The New-Jersey gazette — Burlington [N.J.], 1777-12-17 00:00:00, page 1

STATE of NEWjERSEY.
ACT,to procure certain Articles of Cloathing for the
Use of t'he New-Jcrfey Regiments on the Continental
WHERE AS from the uncertainty
' of importations and for other con
current causes, adequate supplies
of sundry articles of eloathing for
the army of the United States,
cannot, in the prefentfituatioti of
affairs, be furnifhed at seasonable periods, and of
consequence the soldiery may be in danger of fullering
Uriel's some avarice, on occasions of deficiency, can
foe derived from the refpedive States: And whereas
a regular and fixed mode of colle&ng andl drawing
forth such supplies as can be furnished in this State,
will enable the legislature thereof on any emergency,
(to administer more expeditioudy and effectually to the
necessities of their quota of troops.
* Sect I. Be it enacted by the Council ana General
Assembly of this State, and it is hereby enacted by the
authority of the fame, That David Olden and Joseph
Potts of the county of Middlesex, 'fohn banderveer
and Michael Mount of the county of Monmouth, Sa
muel Wellington and William Harriman of the couhty
of Essex, Edward Bunn and Hugh Gaflon of the
county of Somerset, David Board and Tbeunis Dey of
the county of Bergen, John Tonkin and John Butler
of the county of Burlington, Thomas Denny and Rich
lard Wefcott of the county of Gloucefier, John Holme
and William Garrison of the county of Salem, Ephraim
Mills and Timothy Elmer of the county of Cumberland,
fared Sexton and fofeph Chamberlain of the county
of Hunterdon, Stephen Conceding find Man'affeth Reeve
of the county of Morris, Benjamin Stites and feffe
Aland of the county of Cape-May, Robert Maxell
and Abia Brown of the county of Saflex, be, and they
hereby are constituted and appointed commissioners
in their refpe&ive counties, 10 purchase and collect
coats, waistcoats, breeches and shirts, blankets, shoes;
flockings and hats, with such other artich^of eloath
ing necessary for the soldiery, as they may from time
to time be intruded to purchase and collect agreea
bly to the tenor of this act ; and also suitable cloth'
and materials of which to make and manufacture the
flame.
2. And BE IT ENACTED by the authority aforefaid,
,That the commissioners now appointed, or'fuch as
may hereafter be appointed by virtue of this aft, be,
and they hereby are empowered and directed to con
trad with proper and fit persons in their refpediVe
counties or elsewhere, to make up the said cloth,
and manufacture the said materials for use; and to
transmit the] eloathing so procured from time'to time
to the person herein after appointed to receive the
fame, whose receipts, fpecifying the number and kind
@ of various articles, shall be carefully preferred by them
'and laid before the legislature:
" 3. AND, in order that all may have an opportu
nity of contributing as far as in their power to relieve
the wants of their countrymen and fellow-citizens,
and on the other hand none may have reason to com
'plain that they are repeatedly called upon while o
-Ihers are palled by and excused, Be it enacted, That
ofthe commissioners in collecting the said cloath
ing and materials, shall apply to every family in ro
. tation, in which he may conceive there are any of
those articles to spare, and shall keep a book in which
he foall make fair and regular entries of the eloathing,
or materials for preparing it, procured in each ; and
giall fake receipts for all payments and disbursements
made by him, which shall be Sufficient vouchers for
the. expenditure of ib much of the publick money in
^hi*hands.
-4. And be it enacted, That the said commif
rfoners ^d their successors in office, and the person
herein after appointed to receive the eloathing by
them collected, shall, from time to time, be directed
by,, and obey the orders and instructions of the legis
lature of this State, and, during their recess, of the
Governor or Commander in Chief for the time being:
-5. AND WHE REAS there is a great want of
-blankets for the soldiery, efpe&illy at this time of
the year when it is impossible tor them to keep the
field without afpeedy and ample, supply :,Ahd where
as some persons taking fhameful advantage of the dif
ficulty of the times, may refufe to part with, or may
.demand unreasonable prices for the fame, Be it en-
A^hD.by^be a?^ aforefaid, That,if any per-
NEW-JERSEY GAZETTE.
