Adams, John, 1735-1826 to Henry Knox
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02437.00424 Author/Creator: Adams, John, 1735-1826 Place Written: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 25 August 1776 Pagination: 2 p. : Height: 20.2 cm, Width: 15.8 cm Order a Copy
Responds to Knox's letter (see GLC02437.00423). Discusses the difficulty of obtaining copper in order to cast canons. Also discusses importance of officers to an army and the issue of appointing more officers from Massachusetts. Asks Knox for a list of the best prospects and comments on their characters. Explains his advocacy of a permanent regular army but also his doubts about one being created. Writes, "I am a constant Advocate for a regular Army, and the most masterly Discipline, because, I know that without these We cannot reasonably hope to be a powerfull, a prosperous, or a free People...Men of Genius and spirit, must be promoted, wherever they are…"
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