HEADQUARTERS HUMBOLDT MILITARY DISTRICT,
Fort Humboldt, March 8, 1862.

Captain CHARLES HEFFERNAN,

Commanding Company K, Second Infantry California Volunteers:

CAPTAIN: You are charge by the colonel commanding the Military District of Humboldt with the establishment of a new post on the northerly side of Mad River, at Bremer's ranch, opposite the Blue Slide, about twenty milies to the eastward of Arcata, to be called, subject to the approval of the proper authority, Fort Lyon. The ground selected for the post, consisting of eight acres or more, will be pointed out to you by Mr. Bremer. Your command is designed specially for the protection of the district of country lying between Mad River and Redwood Creek, and your military operations will be confined to that district. This is not intended to prevent a temporary crossing of Mad River or of Redwood Creek whenever you may have a strong reason to believe that some important object may be subserved by so doing. On the first of every month one-half of the men of your command who are for duty will take the field under a company officer for the purpose of capturing and bringing in all the Indians that can be found, whether men, women, or children. The detachment will be kept fifteen days in the field, and on its return the remaining half of all the effective men at the post will be sent out, also under the command of a company officer, and will return at the end of the month. In other words, it is intended that one-half of your entire effective force shall be kept constantly in the field. For these expeditions a reliable guide will be furnished you from these headquarters. The men's provisions and necessary camp EQUIPAGE will be packed on mules. If at any time there should not be enough of public mules for this purpose you are authorized to hire private ones, provided that they can be had at reasonable rates, but you will hire no citizen packers. As great celerity of movement will be often required the mules should be packed very lighty, not exceeding, it is recommended, 150 pounds for each mule. Fresh mules will be sent with each expedition. The purpose for which the military force in this district is to be employed is not to make war upon the Indians, nor to punish them for any murders or depredations hitherto committed, but to bring them in and place them permanently on some reservation where they can be protected against all outrages from hostile whites. The end in view in all your expeditions will be, therefore, a friendly one. You will avail yourself of every opportunity to impress this truth upon all the Indians with whom you can communicate, directly or indirectly, and to assure them that from the moment they surrender themselves at your post, or at any other in the district, they will have entire protection for themselves and their families; that if they do not come in voluntarily they will be brought in by force, and that in the meantime any outrage or depredation that may hereafter be committed on the whites by Indians will be promptly and severely punished. The officer in charge of each expedition will have strict orders to effect the capture of such Indians as he may find without bloodshed whenever it is possible to do so. You will make and publish an order without delay, prohibiting any man of your command from killing or wounding an Indian, unless in self-defense, in action, or by orders of a superior officer. For any disobedience to this order you will cause the offender to be immediately arrested and sent to Fort Humboldt for trial by a court-martial, which has power in such case to sentence the guilty man to death. The guides employed must be made to understand that under the Articles of War they will be subject to