To George Washington from Brigadier General Jedediah Huntington, 17 April 1780
From Brigadier General Jedediah Huntington
Springfield [N.J.] 17 April 1780
Dear Sir,
The Connecticut Line becomes weaker every Day by the three Years Men leaving us, besides two hundred unfit for Duty for Want of Shoes & Shirts—the Duty is at present as hard as in the most active Parts of a Campaign—I shall be obliged to diminish the Guards & consequently to attend more to their security and less to the other Objects of the Command—indeed, as to the Intercourse & Trafic with the Enemy, the Coast is so extensive & the Places of Access so many, we cannot be, in any Disposition, but a feeble Barrier.1
I do not learn that the Enemy have any serious thoughts of an Entreprize this way, but should they come with a Number much inferior to ours and act with Vigour, we could not possibly collect ourselves in season to give effectual Opposition—in such a Case the Country finding themselves defenceless will be very ready to load us with Reproaches, with military Men, our situation would in some Measure apologize.
For some Reasons, it would be agreeable to this Line to be relieved, if the service admits of it—We are not, however, uneasy. I remain, Your Excellencys very affectionate & hble servant
J. Huntington2
half after two, P.M. Capt. Betts, on Command at Newark, has just informd me that the Enemy have returned from Paramus to N. York, that they have burnt two Houses belonging to the Hoppers and plundered considerably.3
J.H.
ALS, DLC:GW.
GW’s aide-de-camp Tench Tilghman replied to Huntington from Morristown on 18 April: “His Excellency being obliged to ride out this morning, I do myself the honour of acknowledging yours of the 17th—There are shoes in the Cloathier Generals store and your sub Cloathier may have the quantity wanted for the line upon application. There are shirts also, but of so inferior a quality that your sub Cloathier refused to take any of them—such as they are, you can have them if you chuse.
“His Excellency, for reasons which he will give you the first time he has the pleasure of seeing you, wishes your troops to remain below in preference to any others” (DLC:GW).
1. For Huntington’s command, see GW to Johann Kalb, 2 April, and n.2 to that document.
2. Beneath his signature, Huntington wrote: “Please to turn to the other Side.” Following Huntington’s direction reveals the letter’s postscript.
3. For this British incursion into Bergen County, N.J., see Jonathan Hallett to GW, 16 April, and n.1 to that document.