Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1864-05-06
Letter from President Lincoln

The Frankfort kentucky Common
,cealh publishes a correspondence between
Governor Bramlette and Colonel Hodges,
by Mr.. Lincoln:
"ExEcurIvE MANSION, Washington
April L.
" 4. G. Hodges. Esq, FraHhJort.:
"My Dear Sir: You ask me to put in
writing the substance of what | verbally
said, the other day, III your presence, to
! Governor Bramlctte and Senator Dixon.
1t was about as follows:
Il am naturally nti-slavcry. If slavery
is not wrong. nothing is wrong. | cannot
remember when | did not so think and
feel. And yet have never understood
that the Presidency conferred upon me an
unrestricted right to act officially upon this
Judgment and feeling. 1t was i'll the oath
| took that | would, TO the best Of my
ability. preserve, protect and defend the
constitution of the United States. could
not take the Office without taking the oath.
Nor was it my view that might take an
oath to get power and break the oath in
using the power. understood, too. that
in ordinary civil administration. this oath
even forbade me to practically indulge my
primary, abstract Judgment OH the moral
question of slavery. l had publicly declar
ed this many times aud in many WAYS
and aver that, to this day, have done
no official act in mere Difference to my alb
stract Judgment and feeling on slavery.
IL did understand however. that my
oath to preserve the constitution to the
best of my ability, imposed upon me the
duty of preserving. by every indispensable
means, that government, that nation. of
which that constitution was the organic
law. Was it possible to lose the nation,
and yet preserve the constitution
"By general law, life and limb must be
protected yet often a limb must be am
putatcd to save life; but life is never
wisely given to save limb. l feel that
measures, otherwise unconstitutional, might
become lawful by becoming indispensable
to the preservation of the constitution,
through the preservation of the
nation. Right or wrong, l assumed this
ground, and now avow it. l could not feel
that to the best of my ability, had even
tried to preserve the constitution, if to save
slavery, or any minor matter, l should
permit the wreck of government, country
and constitution, altogether. When early
in the war General Fremont attempted
military emancipation, forbade it, because
did not then think it an indispensable ne
cessitv When, a little later, General
Cameron, then Secretary of War, suggested
the arming of the blacks, l objected, be-
cause did not yet think it an indispensa-
BILE necessity, When, still later, General
Hunter attempted military emancipation,
again forbade it, because l did not vet
think the indispensable necessity had come
''Whcn, in March, and May, and July,
1862, made earnest and successive appeal.
to the border States to favor compensated
emancipation, l believed the indispensable
necessity for military emancipation and
arming the blacks would come, unless
averted by that measure. They declined
the proposition, and l was, in my best
Judgment, driven to the alternative of either
serrendering the Union, and, with it, the
constitutions or of laying strong hands
upon the colored element. l chose the
latter. In choosing it hoped for greater
gain than loss; but of this l was not
entirely confident. More than a year of
trial now shows no loss by it, in our foreign
relations none in our home popular sen
none in our white military force
no loss by it, anyhow or anywhere. On
the contrary, it shows gain of quite a
hundred and thirty thousand soldiers, sea-
men and laborers. These are palpable
facts about which, as facts, there can be
no cavilling. We have the men, and we
could not have had them without the
measure.
"And now, let any Union man who
complains Of the measure, test himself
by writing down in one line that he is for
subduing the rebellion by force of arms,
and i'll the next that he is for taking these
hundred and thirty thousand men from the
Union side and placing them where they
would be but for the measure he condemns
If he cannot face his cause so stated, it is
only because he cannot face the truth.
al add word which was not in the
verbal conversation. In telling this tale,
| attempt no compliment to my own sag
acity. | claim not to have controlled
events, but confess plainly that events
have controlled me. Now, at the end of
three years struggle, the nations condition
is not what either party or any man devils
ed or expected. God alone eau claim it
Whittier it is tending seems plain. If God
now wills the removal of Il great wrong
and wills also that we of the North, as
well as you of the South, shall pay fairly
for our completely in that wrong, impartial
history will find therein new cause to attest,
and revere the justice and goodness of
God. Yours, truly, A. LINCOLN"
Some tanners were engaged last week in
blowing and getting ready for planting. Ten
Il. a.