Whereas an insurrection exists in the State of Florida by which the
lives, liberty, and property of loyal citizens of the United States are
endangered; and
Whereas it is deemed proper that all needful measures should be taken
for the protection of such citizens and all officers of the United
States in the discharge of their public duties in the State aforesaid:
Now, therefore, be it known that I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the
United States, do hereby direct the commander of the forces of the
United States on the Florida coast to permit no person to exercise any
office or authority upon the islands of Key West, the Tortugas, and
Santa Rosa which may be inconsistent with the laws and Constitution of
the United States, authorizing him at the same time, if he shall find it
necessary, to suspend there the writ of _habeas corpus_ and to remove
from the vicinity of the United States fortresses all dangerous or
suspected persons.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of
the United States to be affixed.
[SEAL.]
Done at the city of Washington, this 10th day of May, A.D. 1861, and of
the Independence of the United States the eighty-fifth.