Year: 1867

|


lam willing to die when my time shall come,


And shall be glad to go


For the world, at best is weary place,
| But the grave is dark, and the heart will fail,
In treading its gloomy way;


And it wiles my heart from its dreariness
TO see the young so gay.


A SPICY COMMUNICATION.


The following letter was addressed by Governor
Wells of Louisiana, to General Sheridan, in &C
acknowledgement of the receipt Of the order for his
removal:


STATE OF LOUISIANA, EXECUTTvED EDEPARTAENT, |
New ORLEANS, June f. 1867. J
To Major- General p H. Sheridan, Command


ing Fifth Military District:


GENERAL Il had the honor to receive at the
hands of one of your orderlies this morning, at
half-past o'clock, at my residence in Jefferson, a
written document, purporting to be Especial Or
ders No. SO, in which YOU promulgate that you
have removed me from the Office of Governor OF
Louisiana.


| For the delicate consideration you displayed in
delivering your order at that early hour, owe you
many thanks as suppose you meant that should
enjoy one good nights sleep before my decapita-
ton. 1t may appear ungracious IN me to dlsap-
point your expectations, but, strange to say, the
effect of your order did not drive sleep from my
eyelids. I returned to my couch, with feeling OF
relief that my fate waSno worse. When the NOR
ming paper came containing copy of your tele-
gram to the Secretary of War, again congratu-
lated myself on my merciful sentence, as: knowing
your ideas of the unlimited power you possess, L
might have been condemned to the Dry Tortugas,
or been shot by drum head court-martiaL From
the tone and temper of that document it is very
evident, General, you were in one Of your wrathy
moods when you penned it, and that l was not
hanged, shot or banished, appears to me under the
circumstances, as if were indebted for my safety
to the interposition of Divine Providence
In your order removing me, General, you allege
as reason therefor, that am impeding you in
and in what way you do not condescend to state.


Now, General, it may appear discourteous in so
humble an individual as Myself to contradict so
exalted functionary as you conceive yourself to
be, yet as there is not word Of truth in the charge
you make, you must excuse me If decline to give
you the benefit of so serious an ACQUISITION.
To 60 back to the date Of the July riots OF last
year, your memory cannot fail to serve you that
you availed yourself Of the occasion, in your tee-
grams to General Grant relative to the affair, to
make direct personal attack on me, impeaching
nv efficiency as public officer, and recommend:
ing my removal from Office. Not conscious of
having deserved your severe strictures confess |
was surprised and panied when read them in
print, the more so as you were not in the city on
the day after the riot you having found it conve.
nient to be off to Texas several days before, will
not say in anticipation of riot, nor will use the
word ''skulk"


I bore your damaging accusations long while
in silence, but finally exercised the right belonging
to the humblest individual, Of defending myself
publicly against your charges. This did in let
L. -, ono.o6lo 9ro,,, illinois
but couched in language devoid Of scurrility and
personalities.


! spoke of your military services in the highest
praise. At that time / did not suppose for mo-
ment that any personal hostility on your part
would result from that publication In fact, [ had
dismissed the transaction from my mind, and when
you received your appointment as commander oi
this district, called on you as if there had been
no controversy between us, and rendered you my
cooperation in carrying out the law OF Congress T
tween U.s. When, however, the time arrived foI
you to act in the appointment of registrars, and
in the removal and appointment Of officers, dis
covered no disposition on your part to consult me
in the slightest manner, which, as loyal Cover
nor, and intimately acquainted with the people Of
the State did not think unreasonable in me to
expect of you. did not complain, however; my
official intercourse with you was frequent, though
about this time saw published what purported to
be an extract of letter from you to the Secretary
of War or General Grant, IN which you asked tor
advice as to your power of removal as it was prob
able you would find it necessary to remove me from
office. I have seen no denial from you as to the
authorship of that letter. Notwithstanding these
repeated evidences of an unfrendly spirit on your
part, said nothing, and it was only when you as:
sumed to nulify my appointment OF levee board
and to substitute one Of your own, which think
you had no authority under the law Of Congress to
do, that referred the question of your right to ap'
point to the proper officers at Washington to de-
eide If to demonstrate against the illegal and ar
bitrary exercise of power BY you-having no con,
caly define your duties-isan ''impedient' 10 the
execution of the law, then your power is supreme,
which, in my opinion, was never contemplated by
the act Of Congress.


But, General, you are not content with charging
me as an 'impedment" to the execution of the law,
as your sole reason for removing me from Office
As if conscious that the charge was mere in
vention of yours to afford preteXt for doing On
act you had predetermined on to crafty an ancient
grudge, you come down to your true forte, and
pour out the vals of your wrath in stream OF q:
buse and scurrility on my devoted head. You will
pardon me, General, for not initiating your exam
pie, Dy way OF retalaClOn. Wy euuCdIlOu Has peel
sadly deficient in that polite branch Of literature,
and am willing to leave the field to you as with,
out an equal I cannot forbear the remark, how;
ever, that when Major General of the United
States army has to play the part of "bugler" in
sounding in person his own honesty, it may vel
excite curiosity in the community to surmise the
cause therefor. As to your charge Of appointing
rebels to office, if it is crime would like to ask
General if you are free from the same accusation
Out of levee board composed Of five members
one of your appointees was o member OF the Be-
cession Convention, and signed the ordinanceof Sc
cession another is not citizen Of the United
States, but claimed the protection Of the British
flag on the arrival of Commodore Farragut and his
feet and third was bockade-runner, who twas
arrested and tried by military commission. There
is trite maxim, General in this connection which
it would be well for you to remember IN your tu
ture personal controversies. Equally faulty. ano
unfortunate, in point of memory is your lnslnua
ton that you could not find me on the da o1 ht
riot, when called at your office on my way to the
Mechanics Institute, and talked over the matter
, with YOU l did not call on you for guard, be
cause one had been furnished me by Gen. Baird.
J, Having disposed of your misstatementss concern
fling ME, and defended myself from what conceive
to ha wanton md malicious attack upon nv char