The next day (Saturday) General Wallace went to Washington. A Cabinet meeting was held to consider the election frauds.
Next morning (Sunday), the following order was issued by General Wallace, personally, and is in his handwriting:
Headquarters, Middle Department,
8th Army Corps.
Baltimore, Md., Oct. 23, 1864.
Lt. Col. John Woolley,
Provost Marshal.
You will immediately arrest the following persons: M. J. Ferry, Ed. Donohue, Jr., and such clerks, assistants, &c., as they may have in the office of the New York State Agency in Baltimore. You will also seize and take into your possession all books, papers, letters, &c., which you may find on the persons or in the rooms and baggage of the persons above named.
The prisoners you will take to the City jail and confine them separately, allowing no visitor to have communication with or the prisoners to have communication in any manner with each other.
Lew Wallace,
Major General Commanding.
(You will also station a guard at the door of the office of said Agency. L. W.)
Upon my request to be allowed to conduct the arrests and seizures in my own way, the General ran a pen through the words that are bracketed.
It was my desire to kidnap the parties, so that warning might be given to other places, such as Washington, Harper's Ferry and City Point, to look out for similar crimes, to accomplish which it was desirable to leave behind each person, at his home or office, a reasonable excuse for his absence for a few days, and to keep the State Agency office open to callers.