Today in History:

569 Series I Volume XLVII-III Serial 100 - Columbia Part III

Page 569 Chapter LIX. CORRESPONDENCE, ETC. -UNION.

to be both unjust and unwise. My letter of the 17th expressly said that the composition of the board of education and other details should be arranged after my return from Florida, and it celary defined the policy to be followed, by stating that the details will be arranged in conformity to the principles set forth in my letter to you of the 10th. I am unwilling to believe that you have designedly disregarded my orders. I am willing to believe, from the general tenor of your two letters of 6th and 13th instant, in which you express your willingness to do equal justice to all classes and ask to have the free public education of all children put under your charge and Gneeral Saxton ralieved from his resonsibility as to the oclored children, that you desire to educate all alike, and that you have misapprehended and disregard my orders simply in your zeal to have the schools opened for the whites. The maintenance of correct military discipline requires that my orders as department commander shall be faithfully executed. To this end you are hereby directed to revoke your General Orders, Numbers 34, and are authorized in your order of revocation to establish a system of free public schools for the children of Savannah. You are not required to put white and colored children into the same schools, but you will establish equal facilities for each in accordance with my letter of the 10th instant. Should charitable societies establish any schools, either for white or colored children, in addition to those whih you are authorized to establish, you will extend them any aid in your power, but will not be required to pay money for their support outof the civil found. You will please confer upon this matter with Reverend Doctor Magill, who is I charge of a colored school at Savannah, and who is General Saxton's representative in such duty. I feel that you will find him disposed to co-operate heartily with you in establishing a uniform and just system of education. To avoid any further misunderstanding you will as soon as possible submit the these headquarters the draft of the order which you desire to issue upon this subject, for examination and approval before publication.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

Q. A. GILLMORE,

Major-General, Commanding.


HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE SOUTH,
Hilton Head, S. C., May 24, 1865.

Bvt. Major General C. GROVER,

Commanding District of Savannah, Savannah, Ga.:

GENERAL: The major-general commanding directs me to acknolwedge the receipt of your letter of the 23rd instant*, containing a report of the specie and special deposits believed to belong to the Georgia Central Railroad and Banking Company Turned over to you by General Wilson; also of the bullion and specie public funds of the rebel Government received from its agents by General Molineus, commanding at Augusta, and turned over to you; also of the specie seizxed by you from the possession of the Georgia Railroad and Banking Company, which was received by that company from an agent of the rebel Government after the surrender of General Johnston's army. Your act in seizing this last-mentioned specie is approved. The major-general commanding concurs with you in thinking that no agent of the rebel Government had the right to turn over specie formerly belonging

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*Not found.

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Page 569 Chapter LIX. CORRESPONDENCE, ETC. -UNION.