Abraham Lincoln, July 4, 1863 – 10 a.m.

WAR DEPARTMENT,         

Washington, July 4, 1863 — 10 a.m.

The President announces to the country that news from the Army of the Potomac, up to 10 p.m. of the 3d, is such as to cover that army with the highest honor; to promise a great success to the cause of the Union, and to claim the condolence of all for the many gallant fallen; and that for this he especially desires that on this day, he, whose will, not ours, shou1d ever be done, be everywhere remembered and ever reverenced with profoundest gratitude.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN.

SOURCE: The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series I, Volume 27, Part 3 (Serial No. 45), p. 515