The New Orleans crescent., 1868-02-15
THE PRESIDENT TO GENERAL GRANT.

ance with the resolution ADOPTED yesterday:
THE PRESIDENT TO GENERAL GRANT.
EXECUTIVE MANSION, Feb. 10, 1868.
GeDerdL-The extraordinary character of your
letter Of the Sd instant would seem TO preclude
any reply OF my part; but the manner in which
publicity has been given to the correspondence of
which that letter forms part, and the grave ques
tions which are involved, induce me to take this
method of giving, as proper sequel TO the com
munications which have passed between US, the
statements of the five members of the cabinet
who were present on the occasion of our conyer-
sation on the 14th ut. Copies of the letters which
they have addressed to me upon the subject are
accordingly herewith inclOsed.
You speak of my letter Of the lst ult as a
reiteTation Of the many and gross misreDresenta.
tiOns contained in certain newspaper articles"
aud reassert the correctness of the statements
contained in your communication OF the 18th
ult., adding and here | give your own words
"anyt thing Of yours in reply 10 1t 10 the con-
traTy Notwithstanding" When controversy
upon matters Of fact reaches the point to which
this has been brought, further assertion denial
bstween the immediate parties should cease,
especially when upon either side it loses the char
scteT OF fespeUtfu discussion, which is required
| by the relation in which the parties stand to
each other and degenerates IN tone and temper.
| In such case, if there is notbinS 90 rely anon
but the opposing statsa'ents, conclusions must ne
| dawn from those statements alone, and from
whatever intrinsic probabilities they afford in IA
yor Of or against either Of the parties.
should not shrink from this controversy. But,
Nt
were five cabinet officers present at the conversa-
tCn, the details of which, in my letter of the 2Sth
/ ult, you allow yourself to say contains many and
| gross misIepresentaiions. These gentlemen heard
| hat conversation, and have read my statement.
! They speak for themselves, and leave the proof
! vi VI a word of comment.
! deem il proper, before concluding this CON-
municatiOn, to notice some of the statements con.
ialued in your letter. You say that perform.
suce Of the promises alleged 70 have been made
| by you TO the president 4" would have involved
| resistance TO law, aud an inconsistency with the
! whole history of my connection with the suspen-
| sion of Mr.. Stanton
! You then state that you had fears that the
! president would, on the removal of Mr.. Stanton,
| appoint some one in his place who would embar
Tsss the army in carrying out the reconstruction
acts, and add: 1t was 10 prevent such an ap-
| pOintment | accepted the office Of secretary of
| war dd interim, and not for the purpose Of en-
abling you to get rid of Mr.. Stanton, by my with.
holding it from HIM in opposition to the law, or,
| not doing so myself surrendering it to one who
| would ss the statements and assumptions in your
! communication p.ainy Indicate was sought"
| First Of all, you here admit that from the very
| beginning of what you term the whole history of
your connection with Mr. StantOns suspension
| you intended TO circumvent the president 1t
was TO carry out that intent that you accepted the
appointment this was in your mind at the time
| Of your acceptance. Ii was not then in obedience
| to the order of yO1r superior, az has heretofore
| been supposed, that you assumed the duties of
| the Office. You knew it was the presidents pur-
pose TO prevent Mr.. Stanton from Tesuming the
! Office Of secretary Of war, and you intended to
defeat that purpose. You accepted the Office,
! not in the interest of the president, but Of Mr.
Stanton. If this purpose, so entertained by you,
had been confined to yourself; if, when accept
ing the Office you had done SO with mental
reservation to Illustrate the president, it would
have been a deception. 10 the ethics of some
persons each course is allowable but you can.
not stand even upon that questionable ground.
The history of your connection with this trans.
orfir u-ffft hry ra'a s.
different predicament, aud shows that yOn not
only concealed your design from the president,
but induced him to suppose that you would
carry out his purpose 70 keep Stanton out of
Ofice by retaining it yourself after attempted
restoration by the Senate so as to require Mr.
stanton 10 establish his right by judicial de-
cisior.
Iuow give that part of this history, as written
by yourself. in your letter Of the 2Sth alt:
"SOme time after | assumed the duties OF secre-
tary of war Cd interim, the president asked my
views es TO the course Mr. Stanton would have TO
pursue, in case the Senate should not concur in
bis suspension. 10 obtain possession Of the Office.
Ny reply Was in substance that Mr.. Stanton would
have TO appeal 10 the courts to reinstate him,
illustrating my position by citing the ground had
taken in the case Of the Baltimore police c0mnis-
sionefs."
Now. at hat time, as you admit in your letter
Of the 80 inst, you held the ofice for the very
object Of defeating an appeal to the courts. 10
that letter you say that in accepting the Office
one motive was 70 prevent the president from
appointing some other person who would retain
possession, and thus make judicial proceedings
necessary. You knew the president was unwi-
ing TO trust the Dfce with auy one who could not
by holding it, compel Mr. stanton to resort 10 the
courts lou perfectly understood that. In this
interview, some time after you accepted the
| Office, the president, not content with you
! silence, desired an expression Of your views and
! you answered him that Mr.. Stanton would have
| TO appeal TO the cOurs.
If the president had repOsed confidence before
he knew your vie VS., and that confidence had been
violated, il might have been said he made a mis-
take; but violation OF confidence repOsed after
that conversation was no mistake OF his or yours.
IL is the fact only that needs to be stated that at
the date Of this conversation you did not intend to
! hold the Office with tue purpose of forcing Mr.
Stanton into court; b1t did hold il then, and had
! accepted il, 10 prevent that course from being
carried cut In other words you said to the presi.
dent. that is the proper course and you said to
/ Yourself " have accepted this Office now and
| hold il TO defeat that course"
! The excuse YOU make in q subsequent para
graph Of that letter of the 2Sth ult. that after
! ward you changed your views as % what would
/ te proper course, has nothing to do wi h the
! point now under consideration. The point ia that
! before you had changed your views you had Sc
crety determined TO do the very thing which you
at last dd-suTender the Office TO Mr.. Stanton.
! You may have changed your views as to the law
but yOu certainly did not change your views as to
! TIE course you had marked out for yourself from
the beginning.
will only notice one more statement in your
letter Of the 80 iust.-thst the making good Of the
promises which il Is alleged were made by you,
iuyolved you in the resistance of the law. | know
! of no statute that would have been violated had
you carried out your promises m good faith, and
! rendered your resignation when you concluded
! rot 10 be made party in any legal prOcee iings.
! You add 4" am confirmed in this conclusion,
| by your recent order directing me to disObey or
ders from the secretary of war, my superior aud
! your subordinate, without having counternlnded
| his authority TO issue the orders am to dsObey."
On the oath ult. you addressed a note TO the
president requesting in writing an order given 70
! you verbally five days before to disregard orders
from Mr.. Stanton, as secretary of war, until YOU
! knew from the president himself that these were
his orders. On the 29th, in compliance with your
| request. | did give you instructions in writing
" not TO obey any order from the war department.
to be issued by the direction OF the president IN.
less such order is known by the general command
ing the armies Of the United States to have been
authorized by the executive"
There are some orders which 8 secretary of
! war may issue without the authority of the pres
! cent. There are others which he issues simply
lha M .N Il. 4