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HARRISON TO EUSTIS

Cincinnati July 8th 1812

Sir,

I have the Honor to acknowledge the Receipt of your Circular letter of the 11th Ultimo and have dispatched a speech to the Chiefs of the several Tribes within the Indiana Territory requiring them to meet the Commissioners at the appointed time and place I fear how- ever that an arrangement which has been made by General Hull to assemble them at Brownstown near Detroit on the 18th Inst will prevent their attendance at Piqua at the time proposed [illeg.] invitation to the Chief given by Genl Hull came to my Knowledge incidentally a few days ago.

Having been informed by Colonel Geiger Capt Wells's Father in law, that he (Wells) intended shortly to resign his appointment and return into Kentucky and believing that in the present critical state of our Indian affairs that the public Service would be benefitted by his remaining some time longer at Fort Wayne and thinking also that it would be proper that he should be under the Controle of Mr. Stickney whilst he was there, I wrote to the latter and informed him that he must consider Wells under his immediate orders and that he should employ him in any manner in which his Services might be useful. I have just received an Answer from Mr. Stickney in which is the following curious paragraph (here insert the Extract)

I am convinced, sir, that if Mr. Stickneys statement that he has not been informed that he was to receive orders from any other officer than yourself be correct, it has been occasioned by the Extraordinary press of business in your office at the time that his instructions were com- posed. The General Regulations for the Government of the Indian Depart- ment published in 1802 or 3 by the immediate direction of the President, which have never been rescinded that I know of, prescribed "that the superintendant, in their several Territories should be responsible for the Conduct of Indian Affairs in the same and that the Agents and Sub Agents should from them receive their Instructions and through them Correspond with the Department of War. And it was thought important to prescribe a proper Subordination in the Indian Department that at a subsequent period when the then Agent at Fort Wayne manifested some disposition of Hostility against me he was made to understand by the Secretary of War that the President would retain no one in that office whose conduct was in the least disrespectful towards his superior and his then continuance in office was made to depend upon my forgiveness. The above regulations have indeed been but partially observed, the Agents have generally corresponded immediately with the War Office, they have all however acknowledged their obligation to obey the orders of the Superintendant and it has been reserved for the Common Sense of Mr Stickney to discover that no such obligation existed because he de- rived his appointment immediately from you. The present situation of Indian affairs calling in my opinion not only for the utmost vigilance from the Officers in that Department but for harmony and concert in their measures, I directed Mr. Stickney conformably to the ancient regulations of the Department to correspond regularly and constantly with me but in order that you might be informed without delay of every event of importance he was directed to forward immediately to you copies of all his letters and reports containing such information. The ad- vantages attending this plan are too obvious to require enumeration and provided you are promptly and correctly informed of the Events passing at Fort Wayne it must certainly be very immaterial whither they come in a letter addressed immediately to yourself or in the shape of a Copy of one directed to me. It is this order that has wounded the pride of Mr. Stickney. His delicacy is offended by the Idea of receiving Orders from any other source than one of the principal Departments of Government. It appears to me to be essential to the public Interest that his error should be immediately corrected. For altho Mr. Stickney has kindly offered to attend to any communication which I shall make him not inconsistent with his orders from the War Department, yet as he evidently assume[s] to stand upon ground independent of me his mea- sures may be in contradiction of mine and our interpretations of In- structions so different as to produce a jarring and discord more fatal to the public Interests than were the intrigues of the Enemy. Indeed I have every reason to believe that the construction given by Mr. Stick- ney to his powers has already produced mischief. A Wea Chief immediately from Fort Wayne told Capt Taylor a few Weeks ago at Fort Harrison that he had been informed that I was shortly to be deprived of my office. I have no Idea that Mr. Stickney authorised such a report but I am con- vinced that it had its origin in his assumption of independence in a station which the Indians well knew had been entirely under my Controle. With regard to Wells, it is scarcely necessary that I should ob- serve to you Sir, that I could have no motive but a regard to the public Interests to keep him at Fort Wayne. I have before explained to you the particular circumstances which made his presence important at that place. Hated and feared as he is by a great majority of the surr- ounding Indians he is nevertheless able from his influence over a few Chiefs of great Ability to effect more than any other person particularly with regard to the now all important point of obtaining information Indeed he deserves some credit from the circumstance of the line which seperates his Friends amongst the Chiefs from his Enemies being pre- cisely such as I should designate to seperate those who are sincere Friends of the United States from those who are so in profession only. Such however is the wayward disposition of the man that he began to affect an Independence of Mr. Stickney to send dispatches to me without his Knowledge and to transmit information which had not been previously Communicated to Mr. Stickeny. This was the cause of my order to the latter to take Wells under his direction and to Wells to receive and obey his Instructions and through him only to communicate with me, and it was my intention upon the first discovery of any improper Conduct to Stickney to have requested his immediate removal from Office. I shall probably see the Commissioners on there way to Piqua and shall Cheerfully give them any information in my power.

I have the Honor to be with great respect Sir your Obt St. Willm Henry Harrison

Honble
William Eustis Esqr
Secretary of War -

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