A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents. Volume 6, part 2: Andrew Johnson

Chapter II: Part 2

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Whereas the President of the United States is by the Constitution made Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy, as well as chief civil executive officer of the United States, and is bound by solemn oath faithfully to execute the office of President of the United States and to take care that the laws be faithfully executed; and

Whereas the rebellion which has been waged by a portion of the people of the United States against the properly constituted authorities of the Government thereof in the most violent and revolting form, but whose organized and armed forces have now been almost entirely overcome, has in its revolutionary progress deprived the people of the State of Texas of all civil government; and

Whereas it becomes necessary and proper to carry out and enforce the obligations of the United States to the people of the State of Texas in securing them in the enjoyment of a republican form of government:

Now, therefore, in obedience to the high and solemn duties imposed upon me by the Constitution of the United States and for the purpose of enabling the loyal people of said State to organize a State government whereby justice may be established, domestic tranquillity insured, and loyal citizens protected in all their rights of life, liberty, and property, I, Andrew Johnson, President of the United States and Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, do hereby appoint Andrew J. Hamilton, of Texas, provisional governor of the State of Texas, whose duty it shall be, at the earliest practicable period, to prescribe such rules and regulations as may be necessary and proper for convening a convention composed of delegates to be chosen by that portion of the people of said State who are loyal to the United States, and no others, for the purpose of altering or amending the constitution thereof, and with authority to exercise within the limits of said State all the powers necessary and proper to enable such loyal people of the State of Texas to restore said State to its constitutional relations to the Federal Government and to present such a republican form of State government as will entitle the State to the guaranty of the United States therefor and its people to protection by the United States against invasion, insurrection, and domestic violence: _Provided_, That in any election that may be hereafter held for choosing delegates to any State convention as aforesaid no person shall be qualified as an elector or shall be eligible as a member of such convention unless he shall have previously taken and subscribed the oath of amnesty as set forth in the President's proclamation of May 29, A.D. 1865, and is a voter qualified as prescribed by the constitution and laws of the State of Texas in force immediately before the 1st day of February, A.D. 1861, the date of the so-called ordinance of secession; and the said convention, when convened, or the legislature that may be thereafter assembled, will prescribe the qualification of electors and the eligibility of persons to hold office under the constitution and laws of the State--a power the people of the several States composing the Federal Union have rightfully exercised from the origin of the Government to the present time.

And I do hereby direct--

First. That the military commander of the department and all officers and persons in the military and naval service aid and assist the said provisional governor in carrying into effect this proclamation; and they are enjoined to abstain from in any way hindering, impeding, or discouraging the loyal people from the organization of a State government as herein authorized.

Second. That the Secretary of State proceed to put in force all laws of the United States the administration whereof belongs to the State Department applicable to the geographical limits aforesaid.

Third. That the Secretary of the Treasury proceed to nominate for appointment assessors of taxes and collectors of customs and internal revenue and such other officers of the Treasury Department as are authorized by law and put in execution the revenue laws of the United States within the geographical limits aforesaid. In making appointments the preference shall be given to qualified loyal persons residing within the districts where their respective duties are to be performed; but if suitable residents of the districts shall not be found, then persons residing in other States or districts shall be appointed.

Fourth. That the Postmaster-General proceed to establish post-offices and post routes and put into execution the postal laws of the United States within the said State, giving to loyal residents the preference of appointment; but if suitable residents are not found, then to appoint agents, etc., from other States.

Fifth. That the district judge for the judicial district in which Texas is included proceed to hold courts within said State in accordance with the provisions of the act of Congress. The Attorney-General will instruct the proper officers to libel and bring to judgment, confiscation, and sale property subject to confiscation and enforce the administration of justice within said State in all matters within the cognizance and jurisdiction of the Federal courts.

Sixth. That the Secretary of the Navy take possession of all public property belonging to the Navy Department within said geographical limits and put in operation all acts of Congress in relation to naval affairs having application to the said State.

