How much and how often we have suffered for want of mounted force to enable us in the commencement of hostilities to ·arrest all the evil of savage war, punish the few first offenders, and restore peace, while the frontier people are loo weak to help themselves, and before the Indians have acquired the dangerous habits of killing and burning them, I need not now say; but of one thing I am very sure, millions worlh of property and money would often have been saved by timely movements, such as the one I now propose. Even should everything appear to be settled and quiet when the mounted forces arrive, (of which, however, I am convinced there is now no reason to believe,) a well-regulated movement of such a force as I shall then have, added to that of the third and sixth infantry, upon the late threatened and panic-stricken frontier, would produce a moral effect upon the Indians and the inhabitants, as well as upon the troops, giving them a knowledge of the topography and military resources of this important section of the national frontier, as well as a knowledge of their duties in a wilderness march, which might long if not forever supersede the necessity of war in this quarter, or qualify us for carrying it on in future with credit to ourselves and benefit lo our country, that would, in the resull, prove lo be an economical expenditure of the money which such an expedition would require. At this moment I know not an officer or a soldier sufficiently acquainted with the topography of this whole line of frontier lo be able to conduct a single day's movement upon it without the risk of suffering severely from an ememy better acquainted with the country; whereas a careful movement, such as I propose, would give to every officer and every good soldier a knowledge of the topography of this important frontier. All which is submitted for the information of the President · of the United States, with profound respect.
Edmund P. Gaines, Major General commanding.
To the Hon. the Secretary of War, Washington city.
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