My object more particularly in writing to you to-night is on account of the orders that we learn here to-night from General Gennison to General Hunter that no Indians are to be mustered into the Service we have taken greate paines and have made flattering progress in enrooling them according to the orders of your Selfe and General Hunter nearly all of them set apart 10 Dollars out of their wages pr month for their families and many that have no families leave it in the hands of the Agents for their benefit after the war is over and they are burning with revenge and spiling for a fight and I have no dout at all but they would doo good Service there are two amongst them at least perhaps many more that I think would make good Commanders Billy Bowlegs & Little Captain the latter a Creek that commands in all the Late Battles and they suposed that he was killed but he got in a few days sinc Billy has also recently arivd I am fully of the opinion that these Indians at least two Thousand of them for such a campaigne as they are designed for or the one is suposed to be that is to go South from here are as well calculated for as any Troops that could be selected and it will make great trouble with them as they have their harts set upon it and will be most cruelly disappointed if not permettd to go and they should be got back as soon as posabl to their homes as the planting season is near and if they do not get there in time for putting in a crop the present Spring it looks like they will have to be suportd by the Government til August 1863 or til a crop can be maturd nex year which could not be sooner than August this would entail a heavy expense upon the Indian department that I would like to be avoidd I have had an Interview with General Gennison and he is very sure that if they would arm these Indians and give him three thousd other Troops he could put those Indians into their homes in time for a crop this year all here are very much disappointed and mortified at the course things are for their families will be no small Item in lessening the expense of Subsisting them which with all the Economy we can use will be very large.—Coffin to Dole, dated Humboldt, Kansas, February 28, 1862 [General Files, Southern Superintendency, 1859-1862, C1541].
Since writing you from Humboldt Dr. Kile & my selfe have visited Fort Roe to make arrangements for moving the Indians to the Neosho on getting there we found that about 1500 of them had left for this place they left Saturday noon it turned cold Saturday night and commenced snowing and snowed hard most of the day Sunday and last night was the coldest of the season the Indians all got to timber Saturday night to camp and remained in camp Sunday but most of them ware on the Road to day tho it was too coald to travel in the fix they are in I saw many of them barefooted and many more that the feett was a small part of them that was bare, these people realy seem to be doomd to suffer for this Loyalty beyond measure, the goods and shoes ordered by Dr. Kile and an order sent by myselfe before Kile’s arival have not yet reached here. Kile remained at Fort Roe to Settle and close up business there and assist in the araingements for starting them from there and I came on to se to those on the way and make araengments for taking care of them when they get here I found many of them Sick and not able to leave camp till teams are sent to them to aid them. We find that we cannot move them with less than about three Teams to the Hundred and it may overrun that the weather is moderating now and we shall make a vigorous effort to move them as quick as possible, we find it very dificult to get Teams on government vouchers and may not be able to move them in a reasonable time on that account the funds I brot down three Thousand Dollars was nearly exausted before Kile arived we are now nearly destitute of money if I find it as dificult around here to get teams as I have between here and the fort I shall make an effort to raise some funds for that purpose tomorrow with what success remains to be seen we have kept them pretty well suplied with Something to eat so far but that is all we can bost of, iff we ware to say they ware well clothed there would be ten thousand square ft of nakedness gaping forth its contradiction; they have been out of Tobacco for Several days and I doo think one days experience in camp would convince the most skeptical that with Indians at least the weed is a necessity, the Indians of all tribs held a grand council last Thursday at Fort Roe in regard to the war, at which they determined with great unanimity to gather up and arm as best they could, all there able bodied men and go down with the army on their own hook and aid in driving out the Rebels from their homes in time to plant a crop for this season and then gather all the Ponies they can and they think they can capture enough from the Rebels with what they have to come up for their families. Cannot the Government aid so Laudible an enterprise as that at least with a few guns and some amunition they appear to be in good earnest and are feeding up the best of their Ponies for the Trip....—Coffin to Dole, dated Leroy, March 3, 1862 [General Files, Southern Superintendency, 1859-1862, C1544].
[572] Letter of January 28, 1861 [Official Records, first ser., vol. viii, 534].
I have a despatch from Secretary Smith saying that the Secretary of War is opposed to mustering the Indians into the service, and that he would see the President and settle the matter that day (Feb. 6).
This as you will see disarranges all my previous arrangements, and devolves upon me the necessity of revoking my orders to you to proceed with the agents, to organize the loyal Indians in your Superintendency into companies preparatory to their being mustered into the service by Gen. Hunter. I have now to advise that you explain fully to the Chiefs that no authority has yet been received from Washington authorizing their admission into the army of the United States; but I would, at the same time advise that you proceed to ascertain what number are able and willing to join our army, and that you so far prepare them for the service as you can consistently do, without committing the Government to accept them, as I still hope for the power to get these refugees if no others, into the service, it being one, and as I think, the best means of providing for their necessities....—Dole to Coffin, February 11, 1862 [Indian Office, Letter Book, no. 67, p. 448].
[574] Coffin had not been written to, Jan. 6, because the original plan did not contemplate the employment of southern Indians. Not until he heard of their presence, as refugees in Kansas, did Dole include them in his list of possible soldiers.
[575] Superintendent Branch may have had something to do with the opposition that grew up in Washington after Dole’s departure; for he was there the last days of the month. Lane asked for his immediate return to the west [Mix to Lane, January 27, 1862, Indian Office, Letter Book, no. 67, p. 293].
[576] Special Orders, no. 8, Jan. 10, 1862 [Official Records, vol. viii, 734].