January 14th 1862
This has been a wintry day, the ground covered with snow, air damp and chilly. M. about 27. Cameron, the Sec’y of War, has resigned. Edw’d M Stanton takes his place. Ostensibly he retires voluntarily, the Papers say so. But in reality the “outside pressure” forced it upon him. He was compelled to resign. Other changes in the Cabinet are expected and talked of. Nothing new stirring, but news expected of great moment from the West and south. The day has passed with me as usual in the office. I have spent the evening at home keeping as comfortable as I could. Ed Dickerson has spent an hour or two here, a great talker and not uninteresting. He was from the Camp of the 35th Regt yesterday. Nothing new over the River, “all quiet & comfortable.”
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The three diary manuscript volumes, Washington during the Civil War: The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861-1865, are available online at The Library of Congress.