Seventh. That the Secretary of the Interior put in force the laws relating to the Interior Department applicable to the geographical limits aforesaid.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 17th day of June, A.D. 1865, and of the Independence of the United States the eighty-ninth.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

By the President:
WILLIAM H. SEWARD,
_Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas the fourth section of the fourth article of the Constitution of the United States declares that the United States shall guarantee to every State in the Union a republican form of government and shall protect each of them against invasion and domestic violence; and

Whereas it becomes necessary and proper to carry out and enforce the obligations of the United States to the people of Alabama in securing them in the enjoyment of a republican form of government:

Now, therefore, in obedience to the high and solemn duties imposed upon me by the Constitution of the United States and for the purpose of enabling the loyal people of said State to organize a State government whereby justice may be established, domestic tranquillity insured, and loyal citizens protected in all their rights of life, liberty, and property, I, Andrew Johnson, President of the United States and Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, do hereby appoint Lewis E. Parsons, of Alabama, provisional governor of the State of Alabama, whose duty it shall be, at the earliest practicable period, to prescribe such rules and regulations as may be necessary and proper for convening a convention composed of delegates to be chosen by that portion of the people of said State who are loyal to the United States, and no others, for the purpose of altering or amending the constitution thereof, and with authority to exercise within the limits of said State all the powers necessary and proper to enable such loyal people of the State of Alabama to restore said State to its constitutional relations to the Federal Government and to present such a republican form of State government as will entitle the State to the guaranty of the United States therefor and its people to protection by the United States against invasion, insurrection, and domestic violence: _Provided_, That in any election that may be hereafter held for choosing delegates to any State convention as aforesaid no person shall be qualified as an elector or shall be eligible as a member of such convention unless he shall have previously taken and subscribed the oath of amnesty as set forth in the President's proclamation of May 29, A.D. 1865, and is a voter qualified as prescribed by the constitution and laws of the State of Alabama in force immediately before the 11th day of January, A.D. 1861, the date of the so-called ordinance of secession; and the said convention, when convened, or the legislature that may be thereafter assembled, will prescribe the qualification of electors and the eligibility of persons to hold office under the constitution and laws of the State, a power the people of the several States composing the Federal Union have rightfully exercised from the origin of the Government to the present time.

And I do hereby direct--

Second. That the Secretary of State proceed to put in force all laws of the United States the administration whereof belongs to the State Department applicable to the geographical limits aforesaid.

Fifth. That the district judge for the judicial district in which Alabama is included proceed to hold courts within said State in accordance with the provisions of the act of Congress. The Attorney-General will instruct the proper officers to libel and bring to judgment, confiscation, and sale property subject to confiscation and enforce the administration of justice within said State in all matters within the cognizance and jurisdiction of the Federal courts.

Seventh. That the Secretary of the Interior put in force the laws relating to the Interior Department applicable to the geographical limits aforesaid.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 21st day of June, A.D. 1865, and of the Independence of the United States the eighty-ninth.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

By the President:
WILLIAM H. SEWARD,
_Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas by the proclamations of the President of the 19th and 27th of April, 1861, a blockade of certain ports of the United States was set on foot; but

Whereas the reasons for that measure have ceased to exist:

Now, therefore, be it known that I, Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, do hereby declare and proclaim the blockade aforesaid to be rescinded as to all the ports aforesaid, including that of Galveston and other ports west of the Mississippi River, which ports will be open to foreign commerce on the 1st of July next on the terms and conditions set forth in my proclamation of the 22d of May last.

It is to be understood, however, that the blockade thus rescinded was an international measure for the purpose of protecting the sovereign rights of the United States. The greater or less subversion of civil authority in the region to which it applied and the impracticability of at once restoring that in due efficiency may for a season make it advisable to employ the Army and Navy of the United States toward carrying the laws into effect wherever such employment may be necessary.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 23d day of June, A.D. 1865, and of the Independence of the United States of America the eighty-ninth.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

By the President:
W. HUNTER,
_Acting Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas it has been the desire of the General Government of the United States to restore unrestricted commercial intercourse between and in the several States as soon as the same could be safely done in view of resistance to the authority of the United States by combinations of armed insurgents; and

Whereas that desire has been shown in my proclamations of the 29th of April, 1865, the 13th of June, 1865, and the 23d of June, 1865; and

Whereas it now seems expedient and proper to remove restrictions upon internal, domestic, and coastwise trade and commercial intercourse between and within the States and Territories west of the Mississippi River:

Now, therefore, be it known that I, Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, do hereby declare that all restrictions upon internal, domestic, and coastwise intercourse and trade and upon the purchase and removal of products of States and parts of States and Territories heretofore declared in insurrection, lying west of the Mississippi River (excepting only those relating to property heretofore purchased by the agents or captured by or surrendered to the forces of the United States and to the transportation thereto or therein on private account of arms, ammunition, all articles from which ammunition is made, gray uniforms, and gray cloth), are annulled; and I do hereby direct that they be forthwith removed, and also that the commerce of such States and parts of States shall be conducted under the supervision of the regularly appointed officers of the customs, [who] shall receive any captured and abandoned property that may be turned over to them under the law by the military or naval forces of the United States and dispose of the same in accordance with instructions on the subject issued by the Secretary of the Treasury.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the city of Washington, this 24th day of June, A.D. 1865, and of the Independence of the United States of America the eighty-ninth.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

