An exact return of the pikes to be made without delay, and of the state of the arms in each Regiment and Corps, specifying the number of each kind wanting to complete.

The damage done to Mr.——house yesterday, by the bursting of one of the cannon, to be repaired by the carpenters in the Continental pay.

COLONEL RITZEMA TO NEW-YORK CONGRESS.

Saturday, May 17, 1776.

SIR: The late Committee of Safety for this Colony deferred the appointment of a Surgeon to my regiment till such time as it should be known whether Doctor Woodruff, who was Surgeon to the garrison of St. Johns, was provided for in Canada or not. This gentleman, I am informed, is now appointed senior surgeon to the General Hospital in Canada, and of course is provided for. As the regiment stands much in need of a Surgeon, and Doctor Ledger, mate of Colonel McDougall’s, stands well recommended by Doctor Bard as a proper person for a Surgeon to a regiment, I shall be glad the Congress will be pleased to take this into their consideration; and if Doctor Ledger shall be found properly qualified, that he be appointed Surgeon to the Third Regiment.

Gentlemen, I want arms; I have no more than one hundred and ten muskets in the regiment. How fatal this is to the discipline of the corps, and of what disservice to the country, you are too well convinced of to need my enforcing it. For God’s sake exert yourselves in arming my regiment; I have a fine body of men, and have vanity enough to think if I had arms in a few weeks to be able to vie with any regiment in the Continental service.

You will pardon me in mentioning another matter: three or four of my Captains have not as yet received the billeting and subsistence money for their companies. The sub-Committee, appointed for the settling this matter, from the want of money, could not effect it. This causes some uneasiness, and I think merits attention. The regularly paying of a corps contributes as much as anything to the regularity of it.

I am, gentlemen, with respect, your very humble servant,

RUDOLPHUS RITZEMA.

To the President of the Provincial Congress, New-York.

GENERAL SULLIVAN TO COLONEL DAYTON.

Albany, May 17, 1776.

SIR: In your march from this to Tryon County, and at that place, every method must be used to prevent the soldiers from firing their pieces, insulting the inhabitants, or doing any act of rudeness whatever. A strict silence must be observed by the men at all times. When you are arrived and have seized Sir John Johnson, you are to seize the following persons, or either of them which you may find at his house, namely: James Grey, John Munroe, Thomas Swords, Captain McAlpine, Hugh Munro, Mr. Clyde of Stillwater, Isaac Mann of Stillwater, or either of his sons, Joseph Anderson, or Samuel Anderson.

Your men are frequently to be cautioned against offering any insult or abuse to the Indians, as one act of rudeness in a soldier might involve America in a dangerous war with a savage enemy.

Sir, I am your humble servant,

JOHN SULLIVAN, Brigadier-General.

To Colonel Dayton.

EXTRACT OF A LETTER DATED MONTREAL, MAY 17, 1776.

I wrote you last from Deschambault, where we remained four or five days on a very short allowance, and left it with half an allowance of flour, and no pork, to serve the men to Trois Rivieres, two good days’ march. It has since been concluded on to keep no detachment for the present below the Sorel, as the Army have been living from hand to mouth for some time past, the supplies of provisions from the other side of the Lakes being but small, and very little to be procured without force, or paying hard money for it. The common people in general, though they will probably take the stronger side, do, I have no doubt from all the observations I have made, wish well to us and our cause, and would be very glad we should succeed. Forty or fifty men of the Eighteenth Regiment, commanded by Captain Foster, joined by three hundred Indians and two hundred and fifty Canadians, had (hearing, it is supposed, that this place was in a defenceless situation) come down within twelve miles of this, having made prisoners of a Major Sherburne and three hundred of our men on their way thither; but being informed that a reinforcement was arrived, they retreated. General Arnold is in pursuit of them with nine hundred men, four hundred of whom he has sent to endeavour to cut off their retreat, while he pursues them with the utmost expedition with the remainder. Provisions, as I mentioned before, are so very scarce that we are absolutely obliged to seize flour and wheat, pledging the faith of the United Colonies for the payment of the market price. General Thomas is very ill with the small-pox at Chambly, taken in the natural way. There are five instead of three hundred of our people made prisoners. There is a report that General Arnold has beat the enemy, but no account is yet arrived from himself.

