To James Madison from Richard M. Johnson, [ca. 25 January 1817]
From Richard M. Johnson
[ca. 25 January]
Sir,
The within letter relates to a Captive yet held as the Property of an indian; he is the only son of my near nieghbour, his Parents have long been amused with hopes of his being alive.
I hope something may be done to liberate this young man from captivity.1 ⟨Wi⟩th g⟨rea⟩t respect your ob sert
Rh: M: Johnson
RC and enclosure (DNA: RG 107, LRRS, J-17:10). Undated; conjectural date assigned based on the date of the enclosure (see n. 1).
1. Johnson enclosed a two-page letter he had received from Levi Luther Todd, dated 13 Jan. 1817, conveying information Todd had recently received from a Kentuckian taken prisoner after the Battle of the River Raisin on 22 Jan. 1813 and “just returnd from Captivty.” Todd’s informant told of another prisoner he had met while in Quebec, Thomas Hant (or Vant/Vance), who had been held captive by an Indian and hired out as a drummer to the British. Hant was originally enlisted as a drummer near Lexington, Kentucky, and had been under Todd’s special care. Todd requested that Johnson take steps to obtain Hant’s release because “liberty is his birth right and it is oppressive, to detain him in Slavery.”