To George Washington from Henry Champion, Sr., 18 April 1780
From Henry Champion, Sr.
Hartford April 18th 1780
May it please your Excellency
yours of the 12th Instant is Just rcd & the Contents Observed, In answer, I started a Drove of 107 head fat Cattle about the last of March, with orders to the drover to leave 25 only at Fish-Kill & drive the rest to Morris, as I feared the Main army were in the greatest distress, & were at a greater distance from other relief than those Posts on, & near North-river, however I this day rcd a letter from Genl How Enforming that he notwithstanding stop’t 40 head,1 which was & is still out of my power to prevent, I suppose the other part of the Drove have arrived at Head-Quarters, I have Since Started none, neither Could I, for I have been Intirely destitute of Cash, & Cannot purchase without, I this hour laid your letter before the Govr & Council & house of Representitives & they have ordered me £40,000 out of our treasury,2 I shall Immediately forward all I Can procure with paying part & geting some Credit &c in Case none are stopt at the Posts on the River, likely 80 head will reach Morris, & I design to Exert my self to the utmost to Send a drove off in four or five days after if possible, but fear I shall be able to send but few without Cash, hope I shall be furnish’d in a month or less, however its uncertain—one thing I know, that in Case I had Cash, & no public barr thrown in my way, I Could Soon furnish any Quantity Called for, but I fear Cash will fail, will it not be best fo⟨r⟩ your Excellency to order that no more be stop’t at North River, or no More than their proportion, as my orders to the Drover are not regarded by the Commanding Officers at Posts. I am Your Excellencys Most Obedt H: sert
Henry Champion D.C.G. Ps.
ALS, DLC:GW.
1. Maj. Gen. Robert Howe’s letter to Champion has not been identified, but Champion wrote GW from Colchester, Conn., on 24 April: “I send to Morris Town by Capt. Mather another small drove in case they are not stopt before they arrive at that place hope to be able to send forty or fifty head more next week in case I can obtain a little but unless I can have a supply of cash at least to pay up the main of my old debts I fear I shall be able to supply with but few ’til June however will do ev’ry thing in my power, I wrote in my answer to Yours of the 12th Instt that I had just receiv’d a Letter from Genl Howe informing me that instead of twenty-five head which I ordered the Drover to leave at Fish kill he had stopt forty head but my Drover has now return’d and I find by him and his Rects that Genl Howe had then actually stopt contrary to the Drovers orders from me and his the drovers earnest request seventy head and treated him tho’ a very honest ingenuous and faithful young man very unbecoming a Soldier or Gentleman calling him a damn’d villain and surprising him in a fearfull manner and detained him with the small part he finally was allow’d to drive on which was but thirty-five in the whole two days and two nights and nothing to feed the cattle but the woods and demanded him to deliver up the Letters he had receiv’d from the Issuing Comys by his Sd Genl Howe’s orders and refused to redeliver them when repeatedly requested by which means the young man is deprived the advantage of them and was obliged to go off with only a copy of a sentence in his orders which had not reach’d him seasonably poor encouragement for faithful young men however I wish nothing at present but to have such discouragements prevented in future and that the young man may have his Letters returned to him again” (LS, DLC:GW). Champion presumably sent cattle with Lt. Elias Mather, quartermaster for the 6th Connecticut Regiment, who recently had been on furlough. GW replied to Champion on 4 May; see also GW to Howe, 28 April.
2. For this Connecticut legislative action, see Royal Flint to GW, 10 March, n.3.