vania, in favor of John L. Clarkson, clerk to the Board of Treasury, for twenty four thousand and fifty dollars old emissions, to enable him to pay for a sett of principal books, paper and sundry other articles for the use of the auditor general's office, [and to pay for a stove already fitted up for the use of the said office] and for which the said John L. Clarkson is to be accountable.1

Resolved, That the order of yesterday for changing the new money be and hereby is repealed. Adjourned to 10 o'Clock to Morrow.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 24, 1781

A letter, of this day, from Colonel Armand, was read;2 Ordered, That it be referred to a committee of three: The members, Mr. [John] Sullivan, Mr. [James Mitchell] Varnum, Mr. [Alexander] McDougall.

A letter, of 22, from A. Skinner, was read; 3

Ordered, That it be referred to a committee of three: The members, Mr. [Alexander] McDougall, Mr. [Joseph] Montgomery, Mr. [Abraham] Clark.

A letter, of October 4, from Mr. Dumas, was read, with sundry papers enclosed;

Ordered, That the same be referred to the committee on his former, of September 12.

Ordered, That a member be added to the said committee, in the room of those absent:

The member, Mr. [Thomas] McKean.

A memorial, from the owners of a ship building at Kensington, was read;

1 This report is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 136, V, folio 39; tion in brackets is in the report but not in the Journal.

Thomson here resumes the entries.

2 This letter is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 164, folio 450.

the por

* This letter is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 78, XX, folio 557.

Ordered, That it be referred to the Board of Admiralty to take order.

The committee, on the memorial of E. Forman; and

The committee, on the memorial of R. Peters &c; and The committee appointed to confer and act in concert with the executive of the State of Pensylvania in quieting the disturbances in the Pensylvania line, delivered in their respective reports:

The Committee &

Having at different times sent to Congress every material piece of Intelligence, during the course of their negotiations, now beg leave to lay before the House a connected view of their whole Proceedings with Remarks.

On their arrival at Trenton on Saturday Evening the 6th Instant, they met and conversed fully with Mr President Reed from the Executive Council of the State of Pennsylvania, who had that Day been at Maidenhead near Princeton and began a Treaty with the insurgents through General Wayne. The Committee of Congress and of the Council agreed upon the measures to be pursued by them in conjunction and in particular, that not only every thing justly due to the Soldiers of the Pennsylvania line should be granted, but that a construction favorable to them should be put upon the form of enlistment, for three years or during the war; viz: that it should terminate in three years unless the soldier had voluntarily reinlisted but that they would not on any account discharge those who had freely inlisted for the war. They also agreed that as Gen! Wayne had offered them on the 2a Instant a general amnesty it should be confirmed whatever reason there was in two or three instances to have made exceptions.

The Committee received undoubted information, that the Soldiers during their march had observed very strict order, and had done far less very little damage to the Inhabitants in passing through the Country than could have been expected, and that they observed the same order in Princeton where they had now been near a week. It also appeared that they constantly gave out that they would not go to the Enemy, but that on the contrary, if the Enemy encouraged by their proceedings should make an excursion into New Jersey, they would turn and join the Militia in fighting them. Yet

their taking Post at Princeton, which was so conveniently situated for turning either way, gave ground to suspect that they might reserve this as an ultimate resource in case of extremities-all this while Gen! Wayne, and Colonels Stewart and Butler were with them, not Prisoners as was at first supposed, but without command.

On Sunday morning the 7th Mr President Reed proceeded to Princeton, having been informed that the Soldiers earnestly desired it, and assured him he would be perfectly safe, the Committee of Congress remaining at Trenton to correspond and co-operate with him. In the night preceeding a Sergeant from Gen! Clinton at N. York with a disaffected Inhabitant of N. Jersey for a guide had come to them to Princeton and produced a written but unsigned address to them, a Copy of which is herewith laid before Congress. Another paper of the same tenor wrapt in Sheet lead, was dropt by some unknown person before the door of the House where the Board of Sergeants used to meet. These overtures they received with so much contempt and indignation that they seized the persons who brought them, and sent them to General Wayne, yet taking his promise to re-deliver them when called for, he sent them under a guard of the revolted soldiers to President Reed who met them on his way to Princeton, and carried them back under a guard of the Pennsylvania light Horse to Maidenhead for examination. When he was preparing at that place to proceed to Princeton, the Soldiers sent and desired again to have the custody of the Prisoners, yet promising to have them forthcoming to the order of the President and they were accordingly delivered to them, notwithstanding this suspicious circumstance he determined to go on, and did so. He was received by them with great respect under arms and saluted. They discovered however on this occasion a great jealousy and suspicion of their being overreached, for their Sergeants came up close to him on pretence of enquiring when and where they might converse with him, but in reality to be fully satisfied of the Identity of his person, nor would the soldiers be satisfied until some of the Sergeants who knew him personally assured them it was President Reed.

