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Washington City
April 12, 1857
Hon Thomas Corwin
Sec. of the Treasury,
Sir:
Presuming that you and the President of the United States, in directing the suspension of payments, upon powers of attorney, to the North Carolina Cherokees, under the act of
July 29, 1848, were governed by erroneous impressions, made by a few vagabond Indians, who wished a policy adopted by the Government, to enable them to defraud their creditors. In justice to myself and other creditors I beg leave to address you this communication, and to respectfully ask its [unclear text: perusal ] before a policy is adopted, which must lead to defrauding the creditors of the Indians, and do great injury to the former without any permanent benefit to the latter.
Marked A, in the papers apended [appended], is the Letter of the Hon, Luke Lea commissioner of Indian Affairs. In which it is admitted that I, as the attorney of the North Carolina Cherokees, prosecuted their claims for commutation of removal and subsistence which were finally allowed by the act of
July 29, 1848, from
1836, to
1846, a period of ten years. And that during that period the Indian Office invariably refused to allow those claims.
From the division of the Indian Office, I made an appeal to Congress, and employed General Duff Green, and son Benjamin E. Green to aid in the prosecution of those claims, to whom as assistant attorneys I have already paid the sum of $ 2,500.


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They are also entitled to a part of the fees upon the balance of the claims yet to be paid, by the Government.
I was at the expense of going to Raleigh NoC [North Carolina] during the session of the Legislature, for the purpose of procuring the passage of a Resolution requesting their delegation to use their influence in favor of a speedy settlement of the claims of the North Carolina Cherokees. And after spending a months time procured the passage of the resolution [added text: requesting the delegation in Congress to use their influence in their favor ] ,and an act incorporating the Indians into a company with power to purchase and hold lands, with corporate rights and privileges for 99 years (see act of
1845
Marked, B. is the statement of the Hon [unclear text: T. L. ] Clingman, who represented the Indians in Congress, when the act, of
July 29, 1848, was passed. In his opinion the claims of the North Carolina Cherokees provided for in the act, and the per capita provided for under the treaty of
1846, would not have been allowed but for the exertions made by me.
Marked C, is the statement of the indebtedness of about one half of the North Carolina Cherokees, for supplying them with farming utensils clothing mechanci [mechanic] tools &c [et cetera] That is independent of the purchase of their lands, which they have occupied from the time the purchase was made, and have mostly been deeded to them, since the date of the act of
1848 upon powers of attorney being executed to me to [unclear text: receive ] the money coupled with an interest made irrevocable.
The powers of attorney forwarded to you yesterday from the Office of the 2d [2nd] Auditor, bearing date before the date of the act of
1848, prove that I was employed to represent in the prosecution of their claims the whole population of North Carolina Cherokees. An [And] the powers


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which he [illegible text] since the date of the act, acknowledge that I as the attorney of the North Carolina Cherokees had prosecuted their claims, furnished them with lands purchased by me farming tools cloth &c [et cetera], For which I was to be paid a fair compensation, both for my own services and the services of attorneys employed by me, and also the amount due for their lands & c [et cetera], out of the money due from the United States, and an assignment of interest in the fund coupled with an irrevocable power of attorney, proves that even the Indians want me paid, and have done everything in their power, with a few exceptions, to cause payment to be made by the United State, My claim to receive of the United States a fair compensation for my services and for the assistance of Genl [General] Duff Green and son rests upon the following arguments.
1. The 12th article of the treaty of
1835 under which those Cherokees remained in North Carolina, it is stipulated that they should become citizens of, and subject to the laws of the state.
2d [2nd] By the act of
1836-
7 passaged by the Legislature of North Carolina, giving the protection of the state to the Cherokees who remained therein, their right to make contracts and to transact their business, as other citizens, upon powers of attorney, as well as to employ attorneys, is therein provided for.
3rd I had therefore, an interest in the fund recovered, to the extent of the portrait of which it was stipulated should be paid to me, This position is sustained by the practice of the Government


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from its foundation, and by the decisions of Wm [William] Wirt Attorney General and by his successors down to Gilpin upon a question arising under the Cherokee treaty of
1835, in the case of Geo [George] W. Churchwell who claimed from 10 to 50 per cent fees for prosecuting [unclear text: the ] claims of Cherokees for reservations. Under his [unclear text: decision the ] fees were paid by the Government out of the money due to the Indians.
My debts against the North Carolina Cherokees for their lands &c [et cetera] existing in Notes Judgments obtained before the Cherokee Commissioners, and open accounts, have the following authority to support their payment [unclear text: st. ] The 9th article of the Cherokee treaty of
1835, provides that they shall be paid by the United States as trustee of the fund, out of any money due to the Indians under the Treaty, The money to be paid under the act of
July 29, 1848, is for claims arising under the Treaty, The clause of the 9th article of the treaty referred to is in the following words "The just debts of the Indians shall be paid out of any moneys


