business, and was making himself very annoying in a
thousand ways.

278

Secretary Stanton was profoundly distrustful of Lane, and said that
he would leave the Cabinet rather than put him in independent command.
Finally the matter came to President Lincoln, who wrote the following
characteristic letter:

Executive Mansion, Washington, Feb. 10. Maj.-Gen. Hunter and
Brig.-Gen. Lane, Leavenworth, Kan.:

My wish has been and is to avail the Government of the
services of both Gen. Hunter and Gen. Lane, and, so far as
possible, to personally oblige both. Gen. Hunter is the
senior officer, and must command when they serve together;
tho in so far as he can, consistently with the public
service and his own honor, oblige Gen. Lane, he will also
oblige me. If they cannot come to an amicable understanding,
Gen. Lane must report to Gen. Hunter for duty, according to
the rules, or decline the service.

A. LINCOLN.

Lane, who then thought his seat in the Senate safe, decided that he
would rather serve his country in the forum than in the field, and his
commission was cancelled. Five years later, dismayed to find he had lost
his hold on the people of Kansas by his support of Andrew Johnson, he
ended his strange, eventful history with a pistol-shot from his own
hand.

Gen. Hunter having reported that the division of Kansas from Missouri
was unwise, the Department was merged into Gen. Halleck's command, and
Gen. Hunter assigned to duty in South Carolina.

279

Gen. Halleck's laboriously elaborate system received a little shock so
ludicrous as to be almost incredible were it not solemnly told in an
official communication by himself to Gen. Sterling Price:

St Louis, Jan. 27, 1862. Maj.-Gen. Sterling Price,
Commanding, etc., Springfield, Mo. General: A man calling
himself L. V. Nichols came to my headquarters a day or two
since, with a duplicate of your letter of the 12th instant.
On being questioned, he admitted that he belonged to your
service; that he had come in citizen's dress from
Springfield, avoiding some of our military posts and passing
through others in disguise, and without reporting himself to
the Commander. He said that he had done this by your
direction. On being asked for his flag of truce, he pulled
from his pocket a dirty pocket-handkerchief, with a short
stick tied to one corner