The Online Library of Liberty

A project of Liberty Fund, Inc.

• The Writings of George Washington.
• 1780.
• To Governor Reed.
• To Major Lee.
• To Major-general Heath.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Major-general Greene. Instructions.
• To George Mason. 1
• To Major-general Gates.
• To the Board of War.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To Abner Nash, Governor of North Carolina.
• To Robert Carter Nicholas.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Major-general Greene.
• To William Fitzhugh.
• To Governor Jefferson.
• To Major-general Heath. [private.]
• To John Sullivan, In Congress. 1
• To Sir Henry Clinton.
• To John Sullivan, In Congress.
• To the President of Congress.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To Gouverneur Morris.
• To Count De Rochambeau.
• To Major-general Lincoln.
• To Major-general Greene.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To Count De Rochambeau and the Chevalier De Ternay.
• To Governor Trumbull.
• To John Sullivan, In Congress.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Benjamin Franklin, Minister Plenipotentiary At the Court of Versailles.
• To Lieutenant-colonel David Humphreys. 1 Instructions.
• To James Duane.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To Governor Jefferson.
• 1781.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Brigadier-general Wayne.
• To the New England States.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Brigadier-general Wayne.
• To Major-general Greene.
• To Major-general St. Clair.
• To Lieutenant-colonel John Laurens. 2
• To the President of Congress.
• To Mrs. Sarah Bache. 2
• To Count De Rochambeau.
• To the Executives of the States. 1
• To the Officer Commanding the British Fleet At New York.
• To the Commissioners For Redressing the Grievances of the New Jersey Line.
• To Major-general Howe.
• To Robert R. Livingston.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Major-general St. Clair.
• To John Sullivan, In Congress.
• To Governor Jefferson.
• To Mrs. Francis, Mrs. Hillegas, Mrs. Clarkson, Mrs. Bache, and Mrs. Blair.
• To Count De Rochambeau.
• To Brigadier-general Knox. Private Instructions.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Abraham Skinner.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette. Instructions.
• To Elbridge Gerry.
• To Governor Jefferson.
• To Governor Trumbull.
• To Major-general St. Clair.
• To Major-general Parsons.
• To the Chevalier Destouches.
• To Count De Rochambeau.
• To Governor Clinton.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To John Mathews, In Congress.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Major-general Lincoln.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To John Park Custis.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To Governor Hancock.
• To Benjamin Harrison.
• To Major-general Heath.
• To William Fitzhugh.
• To Major-general Armstrong.
• To Benjamin Harrison. 1
• To the Board of War.
• To Major-general Lincoln.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To Count Rochambeau.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Colonel John Laurens, At Paris.
• To Count De Rochambeau.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Major-general Greene.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To Lieutenant-colonel Alexander Hamilton.
• To Count De Rochambeau.
• To Major Benjamin Tallmadge.
• To Lund Washington, At Mount Vernon.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To the President of Congress.
• To John Sullivan, In Congress.
• To Philip Schuyler.
• To the President of Congress.
• Substance of a Conference Between General Washington and Count De Rochambeau At Weathersfield, 22 May, 1781. 2
• To the Chevalier De La Luzerne.
• Circular Letter to the States.
• To the President of Congress.
• To John Sullivan, In Congress.
• To Major-general Greene.
• To Count De Rochambeau.
• To the President of Congress.
• To John Mathews, In Congress.
• To Governor Jefferson.
• To Colonel William Crawford.
• To Count De Rochambeau.
• To Governor Clinton.
• To President Reed.
• To Count De Rochambeau.
• To Major-general Lincoln. Instructions.
• To the President of Congress.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To the Superintendent of Finance.
• To Major-general Lord Stirling. Instructions.
• To Richard Henry Lee 1 .
• Questions and Replies.
• To Brigadier-general Waterbury.
• To Thomas Mckean, President of Congress. 1
• To John Parke Custis.
• To Major-general Greene.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To the President of Congress.
• Circular Letter to States.
• To the Superintendent of Finance.
• To the President of Congress.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To the Count De Grasse. 2
• To the Superintendent of Finance.
• To Major-general Heath. Instructions.
• To Robert Morris and Richard Peters. 1
• Circular Letter to the States.
• To the Superintendent of Finance.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To the President of Congress.
• To the Count De Grasse.
• To Major-general St. Clair.
• Questions and Answers.
• To the Count De Grasse.
• To the President of Congress.
• To the Count De Grasse.
• To Major-general Greene.
• To Don Francisco Rendon. 3
• To the President of Congress.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Lord Cornwallis.
• To the President of Congress.
• To the Count De Grasse.
• To David Ross.
• To the President of Congress.
• To the Count De Grasse.
• To Major-general St. Clair. Instructions.
• To Major-general Lincoln. Instructions.
• To the President of Congress.
• To the Marquis De Lafayette.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Benjamin Dulany.
• To George Plater, President of the Senate, and Thomas Cockey Dey, Speaker of the House of Delegates, of Maryland.
• To Governor Trumbull.
• To James Mchenry.
• To Major-general Greene.
• To the President of Congress.
• 1782.
• To Thomas Chittenden, Vermont. 2
• To the Marquis De Lafayette, At Paris.
• To Colonel Christian Febiger.
• Circular Letter to the States.
• Circular Letter to States. 1
• To Major-general Schuyler.
• To the Count De Rochambeau.
• To the President of Congress.
• To Lieutenant-colonel John Laurens. 2
• To the President of Congress.
• To Major-general Heath.
• Circular to the Eastern and Middle States.
• To Brigadier-general William Irvine. Instructions.
• To Brigadier-general Knox and Gouverneur Morris. Instructions.
• To James Mchenry.
• To Major-general Greene.
• To Brigadier-general Knox and Gouverneur Morris, At Elizabethtown.
• To Colonel Matthias Ogden. Instructions.
• To the General Officers.
• To John Lewis (fredericksburg).
• To the General and Field Officers of the Army.
• To Bartholomew Dandridge.
• To Sir Henry Clinton.
• To Major-general Greene.
• To the Secretary At War.
• To the Chevalier De La Luzerne.
• To the President of Congress.
• Plan of Campaign.

