The writings of George Washington; being his correspondence, addresses, messages, and other papers, official and private, selected and published from the original manuscripts; with a life of the author, notes and illustrations. By Jared Sparks.

PART I.] THE FRENCH WAR. 205
as soon as I arrived, is herewith sent, signed by the
adjutant, amounting, exclusive of the drafts, to eightyone effectives, including the sick, and young drummers,
who were sent here to learn.
When Captain Mercer went down, our strength consisted of about twenty-five more, including drafts, who
have been sent over, since the middle of October, to
Conococheague and Swearingham's Ferry, to encourage
the inhabitants there to stay at their places, who otherwise were determined to forsake them. Your late and
unexpected order' has caused the utmost terror and
consternation in the people, and will, I fear, be productive of numberless evils, not only to this place, and the
public works erecting here, but to the people in general,
who seem to be in the greatest dread of the consequences. The stores of every kind have all been
brought~ from Fort Cumberland, save those indispensably necessary there, at a very great expense, and lie
in the court-house and other public buildings, to the no
small inconvenience and detriment of the county., I
have frequently been importuned by the members of
the court, and other public officers, to remove them, and
have as often by gentle persuasives protracted the time;
which-was the more cheerfully granted, as it was evident there were no other places to receive them, and
that I strove with the utmost diligence to prepare the
proper receptacles.'What course to take now, I know
not, and hope you will direct.
I am convinced, were you informed how much this
place (which is in every respect our extreme and
most exposed frontier, there being no inhabitants between this and the South Branch, and none there but
such as are forted in,) -I say, I am convinced, if you
were truly informed of the situation of this place, of its
importance and danger, you would not think it prudent
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