left a village on one side, the advance guard of the British entered it at the other. The last proclamation of the Howes appeared during this gloomy retreat, and produced considerable defection on the line of march. To add to the embarrassments of the American general, an insurrection broke out in Monmouth county, which required the aid of a party of his troops to repress it. The only encouraging circumstance, in the distressing time, was the arrival of some reinforcements from Philadelphia, with which he kept the British in check for a short time, and pressed forward upon Princeton, to give an opportunity for conveying his sick, stores, and baggage, such as were left him, across the Dela

ware.

Affairs prospered no better with the Americans in other quarters.

On the very day that Washington crossed the Delaware, General Clinton, with two brigades of British and two of Hessian troops, and the squadron under Sir Peter Parker, took possession of Newport in Rhode Island, and blockaded Commodore Hopkins, with his squadron and a number of privateers, in Providence. The chief object of this movement was to prevent the New England states from reinforcing Washington. It had that effect-six thousand troops under General Lincoln, which were already on the march, were detained to watch the enemy at home. Another object was to interrupt the privateering business; this also was effected. But such inconsiderable objects were purchased too dearly. From three to five thousand of the best British troops were kept in a state of inactivity for nearly three years.

By the approach of the British army, the deliberations of Congress were disturbed, and on the 12th of December they adjourned from Philadelphia to Baltimore, where they met on the 20th. Before their adjournment they vested General Washington with almost unlimited powers, "to order and direct all things relating to the department, and to the operations of war." They especially authorized him to levy sixteen additional battalions of infantry, three regiments of artillery, three thousand light-horse, and a corps of engineers, to appoint officers, establish their pay, to call the militia into service, and, in short, gave to him the absolute direction of military affairs for six months. The other proceedings of Congress, will be noticed after bringing up to this date, the military events of the Northern frontier, where the British

General Carleton had in the early part of the season, expelled the Americans under Arnold from Canada, and driven them into Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain.

General Gates, who assumed the command, fortified the post, and garrisoned it with about twelve thousand men.

The command of the Lakes George and Champlain was of the highest importance, for from that point to New York, a chain of British communications would effectually sepa rate the Eastern and Middle States, and enable the roya troops to overrun either at pleasure, without the possibility of their co-operating for defence. The evacuation of Crown Point by the main body, leaving only a garrison there, and the selection of Ticonderoga as the point upon which to fall back, had been disapproved of by several American officers, and did not meet with Washington's approbation. In conformity with the design of maintaining the naval superiority on the Lake, General Gates with vast labor collected a fleet of sixteen vessels, consisting of one sloop, three schooners, one cutter, three gallies and eight barges or gondolas, the whole carrying fifty-six guns, eighty-six swivels, and four hundred men. The command was given to Colonel Arnold. The plans of the British were no less energetically pursued, and their means were more ample than those of the Americans. They did not pursue the Americans beyond Crown Point, but bent all their efforts to acquire such a preponderance of naval force, that they could drive them at once from their positions, force their way to Albany, and form a complete junction with Lord Howe's army at New York. In less than three months a powerful fleet was constructed and equipped. The materials for some of the largest vessels were brought from England, and time and great labour were, required to put them into a state for use. Gondolas, boats and batteaux, and vessels of larger size, containing materi als, muniments, and stores, were dragged up the rapids, and about the first of October, a large British squadron was afloat on Lake Champlain. It consisted of the Inflexible, a ship carrying eighteen twelves, two schooners, the Carlton and the Maria, carrying twelve and fourteen guns, a flat-bottomed boat carrying twelve guns besides howitzers, a gondola carrying seven nine pounders, twenty gunboats carrying each a brass field piece, from nine to twenty-four pounders; some large boats acting as tenders, with each a carriage gun, and a large number of small vessels

October.

prepared for the transportation of the army and stores. This fleet was navigated by seven hundred prime seamen; of whom two hundred were volunteers from the transports; was commanded by Captain Pringle, an experienced and gallant officer; and the guns were served by detachments from the artillery corps.

