I am honored with your’s of the 6th—& have given orders to the Troops at this Place to hold themselves in readiness to march at a Days Notice—I have wrote to the same Purpose to those at George Town. Tho’ it will be extreemely inconvenient to remove before they have recd. some Pay. To some of the Soldiers there is more than six months due. To the Officers between three & four Mon⟨ths⟩ generally. The Muster-Roll & Pay-Roll agreeably to the Form⟨—⟩ you prescribed have gone forward to the Pay-Master-General Other Forms have been since recd. from this Gentleman, not materially variant from your’s. The Regimental Pay-Master is now employed in fulling up a Set of his Forms, least they should be demeed essential—I hope they will be dispensed with at this Time. It will create some Delay I have enclosed the Contractor an Extract of your Letter & at the same time requested he would meet me to make the necessary Arrangements for Transportation &c. If Boats can be had reasonably, I have thought it best to send the Troops with their Baggage round by Water to George Town. They will then be within less than forty Miles of their Place of Destination. The nearest Rout by Land will be upwards of 100 Miles. They will be less liable to desert by Water. It will be necessary to have a great Proportion of the Officers of this Battalion to recruit, when they get Money for that Purpose

I will attend the Troops to their Destination—see them quartered & return. Major Hopkens who has solicited leave to visit his aged Father in New England will by that Time have returned. I wish this Gentleman co⟨u⟩ld be better provided for in some other Post. He is by no Means so well acquainted with the Duties of Infantry as either Major or Capt. Beall. By the Rule lately promulged for settling the relative Rank, I suspect he is the senior Officer.

Capt. Lloyd Beall was promoted to a Compy. sometime before the close of the R revolutionary War. He writes a good Hand was bred a Merchant & is conversant with Accts. He would probably make a good Staff Officer

Capt. Brothers Company has joined him to take charge of the French Prisoners at Frederick Town where there are a very good Range of Barracks belonging to this State. Major Beall has been confined by sickness, which accounts for the Delay of the Monthly Return, due some time since

I have recd your Confirmation of the Sentance of the General-Court-Martial. It shall be carried into Execution the Day after tomorrow

With great Consideration I am Sir Your most Obedt. ⟨—⟩