E. Rector, Sup’t Ind. Aff’rs.
E. C. Elmore Esq., Treasurer of the Confederate States
Richmond, Va.
Office Sup’t Ind. Affairs, Fort Smith, Feb’y 28th, 1862.
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of Jany 1st accompanying Tabular Statements sent out by Gen’l Pike. On his arrival here I was absent in the Indian Country where I had been ordered by him to meet a Delegation of wild Comanches and Kiawas. Genl P— did not leave the money here to be paid over to me but tuck it in the Indian Country to his head quarters, where he will I presume pay it out to the Indians himself. Very Respectfully, your ob’t Serv’t.
E. Rector, Sup’t Ind Affairs.
S. S. Scott Esq. Acting Com’r Ind. Affairs, Richmond, Va.
[Rector to Scott]
Office Supt Ind. Affairs, March 4th, 1862.
Sir: I deem it my duty, in justice to myself, as well as my duty to the government to notify you that Gen’l Pike has been paying over certain of the funds sent out by him to the Indians, one payment which he has made, I wish here to enter my protest against as not meeting with my approbation, it was in paying over to Agent A. J. Dorn the specie sent out for the Indians in his Agency. My objections to said payment are these: Agent Dorn has never executed a Bond to the Confederate government for the faithful accounting for of funds placed in his hands, and I should certainly not turn over large amounts of government funds to any Agent in my Department until he first gave a good and sufficient Bond and next; the Agency which Mr. Dorn fills is in the limits of the State of Kansas and has been in the possession of the Federals for six or seven months, Dorn cannot even get to it, he has no fixed locality for his Agency sometimes he is with the army, at others in the State and is now here at this place and has with him the money.