Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1865-1869, 1865-06-03
JOHNSTON'S SURRENDER.
GENERAL SHERNIAN'S STATE.
MENT OF THE NEGOT1A.
TION.

War;" in Washington, on the 22d ult.,, and
in response to question of the Chairman,
made the following statement of his negotia-
ton with General Johnston:
met General Johnston in person al a
house five miles from Durham Station, un.
der a flag of truce. After a few preliminary
remarks he said to me, since Lee had sur
rendered his army at Appomattox Court
House, of which he had just been advised,
he looked upon further opposition by him a.
the greatest possible of crimes that te
wanted to know whether could make HIM
any general concessions anything by which
he could maintain his hold aud control of his
army, and prevent its scattering; anything
to satisfy the great yearning of their leOple;
if so, he thought he could arrange terms
satisfactory to both parties. He wan ed to
embrace the condition and fate OF all the
armies of the Southern Confederacy, to the
Rio Grande, TO make one job of it, as he
termed it.
/ asked him what his powers were-wheth-
err he could command and control the tate Of
all the armies to the Rio Grande. He an
swered that he thought he could obtain the
power, but he did not possesses it that mo-
ment; he did not know where Mr.. Davis was,
but he tn, ught il could give him the time
he could find Mr.. Breckenridge, whose or
ders would be obeyed everywhere, and he
could pledge to me his personal faith that
whatever he undertook TO do would be done.
had had frequent correspondence with
the late President of the United States, with
the Secretary of War, with Gen. Halleek
and with Gen. Grant, and the general inn
preston left upon my mind, that if a settle
ment could be made, consistent with the
Constitution of the United States, the laws
of Congress and the proclamation of the
President, they would not only be willing,
but pleased TO terminate the war by one sim
gle stroke of the pen.
/ needed time TO finish the railroad from
the Neuse bridge up TO Raleigh, and thought
l could put in four or five days of good time
in making repairs to my road, even if l had
TO send propositions TO Washington. l
therefore consented to delay "a hours, to enc
able Gen. Johnston to procure what would
satisfy me as 10 his authority and ability as
military man, to do what he undertook to
do; l therefore consented to meet him the
next day, the l7th, at II noon, at the same
place.
We did meet again after general inter-
change of courtesies, he remaI ked that he
was then prepared to satisfy me that he
could fulfill the terms Of our conversation Of
the DAY before. He then asked me what |
was willing 10 do; l told him, in the first
place, could not deal with anybody except
men recognized by Us as "belligerents," be-
cause no military man could go beyond that
fact. The Attorney General has since so
decided, and any man of common sense so
understood it before; there was no difference,
upon that point, as to the men and officers
accompanying the Confederate armies. /
told him that the President Of the United
States, by published proclamation, had en-
abled every man in the Southern Confederate
Army, of the rank of Colonel and under, &c
procure and obtain amnesty, by simply tat
king the oath OF allegiance to the United
States, and agreeing TO 60 to his home and
live in peace. The terms of General Grant
to General Lee extended the same principles
to the officers, OF the rank of Brigadier
General and upward, including the highes;
officer in the Confederate Army, viz: Gene-
raj Lee, the Commander-iD-Chief. l was
therefore willing 10 proceed with him upon
the same principles.
Then q conversation arose as to what form
of government they were to have in the
SOUTH Were the States there TO be dis
severed and were the people to be denied
representation in CongressH Were the peo-
pie there to be, in the common language of
the people of the South-slaves to the peO-
pie of the Northi OF course, 1 said, ''No;
we desire that you shall regain your position
as citizens of the United States, free and
equal to us in all respects, and wish repre-
sentation upon the condition of submission
to the lawful authority of the United States
as defined by the Constitution, the United
States Courts, and tho authorities of the
United States supported by those courts."-
de then remarked to me that Gen. Breckin.
ridge, a Major General in the Confederate
army, was near by, and, if l had no o6jec-
ton, he would like to have him present /
called his attention to the fact, that mad on
the day before, explained to him that any
negotiations between Us must be confined u
belligerents. He replied that he understood
tat pei iectly. But" said he, "Breckin
ridge, whom you do not know, save by puLc
rumor, as Secretary of War, is, in FAC.
Major General; give you my word for that.
Have you any objec ion to his being prese,.
as a Major General p l replied, al L@ye
no objection to any military officer You dc.
sire being present as part of your personal
staff" l, myself, had my own officers near
me at call.
Breckenridge came a stranger to me,
whom had never spoken to in nv lie, aud
ne Joined in the conversation; while that
conversation was going on a courier arrived
and handed to General Johnston package
Of papers; he and Breckenridge sat down
aud looked over them tor some t..ne AID put
them away in their pockets; what they were
l knew not, but one OF them was slip of
paper, written, as General Johnston told me,
by Mr.. Reagan, Postmaster General of the
Southern Coniederacy; they seemed to talk
bout it soto Uoce, and finally handed it to
me; ! glanced over it; it was preceded by a
preamble and closed with a few general
terms | rejected it at once.
We then discussed matters talked about
slavery, talked about everything. There
was a universal assent that slavery was as
dead as anything could be ; that it was one
of the issues OF the war long since deter
mined; AM even General Johnston laughed
az the folly of the Confederate Government
in raising negro soldiers, whereby they gave
us all the points of the case. told them
that slavery had been treated by us as a
dead institution, first by one class from the
imitation Of the war, and then from the date
of the Emancipation Proclamation of Presi-
dent Lincoln, and finally by the assent Of all
parties. As TO reconstruction, | told
them / did not know what the views Of
| toe Administration were. Mr.. Lincoln, up
to that time, in letters and by kilograms TO
me, encouraged me by all the words which
cuuid be used in general terms to believe,
not only in his willingness, but in his desire
that | should make terms with civil authori-
ties, Governors and Legislatures, even as far
back as 1868. 1t then occurred to me that
might write off some general propositions,
meaning little, or meaning much, accoi ding
TO the construction OF parties-what Won d
term "glittering generalities"-and send
them to Washington, which l could do in
four days. That would enable the new Presi-
I'll in rnnlirrr in, Tho