The Pennsylvania packet, or, The general advertiser — Lancaster, Pa.;Philadelphia, Pa., 1782-03-07 00:00:00, page 1

WHEREAS there is good reason to believe,
that there are many Deserters from the Con
tinental Army, who, from a conviftion of
their errors, and from finding themselves deluded by
falfe promises, would willingly return to their colours,
were they not apprehensive of that punishment which
is justly due to their crimes: Therefore, from motives
of humanity,and in order to give all such an opportu
nity of returning to the Service of their country, I
have thought fit to issue this, my Proclamation, offering
free Pardon to all Deserters ; as well those who may
have joined the enemy as others, who Shall deliver
themselves up to any Continental Officer, on or before
the firft Day of June next.
But I think it necessary at the fame time to declare,
that all those who negled to embrace the terms now
offered, and are hereafter apprehended, may expert
the most exemplary Punishment.
By His Excellency GEORGE WASHINGTON,
Esquire, General and Commander in Chief of the
Armies of the United States of America.
February 26, 1782.
IRON ORDNANCE.
TO BE SOLD,
ONE Hundred pieces of IRON ORDNANCE, ly
ing at the Head of ELK, being the property of
the United States, viz.
Two 3 pounders without carriages,
Sixteen 6 pounders, 7
Forty 9 pounders, > on Ship carriages,
Sixteen 12 pounders, J
Twenty-fix 18 pound Caronades without carriages.
The Prices are as follows for every Fair of the
above ordnance :
3 pounders 120 dollars, 6 pounders 226 dollars
and zgds, 9 pounders 293 dollars and 1 3d, 12
pounders 333 dollars and 1 3d, and >% pound caro
mades 213 dollars and z-gd.
Any person inclining to purchase, on payment of the
money to the Treasurer of the United States, for a
part or the whole, and producing his receipt into this
office, (hall have an order for the delivery.
PROC LAMATIO N.
By His Excellency's
Command.
Tench Tilghman, A. D. C.
[The Printers in the different States are requeued to
publish the above.]
By virtue of a Decree of the Court of Admiralty for
the Delaware State, will be SOLD at Lewis-town,
On MONDAY the lith of March,
Cargo of the prize Sloop Hawk,
Consisting of
120 barrels of Irish mess and cargo Beef,
80 ditto ditto mess Pork,
150 half barrels mess Beef and Pork,
60 barrels Flour,
40 ditto Oat Meal,
200 fi r kins of Butter,
30 half barrels of Tallow, and
45 boxes of Candles.
At the fame Time will also be Sold, the
aforefaid
Sloop H A W K,
Her Tackle and Apparel. She is a strong Vessel,
built of Irish Oak.
The Sale to be tor ready Money only, by
GEORGE LATIMER, Marlhal.
Newport, Feb. 23, 1782.
Adventurers in the United
State LOTTERY, may know the fate of their tickets,
, applying at the office, on Mr. John Mean's wharf,
Where the lottery is now drawing.
N n JOHN GRAFF, check clerk.
13. Hours of enquiry from half past three in the
bernoon till dark, Philadelphia, Dec. 19, 1781.
VOL. XI.I
THURSDAY,
Office of Finance,
Given at Head-Quarters, in Philadelphia, this
eighth Day of February, 1782.
GEORGE WASHINGTON.
GENERAL ADVERTISER.
THE
Published every TUESDAY, THURSDAY and SATURDAY.—Price Six-Pence.
A remarkable instance of this happened in the case of
Silas Deane; and I mention this circumstance with the
greater ease, because the poison of his hypocrisy spread
over the whole country, and every man, almost without
exception, thought me wrong in opposing him. The belt
friends I then had, except Mr. Laurens, flood at a di
stance, and this tribute, which is due to his constancy, I
pay to him with refpedt, and that the readier, because he
is hot here to hear it. If it reaches him in his imprison
ment, it will afford him an agreeable reflection.
