The Pennsylvania packet, or, The general advertiser — Lancaster, Pa.;Philadelphia, Pa., 1780-07-29 00:00:00, page 3

tyn much clouded over your country, is clearing up very
[aft.— Ireland basalready a volunteer army under the
rnoft approved whig leaders, who art of their own choice.
The whigs of England are associating after the example
of America. Great Britain has made herfelf odious to
all the commercial nations of Europe by her arrogance in
pretending to keep the sovereignty of the seas, and by
her injufiice in feiziog and condemning neutral yeffels,
contrary to treaty. The time is now come when those
nations will insist on their right to a free trade, and are
determined to support the honour of their refpedive flags.
There is already a negociation on foot, and as good as
conclu j ed, between the Courts of Raffia, Denmark, Swe
den, Portugal, and -this Republic (to which they were
invited by the Empress of Russia). to make it a common
cause, and to form a system for the protection of their
commerce to every part of the world, and not fuffer it to
be interrupted b,aoy nation whatever. She has already
declared her design to the belligerent powers, and requfft
cj the concurrence of our States; and tho' you know
our motions are generally very flow, in this inflance the
.Province of Holland received immediately not only to
enter intothe plan, but to confer with prince Gallitzin,
the Ruffian Ambassador, on the best and most effeau&l
nieafures to accelerate the negociation and to complete
the plan. We believe that a Ruffian squadron will, for
that purpose,, soon be in the Britjth channel to aft in
conjunction with ours, as there is not a doubt of the o
ther Provinces following the example of that of Holland.
The Court of Great Britain are in great jeopardy, and
seem to a& irresolutely desperate. About the middle of A
prd left, when they found the Dutch would not at any
rate grant them fuccours, but on the contrary, were de.
Cermined to assist in abridging their assumed sovereignty
of the leas', to cover their chagrine and disappointment
puolhlied a declaration charging the Republic with de
fitting their alliance, W have suspended, till further or
ders, ail the particular privileges hi commerce it has hi
therto enjoyed ; the very mention of privileges, which
we never enjoyed but when they pleaded, is affronting
in the highest degree : Generally speaking, these would
be called privileges with the fame propriety as the Bri
tish cruelties practifed in America may be called tender
mercies. Finding we were not very uneasy in consequence
of their threatenings, a great miniflerial boufe in Lon
don h s written that by properly appeal ng, the con
damnation of our vtffel„ taken under Count Byland's
convoy, would be reverfecl. A great patriotic character
among us, whom you know, I believe to havb been very
inftrymental io,cur prehnt rceafures.- r Thus we may tru
ly fay, " auspice ——
^tandem bona caufa taiumphat,” the' by the bye there
have been great political druggies here The eff Rs of
tail triumph must extend to America ; for if'afterthe o
pen declaration of two great powers in its favour, the o
ther maritime ones (Mould combine to preserve a neutra
lity, and at the fame time to ptvea and infill upon a
ft wade, England must flop her mad career or fink for
c^cr- I have therefore^rch^ hopes that peace may at
length be the iffuc of these proceedings; especially if Eng
lani could have its intolerable pride humbled by a blow
at sea.
" You were, when among us, a personal witneG of the
inclination of many wealthy individuals of this country to
fteQart.of their money in the'American funds ; tsnt
iucl;&at on is net aTtere I, —and ATOUId that dtfi red p-a.ee
b: wrought about by proper management, ahnoft any
firms ogrf be procured,and at a lower rate than it would
be poffiblein any other part of Europe. We hope to fee
fpetd% fore person properly authored for the above
purpuft, as well a'for the grafting of vacant lands, as
we already observe a fpir t prevailing here which agrees
well with that idea. Thus would America reap import
a t advantages from the wealthy individuals of Holland
bzint its creditors, and land proprietors, as im'ereft would
fir. and irreafe :he attachment, and produce the fame ef
f< as as the Enflifh flocks have done, but on much better
ground.
“ Before this reaches you, the French fleet defined for
America will be probably on your coail. I hope your army
will be ready for co-operation ; the troops on board will
very considerably ingreafe the number.
We will prrfevere in promoting the cause of America in
Holland, and request your continued correfpcmdence to
enable us the better so to do."
The opinion of a Court of enquiry held by therequeft
of Col. White, commanding the southern cavalry,
receding his conduct on the 6th instant, at Linud's
ferry.
