The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1867-12-06
Testimony Of Gen. Grant.

create a sensation, especially among hon
est Radicals. GRANT swears that JOHN
SONS proclamation establishing provis-
ional Government in North Carolina was
precisely the same proclamation which was
drawn up and approved by Mr. LINCOLN $
cabinet before LINCOLN S assassination, and
thct he, General GRANT, was present when
the paper was submitted, and expressed
no dissent to it. As this North Carolina
proclamation embraces the sum and sub
stance of JoHNsoN's plan of reconstruction
it is thus shown that JoHNsoN's plan was
no other than the plan of LINCOLN and
GRANT. Here IS GRANT S testimony:
| s'I have seen the President very fre-
quently in reference to the condition OF at
fairs in the rebel States. When | was ask
ed to be at a cabinet meeting it was because
some question was up on which, as gener-
| al OF the army. | was Interested. l am
/ not aware of interviews with the President
on amnesty. [ hads occasionally recon-
mended person for amnesty. L thought
myself, at that time, that there was no
reason because that person had risen TO
the rank Of general that be should be ex-
cluded from amnesty any more than he
who failed to reach that rank, and |
spoke on that point | did not reason so
much for the $4,000 clause. These are
tie two only points that remember to have
spoken Of at that time. [ afterwards,
however, told him that | thought he was
much nearer right on the $50, 700 clause
than was. was present when the proc
iamation was read in the cabinet, but my
views were not asked. | never gave any
opinion to the President that it would be
better at that time to issue proclamation
of general amnesty.
Question Did you ever give your op
inion to The president that his proclamation
interfered with the situation between your
self and Gen. Lee ?' aai ~
Answer-'No, sir | frequently bad to
intercede for Gen. Lee and other paroled
officers, on the ground that their parole, so
long as they obcyed the laws OF the United
States, protected them from arrest, and the
| President at that time, occupied exactly
the same grounds, viz That they should
be tried and punished. He wanted to know
when the time would come that they should
be punished I told him not so long as they
obeycd the laws and complied with the
| stipulation. That was the ground |
took.
Question -"Did you net also insist that
that applied as we'll to the common sol
| di.r?"
Ans wcr-"Of course it applied to every
one who took the Parole, hut that matter
was not converscd about. III the case OF
some Of the leaders he claimed that in the
surrender of their armies and arms they had
done what they could not have been com
PEELED to- do, as portion Of them could have
escaped, but they surrendered in consider
enIpt from trial. AS long Us they conform
ed to the obligations they had taken they
were entitled to that"
Question: You look on that in the
nature Of a parole, and held that they
could only be tried when they violated that
parole?'
Answer. Yes, that was the view l took
of the question
Question" THAT is your view still p
| Answer-"Y es sir, undoubtedly
Qucstien-"D Did you understand that to
apply to Gen Lee p
| Answer-"C Certainly"
Question-"i'hat was the understanding
Of this arrangement which you made with
| Gen. Lee p
| Answer That was my understanding
ofan arrangement which gave voluntali-
| ~. Gen. Lee 5 army was the first 10 sur
| render, and believe that with such terms
| all the rebel armies would surrender. and
| that we would thus avoid bushwhacking
and continuation Of the war in way that
we would make very little progress, with
having no organized armies to meet.
Question-"You consider that the like
| terms were given b. Gen. Sherman to the
armies which surrendered to tim?'
Answer-''Yes, sir, and to all the armies
that surrendered after that"
Question-"Y held that so long as
they kept their parole Of honor and ohcyed
the laws they were not subject to be tried
by court p
Answer-'That was my opinion | will
state here that am not quite certain
whether | am being tried, pr who is being
| tried by the question asked ?
Mr.. Eldridge-'I am not trying any
body. am inquirng as to the Presidents
proclamation, and as to the views he enter
tanned. Did you give these views to the
President p
Gen Grant-'I have stated these views
to the President frequently, and, as | have
said. he disagreed with me in these views.
He insisted on it that the leaders must be
punished, and wanted to know when the
time would come that these persons would
be tried. | told him when they violated
their parole y
Question -''Did you consider that it APP
piled to Jeff Davis p
Answer-"No, sir lie did not take any
parole.
Questionable did not surrender?'
Answer-"No, sir 1t applied to no per-
son who was captured, only to those who
were paroled,'
Question-'Di1 the President insist that
Gen. Lee should lie tried for treason %
Answer-"He contended for it
Question And you claimed that the
parole which Gen. Lee had given would be
violated in such trial p
Answer-"I did, | insisted on it that
Gen. Lee would not have surrendered his
army and given up all its arms if he sup
posed that after surrender he wa, going TO
be tried for treason and hanged | thought
we got very good equivalent for the lives
OF few leaders in getting all theirar
and getting themselves under control,
bound by their oath to obey the laws. That
was the consideration which insisted upon