By the President:
W. HUNTER,
_Acting Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas it becomes necessary and proper to carry out and enforce the obligations of the United States to the people of South Carolina in securing them in the enjoyment of a republican form of government:

Now, therefore, in obedience to the high and solemn duties imposed upon me by the Constitution of the United States and for the purpose of enabling the loyal people of said State to organize a State government whereby justice may be established, domestic tranquillity insured, and loyal citizens protected in all their rights of life, liberty, and property, I, Andrew Johnson, President of the United States and Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, do hereby appoint Benjamin F. Perry, of South Carolina, provisional governor of the State of South Carolina, whose duty it shall be, at the earliest practicable period, to prescribe such rules and regulations as may be necessary and proper for convening a convention composed of delegates to be chosen by that portion of the people of said State who are loyal to the United States, and no others, for the purpose of altering or amending the constitution thereof, and with authority to exercise within the limits of said State all the powers necessary and proper to enable such loyal people of the State of South Carolina to restore said State to its constitutional relations to the Federal Government and to present such a republican form of State government as will entitle the State to the guaranty of the United States therefor and its people to protection by the United States against invasion, insurrection, and domestic violence: _Provided_, That in any election that may be hereafter held for choosing delegates to any State convention as aforesaid no person shall be qualified as an elector or shall be eligible as a member of such convention unless he shall have previously taken and subscribed the oath of amnesty as set forth in the President's proclamation of May 29, A.D. 1865, and is a voter qualified as prescribed by the constitution and laws of the State of South Carolina in force immediately before the 17th day of November, A.D. 1860, the date of the so-called ordinance of secession; and the said convention, when convened, or the legislature that may be thereafter assembled, will prescribe the qualification of electors and the eligibility of persons to hold office under the constitution and laws of the State--a power the people of the several States composing the Federal Union have rightfully exercised from the origin of the Government to the present time.

And I do hereby direct--

Second. That the Secretary of State proceed to put in force all laws of the United States the administration whereof belongs to the State Department applicable to the geographical limits aforesaid.

Fifth. That the district judge for the judicial district in which South Carolina is included proceed to hold courts within said State in accordance with the provisions of the act of Congress. The Attorney-General will instruct the proper officers to libel and bring to judgment, confiscation, and sale property subject to confiscation and enforce the administration of justice within said State in all matters within the cognizance and jurisdiction of the Federal courts.

Seventh. That the Secretary of the Interior put in force the laws relating to the Interior Department applicable to the geographical limits aforesaid.

[SEAL.]

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the city of Washington, this 30th day of June, A.D. 1865, and of the Independence of the United States the eighty-ninth.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

By the President:
WILLIAM H. SEWARD,
_Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas the fourth section of the fourth article of the Constitution of the United States declares that the United Stales shall guarantee to every State in the Union a republican form of government and shall protect each of them against invasion and domestic violence; and

Whereas it becomes necessary and proper to carry out and enforce the obligations of the United States to the people of Florida in securing them in the enjoyment of a republican form of government:

Now, therefore, in obedience to the high and solemn duties imposed upon me by the Constitution of the United States and for the purpose of enabling the loyal people of said State to organize a State government whereby justice may be established, domestic tranquillity insured, and loyal citizens protected in all their rights of life, liberty, and property, I, Andrew Johnson, President of the United States and Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, do hereby appoint William Marvin provisional governor of the State of Florida, whose duty it shall be, at the earliest practicable period, to prescribe such rules and regulations as may be necessary and proper for convening a convention composed of delegates to be chosen by that portion of the people of said State who are loyal to the United States, and no others, for the purpose of altering or amending the constitution thereof, and with authority to exercise within the limits of said State all the powers necessary and proper to enable such loyal people of the State of Florida to restore said State to its constitutional relations to the Federal Government and to present such a republican form of State government as will entitle the State to the guaranty of the United States therefor and its people to protection by the United States against invasion, insurrection, and domestic violence: _Provided_, That in any election that may be hereafter held for choosing delegates to any State convention as aforesaid no person shall be qualified as an elector or shall be eligible as a member of such convention unless he shall have previously taken and subscribed the oath of amnesty as set forth in the President's proclamation of May 29, A.D. 1865, and is a voter qualified as prescribed by the constitution and laws of the State of Florida in force immediately before the 10th day of January, A.D. 1861, the date of the so-called ordinance of secession; and the said convention, when convened, or the legislature that may be thereafter assembled, will prescribe the qualification of electors and the eligibility of persons to hold office under the constitution and laws of the State--a power the people of the several States composing the Federal Union have rightfully exercised from the origin of the Government to the present time.

