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Owensville May 28th 1867
Maj Gen'l Griffin USA
Commanding District of Texas

General
In 1863 I took without any mental reservation within the Federal lines the oath of allegiance to the United States known as the amnesty oath and returned to Texas, immediately after the surrender to my plantation in Robertson county. I was the first person in Robertson county who announced their freedom to their former slaves and the first who contracted with the former slaves for their labor and that too before any Bureau was established in Texas or any orders issued requiring contracts to be made. This was distasteful at that time to my neighbors but I say  thus much if my antecedents which will be established if you require by any number of witnesses. In 1866 my labor with freedmen was demoralized by an unscrupulous neighbor though my contracts with the laborers had been approved by General Kiddo. I appealed to General Kiddo and on my application he issued General Order No 14. Lieut McClermont of the USA stationed last May in Millican as Sub Agent of the Bureau was on my plantation soon afterwards and inflicted of his own volition such punishment to