William Boynton, Sherman's Historical Raid

This paper, which is now both interesting and pertinent to the questions General Sherman has raised, is as follows:

Views of Postmaster-General Reagan:

Charlotte, N. C., April 22, 1865.
To the President.

Sir—In obedience to your request for the opinions in writing of the members of the Cabinet on the questions: first, as to whether you should assent to the preliminary agreement of the 18th inst., between General Joseph E. Johnston, of the Confederate army, and Major-General W. T. Sherman, of the army of the United States, for the suspension of hostilities and the adjustment of the difficulties between the two countries; and, if so, second, the proper mode of executing this agreement on our part, I have to say that, painful as the necessity is, in view of the relative condition of the armies and resources of the belligerents, I must advise the acceptance of the terms of the agreement

General Lee, the General-in-Chief of our armies, has been compelled to surrender our principal army, heretofore employed in the defense of our capital, with the loss of a very large part of our ordnance, arms, munitions of war, and military stores of all kinds, with what remained of our naval establishment. The officers of the civil government have been compelled to abandon the capital, carrying with them the archives, and thus to close, for the time being at least, the regular operations of its several departments, with no place now open to us at which we can reestablish and put these departments in operation, with any prospect of permanency or security for the transaction of the public business and the carrying on of the Government. The army under the command of General Johnston has been reduced to fourteen or fifteen — infantry and artillery and — cavalry, and this force is, from demoralization and despondency, melting away rapidly by the troops abandoning the army and returning to their homes singly and in numbers large and small; it being the opinion of Generals Johnston and Beauregard that with the men and means at their command they can oppose no serious obstacle to the advance of General Sherman's army. General Johnston is of opinion that the enemy's forces now in the field exceed ours in numbers by probably ten to one. Our forces in the South, though still holding the fortifications at Mobile, have been unable to prevent the fall of Selma and Montgomery in Alabama, and of Columbus and Macon in Georgia, with their magazines, workshops, and stores of supplies.

The army west of the Mississippi is unavailable for the arrest of the victorious career of the enemy east of that river, and is inadequate for the defense of the country west of it. The country is worn down by a brilliant and heroic, but exhausting and bloody struggle of four years. Our ports are