And I do hereby direct--

Second. That the Secretary of State proceed to put in force all laws of the United States the administration whereof belongs to the State Department applicable to the geographical limits aforesaid.

Fifth. That the district judge for the judicial district in which Florida is included proceed to hold courts within said State in accordance with the provisions of the act of Congress. The Attorney-General will instruct the proper officers to libel and bring to judgment, confiscation, and sale property subject to confiscation and enforce the administration of justice within said State in all matters within the cognizance and jurisdiction of the Federal courts.

Seventh. That the Secretary of the Interior put in force the laws relating to the Interior Department applicable to the geographical limits aforesaid.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 13th day of July, A.D. 1865, and of the Independence of the United States the ninetieth.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

By the President:
WILLIAM H. SEWARD,
_Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas by my proclamations of the 13th and 24th of June, 1865, removing restrictions, in part, upon internal, domestic, and coastwise intercourse and trade with those States recently declared in insurrection, certain articles were excepted from the effect of said proclamations as contraband of war; and

Whereas the necessity for restricting trade in said articles has now in a great measure ceased:

It is hereby ordered that on and after the 1st day of September, 1865. all restrictions aforesaid be removed, so that the articles declared by the said proclamations to be contraband of war may be imported into and sold in said States, subject only to such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 20th day of August, A.D. 1865, and of the Independence of the United States of America the ninetieth.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

By the President:
WILLIAM H. SEWARD,
_Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas by a proclamation of the 5th day of July, 1864, the President of the United States, when the civil war was flagrant and when combinations were in progress in Kentucky for the purpose of inciting insurgent raids into that State, directed that the proclamation suspending the privilege of the writ of _habeas corpus_ should be made effectual in Kentucky and that martial law should be established there and continue until said proclamation should be revoked or modified; and

Whereas since then the danger from insurgent raids into Kentucky has substantially passed away:

Now, therefore, be it known that I, Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution, do hereby declare that the said proclamation of the 5th day of July, 1864, shall be, and is hereby, modified in so far that martial law shall be no longer in force in Kentucky from and after the date hereof.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 12th day of October, A.D. 1865, and of the Independence of the United States of America the ninetieth.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

By the President:
W. HUNTER,
_Acting Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas it has pleased Almighty God during the year which is now coming to an end to relieve our beloved country from the fearful scourge of civil war and to permit us to secure the blessings of peace, unity, and harmony, with a great enlargement of civil liberty; and

Whereas our Heavenly Father has also during the year graciously averted from us the calamities of foreign war, pestilence, and famine, while our granaries are full of the fruits of an abundant season; and

Whereas righteousness exalteth a nation, while sin is a reproach to any people:

Now, therefore, be it known that I, Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, do hereby recommend to the people thereof that they do set apart and observe the first Thursday of December next as a day of national thanksgiving to the Creator of the Universe for these great deliverances and blessings.

And I do further recommend that on that occasion the whole people make confession of our national sins against His infinite goodness, and with one heart and one mind implore the divine guidance in the ways of national virtue and holiness.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 28th day of October, A.D. 1865, and of the Independence of the United States of America the ninetieth.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

By the President:
WILLIAM H. SEWARD,
_Secretary of State_.

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas by the proclamation of the President of the United States of the 15th day of September, 1863, the privilege of the writ of _habeas corpus_ was, in certain cases therein set forth, suspended throughout the United States; and

Whereas the reasons for that suspension may be regarded as having ceased in some of the States and Territories:

Now, therefore, be it known that I, Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, do hereby proclaim and declare that the suspension aforesaid and all other proclamations and orders suspending the privilege of the writ of _habeas corpus_ in the States and Territories of the United States are revoked and annulled, excepting as to the States of Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Texas, the District of Columbia, and the Territories of New Mexico and Arizona.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

Done at the city of Washington, this 1st day of December, A.D. 1865, and of the Independence of the United States of America the ninetieth.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

By the President:
WILLIAM H. SEWARD,
_Secretary of State_.

EXECUTIVE ORDERS.

