Reply of the judge advocate, John A. Bingham, to the defence of the accused : before a general court-martial for the trial of Brig. Gen. William A. Hammond, Surgeon General, U.S.A.

  • Hammond, William A. (William Alexander), 1828-1900.
Date:
1864
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Reply of the judge advocate, John A. Bingham, to the defence of the accused : before a general court-martial for the trial of Brig. Gen. William A. Hammond, Surgeon General, U.S.A. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    and I would not touch it. He left the sample with me in my office, where it remained until June 13, 18G2, when lie came back to my office and asked me if I had decided to buy his blankets. 1 told him 1 had decided the first day not to buy them. He asked me to give him tin- sample. I did so. II- said he would go to Washington and see if he could not sell them there. That was on Friday, June 13, 1862. On Sunday afternoon, June 15, Dr. Cooper received the letter given above, of June 14, from the Surgeon General. That that letter is in the handwriting of the Surgeon General is admitted without objection, and is in evidence in the case. Upon the receipt of this letter, Surgeon Cooper ad- dressed a letter on the subject of this order to the Surgeon General and mailed it himself, in Philadelphia, at half past 4 o'clock Sunday afternoon, p. 209. June 15, directed to Surgeon General Hammond, Washington, D. C. The prosecution put in evidence a written notice, which was served p. 211. by the judge advocate upon the accused, requiring him to produce on the trial all letters written by George E. Cooper, late medical purveyor in Philadelphia, relative to the purchase of blankets from Wm. A. Stephens. The accused was called upon in open court, under this notice, to produce the letter of Cooper, which he failed to do. Surgeon Cooper then being asked, testified that he had a copy of the letter present which he had addressed and mailed, as before stated, to the accused. This copy, which was put in evidence, is as follows : p_ 214. Philadelphia, Pa., June 15, 1SG2. Dear Hammond: I am just in receipt of order directing me to purchase 8,000 pairs of blankets from Stephens, of the Vanity Fair. I refused to purchase them of him because of quality. I can get a better article at a less price. It you wish to compensate him for services rendered you in your campaign tor the Suro-eon Generalship, the 3,000 pairs you directed me to purchase from him some weeks since are enough, and these 8,000 pairs would be crowding the mourners off the anxious seats. Think well of this, and answer me immediately by telegraph if possible. Yours, COOPER. That this letter was received by the Surgeon General cannot admit of a doubt, for Sureeon Cooper testifies that on the afternoon ot luesday, June n 221 17 1862, he received from Surgeon General Hammond, in reply to P ~ that letter which I had sent to him, a telegram dated June 1/, which original telegram produced by Dr. Cooper and put in evidence « 202 reads, «d> as vou see best about the blankets from Stephens. A P' certified copy of this telegram from the Surgeon General's office is also , ceraneoLopj & .-Cooper states further, that on the Qpon the record of ^ ~^jg£jt SS presented a letter to him ^rDmg ImXLin SneS n 2,3 D O andin the Surgeon General's handwriting, and asked if Cooper P 233 wotdd revive the blanket. Stephens says of tins letter,'Ojon think , have it in my possession I ^^SSfJ? ^ M Hammond; I do not know what has becometf^ ^ g>00() >^ rr° ?i10no?K I r, 1 • pi.ilod.dnhia He went (town to uie omev 0ffice to my address in 1 b I.hU pi) a a* p. 25G of Purveyor Cooper and toldJum ^^ a ^ ^ 1 letter to him. He says it was on M< and >-16 Sfw^Xl^Sn-fc *.**&*.