The National tribune., 1901-06-06
Re ecords of the Rehellion.

EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE: In issue
of May 25 l have read with pleasure and
| a good deal of interest an article concern
| ing the publication of the Records of the
Rebellion" which recalls to my mind an
interview | had recently with Gen. John
| COburn upon the same subject. Gen. Co
burn. in the early 'I0S- was a member OF
| the House of Representatives, and most
of the time Chairman of the Committee
on Military Affairs, which Committee had
much to do with the adjustment and set
tlement of claims that were the result Of
the civil war. In search for evidence ic
was necessary for Gen. COburn to exam
inc the vast accumulation of records in
the War Department, which involved q
great amount of time and labor and was
unsatisfactory in many ways. Knowing
this, / asked Gen. Coburn to relate his
knowledge of how and why the publi2a-
ton of the records was inaugurated, and
he replied substantially as follows:
They were printed in pursuance Of the
an appropriation for the work. Not one
thing was printed before that time. L
never knew of an effort to have it done
until | had suggested it to Adj't-Gen.
Townsend.
In our conversation upon the subject we
examined the combustible buildings west
of the War Department, in which were
deposited a vast amount of documents and
earnestly about the danger of fire consum-
ing them. He said he had saved many
millions of dollars in claims preferred
against the Government by evidence OBJ
tanned in the captured papers and records
and could continue to do So"
At the suggestion of Gen. Coburn, and
as 4 starter, Gen. Townsend said that
the first volume would cost $4,000. He
made this statement in writing and SUBJ
mitted it to the Committee on Military
Affairs, which committee unanimously
concurred in the proposition. Gen. Co
burn, as Chairman of the Committee, sub
mitted it to the Appropriations Commit
tee, of which Gen. Garfield was Chair
man. The Committee on Appropriations
inserted the matter in their bill for the
Sundry civil expenses, and not a word OF
objection was heard. So it became the
law, and the first volume was printed, and
never afterward was there any objection
to the great work.
Gen. Townsend planned the matter Of
the publication on broad scale, and Sc
lected capable assistants, who have made
this publication perhaps as great an
achievement as anyone ever performed in
the history of the world. In it are en-
bodied the reliable and original documents
of all the armies on both sides in the civil
war; and the future historians can find
such treasure house as never was opened
before to any of their immortal predeces-
SCrs.
Gems Townsend and COburn often
talked of this great work. and he never
mentioned any previous effort to accom-
plish it. In fact, he delayed the legisla-
ton on the subject some time in order to
make out a basis for the publication.
Following is the act of Congress max
ing appropriation for sundry civil expenses
for the year ending June so, 1919, U. S.
Statutes-at- Large, Vol. Is, page ODD:
ITO enable the Secretary of War to be-
gin the publication of the official records
of the war of the rebellion, both of the
Union and Confederate armies, the sum
of fifteen thousand dollars. And the Sec
retary of War is hereby directed to have
copied, for the Public Printer, all reports,
letters, kilograms and general orders not
heretofore copied or printed and properly
arranged in chronological order."-J. r.
MCBRIDE, GA 1 ST., n. w, Washington,
d. G.