Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, Transmitted to Congress, With the Annual Message of the President, December 4, 1882
No. 247.
Mr. Frelinghuysen to Señor Romero.
Washington, July 10, 1882.
Sir: I have the honor to lay before you a copy of a letter with its accompanying papers addressed to me by his excellency Governor F. A. Tritle, of Arizona Territory, in relation to the arrest and expulsion from Mexican territory of Capt. William J. Ross, a deputy sheriff of Pima County, and his sworn posse, by order of General Bernardo Reyes, of Sonora, on the 5th ultimo.
It appears from these papers that, in consequence of the perpetration of certain murders in Arizona by hostile Apaches, their pursuit was instituted by a body of men acting as sheriff’s aids under Captain Ross; that the fugitives were followed to the Mexican line, where they were surrounded by Mexican forces; that, on the invitation of their commander, Captain Ross and his posse aided the Mexican forces; that Captain Ross, having due warrants for the arrest of the fugitives, sent forward a letter, by a courier, to General Terrazas, commanding in Chihuahua, whither the hostiles fled, asking for their delivery to him; that the courier was arrested by General Reyes, whose command was in Sonora, and the letter of Captain Ross to General Terrazas thus failed to reach its destination; and that soon afterwards Ross himself and all his posse were arrested by General Reyes, their arms taken from them, and they themselves ordered to return to Arizona, which they did, unarmed, after a trying march of some hundreds of miles.
In view of these circumstances, Governor Tritle makes the very reasonable request that the arms taken from Ross and his posse (and for which the governor holds General Bernardo Reyes’ receipt) be returned to the authorities of the Territory of Arizona, whose property they are. It has seemed to me that I might more promptly, and with less of formality, compass the desired relief through your intervention with the military authorities of Sonora than by formal representations through the United States legation at the city of Mexico. And, with this desire to dispose of the matter frankly and amicably, I refrain from any criticism of General Reyes’ course in disarming, and exposing to the dangers of a tedious march through wild country, a body of men on a mission of justice and good will.
Be pleased, &c.,
Governor Tritle to Mr. Frelinghuysen.
Sir: I have the honor most respectfully to submit the following, and inclosed documents, connected with and relating to the taking of certain guns and ammunition from William J. Ross, a deputy sheriff of Pima County, and captain of militia of Arizona Territory, by General Bernardo Reyes, of Sonora, Mexico, on June 5 1882, as is shown by a copy of his receipt for said arms, remitted herewith.
Said William J. Ross entered into the State of Sonora for the purpose of having the arrest made of hostile Apache Indians, who had fled there, after murdering certain citizens of Arizona, and for whose arrest he had proper warrants, issued by the authorities of Pima County, Arizona, within the limits of which the offense had been committed. Said Ross had sent a courier with a letter to General Terrazas, of Chihuahua, in which State he had information the Indians for whose arrest he held the warrants were supposed to be, desiring to have them delivered to him, which courier was arrested by General Reyes, and letter taken, by which the request of said Ross failed to reach said General Terrazas. That afterwards he was arrested by said General Reyes, and his arms, &c., taken from him—a receipt therefor given, a copy of which is hereby submitted—and ordered to at once return to Arizona, and which order he at once obeyed, as will be shown by the sworn statement of said Ross, herewith submitted as Exhibit F.
I would most respectfully ask that your Department request that the arms so taken be returned by the Mexican government to me as governor of Arizona, or to William C. Davis, chairman of the board of county supervisors of Pimo County, Tucson, Ariz., by whose order they were paid for, and furnished to said deputy Sheriff.
Respectfully submitted.
Governor of Arizona.
Mr. Carr to Mr. Tritle.
Dear Governor: In reply to your dispatch of 21st instant to Col. Jas. H. Toole, asking for certain papers relating to loss of arms, &c., by our troop of volunteers in the Mexican territory, I have the honor to herewith forward you, at request of committee of citizens, the enclosed documents, as follows:
- Exhibit A.—Deputy Sheriff Ross’s appointment by Sheriff Paul.
- Exhibit B.—Copy of warrant issued for arrest of Indians.
- Exhibit C.—Copy of special meetings of board supervisors.
