after December 6, 1775? 1

The importance to the safety & freedom of the united colonies that there should be Sufficient supply of firearms, the great difficulty & uncertainty of importing them from abroad & the large sums of money that must be sent away for these purposes, renders it indispensibly necessary that there should be manufactured in the colonies substantial musketts sufficient not only for the arming such Troops & forces as are raised & put into pay, but also sufficient to arm any every Freeman in the united colonies & also a surplus for contingencys in time of War, & for encrease of Freeman. And as there are many Artificers in the united Colonies who are abundantly skilled in the manufacture of Musketts, & nothing is wanting to produce a sufficient supply but to encourage such Artificers to carry on & enlarge their said business therefore

Resolved that it be recomended to the several assemblys Conventions or Comittees of safety in the several Colonys to cause immediate & diligent enquiry to be made for Artificers skilled in making locks for musketts 116& to take the most effectual methods to induce them to set up & carry on the manufacture of double bridled locks suitable for musketts, & to employ themselves intirely in that business, & to employ the best journey men & to teach Apprentices in the same: And also to make enquiry for artificers skilld in making musket barrells & to induce them also to sett up & carry on the manufacture of muskett barrells 45 inches long, Carrying an ounce ball & bearing proof in firing, & also bayonets long steel ramrods & worms & also employ journey-men & instruct apprentices in the same: and also engage skilful persons to stoak & mount the same with proper pipe springs & bell Swivels.

And that the several Artificers abovenamed may be induced to apply themselves to the several branches of business & find full employ therein Resolved that it be recomended to the several assemblys Conventions and Councils of safety in the thirteen united Colonies, to contract with the Artificers above named or gunsmiths who may finish such musketts & bayonets for use for the following number on Account of the united Colonies Vizt.

New Hampshire	Massachusetts Bay	Rhode Island
Connecticut	New York	New Jersey
Philadelphia	Delaware Countys	Maryland
Virginia	North Carolina	South Carolina
Georgia

of the dimensions above named at the price of each muskett to be made & delivered as soon as possible.

And that there may be no delay or defeat in the above important business, it is strongly recomended to the respective Assemblys Convention & Committees of safety to appoint suitable persons in divers parts of their colonies to carry into execution the above resolves as soon as possible & to contract with suitable persons for the above numbers of Substantial Musketts & bayonetts of the description beforenamed to be made and delivered as soon as possible.

And also for the further encouragement of such Artificers to improve in their said business & enlarge the same Resolved that it be recomended to the several assemblys or Conventions to engage & resolve that there shall be manufactured in their respective colonies on their account by such Artificers, as many Musketts & bayonetts as there are Freemen in the same, which shall be kept in proper magazines for their use.

117

And the Assemblys Conventions or Committees of safety are desired to make known to the Congress as soon as may be & from time to time the progress that is made in the Execution of these Resolves.

On verso:

N H	1800
M	8000
R	2000
C	5000
N Y	3000
N J	2000
P	9000
Del	1000
Mar.	2000
V	5000
N C	500
S C	500
G	200
	40000 at 112 Doll.

MS ; endorsed: “Report of Resolves for Muskets.” An earlier draft of this letter appears on the reverse of a broadside extract of the Congressional minutes for Dec. 6, 1775, endorsed: “Circular of the Comtee respecting the manufacture of Muskets.”

1.

On June 24, 1775, the Continental Congress resolved to create a committee “to devise ways and means to put the Militia of America in a proper state for the defence of America.” RTP was appointed to the committee, along with Benjamin Harrison, Roger Sherman, Stephen Hopkins, William Floyd, Christopher Gadsden, and John Dickinson.

This document in RTP’s handwriting is presumably the draft report for a portion of the resolves which were recorded in the Journals of the Continental Congress for Nov. 4, 1775, concerning the establishment of the Continental Army. As resolved, this portion reads: “That it be recommended to the several Assemblies or conventions of the colonies respectively, to set and keep their gunsmiths at work, to manufacture good fire locks, with bayonets; each firelock to be made with a good bridle lock, 3/4 of an inch bore, and of good substance at the breech, the barrel to be 3 feet 8 Inches in length, the bayonet to be 18 Inches in the blade, with a steel ramrod, the upper loop thereof to be trumpet mouthed: that the price to be given be fixed by the Assembly or convention, or committee of safety of each colony, and that until a sufficient quantity of good arms can be manufactured, they import as many as are wanted, by all the means in their power” (Journals of the Continental Congress, 3:322–323).