Dear Sir

I have got a waggon made, have purchased four good Horses and expected to have sent them off on yesterday but when I went to examine the Powder in the Magazine I found to my surprise there was none but Cannon powder and that very coarse & orderly not fit for musketry knowing the greatest part that is wanted for our province ought to be musket powder I thought it best to detain the Waggon till such could be obtained, Seven Tons of such I hear is in a Vessel below and will be up as soon as the Ice will suffer anything to pass I hope in a few days to get the Waggon away, the horses come pretty high, two of them $50 each, the other two 35 each, they are all bays & young

Our friend Hooper has taken an Opprty when he could be best spared from Congress to fly to the Camp at Cambridge to see his mother who has lately got out of Boston he has been gone about ten days and will return as soon as possible he desired me to put his name to any letter I should write to the Provincial Council I believe he would not wish they should know he was absent

Late last night I received a letter from him dated at New York the 6th he seems greatly alarmed at the intelligence he had received there and urged very pressingly the necessity of sending of[f] an express to you, the substance of the information he gave and what has been recd since he left it you will find in our Letter to the Council which you have herewith, the Anxiety of my worthy friend for the safety, honor & happiness of our Province, and for his dearest connections there I imagine has induced him to paint things in the strongest colours to me however I wish there may not be too much truth in his suggestions, all are from England seem to agree that we shall have a dreadful storm bursting on our heads thro' all America in the Spring, we must not shrink from it we ought not to shew any simptons of fear, the nearer it approaches and the greater the sound the more fortitude and calm steady firmness we ought to possess, if we mean to defend our liberties our dearest rights & privileges against the power of Britain to the last extremity we ought to bring ourselves to such a temper of mind as to stand unmoved at the bursting of an Earthquake ー altho the storm thickens I feel myself quite composed I have furnished myself with a good musket & Bayonet and when I can no longer be useful in Council I hope I shall be willing to take the field, I think I had rather fall there than be carried off by a lingering illness, in this I am nearly of the same opinion of the French General who Confined a long time by sickness to his bed, on hearing the Duke of Berwick was killed by a Cannon Ball, he exclaimed, great God, how unfortunate I am, Berwick was always a lucky fellow