- Exhibit D.—Copy of appointment of Captain Ross as captain of militia.
- Exhibit E.—Copy of receipt of Gen. Bernardo Reyes for guns taken from Captain Ross.
- Exhibit F.—Deposition and statement of Capt. W. J. Ross, and certificate of chairman of citizens’ executive committee, relating to Ross having served under his respective titles and authorities.
I hold the originals of Exhibits D and E, which can be forwarded to you if so desired. It was thought best to keep the originals here, unless really needed by you, to assist you and the Department in making the necessary requisition on the Mexican Government.
In this connection I might state these arms were taken from Captain Ross by Gen. Bernardo Reyes (commander of the troops of Sonora) in the State of Chihuahua. Captain Ross had taken the precaution to notify General Terrazas, commander of the Mexican troops in the State of Chihuahua, of his presence in that State, and the object for which he was there. His courier was captured by General Reyes, and thereby the desire and object of Captain Ross was thwarted.
Herewith I inclose you press copy of my telegram to you notifying you that these documents would be mailed to you to-night.
I am, &c.,
Chairman of Citizens’ Executive Committee.
Gov. F. A. Tritle, Governor of Arizona, Washington, D. C.:
Documents asked for in your dispatch of 21st to Colonel Toole, go to your address by to-night’s mail.
Please await their arrival.
Chairman Executive Committee.
Know all men by these presents that I, the undersigned, sheriff of Pima County, Arizona Territory, do hereby appoint W. J. Ross a deputy sheriff in and for said county.
Sheriff.
Territory of
Arizona,
County of Pima, ss:
I, W. J. Ross, do hereby solemnly swear to support the Constitution of the United States and the laws of the Territory of Arizona and to true allegiance bear to the same, and to defend them against all enemies whatsoever, and to discharge the duties of the office of deputy sheriff of Pima County to the best of my knowledge and ability. So help me God.
[seal.]
Notary Public, Pima County, A. T.
Territory of
Arizona,
County of Pima, ss:
I, Charles R. Drake, county recorder in and for the county of Pima, do hereby certify that the above and foregoing is a full, true, and correct copy of the appointment of W. J. Ross as deputy sheriff for the county of Pima, as appears on file now in my office.
[seal.]
County Recorder.
Territory of
Arizona,
County of Pima, ss:
To the sheriff, constable, marshal, or policeman in this Territory:
Complaint upon oath having been this day made before me, a justice of the peace in and for the above county, by Hugh Farley, that the offense of murder has been committed, and accusing Ju, Nashi, Geronimo, and others, whose full and true names are unknown, thereof:
You are therefore commanded by the Territory of Arizona forthwith to arrest the above-named Ju, Nashi, Geronimo, and others, whose full and true names are unknown, and bring them before me forthwith at my office in the town of Tucson, or, in case of my absence or inability to act, before the nearest and most accessible magistrate within this county.
Justice of the Peace in and for said county.
Territory of
Arizona,
County of Pima, ss:
I, William J. Osborn, a justice of the peace in and for the county of Pima, Territory of Arizona, do hereby certify the foregoing to be a full, true, and correct copy of the original warrant issued by me upon a complaint as provided by law, and that I delivered said warrant to R. H. Paul, sheriff of the county of Pima, for service and execution, on the 27th day of April, A. D. 1882.
Justice of the Peace, Pima County, Arizona.
special meeting.
Pima County, Arizona Territory, Tucson, May 1, 1882.
Board met pursuant to a call from the chairman, after due notice as required by statute, at 2 o’clock p.m., for the purpose of taking action in the matter of a certificate from the sheriff of Pima County, Mr. R. H. Paul, asking for assistance to enable him to execute a warrant of arrest upon certain Apache Indians, accused of murder in said Pima County, he having every reason to believe that armed resistance would be made to the execution of said warrant.
Present, W. C. Davis, chairman; B. M. Jacobs, member; H. Ward, deputy clerk. Absent, M. Fagan, member.
Minutes of last meeting read and approved.
After consideration and discussion of the above-named matter, the board, upon motion, adjourned until Wednesday, May 3, 1882, at 2 o’clock p.m., for the purpose of securing the attendance and advice of Mr. H. Farley, district attorney, touching the framing and passage of proper resolutions.
