COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS, ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE,

Boston, September 22, 1862.

P. H. WATSON, Esq.,

Assistant Secretary of War, Washington, D. C.:

SIR: I have made such inquiries in regard to the sale of those Enfield rifles as satisfied me that there has been deceit and deception in the parties who pretended to have them for sale.

The first that I knew about them Honorable Josiah Dunham, naval store-keeper at Charlestown, came to me and stated that he knew of certain parties that had a lot of Enfield and other rifles for sale, and wished to know if the State wanted any. I answered that we did not want any. At his request I wrote to the adjutant- generals of the other New England States if they were in want of any. They answered in the negative, with the exception of the adjutant-general of Connecticut. I then wanted to see the guns and one was brought which I found was one of the ill-finished Prussian muskets. I told the party that I would have nothing to do with such arms, but if he would take it to Watertown and get Captain Rodman to test it, and state in writing what it was worth, I would state the fact to the adjutant-general of Connecticut. Mr. Berret, a brother of the late mayor of Washington, was the person with whom I had this conversation ad it was he that took the musket to Watertown. Captain Rodman declined to test the gun without express orders from the War Department; such was the end of that.

A day or two afterward Mr. Dunham and Mr. Berret called on me again and said they had the refusal for a certain number of days of a lot of Enfield rifles which were in bond, as I understood them, which they would sell to the Government, and they asked me to telegraph to you in regard to them, which I did. The result was when you offered to buy them at the price named, they informed me that they had been sold to Pennsylvania for the price named in my telegram to you, but they had 18,000 more which they would sell to the Government at the same price that they had sold the others to Pennsylvania, and that Pennsylvania was ready to take them at that price. I showed Berret, who came to my office, your telegram in answer to mine, and told him I wanted an explanation such as you asked for. He promised to give it to me that forenoon, but I have not seen him since. On Saturday I saw Mr. Dunham and showed him your last telegram, in which Governor Curtin denied having made or authorized any purchase of arms for Pennsylvania. He then told me that all he knew about the muskets was what the learned from Mr. Berret, who informed him that a person in New York, name Welsh, had the guns for sale and had sold them to Pennsylvania, and it was upon this information that he acted. This is a simple narrative of the case as far as I know about it. I have no doubt that Dunham was deceived as I was. Whether Berret was a dupe of Welsh, I cannot say. As the case stands I don"t think he was. He has not been near me since Thursday last. I shall endeavor to find out more about the case, and if I do I will acquaint you what it is.

Respectfully, your obedient servant,

WM. SCHOULER,

Adjutant-General.