Chautauqua Land Office
Westfield, New York,
Feb. 7th 1865.
Honored Sir

Having been appointed Notary Public by the Governor of this State and Commisioner by the Governors of different other States, I beg respectfully to ask of your Excellency the appointment of Commissioner for your State.

If you require any reference before making the appointment I beg to mention Hon G. W. Patterson or any Banker &c of this Place or Governor Fenton of this State, or Governor Seward, of Washington of whose business I have more or less had

the charge in the Office for the past fifteen years.

If my application is favorably received be so kind as to direct your secretary to inform me what fee if any is required. There is of course but little to be done & therefore I could not pay a large fee but there are a few persons here who contemplateing assisting to develop one of the almost wholly latent sources of wealth in your state as soon ats the arm of Justice can destroy the bands of Gurrillas by which it is infested —

We sent down some men the other day & after spending nearly a thousand dollars at Louisville for tools, they

were obliged to leave on account of the murders & robberies committed in the neighborhood — Allen County

Could your Excellency adopt some plan or setation a force there it would add vastly to the resources of the State as it has already in Pennsylvania. If I mistake the value & export of Oil from that State well nigh competes with that of Cotton in its palmiest days & is at any rate in a high degree worthy of the fostering care of your Excellency, and the National Government.

I am
Honored Sir,
Yours Resp"
John Francis.

To his Excellency the Governor of Ky,

New York
Com^r Deeds
John Francis
appt^d14^th Feby 1865