Monday January 12th 1862
I have been at home for the last week sick with the ear ache. The new year opened rather gloomily for us for the American eagle, hearing the roar of the British Lion has humiliated itself before it has agreed to give up the two ambassadors but Seward, the yankee secretary has done it in such a manner that the English cannot think of receiving it. He never admits once that they are in the wrong but even goes so far as to imply that they should have taken the vessel, also, Lord Russel’s letter to Lord Lyons which he was requested to hand to Mr. Seward states the incidents of the capture & calls it “an act of violence” which as an affront to the British flag & a violation of international law & he adds “Her majesty’s government, bearing in mind, the friendly relations which have long subsided between the US and Great Britain, are willing to believe the US officers, who committed the aggression, was not acting in compliance with any authority from his government, or if he conceived himself to be so authorized the greatly misunderstood the instructions which he had received. For the government of the US must be fully aware that the British government would not allow such an affront to the national honor to pop without full reparation & her Majesty’s government trust, therefore, that, when this matter shall have been brought before the US government, that government will of its own accord offer to the British government such redress as alone can satisfy a British government namely, the liberation of the four gentlemen & the delivery to your lordship, in order that they may again be placed under British protection & a suitable apology for the aggression which has been committee.” Seward writes a very long reply which would fill 7 or 8 fools cap. He says neither Capt Wilkes or any other Naval Officer had any instruction to capture the four persons named (he never once calls their names) on board any neutral vessel. But after this he maintains at length that they & their dispatches were contraband of war and that Capt Wilkes could have fully stop the Trent & search it for them & they found that having found them he had a right to capture them. That is if he did it in the manner recognized by the law of nations and therefore the British government had no claim for reparation. He then goes on with a long argument to show that Capt Wilkes right to have captured the Trent and brought her in as a prize! And then he suddenly discovers that the surrender of Mason & Slidell is in accordance with the most cherished principles of the US. He then tells Lord Lyons that the surrender is in conflict with the claim which Great Britain has heretofore maintained with the US & all other nations even to war. Yet he abruptly ends. “The four persons in question are now held in military custody at Fort Warren in the State of Massachusetts. They will be cheerfully liberated. Your lordship will please indicate a time & place, for recovering them.” But in all this long harange it will be observed not one word is said about the suitable apology demanded by Earl Brussel. It is general thought at the north that this mission & the threat of war in case of the recognition of the Southern Confederacy combined will leave the parties as far as ever from a friendly settlement. Gen McClellan the Commander in Chief of the Federal Army is very ill his recovery is doubtful.* Col Lee, formerly Col of the 1st regiment NC volunteers was in town part of last week.** Mary Pearce is very sick she was very sick saturday evening. It seems the Yankees have got themselves in another bad scrape. Last Monday a French man of war approached Ship Island for the purpose of transacting some business with French General at New Orleans. She sailed under a neutral flag. She was fired into by the Federal fleet & some what crippled. She did not return the fire. The Yankees apologize but the French Captain refused to accept that apology.
* At this point, McClellan was more in danger of being removed from command moreso as a result of politics than sickness. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_B._McClellan
** for information on Col. Charles C. Lee, see Michael Hardy’s blog: http://michaelchardy.blogspot.com/2012/01/two-colonels.html
Source: Malinda Ray Diary, Anna Sutton Sherman Papers, North Carolina State Archives. See also David A. Ray Papers, Southern Historical Collection, UNC-Chapel Hill
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