EXECUTIVE CHAMBER,

_Washington, April 29, 1865_.

Being desirous to relieve all loyal citizens and well-disposed persons residing in insurrectionary States from unnecessary commercial restrictions and to encourage them to return to peaceful pursuits--

_It is hereby ordered_, I. That all restrictions upon internal, domestic, and coastwise commercial intercourse be discontinued in such parts of the States of Tennessee, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and so much of Louisiana as lies east of the Mississippi River as shall be embraced within the lines of national military occupation, excepting only such restrictions as are imposed by acts of Congress and regulations in pursuance thereof prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury and approved by the President, and excepting also from the effect of this order the following articles contraband of war, to wit: Arms, ammunition, all articles from which ammunition is manufactured, gray uniforms and cloth, locomotives, cars, railroad iron, and machinery for operating railroads, telegraph wires, insulators, and instruments for operating telegraphic lines.

II. That all existing military and naval orders in any manner restricting internal, domestic, and coastwise commercial intercourse and trade with or in the localities above named be, and the same are hereby, revoked, and that no military or naval officer in any manner interrupt or interfere with the same, or with any boats or other vessels engaged therein under proper authority, pursuant to the regulations of the Secretary of the Treasury.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

WAR DEPARTMENT,

_Washington City, April 29, 1865_.

The Executive order of January 20, 1865, prohibiting the exportation of hay, is rescinded from and after the 1st day of May, 1865.

By order of the President:

EDWIN M STANTON.

_Secretary of War_.

EXECUTIVE CHAMBER,

_Washington City, May 1, 1865_.

Whereas the Attorney-General of the United States hath given his opinion that the persons implicated in the murder of the late President, Abraham Lincoln, and the attempted assassination of the Hon. William H. Seward, Secretary of State, and in an alleged conspiracy to assassinate other officers of the Federal Government at Washington City, and their aiders and abettors, are subject to the jurisdiction of and lawfully triable before a military commission--

_It is ordered_:

First. That the assistant adjutant-general detail nine competent military officers to serve as a commission for the trial of said parties, and that the Judge-Advocate-General proceed to prefer charges against said parties for their alleged offenses and bring them to trial before said military commission; that said trial or trials be conducted by the said Judge-Advocate-General, and as recorder thereof, in person, aided by such assistant or special judge-advocate as he may designate, and that said trials be conducted with all diligence consistent with the ends of justice; the said commission to sit without regard to hours.

Second. That Brevet Major-General Hartranft be assigned to duty as special provost-marshal-general for the purpose of said trial, and attendance upon said commission, and the execution of its mandates.

Third. That the said commission establish such order or rules of proceeding as may avoid unnecessary delay and conduce to the ends of public justice.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

Official copy:

W.A. NICHOLS,

_Assistant Adjutant-General_.

WAR DEPARTMENT,

_Washington, D.C., May 3, 1865_.

Order Rescinding Regulations Prohibiting the Exportation of Arms, Ammunition, Horses, Mules, and Live Stock.

The Executive order of November 21, 1862, prohibiting the exportation of arms and ammunition from the United States, and the Executive order of May 13, 1863,[2] prohibiting the exportation of horses, mules, and live stock, being no longer required by public necessities, the aforesaid orders are hereby rescinded and annulled.

By order of the President of the United States:

EDWIN M. STANTON,

_Secretary of War_.

[Footnote 2: Order of Secretary of War.]

EXECUTIVE MANSION,

_Washington, May 4, 1865_.

This being the day of the funeral of the late President, Abraham Lincoln, at Springfield, Ill., the Executive Office and the various Departments will be closed at 12 m. to-day.

ANDREW JOHNSON,

_President of the United States_.

SPECIAL ORDERS, No. 211.

WAR DEPARTMENT,

ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE,

_Washington, May 6, 1865_.

* * * * *

4. A military commission is hereby appointed to meet at Washington, D.C., on Monday, the 8th day of May, 1865, at 9 o'clock a.m., or as soon thereafter as practicable, for the trial of David E. Herold, George A. Atzerodt, Lewis Payne, Michael O'Laughlin, Edward Spangler, Samuel Arnold, Mary E. Surratt, Samuel A. Mudd, and such other prisoners as may be brought before it, implicated in the murder of the late President, Abraham Lincoln, and the attempted assassination of the Hon. William H. Seward, Secretary of State, and in an alleged conspiracy to assassinate other officers of the Federal Government at Washington City, and their aiders and abettors.

