protection by a sufficient force of white troops, and I consented to take the command here to given you that protection. The President gave me all I asked. I procured infantry soldiers enough, arms, ammunition, clothing, shoes, cannon, and everything necessary for my troops. General Van Dorn in March took from me at Fort Smith and Little Rock two regiment of my infantry, six of my cannot, all my cannon powder, and many rifles, and let his soldiers take nearly all the coats, pantaloons, shirts, socks, and shoes I had procured for you. By other orders all the rest of my infantry, and all the artillery except one company with six guns, have been taken away, and that company with its six guns has been ordered to Fort Smith, with the last armed man from Arkansas. If I had gone out your country, as it was demanded I should, into Northwestern Arkansas, to organize and take command of troops there, your country and your welfare could no longer have been my first object;but everything would have been directed to the interests and safety of Arkansas, and the very things would have happened to prevent which I was placed in command of your country alone.

You would have been thought of and cared for only so far as the possession of your country by the enemy would endanger Arkansas. I should have had to give what little ammunition remains to the troops in that State, and to take all the moneys I had sent to be paid to you, and all that are on their way here for you, to feed, supply, and pay the white troops under me in Northwestern Arkansas; and act of injustice to you which no power on earth could make me do, and for this reason I resigned. Some other person must be found to do that great wrong.

I tried in vain to get men enough from Arkansas and Texas to prevent an invasion of the Cherokee country. You can see not at Cantonment Davis all the white troops I was allowed to have. You will plainly see that with them, if they had all been in the Cherokee country, 2,000 or 3,000 of the enemy could at any time have driven them away.

And white they were there, if I could have fed them there, what would have kept the Northern troops and the hostile Creeks and other Indians from coming down to the Deep Fork and North Fork of the Canadian and driving out friends from the Creek and Seminole country? You cannot cut off a man's feet and then tell him to walk. What could I do with 1,200 or 1,300 mounted Texans? The President and the Government are not to blame for this nor am I; nor am I to blame because your troops have not been paid. Moneys had been sent to us long ago and stopped on the way, just as your clothing has and the arms and ammunition I provided for you. By and by these things will all be remedied. To make it certain that this shall be done and that you shall have justice done you and your rights I have resigned, in order to go to Richmond and make known to the President the manner in which you have been treated. As far as it is in my power every dollar due your troops and to the people in your country shall be paid. I have already sent you $400,000 in spite of an order to send all our money to Fort Smith, and have paid out here to your troops $100,000 more. As far as it may be in my power your annuities and interest for this year shall be paid. They are already appropriated. I have sent officers to Richmond to attend to that. As far as it is in my power all the promises made you by treaties shall be kept, and you shall be protected and your country secured to you. My first duty is to you and my only care is for you.

I made the first treaty you on July 10, a year ago. For a whole year you had peace, quiet, and prosperity. Your own were enforced, and the military power nowhere set itself above your chiefs,