Naval Documents of The American Revolution Volume 6 AMERICAN THEATRE: Aug. 1, 1776–Oct. 31, 1776 EUROPEAN THEATRE: May 26, 1776–Oct. 5, 1776 Part 2 of 8 United States Government Printing Office Washington, 1972 Electronically published by American Naval Records Society Bolton Landing, New York 2012 AS A WORK OF THE UNITED STATES FEDERAL GOVERNMENT THIS PUBLICATION IS IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN. * AUGUST 1776 f' 143 Their Lordships I presume will perceive by the Governor of Marti- nique's Answer to my Letter that any further Correspondence with him (or indeed with any of the Governors at the other Islands) will be useless. I therefore hope they will be pleased to give me such farther Instructions as may be thought proper, and necessary on the present occasion, as by the Kings -late Instructions We are so very strictly enjoyned to Observe the exactest Neutrality towards the Foreign Ports. - I likewise tvish to receive their Lordships farther directions about that part of the Kings Instructions relating to the keeping the American Prisoners, as they will soon increase here to a considerable Number; and there is no place of Security provided to keep them on shore, neither can it be proper in this Climate to Croud the Ships with them, as that would undoubtedly cause great Sickness to happen onboard, and thereby very much distress the Service. - I have just now received a Letter from Governor [Valentine] Morris of St Vincent, Copy of which, marked No 4 is inclosed; by it their Lordships may perceive I have not been mistaken in the Surmise I mentioned in the beginning of this Letter. I shall send the Pomona to Sea to morrow, with directions to Cruize between Port Royal Harbour and the Island of St. Lucia, to endeav- our to intercept said Vessels, and will write at the same time to Captain Chapman (who was directed by my Orders of the 16th July last to Cruize about those Islands) to assist in the like Service, and I flatter myself they may by keeping a good look out, be enabled to intercept and take the afore- said Armed Vessels. I am Sir [&c.] Jams Young. 1. PRO, Admiralty 1/309. 11 Aug. ('sunday) [Extract] Boston, August 11, 1776 . I wish I could entertain you with any important intelligence. We have nothing going forward here but fixing out privateers, and condemna- tion and sale of prizes sent in by them, so many that I am quite lost in my estimate of them, and West India Goods are falling at a great rate. Yester- day arrived a prize taken by a [New] York Privateer with several hundred bags of cotton (a capital article), etc., etc."hile all this is going forward, and ~vholefleets have been here, and might have been taken by your ships if at sea, I can't sufficiently lament the languor, and seeming inattention to so important a matter. A very fine ship lies at Portsmouth waiting only for guns,3 and I am told there are not yet orders issued for manning those at Newbury P~rt.~This delay disgusts the officers, and occasions them to re- pent entering the service. 1. Warren-Adams Letters Being Chiefly a Correspondence among John Adams, Samuel Adams, and James Warren . (Boston, 1917-1925), I, 267-69. Hereafter cited as Warren-Adams Letters. 2. The ship Earl of Errol, 270 tons, John Bartlett, master, from Jamaica for London. 3. The Continental frigate Raleigh. 4. The Continental frigates Boston and Hancock. 144 AMERICAN THEATRE NATHANIELSHAW, JK.'s L~STOF ORDNANCESTORES SHIPPED TO THE ARMYIN NEWYORK . [New ond don August 11, 17761 Invoice of Warlike Stores Shipt to 'New York p David Harris 8C Consigned to Ezekiel Chevers Commissary of ordinance Stores viz 2 boxes ContaCining] 16 Carcass's 1 bar Conta 1 paper Quick Match 11 Long paper Tubes or fallse fires 300 Tin Tubes fill'd > 39 Flannel cartrages 258 Fusees i 2 papers pitch 1 pr pinchers 4 Irons 1 Spring 6 Fire Rings 3 Fire Rings 16 Sheels fill'd Brass Howet all Returned but these 2 Carriages 1 175 Empty sheelsZ To Joseph Trumbull p Harris 1 box 20 Arms from Baleys 1 box 24 do charged to Gen Washington 1 box 30 do Brass Mounted. 1. Shaw Papers, Ledger 39, YUL. [New London, August 11, 17761 1776 The Ordinance Store at N York Ezekiel Chevers Esqr Apr Recever General Dr. 23 . 9 Brass Morters 14. .O. .4 @120/ £ 84..4. .O 50 Seven Inch Chells 12. .3.22 ;E l8 29.14. .7 150 Five&half Incdo20. .0.10 I . 2 Wooden Beds for the 5% Inc Morters 0. .o. .o 6 Iron Mounted not apprized 1 Brass Howet from the Boulton deld Robt.1 Coak 40. .O. .O May 3998 Shells of Different Sizes 22 ton. 15.2.24 410. .2.10 10 1 BrassMortar4..0..0 6 Small ' do 1. .O. 23 p Capt [~oberi]Niles AUGUST 1776 . 145 30 59 Shels & 1 Shott 5. .3. .25 @ 18/ 5. .7. .6 p Capt Hacker Aug- 1 Brass Howet 40. .-. .- 11 2 Carriages not apprized £640.14..0 pr David Harris To.