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by any one; nor do I suppose any will be。   All there is; so far as I

have heard; is General Grant's statement of his reasons for relieving

you。  And even this I have not seen or sought to see; because it is a

case; as appears to me; in which I could do nothing without doing

harm。  General Grant and yourself have been conspicuous in our most

important successes; and for me to interfere and thus magnify a

breach between you could not but be of evil effect。  Better leave it

where the law of the case has placed it。  For me to force you back

upon General Grant would be forcing him to resign。  I cannot give you

a new command; because we have no forces except such as already have

commanders。



I am constantly pressed by those who scold before they think; or

without thinking at all; to give commands respectively to Fremont;

McClellan; Butler; Sigel; Curtis; Hunter; Hooker; and perhaps others;

when; all else out of the way; I have no commands to give them。  This

is now your case; which; as I have said; pains me not less than it

does you。  My belief is that the permanent estimate of what a general

does in the field is fixed by the 〃cloud of witnesses〃 who have been

with him in the field; and that; relying on these; he who has the

right needs not to fear。



Your friend as ever;



A。 LINCOLN。









TELEGRAM TO GOVERNOR SEYMOUR。



EXECUTIVE MANSION; WASHINGTON; AUGUST 16; 1863。



GOVERNOR SEYMOUR; New York:



Your despatch of this morning is just received; and I fear I do not

perfectly understand it。



My view of the principle is that every soldier obtained voluntarily

leaves one less to be obtained by draft。  The only difficulty is in

applying the principle properly。  Looking to time; as heretofore; I

am unwilling to give up a drafted man now; even for the certainty;

much less for the mere chance; of getting a volunteer hereafter。

Again; after the draft in any district; would it not make trouble to

take any drafted man out and put a volunteer infor how shall it be

determined which drafted man is to have the privilege of thus going

out; to the exclusion of all the others?  And even before the draft

in any district the quota must be fixed; and the draft must be

postponed indefinitely if every time a volunteer is offered the

officers must stop and reconstruct the quota。  At least I fear there

might be this difficulty; but; at all events; let credits for

volunteers be given up to the last moment which will not produce

confusion or delay。  That the principle of giving credits for

volunteers shall be applied by districts seems fair and proper;

though I do not know how far by present statistics it is practicable。

When for any cause a fair credit is not given at one time; it should

be given as soon thereafter as practicable。  My purpose is to be just

and fair; and yet to not lose time。



A。 LINCOLN









To J。 H。 HACKETT。



EXECUTIVE MANSION; WASHINGTON

August 17; 1863。



JAMES H。 HACKETT; Esq。



MY DEAR SIR:Months ago I should have acknowledged the receipt of

your book and accompanying kind note; and I now have to beg your

pardon for not having done so。



For one of my age I have seen very little of the drama。  The first

presentation of Falstaff I ever saw was yours here; last winter or

spring。  Perhaps the best compliment I can pay is to say; as I truly

can; I am very anxious to see it again。  Some of Shakespeare's plays

I have never read; while others I have gone over perhaps as

frequently as any un…professional reader。  Among the latter are Lear;

Richard III。; Henry VIII。; Hamlet; and especially Macbeth。  I think

nothing equals Macbeth。  It is wonderful。



Unlike you gentlemen of the profession; I think the soliloquy in

Hamlet commencing 〃Oh; my offense is rank;〃 surpasses that commencing

〃To be or not to be。〃 But pardon this small attempt at criticism。  I

should like to hear you pronounce the opening speech of Richard III。

Will you not soon visit Washington again?  If you do; please call and

let me make your personal acquaintance。



Yours truly;



A。 LINCOLN









TO F。 F。 LOWE。



WASHINGTON; D。 C。;

August 17; 1863。



HON。 P。 F。 LOWE; San Francisco; Cal。:



There seems to be considerable misunderstanding about the recent

movement to take possession of the 〃New Almaden〃 mine。  It has no

reference to any other mine or mines。



In regard to mines and miners generally; no change of policy by the

Government has been decided on; or even thought of; so far as I know。



The 〃New Almaden〃 mine was peculiar in this:  that its occupants

claimed to be the legal owners of it on a Mexican grant; and went

into court on that claim。  The case found its way into the Supreme

Court of the United States; and last term; in and by that court; the

claim of the occupants was decided to be utterly fraudulent。

Thereupon it was considered the duty of the Government by the

Secretary of the Interior; the Attorney…General; and myself to take

possession of the premises; and the Attorney…General carefully made

out the writ and I signed it。  It was not obtained surreptitiously;

although I suppose General Halleck thought it had been; when he

telegraphed; simply because he thought possession was about being

taken by a military order; while he knew no such order had passed

through his hands as general…in…chief。



The writ was suspended; upon urgent representations from California;

simply to keep the peace。  It never had any direct or indirect

reference to any mine; place; or person; except the 〃New Almaden〃

mine and the persons connected with it。



A。 LINCOLN。









TELEGRAM TO GENERAL MEADE。



EXECUTIVE MANSION; WASHINGTON; August 21; 1863。



MAJOR…GENERAL MEADE; Warrenton; Va。:



At this late moment I am appealed to in behalf of William Thompson of

Company K; Third Maryland Volunteers; in Twelfth Army Corps; said to

be at Kelly's Ford; under sentence to be shot to…day as a deserter。

He is represented to me to be very young; with symptoms of insanity。

Please postpone the execution till further order。



A。 LINCOLN。









TELEGRAM TO GENERAL SCHOFIELD。



WASHINGTON; D。 C。; August 22; 1863。



GENERAL SCHOFIELD; Saint Louis; Mo。:



Please send me if you can a transcript of the record in the case of

McQuin and Bell; convicted of murder by a military commission。  I

telegraphed General Strong for it; but he does not answer。



A。 LINCOLN。









TELEGRAM TO MRS。 GRIMSLEY。



WAR DEPARTMENT; WASHINGTON; D。 C。; August 24; 1863。



MRS。 ELIZABETH J。 GRIMSLEY; Springfield; Ill。:



I mail the papers to you to…day appointing Johnny to the Naval

school。



A。 LINCOLN









TO CRITICS OF EMANCIPATION



To J。 C。 CONKLING。



EXECUTIVE MANSION; WASHINGTON;

August 26; 1863。



HON。 JAMES C。 CONKLING。



MY DEAR SIR:Your letter inviting me to attend a mass meeting of

unconditional Union men; to be held at the capital of Illinois; on

the 3d day of September; has been received。  It would be very

agreeable for me thus to meet my old friends at my own home; but I

cannot just now be absent from here so long as a visit there would

require。



The meeting is to be of all those who maintain unconditional devotion

to the Union; and I am sure that my old political friends will thank

me for tendering; as I do; the nation's gratitude to those other

noble men whom no partisan malice or partisan hope can make false to

the nation's life。



There are those who are dissatisfied with me。  To such I would say:

You desire peace; and you blame me that we do not have it。  But how

can we obtain it?  There are but three conceivable ways:



Firstto suppress the rebellion by force of arms。  This I am trying

to do。  Are you for it?  If you are; so far we are agreed。  If you

are not for it; a second way is to give up the Union。  I am against

this。  Are you for it?  If you are you should say so plainly。  If you

are not for force nor yet for dissolution; there only remains some

imaginable compromise。



I do not believe that any compromise embracing the maintenance of the

Union is now possible。  All that I learn leads to a directly opposite

belief。  The strength of the rebellion is its military; its army。

That army dominates all the country and all the people within its

range。  Any offer of terms made by any man or men within that range;

in opposition to that army; is simply nothing for the present;

because such man or men have no power whatever to enforce their side

of a compromise; if one were made with them。



To illustrate: Suppose refugees from the South and peace men of the

North get together in convention; and frame and proclaim a compromise

embracing a restoration of the Union。  In what way can that

compromise be used to keep Lee's army out of Pennsylvania?  Meade's

army can keep Lee's army out of Pennsylvania; and; I th

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