Lincoln and the Sleeping Sentinel: The True Story

In Short

This concise memoir by Lucius Eugene Chittenden records the true story of William Scott, a young Union private in the Third Vermont Regiment sentenced to death for sleeping on his post. After Scott’s comrades approach Chittenden, Register of the Treasury, the case reaches President Abraham Lincoln, who personally travels to camp to grant a reprieve. Scott returns to service with a profound sense of duty, ultimately demonstrating remarkable bravery and giving his life at the Battle of Lee's Mills. The work survives as a enduring portrait of Lincoln's profound mercy and moral leadership.

The Story

The narrative begins in September 1861 at the Chain Bridge near Washington, a critical defensive position where Union and Confederate forces face one another. Private William Scott, an inexperienced young farmer from the mountains of Vermont, volunteers to take a sick comrade’s night guard duty. Immediately detailed for his own scheduled shift the following night, exhaustion overcomes him, and relief guards discover him fast asleep. A military court-martial promptly tries Scott and sentences him to be shot within twenty-four hours to enforce strict military discipline under General W. F. Smith.

Desperate to save Scott, his comrades form a committee and march to the Washington office of Lucius Eugene Chittenden, the Register of the Treasury and a fellow Vermonter. Recognizing that normal legal appeals and military channels will fail, Chittenden leads the soldiers directly to President Abraham Lincoln at the White House. Lincoln listens intently to the captain’s impassioned plea regarding Scott's character and the harsh realities of farm-boy fatigue. Touched by the tale, Lincoln decides to handle the matter personally, driving out to the camp to inspect the situation and grant the young private a full pardon.

During their private interview, Lincoln informs Scott that his debt cannot be settled with money, savings, or mortgages. Instead, the President asks Scott to promise that he will perform his duty as a soldier so faithfully that he can look Lincoln in the face without shame when his time comes. Scott returns to Company K with renewed devotion. He declines promotions, diligently performs camp chores, trains himself as a hospital nurse to handle night shifts, and earns widespread respect as a courageous, generous comrade.

The final chapter unfolds during the Spring 1862 Peninsula Campaign in Virginia. At the Battle of Lee's Mills along the Warwick River, General Smith’s division receives orders to assault fortified Confederate earthworks across Dam Number One. Dashing into the water with arms raised to keep their equipment dry, Scott and his fellow Vermonters storm the opposite bank. Scott is among the first to reach the enemy rifle-pits and the last to retreat under heavy enemy fire, crossing the river repeatedly to carry wounded soldiers to safety.

During his final attempt, a volley of gunfire strikes Scott. Mortally wounded, he is carried to a hospital tent. Before dying, Scott gathers his comrades to send a final message to President Lincoln, reassuring him that he kept his promise and died honorably as a soldier. Chittenden later delivers this message to Lincoln, who reflects warmly on the nature of sympathy and mercy.

How It Unfolds

The morning appeal A distraught delegation of Vermont soldiers arrives at Chittenden's Treasury office at daybreak to plead for their condemned comrade, William Scott. Their captain admits his own failure to protect the exhausted young farmer, while the men offer their personal savings to secure a legal defense.

The executive intervention Realizing military courts offer no hope, Chittenden takes the soldiers directly to the President's White House office. Moved by the captain’s emotional narrative of mountain life and honest labor, Lincoln promises that Scott will not be shot and personally travels to the military post to investigate.

The covenant at camp Lincoln meets privately with Scott in camp, asking about the young man's mother, home, and farm life before forgiving the sentence. Instead of demanding payment, the President requires a personal pledge that Scott will perform his duty as a good soldier for the remainder of his life.

Redemption in service Returned to his regiment, Scott becomes the most diligent and athletic soldier in Company K. He refuses promotion, acts as a dedicated hospital nurse during night hours, performs hazardous scouting duties, and earns the deep affection of his entire unit.

The assault at Lee's Mills During the Peninsula Campaign in April 1862, Scott's company charges across the Warwick River under heavy fire to attack Confederate earthworks. Scott fights bravely in the front lines and repeatedly recrosses the river to rescue wounded comrades from drowning or capture.

The final message Shot through the body during his last rescue attempt, Scott lies dying in a hospital tent surrounded by weeping soldiers. He asks his comrades to inform President Lincoln that he kept his promise, before being buried beneath a large oak tree near the battlefield.

The People

• Abraham Lincoln serves as the sixteenth President of the United States. Burdened by the weight of the Civil War, he seeks to preserve army discipline while remaining incapable of denying mercy to an honest soldier whose failing stems from human weakness rather than moral depravity. His intervention changes Scott's fate and reinforces his own belief in human empathy.
• William Scott is a young Union soldier in Company K of the Third Vermont Regiment. Raised on a mountain farm, he possesses great physical strength, honesty, and deep devotion to his mother, but lacks experience with night watch duty. Pardoned by Lincoln, he seeks only to clear his name, honor his pledge, and serve his fellow soldiers.
• L. E. Chittenden is the Register of the Treasury from 1861 to 1865 and a Vermonter. He acts as an advocate for the soldiers, breaking official protocol to bring Scott’s case directly to Lincoln and later carrying Scott’s final words back to the White House.
• General W. F. Smith ("Baldy Smith") is the commander of the post at Chain Bridge. A strict West Point graduate, he views soldiers as basic units of military force and believes executing sentinels who sleep on post is necessary to enforce strict military discipline.

In Its Own Voice

"If God wanted me to see it he would let me know it, and until he does I shall go on pardoning and being cruel to the end."

Before the main narrative begins, Chittenden recalls Lincoln explaining his fundamental refusal to permit executions for soldiers whose mistakes lacked criminal intent.

"My boy, my bill is a very large one. Your friends cannot pay it, nor your bounty, nor the farm, nor all your comrades! There is only one man in all the world who can pay it, and his name is William Scott!"

Scott recalls the precise words President Lincoln used when forgiving his death sentence and setting the terms of his moral debt.

"Oh, then it isna what we hae dune for oursells, but what we hae dune for others, that we think on maist pleasantly."

Upon receiving Scott's dying message, Lincoln quotes Walter Scott's The Heart of Midlothian to reflect on the deep personal satisfaction that comes from showing mercy.

What It's Really About

The core of the narrative focuses on the tension between cold military necessity and human compassion. General Smith represents the rigid demands of institutional discipline, where individual human limits are subordinate to organizational order. Lincoln represents an alternative authority rooted in empathy, understanding that true loyalty and duty are inspired by grace rather than fear of execution.

The story also explores the nature of debt and moral redemption. Scott does not view his pardon as a free escape from punishment, but as an obligation to live and die honorably. His sacrifice at Lee's Mills completes a covenant made between a common soldier and his Commander-in-Chief, demonstrating how mercy can transform an ordinary individual into a hero.

Why Read It Today

This short history appeals to readers who appreciate intimate, human-scale vignettes from the Civil War. Rather than focusing on grand troop movements or political battles, Chittenden presents a clear, moving portrait of everyday soldiers and executive decision-making. The narrative offers a direct, eye-witness perspective on Abraham Lincoln's personality, capturing his characteristic blend of humor, melancholy, and profound accessibility.

The writing is plain, direct, and free of artificial ornament, reflecting the journalistic clarity of a nineteenth-century public servant. While modern readers may notice the author's romanticized view of Vermont mountain life and the period's sentimental tone regarding duty and sacrifice, these elements reflect the genuine cultural values of the 1860s. The book can easily be read in a single sitting, leaving a lasting impression of how brief encounters and quiet acts of clemency shape human lives during times of immense national crisis.