[Vol. I.]
WEDN E S. D A Y, December 17, 1777.
son having any blankets to fell, or such fufficienty as to
enable him or her to spare a part without distressing
his or her family, and shall rate them at an exorbi
tant price, or wholly deny the sale of the fame, then;
and in such case; the commissioner shall take them
and tender such price as shall appear to him reafon
fable : And if the owner shall rejufe to accept, or shall
not within one week thereafter demand the fame,
such owner shall be for-ever barred from recovering
the sum so tendered, or any other sum in considera
tion of the blanket or blankets so taken. And if any
commissioner shall have reason to believe that any
person hath ferreted his or her blankets, the com
missioner in that case shall apply to one of the near
est Justices df the Peace, who is hereby directed to
issue his warrant, commanding any constable, and
where there is no constable, or the constable shall re
fufe to ad, any fubalterh or sergeant of the militia of
the township where the said perlon shall dwell, at the
proper expence and charge of the owner, if any se
creted blankets shall be found, if not, at the charge
ofthe State, to take with him such hffiftance as may
be neceffaty, ^d attend the laid commissioners in
difeovering such secreted blankets ; and, upon difeo
very being made, they shall be forfeited to the State,
and taken by the said commissioner. Provided, That
upon the quota of blankets herein after mentioned
shall be collected in any county, the power of im
pressing in such county shall thereupon cease ana be
determined.
6. AND WHEREAS some of the counties in this
State have not hitherto furnished a reasonable pro
portion either of blankets, cloathing or other neces
saries for the use of the army, while the inhabitants
of other courities have not only been severely plun
dered by the enemy, but have cheerfully exerted
themselves in a greater degree not only in turnifhing
considerable quantities of those necessary articles,
but in going into actual service in the militia, and
thereby confuming' many of the said necessary arti
cles in the publick service, which ought to be re
garded in fettling the quotas to be drawn from the
said counties, Be it enacted, That the quota of
blankets to be furnifhed by the refpedive counties
shall be as follows, vi%. Middlesex fifty; Somerset
fifty-five; Monmouth ninety; Essex fifty ; Burlington
one hundred and fifty; Glouce/ler one hundred and
ten ; Salem eighty ; Cumberland feventy-five ; Morris
fifty-five ; Cape-May fifty; Sussex sixty •,.Hunterdon
one hundred and twenty-five, and Bergen fifty.
7. AND, in order to enable the commissioners to
purchase the cloathing and materials as above direct
ed, Be it enacted by the authority aforefaid, That
it shall and may be lawful for the said commissioners
respectively to draw from the treasury or collector of
the refpedive county, any sum not exceeding one
hundred and fifty pounds ; and the receipts of the said
commissioners refpedively shall be available to the
treasurer or refpeftive county collector in accounting
for so much of the publick money, and provided the
said sum be laid out and expended by the commission
ers of any county in the service for which it was
drawn; and a further sum may be necessary at any
time when the legislature is not fitting, it shall and
may be lawful for the member of Council, with any
one member, of the Assembly of the fame county ;
and in case there is no member of Council, then any
two members of the Assembly; to order such further
advance from the treasury from time to time as may
be expedient, until the next meeting of the legisla
ture ; and the said commissioners shall be severally
accountable to the legislature ofthis State for all
films of money by them received in pursuance of
this ad.
8. AND WHEREAS in some parts of this State,
from their proximity to the quarters of the enemy or
other causes, the commissioner or commissioners may
think it unfafe to attend his or their duty without
a military guard, Be it enacted, That it shall and
may be lawful in such case for any commissioner to
apply to a commissioned officer of the militia of the
county for such guard as he may think absolutely
necessary to his security, and the due performance
of the service required of him ; and the said officer
is hereby enjoined to attend him with such guard
accordingly:
9. AND, that the said commissioners may be en
abled to answer the end of their appointment more
effectually,. Be it enacted, That they be and here
by are/C^mpted from aftual service in the militia
THE
A™ D BE iT Enacted by the authority afore-
Jaid, That the said Receiver-General shall be paid
lUch compensation for receiving and fafely keeping
the cloathing committed to his care as shall be deem
ed just and adequate, together with all reasonable
e xpence s of storage and transportation ; and each of
c° rcmifl i o ^ers shall be paid three dollars by
the day for every v|hole day he shall be actually em
ployed in difeharging the duties enjoined on him by
tins act, together with reasonable expences of trans
mitting the cloathing to the Receiver-General.
