| Friday, December 25, 1863.Washington,
DC. | Lincoln reads to John Hay and others article he
wrote last summer upholding constitutionality and expediency of draft.
Hay, Letters and Diary. Suggests to Bayard Taylor that he prepare lecture on "Serfs, Serfdom, and
Emancipation in Russia." Abraham
Lincoln to Bayard Taylor, 25 December 1863,
CW, 7:93. Plans to
extend practical benefits of Amnesty and Reconstruction Proclamation to people
of rebellious districts. Record books will be sent to various points to receive
subscriptions to oath. Hay, Letters and
Diary. |