[N^o 57 From Major General Knox Sec^y of War] War department July 20^th 1793 Sir Your letter of the 27^th of May has been received and submitted to the President of the United States. You will perceive by the letter of the same date to you which accompanies this a Copy of which is sent to the Commissioners that a great alarm has been excited by Col. Strongs movement which you must remedy instantly. If in consequence of this or other similar movements the Commissioners should be sacrificed or the treaty frustrated the consequences would be awful indeed. You say you may probably be censured for having acted without positive although implied orders. It is conceived that your orders of the 20^th April will be considered as sufficiently justificatory for efficient preparations in case the event of the treaty should prove unsuccessful. This letter you received on on the 29^th or 26^th of the same month but were any doubts by possibility to remain in your mind as to your authority they must have been intirly dissipated on the Receipt of the letter of the 17^th May by Brigadier General Posey which it is to be expected you may have received by the 7^th of June at farthest. It is conceived that the letter from the Quarter Master to you of the 17 May relatively to his estimates is neither correct nor candid he says "you will perceive by the enclosed extracts that 13000 Dollars intended for the purpose of purchasing pack-horses and twelve thousand dollars for the pay of my department to the 1^st of July has not been admitted in my last requisition and that the Secretary of War has indirectly ordered that the horses shall not be purchased without your particular orders; however disagreeable the consequence of rejecting this demand for twenty five thousand dollars may be in my future arrangements I am now prepared to furnish such means of carriage as you will please to order." On the 26 March he transmitted his requisition for sums required for his department until the 1^st July following. On the 20^th of April I wrote him "In pursuance of your requisition the Secretary of the Treasury has issued his warrant in favor of your Agent for 40,000 Dollars which he will forward immediately, the remaining 25,000 will be issued in due season On the 20^th April he writes me "I am favored with yours of the 20^th instant and with pleasure acknowledge the particular attention you have paid to my requisition for the [underline: present] year." In fact the entire sum required was issued from the Treasury prior to the 1^st July as will appear by letter to him of the 29^th Ultimo a copy of which is enclosed for your information It is presumed that all the articles furnished by Mr Belli and Major Craig were embraced in his original estimate of the 20^th March last—the latter has complained that the Quarter Master General made no arrangement for the payment of Articles which he had ordered at Pittsburgh. The payments to Major Craig were then indispensible and most or all of the sum stated to have been drawn by the agent on the 29^th Ultimo has since been paid either to the bills of the Quarter Master General or remitted to Major Craig. The copies of my letter to Lieutenant Colonel Clarke of the 29^th Ultimo are enclosed by which he is directed to order all the Troops down to Fort Washington excepting those therein mentioned. Doctor Scott will set off to day or tomorrow with the one months pay for your army and another Month will be forwarded in a few days. Major Rudolphs resignation was accepted on the 17 instant. It seems he is going into trade. It has been extremely difficult to obtain waggons for the transportation of the Clothing and Stores for your army, But Mr Hodgdon assures me that all the material articles have arrived or are on their way to Pittsburgh those which remain behind will be on their way as soon as possible. Captain Pratts detachment will escort the rear of the Stores from Pittsburg. The horses deficient acrding to Mr Bellis return he must be made to account for I am Sir with great esteem your humble Serv^t H Knox Sec^y of War Major General Wayne