In the afternoon of that Day he conversed fully with the Sergeants, who acted in name of the whole, and found that they discovered no prejudices against Congress nor even against the State of Pennsyl vania but chiefly against some of their own officers and complained of fine deception in their enlistments. We then read to left with them

a set of propositions to be read to the Soldiery next morning on the Parade and early on the following day, Monday the 8th, sent an account of his proceedings, and a Copy of the Propositions to the Committee of Congress. In the mean time the Executive authority of the State of New Jersey had given orders to have the Militia assembled on the lines and at Brunswick, in order to protect the Country and oppose the Enemy if they should land at Amboy, as also finally to quell the Mutiny if reasonable terms should be refused.

The Committee attentively considering the whole affair and being fully informed of every circumstance by the Inhabitants of Princeton and the neighbourhood, whom the Soldiers suffered freely to mix with them, found that there was a considerable number of British Deserters who had been enlisted among them, though contrary to the repeated directions of Congress and the laws of their own State. Two of these had even been chosen into the Board of Sergeants who managed their affairs, and nothing but the dissent of these hindered them from executing the two spies by their own authority. Probably these as well as some of the other English Deserters had their eyes on New York, but they were never able to make their sentiments on this subject general, nor durst they even express them freely. The revolted Body in general discovered and even expressed great jealousies that the Militia of the country would be brought upon them to prevent which they paid the strictest attention to discipline, and the protection of the Inhabitants and every where published that they wanted only justice to themselves. They further often said that should the Enemy come out, they would join the Country under Gen! Wayne, at the same time dropping threatenings that if the Militia came upon them before the affair was settled they would burn and waste the Country without mercy. All this had its natural effect, for there appeared no disposition in the Militia to act against them till an accommodation was tried but if they had either refused reasonable terms or turned towards New York, the Country would have risen upon them to a man.

The Committee therefore prepared on their part an additional Declaration and Requisition a Copy of which is herewith produced. This having been sent to President Reed, was by him communicated to them this Day, Monday the 8th, and in the Evening they sent a written Declaration upon the terms offered them a Copy of which also accompanies this Report-about this time the Committee were

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happy in receiving a Copy of Gen! Washingtons letter to Gen! Wayne, by which it appeared that he approved and recommended the very measures of lenity and justice which had been adopted by them, so that there would be perfect harmony on the part of the United States. President Reed adhered to his own propositions, and those of the Committee and rejected that mentioned by them of chusing an equal number of the Commissioners, who were to determine the particular claims and insisted that they should immediately accept or refuse, and if they accepted, that they should march to Trenton to have the plan carried into execution. This was accordingly agreed to. They marched next Morning and arrived at Trenton Tuesday the 9th about 2 o'clock P. M.

The Committee were at Trenton when they arrived and from the disposition they were in had no apprehension of danger from them yet thought it would have an improper appearance should they con tinue in the power of men in arms who had not yet compleated their agreement and named their officers. On this account they went over the River in the afternoon and that Evening had a long and full conference with the Committee of the Council of Pennsylvania, on which they appointed Commissioners for hearing and determining the claims of the Soldiers without delay viz. Col. Atlee of the Committee of Congress, Gen! Potter of the Committee of Council, Capt. Morris and M: Blair Melenaghan of the light horse, and also determined next Morning to make a peremptory demand of the two Spies who were yet in the custody of the Soldiers. Next Morning Wednesday the 10th the Soldiers proposed an additional article that they should continue in arms till the whole Regiment were settled with and not disperse as they received their discharges. But this was by President Reed who had staid on the east side of the River positively refused as absurd in itself and discovering an unreasonable jealousy and a final answer to the former propositions required in two hours. Within this time they declared they were well satisfied with the nomination of the Commissioners they departed from their demand of continuing in arms after they were discharged, and promised immediately to deliver up the Spies, accordingly that Evening the Spies were sent to the Committee of Congress, a Board of officers immediately tried and condemned them, and they were executed next day the 11th at 12 o'Clock at the cross roads near the upper Ferry.