Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1868-02-06
THE JOHNSON AND GRANT CORREs.
RANnRNCE

The following letter, which We failed to
receive by telegraph last night. concludes
the correspondence between President
johnson and Gen. Grant:
HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE UNITED
STATES, WASHINGTON, ID. c., Feb. Sd,
186S.-His Ebeeilency ANDREW johnson,
President of the United SidfeS--SIR have
the honor to acknOw ledge the receipt OF
your communication of the 3lst ult., in
answer to mine Of the 18th nit. After
careful reading and comparison of the ar
ticIe with the article over the initials j. b.
S. in the New York World Of the 9th ult,
purporting to be based upon your state
ment and that Of the members of the Cabi-
net therein named, | find it only TO be but
a reiteration, only somewhat more in de-
tail, of the many and gross misrepresenta-
tions contained in that article, and which
my statement Of facts set forth in my letter
Of the Oath ult. was intended TO correct,
and herein / re-assert the correctness of
my statements in that letter, anything 10
yours in reply to the contrary notwith-
standing.
/ confess nv surprise that the Cabinet
officers referred to should so grossly mis-
apprehend the facts concerning the admis-
sion alleged to have been made by me at
the Cabinet meeting on the 18th ult., as to
suffer their names TO be made the basis Of
the charges in the newspaper article re-
ferred TO, or agree to the accuracy, az you
affirm they do, of your account of what oc-
Cured at that meeting. You know we
parted on the 18th ult. without any promise
on my part, expressed or implied, to the
effect that would hold on TO the office of
Secretary of War od interim, against the
action OF the Senate or declining TO do so,
would surrender it to you before such &C
ton was had, or that / would see you
again at any fixed time on the subject.
The performance Of the promises al
| legged to have been made by me would have
involved resistance of the law and an in
consistency with the whole history of my
connection with the suspension of Mr..
Stanton. From our conversation and my
written protest of August LIST, 1857, against
the removal of Mr. Stanton, you mnst have
known that my greatest objection to his re-
| moval was the fear that some one would be
| appointed in his stead who would, by their
| opposition TO the laws relating TO the res
| toration of the Southern States to their
proper relations to the government, embar-
rass the army in the performance of Che
duties especially imposed upon it by the
| laws, and that it was 10 prevent such an
| appointment that | accepted the appoint:
ment of Secretary of War ad interim, and
I not for the purpose of enabling you to get
| rid of Mr.. Stanton by Withholding from
| him in opposition to the law, or not doing
| 80 myself, surrender to the one who, as the
/ statement and assumptions in your COM
| munication plainly indicate, was sought !;
and it was to avoid this danger, as we'll as
to relieve You from the personal emhar-
rassment in which Mr.. StantOn's reinstate-
ment would place yon, that urged the ap-
| pointment of Gov. Cox, believing IL wonld
be agreeable to yon and also TO Mr.. Stan
| ton.
Satisfied as | was that it was The good Of
the country and not the Office the latter
/ desired, on the 18th ult., in the presence of
| General Sherman, stated to you thought
| Mr.. Stanton &ould resign but did not say L
would advise him to do 30. On the 18th |
| did agree with General Sherman to go and
| advise him to that course, and on the 18th
| / had an interview alone with Mr.. Stanton
/ which led me to the conclusion that any
| advice would be useless, and 20 informed
| General Sherman. Before l consented to
advise Mr.. Stanton to resign | understood
| from him, in conversation on the subject
| Immediately after his reinstatement, it was
his opinion that the act of Congress entitled
an act temporarily to supply vacancies in
the Executive Department in certain cases,
approved Feb. 20, 1869, was repealed by
subsequent legislation, which materially
influenced my action.
Previous to this time l had no doubt
that the law of 1863 was still in force, and,
Notwithstanding my action, an examine.
| ton of the laws leaves a question ia my
| mind whether it is or is not repealed.
| This being the case, could not now adj
| wise his resignation, lest the same danger
| apprehended on the first removal might
| follow. The course you would have it
understood | agreed to pursue was ia yio-
lation of law and orders from you, while
| the course did pursue, and which, never
doubted you fully understood, was in ac-l
cordance with law, and not in di9obedience-
to any orders Of my superior.
And now, Mr.. President, when nay honor
az a soldier, and integrity as a man has been
80 violently assailed, pardon me for saying
| that ] can but regard this whole matter,
| from beginning TO end, as an attempt to.
/ involve me in the resistance of the law,
for which you hesitated to assume the re-
sponsibility, in order thus to destroy my
| character before the country. | ara ira
| measure confirmed in this conclusion by
| your recent orders, directing me to disobey
orders from the Secretary Of War, my su-
perior and your subordinate. Without
having countermanded his authority, am
to disobey him. With the assurance, Mr..
President that nothing less than vindica-
ton of my personal honor and character
could have induced this correspondence on
my part, ] have the honor to be, very
respectfully, your obedient servant,
US. GRANT, General.