580 Letters to the Governor and Council

December 27
Blue Book
No. 4
Letter 19

your Petitioner with three small Children And no ways provided for,
so that we all are in a very distressed & destitute way, Your Ex-
cellencies Petitioner therefore Humbly pleads Your Excellency
would take her truly deplorable Case into Consideration, And be
so Condescending as Sign this Petition To the Governor and Coun-
cil in behalf of Your Petitioner And her Small Children. Your
Excellencys Petitioners husband being now Almost Six Years in
the Service, And his poor wife & Children never received any
Benefit Your Excellencies Intercession in behalf of your Petitioner
will be a singular Act of Charity. And Your Excellencies Petitioner
as in Duty bound shall ever Pray.

From the best information that can be obtained, the Facts set
forth in this Petition are found to be truly stated, and the Womans
distress appears to be very great. She is therefore referred to the
Governor and Council that some relief may be extended to her.
W Smallwood
Annapolis 30 Decem^r 1781

The Clerk of the County Court is requested to inform the Council
what money has been advanced to Mary Preston a soldiers wife
T. Johnson J^r Cl Co.
31 Dec^r 1781
Ann Arundal County ss. I hereby Certify that it does not appear
from the minutes of the County aforesaid that Mary Preston has
had any allowance from the said County.

Nich Harwood Cl.

December 27

[Chas. Blake to Gov. Lee.]

Y^rs of the 14^th I this moment Rec^d I have no beef here on hand
Col^o Hollingsworth has order'd all off on the Hoofe I have sent all
that could go to him only what was att M^r Paca's which is gone
off by y^r orders to Annapolis. Col^o Hollingsworth desired some
to be fed at the Mills, There are a few now feeding which shall be
Kill'd as soon as it can be done to advantage; the Brann and Shorts
are 10 miles distant and M^r Shepherd informs that his Vessel can
neither carry those or any thing else unless in barrels and those I
have not. I have two thousand bus: of wheat here that I wish I
could gett away. I shall give orders to send Brann and shorts from
Wye where it can be done with convenience by putting it with flour
barrels when the Vessels arrive
those feeding are so few that it is not worth detaining the Vessel
to kill them and they are growing better every day they shall be
sent to Annap: when killed