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Notwithstanding the recent and oft-repeated refusals of the Cherokees to part with more land, a new commission, consisting of Return J. Meigs and Daniel Smith, was appointed and instructed139 by the Secretary of War to negotiate a treaty for the cession of lands in Kentucky, Tennessee, or Georgia, and particularly of the tract near the Currahee Mountain, including the Wafford settlement.

They were authorized to pay for the first cession a sum not exceeding $14,000, coupled with an annuity of $3,000, and for the "Wafford tract" not exceeding $5,000, together with an annuity of $1,000, and were directed to give "Vann," a Cherokee chief, $200 or $300 to secure his influence in favor of the proposed purchase.

Purchase of Wafford settlement tract.—In pursuance of these instructions a conference was held with the Cherokees at Tellico, Tenn.,140 at which they concluded the arrangements for the cession of the Wafford tract, but failed in their further objects. The treaty was signed on the 24th of October, and transmitted to the Secretary of War a week later,141 two persons having been appointed to designate and run the lines of the ceded tract, which was found to be 23 miles and 64 chains in length and 4 miles in width.142

Singular disappearance of treaty.—No action having been taken looking toward the ratification of this treaty for several years ensuing, Return J. Meigs, in the winter of 1811,143 addressed a letter to the Secretary of War calling attention to it, setting forth the fact that its consideration had theretofore been postponed on account of a misunderstanding in relation to the limits of the ceded tract, but that the Cherokees had now of their own motion, and at their own expense, had a survey made of 10 miles and 12 chains in length in addition to the original survey, which would make the tract ceded 33 miles and 76 chains in length, and which would include the plantation of every settler who could make the shadow of a claim to settlement prior to the survey of the general boundary line run in 1797144 by Colonel Hawkins. He therefore concluded that there could be no reason for further postponing the ratification of the treaty, and urged that it be done without delay.

Notwithstanding this letter of Agent Meigs no further notice seems to have been taken of the treaty, and it had been entirely lost sight of until attention was again called to it by a Cherokee delegation visiting Washington early in 1824, nearly twenty years after its conclusion.145

After diligent search among the records of the War Department, Secretary Calhoun reported146 that no such treaty could be found and no evidence that any such treaty had ever been concluded. Whereupon the Cherokee delegation produced their duplicate copy of the treaty together with other papers relating to it. The Secretary of War, after receiving a reply147 to a letter addressed by him to Colonel McKee, of the House of Representatives (who was one of the subscribing witnesses to the treaty), became satisfied of its authenticity, and the President thereupon148 transmitted the Cherokee duplicate to the Senate, which body advised and consented to its ratification. It was duly proclaimed by the President on the 17th of May, 1824.149