556 Letters to the Governor and Council

November 23
Red Book
No. 27
Letter 154

Excellency a tolerable Idea of their Situation and I cannot but hope
from the arrangements I have made there, we shall be enabled to
compleat The General's wishes respecting them, at present they are
tolerably well Supplied and guarded, and I think the Stockades now
erecting will secure them

November 24
Blue Book
No. 4
Letter 50

[Petition of British deserters Annapolis Goal to Governor Lee]

Please Your Excellency to Look into the three Deserters that they
Deem as British Prisoners do take this Oppertunity of Leting Your
Excelency know the Poor Starved Condition that we ar in for the
want of Wood to Cook Our Provitions We ar Obledged to Make
Us of it Raw as we Draw it from the Commisry And Sterving
With Cold and Weet So as we ar in A Miserable Condition. We
have ben in this Condition thes three Wiks And if Your Exelency
would Pleas to Do som thing for Us for Ever we should to you,
Do but Consider the Miserable Condition that we ar in at Present
Laying in the Cold Rain And if Your Honour Would be Plesed to
Exemen in to this Affair And to Grant us a pass or to Let us out in
to the town for to Work for our Living for Ever we should be
obledged to you or any thing that Your Honnour should think fite
Do for Gods Sake think upon us and Relive us from this Place And
not Let us Lay Like thives or Murders. Do for Gods Sake think
upons and for Ever we Shaild be Obledged to you.

November 25

[Jas. Calhoun, Baltimore, to the Council.]

I had the honour to receive yours of the 23^d inclosing a copy of
your letter of the 5^th Ins^t That letter reached me six days after its
date, and I gave immediate directions to M^r Griffith Com^y of this
County to have some of the Wheat collected by him, manufactured
into Merchantable Flour and brought to Town, to enable me to make
the purchase of Salt you directed which he promised to have done
as expeditiously as possible but to this hour I am not able to pro-
cure one Barrel of Flour. He says the Millers will not grind the
Wheat without being paid in Specie, the Coopers will not supply him
with Casks, without being paid in Specie, nor can he get it hauled to
Town without paying for it in Specie, thus the want of Money
that will pass stops it in every stage nor can I see how we can remedy
it unless impowered to pay for all these matters out of the Sales of
the Flour, and I am afraid there will be no great quantity of Wheat
received this collection as most people find it their interest to pay
their Taxes in red Money which can be readily purchased at two
for one.
The day after yours of the 5^th Ins^t came to hand I rec^d a letter
from Col^o Price (who issues Provisions at Frederick in the place
of M^r Murdock who refused to Act) informing me of the very