Provided, always, tiiat "so much shall be left in the hands of the owners as "will be sufficient to support their families for nine "months, and to perfect the fattening of such Hogs "as may, now, be actually put up, for that purjrose; '' " that His Excellency General Washington, in case " that the Cattle, Hogs, Sheep, Horses, or Hay, in the " County of Westchester, should be in danger of fall-

" Phiui-se's Manor, Augt. 31, 1776 ;" the CummiUeeof Safety to General n'aihington, " Augt. 31, 1776."

^Journal of the Committee of Safeti/, "Monday morning, Octor. 14lh, "1776."

HISTORY OF WESTCHESTER COUNTY.

" ing into the hands of the enemy, be empowered " either to remove it or them, therefrom, or, if that " should not be practicable, to destroy the same ; " " that the Commissary or Commissaries hereby ap- " pointed be empowered to appoint Agents under " them, and to call upon any officer commanding any " part of the Militia, for such detachments of the men "under his command as will be necessary to carry " the same into execution ; " " that Mr. Stephen Ward " apply to the Commissary -general for such sums of " money as will, from time to time, be necessary to "carry the above Resolves into execution;" and " that a copy of the above Resolutions be sent to His " Excellency General Washington and to the Com- " missary -general, requesting their assistance in car- "rying the same into execution." ^ In the absence of General Lewis Morris, whose hankerings were evidently for something else than for active service in the field, at the head of his Brigade,' Colonel Joseph Drake, of New Rochelle, the senior Colonel, was placed in command of the Westchester-county Militia, with instructions to " call out as many of the Militia, "with five days provisions, as he shall think suffi- " cient to watch the motions of the enemy's ships,'' " now in the Sound, and to prevent all communica- " tion with the disaffected inhabitants in said County ; " and that he send notice, from time to time, to the " Convention, of every remarkable occurrence ; and, " for that purpose, that he is hereby empowered to " press horses, when he shall think it necessary." * In faithful compliance with the Order thus sent to him, enough of the Militia were ordered out to guard from Rye-neck to Rodman's-neck, Colonel (Jraham's Regiment being at Throgg's-neck ; and Colonel Budd was to send a hundred men and to guard from the Snuffmills to Rye-neck.'' Two days after the disastrous engagement on Long Island, the Convention adjourned from Harlem to Fiskill ; ® and its Committee