| Summary: | Proclamation issued by President Abraham Lincoln in response to the secession of seven Southern states. He calls for 75,000 men from state militias to deal with the rebellious states, which are "too powerful to be suppressed by the ordinary course of judicial proceedings, or by the powers vested in the Marshals by law"; he stresses, however that they are to "avoid any devastation and destruction of or interference with property, or any disturbance of peaceful citizens in any part of the country." Lincoln also orders a special session of Congress and asks for civilian cooperation: "I appeal to all loyal citizens to favor, facilitate and aid this effort to maintain the honor, the integrity and the existence of our National Union, and the perpetuity of popular government, and to redress the wrongs already long enough endured."
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