Diary of Gideon Welles: Friday, May 19, 1865

Preston King tells me he has a letter from Senator Dixon, speaking of me in very complimentary terms and expressing a wish that I may continue in the Cabinet, assuring K. that this is the sentiment of all parties in Connecticut. The President is not yet prepared to complete the Amnesty Proclamation, nor to issue the order for the reëstablishment of the authority of the local State governments. Our North Carolina friends have not arrived. Seward was to-day in the State Department, and the President with the rest of us went to his room. I noticed that his old crony and counterpart, Thurlow Weed, was with him as we entered. Seward was gratified and evidently felt complimented that we called. Was very decisive and emphatic on the subject of a proclamation declaring the Rebel vessels pirates and also a proclamation for opening the ports. Both these measures I had pressed rather earnestly; but Stanton, and Speed under Stanton's prompting, had opposed, for some assumed technical reason [?], the first, i.e. declaring the Rebel vessels pirates, and McCulloch the last, opening the ports. I was, therefore, pleased when Seward, unprompted, brought them both forward. I suggested that the proclamation already issued appeared to me to be sufficient, but I was glad to have his opinions on account of the opposition of Speed.

Received a telegram this P.M. from Commander Frailey and one from Acting-Rear-Admiral Radford, stating that the former, in command of the Tuscarora, had convoyed to Hampton Roads the William Clyde, having on board Jeff Davis, Stephens, etc.

This dispatch, addressed to me, Stanton had in his hand when I entered his room, whither he had sent for me. The telegraph goes to the Department of War, where it has an office, and I before have had reason to believe that some abuse — a sort of an espionage — existed. Half apologizing for an obvious impropriety, he said the custody of these prisoners devolved on him a great responsibility, and until he had made disposition of them, or determined where they should be sent, he wished their arrival to be kept a secret. He was unwilling, he said, to trust Fox, and specially desired me to withhold the information from him, for he was under the Blairs and would be used by them, and the Blairs would improve the opportunity to embarrass him.

I by no means concur in his censures or his views. Fox, like Stanton, will sometimes confide secrets which he had better retain, but not, I think, when enjoined. The Blairs have no love for Stanton, but I do not think he has any cause of apprehension from them in this matter.

He wished me to order the Tuscarora to still convoy and guard the Clyde, and allow no communication with the prisoners except by order of General Halleck or the War Department, — General Halleck, Stanton has ordered down from Richmond to attend to this business, — and again earnestly requested and enjoined that none but we three — himself, General Grant, and myself — should know of the arrival and disposition of these prisoners. I told him the papers would have the arrivals announced in their next issue.

Stanton said no word could get abroad. He had the telegraph in his own hands and could suppress everything. Not a word should pass. I remarked he could not stop the mails, nor passenger-boats, and twenty-four hours would carry the information to Baltimore and abroad in that way. Twenty-four hours, he said, would relieve him.

Stanton is mercurial, - arbitrary and apprehensive, violent and fearful, rough and impulsive, — yet possessed of ability and energy. I, of course, under his request, shall make no mention of or allusion to the prisoners, for the present. In framing his dispatch, he said, with some emphasis, the women and children must be sent off. We did not want them. “They must go South,” and he framed his dispatch accordingly. When he read it I remarked, “The South is very indefinite, and you permit them to select the place. Mrs. Davis may designate Norfolk, or Richmond.” “True," said Grant with a laugh. Stanton was annoyed, but, I think, altered his telegram.

SOURCE: Gideon Welles, Diary of Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy Under Lincoln and Johnson, Vol. 2: April 1, 1864 — December 31, 1866, p. 307-9

Lieutenant-General Ulysses S. Grant to Major-General Edward O. C. Ord, April 15, 4 p.m.

WASHINGTON CITY, April 15, 1865 — 4 p.m.

Major-General ORD,

Richmond, Va.:

Arrest J. A. Campbell, Mayor Mayo, and the members of the old council of Richmond, who have not yet taken the oath of allegiance, and put them in Libby Prison. Hold them guarded beyond the possibility of escape until further orders. Also arrest all paroled officers and surgeons until they can be sent beyond our lines, unless they take the oath of allegiance. The oath need not be received from any one who you have not good reason to believe will observe it, and from none who are excluded by the President's proclamation, without authority of the President to do so. Extreme rigor will have to be observed whilst assassination remains the order of the day with the rebels.

U.S. GRANT,

Lieutenant-General.

