The Campaign of 1776 around New York and Brooklyn Part 27

A sub. & 20 men to parade immediately to march to Jamaica. Let the men be decently dressed, & the officers keep them from offering insolence or abuse to any person. They are to escort & a.s.sist Lt. Skinner & wait there for his directions.

Aug. 9, 1776.

A report from Col. Hand mentions a large number of regulars drawn up at Staten Island Ferry, & boats to embark in. No officer or soldier to stir from his quarters that we may be ready to march at a moment's warning if necessary.

Aug. 16, 1776.

Col. Smith (L.I. militia) to appt an Adjt., Q.M. & Serjt Maj.

& Q. Mr. Serjt to his regt., & to have the troops in his regt not on duty exercised daily in learning the necessary manoeuvres and evolutions.

Genls. Nixon and Heard are to furnish a fatigue party from their brigades and to form the necessary lines from fort Box to fort Putnam.

The gin shops and houses selling liquor, strictly forbidden to sell to soldiers, excepting near the two ferries.

The inhabitants of houses near the lines are immediately to move out of them, and they are to be appropriated to the use of the troops. The General is determined to have any soldiers punished that may be found disguised with liquor, as no soldier in such a situation can be fit for defense or attack.

The General orders that no sutler in the army shall sell to any soldier more than 1 gill of spirits per day. If the above orders are not adhered to, there shall no more be retailed out at all.

The Colonels of regts. lately come in are immediately to make returns to the Genl. of their number of men & where they are quartered. Col. Hitchc.o.c.k's and Smith's Regts are to do duty in Genl. Nixon's brigade--Cols. Van Brunt's and Gay's Regts. to do duty in Genl. Heard's brigade. Capts in the brigades are to be particularly careful that the Rolls are called 3 times a day & that the troops do not stray from quarters.

GENERAL ORDERS.

HEAD QUARTERS, Aug. 20, 1776.

... General Sullivan is to take command on Long Island till Gen.

Greene's state of health will permit him to resume it. Brig. Ld Sterling is to take charge of Genl Sullivan's division.

[No. 2.]

MAJOR GENERAL SULLIVAN'S ORDERS

CAMP ON LONG ISLAND

[_Colonel Little's Order Book_]

[LONG ISLAND,] August 20, 1776.

Field Offr of the Day tomorrow, Col. Phipps, (?) Adjt from Col.

Little's regt.

August 21st, 1776.

Five hundred men to be on fatigue to-morrow to be on the works by 8 o'clock, to leave at 12, & begin at 2 o'clock, & work till half past 6. Nothing can be more disagreeable to the Genl. than to call upon the men to be so constantly on fatigue, but their own salvation, and the safety of the country requires it. He hopes that in 2 or 3 days more the encampment will be so secure that he can release the men from fatigue and give them an opportunity to rest from their labors.

Adjt. of the day to attend at the Genls. quarters every morning at 8, and an orderly from each brigade daily. Four men are to be drafted to row the Genls boat and do no other duty. The Brigade majors, upon receiving orders from Head Quarters are to call at Gen.

Sullivan's quarters for his orders, or send adjts to take them off.

Col. Johnson's and Newcomb's regts are to consider the woods on the west side of the creek as their alarm post, and repair there in case of an alarm. Gen. Nixon will show the ground this evening at 6 o'clock to the commg officers of the Regts.

Aug. 23, 1776.

The men not to turn out to their alarm posts this afternoon, (but) to get 2 days' provisions ready, & to be at their alarm posts to-morrow morning by 3 o'clock in order for action.

Cols. Miles & Ransom's (Remsen's of L.I.) regts. to take possession of the Bedford road this night--Col. Ransom's regt. to march at 5 o'clock. Col. Miles' regt. is on the spot. Cols.

Little's & Hitchc.o.c.k's Regts to possess the Flatbush road & Cols. Johnson's & Martin's to take possession of the road near the river. All these regts. to be at their posts by 6 o'clock. Upon their arrival the troops now there are to retire to their encampments & get 2 days provisions dressed, & be ready for action. The Gen. will never make a 3rd. requisition to the majors of brigade, to attend for orders.

LONG ISLAND Aug. 24 1776.

A return to be made to the Gen. this afternoon at 5 o'clock of all ye Light Horse & companies of troop within the lines. The adjt.

of Col. Little's regiment is to attend at Genls. quarters at 7 o'clock A.M. to-morrow.

