Post, Joseph. Letter to Isaac Post.

Title

Post, Joseph. Letter to Isaac Post.

Creator

Post, Joseph

Contributor

Post, Isaac, 1798-1872

Date

186-

Description

Handwritten letter from Joseph Post to Isaac Post, 186-.

Is Part Of

Isaac and Amy Post Family Papers

Rights

The organization that has made the Item available believes that the Item is in the Public Domain under the laws of the United States, but a determination was not made as to its copyright status under the copyright laws of other countries. The Item may not be in the Public Domain under the laws of other countries. Please refer to the organization that has made the Item available for more information. http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/

Identifier

1268

Location

Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester

Transcription

2^nd mo 8^th 3 oclock

I have just got home from
New York I went down day before
yesterday in the afternoon to here [sic] Carl
Shurz[sic] at Brooklyn I like him very
much he advocated the equality of
all before the law and to the b^a^llot
said he thought the President made
a great mistake in takeing [sic] the rebels
back and keeping the coulerd [sic] people
who were universially [sic] loyal out
that the President spoke truly when
he said the Southern people done
as well as he expected, for he to [sic]
could say the same, and what could
be expected of people who had
risked all who had for the support
slavery, and to have the rule of the
government, and had lost both rule
and Slavery, and had forfieted [sic] all
right not only to slavery but life also
that if the President had only said
that as a condition of pardon the

(Page 2)

black man must have equal rights
in all respects, they would have
gladly excepted[sic] it. that the President
sent him through the Suthern [sic] States
he had made his report and he had
not one work to take back, that he
expected the committee of 15 would
make a repote [sic] much more startling
than his, he still hopes that Congress
would maintain their position
I yesterday attended New York Monthly
Meeting they had much buisness [sic]among
the rest Silas T Robbins for marrying a
member contrary to our order and being
drafted and procuring a substitute
and nearly neglecting the attendance of
meetings I said to one friend that I
thought it a little inconsistent to
bring his case of hireing [sic] a substitute
when they all were paying taxes for
the very purpose of hireing [sic] substitutes
so that others would not be drafted I
have heard that Silas aske [sic] one of the
overerseers [sic]whither [sic] it was any worst[sic] to

(Page 3)

hire a man to go, than to pay the 300 $
which the law then required after being
drafted, which a son of the Overseer did
and which has not yet been noticed and
proberly [sic] never will they also 4 other
cases of serveing [sic] in the war
Two months ago the monthly meeting of
New York got up a concern to see if they
could not do something to get up a the
young folks to attend meeting and feel
an interest in society which resulted
in calling a conferrence [sic] of friends
generally both young and old to have
a free enterchange [sic]of views They had
one meeting and adjourned to meet
last evening again I felt so much interest
I staid [sic] to attend it Samuel Willets was
appointed chairman at the first meeting
after Thomas Folk was rejected he acted
again last evening after the meeting
was opened Effringham Cock introduce [sic]
the buisness [sic] by offering to the meeting
some resolutions the first that plain
=ness does not require a particular form but

(Page 4)

simplisity [sic] which after much being
said resulted by a large majority in
favour of the view, the next the names
of days and months which also had a
large majority in favour of a change
Then came the music question which
called out much expression when
the meeting adjourned for 2 weeks
without coming to a dissition [sic] the
reselutions [sic] were worded very different
from what I have given The above
is only the substance. the first meeting
nearly full up stairs as well as down last evening
quit [sic] a snow storm yet the house nearly full
down stairs Rosoland Johnson and Aaron [Powell?]
were their [sic] and took an active part Aaron read
a resolution proposeing [sic] to ask the monthly
to take steps to have the disipline [sic] so change
as to do away with the select meeting which
was not reached as the other took all the
time wether [sic] it will be entertained next time
is somewhat uncertain yet I think if they
do not allow the largest liberty now they
have begun it will do no good but rather
hurt From what appeared in the meeting
some were for stoping [sic] the thing last
night but a very large majority were disposed
to to [sic]meet again I heard of some advising other
freinds [sic]to stay away. I suppose many of the cons
=ceritive [sic] friends will feel as though all was lost

[Added comment around periphery of pp. 2 and 3. Starts upside down across top 3 & 2, then sidewise down left edge of 2, then right side up bottom page 2]

Just say to Jacob that I don’t know but his letter is lost it stood on the mantle for weeks waiting to send it or hear from him about it it was taken off by some one and whither it has got I cannot tell we are thinking it may turn up somewhere but have not the least idea where it is if found will send I am sorry for our carelessness .

Annotations

Carl Shurz (1829-1906) German born; came to US in 1852; abolitionist; served in Civil War as general; at the request of President Andrew Johnson, Shurz toured the Southern States in the summer of 1865; his report was critical of Johnson’s reconstruction policies which were adversely affecting blacks and those who had stayed loyal to the Union.

Andrew Johnson (1808-1875) was elected as Abraham Lincoln’s Vice President in the election of 1864. He became President when Lincoln was assassinated in 1865. A native of Tennessee he was eventually impeached by radical Republican members of Congress who disagreed with his reconstruction policies regarding the civil and political rights of former black slaves and the repatriation of Confederate insurgents.

Monthly Meeting is the basic unit of Quaker administration, which holds regular monthly business meetings. Only Quakers could participate. It has responsibility for care of members, authorizes removals and marriages, maintains discipline, considers the queries, manages meeting property, fosters social concerns, and reports regularly to the quarterly meeting. Business meetings in theory are held in a spirit of worship, and so are in effect meetings for worship for conducting business.
http://www.swarthmore.edu/academics/friends-historical-library/quaker-meeting-records/glossary.xml

After 1828, at the time of the Hicksite Separation, there were two New York Monthly Meetings: the Orthodox met at Rutgers Medical College and later on Henry Street, and the Hicksites retained the Rose Street and Hester Street Meeting Houses.

Civil War substitutes
In 1863, the government federalized the draft process, and while not allowing specific exemptions for religious beliefs, the government created a $300.00 commutation fee in lieu of service. However, many Meetings considered the payment of this fee by its members tantamount to nonobservance of the testimony against military service; therefore, no legal means existed for drafted Quakers to avoid violating the peace testimony in most Meetings.
Because of their beliefs, individual Quakers struggled with their consciences in ways not fully understood by others. of the peace testimony to some Quakers, people not accustomed to pocketing scruples. Others found ways in their hearts to make peace with their decision to make war.
http://courses.wcupa.edu/jones/his480/reports/civilwar.htm

On February 24, 1864, the following exemption clause was included as an amendatory to the Enrollment Act:
Members of religious denominations who shall by oath or affirmation declare that they are conscientiously opposed to the bearing of arms, and who are prohibited from doing so by the rules and articles of faith and practice of said religious denominations, shall, when drafted into the military service, be considered non-combatants, and shall be assigned by the Secretary of War to duty in the hospitals, or to the care of freedman, or shall pay the sum of $300 to such person as the Secretary of War shall designate…to be applied to the benefit of sick and wounded soldiers.
http://castle.eiu.edu/historia/archives/2011/2011Carnahan.pdf

Key words:
SHURZ, KARL
JOHNSON, ANDREW
CIVIL WAR
RECONSTRUCTION
QUAKER MONTHLY MEETING

Tags

Family; Quakers

Collection

D.93 Isaac and Amy Post Family Papers

Citation

Post, Joseph, “Post, Joseph. Letter to Isaac Post.,” RBSCP Exhibits, accessed November 23, 2024, https://rbscpexhibits.lib.rochester.edu/items/show/3557.

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