-pd Davd. Harris f[reigh]t of do , . 6.10. .O 1. Shaw Papers, Ledger 39, YUL. [Extract] Tyconderoga 1lth August 1776 . Our Fleet since the Arrival of the reinforcement of Carpenters groivs daily more & more powerful, inclosed is a List "of those Man'd, Armed, & ready for Action at Crown Point a Schooner, a Row Gally 8c three more Gondolas are rigging here & will this Week Join those at Crown Point when General Arnold will sail with the whole down the Lake - Three fine ROWGalleys will be finished in a Fortnight at Skeenesborough & di- rectly Join the rest of the Fleet under General Arnold, this is a Naval Force when Collected that promises to Secure the Comand [of] 'Lake Champlain . Captain & Thirty Nine Carpenters, from Rode Island, Hired by the united States, at prodigious Wages, General Waterbury writes me Word, are Inoculated at Williams Town. I beg you Sir to write to Governor Cooke to Disrniss them immediately, pay they db not deserve a penny, they should on no Account be permitted to come to Skeensborough, I am con- fidently assured we can do without them. 1. "Revolutionary Correspondence of Governor Nicholas Cooke," Proceedings of the American Antiqz~nria~zSociety New Series, XXXVI, 332-34. 2. A copy of this letter was sent to Governor Cooke, but the list was not enclosed. August. 1776 Montock Point NNW. 16 Leagues ' Sunday 11 at 4. AM. sounded from 70, to, 50, Fathoms. Do Ground. out 3d and 2d Reefs Topsails. at 6 saw a ship & Brigg to the NW who bore down to us, both fitted for War. we hauled to the Northwd and fired several shot at the Brigg, who attempted to cut off a Brigg in our Conlpany. Gave chase out all Reefs Topsails. Light Airs and Cloudy Weather. at. 1/2 past 7 PM, finding the Chase gained on us considerably, bore up sounded in 35 faths black Ouze like the former, in 1st & 2d Reefs Topsls 1. PRO, Admiralty 511493. Eagle, off Staten Island. My Lord, 1 1th August 1776 Conceiving it of the utmost Importance, in pursuit of the Objects of the 146 AMERICAN THEATRE special Commission with which I had the honor to be charged by His Majes- ty, that the Colonies in Rebellion should have the earliest Information of His Majesty's most gracious Intentions, with respect to the Restoration of Peace, and the granting of Pardons to such of His Majesty's Subjects as, by a speedy Return to their Allegiance, might deserve the Royal Mercy; I thought proper, in the course of my Voyage, to prepare a Declaration to that Effect, together with a circular Letter address'd to the Governors, or, in their Absence, the Lieutenant Governors or chief Magistrates, of the respec- tive Colonies; Copies of which I have the honor to inclose to your Lordship, NS 1 &2.- I had little expectation that these Letters and Declaration would reach the Hands of His Majesty's Governors. - My Object was, that they should be circulated as much as possible throughout the Provinces; and I hoped to have found an opportunity of landing them soon after the time of their Date, by means of some Vessel I might meet with upon the Coasts; But no opportunity offered 'till I arrived off the Harbor of New York, on the 12th of last Month, yhen I dispatched the first Lieut of the Eagle, to Amboy, with those intended for the Colonies to the Southward of New York, direct- ing him to deliver them to any person who might appear in Authority; and to desire they might be forwarded by the Post. - The inclosed printed Paper No 3, which came accidentally to my Hands, will inform your Lordship of the Resolution of the General Con- gress, upon their Receipt of the above mentioned Packets, which it seemed were transmitted by'Mr (called General) ~ercier[Hugh Mercer], the Com- manding Officer at Amboy, to Mr Washington at New York, and by him to the ~ongresi.- Captain [William C.] Burnaby in the Merlin Sloop was charged with the Packets for the Colonies of Massachusets Bay, Rhode Island, Connecti- cut, and New Hampshire, and directed to land them at Rhode Island - On the 28th of last Month he returned, with a letter to me from Mr [Nicholas] Cooke, acknowledging the receipt of my letter & Declaration, and acquaint- ing me that he had communicated them to "the General Assembly of that State" then gitting at Newport, who would transmit Copies of them to "the most Honorable the General Congress of the united States of America, to whom every application ought to be Addressed, and must be referred." A Copy of Mr Cooke's letter to me is enclosed No 4 - As the issuing of the above mentioned Letters and Declaration, is the only Measure I judged necessary to take before I could have a Conference with General [William] owe, I have nothing further to add in this separate Dispatch but my hopes of being inlormed by your Lordship, that my Con- duct is honored with His Majesty's Approbation.