Chairman.
Attest:
Deputy Clerk.
Pima County, Arizona Territory, Tucson, May 3, 1882.
Board met, pursuant to adjournment, at 2 o’clock p.m.
Present, W. C. Davis, chairman; B. M. Jacobs, member; H. Ward, deputy clerk. Absent, M. Fagan, member.
Minutes of last meeting read and approved.
On the matter of the certificate from R. H. Paul, sheriff of Pima County, referred to in minutes of May 1, the board, after consultation with H. Farley, district attorney, upon motion, both members voting aye, passed the following resolution, to wit:
“Resolved, That said sheriff be and he is hereby recommended to appoint fifty special deputies for the purpose of executing said warrant.”
Chairman.
Attest:
Deputy Clerk.
I hereby certify that the above and foregoing is a full, true, and correct copy of the minutes of the board of supervisors of Pima County, Arizona Territory, of May 1, A. D. 1882, and of May 3, A. D. 1882, in as far as action of said board has reference to the certificate of R. H. Paul, sheriff of said county, touching the execution of a warrant of arrest against certain Apache Indians.
Deputy Clerk, Board of Supervisors, Pima County, Arizona Territory.
The governor of the territory of Arizona, to all who shall see the presents greeting:
Know ye, that, reposing special trust and confidence in the patriotism, valor, fidelity and ability of William J. Ross, I, F. A. Tritle, the governor of the Territory of Arizona, as the commander in chief of all the military forces thereof, in the name of and by the authority of said Territory of Arizona, to rank as such in the First Regiment of the militia of said Territory from the date of this commission.
He is therefore carefully and diligently to discharge the duty of captain by doing and performing all manner of things thereunto belonging. And I do strictly charge and require all officers and soldiers under his command to be obedient to his orders as captain. And he is to observe and follow such orders and directions from time to time as he shall receive from me or the future governor, or other superior officers set over him, according to the rules, regulations and discipline prescribed for the militia of said Territory. This appointment to continue in force during the pleasure of the governor of said Territory.
[Page 430]By the governor:
[seal.]
- F. A. TRITLE.
- H. M. Van Arman,
Secretary of the Territory. - Clark Churchill,
Adjutant-general.
Territory of
Arizona,
County of Pima, ss:
I, William J. Ross, do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the laws of this Territory; that I will true faith and allegiance bear to the same and defend them against all enemies whatsoever; and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge the duties of the office of captain of the Pima County Rangers according to the best of my abilities. So help me God.
Governor of Arizona.
Territory of
Arizona,
County of Pima:
I, George A. Clum, clerk of the district court of the first judicial district of the Territory of Arizona, in and for the County of Pima, do hereby certify that the foregoing is a full, true, and correct copy of the commission of William J. Ross, as captain in the service of the Territory of Arizona in the First Regiment of the militia of said Territory, the original commission as exhibited to me then and still being in the possession of said Ross, together with the oath indorsed on the back thereof.
[seal.]
By
I have taken from Capt. William J. Ross, commander of the company of Tucson Volunteers, forty-eight rifles and five carbines, Springfield pattern, for having come with his company into Mexican territory, from which I have caused him to return to the United States.
(Seal of commander in chief. Federal guard in the State of Sonora.)
Territory of
Arizona,
County of Pima, ss:
I, W. B. Horton, a notary public in and for Pima County, do hereby certify that the foregoing in the Spanish language is a full, true, and correct copy of the original as exhibited to me by Capt. William J. Ross, and that I am the translator from Spanish into English thereof, and that the said translation is correct according to the best of my ability.
[seal.]
Notary Public.
