the President's proclamation against the Fenians was
issued.

It is needless to say that the good sense of Congress prevailed, and the
resolution was consigned to the morgue which is the receptacle for all
undesirable resolutions.

CHAPTER XV.

THE FENIAN PRISONERS--CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN SECRETARY SEWARD AND THE
BRITISH MINISTER.

The question of the ultimate fate of the Fenian prisoners who had
fallen into our hands was one which received considerable thought and
discussion. While the temper of the Canadian people was not favorable
to any leniency being shown to them in those sad days in June when they
viewed the death and desolation that had been caused by the raiders,
yet all felt constrained to give them the full benefit of British
justice--fair trials and an opportunity to separate the guilty from
the innocent. The authorities further resolved to be not too hasty in
bringing the unfortunates before the tribunal, as in the excited state
of the public mind such action might prove disastrous to the accused.
This policy was a wise and just one, and met with general approval.

While these Irish-Americans were penned up in Canadian prisons their
friends across the line were using every effort to effect their release
by supplicating President Johnson and Secretary Seward to interpose
in their behalf, and at last succeeded in getting some resolutions put
through Congress with this object in view.

Secretary Seward took the question up in an official way with Sir
Frederick W. A. Bruce, the British Minister at Washington, who forwarded
the documents relating to the matter to the British and Canadian
Governments, and no doubt this friendly interposition had some effect
in influencing the authorities to adopt the humane policy which
subsequently prevailed.

During the month of June the Fenian prisoners who had been captured
at Fort Erie and vicinity and lodged in the jails at Brantford and
elsewhere, were removed to Toronto Jail and placed under special guard
until their cases could receive due consideration by the authorities. At
a preliminary investigation a large number of these men were discharged
for want of sufficient evidence to convict, and were deported from the
country. About forty were held for trial. Some of these were British
subjects, while the remainder claimed American citizenship. The former
were charged with high treason, the penalty for which is death. Those
claiming to be aliens, and citizen