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REESE LIBRARY 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 Received *J& &4^ " iSS 
 Accessions No. 
 

 UIIVEBSITY 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTK N 
 
 1 . Settlement of British America. 
 
 THE discovery of the western hemis 
 phere, effected by the bold and perse 
 vering genius of Christopher Columbus, 
 in the year 1492, gave a new impulse 
 to European activity ; and the splendid 
 conquests of the Spaniards in the West 
 Indies, and in South America, excited 
 the emulation of the other maritime 
 powers of Christendom. Our ancestors 
 were not dilatory in their endeavours to 
 enter upon this new path to glory and 
 wealth; for we find that, in the year 
 1498, John Cabot, by virtue of a com 
 mission from Henry VII., took formal 
 possession, in the name of that monarch, 
 of a considerable portion of the con 
 tinent of North America. No attempt, 
 however, was made to establish a colony 
 in that country till the reign of Queen 
 Elizabeth, when Sir Humphrey Gilbert 
 and Sir Walter Raleigh, in the years 
 1578 and 1584, formed settlements there, 
 which were soon wasted by famine, by 
 disease, and by the arrows of the natives, 
 who, as heathens, were counted as 
 nothing in the royal grants under which 
 the adventurers acted. The first per 
 manent British settlement was esta 
 blished in the reign of King James I., 
 under whose auspices a company of 
 adventurers built James Town, on the 
 northern side of James River. This 
 colony, however, continued for a long 
 time in a feeble state. It was founded 
 A. D. 1607; and, though it received 
 continual accessions of new settlers, its 
 population, in the year 1670, amounted 
 to no more than 40,000 souls. 
 
 The Virginian colonists were prompted 
 to quit their native country by the hope 
 of bettering their temporal condition. 
 A higher motive gave rise to the colo 
 nization of the northern portion of the 
 new continent. After the passing of 
 the Act of Uniformity, in the reign of 
 Elizabeth, the Puritans had suffered a 
 grievous persecution ; to escape from 
 which a small body of them had fled, 
 in the year 1606, into Holland. Un 
 willing, however, entirely to sever 
 themselves from the land which gave 
 
 them birth," they applied to their^so- 
 vereign, King James, beseeching him to 
 permit them to establish themselves in 
 his North American dominions, in the 
 full exercise of liberty in religious 
 matters. With this their request, in its 
 full extent, James refused to comply. 
 All that they could obtain from him was 
 a promise that he would connive at their 
 infringements of the statutes, the ope 
 ration of which had driven them into 
 voluntary exile. On the faith of the 
 royal word to this effect, they embarked, 
 to the number of 101, in the month of 
 September, 1620, and arriving at Cape 
 Cod in the following November, soon 
 afterwards fixed themselves in a place of 
 settlement, which they called New 
 Plymouth, and which, it must be ob 
 served to their honour, they purchased 
 from the natives. Dreadful were the 
 difficulties with which this handful of 
 religionists had to struggle ; landing as 
 they did in the depth of winter, and 
 exposed as they were, notwithstanding 
 their conciliatory disposition, to the 
 hostility of the natives. But, supported 
 by the principles of piety, and deter 
 mined, at any price, to purchase religious 
 freedom, they maintained their ground ; 
 and being from time to time recruited 
 by new migrations of their persecuted 
 brethren, they, by degrees, spread 
 themselves over the province of Mas 
 sachusetts. 
 
 It too often happens that religion 
 produces dissension, and that those who 
 have suffered persecution, when they 
 have obtained power, become persecu 
 tors themselves. This was the case 
 with the principal inhabitants of the 
 colony of Massachusetts. Falling into 
 the common error of the times, in think 
 ing that uniformity of sentiment on the 
 subject of religious doctrines was re 
 quired by the truth of the gospel, and 
 by a regard to the peace and welfare of 
 society, they established it as a rule of 
 government, " that no man should be 
 admitted to the freedom of their body 
 politic, but such as were members of 
 some of their churches ;" and they after 
 wards passed a resolution, " that none 
 B 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 2 
 
 but such should share in the adminis 
 tration of civil government, or have a 
 voice in any election." In this instance, 
 however, as in many others, evil was 
 productive of good. The discontented 
 sectarians sought other settlements, and 
 founded the colonies of Connecticut, 
 Rhode Island, and New Hampshire. 
 
 Whilst the once persecuted Protestants 
 thus gave a sad proof that their suffer 
 ings had not taught them mercy, it 
 was reserved for a Roman Catholic 
 nobleman to give to the new world a 
 striking example of this happy docility. 
 In the year 1632, Lord Baltimore ob 
 tained a charter for a new colony, the 
 first settlers of which consisted chiefly 
 of Roman Catholic gentlemen ; and, 
 having established his band of emi 
 grants in Maryland, he so exerted his 
 influence with the members of the 
 assembly of the new province, that they 
 laid it down as a fundamental principle 
 of their constitution, " that no persons 
 professing to believe in Christ Jesus 
 should be molested in respect of their 
 religion, or in the free exercise thereof." 
 His lordship s enlightened policy was 
 eminently successful. Under the nur 
 ture of religious liberty, his infant set 
 tlement soon advanced rapidly towards 
 maturity. 
 
 In the reign of Charles II., royal 
 charters of the most liberal tenor were 
 granted to Connecticut, Rhode Island, 
 and Providence Plantations ; and pa 
 tents were also granted to Lord Cla 
 rendon and the Duke of York, bestowing 
 on the former aright to form plantations 
 in the district now comprehending North 
 and South Carolina and Georgia, and 
 delegating to the latter the same right as 
 respecting New York and New Jersey ; 
 and, finally, a patent was issued, autho 
 rizing the celebrated William Penn to 
 colonize Pennsylvania and Delaware. 
 
 The English emigrants who settled in 
 North America were a class of people 
 very different from the Spaniards, who 
 subdued the southern continent. They 
 did not leave their native shores for the 
 purpose of invading and plundering rich 
 provinces and wealthy cities ; but they 
 sought prosperity by the painful arts of 
 industry and economy. Purchasing 
 land from the aborigines, they at first 
 devoted themselves to the culture of the 
 soil ; and, in process of time, those who 
 continued to reside on the sea-shore, or 
 on the banks of navigable rivers, ad 
 dicted themselves to commerce. Their 
 success in this pursuit is evinced by the 
 
 fact, that though in the year 1704 the 
 imports of the province of Pennsylvania 
 amounted only to 11,499^. sterling, in 
 1772 they were increased to the value of 
 507>909/., and in the same year the 
 whole of the exports from Great Britain 
 to her North American colonies amount 
 ed to upwards of 6,000,000/. sterling. 
 
 Though each colony had its separate 
 constitution, the principles of freedom 
 pervaded them all. In some provinces 
 the governors and the magistrates were 
 elected by the people : and in those, the 
 governors and chief officers of which 
 were appointed by the crown, the power 
 of these functionaries was controlled by 
 assemblies, the members of which were 
 chosen by the freeholders, who were too- 
 numerous to be bribed, and too inde 
 pendent in their circumstances to be 
 swayed by influence. Throughout the 
 whole of the union there was not found 
 a single proprietor of a borough, nor 
 an interest to nurture the principles of 
 bigotry and passive obedience. When 
 the first settlers took possession of the 
 country, they brought with them all the 
 rights of Englishmen, and those rights 
 they were jealous in maintaining. Their 
 interior concerns were regulated by their 
 representatives in assembly ; but in con 
 sideration of their origin, and of the 
 protection against foreign enemies, 
 which they received from the mother 
 country, they cheerfully submitted to the 
 obligation of exclusively trading with 
 her, and of being bound by all the laws 
 touching commerce which might be 
 passed by the British parliament. The 
 limits of the authority of parliament they 
 were not critical in canvassing, with one 
 exception, namely, claiming to be inde 
 pendent of that body in the matter of 
 internal taxation. They maintained, 
 conformably to one of the most esta 
 blished principles of the British consti 
 tution, that an assembly in which they 
 were not represented had no right to 
 burden them with imposts. 
 
 2. War 0/1756. 
 
 The growing power of the British 
 colonies in America was strikingly 
 evinced in the year 1745, when a force 
 of 5000 men, raised and equipped by 
 the single state of Massachusetts, and 
 acting in concert with a British arma 
 ment from the West Indies, took 
 Louisbourg from the French. The 
 success of this expedition so much 
 excited the jealousy of the government 
 of France, that, after the termination of 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 yj the war in which Louisbourgwas taken, 
 - they dispossessed the Ohio Company of 
 the settlements which it had formed on 
 u the river of that name, alleging that 
 the territory in question was part of the 
 dominions of his most Christian Ma 
 jesty. It was on this occasion that 
 George Washington, then a major in the 
 Virginian militia, first drew his sword 
 in hostility. At the head of 300 men 
 he defeated a party of French ; but 
 being afterwards attacked by a superior 
 force, he was obliged to surrender, re 
 ceiving, however, honourable terms of 
 capitulation. 
 
 A war with France now seeming in 
 evitable, a general meeting of the go 
 vernors and leading members of the 
 provincial assemblies was held at Albany, 
 in the state of New York. This meeting 
 proposed, as the result of its delibera 
 tions, " that a grand council should be 
 formed of members, to be chosen by 
 the provincial assemblies ; which council, 
 together with a governor to be appoint 
 ed by the crown, should be authorized 
 to make general laws, and also to raise 
 money from all the colonies, for their 
 common defence." The British govern 
 ment seem to have viewed this proposal 
 with jealousy, as a step towards inde 
 pendence. They disapproved of the 
 projected mode of the election of the 
 members of the council ; nor were they 
 satisfied with the plan of raising the re 
 quisite supplies by acts of the colonial 
 legislatures ; and they proposed that 
 "the governors of all the colonies, at 
 tended by one or two members of their 
 respective councils, should, from time 
 to time, concert measures for the whole 
 colonies; erect forts and raise troops, 
 with a power to draw upon the British 
 treasury in the first instance ; but to be 
 ultimately reimbursed by a tax to be laid 
 on the colonies by act of parliament." 
 This counter proposal was strenuously 
 opposed by the colonists, who refused 
 to trust their interests to governors and 
 members of councils, since almost the 
 whole of the former, and the great ma 
 jority of the latter, were nominated by 
 the crown. As to the plan of raising 
 taxes in the colonies by the authority of 
 the British parliament, they rejected it 
 in the most peremptory manner. In the 
 discussions which took place on this oc 
 casion, Dr. Franklin took an active 
 part, and in a letter to Mr. Shirley, go 
 vernor of Massachusetts, as Dr. Ramsay 
 observes, " he anticipated the substance 
 of a controversy, which for twenty years 
 
 employed the pens, tongues, and swords 
 of both countries." In his correspond 
 ence with the governor, the American 
 patriot intimated his apprehension, "that 
 excluding the people from all share in 
 the choice of the grand council, would 
 give extreme dissatisfaction, as well as 
 the taxing them by Act of Parliament, 
 where they have no representation. It 
 is," observes he, with equal candour 
 and good sense " it is very possible 
 that this general government might be 
 as well and faithfully administered with 
 out the people as with them ; but where 
 heavy burdens are to be laid upon them, 
 it has been found useful to make it, as 
 much as possible, their own act ; for 
 they bear better, when they have, or 
 think they have, some share in the direc 
 tion; and when any public measures 
 are generally grievous, or even distaste 
 ful to the people, the wheels of govern 
 ment move more heavily." On the 
 subject of the general characters of the 
 governors of the colonies, to whom it was 
 thus intended to delegate extraordinary 
 powers, Dr. Franklin thus expressed 
 himself, in terms well worthy the atten 
 tion of all ministers who are invested 
 with the appointment of such function 
 aries : " Governors often come to the 
 colonies merely to make fortunes, with 
 which they intend to return to Britain; 
 are not always men of the best abilities 
 or integrity; have many of them no 
 estates here, nor any natural connection 
 with us, that should make them heartily 
 concerned for our welfare; and might 
 possibly be fond of raising and keeping 
 up more forces than necessary, from the 
 profits accruing to themselves, and to 
 make provision for their friends and 
 dependents." The opposition which 
 their project experienced, induced the 
 British government to withdraw it, and 
 the colonies and the mother country 
 for some time longer acted together in 
 union and harmony. The consequence 
 of this was, that under the vigorous ad 
 ministration of Mr. Pitt, the war, begun 
 in 1756, was terminated by a treaty 
 signed in 1763 ; according to the arti 
 cles of which, Canada was ceded to 
 Great Britain by France, and the two 
 Floridas by Spain. 
 
