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396

August 9th

Major Genl.
J. C. Robinson
Asst Com. Bu RF and A.L

General
I would respectfully request information as to the meaning of General Order No. 3 from your Hd. Qr's. If the first paragraph of said order means that the jurisdiction of the Bureau exists [[underlined]] only [[/underlined]] in claims for wages due under contracts approved or witnessed before an officer of the Bureau. The result will be that no more Contracts for labor will be made before a Bureau Officer, and the Freedmen will be obliged to bring a suit for his wages before a Civil Court. The expence and delay attending such proceedings, together with the general belief among the Freedmen that justice will not be done them by the Courts, would prevent a recourse to the Courts by them, and I believe would be a source of great suffering and wrong being inflicted on the Freedmen
I Am Genl. Very Respectfully
Your Obdt Servant
Allan Rutherford
Supt So. Dist. N. C