Page:Harris Dickson--The unpopular history of the United States.djvu/66

 lot of deserters from Burgoyne’s army. Think of it! Buying and paying liberty’s money to skulkers who had sneaked out of British regiments! Thereupon Father wrote letters and told these proxy patriots exactly what he thought about them, and especially about the dangers of substituting as soldiers of the infant republic men who had already given proof of their treacherous dispositions. One of his colonels backed up Father with the proof that every British deserter, except one, had in turn deserted him, stealing properties and accouterments as they left. Anyway, they were impartial deserters.

My son, let me beat into your head something else about this whirligig of volunteer militia. It did not produce an army of soldiers. But as a mill for turning out pensioners it went on grinding day and night. The greatest force of soldiers that Washington could ever get together in one command was 17,000. But after the smoke blew away I had on my hands, in one bunch, an army of 95,753 pensioners.