Litchfield enquirer., 1880-02-26
WHOLE NO. 2783
Lees Danger in 1865.

Judge T. J. Mackey of South Corolina has been telling newspaper man in Columbia about certain recent interviews with Grant In one of them Judge Mackey asked whether it were not true as he had heard, that Gen. Grant had furnished an escort to Gen. Lee, placing it under his comman1, when he left Appomattox for Richmond.
 Gen. Grant replied '1 left Appomattox for Washington before Gen. Lee started Before going, however, placed Gen. Gibbon in com mand, instructed him to supply Gen. Lees wants. have understood that Gen Gihhon -perceving that Gen. Lee was starting off in d carriage with only one or two Confederate officers, and that the country was tn very lisOrdered state, and infested with strogglers from both armies ordered an escort to report to Gen. Lee. and have been informed that it accompanied him to Richmond. do not know the fact, but 1t may be as you have heard.
 Judge Mackey next asked whether it were true, as had been stated, recently, that after the surrender President Johnson proposed 10 arrest Gen. Lee, and have him tried in the civil courts on charge of treason and that Gen. Grant had interposed and prevented his arrest, threatening to resign his commission in the armf if the arrest was made.
 Gen. Grant replied that 'the statement re- ferred to was not entirely correct. did not interpose, especially" he said, ''to prevent the arrest of Gen. Lee Soon after President Lin cOln's assassination Mir. Johnson sent for me and stated that he bad decided that the gen eral officers of the Confederate army should be arrested and placed on trial for treason in the civil courts. The entire cabiuet was pres ent, except Mir. Seward, who was the suffer- ing from severe wounds received at the hands of an assassin concerned in the Booth conspir- acy. 1 replied: 'Mr. President, 1 am deeply concerned about this matter. When those officers of the rebel army surrendered they gave their parole, in which they bound themselves not to take up arms against the United States until they were regularly exchanged, and l bound myself tbat they should not be disturb ed by the government of the United States while they obeyed the laws of the United States and of the states in which they resid- ed.
 |" They have kept this parole, and it ismy du- ty to see as far as 1 can, that the pledge l gave them in behalf of the government shall not be violated. 1 protest against their arrest, for my honor is involved in maintaining the pledge gave them' President Johnson and several members of the cabinet then insisted that what 1 had stated would be perfectly true if those officers were citizens of foreign state, but that us they were American ciii. zens and amenable to the laws of the country, the military parole could only exempt them from actual confinement as prisoners of war, and could not relieve them from prosecution in the courts. 1 sad that all civilized nations respected the terms of surrender granted by successful general to armed public enemies, and that I would exhaust every lawful resource in preventing this violation of the faith of the government. which 1 had pledged to those men. President Johnson and his entire cab inet were against me, and insisted upon their views of the matter. I told them that could not submit to it. I called upon Mir. Seward that night, beng anxious to consult with him; and, though found him suffering greatly from his injuries, told him what had occurred 1 say 1t to his honor that he ear nesly supported me in my protest against the arrest of the paroled Confederate officers. These are the real facts of the case"