General Washington had given early intelligence of this expedition to
Governor Livingston; and had requested that he would immediately order
out the militia to join Colonel Shreve, whose regiment was detached
into Jersey; but the legislature had neglected to make provision for
paying them; and the governor could not bring them into the field.
Colonel Shreve, on his arrival at Haddonfield, the place at which they
had been directed to assemble, found less than one hundred men.
Colonel Ellis, their commanding officer, remarked, in a letter to the
governor, that "without some standing force, little was to be expected
from the militia, who, being alone not sufficient to prevent the
incursions of the enemy, each one naturally consults his own safety,
by not being found in arms."

Mawhood, of course, was unrestrained; and the devastation committed by
his party was wantonly distressing. Its course of destruction was
preceded by a summons to Colonel Hand, the commanding officer of the
militia, to lay down his arms, which was accompanied with a threat of
the consequences to result from his refusal. This threat was too
faithfully executed.

After completing his forage, without molestation, Mawhood returned to
Philadelphia. During the continuance of this incursion, which lasted
six or seven days, not more than two hundred men could be collected to
reinforce Colonel Shreve, who was consequently unable to effect any
thing, and did not even march to the lower parts of Jersey, which were
plundered without restraint.[1]

[Footnote 1: See note No. I. at the end of the volume.]