SOURCE: The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series I Volume 46, Part 3 (Serial No. 97), p. 762

Robert E. Lee to P. G. T. Beauregard, October 3, 1865

LEXINGTON, VIRGINIA, 3d October, 1865.

GEN. G. T. BEAUREGARD, New Orleans, La.

MY DEAR GENERAL: I have received your letter of the 1st ult., and am very sorry to learn that the papers of yourself and Johnston are lost, or at least beyond your reach; but I hope they may be recovered. Mine never can be, though some may be replaced. Please supply all you can. It may be safer to send them by private hand, if practicable, to Mr. Caskie at Richmond, or to me at this place. I hope both you and Johnston will write the history of your campaigns. Every one should do all in his power to collect and disseminate the truth, in the hope that it may find a place in history, and descend to posterity. I am glad to see no indication in your letter of an intention to leave the country. I think the South requires the aid of her sons now more than at any period of her history. As you ask for my purpose, I will state that I have no thought of abandoning her unless compelled to do so.

After the surrender of the Southern armies in April, the revolution in the opinions and feelings of the people seemed so complete, and the return of the Southern States into the union of all the States so inevitable, that it became in my opinion the duty of every citizen, the contest being virtually ended, to cease opposition, and place himself in a position to serve the country. I, therefore, upon the promulgation of the proclamation of President Johnson of 29th of May, which indicated his policy in the restoration of peace, determined to comply with its requirements, and applied on the 13th of June to be embraced within its provisions. I have not heard the result of my application. Since then I have been elected to the Presidency of Washington College, and have entered upon the duties of the office in the hope of being of some service to the noble youth of our country. I need not tell you that true patriotism sometimes requires of men to act exactly contrary, at one period, to that which it does at another, and the motive which impels them — the desire to do right — is precisely the same. The circumstances which govern their actions change; and their conduct must conform to the new order of things. History is full of illustrations of this. Washington himself is an example. At one time he fought against the French under Braddock, in the service of the King of Great Britain; at another, he fought with the French at Yorktown, under the orders of the Continental Congress of America, against him. He has not been branded by the world with reproach for this; but his course has been applauded. With sentiments of great esteem,

I am, most truly yours,

R. E. LEE.

SOURCE: John William Jones, Life and Letters of Robert Edward Lee: Soldier and Man, p. 390

Robert E. Lee to Josiah Tatnall, September 7, 1865

NEAR CARTERSVILLE, VIRGINIA, 7th September, 1865.

CAPT. JOSIAH TATNALL, Savannah, Ga.

SIR: I have received your letter of the 23d ult., and in reply will state the course I have pursued under circumstances similar to your own, and will leave you to judge of its propriety. Like yourself I have since the cessation of hostilities advised all with whom I have conversed on the subject who come within the terms of the President's proclamation to take the oath of allegiance and accept in good faith the amnesty offered. But I have gone farther and have recommended to those who were excluded from their benefits to make application under the proviso of the proclamation of the 29th of May to be embraced in its provisions. Both classes in order to be restored to their former rights and privileges were required to perform a certain act, and I do not see that an acknowledgment of fault is expressed in one more than the other. The war being at an end, the Southern States having laid down their arms and the questions at issue between them and the Northern States having been decided, I believe it to be the duty of every one to unite in the restoration of the country and the reestablishment of peace and harmony. These considerations governed me in the counsels I gave to others and induced me on the 13th of June to make application to be included in the terms of the amnesty proclamation. I have not received an answer and cannot inform you what has been the decision of the President. But whatever that may be, I do not see how the course I have recommended and practiced can prove detrimental to the former President of the Confederate States. It appears to me that the allayment of passion, the dissipation of prejudice, and the restoration of reason will alone enable the people of the country to acquire a true knowledge and form a correct judgment of the events of the past four years. It will I think be admitted that Mr. Davis has done nothing more than all citizens of the Southern States, and should not be held accountable for acts performed by them in the exercise of what had been considered by them an unquestionable right. I have too exalted an opinion of the American people to believe that they will consent to injustice; and it is only necessary in my opinion that truth should be known for the rights of every one to be secured. I know of no surer way of eliciting the truth than by burying contention with the war. I enclose a copy of my letter to President Johnson and feel assured that however imperfectly I may have given you my views on the subject of your letter your own high sense of honor and right will lead you to a satisfactory conclusion as to the proper course to be pursued in your own case. With great respect and esteem,

I am, your most obedient servant,

R. E. LEE

SOURCE: John William Jones, Life and Letters of Robert Edward Lee: Soldier and Man, p. 387-8

Robert E. Lee to Andrew Johnson, June 13, 1865

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA, June 13, 1865.

