of the Council of Maryland. 21

[Daniel Jenifer Porttobacco to His Excellency Thos. Sim Lee]

July 22

Red Book

Sir Immediately upon the recd^t of your Excellencys Letter ap-

No. 29

pointing me com^ry of purchases in this county; I set out in pursuit

Letter

No. 5

of Bacon and am unhappy to tell you that it will not be in my power

to procure above 6 or 7000 w^t Wheat and Beef I shall be able to get ;

of the former betwixt 2 and 3000 bushells and of the latter about

200 hun^d but not without money; therefore shoud be glad that your

excellency will fill my hands; It will, I believe be in my power to

prevail on the people to take half Certificates but their necessities are

such, that they must have some money. I have sent to the Treasury

by Col Stone 30 Crop notes taken on loan and likewise an Acc^t of

the money borrowed since my last return, which is only 3200 Dollars

& 400 paid in, to me by M^r Hamersly

[Richard Peters, By order and in behalf of the Board, War &

July 22

Ordinance Office to His Excellency the Governor Lee]

Red Book

No. 7

Sir The Board have been pressingly called upon by the Com-

Letter
No. 178

mander in chief for a larger quantity of Powder than the Magazine

of the United States can possibly supply, for the intended operations

in concert with the Fleet & Armies of our Allies. We need not im-

press upon your Excellency the necessity of complying with the

Generals request & how disagreeable would be our situation, if the

operations in which our Allies were invited by Congress to assist us,

were either retarded or totally obstructed by a failure on our part.

Yet we are under the greatest apprehensions for the success of the

intended measures if we are not enabled by the generous & vigorous

Exertions of the respective States to afford Supplies of many essen-

tial Articles, among which that of Powder is of the highest impor-

tance. We have therefore most earnestly to request of your Excel-

lency & the Hon^bl Council that you would lend, out of the stores

belonging to your State, all the powder you can possibly spare; &

we have farther to entreat your strenuous endeavours to procure,

on the credit of the State, as much as can be had from Individuals &

that you will be pleased to take the earliest opportunity of inform-

ing us how much we are to expect from your State. Nothing shall

be wanting to provide all we can on Account of the United States ;

but we are convinced that without the assistance of the States indi-

vidually we shall fall very short of the Quantity required & perhaps

experience the most distressing disappointments from the want of

this most essential Article. We will, when the Continental Maga-

zines are replenished, chearfully return in kind the powder you are

pleased to lend us, or pay the Value in money, as you shall choose.

We hope the State will, on this interesting occasion, go to the extent

of her Abilities in the Article required; & if hereafter as the conti-

nental Stock encreases, any quantity shall be wanting for State uses,

in part of the quantity lent, we can at any time accommodate them