[...] the army of the [undecipherable] [Lexington?] [undecipherable] Jan 30. 179[undecipherable] I beg before your Excellency that Reasons to state here how [undecipherable] ago [undecipherable] in this will have not I can see [anything?] in this be wrong — as they affect the interests of numbers of persons it may not appear irrelevant to state the reasons which [undecipherable] any conduct, and to request that Congress will — and that be pleased to favor me with [undecipherable] and [treat?] our applications — The past [lawyers?] who had those apparently [undecipherable] of the war were [undecipherable] composed of [undecipherable] the concentration of more — which [undecipherable] I have [represented?] a [undecipherable] because they brought all these resolutions have justly [undecipherable] granted [undecipherable] to extending the half pay to the widows and were only [undecipherable], and Promises I ought to say did not so much [undecipherable] of ourselves as what has always been the sense of Congress in the same case — That it would be unequal in many who [undecipherable] have been in those offices only for a few months, while others who preceded them have [served?] nearly [largely?] they [undecipherable] and [being?] [undecipherable] recommended like Congress [undecipherable] this [undecipherable] but only temporarily. And that this is [adopted?] many [other?] offices [most?] the [existing?] establishment with great [undecipherable] their [undecipherable] claiming against it as as [principal?]. The second [is?]: [undecipherable] having being made Promises in [undecipherable] [undecipherable] were [charged?] while in [employ?] and [undecipherable] and a resolve of Nov [undecipherable] having [granted?] to [make?] as was led to the agents [carried?] into this [undecipherable] the [possibility?] of [promising?] [undecipherable] [undecipherable] to the authority of this [undecipherable] and [undecipherable] half pay until they were [called?] into their [undecipherable] — many of them have produced to our [undecipherable] [witnesses?] of their [comply?] within the laws of this resolve, and that they were never called out to [make?] [statement?] the same, not [undecipherable] this help away from that time of their reporting themselves [undecipherable] the [undecipherable] of this [undecipherable] and also the communication of this [undecipherable] falls easy — the first [undecipherable] I have [undecipherable] totally [undecipherable] with and then [undecipherable] totally [undecipherable]. It appears to me that they [undecipherable] only [undecipherable] to a [undecipherable] [undecipherable] it is [undecipherable], as all the offices who thus [undecipherable] whether [undecipherable] or still remain to [undecipherable] business, it appears to me to be the uniform condition of [undecipherable] that the most [pay?] [should?] be the only [undecipherable] [undecipherable] of [undecipherable]. [undecipherable] may be [undecipherable] concerned the same of the resolve. Not [undecipherable] resolve while they [undecipherable] as many [undecipherable] more than [undecipherable] are [undecipherable] more to the offices who were actually [undecipherable] and called into their [undecipherable] as [undecipherable] also [undecipherable] would [undecipherable] by hand put a stop to it — [Third?] [Fourth?] is: that the officers by the resolves of [September?] [undecipherable] this having [undecipherable] for [undecipherable] [undecipherable] have [undecipherable] [undecipherable] of it — because this [undecipherable] have not [undecipherable] of it, and the resolutions on which the half pay and [undecipherable] and founded [undecipherable] to [undecipherable] only [undecipherable] in more particular and [undecipherable] who are [undecipherable] to the [undecipherable] of this [undecipherable] — [undecipherable] I cannot [undecipherable] it was extended to [undecipherable] [undecipherable] until there was a [undecipherable] [undecipherable] [undecipherable] [undecipherable] [undecipherable] [undecipherable] [28984]