In the Revolutionary War "time frame" children were considered the PROPERTY of their parents. A father of a male child under 21 could demand that all pay be made to him instead of the minor child. Most males did not marry until after age 21 because they were cheap labor on the family farms and could not get permission to marry from their fathers. Seems out of line now but it was normal practice for that time frame. It would have been normal business practice for Edward to accept Samuel's pay until Samuel was age 21, and it appears that Edward did in fact accept Samuels pay. Bobby G. Carwile