Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application File Rej. B. L., Barnett Eichelberger, Penn.
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Service                                     Number
Penna.   Eichelberger, Barnett  rej. B.L.
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Contents
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Claim of the representatives of Capt. Barnet Eichelberger to bounty land - appeal of Henry Northup from decision of Commissioner of Pensions.

Rev. Bounty Lands
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Decision of Commissioner of Pensions
                                                 //s//
                                           J.M.Porter
Witness
July 3, 1843.





11-0
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Claim of the representative of Capt. Eichelberger to bounty land for his services in the war of the revolution. 

   Those only were entitled to bounty land who served to the end of the war or became supernumerary before its close.  It is alleged that Capt. Eichelberger became a supernumerary, and as the only evidence of that fact is a certain alleged return among the Washington papers in the Department of State, the question is whether that paper is to be relied on as establishing it.  The Commissioner of Pensions thinks not, because it is without date, signature or authentication of any kind, and is manifestly incorrect from the fact that while the return in possession of the office, of the Supernumerary Pennsylvania Officers, embraces one hundred and three, that in the Department of State includes but forty seven, of which two, instead of being supernumeraries, are shown by the records as having seven to the end of the war, and thirty three only are the office returns of Supernumeraries.  The office return, the Commissioner states is well known to have been prepared soon after the close of the war, when there was no difficulty in referring to the original rolls and record of service, and it has therefore been uniformly considered as entitled to full reliance.  He also states that there is another and authentic return of supernumeraries on file in the office of the Third Auditor, but Eichelberger's name on neither, and it is therefore reasonable to conclude that he did not become supernumerary not withstanding its being in that in the Department of State.  Another fact cited against his having become supernumerary is that he never received the one year's extra pay to which a supernumerary he would have been entitled.

    Wm. Northrup states that in Vol. 5 of the Washington papers there are rolls of fourteen or fifteen regiments respectively, made out (next page)
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made out between June 1st and August 21st 1778, properly signed by the appropriate commanding officers &c, and in which the casualties, such as death, resignation, left out of service & are duly noted - that in the same volume but at a much later period is a roll of Hartley's Regiment "made out up to that time on which the name Capt. Barnett Eichelberger is to found as well as several others then in service in the regiment none of whom are at that time noted as supernumeraries," and that in Vol. 105 there are rolls of the above regiment under a new arrangement - consolidating them into ten, in which all those noted on the previous rolls as supernumeraries, and those who became such in the interval, including Eichelberger, are on rolls as supernumeraries, and those noted as dead, resigned &c are left out.  He contends that this this agreement of the set of rolls with the other proves that the latter are correct and authentic, that it is evident that they were made out between November 1778 and February 1779, and the excess of supernumeraries on the Department list comprises those who afterward became supernumerary.

    I have carefully examined the two volumes of the Washington papers referred to by Wm. Northup.  In Vol. 5 there are two sets of rolls made out about the same time, the latter part of August and the early part of September, one of the non-commissioned officers and privates, and one of the commissioned officers.  These do not correspond as to regiments, and there are several more regiments embraced in the latter than in the former set.  In the latter is the roll of the officers of Hartley's Regiment referred to, but instead of being of a subsequent date to the rolls of the others it is dated in June 1777 more that a year previous.  It appears to be only a nomination list to the Commander in Chief, of the officers who had been selected, and there is no evidence of there having been confirmed and commissioned

    In Vol 105 there are what purports to be rolls of eleven regiments appended (next page)
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appended to which there is a list of supernumeraries, headed, "Pennsylvania arrangement, officers in the Supernumerary list".  This contains two columns of names, one headed "To be specially recommended" and the other "Supernumeraries not recommended;" what these words mean is not known.  Eichelberger's name is in the latter column.  As stated by the Commissioner of Pensions, these rolls are without date, signature or authentication of any kind.  The reason why Wm. Northrup considers they were made out between November 78 and February 79 is that in October 78, Congress directed Hartley's Regiment to be consolidated with other troops and rearranged, when it became the 11th Regiment, that he roll is of Hartley's Regiment as the 11th, that it contains his name and as he resigned in February 79, it must be of course have been made out between that time and when the consolidation took place.

    In my opinion, the objection to these rolls being relied on, stated by the Commissioner of Pensions, are well founded.  This is evident from the fact that two persons noted on them as supernumeraries, served to the end of the war.  They are said to be the rolls of the regiment of the Pennsylvania line after they were consolidated and rearranged, and I regard them merely as nomination lists to the Commander in Chief, who may have materially modified and alter them,  Had they been intended as the regulars returns of the Officers actually in service after the rearrangement and consolidation took place, they would certainly have been dated and signed by the proper officers, as are the other rolls made out the latter part of August and first of September 1778.  The claim ought not in my opinion to be admitted.

War Office                                    J.T.C.
June 28th, 1843