Washington by William P. Wood. I also return the list* of prisoners brought on by Wood, numbering 145. Prisoners were selected from those in confinement here and sent off, numbering 62, leaving 83 to be drawn from Salisbury to make up the equivalent. Inclosed is the list,* marked A, of those sent off. It will be observed none of these men are citizens of the Confederate States. To complete the number of 145 it was, as above stated, necessary to draw from Salisbury 83 others. William P. Wood obtained permission to visit Salisbury to look to the condition of the prisoners. After his return a protracted and sometimes an unpleasant negotiation ensued in reference to the individual prisoners discharged from confinement. Three points were settled in these negotiations, subject to your approval: 1. All the prisoners discharged were to be of those who adhered to the Government of the United States. 2. All who thus adhered were to be sent out of the Confederacy as alien enemies and adherents of the Government of the United States, and if such persons returned to any State in the Confederacy they were liable to be treated as alien enemies. 3. No citizen of any other State than Virginia was to be discharged in consequence of the discharge of a Virginian, but citizens of the United States might be discharged without reference to the place of their arrest. The first two questions became very important because I thought one object to be obtained by the irregular mission of Wood was to obtain such pretext for interfering between the Government of the Confederate States and its citizens as would give them a plausible ground of alleg ing there were Union men here who desired their protection and to whom they were giving protection. To me it seemed the best and most obvious course to prevent this was to send away such prisoners as determined to remain citizens of the United States out of the limits of the Confederate States as alien enemies. This course was equivalent to banishment and would make the political status of these men one in which they could do us no harm. By permitting them to remain after they deliberately chose to adhere to the United States and had been looking for protection to that Government would leave bad citizens among us and perhaps fully as injurious as if they returned to the community. On the third question, many of our citizens from Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina are imprisoned in the United States. I thought it right the citizens held from those States should be held as hostages for our citizens from those States. Governed by these considerations I made out with William P. Wood a list of 91 or 92 persons who were directed to be brought from Salisbury. Seventy-nine were brought and 12 remained. Those ordered to be brought on above the 83 were ordered to be exchanged for guerrillas and other prisoners. In making out this list I excluded all our citizens who (as far as I then was informed) had been charged with crimes against the laws of the Confederacy or States and against whom proof could be procured. I put on it citizens of the States of the United States who I believed were great scoundrels, but who could not be brought to justice in the Confederacy or any of the Confederate States. In making out this list difficulty was encountered from the fact that only citizens of Virginia and some of the States of the United States were included in it. The recall of William P. Wood relieved me from further negotiations with him, but it seems to me that justice to the discharged citizens and *Not found. good faith require 145 prisoners to be discharged for those sent and received by us. I permitted Mr. Wood to take his copy of the papers signed by him and myself. These papers were not to take effect until ratified by the Secretaries of War of the respective Governments. The copies are marked C and D. Of course these papers not having been ratified are not of any validity. I returned, marked E, a list of the 79 prisoners brought here from Salisbury and suggestions of prisoners to be taken from that list and one to be added to it. S. S. BAXTER, Esq. [Inclosure No. 1.] S. S. BAXTER, WAR DEPARTMENT, October 7, 1862. SIR: I understand that a considerable number of political prisoners have been sent here by the Federal Government for exchange. We do not acknowledge the right of exchange and cannot recognize it, but as we are engaged in examining the cases of our political prisoners with a view to their release and desire that such release shall benefit our own unfortunate citizens in the hands of the enemy as much as possible, I must request that you will forthwith recommend for discharge all who may properly be discharged. They may be delivered to the agent of the enemy for the exchange of prisoners, if they prefer returning in that way to their homes, or if their stay is considered dangerous, or such of them as prefer it, may be discharged here, if it is compatible with the public safety. You may furnish a list of the discharged prisoners to the agent of the enemy. You will as heretofore confine your discharges to persons arrested for political offenses and retain those charged with violations of municipal laws or with being spies. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, GEO. W. RANDOLPH, Secretary of War. [Inclosure C.] Memorandum of agreement between William P. Wood, an agent appointed by Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War of the Government of the United States, and Sydney S. Baxter, an agent appointed by George W. Randolph, Secretary of War of the Government of the Confederate States, in reference to citizens who, if taken, would be imprisoned in the jurisdiction assigned by the United States Government to General Wadsworth and by the Confederate States Government to General Winder. 1. Persons taken in arms who belong to companies authorized either by the State of Virginia or the Government of the United States or the Government of the Confederate States are hereafter to be treated as prisoners of war and exchanged as such. 2. No citizen peacefully pursuing his ordinary avocation is to be molested by either army for his political opinions or as a hostage for other citizens. But this exemption shall not be extended to protect citizens in riotous or seditious conduct or in acting as spies, nor shall it be so extended as to prevent officers commanding armies from removing temporarily (but not confining in prison) any persons they may deem necessary from the theater of immediate operations, nor shall it be construed so as to prevent the arrest of any person against whom civil or criminal process has been lawfully issued, and if such person be arrested by the military authority he shall be immediately transferred to the civil authority for speedy and proper proceedings under the process, and this shall be done without reference to the cause the person may espouse. 3. No marauding parties and no wanton or illegal interference with the property of citizens shall be tolerated by either party, and offenders against this article shall be brought to speedy justice. Signed by William P. Wood and Sidney S. Baxter and to take effect when signed and ratified by Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War of the United States, and George W. Randolph, Secretary of War of the Confederate States. S. S. BAXTER, For George W. Randolph, Secretary. For E. M. Stanton, U. S. Secretary of War. [Inclosure D.] Memorandum of agreement between W. P. Wood, agent of E. M. Stanton, Secretary of War of the United States, and S. S. Baxter, agent of George W. Randolph, Secretary of War of the Confederate States, in relation to certain citizen prisoners held by their respective Governments. It is agreed the parties shall have lists made of the Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina prisoners held in Richmond and in Salisbury. Such of these prisoners as declare their adherence and loyalty to the Government of the United States shall be delivered to the agent of the United States when the articles signed this day by the said Wood and the said Baxter are ratified by their respective principals, subject to this rule, that for prisoners delivered from each State an equivalent is to be furnished in prisoners from that State. And as the said Wood believes that there has been released from custody by the Government of the United States eighteen or nineteen prisoners held from North Carolina for whom no equivalent has been given or received, on producing evidence of the unconditional release of that number of prisoners he shall be entitled to an equivalent therefor in North Carolinians professing fidelity and loyalty to the Government of the United States and against whom there is no charge of specified crimes other than loyalty to the Government of the United States, if there be so many confined under the charge of General Winder. WILLIAM P. WOOD, For the United States. S. S. BAXTER, Agent for Confederate States. HEADQUARTERS DISTRICT OF GEORGIA, Brigadier-General JORDAN, Chief of Staff and Assistant Adjutant-General, Charleston, S. C. GENERAL: I have the honor to report the following facts to the general commanding and beg that they may be referred to the Secretary of War for his decision: A few days since Captain Brailsford, of the Lamar Rangers, landed on Saint Catherine's Island and while there encountered six negroes in Federal uniforms with arms (muskets) in their hands. Captain B. killed two of them and captured the other four. One of these negroes, 60 R R-SERIES II, VOL IV a boy named Manuel, is now in the possession of Messrs. Blount & Dawson, negro brokers in this city, for sale, to prevent which I have just ordered one of my officers to take him out of their