Daily Davenport Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1864-1874, 1868-12-18
THE TRUTH OF HISTORY !
Gen. Sherman's Terms Of Sur.
render with Ger. Johnston.
They were Dictated by Mr..
Lincoln.
From Wilke's S,irit


yswaYkable revenges '~t'ng the last seven :
years of our history. MAJ military bub- +
bic has been pricked; many 4 name which /
In the war tiled every ear has cen dessrv-
eddy forge on and, on the other band,
many are, Y great man has outlivsd SIAN /
der and y .sconception and il honorsd with /
vas when We refu,sd him the laursls he
deserved. II lsnot 30 many yesrs since
Grant was st down % an obstinate blum
derer, and atths turning point Of his career
II VAS for . while IN doubt whether he
should 10 sent back in disgrace 70 private
life or Allceed 10 march forward in that |
glorious path which be discernsd, bu. his
super ors did not. A more rsmar hsbls sx-
ample, however. of lie triumph OF truth and
justice is sficSded in the case Of Sherman.
lie perceived long before any body else the
magnitude which the campaign in the Mis- |
sissippi Valley must assume; and. when |
he told the government how lags an army |
would he needed in that department, men |
called him . lunatic. Costly experience
convinced us that sherman was right, and !
We hal to call on him At lastt 10 do the work
in which 40 many pet generals had failed.
His capacity ~ . commAnder hss been fully
| vindicatsd but there is another side to
character which has been suffered TO remain
in the shade, and this, too, 10 now - be
cleared. II has hesn The fashion to decry |
his political aagscity. The terms Of sur
rende or which he granted 70 Johnston ex-
cited = clarnsr throughout the Northern
Slater. "Ifthe agreement had been ear |
RED out" writes one Of the latest histo-
rams Of the var, at would in effect have
| instantly restored to oil person.. who had
been engaged in the rebellion every right
and privilege, political asi social, which
they had enjoyed before they rsbellsd,
without any liability 70 punishnsat. II
proposed practically an utter fsrgstfulusss
Of the events OF the var, and made it hid
eous farce, with the features Of dreadful
tragedy. In his anxiety 10 end
the war and restore the Union, Sherman,
with thc pufsst motives aud most earnest
desire - do right, made grave mistake.
II occurred at : time when such mistakes
could hardly be excused by loyal people.
~ The Memorandum was published,
and created universal Indignation and
alarm. Gen. Grant was Immediately
sent 10 Raleigh to declare the rejection Of
tho Memorandum to relieve Gen. Sher-
man Of command. if he should think best
to do 50, and to direct an immediate 70
sumption Of hostilitiss." Gen. Grant, Of
oourse, was too wise and rms gnsnimous and
too sinesrs friend to depIi i've Of his com
mand . general whom he SO highly esteem
cd. aud whose fault, at the very worst, was
nothing but an error Of Judgment. The
| agreement, however. was revoked; and the
oval people, then in the fever Of their ex-
| element over the assassination OF Mr.. Lin
| coin, were no incensed with Sherman that
his past services were all but forgotten.
II now falls to cur lot to show that the
responsible author Of the Sherman John
s,on agreement was not Gen. Sherman, but
President Lincoln. The facts which We arc
| Ibsut to relate came 10 our knowledge dur
| Ing this last summer, and were committed
% paper at tbat tine. There were obvious
rsas ans why they should he Withdrawn I'M
I'll after he election, bat there is no otiec
ton nov to their being laid bsiore he pub
lie, and We are especially glad to have an
opportunity Of dong so. becaus. this Jour
nal, among Others, was ust to Sherman
at the time of the bartender.
On the 9th Of March, 1865, two or three
days before the FINAL movement upon Rich.
mond, Gen. Sherman, fresh frem his march
| % the sea, arrived At City Point for the pur-
pose Of confernng with the President and
the gensral-in-ch,ef. Mr.. Lincoln was then
on board the gunboat Queen, and on that
day an interview took place on the boat be.
| tween the President, Gen. Grant, Gen.
Sherman and Admiral David ID. Porter.
From one Of the parties TO this interview, q
gentleman connected with the Sp:,n 81 tn.
Itmrs obtained a verbal narrative Of what
took place. There was no pledge Of secrs-
cy, and we feel that we violate no oblign-
ton in making public the substance Of il. |
"Mr. Lincoln SAID tho narrator, chad |
come down 10 City Point with the most lib |
eFal views towards the rebels, and was v IL |
liu. lscy shsuld caaitulate on almost any |
tc'us. His heart was tenderness through |
ou, sud n long AS the enemy laid down |
their arms lie did not care how il WAS done
After hearing from sherman description |
~ ms position. &c proposed tnat tha same |
terms should b, offered t. Johnston that |
"on'd have been gwen to Lee. TO this |
ten. sherman strenuOusly ehsctcd de-
clsring that he had Johnston coopei up |
where he would be compelled to surrender |
a. all hazards, whatever terms arc prepos- |
ell. never saa him more energetic in |
my life llian while he was arguing this |
point but Mr. Lincoln leaned towards |
miider measures, fearing that the Confsd-
crate general would escape south by the |
railroads, and have to be chased again,
Sherman declared this to BE- impossible. Il |
have Johnston, said he, where he cannot
move without breaking up his arms, which,
once dsbsnded. can never be got together |
again. The southern railroads are oil |
broken up. | have destroyed them 50
that they cannot be used for . long |
time
"Gsn. Grant asked what 10 TO ore.
vent their laying the rails again y
why" said Sherman, my bummsrs |
don't do things by halves. Every rail haa |
been placed over hot fire, and twisted as
crooked - rams horn. They never can
DO uAed again till they have been through |
rolling mill
The President, however, was very de. |
eieed about the matter, and insisted that |
Johnston should he induced Immediately |
TO surrender, by granting most liberal |
terms. Grant, too, was anxious that John |
atom shonld not try to get into Richmond,
where no might give u q great deal Of |
trouble and Sherman was compelled 10
wed, though he did it very unwill,uelv.-l
The tsrms Of capitulation, which after.
wards made such q disturbance. were. in
tact. substantially arranged by Mr.. Lin>
coin himself. and II he had lived he never
would have allowed Sherman 10 bear the |
responsibility Of them
This narrative is conclusive. Mr.. Lin
coin, It is now clear, virtually dictated the |
terms y Jehnstons just - hs did the terms |
to Lee and had II not been for his kid |
ness Of heart, We have no doubt that Grant |
would have exActsd Unconditional sur
render in the one case, and Sherman have
been equally psrsmptory in the ether. Had
the President not been assassinated before |
Johnston's capitulation, it 10 probable that |
the celebrated Memorandum would have |
been more acceptable to the msjority Of |
ths Nurthern people. 1t "a certain, at oil |
events. that Sherman would not have been
to tlsms fer j. The patience with which |
he has borne undeseryed obloquy 10 long
will bsapprsciated by his counirpmsn, and |
they will not fail TO honor the elevated sen
timent through which. when single word |
would have vindicated him, he refrained |
from speakingi;