The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1892-04-12


the news burst on the country that Gen.
Sherman had made an agreement with
Johnston which embraced recognition
of Southern State governments. the
guaranty of personal and political rights
to the late rebels, and general amnes-
ty $50 far as the executive power of the
United States can command" By this
agreement General Sherman attempted
to do precisely what Lincoln had told
Grant, more than q month before, that
he must not do, viz. decide upon po-
litical questions. The announcement of
the agreement was met with storm OF
disapproval throughout the North. 1t
was universally regarded as a terrible
bluDder on General Sherman's part.
The New York Tribune said in an edi-
torial on the subject:
The repeatedly reported surrender of
Johnston to Sherman turns out. ON full
development. q queer bit of diplomacy.
whence you can hardly guess whether
Johnston was 10 surrender to sherman or
Sherman TO Johnston. As 1t was by it's
terms conditional. to be valid only in case
of it's approval at Washington. 1t has. of
course, been disapproyed, ana General
Grant sent down post-haste to Raleigh to
take charge of affairs in North Carolina
and preclude any more blunders.
A Washington dispatch of April 90,
1865, said:
A Cabinet meeting was called at o'clock
In the evening, at which the action of Gen.
Sherman was disapproved by the Presi-
dent by the Secretary of War. by General
Grant and by every member of the Cabinet.
Not even the excitement caused by
the assassination of Lincoln could pre-
vent the people from expressing their
strong disapproval of General Sher-
mans mistake. In order to define the
position of the government and allay
public excitement. Secretary Stanton
published statement that "the pro-
ceeding of General Sherman was unap-
proved for the following reasons"
Nine reasons were given, one being that
the proposed agreement gave terms
that had been deliberately. repeatedly
and solemnly rejected by President
Lincoln. and better terms than the
rebels had ever asked in their most
prosperous condition." At the same
time Sherman was ordered to resume
hostilities at the earliest moment"
General Grant was ordered to proceed
Immediately to the headquarters of
against the enemy" The order to
Grant contained the following para
graph:
The instruction given you by the late
President Abraham Lincoln. on the Sd of
March, by my telegraph of that date. ad
dressed to you. expresses substantially the
views of President Andrew johnson, and
will be observed by General Sherman. A
copy is herewith appended.
General Grant reached ShermAn's
headquarters on the morning of April
"a and directed the latter to give John
ston notice of the immediate resumption
of hostilities. To this notice Johnston
replied with an offer to surrender, which
was approved by Grant, and the sur
render took place April 20.
These facts and other contemporaries
Gus history prove beyond doubt that
General Sherman's first agreement with
General Johnston was strongly disap-
proved by the people as we'll as the
President and his Cabinet. 1t came
very near making General Sherman not
only unpopular. but distrusted. Some
people even believed the charge of the
Richmond correspondent of the London
Times that Sherman was scheming to
become dictator, so wild and unreas-
enable are popular suspicious in times
of great excitement. The New York
Tribune, adverting to this rumor, said.
editOrially:
General Sherman has done an unwise
thing unquestionably, but thing perfect
ly characteristic of the man. But. wise OF
foolish, he left 1t open for the decision of
the government at Washington. which,
had it been meant to he a reasonable
thing. he certainly would not have done.
All is well that ends well, and John
stOn's surrender on terms approved by
Grant brought the censure of Sherman
to a speedy end. But the fact remains
| that as o soldier he did make a stupen-
dous blunder in trying to settle polit-
ical problems.