Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes County, Ohio) 1856-1865, 1856-09-25

Translated from GA Cronica' of July ,.
A Letter ReIating TO Col. Ere
nOnf,s Cattle Contracts in Cal
ifOrnia.
Senior Cells has addressed us letter
which we publish below, in reference to
contract made between him and Col. Ere
mont, in 1S47. In this communicated
Senor Cells proposes to destroy certain ca
luminous imputations which the spirit @
party has circulated against Mr.. Fremont
and to vindicate at the same time, the RICH
of his claim against the Government of tn
United States, for sacrifices required of hin
bv the under officers in California. al
though we are foreign to questions of th'
interior politics of this country, we fulfil
the request of our friend publishing hi
letter, wishing to crafty friendly feeling
and subserve his interest.
SAN FRANcIsco, July 2, 1856.
Ny ESTEEMED FRIEND: l have seel
published in the newspapers of this city
since my return to California, several state
ments relating to subject which particu
larly concerns myself; and wishing to ait
in setting public opinion right on tho
matter, which l am going to speak of witt
all possible brevity, l have to request that
you will publish these lines in your jour
nal.
For about eight years articles have ap-
peared with more or less frequency in some
newspapers in the Union, in which contract
for number of cattle has been spoken Of
made in 1s47, in the City of Los Angeles,
between COL Fremont and myself. The
evident want of truth in the published YER
sions of that business and simple nature Of
the contract made in this country I'M
der the circumstances then existing, seem
| ed to me sufficient reasons for not taking
the trouble to refute unfounded calumnles.
l do not now propose to give an extensive
statement of events, or to make known
the want of resources under which Califor-
MIA was conquered, because all those things
are perfectly well known. The chiefs had
no choice but to recur to their own per-
sonal credit to feed their soldiers. The
cattle which Col. Fremont contracted for
were for that object. 1t was necessary to
transport them from San Luis Obispo, and
for that purpose Don A. Pico was appoint
ed; but when he arrived with the cattle
Col. Fremont had lost his command. AS
a sum Of money accompanied the contract,
beside the heavy expenses paid on the way,
| was not able to receive the cattle at Los
Angeles, where had no pasture-land, and
therefore Mr.. Fremont, who was bound by
the contract-as the new chiefs refus-
ed to receive the cattle-found him
self obliged to deliver them in deposit to
M. A. Stearns of Los Angeles, who sent
them to his rancho of San Rafael.
1t is not true, as has been said, that Col.
Fremont gave a receipt before receiving
the property. The contract was signed ON
the Sd of March, 1917, and the receipt or
document which proves that 1 performed
my part is dated April 26, the same year,
when the total delivery had been made.
We see, therefore, that those who have
made this calumnious weapon against Col.
Fremont are very far from the truth. And
it ought to be kept in mind, as a certain
and indubitable fact, that Col. Fremont, in
making provisions for the future, rendered
a real service to the United States, while
| suffered severe injury; as, to the pres
ent day, not dollar has been paid by the
Government of the United States on ac-
count of the cattle, nor for the expenses
and damages, or for money delivered in
1S47. The public treasury, in reality, has
come off gamer; for the import duties on
the cattle were collected in the custom
house of San Diego, where they were trans
ported from the valley of San Rafael to
the territory of Los Angeles, whence they
had been bought.
This is the true history of that transac-
ton; and the documents which prove it
will be published in due time, if necessary
for the object of my claim.
| am, very truly, your friend and humble
E. DE CELLS.
The above letter relates to the "six hun
dred cows" out ofwhich Col. Fremont has
been accused, in some of the baser Buch-
aneer journals, of swindling, or trying to
swindle, the Government, by buying them
on its credit and converting them to his
own use! We have already stated the fact
that the Government never paid one cents
for them, but we did not then know that il
had actually made money on them, by sub
ecting them to duty at San Diego. NJ. de
Cells statement is evidently truthful, and
he speaks of what he knows.N. Y. Tr;-
5uae