The daily gazette., 1877-10-11
~ q tU7TNI ln1Yfi.I 10 IOI nTUl1lsl IUNI n
JefDavis and the Gallows
DID oL1NER p. MORTON. PROPOSE TO
HaAtNG THE coNFEpEaArE cHrEEs y
From the Atlanta Constitution.

DID oL1VBR p. NORTON PROPOSE, TO
HANG THE coNFEDEaATE cHIEE! y y
From the Atlanta Constitution 10
It, WIN be rsInembsrsd that while MI.
Davis was, in Fortress Monroe, he was a,
souree Of very great anxiety, not only to
President johnson, but to the99FsdeTai
jpdieiaty sud the leaders Of the greet ;ReI.
ppbkcAn, party, The liannef in which To-
laispose OF him was a, constant, Question ,ot
debate With them, aud 10 ,certain that no
two OF them fully concurred Ia their esti-
mate OF what would be Justice in his case.
see how ''tfaitors, jwere 70 be punisned and
treason made edlols,n and who were ready
to be mnde respons ibis for the tate Of j Of
ierson DAVIS. Europe looked on 10, see the
,end Of "the great rebel, land 10 Judge of cur
hohor and maghauitnity BY Tina unparai-
leled occasiou and its Incidents. ! Jt. t.,0
The war Governor appears upon the
scene at this juncture anu In this coupeo-i
tiob. AT tbis SINE he was Governor OF InA
Idiana, ana not regarded us man OF such
Violent hates aud desperately reyengeful
character as lie has been in the light Of his
higher station and the iafuence 81 his ofhis
Great power. :,
Among ths papers of the late President
Andrew Johnson are the originals Of the
following .papers, Iwhich, are true, .copies.
The first is u telegram, in cipher, as ltol,
lows: D. riIHl tf e.9{I 10 lnI ni,..l.,l III d
INDIANAPoLIs, Nov IA, 1865--10:s0 A-'Nll
His Ezceue,,cy Andrea Johnson A President 0i
the United Stdtes: R Ui -"7 .u ~ lno
II there is no question: of Jurisdiction in
the way, Davis can be indicted and tried i'll
Indiana, as the rebel army, tive thousand
strong, under the command of Gen. Nor
D. b b NJ
The court and Grand Jury are now in
session, and If Davis will be sent here for
trial, in case he is indicted, he will be in
dlcted here will be no ditficulty in get
ting a jury that will do Justice to the Cow
ernment-aIId to Davis. Uii nj lIisI rnl
U. r. MORTON, Governor of Indiana. u
To this startling proposition TO shouider
"the white elephant" and relieve the Gov
ernment of all further anxiety on his ac~
count. President johnson made the tol-
lowing cautions feply in cipher I;
WASHINGTON, Nov. IA, 1865.
GOU. o. p. Morton, I1lCtidnup potis, Ind: - Z
Jurisdiction is one of the questions which
has been much in our way. The place OF
trial must be determined hereafter. II
theicourt and jury find true bills against
him 1t would not interfere with trial at
any other place. Bills have been found
against him at some two or three places in
Tennessee and in this District. 'G .1nii
.nI....> .Ii ANDREW JOHNSON.
I'VE do not know whether Morton went
further in the matter and had, or attempted
to have, bill5 OF indictment preferred against
Davis or not, but it is very apparent from
the tone Of his Telegram, and particularly
his Fast sentence, that he was anxious to
getlhls hands upon Davis. ...,. ~,
We once asked the ex-Presidhnt what Nor
ton meant by his telegram ~ ' '"'.it
81 suppose" replied Mr.. Johnson she
thatUht r Uanted DaVia hunp,p
That Mr.. johnson did not want Davis
hung, and the reason who he did not, we
may make plain at another time. ...ls
Gen. Robert Toombs reading this tele-
gram, was of opinion that Morton was then
fully informed as to Mr.. Johnson's intend
ed policy towards the South, aud sympath-
ized with 1t, and cent the Telegram IN Lhe
hope that Mr.. johnson, before The assem1-
ling OF Congress in Decsmber would aecede
to the proposition and turn Davis over to
the courts of Indiana, aud thereby relieve
himself OF the "white elephant and Con
gressional , interference on his account
Gen. Toombs seemed to think that Morton,
at that time, would have quietly let tht
law take it's course, whatever the result 10
Davis, and that result Gen. Toombs thought
would have been aequitlaE 1iq. d7. -,
1t may be proper 10 say that Gen. Toom6s'
idea iof MOrton's agreement, vita NJ r.
Johnson's Southern policy Is fully borne
out In strong and lengthy letter written
by Morton from New York on the tn OF
December, 1866, TO Presldant johnson, fnl,
~ indorsing his message TO Congress and
his announced policy for restoring the coun-
try to its normal condition.
os The Hon Alexander H. Stephens, upon
the other hand is of the opinion that the
telegram was plain business proposition
to get away with Davis by quick and GER
tain process, commonly called Hanging
by tAs neck unt,L you are dead. dead, dead /