Early Governors' Papers

Department of War October 24^th 1825

Sir,

One of the members of the Board of Internal Improvement, M^r. David Shriner, having resigned and the other member General Bernard being required to attend personally at the seat of Government to objects connected with Internal Improvements which will necessarily detain him here for several months and which are considered of paramount national importance, the employment of the Board of Internal Improvement in the examnation of the Westernmost route con-templated for the National Road proposed to be established between this place and New Orleans, which you were informed by the letter of this Department of the 28th of February last, would be undertaken by the Board after the other two routes should have been examined, has become impracticable.

To fulfil [sic] the expectation of Congress and to satisfy the solicitude which pevails throughout the Country and particularly in those sections through which the westernmost route will pass, the Department has de-termined to resort to the best means available of having that route examined without delay and accordingly has