotheGovernorofthatState，andyourotherlettertome，isconcurredinbytheGovernor，itisapprovedbyme，andyouwillbesustainedinproceedinguponit。

A。LINCOLN。

TELEGRAMTOGENERALORD。

EXECUTIVEMANSION，WASHINGTON，May[March]20，1865。

MAJOR—GENERALORD，ArmyoftheJamesIsittruethatGeorgeW。LaneisdetainedatNorfolkwithoutanychargeagainsthim？Andifsowhyisitdone？

A。LINCOLN。

TELEGRAMTOJUDGESCATES。

EXECUTIVEMANSION，WASHINGTON，March21，1865。

HON。WALTERB。SCATES，Centralia，Illinois：

IfyouchoosetogotoNewMexicoandreside，Iwillappointyouchiefjusticethere。Whatsayyou？Pleaseanswer。

A。LINCOLN。

TELEGRAMTOGENERALW。S。HANCOCK。

WASHINGTON，D。C。，March22，1865。

MAJOR—GENERALHANCOCK，Winchester，Va。：

SeeingyourdespatchaboutGeneralCrook，andfearingthatthroughmisapprehensionsomethingunpleasantmayoccur，IsendyoubelowtwodespatchesofGeneralGrant，whichIsupposewillfullyexplainGeneralCrook’smovements。

A。LINCOLN。

ANOTHERFEMALESPY

TELEGRAMTOGENERALDODGE。

EXECUTIVEMANSION，WASHINGTON，March23，1865。

GENERALDODGE，Commanding，&c，SaintLouis，Mo。：

AllowMrs。R。S。Ewellthebenefitofmyamnestyproclamationonhertakingtheoath。

A。LINCOLN。

TELEGRAMTOSECRETARYSTANTON。

CITYPOINT，VIRGINIA，March25，1865。8。30A。M。

HON。SECRETARYOFWAR，Washington，D。C。：

Arrivedhereallsafeabout9P。M。yesterday。Nowarnews。GeneralGrantdoesnotseemtoknowverymuchaboutYeatman，butthinksverywellofhimsofarashedoesknow。

IlikeMr。Whitingverymuch，andhencewouldwishhimtoremainorresignasbestsuitshimself。Hearingthismuchfromme，doasyouthinkbestinthematter。GeneralLeehassenttheRussellletterback，concluding，asIunderstandfromGrant，thattheirdignitydoesnotadmitoftheirreceivingthedocumentfromus。Robertjustnowtellsmetherewasalittlerumpusupthelinethismorning，endingaboutwhereitbegan。

A。LINCOLN。

TELEGRAMTOSECRETARYSTANTON。

(Cipher。)

HEADQUARTERSARMYOFTHEPOTOMAC，March25，1865。(Received5P。M。)

HON。EDWINM。STANTON，SecretaryofWar：

Iamherewithinfivemilesofthesceneofthismorning’saction。I

havenothingtoaddtowhatGeneralMeadereportsexceptthatIhaveseentheprisonersmyselfandtheylookliketheremightbethenumberhestates——1600。

A。LINCOLN

TELEGRAMTOSECRETARYSTANTON。

CITYPOINT，VA。，March26，1865。(Received11。30A。M。)