"'President, you must excuse me. I am unable to stand longer to give utterance to the feelings of gratitude which oppress me. In my retirement I shall offer up my prayers to God for this Administration and for my country. I shall pray for it with confidence in its success over all enemies, and that speedily.'
"The President then took leave of General Scott, giving him his hand, and saying that he hoped soon to write him a private letter expressive of his gratitude and affection.... Each member of the Administration then gave his hand to the veteran and retired in profound silence."
The Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of War accompanied General Scott to New York the next morning. On the same day (November 1st) Secretary Cameron addressed the lieutenant general the following letter in response to the latter's of the day previous:
"General: It was my duty to lay before the President your letter of yesterday, asking to be relieved on the recent act of Congress. In separating from you, I can not refrain from expressing my deep regret that your health, shattered by long service and repeated wounds received in your country's defense, should render it necessary for you to retire from your high position at this momentous period of our history. Although you are not to remain in active service, I yet hope that while I continue in charge of the department over which I now preside I shall at all times be permitted to avail myself of the benefits of your wise counsels and sage experience. It has been my good fortune to enjoy a personal acquaintance with you for over thirty years, and the pleasant relations of that long time have been greatly strengthened by your cordial and entire co-operation in all the great questions which have occupied the department and convulsed the country for the last six months. In parting from you I can only express the hope that a merciful Providence that has protected you amid so many trials will improve your health and continue your life long after the people of the country shall have been restored to their former happiness and prosperity. I am, general, very sincerely,
"Your friend and servant."
In his first annual message to Congress, Mr. Lincoln deplores the physical necessity that compelled the retirement of Scott in the following language:
"Since your last adjournment Lieutenant-General Scott has retired from the head of the army. During his long life the nation has not been unmindful of his merits; yet, in calling to mind how faithfully and ably and brilliantly he has served his country, from a time far back in our history, when few now living had been born, and thenceforward continually, I can not but think we are still his debtors. I submit, therefore, for your consideration what further mark of consideration is due to him and to ourselves as a grateful people."
In virtue of this act and in pursuance of the foregoing request on November 1, 1861, the lieutenant general having been retired from active service, General Orders No. 94 announced that "the President is pleased to direct that Major-General George B. McClellan assume command of the Army of the United States." On assuming the important command to which he had been designated, General McClellan on the same day issued his General Orders No. 19, in which he gracefully and feelingly alludes to the retiring commander:
"The army will unite with me in the feeling of regret that the weight of many years and the effect of increasing infirmities, contracted and intensified in his country's service, should just now remove from our head the great soldier of our nation—the hero who in his youth raised high the reputation of his country on the fields of Canada, which he hallowed with his blood; who in more mature years proved to the world that American skill and valor could repeat, if not eclipse, the exploits of Cortez in the land of the Montezumas; whose life has been devoted to the service of his country; whose whole efforts have been directed to uphold our honor at the smallest sacrifice of life; a warrior who scorned the selfish glories of the battlefield when his great abilities as a statesman could be employed more profitably to his country; a citizen who in his declining years has given to the world the most shining instances of loyalty in disregarding all ties of birth and clinging to the cause of truth and honor—such has been the career, such the character, of Winfield Scott, whom it has long been the delight of the nation to honor, both as a man and a soldier. While we regret his loss, there is one thing we can not regret—the bright example he has left for our emulation. Let us all hope and pray that his declining years may be passed in peace and happiness, and that they may be cheered by the success of the country and the cause he has fought for and loved so well. Beyond all that, let us do nothing that can cause him to blush for us; let no defeat of the army he has so long commanded embitter his last years, but let our victories illuminate the close of a life so grand." General Scott lived to see the fulfillment of this devout prayer in a restoration of the union of the States.
General Scott held in great reverence the fame and memory of the Father of his Country, and was desirous that Mount Vernon should be left undisturbed during the trouble arising from the civil war. A report was sent abroad that the bones of Washington had been removed. This report was wholly without foundation, but it created a great deal of excitement in both sections of the country. Through the efforts of the lady regent who resided there, an understanding was arrived at by which it should be regarded by both sides as neutral ground. The general, however, issued General Orders No. 13, July 31, 1861, from which is quoted: "Should the operations of the war take the United States troops in that direction, the general in chief does not doubt that each and every man will approach with due reverence and leave uninjured not only the tombs, but also the house, the groves, and walks which were so loved by the best and greatest of men." It is true that neither party ever invaded the sacred precincts where repose the remains of the illustrious Washington, but they were found when the war closed to be in as fair a state of preservation as was possible under the circumstances, and of partial suspension of husbandry. No act of vandalism was attempted.