Letter: J.C. Calhoun to Col. John Crowell, Indian Agent
September 29, 1821
Source: T.J. Petty, "Creek Letters 1820-1824" 
(Transcription, Georgia Dept. of Archives & History, Atlanta)


					Department of War
					29 Sep. 1821

Col. John Crowell
Creek Agency

Sir,

     Since my return to the Department, I have had under consideration
your letter of the 20th ulto. relative to certain negroes brought from
Florida by a detachment of troops from the Creek nation, and other
matters concerning that nation, and other matters concerning that nation,
upon all of which you ask my instructions.

The expedition to Florida was entirely unknown to this Department and 
I have to express my concern at, and most decided approbation of, the
conduct of the chiefs; that they should seize upon the very moment
when that country was about to pass from the possession of Spain to that
of the United States, and when everything was in confusion, to use the
superior force of the Creek nation over the weakness of the Seminoles, 
to impose on and plunder them. If negroes belonging to the Creeks had 
gone off and taken shelter in Florida they should have waited until the
United States obtained the possession, when, upon a proper application,
measures would have been taken by the government to return them to their
owners, without such a lawless and unjustified procedure on the part of 
the chiefs -- It is understood from information from Florida that
another expedition of the kind is contemplated. Should that be the fact,
you will inform the chiefs that as this Country belongs to the United States,
the President will view any attempt of the sort with the most marked 
disapprobation, and will hold the Creek nation resonsible for the 
consequences. You will observe by the enclosed copy of a list transmitted 
to me by Col. Arbuckle that there are a number of negores on it that are not
upon the one transmitted by you, which difference I suppose has arisen in
some measure by the delivery of the twenty negroes, which you mention, to 
their owners by the detachment in its march from Florida, after 
Col. Arbuckle's list was made out. You will also observe that manty of the
negroes are stated to belong to persons residing in Florida -- Should 
such be the fact the Creek nation will be held respnsible for the 
restoration of the property or the value of it to its proper owners. In the
mean time you will ascertain the names of the persons to whom the negroes
were delivered, on the return of the detachment, and report them with the
number of negroes delivered to each, to this Department. The negroes that
are in your possession you will hold until further orders, which will be
given as soon as I receive the instructions of the President as to the 
manner of disposing of them, to whom I have submitted the subject. 

In relation to the claim of the Creek nation to lands in Florida, 
they have already been explicitly informed, in a talk addressed to a
deposition from the nation, the 28th March 1819, and in a subsequent
addressed [sic] to General McIntosh and others that it could not be
acknowledged; and from a further investigation of the claim the
President has seen no reason to induce him to change his decision
upon it, and it is expected that this will be considered a definitive
answer upon the subject.

With respect to the application for remuneration on account of the
destruction of the Chehaw village, I have to state that the 
government, immediately upon receiving information of the act, remitted
$10,000 for the relief of the sufferers and promptly took the necessary
measures for the arrest and punishment of the perpetrators. The sum then
remitted is considered an ample pecuniary satisfaction for the injury, and
it is conceived that the nation has in justice no further claim on the 
liberability of the government, in consequence of the escape of Capt. Wright
after his arrest; from punishment, particularly as his escape did not arise
from neglect or design on its part.

As to the claims of the Indians who lost property during the war I have 
to state that the sum of $85,000 was appropriated 3 March 1817, on account
of their claims, which proved insufficient for the payment of the whole of
them, and that the subject has been twice submitted to the Committee of
Congress on Indian Affairs in order to obtain a further appropriation for
the payment of the residue, but without success. Until the necessary 
appropriation is made they cannot be paid by this Department. As regards
the claim for reservations I refer you to the act of Congress 
3d March of 1817, making provision for the location of the lands reserved
by the 1st article of that treaty to certain chiefs and warriors of the
Creek nation which will give you the information you need in relation to
them. If you should not have a copy of the act, you will apprise me of it
in your next letter and one will be sent you.

I enclose herewith for the information of the Creek chiefs a copy of
Mr. Lumpkins reply to their letter to the President in relation to the line
recently run out by him from the head of the Flint river to Chattahoochee,
under the late treaty. A copy of their letter is also enclosed. You will
inform the Big Warrior, Genl. McIntosh and Major Lovett that it seems to
admit of but little doubt that the line run by Mr. Lumpkin is the one 
intended by the treaty, and it is hoped the chiefs will, on examination
of Mr. Lumpkins report, be entirely satisfied that the line has been
correctly designated.

I am glad the chiefs have consented to supply themselves with wheels, 
Looms & c. as their annuity is now ample, they could not expect the
United States to supply them longer than this year. I should also have
been pleased if you had been equally successful in your efforts to obtain
an appropriation of a part of their annuity for the support of schools
in the nation. Such an appropriation would have held out inducements
to those benevolant societies by which such institutions have been
established among other nations, to establish them in the Creek nation.
I have no doubt, however, that as the chiefs have consented to their
establishment in the nation, they will not be long without them; in
which event the Government, will contribute towards their support; 
but it does not undertake to establish them itself.

It was not intended by my letter of the 23d July, that the blacksmith
shop at the agency which had usually been kept up should be discontinued.
But from your letter to which that was a reply, I was led to believe
that you had employed a blacksmith in addition to the one usually
employed, for the purpose of supplying the Indians, more readily, with
farming utensils, of which you stated they were almost destitute, and
that it was his services that were intended to be discontinued, after
the period fot which you had engaged them, and not those of the 
ordinary Black smith. 

					I have &c.

					J.C. Calhoun