HIS EXCELLENCY ANDREW JOHNSON,

President of the United States.

SIR: Being excluded from the provisions of amnesty and pardon contained in the proclamation of the 29th ult., I hereby apply for the benefits and full restoration of all rights and privileges extended to those included in its terms. I graduated at the Military Academy at West Point in June, 1829; resigned from the United States Army, April, 1861; was a general in the Confederate Army, and included in the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, April 9, 1865. I have the honor to be, very respectfully,

Your obedient servant,

R. E. LEE.

SOURCE: John William Jones, Life and Letters of Robert Edward Lee: Soldier and Man, p. 384

Robert E. Lee to Lieutenant-General Ulysses S. Grant, June 13, 1865

RICHMOND, June 13, 1865.

Lieut. Gen. U.S. GRANT,

Commanding Armies of the United States:

GENERAL: Upon reading the President's proclamation of the 29th ultimo, I came to Richmond to ascertain what was proper or required of me to do, when I learned that with others I was to be indicted for treason by the grand jury at Norfolk. I had supposed that the officers and men of the Army of Northern Virginia were, by the terms of their surrender, protected by the United States Government from molestation so long as they conformed to its conditions. I am ready to meet any charges that may be preferred against me. I do not wish to avoid trial, but if I am correct as to the protection granted by my parole, and am not to be prosecuted, I desire to comply with the provisions of the President's proclamation, and therefore inclose the required application, which I request in that event may be acted on.*

I am, with great respect, your obedient servant,

 R. E. LEE.

_______________

* The application was forwarded by General Grant to the President – See last paragraph of Grant to Lee, June 20, p. 1287

SOURCES: The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series I, Volume 46, Part 3 (Serial No. 97), p. 1275-6; John William Jones, Life and Letters of Robert Edward Lee: Soldier and Man, p. 384

Lieutenant-General Ulysses S. Grant to Robert E. Lee, June 20, 1865

HEADQUARTERS ARMIES OF THE UNITED STATES,

Washington, June 20, 1865.

General R. E. LEE,

Richmond, Va.:

Your communications of date of the 13th instant, stating the steps you had taken after reading the President's proclamation of the 29th ultimo, with a view of complying with its provisions when you learned that, with others, you were to be indicted for treason by the grand jury at Norfolk; that you had supposed the officers and men of the Army of Northern Virginia were by the terms of their surrender protected by the United States Government from molestation so long as they conformed to its conditions; that you were ready to meet any charges that might be preferred against you, and did not wish to avoid trial, but that if you were correct as to the protection granted by your parole, and were not to be prosecuted, you desired to avail yourself of the President's amnesty proclamation, and inclosing an application therefor, with the request that in that event it be acted on, has been received and forwarded to the Secretary of War, with the following opinion indorsed thereon by me:

In my opinion the officers and men paroled at Appomattox Court-House, and since, upon the same terms given to Lee, cannot be tried for treason so long as they observe the terms of their parole. This is my understanding. Good faith, as well as true policy, dictates that we should observe the conditions of that convention. Bad faith on the part of the Government, or a construction of that convention subjecting the officers to trial for treason, would produce a feeling of insecurity in the minds of all the paroled officers and men. If so disposed they might even regard such an infraction of terms by the Government as an entire release from all obligations on their part. I will state further that the terms granted by me met with the hearty approval of the President at the time, and of the country generally. The action of Judge Underwood, in Norfolk, has already had an injurious effect, and I would ask that he be ordered to quash all indictments found against paroled prisoners of war, and to desist from the farther prosecution of them.

This opinion, I am informed, is substantially the same as that entertained by the Government. I have forwarded your application for amnesty and pardon to the President, with the following indorsement thereon:

Respectfully forwarded through the Secretary of War to the President, with the earnest recommendation that this application of General R. E. Lee for amnesty and pardon may be granted him. The oath of allegiance required by recent order of the President to accompany applications does not accompany this for the reason, as I am informed by General Ord, the order requiring it had not reached Richmond when this was forwarded.

 U. S. GRANT,

Lieutenant-General.

SOURCE: The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series I, Volume 46, Part 3 (Serial No. 97), p. 1286-7