•, H B Court after hearing the evidence produced, are
, of opinion that Col. White was not guilty of the
leaf! negl^a or inattention on the 6th instant ; and on thi
whole did every thing for the troops under his command
that prudence could dictate.
E. MAYHAM, President.
George-Town, May iz, ,78a.
PHILADELPHIA, July 29 .
Extract of a Letter from near Morristown, dated June
21, 1780.
" Dr. Shippen's defence is to be de'ivere! this week.
I am told that mod of the witnesses firft examined are to
be intemperatcly abused : Dr. Ruffi among the foremoft.
As for that part of Dr. Brown's evidence which de
clares “ that the system of arrangement was imperfeft,
and that Dr. Shippen did not remedy it (tho' in his pow
er) in so far as the physicians and forgeons had 00 au
thority of direction or power to regulate the economy
of the hofpitafe, nor was it regulated before February 6,
1778 ;' 'he centrad &s it by the testimony of all the
commissaries and a fe<w others whom he has foppo^ted
in iJlenUs and finecurefhip from the beginning till this
day, who all swear, that the surgeons, did regulate the
hofpita's in all refpe&s as well before as since that change
wasmade in tne system. If that was the case where was
the necessity for calling—petitioning--and disputing about
more room—more ibirts —more bedding — and numberless
other particulars that frequently, were wanting? And
why have fewer men died in twenty months since that
power was given to t^e surgeons by Congress than ufual
did in twenty days before that al eration was made ;
'Burgeons had had the fame powers put into their
hajrds oy the Director General ?—lt cannot however be
expected that commissaries even on oath will criminate
tbmfehues ; or that any persons having once inlifted as
partisans in favor cf Chief whether,or, or without <va
^ received will tell unbiaffed truths'.
" The affairs of our country I fear are dafperate.
Iniquity—vice— -and impudence every where bear down
diffident virtue and konefiy. Our governments are too
distant and too feeble to teftrainthe former and puniffi the
litter.—They are moreover too much fubjeßed to tne
influence of rogues and villains; or rendered lukewarm
and careless by them, Hence viftory declares in favour
of vice, and virtue muff lurk abashed in places of retire,
mept, where she will find the eonfoladon of felf-apprb
batioa, and that of her private friends."
We were misinformed with refpeH to the capture of the
Perfeut mentioned in our last as having been made by the
French fleet arrived at Newport. The fad is, that on
the 15th of June they took a verf.l bound from Charkf
town to the Weft-Indies, with seven English officers on
board ; but (hedges not appear to be the Perseus.
To Dr. JOHN M O<RG AN.
SI R,
A"' 'H°°° Ht am teized with no petulant itch of
dribbling, nor disposed to engross a single column
of a public paper, with a private dispute ; yet to the can
dour and justice of the public, am I ready to appeal for
tiie prefect exhibition of your consistency and integrity.
In Nov. 1775, when you affirmed ths direction of the
Hospitals at Can bridge, you found me acting in the ca
pacity of an Assistant Apothecary. After the most ex
traordinary and unparraMelled difihiffon of Mr. Andrew
Craigie, from the head of this department, to make way
an augmentation of your emoluments, by the intro
duCTion of a pupil of your own you confirmed me in
that character. Upon my expreffiog a desire te leave the
department you drenuoufly opposed me. Confeious
doubtless ®f the incapacity of my new superior, to fulfil
the duties of his flation, and of the necessity of fame one
whose knowledge and services in the profeffion, might
screen the affair from public notice. Dissuaded from my
invention of leaving r a department at this time, by some
woo had the interest of their country at 1 eart, I conti
nued without either t>e ; onor or the profit, to perform all
the services of Principal Apothecary, till October 1776,
during which, I had twice tie fatisfaftion to save from
the enemy, all the medicares under my caie, when in the
m®ft imminent danger. 'Ashamed that a youth well known
to be unfit for that office, however accomplifh^d in other
refpefte, should have the honor of heading the profeffion,
whileldid his duty, and you drew his wages, I again
solicited a dilmiffion. The pay of an Assistant Apothe
cary, at this time, was thirty dollars peY month. On
the yth of November, after I received the following an
swer from you: “ Willing to make it more wortl; your
white to serve the public, I make you the offer of a place,
it will be on the fame footing you have held your present
one, my verbal appointment and bearing you on my lift
cf officers, so that you will be bettered only in rank and
pay, to deliver out medicines to the Regimental Su ge
ons, and mufi fiill be subordinate to Mr. Giles." To
this newly proffered place, you made an addition of ten
dollars per mouth,amounting with the thirty I had before,
to forty. From the date of this letter. I never beared
from or few you, till I obtained my difmiffion from the
dfrrtrfo (D^ ^ m &r izrciZ&LEhfolpbia. Here
1 received your verbal thanks far ray goc'iTi'or, cruft nr~r^
neral, and in particular, for my extraordinary exertions
and vigilance, in removing from Newark on the enemies
near approach, not only all the medicines, committed to
my charge, hut also in the absence of the feaior Surgeon,
all the Hospital fiores, baggage and fiak, to a place of se
curity near Morris town ; after which,: unfobcited, you
gave me the following certifi. ate: “ This is to certify, that
Mr. John B. Cutting has been employed in the General
Hospital as Assistant Apothecary, ever .since my entrance
into the service, to Odober sth last, and from thence to
the present day, as Apothecary, and given entire fatufac
&." JOHN MORGAN,
Philadelphia, Dec. 17, 1776. Director General.
