North Branch democrat. [volume] (Tunkhannock, Pa.) 1854-1867, 1863-06-17
Major General Fremont.


The friends of unconditional abolition, as
we learn from the report of The self appointed
New York committee to ascertain the
views of the President on the subject
of negro army, have seen the Pres
dent, and have received from him t he assuT-
ance that he is ready to give Gen Fremont
a Departme Mt, if ten thousand blacks cJuld
be raised to follow that distinguished leader.
The President stated that the policy of the
Government, so far as. he controlled it, was
fixed" 1t was that the Government
should avail II of any means to obtain the
aid of emancipated slaves in the South
in the present war" This, as we under
stand it,is the n cans of inducing them to join
ihe army, must be pressed into the servi ce
and that tteir military task, il they refuse to
volunteer, must be made compulsory,
The President then exhibed TO the COM
mittee, map showing the relative extent Of
slave population and whites in different re :
gions of the South, including that Of Vlcks-
burg, saying, My opinion is that the color,
ed population will have to take these places
and will have to hold them" The President
further stated that he has expl aimed the
matter to various officers OF high rank, but
always found that " on these occasions he had
run afoul of somebody's dignity" &" would
like any body who cam" said Mr. Lincoln, '' to
undertake the matter. believe General
Fremont peculiarly adopted to this special
work would like to have HIM do It,"
There is a great deal NOR. in this declara
ton of the President than at first sight
night strike the reader. In the first place.
the president confesses hat he has talked the
m,tter over with severel officers of high rank !;
bnt that he always "run afoul OF their dignity;
that they thought 1t Incompatible with the
honor of soldier to do that sort of work.
But Mr.. Lincoln thinks General Fremont pc
cuiidriy adapted to this special work, and
he wonId like him to do it," And as 1t is
particularly the region about Vcksburg to
which the President al!udeS, We are bound to
infer. that a. soon as General Grant hes NC.
eeeded in reducing that placelt is intended 10
embody it in a new Department, and to give
the command OF that Department i Gener
al Fremont. The Npgr, General would, no
doubt, in short time, Africanize it, and
make The people as happy and prosperous as
he made the adopted citizens OF Missouri,
who looked upon him az. another Wallensteln
that was 10 command them with or without
consent of the Emperor, during the Thirty
years: war. With large proportion Of the
adopted citizens on the upper Mississippi de-
voted TO him, and the negro cohorts on the
lower Mississippi Immediately under his con-
troll, General Fremont will be the next
Presidential Candidate with or without til e
consent Of the politicians Of he Empire State.
General Fremont, TO be sure, has not yet
won battle; but he occupies positions !"
which are invulnerable, and the President
thinks him particularly qualified for the spe
cial work which the d" dignity" of other Off
GERS of high rank refuses to undertake. In
the mean time, we are anxious to hear from
General Grant.-The Age.