To George Washington from Major General Johann Kalb, 23 December 1777
From Major General Johann Kalb
23th Xber 1777
Colonel Wesons & Lt Col. Badlem of Col. Bailey regt made appear to me the necessity of their going home to provide cloathing and other necessarys for their respective Corps They desire His Excellency General Washington will grant them furloughs for that purpose.1
Baron de Kalb
ALS, DLC:GW. The letter is docketed in part “Cols. Wesson & Badlam Furloughs to 15 March next.”
1. Ezra Badlam (1746–1788), who had served as a lieutenant in the Lexington Alarm in April 1775 and as a captain in Richard Gridley’s Massachusetts artillery regiment from June to December 1775, was appointed a captain in the 26th Continental Regiment on 1 Jan. 1776. He became major of the 9th Massachusetts Regiment in November 1776 and lieutenant colonel of Col. John Bailey’s 2d Massachusetts in July 1777. Badlam transferred to the 8th Massachusetts Regiment on 1 Jan. 1781. On 1 Aug. 1782 he was dismissed from the Continental army for “Neglect of duty and unofficerlike conduct in ministering and forwarding to the Army as Recruits for the Massachusetts Line several persons precluded by the Laws of the State and others unfit to perform the duty of soldiers in the field,” including British deserters, foreigners, a couple of “boys undersized,” “a negroe lame in the ancle,” and “an idiot” (see General Orders, that date). Colonel Bailey wrote to GW on 24 Dec. requesting that Badlam be allowed to travel to Massachusetts.