[Sub-inclosure.]

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

Washington, June 19, 1862.

FRIEND SPENCER:

I received yesterday a letter from your friend Wigmore inclosing one from his Mississippi friend and urging renewed efforts in his favor. I have not received a word of reply from Reuben Davis, of Mississippi, and hence the exchange has not been arranged; but as you take such a deep interest in Mr. Jones I have procured his unconditional release a you will see from the inclosed,* which will open his prison doors and which the Secretary of War granted me as a personal favor. Please have your friend Mr. Wigmore state to Mr. Jones that if he desires to cross our lines into the South he will have to decline it and wait till his comrades are released, when they will be sent to our lines by the Government.

I am arranging irrespective of Mr. Davis' failure to write for the exchange of the Mississippians, a list of whom you furnished me. That lit I sent to Davis and a copy of it to General Wool and hence have no record of it with me. Ask Mr. Jones to make out another list excluding the lieutenants, as in the prisoners returned to us recently on parole they have sent only from sergeants down to privates, and if he chooses include enough more Mississippians to make up seventy-five, place them in the order he desires to have them released, and I will arrange for at least forty-five of them to be discharged on parole and sent across the line within two weeks, I trust; perhaps for the whole. I mean that forty-five shall be released certainly and I hope within two weeks.

The bad faith of the Southerners as to Corcoran blocks the way as to general exchanges, but I will have a special exception made of this case. They will of course have to report to their authorities as exchanges for paroled Indianians.

Perhaps you had better send this letter to Mr. Jones through Mr. Wigmore and ask the former to write to me without delay, as the adjournment of Congress is uncertain. You wrote me that Mr. Jones could remain North, but he speaks in his letter* which I inclose of returning South. He cannot get across our lines if unconditionally discharged, so he must decide himself which course to adopt. In great haste, as usual,

Yours, truly,

SCHUYLER COLFAX.

P. S. -As the temper of our people is not in favor of releasing rebels and as I would not have done it but to oblige you make no reference to it in the paper. After the exchange is arranged it will be time enough. My regards to your new partner, with my best wishes for the success of both of you.

S. C.

HEADQUARTERS, Camp Butler, July 7, 1862.

Colonel WILLIAM HOFFMAN,
Commissary-General of Prisoners, Detroit, Mich.:

Yours of the 5th instant asking in what capacity Drs. J. L. H. Sessum, E. R. Crockett, S. E. Winnemore and R. H. Andrews appear on the roll is received. I have examined the rolls and do not find them reported as surgeons. I will state, however, as a matter of justice to those gentlemen that they are practicing physicians and surgeons and that they

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*Not found.

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