The front page is dominated by General William Tecumseh Sherman's explosive letter to General Grant, dated April 28, 1865, defending his controversial surrender negotiations with Confederate General Johnston. Sherman's letter seethes with indignation at Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, who had publicly criticized Sherman's peace terms as overreaching his authority. "I do think that my rank, if not past service, entitled me at least to the respect of keeping secret what was known to none but the Cabinet," Sherman wrote, clearly furious that his private negotiations were leaked to the New York Times before he could explain himself. Sherman reveals fascinating details about his meetings with Johnston on April 17th and 18th, describing their first face-to-face encounter despite "exchanging shots continually since May, 1863." Johnston had frankly admitted the Confederate cause was lost and that "every life sacrificed after the surrender of Lee's army was the highest possible crime." Sherman's report explains his reasoning for offering broader terms than Grant gave Lee—he wanted to prevent Johnston's army from dissolving into "bands of armed men" capable of "infinite mischief" across the South.

This bitter dispute between Sherman and Stanton represents one of the most dramatic clashes in the final weeks of the Civil War. With Lincoln assassinated on April 14th and the Confederacy collapsing, crucial questions remained about how to end the war and reconstruct the South. Sherman's attempt at a comprehensive peace deal—going beyond military surrender to address political reconstruction—was seen by Washington as dangerous overreach by a general, not a diplomat. The controversy highlights the chaotic transition from Lincoln's more conciliatory approach to the harsher policies that would define Reconstruction under Andrew Johnson and the Radical Republicans. Sherman's fury at being publicly humiliated while his army of "seventy thousand men in magnificent style" had just completed their legendary march through the Carolinas shows how even victorious Union generals were caught up in the bitter political battles over America's future.

• The Portland Daily Press cost $8.00 per year in advance—about $140 in today's money, making it quite expensive for working families
• Sherman reveals he never saw Lincoln's March 5th dispatch to Grant about peace terms until after his controversial agreement with Johnston was already made
• Sherman sarcastically refers to 'non-combatants—men who sleep in comfort and security while we watch on the distant lines' being better judges than soldiers who 'rarely see a newspaper, hardly hear from our families'
• The paper charged $2.00 per square per week for 'Special Notices'—premium advertising real estate that cost about $35 in today's money
• Sherman mentions that twelve miles of new railroad had to be built and two bridges constructed just to supply his army at Raleigh

• Sherman's staff officer Major Hitchcock, who carried the peace terms to Washington, had to travel carefully to 'avoid the spies and informers' along the route—espionage was still a major concern even in the war's final days
• This letter appeared in a Maine newspaper just three weeks after it was written, showing how quickly military correspondence could spread nationwide in 1865 despite no telephones or radio
• Sherman had been 'exchanging shots' with Johnston since May 1863, meaning they had been fighting each other for nearly two years before their first face-to-face meeting
• The controversy over Sherman's peace terms helped establish the principle of civilian control over military policy that remains fundamental to American government today
• Sherman's mention of troops sleeping in 'comfort and security' while soldiers 'watch on distant lines' echoes complaints about civilian-military divides that persist in American politics today