Legation of the United States
Peking, October 10, 1871

To His Imperial Highness
Prince Kung &c. &c

Sir:
　I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch of the 2nd inst. in which you inform me that you have learned through the Board of Rites, that a special officer named Li Ying-siun has arrived in Peking, bringing a letter from the King of Corea, in which that Ruler requested that an Imperial Decree might be issued to the American Minister, clearly making known to him the advantages and disadvantages of intercourse, and that each country ought to attend quietly to its own affairs: to which you add the general purport of the two points in his letter &c. In respect to the abstract of the King’s letter here made known to me, I find that it gives me only a small portion of the contents and not all its details. In the abstract received last summer of the reply to my letter made by him, only a very brief summary of the contents were given, and the Board of Rites left out many important points in their note.
　In Western Countries it is the general usage among nations on friendly terms with each other, that whenever one acts as the intermediary with regard to any public affair between two nations she is expected to transmit the entire text of every document that passes between them, without any question. I shall be obliged, therefore, if Your Highness will communicate with the Board of Rites and obtain the complete text of this recent letter from the King of Corea, and send it to me so that I may for myself ascertain whether he has narrated the circumstances which transpired correctly, and given a just view of the affair. We shall then be able to discuss the matter ourselves, and see what is necessary to be done.
　In sending this note, I join herewith my best wishes for your happiness.