| District of Columbia, | } |
| County of Washington |
I, .........................., of ................... do solemnly swear on the Holy Evangelist of Almighty God, without any mental reservation, that I will at any and all times hereafter, and under all circumstances, yield a hearty and willing support to the Constitution of the United States and to the Government thereof; that I will not, either directly or indirectly, take up arms against said Government, nor aid those now in arms against it; that I will not pass without the lines now established by the Army of the United States, or hereafter from time to time to be established by said Army, nor hold any correspondence whatever with any person or persons beyond said lines so established by said Army of the United States during the present rebellion, without permission from the Secretary of War; also, that I will do no act hostile or injurious to the Union of the States; that I will give no aid, comfort or assistance to the enemies of the Government, either domestic or foreign; that I will defend the flag of the United States and the armies fighting under it from insult and injury, if in my power so to do; and that I will in all things deport myself as a good and loyal citizen.
Subscribed and sworn to before me, this ........ day of ....................
........................
[B] Colonel William P. Wood was born in Alexandria, Va., on the 11th of March, 1820, and died at the Soldiers’ Home, Washington, D. C., March 20, 1903.
He was a veteran of the Mexican and Civil Wars, and one of the survivors of the Walker filibustering expedition to Nicaragua. When the Mexican War broke out he enlisted in the mounted rifles under Sam. H. Walker, the noted Texan Ranger. After serving out his term, he returned to Washington and married a Maryland lady.
When Stanton became Secretary of War he appointed Wood to be Superintendent of the Military Prisons of the District of Columbia, and concentrated the “State” prisoners and all others in the Old Capitol, to which was afterward added the Carroll Prison (Duff Green’s Row).
Wood was the first Chief of the United States Secret Service when it became part of the Treasury Department.
At the time of his death a bill was before Congress to pay him $15,000 for his services in the famous Brockway case. Wood captured the author and secured the plate of this noted 7.30 Bond counterfeit. The work on this bond was so well executed that it passed as genuine until Jay Cooke & Co. forwarded $84,000 to the United States Treasury for redemption.
[C] When General Pope was placed in command of the Army of Virginia, he issued a General Order to his soldiers which virtually gave them unbridled license to plunder and destroy, by depriving the citizens of the section of country through which they were passing of even the trifling amount of protection afforded by safeguards, as may be seen by the copy of the Order here shown: