Colonel Timothy Pickering to George Washington, 9 May 1781
From Colonel Timothy Pickering
Newburgh [N.Y.] May 9. 1781.
Sir,
I have just received from Colo. Hughes a letter of which the inclosed is an extract.1 Mr Pomeroy (the bearer of it, brother to the D.Q.M.) informs me that the towns who were called on early in March to send forward their salted meat, got themselves excused by the government, under pretence that the roads were impassable; promising to turn out when the roads were good. But when called upon, the beginning of April, for this purpose, they said they had no forage; and that excuse continues; so that even the offer of payment is unavailing.2 Yet probably none of these people are without corn and oats, which with the grass would well support their teams.
There seems to be no alternative (and such people deserve no other) than to send one party to the towns toward the sound, and another from Colo. Hazens regt to the towns eastward of Fishkill. Lists of those towns are inclosed.3 The average distance from Fishkill of the towns towards the sound is I believe from 60 to 70. miles—The others about 40 to 50. Mr Pomeroy will either return with a guard to the towns toward the sound, or precede the guard, & advertise the selectmen of their coming; which may perhaps sooner put them in motion. One of Colo. Hughes’s people may proceed with the guard from Fishkill.
The foregoing thoughts have occurred to me, & I beg leave to submit them to your Excellency’s determination. Mr Pomeroy says the selectmen promised to send forward or start their provisions by the middle of next week: but this will be as the people please.4 I have the honour to be with the greatest respect your Excellency’s most obedt servt
T. Pickering Q.M.G.
ALS, DLC:GW; LB, DNA: RG 93, Records of Quartermaster General Timothy Pickering, 1780–87.
1. The enclosure from Col. Hugh Hughes, deputy quartermaster for New York, to Pickering written on Tuesday, 8 May, from Danbury, Conn., reads: “Here I have been ever since Sunday morning (unless whilst I went to Reading to see Genl Parsons) begging and intreating of these callous W——s to turn out their teams, but to no purpose neither for pay nor civil impress, till I sent out the Bayonet which has just now got them to loading that is a few I am in hopes that the whole of what is here will move on to morrow which is 160 Barrels. Capt. Clarke will give them pay table notes for the transportation—I have ordered them to Fishkill landing as there was not a sufficient guard to go to Peekskill neither could they be collected so as to go in Brigades for want of forage here and on the road.
“Mr Pomeroy the bearer of this has met with the same difficulty in other towns as I have here, on which account I have advised him to apply for a party at Head quarters, as General Parsons has not more force than is absolutely requisite for other purposes” (DLC:GW).
2. Pickering refers to measures Connecticut officials adopted on 22 March and 12 April to facilitate provision transportation (see GW to Pomeroy, 7 April, and Pomeroy to GW, 14 April). For legislative action taken to address forage scarcity, see Pickering to GW, 6 May, and n.1 to that document.
3. The enclosed list of towns located “Towards the Sound” gives the number of barrels of salted provisions deposited at each as of “May 8th 1781”: Stamford, 16; Norwalk, 80; Fairfield, 70; Stratford, 271; New Haven, 300; and Woodbury, 142. The barrels totaled 879. Barrels at Newtown, Ridgefield, and Redding raised the total along Long Island Sound to 1,038. A second column listed towns “North eastward or back of Fishkill” and the number of barrels “On hand in March last, part forwarded but great part behind”: New Milford, 72; New Fairfield, 38; Washington, 40; Litchfield, 108; Torrington, 56; Harwinton, 30; Cornwall, 30; Kent, 43; Sharon, 30; Salisbury, 46; Canaan, 38; Norfolk, 18; New Hartford, 55; Goshen, 56. The total amounted to 660 (DLC:GW; see also GW to William Heath, 9 May, n.7).