WHEN " by reason of general complaints of perform of
all ranks, in the army," Cengrefs thought proper to dif
miis you their service, you set about the vindication of
your public charade,. Alas for an hapless Apothecary !
Tiio'the " iky was tenspeftuous, and the clouds colled
jug over you, a contemptible " meteor" raised
in the “ fog" this moment, to be obfeured forever,
the next could not efeape your attention. “ Mr.
John Brown Cutting a person moulded by nature, to fub
ferve Dr. Shippen's purposes, whom from Apothecary's
Mate, I promoted to be Assistant Apothecary, and dou
bled his original pay, to issue out medicines to the Regi
mental Surgeons at Newark, having on the enemy's ap
proach, abandoned all the stores committed to his charge
to such Mates as had courage to accompany and take
ehargeofthem, fed to Bethlehem, the place of Dr.
Shippen's ret^at, where this gentlemen together with hit'
fobs, had an opportunity of making what"impreffions
on him they pleased when they saw the clouds collecting
over meand knew who was their, expectant 10 the place."
&c. &c. &c.
Myfletioug as it may seem, i never saw yottr vindica
tion, or the above extrad from it, till several months
after I heard it was pubffihed, viz. when the British troops
(with whom it is well known you meant to depart, but for
assurances of American lenity) evacuated Philadel
phia. Of this I informed you in a letter which you recei
ved from melaft November, together with my reasons
for not addressing you upan the fubjed sooner, and my
reasons for then insisting upc your acknowlegement of
the injustice you had done me in year vindication: Your
answer as far as it relates to my requifitfon you'll permit
me to copy.
" When I came to Philadelphia you were pleased by
the strongest marks of difrefped but in a way that
cou'd not be laid hold of to give me very great eaufe of
Umbrage, which I therefore paffcd oter. Some time af
ter, however, a gentleman of the hospital called upon me
and amongst other conversation on the fubjed, informed
me, that you laid you yourfelf knew enough to break me.
Stung to the quick with such an unpardonable insinuation,
I enquired after you and heard jou were gone to camp
or to Boftoo, I then receded upon your former conclude
and not doubting then,nor do, I now doubt,that what that
gentleman told me was truth, I refolded in return, ^
such a secret stab, to ad openly, and by printing that
note, compel you to support your allegations. When I
have been firfl insulted I never will make any conceffiong
for what I may be induced to publish on thrft account.
If, therefore, you ever txpfrd tb le?f lcunceffions from
me, for what f have already wri ten from the ab^ve mo
tive, you must sirs lmake due reparation for ,owr forn er
injurious treatment of me. On that ground alo^e will
I ever receive any farther letter or message from you."
Confeious of no injuflice I had ever done you, I could
make you no reparation, an 1 as that " was the ground
alone upon which you would receive a y further letter or
message from me," 1 took a gentleman of charader, and
called at your house in person three times, when 1 recei
ved the following note: "Should Mr. Cutting cdlon
me, if he has befinefs, be is defiied to communicate in
writing, and to mention where he is to be met with, and
he will receive an answer in the fame way/ ' So much for
a brief narrative of fads.
