The Journal of Commerce, a Democratic-leaning paper that viewed the Civil War more as disruptive than necessary, was no favorite of the Lincoln administration. In 1961 the JoC ran a list of more than 100 northern newspapers that were opposed to "the present unholy war."

A grand jury in New York deemed this an indictable offense, leading the postmaster general to ban from the mail the JoC and five other papers cited by the grand jury. Only by ending his 32-year reign as editor and selling his ownership stake was the formidable Gerard Hallock once again able to distribute the 50 percent of the JoC's circulation that depended on the mail.

"Ascertain who is the writer of the paragraph that appeared in that sheet two days ago regarding the Vanderbilt steamer," an irritated Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton wrote to New York City Police Chief John Kennedy in this 1862 confidential military telegraph, after the JoC revealed sensitive information about the vessel, which the Army had requisitioned for military use.

A few years later, the JoC crossed the line again, publishing what was deemed as militarily sensitive information about the movements of the Vanderbilt steamer that had been requisitioned by the Army. That prompted an irate Secretary of War Edwin Stanton to dash off a telegram to the New York City chief of police, a document that today hangs in the JoC's offices.

But the mother of all JoC transgressions in the government's eyes occurred in May 1864 when it published the appropriately dubbed "Bogus Proclamation." The previous weeks had witnessed the bloody battle of the Wilderness, the first head-on clash between Grant and Lee. It was a tense time where the outcome of the war hung in the balance.

It was thus a bombshell when the editions of the JoC and another newspaper, the New York World, carried a statement by Lincoln on May 18 proclaiming a day of fasting and prayer, and, significantly, demanding 400,000 additional troops. Such a statement could only mean one thing: The war was going badly. The only problem was that the statement was a forgery. Coincidentally, the only two papers duped were the most anti-Republican in the city. At 3:30 a.m., a messenger had dropped off the release at the JoC's offices, just as the last edition was being locked into the press. The only person still there was the night foreman, who faced a crucial decision - to be scooped or possibly hoaxed? He put the report into the paper. The night editor of the New York Times became suspicious of the flowery language, which he thought was unbecoming of the eloquent Lincoln "With a heavy heart, but an undiminished confidence in our cause, I approach the performance of a duty rendered imperative by my sense of weakness before the Almighty...")

The next morning, hell broke loose. "Found on coming down town that we, in common with the World and other newspapers (untrue), had been hoaxed by a most ingenious scoundrel," the JoC's business manager, William C. Prime, wrote in a letter to his wife. That night Prime was arrested and troops arrived at the JoC's offices to shut it down.

Many newspapers weighed in, as did Congress, which tried to have Lincoln censured over the episode. "The meanest and smallest act of the administration.is the suppression of the World and The Journal of Commerce because they were imposed on by a forgery," the Boston Post thundered on its front page. "Such persecution as these editors is an outrage upon common justice and deserves the indignant rebuke of every good citizen."

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle wrote, "Shall we have a free press?" The Times said simply, "We noticed something wrong - we were careful and checked so we were not fooled," though later it said, "The infliction of punishment without trial is a thing abhorrent."

The culprits were caught. They were reporters for the Brooklyn Eagle trying to influence the gold market. Lincoln eventually did need more troops but, because of the episode, delayed the call for several weeks. A regular figure during this episode was Prime's close friend, Gen. George McClellan, who had been relieved of his duties as commander of the Union armies and was to be the Democratic opponent to Lincoln's re-election.

"McClellan, noble old fellow, was the first man here on Wednesday and he was the first man here today, literally the first, after the officer handed over the concern to me," Prime wrote.

For Prime, the episode ended in complete exoneration.