TO JAMES DUANE.

New Windsor, 26 December, 1780.

My Dear Sir,

I received with much thankfulness your confidential letter of the 9th. Inst., and am greatly obliged by the affectionate expressions of personal regard which are contained in it. An unreserved communication of sentiments, accompanying such information as you are at liberty to give, will ever be pleasing to me, and cannot fail of being useful. In this light I view and value your last letter, some parts of which are new, agreeable and instructive—while that part of it which relates to the transaction at the Ct. of V—, is wonderfully astonishing.

There are two things (as I have often declared) which in my opinion, are indispensably necessary to the well being and good Government of our public affairs; these are, greater powers to Congress, and more responsibility and permanency in the executive bodies. If individual States conceive themselves at liberty to reject, or alter any act of Congress, which in a full representation of them has been solemnly debated, and decided on; it will be madness in us, to think of prosecuting the war. And if Congress suppose, that Boards composed of their own body, and always fluctuating, are competent to the great business of war, (which requires not only close application, but a constant and uniform train of thinking and acting), they will most assuredly deceive themselves. Many, many instances might be adduced in proof of this, but to a mind as observant as yours, there is no need to enumerate them. One, however, as we feelingly experience it, I shall name. It is the want of cloathing, when I have every reason to be convinced that the expence which the Public is run to in this article would cloath our army as well as any troops in Europe—in place of it we have enumerable objects of distressing want.

Necessity alone can justify the present mode of obtaining supplies, for besides the hazard and difficulty we meet with in procuring them, I am well convinced, that the public is charged with double what it receives, and what it receives is doubly charged, so expensive and precarious is the present system. When the army marched [illegible] for winter Quarters, I visited the Hospitals and back communication from Pensa. to this place. In the neighborhood of Pittstown I fell in with a parcel of cattle that were going to be slaughtered and salted, and can assure you upon my honor, that besides being immensely poor, they were so small that I am convinced they would not average 175 lbs. the 4 nett quarters—some could not exceed one hundd. weight, and others were mere calves. These pass by the head, and the State or States that furnish them, will have the reputation of supplying that number of merchantable bullocks, when the fact is that next summer a starving man would scarce eat the beef they were about to put up) after the salt had extracted the little fat and juice that were in it. There were about 100 in the drove I saw, and my information extended to about 8 or 900 more of the same kind, in the neighborhood. I directed the Commissary to select the best for salting, and let the others be eaten fresh, as it would be a waste of salt, barrels, and time to put it up. I relate this as a matter coming under my own observation. Many other instances of a similar nature might be given from information, but I avoid it.

This letter will accompany one to Congress on the subject of promotion. That of lineal, instead of regimental, I am perswaded, as well from the opinions I have heard, as from the reason and the nature of the thing, will be the most consistent with justice, and most pleasing to each state line. With respect to the rise of Colonels and promotion of General officers, I have no wish to gratify, except that which I have expressed in my public letter, of fixing some principle to avoid discontent and the consequences which flow from it. Irregular promotion, unless there is obvious cause for it, is not only injurious in any service, but in ours is derogatory of the dignity of Congress, for the officer who is superceded, and afterwards restored, is hurt by the first act, and does not feel himself obliged by the latter (considering it as an act of justice only); while the two acts stand as an undeniable proof on record, that there is an established principle wanting, or that there is a want of information, or a want of firmness in Congress to resist importunity, because the restoring act, as I have observed, is an incontestable proof of one or the other of these three things.

At present we are in no want of Major Generals—in this part of the army at least. But while I am on the subject of promotion, and while the thing is in my mind, I will beg leave to mention, that if at any time hereafter there should be a brigadier junior to Gen’l Knox promoted before him, he will be lost to the service, tho’ he should thereafter be restored to his place. I mention it because under the idea of State promotion he can never rise, and because I am well perswaded that the want of him at the head of the artillery, would be irrepairable. * * *