you before this time to order some other Forces to Fort Cumber-
land lest upon our Assembly's breaking up without doing any
thing (which is far from being improbable) our Men should
go off & the Fort be thereby left without a Garrison. I will
give orders for clearing & repairing the Road between
Pens" & Williams's Ferry according to Your Desire, & I will
immeately write to Colo Thos Prather an Officer of our
Militia that lives near the mouth of Conegocheague &
desire him to contract for a quantity of Forage to be de-
livered at that place upon the first Notice, from his Beha-
viour on other occasions I am persuaded he will execute the
Commission as far as shall be in his power but as there
are many People in that neighbourhood who have not
been yet satisfied for Services they did when General Brad-
dock marched that Way I am afraid nothing can be done
unless some Person be on the Spot, with a Sum of Money
sufficient to pay for every thing as soon as it shall be deliv-
ered. Since Sr In St Clair was at Annapolis some of those
Cherokees with an Officer & a few of our Men have been to
Fort Du Quesne, three of the Indians lay in Sight of it some
Days in hopes of being able to bring off a Prisoner but they
were not so lucky as to succeed in the Attempt, the Chief
Warriour & Eight others of them are now here, when they are
disposed to return to Fort Frederick which they will be I pre-
sume in a few Days I shall give them a small Present by way
of Encouragement & order one of our Lieutenants whom they
are very fond of & who usually accompanies them to carry
them out again to the Ohio & endeavour to make Discoveries,
I will also write to Capt Dagworthy who commands at Fort
Cumberland & recommend it to him to send out such Persons
as are best acquainted with the Country & can be relied on.
It will be impossible for me to wait on you at Philaa but I hope
to have an opportunity of paying my Respects to you in
Person before you leave this Province & of assuring you that
none can be more desirous of serving you or more sincere in
their Wishes for your Success —
[Sharpe to St. Clair.]
27th March 1758 —
D S
I neither converse with nor hear of any Persons that enter-
tain different Sentiments from your own with regard to the
late Sudden & surprizing Revolution, those that are least con-
cerned thereat say tis highly proper the Customs & People of
America should be better known in England than they are at
present & that no one can communicate such knowledge to
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Letter Bk. III
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