The Pennsylvania packet, or, The general advertiser — Lancaster, Pa.;Philadelphia, Pa., 1779-10-14 00:00:00, page 1

The Examination of JOSEPH GALLOWAY,
Esq; before the House of Commons.
(Continued from last Thursdays Papered
Q WHAT was the force under Washington when Sir
VV William Howe landed on Long-Island?
A. From the best information I could get, I believe it
was about 20,000 men ; some said more, others said iefs.
Q Was their force composed chiefly of Militia or Con
tinental troops ?
A. More of Militia than Continental troops. They
had not then time to raise, by recruiting, any great num
ber of men, nor were their States at that time perfectly
formed, and therefore could not make the exertion for
railing the regular troops which they did afterwards.
NeTV-Jerfey, October 6.
To be SOLD at Public Vendue,
At Chefnut Neck, on Wednesday the twentieth inst.
qr+HE Schooner DISPATCH; alfb bSr cargo
A confuting of about one thoufind bushels of coarse
salt, a few hotheads of rnohffns, and some tobacco.
By order of the Court of Admiralty,
JOSEPH POTTS, Marshal.
Philadelphia, September 13°
NOT ICE is hereby given, That on
Thursday the fourteenth day of October next, at
Ten o'clock in the forenoon, at the Continental Yard
the corner of Chefnut and Seventh-ftre'ets, will be fold
at Public Sale, for caffi only, a number of HORSES,
belonging to the U ited States.
By order of the Q M. G.
5 JACOB HILTZHEIMER.
Mrs. KAYSER is to be consulted with from Ten
tq Twelve in the forenoon, and from Three to Eight in
tha afternoon, next door but one to the Three Tens,
in Third street, between South and Shippen streets.
To be SOLD by Public Vendue,
On Saturday the 16 h inft^nt, ar Six o'clock in the cven
i^, at the Coffee-hcufe,
AN UMBER of valuable Lots cf Ground, situate
on Fourth ftrect continued, in the Northern Liber
ties, each lot containing twenty feet front and one hun
dred and forty-one and a half feet in depth to another
good front on a street between Third and Fourth streets.
MR S. KAYSER begs to inform the
Public That she has a fafe and peculiar method
for the cure of the fever and Ague, and will undertake
to perfect the cure in five days. She likcwife cures rhe
feurvy in te gums, and makes the teeth most beauti
fully white in a few minutes; alf© cures the rheumatism,
chin cough, fore eyes, the flux, all tons of ulcers, and
many other dif^fes too tedious to mention.
She has had the pleasure to practice in the general
way of Payfic and Surgery with very great success, both
in Baltimore and different parts of Virginia, from which,
if it was defied, fne could produce good certificates.
WANTE D,
To wait on a Gentleman,
A MAN SERVANT with an undeniable cha
n. raster and a good recommendation: Ore who can
dress hair and serve as a valet will he most preferable,
and good wages will be given. None need apply but
such whole charadr will bear the ftri&^ft scrutiny.
Enquire of the Printer.
TO BE SO L D,
?r BREE different pieces of Land, containing about
l three thousand fix hundred acres, lituate in Augusta
county, New Virginia; the greatest part woodland, the
remainder meadow, and fi fficient water for two railis.
For fu ther particulars enquire of the fubferiber, living
in Arbuckle's Row, near Poole's Bridge, Philadelphia.
MICHAEL SENSER.
Head of Severn, Maryland, Augufi 20.
WANTED IMMEDIATELY,
At my Fulling Mdi here,
ACOMPLEAT FULLER; one that if frilled
in Falling, Dyeing, Shearing, Pressing, &c. &c.
ana who can come well recommended for his diligence
and good cendu& in general. Such a one may have the
mill (which is an excellent one, and commands abun
dance of wafr) en lease, for a longer or Ihortcr t me,
as he may incline; or, at his ele&ion, fbare a third, or
ev-n a half part of the net profits o; her, for his manage
ment and trouble, as he may merit, and as may be agreed
on between him and his humble fervent,
JOHN HAMMOND.
GEN ERA L
T H U RSDA Y,
O R
[ Published every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. ]
Q Did Washington's army diminish after the battle at
Long-Island, and what was his force at the end of the
campaign, when General Howe was at Trenton?
A. In consequence ol the (uccefs on Long-Island, New-
York, the White Plains, and Fort Independence, Wash
ington's army did diminish very rapidly, insomuch that
when Washington crossed the Delaware, and Sir William
Howe marched to Trenton, his army did not consist of
more than three thousand three hundred men.
