Col. Joseph Williams Sir War Department, 22 Decem^r [undecipherable] I have letters from you and the Superinten[dant] at Springfield [warning?] me [to/of] a [undecipherable] of Coal furnished under a Contract made by you for the use of the Armory, the payment for which you are forced to decline by his refusal to give certificates that the quantity and quality of the ^Coal as the account rendered by the Contractors. It is surprizing that I should be requested to decide on a subject to which you & the Superintendant ought to be fully competent. Do you wish me to believe that the Superintendant without cause would refuse to give a receipt agreeably to the quantity & quality of the Article furnished? or does he wish me to suppose that you are willing to pay public monies for unmerchantable articles, or for greater quantities than are actually delivered for public use? You say you are convinced that the Contractors [Missing Page/s — Some or all of the pages of this file are wholly or in part missing, and we have not been able to locate a more complete copy of the document.]