Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1868-02-11

On tuesday the day Mr. Stanton re-
entered the office of the Secretary of War;
General Comstock, who had served my official
letter announcing that with Mr.. Stanton's
reinstatement by the Senate l had ceased to
be Secretary Of War, ad interim, and who saw
the President open and read the communica-
ton, brought back to me from the President
message that he wanted to see me that day
at the cabinet meeting, after had made
known the fact that was no longer Secretary
of War, al interim. After this meeting, after
opening it as though 1 was member of his
cabinet, when reminded of the notification
already given him that was no longer Sec
retary of War, d0 interim, the President gave
a version of the conversation alluded to
already.
In this statement it was asserted that in
both conversations I had agreed to hold on to
the Office of Secretary of War until displaced
by the courts, or resign, so as to place the
President where he would have been had
never accepted the office. After hearing the
President through | stated our conversation
substantially as given in this letter. 1 will
add that my conversation before the Cabinet
embraced other matter not pertinent here, and
is therefore left out.
in no wise admitted the correctness of
the Presidents statement of our conversa-
tions, though to soften the evident contradic-
tion my statement gave, said (alluding to our
first conversation on the subject) the Pres
ident might have understood me the way he
said, namely, that had promised to resign if
did not resist the reinstatement. l made
no such promise.
U. S. GRANT, General.
WRITTEN INSTRUCTIONS.
The next paper is a note dated January
81, also from Gen. Grant to the President
asking to have ''In writing the order which
the President gave him verbally on Sunday,
the 10Th January, to disregard the orders of
Hon. L. NJ. Stanton as Secretary of War un-
til he (Gen. Grant, knew from the President
himself that they were his orders" This
note was returned with the following endorse
mcnt, signed by the President, and dated
January 20.
GAS requested in this communication, Gen
cral Grant is instructed, in writing, not to
obey any order from the War Department,
assumed to be issued by the direction of the
President, unless such order is known by the
general commanding the armies of the United
States to have been authorized by the Ex~
ccutivc. ANDREW JOHNSON"
The next day, January 30, General Grant,
in letter to the President: acknowledges the
return Of the above note, with the endorse
mcnt thereon, in which he says:
Il am informed by the Secretary OF War
that he has not received from the Executive
any order or instructions limiting or impair
ing his authority to issue orders to the army,
as has heretofore been his practice under the
law and the customs of the Department.
While this authority to the War Department
is not countermanded, it will be satisfactory
II, fl,o
War Department by direction Of the President
are authorized by the Executive.
"U. S. GRANT, General"
LETTER FROM PRESIDENT JOHNSON.
4 lengthy letter from the Presdentto TO Gen.
Grant, dated Executive Mansion, Jan. 3lst,
1868, is the next document given, as follows:
General Il have received your commu-
nication of the 2Sth inst, renewing your re-
quest of the 24th that should repeat in a
written form my verbal instructions of the
10Th inst. viz: That you obey no order from
the Hon. Edwin NJ. Stanton Secretary of
War unless you have information that it Was
issued by the Presidents direction.
In submitting this request, (with which I
complied on the 2Sth inst. } you take occasion
to alludc to recent publications in reference to
the circumstances connected with the vacation
by yourself of the Office of Secretaryof War,
at interim, and with the view of correcting
statements which you term ''gross misrepre-
sentations," give at length your own recollec-
ton of the facts under which, without the
sanction of the President. from whom you had
received and accepted the appointment, you
yielded the Department Of War to the present
incumbent.
AS stated in your communication, some
time after you had assumed the duties of
Secretary of War, Gd interim, we inter-
changed views respecting the course that
should be pursued in the event of non. con-
currence by the Senate in the suspension from
Office of Mr.. Stanton. | sought that inter-
view, calling myself at the War Department.
My sole object in then bringing the subject
to Your attention was to ascertain definitely
what would be your own action should such
an attempt be made for his restoration to the
War Department.
That object was accomplished, for the in
tcrview terminated with the distinct under
standing that if, upon reflection, you should
prefer not to become party to the contro-
versy, or should conclude that it would be
your duty to surrender the Department to Mr..
Stanton upon action in his favor by the Senate,
YOU were to return the Office to me prior to
decision by the Senate, in order that if [ de-
sired to do so | mi ght designate some one to
succeed you. 1t must have been apparent to
you that had not this understanding been
reached it was my purpose to relieve you from
the further discharge of the duties of Secre-
tary of War, ad interim, and to appoint some
other person in that capacity.
Other conversations upon the subject en-
sued, all of them having, on my part, the
same object, and leading to the same .conclu-
sion as the first. 1t is not necessary, how
ever, to refer to any of them excepting that
Of Saturday, the 1lth inst, mentioned in your
communication. AS it was then known that
the Senate lad proceeded to consider the case
of Mr. Stanton, 1 was anxious to learn your
determination. After a protracted interview,
during which the provisions of the tenure of