From George Washington to Colonel Stephen Moylan, 20 June 1780
To Colonel Stephen Moylan
Head Quarters Springfield June 20th 1780
Dear Sir
I have received your favor of the 18th.1 Should the whole of your regiment have left Kings ferry you will be pleased to order back a Commissioned Officer & Six Men, with directions to the Officer to remain on this side, and dispatch a Dragoon every morning with a written report of any appearances upon the Water. Should any Vessels heave in sight, he will endeavour to ascertain their number and size—He will come on himself with the last man.
If the whole regiment should not have come on,2 you may send these orders to the Officer in the rear. I am Dr Sir yr Most Obet hum. Ser.
G.W.
Df, in Richard Kidder Meade’s writing, DLC:GW; Varick transcript, DLC:GW. The draft is addressed to Moylan “or the Officer commanding the Regiment.”
1. On 18 June, Moylan wrote GW from West Point: “Captain Craig is come on with 38 horse and only waits for cloathing, of which the men are very destitute, to proceed to Head qrs I expect the cloths down from Newboro [Newburgh] this evening.
“the remainder of the Regiment are Comeing on and hope they will be at Kings ferry or its vicinity the day after tomorrow, if the enemy do not prevent us, I will move on with them with all possible dispatch, Shoud we be interupted in this quarter, I will march them over by way of Fish Kill” (ALS, DLC:GW). For GW’s orders to have Moylan’s cavalry regiment join the main army, see his letter to Robert Howe of 10 June.
2. Meade inadvertently wrote “one.”