Mr. Seward to Mr. Washburn
Sir; I have to acknowledge the receipt of your despatches of March 11th, and March 12th, Nos. 81 and 82, which are accompanied by a copy of a letter which the minister for foreign affairs addressed to you on the 4th of March, in reply to the tender you had before made of the good offices of the United States to the belligerents for the adjustment of the issues involved in the Paraguayan war. The reply of the minister for foreign affairs is in a kind and becoming spirit, which is highly appreciated by the President. We are as yet without any answer to the same proposals from the allies.
The President’s attention has been called to the complaints made by you against Admiral Godon, and to your repeated conditional requests to be relieved from the mission in Paraguay, and to be provided with facilities for leaving that country. Substantially the same complaints against Admiral Godon which you present in these despatches were recently brought to the President’s attention by Mr. Asboth. I give you for your information a copy of a despatch* to him, No. 34, of 18th May, in which I have treated of the differences between yourself and Mr. Asboth and the admiral.
In regard to the conditional tender of your resignation, it will appear clear to you upon reflection that this department cannot undertake to ascertain and conclusively fix the conditions upon which your resignation should be accepted. Public trusts, whether at home or abroad, are frequently attended with inconveniences, disappointments, and disgusts. The incumbent has at all times a right to determine whether they are sufficient to outweigh his hopes of being useful to the government in the station to which he is assigned. He can barely expect the executive government here to divide with him the responsibility of deciding that question when it depends upon incidents very imperfectly understood. The President would be pleased with you remaining at your post, while he has no sufficient reason for insisting upon it. If, upon a review of the subject, you shall render your resignation absolute, it will be accepted, but not otherwise.
I am, sir, your obedient servant,
Charles A. Washburn, Esq., &c., &c., &c.
- For enclosure see correspondence with United States minister to the Argentine Republic↩