Shreveport daily news., 1861-08-02

and Navy OF the United States:
Sir - Having learned that til,
schooner Savannah, private armct
vessel in the service and sailing un
der a commission issued by authority y
OF the Confederate States of Ameri
ca, had been captured by one of the
vessels forming the blockading squad
ron off Charleston harbor. l direct
ed a proposition to be made to the
officer commanding that squadron 70,
an exchange Of the officers and crew
Of the Savannah for prisoners Of wa,
held by this Government according
to number and rank" TO this prop
osition, made on the 10Th ult., Capt
Mercer, the officer in command of the
blockading squadron, made answer
on the same day, that "the prisoners
| Preferred to) are not on board Of any
of the vessels under my command"
1t now appears, by statements
made without contradiction in news
papers published in New York, that
the prisoners above mentioned were
conveyed to that city, and have there
been treated not as prisoners Of war,
but as criminals: that they have been
put in irons, confined in Jail, brought
before the courts Of justice On char
ges of piracy and treason, and it is
even rumoreG that they have been
actually convicted OF the offences
charged, for no other reason than that
they bore arms in defence Of the
Government and under the authority
OF its commission,
could not without grave discour-
tcsy, have made the newspaper state
ments referred to the subject Of this
communication, if the threat of treat
ing as pirates the citizens Of this
Confcderacy, armed for its service on
the high seas. had not been contained
in your proclamation of the -th Of
April last. That proclamation, how
ever. seems to afford sufficient JUS
titication for considering these pub
lishcd statements rs not devoid of
probability.
1t is the desire Of this Govern
ment so to conduct the war now ex-
isting as to mitigate its horrors as
far Us may be possible; and, with this
intent. its treatment Of the prisoners
captured by its forces has been mark
ed by the greatest humanity and lem
iency consistent with public obliga-
ton; some have been permitted to
return home on paroles, others to re-
main at large under similar condition
within this Contederacv, and all have
been furnished with rations for their
subsistence, such are allowed to our
own trrops. 1t is only since thenews
has been received of the prisoners ia
ken on the Savannah. that [ have
been compelled to withdraw these in
iulGences, and to hold the prisoners
taken by us in strict confinement.
A just regard to humanity and to
the honor of this Government now
me to state explicit V, that
painful as will be the necessity, this
Government viii deal out to the pris-
,ners held by it, the same treatment
md the same fate as shall be expert
need by those captured on the Sa- t
7annah; and if driven to the terri
Die necessity Of retaliation by your t
execution of any Of the officers or :
rev Of the Savannah that retalia- I
ion will be extended 50 far as shall :
>c requisite to secure the abandon- ,
ncnt OF Il practice unknown 50 the !
warfare of civilized man: and so bar t
'arouS as TO disgrace the nation which l
hall be guilty of inaugurating it. |,
With this view, and because it I
nay not have reached you, now re-
Iew the proposition made to the com I
nander of the biockading squadron, Q
0 exchange for the prisoners taken t
n the Savannah, an equal number
f those now held by us, according q
. rank. am, sir, yours, &c, v
,JEFFERSOND DAVIS <