Congress on this head & at this time that we may at no future time be at a loss when such a measure shall be rendered necessary.

TO BRIGADIER-GENERAL EDWARD STEVENS.

J. MSS.

RICHMOND Sept 15th 1780

SIR, I beg leave to trouble you with a private letter on a little matter of my own, having no acquaintance at Camp with whom I can take that Liberty. Among the Waggons impressed for the use of your Militia were two of mine. One of these I know is safe having been on its way from hence to Hillsborough at the time of the late Engagement. The other I have reason to believe was on the field. A Waggon Master who says he was near her, informs me the Brigade quarter Master cut out one of my best Horses, & made his Escape on him, and that he saw my Waggoner loosening his own Horse to Come off, but the Enemy's Horse were then Coming up & he knows nothing further. He was a Negro man named Phill lame in one Arm and Legg. If you will do me the favor to enquire what is become of him, what Horses are saved, and to send them to me, I shall be much obliged to you. The Horses &c., were not public property, as they were only impressed & not sold. Perhaps your Certificate of what is lost may be necessary for me. The Waggon Master told me that the publick money was in my waggon, a Circumstance which perhaps may aid your enquiries.

to come.

TO GENERAL WASHINGTON.

W. MSS. RICHMOND Sepr. 23. 1780.

SIR,-I yesterday forwarded a letter to you from Colo. Wood informing you of his situation. That Post has for some time past been pretty regularly supplied, and I hope will continue to be for some time A Person whose punctuality can be relied on offers to contract for victualling it. If we can agree on terms, and the Assembly will strengthen our Hands sufficiently, we think to adopt that method, as the only one to be relied on with certainty. I have heard it hinted that Colo. Wood thinks of quitting that Post; I should be exceedingly sorry indeed were he to do it he has given those under his charge the most perfect satisfaction, and at the same time used all the cautions which the nature of his charge has required. It is principally owing to his prudence and good temper that the late difficulties have been passed over almost without a murmur. Any influence which your Excellency shall think proper to use for retaining him in his present situation will promote the public Good, and have great tendency to keep up a desirable harmony with the Officers of that Corps. Our new Levies are rendezvousing very generally. Colo. Harrison was uneasy at having none of them assigned to his Corps of Artillery, who have very much distinguished themselves in the late unfortunate action, and are reduced almost to nothing. We happened to have about 400 draughts raised in the last Year and never called out and sent on duty by their County Lieutenants whom we have collected and are collect

ing. We think to deliver these to Colo. Harrison; They are to serve 18 months from the time of rendezvous. The numbers of Regulars and Militia ordered from this State into the Southern service are about 7000. I trust we may count that 5500 will actually proceed; but we have arms for three thousand only. If therefore we do not speedily receive a supply from Congress we must countermand a proper number of these Troops. Besides this supply there should certainly be a magazine laid in here to provide against a general loss as well as daily waste. When we deliver out those now in our magazine we shall have sent 7000 stand of our own into the Southern Service in the course of this Summer: We are still more destitute of Clothing, Tents and Waggons for our Troops. The Southern Army suffers for Provision which we could plentifully supply were it possible to find means of transportation: despairing of this we directed very considerable quantities collected on the navigable waters to be sent Northwardly by the Quarter Master; this he is now doing, slowly however. Unapprised of what may be proposed by our Allies to be done with our Fleet in the course of the ensuing Winter, I would beg leave to intimate to you that if it should appear eligible to them that it should winter in the Chesapeake they may be well supplied with Provision, taking their necessary measures in due time before hand. The waters communicating with that Bay furnish easy (and in that case) safe Transportation, and their Money will call forth what is denied to ours.

I am with all possible esteem & respect your Excellency's most obedt. & most humble servt.

TO GENERAL WASHINGTON.

W. MSS.

RICHMOND September 26. 1780.

SIR,-The enclosed Copy of a letter from Ld. Cornwallis to Colo. Balfour was sent me by Govr. Rutledge: lest you should not have seen it I do myself the pleasure of transmitting it, with a letter from Genl. Harrington to Genl. Gates giving information of some late movements of the Enemy.

I was honored yesterday with your favor of the 5th inst. on the subject of Prisoners and particularly Lt. Govr. Hamilton. You are not unapprised of the influence of this Officer with the Indians, his activity, and embittered Zeal against us; You also perhaps know how precarious is our tenure of the Illinois Country, and how critical is the situation of the new Counties on the Ohio. These circumstances determined us to detain Govr. Hamilton & Majr Hay within our Power, when we delivered up the other Prisoners. On a late representation from the People of Kentuckey by a person sent here from that County, & expressions of what they had reason to apprehend from these two Prisoners in the event of their liberation; we assured them they would not be parted with, tho we were giving up our other Prisoners. Lt. Colo Dubuysson aid to Baron de Kalb lately came here on his parole with an offer from Ld Rawdon to exchange him for Hamilton. Colo Towles is now here with a

like proposition as to himself from Genl. Phillips, very strongly urged by the Genl. These and other overtures do not lessen our opinion of the importance of retaining him; and they have been and will uniformly be rejected. Should the settlement indeed of a Cartel become impracticable without the consent of the States to submit their seperate Prisoners to its obligation, we will give up these two Prisoners, as we would anything rather than be an obstacle to a general good; But no other circumstances would I be lieve extract them from us. These two gentlemen with a Lt Colo Elligood are the only seperate Prisoners we have retained, & the last only only on his own request, & not because we set any store by him. There is indeed a Lt Governor Rocheblawe of Kaskaskie who has broken his parole & gone to N. York, whom we must shortly trouble your Excellency to demand for us as soon as we can forward to you the proper documents. Since the forty Prisoners sent to Winchester as mentioned in my letter of the 9th ult. about 150 more have been sent thither, some of them taken by us at sea, others sent on by Genl Gates.

The exposed and weak state of our western settlements and the danger to which they are subject from the Northern Indians acting under the influence of the British Post at Detroit, render it necessary for us to keep from five to eight hundred men on duty for their defence. This is a great and perpetual expense: Could that post be reduced and retained it would cover all the States to the South-East of it. We