TEXAS INDIAN PAPERS, 1846-1859
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has no power or authority to avert the evils herein enumerated. The management and control of the Indians belong exclusively to the General Government, and however great the interest I feel in this subject, I can only make a representation of the facts to your Excellency, and advise such measures as I deem to be necessary. Allow me, then, to recommend that an agent be appo'inted, as soon as possible, by the Government, to see that the laws of the United States are enforced upon the frontier, and to dis- charge the usual duties imposed upon such officers. I earnestly request, also, that the five companies of mounted volunteers, raised under the requisition of Col. Harney of the 26th June last, for the protection of the frontier, may be made subject to my orders. The officers of the regular Army, strangers to the country and its citizens, as well as to the Indians themselves, cannot employ those troops so advantageously & effectively, (so far as their operations in regard to the Indians are concerned) as the Executive of the State. In connection with this I would also recommend and request that a company of Delaware, or other friendly Indians, in whom confidence can be placed, may be organ'ized and placed under the control of the Executive-They would render the most valuable assistance, by h_aving it in their power to obtain and give the earliest informa- tion of any suspicious movement, made by the Indians on the frontier. If the above measures are adopted, I have every confidence of being able to preserve the peace and quiet of the frontier, and removing all difficulties, which may otherwise prevent the Government from making a permanent treaty with the Indians, involving the settlement of the boundary line, and other impor- tant matters. I beg leave, in conclusion, to recommend to your Excellency Robert S. Neighbors Esq. for the office of Indian Agent. He has great experience in the duties of this office, an intimate personal acquaintance with the various tribes, and possesses their confidence in every respect. I have no hesitation in saying that a more suitable person could not be found. I am, very respectfully Your Excellency's obt. Servt. (signed) AC HORTON
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