Mr. Dayton to Mr. Seward.
Sir: Your circular, dated September 22, 1862, and the proclamation of the President of the same date, in relation to the abolition of slavery, were received at the legation on the 7th instant.
It is needless to say that these papers are of great interest. They have already been, or soon will be, published throughout the civilized world, and, wherever published or known, will at once fix the attention of mankind.
You may look immediately for the most mischievous efforts from portions of the foreign press to pervert and misconstrue the motives which have prompted the proclamation, and the probable consequences which will follow it. You must not be surprised if another spasmodic effort for intervention is made, based upon the assumed ground of humanity, but upon the real ground that emancipation may seriously injure the cause of the south, and will interfere, for years to come, at least, with the production of cotton.
But whatever may be the motive which prompts emancipation, or the immediate consequences which may follow it, the act will remain, and this cannot fail, in the end, to commend itself to the enlightened conscience of the Christian world.
I am, sir, your obedient servant,
His Excellency William H. Seward, Secretary of State, &c., &c., &c.