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Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned Lands,
Headquarters 2nd Sub-District, Virginia,
Petersburg, Va, September 4th, 1868

Col. Thos. S. Dunn, 
Military Commissioner
Petersburg, Va.

Colonel:-
I have the honor to inform you that in March last, a man named R.T. Reese, of Prince George Co. stationed himself in the road with a gun, and halted one David Crawford and daughter, demanding to see what he had in his basket. Crawford informed him that he had chickens, and on Reese attempting to open the basket, Crawford resisted, and Reese struck him with his gun. Crawford then wrested the gun from Reese's hand and struck Reese: the latter then drew a knife and finished the assault by stabbing Reese dangerously.

In communities where justice is done, this Reese would have been arrested and punished; but no attention was paid to the outrage, and Reese, gaining courage, has recently actually found a magistrate to issue a warrant for the arrest of Crawford, for defending himself and he is now incarcerated in a dungeon of the Petersburg Jail.

I respectfully ask that he be at once released, or that

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