[Extract]

I think many of the people of this country begin to think they have gone too far. The behaviour of the New York people will have a very good effect: the General thinks he sees it already, and all the friends to Government are of opinion that vigorous measures at present would soon put an end to this rebellion. The deluded people are made believe that they are invincible. A very impudent publication, lately came out, asserts that they are an over-match for all Europe in their own country. When this army is ordered to act against them, they will soon be convinced that they are very insignificant when opposed to regular troops. I have sent your Lordship enclosed with this the newspaper with the late resolves of the Provincial Congress, impudent enough they are.

Your Lordship will observe by the return I have sent to the Board that I have but a small battalion on shore: there are still fifty of the supernumeraries that were ordered out on board ship, this hurts the appearance of the battalion greatly, as they are the best of our men and ten of them belong to our light infrantry company. I have spoken often to the Admiral about this, but to no effect; it was much against his inclinations that he landed any of us. This distresses me greatly, as I have a great desire to convince everybody of the utility of keeping a large body of marines, who are capable of acting either by sea or land as the public service may require. One observation I beg leave to make to your Lordship at this place, which is that I am a good deal hurt and mortified to find the marines so much shorter than the men are in the regiments ー the men of the Plymouth division extremely short indeed. I wish the standard was raised: no marine, in my humble opinion, ought to be taken who is under five foot six inches, and even not at that size if above twenty years of age.

I often march out with our battalion six or seven miles into the country. The people swear at us sometimes, but that does us no harm. I often wish to have orders to march to Cambridge and seize those impudent rascals that have the assurance to make such resolves. They sometimes do not know what to think of us; for we march into the town where they are all assembled, but we have no orders to do what I wish to do, and what I think may easily be done, I mean to seize them all and send them to Eengland.