 In July 1864, Colorado governor John Evans sent a circular to the Plains Indians, inviting those who were friendly to go to a place of safety at Fort Lyon (near present Lamar, Colorado) on the eastern plains, where their people would be given provisions and protection by the United States troops.A substantial number of the Indians desired peace, while the Dog Soldiers pursued war.On August 29, 1864, the two mixed-blood Cheyennes, George Bent and Edmund Guerrier, wrote letters on behalf of "Black Kettle and Other Chiefs" offering to make peace and return seven white prisoners in exchange for Indian prisoners held by the whites.