“Executive Mansion, Washington, D. C.,
Saturday, October 22, 1864“MESSRS. WM. B. CAMPBELL, THOMAS A. R. NELSON, JAMES T. P. CARTER, JOHN WILLIAMS, A. BLIZZARD, HENRY COOPER, BAILIE PEYTON, JOHN LILLYETT, EMERSON ETHERIDGE, AND JOHN D. PERRYMAN.
“Gentlemen: On the fifteenth day of this month, as I remember, a printed paper manuscript, with a few manuscript interlineations, called a protest, with your names appended thereto, and accompanied by another printed paper, purporting to be a proclamation by Andrew Johnson, Military Governor of Tennessee, and also a manuscript paper purporting to be extracts from the code of Tennessee, were laid before me.”
“MESSRS. WM. B. CAMPBELL, THOMAS A. R. NELSON, JAMES T. P. CARTER, JOHN WILLIAMS, A. BLIZZARD, HENRY COOPER, BAILIE PEYTON, JOHN LILLYETT, EMERSON ETHERIDGE, AND JOHN D. PERRYMAN.
[The protest is here recited, and also the proclamation of Gov. Johnson, dated September 30, to which it refers, together with a list of the counties in East, Middle, and West Tennessee; also extracts from the code of Tennessee in relation to electors of President and Vice President, qualifications of voters for members of the General Assembly, and places of holding elections and officers of popular elections.]
“At the time these papers were presented as before stated, I had never seen either of them, nor heard of the subject to which they relate, except in a general way, only one day previously.
“Up to the present moment, nothing whatever upon the subject has passed between Gov. Johnson, or any one else connected with the proclamation and myself.
“Since receiving the papers, as stated, I have given the subject such brief consideration as I have been able to do, in the midst of so many pressing duties.
“My conclusion is, that I can have nothing to do with the matter, either to sustain the plan as the Convention and Gov. Johnson have initiated it, or to modify it as you demand. By the Constitution and laws the President is charged with no duty in the Presidential election in any State. Nor do I, in this case, perceive any military reason for his interference in the matter.
“The movement set a-foot by the Convention and Gov. Johnson does not, as seems to be assumed by you, emanate from the National Executive.
“In no proper sense can it be considered other than as an independent movement of at least a portion of the loyal people of Tennessee.
“I do not perceive in the plan any menace, or violence, or coercion toward any one.
“Gov. Johnson, like any other loyal citizen of Tennessee has the right to form any political plan he chooses, and as Military Governor it is his duty to keep the peace among and for the loyal people of the State.
“I cannot discern that by his plan he purposes any more—but you object to the plan.
“Leaving it alone will be your perfect security against it. It is not proposed to force you into it.
“Do as you please on your own account peaceably and loyally, and Gov. Johnson will not molest you, but will protect you against violence so far as in his power.
“I presume that the conducting of a Presidential election in Tennessee, in strict accordance with the old code of the State, is not now a possibility.
“It is scarcely necessary to add, that if any election shall be had, and any votes shall be cast in the State of Tennessee for President and Vice-President of the United States, it will belong not to the military agents nor yet to the Executive Department, but exclusively to another department of the Government, to determine whether they are entitled to be counted in conformity with the Constitution and laws of the United States.
“Except it be to give protection against violence, I decline to interfere in any way with any Presidential election.
“Abraham Lincoln.”
THE END.
[Transcriber’s Notes]
The original book contained many unprinted characters. Those omissions are too numerous to enumerate here, and have been silently corrected unless more than one alternative existed. Those exceptions are noted below.
Punctuation and spelling were made consistent when a predominant preference was found in this book; otherwise they were not changed.
Simple typographical errors were corrected.
Unbalanced and mismatched single- and double-quotation marks remedied only when the correction was unambiguous.