GENERAL WARD TO GENERAL WASHINGTON.

Boston, May 17, 1776.

SIR: I have the pleasure to inform your Excellency that the armed schooner Franklin, Captain Mugford, this day took and brought into this harbour a large ship from Cork.* Several other armed schooners were in company. A bill of lading I have enclosed, by which you will see that she is a very valuable prize. She carried four three-pounders, and is about three hundred tons burden. She came out the 4th of April, with nine sail of transports, under convoy of a frigate. I cannot learn any important intelligence by her; the master says there are but about one hundred soldiers on board these transports, and that they are laden with provisions and warlike stores for the King’s troops.

I am your Excellency’s obedient, humble servant,

ARTEMAS WARD.

To General Washington.

* COLONY OF THE MASSACHUSETTS-BAY, ESSEX, ss. A libel is filed before me against the ship named the Hope, burden about two hundred and eighty tons, commanded by Alexander Lumsdale, which vessel is said to have been improved in carrying supplies to the fleet and army employed against the United Colonies, and taken and brought into the County of Suffolk. And the Court erected to try and condemn all vessels that shall be found infesting the sea-coast of America, and brought into either of the Counties of Suffolk, Middlesex, or Essex, will be held at Boston, on Friday, the 21st day of June, 1776, at the hour of ten in the forenoon, to try the justice of the said capture; of which this notice is given, pursuant to the laws of the Colony aforesaid, that the owners of said ship, or any persons concerned therein, may appear and show cause, if any they have, why the said ship, with her cargo and appurtenances, should not be condemned.

TIMONTHY PICKERING, Jun., Judge of said Court.

COLONY OF THE MASSACHUSETTS-BAY, Middle District, ss. Libels are filed before me in behalf of the officers, marines, and mariners, of the Continental armed vessels Hancock, Lee, Lynch, Warren, and Franklin, against the ship named the Lord Howe, of about two hundred tons burden, commanded by one Robert Parke; against the brigantine named the Annabella, of about one hundred and eighty tons burden, commanded by one Hugh Walker; and against the ship named the George, of about two hundred and twenty tons burden, commanded by one Archibald Bog.

Another libel is filed before me, in behalf of the officers, marines, and mariners, of the Continental armed vessels Lee, Warren, and Lynch, against the ship named the Anne, of about two hundred and twenty-three tons burden, commanded by one John Denniston, which ships and brigantine are said to have been taken carrying supplies to the fleet and Army employed against the United Colonies, and armed soldiers infesting the sea-coast of America, and brought into the Counties of Suffolk and Essex,

Another libel is filed before me, in behalf of John Adams, commander of the armed sloop called the Chance, and his company of marines and mariners, and the owners of the same sloop, against the ship named the Lady Juliana, of about two hundred and forty tons burden, commanded by one Christopher Stephenson, and taken and brought into the County of Essex; which ship, her cargo, and appurtenances, are said to have been, at the time of the capture, the property of, and owned by divers inhabitants of the Island of Great Britain,

And for the trial of these captures, the Maritime Court for the Middle District of the Massachusetts-Bay will be held at the Court-House in Boston, on Tuesday, the 23d day of July, 1776, at the hour of ten in the forenoon; of which this notice is given, pursuant to the laws of the Colony aforesaid, that the owners of the vessels taken as aforesaid, or any persons concerned, may appear and show cause (if any they have) why the same vessels, or any of them, and their cargoes and appurtenances, should not be condemned.

TIMOTHY PICKERING, Jun., Judge of said Court.

NOTE.—Persons claiming the whole, or any part or share, either as owners or captors, of any vessels taken and libelled, must, by law, file their claims before the Judge of the Court five days before the day set for the trial, or they will be forever barred there from.