Hon. William H. Seward,
Secretary of State.
Colonel Shaffner to General Grant
Headquarters Armies of the
United States,
City Point, Virginia,
March 19,
1865.
Dear Sir: In answer to your inquiry of
this date I make the following statement:
The sample of fuzes you have caused to be submitted to me, marked
A, B, and C indorsed by Colonel Babcock, are known to me as the
Abel fuze,” and manufactured by Professor Abel, and sold by the
official vendor of the war department of the British
government.
Professor Abel is an officer of her Majesty’s government in
Woolwich arsensal, and he ex ercises sole authority as to the
manufacture and sale of the above named fuses. The mysteries for
packing the composition of the fuzes are solely the property of
the British government.
In January last I desired to purchase one hundred fuzes of the
above composition from the official vendor in London, to be
especially made for the United States government; but Professor
Abel would not allow them to be made for our government. At the
same time, and for some weeks anterior, large quantities of
fuzes had been and were being made for the confederate
government’s agents by authority and knowledge of Professor
Abel.
In order to prevent the further sale of the said fuzes to the
confederate agents, I offered to negotiate the sale of the
mysteries for making the composition to the United States
government, by consent of the British government to be obtained,
contemplating the payment of a sum not less than three hundred
pounds sterling, conditional that the rebel States should not
have the mysteries or further supplies. This proposition
Professor Abel declined.
I know how to make the composition, and did at the time of making
the above offer, but my object was to prevent further supplies
to the rebel agents. For some years anterior I had been using a
superior composition, and had, before the above date, offered
the mysteries freo to our government.
Before concluding I desire to express the belief that his
lordship Earl de Grey and Ripon, the honorable secretary of
state for war, would not allow the continuance in office of any
one
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guilty of so
flagrantly violating her Majesty’s proclamation of neutrality,
and I am quite sure his lordship will not hesitate to administer
such an order as will atone for the breach of faith to our
government and the prostitution of her Majesty’s arsenal at
Woolwich.
It is within my power to substantiate the statements herein
made.
Very respectfully, your most humble and obedient servant,
Lieutenant General U. S. Grant,
&c., &c., &c.
N. B.—I attach to the samples my initials, for the purpose of
further verification if ne cessary.
Lieutenant Colonel Babcock to
General Grant
Headquarters Armies oF the
United States,
City Point, Virginia,
March 19,
1865.
I hereby certify that the accompanying fuzes were captured in
Fort Fisher, at the mouth of Cape Fear river, North Carolina, a
work held by the so called confederate forces, and captured by
the Union forces under Major General A. H. Terry, United States
army, and Rear-Admiral D. D. Porter, United States navy,
January, 1865.
These fuzes were used in the vast number of subterranean and
submarine mines at that place. I understand that these fuzes are
used extensively throughout the so-called southern
confederacy.
Accompanying this are samples of the fuzes, marked A, B, and C,
with my name at tached.
O. E. BABCOCK,Lieutenant Colonel and
A. D. C.
Lieutenant General U. S. Grant, Commanding Armies United States.