Q What do you take to have been the cause of so great
a diminution of the rebel force ?
A. Tney were panic flruck with the successes I have
mentioned ; I was at that time in Pennsylvania ; many of
them who fled from the army puffed by my house, and I
conversed with them ; they all appeared to me in the ex
tremest panic.
Q What was the disposition of the people in Pennsyl
vania when General Howe arrived at Trenton ?
A. I had, though with the army at that time, constant
communication with my friends in Pennsylvania, from
whom, while on the Delaware, I learned the disposition of
the people, and when last in Philadelphia with the Bri.ifh
army, I made it my particular business to enquire into the
state of the Province at that time Sir William Howe was
at Trenton, and I conversed with no man that did not in
form me the people of that Province were disposed to sub
mit to government, a very few excepted, and they were
those who had a&ed themoft violent part ; great pains were
taken to get the Militia out, and very few were prevailed
on to turn out.
Q Did they expert the British army in Philadelphia at
that time?
A. They certainly did.
Q Did the members of the Congress and others, who had
taken an active part in the rebellion, take any ftepsin con
sequence of their expeding the British troops in Philadel
phia ?
A. I was informed by every onel conversed with on the
fubjed, that the Congress and the rebel States, in which I
include all their officers, fled in a panic from Philadelphia,
many of them leaving a part of their property behind them;
and when I was iaft at Philadelphia, I was informed by
two or three gentlemen, that they were appointed by a
number of refpedable inhabitants of the city of Philadel
phia to wait on the Congress, and to inform them that they
would go up and certainly meet Sir Wililam Howe, in case
he fheuld cross the Delaware, and implore his protection
in behalf of the inhabitants; that they did wait on the
Congress accordingly, and delivered their message; that
they received for answer from the Congress, that they
could not blame them, for they could no longer protest
them.
Q Do you know any thing of the disposition of the
other revolted colonies, were they from the successes of the
British army disposed to peace, or did they still remain
sanguine in their hopes o' maintaining their independence.
I mean those who had been the supporters of the Congress
and their measures ?
A. I had very good ®pportunities of knowing the state
of the middle colonies, in which I include New York,
New-Jersey, Penofylvania, Maryland, the Delaware
Counties and Virginia. Gentlemen of fortune and inte
grity, on whom I could rely, came in to me in Philadel
phia from Norfolk in Virginia, Williamsburg, Frede
ricksburg, the diflant county of Botetourt, Fort Pitt, and
from the intermediate parts of New-York, New-J, r fey,
Maryland and the Delaware Counties, from whom I maje
it my particular business to learn the state of the disposition
of the people of those colonies, as well at that time as in
the year 1776, when Sir William Howe was at Trenton;
and I was informed by them all, that the panic extended
to all those parts, and at that time very few indeed enter
tained hopes of supporting the independence.
Q Do you think if Sir William Howe had pursued
Washington across the Delaware, scattered the remains of
his army, mid taken up his quarters at Philadelphia, that
the Congress would have been able to raise another army ?
A. I verily believe they would not have been able to
raise an army of ny consequence, not of 5000 men, so as
to take field at the usual time of opening the campaign. It
was not only my opinion, but that @f every gentleman I
conversed with in Pennsylvania.
Q What effeft had the success of the rebels in defeating
and making prisoners the Hessians at Trenton on the minus
of the people ?
A. It had a very mischievous eftfl to the British service.
It removed that panic with which the new state ol the mid
dle colonies were Grack ; it enabled the Congress and the
members of the new states to return to Philadelphia ; the
most advantageous post for their residence in all America;
it revived their spirits, and the spirits of the difaffeQed;
it induced a number of the militii to turn out, who other
wise would not have done it, and contributed in a great
measure to the railing of the army which Washington
commanded the next campaign
Q. After the affair at Trenton, did the Congress find
it easy to recruit their army ? And w al number of troops
had Washington with him in the Jetfes during the win
ter ?
^ w&< urara x^"™™—^
ruffl
THE
I ^^^/f^^^ Gh %>frV^^
ADVERTISER
Q Did the British army find any difficulty in procu
""l provisos whilst on the banks of the Delaware?
