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Resolved:

That the Secretary at War, on or before the first day of January next, cause the non-commissioned Officers and Privates belonging

to the lines of the respective States, including Soldiers, prisoners with the Enemy, to be arranged in such manner as to form complete Regiments, agreeably to the Acts of Congress of the 3rd and and 21st of October, 1780, in Regiments of not less than five hundred rank and file, as circumstances and the good of the service may in his Judgment require. That for this purpose the Junior Regiments shall be drafted to fill the Senior Regiments and the surplus, should any remain after such draughts, shall be formed into a complete Company or Companies, as near as may be, according to the said establishment, with a proper allowance of field officers to two or more Companies; the said Regiments and Companies shall be commanded by Officers belonging to the respective States, to which the non-commissioned Officers and Privates shall belong.

Resolved:

That the Commander-in-Chief and Commanding Officer of the Southern Army, direct the Officers of the line of each respectively to meet together and agree and determine upon the Officers who shall remain in service to command the Troops arranged as aforesaid; provided, that where it cannot be done by voluntary agreement the Junior Officers of each grade shall retire, so as to leave complete corps of Officers in proportion to the number of men, and to be adjusted upon the principles of the third and twenty-first of October, 1780, and the fifth Resolution of the Act passed the 23rd day of April, 1782.

Resolved:

That the Commander-in-Chief and Commanding Officer of the Southern Army, as soon as the said arrangement shall have taken place, transmit to Congress a list of Officers whom they may deem proper to be employed in the several Staff Departments and other necessary duties in the Army, to be taken from the list of retiring Officers, and accepting such appointments, such Officers shall retain their rank in the Army with the pay and emoluments thereto annexed.

Resolved:

That the Officers retiring under the foregoing Resolutions and not employed in the Staff Department as aforesaid, shall, until called into service with their proper command, be entitled to all the emoluments to which the Officers are entitled, who retired under

the Resolutions of the 3rd and 21st of October, 1780; that the said Officers shall retain their rank in the Army, and be called into the services from time to time, according to Seniority, in case of deficiencies of Officers, upon the principles of the forgoing resolutions.

Resolved:

That in arranging the non-commissioned Officers and Privates of the Army, each State shall be credited for all men, except Deserters and such as may have died, who shall have been duly mustered to serve during the War, or for three years in compliance with the requisitions of Congress of the 3rd of October, 1780, or the tenth of December, 1781.

Resolved:

That the preceding arrangements shall take effect on the first day of January, 1783, and that copies thereof be immediately transmitted by the Secretary at War to the Executive authorities of the respective States.

Extract from the Minutes.

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