Treasury Department, Comptroller's Office, January 30. 1799. — Sir, I have received your letter of the 25.^th instant, and considered its contents. The debt due from Jacob Slough late a Captain in the service of the United States is only one I suppose among many others for the recovery of which compulsory process will be found necessary. — It is expected of you, to urge all persons accountable for monies on the books of your Office to a punctual exhibition of their accompts, and when exhibited to give them a speedy examination; to take security when offered by the persons accountable, or when directed to require it, and if balances are withheld improperly by Officers subject to the articles of war it will be your duty to represent such conduct to the head of your Department, and request his cooperation; but you cannot institute suit without first obtaining the special direction of the Comptroller of the Treasury before whom the party appearing to be delinquent has a right to be heard. This course is rendered necessary by the relation which your Office bears to others vested with power to revise and controul its proceedings, and by the law which prescribes the manner in which debts due to the United States for monies advanced shall be authenticated in the Courts of Law. If suit should be instituted for the recovery of such advances under any other direction than that of the Comptroller [even upon a bond] [undecipherable: it is within] the power of the Defendant to plead his right to be heard [undecipherable] at the Treasury and it is probable this plea would very generally be admitted. It appears to me to be proper that it should. — A prudent and vigilant use of the means which your official situation affords, with the occasional aid of the Secretary at War will I hope be found sufficient to supersede in a great proportion of cases the necessity of instituting suits, and it is believed that the interest of the public like that of individual creditors, will be promoted by avoiding it whenever it can be done without giving countenance to unjust pretensions, or submitting to impositions. When suits however shall appear proper (as they sometimes will notwithstanding your best exertions) you will be pleased to make a report to this Office of the names of the delinquent debtors, the capacities in which, and the periods when, they became accountable, the balances appearing to be due from each, the measures taken by you to obtain payment or accounts shewing a satisfactory application of those balances, a statement of the claims suspended in your Office with the vouchers (if any) and the considerations which governed you in refusing their admission. — As often as these reports are rendered such measures will be adopted in relation to the cases comprized in them, as upon consideration at the Treasury shall appear best calculated to promote the public interest consistently with that respect which is always due to the rights and characters of individuals. I have also received your letter of yesterday with the correspondence enclosed; but being much engaged in other business I must beg leave to refer you to M^r. Rann, or M^r. Farrel who will in future furnish you with that or any other information which may be wanted from the Treasury without putting you to the trouble of making formal applications. It is an unnecessary waste of time to be employed in writing letters to an Officer in the same, or a different Department upon subjects which admit of being explained, and understood without difficulty in another way. — I take this occasion to repeat the request which I made in person about a week ago, that you will expedite the settlement of Captain Lewis's accompt and certify to me the balance in order that he may have an opportunity of giving bond and security for it, as proposed and acceded to, previous to the acceptance of his resignation. — I am, Sir, very respectfully, Your Ob: Serv^t; [signature: undecipherable] [Addressed:] William Simmons Esquire, Accountant of the War Department [Docket:] letter from the Comptroller dated 30^th January 1799 — requesting the Accountant to urge all persons accountable for monies on the books of this Office for money on the books of this [Office] to a punctual exhibition [undecipherable] to be a periodical exhibition of their accounts —