The Genl. returns his thanks to the brave officers & soldiers who with so much spirit & intrepidity repulsed the enemy & defeated their designs of taking possession of the woods near our lines. He is now convinced that the troops he has the honor to command, will not, in point of bravery, yield to any troops in the universe. The cheerfulness with which they do their duty, & the patience with which they undergo fatigue evince exalted sentiments of freedom, & love of country gives him most satisfactory evidence that when called upon they will prove themselves worthy of that freedom for which they are now contending.

Col. Ramsons (Remsen's) Regt. to mount no guard except quarter guard of 12, but be considered a fatigue party, to which they are to attend from day to day. The Genl. is sorry to find that Regt.

flying from their posts, when timid women would have blushed to have betrayed any signs of fear at any thing this regt. discovered at the time of their flight.

Officers are requested to see that their men always keep at least 2 days provisions, ready dressed by them. The Commissary is to deal out one gill of rum per man each day on this Island until further orders.

Soldiers are not to be out of their encampment but upon urgent business. Gen. Nixon to take command of the lines next the enemy until further orders, to post his men in the edge of the woods next the enemy. Brigde Majors to attend punctually at the Genl's.

quarters at 10 A.M.

LONG ISLAND Aug. 25 1776.

The following arrangement to take place on Long Island until further orders--Viz: Col. Mile's 2 battalions, Col. Atlee's, Col. Lutzs, Major Hayes, Col. Lashers and Drake's to be formed into one brigade under the command of Gen. Ld. Stirling. Col. Hand's, Prescott's, (Late) Nixon's, Varnum's, Hitchc.o.c.k's, Little's, Smith's, & Ramson's to be under Gen. Nixon. Wylly's, Huntington's, Taylor's, (Tyler's) Silliman's, Chester's, & Gay's under Gen. Parsons; Johnson's, Courtlandt's, Martins, Newcombs & Freeman's (Forman's), under the command of Brig. Gen Hurd.

The General orders that the Brigrs. attend at Head Quarters at 8 A.M. to-morrow for directions. Brigde Major Box is appointed to act as Adjt. Genl. for this department until further orders.

A Brigr. Genl. of the Day to attend the Grand Parade at Guard mounting at 10 A.M., every day afterwards at 8, whose duty it shall be to see that the guards are regularly made up, & properly posted & duly relieved. No firing at the outposts _to be allowed_ on any pretense, except by permission of the Comg Gen. of the day, & none within the lines except by permission. This order not to extend to sentries on guard.

Brigr. for the day Gen. Ld. Stirling.

The Gen. is surprised to find the soldiers strolling about, notwithstanding repeated orders, miles distant from the lines, at a time when the enemy are hourly expected to make an attack. The officers are enjoined to cause the arrest of any soldier who shall be found strolling without the lines unless they can show a written permit from their Cap. or Comg. officer of the regt. or company.

All the officers and soldiers are to keep within their quarters, unless ordered on duty.

All troops in this department are desired to wear a green bough or branch of a tree in their hats, till further orders.

Col. Ward's Regt. to be added to Gen. Parson's brigade. All the troops not[231]----

[Footnote 231: The order breaks off at this point in Colonel Little's book, but it is fortunately preserved entire in an orderly book kept by Captain John Dougla.s.s, of Philadelphia. (Hist. Mag., vol. ii., p.

354.) The following order from General Lord Stirling also appears in Captain Dougla.s.s's book:

[LONG ISLAND] August 25th 1776.

"The Adjutants of each Corps of this Brigade are to attend Brigade Major Livingston at Gen. Sullivan's Quarters every morning at 9 o'clock to receive the orders of the day. The Weekly Returns are to be brought in this day. Such regiments as have tents are to encamp within the lines as soon as possible."]

All other troops not mentioned and those which may be sent here without a General Officer to command them are to be considered as a part of Lord Stirling's Brigade till further orders.

A return of the several Brigades to be made immediately. Eight hundred (men) properly officered to relieve the troops on Bedford Road to-morrow morning, six field officers to attend with this party. The same number to relieve those on Bush (Flatbush) Road, and an equal number those stationed towards the Narrows. A picket of three hundred men under the command of a Field Officer, six Captains, twelve Subalterns to be posted at the wood on the west side of the Creek every night till further orders.

It is a very scandalous practice unbecoming soldiers whose duty it is to defend the liberty and property of the Inhabitants of the country to make free with and rob them of that property; it is therefore ordered that no person belonging to this army do presume on any pretense whatever to take or make use of any Corn, Poultry or Provision, or anything else without the consent of the owners nor without paying the common price for them; any breach of this order will be severely punished. The Commanding Officer of each Regiment and Company is to see this order communicated to their respective corps and to see it carried into execution....