" As be rose like a rocket, be would jail like ibe flick," is
a metaphor which I applied to Mr. Deane in the tirft piece
which I published respecting him, and he has exactly ful
filled the defcriptiou. The credit he so unjustly obtained
from the public, he loft in alinoll as short a time. The
delusion perished as it fell, and he soon law himfelt Grip
ped of popular support. His more intimate acquaintance
began to doubt and to defect him long before he left A
merica, and at his departure he saw himfelt the object of
general suspicion. When arrived in France, he endea
voured to effect by treason what he had failed to accom
plifli by fraud. His plans, schemes and projects, together
with his expectation of being sent to Holland to negociate
a loan of money, had all miscarried. He then began tra
ducing and accusing America of every crime, which could
injure her reputation. " That she was a ruined country;
“ that she only meant to make a tool of France, to get
“ what money she could out of her, and then to leave her,
“ and accommodate with Britain." Of all which, and
much more, C< lonel Laurens and myfelf, when in France,
informed Dr. Franklin, who had not before heard of it.
And to compleat the character of a traitor, he has, by
letters to this country since, some of which, in his own
hand writing, are now in the pofieffion of Congress, used
every expression and argument in his power to injure the
reputation of France, and to advise America to renounce
her alliance, and surrender up her independence. * Thus,
in France, he abuses America, and in his letters tq Ame
rica he abuses France; and is endeavouring to create dis
union between the two countries, by the fame arts of
double-dealing by which he caused dissensions among the
Commissioners in Paris, and diffractions in America. But
his life has been fraud, and his character is that of a plod
ding, plotting, cringing mercenary, capable of any dis
guise that suited his purpole. His final detection has very
happilv cleared up those mistakes, and lemoved those un
eafinefles, which his unprincipled conduct occasioned.
Every one now fees him in the fame light; for towards
friends or enemies he a&ed with the fame deception and
injustice, and his name, like that of Arnold, ought now
to be forgotten among us. As this is the firft time I have
mentioned him since my return from France, it is my in
tention it Shall be the last.---From this digression, which
for Several reasons I thought necessary to give, I now
proceed to the purport of my address.
% I confider the war of America against Britain as the
country's war, the public's war, or the war of the people
in their own behalf, for the security of their natural
rights, and the protection of their own property. It is
not the war of Congress, the war of the Assemblies, or
the war of Government, in any line whatever. The
country firft, by a mutual compact, resolved to defend
their rights and maintain their independance, at the ka
%ard of their lives and fortunes. They elected their Re
presentatives, by whom they appointed their members to
Congress, and laid, aft you for us, and rose will jufort
you. This is the true ground and principle of the war on
the part of America, and, conEquently, there remains
nothing to do, but for every one to fulfil his obligation.
It was next to impossible that a new country, engaged
in a new undertaking, could let off ffltemaricdly ri^ht
at firft. She saw not the extent of the Struggle die was
involved in, neither could she avoid the beginning. She
supposed every step She took, and every refuhuLn she
formed, would bring her enemy to reason, and close the
WHEN any necessity or occasion has pointed out
the convenience of addressing the public, I have
never made it a consideration whether the subject was po
pular or unpopular, but whether it was right or wrong ;
for that which is right will become popular, and that
which is wrong, though by mistake it may obtain the cry
or fashion of the day, will soon lose the power of delusion,
and fink into difelteem.
On the Expences, Arrangements and Disbursements for
carrying on the War, and finifhing it with
Honour and Advantage.
* Mr. William Marfal, of this city, formerly a pill, wko
bad been taken at sea and carried to England, and got fr m thence
to France, brought over letters from Mr. Deane to America, one
of which was directed to " Robert Morris, Fff Mr. Morris
sent it unopened to Congress, and advised Mr, Marfhai to deliver
the others there, which he did. The letters were of the fame
purport with those which have been already published under the
Signature of 5. Douse, to which they had frequent reriteace.
COMMON SENSE,
(Continued from our Paper of February 28.)
To the PEOPLE of AMERICA.