12. And be it enacted, That if the Receiver-
General, or any of the commissioners above-named,
or hereafter to be appointed as this ad directs, after
ent ^ d ° n the duties of his appointment,
ty. o ' wilful ^ lea > fraud or peculation,
he shall forfeit and pay for each offence the sum of
twenty pounds, to be recovered by the Attorney-Ge
neral on behalf of the State, in any court of record
where the fame is cognizable, and paid into the trea
sury for the use of the State; and also shall be ad
judged to pay all costs bf frit.
J'^AND BE IT ENACTED ^ the authority afore
faid, That the Receiver-General, and the refpedive
commissioners shall, previous to their entering upon
the difcb'arge of their several offices, take the oaths
of abjuration and allegiance required by an aft of
the legislature of this State, intitled, dn ad for the
security of the government of New-Jersey, unless they
have before taken the fame ; and also an oath of of
fice before any Justice bf the Peace or Magistrate of
the county where they inhabit. '. ...
14. And be it enacted, That if any ofthe said
commissioners shall by death, refufal, removal out of
the county where he resides, or any other disability,
cease to difeharge the services of him required^
this ad, the members of the legislature for the
county, or a majority of them, shall supply the Va
cancy so happening; and if the Receiver-General
shall, by such disability, cease tq difeharge the duties
of him required, the Governor or Commander in
Chief for the time being, with the assistance of the
Privy Council, shall supply his place by a new ap
pointment : y Anq the person or persons so appointed,
shall be invefled with the,fame powers, receive the
like rewards, and be fubjed to the fame penalties, to
all intents and purposes as thofeappointed byAhis aft.
15. And be it enacted ^ the authority aforefaid,
That the rtfolutions of the lute Council andaffembly
during their continuance in that office ; and that all
such taylors, weavers, fullers and shoemakers as the
said commissioners, or any of them, shall find it ne
cessary to employ for the purposes aforefaid, shall,
during such their employment, be exempted from
adua) service in the militia ; and the certificate of
the said commissioners, or of any one of them, shall
be a fufficient voucher to any such workman of his
being so exempted; provided he shew the fame to
his captain, or the .officer notifying him to serve in
the militia, at the time bf such notification, or with
in two days thereafter ; and provided that during such
exemption the said workmen be bona fide employed
in the said business Only, and that he receive no other
wages, besides a reasonable allowance for board,
than the pay and bounty he would have~been entitled
to receive from actual service in the militia.
10. And be it enacted by the authority aforefaid.
That Alexander Chambers of Trenton be, and is here
by appointed Receiver-General of the said cloathing,
and empowered to receive from the said commission
ers, and each and every of them, all cloathing by
them purchased, collected and prepared, and the
fame fafely to ftorb and keep to be disposed of as the
legislature, or in their recess the Governor or Com
mander in Chief of this State shall from time to time
direct, and to transport the said cloathing, or any
part thereof to such place or places, and deliver the
fame to such person or persons as he may be order
" 9 1 iphrudted as aforefaid, taking proper receipts,
fpecifying the number and kinds of the articles deli
vered, to be by him produced to the legislature in
the settlement of his accounts, and to draw from
the treasury any sum not exceeding one hundred
pounds, in the manner the commissioners are above
empowered to draw, and his receipt shall difeharge
the treasurer from the sum or sums therein fpecified
to be drawn; and the said Receiver-General shall
be accountable for all such cloathing to him deliver
ed, and all monies to him so advanced from time to
time.
[Numb. 3.]