From George Washington to Major General Nathanael Greene, 27 January 1780
To Major General Nathanael Greene
Head Quarters Morris Town January 27th 1780
Dear Sir
Having considered the Act of the 27th of December directing the dismission of the Express riders and a subsequent On⟨e⟩ of the 14th of January, in consequence of my Letter founded on the former, the op⟨e⟩ration of which I had in some measure suspended1—it would be improper for me to continue the suspension longer in any degree, or to direct any Expresses to be retained, except with the main Army and at posts where there are commands. From this view of the subject it will be necessary for you to govern yourself by the first mentioned Act with respect to the Expresses, except in the following instances—the main Army—the Post in the Highlands and at Fish Kills and at Fort Pitt. With the first you will continue Ten—One at the post in the Highlands—Five at Fish Kills—and one at Fort pitt. I am Dr Sir with great rega⟨rd⟩ Your Most Obt Servt
Go: Washington
LS, in George Augustine Washington’s writing, PPAmP: Nathanael Greene Papers; Df, DLC:GW; copy, DLC:GW; copy, PWacD: Sol Feinstone Collection, on deposit at PPAmP; copy, DNA:PCC, item 173; Varick transcript, DLC:GW.
On 25 Jan., GW’s secretary Robert Hanson Harrison wrote to Greene: “His Excellency requests that You will transmit him a Return of the number of Expresses employed in service, particularising how many are with the main Army and the places where the rest are stationed” (PPAmP: Nathanael Greene Papers).
Greene, at Morristown, replied to Harrison the same day: “Inclosd is a return of the Expresses in and out of Camp. I have subjoind to the return, an extract of a circular letter to the Deputies, agreeable to the Resolution of Congress” (DLC:GW).
The enclosed undated document contained two items. The first, “A list of Express-riders by the last returns,” indicated that thirty express riders were with the main army; two were stationed at Williamsburg, Va.; one at Wilmington, Del.; three at Lancaster, Pa.; five at Carlisle, Pa.; two in Chester County, Pa.; twenty-eight at Philadelphia, but these had been dismissed; one at Fort Pitt, Pa.; one at Reading, Pa.; six at Easton, Pa.; seven at Pittstown, N.J.; one at Morristown; one at Albany; sixteen at Fishkill, N.Y.; seven at Providence; and one with Maj. Gen. William Heath’s division in the New York Highlands (DLC:GW). The second item was the extract from Greene’s circular letter. The extract, headed “Paragraph of a circular letter to the Deputies, dated 19th Jany 1780,” reads: “Inclosed is a copy of a resolve of Congress, for dismissing all established Express-riders: you will immediately dismiss all your Expresses, except such as are absolutely necessary for daily purposes—hiring Expresses as the service may require, conforming as much as possible to the letter of the resolution.” (DLC:GW). In an undated memorandum, Harrison wrote down the locations and numbers of express riders given in Greene’s list and added below that list the locations and numbers of express riders that GW directed Greene to retain (DLC:GW, filed with the 27 Jan. documents).
For the full text of Greene’s circular letter to his deputies, see 5:288–89.
1. For the act of 27 Dec. 1779, see Samuel Huntington to GW, 29 Dec., n.1; see also 15:1411–12. For the act of 14 Jan., see Huntington to GW, 14 Jan., n.1; see also 16:56. For GW’s suspension of the act of 27 Dec., see GW to Huntington, 5 Jan., and n.2; see also GW to Greene, 2 January.