up

out waiting for gen. Washington's orders, he directed 1776. the troops to march immediately, and fecure their retreat by poffeffing themfelves of the English neighbourhood; he fent off at the fame time, information to gen. Washington at Hackinfack town. Having gained the ground and drawn the troops in face of the enemy, he left them under the command of gen. Wafhington; and returned to pick up the ftragglers and others, whom to the amount of about 300, he conveyed over the Hackinfack to a place of fafety. By this decided movement of gen. Greene's, 3000 Americans efcaped; the capture of whom, at this period, must have proved ruinous. Lord Cornwallis's intent was evidently to form a line across from the place of landing to Hackinfack: bridge, and thereby to hem in the whole garrifon bes tween the North and Hackinfack rivers: but gen. Greene was too alert for him. His lordship had but a mile and a half to march, whereas it was four miles from Fort Lee to the road, approaching the head of the English neighbourhood, where the other amufed his lordship, till gen. Washington arrived, and by a well-concerted. retreat, fecured the bridge over the Hackinfack, But though the men were faved, fome hundred barrels of flour, most of the cannon, and a confiderable part of their tents and baggage, were taken; befide the trifling number of ninety-nine privates, and fix, officers and staff,

General Washington retreated to Newark, where his whole force confifted of no more than 3500 men. He confidered the caufe as in the greateft danger; and faid to col. Reed, "Should we retreat to the back parts of Pennsylvania, will the Pennsylvanians fupport us?" The colonel answered, "If the lower counties are fubdued, VOL. II.

A a

and

22.

1776. and give up, the back counties will do the fame." The

28.

general paffed his hand over his throat, and faid, "My neck does not feel as though it was made for a halter. We must retire to Augufta county in Virginia. Numbers will be obliged to repair to us for fafety; and we must try what we can do in carrying on a predatory war: and if overpowered, we must crofs the Alleghaney mountains." The general, after tarrying near a week without being molested, obtained information of lord Cornwallis's being in pursuit of him; he therefore marched Nov. for Brunfwick, leaving Newark the very morning that his lordship entered it. As his lordship's van advanced to Brunfwick, by a forced march on the firft of December, gen. Washington retreated to Princeton, having first delayed its paffing the Rariton by breaking down a part of Brunswick bridge, and fo fecured his troops from being haraffed. Lord Cornwallis, having orders not to advance beyond Brunswick, difcontinued his purfuit but fent an exprefs to gen. Howe at New York, acquainting him, that by continuing it brifkly he could entirely difperfe the army under gen. Washington, and feize his heavy baggage and artillery, before he could pafs the Delaware. Gen. Howe returned for anfwer, that he would be with him in perfon immediately; but did not join him till the fixth. Gen. Washington hoped to have made a stand at Brunswick, but was difappointed in his expectation of the militia: on the day he quitted it, the fervice of the Jerfey and Maryland brigades expired, and neither of them would stay an hour longer; he wrote therefore to gen. Lee," haften your march as much as poffible, or your arrival may be too. * Loyalift's letter, Nov. 10, 1777

late."

late." On the 7th, lord Cornwallis's corps marched to 1776. Princeton, which the Americans quitted the fame day. The next day the corps marched in two divifions; the Dec. first advanced to Trenton, and reached the Delaware 8. juft as the rear guard of gen. Washington's army, under col. Henley, gained the oppofite fhore about twelve o'clock at night.

Lord Cornwallis, who halted with the rear divifion within fix miles of Trenton, intended croffing a body very early the next morning, near two miles below Corriel's ferry; and got the troops in readiness, and the artillery prepared to cover the landing; for at that place it was only eight and twenty rod to a fpit of fand on the Pennsylvania fide, on which a fufficient number were to have landed, and then to have marched up to Corriel's ferry, and to have taken the boats that had been collected there by the Americans, and left under a guard of only about ten men: with them it was meant to carry over the main body. In the vicinity of this place, a large funken Durham boat (which came down three days before, laden with flour, and which could carry 100 men) lay concealed under a bank. This had been discovered and taken away by Mr. Merfereau, fo that the British were disappointed in their expectation of finding it. They hailed one Thomfon, a quaker, who lived on the other fide of the Delaware, and inquired what was become of the boat, and were anfwered it was carried off. They continued reconnoitring up and down the river till ten o'clock, but finding no boats, returned to Pennytown. Men had been employed in time for taking off all the boats from the Jerfey fide of the Delaware; but Mr. Merfereau's attention would not admit

1776. of his confiding wholly in their care and prudence. He therefore went up the river to examine whether all the boats were really carried off or deftroyed; upon difcovering the above funken one, which had efcaped the obfervation of the men, and inquiring of a perfon in the neighbourhood concerning her, he was told that the was an old one and good for nothing; but not relying upon the information, he found her to be new, had the water baled out, and fent her off*. The importance of this affair to the Americans, prevents the relation of it from being trifling. Had lord Cornwallis croffed into Pennsylvania as he propofed, the confequence would probably have been fatal to the Americans. Gen. Washington, when he croffed, had about 2200 men: but the time of their fervice expiring, they left him in fuch a manner, that the fecond day after croffing he had but feventeen hundred.

The militia of Jersey had timely notice given them; and had they stept forth in feafon, might have enabled gen. Washington to have prevented lord Cornwallis crofling the Hackinfack: but either difaffection, or the want of exertion in the principal gentlemen of the country (through depreffion of spirit at the threatening appearances that exifted) or a fatal fupinenefs and infenfibility of danger, increafed the actual evil, and made it abfolutely necefïary for gen. Washington to quit the Jeritys, and feek fecurity on the other fide of the Dela.ware. To whatever caufe it was owing, the inhabitants lalmoft to a man refused to turn out, fo that he could not at any time bring more of them together than 1000

Mr. Merfereau, afterward an American deputy commissary of prifoners, was my informer.

men,

men, and even on these very little dependence was to be 1776. put. The proclamation iffued the 30th of November by lord Howe and gen. Howe, as the king's commiffioners, added to gen. Wafhington's difficulties. In that, they commanded all perfons affembled in arms. against his majesty's government, to difband and return to their dwelling; and all general or provincial congreffes, &c. to defift from all their treasonable actings, and to relinquish all their ufurped power. They declared that every perfon, who, within 60 days, fhould. appear before the governor, lieut. governor, or commander in chief of any of his majefty's colonies, or before the general or commanding officer of his majefty's forces, &c. and claim the benefit of the proclamation,. and teftify his obedience to the laws by fubfcribing a certain declaration, fhould obtain a full and free pardon. of all treafons, &c. by him committed, and of all for feitures and penalties for the fame. Numbers, who had been provincial congrefs-men, committee-men, juftices* and the like, though out of the way of immediate dan ger, ran to take the advantage of the proclamation. Many of the whigs fhifted about. Only a few of fortune. ftood firm to the caufe. It was the middle rank of people in general that remained stedfast in this day of trial. The fuccefs of the royal army extended its influence alfo to Pennfylvania. Mr. Galloway, the family of the Allens, with fome others, repaired to the commiflioners to claim the benefits of the general pardon.

General Lee, with more than 3000 men, though repeated expreffes were fent to him, continued in the rear of the royal forces, marching fo flowly that Washington could not account for it. It at length proved fatal to