Merrimack Valley Independent Militia

Feeding the Troops

Soldiers and sailors of the eighteenth century were issued salt pork, beef, and fish when it would be impractical to issue fresh provisions. This is not the salt pork fat you are accustomed to from the supermarket, it is simply assorted chunks of pig that have been preserved by heavy salting. The salt helped to evaporate excess moisture from the meat and prevented the growth of harmful bacteria which would spoil the meat.

The various salt meats had to be soaked in fresh water to remove most of the salt before use. The meat would then be cooked, usually boiled, in the brass, copper, or tinned steel kettles that were issued. Whatever sturdy vegetables could be had were added to the water in which the meat was cooking to make stews etc.. The British army was issued dried peas on a weekly basis. The monotonous diet of pea soup with salt meat was called the "green death". Groups of men, usually six, were issued a kettle to share. This group was called a "mess" and the soldiers were "messmates" to each other, often pooling their foodstuffs. The kettle was hand carried with the men taking turns carrying it and it's contents.

The "biscuit" the men were issued was similar to what we know today as "hardtack", able to be shipped or carried long distances with minimal spoilage. It was basically a flour biscuit with no leavening agent, baked flat like a cracker. The biscuit could be added to the above mentioned ration soup to thicken it. In more permanent locations, such a fort or garrison, the men would have the facilities to bake their own bread with issued flour. Bread was a staple food for the colonists, Europeans of the era felt that eating bread steaming hot from the oven was why Americans tended to have such rotten teeth. Larger forts and camps would have a bakery to provide fresh bread for the troops on large scale basis.

Rum was issued to the troops and would usually be added to water to add to it's longevity. Grog was water with rum in it, water carried on ships for long passages would grow stagnant and unhealthy. The addition of good West India rum would prevent the growth of microorganisms in the water. Sometimes troops were issued molasses to make spruce beer to prevent scurvy. The men would often simply use the molasses to flavor their foodstuffs instead of making the beer, resulting in disciplanary action. It may seem like a bad idea to today's nutrionalists to require the men to drink alcohol, but healthy water supplies were uncertain at best and other beverages could be just as dangerous because this was an age before pasturization. Drinking fresh milk could give you "milk sickness", we know it today as tuberculosis. Given the low alcohol content of spruce beer and other "small beers" the benefits of a bacteria free beverage far outweighed the risks of alcohoic beverages.

These provisions were supplied by independent contractors designated by the state in some location convieniant to the the expedition. Because he was working for the state in an official capacity, John Goffe was often provided with a letter of credit from the state to pay for the goods, or he would pay for them up front out of his own pocket and later fight with the legislature to be reembursed, sometimes years later.

Other independent snowshoe companies were authorized by the legislature similar to privateers at sea. They were issued provisions and ammunition on credit with the understanding that any debts were to be deducted from monies paid as a bounty on Indian scalps, at times as high as 100 pounds each. If the group were to return empty handed, the state would have to be reembursed for the supplies.

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