Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 20.djvu/215

 General Johnston's Surrender. 209

such importance that I think immediate action should be taken on them, and it should be done by the president in council with his whole cabinet. I would respectfully suggest whether the president should not be notified and all his cabinet, and a meeting take place to-night.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

U. S. GRANT, Lieutencuit- General.

General Grant started immediately after the adjournment of the cabinet meeting for Raleigh, North Carolina, and arrived at Sher- man's headquarters on the 24th to execute the president's order. Under this order Sherman gave notice that hostilities would be resumed, whereupon Johnston's army was surrendered upon the terms accorded by Grant to Lee.

As a matter of prudence and necessity, Mr. Stanton telegraphed to General John A. Dix, then in New York, with permission to pub- lish the same, a copy of the Sherman-Johnston agreement and its disapproval by the government. To it was appended the reasons for its disapproval. These reasons were as follows :

1. It was an exercise of an authority not vested in General Sher- man, and on its face shows that both he and Johnston knew that General Sherman had no authority to enter into any such arrange- ment.

2. It was a practical acknowledgement of the Rebel government.

3. It undertook to re-establish the Rebel State governments that had been overthrown at the sacrifice of many thousand loyal lives and an immense treasury, and placed the arms and munitions of war in the hands of Rebels at their respective capitals, which might be used as soon as the armies of the United States were disbanded, and used to conquer and subdue the loyal States.

4. By the restoration of Rebel authority in their respective States they would be enabled to re-establish slavery.

5. It might furnish a ground of responsibility for the Federal gov- ernment to pay the Rebel debts, and certainly subject the loyal citizens of Rebel States to debts contracted by Rebels in the State.

6. It would put in dispute the existence of loyal State governments and the new State of West Virginia, which had been recognized by every department of the United States Government.