aking, very good,
and when supplies can be received, the living is equally so; when they
cannot, it can't be helped, and there is so much money saved. A
suttler's store is attached to each outpost, and the prices of the
articles are regulated by a committee of officers, and a tax is also
levied upon the suttler in proportion to the number of men in the
garrison, the proceeds of which are appropriated to the education of the
children of the soldiers and the provision of a library and news-room.
If the government were to permit officers to remain at any one station
for a certain period, much more would be done; but the government is
continually shifting them from post to post, and no one will take the
trouble to sow when he has no chance of reaping the harvest. Indeed,
many of the officers complained that they hardly had time to furnish
their apartments in one fort when they were ordered off to another--not
only a great inconvenience to them, but a great expense also.

The American army is not a favourite service, and this is not to be
wondered at. It is ill-treated in every way; the people have a great
dislike to them, which is natural enough in a Democracy; but what is
worse, to curry favour with the people, the government very often do not
support the officers in the execution of their duty. Their furloughs
are very limited, and they have their choice of the outposts, where they
live out of the world, or the Florida war, when they go out of it. But
the greatest injustice is, that they have no half-pay: if not wishing to
be employed they must resign their commissions and live as they can. In
this point there is a great partiality shown to the navy, who have such
excellent half-pay, although to prevent remarks at such glaring
injustice to the other service, another term is given to the naval
half-pay, and the naval officers are supposed to be always on service.

The officers of the army are paid a certain sum, and allowed a certain
number of rations per month; for instance, a major-general has two
hundred dollars per month, and fifteen rations: According to the
estimated value of the rations, as given to me by one of the officers,
the annual pay of the different grades will be, in our money, nearly as
follows:--

Army.

+==================+======+=========+======+
YArmy YpoundsYNavy YpoundsY
+------------------+------+---------+------+
YMajor-General Y 850Y Y Y
+-----------