February 23rd, 2012
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 2/23/2012
Three Newspapers, National Intelligencer, Washington, includes, May 17, 1862, each 4pp. filled with war and congressional reports. From an inside page, under a column head “Emancipation by Proclamation,” Major General Hunter’s Emancipation Order is printed in full, “Hilton Head, S. C., May 9th, 1862. ‘General Orders No. 11’., The three States of Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina, comprising the Military Department of the South, having deliberately declared themselves no longer under the protection of the United States of America, and having taken up arms against the said United States, it becomes a military necessity to declare them under martial law. This was accordingly done on the twenty-fifth day of April, 1862. Slavery and martial law in a free country are altogether incompatible. The persons in these three States, Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina, heretofore held as slaves, are therefore declared forever free. David Hunter, Major-General Commanding.” This continues for a three column editorial which includes general Fremont’s earlier emancipation effort. ... plus, National Intelligencer, Washington, May 20, 1862, 4pp., from an inside page, Lincoln’s proclamation denouncing general Hunter’s Emancipation Order, in part “..."Therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, proclaim and declare that the government of the United States had no knowledge or belief of an intention, on the part of General Hunter, to issue such a proclamation, nor has it yet any authentic information that the document is genuine; and further, that neither General Hunter nor any other commander or person, has been authorized by the government of the United States to make proclamation declaring the slaves of any State free, and that the supposed proclamation now in question, whether genuine or false, is altogether void, so far as respects such declaration. I further make known, that whether it be competent for me as Commander-in-chief of the army and navy to declare the slaves of any State or States free, and whether at any time, or in any case, it shall have become a necessity indispensable to the maintenance of the government to exercise such supposed power, are questions which, under my responsibility, I reserve to myself, and which I cannot feel justified in leaving to the decision of commanders in the field. These are totally different questions from those of police regulations in armies and camps....” plus, National Intelligencer, Washington, May 29, 1862, 4pp., from the back page, “General Hunter’s ‘Order’” continues with the editorial comments regarding the whole affair.
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