December 24. 1862
To Abraham Lincoln
President of the United States
Washington
Sir.
The undersigned, as Electors performed two years ago the
pleasant duty of certifying to your appointment to the Chief Magistracy of this
country by the choice of the People.
Believing that the approaching new year brings with it a
crisis in the life of the Nation, they beg leave to congratulate you upon
your having begun the greatest act in American history; the emancipation of
three millions of blacks and of five millions of whites from the power of an
aristocratic class.
It is admitted upon all sides that the transfer of three
millions of Slaves, from the productive force of the Rebels to that of the
loyal States would instantly end the Rebellion; it follows that each
Slave so transferred will proportionately contribute to that end.
It is only a question of time when emancipation must take
place, and it is believed, that no time can occur, so safe from violence as
when the Slaves have the Strength of the Union to rally behind, and when a
large army of the Rebels can & ought to be thus withdrawn, from opposing
the laws to the more fitting work of keeping order around their own homes.
For these & other reasons the undersigned believe that Emancipation is the
weapon which, efficiently used can not only strike at the heart of the
Rebellion but lay the foundation for a true & permanent republic; a
consummation even more beneficent to the moral & material interests of the
people of the South, than to those of the North.
They therefore earnestly pray you to complete now your great
work, by taking every possible measure to carry into practical effect the
promise of your proclamation of 22d September, and especially by demanding
of every person in the Military Naval & civil service of your government to
obey strictly the regulations by which you will enforce your now settled policy.
They believe that by so doing you will place yourself among
the great benefactors of your country & of the human race, and that you
will live in future ages by the side of the Father of his Country – George
Washington.
Respectfully
Submitted
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J. M Forbes}
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Electors
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Gerry. W. Cochrane}
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SOURCE: Sarah Forbes Hughes, Letters and
Recollections of John Murray Forbes, Volume 1, p. 347-8; This letter can be
located amongst the Abraham
Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
