760 



PRISONERS, EXCHANGE OF. 



Churches of the United States the idea of a 

 union made likewise considerable progress. 

 Several presbyteries of the wo denominations 

 not only declared in favor of a union of the 

 two bodies, but also as far as in them lay 

 consummated it by holding joint sessions. The 

 General Assembly of each body unanimously 

 passed resolutions to appoint commissioners to 

 represent them at the session of the other body 

 the first time since the great schism in the 

 Presbyterian Church that this civility was in- 

 terchanged. 



The General Assemblies of the Free and the 

 Established Churches of Scotland met on May 

 81st. The most important topic discussed by the 

 former was on the overtures for union from the 

 United Presbyterian Church. Upon the motion 

 of Dr. Buchanan it was unanimously resolved to 

 appoint a committee to take into consideration 

 the whole subject of union among the non-es- 

 tablished churches in Scotland, and to authorize 

 them to act with the committee on union ap- 

 pointed by the Synod of the United Presbyte- 

 rian Church, as well as with representatives of 

 any of the other churches named or indicated by 

 the overtures, should occasion or opportunity 

 arise ; the committee to report upon the whole 

 subject to the General Assembly of next year. 



On the 17th of June the committees of the 

 two bodies held their first joint meeting, and 

 appointed a joint sub-committee, to report as 

 to the authoritative documents which serve to 

 define the principles and position of the two 

 churches. The first meetings of the joint com- 

 mittee were very harmonious, but toward the 

 close of .the year a great difficulty was expe- 

 rienced to harmonize the differing views of the 

 churches as to the relation of the State govern- 

 ments to the church. 



The Reformed Presbyterian Church of Scot- 

 land has been for some time agitated by the 

 question whether the position of the church in 

 regard to the exercise of the elective franchise 

 and the taking the oath of allegiance by her 

 members should be changed. Last year the 

 dissension ripened into a disruption of the 

 church. The majority of the synod, which was 

 held, in May, in Glasgow, agreed that the time 

 had gone past for visiting with excommunica- 

 tion those members who take the oath of alle- 

 giance to the queen. In consequence of this 

 decision, the minority withdrew from the 

 church, and declared themselves to be the 

 proper Reformed Presbyterian Church. 



PRISONERS, EXCHANGE OF. The com- 

 mencement of 1868 found the cartel agreed 

 upon by Gens. Dix and Hill in the preceding 

 July, in full force and operation. The prepon- 

 derance of prisoners on either side was not 

 great, and notwithstanding certain acrimonious 

 correspondence and retaliatory proclamations 

 of the previous year, exchanges proceeded reg- 

 ularly at City Point on the James river, the 

 chief place appinted for that purpose, to the mu- 

 tual relief and advantage of the hostile parties. 



The first indication of approaching complica- 



tions was afforded by the message of Jefferson 

 Davis to the Confederate Congress on Jan. 14th, 

 in which he used the following language : 



So far as regards the action of the Government on 

 such criminals as may attempt its execution [referring 

 to President Lincoln's emancipation proclamation of 

 Jan. 1st, 1863], I confine myself to informing you that 

 I shall, unless in your wisdom you deem some other 

 course more expedient, deliver to the several State au- 

 thorities all commissioned officers of the United States 

 that may hereafter be captured by our forces in any of 

 the States embraced in the proclamation, that they 

 may be dealt with in accordance with the laws of those 

 States providing for the punishment of criminals en- 

 gaged in exciting servile insurrection. 



On May 1st, the Congress, after mature de- 

 liberation, passed a series of resolutions in con- 

 formity with these views. {See CONFEDEBATK 

 CONGBESS, p. 227.) 



Previous to the adoption of these resolutions 

 the following letter, which may possibly have 

 led to the stringent measures which they em- 

 body, was sent by Gen. Hunter, commanding 

 the Department of the South, to Jefferson Davis : 



HEADQ.TUBTERS OF THE SOTTTH, HILTON HEAD, J 

 POET ROYAL, April 28rf, 1 863. J 

 Jefferson Davis, Richmond, Va. : 



The United States flag must protect all its defenders, 

 white, black, or yellow. Several negroes in theemploy 

 of the Government in the "Western Department, have 

 been cruelly murdered by your authorities and others 

 sold into slavery. Every outrage of this kind against 

 the laws of humanity which may take place in this De- 

 partment, shall be followed by the immediate execu- 

 tion of the rebel of highest rank in my possession, man 

 for man. These executions will certainly take place 

 for every one murdered, or sold into a slavery worse 

 than death. On your authorities will rest the respon- 

 sibility of their barbarous policy, and you will be held 

 responsible in the world to come for all the blood thus 

 shed. 



In the month of August last, you declared all those 

 engaged in arming the negroes to fight for their coun- 

 try, to be felons and directed the immediate execution 

 of all such as should be captured. I have given you 

 long enough to reflect on your folly. 



I now give you notice that unless this order is im- 

 mediately revoked I will at once cause the execution 

 of every rebel officer and every rebel slaveholder in 

 my possession. The poor negro is fighting for liberty 

 in its truest sense. Jir. Jefferson has beautifully said, 

 " In such a man there is no attribute of the Almighty 

 which will induce him to fight on the side of the op- 

 pressor." You say you are fighting for liberty. Yes, 

 you are fighting for liberty, liberty to keep four mil- 

 lions of your fellow beings in ignorance and degrada- 

 tion ; liberty to separate parents and children, husband 

 and wife, brother and sister ; liberty to steal the pro- 

 ducts of their labor, exacted with many a cruel lash and 

 bitter tear; liberty to seduce their wives and daughters 

 and to sell your own children into bondage ; liberty to 

 kill these children with impunity when the murder 

 cannot be proven by one of pure white blood. This is 

 the kind of liberty the liberty to do wrong which 

 Satan, chief of the fallen angels, was contending for 

 when he was cast into hell. I have the honor to be, 

 very respectfully, your most obedient sen-ant, 



D. HUNTER, Maj.-Gen'l Commanding. 



The effect of the resolutions was to withhold 

 from exchange, if captured, a certain class of 

 soldiers of the United States army, who were 

 not regarded by the enemy as prisoners of 

 war. As no colored soldiers had up to this 

 time fallen into their hands, notwithstanding a 

 large number of colored persons employed as 