 The North American colonies, in ge 
 neral, entered into the war of 1756 with 
 such zeal, that some of them advanced 
 funds for its prosecution to a greater 
 amount than the quota which had been 
 demanded of them by the British go 
 vernment. Others of them, however, 
 B 2 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 the state of Maryland for instance, had, 
 from local and accidental causes neg 
 lected to contribute their share to the 
 requisite supplies. This circumstance, 
 in all probability, led British statesmen 
 to wish to establish a system, by means 
 of which the resources of the colonies 
 might be made available without the 
 necessity of the concurrence of their 
 local legislatures. Accordingly, Mr. 
 Pitt is said to have told Dr. Franklin, 
 that, "when the war closed, if he should 
 be in the ministry, he would take mea 
 sures to prevent the colonies from 
 having a power to refuse or delay the 
 supplies which might be wanting for 
 national purposes." This declaration 
 is certainly at variance with the doc 
 trines which Mr. Pitt maintained when 
 the question of colonial taxation was 
 afterwards discussed in parliament. 
 But at the latter period that great states 
 man was no longer minister ; and he is 
 not the only politician who has held 
 different language when in and when 
 out of power. 
 
 3. Resolutions of the House of Com- 
 
 - mons, Wth March, 1764. 
 Whatever might be the motives of 
 their conduct, the British ministry, in the 
 year 1764, began to manifest a narrow 
 and jealous policy towards the North 
 American colonies. For a long series 
 of years the commerce of the eastern 
 states had been most beneficially ex 
 tended to the Spanish and French colo 
 nies ; to which they transported great 
 quantities of British manufactures, the 
 profits on the sale of which were divided 
 between themselves and their corre 
 spondents in the mother- country. This 
 course of trade, though not repugnant 
 to the spirit of the navigation laws, was 
 contrary to their letter. Of this the 
 British ministry took advantage; and 
 by the activity of their revenue cutters, 
 they put a stop to the traffic in question, 
 to the detriment and ruin of many mer 
 chants, not only in America, but also 
 in Great Britain. In September 1764, 
 indeed, they caused an act to be passed, 
 authorizing the trade between the North 
 Americans and the French and Spanish 
 colonies, but loading it with such duties 
 as amounted to a prohibition, and pre 
 scribing that all offenders against the 
 act should be prosecuted in the Court of 
 Admiralty, where they were deprived of 
 a trial by jury. As an accumulation of 
 the grievances which the colonists felt 
 jrom this act, its preamble contained 
 
 the following words of fearful omen : 
 "Whereas it is just and necessary that 
 a revenue be raised in America, for 
 defraying the expenses of defending, 
 protecting, and securing the same, We, 
 the Commons, &c., towards raising the 
 same, give and grant unto your Ma 
 jesty/; &c. _ 
 
 It is believed by competent judges 
 that the colonists, however disposed to 
 resent this encroachment on their con 
 stitutional rights, would have submitted 
 without resistance to the provisions 
 of the act as regulations of trade 
 and commerce. But the ministry soon 
 took a bolder step, by proceeding: to im 
 pose a direct internal tax upon the colo 
 nies by authority of parliament. This 
 measure was vindicated on the following 
 grounds, that the pressure of the pay 
 ment of the interest of the national debt 
 weighed so heavily on the British com 
 munity, that it was expedient that by 
 every proper means this burden should 
 be lightened; that a considerable por 
 tion of this debt, had been contracted in 
 the furnishing of supplies for the defence 
 of the North American colonies ; that it 
 was just and reasonable that those colo 
 nies should contribute their proportion 
 towards its liquidation ; and that the 
 authority of parliament was competent 
 to bind them so to do. The idea of re 
 lieving the public burdens by the taxa 
 tion of distant colonies, was, of course, 
 very popular throughout the British 
 nation ; and so little was the right of 
 parliament to impose such taxation at 
 first questioned in Britain, that on the 
 10th of March, 1764, a resolution to the 
 following effect passed the House of 
 Commons, without any remark, * That 
 towards farther defraying the said ex 
 penses, it may be proper to charge cer 
 tain stamp duties in the said colonies 
 and plant al ions." Nothing, however, 
 was immediately done in pursuance of 
 this resolution, as ministers were in 
 hopes that the apprehension of the pass 
 ing of an act. founded on it would induce 
 the colonists to raise a sum equivalent 
 to the expected produce of such act, by 
 bills passed in their respective legislative 
 assemblies : but in these hopes they were 
 disappointed. When intelligence of the 
 resolution for laying a tax on stamps ar 
 rived in America, the colonists were filled 
 with alarm and indignation. They de 
 clared internal taxation of the colonies 
 by the authority of parliament to be an 
 innovation and an infringement on their 
 rights and liberties, If parliament was 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 
 
 authorized to levy one tax upon them, 
 it was authorized to levy a thousand. 
 Where, then, was the security of their 
 property, or what protection could they 
 expect for their dearest interests, from a 
 body of men who were ignorant of their 
 circumstances ; between whom and them 
 selves there was no bond of sympathy, 
 and who, indeed, had a direct interest in 
 removing the weight of taxation from 
 their own shoulders to those of the 
 colonists ? They were entitled, they af 
 firmed, to all the rights of British sub 
 jects, of which the most valuable was 
 exemption from all taxes, save those 
 which should be imposed upon them by 
 their own freely-chosen and responsible 
 representatives. Influenced by the feel 
 ings and motives implied in these decla 
 rations, instead of passing tax bills, they 
 voted petitions and remonstrances to 
 parliament and to the thron e. 
 
 4. Stamp Act, March 22, 1765. 
 The supplications and complaints ofj 
 the colonists were disregarded. In the 
 month of March, 1765, a bill for laying 
 a duty on stamps in America was brought 
 into the House of Commons by Mr. 
 Grenville. This bill was supported by 
 Mr. Charles Townsend, who is reported 
 to have concluded his speech in its 
 favour, in the following words : " And 
 now will these Americans children 
 planted by our care, nourished up by 
 ur indulgence, till they are grown to a 
 degree of strength and opulence, and 
 protected by our arms will they grudge 
 to contribute their mite to relieve us 
 from the heavy weight of that burden 
 which we lie under?" To this invidious 
 appeal to the pride and the prejudices 
 of the members of the House of Com 
 mons, Colonel Barre thus energetically 
 replied : " They planted by your care ! 
 No ! your oppressions planted them in 
 America. They fled from your tyranny 
 to a then uncultivated and inhospitable 
 country, where they exposed themselves 
 to almost all the hardships to which 
 human nature is liable, and, among 
 others, to the cruelty of a savage foe, 
 the most subtle, and, I will take upon me 
 to say, the most formidable of any people 
 upon the face of God s earth ; and yet, 
 actuated by principles of true English 
 liberty, they met all hardships with 
 pleasure, compared with those they suf 
 fered in their own country, from the 
 hands of those who should have been 
 their friends. They nourished up by 
 your indulgence! they grew by. your 
 
 neglect of them. As soon as you began 
 to care for them, that care was exercised 
 in sending persons to rule them in one 
 department and another, who were,, 
 perhaps, the deputies of deputies to some 
 members of this house, sent to spy out 
 their liberties, to misrepresent their ac 
 tions and to prey upon them men whose 
 behaviour,on many occasions, has caused 
 the blood of those sons of liberty to 
 recoil within them men promoted to 
 the highest seats of justice ; some who, 
 to my knowledge, were glad, by going 
 to a foreign country, to escape being 
 brought to the bar of a court of justice 
 in their own. They protected by your 
 arms ! they have nobly taken up arms 
 in your defence, have exerted their va 
 lour, amidst their constant and laborious 
 industry, for the defence of a country 
 whose frontier was drenched in blood, 
 while its interior parts yielded all its 
 little savings to your emolument. And, 
 believe me, remember I this day told 
 you so, that same spirit of freedom 
 which actuated that people at first, will 
 accompany them still ; but prudence 
 forbids me to explain myself further. 
 God knows I do not at this time speak 
 from any motives of party heat ; what I 
 deliver are the genuine sentiments of my 
 heart. However superior to me, in ge 
 neral knowledge and experience, the 
 respectable body of this House may be, 
 yet I claim to know more of America 
 than most of you, having seen, and been 
 conversant with that country. The peo 
 ple, I believe, are as truly loyal as any 
 subjects the king has, but a people jea 
 lous of their liberties, and who will vin 
 dicate them, if ever they should be 
 violated. But the subject is too deli 
 cate I will say no more." 
 
 In the House of Lords the Bill met with 
 no opposition ; and on the 22nd of March 
 it received the royal assent. In adopting 
 the stamp act as a method of taxing the 
 colonies, ministers flattered themselves 
 that the nullity of all transactions in. 
 which the stamps prescribed by the new- 
 law were not used would insure its exe 
 cution. In this confidence they post 
 poned -the commencement of its ope\> 
 tion to the month of November, 1767. 
 This was a fatal error on their part. 
 Had they prescribed its enforcement im 
 mediately on its arrival in America, the 
 colonists might, in their consternation, 
 have been awed into compliance with its 
 provisions ; but the long interval be 
 tween its arrival and its execution, 
 gave them ample time to .organize their 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 opposition against it. Of this they fully 
 availed themselves. On the 28th of 
 May, the assembly of Virginiau^assed 
 strpn^Tesoiuiions_ against the stamp 
 ac!7 the substance of which was readily 
 adopted by the other provincial legisla 
 tures. Popular pamphlets were pub 
 lished in abundance in reprobation of 
 the power thus assumed by the British 
 parliament ; and the proprietors of 
 newspapers, whose journals were des 
 tined to be burdened with a stamp duty, 
 raised against the obnoxious statute a 
 cry which resounded from Massachu 
 setts to Georgia. The oppressive mea 
 sures of ministers were canvassed in 
 town-meetings and in every place of 
 public resort ; and the limits of the obe 
 dience due to the parent country were 
 freely and boldly discussed in every com 
 pany. In these proceedings the colony 
 of Virginia led the way, by passing in 
 the house of burgesses, at the motion of 
 Mr. Patrick Henry, the following reso 
 lutions : 1st. " That the first adventu 
 rers settlers of this his Majesty s colony 
 a"nd dominion of Virginia brought with 
 them, and transmitted to their posterity, 
 and all other his Majesty s subjects, since 
 inhabiting in this his Majesty s said 
 colony, all the liberties, privileges, "and 
 immunities that have at" any time been 
 held, enjoyed, and possessed by the 
 people of Great Britain ;" 2dtyV " That 
 by two royal charters, granted by King 
 James L, the colonies aforesaid are de 
 clared to be entitled to all liberties, pri 
 vileges, and immunities of denizens, and 
 natural subjects, to all intents and pur 
 poses, as if they had been abiding and 
 born within the realm of England ;" 
 3dly, "That his Majesty s liege people 
 of this his ancient colony have enjoyed 
 the right of being thus governed by their 
 own assembly, in the article of taxes 
 and internal police, and that the same 
 has never been forfeited or yielded up, 
 but been constantly recognized by the 
 king and people of Britain;" 4thly, 
 " Resolved, therefore, that the general 
 assembly of this colony, together with his 
 Majesty or his substitutes, have, in th_ j ir 
 representative capacity, the only exclu 
 sive right and power to lay taxes and 
 imposts upon the inhabitants of this 
 colony, and that every attempt to vest 
 such power in any other person or per 
 sons whatsoever than the general as 
 sembly aforesaid, i s illegal, unconstitu 
 tional and unjust, anil hath a manifest 
 tendency to destroy British as well as 
 American liberty ;" Sthly, 4< Resolved, 
 
 lhat his Majesty s liege people, the in 
 habitants of this colony, are not bound 
 to yield obedience to any law or ordinance 
 whatever, designed to impose any tax 
 ation whatever IfpblTlrlelhY other than 
 the laws or ordinancWoT the general 
 assembly aforesaid ;" Gthly, "Resolved, 
 that any person who shall, by speaking or 
 writing, assert or maintain that any per 
 son or persons, other than the general 
 assembly of this colony, have any right 
 or power to impose, or lay any taxation 
 on the people here, shall be deemed an 
 enemy to this his Majesty s colony." 
 
 The heat engendered by the de 
 bates, which in various colonies issued 
 in resolutions to the tenor of the fore 
 going, at length broke out in acts of 
 violence. The populace of Boston at 
 tacked the houses of the officers of go 
 vernment, and destroyed their furniture. 
 Similar excesses took place in some of 
 the other colonies ; and the general an 
 tipathy of the public against the act 
 sheltered the perpetrators of these out 
 rages from punishment. 
 
