Cover letter to Governor Geeorge Clinton

May it Please your Excellency

                The DistressedThis frontier Settlement
      this frontier Settlement urges us to call upon your
      Excellency for Relief. We flatter ourselves that
      your Excellency is Convinced that the Western
      Expedition has not Prevented the Enemy from
      making Inroads upon our Defenceless Settlement
      as appears by the Inclosed Copy of Captain
      Alexander Harper's Letter and by the list of
      those Taken and killed. Immediately upon the
      above Account Received from Harpersfield, we
      have Transmitted the same to General Ten Broeck
      in Answer to which he Informs us that he
      had Issued Orders for Two Hundred Men of his
      Brigade to march for this Place but none
      have Arrived as yet — Cobus Kill is Daily
      Applying to us for Relief, which is out of our Power
      to Grant, as we have three forts to Maintain in
      this Place besides Constant Scouts to be
      sent out _______ Those taken and killed
      have left six large and Helpless Famelies
      Destitute of the Common Necessaries of life
      which we hope your Excellency will take into
      Consideration, and point out some way for their

BACK	Cover letter to Governor George Clinton forwarding a copy of Alexander Harper's letter and informing the Governor of the Harpersfield raid by Joseph Brant.
	Letter images	Transcription
Front of cover letter		May it Please your Excellency The DistressedThis frontier Settlement this frontier Settlement urges us to call upon your Excellency for Relief. We flatter ourselves that your Excellency is Convinced that the Western Expedition has not Prevented the Enemy from making Inroads upon our Defenceless Settlement as appears by the Inclosed Copy of Captain Alexander Harper's Letter and by the list of those Taken and killed. Immediately upon the above Account Received from Harpersfield, we have Transmitted the same to General Ten Broeck in Answer to which he Informs us that he had Issued Orders for Two Hundred Men of his Brigade to march for this Place but none have Arrived as yet — Cobus Kill is Daily Applying to us for Relief, which is out of our Power to Grant, as we have three forts to Maintain in this Place besides Constant Scouts to be sent out _______ Those taken and killed have left six large and Helpless Famelies Destitute of the Common Necessaries of life which we hope your Excellency will take into Consideration, and point out some way for their
Back of cover letter		support. — There is a number of Disaffected Persons at Harpersfield, Corthright's Patent and the Deleware whom we Suspect of having Harboured and Supported the Enemy, and did not Inform us till Six days after the Party was Killed & Taken altho they Remained amongst them three Days Making Canoes. We hope your Excellency will Inform us what Steps we shou'd take Conceirning those Persons We have the Honour to subscribe ourselves Your Excellencies Most Obedient Humble Servants Peter Vroman, Col. Pieter Ziele, L: Col. Thomas Eckesen, Jr. Major Will'm Wills, Lt. Col. Johannis H. Becker Jacob Heger, Capt. Geo. Richtmeyer, Capt. Stormbecker Capt. His Excellency Governor Clinton
		A List of those Persons Taken & Killed by Jos: Brandt and 18 others — Taken Prisoners Killed Capt'n Alexander Harper Major Thomas Handry Lieut. John Handry Lieut. James Handry, Freegift Patchin William Stephens. Isaac Patchin William Lam & son David Brown & three sons Izra Harp Wm. Trumbell a Continantal Soldier in Colonel Van Schaick's Regt.
Notes: This letter was transcribed and published in Volume V, page 578-579, of the "Public Papers of George Clinton". The original manuscripts were held in the State Archives in Albany. In 1911, a great fire destroyed much of the Capital building. The building housed hundreds of thousands of original manuscripts. We are both fortunate that this letter was transcribed just 10 years prior to the fire and that it was not completely destroyed - thousands of manuscripts were lost forever.
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