ders, officers or as having anything to do with

the affair. You will have the right to pick your

men. This you must attend to. I have nothing to

do with giving men the preference nor have you,

because they have been in service, or because they

have contracted debts expecting to be kept in service,

our action is not expected by the public to be based

on private or individual interests, but for the good

of the service and in due regard to the interests

of the whole State.

Dispense with the service of any por-

tion of the men whenever you are satisfied they

are no longer needed and consider this your or-

der for doing so. I am responsible, one thousand

men on the frontier would not give satisfaction to

many, and as loud a cry would be raised against

the dismissal of any portion of them, as is now

attempted to be raised by some of Hells hounds

who are noising about Conner and his men

being dismissed.

To justify the keeping of a force on the

frontier, the people will want to hear of some

thing being done, to hear of Indians and of

their being whipped.

If men living on the frontier loose

a cow or a Jackass occasionally, only it is be-

cause they have placed themselves in a posi-

tion where they might expect it. It would

be better however if that is all the damage