 These ebullitions were followed by 
 more regular and more effective pro 
 ceedings on the part of the American 
 patriots. On the 6th of June the as 
 sembly of Massachusetts, sensible of the 
 necessity of union to the maintenance of 
 their rights and liberties, invited the 
 other colonial legislative bodies to send 
 deputies to a general congress to be 
 holden at New York on the second 
 Tuesday of October, for the purpose of 
 deliberating on the steps necessary to be 
 taken in the existing circumstances. 
 This summons was readily answered by 
 all the colonies, except those of Virgi- 
 ginia, North Carolina, and Georgia, 
 which, however, heartily approved of 
 the purposed measure, but were pre 
 vented by their respective governors 
 from meeting for the purpose of electing 
 deputies to attend the congress. The 
 representatives of nine colonies met at 
 the time and place appointed, and after 
 mature deliberation agreed upon a de 
 claration of their rights and a statement 
 of their grievances, and also drew up 
 and signed petitions to the king and to 
 both houses of parliament. Similar 
 steps were taken individually by the 
 colonies which had been prevented from 
 sending deputies to the congress. 
 
 $ 5. Repeal of the Stamp Act, 10th 
 March, 1766. New attempt at tax 
 ation, and resistance to the same. . 
 
 The first of November, the day on which 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 the stamp act was to commence its 
 operation, was ushered in throughout 
 the colonies by the funereal tolling of 
 bells. In the course of the day various 
 processions and public exhibitions were 
 made, all indicative of the abhorrence in 
 which the detested statute was univer 
 sally held. By common consent, the act 
 was utterly disregarded, and not a stamp 
 was bought to legalize any transaction. 
 Nor did the Americans content them 
 selves with this sullen opposition to the 
 measures of ministers. They entered 
 into solemn resolutions not to import 
 any British manufactured goods till the 
 stamp act was repealed ; and an associa 
 tion was formed to oppose the act by 
 force of arms. The latter step had no 
 immediate effect ; but the non-importa 
 tion agreement brought such distress 
 upon the British manufacturers, that 
 they besieged parliament with petitions 
 against the measures which ^iad been 
 adopted for the taxing of the colonies. 
 Thus assailed by the clamours of the 
 colonists and by the complaints of the 
 suffering British merchants, his Ma 
 jesty s government, at the head of which 
 was now placed the Marquess of Rock- 
 insrham, for a time wavered at the 
 view of the unpleasant alternative which 
 was set before them, of either repealing 
 or enforcing the obnoxious statute. The 
 former measure was grating to the pride 
 of the nation at large, and the latter 
 evidently involved in its prosecution the 
 danger of a civil war. During this period 
 of hesitation, the state of the colonies 
 was frequently discussed in parliament. 
 It was, in particular, the prominent sub 
 ject of debate at the opening of the 
 session on the 17th of December, 1765. 
 On this occasion Mr. Pitt seems to have 
 exerted all the energies of his powerful 
 mind to avert the mischiefs which he 
 beheld impending over his country. " It 
 is a long time, Mr. Speaker," said he, 
 " since I have attended in parliament. 
 When the resolution was taken in the 
 house to tax America, I was ill in bed. 
 If I could have endured to have been 
 carried in my bed, so great was the agi 
 tation of my mind for the consequences, 
 I would have solicited some kind hand 
 to have laid me down on this floor, to 
 have borne my testimony against it. 
 It is now an act that has passed; I 
 would speak with decency of every act 
 of this house, but I must beg the in 
 dulgence of the house to speak of it 
 with freedom. 1 hope a day may 
 be soon appointed to consider the 
 
 state of the nation with respect to Ame 
 rica. I hope gentlemen will come to 
 this debate with all the temper and 
 impartiality that his Majesty recom 
 mends, and the importance of the subject 
 requires a subject of greater import 
 ance than ever engaged the attention of 
 this House, that subject only excepted, 
 when, nearly a century ago, it was the 
 question whether you yourselves were 
 to be bound or free. In the mean time, 
 as I cannot depend upon health for any 
 future day, such is the nature of my 
 infirmities, I will beg to say a few words 
 at present, leaving the justice, the equity, 
 the policy, the expediency of the act to 
 another time. I will only speak to one 
 point a point which seems not to have 
 been generally understood I mean to 
 the right. Some gentlemen seem to 
 have considered it as a point of honour. 
 If gentlemen consider it in that light, 
 they leave all measures of right and 
 wrong, to follow a delusion that may 
 lead to destruction. It is my opinion 
 that this kingdom has no right to lay a 
 tax upon the colonies. At the same 
 time I assert the authority of this 
 kingdom over the colonies to be so 
 vereign and supreme in every circum 
 stance of government and legislation 
 whatsoever. They are the subjects of 
 this kingdom, equally entitled with your 
 selves to all the natural rights of man 
 kind, and the peculiar privileges of 
 Englishmen. Equally bound by its 
 laws, and equally participating of the 
 constitution of this free country, the 
 Americans are the sons not the bas 
 tards of England. Taxation is no part 
 of the governing or legislative power. 
 The taxes are a voluntary gift and grant 
 of the Commons alone. In legislation 
 the three estates of the realm are alike 
 concerned ; but the concurrence of the 
 peers and the crown to a tax is only 
 necessary to close with the form of a 
 law. The gift and grant is of the Com 
 mons alone. In ancient days the crown, 
 the barons, and the clergy possessed the 
 lands. In those days the barons and 
 clergy gave and granted to the crown. 
 They gave and granted what was their 
 own. At present, since the discovery 
 of America, and other circumstances 
 admitting, the Commons are become 
 the proprietors of the land. The crown 
 has divested itself of its great estates. The 
 church (God bless it !) has but a pittance. 
 The property of the Lords, compared 
 with that of the Commons, is as a drop 
 of water in the ocean ; and this house 
 
8 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTIONS 
 
 represents those Commons, the pro 
 prietors of the lands ; and those pro 
 prietors virtually represent the rest of 
 the inhabitants. .When, therefore, in 
 this house we give and grant, we give 
 and grant what is our own. But in an 
 American tax what do we do ? We, 
 your Majesty s Commons of Great 
 Britain give and grant to your Majesty 
 what ? our own property ? No ! 
 We give and grant to your Majesty the 
 property of your Majesty s Commons of 
 America ! It is an absurdity in terms." 
 " There is," said Mr. Pitt, towards the 
 close of his speech " there is an idea in 
 some, that the colonies are virtually 
 represented in this House. I would fain 
 know by whom an American is repre 
 sented here ? Is he represented by any 
 knight of the shire in any county in this 
 kingdom? Would to God that re 
 spectable representation was augmented 
 to a greater number ! Or will you tell 
 him that he is represented by any repre 
 sentative of a borough a borough 
 which, perhaps, no man ever saw. This 
 is what is called the rotten part of the 
 constitution. It cannot continue a cen 
 tury if it does not drop it must be 
 amputated. The idea of a virtual re 
 presentation of America in this House 
 is the most contemptible idea that ever 
 entered into the head of a man." Mr. 
 Pitt concluded by declaring it as his 
 opinion, that whilst the Americans were 
 possessed of the constitutional right to 
 tax themselves, Great Britain, as the 
 supreme governing and legislative 
 power, had always bound the colonies 
 by her laws, by her regulations and 
 restrictions in trade, in navigation, in 
 manufactures, in every thing except that 
 of taking their money out of their pockets 
 without their consent. Of this broad 
 assertion, of the extent of British 
 power over the colonies, Mr. Grenville, 
 the patron of the Stamp Act, took ad 
 vantage, and maintained that there was 
 no difference in principle between the 
 right to impose external and internal 
 taxation. He asserted that the protec 
 tion from time to time afforded to Ame 
 rica by Britain was a just ground of 
 claim to obedience on the part of the 
 latter from the former, and asked when 
 America was emancipated from the al- 
 leiance which she owed to the parent 
 state? Provoked by Mr. Grenville s 
 sophistry, and irritated by his insolence 
 of tone and manner, Mr. Pitt gave 
 utterance to the following declaration 
 a declaration, no doubt, well calculated 
 
 to animate the spirit of freedom on the 
 other side of the Atlantic. " The gen 
 tleman tells us that America is obstinate; 
 America is almost in open rebellion. I 
 REJOICE THAT AMERICA HAS RESISTED. 
 Three millions of people, so dead to all 
 the feelings of liberty, as voluntarily to 
 submit to be slaves, would have- been fit 
 instruments to make slaves of the rest 
 of their fellow subjects." 
 
 Thus did Mr. Pitt plead the cause of 
 the colonies with all the fervour of com 
 manding eloquence. In the course of a 
 few days the same cause was maintained 
 by Dr. Franklin, on the plain and un 
 adorned, but convincing principles of 
 common sense. In the month of Fe 
 bruary, that celebrated philosopher was 
 examined at the bar of the House of 
 Commons touching the state of Ame 
 rica, and the probable effect upon the 
 inhabitants of that country of the 
 imposition of stamp duties. In this 
 examination he evinced an accurate and 
 extensive knowledge of facts of facts 
 which were calculated to convince any 
 reasonable mind that it was morally 
 impossible to enforce the Stamp Act in 
 the colonies ; and that an attempt to 
 effect that object would be productive 
 of the worst consequences to the 
 prosperity of Britain. The train of 
 interrogatories furnished, of course, by 
 himself, afforded him an opportunity of 
 stating his opinions in his accustomed 
 clear and simple manner ; and the 
 cross-examination which he underwent 
 on the part of members hostile to the 
 claims of the colonies, gave an occasion 
 for the display of that coolness of temper 
 and promptiude of perception by which 
 he was distinguished. His examination 
 concluded with the following pithy ques 
 tions and replies: Q, What used to 
 be the pride of the Americans? A. To 
 indulge in the fashions and manufac 
 tures of Great Britain. Q. What is now 
 their pride? A. To wear their old 
 clothes over again till they can make 
 new ones. < 
 
 The distresses of the commercial and 
 manufacturing interests now co-ope 
 rating with parliamentary arguments 
 and eloquence, the new ministers, who 
 were not so deeply committed as their 
 predecessors on the subject of the Stamp 
 Act, at length made up their mind to 
 give way. Before the examination of 
 Dr. Franklin, indeed, viz. on the 21st of 
 January, 1766, a motion had, under 
 their auspices, been made in the Com 
 mons in a committee of the whole 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 House to the following effect :" That 
 it is the.opinion of the committee, that 
 the House be moved, that leave be 
 given to bring in a bill to repeal an act 
 passed in the last session of parliament, 
 entitled An Act for granting and ap 
 plying certain Stamp Duties, and other 
 Duties in the British Colonies and 
 Plantations in America towards farther 
 defraying the expenses of defending, 
 protecting, and securing the same, 
 and for amending such parts of the 
 several acts of parliament relating to 
 the trade and revenues of the said co 
 lonies and plantations, as direct the 
 manner of determining and recovering 
 the penalties and forfeitures therein 
 mentioned. " To this resolution the 
 advocates of the obnoxious statute 
 moved an amendment, by which it was 
 proposed to leave out the word " repeal/ 
 and insert " explain and amend." But 
 this amendment was rejected by a ma 
 jority of 118. 
 
 On the 24th of February, the above- 
 mentioned proceedings were confirmed 
 by the passing a resolution similar to 
 the foregoing one, but with a view, no 
 doubt, of saving the dignity of the na 
 tion and of his Majesty s government, 
 this second resolution was accompanied 
 by others, approving of the conduct of 
 such of the colonists as had used their 
 best exertions for the enforcement of the 
 Stamp Act in America; indemnifying 
 those " who by reason of the tumults 
 and outrages in North America had not 
 been able to procure stamped paper since 
 the passing of the Act for laying certain 
 duties on stamps in the colonies, and 
 had incurred penalties and forfeitures, 
 by writing, ingrossing, or printing on 
 paper, vellum, or parchment, not duly 
 stamped, as required by the said Act." 
 A Bill, founded on these resolutions, 
 was accordingly brought into the 
 House. This Bill, after warm debates, 
 passed both Houses of Parliament, and 
 received the Royal Assent on the 16th 
 of March, 1766. The ostensible grounds 
 for the adoption of this measure, as ex 
 pressed by the preamble to the Act, was 
 the inexpediency of the tax on stamps, 
 and by way of guardedly reserving 
 the main point in question, namely, 
 the right of the British parliament 
 to impose internal taxes on the colo 
 nies, the Repeal Act was accompanied 
 by a declaratory act in which it was 
 asserted, " that the Parliament had, 
 and of right ought to have, power to 
 bind the colonies in all cases whatsoever. 1 
 
 This broad and unqualified claim on the 
 part of the British legislature was little 
 calculated to satisfy such of the American 
 colonists as had maintained the struggle 
 against the British ministry upon deep 
 and well considered principle. These, 
 no doubt, regarded it with suspicion and 
 dislike, as contafning the germ of future 
 encroachments upon their rights and 
 privileges. But it seems to have made 
 little impression upon the minds of the 
 American public. In their joy for the 
 repeal of the Stamp Act, and in their 
 eagerness to resume their ordinary oc 
 cupations, the colonists regarded it as a 
 harmless sally of wounded pride, and 
 cheerfully renewed their commercial in 
 tercourse with the mother country. 
 
