Fire destroys the White House stables and six horses

A fire this week destroyed the White House stables. What was particularly troubling was the loss of six horse who died in the blaze, including a pony belonging to Willie that had been passed down to Tad when Willie died. The pony had been a gift to Willie and with his death, had been the only reminder that had remained in the White House. Several days later, Patterson McGee, a disgruntled former stable employee was arrested by the Metropolitan Police for deliberately setting the stable fire.

Congress appropriated $12,000 for the stables to be rebuilt. The president appointed Benjamin French to be in charge of the construction.

Mr. Lincoln again met with artist Francis Carpenter. They took young Tad along and walked together to Matthew Brady's Washington studio where several photographs were taken to help Mr. Carpenter with his portrait. It was on that occasion that the president was also photographed alongside of Tad.

Mary and Abraham Lincoln attended another play the evening of February 19. The play was Shakespeare's "Richard III" which they attended at Grover's Theater. The starring role was played by Edwin Booth, son of the famous Shakespearean actor Junius Brutus Booth.

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.  

Mr. Lincoln develops a test plan to help restart the southern economy

In an interesting move this week, Mr. Lincoln sent Alpheus Lewis into the south to meet with plantation owners in Mississippi and Arkansas with a revolutionary test plan in hand. The president's plan was to allow plantation owners to re-hire newly freed slaves on their plantation to keep the southern plantations in business and stave off a complete collapse of their economy, bringing starvation to both the former slaves and the whites on the plantation.

It was no surprise that the radical Republicans vehemently opposed the idea and instead wanted the southern economy to undergo change from agriculture to industrial at the end of the war.

Mr. Lincoln also added Union General Daniel Sickles to his list of emissaries with assignments in the south. Sickle has his leg amputated following the battle at Gettysburg and had requested the president give him an assignment to help aid the Union. Mr. Lincoln asked Sickles to look into preparations for the new government of Arkansas.

The president's social calendar for the week included a public reception at the White House attended by long lines and probably eight thousand persons and a visit to Grover's Theater with Senator Chales Sumner of Massachusetts to attend the play "Gamea".

The president orders officials in Arkansas to set elections for their state to return to the Union

This week, President Lincoln worked with officials in Arkansas to set up an election to become the first state to return to the Union. Both Louisianan and Arkansas had been mostly under Union jurisdiction. Mr. Lincoln thought that being able to pull states back into the Union under his recent Amnesty plan would greatly undermine the Confederacy.

The Lincolns also hosted a dinner for Cabinet members, members of the Supreme Court and others and their wives at the White House. He always like my presence at these type of events as his official greeter. And I always enjoyed being there.

What I wasn't enjoying recently was testimony made before Congress by recently deposed Jailer Benedict Milburn who erroneously told those troublesome radical Republicans that I made $30,000 from my position as U.S. Federal Marshal and another $18,000 from feeding the prisoners.  While this was certainly an "unmitigated falsehood", I suggested that I would be happy if my remuneration by even 1/6th of that.    

President Lincoln meets with one of his critics

This week the president met with Anna Dickinson and then attended her presentation in from of the House of Representatives. The lady was an abolitionist and women's rights activist who had been critical of Mr. Lincoln. She in fact had called him a "scoundrel" on numerous occasions. Dickinson was the first woman to ever address the Congressmen.

In her address, she took issue sternly of the president's proposal for reconstruction and his apparent generosity to the rebels. She also advocated strongly for suffrage for women.

Around this time radical Republicans in Congress were also considering naming a warden for the jails of the District of Columbia in an attempt to undermine some of my authority as U.S. Federal Marshal. When I complained to Mr. Lincoln about the Congressional attempts, Mr. Lincoln assured me that he still had my full support. He said that their way of getting at him was through me, and that was just part of the way things were done in Washington. He told me not to worry.

The president declines getting into the butchering business

President Lincoln hated blood because it reminded him of the long on-going war. During this recent week, with his commuting of the death sentence of an Ohio soldiers for deserting, the president wrote "I did this, not on any merit in the case, but because I am trying to evade the butchering business lately."

In that same nature of the president, he recently gave the father of a Union soldier condemned to death a note saying his son was "not to be shot until further orders from me." The father argued that he was asking for a commutation and that the president could surely change his mind and have his son shot the next week. Mr. Lincoln replied "well, my old friend, I see you are not very well acquainted with me. If your son never looks on death till further orders come from me to shoot him, he will live to be a great deal older than Methuselah."

He also asked Naval Admiral John Dahlgren to meet with Captain Lavender of New York in reference to an idea Lavender had which would aid Union ships by removing under water obstructions from the paths of Naval vessels.

Two treaties with Indian tribes, the Shoshonee Nation of Indians and the Chippewa tribe, were delivered to Congress this week.

Mr. Lincoln also suggested that the nation mourn the recent death of his former Secretary of the Interior, Caleb Smith by draping the executive buildings in Washington in black bunting for fourteen days.

The President and Mrs. Lincoln host their annual New Years Day reception

The annual New Year's Day reception was something I always enjoyed. It was the absolute best way to kick off the new year, with a reception at the White House. This year the first family hosted Union army and navy officers at 11:30 and then opened the White House to the public.  As usual, large lines had formed early in the morning to attend this festive event. Included in this year's reception visitors were four Negroes who were graciously greeted by the President and Mrs. Lincoln.

The Lincoln's again attended Ford's Theater on January 2. This time they were using the box offered by Colonel James D. Greene.

Mr. Lincoln met with and made arrangements this week for artist Francis Carpenter to begin sittings for a painting he had proposed to show President Lincoln's first reading of the Emancipation Proclamation to members of his Cabinet. That event had occurred on July 22, 1862 and had surprised its members. Mr. Carpenter was to maintain a studio in the White House for several months in order to complete the painting.