Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1895-01-19

| together. L us cOntiliuc'i ~ S"uie 49,
tie time. when Ga.rerai i,@c as:iu ill.,
te,rupted the course OF ihe coivcrs :
ton by suggesting that the terms |
proposed to give his armv ought 10 be
written out. called TO General Park
er, secretary on my stall, for writing
materials and commenced wri ing out
the following terms:
'APPoMATToX COURTHOUSE. VA,
April, 8. 1865.
General r. E. Lee, Commanding
Confederate States Army:
General, in accordance with the
substance of my letter to you ofthe Sin
instant, propose to receive the sur
render of the Army of Northern Vir-
ginia on the following terms-to wit
Rolls ofall the officers and men to be
made in duplicate, one copy to be
given to an officer designated by me,
the other to be retained by such officer
or officers as you may designate. Tine
officers to give their individual paroles
not to take up arms against the Gov.
ernment of the United States until
properly exchanged, and each COM
pany or regimental commander TO sign
like parole for the men Of their COM
mand. The arms, artillery and public
property TO be acked and stacked and
turned over to the officer appointed by
me to receive them. This will not en-
brace the side arms of the officers, nor
their private horses or baggage. This
done, each officer and man will be al
lowed to return to their homes, not to
be disturbed by United States author-
ty so long as they observe their paroles
and the laws in force where they re-
side.
Very respectfully,
)" u. S. GRANT,
'Leutenant-Gener }
''When l put my pen to the paper, |
did not know the first word that l
should make use of in writing the
terms. ! only knew what was in my
mind, and I wished 10 express it clear
iy, so that there could be no mistaking
il. AS l wrote on the thought occur
red to me that the officers had their
own private horses and effects, Which
were important to them, but of no
value to US; also, that it would be un-
necessary humiliation to call upon
them to deliver their side arms.
mo conversation, not one word,
passed between General Lee and my
SELF either about private property, side
arms or kindred subjects. He appeared
to have no objections to the terms first
proposed or, if he had point to make
against them he wished to wait until
they were in writing to make it. When
he read over that part of the terms
about side arms, horses, and private
property of the officers, he remarked,
with some feeling, l thought, that this
would have happy effect upon his
army.
"Ihen, after a little further conver-
sation, General Lee remarked to me
again that their army was organized
little different from the army of the
United States (still maintaining, by
implication, that we were two count
ries); that in their army the cavalrymen
and artillerymen owned their own
horses: and he asked if he was to
understand that the men who so owned
their horses were to be permitted to re-
tain them. Itold him that as the terms
were written they would not; that only
the officers were permitted to take
their private property. He then, after
reading over the terms second time,
remarked that that was clear.
81 then said to him that l thought
this would be about the last battle of
the war-I sincerity hoped so; and / said
further, / took it that most of the men
in the ranks were small farmers. The
whole country had been so raided by
the two armies that it was doubtful
whether they would be able to put in a
crop to carry themselves and their
families through the next winter with
out the aid of the horses they were
then riding. The United States did
not want them, and would, therefore,
instruct the officers l left behind to re-
ceive the paroles of his troops to let
every man of the Confederate army
who claimed to own horse or mule
take the animal to mis- home. Lee re-
marked again that this would have a
happy effect.
"He then sat down and wrote out
the following letter:
'"H'Do'TRs ARMY NORTHERN VA.
"'April 8, 1865.
General received your letter of
this date containing the terms of the
surrender of the Army of Northern Vir.
ginia as proposed by you. AS they are
substantially the same as those ex-
pressed in your letter of the Sth instant,
they are accepted. 1 will proceed to
designate the proper officers to carry
the stipulations into effect.
"'R. E. LEE, General.
Lieutenant General US. Grant,
"While duplicates of the two letters
were being made the Union generals
present were severally presented to
General Lee.
"The much -talked-of surrender of
of Lees sword and my handing it back,
this and much more that has been said
about it, is the purest romance. The
word sword or side arms was not men
toned by either of US until I wrote it in
the terms. There. was no premedita-
ton, and it did not occur to me until
the moment I wrote it down. III had
happened to omit it and General Lee
had called my attention to it, l should
have put it in the terms precisely as 1
acceded to the proposition about the
soldiers retaining their horses.
General Lee, after all was complet-
ed and before taking his leave, remark
ed that his army was in very bad con-
dition for want of food, and that they
were without forage; that his men had
been living for some days on parched
corn exclusively, and that he would