 But the evil genius of Britain still 
 fostered in the cabinet the idea of 
 raising a revenue in America. Lord 
 Rockingham having been superseded 
 by the Duke of Grafton, Charles Town- 
 send, the then chancellor of the ex 
 chequer, brought into the House of 
 Commons, in the year 1767, a bill, 
 which was quickly passed into a law, 
 for granting duties in the British colo 
 nies on glass, paper, painter s colours, 
 and tea. This proceeding again kindled 
 a blaze throughout the provinces. In 
 their estimation, it proved that the 
 declaratory act was not intended to be 
 a dead letter, and it gave rise to bold 
 and acute discussions as to the dis 
 tinction between tax bills and bills for 
 the regulation of trade. To add to the 
 alarm of the colonists, a board of com 
 missioners of customs was established 
 at Boston, which step convinced them 
 that the British government intended to 
 harass them with a multiplicity of 
 fiscal oppressions. They therefore again 
 had recourse to petitions, remonstrances, 
 and non-importation agreements. The 
 seizure of the sloop Liberty, belonging 
 to Mr. Hancock, a popular leader, for 
 an infringement of the revenue laws, 
 incited the populace of Boston to re 
 newed acts of violence, which drove the 
 commissioners of the customs to take 
 shelter in Castle William. To sup 
 press this spirit of insubordination, his 
 Majesty s ministers stationed some 
 armed vessels in the harbour, and 
 quartered two regiments of foot in the 
 town of Boston. The intention of the 
 British government to send this force 
 to Boston having been announced, the 
 select men of ninety-six towns of the 
 state of Massachusetts, met at Faneuil 
 hall, in that town ; but this assembly, 
 
10 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 which had excited great alarm among 
 the friends of government, merely re 
 commended moderate measures, and 
 then dissolved itself. The day after the 
 breaking up of this convention, the 
 troops arrived, and landed without op 
 position under the protection of the guns 
 of the armed vessels in the harbour. 
 
 The intelligence of the refractory 
 spirit thus manifested by the inhabitants 
 of Boston, produced such irritation in 
 the British parliament, that in February, 
 1769, both Houses concurred in an 
 address to his Majesty, prompting him 
 to vigorous measures against all persons 
 guilty of what they were pleased to 
 denominate treasonable acts ; and be 
 seeching him, in pursuance of the 
 powers contained in an obsolete statute 
 of the 35th of Henry VIII., to seize the 
 offenders, and cause them to be tried 
 by a special commission within the 
 realm of Great Britain. This im 
 prudent suggestion was encountered by 
 strong resolutions on the part of the 
 provincial assemblies; and the colonists 
 again had recourse to non-importation 
 agreements, and, in some instances, 
 sent back to Great Britain cargoes of 
 goods which had actually arrived. 
 Thus the distresses of the British manu 
 facturers were renewed ; and ministers 
 were induced, by their earnest remon 
 strances, to repeal all the newly 
 imposed duties, except that on tea. 
 This reservation being a practical as 
 sertion of the right of Parliament to 
 impose internal taxes on the American 
 States, was very odious to the colonists, 
 who, however, relaxed their associations 
 so far as to allow the importation of 
 all articles except tea, the use of which 
 commodity they forebore, or supplied 
 themselves with it by smuggling. 
 
 6. Petition and Remonstrance, 1773. 
 Thus was tranquillity restored to most 
 of the colonies. But the presence of the 
 troops in the town of Boston was a 
 perpetual source of irritation in the 
 province of Massachusetts. The Bos 
 ton ians regarded the soldiers with an 
 evil eye, as the instruments of tyranny 
 designed to be used for the destruction 
 of their liberties, and availed themselves 
 of every opportunity which occurred to 
 annoy and insult them. In resisting 
 a violent act of aggression, a party of 
 the military were obliged to fire on the 
 populace, of whom three were killed, 
 and five dangerously wounded. In times 
 of public excitement, nothing is more 
 
 irritating to the populace, and nothing 
 more painful to men of cultivated minds, 
 than the interference of the military. 
 When that interference is attended with 
 fatal consequences, the frenzy of Ihe 
 people rises to the utmost height. Such 
 was the case with the inhabitants of 
 Boston. On hearing of the melancholy 
 event, some obscure individuals caused 
 the drums to beat to arms, and the 
 townsmen assembled to the amount of 
 some thousands. They were, however, 
 happily appeased by the intervention of 
 several patriotic leaders, whose zeal was 
 allayed by prudence, and in consequence 
 of whose interference with the Lieute 
 nant -Governor the obnoxious troops 
 were sent out of the town. Artful 
 means were, however, resorted to for 
 the purpose of keeping alive their resent 
 ment. On the morning of the day ap 
 pointed for the burial of the slain most 
 of the shops in Boston were shut. The 
 bells of that town, of Charleston, and 
 Roxburg, rung out muffled peals. Mourn 
 ful processions moving from the houses 
 of the murdered dead, as they who had 
 fallen by the fire of the military were 
 denominated, united with the corpses at 
 the spot where they had met their fate. 
 Here, forming into a body, they marched 
 six a-breast, followed by the carriages 
 of the gentry, through the main streets 
 to the place of interment. 
 
 Immediately after the affray which 
 was productive of such sad conse 
 quences, Captain Preston, the officer 
 who commanded the party who had 
 fired upon the people, had been commit 
 ted to prison, together with a number 
 of private soldiers who were implicated 
 in that act. The firing had taken place 
 on the 5th of March, and though the 
 trial of the accused did not take place 
 till the folio wing November, there might 
 have been reason to apprehend that, in 
 appearing, for a decision on a case of 
 life and death, before a Boston jury, they 
 would run the greatest hazard of falling 
 victims to infuriated prej udice. B ut, in this 
 instance, the Bostonians gave evidence 
 of their English descent. In capital 
 cases, Englishmen, in modern times at 
 least, have almost uniformly exercised 
 an impartial administration of the law. 
 Such was the temper which was mani 
 fested by the court and jury on the trial 
 of Captain Preston and his comrades. 
 After a patient investigation of the 
 case, all the prisoners were acquitted of 
 murder, and two, being found guilly of 
 manslaughter, were immediately burnt 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 11 
 
 in the hand and discharged. It is a fact 
 not to be omitted, that they were de 
 fended, and zealously defended, by the 
 celebrated John Adams and Josiah 
 Quincy, than whom there did not exist 
 more ardent advocates of the cause of 
 American freedom. The former of 
 these gentlemen, in warning the jury 
 against giving way to popular impres 
 sions, expressed himself in the following 
 energetic terms : " The law, in all vicis 
 situdes of government, fluctuations of 
 the passions, or flights of enthusiasm, 
 will preserve a steady, undeviating 
 course : it will not bend to the uncertain 
 wishes, imaginations, and wanton tem 
 pers of men. To use the words of a 
 great and worthy man, a patriot and a 
 hero, an enlightened friend to mankind, 
 and a martyr to liberty I mean Alger 
 non Sidney who, from his earliest in 
 fancy, sought a tranquil retirement under 
 the shadow of the tree of liberty, with 
 his tongue, his pen, and his sword, 
 The law, says he, * no passion can dis 
 turb. It is void of desire and fear, 
 lust and anger. It is mens sine affectu ; 
 written reason ; retaining some measure 
 of the divine perfection. It does not en 
 join that which pleases a weak, frail 
 man, but, without any regard to persons, 
 commands that which is good, and 
 punishes evil in all, whether rich or 
 poor, high or low. It is deaf, inexorable, 
 inflexible/ Yes," said Mr. Adams, 
 "on the one hand, it is inexorable to 
 the cries and lamentations of the pri 
 soners ; on the other, it is deaf, deaf as 
 an adder, to the clamours of the popu 
 lace/ 
 
 Notwithstanding this firmness on the 
 part of the counsel for the prisoners, 
 and notwithstanding the impartiality of 
 the jury and of the judge, which latter, 
 in his summing up on the trial of Cap 
 tain Preston, did not hesitate to say, 
 " I feel myself deeply affected that this 
 affair turns out so much to the shame 
 of the town in general," ministers took 
 advantage of the disturbed state of the 
 public mind, by making it a pretext for 
 rendering the governor and judges of 
 Massachusetts independent of the pro 
 vince, by transferring the payment of 
 their salaries from the assembly to the 
 crown. In consequence of this pro 
 ceeding, Governor Hutchinson,who had 
 never been popular, became still more 
 than ever an object of dislike. Such 
 being the disposition of the people of 
 Massachusetts towards their chief ma 
 gistrate, .their indignation against him 
 
 was raised to the highest pitch in the year 
 1773 by an incident, the consequences of 
 which had a most unhappy aspect on the 
 fortunes of Great Britain. The servants 
 of government naturally look with a 
 jealous eye upon the bold assertors of 
 popular rights ; and as naturally imagine 
 that they shall most gratify their masters 
 by the recommendation of a steady 
 and active resistance against what they 
 are apt to deem the encroachments of po 
 pular claims. In this spirit Mr. Hutchin- 
 son and Mr. Oliver, the former the Go 
 vernor and the latter Lieutenant-Gover- 
 nor of the colony of Massachusetts, had 
 addressed some letters to individuals 
 who had put them into the hands of his 
 Majesty s ministers, in which letters 
 they vituperated the American patriots, 
 called upon government to adopt more 
 vigorous measures than they had 
 hitherto done in support of their au 
 thority, recommended restraints upon 
 liberty and an infringement of charters, 
 and even the " taking off" of the prin 
 cipal opponents to British domination. 
 These letters having come into the pos 
 session of Dr. Franklin, he thought it 
 his duty, as agent of the House of Re 
 presentatives of Massachusetts, to send 
 them to his constituents. Their perusal 
 excited, as might have been expected, 
 the indignation of the Assembly, the 
 members of which unanimously resolved, 
 " That the tendency and design of the 
 said letters was to overthrow the con 
 stitution of this government, and to in 
 troduce arbitrary power into the pro 
 vince ;" and, moreover, passed a vote, 
 " that a petition should be immediately 
 sent to the King, to remove the Gover 
 nor, Hutchinson, and the Lieutenant- 
 Governor, Oliver, for ever from the go 
 vernment of the province." Dr. Frank 
 lin, after having transmitted the petition 
 in question to Lord Dartmouth, the 
 then Colonial Secretary, appeared to 
 support it in person at the Council 
 Chamber on the 1 1th of January, 1774; 
 but, finding that he was to be encoun 
 tered by counsel employed on behalf of 
 the accused functionaries, he prayed 
 that the hearing of the case might be 
 adjourned for the space of three weeks, 
 which was granted him. In the mean 
 time speculation was all alive as to the 
 means by which Dr. Franklin had ob 
 tained possession of the letters ; and a 
 Mr. Whateley and a Mr. Temple, both 
 connected with the colonial office, mutu 
 ally suspecting each other of the uniaith- 
 ful communication of them, a corre- 
 
12 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 spondence took place between those 
 gentlemen, which ended in a duel, in 
 which Mr. Whateley was dangerously 
 wounded. For the prevention of further 
 mischief -of this sort, Dr. Franklin pub 
 lished, in the "Public Advertiser," a 
 letter exonerating both the combatants 
 from blame in this case, and taking the 
 whole responsibility of the procuring the 
 documents on himself. When the Doc 
 tor appeared again before the council in 
 support of the Massachusetts petition, he 
 was assailed by Mr. Wedderburne, who 
 acted for the Governor and the Lieutenant 
 Governor, in terms of most elaborate 
 abuse. " The letters," said the caustic 
 advocate, " could not have come to Dr. 
 Franklin by fair means. The writers 
 did not give them to him, nor yet did 
 the deceased correspondent. Nothing, 
 then, will acquit Dr. Franklin of the 
 charge of obtaining them by fraudulent 
 or corrupt means, for the most malig 
 nant of purposes ; unlass he stole them 
 from the person that stole them. This 
 argument is irrefragable. I hope, my 
 Lords, you will mark and brand the man, 
 for the honour of this country, of Europe, 
 and of mankind. Private correspond 
 ence has hitherto been held sacred in 
 times of the greatest party rage, not 
 only in politics, but religion. He has 
 forfeited all the respect of societies and 
 of men. Into what companies will he 
 hereafter go with an unembarrassed 
 face, or the honest intrepidity of virtue ? 
 Men will watch him with a jealous eye 
 they will hide their papers from him, 
 and lock up their escmtoirs. He will 
 henceforth esteem it a libel to be called 
 a man of letters homo trium litera- 
 rum*. But he not only took away the 
 letters from one brother, but kept him 
 self concealed till he nearly occasioned 
 the murder of the other. It is impos 
 sible to read his account, expressive of 
 the coolest and most deliberate malice, 
 without horror. Amidst these tragical 
 events, of one person nearly murdered, 
 of another answerable for the issue, 
 of a worthy governor hurt in his dear 
 est interests, the fate of America in sus 
 pense, here is a man, who, with the 
 utmost insensibility of remorse, stands 
 up and avows himself the author of all. 
 I can compare it only to Zanga in Dr. 
 Young s Revenge 
 
 Know, then, twas I ; 
 
 I forged the letter ; I disposed the picture. 
 I hated, I despised, and 1 destroy. 
 
