arisen upon which the destiny not only of the few but millions are hinge, therefore herein your official attention is precisely called in behalf of the Mohegan tribe of Indians now residing upon the Mohegan Reservation in the county of New London and State of Connecticut, where we have lived and possessed in a tribal form for time immemorial, and through aand through all the pilgrim's strife and colonial struggles for life and possession upon this continent, we have been their help, and with all we have always had the privilege of voluntarily proving to be their allies of war, and for the last 250 past years up to the present time we have with them and their descendants, now the citizens of the United States, cherished and maintained the most friendly relations toward each other, and now at this moment we are the U. S. alliance of peace alike to the North and South, East and West, and the same with all nations that we know of, and wish to remain so. We, the said Mohegan tribe of Indians, have possessed and occupied our said Mohegan reserved land i nor od aboriginal Indian title for about 200 years, with definite boundaries and sequestered from any town or county in said State, and never through all the elapse of time prior to the present day have we been reckoned as citizens of any State or citizens of the United States, nor citizens of any foreign State or nation, except as members of the said Mohegan tribe and relatives to that natural and native allegiance that we were first found or discovered with; nor have we or our land ever been taxed by any State or the United States, nor any foreign State or nation on this globe. Notwithstanding all this, whether it be through incapacity or misunderstanding, your official subordinates, Mr. I. Bromley, the provost-marshal at Norwich, and H. Palmer, in the town of Montville, in said State, have taken the liberty to enroll some of the said Mohegan tribe for the present draft and without our consent, which we claim is contrary to the present conscription law and contrary to all law and reasons which we are connected in that respect.

Furthermore, we claim it is contrary to the provisions made in te Constitution of the United State respecting Indians not taxed, which may be found in article I, section 2, clause 3, and a confirmation of the same in article I, section 9, clause 4, where it may be readily perceived that we are unlawfully and unreasonably dealt with.

And now the above reasoning we hope will be taken into your official consideration, and in our behalf we solicit your favor by rejecting our names from any enrollment or draft that might be injurious to us, or whose consequences might work death to our small number that has already been recused by war and other pestilence. Sir, we wait with intense interest for an agreeable answer to this appeal. Please direct to Norwich, Conn.

Most respectfully, yours, sir,

ANSON D. COOPER,

Indian Advocate.

ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE,

Topeka, July 25, 1863.

Colonel JAMES B. FRY,

Provost-Marshal-General, Washington, D. C.:

COLONEL: It being understood that the number of men to be drawn from each State under the pending conscription is in process of assignment, and that that number will depend upon the aggregate of