_Detail for the court_.

Major-General David Hunter, United States Volunteers.
Major-General Lewis Wallace, United States Volunteers.
Brevet Major-General August V. Kautz, United States Volunteers.
Brigadier-General Albion P. Howe, United States Volunteers.
Brigadier-General Robert S. Foster, United States Volunteers.
Brevet Brigadier-General Cyrus B. Comstock,[A] United States Volunteers.
Brigadier-General T.M. Harris, United States Volunteers.
Brevet Colonel Horace Porter,[B] aid-de-camp.
Lieutenant-Colonel David R. Clendenin, Eighth Illinois Cavalry.
Brigadier-General Joseph Holt, Judge-Advocate-General, United States
Army, is appointed the judge-advocate and recorder of the commission,
to be aided by such assistant or special judge-advocate as he may
designate.

The commission will sit without regard to hours.

By order of the President of the United States:

E.D. TOWNSEND,

_Assistant Adjutant-General_.

[Footnote 3: Brevet Brigadier-General James A. Ekin substituted; see Special Orders, No. 216.]

[Footnote 4: Brevet Colonel C. H. Tompkins substituted; see Special Orders, No. 216.]

WAR DEPARTMENT, _Washington City, May 7, 1865_.

Brigadier-General Holt, Judge-Advocate-General, having designated the Hon. John A. Bingham as a special judge-advocate, whose aid he requires in the prosecution of Herold and others before the military commission of which Major-General Hunter is presiding officer:

_It is ordered_, That the said John A. Bingham be, and he is hereby, appointed special judge-advocate for the purpose aforesaid, to aid the Judge-Advocate-General, pursuant to the order of the President in respect to said military commission.

By order of the President:

EDWIN M. STANTON,

_Secretary of War_.

SPECIAL ORDERS. No. 216.

WAR DEPARTMENT,
ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE,
_Washington, May 9, 1865_.

* * * * *

91. Brevet Brigadier-General Cyrus B. Comstock, United States Volunteers, and Brevet Colonel Horace Porter, aid-de-camp, are hereby relieved from duty as members of the military commission appointed in Special Orders, No. 211, paragraph 4, dated "War Department, Adjutant-General's Office, Washington, May 6, 1865," and Brevet Brigadier-General James A. Ekin, United States Volunteers, and Brevet Colonel C.H. Tompkins, United States Army, are detailed in their places, respectively.

The commission will be composed as follows:

Major-General David Hunter, United States Volunteers.
Major-General Lewis Wallace, United States Volunteers.
Brevet Major-General August V. Kautz, United States Volunteers.
Brigadier-General Albion P. Howe, United States Volunteers.
Brigadier-General Robert S. Poster, United States Volunteers.
Brevet Brigadier-General James A. Ekin, United States Volunteers.
Brigadier-General T.M. Harris, United States Volunteers.
Brevet Colonel C.H. Tompkins, United States Army.
Lieutenant-Colonel David R. Clendenin, Eighth Illinois Cavalry.
Brigadier-General Joseph Holt, judge-advocate and recorder.

By order of the President of the United States:

E.D. TOWNSEND,

_Assistant Adjutant-General_.

EXECUTIVE CHAMBER,

_Washington City, May 9, 1865_.

Executive Order to Reestablish the Authority of the United States and Execute the Laws within the Geographical Limits Known as the State of Virginia.

_Ordered_, first. That all acts and proceedings of the political, military, and civil organizations which have been in a state of insurrection and rebellion within the State of Virginia against the authority and laws of the United States, and of which Jefferson Davis, John Letcher, and William Smith were late the respective chiefs, are declared null and void. All persons who shall exercise, claim, pretend, or attempt to exercise any political, military, or civil power, authority, jurisdiction, or right by, through, or under Jefferson Davis, late of the city of Richmond, and his confederates, or under John Letcher or William Smith and their confederates, or under any pretended political, military, or civil commission or authority issued by them or either of them since the 17th day of April, 1861, shall be deemed and taken as in rebellion against the United States, and shall be dealt with accordingly.

Second. That the Secretary of State proceed to put in force all laws of the United States the administration whereof belongs to the Department of State applicable to the geographical limits aforesaid.

Third. That the Secretary of the Treasury proceed without delay to nominate for appointment assessors of taxes and collectors of customs and internal revenue and such other officers of the Treasury Department as are authorized by law, and shall put in execution the revenue laws of the United States within the geographical limits aforesaid. In making appointments the preference shall be given to qualified loyal persons residing within the districts where their respective duties are to be performed; but if suitable persons shall not be found residents of the districts, then persons residing in other States or districts shall be appointed.