 I ask, my Lords, whether the re- 
 
 * Fur, thief. 
 
 vengeful temper attributed, by poetic 
 fiction only, to the bloody African, is not 
 surpassed by the coolness and apathy of 
 the wily American?" Less fervid elo 
 quence than this of Mr. "Wedderburne s 
 would have been sufficient to sway the 
 decision of the council, who declared 
 the petition of the Massachusetts 
 Assembly to be scandalous and vexa 
 tious. Franklin was dismissed from 
 the office which he held of postmaster- 
 general of the colonies. Wedderburne 
 was afterwards advanced in his profes 
 sion till he attained the chancellorship 
 and a peerage; and George III. lost 
 thirteen provinces. Till this moment 
 Franklin had laboured for conciliation ; 
 but though, during the time of the hear 
 ing of the arguments before the council, 
 he preserved his countenance unmoved, 
 the insults of Wedderburne so exas 
 perated his feelings, that when he left 
 the council-room he declared to his 
 friend Dr. Priestley, who accompanied 
 him on this memorable occasion, that he 
 would never again put on the clothes 
 which he then wore till he had received 
 satisfaction. He dressed himself in this 
 " well- saved" suit when he signed at 
 Paris the treaty which for ever deprived 
 the crown of Great Britain of its domi 
 nion over the United States. It is only 
 within these seven years that it has 
 been ascertained, that governor Hut- 
 chinson s letters were put into Frank 
 lin s hands by a Dr. Williamson, who, 
 without any suggestion on his part, had 
 procured them by stratagem from the 
 office where they had been deposited*. 
 
 $ 7. Boston Port Act, and Repeal of 
 
 the Charter of Massachusetts. 
 The determination of the colonists" to 
 use no tea which had paid duty was so 
 generally persevered in, that seventeen 
 millions of pounds of that commodity 
 were accumulated in the warehouses of 
 the East India Company. With a view 
 of getting rid of this stock, and at the 
 same time of aiding ministers in their 
 project of taxing the North American 
 colonies, the Company proposed that a 
 law should be passed authorizing them 
 to receive a drawback of the full import 
 duties on all teas which they should 
 export. To this proposal the British 
 government agreed, in hopes that, as 
 by this arrangement the colonists, on 
 paying the duty of three-pence per 
 pound on the landing of the tea in their 
 
 * This curious fact is stated, with many parti 
 culars, in a Memoir of JDr, Williamson, by Dr. 
 Hosack, of New York, 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 harbours, would be able to buy it at a 
 cheaper rate than they could do from 
 the contraband dealers, their patriotic 
 scruples would be silenced by their 
 love of gain. In this notion, however, 
 ministers were mistaken. Strong resolu 
 tions were entered into throughout the 
 provinces, declaring, that whosoever 
 should aid or abet in landing or vending 
 the tea which was expected, ought to be 
 regarded as an enemy to his country ; 
 and that committees should be appointed 
 to wait on the agents of the East India 
 Company, and to demand from them 
 a resignation of their appointments. 
 Terrified by these proceedings, a great 
 majority of the consignees complied with 
 this requisition ; but in Massachusetts 
 these agents, being the relatives and 
 friends "of the governor, and expecting 
 to be supported by the military force 
 stationed in Boston, were determined to 
 land and offer for sale the obnoxious 
 commodity. As the tea ships were 
 lying in the harbour, ready to land their 
 cargoes, the leading patriots, appre 
 hensive that, if the tea were once ware 
 housed, the opposition of the people to 
 its sale might gradually give way, and 
 deeming decisive measures absolutely 
 necessary in the present circumstances, 
 boarded the vessels, and emptied the tea 
 chests into the water. 
 
 The British ministry rejoiced that this 
 outrage had occurred, and that it had 
 occurred in the town of Boston, which 
 they had Jong regarded as the focus of 
 sedition, from whence a spirit of resist 
 ance to British authority was diffused 
 throughout the colonies. It now lay at 
 their mercy, as having been guilty of a 
 flagrant delinquency, and as meriting 
 exemplary punishment. Determined 
 to chastise its mutinous inhabitants 
 for their numerous delinquencies, and 
 to bend them to submission, Lord 
 North, then prime minister, on the 
 14th of March, made a motion in the 
 House of Commons, " That leave be 
 given to bring in a bill for the imme 
 diate removal of the officers concerned 
 in the collection and management of his 
 Majesty s duties and customs from the 
 town of Boston, in the province of 
 Massachusetts bay in North America ; 
 and to discontinue the landing and dis 
 charging, lading and shipping of goods, 
 wares, and merchandize, at the said town 
 of Boston, or within the harbour 
 thereof." The deep silence which fol 
 lowed the annunciation of this motion 
 
 marked the sense of the House "as to 
 the serious consequences which it in 
 volved ; but it met with no opposition, 
 except on the part of Alderman Saw- 
 bridge and Mr. DowdsWell. Even Co 
 lonel Barre, the great advocate of the 
 rights of the colonies, spoke in favour of 
 it, and it passed without a division. No 
 debate occurred on the first reading of 
 the Bill on the 18th of March ; and the 
 second reading, which took place on the 
 twenty-first of the same month, was 
 only interrupted by a few adverse re 
 marks made by Mr. R. Fuller. On the 
 twenty-fifth, a petition was presented 
 against the bill, signed by several na 
 tives of North America, at that time 
 resident in London ; after the reading of 
 which the House discussed its provisions 
 in Committee. Mr. Fuller availed him 
 self of this occasion to move, that, in 
 stead of the closing of the port of Boston, 
 which measure, he argued, would be 
 detrimental, not only to American, but 
 also to British interests, a fine should be 
 imposed on the offending community. 
 This amendment was opposed by the 
 prime minister, who said, that he was no 
 enemy to lenient measures, but that it 
 was evident that, with respect to the in 
 habitants of Boston, resolutions of cen 
 sure and warning would avail nothing 
 that it was then the time to stand-out, 
 to defy them, to proceed with firmness 
 and without fear, and that they would 
 never reform till severe measures were 
 adopted. With a lamentable want of 
 foresight his lordship thus proceeded: 
 " I hope that we every one feel that this 
 is the common cause of us all ; and una 
 nimity will go half way to the obedience 
 of the people of Boston to this bill. The 
 honourable gentleman tells us, that the 
 act will be a piece of waste paper, and 
 that an army will be required to put it 
 into execution. The good of this act is, 
 that four or five frigates will do the 
 business without any military force." 
 With a similar blindness to futurity, Mr. 
 Charles Jenkinson exclaimed, " We 
 have gone into a very expensive war for 
 the attainment of America ; the struggle 
 which we shall now have to keep it will 
 be of little expense." Thus rash and 
 short-sighted are statesmen when their 
 passions obtain the mastery over their 
 judgment ! After a lengthened debate, 
 in the course of which the bill was 
 powerfully opposed by Mr. Burke and 
 Mr. Dowdswell, it passed the Commons 
 with but very few negatives ; and having 
 
II 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 been hurried through the House of 
 Lords, it finally received the Royal 
 Assent, and was passed into a law. 
 
 The Boston Port Act was speedily 
 followed by still more alarming mea 
 sures. The free constitutions of the 
 American provinces had presented strong 
 impediments against the views of his 
 Majesty and his ministers. Among 
 these, the charter of Massachusetts was 
 pre-eminent for the liberality of its prin 
 ciples. Being well aware, that whilst 
 this charter subsisted he could never 
 effectuate his designs, Lord North de 
 termined to set it aside. When Charles 
 II. deemed it necessary for his purposes 
 to abrogate the franchises of the city of 
 London, and of other corporate towns in 
 England, he attacked their charters by 
 quo warrantos ; but the process of law 
 is tedious, and in this case the issue of 
 legal proceedings might be uncertain. 
 The minister, therefore, decided upon 
 bringing the omnipotence of parliament 
 to bear upon the contumacious inhabi 
 tants of the offending colony. Accord 
 ingly, on the 28th of March, 1774, on 
 the allegation that an executive power 
 was wanting in the province of Massa 
 chusetts, and that it was highly neces 
 sary to strengthen the hands of its ma 
 gistracy, he proposed to bring in a bill, 
 authorizing the Governor for the time 
 being to act as a justice of the peace, 
 and empowering him to appoint at his 
 will and pleasure the officers throughout 
 the whole civil authority, such as the 
 provost marshal and the sheriffs, to 
 which latter officers was to be delegated 
 the nomination of juries, who had for 
 merly been elected by the freeholders 
 and inhabitants of the several towns of 
 the province. It was also his lord 
 ship s intention to vest in the crown the 
 appointment of the council,which, under 
 the provisions of the ancient constitution, 
 had heretofore been elected by the gene 
 ral court. The latter provision was in 
 troduced into the bill at the suggestion 
 of Lord George Germaine, who was 
 pleased to say that " he would not have 
 men of a mercantile cast every day col 
 lecting themselves together, and debating 
 about political matters ; he would have 
 them follow their occupations as mer 
 chants, and not consider themselves as 
 ministers of that country." In pursu 
 ance of this suggestion, which was 
 thankfully received by the premier, there 
 were added to the bill severe restric 
 tions on the holding of public town s 
 
 meetings. Leave was given to bring in 
 the bill without a single objection, ex 
 cept on the part of Mr. Byng, the Mem 
 ber for Middlesex; and though, in its 
 progress through the House of Com 
 mons, many weighty arguments were 
 urged against it, especially by Governor 
 Pounall and Mr. Dowdswell, it was 
 carried on the second of May by a ma 
 jority of 239 against 64 voices. In the 
 House of Lords it was severely animad 
 verted upon ; but a division of 92 to 20 
 evinced that the majority of the peers of 
 the realm entered heartily into the 
 views of the ministry as to qoercing the 
 American colonies. The Duke of Rich 
 mond, however, and eleven other peers, 
 protested against it for the following 
 reasons, " Because, before the rights of 
 the colony of Massachusetts Bay, which 
 they derive from their charter, are taken 
 away, the definite legal offence by which 
 a forfeiture of their charter is incurred 
 ought to have been clearly stated, and 
 theT parties heard in their own defence; 
 and the mere celerity of a decision against 
 it will not reconcile the minds of 
 the people to that mode of govern 
 ment which is to be established upon its 
 ruins. On the general allegations of a 
 declaratory preamble, the rights of any 
 public body may be taken away, and any 
 visionary scheme of government substi 
 tuted in their place. By this bill, the 
 governor and council are invested with 
 dangerous powers, unknown to the Bri 
 tish constitution, and with which the 
 King himself is not intrusted. By the 
 appointment and removal of the sheriff 
 at pleasure, they have the means of 
 returning such juries as may best suit 
 with the gratification of their passions 
 and their interests ; the life, liberty, and 
 property of the subject are put into 
 their hands without control. The weak, 
 inconsistent, and injudicious measures of 
 the ministry have given new force to the 
 distractions of America, which, on the 
 repeal of the Stamp Act, were sub 
 siding; have revived dangerous ques 
 tions, and gradually estranged the affec 
 tions of the colonies from the mother- 
 country. To render the colonies perma 
 nently advantageous, they must be satis 
 fied with their condition, that satisfaction 
 there is no chance of restoring, but by 
 recurring to the principles on which the 
 repeal of the Stamp Act was founded." 
 The Boston Port Act, and the Act for 
 Remodelling the Constitution of Massa 
 chusetts, were strong and severe mea- 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION". 
 
