To George Washington from Ephraim Blaine, 18 May 1780
From Ephraim Blaine
Morris Town 18th May 1780
Please Your Excellency,
One Hundred and forty barrels of the salt Provisions mentioned in my last return has been delivered at the Magazine the residue I look for daily which is all I have any expectations of,1 and when that is used, the supplies of meat will depend on Colo. Champion I gave him very pointed instructions in February last and has wrote him Frequently since, to arrange Matters in such a manner as wou’d afford us an Ample supply of meat from the 10th of this month till the middle of July2 and furnished him with the principl⟨e⟩ part of what money I obtain’d from Congress for that purpose3—I have had no late information from him of his success or what number of Cattle he can forward this and the next month.4 (but hope they will be considerable) every means in my power shall be adopted to Keep up the supplies of meat but doubt its Imposible; shou’d Colo. Champion fail of my expectations, I shall try to procure some beef Cattle below Philadelphia, which shall be forwarded with all posible dispatch,5 remain with due respect, Your Excellencies Most Obdt and Most Hble Servant
Eph. Blaine C.G.P.
N.B. Colo. Stewart and Mr Dunham will give you the necessary information respecting supplies in my Absence.6
ALS, DLC:GW; LB, DLC: Ephraim Blaine Letterbook.
1. This return has not been identified, but see Charles Stewart and Blaine to GW, 9 May, postscript. Blaine had advised GW to expect close to 3,000 barrels of salt provisions at headquarters (Blaine to GW, 10 April, postscript). For Blaine’s continued efforts to obtain salt provisions, see his letter to GW of 21 May; see also Board of War to GW, 22 May, and n.2 to that document.
2. Blaine’s instructions of February 1780 to Henry Champion, Sr., deputy commissary general of purchases, have not been identified. In April, Champion had been appointed commissary to superintend provision purchases in Connecticut (see , 2:531). In a letter to Champion dated 10 May, Blaine had warned that “all the provisions in the Vicinity of Camp is consumed” and urged his assistant to “use every possible exertion to keep us supply’d else the Army must Starve, we can have no Supply in the middle State til grass Beef is fit for use, I hope you have obtain’d all the Mony upon those Orders sent you & that you have had it in your power to procure a large number of Cattle, such a Number of the Militia being call’d out in Actual service in the Southern States will deprive us from receiving any supply of Salt pork” (DLC: Ephraim Blaine Letterbook; see also Champion to GW, 18 April, and n.1 to that document).
3. On 20 Jan., Congress ordered a warrant for $3 million to be issued “in favor of Jeremiah Wadsworth,” whom Blaine replaced as commissary general of purchases, “to be by him transmitted to Henry Champion, Deputy Commissary General of purchases for the purpose of discharging sundry contracts for beef” (, 16:75).
4. Despite procurement concerns and warnings of continued delays, Champion secured some meat for the army (see his letters to GW of 25 May and 2 June, and GW to Samuel Huntington, 27–28 May).
5. For Blaine’s successful efforts to purchase cattle in Pennsylvania, see his letter to GW of 21 May, and n.1 to that document.
6. See Charles Stewart to GW, 1 June, and Azariah Dunham to GW, 6 June; see also GW to Champion, 26 May, and n.2 to that document; and State of Matters Laid Before the Committee at Headquarters, c.25–31 May, and n.7.