A Tney did not. I was both, at Trenton and Bor
deuton, the ^o posts left by Sir William Howe on t^e
Delaware. The people brought in their cattle, and other
provisions to both tuefe posts. Captain Campbell, with
whom I lodged, ailed as Deputy Quarter-Matter, I drew,
at his requert, invitations to the people of the country to
bring in their provisions towards forming a magazine at
Bordentown; and although he was there but a little while,
a very considerable magazine was formed, and a great
quantity of provisions brought in before h^ was obliged
to leave it by the taking of Trenton.
P' ak °° ° P his winter quarters at
,h w °°r " f "' e run any ri '9 we ° f not be ^
lupplied with provisions from the country ?
1 tfnnk it impossible. The country was full of pro
visions. General Howe's army was the fup f rior army
^ h e " a T/ ' h * ve !° r ^ ed? had th e inhabitant
not brought in their provisions, of which I think there
^Ph F d ° Üb '’ becau ' e whe " Sir Wi " iam Howe was
w t<° " 7 ?' ' be pe ° ple at that time > wh ea
Washington had four times the number of troops that he
had at Trenton, and when his party were continually pa
trolling round tne lines, the inhabitants of Philadelphia,
the army and the navy, such as chose to eat frefh provi
fi°^ X ere ° P?!l f d by the country without the lines
Q. W na t number of men did the Congress vote for that
campaign, 1777 ?'
A. Congress voted for that year eighty-eight batta
lions, each con lifting of deven hundred and fifty men, of
ficers included, making in the whole oout sixty-six thou-
Q ], a , number did they actually raise for that year>
A. At the outside they did not bring into the field
sixteen thousand men. I think lam beyond the mark in
tnat number.
Q„ Whet was the reason that so small a number of the
r @ ops voted were raxfed, was it that Congress had altered
their refoiution, as to the numbers to be employed, or was
it because the men were not to be had ?
c °^' be ' aufe the Congress had altered their re
folutiop, but because the men were not to be had ; they
made every exertion as u f ua |, but they had loft in the Ca
eT^°?; ?' P° fton > where the - vwe ^ e extremely
'° 'VI" '" ^ federal engagements with
theßritiih troops, taken prisoners, and by deaths in the
military hospitals, southward of New-York, I think I
may fafely fay upon good enquiry, near forty thousand
men; t e people also at that time were more averse to the
measures of Congress than the year before.
Q What were the exertions made use of to bring a nu
merous army in 0 the field? 6
A. They were, , j mentioned before, partly recruit
% ^"^ '"" Mlli ^, and enlisting of servants.
Q what proportion of the troops that composed Wash.
ington's army enlisted voluntarily?
A. I cannot answer that question with precision ; I be
lieve not a moiety of them.' °
c^r^"' d " ertions from the rebel army frequent, while
Sir William Howe was in Phi adelphia? "
A. They were very frequent, almost daily. I have
°' ne °"'" '" ° f a day# Many ^ from
.y?f' L ? umber d ° y° u suppose came into the army
at Philadelphia? '
A. The deserters were generally feat from head-quar
ters down to me for examination; from me they went to
Mr. Story, the officer appointed to administer the oath of
allegiance. -He kept a regular account of their numbers
their names and places of nativity ; and I think the^
were upwards of two thousand three hundred qualified at
his office, and J believe on good reason there mi?ht have
been upwards of seven or eight hundred more not qualified
for I often found, on feeing him in the evening, that th^
numbers I had fentdown to him had not gone, so that r
supposed at least three thousand came in
°7^ ,PP°, the number you have mentioned to
be the whole of the desertion 'rm the rebel army?
u n ° mea ° 6 ' 'don't foppofe it many might have
ny more'°'° '"" '° ""' ' rie ° ds)P " hap ' h ' s as ma
(To be Continued.)
a A, NotwrthLanding that success, the Congress did not
e , af y,° recruit their army. They were obliged to
° he f° m p u > for y methods I have mentioned ,
^^ """^ Washington, at Morristown
A ^formation I could get, had not 6oco men.
v ° Washington take any measures to pre.e t the
Eritilh army from procuring provisions in their march
through the Jerfies, and what measures?
WafhingtonT retreat through the Jerfies he iffm
, commanding the inhabitants near that
route which he fufpeded the British army would follow,
to remove all them provisions under pain of having it de
but thls Proclamation was not obeyed, nor
f.'° ^^° executi °m He did not put it
into execution, left he should render the people averse to
his measures. • ' ' ^ CTIC 0
OCTOBER 14, 1779.
THE