 In the late spring of 1778 , Rawlings began marshaling his regiment , including returning prisoners of war and new recruits , to reestablish its full complement . His efforts met with only limited success , however , despite Washington 's request to Maryland governor Thomas Johnson in late December 1777 in anticipation of Rawlings ' imminent exchange " that the most early and vigorous measures will be adopted , not only to make [ Rawlings ' ] Regiment more respectable , but compleat [ sic ] . " Moreover , in early October 1778 Congress permitted Rawlings and his officers to recruit outside Maryland , with each new enlistee being officially entitled to the enlistment bonus and clothing allowance of his own state 's line organization . Implementation of this unusual ruling , however , added few men to the unit , reflecting the Continental Army 's increasing difficulty in recruiting by this time of the war . The few recruiting records for the unit that exist indicate that by the end of 1778 , Rawlings ' force of Continental regulars at Fort Frederick probably included no more than 30 to 40 new enlistees . 