The American force was inferior in number, but could not avoid an action, which commenced under favorable circumstances on the 11th of October. The wind

Oct. 11. was unfavorable to the British, and the Inflexible and other vessels of force could not be brought into action. The combat was thus rendered more equal, and continued with great fierceness for four hours. The principal damage to the Americans was the loss of a schooner and a gondola Two of the British gondolas were sunk, one blown up, and the rest suffered severely. The commander finding it impossible to bring his whole strength advantageously into action, drew off his vessels at night, preparing to make a general attack the next day, if the wind should prove more favorable. Arnold, during the night, which was dark and foggy, by a bold and well executed manœuvre, run through the enemy's line, and by morning had escaped, with his whole fleet, out of sight. The wind freshened in that direction and Captain Pringle made sail with all speed, and after several days' chase, overtook the Americans before they had reached Crown Point, and brought them to action again. Some of the American vessels, by superiority of sailing escaped to Ticonderoga, but two gallies and five gondolas maintained the fight with an intrepidity approaching to desperation. One of the gallies having struck, Arnold conceived a gallant movement, and carried it into execution with singular courage, promptness and address. Determined that the enemy should not possess his vessels, nor capture the crews, he run his galley, followed by the gondolas, on shore, in such a situation that he could land the men, and blow up the vessels. The enterprise was perilous, but was completely successful. Paying a romantic attention to a point of honor, he resolved not to strike his flag, nor permit it to be struck, by the British, and never abandoned his galley till she was completely in flames. With the remnant of his force he reached Ticonderoga, Crown Point was abandoned to the enemy, and the American naval force having been reduced to two gallies, two schooners, one

sloop, and a gondola, the British were undisputed masters of the Lake. A change in the wind prevented their advance to the works at Ticonderoga, for eight days, which interval was busily employed by Generals Gates and Schuyler in strengthening the defences. Having taken possession of Crown Point, General Carleton advanced a part of his fleet, and put his land forces in motion on both sides of the Lake, apparently with a view of besieging the post. The garrison were deficient in ammunition and supplies, and by no means in a condition to resist a vigorous siege by a superior force, for any great length of time, but happily these circumstances were unknown in their full extent to the enemy, and the lateness of the season, and the apparent strength of the works, induced General Carleton, after reconnoitering them, to re-embark his army and return to Canada, where he went into winter quarters.

When the commanders were assured that there was no danger of any further attack from the Canada side, they despatched a large reinforcement to General Washington, then retreating before Lords Howe and Cornwallis, through the Jerseys. Very few of these troops reached their destination, having abandoned their officers by the way; and General St. Clair, with the officers and some scanty followers, were all that ever appeared in the camp of Washington.

Thus disheartening were the prospects of American freedom, in the middle of December 1776. The British forces had occupied nearly the whole of two powerful States, and had pursued a harassed, barefooted, destitute, almost disbanded, and daily diminishing army, from spot to spot, until a short pause was made on the banks of the Delaware, from the difficulty which was found in transporting the pursuing army over. On that day a return of the American forces made to Congress, showed that Washington could not muster more than thirty-three hundred men. After crossing, their numbers were little more than two thousand, and of these, the rapid deductions by desertion, and the expiration of the term of enlistment, left him an average force not exceeding sixteen hundred. Indeed, one of his official letters, dated the 24th of December, rated his whole strength at fourteen or fifteen hundred, hourly diminishing.

At this gloomy period, when defection was busy every where, and defeat seemed to menace the arms of the new

States in all directions, and before the eyes of the most zealous patriots no hope remained, but of a long, dangerous, doubtful, and bloody contest, the courage of Congress and the Commander-in-chief, never quailed. Counting on the necessity of further retreats and suffering in the midst of this wretched campaign, Washington asked of Colonel Reed, whether the upper counties of Pennsylvania would support their cause, if they were compelled to fall back so far. The Colonel doubted whether, if the lower counties were subdued, the upper parts of the state would hold out. reply of Washington was memorable: We must then retire to Augusta County in Virginia; numbers will be obliged to repair to us for safety, and we must try what we can do in carrying on a predatory war. If overpowered there, we must cross the Alleghanys.'

The

Congress were fired with a similar determination. On the tenth of December, they made an animated appeal to the States, betraying no symptoms of despair; they spoke in terms of ardor of the ultimate success of the glorious struggle, and urged a manly fortitude in resisting the influence of temporary distresses, and a zeal commensurate with the inestimable rights and liberties at stake. An address adopted by the New York Convention, at that critical period, was admirably calculated to produce effect upon the minds of the people of other states. The enemy was within their borders; their rich capital was occupied by his armies; another army was prepared on their Northern frontier, and their slender troops were flying from the overwhelming force, which was gathering around them. In this posture, the New York patriots called upon their fellow-citizens, by every thing they held dear in life, to support their rights and save their country. With lofty reliance on the certainty of ultimate triumph, they recalled the noble conduct of the ancient Romans, under adverse fortune. They said:"After the armies of Rome had been repeatedly defeated by Hannibal, that imperial city was besieged by this brave and experienced general, at the head of a numerous and victorious army. But so far were her glorious citizens from being discouraged by the loss of so many battles, and of all their country, so confident of their own virtue and of the protection of heaven, that the very land upon which the Carthagenians were encamped was sold at public auction for more than the usual price.