Letter from the Committee of Southold

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Suffolk County, Southold, August 31, 1776.

HONOURABLE SIR: We are sorry to acquaint you that we have received several expresses from the middle of this Island, acquainting us of the Regular troops having surrounded our lines at the west end, and stopped our communication to the Array and Provincial Congress. Their scouting party consists of about three hundred Light-Horse and four hundred Foot, together with a number of Tory recruits, and to all appearance are about penetrating into this County, as they have already marched as far as the western post, or Hempstead Plains, where they took prisoner Brigadier-General Nathaniel Woodhull, Commander-in-Chief of the Militia of this Island. We must beg the favour of you to aid and assist us with men and ammunition, as our men are chiefly drawn off, and are now in the Army, so that we are not able to raise more than seven hundred and fifty men in the whole County that are capable to bear arms. If you think proper to send us men, which we think we really need, we must beg you would send what provisions you think they will want, all but fresh, which we can make out to supply them with. By the best account we can learn of the strength of the regular Army now landed on this Island, they consist of about fifteen thousand or twenty thousand men.

At a Committee meeting:
Signed per order:
ROBERT HAMPSTEAD, Chairman.

Original come to hand September 1st, nine o' clock, P˙ M.

JONTH˙ TRUMBULL.