Congress passes a bill to bring a warden into the district's jails

As expected, Congress approved bill submitted by Senator James E. Grimes of Iowa as warden for the jails of the District of Columbia. I had already prepared myself for this news and accepted it as another veiled attempt to disrupt the president's efforts.

Mr. Lincoln also spent time again with artist Francis Carpenter concerning ideas for the painting of the first reading of the Emancipation Proclamation. Mr. Lincoln had given Mr. Carpenter use of a small closet for his paints and supplies. Unfortunately for Mr. Carpenter, the Lincoln's young son Tad had used the closet as a dressing room for his pretend theater and was outraged finding Mr. Carpenter had taken it over. In a huff, young Tad locked the closet and refused to give up the key. Mr. Lincoln was quite embarrassed by the situation, and after apologizing to the artist in residence, confronted Tad saying "do you know you are making your father a great deal of trouble?"  Tad reluctantly gave up the keys and closet at his father's insistence.

Our long-time friend and judge of the 8th Circuit of Illinois, Associate Justice David Davis visited with Mr. Lincoln this week. His recent appointment to the Supreme Court had been long desired by Judge Davis, but postponed until October 1862. Judge Davis had gotten on Mr. Lincoln's bad side by offering Cabinet appointments to men who turned their presidential votes at the Republican National Convention way back in 1860. Mr. Lincoln had specifically order Judge Davis, who was Lincoln's campaign manager, to not promise anything to anyone.