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Matthews Court House. Va,
May 31st. 1867

Major General Howard
B.R.T. and A.L.
Washington D.C.

General, 
We the colored men of Matthews County, respectfully represent that being well aware of your benevolence and solicitude for our welfare, we take the liberty of calling your attention to the fact that a certain Major F.K Smith was last month appointed as Agent of the Bureau in this County, and as he always conducted himself towards us with brutality and coarse insolence, we were much gratified when he was relived at the end of April, and Captain H.R. Howlett, late of Washington City, D.C. was sent in his place. We found Captn. Howlett kind, courteous, and polite; always ready to attend to our interests, and even to relieve the distressed among us from his own pocket, a humane and sober gentleman, thereby well contrasting with his predecessor who is a steady drunkard, often seen in a state of intoxication, reeling about the Court House, regardless of his duties. Major Smith has often, while under the influence of liquor, given us the lie when we were telling the truth and otherwise abused us, yet before he left here he sold a bale of hay belonging to the Bureau to Mr. Sleet, the landlord of the hotel, to pay his whiskey bill of $3.00 and the Secesh boast that he always read to them his letters and reports to General Armstrong before he sent them to him, and say that he is the man from them. Well, General, to our great dismay and mortification, we find that our good friend Captn. Howlett has been relieved from duty among us, though he is a favorite with all, black and white, and Major F.K. Smith has been sent back in

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---------- Reopened for Editing 2023-10-18 18:20:24