OFFICE OF PROVOST- MARSHAL- GENERAL,

DEAPRTMENT OF THE MISSOURI,

Sint Louis, May 17, 1862.

The bearer of this, Wayne, a negro boy aged about sixteen years having been used for hostile purposes against the Government of the United States as appears from the evidence submitted to the provost- marshal- general is by the laws of the United States entitled to his master or owner or otehr person claiming to own his services unless the prima facie case made before me is satisfactorily disproved on a trial in a court of competent jurisdiction.

By order of Liut. Colonel Bernard G. Farrar, provost- marshal- general:

THO. C. FLETCHER,

Assistant.

PROCLAMATION.

Whereas, there appears in the public prints what purports to be a proclamation of Major-General Hunter in the words and figures following, to wit:

GENERAL ORDERS,
HEADUQARTERS DEAPRTMETN OF THE SOUTH, Numbers 11.
Hilton Head, S. C., May 9, 1862.

The three States of Geoargia, Florida and SOuth Carolina, comprising the Military Deaprtmetn of the SOuth, having deliberately declared themselves no longer under the protection of the Untied Sttes of America and having taken up arms against the said United States it becomes a military necessity to declare them under martial law. This was accordingly done on the 25th yay of April, 1862. Slavery and martial law in a freee country are altogetehr incompatible; the persons in these three States- Georgia, Florida and South Crolina- heretofore held as slaves are therefore declared forever free.

DAVID HUNTER,

Major-General, Commanding.

And wheras, the same is producing some excitement and misudner- standing:

Therfore, I, Abraham Lincoln, Presidnet of the United States, proclaim and declare that the Govenrmebnt of the United States had no knowledte, information or belief of an intention ont hepart of General Hunter to issue such a proclamation nor had it yet any authentic informaiton that the document is genuine. And further that neither General Hunter nor any other commander or person has been authorized by the Govenrment of the United States to make procalamtions declaring the slaves of any State free; a dn that the supposed procalamtion now in question whether genuine or false is altogether void so far as resepctws such declaration.

I further make known that whether it be cometent for me as Commander- in- Chief of thee Army and Navy todeclare the slaves of any State or Stats free, and whether at any time in any case it shall have become a necessity indispenssable to the nmaintenance of the Govnerment to exercise such supposed power are questions which under my respeonsiblity I reserve to myself and which I canot feel justified in leavving to the decision of comanders in the field. These are totally different questions from tsoe of police regultions in armies and camps.