Fourth. That the Postmaster-General shall proceed to establish post-offices and post routes and put into execution the postal laws of the United States within the said State, giving to loyal residents the preference of appointment; but if suitable persons are not found, then to appoint agents, etc., from other States.

Fifth. That the district judge of said district proceed to hold courts within said State in accordance with the provisions of the act of Congress. The Attorney-General will instruct the proper officers to libel and bring to judgment, confiscation, and sale property subject to confiscation, and enforce the administration of justice within said State in all matters, civil and criminal, within the cognizance and jurisdiction of the Federal courts.

Sixth. That the Secretary of War assign such assistant provost-marshal-general and such provost-marshals in each district of said State as he may deem necessary.

Seventh. The Secretary of the Navy will take possession of all public property belonging to the Navy Department within said geographical limits and put in operation all acts of Congress in relation to naval affairs having application to the said State.

Eighth. The Secretary of the Interior will also put in force the laws relating to the Department of the Interior.

Ninth. That to carry into effect the guaranty by the Federal Constitution of a republican form of State government and afford the advantage and security of domestic laws, as well as to complete the reestablishment of the authority and laws of the United States and the full and complete restoration of peace within the limits aforesaid, Francis H. Peirpoint, governor of the State of Virginia, will be aided by the Federal Government so far as may be necessary in the lawful measures which he may take for the extension and administration of the State government throughout the geographical limits of said State.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

[SEAL.]

ANDREW JOHNSON.

By the President:
W. HUNTER,
_Acting Secretary of State_.

WAR DEPARTMENT,

_Washington City, May 27, 1865_.

_Ordered_, That in all cases of sentences by military tribunals of imprisonment during the war the sentence be remitted and that the prisoners be discharged. The Adjutant-General will issue immediately the necessary instructions to carry this order into effect.

By order of the President of the United States:

EDWIN M. STANTON,

_Secretary of War_.

EXECUTIVE OFFICE,

_Washington, D.C., May 31, 1865_.

To-morrow, the 1st of June, being the day appointed for special humiliation and prayer in consequence of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, late President of the United States, the Executive Office and the various Departments will be closed during the day.

ANDREW JOHNSON,

_President of the United States_.

GENERAL ORDERS, No. 107.

WAR DEPARTMENT,
ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE,
_Washington, June 2, 1865_.

_Ordered_, That all military restrictions upon trade in any of the States or Territories of the United States, except in articles contraband of war--to wit, arms, ammunition, gray cloth, and all articles from which ammunition is manufactured; locomotives, cars, railroad iron, and machinery for operating railroads; telegraph wires, insulators, and instruments for operating telegraphic lines--shall cease from and after the present date.

By order of the President of the United States:

E.D. TOWNSEND,

_Assistant Adjutant-General_.

DEPARTMENT OF STATE,

_Washington, June 2, 1865_.

Whereas, pursuant to the order of the President and as a means required by the public safety, directions were issued from this Department, under date of the 17th of December, 1864, requiring passports from all travelers entering the United States, except immigrant passengers directly entering an American port from a foreign country; and

Whereas the necessities which required the adoption of that measure are believed no longer to exist:

Now, therefore, the President directs that from and after this date the order above referred to shall be, and the same is hereby, rescinded.

Nothing in this regulation, however, will be construed to relieve from due accountability any enemies of the United States or offenders against their peace and dignity who may hereafter seek to enter the country or at any time be found within its lawful jurisdiction.

WILLIAM H. SEWARD.

EXECUTIVE MANSION,

_Washington, D.C., June 2, 1865_.

Whereas by an act of Congress approved March 3, 1865, there was established in the War Department a Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, and to which, in accordance with the said act of Congress, is committed the supervision and management of all abandoned lands and the control of all subjects relating to refugees and freedmen from rebel States, or from any district of country within the territory embraced in the operations of the Army, under such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the head of the Bureau and approved by the President; and

Whereas it appears that the management of abandoned lands and subjects relating to refugees and freedmen, as aforesaid, have been and still are, by orders based on military exigencies or legislation based on previous statutes, partly in the hands of military officers disconnected with said Bureau and partly in charge of officers of the Treasury Department: It is therefore

_Ordered_, That all officers of the Treasury Department, all military officers, and all others in the service of the United States turn over to the authorized officers of said Bureau all abandoned lands and property contemplated in said act of Congress approved March 3, 1865, establishing the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, that may now be under or within their control. They will also turn over to such officers all funds collected by tax or otherwise for the benefit of refugees or freedmen or accruing from abandoned lands or property set apart for their use, and will transfer to them all official records connected with the administration of affairs which pertain to said Bureau.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

GENERAL ORDERS, No. 109.