 sures measures which, it might have 
 been conceived, would have set at rest 
 any common jealousy of popular rights, 
 and satisfied any ordinary thirst for ven 
 geance. But, whilst these acts were in 
 progress, the British prime minister 
 held in reserve another vial of wrath to 
 pour on the heads of the refractory colo 
 nists. On the 15th of April, he rose in 
 his place and proposed a third bill, 
 which, he hoped, would effectually secure 
 the province of Massachusetts Bay from 
 future disturbances. The tenor of this 
 bill, which bore the plausible title of a 
 bill " for the impartial administration of 
 justice," was, that " in case of any per 
 son being indicted for murder or any 
 other capital offence committed in the 
 province of Massachusetts in aiding the 
 magistracy, the governor might send 
 the person so indicted to another colony 
 or to Great Britain for trial," the act 
 to continue in force for four years. It 
 was observed, that whilst Lord North 
 was moving the House for leave to bring 
 in this bill, and was attempting, in a 
 short speech, to enforce its necessity, his 
 voice faltered. This is not matter of 
 surprise. His lordship was a good 
 tempered and humane man; and it must 
 have been repugnant to his better feel 
 ings to become the onjan for the pro 
 posing of such atrocious measures. The 
 introduction of this bill roused in oppo 
 sition to it the energies of Colonel 
 Barre, who had, however unwillingly, 
 acquiesced in the preceding laws of 
 coercion. He saw clearly the drift of 
 the proposed statute, and was well aware 
 that the colonists would not submit to 
 it. " You may," said he, " think that 
 a law founded on this motion will be a 
 protection to the soldier who imbrues his 
 hand in the blood of his fellow-subjects. 
 I am mistaken if it will. Who is to exe 
 cute it? He must be a bold man, in 
 deed, who will make the attempt. If 
 the people are so exasperated, that it is 
 unsafe to bring the man who has in 
 jured them to trial, let the governor who 
 withdraws him from justice look to him 
 self. The people will not endure it; 
 they would no longer deserve the repu 
 tation of being descended from the loins 
 of Englishmen if they did endure it." 
 Such was the bold language of an expe 
 rienced soldier, who knew America well. 
 But this warning voice was raised in 
 vain. The views of the Court were 
 adopted by both Houses of Parliament, 
 and this last and most unconstitutional 
 measure ol coercion was passed into a law. 
 
 It might seem just and equitable that 
 compensation should be made by a 
 delinquent community for property de 
 stroyed within its precincts, and not 
 unreasonable that a town which had 
 perpetrated an open violation of fiscal 
 law should be deprived, till it was re 
 duced to a better spirit, of the privileges 
 of a port. Nor is it improbable that, 
 had the British ministry proceeded no 
 farther in their measures of vengeance, 
 the other commercialcities of the colonies 
 would have regarded the humiliation of 
 the people of Boston with indifference. 
 But the attack upon the charter of Mas 
 sachusetts filled the bosom of every 
 North American with indignation and 
 alarm. Charters they had been accus 
 tomed to consider as inviolable compacts 
 between the king and his people; but 
 if these could be annulled and abrogated 
 by parliament, what province could 
 deem its constitution safe from violation ? 
 And in the provision for the trial in 
 Great Britain of individuals accused of 
 murders committed in America, they 
 saw an indemnity for every one who 
 might avail himself of a plausible pre 
 text to put to death any person who 
 might be obnoxious to government. 
 Such were the feelings of the colo 
 nists. But, on this side of the Atlantic, 
 these invasions of the liberties of fellow 
 subjects were regarded with unconcern, 
 and even with satisfaction. The people 
 of Great Britain generally care little 
 about the internal state of the distant 
 possessions of the crown. They at that 
 time looked up to parliament with awe, 
 as a threefold body vested with the 
 attribute of omnipotence ; and they made 
 themselves a party in the quarrel, re 
 probating the refractory spirit of the 
 colonies as a rebellion against the 
 sovereign authority, of which they ima 
 gined that every individual Briton had a 
 share. 
 
 8. Removal of the Seat of Government 
 from Boston. 
 
 AVhen intelligence arrived at Boston of 
 the strong proceedings of the British 
 parliament and government, the patriots 
 of Massachusetts cast an anxious eye 
 on the sister colonies. They were well 
 aware that, if left to themselves at this 
 awful crisis, they must succumb to the 
 power of the mother-country ; but they 
 entertained hopes that an union of the 
 provinces against what they regarded as 
 ministerial oppression, would rescue 
 their common liberties from destruction. 
 
1G 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 To effect this union they used the utmost 
 exertions of activity, skill, and prudence. 
 The opposition to the stamp act and to 
 the duty on tea had been carried on by 
 means of committees of correspondence, 
 which had established links of connexion 
 throughout the whole of the British 
 dependencies in North America. Of this 
 organization they now availed themselves 
 with the utmost promptitude ; and, by 
 the mission of agents of consummate 
 ability, they roused the inhabitants of 
 every district of continental America to 
 a sense of their wrongs. Public meetings 
 were held in every township of every 
 province, in which it was resolved to 
 make common cause with the people of 
 Massachusetts, and to resist the claim 
 of the British parliament to tax them 
 without their consent. The steps to be 
 taken in pursuance of these resolutions 
 they unanimously agreed to refer to a 
 general congress, the speedy summoning 
 of which they declared to be absolutely 
 necessary to the public safety. 
 
 In the mean time, General Gage had 
 arrived at Boston, invested with the 
 united authority of governor and com- 
 mander-in-chief of the forces. He was 
 speedily followed by two regiments of 
 foot, and by various other detachments, 
 which gradually swelled his garrison to 
 a number which was deemed amply 
 sufficient to overawe the malcontents, 
 and to enforce the execution of the 
 obnoxious acts. Soon after his arrival, 
 he announced his intention of holding 
 the general court of the colony at Salem 
 after the 1st of June, the day appointed 
 by the statute for the commencement of 
 the operation of the Boston port act. 
 The blow thus struck seemed to com 
 mon observers to be fata^ to the inha 
 bitants of that devoted town. Property 
 was instantly depreciated to the lowest 
 scale of value. Houses were deserted 
 by their tenants ; warehouses were 
 emptied and abandoned ; the quays were 
 deserted; silence reigned in the ship 
 yards, and thousands of artificers wan 
 dered through the streets destitute of 
 employ. But the sufferers bore their 
 distresses with a sullen resolution. Not 
 a murmur was heard against the demo 
 cratic leaders, who might in a certain 
 sense be regarded as the authors of their 
 miseries ; but their execrations of the 
 British parliament were loud and vio 
 lent. Contributions poured in from all 
 quarters for their relief ; and they were 
 comforted by letters of condolence in 
 their distresses, and of thanks for their 
 
 steadiness. The inhabitants of Marble 
 Head offered to accommodate the mer 
 chants of Boston with their warehouses, 
 and the people of Salem, in an address 
 to the governor, declared that they could 
 not " indulge one thought to seize on 
 wealth, and raise their fortunes on the 
 ruin of their suffering neighbours." 
 
 9. Fir si Acts oftho, Assembly at 
 
 Concord. 
 
 On the 7th of June the governor held 
 the general court of Massachusetts, at 
 Salem; but finding that the popular 
 leaders were prepared, on the first day 
 of its meeting, to carry some most ob 
 noxious motions, he promptly dissolved 
 the assembly. This, however, he did 
 not effect before it had nominated five 
 deputies to meet the committees of other 
 provinces at Philadelphia on the en 
 suing 1st of September. 
 
 The more, indeed, he exerted him 
 self to embarrass the proceedings of 
 the patriots, the more decidedly did he 
 find himself baffled by their vigilance 
 and their ingenuity. When, according 
 to the provisions of the coercive sta 
 tutes, he issued a proclamation prohi 
 biting the calling of any town meetings 
 after the 1st of August, 1774 ; an assem 
 bly of this kind was, nevertheless, held ; 
 and, on his summoning the select men 
 to aid him to disperse it, he was en 
 countered by the following notable spe 
 cimen of special pleading, that the hold 
 ing of the meeting to which he objected 
 was no violation of the Act of Parlia 
 ment, "for thai only prohibited the 
 calling of town meetings, and that no 
 such call had been made ; a former 
 legal meeting, before the 1st of August, 
 having only adjourned themselves from 
 time to time." One consequence of 
 these adjourned meetings was a "so 
 lemn league and covenant," whereby the 
 parties who signed it bound themselves 
 " to suspend all commercial intercourse 
 with Great Britain until the late ob 
 noxious laws were repealed, and the 
 colony of Massachusetts was restored to 
 its chartered rights." A proclamation 
 by which the Governor denounced this 
 association as "unlawful, hostile, and 
 traitorous," was treated with contempt. 
 In another proclamation, published 
 about this time, "for the encourage 
 ment of piety and virtue, and for the 
 prevention and punishing of vice, pro- 
 faneness, and immorality," the Governor 
 made especial mention of the vice of 
 hypocrisy as a failing which the people 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 17 
 
 were admonished to eschew. No doubt, 
 the staff of General Gage thought this 
 an excellent satire upon the puritanism 
 of the Bostonians. Bat the joke was 
 ill timed, and served only to add fuel to 
 the popular mind, which was already in a 
 high state of inflammation. When, in the 
 month of August, Gage attempted to or 
 ganize the new constitution of the colony, 
 most of the counsellors whom he ap 
 pointed refused to act, and the juries 
 declined to serve under judges nominated 
 by the crown. Dreading the most seri 
 ous consequences from the obstinacy 
 thus manifested by the people of Massa 
 chusetts, the Governor thought it pru 
 dent to fortify Boston Neck, and to seize 
 the powder deposited in the arsenal at 
 Charlestown, which is a kind of suburb 
 to Boston, to which it is united by a 
 bridge. These measures produced a 
 general rising throughout the province, . 
 which was with difficulty repressed by 
 the prudence of the leading patriots. 
 This demonstration drove the Governor 
 and his revenue officers from the new 
 seat of government to the proscribed 
 town of "Boston. Whilst these trans 
 actions were going on, the Congress, 
 or union of the several committees, had 
 assembled at Philadelphia, and, as the 
 first fruits of its deliberations, issued a 
 declaration, that it " most thoroughly 
 approved the wisdom and fortitude with 
 which opposition to wicked ministerial 
 measures had been hitherto established 
 in Massachusetts ; and recommended 
 perseverance in the same firm and tem 
 perate conduct, as expressed in the re 
 solutions of the delegates from the county 
 of Suffolk." The , tenor of these reso 
 lutions was, that no obedience was due 
 to the restraining statutes. Emboldened 
 by the approbation of Congress to act 
 up to the spirit of these resolutions, a 
 provincial assembly, held at Concord, 
 of which Mr. Hancock was president, 
 after having in vain solicited the Go 
 vernor to desist from constructing a 
 fortress at the entrance into Boston, 
 in defiance of his Excellency s authority, 
 appointed a committee to draw up a plan 
 for the arming of the province. The 
 members of this committee did not 
 shrink from the discharge of their peril 
 ous duty. They gave instructions for 
 the organizing of a species of partisans, 
 under the name of minute men, the com 
 mand of whom was conferred on Jede- 
 diah Fribble, Artemas Ward, and Seth 
 Pomeroy, warriors whose puritanical 
 names gave ominous foreboding of a 
 
 determination of purpose and of an ob 
 stinacy of valour, which their future con 
 duct did not belie. The assembling of 
 the militia was delegated to a com 
 mittee of safety ; and a committee of 
 supply was authorized to expend the 
 sum of 15,000/. sterling, in provisions, 
 military accoutrements, and stores, which 
 were accordingly provided, and deposited 
 at Worcester and Concord. At a later 
 meeting of the provincial congress, still 
 bolder measures were adopted. Reso 
 lutions were then passed to raise an 
 army of 12,000 men, and delegates were 
 sent to the adjacent colonies to urge 
 them to increase these forces to the 
 number of 20,000. It was, moreover, 
 determined that the British troops should 
 be attacked if they marched in field 
 equipment beyond Boston Neck. A 
 circular letter was also issued request 
 ing the clergy to aid the common cause 
 by their prayers and exhortations. At 
 this crisis the situation of the Governor 
 was far from being an enviable one. The 
 reins of authority had fallen from his 
 hands, and had been seized by the pro 
 vincial congress, whose resolutions had 
 throughout the province the force of laws. 
 At the approach of winter he experienced 
 the utmost difficulty in procuring mate 
 rials or workmen to construct barracks 
 for .the sheltering of his troops. The 
 straw which he purchased in the vicinity 
 of the town was set on fire, and the tim 
 ber which he had bought for the king s 
 stores was seized or destroyed. Nor 
 was the spirit of open resistance con 
 fined to Boston. In Rhode Island the 
 people seized the public battery of forty 
 pieces of cannon, and stormed and took 
 the castle of Portsmouth, where they 
 obtained a seasonable supply of powder. 
 
