The National tribune., 1897-10-07

! Ston 5 army actually surrendered 10 me
at the time, at Greensboro, on the 26th
of April, simply excited my contempt
for judgment such as he was supposed
to possess.
The assertion that JEFF Davis's specie
train, of six to thirteen million dollars
was reported to be moving south from
Goldsboro' in wagons as fast as possible,
found plenty of willing ears, though my
army of eighty thousand men had been
at Goldsboro' from March % to the
date of his dispatch, April 26; and such
train would have been composed OF
from fifteen to thirty-two siX-mule teams
to have hauled this specie, even if it all
were in gold.
suppose the exact amount of treas
ure which Davis had with him is now
known to the cent; some of it was paid
to his escort when it disbanded at and
near Washington, Ga, aud at the time
of his capture he had small parcel of
gold and silver coin, not to exceed S10,-
600, which is now retained in the United
States Treasury-vault at Washington,
and shown to the curious.
The S13,000,000 of treasure with
which JEFF Davis was to corrupt our
armies and buy his escape dwindled
down to the contents of hand-valise
To say that | was merely angry at
the tone and substance of these pub
lisled bulletins of the War Department
would hardly express the state Of my
feelings. | was outraged beyond meas
ure. and was resolved to resent the in
suit, cost what it might. l went to the
Wayanda, and showed them to Mr..
Chase, with whom | had long and
frank conversation, during which he ex-
planned to me the confusion caused in
Washington by the assassination of Mr..
Lincoln, the sudden accession to power
of Mr.. Johnson, who was then supposed
to be bitter and vindictive in his feeling
toward the South, and the wild pressure
of every class &C politicians to inforce
on the new President their pet schemes.
He showed me a letter of his own,
which was in print, dated Baltimore,
April 18th, and another of April 18th,
addressed to the President, urging him
to recognize the freedmen as equal in all
respects to the whites He was the first
man, of any authority or station, who
ever informed me that the Government
of the United States would insist On ex-
tending to the former slaves of the
South the elective franchise, and he gave
as a reason the fact that the slaves,
grateful for their freedom, for which
| they were indebted to the armies and
Government Of the North, would, by
their votes, offset the disaffected and
rebel element of the white population of
the South.
At that time quite storm was pre-
vailing at sea, outside, and our two
vessels lay snug at the wharf at More
head City. | saw good deal of Mr..
Chase, and several notes passed between
us, of which | have the originals yet.
Always claiming that the South had
herself freed all her slaves by rebellion,
and that Mr.. Lincoln's proclamation of
freedom (of Sept. 22, 1862 was bind
ing on all officers of the General Gov
ernment, / doubted the wisdom of at
once clothing them with the elective
franchise without some previous prepa-
ration and qualification and then real
lied the National loss in the death al
that critical moment of Mr.. Lincoln,
who had long pondered over the difficult
questions involved, who, at all events,
would have been honest and frank, and
would not have withheld from his army
commanders at least hint that would
have been to them a guide.
1t was plain to me, therefore, that the
manner Of his assassination had stam-
peded the civil authorities in Washing
ton, had unnerved them, and that they
were then undecided as to the measures
indispensably necessary TO prevent an
archy at the South.
at OUTS WITH HALLECK.
On the 9TH of May the storm subsided,
and We put to sea-Mr Chase to the
south on his proposed tour as far as
New Orleans, and | for James River. |
reached Fortress Monroe ON the Sth,
and thence teIegraphed my arrival to
Gen. Grant, asking for orders. found
at Fortress Monroe dispatch from Gen.
Halleck, protesting great friendship, and
inviting me to accept his hospitality
at Richmond. / answered by cipher
dispatch that had seen his dispatch to
Mr.. Stanton of April 26th, embraced in
the second bulletin, which | regarded as
insulting, declined his hospitality, and
added that | preferred we should not
meet as / passed through Richmond.
/ thence proceeded to City Point in
the Russia, and ON to Manchester,
opposite Richmond, via Petersburg, by
rail. | found that both wings of the
army had arrived from Raleigh, and
were in camp in and around Manchester;
whence | again telegraphed Gen. Grant
on the 9th of May, for orders, and also
reported my arrival to Gen. Halleck by
letter.
[ found that Gen. Halleck had
ordered Gen. Davis's Corps (the Four
n