O R, THE
THE
contest. Those failing, the was forced into new measures ;
and these, like the former, being fitted to her expert -
tions, and failing in their turn, left her continually un
provided and without fyttem. The enemy 1 kewiie was
induced to prosecute the war, from the temporary expe
dients we adopted for carrying it on. We were continu
ally expecting to fee their credit exhaefted, and they were,
looking to fee our currency fail; and thus, betwe n their
watching us and we them, the h ,pes of both have been de
ceived, and the childishness of the expectation has Served
to enefeafe the expence.
Yet who, through this wilderness of error, has been to
blame ? where is the man who can fay, the fault has not
in part been his? They were the natural unavoidable er
rors of the day. They were the errors of a whole coun
try, which nothing but experience could detect, and time
remove. Neither could the circumstances of America ad
mit of system, till either the paper currency was fixed or
laid aside. No calculation of finance could be made on a.
medium falling without reason, and fluctuating without
rule.
But there is one error which might have been prevented,
and was not ; and as it is not my custom to flatter, but to
feive mankind, I will speak it freely. It certainly was
the duty of every assembly on the continent to have known,
at all times, what was the condition of its treasury, and
to have ascertained at every period of depreciation, how
much the real worth of the taxes fell short of their nomi
nal value. This knowledge, which , might have been eably
gained, would have enabled them to have kept their con
stituents well informed, which is one of the greatest du
ties of representation. They ought to have Studied and
calculated the expences of the war, the quota of each
State, and the consequent proportion that would fall 01
each man's property for his defence; anil this mutt easily
have Shewn to them, that a tax of an hundred pounds
could not be paid by a bufliel of apples or an hundred of
flour, which was often the case two or three years ago.
But instead of this, which would have been plain and up
right dealing, the little line of temporary popularity, the
feather of an hour's duration, was too much purfue'd ;
and in this involved condition of things, every State, for
the want of a little thinking, or a little information, sup
posed that it Supported the whole expences of the War,
when in fad it Sell, by the time the tax was levied and
collected, above three fourths short of its own quota.
Impiefled with a sense of the danger to which rhe c un
try was exposed by this lax method of doing bufinefv, arid
the prevailing errors of the day, 1 published, last October
was a twelvemonth, Tbe Crisis Extraordinary, on toe re
venues of America, and the yearly expence of carrying
on the war. My estimation of the latter, together with
the civil lift of Congress, and the civil lift of the several
States, was Two Million Pounds Sterling, which is very
nearly Nine Millions of Dollars.
Since that time, Congress have gone into a calculation,
and have estimated the expences of tbe war department
and the civil lilt of Congress (exclusive of the civil lift of
the Several governments) at Eight Millions of Dollars;
and as the remaining million will be fully Sufficient for the
civil lilt of the Several States, the two calculations are
exceedingly near each other.
This sum of Eight Millions of Dollars they have called
upon the States to furnifh, and their quotas are as follows,
which I Shall preface with the refolutivn itfelf.
By the United States in Congress assembled,
October 30th, 1781.
Resolved,
THAT tbe refpeftive States be called upon to furnifh
the Treasury of the United States with their quotas of
eight millions of dollars, for the war department and civil
lift for the ensuing year, to be paid quarterly, in equal
proportions, the firft payment to be made on the firft day
of April next.
Resolved, That a Committee, consisting of a member
from each State, be appointed to apportion to the Several
States the quota of the above sum.
The Committee, appointed to ascertain the proportions
of the several States of the monies to be railed for tbe
expences of the ensuing year, report the tollowing reso
lutions :
That the sum of Eight Millions of Dollars, as required
to be railed by the refoliations of the 30th of Oct >be, last,
be paid by the States in the following proportion.
New-Hamp/hire, - 373,598
Maflachuletts. - 1307,596
Rhode-lfland, - 216,684
Connecticut - 747,106
New-York - 37.3,498
New-JerSey - 485,679
Pennsylvania, - 1120,794
Delaware, - - 112,085
Maryland, - 933^996
Vugmia, - - 1307,594.
Nath-Carolina, - 622.677
South-Carolina, - 373,598
Georgia, - 24,905
MARC H 7, 1782,
November zd.
[NCM 855.
8,000,000 Dolkft