HEADQUARTERS, Fort Monroe, Va., July 29, 1862. C. P. WOLCOTT, Assistant Secretary of War. SIR: After writing my letter of the 23d instant I concluded not to send the papers relating to the negotiation for an exchange of prisoners of war by mail but to reserve them for a private messenger. They are in my possession and will be sent the first safe opportunity. I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, JOHN A. DIX, Major-General. FORT MONROE, July 29, 1862. Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War: There are several insurgent prisoners here who are very unwilling to return to the South. Some are willing to take the oath of allegiance; others desire to give their parole of honor to remain North and neither to bear arms nor to serve in any capacity against the Government of the United States. Of the latter class there is a captain whose family has large property in New Orleans. Col. D. H. RUCKER, JOHN A. DIX, QUARTERMASTER-GENERAL'S OFFICE, Chief Quartermaster and Aide-de-Camp, Washington : You will furnish transportation to Fortress Monroe for a body of 110 prisoners of war from this place. A guard will be furnished by the Military Governor, General Wadsworth. Adjutant-General Thomas will inform you as to the time of starting. Any steamer which is ready to return to the Chesapeake may be used for the purpose. M. C. MEIGS, Quartermaster-General. QUARTERMASTER-GENERAL'S OFFICE, Captain MCKIM, Quartermaster, Boston, Mass.: The Ocean Queen must carry prisoners to Fort Monroe on her way to New Orleans. You will receive instructions from the military authorities. M. C. MEIGS, Quartermaster-General. HDQRS. MILITARY GOVERNOR OF NORTH CAROLINA, Capt. S. HOFFMAN, New Berne, July 29, 1862. Assistant Adjutant-General, Department of North Carolina. CAPTAIN: Governor Stanly instructs me to refer the accompanying communication to General Foster with the request that the prisoner be informed of the charges against him if not inconsistent with the public service. I am, your obedient servant, J. L. VAN BUREN, Major, Aide de Camp and Military Secretary. [Inclosure.] BEAUFORT, July 27, 1862. Hon. EDWARD STANLY, Military Governor of North Carolina. DEAR SIR: I am arrested and in the guard-house for some cause and detained from my business. Will you, if you please, see General Foster or whoever tends to this case and let me know the charges and penalty, as my vessel is laying on expenses and I can't attend to everything. The marshal is not here. He has gone to Swansborough and has been gone three days, and I don't know the charges preferred against me; but I pledge my word and honor I have not said or done anything against the Government in any way to my knowledge. Every gentleman here knows me and I don't think any of them would say I have said or done anything against the Government. I may have been arguing some point and somebody mistook my words or misrepresented them for some cause or other. Please attend and let me know the charges and penalty. From your humble servant, JOSEPH HARTICK, Commander of Schooner Velasco, of New York. PHILADELPHIA, July 30, 1862. Hon. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War: I have just searched the house of a lady named Emley, who has four women at work making clothing for secesh prisoners. She does not deny it. Says all her sympathies are with them. There are other parties connected with her. I found two letters addressed to her from Captain Gibson, commander Fort Delaware, thanking her for her kindness. What shall I do with the parties? Strong feeling here against such parties. It operates against recruiting. WILLIAM MILLWARD, U. S. Marshal. Answer by telegram as I have an officer upon the premises. WAR DEPARTMENT, Washington, July 30, 1862. WILLIAM MILLWARD, Esq., U. S. Marshal, Philadelphia: Send the two letters to this Department. Mistress Emley must be permitted to exercise her charity by supplying clothing or other necessaries or comforts to those who are sick or in prison. P. H. WATSON, Assistant Secretary of War. WINCHESTER, July 30, 1862. C. P. WOLCOTT, Assistant Secretary of War: Mr. Cridge is here with Miss Boyd as prisoner. What shall be done with her? JULIUS WHITE, Brigadier-General, Commanding. WAR DEPARTMENT, July 30, 1862. Brigadier-General WHITE, Winchester, Va.: Direct Cridge to come immediately to Washington and bring with him Belle Boyd in close custody, committing her on arrival to the Old Capitol Prison. Furnish him such aid as he may need to get her safely here. By order of the Secretary of War: C. P. WOLCOTT, Assistant Secretary of War. HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, ADJUTANT-GENERAL, Washington. SIR: I have the honor to transmit herewith a copy of a communication from General R. E. Lee,* dated the 21st instant, in regard to the alleged arrest and imprisonment of citizens of the rebel States who have refused to take the oath of allegiance to the United States. I also inclose copies of reports from Maj. William H. Wood, acting provost-marshal-general, and Major-General Dix. In addition to these reports I respectfully state that so far as my knowledge extends no transactions of the nature alleged have taken place in this army. I have the honor to request that these papers may be laid before the War Department for its consideration and that the Department will furnish me with such information as to the facts and its views in the premises as will enable me to reply to General Lee. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, GEO. B. MCCLELLAN, [Inclosure No. 1.] OFFICE PROVOST-MARSHAL-GENERAL, Brig. Gen. S. WILLIAMS, Assistant Adjutant-General. July 23, 1862. GENERAL: In reply to your communication of the 22d instant inquiring "if during the progress of this army in Virginia any citizens of Virginia engaged in peaceful avocations have been arrested by this Department and imprisoned on the ground of refusal to take the oath of allegiance to the United States, or having been imprisoned for other causes have been refused release on the ground of declining to take the oath of allegiance," I have the honor to state that to my knowledge no citizens have been arrested on that ground only nor have any citizens been refused release on the same ground. I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant, W. H. WOOD, Major Seventeenth Infantry, Acting Provost-Marshal-General. [Inclosure No. 2.] HEADQUARTERS, Fort Monroe, Va., July 28, 1862. General S. WILLIAMS, Assistant Adjutant-General. GENERAL: I have received yours of the 23d, inclosing a copy of a letter from General R. E. Lee, stating that "citizens engaged in peaceful * Omitted here; Lee to McClellan, July 21, p. 251. avocations have been arrested and imprisoned because they refused to take the oath of allegiance to the United States, while others by hard and harsh treatment have been compelled to take an oath not to bear arms against that Government." He adds, "I have learned that about 100 of the latter class have been released from Fortress Monroe." In reply to the inquiry of the major-general commanding how far these allegations are sustained by actual occurrences I have the honor to state 1. I have no knowledge that any citizen has been arrested and imprisoned for refusing to take the oath of allegiance. I do not believe any such case has occurred in my command. If so it was without my authority and without my knowledge. All prisoners are sent to Fort Wool and their cases are personally examined by me, and it is not at all probable that any such case would have escaped my scrutiny. 2. In regard to the "100" prisoners released from Fortress Monroe I can speak positively. The prisoners alluded to were confined at Fort Wool. Their "treatment" was neither "hard" nor "harsh." They were not "compelled" to take any oath at all. In fact they took no oath. The number of prisoners released was ninety-three. Nearly all of them were taken during the change of position made by the army from the Chickahominy to the James River. I examined their cases myself, having gone to Fort Wool two days for the purpose. Several of them wrote notes to me before I went there asking to be released on their parole of honor not to do any act of hostility to the United States during the continuance of the war. I inclose the form of the parole given by them and of the certificate which each one received. No one objected to the parole. On the contrary it was solicited by many and given with cheerfulness by the others. I did not speak to every one myself but I did speak either to each one or to some one who responded for him. These prisoners as well as the prisoners of war at Fort Wool were treated with all possible kindness. They had the same food which was provided for our own men and no effort was spared to make them comfortable. I, of -, do hereby give my parole of honor that I will do no act of hostility to the United States and that I will give no information, aid or comfort to their enemies during the existing war. In presence of— FORT MONROE, July 30, 1862. Hon. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War: General Wool sent here to-day sixty prisoners without any letter or explanation of any sort. On examining them I found forty to be pris oners of war and sent them to Fort Wool to wait General Thomas' arrival. The other twenty were political prisoners and I declined to receive them. There is no place here for political prisoners. Fort Wool is so crowded now that our men are in the way of the engineers, who are going on with work. JOHN A. DIX, Major-General. HEADQUARTERS, Fort Monroe, Va., July 30, 1862. Hon. EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War. SIR: Professor Brooks, of Maryland, who will hand you this note, was presented to me while I was in Baltimore as a true Union man. His son has been sent here for exchange. I do not consider him a subject for exchange as he is not in the rebel service and he is very averse to returning to Virginia. I have therefore sent him back to Baltimore as there is not room here for political prisoners. I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, JOHN A. DIX, Major-General. HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE GULF, New Orleans, July 30, 1862. Mrs. Jane C. Beach and daughter, Mrs. Spooner, having made application for the remission of the order sending Madam Dubois to Ship Island her sentence is revoked and she may be discharged upon the express condition, however, thus: Madam Dubois shall not in any way give aid or information to the Confederate States or in any way interfere with the schools at the corner of Robertson and Bienville streets. BENJ. F. BUTLER, Major-General, Commanding. HEADQUARTERS, Huntsville, July 30, 1862. Major SIDELL, Headquarters, Nashville: What troops are at Clarksville and what numbers? Refer the subject of political prisoners to Governor Johnson and get his views about sending them North and act upon them. JAMES B. FRY, HEADQUARTERS, Camp Douglas, Chicago, July 30, 1862. L. THOMAS, Adjutant-General U. S. Army, Washington. GENERAL: In view of the probability of arrangements being effected by the Department of War for a general exchange of prisoners I respectfully ask for instructions which will cover the cases of prisoners who do not wish to be exchanged. I have numerous written communications from prisoners who state that they entered the rebel service unwillingly; some through fear of being drafted, some to escape from actual imprisonment and some from the impossibility of finding any other employment. Others and principally those whose homes are now |