The world at their leisure may animadvert upon the
magnitude and goodness of your undertakings, and the
happiness of your success for these five years past, I will
trouble them with what affeds me only. The glaring
contradiction between the contents of your certificate,
and the language of your raargnal note, must forcibly
strike every candid examiner. Neither Can such be at
any loss to determine, which is the offspring of truth, or
which the effufion of ma'ice. At any rat, you, Sir,
be exhibited to the world on this occauGn, either
highly culpable as an officer, or as a man destitute of
integrity. If [ really abandoned ' d all the fiores, &c.
c < nmiited to my charge," you were criminal in not ha
ving me arrefled, and tried by a Court Martial; and
Bill more so if you belyed your ronfeience, acd deliber
ately certified a faifehood. The certificate of having
" given entire fatisfadion," was preferred to me in De-
Gember 1776, the marginal note of yoir vindication as
quoted above, was written fume time in the pring 1777.
Fhey are diametrically oppofte to each other, tiny both
teftify of the fame perfca, and yet each of the teßimonics
were made after lie had regularly and formally Operated
himlelf from you/ If my official ondud gave you " en
tire fatisfadion from the day you entered the service, to
the time of, my aifneffion from y.ur department," with
what approbrious Epithets will mank nd char?fterife the
•venom and virulence of your heart. For they muff c ear
ly difeern the true source fr^m whence your abefe of me
derived. The bare invidious fufykion that I wa> friendly
with the min you ever ervyed, hated and persecuted.
And here let me inform you, that you would have
heard from me immediately on the receipt of your daft
letter, had not your fondnefs to insinuate that "Dr.Ship
pen's " Subs" were interetled to interrupt you in pro
fecutiQg him," induced me to defer calling on you, till his
honourable acquittal from all your malicious charges was
publibly known. In your private letter tg me above quo
y°" ^° not "' e " pretend that any cf those malevolent
wflertions refyeaing me aretruth, but fay you ' # printed
them in return for the dab" I had given you ; and as a
voucher for this flab seek a pitiful fubteru^e in giving
an anonymous person as your informant. Now even ad
mitting that this pretended information had been given,
and you were confeious it was untrue would this fuppo~
fed calumny have ju fyfied your inventing and publishing
what you knew to be abfolyte falffiaads ? The truth is,
Sir, you had forgot that ^*Bu had given me a ctfifi.
_,G^te i% U^ and QeLjG,. o
tis^&ion. iVuat a pity your memory failed you ! But
thus will it happen, when one paffioa absorbs every o
ther, and imaginary i. juri s inflame a bewilder d D f
perate, till the means of " degrading ahd Supplanting"
are the only ideas retained or admitted. It is a pity to
be Cure 1 Yet this policy f< united upon the insidious
arts of cunning hlfliood wi'l frequently lead into fame
thing in th^ opinion of the world very mu<h like incon
fiftenry. But inconfittency is no novelty in Dr Morgan!
In your letter of December ift, you " will receive no
letter or meffagc from me but upon the ground of con
cetfions," yet " Mr. Cutting is (notwithftandinf) defi
re| to communicate his business in writing " in your
last note.'
On the whoe as it is more than probable you will
still continue to think, those who are not for you, a
gainst you in all your purfurs, and those who area
gainft you " fugitives, futjea to the impressions of
subs, ' I shall never tire the public with attempts to
effeft your mental conviction. And altho’ the firft sense
of your unprovoked tradu&ion of my character, had
once nearly dffuad d me from awaiting the determina
tion of civil justice on your malevolent libel, yet, re
flection upon your unworthiness and your degradation
from the ttile of a gentleman, by the inconfift-mey, du
plicity and littleness of your conduct, at present fervent
your person from hazard, since 1 am obliged to decline
a mode of decision, wherein even success would not
juftif, an offer to put myfrlf in competition with you.
At the fame time rest shared, Sir, that your at
tempts to injure my character will no longer be fuffer
ed with impunity, but that after having vindicated my
reputation to the public, I shall seek that justice from
the laws of ray country whieh I find it is vain to expert
from the con/riouhief* of a person destitute of genero
fi y and truth.
JOHN B. CUTTING,
_,. - Apothecary General Middle Diftrift.
Philadelphia, July 26, 17^3,
HI Advertisements, & c . omitted in this Paper
for want of room, (hall be inerted io our next.'
TO BE SOLD BY
Andrew & James Caldwell,
w E GIN""" A kUM '
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MADEIRA WINE,
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ALLUM,
JESUtT's BARK, k
BRIMSTONE,
A Few Pieces of CALLICO,
And a Quantity of ENGLISH NEEDLES
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