Hon. William H. Seward, Secretary of State, &c., &c., &c.
[Translation.]
In a conversation of the 9th of March, and through two notes, one of
the same date, and the other of the 15th of March, the minister of
the United States pointed out to the minister of foreign affairs of
the Emperor, as infractions of Mexican neutrality, in behalf of the
confederates, two occurrences that had become known on the Rio
Grande and at Matamoras. The steamer Ark, belonging to a citizen of
the United States, having stranded in ascending the Rio Grande,
above Bagdad, some yards distant from the Mexican shore, was seized,
it is said, by the confederates, taken to Brownsville, condemned as
a prize, with the cargo, and sold to Mexicans. Then it is asserted
that more recently General Mejia, commanding the allied division,
arrested at Matamoras thirty deserters of the south, and caused them
to be taken under escort to the banks of the Rio Grande to be
delivered up to a confederate corps.
The minister, without assuming to prejudge the accuracy of the above
facts, replied to Mr. Bigelow
[Page 400]
that, in principle, the government of the
Emperor would always take into serious consideration any act pointed
out as infringing on neutrality. The minister consequently
communicated the above information to his colleagues of the
departments of war and marine, and requested them to beg the
commandants in chief of our expeditionary corps and naval forces in
Mexico to see, as far as it should depend upon them, that no act
contrary to neutrality should take place on the Mexican frontier,
bordering Texas. M. le Marechal Randon and M. le Marquis de
Chasseloup Laubat sent at once to Marshal Bazaine and Commandant
Glorié instructions in this sense.
Since then the commandant of our naval subdivision in the Mexican
waters transmitted to the minister of marine precise information
regarding the occurrences which Mr. Bigelow mentioned to the
minister. They show, in the first place, and as we had reason to
expect, that the French authorities had no part whatever in it; and
further, that the facts did not exactly occur as was reported at
Washington.
Thus, the steamer Ark was taken, as stated, by the confederates, but
this seizure was effected before the expedition under the guidance
of Marshal Bazaine, on the Rio Grande, last year, and when the
disaffected under Cortinas were masters of Matamoras and Bagdad.
When General Mejia afterwards took possession of Matamoras, in the
name of the emperor Maximilian, the vessel was sold to one of its
inhabitants, (a German, as we are informed,) but as the vessel was
moored before Brownsville, General Mejia did not suspect what had
passed in this matter, and that he would have to intervene with
respect to the sale. The fact, therefore, could neither be laid to
the charge of the Mexican nor of the French authorities.
In the case of the delivering up of southern deserters indicated by
the United States minister, it is impossible, if it really did take
place, to render any of the French authorities in the smallest
degree responsible for it, considering that since the temporary
occupation of Bagdad by the crews of the ships placed under the
orders of the Admiral Rosse, there was positively no French military
either at Bagdad or Matamoras until the second of last May, when the
column of the Commandant de Brian was landed. A confederate leader
announced that he was going to send back to the Mexican shore four
deserters of the foreign legion. The Commandant de Brian could not
return them to the Texan shore, after they had been brought over to
the Mexican shore. He therefore consented to receive them, but
without desiring to have an interview, on this occasion, with the
authorities of Brownsville—a misconception of the orders of which
they were the bearers having led the Mexican major and the French
sergeant who were sent to meet these deserters to cross the stream
in order to go in search of them. The sergeant suffered a month’s
imprisonment, and the major a month’s arrest. M. le Commandant de
Brian declared at the same time to General Mejia that neither of
them should have any intercourse with the authorities of
Brownsville; moreover, when the Commandant Florie was informed that
they were also about to send back to him two of his sailors who had
deserted, he refused to take any steps which should facilitate their
delivery.
