proposition relating to such captures which I made to you at our last interview, these citizens of Pennsylvania will be unconditionally released. You have in your military prisons at this time a far larger number of persons who were arrested on Confederate soil while engaged in no acts of hostility to your Government than we have in ours. How can you claim the release of your non-combatants when you retain ours? How can you ask us to release your non-commissioned when you refuse to agree that ours shall not be captured? In retaining these Pennsylvanians the Confederate Government does not abandon its position so often reiterated that the capture of non-combatants is illegal and contrary to the usages of civilized warfare. The Government of the Confederate States is anxious to put an end to any such practice. It has protested earnestly and persistently against it. When those protests failed to accomplish the desired end a sense of duty to its own citizens demanded that the Confederate Government should resort to other means. May I not hope that the United States Government will promptly settle this whole matter by a release of such Confederate citizens as are now in prison who when captured were connected with no military organization and by a disavowal of any purpose to make such arrests in future?

Respectfully, your obedient servant,

ROBT. OULD,

Agent of Exchange.

RICHMOND, December 11, 1862.

Lieutenant Colonel W. H. LUDLOW, Agent of Exchange.

SIR: I have directed that all the military prisoners now in Richmond shall be sent to you. Mrs. Anderson will also go down in the same train. There are quite a number of persons, mostly ladies, whose friends, connections and means are in the North who are extremely anxious to go to the United States by flag-of-truce boat. Some of them have already the permission of the Confederate Government and others are applying for permission. Others again whose families are in Norfolk are very desirous of going to them. I cannot at this time give you a list of these applicants. They, however, all come within the above description. You would probably not recognize their names if they were given. I am very much harassed and pressed by these applications and hardly know what to do or say in the premises. What rule have you adopted about them? If I send the to the flag-of-truce boat will you receive them and forward them to their destination? I can assure you that I will only send such as come within the categories I have mentioned.

We on the other hand will receive such as have their friends, connections and means in the South. You can send such to City Point where they will be received.

Respectfully, your obedient servant,

RO. OULD,

Agent of Exchange.

WAR DEPARTMENT, Washington, December 12, 1862.

Hon. WILLIAM H. SEWARD, Secretary of State.

SIR: The Secretary of War has had the honor to receive your communication of the 10th instant covering a copy of correspondence