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 Duke University Libraries 
 
 D03209803P 
 
MESSAGE OF THE PRESIDENT. 
 
 Richmond, Va., April 20, 18G3. 
 To the House of Representatives : 
 
 I herewith transmit, for your information, a communication from 
 the Secretary of War, in response to your resolution of January 24tb, 
 in refence to the exchange or release " of persons, who, t.i^en. from 
 civil life, have been transported and confined beyond the limits of the 
 Confederacy. " 
 
 JEFFERSON DAVIS. 
 
 COMMUNICATION FROM THE SECRETARY OF WAR, 
 
 War Department, April 13, 1863. 
 
 To the President of the Confederate* States : 
 
 Sir: In compliance with a resolution of the House of Represen- 
 tatives of the 24th January last, I have the honor to submit the report 
 of the lion. Robert Oul-L agent of exchange ot° prisoners, *' as to the 
 steps that have been taken to procure the liberation and exchange of 
 rvrisoners, who, taken nom civil life have been- transported and confined 
 beyond the limits ot : the Cofcder::- -- " and whether any and 
 
 what person so confined, at the instance of the government, have been 
 set at liberty. 
 
 Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 JAMES A. SEDDON, 
 
 Secretary of War, 
 
REPORT OF ROBERT OULD. 
 
 Richmond, April 1 4th. 18 
 Hon. Jamfs A. Seodon, Secretary rf War : 
 
 Sir : In the matter of the accompanying resolution of the H >use 
 of Representatives, relating to citizen prisoners, 1 have the honor to 
 make the following report : 
 
 The suhject of the arrest and detention of civilians has been a mat- 
 ter of controversy between the Federal agent of exchange and myself, 
 ever since the establishment of the carrel. I have again and again 
 protested against such arrests as illegal and contrary to the usages of 
 civilized w rfare. At an early stage of the cartel, I urged the adop- 
 tion of the following rule, to wit: " That peaceable, non combatant 
 citizens of both the Confederate and United States, who are not con- 
 nected with any military organization, should not be arrested by 
 either the Confederate or United States army within the territory of 
 the adverse party ; that, if such a proposition was considered as being 
 too broad, let the only exception be in the c?ise of a temporary arrest 
 of parties within army lines, where the arresting party has good reason 
 to believe that their presence is dangerous to the safety of the army 
 from the opportunity afforded of giving intelligence to the enemy ; 
 that then the arrest should cease as soon as the reason for making it 
 ceased in the withdrawal of the army, or for any other cause; and, 
 finally, that the foregoing proposal should apply to, and include such, 
 arrests and impi isomnents as were then in force " 
 
 The proposition was declined. I have urged it frequently since, 
 but without success. 
 
 The Federal authorities, on the other hand, have always been anx- 
 ious to institute a system of exchange of political prisoners, man for 
 man. It was a deeply laid scheme to interfere with the administra- 
 tion of justice in the Confederate States, and to give practical immu- 
 nity to such of their friends and partizans in the South, as felt dis- 
 posed to preach or practise disloyalty. Under the instructions of the 
 War Department, I have constantly refused to engage in any such 
 system of exchanges. There was no reciprocity in the arrangement. 
 It amounted to an exchange of Confederate citizens for Confederate 
 citizens, owing to the fact that the enemy was in possessien of por- 
 tions of our own country, and had therefore more fiequent opportu- 
 nities of making arrests. If any such p opoeal had been accepted, 
 we bhould soon have released every civilian held by us, leaving many 
 
hundreds of our own people to languish in northern prisons, for -whom 
 •we had no equivalent to offer, I repeatedly offered to release all polit- 
 ical prisoners held by us, except such as were held upon very aggra- 
 vated charges, if the Federal authorities would do the same. Lately 
 they agreed to this proposition, coupling it with a written statement 
 that it was not their intention to make any more arrests of non-com- 
 batants. I had very great doubts as to their good fiith both as to the 
 delivery of ail political prisoners and their di avowal of any intention 
 to make any. more arrests. The sequel has proved that those doubts 
 in both respects were well founded. A few weeks ago, in pretended 
 compliance with' the agreement, they delivered some six hundred per- 
 sons whom they called political prisoners. About one half of that 
 number were persons who had been in our service in the West,< 
 belonging to irregular military organizations, and who, long ago, had 
 been declared exchanged under the agreement made between lhe Fede- 
 ral agent and myself. Finding they could not get any equivalent for 
 them as military prisoners, they attempted to palm them off as political 
 prisoners. The false pretence was too apparent to deceive anybody. 
 Some political prisoners held in this city, against whom the charges 
 were not aggravated, were sent oft in return. The number delivered 
 by me bore about the same proportiin to the whole number held 
 by us, as the number delivered by ihe Fedelfcil agent did to all 
 the political prisoners held by the Federal authorities. They were 
 not exchanged one against the other. They were simply released 
 upon both sides, discharged from any paroles heretofore given by 
 them. The Fedeial agent demanded that I should deliver to him 
 political prisoners equal in number to those released by him. I 
 refused to do so. as the agreement was for the release of all political 
 prisoners, and it was necessary that the proper proportion should 
 he maintained on our side to secure the release of the hundreds still 
 held in captivity at the North. If all our prisoners had been deliv- 
 ered, I am very sure no more deliveries would have been made by the 
 Federal agent. 
 
 Even less faith has been shown by the Federal authorities in the 
 matter of political arrests. Since the date of their declaration, they 
 have made more of such arrests than during any other equal space 
 of time, embracing an unusual proportion of old men and helpless 
 women. 
 
 The resolution of the House of Representatives specifically inquires, 
 "what ste-s, if any, have been taken to procure the liberation of 
 persons, who, taken from civil life, have been transported and confined 
 beyond the limits of the Confederacy." In answer, I respectfully 
 state that at every interview, without exception, between the Federal 
 agent and myself, I have, under the instruction of he War Depart- 
 ment, brought the subject to his attention in as forcible and as earnest 
 manner as possible — that I have demanded the release of all civilians 
 held in confinement, and have threatened retaliation. In addition, 
 whenever 1 have been specifically informed of cases of incarceration, 
 I have made them the subjects of correspondence with the Federal 
 agent. In many cases 1 have been successful in procuring the release 
 
of the parties named — in others I have not succeeded. Some have* 
 been released at the North,, and allowed to make their way to their 
 own homes, and others have been brought on flag of truce boats to 
 Varina and City Point. Some have been discharged unconditionally, 
 and others put on parole. With reference to the latter cla>s, all such 
 have been relieved from any obligation contained in the parole, whe- 
 ther it was to return at a certain time, to secure the release of another 
 person, or any other obligation. 
 
 Some nine hundred so called political prisoners have been received 
 by me at Varina ai.d City Point. Abought five or six hundred were 
 really no a -combatants. 
 
 I have no means of knowing how many have been allowed to make 
 the r way to their own homes. Such parties do not* report to me. 
 They amount, however, to Several hundreds. I have only a record of 
 the names of such as were delivered at Varina and City Point and 
 Vicksburg. Only a very few have been delivered at the latto. place. 
 If it be the pleasure of the House of Representatives that the names 
 of all such be presented, I will cause them to be separated from the 
 rolls. 
 
 I have delayed until the present time this report, because, until 
 within a few days past, the whole subject was undetermined. I 
 thought it, best, under the circumstances, to wait long enough to 
 ascertain whether the Federal authorities intended to carry out their 
 agieementi I am now fully satisfied they have no such purpose. 
 Respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 RO. OULD, 
 Agtnt of Exchange. 
 
 
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