The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-09

Tenn, when Charles R. Thompson, one
of his aids, entered the room and handed
| him letter, saying that the bearer was
waiting for an answer. Rosecrans opened
the letter and became at once absorbed In
| it's contents. He then asked, ''Tompy,
what sort of a looking man gave you
this?''
GA bright-colored mulatto, decently
clad, and, should Judge, OF more than Or
binary intelli gence," was the answer
'Tell him to wait" said the general. be
then reread the letter, and. handing 1t to
me, said, "Read that; tell me what you
think of it."
The outside of the letter was worn and
leather stained, indicating that 1t had been
| pressed between the outer and inner soles
of shoe; but the inside startled me. 1t
was written in round, Impractical hand,
and, though badly spelled, showed that
| it's author was accustomed to the hearing
of good English. The date was May Is,
1868, and it began thus:
"General-A plan has been adopted for
a simultaneous movement or rising to
sever the rebel communications through
out the whole South, which is now dis
closed to some general in each military de-
|
that they may act in concert and thus in
sure success.
1.-The plan is for the blacks to make a
concerted and simultaneous rising on the
night of the 1st of August next, over the
whole States in rebellion; to arm them
selves with any and every kind of weapon
that may come to hand, and commence
operations by burning all railway and
country bridges, tearing up all railroad
tracks and cutting and destroying tele-
graph wires, and, when this is done, take to
the woods, the swamps or the mountains,
whence they may emerge as occasions may
offer for provisions or for further depreda-
tons. No blood is to be shed except in
self-defense.
The corn will be in roasting ear about
the list of August and upon this, and by
foraging on the farms at night, we can sub
sist. Concerted movement at the time
named would be successful, and the re-
bellion be brought suddenly to an end"
The letter went on with some other de.
tails, and ended as follows: 1.-THE plan
| will be a simultaneous rising over the
whole South and yet few of all engaged
will know of its full extent. Please write
II and Approved and send by the bearer,
that we may know you are with US.
''Be assured, general, that copy of this
letter has been sent to every military de-
partment in the rebel States, that the time
of the movement may be general over the
entire South
AS finished the letter the general asked
"What do you think of it?"
1 answered: at would end the rebel
lion. Co-operated in by our forces it would
certainly succeed; but-the South would
run with blood"
Innocent blood! Women and chill
drenl"
Eyes, women and children. If you let
| the blacks loose. they will rush into car
| mage like horses into burning barn.
| San Domingo would be multiplied by mil
| lion
HE says no blood is to be shed except
in self-defense."
"He says So and the leaders may mean
SO, but they could not restrain the ra bible.
Every slave has some real or fancied
wrong. and he would take such a time to
revenge it.
'Well, | must talk with Garfield. Come.
We crossed the street to General Gar
fields lodgings, where he was bolstered up
in bed, just recovering from fever. Rose
Grams sat down on the foot of the bed and
handed him the letter. Garfield read it
over carefully, and then laying it down,
said: at would never do, General. We
don't want to whip by such means"
81 knew you would say So" said Rose
Grams, 'but he speaks of the other depart
ment commanders-may they not come
into it?';
Yes, they may, and that should be
goes home to-day. Send by him this letter
| to the President and let him head off the
| movement. He can do it, restraining the
department commanders. Without their
| support it will soon fall through"
| 1t was not thought prudent to intrust
| the letter to the mails, nor, with the rail-
way infested with John Morgan's men and
! Confederate guerrillas, was it a safe docu-
| fnent to carry about the person. If /
should be captured and searched, and that
| were found upon me-with no attending
proof to show the use of it that was in
tended-a short shrift and long rope
would be my. way to glory. So, ripping
open the top of my boot, l slowed it snugly
away in the lining, and then, having a
shoemaker soldier restore the broken
stitches, took it with me to Washington.
In couple of days in a private inter-
view. submitted the insurrectionary let
ter to MIR. Lincoln. He read it over
thoughtfully and then asked, "Is not this
a hoax?"
answered that at first thought it was;
however, it bore so many marks of gem
uineness-its style, just that of an I'M
educated negro, who had gathered a GER
tain kind of oral culture from intercourse
with the whites, but not the ability to ex-
press himself correctly in writing, and the
leather stains upon the envelop-these
looked so genuine that it seemed to me it
would not be safe to treat it as counter
felt.
Well" he said, "it does have a genuine
look: What do Rosecrans and Garfield
think of it?'
told him.
itp"
"They do, most decidedly; they urge its
having immediate attention. They think
the country would be seriously compro-
missed if the, project were for a moment
contemplated.
They are right, and will give it i'm
mediate attention. You may write them
to that effect"
This was late in May, and early in June
| received a letter from Garfield dated the
4th inst, of which the following is an ex-
tract: II am clearly of the opinion that
the negro project is every way bad, and
should be repudiated, and, if possible,
thwarted. If the slaves should, of their
| own accord, rise and assert their original
right to themselves, and cut their way
! through rebeldom, that is their own affair;
but the Government could have no COM
pllcity with it without outraging the sense