Benjamnin F. Butler, Butler's Book: Autobiography and Personal Reminiscences of Major-General Benjamin Butler

That this condition of my feeling toward Grant is no afterthought of mine, and that I understood the circumstances of my removal as fully then as now, is shown by a letter written by me on the 13th of January, 1865, to Gen. John A. Rawlins, chief of General Grant's staff, who was not a West Point officer, but above them all, and afterwards became Secretary of War.¹

I never spoke with General. Grant upon these matters until shortly after his inauguration as President, when a mutual friend, Geo. Wilkes, Esq., spoke to him of the occurrence and told him of my feelings and views in regard to it. Grant said to him: “I would like to see General Butler; will he come to see me?”

“No,” replied my friend, “not unless you send to him and express a wish to have him come.”

Grant said: “Tell General Butler to come and see me, and say to him that I wish to have a conference with him.”

“When shall I say he may come?”

“To-morrow evening, at which time I shall be at home.”

I received from Mr. Wilkes the following letter on this subject:--

Washington, D. C.
Hon. B. F. Butler.

Dear General:--In a recent interview with General Grant, I took the liberty of expressing the regret that any misunderstandings should continue to exist between himself and you, and particularly now, that public events required both of you to co-operate to the extent of your abilities in a common cause.

I suggested that these events and the responsibilities which they involve seemed, of themselves, to propose a reconciliation; and that I had ventured, therefore (without consulting you), to ascertain from him, if possible, whether the matters in dispute were not susceptible of explanation and adjustment.

General Grant did not at first seem desirous of conversing on the subject, but I went on to say that I knew of but two points of difficulty in the premises, the first of which was the remark in his report about your military position at Bermuda Hundred, and the other the matters growing out of the invitation to his family soiree; and here I ventured to remark, that while I was quite sure that General Butler believed himself to be entirely justified in the interpretation he had given to these incidents, I was equally certain he was under a misapprehension in relation to them both.