Morris, Robert

Autograph letter signed ("Robt Morris"), one page plus integral address leaf (9 x 7 ½ in.; 228 x 190 mm), Philadelphia, 29 January 1785, to Friedrich Wilhelm Baron von Steuben, assuring him that a sword has been procured for him; formerly folded, small repaired tear in gutter margin without loss, a few stains left from seals, postmarked.

Ronald von Klausen

See E. M. Nuxoll & M. A. Gallagher, eds., The Papers of Robert Morris, vol. 9 (1999), p. 969 where the present letter is listed as being intended for microform publication.

Autograph letter signed ("Robt Morris"), one page plus integral address leaf (9 x 7 ½ in.; 228 x 190 mm), Philadelphia, 29 January 1785, to Friedrich Wilhelm Baron von Steuben, assuring him that a sword has been procured for him; formerly folded, small repaired tear in gutter margin without loss, a few stains left from seals, postmarked.
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The financier of the American Revolution assures Baron von Steuben that his sword is "in the mail." 

Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben (1730-1794) was a Prussian army officer who served as inspector general of the Continental Army during the American Revolution. He taught the Continental Army the essentials of military discipline and wrote the book that became the standard United States drill manual until the War of 1812. He served as General George Washington's chief of staff in the final years of the war. 

The war over, Steuben resigned from military service in 1784 and settled in New York City, where he became an elder in the German Reformed Church. His business acumen was not very keen, and he found himself in a difficult financial condition, particularly because Congress did not pay him a pension or compensate him for his wartime expenses. Having applied to Congress in March 1784, a committee reported a resolution: "That the thanks of the U.S. in Congress assembled be given to the Baron de Steuben ... for the great zeal and abilities he has discovered in discharge of the several duties of his office ...and that a gold hilted sword be presented to him, as a mark of the high sense Congress entertain of his character and sentiment." They also voted in support of amounts varying between $6,000 and $13,000 "in compensation for the sacrifices he made when he entered the service of the U.S. exclusive of all sums due to him for pay and arrearages of pay, rations and subsistence." While the resolution on the sword was passed, those regarding compensation failed.  

In the present letter, Robert Morris (1734-1806), national Superintendent of Finance, writes: "Before Colonel [David] Humphreys departed for Europe, I took, with him, the arrangements for procuring the Swords & Medals which had been ordered by Congress for various deserving officers who by their conduct had drawn the particular attention of their Sovereign." [sic, old habits of speech die hard] "...it may be expected that the Colonel will not delay the Execution of a business which must be more agreeable to many of his friends and acquaintances. I wish you may soon have the pleasure of receiving a sword to your liking..." 

Things improved for Steuben after his friend Alexander Hamilton became Secretary of the Treasury (1789). Hamilton, with the support of President Washington, submitted Steuben's expenses to Congress, which in 1790 finally voted him a yearly pension of $2,500.