enter into such contracts, you are recommended to apply to the Secretary of the Interior, who has been charged with that business on the part of the government of the United States. WILLIAM H. SEWARD. I am, sir, your very obedient servant, Mr. Van Limburg to Mr. Seward. [Translation.] DETROIT, July 28, 1862. SIR: I have the honor to bring to your knowledge that I have just received from his excellency, the minister of the King for foreign affairs, instructions relative to the facts which have occurred at the consulate of the Netherlands at New Orleans on the 10th and 11th of the month of May this year. Approving fully the line of conduct which I thought it my duty to pursue in that business, the royal government, shares the satisfaction which I experienced, when, by your letter of June 5, you were so good as to inform me, sir, that the President and the government of the United States viewed the conduct of the military authoritics at New Orleans as a violation of the law of nations; that they disapproved it, and disapproved the sanction there given to it by Major General Butler. But the King's government flatters itself that the United States will go further. In view of the King's government, the gravity and publicity of the outrage demand that the government of the United States give public evidence of its regret, for example, by manifesting, by some public act, its dissatisfaction with Major General Butler. The King's government, considering, until the proof made to the contrary, the Netherlands consul at New Orleans as having acted in good faith, expects that the government of the United States will not refuse to do likewise, and that it will please, consequently, to invite the consul, who, on the avowal of the American government itself, has been very ill used, to resume his consular functions. Mr. Vander Macsen de Sombreff observes, in passing, that if the consul should, perhaps, have given at once the information asked for, it is to be noticed that Mr. Conturié announced at once, but in vain, his wish to consult his colleague, the French consul, adding that "something good might come out of the consultation." Captain Shepley replied that "he could not delay action." The government of the Netherlands, actuated by sentiments of moderation and conciliation, does not insist, at present, on a restitution in integrem or in statu. .quo ante, but expects, in requital, from the justice of the American government, that the property taken from Netherlanders residing at New Orleans or elsewhere be restored. Among these properties are securities belonging to Messrs. Hope & Co., personally; for example, the bonds of New Orleans and of Mobile, mentioned in the statement of facts of the consul, (Sch. No. 2,) then the property of individuals (Netherlanders) mentioned, (Sch. No. 3.) As to what regards the $800,000, the King's government, informed of the investigation which the American government has instituted in this respect at New Orleans, does not wish to hasten a demand upon it. I am therefore happy, sir, to be the organ of sentiments quite as conciliatory as those which you assured me animated the government of the United States in this lamentable business, and at present I restrict myself to asking from you, in the name of the King's government: First, satisfaction, ulterior and public, (in the sense above expressed,) given to the government of the Netherlands by that of the United States for the violation of the Netherlands consulate at New Orleans. Second, an invitation addressed by the government of the United States to the consul of the Netherlands, outraged by military authority, to the end that he resume the exercise of his functions. Third, restitution of property seized, belonging to Netherlanders. Fourth, restitution of $800,000 as soon as it shall be shown that the ownership was transferred to Messrs. Hope & Co. I have the honor, Mr. Secretary of State, to renew to you the assurance of my high consideration. Hon. Mr. SEWard, ROEST VAN LIMBURG. Secretary of State of the United States of America, &c., &c., &c. Mr. Seward to Mr. Van Limburg. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, August 20, 1862. SIR: The honorable Reverdy Johnson, who, as you have heretofore been informed, was appointed by this department a commissioner to proceed to New Orleans and investigate, among other affairs, transactions which occurred there affecting the consul of the Netherlands, and certain subjects of the King of the Netherlands, under the direction of Major General Butler, has performed that duty, has submitted his reports concerning the same, and they have been approved by the President. I have thought it not improper to present you, for the information of your government, a complete copy of so much of those reports as relates to the transactions herein above mentioned. As a result of the approval of Mr. Johnson's proceedings in the premises, I have now the honor to inform you that the eight hundred thousand dollars in coin which was taken by Colonel Shepley, under direction of Major General Butler, from the possession of Amedée Conturié, the consul of the Netherlands at New Orleans, and which was claimed to have been deposited with him to the use of Messrs. Hope & Co., of Amsterdam, and which is more particularly described in the corre spondence which has heretofore taken place between yourself and this department, will be restored by the major general, or the United States officer commanding at New Orleans, to either Mr. Conturié, the consul of the Netherlands, or to Mr. Forstall, as the agent of Messrs. Hope & Co., or to the Citizens' Bank of Louisiana, whichsoever of them you may designate. I refer the designation of it to yourself, because your government has intervened in regard to the transaction, whereby its consent to the designation has become necessary, and it will of course be conclusive. Secondly, I proceed to speak of the articles of property other than coin described specifically by part number two in a statement of the said consul, Mr. Conturic, dated May 13, '1862, and which was submitted to this department by you, as follows: One tin box, to which was given the name of a bank box in this city, locked, containing first, ten bonds of the consolidated debt of the city of New Orleans for one thousand dollars ($1,000) each, making the nominal value of ten thousand dollars; second, eight bonds of the city of Mobile of the value of one thousand dollars ($1,000) each, the nominal value of which is eight thousand dollars, ($1 000,) claimed by Mr. Conturié to have been deposited with him on the 12th day of April last, by Edward I. Forstall, esq., in the capacity of agent, and as the property of Messrs. Hope & Co.; third, divers papers, being titles and deeds, the consular commission of Mr. Conturié and his exequatur No. 3, six other tin boxes, marked with the name of Amédée Conturié, containing private deeds, silver ware, &c., which boxes are claimed to be the property of divers persons for whom he was acting as agent; fourth, two or more tin boxes, the property of the Hope Insurance Company of the city of New Orleans, which occupied a portion of the premises in which the consulate was located. The extracts from Mr. Johnson's report will show you that, under his direction, all this property would have been delivered to Mr. Conturié if he had not declined to accept it for reasons specified by him in a letter to Mr. Johnson. Upon his thus declining, the eighteen bonds were delivered by Major General Butler, under Mr. Johnson's direction, to Mr. Forstall, as agent for Messrs. Hope & Co. A copy of his receipt for the same is herewith transmitted to you, and the original will be handed to you or given to whomsoever you may indicate. The other articles named in said statement No. 2 will be delivered by Major General Butler, or other officer commanding at New Orleans, to Mr. Conturié, unless you shall designate some other person to receive them. In your note of the 28th of July last you informed me that your government shared the satisfaction which you had expressed when, on a previous occasion, I announced to you that the President and government of the United States viewed the conduct of the military authorities at New Orleans, in regard to the transaction in which Mr. Conturié, the consul of the Netherlands, was concerned, as a violation of the law of nations, and that they disapproved of it, and disapproved the sanction which had been given to it by Major General Butler. You added, however, that your government flattered itself that the United States would go further, and that, in the view of the government of the Netherlands, the gravity and publicity of the outrage (as you are pleased to call the transaction) demand that the government of the United States give public evidence of its regret, for example, by manifesting, by some public act, its dissatisfaction with Major General Butler. You further add that the government of the Netherlands, conceiving, until proof is made to the contrary, that Mr. Conturié, its consul, has acted in good faith, expects that the government of the United States will not refuse to do likewise, and that it will please, consequently, to invite the consul, who, on the avowal of the American government itself, has been ill used, to resume his consular functions. I cannot avoid thinking that these requests are made by your government under a mistaken idea that the United States, for some reason, desire in some way to cover or conceal from the world the proceedings which they have taken in regard to these questions. If this be true, your government has fallen into a serious error. The whole of the proceedings have been direct, frank, and unreserved. The United States, as you are aware, did not only express their regret for the transaction, and their dissatisfaction with General Butler in the premises, in the language you have quoted, but they also sent an agent to ascertain the extent of injuries which were complained of, to the end that they might promptly be redressed, and that restitution might be made. That redress has been made, and the restitution ordered, immediately upon the facts on which it depended having been established. Moreover, you were advised in my former communication that simultaneously with the appointment of Mr. Johnson as commissioner, Major General Butler was relieved of his functions as military governor of New Orleans, and Brigadier General Shepley was appointed military governor of that city; the military authorities were at the same time directed to invite Mr. Conturié to resume his consular functions. These proceedings fully appear in the official correspondence which has taken place between yourself and this department. This correspondence is not a private but a public one, which your government is at entire liberty to promulgate without reserve whenever it shall please to do so, and whether your government shall think proper to so promulgate it or not, it will, according to our national habit, be communicated without any reservation to Congress, on their assembling here, on the first Monday of December next. Nor is it all a matter of reserve on the part of this government that the dissatisfaction with Major General Butler's precipitancy and harshness, in the transac tion concerned, were among the causes for transferring the administration of public affairs at New Orleans to General Shepley. It is very true, sir, as you remark, that Mr. Conturié has been very ill used, and upon that ground General Shepley will be directed to invite him at New Orleans to resume his consular functions, if, indeed, he has not done so already under previous instructions. But I must nevertheless accompany this instruction with the declaration that, in the judgment of this government, Mr. Conturié has acted throughout the transaction, which has been reviewed, and even throughout the investigation, after what has taken place, in a manner that was very indiscreet, and calculated, though I presume not intended, to embarrass the relations between your country and our own; and that unless his conduct hereafter shall exhibit more of consideration for the authority of the United States, it must not be expected that the President will be content with his remaining in the consulate at New Orleans. I trust, sir, that your government will be satisfied that the United States have resolved the questions which have been discussed between us in a spirit not only of good faith, but also of friendship and good will towards their ancient and esteemed friend the Netherlands. I avail myself of this opportunity to renew to you, sir, the assurance of my very high consideration. WILLIAM H. SEWARD. Mr. Van Limburg to Mr. Seward. [Translation.] SHARON SPRINGS, August 22, 1862. SIR: I have the honor to bring to your knowledge that only this morning I have learned from Mr. Conturié, by letter dated at New Orleans the 8th of this month, that since the 10th of the month of May, on which the consulate of the Netherlands in said city was invaded by the military authorities of the United States, he had completely ceased from the exercise of his consular functions, and invariably referred individuals applying to the consul of France, who has acted as consul, ad interim, of the Netherlands. The Count of Mejan, to whom I had addressed the request, by letter dated at Washington the 10th of June, in the first instance, and then by duplicate dated July 26, answered me by letter dated at New Orleans the 8th of August, that he had assumed the mission offered to him provisionally, and had already, on occasion, lent his protection and good offices to Netherlanders. I have therefore the honor to request you, sir, to be so good as to recognize, and cause to be recognized, the Count de Mejan, consul of France at New Or leans, as charged, ad interim, with the consulate of the Netherlands, in virtue of instructions from the King's government. If I have not been able before to-day to make this communication and request to you, it is because of the loss of my enclosures addressed from Washington the 10th of June last to the Count Mejan, and sent by me to the minister of France, who was pleased to take upon him the delivery to the consul of his country at New Orleans. Mr. Mercier sent the enclosure to the Marquis de Montholon at New York, who mailed it, but the enclosure never reached its address. I have therefore sent to the Count de Mejan and Mr. Conturié duplicates, dated July 26, and the answer which I have received to-day has at length enabled me, sir, to write to you, which I now have the honor to do. Please to accept, sir, the fresh assurance of my high consideration. ROEST VAN LIMBURG. Hon. Mr. SEWARD, Secretary of State of the United States of America. Mr. Seward to Mr. Van Limburg. DEPARTMENT OF STATE. Washington, August 25, 1862. SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 22d instant, in relation to the suspension of the consular functions of Mr. Conturié, and the provisional appointment of the Count Mejan, the consul of France at New Orleans, to take charge of the Netherlands consulate. It is inferred that you had not, at the date of your note, received my communication of the 20th instant, in which, it is hoped, the subject of the controversy between General Butler and Mr. Conturié has been disposed of to the satisfaction of the government of the Netherlands. In accordance with your request, the Count Mejan will be recognized as temporary consul of his Majesty the King of the Netherlands. I avail myself of this opportunity to renew to you, sir, the assurance of my high consideration. Mr. ROEST VAN LIMBURG, &c., &c., &c. WILLIAM H. SEWARD. Mr. Van Limburg to Mr. Seward [Translation.] SHARON SPRINGS, August 30, 1862. SIR: I have had the honor to receive your letter, dated Washington, 20th of this month, relative to the seizure made at the consulate of the Netherlands in New Orleans, and to the report on this subject which has been made by the honorable Reverdy Johnson. I have likewise had the honor to receive the extract from the report which was annexed to your letter. I shall hasten to transmit the two documents to his excellency the minister of foreign affairs of the King, with a request to furnish me with the necessary instructions, in order that I may fully answer the letter which you have just done me the honor to address to me. Meanwhile, I avail myself of the power which you have been pleased to confer on me of selecting the person to whom will be delivered the sum of eight hundred thousand dollars in silver, by indicating the person under whose charge that sum was found, that is to say, Mr. Amédée Conturié. As to what concerns the other articles seized, I have not been able to find, either in the report of the honorable Reverdy Johnson or in the correspondence exchanged between him and Mr. Conturié, the slightest trace of any refusal by the latter to receive back the various boxes seized. I have, however, perceived that there was a disagreement between them as to the opening of one of the boxes, and as to the delivery of the eighteen bonds of the cities of New Orleans and Mobile; but I have also perceived that, very far from refusing to receive all the boxes which are mentioned in the "Statement" of the consul dated the 13th of May, he asked them back in their entirety in his letter of the 24th of July addressed to Mr. Reverdy Johnson. I have, moreover, not found in all the correspondence which has been communicated to me any want of respect shown by Mr. Conturié towards the authorities of the United States, although he may have differed from them as to the way of understanding his duties. For instance, the honorable Reverdy Johnson seems to have thought that it was the consul's duty to go in quest of or to send for that which had been improperly seized at his house. I cannot, any more than the consul, share this opin |