BALTIMORE, October 29, 1862. His Excellency the PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Intelligence has just reached me that Colonel Rich, one of my aides, and Messrs. Sewell, Gardner and Evans, four citizens of Baltimore as devotedly loyal as any within the Union, whilst last night engaged in conferring as a committee with the officers of the Union meeting assembled some time since in Monument Square over which I presided were arrested by the military authorities here, confined during the night at the police station and this morning marched under guard of soldiers through the streets as though they were the vilest traitors and placed on board a steamer in the harbor. Our whole loyal community regard this as the grossest outrage and demand their release, and I on their behalf most respectfully insist that Your Excellency will forthwith order the military commander of this department to set them at liberty and to return the papers forcibly seized and taken from them. Major-General GRANT, A. W. BRADFORD, HEADQUARTERS DISTRICT OF CORINTH, Commanding Department of the Tennessee: I desire to call your attention to the letters of Van Dorn sent by flag of truce. You can perhaps answer the question propounded as to the exchange of Captain Silence for Van Dorn's aide. I cannot but think the making of Iuka a hospital for Confederate prisoners was very ill advised. Under the terms of the cartel we are obliged to deliver prisoners within the lines of the opposing army. This involves the necessity of sending them from luka by ambulance to Baldwin for those who cannot march or bringing them back through Corinth to be sent to Columbus or to Holly Springs. I do not want to bring them back this way. Van Dorn's language that "Iuka is liable to the vicissitudes of war" can be construed only that it is liable to capture and that the stores sent there for the use of the rebel sick and wounded are liable to seizure as also would be the rolling-stock of the railroad used in communicating and furnishing that hospital with supplies. I wish you would suggest some plan by which the whole thing can be shifted off our hands. Many of the prisoners leave daily and go where they choose. This has been the case with those sufficiently recovered to move. Of this I do not care, but I do not like the idea of being burdened with the care of that place as a hospital unless it may fairly be considered as not liable to capture while so occupied. My idea would be to move all the wounded by rail through Corinth at night, to be sent to Vicksburg via Columbus. Please write me your views with such instructions as may suggest themselves to you. An answer on this subject and also that of exchange of Captain Silence may be the means of sending another flag of truce to the rebel lines. Very truly, yours, C. S. HAMILTON, Brigadier-General, Commanding. HEADQUARTERS U. S. FORCES, H. Z. CURTIS, Assistant Adjutant-General. I have the honor to be, your most obedient servant, ALVIN P. HOVEY, Brigadier-General, Commanding. [Inclosure No. 1.] HEADQUARTERS TRANS-MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT, Brig. Gen. E. A. CARR, U. S. Army, Commanding U. S. Forces, Helena, Ark. GENERAL: Your communication of the 15th instant is received. I accept your disclaimer of the outrages perpetrated by the Federal troops otherwise than in violation of their orders, and I also accept your definition of guerrilla as it embraces none that are known to any military organization of the Confederate States. In the spirit of humanity that dictated your letter and believing that as you participated in the entire campaign in Arkansas you express the opinions and wishes of your Government I have rescinded my order relative to the Federal prisoners in my possession and will permit the cartel arrangement between our Governments to continue in force. I therefore send to you under a flag of truce all the Federal prisoners now in my hands, whom I respectfully request you will cause to be exchanged for Lieutenant-Colonel Giddings and an equivalent of our prisoners from this department now in the hands of your Government. I will cause a strict investigation to be had of your charge that two of your men were murdered after being taken prisoners by men of the Twentyfirst Regiment Texas Cavalry, of which I had heard nothing. I sin. cerely hope it will be found to be groundless, and should feel confident that such was the case but that a precisely similar charge was made against a party of your men toward one of their prisoners a few days * Omitted. ago, and also that another party went to the house of a lady (Mrs. Moore) who was enceinte, and against the remonstrance and entreaty of her daughters, entered her chamber where she was in bed, aimed their pistols at her, exploded the caps, and so alarmed her that premature labor resulted and she died the next morning. This is horrible; this is hellish, and yet the facts are vouched for by the husband of the lady who reported them to a member of my staff. I sincerely hope this correspondence will result in suppressing on both sides the retali atory feeling incident to such charges. I send this communication by Major Gallagher, my assistant adjutant-general, who will deliver to your order the prisoners who have been paroled until exchanged. I am, general, very respectfully, your most obedient servant, TH. H. HOLMES, Major-General, Commanding. [Inclosure No. 2.] HEADQUARTERS U. S. FORCES, Major-General HOLMES, Little Rock, Ark. GENERAL: The steamer Little Rock, bearing a flag of truce and dispatches to these headquarters with Federal prisoners for exchange, arrived last night and I am now in receipt of yours* of the 21st instant. I am much gratified with the tone of your communication and trust that by vigilance we will be enabled to prevent all unauthorized acts of violence by officers or men. My heartfelt desire is to terminate this unhappy struggle with as little injury to non-combatants and as few violations of the rules of civilized warfare as possible. For myself I should be proud as an American if our armies could only present to the world deeds of chivalry and generous bearing unaccompanied by the brutalities that have stained the pages of the civil wars of the earth. The case of Mrs. Moore stated in your letter is indeed brutal. I have heard nothing of the report before, and trust that like the thousands of rumors floating on the winds it may prove entirely groundless. As you are no doubt aware many false stories are made for effect. If the case of Mrs. Moore