To George Washington from Henry Lee, Jr., 22 May 1799
From Henry Lee, Jr.
Alexa[andria] 22d may [1799]
dear General
I have waited here two weeks cheifly to try to finish my engagement with you—But all my endeavors are vain—I shall never recede from my exertions till I do accomplish the end, for no event of my life has given me more anguish.
I would if you consider yr sale injurious rather relinquish the contract & give up the payments made, than to be the instrument of damage to you—The loss of money I am used to, the loss of mental quietude I cannot bear, & pained as I am, I wish to regain tranquility.
Every conversation I hold with you on the subject furnishes additional matter of regret to me—Till then I can close the contract I must avoid their repetition—this I am sure notwithstanding the present & general distress, I shall be able to do in the Course of the summer.1
In June I return here for that purpose.
Respecting the military appointment which you did me the honor to consult me upon I have not been able to do any thing satisfactory.
I beleive Byrd, Baytop and Campbell (the two last are Majors in the ten Regts) will best fill the commissions of Colonels. Thos Turner & Archd Randolph are well calculated for the cavalry & ought to command troops. Aylette Lee would make an excellent Captain if reformed; rejected as he was by the senate he had become melancholy & melancholy brought him to the bottle—I beleive he may be considered as restored now.2
I mentioned to Captain Thornton the report which reached yr ears with a hope of arresting his progress in a course which must lead to his ruin—His respect for you will I hope ⟨illegible⟩ the tendency which has been attached to his character by rumour.3 with the highest respect & regard I remain yr sincere friend & ob. st
H. Lee
ALS, DLC:GW.
1. The “conversation” was held when Lee was at Mount Vernon on 9 May; its subject was Lee’s inability to make his payments on the Dismal Swamp land that he had bought from GW (, 6:346; see also Lee to GW, 28 Feb. 1799, n.2).
2. Byrd is probably Col. Francis Otway Byrd (1756–1800), collector of the port of Norfolk who had been a lieutenant colonel of dragoons during the Revolution. In the list of Virginia officers that James McHenry sent to GW on 21 May, James Baytop of Gloucester County is listed as a major in the 7th and William Campbell as a major in the 8th Infantry Regiment. For reference to the appointment for Thomas Turner, see GW to Bushrod Washington, 5 May 1799, n.1. For Archibald C. Randolph, see GW to James McHenry, 7 April (second letter), 23 April, and to Daniel Morgan, 10 April. Lee wrote GW from Richmond on 11 July to make another recommendation: “Mr Wm Randolph [born c.1769] of Cumberland son to the late Colo. Thomas M[ann] Randolph & son in law to the late governor [Beverley] Randolph [1754–1797] is desirous of being accepted as Captain of Cavalry in the eventual army. His capacity to discharge the dutys of that office I beleive will be universally acknowledged his attachment to govt has been manifested on every occasion which has presented an opportunity & especially in the late elections, & his personal courage is indubitable” (DLC:GW). Capt. William Aylett Lee was the son of Thomas Ludwell Lee and Mary Aylett Lee. Lee did not receive an appointment at this time. For Lee’s court-martial several years earlier, see GW to Henry Knox, 14 July 1794 (DLC:GW).
3. When writing on 12 Aug. 1799 to Presly Thornton, whom at GW’s request Charles Cotesworth Pinckney had made an aide-de-camp, GW betrays no awareness of Thornton’s having problems.