his army; and by which he conceals himself from the 1777notice of the enemy, and induces them to believe he is ftill upon the ground, waiting for them till morning. The ftratagem is rendered the more complete, by an order given to the men, who are intrufted with the bufinefs, to keep up the fires in full blaze, till break of day. While the fires are burning, the baggage and three pieces of ordnance are fent off to Burlington for fecurity; and with the defign, that if the enemy follow it, the Americans may take advantage of their fo doing. The troops march about one o'clock with great filence and order, and croffing Sanpink Creek, proceed toward and arrive near Princeton a little before day break. The three British regiments are marching down to Trenton on another road about a quarter of a mile diftant. The centre of the Americans, confifting of the Philadelphia militia, under gen. Mercer, advances to attack them. Col. Mawhood confiders it only as a flying party attempting to interrupt his march, and approaches with his 17th regiment fo near before he fires, that the colour of their buttons is difcerned. He repulfes the affailants with great fpirit, and they give way in confufion; officers and men seem seized with a panic, which spreads fast, and indicates an approaching defeat. Gen. Washington perceives the diforder, and penetrates the fatal confequence of being vanquished. The prefent moment requires an exertion to ward off the danger, however hazardous to his own perfon. He advances instantly; encourages his troops to make a ftand; places himself between them and the British, diftant from each other about thirty yards; reins his horfe's head toward the front of the enemy; and boldly faces them while

1777 they discharge their pieces: their fire is immediately returned by the Americans, without their adverting to the pofition of the general, who is providentally preferved from being injured either by foe or friend. The fcale is turned, and col. Mawhood foon finds, that he is attacked on all fides by a fuperior force; and that he is cut off from the reft of the brigade. He difcovers also by the continued distant firing, that the fifty-fifth is not in better circumftances. His regiment having ufed: their bayonets, with too much feverity, on the party put to flight by them in the beginning, now pay for it in proportion, near 60 are killed upon the fpot, befide. the wounded. But the colonel and a number force their way through, and purfue their march to Maidenhead. The fifty-fifth regiment being hard preffed, and finding it impoffible to continue its march, makes good its retreat, and returns by the way of Hillsborough to Brunfwick. The fortieth is but little engaged; thofe of the men who efcape, retire by another road to the fame place.

It was propofed to make a forced march to Brunfwick, where was the baggage of the whole British army, and gen. Lee; but the men having been without either reft, rum, or provifions for two days and two nights, were unequal to the tafk. It was then debated, whether to file off to Cranberry in order to cross the Delaware and fecure Philadelphia. Gen. Knox urged their marching to Morristown, and informed the commander in chief, that when he paffed through that part of the country, he obferved that it was a good pofition. He alfo remarked, that they should be upon the flank of the enemy, and might eafily change their fituation, if ་མ་ requifite.

requifite. By his earnest importunity he prevailed, and 1777. the measure was adopted. Gen. Greene was with the main body, which was advanced; and had put it into the Morristown road, without having been first acquainted with the determination. Just as that was concluded upon, the enemy were firing upon the rear of the Americans. Lord Cornwallis had been waked by the found of the American cannon at Princeton; and finding himself out-generalled, and apprehensive for his ftores and baggage, had pofted back with the utmost expedition. The army under gen. Washington marched on to Pluckemin in their way to Morristown, pulling up the bridges as they proceeded, thereby to incommode the enemy and secure themselves. By the time they got there, the men were fo exceffively fatigued, that a fresh and refolute body of five hundred, might have demolished the whole. Numbers lay down in the woods and fell asleep, without regarding the coldness of the weather. The royal army was ftill under fuch alarming impreffions, that it continued its march from Trenton to Brunswick, thirty miles, without halting longer at least than was neceffary to make the bridges over Stony Brook and Millftone paffable.

General Howe admits, that the lofs in this affair was 17 killed, and nearly 200 wounded and miffing. But the Americans say, they have taken near 300 prisoners, of whom 14 are officers, all British. Capt. Leslie, the fon of the earl of Leven, who was killed in the engagement, was buried by the Americans with the ho nors of war, not only as a British officer, but in teftimony of respect to his lordship's worth. The Amėrican officers commended the bravery of the troops un

$777 der col. Mawhood: one of the generals obferving how they fought, exclaimed, "When will our men fight like thofe fellows!" Gen. Mercer met with hard ufage, being bayonetted in three places, of which wounds he is fince dead. He was a deferving character, and merited different treatment. Some may pronounce the treatment, that capt. Phillips, of the thirty-fifth-grenadiers, has met with, much bafer; but not when they have the cafe properly reprefented. The captain, as he was returning from New York to join his company, was furprised between Brunswick and Princeton, by a party of militia, who threatened him in cafe he attempted to efeape; regardless of the threat, he clapped fpurs to his horfe, and pushed forward, on which they fired and killed him. Gen. Gates, who is married to the captain's fifter, blames the captain more than the men.

The eagerness of the royal army to reach and fecure Brunswick, occafioned their marching through PrinceTon with fuch expedition, as to divert their attention from either carrying off or deftroying the curious orrery belonging to Naffau college. It was contrived and made by an original genius, and felf-taught aftronomer, Mr. Rittenhouse of Philadelphia. There is not the like in Europe. An elegant, and neatly ornamented frame rifes perpendicularly near upon eight fect. In the front of which you are prefented, in three feveral apartments, with a view of the celeftial fyftem, the motions of the "planets round the fun, and the fatellites about the planets. -The wheels, &c. that produce the movements, are be-hind the wooden perpendicular plane, on which the orrery is fixed. By fuitable contrivances, you in a fhort -time tell the cclipfes of the fun and moon for ages paft

and ages to come: the like in other cafes of aftronomy. 1776. It is faid, that lord Cornwallis intended to have carried it over to Great Britain: no man of fcience can blame his tafte, which may have preferved it from ruin, by fecuring to it that protection while in the hands of the: enemy, that might otherwife have been denied. But the children of the alma mater whose it is, triumph in its preservation, though fomewhat damaged. The college library did not efcape fo well as the orrery; but fuffered confiderably.

Let us attend for a while upon the congrefs at Baltimore; where they met according to adjournment the 20th of December, and foon after paffed the following act" The congrefs, having maturely confidered the Dec. prefent crifis, and having perfect reliance on the wisdom, 27 vigor and uprightness of gen, Washington, do hereby Refolve, That gen. Washington fhall be, and he is hereby vested with full, ample, and complete powers, to raise and collect together in the most speedy and effectual manner, from any or all of thefe United States, fixteen battalions of infantry in addition to thofe already voted by congrefs; to appoint officers for the faid battalions of infantry; to raife, officer, and equip three thousand light horfe, three regiments of artillery, and a corps of engineers, and to establish their pay; to apply to any of the states for fuch aid of the militia as he shall judge neceffary; to form fuch magazines of provifions, and in fuch places as he fhall think proper; to displace and appoint all officers under the rank of brigadier general, and to fill up all vacancies in every other de partment in the American armies; to take, wherever he ! may be, whatever he may want for the ufe of the army,