Office Supt. Ind. Affairs, Fort Smith, Arks.
Oct. 30th, 1861.
Sir: I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 21st inst. by Expressman.
On the 12th Inst, I wrote you by your expressman Mr. Sturm and as then, state I have no funds in my hands for the purchase of Medicines or for any other purpose for the Indian Service. Nor have I been authorized to provide the Indians with Medicines or Medical assistance; there has been no Indian Department regularly organized as yet, by our Government, nor will there be until after the Treaties lately made by Comr Pike are laid before the President and approved.
I have purchased for you on your own account, all the medicines I can purchase in this place that would be useful to the Indians. I send them by your Expressman with the bills, you can charge the Government with them in your account.
I am pleased to learn that the Kiowa Indians are likely to come in and make a treaty. Comr Pike cannot possibly be there to treat with them for some months to come, the treaties made by him with the Comanches places all of those Indians who may hereafter come in on the same footing with those who entered into treaty stipulations, and I hereby authorize you, as I have authority to do from Comr Pike, to make the same treaties and hold out the same inducements to the Kiowas as were made by him with the Comanches, do not, however, promise them blankets this winter as it would be impossible to procure them, the Government cannot procure a sufficiency of them for the Soldiers, not even at the most exorbitant prices. Agents are traveling over the States purchasing second hand blankets from families who take them off their beds to accomodate the Soldiers in the field.
H. L. Rogers is now on his way to your agency with hands to build houses for the Indians, he is sent out by Comr. Pike on his responsibility. I wrote you by him.
Gen’l Pike will have command of the Military Department of the Indian Country. He is now on his way to Richmond Va., when he will [return] I am not advised, it will be with him to direct what military force will be placed at Fort Cobb for the protection of your agency, when that protection will be furnished I am unable to advise you, of the importance of an efficient force being stationed there at an early day there can be no doubt.
In regard to the Mail or Express arrangements you speak of, I must say I have neither power, authority, or means to establish mail or express routes to your agency or elsewhere. Our State and other States are suffering greatly for want of mail facilities, and I cannot involve myself pecuniarily in the matter, this matter must be brought regularly before the Department and its action had.
In regard to the time when you may expect funds to close your accounts I can only say that you need not expect funds until after the treaties recently made are ratified and appropriations made in accordance with your estimates furnished Comr Pike, the Government will not, of course, send out funds for Indians until it is advised that it has some treaty relations with them, I will leave here on the 7th day of next month for Richmond for the purpose of assisting in the organization of our Indian business, and for the procurement of funds, goods, etc, to carry out the provisions of the late treaties, on my return you will be advised of the result of my mission.
I learn from Mr. C. B. Johnson that you had advised him that Mr. Beckle is acting as Commissary, this is wrong and is calculated to produce confusion in the accounts. Mr. Sturm is the recognized commissary regularly appointed by me, he should not be sent away from his regular duties on any other business and I so informed him while here and notified him that his absence from his regular duties on another occasion would be sufficient cause for me to remove him and appoint his successor, the appointment of commissary belongs exclusively to me, and you are well aware of the importance of his being constantly at his post, as he is the check on the contractor in filling the requisitions of the agent. In future I hope he will not be detailed for any other duties. Mr. Sturm is and will continue to be Commissary until removed by me either upon charges or such cause as I may think requires his removal. Very respectfully, Your Ob’t. Serv’t,