Enclosure: From George Washington to New York County Magistrates, 30 March 1781
ENCLOSURE
To New York County Magistrates
Head Quarters New Windsor March 30th 1781
Gentlemen
Upon the representation of the acting Quarter Master with the Army, that public Teams cannot be furnished to bring forward the provisions necessary for the immediate subsistence of the Troops, that private Ones cannot be procured upon hire, and that application hath been made in vain to the neighbouring Justices for their impress Warrants1—I have thought proper to state the circumstances, and to request your interposition and assistance on the occasion.
It is necessary to be known in the first place, that there is but a small quantity of flour at present in the Magazines of the Army: Our whole dependence is th⟨ere⟩fore placed on the supplies now on the Communication, and which cannot be brought forward in season to releive our wants; without a general and speedy exertion of the substantial Farmers of the Country, who are possessed of the means of transportation—In addition to the distresses in which the Army will be involved in the course of a few days if the flour in question is not conveyed to this place—the danger to which the important Posts on this River, will be exposed under these circumstances; and the hazard of loosing some part of the flour itself, which is now deposited within reach of a stroke from the Enemy—are objects of the most interesting consequence, which ought to be taken into consideration.
I have therefore to sollicit and request in the most earnest Manner, that the Justices in their several Districts will issue their impress Warrants for the number of Teams required by the Quarter Master, for the beforementioned purpose.2 Ever averse to all coercive Measures which may seem to interfere with the rights of the Civil Authority, I cannot but flatter myself this application will be attended with the desired success, and supersede the necessity of having recourse to a Military impress. But if it should prove otherwise—while the existence of the Army, and the preservation of the Key to the Country depend on the Measure—after this candid stating of the matter—what friend to his Country is there who would not approve of its being carried into execution by Military Coercion?3 I am Gentlemen Your Most Obedient and Humble Servant
Go: Washington
LS, in David Humphreys’s writing, DNA: RG 93, manuscript file no. 25597; Df, DLC:GW; copy, DNA: RG 93, manuscript file no. 25597; copy, MiU-C; Varick transcript, DLC:GW. The internal address of the LS reads: “To the Civil Authority of the Counties of Ulster Orange &C.” Richard Platt, deputy quartermaster general of the main army, certified the copy at DNA. Three New York officials signed that copy to indicate their having read the letter.
1. Platt had written GW’s aide-de-camp David Humphreys from Newburgh, N.Y., on 29 March: “Aware how difficult it would be to get Teams to transport flour from Ringwood to New Windsor, I made early Application to the Justices to guard against Accidents, and inform’d them of the cruel Alternative to which Recourse must be had in Case of their not granting their warrants—that of military Impress.
“Three Days my Expresses have been after Teams—One of them has just returned & informs that he had made Application to [several officials] and they refuse granting their warrants—They say the Roads are bad, their forage is exhausted and they have no money to bear their Expences, and that they will not turn out their Teams.
“This Express parted yesterday Morning with another who had made Application ⟨to⟩ a Number of other Justices who gave but little Encouragement so little, that he did not expect to get more than six or eight Teams.
“A third Express has been after Teams near this post, to transport Cloathing (Blankets & Overhalls) to the Southward for the Pensylvanians said to be under Orders to march to the Southward: he informs 20 will be in this day: the order for the Cloathing was very pressing from the Cloathier Genl and Board of war, & misfortune or neglect have rendered it more so. …
“Having thus premised I am to request your Application to the Commander in chief, in what manner to proceed—here I beg leave to observe, that no certain Number of Teams were asked, but a general request was made in hopes by a great Exertion to draw in at once all the Flour & stores at Ringwood—what influenced to this Determination was a supposition that the Inhabitants would more chearfully give their Aid as soon as the Roads became tolerably good than at a later period, when they might be engaged in their plowing &c—and I was desirous of convincing them that even under our pressing Necessities, we were not unmindfull of their Convenience & Advantage.
“The Quantity of flour was some time since upwards of 500 Barrels—besides salt, Beans &c., now it may be 800, perhaps a thousand—a Team will bring four Barrels—an Hundred Teams to trips each will take nearly all & place us in a Situation which I hope the Arrival of Cash will chearfully make more and more pleasant to the Inhabitants as well as advantageous to the Army.
