Colonel Carleton to William A. Thompson, May 8, 1862

SPECIAL ORDERS, ) HDQRS. DIST. OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA,
May 8, 1862.
No. 57. Fort Yuma, Cal., May 8, 1862.

I. First Lieut. William A. Thompson, of Company E, First Infantry California Volunteers, will receive from Maj. Edwin A. Rigg, First Infantry California Volunteers, two 12-pounder mountain howitzers on prairie carriages, with fixtures and implements complete, so that the pieces will be ready for service at a moment’s notice, and will receive an adequate supply of spherical case-shot, shell, and canister-shot fixed, to fill the boxes and limbers of these pieces, and also receive a good supply of friction tubes, metallic tubes, port fire, slow-mateh, extra fuses, &c., to serve the howitzers. A detachment of men will then be placed under Lieutenant Thompson’s command to proceed with these pieces to the Pima Villages, in New Mexico, This detachment will be composed of Corporal Russell, of- Company F, First Infantry, and Corporal Carey, Company O, Fifth Infantry, and the following privates of the First Infantry California Volunteers, viz: Keho, Swan, Andrews, and Winchill, of Company A; Monihon, Jay, Hundertmark, and Magill, of Company F; O’Brien, Winnell, Pape, and Fleming, of Company G, and Webber, of Company D, and Baxter, of Company E. This detachinent will be armed with muskets with thirty rounds of ammunition per man.

II. Lieutenant Thompson will be furnished by Captain Moore, assistant quartermaster, with two four-mule teams for the howitzers and two good teamsters. He will provide himself and party with subsistence to include the 31st of May, 1862. He will proceed with Veck’s train to the place of his destination and there report for duty to the commanding officer.

By order of Colonel Carleton:

First Lieut., First Infty. California Vols., Actg. Asst. Adjt. Gen.

Camp Latham, May 8, 1862. Capt. R. W. KIRKHAM, Acting Assistant Adjutant-General: CAPTAIN: I have the honor to report that immediately on my arrival at this post, in pursuance to instructions, I determined to dispatch

Lieutenant-Colonel Evans, Second California Cavalry, to Owen’s River to command the troops to chastise the hostile Indians. You will judge of my surprise upon my arrival at Camp Latham to find the soldiers of his command were destitute of everything (nearly) pertaining to a soldier, excepting only commissary stores. Colonel Evans’ command exhibits an aggregate of 204, of which number 114 are reported as duty men. To mount these men scarcely 100 horses are fit for service, a large number of the horses attached to the command having been previously condemned in First Cavalry and turned over to Second. To arm the command there are 114 pistols and only 2,000 pistol cartridges (navy revolvers). The Government has not a single team fit to be used in an expedition of this kind, but I have made arrangements to supply the same by private contract through my quartermaster, subject to be hereafter approved by the Quartermaster-General. Permit me to suggest that a mountain howitzer with the necessary ammunition should accompany the expedition, and that the deficiency in pistol cartridges should be immediately supplied, say 40,000, for neither of the above are to be found at Camp Latham or the depot at San Pedro—in fine, no ammunition of any kind is to be had this side of San Francisco or Benicia. Should my command be ordered forward at an early day 50,000 musket cartridges would not exceed our wants. I deem the force able to be put in the field totally inadequate to the purpose intended, yet I will start so many as can be moved at an early day, believing that the general commanding will concur with me in the necessity of re-enforcing them. I shall send no infantry with the expedition unless so directed, believing that the settlers of the valley will with alacrity supply any deficiency in that particular. In the article of pantaloons and shoes ! have ordered Regimental Quartermaster Williamson to distribute to Second Cavalry any supplies he may have on hand, which will be probably sufficient for the present wants. In the estimate of men above, eighteen men and six non-commissioned officers are to be deducted,

by order of Colonel Carleton, to be distributed along the line

from Camp Wright to Fort Yuma to act as vedettes. I think of nothing more at present to suggest in relation to the Owen’s River expedition. l have spent a day in Los Angeles since my arrival at Camp
Latham, and taken considerable pains to ascertain the state of things
existing here, and should give it as my opinion that though the loyal
sentiment is not in the ascendant, yet the disloyal sentiment is not to
be dreaded. No man of sense here doubts the loyalty of Colonel Carleton, yet under him many contracts have been given to parties not,
friendly to the Government. Whether this could fairly have been
avoided I have no means of judging. I fear the command of Colonel
Evans has been greatly weakened to strengthen the command under