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Ulysses S. Grant clarifies his infamous "Jew Order"....



Item # 698506

November 30, 1868

NEW YORK HERALD, Nov. 30, 1868  

* General Ulysses S. Grant
* General Order No. 11 - Jews


Page 5 has a very significant Judaica item headed: "Letter From General Grant on the Hebrew Question." 
This relates to Ulysses S. Grant's General Order #11 from during the Civil War, known as the infamous "Jew Order". A website has further details on Grant's controversial order which is considered to be the most anti-Semitic official act in American history.
As Wikiipedia notes, Grant's General Order #11 and antisemitism became an issue during the 1868 presidential campaign. In a letter, published after the election, Grant sought to unequivocally distance himself from General Orders No. 11: "Grant's self-serving explanation", notes Jonathan Sarna, "did not actually bear close scrutiny," but Jews nonetheless generously accepted his attempt at self-extrication as noted in the text of the article. Though Jewish opinion was mixed, Grant's determination to court Jewish voters ultimately resulted in his capturing the majority of that vote, though Grant did lose some Jewish votes as a result of the order.
The article includes an exchange between Grant and Adolph Moses, a Jewish lawyer who contacted President-elect Grant about the famous Order No. 11 which was initially believed to be anti-Semitic. The reply from Grant includes details of the circumstances and states in part: "...I have no prejudices against sect or race, but want each individual to be judged by his own merit. Order No. 11 does not sustain this statement, I admit, but then I do not sustain that order. It never would have been issued if it had not been telegraphed the moment it was penned, and without reflection." This letter is signed in type: U. S. Grant.
Complete in 8 pages, very nice condition.

Category: Post-Civil War