Friday 3d. Thermometer at [ ] in the Morning—[ ] at Noon and [ ] at Night.
The Snow which fell yesterday & last night covered the ground at least a foot deep and continuing snowing a little all day, & blowing hard from the No. West. We were obliged tho’ we assembled at the huts again to relinquish all hopes of levelling & Surveying the ground this trip; & therefore resolved on the Rout for the Canal from the best view we could take, & information get; and after doing some other business, as a board—particularly resolving to advertize a Contract for the Supply of our labourers with provisions, we broke up the Meeting; and I again returned (first dining at the Hutts) with Colo. Fitzgerald to Towlston, in a very severe evening.
The provisions per man per day were advertised as consisting of 1½ pounds of fresh meat, or 1¼ pounds of salt beef, or 1 pound of salt pork, plus 1½ pounds of flour or bread and “3 gills of good spirituous liquor, per day; also, 1 gill of salt and 1 of vinegar per week, to each ration” (Va. Journal, 23 Mar. 1786).