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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC05603.01.18 |
| From Archive Folder | Collection of letters, clipped signatures, and news clippings from Lincoln's cabinet members |
| Title | Anecdote about Lincoln's kindness towards a wounded Confederate soldier |
| Date | n.d. |
| Author | Smith, Francis M. (1842-1917) |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | Signed as 1st Lieutenant and Adjutant, 1st Maryland Volunteer Infantry. Relates an incident at City Point hospital on 2 April 1865, where President Abraham Lincoln met a Confederate soldier and treated him with great kindness. After Lincoln left, the Confederate soldier asked "Who did you say that man was?" When he learned it was Lincoln, he declared that if other Confederates could meet Lincoln, they would lay down their arms and go home. According to Smith, the Confederate soldier exclaimed, "If God spares my life, I will never again raise my arms against the United States Government." See GLC05603.17 for the introductory letter. |
| Subjects | President Military History Civil War Union Forces Confederate States of America Hospital Prisoner of War |
| People | Smith, Francis Marion (1842-1917) |
| Place written | s.l. |
| Theme | The Presidency |
| Sub-collection | Papers and Images of the American Civil War |
| Additional Information | Smith served 1st Lieutenant and Adjutant, 1st Maryland Volunteer Infantry. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |