Mr. Adams to Mr. Seward.
Sir: Mrs. Rose Greenhow is scarcely a person of sufficient consequence to call for any special report of her proceedings in this place. The object of a [Page 217] visit which she made to me was to solicit my interposition to obtain the parole of a person by the name of Wilson, one of the officers of the Alabama taken prisoner and now on board of the Kearsarge. I replied to her request by saying that I had already understood from one of the officers of the Kearsarge that Mr. Wilson, who had been paroled to come to London, was intending to visit me himself. It was only by personal conference that I could judge of the nature of his application. Mrs. Greenhow left me to infer that she had taken the step without consultation with him, as she did not appear to know where he was to be found. She, however, said that she would write to him on board the ship to let him know that I would see him, and then took her leave. There was no other conversation.
The young man came accordingly a day or two since to ask me to write a line to Captain Winslow in favor of his object. His health has become much impaired, and he was very anxious to return to America. He should rigidly observe his engagement not to serve in any way against the United States, unless he was regularly exchanged.
The officer of the Kearsarge, to whom I have already referred as mentioning this case to me, spoke well of him, as having scrupulously adhered to his notion of his obligation to surrender when so many other officers evaded it; and told me, also, that Captain Winslow was inclined to grant the request, if I should authorize him to do so.
Under these circumstances I wrote a note to Captain Winslow declining to assume any authority in the matter, as out of my province. At the same time I added, that if, in his judgment, the case was one which merited discrimination from all others, by reason of ill health or other good cause, I should be ready to concur in his opinion in case he should decide to grant the request, under suitable conditions.
I report this proceeding in order to avoid all possibility of misunderstanding the extent of my agency in the matter.
I have the honor to be, sir, your obedient servant,
Hon. William H. Seward, &c., &c., &c.