Benteen concluded that Custer had abandoned Elliot and wrote to a friend criticizing the senior officer over this. The letter was passed to the "St. Louis Democrat" newspaper and published without Benteen's permission or name. On its publication Custer called the officers together and threatened to 'horsewhip' the author. Without revealing that the letter had been published without his knowledge or permission, Benteen admitted authorship, albeit with a hand on his pistol. Custer did not attempt a whipping but dismissed the matter with a curt "Mister Benteen, I will see you later".