The Booker T. Washington Papers, Vol.10, page 131, June 1909, U. of Illinois Press

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JUNE · 1909 is that of the consolidation of the offices. It seems that there are three land offices in Louisiana. The work has been so reduced that the Secretary says according to the law he is compelled to arrange to have only one office. Since there are no public lands near New Orleans he says the proper thing to do is to locate one office at either Laco~que2—I am not sure what the name is or Alexandria. As to just who the officials will be has not been determined, but I have impressed upon him and the President the importance of having you kept somewhere in the service and they seemed to be impressed with this view of the case. I have tried to get them to see the importance of locating the office at New Orleans and in this am not sure that ~ have succeeded as they are not sure that they can under the law properly do so. The point that was holding up your case at the time I wrote you before I think I have gotten rid of. There is no need of my mentioning it in this letter, but I will tell you about it when I see you, but I do not think this point need trouble you. I think everything is straightened out except the matter of turning the three offices into one and the decision as to just who will occupy the positions in this office. Of course, that involves a matter of much importance to you. I told them I did not know whether you would feel like going to either one of the two points, but that would have to be a matter which you yourself could determine when the point is finally reached. My own feeling is that they are not going to make any move in the direction of consolidation or change within the near future. I think they are going to delay it just as long as possible. In the meantime I advise that at any time you are going North before the President leaves on his vacation that you drop in and talk with him. There is nothing like keeping in close touch with him and presenting your own side of the case. You can do it better than anybody else. A personal talk is worth a good many letters. Yours very truly, Booker T. Washington] TLc Con. 44 BTW Papers DLC. Richard Achilles Ballinger (1858-1922), Secretary of the Interior from og to . 2No such name could be found. The two places considered for the land office were Natchitoches and Alexandria. (See BTW to Taft, June 18, og, below.) 131