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due them for their improvents [improvements] and claims. "
With regard to the justice of my debts against the Indians a part of them were filed before the commissioners appointed the 17th article of the Treaty of
1835, acknowledged to be just by the Indians, and jugment [judgment] entered on their books in my favor, as will appear by reference to their books on file in the office of Indian Affairs, The balance of the debts are acknowledged by the Indians to be just, and the United States is not only furnished with the authority under the Treaty to pay them; but in most cases has been authorized by powers of attorneys from the claimants themselves, made in accordance with the law of Congress, and the laws of North Carolina, subsequent to the date of the appropriation, to make payment to me
Having shown that I am entitled to receive the money, for a part of which requiquistions [requisitions] have already issued, upon the powers of attorney and received the proper signatures of the officers of the Government the delivery of which has been suspended And also the balance of the money due me from the Indians, I beg leave, in conclusion, to examine the effects that will be produced by adopting a mode of payment, which puts it in the power of the Indians, with the aid of the Government, to defraud their creditors.
1st such a mode of payment is a violation of a paramount duty which the United States owe to her citizens to protect their interest,


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2d [2nd] I is a violation of the 9th article of the Cherokee treaty of
1835, which by the Constitution of the United States it made the supreme law of the land,
3rd, The 12th article of the treaty, and subsequent acts of the Legislature of North Carolina made those Indians citizens of the state subject to her laws, in accordance with which my contracts were made, such a mode of payment as deprives me of the portion of the fund due [deleted text: to me ] upon those contracts, would be an assumption of power on the part of the President [illegible text] and not only [deleted text: be ] an [added text: act ] of injustice to me, and violate my rights as an American citizen but would be an assumption of Federal power never claimed or exercised by any of his predecessors, No President has ever claimed or exercised the right to impair the Obligation of contracts made under the laws of a state between [deleted text: two of ] her citizens.
While I fell at all times willing to see [deleted text: all ] the powers of the Federal Government exercised to the fullest extent, I should regret to see a power claimed to impair the sacred obligation of contract existing under the laws of a state between debtors and creditors.
And how is it attempted to justify this assumption of power? By act of Congress which is in these words " for the purpose of paying off Indians in the Old States and particularly the


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North Carolina Indians, their removal and subsistence [subsistance] fund under the order and instructions of the secretary of the Treasury one thousand dollars, " What is the " removal and subsistence [subsistance] fund " here referred to, The act of
July 29, 1848, explaining what it is. By that act a removal and subsistence [subsistance] fund of $53 33 is set a part in the Treasury for each of the North Carolina Cherokees. On that sum the interest is to be paid to the Indians or their legal representatives while they remain in North Carolina. The principal or the removal and subsistence fund can only be withdrawn from the Treasury by a warrant from the Secretary of [deleted text: the ] War, [deleted text: Department ] to be preceded by a desire of the Indian, whose removal and subsistence fund is to be withdrawn, to remove west,
It is only therefore by an implied construction of the act, that it can be made to apply to the payment of the interest which by the act of
1848, forms no part in the removal and subsistence fund, But how can it be made to apply to the interest which the Indians And the treaty had assigned to the used of their creditors; before the date of the Act, The act could only by an implied construction, be made to apply to "their" portion of the fund, not to the portion which did not belong to them, One annual payment of interest on the removal and subsistence fund of the North Carolina Cherokees falls


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due on the 29th of next July, which amounts to $3.19 each [added text: amounts to about $4.500, ] no one will I presume object to that being paid by the agent and such other portions of the interest as does not belong to their creditors, and attorneys,
If you should decide against me, please lay this communication before the President of the United States, to whom I shall apply for a reference of the questions enclosed, to the Judicial tribunal to settle the construction of the treaty and the acts, If you should perceive an earnestness of feeling manifested in this communication, in asserting what I conceive to be my rights, you will please attribute it, to no disrespect I entertain, for either yourself or the President of the United States, but to the fact that I consider I have already under the influence of a few Indians [added text: a small [illegible text] whig opponents ] who wanted to avoid the payment of their fees and debts by the aid of the Government, been wronged out of $1000 due to me, And while I who prosecuted and gained the money were deprived of my fees, whig lawyers could be paid ten percent for doing nothing but receive the money. And now when I am at the trouble of getting a portion of what is due to me through the Office, I am to be kept out of it until board exhausts me fees, I am inclined to believe I would have fared better if I had been a Whig.

your Obt Sert. [Obedient Servant]
[Signed] Wm [William] H. Thomas