 . 1 0. Opening of the Congress at 
 Philadelphia. 
 
 These active measures, which amounted 
 to a direct levying of war against the 
 King, were provoked by the rigour exer 
 cised against the colony of Massachusetts. 
 In the meantime, the deputies of eleven 
 provinces had assembled in congress at 
 Philadelphia, and were soon joined by 
 delegates from North Carolina. Peyton 
 Randolph was chosen president of this 
 assembly, and Charles Thompson was 
 appointed its secretary. After a slight 
 controversy as to the mode of voting, 
 which was at length determined to be 
 taken by provinces, each province having 
 one vote, the members proceeded with 
 
18 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 the utmost zeal and harmony to the 
 arduous business before them. In the 
 iirst place, they issued a declaration of 
 rights, in which, whilst they claimed a 
 total exemption from any species of in 
 ternal taxation imposed by the British 
 parliament, they professed their willing 
 ness to obey all the laws which might be 
 enacted in the mother country for the 
 regulation of trade. They protested 
 against the introduction of a standing 
 army into the colonies without their con 
 sent, as also against the violation of their 
 chartered rights in the infringement of 
 their ancient constitutions. Enumerat 
 ing the several acts by which they were 
 aggrieved, they declared that till these 
 acts were repealed, they and their con 
 stituents would hold no commercial in 
 tercourse with Britain ; and, with a view 
 of over-awing the weak and the waver 
 ing, and the partisans of royal authority 
 among their countrymen, they resolved 
 that committees should be chosen in 
 every county, city, and town, to ob 
 serve the conduct of all people touching 
 the suspension of trade with the mother 
 country, and to publish, in gazettes, 
 the names of those who violated this 
 ordinance, as foes to the rights of 
 British America. They also agreed 
 upon an address to the British people, 
 vindicating their resistance to oppres 
 sion ; and two memorials to the West 
 India colonies and to the people of 
 Canada, exhorting them to unite with 
 their persecuted brethren in a steady 
 opposition to the encroachments of arbi 
 trary power. In laying their grievances 
 before the throne, in a petition to the 
 King, they professed sentiments of loyalty 
 to his Majesty s person and authority ; 
 but complained of the miseries which 
 had been brought upon them by the 
 mal-administration of wicked ministers. 
 " We ask," said they, " but for peace, 
 liberty, and safety. We wish not a 
 diminution of the prerogative, nor do we 
 solicit the grant of any new right in our 
 favour. Your royal authority over us, 
 and our connexion with Great Britain, 
 we shall always carefully and zealously 
 endeavour to support and maintain." 
 This address to the sovereign concluded 
 in the following pathetic terms. " We 
 implore your Majesty, for the honour of 
 Almighty God, for your own glory, for 
 the interest of your family, for the safety 
 of your kingdoms and dominions, that, 
 as the loving father of your whole peo 
 ple, connected by the same bonds of law, 
 loyalty, faith, and blood, though dwell 
 
 ing in various countries, you will not 
 suffer the transcendent relation formed 
 by these ties to be farther violated by 
 uncertain expectation of effects, which, 
 if attained, never could compensate for 
 the calamities through which they must 
 be gained." These various documents 
 were drawn up with great judgment 
 and ability; and their dissemination 
 throughout the union produced a power 
 ful effect upon the feelings of the peo 
 ple, preparing them for the most 
 strenuous exertions in what they deemed 
 to be the cause of justice and free 
 dom. Their framers, howeyer, did 
 not rely upon their eloquence alone, to 
 produce an effect favourable to their 
 cause upon the people of Britain. Their 
 non-importation agreements had pro 
 duced the repeal of the Stamp Act, and 
 they trusted that the annunciation of 
 similar resolutions would produce simi 
 lar effects as to the removal of their late 
 parliamentary grievances. The event 
 proved that they were mistaken. The 
 merchants trading to America composed 
 a small fraction of the British commu 
 nity. A hostile ministry was all power 
 ful in parliament the pride of the King 
 was touched every individual Briton, 
 in whose mouth the phrase our colonies 
 was familiar, deemed himself, in some 
 sort, sovereign over the North American 
 plantations, and a cry almost unanimous 
 was raised throughout the nation, that 
 the mutinous contemners of the omni 
 potence of the legislature of the parent 
 state must be reduced to obedience by 
 the strong hand of coercion. 
 
 The CONGRESS, after a session of about 
 eight weeks, and alter passing a resolu 
 tion for the calling of another assembly 
 of the same nature, if necessary, in the 
 ensuing May, dissolved themselves ; and 
 the members proceeded to further in their 
 respective provinces the cause in which 
 they were thus decidedly embarked. 
 By their influence, operating upon minds 
 ready prepared by perpetual discussions, 
 both public and private, of the wrongs 
 of the colonies, the recommendations of 
 an assembly, invested with no legal au 
 thority, obtained the force of laws. The 
 non-intercourse agreements were zeal 
 ously adopted by the great mass of the 
 people; and the few who ventured to 
 dissent from the general voice were pro 
 scribed as enemies to their country. 
 
 .11. Address of the House of Com 
 mons, 9th February, 1775. 
 
 When the petition from Congress to 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUT 
 
 the King arrived in England, his Majesty mentioned in the restriiinfnjr 
 had just met a new parliament, to which should sow amongst the as-socHiled 
 he had communicated information, in n 
 
 speech from the throne, " that a most 
 daring spirit of resistance and disobedi 
 ence to the laws unhappily prevailed in 
 the colony of Massachusetts ;" and at 
 the same time intimated that he had 
 taken the requisite steps to repress it. 
 Notwithstanding this angry demonstra 
 tion, hopes were, for a short time, enter 
 tained by the friends of America that 
 ministers would adopt measures of con 
 ciliation. The secretary of state, after 
 submitting the petition of the general- 
 Congress to the cabinet council, pre 
 sented it to the King, by whom, as he 
 reported, it was graciously received, and 
 was intended to be laid by him before 
 his two houses of parliament ; numerous 
 petitions from the merchants and manu 
 facturers of the principal towns in the 
 kingdom, and from the West India 
 planters, prayed for the adoption of a 
 more lenient policy towards the North 
 American colonies ; all the eloquence 
 of Lord Chatham was exerted in the 
 house of peers to effect the same ob 
 ject ; yet Lord North was determined 
 to proceed in the course of coercion. 
 The Rubicon was passed on the 9th 
 of February, 1775, by the presenta 
 tion by both houses of a joint address to 
 the King, in which they stated it as their 
 opinion, that " a rebellion actually ex 
 isted in the province of Massachusetts ;" 
 and, in the usual style, offered to hazard 
 their lives and fortunes " in the main 
 tenance of the just rights of his Majesty 
 and the two houses of parliament." In 
 support of this address, an addition was 
 voted to the military force, of 4383 rank 
 and file, and 2000 seamen. An act was 
 also passed to restrain the commerce of 
 the eastern colonies to Great Britain, 
 Ireland, and the British West Indies ; 
 and to prevent them from fishing on 
 the banks of Newfoundland, under cer 
 tain conditions, and for a limited time. 
 The provisions of this act were soon 
 afterwards extended to the provinces of 
 New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, 
 Virginia, and South Carolina. It is to 
 be remarked, that New York, Delaware, 
 and North Carolina, did not on this 
 occasion fall under the ban of ministerial 
 
 d pro-. 
 
 vmces jealousies which would dis-solvo ; 
 their connexion; but in this he was"ths- 
 appointed. So powerful was the spirit 
 of patriotism in America, that the in 
 habitants of the exempted colonies dis 
 dained to avail themselves of the privi 
 leges which were reserved to them, and 
 determined to share in the restrictions 
 imposed on their brethren ; and it was 
 with severe mortification that the premier 
 soon afterwards witnessed the presenta 
 tion to the house of commons of a peti 
 tion and remonstrance from the assembly 
 of New York, claiming exemption from 
 internal taxation, and protesting against 
 the dependance of governors and judges 
 on the crown for their salaries and emo 
 luments. A hearing had been refused 
 to the petition of Congress, though it 
 was individually signed, under the pre 
 text that it emanated from an illegal 
 meeting. The remonstrance of the New 
 York assembly was not liable to this 
 objection ; but when a motion was made 
 in the House of Commons that it should 
 be brought up, it was lost by a strata 
 gem of Lord North. 
 
 On the 20th of February, 1775, some 
 time previously to the transaction which 
 has just been related, his lordship had 
 manifested some cunning, but little wis 
 dom, in proposing a resolution to the 
 effect that when any of the colonies or 
 provinces in America should make pro 
 vision for contributing their propor 
 tion to the common defence, and for the 
 support of .their civil government (such 
 proportion to be raised under the autho 
 rity of the general court or general as 
 sembly of such province and colony), 
 " it will be proper to forbear, in respect 
 of such colony or province, to levy any 
 duty or tax, except such duties as may 
 arise for the regulation of commerce, 
 which duties are to be carried to the 
 account of such colony or province." 
 The bill founded on this resolution was 
 violently opposed by certain of the prime 
 minister s habitual partisans, who in 
 sisted on it that the colonies should be 
 taxed directly by the British parliament. 
 It was also attacked by the opposition, 
 who argued that as it reserved to the 
 British government, the right of appor 
 
 interdiction. New York, where the 
 government had more influence than in 
 other colonies, had been tardy in joining 
 the union ; and Lord North flattered 
 himself that, by forbearing to include 
 that and the other two colonies above- scourge of taxation should be left to the 
 
 W M 
 
 tioning the respective proportions which 
 the provinces should raise for the general , 
 service, and left the disposal of the sums 
 raised tp parliament, it mattered little 
 that the immediate application of the 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 20 
 
 colonial assemblies, who would regard 
 the bill as an insult and a wrong. The 
 opposition made a right estimate of the 
 feelings of the Americans. The bill 
 passed into a law ; but it was received 
 throughout the union with abhorrence 
 and contempt. 
 
 < It was in this session, viz. on the 22d 
 of March, 1775, that Mr. Burke made 
 his celebrated speech for conciliation 
 with America, a speech fraught with 
 statesman-like views, expressed in lan 
 guage at once temperate and eloquent. 
 At the commencement of this deeply- 
 studied oration, Mr. Burke, after ob 
 serving that all former measures recom 
 mended by the ministry and adbpted by 
 parliament had served to no other pur 
 pose but to keep America in a state of 
 agitation, intimated that it had been ob 
 served to him by an intelligent friend, 
 that, instead of limiting himself to criti 
 cisms or the plans of government, it was 
 highly expedient that he should produce 
 a plan of his own. Though he was 
 aware, said he, that it argues little 
 knowledge to hazard plans of govern 
 ment, except from a seat of authority, 
 yet, as public calamity was a mighty 
 leveller, he would now act upon his 
 friend s suggestion. " My proposition," 
 proceeded he, " is peace ; not peace 
 through the medium of war ; nor peace 
 to be hunted through the labyrinth of 
 intricate and endless negotiations ; nor 
 peace to arise out of universal discord, 
 fomented from principle in all parts of 
 the empire ; not peace to depend upon 
 the juridical determination of perplexing 
 questions, or the precise marking of the 
 shadowy boundaries of a complex go 
 vernment. It is simple peace, sought 
 in its natural course and in its ordinary 
 haunts it is peace sought in the spirit 
 of [peace, and laid in principles purely 
 pacific. I propose, by removing the 
 ground of the difference, and by re 
 storing the former unsuspecting confi 
 dence of the colonies in the mother 
 country, to give permanent satisfaction 
 to your people, and, far from a scheme 
 of ruling by discord, to reconcile them 
 to each other in the same act, and by 
 the bond of the very same interest which 
 reconciles them to British government." 
 After laying down and enforcing the po 
 sition that the proposal for reconcilia 
 tion ought, in consideration of her 
 strength, to come from Great Britain, 
 Mr. Burke asserted, that the plan for 
 conciliation ought to be guided, not by 
 abstract theory, but by a regard to cir 
 
