Memo. Soon after hostilities commenced, in the spring
or summer of 1861, a letter from William D. Porter to his son was published.
The son had joined the Rebels, and so informed his father, who wrote him he
thought he had committed a mistake. But, having taken this step, he advised him
to adhere and do his duty. At that time W. D. P. was on duty in the Pacific. I
immediately detached and ordered him home. He reported to me in great distress;
disavowed the letter; said it was a forgery, that his son and himself were on
bad terms and the letter had been written and published to injure him. There
was, he informed me, much disagreement in the family; his son had been
alienated from him, and, like David, sympathized with the Secessionists, while
he (W.) had taken the opposite course. David, he remarked, was the intimate
friend of Jefferson Davis and the Rebel conspirators, and he had expected that
he would act with them, and he had no doubt that David's course had injured
him; confounding him with D., he was made accountable for D.'s acts. David said
he had no doubt that Bill wrote the letter, and I was of that opinion.1
William had, not without reason, the reputation of being very untruthful, — a
failing of the Porters, for David was not always reliable on unimportant
matters, but amplified and colored transactions, where he was personally
interested especially, but he had not the bad reputation of William. I did not
always consider David to be depended upon if he had an end to attain, and he
had no hesitation in trampling down a brother officer if it would benefit
himself. He had less heart than William.
Had a conversation with the President in relation to W. D.
Porter, who was the efficient officer that attacked and destroyed the Rebel
armored ram Arkansas. Porter is a bold, brave man, but reckless in many
respects, and unpopular, perhaps not without reason, in the service. He has
been earnest and vigorous on the Mississippi, and made himself. The Advisory
Board under the late law omitted to recommend him for promotion. It was one of
the few omissions that I regretted, for whatever the infirmities of the man I
recognize his merits as an officer. His courage in destroying the Arkansas was
manifest. Both the flag officers were delinquent in the matter of that vessel
at Vicksburg, and I so wrote each of them. Admiral Farragut cannot conceal his
joy that she is destroyed, but is not ready to do full justice to Porter.
I canvassed the whole question, — the law, the proceedings,
the difficulties, the man, the officer, the responsibility of promoting him and
of my advising it, — yet I felt it a duty, if service rendered in battle and
under fire were to govern. The President conversed with me most fully, and
said, “I am so satisfied that you are right generally, and in this case
particularly, that I say to you, Go ahead, give Porter as you propose a
Commodore's appointment, and I will stand by you, come what may.”
Sent a letter of reproof to Colonel Harris and also one to
Lieutenant-Colonel Reynolds of the Marine Corps, between whom there is a bitter
feud. Almost all the elder officers are at loggerheads and ought to be retired.
Reynolds had been tried by court martial on charges preferred by Harris, and
acquitted, though by confessions made to me personally guilty. But a majority
of the anti-Harris faction constituted the court, and partisanship, not merit,
governed the decision. I refused to approve the finding. In his turn, Reynolds
brought charges against Harris, and of such a character as to implicate others.
To have gone forward would have been to plunge into a series of courts martial
for a year to come.
McClellan's forces have left the banks of James River
several days since. Their exodus I think was not anticipated at Richmond, nor
believed until after all had left and crossed the Chickahominy. We are
beginning to hear of the arrival of the advance guard at Acquia Creek,
Alexandria, and Fredericksburg. In the mean time Pope is being heavily pressed
at Culpeper by Stonewall Jackson and the whole accumulated forces from
Richmond, which has compelled him to fall back on the left bank of the Rapidan,
his policy being to keep the enemy in check until McClellan's forces can unite
with him.
_______________
1 I some years later, and after William's death,
learned from Admiral Farragut and Mrs. Farragut that they knew the letter to be
a forgery and that it was got up for mischievous purposes. — G. W.
SOURCE: Gideon Welles, Diary of Gideon Welles,
Secretary of the Navy Under Lincoln and Johnson, Vol. 1: 1861 – March 30, 1864,
p. 87-9
