The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1863-09-03
BY TELEGRAPH.
ToPHE
Portland Daily Press.


f0tr1Ot1c Letter from fTesluent Lincoln
New YORK, Sept 2.
The following is President Lincoln's letter:
EXECUTIVE MANSION,
Washington, August 3lst, 1863
Hon James c. Coaktin
Ny Dear Sir:-Your letter inviting me to
attend mass meeting OF unconditional Union
men, to be held at the capital of Illinois on the
Sd day OF September, has been received. 1t
would be very agreeable to me thus to meet
my old friends al my own home, but cannot
just now be absent from this city so long as
visit there would require. The meeting is to
be OF all those who maintain unconditional de-
votion TO the Union; and am sure that my
old political friends will thank me for tender
ing, as do, the nations gratitude to those 9TH
er noble men whom no pariizan malice or par
tizan hope can make false to the nations life.
There are those who are dissatisfied with me.
To such would say, you desire peace, and
! you blame me that We do not have it. But
how can We attain it.? There are but three
conceivable ways: First, to suppress the re-
bellion by force of arms. This l am trying to
do. Are you for it? Ii you are, so far we
are agreed. Ii you are not for it, second
way is to give up the Union. am against
this. If you are, you should say SO plaiply.-
| Ii you are not for force, nor yet for dissolution,
there only remains some Imaginable compro-
mise. l do not believe that any compromise en-
bracing the maintenance OF the Union is now
| possible. All that l learn leads to directly
| opposite belief. The strength of the rebellion
| is in its miitary-its army That army domi-
mates all the country and all the people within
its range. Any offer Of terms made by any
man or men within that range in opposition TO
that army is simply nothing for the present,
| because such man or men have no power what
ever to enforce their side Of compromise if
one were made with them. To Illustrate: sup
pose refugees from the South and peace men
OF the North get together in convention and
frame and proclaim compromise embracing a
restoration of the Union; in what way can that
compromise be used to keep Gen. Lees army
out OF Pennsylvania? Gen. Meade's army
can keep Lees army out of Pennsylvania and
think can ultimately drive it out of exist
ence, but no paper compromise, to which the
controllers OF Gen. Lees army are not agreed,
can al all affect that army. In an effort at
such compromise we wond waste time, which
the enemy would improve to our disadvantage
and that would be all. A compromise, to be
effectual, must be made either with those who
control the rebel army or with the people first
liberated from the domination of that army by
the successes of our army. Now allow me to
assure you that no word or intimation from
the rebel army or from, any OF the men con-
trolling 1t, IN relation to any peace compro-
mise, has ever come to my knowledge or be-
lief. All charges and intimations to the con-
trary are deceptive and groundless, and /
promise you that If any such proposition shall
hereafter come, 1t shall not be rejected and
kept secret from you.
freely acknowledge myself to be the SER
want of the people according TO the bond of
service in the United States Constitution,
and that as such am responsible to theuI.
But, to be plain, you are dissatisfied with
me about the negro. Quite likely there is a
difference of opinion between you and myself
on the subject. l certainly wish that all
men were free, while you, l suppose, do not.
Yet, have neither adopted nor proposed any
measure which is not consistent, with even
your view, provided you are for the Union. l
suggested compensated emancipation,to which
you replied that you did not wish to be taxed to
buy negroes but had not asked you to be tax
ed to buy negroes, except in such way AS to
save you from greater taxation, to save the I'm
ion exclusively by othermeans. You dislike the
emancipation proclamation, and perhaps would
have it retracted. You say it is unconstitu-
tional. think differently. l think the Con-
stitution invests the Commander-in-C Chief with
law of war in times of war. The most that
can be said OF so much, is that slaves are
property. Is there--has there ever been any
question that, by law of war, property both of
enemies or friends, may be taken when riee.-
ed, and is it not needed whenever taking it
helps us and hurts the enemy? Armies, the
world over, destroy the enemies property,
when they cannot use it, and even destroy
their own to keep it from the enemy. Civil
lied belligerents do all in their power to help
themselves or hurt the enemy, except a few
things, regarded as barbarous or cruel.
Among the exceptions, are the massacre of
yanqushed foes and non-combatanis, male
and female. But the proclamation law is val
i'd or not valid.s Ii it is not valid, it needs no
retraction if it is valid, it cannot be retracted
tt.,.. q h. a Ill
Some OF you profess to think that its retraction
would operate fayorably for the Union. Why
better after the retraction than before the is
sue? There was more than year and half
OF trial to suppress the rebellion before the
proclamation was issued, the last one hundred
days Of which passed under an explicit notice
that it was coming unless arrested by those in
revolt returning to their allegiance The war
has certainly progressed as favorably for us
since the issue Of the proclamation as before.
/ know, as fully as one can know the opinion
OF others, that some Of the commanders Of
our armies in the field who have given us our
most important victories, believed the emsnci-
patton policy and the aid of colored troops,
constituted the heaviest blows yet dealt to the
rebellion, and that at least one of those i'm
portant successes could not have been achiev-
ed when it was but for the aid of black sol
diers. Among the commanders holding these
views, are some who have never had any Atm
ity with what is called aboltionism, or with
the Republican party politics, but who hold
them purely as military opinions. submit
their opinions as being entitled TO some weight
against the objections often urged that eman-
cipation and arming the blacks are unwise as
military measures, and were not adopted as
such in good faith. You say you will not OBJ
ject to free negroes. Some of them seem to
be willing to fight for you, bnt no NATTER
Fight you then exclusively to save the Union?
i issued the proclamation on purpose TO aid
you on in saving tho Union.
Whenever you shall have conquered all re-
sistance to the Union, If / shall urge you to
continue fighting, it will be an apt time then
for you TO declare that you will not fight 10
free negroes. thought that in your struggle
to save the Union, to whatever extent the ne
groes should cease helping the enemy, to that
extent 1t weakened the enemy in his resistance
to you. Do you think differently? thought
that whatever negroes can be got to do as sol
ders leaves just SO much less for white SOL
ders to do in saving the Union. Does il APP
pear otherwise to you? But negroes, like
other people, act upon motives. Why should
they do anything for us il we will do nothing
for them? If they stake their lives for us, they
must be prompted by the strongest motives
even the promise of freedom; and the promise
being made must be kept.
The signs look better. The Father of Wa
tiers again goes uuyexed to the eea Thanks