he British
refusal to recall Bunch. At this moment Lyons at Washington was writing
in a hopeful view of "avoiding abstract assertions of principles," but
accustoming the North to the _practice_ of British recognition of
Southern belligerent rights[373]. Lyons believed that Seward would not
go further than to withdraw Bunch's exequatur, but he was anxious for
the return of Mercier (long absent with Prince Napoleon), since "our
position is unluckily not exactly the same with that of France[374]." On
October 12 Lyons conferred at length with Seward on the Bunch matter, as
usual, privately and unofficially. Seward dwelt on a letter just
received from Motley assuring him that Great Britain was not "unfriendly
to the United States," and "appeared anxious not to pick a quarrel, yet
hardly knowing how to retract from his original position." Lyons told
Seward that it would be "impossible to carry on the Diplomatic
business ... on the false hypothesis that the United States Government"
did not _know_ England and France had recognized the belligerent rights
of the South, and he urged Russell to get from France an open
acknowledgment, such as England has made, that she "negotiated" with
the Confederacy. Lyons thought Mercier would try to avoid this, thus
seeking to bring pressure on the British Government to adopt his plan
of an early recognition of Southern independence. Like Cowley, Lyons
was disturbed at the French evasion of direct support in the Bunch
affair[375].

Bunch's formal denial to Lyons of the charges made against him by the
United States was confined to three points; he asserted his disbelief
that Mure carried any despatches from the _de facto_ government at
Richmond; he protested that "there was not one single paper in my bag
which was not entirely and altogether on Her Majesty's service"; and he
explained the alleged "passport" was not intended as such, but was
merely "a certificate stating that Mr. Mure was charged by me with
despatches," but he acknowledged that in the certificate's description
of Mure as a "British merchant" a possible error had been committed,
adding, however, that he had supposed anyone would understand, since the
words "British subject" had not been used, that Mure was in reality a
naturalized citizen of America[376]. This explanation was received by
Russell on October 21. Lyons' comment on Bunch's explanation, made
without knowledge of what would be Seward's final determination, was
that if