From James Madison to John Armstrong, 27 July 1814
To John Armstrong
July 27 [1814]
It does not appear that Izard, tho’ the Senior officer of the District has been made acquainted with the plan of operations under Brown, or that any correspondence exists between those officers. It would certainly be advantageous that each should be apprized of the instructions and views of the other; as well as of the movements & forces of the Enemy, and of all material occurrences within their respective spheres. Information of this sort would aid each commander in interpreting the movements & purposes of his immediate adversary; and produce a tacit concert & co-operation, with the other Commander; the more necessary as the separate Corps of the Enemy are kept in a harmony of operations, by an acting Commander superintending the whole. A mutual understanding between Commanders on Lake Champlain, and at the head of L. Ontario, through Washington alone, would often lose its effect from delay.
These remarks are more or less applicable to all separated commands, having a relation to or influence on each other.
A Cypher in the hands of distant Commanders would be useful, on certain occasions, as giving security to confidential communications, as well among themselves, as with the Government. In that case also, copies might be safely sent with a view to miscarriages.1
RC (PHi: Daniel Parker Papers); draft (DLC); Tr (DLC, series 3). Year assigned based on draft dated “July 27. 1814.” Addressee not indicated; determined based on evidence in n. 1. Minor differences between the copies have not been noted.
1. Filed with the draft is Armstrong’s note: “Generals Izard & Gaines were both fully apprised of Gen. Brown’s movements—the former by my letter of the 10th. of June.” Following this JM placed an asterisk and wrote below it: “*The letters giving this information to I. & G. not communicated to J.M. in one instance & not sent in another: It remains that no instruction to correspond among themselves, appears to have been given or presumed.” At the head of the note, probably at a later date, he wrote: “Note on the above from the Secretary of War.” Tr includes nearly identical notes.