LETTERS TO THE COUNCIL.
[Richard Dallam, Harford County to Gov. Thomas Johnson]

Sir I am under the disagreeable necessity of informing your Ex-
cellency of the further rise of Wheat to 20 £ & that I realy expect to
hear this day 22..IO..O being given
These prices are the consequence of Contracts M^r Giles (in Acc^t
with me) entered into with M^r Hall & John Baxley to whom he has
engaged to give fifty Pounds & the rise of the marketts till April and
advance them the money. And they to deliver the flour by Christmas
for about 400 Barrels. Baxley I know has near all the Wheat to pur-
chase & he must have it, he will shirk at no price, the Present price
he gets for flour enables him without loss to give 20 £ & better for
Wheat which he has already done. This Joins all the Wheat pur-
chased in this Country to that price. And as We have four Millers
in this County under like Contracts as M^r Hutson, I have no guess
when it will stop.
I am not the only person alarmed I have conversed with numbers
of Persons of different ranks & find all of the opinion that the money
is gone, so little Confidence have the people in the money that I
have been offered only yesterday, Wheat at 7/6 & Pork at 305. gold,
to be paid in three years altho the latter sells for 100 £ I cannot
help saying I believe that money will not Procure the necessary
supplys and that some other mode must be adopt^d
This Contract of flour with Hall & Baxley is the first I hear of
M^r Giles making altho he has had his Commission some time he
Boasts of being unlimmit^d in price & that he will out bid me, let the
loss to the Public be what it will for my Part I have no intention of
entering into such a Contention with M^r Giles. Were we expending
our own money, I should have no fears on that acc^t You may depend
nothing shall induce me but a Conviction, of the Public service being
Promoted, to give over what I am justifyd in doing from the price
being general could an immediate supply of flour be obtained I believe
I should have not been nice afr a bid, both M^r Hall & Baxley was
with me on the morning of my return Home & I could have con-
tractd for Baxley flour at fourty Pounds & a rise but knowing
his situation & hav^g laid a plan which I had no doubt of executing to
prevent a further raise I put him & M^r Hall off with a promise of
geting his flour on the Terms that others offerd And as M^r Giles
soon after meet with them they informd me of the offer made them

1779
October 27