The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1863-10-15

L
| cnce which alone could justify the appeal.
Since the date Of these two letters numer
0us requests have been made by British Con
sular officials for the Interpolation Of tn.
/ Government In behalf Of pcrs0us, alleged Il
| be British subjects, wrongfnlly sutjected Il
| draft. Relief has always been afforded whei
warranted BY the facts; but 1t soon becam,
known that these gentlemen regarded theil
own certificates rs conclusive evidence that
the persons named in them were exempt
| from military service, aud that these certiti
Gates were freely issued on tho simple afH
dayit Of the Interested parties. Thus Consul
Moore was deceived into claiming exeinp
| ti0n for two men who were proven to be citi
zens of the Confederacy, and to have been
landowners and voters for series Of years
prior to the war.
Much Inconvenience was occasioned be-
fore these abuses could be corrected, but
they afterwards assumeda shape which for
bade further tolerance The correspondence
Of the Acting British COnsuls at Savannah.
and Charleston, already referred to, asserts
the existence Of Instructions from their Gov
ernment, under which, instead OF advising
British subjects to resort tc the courts 0i
justice, always open for the redress OF griev-
anccs, or to apply to this Government FOR
protection against any harsh or unjust treat
ment by its sub0rdinates, they deem it a
duty to counsel enlisted soldiers to Judge
for themselves of their right to exemption.
to refuse obedience to Confederate laws aud
authority, and even exhort them to open
mutiny in face of the enemy.
This unwarrantable assumption by foreign
officials Of jurisdiction within our territory.
this offensive encruachment on the isoyer.
eighty OF the Confederate States. has been
repressed by the Presidents order fof the
immediate departure Of all British Consular
Agents from our country, rs you will per-
ceive by perusal Of the enclosed copy of
tn. notice addressed to one oithem, Acting
Consul Fullarton.
l have been induced to place the whole
subject fully i'll your possession, by reasop OF
statement made by Consul Fullarton to
the Governor OF Georgia, that in the event
of the failure Of his circumstances to pro
duce the exemption Of all British subjects
from service, he is instructed to state that
"the Governments in Europe interested in
this question will unite in making sucl rep
rcsentatiOns as will secure to aliens this dc.
sired exemption"
The menace here implied would require no
answer ii 1t were not made prOfcssedly under
instructions. 1t is scarcely necessary to say
to you that the action OF the President in re.
peliing with decision any attempt by toreign
officials to arrogatc sovereign rights within
our limits, or to interfere Of their own a,,-
thority with the execution of our laws, would
not be affected in the slightest degree by re-
presentations from any source, however cx-
alted. This is the only point ON which the
President has had occasion to act, and on this
point there is no room for discussion.
The exercise of the Dron de yenvoi is too
harsh, however, to be resorted to without
justitiable cause, and it is proper that you
should have it in your power to explain the
grounds on which the President has bee.l
compelled to enforce it. Lest also the Coy
ernment Of His Imperial Majesty should be
misled into the error of supposiny that the
rights Of French citizens are in any manner
involved in the action ofthc President which
has been rendered necessary by the repre-.
hensible conduct of the British Consular
agents, you are requested to take an early oc
casion for giving such explanation to NJ.
Drnuyn de L'Huys as will obviate all risk of
AN, sir, respectfully,
Your ob't serv't,
J. p. BENJAMIN,