John Alsop, John Jay, George Clinton, and Lewis Morris to Walter Livingston, 17 April 1776

John Alsop, John Jay, George Clinton, and Lewis Morris to Walter Livingston

Philadelphia 17th Apl. 1776

Sir

We received your Favour of the 8th Inst.—1 The Office of Commissary is extreamly embarrassed—The Commissary Genal. (who it was expected woud have continued in the Eastern Department) is now (by the Removal of the Army from Bo[s]ton) in NewYork—2 tho it was originally intended (as we understood) that you as Deputy Commissary General shoud have the sole Managemt. of that Office in the Northern Department—The Provincial Congress of NewYork by the Directions of this Congress entered into a Contract with Mr. Abm Livingston to supply the Army stationed at NewYork with Provissions at the Price you mention per Ration—3 When the Pensylvania Batallions were raised (Part of which are now at NewYork) a certain Mr. Wharton4 was appointed by Congress Commissary for those Levies who contracted to supply them at the Rate of 7d. Pensylvania Currency pr. Ration; which you will perceive interferes with Mr. Abraham Livingston’s Contract; But it is probable Mr. Wharton who was lately at NewYork & is returned here will relinquish his Contract—The Congress have lately appointed Mr. Price5 Commissary for the Troops in Canada but have not made any particular Contract with him for furnishing the Provissions for that Part of the Army—He is to consult General Schuyler as to the Mode of supplying those Troops and is to be furnished With Money by Congress for that Purpose; Flour & Bread he expects to procure in Canada; but no other Part of the Provissions.

These being the Facts we have but little if any Prospect of procuring any Contract or Appointment for you that we think may be worth your accepting—It is not thought that any of the above Contracts interfere with your Office of Deputy Commissary General which it is likely will continue to be a necessary Office in Albany—Perhaps on Mr. Price’s consulting with Genl. Schuyler on the most proper Method of suppling the Army in Canada something may turn up worth your Attention; shoud this be the Case be assured we will not forget you as we consider you as having served the Public in your present Office without an adequate Compensation; for your extraordinary Trouble—We are your Most Obedt. Servts.

John Alsop	Lewis Morris
John Jay	Walter Livingston Esqr.
Geo. Clinton

LS, NHi: Misc. Mss. (Livingston) (EJ: 649). Addressed: “To/Walter Livingston Esqr.” Body of the letter in the hand of George Clinton, who rejoined the New York delegation in Congress in early April 1776 after an absence of eight months.

1. Letter not located.

2. Closing parenthesis omitted in manuscript. Joseph Trumbull (1738–78) of Connecticut was named Continental commissary general on 19 July 1775. After the British evacuation of Boston, Washington began to dispatch troops to New York and arrived in the city himself on 13 Apr. 1776.

3. As troops from various provinces converged in New York, jurisdictional conflicts arose among the commissaries and contractors appointed by the Continental Congress and the various states to supply their troops. Such disputes continued even after Congress resolved in July 1776 that the commissary general had full power to supply the armies in New York and in the Northern Department and to employ and dismiss such persons as he deemed expedient. Walter Livingston, whom Congress had appointed commissary for the Northern Department on 17 July 1775, had made his cousin Abraham Livingston (1754–82) his assistant.

On 17 Feb. 1776 the Continental Congress advanced New York $35,000 to supply the troops ordered to defend the colony and directed the provincial congress to make contracts for provisioning these soldiers. On 14 Mar. 1776 the New York Congress accepted Abraham Livingston’s proposals for supplying Continental troops in New York. The Continental Congress confirmed the contract on 6 Apr. However, after Livingston experienced many difficulties implementing his contract and voluntarily resigned it early in May, he received a vote of thanks from Congress on 10 May. Walter Livingston resigned as deputy by September 1776, but subsequently served as a military contractor. LDC description begins Paul H. Smith et al., eds., Letters of Delegates to the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 (26 vols.; Washington, D.C., 1976–98) description ends , 3: 423, 653; JCC description begins Worthington C. Ford et al., eds., Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 (34 vols.; Washington, D.C., 1904–37) description ends , 4: 159–60, 260, 338, 346; JPC description begins Journals of the Provincial Congress, Provincial Convention, Committee of Safety and Council of Safety of the State of New-York (2 vols.; Albany, N.Y., 1842) description ends , 1: 360; Risch, Supplying Washington’s Army description begins Erna Risch, Supplying Washington’s Army (Washington, D.C., 1981) description ends , 159–65.

4. Carpenter Wharton (1747–80) contracted to supply the battalion raised in Pennsylvania in 1775. The Continental Congress confirmed his responsibility for provisioning Pennsylvania units in January and March 1776, when these troops were sent to New York. Wharton, whom Trumbull later named a deputy commissary, was accused in 1777 of having purchased goods at excessively high prices so as to collect a larger commission, investigated, and removed from office. In 1778 he was attainted for treason after going over to the British in Philadelphia. JCC description begins Worthington C. Ford et al., eds., Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 (34 vols.; Washington, D.C., 1904–37) description ends , 3: 419; 4: 87, 210; 8: 499–501; Risch, Supplying Washington’s Army description begins Erna Risch, Supplying Washington’s Army (Washington, D.C., 1981) description ends , 167–68, 430; Pennsylvania Packet, 17 June 1778.

5. James Price (b. 1740), a Montreal merchant who had aided American forces in Canada, was appointed deputy commissary on 29 Mar. 1776. JCC description begins Worthington C. Ford et al., eds., Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 (34 vols.; Washington, D.C., 1904–37) description ends , 4: 240–41.

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Source Project: Jay Papers
Title: John Alsop, John Jay, George Clinton, and Lewis Morris to Walter Livingston, 17 April 1776
Authors: Alsop, John
Jay, John
Clinton, George
Morris, Lewis
Recipient: Livingston, Walter
Date: 17 April 1776

Reference

Cite as: “John Alsop, John Jay, George Clinton, and Lewis Morris to Walter Livingston, 17 April 1776,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jay/01-01-02-0138. [Original source: The Selected Papers of John Jay, vol. 1, 1760–1779, ed. Elizabeth M. Nuxoll. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2010, pp. 231–233.]