It is with the most unfeigned concern that the Captain Lieutenants of Artillery find themselves under a real necessity of beging your Excellency’s attention to their case, as they conceive themselves very sensibly affected by a Resolve of the Honorable Congress passed the 27th May last.1 They wish your Excellency to be assured that no consideration but a clear conviction of the justice they owe to their reputation could have prevailed on them to trouble you with an affair of this nature, or intrude on those moments of your Excellency’s which are constantly devoted to subjects of a more public and general utility—at the same time, they pray your Excellency’s indulgence, while they state the several matters of which they think they have reason to complain.

The Resolve refered to respects the Establishment and Pay of the American Army, by which we, the Captain Lieutenants of Artillery, are pointed out to the world as the only exception to the general rule observed by Congress on that occasion.

On forming the Corps of Artillery in 1776, the Pay of the Captain Lieutenants was fixed at the same rate as Captains of Infantry, and that of Captains and Field Officers at twenty five per cent more than those of equal rank in that Line, to commence the first day of January following,2 it took place accordingly, and has been received by them ever since. Several reasons we presume might be offered in support of the propriety of this Establishment, we will only mention one: that as the nature of the service required a greater number of Officers in the Artillery under the degree of Captains, and at the same time did not allow us to rise in any other than our own Line, the appointment of Captain-Lieutenant, with the Pay of Captain in the Infantry, was considered as a compensation for the inconveniences sustained by us in having our promotion confined to such narrow limits.

Under these circumstances, and at a time when it was universally expected by the Officers of the Army that their Pay would, at least, have been continued, and which in fact is done by the Resolves refered to, as far as respects the Infantry—we, the Captain Lieutenants of Artillery, are exceedingly surprized and concernd in finding ourselves the only persons who experience a contrary treatment. The more so, as it is, by a subsequent Resolve of the same date, fixed, “That, when supernumerary Lieutenants are continued under this arrangement of the Battalions, who are to do the duty of Ensigns, they shall be intitled to hold their rank, and receive the pay such rank intitled them to receive”. In this case, Lieutenants in the Infantry, though doing duty as Ensigns, are nevertheless intitled to their Rank and Pay as Lieutenants; while Captain-Lieutenants of Artillery, who have ever been acknowledged, respected, and obeyed as senior to any and every Lieutenant in the Line, both as to Rank and Pay, have had the latter reduced to the same standard with that of a Lieutenant; and are not without just apprehensions that the former also will be regarded by the Army at large as proportionably reduced.3

We are the more induced to apprehend consequences of this nature, as in the Resolve of the 2d of June, allowing subsistence to Officers, no notice is taken of such a Rank in the Army as Captain Lieutenants, and of course no provision made for them.4 In this instance we know not whether to consider ourselves as intitled to subsistence at all—whether as Captains—or only as Lieutenants and Ensigns. Upon the whole, we are exceedingly at a loss indeed upon what principles to account for the exception Congress have been pleased to make in our particular case; especially as they have not extended it to that of any other Officers, even in our own Corps.

Having just mentioned these Concerns, we are happy in refering them to Your Excellency’s consideration, fully convinced, that ourselves cannot be more ready to complain of grievances than Your Excellency to recommend a redress of such as may appear resonable.5

We beg Your Excellency’s pardon for this intrusion—and are, with every Sentiment of Respect and Attachment, Your Excellency’s most dutiful Servants,

Isaiah Bussey	Wm Fleming Gaines
Ebenr Finley	Oliver Brown
Jonas Simonds	Daniel Gano
John Gridley	Thos Vose
Willm Power	S. Shaw
James Smith	Tho. Barr
James McClure	Edward Archbald
John Pryor	Geo: Fleming
Wm Godman	Jacob Reed
A. Bohannon	Thos Jackson
Lewis Booker	Thos Thomptson
Whitehead Coleman	Joseph Thomas
John Lillie	Philip Jones
	William Stevens