The Dickinson press., 1883-11-17
GRANT AND PORTER.

GRANT AND PORTER.
The Ex-Geueral Explains How Cen. Terry
Caused Him to Revise His Opinion OF
Porter's Guilt-He Will Never Cease His
Defense Of the Claim.
Tho following letter was made public at
New York Wednesday:
NEW YORK, Nov. 8, 1893.-Gen. F. ]. Por-
ter, Morristown, N. J.-Dear General: AS
there 10 now some discussion as to the proba-
BILE reasons for my change Of mind in regard
to your case. now pending before the people of
shen United lied STAT. States. 1 deem it r proper that !
1 never believed you to be a traitor, as many
affected to believe. I thought 1 knew you too
we'll to believe for one moment that you
would accept the pay. rank and com
nj bet,, You hs cid for .sn.o the 1on purpose pose
protesting to serve. Then, too. your services
had been too conspicuous as q staff officer at
the beginning of the war and as 3 commander
of Hoops later to support such q theory for q
moment. But I did believe that Gen. Pope was
that a cordial support was not given him by
them. I was disposed, too, to accept the YER
dict Of a court-martial composed as the one
which tried you was. Some of the mem
and had great confidence in their
you had shared in this feeling toward
Pope. and while not more guilty than others
you were unfortunate in being placed in = po-
sltion where specifications could be made show
ing this hostility. After the close of the wal,
when l was requested to read your new de-
Tense, I read it with the feeling above de-
scribed. At the same time I read the other
side as prepared or furnished by Gen. Pope.
This gave maps showing the position of the
two armies, substantially as shown by the first
of the diagrams presented by MI. Lord of San
Francisco, aud did not indicate the presence Of
any other force than Jackson's. Then. too. it
appeared that you had actually received an
order at about five or halt. past five in the after
noon of Aug. 20 to attack the enemy's flank,
and that, too. at a time when . fierce battle was
raging in the front
I was first shaken in my views. however,
I when such a man as Gen. Terry, who unltes
the lawyer with the soldier, and a man Of high
character and ability, and who had believed as
I had, and possibly worse, after many weeks
of investigation. should entirely vindicate you,
and be sustained, too, by men of the known
ability Of his colleagues on the board. Until
in 1881 re-examined for myself, my
1862, a great battle was fought between
Gen. Pope, commanding the Union forces, and
| Gen. jackson, commanding the Confederate
forces: that you, with q corps of twelve or
more thousand men, stood in q position across
the right flank of Jackson, and where you
Il ~ SaSAAN " 1hGO Ah5 ASWAS GAAeV " ~.
ceived an order to do so about 3 or $50
o'clock, which you refused to obey because of
clouds of dust in your front, which you con-
tended indicated an enemy in superior force to
you; that You allowed Pope to get beaten while
you stood idly looking on without raising an
arm to help him. With this understanding,
and without a doubt as to its correctness, I
condemned you.
Now, on a full investigation Of the facts, 1
find that the battle was fought the 3Oth Of
,,~,,rk. 49, aa -~A x1fnn1klr
by you in person, lost a greater percentage
than any other corps engaged; that the half
past four order of the day before did not reach
you until nightfall; that your immediate
superior had cautioned you early in the day
t the1 you 4h.t were ere to Pon Tar bs out c, to ane front yon
against bringing on an engagement, 'ex-
cept under such circumstances as he de-
scribed, and that in any event you must
be prepared to fall back behind Bull Run that
night, where it would be necessary FOR you to
be to receive supplies; that from IL o'clock Of
twice your " number, of whose presence
you had positive proof, while Gen. Pope did
not know of it. This last fact is shown by the
wording Of the 4:3O. order. 1t directed you to
attack the enemy's right and to get into his
rear. Gen. Pope's circular of the morning of
the 29:h eaid that Gen. Lee was advancing by
way of Thoroughfare Gap, and at the rate at
which he was moving he would be up the night
of the 10th or the morning OF the 3lst. In his
testimony before the court martial which tried
| you, he said under oath that he did not know
of tho arrival of Lees command until 6 O'clock
of the Doth, an hour and q half after he had
dictated the order for your attack. His circular
and testimony prove conclusively thatJackson,
and jackson alone, was tho enemy ho in
| tended YOU to attack. Your knowledge of this
fact, as we'll as of the fact that you had another
force, quite double yours, in addition in your
front would AVE been sufficient justification
for your not attacking, even if the order had
been received in time. OF course, this would
| not apply il o battle had been raging between
| jackson and Pope. At the hour you received
| the order all was quiet.
This very short, hastily written, and incom-
plete summary shows why and when my mind
underwent a change. Ihave no doubt now but
the change would have taken place i'll 1867 if
1 had then made an investigation. l regret now
that l did not understand your case then as
do now Your whole life since your trial, as
we'll as your services before. disprove the great
burden of the charges then sustained by a
court-martial. As long as I have a voice i.
any reference to the effect upon me OF
others. Your restoration to the army simply ]
would regard as q very inadequate and unjust
PREPARATION, while men-one at least-haye been
restored to the army because of their gallantry
and wounds after convictin and sentence not
only to be dismissed, but to be confined in q
| penitentiary, and when there is no doubt OF
their guilt, and given all their pay for the years
| they were out of the service. 1 can see NO
reason for your having less. l hope for you a
thorough vindication, not only by congress, but
in the minds of your countrymen. Faithfully
yours, U. 3. GRANT.