642 Surrender of Johnston and Beauregard. [ises archives, and moved to Greensborough, North Carolina. Here, on April 12, Davis called Generals Johnston and Beauregard into council with himself and three members of his Cabinet ; and in an amazing mood of optimism informed the party that in two or three weeks he expected to have a large army in the field in response to new proclamations. " I think we can whip the enemy yet," he said, "if our people will turn out." The two generals entertained no such absurd illusion. They replied that men whom the Conscript Bureau had been unable to force into the ranks would hardly come upon mere invitation. That afternoon Breckinridge, the Secretary of War, also arrived, bringing definite news and details of Lee's surrender. When the council met again next morning, the situation was awkward. Davis was still unconvinced and stubborn ; the members of the Cabinet had not the courage to tell him the plain truth, and the generals had no authority to suggest the obvious duty of the hour. The spell was broken when at length Davis invited General Johnston to give his views. "My views are, sir," he replied bluntly, " that our people are tired of the war, feel themselves whipped, and will not fight." He then tersely compared the strength of the opposing forces, about eighteen to one ; represented that, in such circumstances, it would be the greatest of human crimes to continue the struggle; and urged Davis to exercise at once the only function of government still remaining to him, namely, to open negotiations for peace. These opinions being supported by three of the members of the Cabinet present, Davis reluctantly consented ; and the remainder of the interview was devoted to drafting a letter to be sent by Johnston to Sherman asking a suspension of hostilities to permit the civil authorities to negotiate for peace. Receiving this letter on April 14, Sherman promptly replied the same day, agreeing to a conference, and suggesting as a basis of discussion the terms and conditions made by Generals Grant and Lee at Ap- pomattox. The meeting was duly held on April 17 ; but, instead of adhering to his first suggestion, Sherman allowed himself to be per- suaded on the following day to sign a provisional convention for the surrender of all the Confederate armies, including such important political conditions, that when they were brought to the notice of the Washington authorities, the convention was promptly rejected, and a cessation of the armistice and a resumption of hostilities peremptorily ordered. Within a few days, however, General Johnston requested another conference and proposed a modification of the former terms ; and on April 26 the two Generals signed a new convention, surrendering all the forces under Johnston's command, a total of 89,360 in North Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, upon the simple military conditions given by Grant to Lee. Lincoln had been murdered on April 14. Davis and his party meantime had continued their southward flight without awaiting Sherman's answer. Their railroad accommodation