is a reality I should be pleased if you would communicate to me any facts within your knowledge that may aid in identifying the villains and bringing them to justice. I will forward to Major General Curtis a copy of your letter and will as soon as practicable have the account of prisoners exchanged adjusted. I am, general, very respectfully, your most obedient servant, ALVIN P. HOVEY, Brigadier-General, Commanding. WAR DEPARTMENT, ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE, Col. G. LOOMIS, Washington, October 29, 1862. Fifth U. S. Infantry, Commanding Fort Columbus. SIR: The Secretary of War directs that you ship the exchanged prisoners received from New Orleans to Camp Butler, near Springfield, Ill. I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, L. THOMAS, *Addressed to Carr. Adjutant-General. OFFICE COMMISSARY-GENERAL OF PRISONERS, Col. THOMAS T. GANTT, Prov. Mar. Gen. Dist. of Missouri and Iowa, Saint Louis, Mo. COLONEL: Your letters of the 15th and 18th are réceived. To obviate the inconvenience which would arise from your not having authority to release prisoners from the Alton Prison I will direct the commanding officer to release on your order all such as may have been sent there by you on charges which on investigation prove to be informal. To prevent the necessity of sending up prisoners whose cases have not been decided on I wish as far as practicable you would hold such prisoners at the Gratiot Street Prison until a decision is had, and then if they are not to be released send them to Alton. That this prison may not be so much crowded I will direct that prisoners be transferred from time to time from there to the depot at Sandusky. I inclose herewith Orders,* No. 142, announcing the cartel. You will perceive that by the supplementary article prisoners of war are to be sent with all reasonable dispatch (in the West) to Vicksburg where they will be exchanged or paroled. I have already given orders for them to be sent from Alton from time to time as the numbers justify it to Cairo, where the commanding officer is directed to take charge of them and forward them, and I wish you would send any that may now be at the Gratiot Street Prison or that you may have in charge hereafter to that point with full rolls. I would not send less than ten at a time. A larger number would be better. It is the direction of the Secretary of War [illegible] Alton Prison. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, W. HOFFMAN, Colonel Third Infantry, Commissary-General of Prisoners. Major-General CURTIS: SPRINGFIELD, Mo., October 29, 1862. Am I authorized to make exchange of prisoners held by us here for those taken and held by guerrilla bands? There are some cases where I would like to procure a release of our friends if I am authorized to exchange. General Schofield is too far from the telegraph for me to communicate with him speedily. WILLIAM W. ORME, GRATIOT STREET PRISON, October 29, 1862. General CURTIS, Commanding Division of Missouri: I wrote you on the 25th to which I have no reply and suppose you have not received my letter. It does not appear from your letter of the 23d that General Holmes has refused to carry out the agreement between the two Governments except as to those which he claims were captured with armed negroes, and especially as to the exchange of privates. I now demand the exchange of the privates belonging to the Twenty-first Texas Cavalry now confined at this prison, as well as my own exchange. I see from the newspapers that an officer of your army * Omitted here; see Cartel and Supplementary Articles, p. 266 et seq. was lately paroled and discharged from Little Rock. There must be near 300 Federal prisoners now at Little Rock who do not relish confinement better than I do. I am satisfied that an exchange of these men could be effected if I were permitted to communicate with General Holmes. I am informed that paroles have been extended to officers for a certain period in order to effect an exchange. I am in need of some clothing for myself and men, and would like a parole for a few days at least in order to have some clothing made. I would be pleased to have a personal interview with you with a view of effecting or expediting a mutual exchange. Respectfully, yours, D. C. GIDDINGS, Lieutenant-Colonel, C. S. Army. HEADQUARTERS, Fort Scott, Kans., October 29, 1862. Major LIVINGSTON, Commanding Cherokee Rangers. SIR: Your letter to me in which you promise to release all citizens prisoners on condition of my doing the same is received. Immediately upon the receipt of it I ordered the release of those in my charge and forwarded them in wagons to your command to be passed over the lines in charge of Capt. W. H. Taylor, who was paroled by me for that purpose. I also wrote you at the time, which is now in possession of Captain Taylor, unless you have received it, which I cannot believe as you would not have arrested quiet citizens at their homes as late [as] reported me. This day appeared before me Mrs. Riggins and Catharina Spencer in behalf of Riggins and young Spencer, and say that you will release them if I give up Peter Johnson, Bishop and one other man. The men named by you are all released and sent on to be passed over the lines and are probably at home before this. I feel confident that you will perform your part of the agreement and hope this will be the last time that complaint will be made to me of like character. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, B. S. HENNING, Major, Third Wisconsin Cavalry, Commanding Post. HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE MISSOURI, Brig. Gen. J. W. DAVIDSON, Saint Louis, October 29, 1862. Commanding Saint Louis District, Mo. SIR: The number of inquiries made in regard to prisoners is so great and the source of information so meager and unsatisfactory that the dignity of the Government requires an examination into and record of the facts that have led to the arrest and justify the present confinement of all persons now held as prisoners in the several military prisons. To this end you are directed to convene by special order a board of inquiry in the nature of a military commission, to consist of not less than three members, with a competent officer to act as examiner and recorder, whose duty it shall be to investigate by such means as they deem best the case of each prisoner now at Gratiot [Street] Prison, or who may be brought before the board, and to report who are and who are not prisoners of war. And of those who are determined not to be |