To James Madison from Jacob Lewis, [ca. 15–31 May 1813]
From Jacob Lewis
[ca. 15–31 May 1813]
Sir
A sense of duty prompts me to take the liberty of giving you direct the following Information, the British fleet are before this port four in number, Consisting of one two decker and three Frigates, on the 14th. they were about two leagues from Montauge point,
The situation of this port is such, that no resistan⟨ce⟩ Could be made even against so a small force, only 28 Gun boats are in Commission—the rest perishing, not a fire ship in readiness,
A Copy of a letter received from Governor Tompkins has been transmited to the Secretary of the Navy. It ought to meet your Eye, the Substance of the same would apply to this City and its environs, a plan of defence has been Transmited which if adopted would tranquillise The inhabitants of this City,1 they all have approved of it, with the highest Consideration & Respt I have the honor to subscribe myself yr. Obt. Humbe. St
J Lewis
RC (DLC). Docketed by Edward Coles. Undated; dated 1814 in the Index to the James Madison Papers; conjectural date assigned here based on internal evidence and evidence in n. 1.
1. Lewis may have referred to a proposal from the New York Common Council to provide crews for an additional fifteen gunboats to defend the city from an anticipated British attack, along with the fifteen that William Jones had authorized Lewis to man at the Navy Department’s expense. On 8 May 1813, the Council requested that Nicholas Fish, chairman of the city’s Committee of Defence, write Jones to make the offer. Jones replied to Fish on 15 May, agreeing to the plan (Peterson, Minutes of the Common Council of the City of New York, 7:454–55; Jones to Fish, 15 May 1813, DNA: RG 45, Misc. Letters Sent; Dudley, Naval War of 1812, 2:106–8).