Correspondence between John Belton and the Continental Congress

This is a collection of correspondence between Joseph Belton, a firearms inventor, and the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, in 1777. It contains descriptions of a modification that could be made to flintlock muskets to allow rapid firing of multiple shots with a single loading. Congress was interested in the invention, and it was demonstrated before noted scientists and military officers (including well known scientist David Rittenhouse and General Horatio Gates), but was rejected due to Belton's demand for what Congress considered excessive fees for the use of Belton's design.

Belton's original letter to Congress, April 11, 1777

 * To the Honourable Conteintnal Congress
 * May it Please your Honours,
 * I would just informe this Honourable Assembly, that I
 * have discover'd an improvement, in the use of Small Armes,
 * wherein a common small arm, may be maid to discharge
 * eight balls one after another, in eight, five or three seconds of
 * time, & each one to do execution five & twenty, or thirty yards,
 * and after so discharg'd, to be loaded and fire'd with cartridge as
 * usual, which I am ready to prove by experimental proof
 * and can with equal ease fix them so as to discharge sixteen,
 * or twenty, in sixteen, ten, or five seconds of time, which I
 * have kept as yet a secret, thinking that in two, or three Months
 * we might have an army thus equipt, which our enemy
 * should know nothing of, till they should be maid to know it
 * in the field, to their immortal sorrow
 * And if you Gentlemen are desirous to enquire into this im-
 * provement, your Humble Servent, is ready to wait upon you at
 * any time, or place, or he may be waited on at the Widow
 * Fords, in Walnut Street, between second & third street.
 * from your most Obedient
 * Humble Servent
 * Philidelphia April 11th 1777 Joseph Belton

Journals of the Continental Congress, Sat. May 3, 1777

 * Resolved, That John Belton be authorized and appointed to superintend,
 * and direct, the making or altering of one hundred muskets, on the
 * construction exhibited by him, and called "the new improved gun,"
 * which will discharge eight rounds with once loading; and that he
 * receive a reasonable compensation for his trouble, and be allowed
 * all just and necessary expences.

Belton's second letter to Congress, May 7, 1777

 * To the Honorable Continental Congress
 * May it Please your Honours;
 * I have receiv'd your resolve of the first of May, Were-
 * in, I am Authorized to superintend, & direct, the altering of one
 * hundred Muskets, & that I receive a reasonable compensation for
 * my trouble (for so superintending & directing) &c. But I see
 * no prospect of having any reward for my Invention, and for
 * the cost and trouble I have already been at, Which has ever
 * been customary through all Nations, to reward usefull inventi-
 * ons, or discoveries, as I have set for in a paper, Which I
 * had wrote before. I had seen the Resolve, Which I had defer'd
 * the Board of War to lay before your Honours, and to what lengths
 * I would carry the invention and What Service it might render
 * to the States, and provided I should fail in compeating the
 * armes as I had therein set fourth, I would have no rewards
 * as I desire not my Counteries money without rendering Ser-
 * vices adiquate thereto, And still to remove all possable
 * Objections, & to put things on an equitable, & reasonable a
 * futten, as any one I think can desire, I will engage to direct
 * the arming of one hundred men, so as to be equal to two hun-
 * dred in the field of Battle, or any number equal to double the
 * same number as they are arm'd at present, Which shall be
 * left to the Judgement of the Commander, or three first Comman-
 * ding officers of our Army. And if they judge they are not I
 * will be satisfied, & desire, and receive no reward & be intitled to
 * none, But provided they should judge they were equal I then
 * should be intitled to a thousand pound from each State-
 * according to resolve of Congress, fo then where one hundred was


 * thus equipt it would be the same, to the strength of the army, as if
 * there was another hundred raisd & equipt, & what state can raise, cloth
 * & equipt one hundred men for a thousand pound, or even three thousand
 * then allowing one hundred men to be equipt for each State, their
 * strength would be the same, as if they had been to the expense of three
 * thousand pounds more, in raising men besides the cost of maintaining them
 * which may be saivd to the State, What then would be the saving in
 * arming three or four thousand for each State, in short the many &
 * ennumerable advanteages, which it may render, are almost beyond
 * discription, which makes my proposal vastly reasonable, & untill
 * it is agreed to, or something simular, I shall beg to be exus'd
 * from superintending & directing the altering of any Muskets,
 * But when it is, it will be undertaken with Alacrity by
 * Your Most Obedient Humbl Ser't
 * Joseph Belton


 * N.B. As for the Enemies obtaining & making any use of the
 * invention against us, as some perhaps my imagine, I am no ways
 * apprehensive of at present, for it will be my own folt if they doe,
 * at least untill we had what number you please armd, and if they doe
 * then it might be by a deserter from our army, after he had become
 * acquainted with the use of the armes, for were our enemy to take
 * some of the Armes after they were completed they could not very sud-
 * denly use them, untill they had discovered the true & safe method
 * of Charging, which might puzzle the best of them for Months as
 * it has done me, & perhaps split one or two about their ears, as I have
 * done, Which you may think Gentlemen, as you have seen me


 * discharge, to be very easy, but if any Gentleman in this
 * place will tel me in a week with what, & how I charge
 * I will give him the Invention, And him that alter'=d me
 * the gun knows not, and I am confident there is but one
 * upon the Continent beside myself that does know, But
 * from this you may think it will always be difficult, &
 * dangerous, for men to use them, But so far from that,
 * -that I would trust any friend that was usd to a gun,
 * after giving him the materials, & three or four words of
 * direction, to go by himself & Charge, for me to discharge,
 * and who had never seen the gun thus Charg'd before,
 * Many things appear vastly dangerious & difficult, & are
 * so till they are found out, then as vastly easy & simple
 * so experientia docet omnia, and has taught the forgoing to
 * your HblSert
 * Jo^s Belton


