tolerably sensible, prudent, an "œconomist;" Morgan, fortunate and had met with éclat, possibly intemperate, troubled with palpitation and illiterate; Williams sensible though vain, in poor health; Putnam, (Rufus) strong-minded, discreet, "nothing conspicuous in character . . known little out of his own State and a narrow circle;" Pinckney, brave, honorable, erudite, sensible and a stickler for tactics.[1]
No other officers are named as possible candidates for a position no one could possibly desire. As the list stands, it forms a startling refutation of the oft repeated saying that though drinking was common in the old days it was not carried to excess. The problem with Washington seems to have been, speaking mildly, to find a responsible man with a clear head. His decision at first seems to have wavered between Lincoln and Moultrie; under these men as major-generals, Wayne, Morgan, and Wilkinson might serve as brigadiers. What may have induced the final decision
- ↑ MSS. in the New York State Library in Washington's handwriting; Magazine of American History, vol. iii (February, 1879), pp. 81–88.
