the fide, earlier than now appears; and alfo his not having given every European letter the immediate resemblance of being written to him by a correfpondent. He flatters himself, that he has in fome measure compenfated for these and other defects, by the general contents of every letter in each volume prefixed to the fame; by a copious index to the whole at the end of the last; and by a collection of maps and plans, about which neither care, nor expence, has been spared to render them valuable.

Struck with the importance of the scenes that were opening upon the world, in the beginning of 1776, he formed an early defign of compiling their hiftory, which he made known to the late commander in chief of the American army; and meeting with the defired encouragement from him, he applied himself to the procuring of the best materials, whether oral, written, or printed. Oral communications were minuted down while fresh in the memory; the written were directed immediately to himself in many instances, in others only imparted the productions of the European prefs could not be received with any regularity or certainty during the war, but were improved as they could be obtained.

The United States, in congrefs affembled, favored him with an inspection of such of their records as could with propriety be fubmitted to the perufal

9

al of a private perfon; and he was indulged late generals Washington, Gates, Greene, ln, and Otho Williams, with a liberal exaion of their papers, both of a public and private nature.

had the opportunity of acquainting him-. ith the records of the first fettlers in New nd; and examined thofe of the Maffachubay, from their formation as a company to ofe of the war, contained in near thirty manuscript volumes.

The

tor Ramfay's history of the war in Carolina, ommunicated to him while in manuscript; berty was granted to make full use of it: esent opportunity is embraced for acknowg the benefit received from it, and for reg grateful thanks to the Doctor. cans remarked, that Dodfley's Annual Recontained the beft foreign printed fumaccount of their affairs: but it was not le for writers on this fide the Atlantic bid mistakes. That Register and other ations have been of fervice to the comof the prefent work, who has frequently I from them, without varying the lanexcept for method and concifenefs. He ed'from every fource of intelligence in his while at the place of his refidence near Bofand fince his return to his native country in 1786,