The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1877-08-23
A BIT OF SECRET HISTORY.
Why Grants Order Removing the
Troops from the Packard State House
was Never Carried Out.

"A AAA Va SA<OASAN AA@oA SASAs
Why Grants Order Removing the
Troops from the Packard State House
was Never Carried Out.
Col. w. NJ. Levy has given to the
Nachitoches Vindicator an interesting ac-
count of some of the. inside workings of
the Grant Administration at the close of
its last term. Concerning the order
which President Grant issued to General
Augur for the withdrawal of the troops,
Col. Levy says:
On the End of March General Grant
showed to us the draft of the order di-
recting the withdrawal of the troops, in
accordance with his previously declared
intention, which he said he would send
to Gen. Augur by telegraph. That
General Grant did direct this order to be
sent am fully satisfied and convinced ;
how or by whom it was suppressed or
withheld I am unable to state, and in
time, perhaps, disclosure may be made
which will fix the per6dy where it be-
longs.
There are some curious and interest
ing facts connected with this matter
which the Times can now properly give
to the public. The President issued the
order mentioned by Colonel Levy. 1t
was sent to General Sherman at IL M,
March End. For some reason the Presi.
dent did not submit the order to the Sec
retary of War, nor did the Secretary
know that it had been issued until by ac-
cident he learned that it was in the Ad-
jutant Generals hands for transmission
to New Orleans. He Immediately Or
dered the Adjutant General not to send
it, as it had not come through "the
proper military channels" General
Townsend tried to say that "the Presi-
dent and General Sherman" "D-n
the President and Sherman, too," broke
in the angry Pennsylvania; "I am
either Secretary of War or am not.
Grant, who is an older soldier, ought to
have known better than to do a thing
which is deliberate insult to me-" He
directed General Townsend to notify
General Sherman that "the order to
General Augur to remove the troops from
the State House in Louisiana was with
held by the Secretary of War for sufi-
cient reasons" General Sherman went
at once to the President, and said that
while he would send the order himself if
the President wished, yet as it was one
of great Importance, it had better go
through the proper channels and be sign
ed by the Secretary of War, and that he
thought Cameron had better be sent for.
The President himself wrote Cameron a
note and asked Mr.. Luckey, his private
Secretary, to be the bearer of it, as the
matter was one of great Importance. Mr..
Cameron Immediately went to the White
House and found the President and Gen
eral Sherman awaitipg him.
Cameron" said the President, ''I is-
sued an order to-day for the removal of
the troops from the Louisiana State
House. I learn that you have suppressed
it. Why did you do this ?" "Mr. Presi-
dent" said the Secretary, "you are an
old soldier and very distinguished one.
I do not believe you would put an insult
on me; yet I find you disregarding the
plainest principle of official etiquette by
transmitting orders which should go
through my hands, without my knowl-
edge or consent. AS the Secretary of
War I rank General Sherman. He is
my subordinate: He has no right to for
ward an order, not even from you, unless
it goes through the regular channels.
Your conduct was irregular. I stopped
the order: If you insist upon its being
sent by General Sherman, shall notify
General Augur to disregard any orders
not signed by me. While am Secretary
of War ain entitled to the considera-
tion that belongs to the position. Ifit is
not accorded me by my subordinates l
will take care to see that its neglect is
properly resented"
General Sherman's face was study.
Upon the point of etiquette Cameron was
right. The President sat still, his face
as motionless and impassive as that of
Secretary Stanton that stood near his
right hand, carved in stone. As Cam
eron rose to go, he said: "Mr. President,
I have only two more days to serve in
your Cabinet. Ifyou desire my resigna-
tion, it is at your service" There hap
pened to be an old Louisiana college
friend and class-mate of Cameron's in
Washington. AS this gentleman's per-
sonal relations with Cameron were of a
character that gave him the entree to the
war Office at any hour, he was requested
to find out what the matter was. "Don,"
he said, "what is the hitch in that order
of Grants. I know it was issued at IL
m. to-day, and I also know that it has
never left the city" The Secretary re-
piled that Grant had tried to send the
order without his knowledge and that he
had stopped it. He said that while he
was Republican, he felt that there
ought to be change in the management
of Southern affairs; that he had with
held the order as much from personal rea-
son and feeling that he had not been
treated as he should have been in the
matter as anything else. Two days after
this Cameron went out of Office with
Grant Orleans Times.