To George Washington from the Continental Congress Committee on the Pennsylvania Line, 7 January 1781
From the Continental Congress
Committee on the Pennsylvania Line
Trenton January 7th 1781
Sir—
The Committee appointed by Congress to quiet the disturbances of the Pennsylvania Line &ca think it proper to inform your Excellency that they arrived at this place last night after dark; And that President Reed who acts in concert with us has proceeded to the neighbourhood of Princetown at which place those Troops are now posted.1 We Are happy to inform your Excellencey that some favourable Appearances of a speedy and honorable, as well as a safe Accommodation has appeared in their Conduct this Morning; as they have given an earnest of their Sincerity and intentions by no means equivocal by seizing a Negociator sent to them from New York, together with his Conductor both of whom they delivered up to Genl Wayne, and have sent them out under a Guard with their Papers, they are actually now in the Hands of President Reed, and we do ourselves the Honor of sending your Excellencey a Copy of the Terms offered them in writing by those Emissaries.2 Shou’d your Excellecey have any Communications to make to Congress relative to the present State and Temper of the Army, we request that you will be pleased to make them through us, and direct them to this place—We are with the highest and the most sincere esteem and regard—Your Excelllencys Most Obt Hble Servts
by order of the Committee Jno. Sullivan
LS, DLC:GW. For GW’s reasons not to reply to the committee, see his letter to Arthur St. Clair, 12 Jan.; see also GW to John Sullivan, 16 January.
On 11 Jan., GW’s aide-de-camp David Humphreys wrote New York governor George Clinton from headquarters: “I have it in ⟨command from⟩ the General, who is gone to ⟨West Point to⟩ transmit your Excellency the purport ⟨of⟩ the favorable intelligence received last ⟨Night⟩ by Express from Trenton. The Pennsylvanians have given a decided & unequivocal proof of their attachment to the Country, and determination not to join the Enemy; by delivering up to General Wayne, an Emissary sent by the Enemy to tamper with them, together with his Guide & Papers. These Agents of the Enemy were sent under a guard to Governor Reed, who was in the neighbourhood of Prince Town, and were to be delivered over to Lord Stirling’s Orders, who had ordered a Court Martial at Trenton, for their Tryal—A Copy of the paper found on the Negotiator, I do myself the honor to enclose to Your Excellency—This, with the above intelligence, comes from Lord Stirling and the Committee appointed by Congress to quiet ⟨the Disturbances in the Pennsylvania Line.
“It appears by a variety of circumstances that this was the first⟩ Overture—And that ⟨a Number of A⟩gents were employed on the same ⟨business as⟩ General St Clair, who is at Morris Town ⟨had⟩ just before detected one set of Proposals, and transmitted a Copy (similar to the enclosed) to His Excellency. It is now hoped & expected, from the good disposition shewn in this instance, that the affair may yet be happily settled” (N: George Clinton Papers; most words in angle brackets are taken from the draft in DLC:GW). The enclosed document, headed “Copy of the Enemy’s letter to the Pennsylvanians” and with very similar wording as the document in n.2 below, is in N: George Clinton Papers.
1. For the formation of this committee, see GW to Anthony Wayne, 3–4 Jan., n.7; see also Wayne, Richard Butler, and Walter Stewart to GW, 4 Jan., n.2. Joseph Reed, as president of the Pennsylvania Supreme Executive Council, took the lead in negotiations with the mutineers. Leery of going inside the mutineers’ lines at Princeton, Reed, accompanied by Pennsylvania councilman James Potter, rode to within four miles of the town on this date and met with Brig. Gen. Anthony Wayne and colonels Walter Stewart and Stephen Moylan, who were in communication with the mutineers. These officers informed Reed that the mutineers had expressed “great anxiety” to have him come into their lines to negotiate and had promised “all possible respect.” Reed then decided to go into Princeton to meet with the leaders of the mutiny (Reed to the Continental Congress Committee on the Pennsylvania Line, 6 [Jan.]; Reed to Mr. Barclay, same date; and Reed to the Council, 7 Jan., in , 2:320–23, 326, quotes on 326). For Reed’s account of his reception and his contentious negotiations with the mutineers’ committee of sergeants on 7 Jan., see his letter to the Continental Congress Committee on the Pennsylvania Line, 8 Jan., in , 2:327–29. For another summary, including the demand and articles of complaint presented by the sergeants, see Reed and Potter to GW, 19 February. For Reed’s proposals, delivered at the end of that meeting and eventually accepted in large part by the mutineers, see Wayne to GW, 8 Jan., n.1.
2. The enclosed undated document, addressed “To the person appointed by the Pennsylvania Troops to lead them in the present Strugle for their Liberties and Rights,” reads: “It having been reported at New York that the Pennsylvania Troops and others, having been defrauded by Congress of their Pay, Cloathing and Provissions are assembled for a redress of their Grievances, and also that Notwithstanding the Terms of their Inlistments are expired, they have been forceably detained in their service where they have suffred every kind of missery and oppression.
“They are now offerd to be taken under the protection of the Brittish Government, to have their Rights restored, a free Pardon for all former Offences, and that Pay due to them by Congress faithfully paid to them, without any expectation of military Service, exept it may be voluntary, upon laying down their Arms and returning to their Alligience, for which purpose if they will send Commiss⟨ion⟩ers to Amboy, they will there be mett by people impowered to treat with them, and faith shall be pleged for thier security.
“It is recommended to them for their own safety to move behind south River and whenever they request a Body of Brittish Troops shall protect them.
“It is needless to point out the Inabillity as well as want of inclination of Congress to relieve them, or to tell them the Severities that [will] be used by the Rebel leaders towards them shou’d they think of returning to their former Servitude.
“It will be proved to the Commissioners they choose to send that the Authority from whence this comes is sufficient to ensure the performance of the above proposals” (DLC:GW).
The text of the document taken from the emissaries matches that recorded in British major Oliver De Lancey’s journal of espionage activities during the mutiny (see , 244–45; see also the entry for 4 Jan. in , 2:443). These emissaries were sent by British general Henry Clinton. He later called them “my messengers” (, 241). The mutineers brought the emissaries to Wayne and Reed on 7 Jan. but did not turn them over until 10 January. They were tried on the same date (see the committee’s letter to GW of 10–11 Jan., and Wayne to GW, 8 and 11 Jan.; see also Stirling’s second letter to GW of this date, and Reed to the Continental Congress Committee on the Pennsylvania Line, 8 Jan., in , 2:327–29). Clinton also sent out other emissaries carrying similar documents. One such emissary was captured and sent to Morristown, N.J. (see St. Clair to GW, 8 Jan.). In total, Clinton, acting through De Lancey, his deputy adjutant general and spy chief, sent out six copies of the proposals. De Lancey wrote: “On Thursday Evening [4 Jan.] three Copys of the … proposals were sent off to the Revolters, one by the Raritan River … the others by Newark and Elizabethtown … On the 5th I sent out three copies of the proposals … and a Verbal Message to the same import to the Pennsylvanians” (, 244–45).