“’Twill be impossible to get Teams raised on the Borders of Jersey by the Time of the Arrival of the Cloathing to that point: therefore a military force will be necessary to compell the Teams sent from hence to proceed quite on to Morris Town, where a Relief will be in readiness. . . . an express has just this instant returned & reports he can get only one Team” (DLC:GW).
2. The draft, which Humphreys also wrote, continues with struck-out material: “and for transporting a small quantity of Cloathing to Morris Town to be forwarded to the Troops ordered to the Southward.”
3. Platt wrote Humphreys from Newburgh on 6 April: “His Excellency’s Application to the Justices of Ulster & Orange has been presented, accompanied with a Letter from me containing a Detail of Teams each should furnish.
“You have enclosed Copies of their several Answers.
“’Tis true that some of them had previously been called upon for Teams which I did not know: tho’ the numbers were so small as not interfere materially with the last Call.
“Out of the Number ordered to this post for various services, and particularly, to transport Cloathing to Ringwood; only six have come in, of the whole—I am apprehensive from this failure that those directed to proceed from their homes to Ringwood have played the same Game—I shall ascertain this upon the Return of a person sent there to load & dispatch them, and to forward on the Cloathing.
“The persons who freely turn out on every Call, murmur exceedingly, to see their Neighbors equally obligated, treat with Contempt the Justices warrants & remain quietly at home: and they say unless those are compelled to do their Duty by military force, they themselves will not turn out in future.
“The Law directs that delinquents in this way shall pay a small fine & be impress’d a second Time; but the process is too tedious to be attended to by the military—It is the wish of several Justices with whom I have conversed, that such persons, as do not turn out with their Teams, when ordered by them, may be taken by military Impress & they say they will give their Names.
“To put the most favorable Construction on the present prospect, I am persuaded not a third of those ordered by the Justices will go.
“I pray you to make known to his Excellency such of the Information contained as you think proper.
“Esqr. Chandler remarks that all the Justices of Goshen Precinct are not called upon—It is only necessary to say, they take turns in doing the Duty, and that those at present acting have been applied to” (DLC:GW).
Platt enclosed a document headed “Copy of the justices Answers to the requisition for Teams” (DLC:GW). John Steward, a justice of the peace for Orange County, N.Y., wrote Platt from Goshen on 2 April that he had in his “district, which is but two miles square, since 21st day of March six Teams with forage for the Army and one with Cedar for the like purpose, and the Forage Master is up now for the rest of the Hay and as Waggons are scarce am Obliged to keep them constantly in employ as soon as one Team returns, put fresh Horses to it, and send it down again the Forage Master tells me that there is a Number of loads more to go down yet.”
Another justice wrote on 2 April that his constable had impressed “4 single Teams & two double [Teams] which is all that he can find within his Bounds (that I directed him to) three have engaged to set off tomorrow the other the next day following.”
Elihu Marvin wrote Platt from the Cornwall precinct in Orange County on 3 April: “I have given a Warrant to the Constable to impress 8 double Teams and he Returned that 4 he supposed would do & the others is not much expected to go. but yet I expect to see some of them to day and will urge them to go.”
Nathaniel Satterly, also from the Cornwall precinct, informed Platt on the same date that he had given his warrant to impress seven teams but was notified “that 4 will go.” Satterly indicated that four men “gave no incouragement of their doing their duty.”
Platt’s document also included brief statements from five New York county officials expressing intentions to provide teams over the next few days. Two other officials “only signed their names.”
Another enclosure was a letter justice of the peace Joseph Chandler wrote Platt from Bethlehem, N.Y., on 3 April: “Agreable to my promise I have herein return’d you the Names of the several Persons from whom I have impress’d teams.” They provided “six double teams which I have ordered to proceed with forage and provision for Ringwood tomorrow morning and take each a load of flour and deliver it at New Windsor … I can assure you I find it extreamly difficult to get Teams, so many of my neighbours having not a single handfull of forage for their Creatures which puts it out of their power to give their assistance and now I hope you will do your utmost endeavour to make those precincts & Districts farther back which have forage do their proportion, I observed many of the Justices in Goshen precinct are not called upon for teams at all. I can’t account for it—I have not the least doubt but you will see that matters are so fixed as shall tend to promote the public Good and that of the Inhabitants in general” (DLC:GW; see also Daniel Burt to GW, 9 April).