 * Philidelphia May 7 1777

Belton's letter to John Hancock, May 8, 1777

 * Philadelphia May 8th 1777
 * Mr Hancock
 * Sir
 * Perhaps the Congress will sooner Comply
 * with this than what I have heretofore laid before
 * them, (Viz) I will engage to arm any member
 * which shall prove equal to double the same num-
 * ber in Battle, if so then I should be intitled to
 * five hundred pounds from each State, & if equal
 * to three times their number I should be intitled to
 * a thousand pound from each Sate, and if equal to
 * four times their number I should be intitled to fif-
 * teen hundred from each State, so on riseing five
 * hundred for every greater number. Which should be
 * left to four experienced Officers two of which I
 * should have the privelage of Choosing, And as they
 * brought in so I should receive. And if they judged they
 * were not equal to double their number I would be
 * intitled to no reward which will be hartily complied with
 * by
 * Your Most Obiedient Humble Ser't
 * Joseph Belton

Journals of the Continental Congress, Thurs. May 15, 1777

 * A letter, of the 8, from Joseph Belton, was read, requiring an
 * extraordinary allowance for his new invented gun.
 * Ordered, That the same be dismissed.

Belton's third letter to Congress, June 14, 1777

 * Sir
 * Please to inform the Honourable Congress, that
 * as I have heretofore asserted to them, that I can discharge six-
 * teen, or twenty balls from one piece, one charging, by once pul-
 * ing tricker, or at two or three diffrent times, by little more
 * than cocking & priming the same lock two or three different
 * times. And as I mean ever to fulfull all & every one of my Asser-
 * tions, I propose next munday about ten O'Clock A.M. (if it
 * be agreeable to your Honours) in the State House Yard to make the
 * following exhibition (viz) to make five different discharges from
 * one pulling tricker. then again by little more than cocking & priming
 * to make five more different discharges, then by little more than cocking
 * & priming again to make six, all which I will warrant to do
 * execution one hundred yards and think I might safely warrant
 * it would two hundred, after which I can charge & fire with car-
 * trage as usual.---from
 * Your Most Obedient Humbl Ser't
 * Joseph Belton
 * Phila^da Saturday June 14th 1777

Belton's fourth letter to Congress, July 10, 1777

 * To the Honourable Continental Congress:


 * May it Please your Honours


 * You may see from a paper herewith inclos'd
 * signed by the Generals & other Officers, & Gentlemen, their
 * Oppinions upon my new Constructed Musket, and how extensively
 * usefully they judge it may be, and that I ought to be hansomely
 * rewarded by the Publick for my Invention, And it is reasonable
 * to think that all Publick reward ought to be in proportion to the
 * service that my invention, or improvement, may render to the
 * Publick. And to remove Objections (if any there be) against the
 * usefulness of my Invention, I will engage to direct the making
 * of Muskets upon such a construction, that anybody of men shall
 * be save in using them in discharging sixteen rounds in less
 * space than a minute, that shall do execution two hundred yards, and
 * then shall be able to load and fire with cartridge as usual, or to load the
 * whole sixteen rounds again, and in the least failer herein I would
 * be intitled to no reward. The service that such armes may render
 * to the Publick at this day & to posterity, I will leave your Honours
 * to Judge. at the same time, I think that Great Britan has granted
 * many five hundred a year for less services renderd to their country,
 * then what this will render to mine, and I look upon this extensive
 * continent to be able to grant five hundreds as well as the little Island
 * of Britan, and as money is stild the sinews of war, so it may be stild
 * the sinews of invention, for doubtless many experiments which might
 * have discoverd something useful to the Publick, has for the want of it, died
 * in Oblivion, And as the present Invention opens a door, into a wide
 * extended field of improvement in every military department, where many
 * useful things present themselves to view, which lies as yet unnotissed,
 * which when I am rewarded as the Invention merits, I shall readily
 * step forth in my Counteries cause, and exert eery ingenious nerve
 * to arm my Countery to the best possable advantage, for which purpose
 * I beg leave to dedicate these papers to your Honours serious consideration
 * and your wise determinations, may I hope, be crown'd with salutary con-
 * sequences, which is the desire of
 * your Most Obedient
 * Most Humble Servent
 * Joseph Belton

Enclosure
Philadelphia July 10th 1777
 * Having Carefully examined M. Beltons
 * New Constructed Musket from which He discharged
 * Sixteen Balls loaded at one time, we are fully of
 * Opinion that Muskets of his Construction with
 * some small alterations, or improvements might be
 * Rendered, of great Service, in the Defense of lives,
 * Redoubts, Ships &c, & even in the Field, and that
 * for his Ingenuity, & improvement he is Intitled
 * to a hansome reward from the Publick.

Journals of the Continental Congress, Thursday, July 10, 1777

 * A petition from Joseph Belton, and a petition from Captain James [Joseph] Lees, were read:
 * Ordered, That the petition of J. Belton be referred to the Board of War,
 * and the petition of Captain Lees to the Marine Committee.
 * Journals of the Continental Congress, Saturday, July 19, 1777
 * Resolved, That the petition of Thomas [Joseph] Belton be dismissed.