Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1868-02-12
have the honor to be, sir, with great
-asnact vaur most obedient servant.

| have the honor TO be, sir, with great
respect. your most obedient servant.
o. III. BROWNING.
DEPARTAIENr OF STATE, " AsHINGToN,
Feb. 6. ls6S-SIR: The meeting TO which
YOU refer in your letter was a regular Cab
met meeting, and while the members were
assembling and before the President had
entered the Council Chamber, Gen. Grant
ON coming in. was invited as a member of
the Cabinet, but refused the invitation and
replied by inquiring whether there was a
change IN the War Department. Afler The
President had taken his seat business went
on in the usual way OF hearing matters,
when the time came fora Secretary fWar,
Gen. Grant said he was not there rs SecTe-
tarv of War, bnt upon the Presidents in
vitaiion; be had retired from the War
| Department 4 slight difference then APP
peared ahout Che supposed invitation, When
| Gen. Griut said hat ihe officer who had
| borne his letter iotbe President announcing
his retirement from ahe War Department,
| had told him the President desired 10 see
| him at the Cabinet, to which the President
answered Gen. Grants communication
and delivered il 10 him. The President
simply replied that he supposed Grant
would be very soon at the Cabinet meet
ing. | regarded the conversation thus
| begun as incidental II went on very in
| formally, and consisted Of statement on
| your part OF your views in regard 10 your
understanding therupoD, by which Gen.
| Grant had asserted to hold the War De-
partment al itefim, and of his replies By
way Of answer aud explanation; it was res
| pectful and courteous on both sides. During
| this conversation, all form as TO details
| could have been presented by verbal re
| port, and so far as know no such report
| was made at the time. | can give only the
| general effect Of the conversation. Certainly
| yon stated that although you had reported
resolutions for Mr.. Stanton's suspension
| to the Senate. You nevertheless held he
| wonld not be entitled to resume the office
of Secretary of War, even if the Senate
should disspprove his suspension, and you
had proposed to have the question tested by
judicial processto be applied to some person
| whoshould be incumbent OF the department
| under your designation az Secretary War
| al interim in place of Mr.. Stanton. You
contended that il was well understood be-
tween yourself and Gen. Grant, and that
when he entered the department as Sec
rotary al interim, he expressed his concur
renee in the belief of the question which
! Mr.. Stanton's restoration would be ques-
ton for the courts. In a subsequent
conversation with the General you had
| adveried to an UNDERSTANDING thus had,
and Gen. Grant expressed his concurrence
In that same conversation which haG been
previously held, General Grant said he
still adhered TO the same construction of
the law, but il he should change an opin-
ion he would give reasonable notice of
it, as you could in any Gaze be placed in
the same position in regard to the War
| Department that you were while General
| Grant held it. / did not understand him al
denying nor as explicitly admitting these
statements in form, and the full extent to
which Won made them his admission Of
them rather indirect and circumstantial,
| though | did not understand ii to be an
| evasiye one. He said, reasoning from
| what occurred in the case of the police in
| Maryland, which he regarded as a parallel
over it, he asof the opinion, and so assured
| you that it would be his right and duty,
under your Instructions to hold the War
| Office until the Senate should disapprove
Mr.. Stanton's suspension and the ques-
| ton should be decided by thecourts, and that
| he remained until very recently under that
opinion, and on the Saturday before the Cab
| met meeting. The conversation was held
between yourself and him, in which the
| subject was generally discussed. General
| Grants statement was in that conversation,
| he had stated TO you the legal difficulties
| which might arise, involving fine and
| imprisonment under the civil tenure bill,
1 / L I a..
those penalties. You replied to this re-
mark, that you regarded the civil tenure
| bill as unconstitutional, and did
not think its penalties were TO be
feared, or that you would voluntarily
assume them. You insisted that General
| Grant should either retain the office until
relieved by yourself, according to whatyou
| claimed to be a final understanding be
| tween yourself or him, or by a reasonable
| change of purpose on his part to put you
| in the same, or as near the situation which
/ you would be in if he adhered to your
| claims Gen. Grant finally said in that
| Saturdays conversation that you under
stood his views and his proceedings there
| after would be consistent with what had
| been so understood. Gen. Grant did not
| controYert, nor can | say he admitted his
| last statement; certainly Gen. Grant did
| not at the time in the Cabinet meeting
insist he had in the Saturdays converse
/ ton either distinctly or finally advise v0n
l of his determination to retire from the
| charge of the War Department, otherwise,
| that under your subsequent direction he
| acquesced in your statement. Saturday.
| conversation ended with the expectation
| that there would be a subsequent confer
] renee on the subject, which he, as well "a
| Yourself knew could reasonably take place
| on Monday. You then alluded to the
| fact that General Grant would call
upon you, as you expected from that
conversation. Gen. Grant admitted it was
his expectation or purpose to call upon
you on MoEdny. Gen. Grant assigned a
reason for the omission. He said be was
in conference with Gen. Sherman, and that
there were many little matters to be at
tended to. He had conversed upon the
matter of the incumbency Of the War
! Office with Gen. Sherman, and expected
| Gen. Sherman would call on Monday. Nv
own mind suggested further explanations,
| but ! do not remember whether ii was
mentioned or not; namely, it was rot sup
posed by Gen. Grant on Monday that the
Senate would decide the question so soon, "a
he anticipated further explanation between
Yourself and him. Ii DELAYED beyond that
day, Gen. Grant would make another ex-
PLANTATION. He was engaged on Sunday
with Gen. Sherman, and think also on
Monday, in regard to the War Department.
with the hope though he did not say in
effect, TO procure an amicsble settlement Of
the affair Of. Stanton, aud still hoped it
would be brought about. | have the honor
to be, with great respect, your obedient
servant, ". Ii. SEWARD.
To the President