hands and to lodge him in jail, there to await the decision of Mr. Randolph. If I may be permitted to express an opinion upon this subject I most earnestly request that these negroes be made an example of. They are slaves taken with arms in hand against their masters and wearing the abolition uniform. Some swift and terrible punishment should be inflicted that their fellows may be deterred from following their example. This is by no means the first case that has arisen and I much fear unless something be done to prevent similar outrages it will not be the last. Feeling assured that the commanding general will see the necessity of speedy action in the matter, I have the honor to be, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant, H. W. MERCER, Brigadier-General, Commanding. [First indorsement.] HDQRS. DEPT. OF SOUTH CAROLINA AND Georgia, Charleston, November 17, 1862. The general instructions of the War Department respectfully requested for my guidance in such cases. Respectfully referred to the President. With his concurrence my decision is that the negro be executed as an example. J. A. S.. Secretary of War. EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT, Richmond, November 17, 1862. Lieut. Gen. T. H. HOLMES, Commanding Trans-Mississippi Department. GENERAL: Inclosed you will find a slip* from the Memphis Daily Appeal of the 3d instant, containing an account purporting to be derived from the Palmyra (Missouri) Courier, a Federal journal, of the murder of ten Confederate citizens of Missouri by General McNeil, of the U. S. Army. You will communicate by flag of truce with the Federal officer commanding that department and ascertain if the facts are as stated. If they be so you will demand the surrender of General McNeil to the Confederate authorities and if this demand is not complied with you will inform said commanding officer that you are ordered to execute the first ten U. S. officers who may be captured and fall into your hands. Very respectfully, yours, JEFFERSON DAVIS. HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF WEST TENNESSEE, COMMANDING OFFICER U. S. FORCES, near La Grange: I have to reply, in answer to your communication relative to Captain Haywood's company of partisan rangers, I have made necessary in *See Holmes to Curtis, Series I, Vol. XXII, Part I, p. 816. quiries relative to this company and find that he received full and proper authority to raise a battalion of cavalry and that they belong regularly to the Confederate service and are entitled to all the rights of Confederate troops. I wish to inquire if Capt. S. O. Silence, U. S. Army, recruiting officer First Tennessee Cavalry, has been accepted in exchange for Lieut. C. Sulivane, my aide-de-camp, captured at Hatchie Bridge and paroled. Capt. S. O. Silence, U. S. Army, was sent with Lieutenant-Colonel Ducat, U. S. Army, who bore a flag of truce to these headquarters from General Rosecrans about the 20th of October, 1862. I have also the honor to acknowledge the receipt of Capt. T. W. Harris, assistant adjutant-general, and Capt. William Clark, assistant commissary of subsistence, captured at and near Holly Springs, who are received and acknowledged as prisoners of war, and their names will be sent as others to the proper authorities for exchange. Maj. J. R. WADDY, EARL VAN DORN, Major-General. HEADQUARTERS EXCHANGED PRISONERS, Assistant Adjutant-General, Jackson, Miss. MAJOR: I have in custody six men captured as Yankee soldiers who are charged with enlisting in Alabama, being residents of that State. Shall I send them to Governor Shorter to be tried or shall they be exchanged? I will be glad to have this question answered by General Pemberton or by the Secretary of War. Respectfully, JOHN GREGG, Brigadier-General, Provisional Army, C. S. RICHMOND, November 18, 1862. Honorable SECRETARY OF WAR. SIR: I inclose a letter of Mr. Province McCormick, of Clarke County, Va., relative to the imprisonment of two citizens of that county imprisoned upon arrests made by the Federal troops. I know these citizens and ask the Government to take the necessary steps for their release. They are very respectable and loyal men and valuable as such to the region of country in which they live. I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, J. R. TUCKER, Esq. [Inclosure.] J. R. TUCKER. NOVEMBER 8, 1862. MY DEAR SIR: Thomas H. Crow and William H. Carter, both of whom you know, were taken by the Federal soldiers some months ago as hostages for two men, Richmond and Stoll, who were arrested and taken to Richmond by our soldiers. Mr. Ryan, who will hand you this, can explain the facts touching these arrests. I understand Richmond was shot at Richmond in attempting to make his escape from prison; that Stoll has been recently released and is now at home. Crow and Carter are still in confinement at Fort McHenry, Baltimore. They |