To Erastus B. Tyler1Jump to section
Baltimore. Oct. 1. 1863
Take care of colored troops in your charge; but do nothing further about that branch of affairs until further orders. Particularly do nothing about Gen. Vickers of Kent county. A. LINCOLN.
Send a copy to Col. Birney. A.L.
Annotation
[1] ALS, RPB. See Lincoln to Bradford, supra. William Birney, Colonel of the Second U.S. Colored Troops and mustering officer at Baltimore, telegraphed Lorenzo Thomas on October 13 that upon receipt of Lincoln's telegram he had ceased raising colored troops. Concerning Major General George Vickers of the Maryland Militia, Birney commented: ``The part of the order relating to General Vickers was probably sent me from wrong information, as I had no knowledge of the general, or any intention of taking action in regard to him. . . . I have made inquiry since and find that the general in question was formerly a noisy constitutional Union man, but has recently, and on the slave question, become a virulent enemy of the Government and associate with known secessionists; that he proposed to two secessionists to raise a mob at Chestertown and burn the small Government steamer employed for the transportation of recruits for the U.S. colored troops; and that he was busy and officious in advising masters of slaves to offer armed resistance to the recruiting officers.'' (OR, III, III, 881-82).