Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1855-08-11

tore the President. III tne 1reSiueu1 10 hoV
satisfied on this point, | earnestly request that
may be informed on what particular he dlf-
fers from me- and upon which facts bis OPINION
is based, and it will he my pleasure TO dsproVe
anv and every statement tending to raise
doubt in that direction. If, as the Commission
er alleges, there is rule of the department
that tie decd in such cases shall be executed
in presence Of the agent, l have only to say,
that as vet the deed remains to be made and
the vendors and the President have control of
the whole matter, and can direct how the
agreement shall be consumated, that the matter
was (even in our ignorance of its necessity
brought to the notice Of the agent, who furnish
ed in his interpreter to assist in making the
agreement, and considered the price high one
| cannot conceive it to be on this point that
the President is embarrassed, for, even if the
agreement is to be treated as deed, and if
Mr.. Clark's assertion is to outweigh my own
and the deposition of disinterested witness
there can he no complaint against us, except
! for the violation of an artificial rule of which
we were ignorant.
| If these explanations have not touched the
point which has raised the Presidents embar-
rassment, | would, in view of the fact that the
| President has all the memorials, contracts, de-
positions &c, now before him, in which all the
points are raised, most respectfully request that
the point of difficulty may be succinctly stated,
and that the papers or copies of them be for
warded to me, and | will meet it with all the
drectness and certainty of which | am capa-
bic. In regard to the second charge, would
respectfully request some specification of what
| is alluded to, to enable me to reply satisfac
toriIy to you as we'll as myself. 1t is to be i'm
piled from the charge that some complaint has
been made to the President by some one, Of
! specific acts done by me in violation of law or
regulations, and [ cannot suppose it would be
! received and acted on without being in writing.
! At least it must have had form and shape, and
even though may not know my accuser, it is
not too much to ask that may be informed of
the particular act which | am charged with
having committed, and the particular law | am
charged with having violated.
| Ga turning to the letter of G. W Clark In
dian Agent, to which you refer me, find that
in eudeavorng to eXcuipate himself from
charges Of official delinquencies, he INDUCES in
much general Vituperatlon, which | cannot for
a moment suppose You wish to notice, and the
only matter to which | can judge that your
general illusions can apply, is an allegation
that in October, 1854, | with others procured
claims to be marked upon the Kansas Half
! Breed Reservations. In reply, | have only to
say, that as stated it is untrue In October,
! 1884, several gentlemen, including myself,
happened to be at the house Of Mr.. Ellison, in
portion Of the Territory with which we We're
entirely unacquainted and had never seen be-
fore Being informed that desirable claims
were to be had in the vicinity upon lands open
to pre-emptlOn, we requested that he would
mark them out for US and knowing that the
Kansas HaIf-Breed lands were in the vicinity,
but utterly ignorant of their lines, we request
ed him carefully to avoid entering upon them,
as we had DO desire to trespass upon these re-
servations, and knew perfectly we'll that the
marking of a claim upon an existing reserva-
ton would be utterly fruitless and nugatory,
resulting in the loss of our labor without the
least chance Of benefit.
Mr.. Ellison professed to-know the lines, and
assured Us he would avoid the reserves we
left before the claims were marked, and /
have never seen them since, nor do | know
where they were made. [ do not believe that
MessrS. Ellison and Kramer made them upon
these reservations, Or if they did, | am salts
fed they did it in mistake Of the lines
Finding that we could not personally occupy
| them, and that without occupancy we could not
:
| them, and have never looked after them from
the day they were made
| That | endeayored to retain this claim, and
advised an intruder to leave it, is untrue
| 1t is true, in conversation with one Of the
gentlemen whom Mr. Clark encouraged to 90
on these lands aScertained that he was upon
a section for which we had contracted, and
informed him that he could not possibly secure
| +.tia Il, a., IL
frmed by the President, we could not allow
settlers to remain there he then inquired if
he could not also contract for tract, and |
stated to him that there was one of the re-
serves who had for some time been offering to
sell his section at 81 per acre, and if the Pre-
sldent approved our contracts he could without
doubt purchase that section
This conversation was | think, in the month
OF February last, and so far from attempting
| to induce the gentleman to leave my claim or
take another for himself | distinctly informed
him that it was impossible for any man to ac-
qnire by settlement or presumption, any inter-
est or title to any Of these reservations.
| Most of the statements | have made in this
communication are clearly proven by the depo-
sitions and papers now before the PeeSdent.-
| Those which are not, and particularly my state
| lnent IN regard TO the matters charged In the
letter of q. w. Clark, can establish beyond
| all cavil by the testimony of most unexceptioE-
able witnesses, if necessary.
| cannot conclude this letter without again
urging upon yourself and the President, as
matter of the simplest justice, demanded by the
humblest man i'll the community, that | should
be informed of the particular act to which
exception is taken, and the particular aspect
in which it is considered culpable, and if any
law or regulation is violated, what that law or
regulation is. cannot suppose that the
President has any desire to avoid rule so ne
cesSary to a correct and conscientious discharge
of his own duty, and so Indispensable to the