To George Washington from Colonel Israel Shreve, 14 December 1780
From Colonel Israel Shreve
Jersey-Camp, Pompton [N.J.] 14th Decr 1780.
Yesterday I received a letter for Your Excellency1 which I suppose contains intelligence of Importance, & which I should have forwarded immideately but had no means of conveyance.2 The public horses are all sent out of Camp, & I have neither a Dragoon nor Express to convey dispatches of any kind. I trust Your Excellency need only be informed of this inconvenience in order to remedy it.
Our huts are going on exceedingly well.3 The weather has hitherto been remarkably favorable.4 I am Your Excellency’s Most Obedient Servt
I. Shreve Col. Comdt
LS, DLC:GW; copy, NjR: Israel Shreve Papers.
1. Shreve wrote “Excelleny” for this word.
2. Shreve discusses a letter that has not been identified.
3. For the winter encampment assigned to the Jersey line, see GW to Samuel Huntington, 28 Nov.; see also Shreve to GW, 4 Dec., and notes 2 and 4.
4. GW replied to Shreve from headquarters at New Windsor on 16 Dec.: “I have recd yours of the 14th: We are obliged—on account of the scarcity of Forage to send off all the Dragoons from the Army except a very small detachment to do orderly duty—If any thing material happens you must press a horse and send a Man up.
“As soon as the German Regt have recd their Cloathing, the Men are to be sent, agreeable to the new regulation of the Army, to the lines to which they respectively belong—you will, therefore, when they go off send a Captain and about 50 Men to the Ground which they now occupy near Sufferans.
“If any deserters from the British Army come out to your posts, be pleased to send them up to Head Quarters” (Df, in Tench Tilghman’s writing, DLC:GW; copy, PHi; Varick transcript, DLC:GW). The German Regiment was then assigned to the New Jersey brigade, which Shreve commanded (see Shreve to GW, 29 Dec.). For the new Continental army regulations, see General Orders, 1 November.
GW also wrote Lt. Col. Ludwig Weltner from headquarters at New Windsor on 16 Dec.: “As soon as your Regiment have received their Cloathing you will march all the non Commd and private Men belonging to the State of Pennsylvania, to the Winter Quarters of the troops of that State near Morris Town and there deliver them up to Brigadier General Wayne—You will march those belonging to the State of Maryland on towards Frederick Town, sending an Officer to Brig: Genl Gist at Baltimore town to inform him of this, that if he should prefer their going to Baltimore rather than Frederick he may send you notice of it.
“You will use your utmost endeavour to keep your men from deserting before they are delivered up to the Lines to which they respectively belong.
“You will make me an exact return of the names and Ranks of the Officers of your Regt which is to be transmitted to the Board of War, and upon which they will be intitled to draw their half pay for life” (Df, in Tench Tilghman’s writing, DLC:GW; copy, CU; Varick transcript, DLC:GW; see also GW to the Board of War, 19 Feb. 1781, DLC:GW, and the Maryland Council to Baker Johnson, 20 Feb. 1781, in , 45:319–20).