Mr. Seward to Mr. Burnley
Sir: I have received the note which you addressed to me on the 30th ultimo, together with its accompaniment, namely, a copy of the letter of Mr. Charles Green, of Savannah. It does not seem to me to require any modification of the views I have hitherto had the honor to communicate to you concerning the property captured at that place.
I do not think that the officers of the United States ought to be required to give vouchers to claimants, or to permit them to brand or mark, or in any way to interfere with the captured property. This would be to make documentary or other evidence after the capture, in support of claims which are alleged to have existed before it.
I have the honor to be, with the highest consideration, sir, your obedient servant,
J. Hume Burnley, Esq., &c., &c., &c.