I was arrested Sunday night on the street on my way home, by Government detectives. I gave them a false name. I never was in the Rebel army. Have never taken the oath of allegiance; have never been asked to take it; think my arrest was not justified."
(Signed) Chas. E. Langley.
I followed this man a year. After I arrested him very powerful interests tried to frighten me; tried to make me believe the prisoner was such an important person that his name must be whispered only. That, in fact, he was Mr. Lincoln's personal man, and reporting only to Mr. Lincoln. They threatened to have my commission taken from me. Finally the prisoner himself offered to give up the "hotel burners" of New York, if I would let up. I answered that I thought "a bird in hand worth two in the bush," and I held him.
Upon his person I found his authority from the New York "Tribune" to collect news at the front. This authority had been his open sesame through our lines. I came to New York and saw Mr. Sidney B. Gay, of the "Tribune"; he informed me that he remembered such a person, that he came to him highly recommended; that he gave him the authority but had never heard from him. I learned later that the powerful interests that were working on me to compel his release were the same that had highly recommended him to the "Tribune." He was a very successful and dangerous spy until I interfered.
I will not tell you who the powerful interests were; suffice it to say they were Confederates, doing good work for the Confederacy all the while. Yet they had the entree of the departments at Washington, having very powerful influence there. There were no other parties in the United States so strongly allied. Through their medium many strange things were manipulated. I will not mention their names, for they are all dead now. I consider Langley's arrest one of the most important.
Of all the newspapers the "Tribune" was the very best to conjure with. Any person who could show credentials from that paper would undoubtedly be welcome anywhere on our lines.
Langley knew that I would visit the "Tribune," hence his efforts in his statement to account for why he had not served them.
FILE XXIX.
Patrick Scally, an honest deserter from the Confederate service—A sketch of the defences of Richmond.
The following statement is interesting as showing how a poor, ignorant, drunken man was hurried off with Gilmor and Bradley T. Johnson, in July, '64, when they retreated from north of Baltimore.