Martinsburgh gazette. [volume] (Martinsburgh, Va. [W. Va.]) 1810-1825, 1813-12-02
TO HIS EXCELLENCY
MARTIN CHITTENDEN, ESQ.


Governor, Captain General and Comman-
der in Chief, in and over the State of
Vermont.
SRA most novel and extraordinary |
Proclamation from your Excellency, " or |
derlng and directing such proportion of the
militia of the Third Brigade in the Third
Division of the militia of Vermont, now
doing duty in the State of New York, both
officers and men, forthwith to return to
their respective places of residence" has
just been communicated to the undersigned
officers of said Brigade. A measure so un
exampied, requires we should state to your
Excellency, the reasons which induce us
absolutely and positively to refuse obedience
to the order contained in your Excelency's
Proclamation. With due Difference to your
Excellency's opinion, we humbly con-
ceve, that when we are ordered into the
service of the United States, it becomes
our duty, when required, to march to the
defence of any section of the Union We
are not of that class who believe that our
duties as citizens or soldiers are circum-
scribed within the narrow limits of the
town or state in which we reside; but that
we are under paramount obligation to
our common country, to the great confed-
eraty of states. We further conceive that
while we are in actual service, and during
the period for which we were ordered
into service, your Excsllency's power over
US, as Governor of the state of Vermont,
is suspended.
1t 1t is true, as your escellency states,
that " we are out of the jurisdiction or con-
trout of the executive of VERMONT we
would ask from whence your excellency
derives the right, or presumes to exercise the
power of ordering us to return from the
service in which we are now engag-
ed? five were legally ordered into the
service of the U. States, your Excellency
must be sensible that you have no authori-
| ty to order us out Of that service If we
| were illegally ordered into the service, our
! continuance in it, is either voluntary or
compulsory. If voluntary, it gives no one
| right to demonstrate or complain if CON-
pulsory, we can appeal to the laws of our
country for redress against those who lille
gally restrain us of our liberty In either
case, we cannot perceive the right your
Excelency mas to interfere II the business,
Viewing the subject in this light, we con-
ceive it our duty to declare unequivocally
to your Excellency, that we shall not obey
your Excellency's order for returning but
shall continue in the service of our country
until we are legally and honourably dis
charged. An invitation or order to desert
the standard of our country will never be
obeyed by US, although it proceeds from
the governor and captain general Of YER
mont.
Perhaps it is proper, that we should
content ourselves with merely giving your
Exce1lency the reasons which prevailed up
on us to disregard your proclamation:
but we are impressed with the belief, that
our duty to ourselves, to the soldiers I'M
der our command, and to the public, re-
quire that we should expose to the world,
the motives which were intended to be pro-
duced, and objects to be accomplished by
such an extraordinary proclamation--We
shall take the liberty to state to your Ex-
cellency plainly, our sentiments on this sub
ject-We consider your proclamation as
gross insult to the officers and soldiers in
service inasmuch as it implies that they
are so ignorant of their rights as to believe
you have authorityto command them in their
present situation, or SO abandoned as to fol-
low your insidlous advice. We cannot re- !
gard your proclamation in any other light
than as an unwarrantable stretch of exc
cutive authority, issued from the worst OF
motives, to effect the basest purposes. 1t !
is in our opinion, renewed instance of that
spirit OF Reorganization and anarchy which J
is carried on by faction, to overwhelm
our country with ruin and disgrace. We
cannot perceive what other object your Elk 4
cellency could have in view than to embar-
rass the operations of the army, to excite
mutiny and sedition among the soldiers, and /
to induce them to desert, that they might l
forfeit the wages to which they are entitled |
for their patriotic services.
We have however the satisfaction to in
form your excellency, that although your
proclamations have been distributed among
the soldiers by your agent delegated for
that purpose, they have failed to produce
the intended effect-and although it NAV