DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, November 21, 1861.

Brigadier General ANDREW PORTER, Provost-Marshal, Washington.

GENERAL: Inquiries have been made at this Department concerning Philip Linton, a prisoner in your custody in this city. You will have the kindness to report to me as soon as you conveniently can the proofs in his case.

I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

F. W. SEWARD,

Assistant Secretary.

HDQRS. CITY GUARD, PROVOST-MARSHAL'S OFFICE,
Washington, D. C., December 17, 1861.

Brigadier General A. PORTER, Provost-Marshal.

DEAR SIR: In the case of Philip H. Linton, a state prisoner confind in the Old Capitol Building, I have the honor to report as follows: Sasid Philip H. Linton was arrested on the 6th of November last by order of General McClellan on a charge of having been in communication with the rebels, and was committed to the Thirteenth Street Prison from which he has since been removed to the Old Capitol. the grounds upon which he was arrested and has been held will appear from the following extracts from a report sent up from General Joseph Hooker's division on the occasion of the arrest and sending to Washington of Richard B. Posey, wife and daughter, of Charles County, Md. this report was made to General Hooker by Lieutenant Colonel George D. Wells, commanding First Regiment Massachusetts Voluntees, at Camp Hooker, october 30, 1861, and among other things embraces the following passage in the summing up of the evidence:

My own judgment would be from arious revelations and hints in the course of investigation impossible to put on paper but more conclusive to my mind than the written evidnece itself that Linton was the mainspring of the whole affair. His family came from Virginia after he came from Washington. His was the soughwest room where the signals were mainly seen; he was to him that Evans sent when Posey became too cautious to let him into the house. The negroes say that frequently when out late at nights they have stumbled on people below the house and hid from them fearing to be seen as their orders were strict to keep in their quarters. Linton has connections in one of the Departments at Washington and has gone there.

Statements of witnesses kept entirrely separate during their examination.

Tom, a colored servant of Mr. Posey, aged about twenty, stated on examination by Lieutentant-Colonel Wells that Mr. Linton (Philip H.) went over the river often to see Mr. Evans [at Evansport where the rebel batteries are]; that he (Linton) was boarding at Posey's; that he sometimes went over in the morning and came back at night; sometimes was gone three or four days; that he went over once with some barrels and was seen from the Government steamer; that he was afraid that the steamer's boats would get his boat and got a guard of afraid that the steamer's boats would get his boat and got a guard of men (rebels) to come down to protect it; that Mr. Evans used to come back and forth very often; that he used to bring letters and papers and take letters and papers back with him; that he used to bring the papers to Mr. Linton and that Mr. Lonton would take them to Mr. Skinner at the post-office; that Mr. Skinner used to come there (to Mr. Posey's) often to see the men from Virginia; that Massa Dick (Mr. Posey) used to hoist flags during the day down on the bank of the river; that about two months before this statement he sent a barrel of crushed sugar over the river; that his Massa Dick raised him up to tell the truth and if it turned against him still he must tell the truth