r the aggression which had been committed. I added that Her
Majesty's Government hoped that the Government of the United States
would of its own accord offer this reparation; that it was in order
to facilitate such an arrangement that I had come to him without
any written demand, or even any written paper at all, in my hand;
that if there was a prospect of attaining this object I was willing
to be guided by him as to the conduct on my part which would render
its attainment most easy. Mr. Seward received my communication
seriously and with dignity, but without any manifestation of
dissatisfaction. Some further conversation ensued in consequence
of questions put by him with a view to ascertain the exact character
of the dispatch. At the conclusion he asked me to give him to-
morrow to consider the question and to communicate with the President.
On the day after he should, he said, be ready to express an opinion
with respect to the communication I had made. In the mean time he
begged me to be assured that he was very sensible of the friendly
and conciliatory manner in which I had made it."

SECRETARY SEWARD AND LORD LYONS.

On the 26th of December Mr. Seward transmitted to Lord Lyons the
reply of the United States to the demand of the British Government.
In forwarding it to his Government Lord Lyons said: "Before
transmitting to me the note of which a copy enclosed in my immediately
preceding dispatch of to-day's date, Mr. Seward sent for me to the
State Department, and said with some emotion that he thought that
it was due to the great kindness and consideration which I had
manifested throughout in dealing with the affair of the _Trent_,
that he should tell me with his own lips that he had been able to
effect a satisfactory settlement of it. He had now however been
authorized to address to me a note which would be satisfactory to
Her Majesty's Government. In answer to inquiries from me Mr. Seward
said that of course he understood Her Majesty's Government to leave
it open to the Government of Washington to present the case in the
form which would be most acceptable to the American people, but
that the note was intended to be and was a compliance with the
terms proposed by Her Majesty's Government. He would add that the
friendly spirit and discretion which I had manifested in the whole
matter from the day on which the intelligence of the seizure reached
Washington up to