To George Washington from William Ramsay, 12 September 1758
From William Ramsay
Rays Town Camp Septr 12th 1758
Dear Sir
The General I beleive yet at Loudoun very ill & Weak, some say worse than ever, tho. Capt. Cameron who kindly call’d just now to say how do you, says, he is expected tomorrow. This Gentn with the rest, has the highest Idea of your kind entertainment & manner of living.1
I am affraid provissions cannot be well spar’d from this place at this junture. It is not in my power to get Waggons here, I must request, you will be kind enough to furnish Mr Hite with a small Escort for two Waggons, I have order’d him to send immediatly on your granting my request[.] What I have to send is Wine, Shrub, Lo. Sugr, Vinegar, Candles &c. &c. It is not from any advantage from the sale of Wine, but that you may be better supply’d & to give content.2 The Enemy has scalp’d one Highlander & Captivated one Virginian & one Shamokin, about five Miles from Lowal Hannan3 Major Grant with 1000 Virgs. Highlanders and Royal Americans are gon to Fort Du Quesne. Sr John is gon to Philadelphia to engage 150 Waggons, some say he does not return[.] I wish you health, & evry happiness we in reason ought to desire & am Dear Sir Your Afft. H. Servt
Wm Ramsay
ALS, DLC:GW.
1. The Pennsylvania chaplain Andrew Bey wrote in his diary on Monday, 11 Sept.: “Having spent Thursday, Friday and Saturday very agreeably at this place [GW’s camp near Fort Cumberland], I preached at 7 o’clock on Sunday morning by desire of Colo. Washington, from Nehemiah 4:14, and about 9 o’clock set out for Raystown with my worthy friend Capt. [Allan] Cameron, where we arrived about 7 that evening” (, 1:224). Cameron commanded one of the three Additional Companies of Lt. Col. Archibald Montgomery’s 1st Highland Battalion (77th Regiment of Foot). See GW to John Stanwix, 10 April 1758, n.3.
2. William Ramsay, who since October 1757 had a contract to supply the Virginia troops in Frederick and Hampshire counties with provisions (see Ramsay to GW, 3 Sept. 1757, n.1), had employed John Hite and a man named Hayton to assist him at Winchester. See Ramsay to GW, 17 Oct. 1758.
3. These were two separate incidents, reported to Forbes by Bouquet on 11 Sept. (Stevens, , 2:492–95).