[Sutherland] Treasury Department, Comptroller's Office, October 2^d 1794. Sir, The President of the United States having designated you to execute the Office of Inten- dent of Military Stores, it is requisite that your du- ties, as relative to the Department of War and the Treasury should be defined, and that General prin- ciples should be settled for governing the accounts of your Office, and of the Officers and persons entrust- ed with the keeping and distribution of the public property. The forms herewith transmitted, having been approved by the Secretary of the Treasury, are to be regarded in the bases of the proposed arrange- ment; on respect to which, the following principles will deserve special attention. 1^st That all arrangements, having for their object, the purchase of Military Stores, Cloth- ing, Indian Goods, Supplies in the Quarter Masters Department, and generally all articles for the use of the War Department, will be made by, or under the direction of the Treasury. 2^d That all arrangements having for their object the safe keeping, transfer or final dispo- sition of any of the articles so purchased, will be ma- de, or under the direction of the Secretary of War. 3^d That accounts are to be kept in your Office, relative to the receipt, safekeeping and distribution [Missing Page/s] save that no disposition [undecipherable: being] to be made with- out your knowledge. It is further proposed, that all Warrants or orders of the Secretary of War for the delivery of, any Stores, [undecipherable] to be demands, to be addressed to you, and that the disposition [undecipherable] pursue your concern in [undecipherable]. This arrangement will not however extend to [undecipherable] or Stores [undecipherable] the army, or which have been delivered for the public service, the actual [care] of which are to be controlled by the Commanding Military Officer, or the proper Intendant of a Department. [undecipherable] to [undecipherable] [undecipherable] as the details [undecipherable] you most naturally [undecipherable] in your [books,] the forms now transmitted, are to be regarded merely as outlines of the distribution and arrangement [undecipherable] for the several De- partments. It is however proper to observe, that every article is to [have] a [undecipherable: stated] [place,] in respect to which, all subordinate Officers and Agents ought to be informed and instructed by which to govern their returns to your Office. It will be found of advantage to insti- tute permanent rules for depositing and packing many articles in the public Stores and Magazines. For instance, Gunpowder ought to be [kept] in [undecipherable: barrels] of certain sizes, and in uniform quan- tities, and the different kinds of [undecipherable: barrels] ought to be distinguished by [undecipherable: approved] names in all returns. The same principle may be [justly] extended to a [great] variety of laboratory Stores and other articles. The effect of this regulation to every prac- ticable extent, will be [useful] facilitating inspections [of] certain periods, in preventing losses and em- bezzlements, and in reducing the number of columns under the several heads of accounts. A project arrangement, pursuant to this order, will be a work of time, but it is conceived to be important; and that it ought to be undertaken and prosecuted under systematical instructions, to be [undecipherable] to the Department of War. The forms marked A are prescribed for the Journal and ledger entries of your principal Books, and [undecipherable: exemplify] a [supposed] case in respect to the purchase, transfer, and final delivery of certain articles, in the first Class of Quarter Master's Stores. This instance it is conceived, will suf- ficiently elucidate the proposed plan for keeping the accounts of your Office. The forms marked B are prescribed for returns of purchases and deliveries of articles in the several Departments. It will be proper, that similar forms should be adopted by you, for the [Register] of Warrants [issued] by the Secretary of War. To prevent a misconstruction of the instruc- tions of the Secretary of War, in respect to [undecipherable: Issues,] I take the liberty, to observe, that an absolute credit ought not to be passed in consequence of a Warrant, or order