WAR DEPARTMENT,
ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE,
_Washington, June 6, 1865_.

ORDER FOR THE DISCHARGE OF CERTAIN PRISONERS OF WAR.

The prisoners of war at the several depots in the North will be discharged under the following regulations and restrictions:

I. All enlisted men of the rebel army and petty officers and seamen of the rebel navy will be discharged upon taking the oath of allegiance.

II. Officers of the rebel army not above the grade of captain and of the rebel navy not above the grade of lieutenant, except such as have graduated at the United States Military or Naval academies and such as held a commission in either the United States Army or Navy at the beginning of the rebellion, may be discharged upon taking the oath of allegiance.

III. When the discharges hereby ordered are completed, regulations will be issued in respect to the discharge of officers having higher rank than captain in the army or lieutenant in the navy.

IV. The several commanders of prison stations will discharge each day as many of the prisoners hereby authorized to be discharged as proper rolls can be prepared for, beginning with those who have been longest in prison and from the most remote points of the country; and certified rolls will be forwarded daily to the Commissary-General of Prisoners of those so discharged. The oath of allegiance only will be administered, but notice will be given that all who desire will be permitted to take the oath of amnesty after their release, in accordance with the regulations of the Department of State respecting the amnesty.

V. The Quartermaster's Department will furnish transportation to all released prisoners to the nearest accessible point to their homes, by rail or by steamboat.

By order of the President of the United States:

E.D. TOWNSEND,

_Assistant Adjutant-General_.

EXECUTIVE MANSION,

_Washington, June 6, 1865_.

Whereas circumstances of recent occurrence have made it no longer necessary to continue the prohibition of the departure for her destination of the gunboat _Fusyama_, built at New York for the Japanese Government, it is consequently ordered that that prohibition be removed. The Secretary of the Treasury will therefore cause a clearance to be issued to the _Fusyama_, and the Secretary of the Navy will not allow any obstacle thereto.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

[From the Daily National Intelligencer, June 13, 1865.]

CIRCULAR.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL'S OFFICE,

_Washington, June 7, 1865_.

By direction of the President, all persons belonging to the excepted classes enumerated in the President's amnesty proclamation of May 29, 1865, who may make special applications to the President for pardon are hereby notified that before their respective applications will be considered it must be shown that they have respectively taken and subscribed the oath (or affirmation) in said proclamation prescribed. Every such person desiring a special pardon should make personal application in writing therefor, and should transmit with such application the original oath (or affirmation) as taken and subscribed before an officer authorized under the rules and regulations promulgated by the Secretary of State to administer the amnesty oath prescribed in the said proclamation of the President.

JAMES SPEED,

_Attorney-General_.

EXECUTIVE OFFICE,

_Washington, D.C., June 9, 1865_.

It is represented to me in a communication from the Secretary of the Interior that Indians in New Mexico have been seized and reduced into slavery, and it is recommended that the authority of the executive branch of the Government should be exercised for the effectual suppression of a practice which is alike in violation of the rights of the Indians and of the provisions of the organic law of the said Territory.

Concurring in this recommendation, I do hereby order that the heads of the several Executive Departments do enjoin upon the subordinates, agents, and employees under their respective orders or supervision in that Territory to discountenance the practice aforesaid and to take all lawful means to suppress the same.

ANDREW JOHNSON.

GENERAL COURT-MARTIAL ORDERS, No. 356.

WAR DEPARTMENT,
ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE,
_Washington, July 5, 1865_.

I. Before a military commission which convened at Washington, D.C., May 9, 1865, pursuant to paragraph 4 of Special Orders, No. 211, dated May 6, 1865, and paragraph 91 of Special Orders, No. 216, dated May 9, 1865, War Department, Adjutant-General's Office, Washington, and of which Major-General David Hunter, United States Volunteers, is president, were arraigned and tried David E. Herold, G.A. Atzerodt, Lewis Payne, Mary E. Surratt, Michael O'Laughlin, Edward Spangler, Samuel Arnold, and Samuel A. Mudd.

CHARGE I.

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A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents. Volume 6, part 2: Andrew JohnsonChapter II: Part 2

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