officers of the, Regiments late Colonel Gardner’s, Colonel Glover’s, and Colonel Glover’s, who have omitted com plying with the above orders hitherto.

The commanding officers at Winter Hill, Prospect Hill, and Roxbury, are to make particular inquiry into the ammunition of the men in those lines, and if there is any deficiency, immediately to report it to the General at Head-Quarters.

A General Court-Martial is ordered to sit on Monday next, ten o’clock, A. M., for the trial of Lieutenant Brigham, charged with “rescuing a prisoner when in lawful custody.”

Head-Quarters, Cambridge, July 9, 1775.

The Continental Congress having been pleased to appoint Horatio Gates, Esq., Brigadier-General and Adjutant-General of the Army, he is to be obeyed as such, and all orders transmitted through him from the Commander in-Chief, whether written or verbal, are to be punctually and immediately obeyed.

All soldiers, more than two to a company, who are at present absent on furlough, and all officers, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers, who have not joined their respective corps, to be ordered forthwith to camp. The commanding officers of corps to be answerable to the General for an immediate obedience to this order.

The General, or in his absence, the commanding officer at Roxbury, to send a report every day, in writing, sealed up, to the Commander-in-Chief, at Head-Quarters, in Cambridge, of all the material occurrences of the preceding day, mentioning particularly all arrivals of ships and vessels in the bay, and what changes and alterations are made in the stations of the men-of-war, transports, and floating batteries, &c.

Head-Quarters, Cambridge, July 10, 1775.

The General Court-Martial, of which Colonel William Prescott was President, having tried William Pattin, of Colonel Gridley’s Regiment, and found him guilty of “threatening and abusing a number of persons, when prisoner in the quarter-guard,” the Court sentence the prisoner to ride the wooden horse fifteen minutes.

The General approves the sentence, and orders it to be put in execution at the head of the Regiment.

David Wells, soldier in Col. Gridley’s Regiment, tried by the above-mentioned General Court-Martial, for “sleeping upon his post when sentry,” is acquitted by the Court.

No non-commissioned officer or soldier, but such as are guilty of capital offences, to be confined in the main guard; all those guilty of crimes triable by a Regimental Court Martial, to be sent to the quarter-guards of their respective corps, to be tried by Regimental Court-Martial.

The General Court-Martial, whereof Col. William Prescott is president, to sit again this day, at the usual hour. All evidences, and persons concerned, to attend the Court. Whenever General Court-Martial is ordered, it is expected that the evidences and persons by whom the prisoners are confined, do punctually attend to support the accusation, as they will answer the contrary at their peril.

The Colonels of the Massachusetts Regiments to order one Subaltern from each Company in their respective Corps forthwith upon the recruiting service. Proper instructions will be given by the Adjutant-General to the officers ordered upon that service; they will, therefore, call at Head-Quarters as soon as possible, to receive their instructions. The General recommends it to the Colonels to send active and vigilant officers upon this service, and those who are most in esteem with people in the District they are sent to recruit in.

GENERAL WASHINGTON TO RICHARD HENRY LEE, ESQ.

Camp at Cambridge, July 10, 1775.

DEAR SIR: I was exceeding glad to receive a letter from you, as I always shall be whenever it is convenient, though perhaps my hurry, till such time as matters are drawn a little out of the chaos they appear in at present, will not suffer me to write you such full and satisfactory answers, or give such clear and precise accounts of our situation and views as I could wish, or you might expect. After a journey a good deal retarded, principally by the desire of the different townships through which I travelled, of showing respect to the General of your Armies, I arrived here on this day week; since which I have been labouring with as much assiduity, by fair and threatening means, to obtain returns of our strength in this camp and Roxbury, and their dependencies, as a man could do, and never have been able to accomplish the matter till this day; now, I will not answer for the correctness of them, although I have sent several of the regimental returns back more than once, to have mistakes rectified. I do not doubt but the Congress will think me very remiss in not writing to them sooner, but you may rely on it yourself, and I beg you to assure them that it has never been in my power till this day to comply with their orders. Could I have conceived, that that which ought, and in a regular army, which would have been done in an hour, would employ eight days, I should have sent an express on the second morning after I arrived, with a general account of things; but expecting in the morning to receive the returns in the evening, and in the evening surely to find them in the morning, (and at last getting them full of imperfections,) I have been drilled on, from day to day, till I am ashamed to look back at the time which has elapsed since my arrival here. You will perceive, by the returns, that we have but about sixteen thousand effective men in all this department, whereas, by the accounts which I received from even the first officers in command, I had no doubt of finding between eighteen and twenty thousand; out of these there are only fourteen thousand fit for duty. So soon as I was able to get this state of the Army, and came to the knowledge of our weakness, I immediately summoned a council of war, the result of which you will see, as it is enclosed to the Congress. Between you and me, I think we are in an exceeding dangerous situation, as our numbers are not much larger than we suppose, from the best accounts we are able to get, those of the enemy to be; theirs situated in such a manner as to be drawn to any point of attack, without our having an hour’s previous notice of it, (if the General will keep his own counsel,) whereas we are obliged to be guarded at all points, and know not where, with precision, to look for them. I should not, I think, have made choice of the present posts in the first instance, although I believe the communication between the town and country could not have been so well cut off without; but as much labour has been bestowed in throwing up lines, making redoubts, &c.; as Cambridge, Roxbury, and Watertown, must be immediately exposed to the mercy of the enemy, were we to retreat a little further in the country; as it would give a general dissatisfaction to this Colony, dispirit our own people, and encourage the enemy to remove at this time to another place, we have, for these reasons, resolved in council to maintain our ground if we can. Our lines on Winter and Prospect Hills, and those of the enemy on Bunker Hill, are in full view of each other, a mile distant, our advance guards much nearer, and the sentries almost near enough to converse; at Roxbury and Boston Neck it is the same. Between these we are obliged to guard several of the places at which the enemy may land. The enemy have strongly fortified, or will in a few days, their camps and Bunker, Hill; after which, and when their new-landed troops have got a little refreshed, we shall look for a visit, if they mean, as we are told they do, to come out of their lines. Their great command of artillery, and adequate stores of powder, &c., give them advantages which we have only to lament the want of The abuses in this Army, I fear, are considerable, and the new modelling of it, in the face of an enemy, from whom we every hour expect an attack, exceedingly difficult and dangerous. If things, therefore, should not turn out as the Congress would wish, I hope they will make proper allowances. I can only promise and assure them, that my whole time is devoted to their service, and that, as far as my judgment goes, they shall have no cause to complain. I need not tell you that this letter is written in much haste; the fact will sufficiently appear from the face of it. I thought a hasty letter would please you better than no letter, and therefore I shall offer no further apology, but assure you that, with sincere regard for my fellow-labourers with you, Doctor Shippen’s family, &c., I am, dear Sir, your most affectionate servant,

GEORGE WASHINGTON.