On March 29, 1858, Longstreet wrote to the adjutant general's office in Washington, D.C. requesting that he be assigned to recruiting duty in the East, which would allow him to better educate his children. He was granted a six-month leave, but the request for assignment in the East was denied, and he was instead directed to serve as major and paymaster for the 8th Infantry in Leavenworth, Kansas. He left his son Garland in a school at Yonkers, New York, before journeying to Kansas. On the way, Longstreet came across his old friend Grant in St. Louis, Missouri. Grant was very poor, but nonetheless asked that Longstreet accept a five-dollar gold piece that he had borrowed at West Point. Longstreet initially refused, but Grant insisted and got him to take it. Longstreet's time in Leavenworth lasted about a year until he was transferred to Colonel Garland's department in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to serve as paymaster, where he was joined by Louise and their children.