Territory of
Arizona,
County of Pima, ss:
W. J. Ross, being first duly sworn, deposes and says: That he is a citizen of the United States and of the age of thirty-seven years; that he has served as field officer of volunteers during the late civil war for the period of five years, and for eight years thereafter was lieutenant in the regular army of the United States; that on the 29th day of April, A. D. 1882, he was duly appointed deputy sheriff of Pima County, Arizona Territory, as more fully appears by the certified copy of said appointment attached hereto and made a part hereof, and marked Exhibit A; that as such deputy [Page 431] sheriff a warrant of arrest was placed in his hands by his principal, the sheriff of Pima County, for the arrest of certain Indians for the crime of murder, as more fully appears by the certified copy of said warrant attached hereto and made a part hereof, and marked Exhibit B. That it appearing to said sheriff that said Indians would likely resist arrest, he was instructed by said sheriff, in accordance with the instructions, given to said sheriff by the board of supervisors of said Pima County, to swear in as a posse comitatus about fifty men, the number deemed sufficient to overcome said resistance. A certified copy of said resolution is hereunto attached, and marked Exhibit C. That in accordance with said instructions he swore in fifty men as special deputy sheriffs; that thereafter and on the 9th day of May, A. D. 1882, he was duly commissioned as captain of militia of the Territory of Arizona, and a commission to that effect duly issued to him, a certified copy of which is hereunto attached and marked Exhibit D, and that said men, to the number of fifty, were duly enrolled as a, company of the militia of the Territory of Arizona. That said company were mounted and furnished with arms by the said county of Pima, there being no money in the treasury of the Territory for such purpose; that thereafter and in execution of said warrant, and on or about the 10th day of May, A. D. 1882, he took up the trail of the band of Indians with whom, as said deponent was informed and believed, said Indians against whom said warrant was issued, were: That he pursued said trail nearly due east until about the 28th of said May, when he met a detachment of twelve men of the Sixth United States Cavalry, who informed him that the Mexican troops had said Indians surrounded at a place near Casas Grandes in the State of Chihuahua, Mexico, and that their commander had requested said troops to cut their line in the rear, as his, the said commander’s, line was thin in places, and he did not know whether or not he could hold them. For the purpose of assisting said Mexican troops in holding and capturing said Indians, this deponent pushed in the direction of said troops as rapidly as possible, and on the second day of June met and joined a company of sixty men of the National Guard of Mexico, under command of Captain Ramirez; and from the second of said June until the fifth thereof he operated with said Captain Ramirez, in guarding the rear line of the Mexican troops to prevent said Indians from breaking back; that on the fourth of said June he sent a courier to Colonel Terrazas, the commanding officer of the Mexican forces in Chihuahua with a letter offering his services and that of his men, in any capacity he might see fit to employ him and them; that as he afterwards learned said courier was taken prisoner by General Reyes, as were all the men sent to Janos to purchase supplies; General Reyes opened said letter and learned from its contents who said deponent was, and moved his force consisting of one regiment of infantry and a squadron of cavalry on said deponent and his men, and demanded of this deponent that he and his men surrender up their arms and return to the United States; that in accordance with said demand this deponent and his men surrendered up their arms and returned to the United States, marching through nearly three hundred miles of dangerous Indian country without arms; that at request of this deponent, said General Reyes gave this deponent a receipt for the arms so taken, and embodying therein the order commanding him to return to the United States. A certified copy of which together with a translation thereof is hereunto annexed and made a part hereof marked Exhibit E. And deponent further avers that the said taking of said arms was at the Casa de Janos in the State of Chihuahua, Mexico, and that said State of Chihuahua was not under the command of said General Reyes, but was under the command of said Colonel Terrazas and that the said disarming of this deponent and his men was without the knowledge or consent of said commanding officer in said State of Chihuahua, namely, said Colonel Terrazas. And further deponent sayeth not.
Deputy Sheriff Pima County and Captain Arixona Militia.
[seal.]
Clerk District Court, First District, Arizona.
By
Deputy.
I hereby certify that W. J. Ross acted in the capacity of deputy sheriff of Pima County, Arizona, as well as captain of Arizona militia, in the late campaign against the hostile Apaches—then on the war-path.
Chairman Citizens’ Executive Committee.
[seal.]
Clerk District Court, First District, Arizona Territory.
By
Deputy.
I hereby certify that I issued and delivered to Capt. William J. Ross the following order, May 9, 1882:
Capt. William J. Ross:
You will proceed with your company of the Arizona Militia, known as the Pima County Rangers, to the southeastern border of Arizona, to prevent the incursions and encroachments of hostile Apache Indians upon the citizens of the Territory.
Yours, &c.,
Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Militia.