guerrillas-I am afraid they must go before a military commission. This would be their sentence if captured, if indeed they were not more summarily dealt with. A difference of course must be made with respect to those at large. Not being in our power they are in a condition to make terms. But what terms can bind men who have already broken faith? I cannot do better than leave to you the discretion which must be lodged somewhere, and nowhere more properly than in the hands of the officers receiving the submission of such prisoners.

3. As to those who claim to be regularly enlisted in the Confederate service, if they join with guerrillas they confound themselves with them. No officer or soldier of that service has any business within our lines unless at the head of an organized force, and if taken they cannot be distinguished from those in whose company they are found.

4. As to prisoners taken by you if they are in any proper sense prisoners of war-that is if they belong by any just title to the regularly organized forces of the Southern Confederacy-they must be sent to this point under guard for exchange, or paroled to report here. On all these points nothing can supersede your own discretion and judgment. This contest is without precedent. We are not dealing with enemies whom we never expect to be associated with as fellow-citizens. On the contrary we hope to reclaim as good subjects of the national authority by far the greater part of those now engaged in disturbing our tranquility. Whatever will conduce to this reclaiming is sound policy. We must not allow incorrigible offenders new opportunities of mischief. We must not make the broken pledges of offenders a mere scare-crow. This course will simply encourage others to follow their example. But not only those who have left home intending to engage in practices which are punishable with death, but who have stopped short of accomplishing their designs, but those who after associating themselves with guerrillas desire to abandon that connection and submit themselves to the clemency of the Government should I think be encouraged to look for mild treatment unless some atrocity forbidding such indulgence can be laid to their charge. Very few orders have been issued from this office or from headquarters in relation to it since I have been connected with it. Inclosed* are all of this nature.

I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

THOS. T. GANTT,

Provost-Marshal-General.

P. S. -A question may arise as to what course shall be pursued with respect to bonds, the condition of which is supposed to be broken. I am indisposed to collect these by the military arm for two reasons:

1. To do so would deprive the obligers of the right of contesting the breach; for if this is determined by the military authority I fear that abuses will ensue. Great differences of opinion may arise as to what constitutes a breach, and when that point is settled the question remains, Have the facts constituting a breach really occurred? These are essentially judicial questions.

2. The second objection is a corollary of the first. The sacrifice of property consequent upon declaring by military authority that a breach has occurred and the issue of an order in the nature of an execution would be enormous. For these reasons I am of opinion that in all such cases these bonds should be delivered to the U. S. attorney for suit.

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*Not found.

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