 cumstances. What, then, were the cir 
 cumstances of the present case ? In the 
 first place, the discontented Americans 
 amounted in number to two millions, a 
 number which, considered in mass, could 
 not be regarded " as a paltry excrescence 
 of the state, or a mean dependant, who 
 may be neglected with little damage, and 
 provoked with little danger." But, with 
 the consideration of the population of 
 America, it was requisite to combine 
 mature reflection upon other circum 
 stances ; as, for instance, the commerce, 
 the agriculture, and the fisheries of the 
 colonies. As to commerce, Mr. -Burke 
 proved, by documentary evidence, that, 
 at the beginning of the century, of six 
 millions which constituted the whole 
 mass of the export commerce of Bri 
 tain, the colony trade was but one 
 twelfth part ; but that, by the last re 
 turns submitted to parliament, it ap 
 peared that, as a part of sixteen millions, 
 it constituted considerably more than a 
 third of the whole. In agriculture, he 
 asserted that America was so prosperous 
 that she was enabled to export vast 
 quantities of grain for the supply of the 
 mother country. As to the third head 
 of consideration, "no sea," exclaimed 
 the orator, "but is vexed by the fisheries 
 of the colonists, no climate that is not 
 witness to their toils. Neither the per 
 severance of Holland, nor the activity of 
 France, nor the dexterous and firm sa 
 gacity of English enterprise, ever carried 
 this most perilous mode of hard indus 
 try to the extent to which it has been 
 pushed by this recent people, a people 
 who are still, as it were, but in the 
 gristle, and not yet hardened into the 
 bone of manhood." But, continued Mr. 
 Burke, some persons will say, such a 
 country is worth fighting for true 
 but fighting will not retain it. Force is 
 uncertain, and, if successful, it will de 
 preciate the object gained. He warned 
 the house to consider the temper and 
 character of the people with whom many 
 ill-advised individuals seemed so eager 
 to contend. The North American co 
 lonists were jealous of their liberties. 
 Their jealousy as to their rights they 
 derived from their English origin ; it 
 was nursed by their popular legislatures 
 it was also nursed by their religion. 
 The great body of the colonists were 
 dissenters ; and the dissenting interests 
 have sprung up in direct opposition to 
 all the ordinary powers of the world, 
 and can justify that opposition only on 
 a strong claim to natural liberty, "All 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 21 
 
 protestantism," Mr. Burke acutely re 
 marked " All protestanism, even Ihe 
 most cold and passive, is a sort of dis 
 sent. But the religion most prevalent 
 in our Northern colonies, is a refine 
 ment on the principle of resistance ; it 
 is the dissidence of dissent, and the pro 
 testantism of the protestant religion." 
 The spirit of freedom \vas, moreover, 
 nurtured in the colonies, in general, hy 
 education ; and in Virginia and the 
 Carolinas by that pride which uniformly 
 actuates the holders of slaves, " to 
 whom freedom is not only an enjoy 
 ment, but a kind of rank and privilege." 
 Their distance from the mother country 
 likewise rendered the colonists less dis 
 posed to submit to the dictation of the 
 parent state. " This happens in all forms 
 into which empire can be thrown. In 
 large bodies the circulation of power 
 must be less vigorous at the extremi 
 ties." A proud spirit of liberty having 
 from these various causes been infused 
 throughout the colonies, in consequence 
 of which they have not only disobeyed 
 our authority, but established an effici 
 ent authority of their own, by means of 
 which a vast province has subsisted for 
 near a twelvemonth, without governor, 
 without public council, without judges, 
 without executive magistrates, the ques 
 tion arises, how is this spirit to be en 
 countered ? Some politicians have in 
 this emergency proposed to check the 
 population of the colonies by stopping 
 the grant of more lands by the crown. 
 Others have advised that their maritime 
 enterprises should be checked by the 
 severity of restrictive laws ; whilst a 
 third class of counsellors are sanguine 
 in their expectations, that the Virginians 
 and the planters of the Carolinas will 
 speedily be reduced to submission by 
 the emancipation of their slaves. Some, 
 again, went so far as to talk of prose 
 cuting the refractory as criminals. After 
 demonstrating at length the futility of 
 these proposals, Mr. Burke affirmed, that 
 the only method left of putting an end 
 to the existing troubles was that of con 
 ciliation. The Americans, said he, com 
 plain of taxation I will not on this 
 matter dispute the point of right, but 
 that of policy. " The question is not 
 whether you have a right to render your 
 people miserable, but whether it is not 
 your interest to make them happy. It 
 is not what a lawyer may tell you, you 
 may do, but what humanity, reason, and 
 justice declare you ought to do." Hav 
 ing thus laid down the principle of his 
 
 plan, Mr. Burke began to open it by 
 declaring, that his main object was to 
 admit the people of the colonies to an 
 interest in the Constitution. The fact 
 was, that the Americans did not object 
 to the laws of trade ; nor did they aim 
 at anything more than a release from 
 taxation, imposed upon them hy a legis 
 lative body in which their interests are 
 not guarded by their representatives. 
 Similar [uneasiness was for a long time 
 prevalent in Ireland, in Wales, and in 
 the counties palatine of Chester and 
 Durham. Now the agitations of Ire 
 land were quelled by the establishment 
 of a separate legislature for that country, 
 whilst the feuds which prevailed in 
 Cheshire and Durham were annihilated 
 by the admission of representatives of 
 those counties into the English parlia 
 ment. Let a similar policy then be ex 
 ercised towards America. In her case, 
 let taxation and representation go hand 
 in hand. But the distance between the 
 colonies and the mother country pre 
 cludes the Americans from sending re 
 presentatives to the British legislature. 
 What remains, then, but to recognize 
 for the theory the ancient constitution 
 and policy of this kingdom with regard 
 to representation, and as to the practice, 
 to return to that mode which an uniform 
 experience has marked out to you as 
 best, and in which you walked with 
 security, advantage, and honour until 
 the year 1 763. " My resolutions, there 
 fore"," continued Mr. Burke, " mean to 
 establish the equity and justice of a tax 
 ation of America by grant, and not by 
 imposition ; to mark the legal compe 
 tency of the colony assemblies for the 
 support of their government in peace, 
 and for the public aids in the time of 
 war; to acknowledge that this legal 
 competency has had a dutiful and bene 
 ficial exercise, and that experience has 
 shewn the benefit of their grants, and 
 the futility of parliamentary taxation as 
 a measure of supply." After opening 
 these points at considerable length, and 
 with transcendent ability, Mr. Burke 
 concluded by moving a series of resolu 
 tions, in which their substance was em 
 bodied. This masterly speech, in the 
 meditation and composition of which 
 Mr. Burke, in the earnestness of his 
 wish to point out to the members of the 
 House of Commons the true line of co 
 lonial policy, seems to have chastised 
 and checked the exuberance of his 
 genius, was spoken to the members 
 alone, as during the debate the stand- 
 
22 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 ing orders for the exclusion of strangers 
 were strictly enforced. It was answered 
 by Mr. Jenkinson, who professed seri 
 ous alarm at the proposition, that any 
 public body, save parliament, was enti 
 tled to make grants of money to the 
 crown. These constitutional scruples 
 had their due weight, and Mr. Buvke s 
 resolutions were negatived by a ma 
 jority of 270 to 78. 
 
 About this time, Dr. Franklin, in 
 a kind of demi-official communication 
 with ministers, endeavoured to effect a 
 reconciliation between the colonies and 
 the parent state. In the discussions 
 which took place with this view between 
 the Doctor and the agents of the minis 
 try, most of the points in dispute were 
 settled ; but the obstinate refusal of the 
 cabinet to restore the ancient constitu 
 tion of Massachusetts broke off the con 
 ferences ; and Dr. Franklin, despairing 
 of the preservation of peace, returned 
 to his native land, determined to share 
 the fortunes of his countrymen, and, at 
 all hazards, to devote his talents to the 
 maintenance of their rights. 
 
 12. Affair at Lexington, 19 th April, 
 1775. 
 
 It has already been stated that the 
 Massachusetts patriots had resolved to 
 attack the king s forces whenever they 
 should march out of Boston. On the 
 19th of April, 1775, their adherence to 
 this resolution was put to the test. With 
 a view of seizing the military stores and 
 provisions which the insurgents had col 
 lected at Concord, General Gage, on the 
 night preceding that eventful" day, de 
 tached from his garrison 800 picked 
 men, under the command of Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Smith. These troops made 0, 
 rapid march to the place of their desti 
 nation, in hopes of taking the malcon 
 tents by surprise ; but notwithstanding 
 their precautions, the alarm was given 
 throughout the country, and the inha 
 bitants flew to arms. Between four and 
 five o clock on the morning of the 19th, 
 the advanced guard of the royal troops 
 arrived at Lexington, where they found 
 about seventy of the American militia 
 under arms, whom Major Pitcairn or 
 dered to disperse ; and on their hesitat 
 ing to obey his commands, that officer 
 discharged his pistol, and ordered his 
 soldiers to fire. By the volley which 
 ensued three or four of the militia were 
 killed, and the rest put to flight. Lieu 
 tenant- Colonel. Smith then proceeded tu 
 
 Concord, where he destroyed the stores 
 of the insurgents, and then commenced 
 his retreat towards Boston. He was 
 not, however, permitted to make this 
 retrograde movement without molesta 
 tion. Before he left Concord he was 
 attacked by the American militia and 
 minute-men, who, accumulating by de 
 grees, harassed his rear and flanks, 
 taking advantage of every inequality of 
 ground, and especially availing them 
 selves of the stone walls which skirted 
 the road, and which served them as en 
 trenchments. Had not the detachment 
 been met at Lexington by a body of 900 
 men, which General Gage had sent out 
 to its support, under the command of 
 Lord Percy, it would certainly have been 
 cut off. The united British forces ar 
 rived, wearied and exhausted, at Bun 
 ker s Hill, near Boston, a little after 
 sunset, having sustained a loss of 65 
 killed, 180 wounded, and 28 prisoners. 
 
 When Lord Percy, on his advance, 
 was marching through Roxburgh, his 
 military band, in derision of the Ameri 
 cans, played the tune of " Yankee Doo 
 dle." His lordship observed a youth 
 who appeared to be amused at this 
 circumstance, and asking him why he 
 laughed, received this answer " To 
 think how you will dance by-and-by to 
 Chevy Chase. 1 " It had been too 
 much the habit of the British to despise 
 and insult the Americans as cowards ; 
 but the event of the march to Concord 
 convinced them that the Massachusetts 
 men were not deficient either in personal 
 courage or in individual skill in the use 
 of arms. 
 
 13. Battle of Bunker s Hill> IMhJune, 
 1775. 
 
 Blood having been thus drawn, the 
 whole of the discontented colonies took 
 prompt measures to resist the royal au 
 thority by force of arms. Volunteers 
 enrolled themselves in every province ; 
 and throughout the whole union the 
 King s stores were seized for the use of 
 the insurgents. The surprisal of Ticon- 
 deroga and Crown Point by a party 
 from Connecticut, under the command 
 of Colonel Allen, furnished them with 
 upwards of 100 pieces of cannon, and a 
 proportionable quantity of ammunition. 
 Troops were gradually assembled in the 
 towns and villages in the vicinity of 
 Boston, so as to hold that town in a 
 state of blockade. About the latter end 
 oi iViay, General Gage was reinforced by. 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 the troops which had been sent from 
 Great Britain, and which were accom 
 panied by Generals Howe, Burgoyne, 
 and Clinton. Finding himself thus 
 strengthened, he prepared for active 
 operations; hut wishing to temper jus 
 tice with mercy, on the 1 2th of June he 
 issued a proclamation, offering pardon 
 to all who would lay down their arms, 
 with the exception of Samuel Adams 
 and John Hancock, " whose offences," 
 he declared, "were of too flagitious a 
 nature to admit of any other considera 
 tion than that of condign punishment." 
 This proclamation produced no effect on 
 the Americans, save that of rousing 
 them to more vigorous exertions. On 
 Charlestown Neck, a peninsula situated 
 to the north of Boston, with which it com 
 municates by a bridge, is a considerable 
 eminence, called Bunker s Hill. As this 
 was deemed a post of great importance, 
 the Americans resolved to occupy it,, 
 and orders were given by the provincial 
 authorities that a detachment of 1000 
 men should entrench themselves on the 
 height in question. The party was ac 
 cordingly moved forwards from Cam 
 bridge on the night of the 16th of June, 
 but, by mistake, commenced their ope 
 rations on Breed s Hill, an eminence 
 nearer to the town of Boston than the 
 place of their destination. Here they 
 laboured with such activity, and at the 
 same time with such silence, that the 
 appearance of their works, at day-break 
 the next morning, was the first indica 
 tion of their presence. The firing of 
 guns from the Lively man-of-war, 
 whence they were first seen, gave the 
 alarm to the British, whose commanders, 
 on reconnoitring the position of the 
 enemy from the steeples and heights of 
 the city, perceived that they had thrown 
 up a redoubt about eight rods square, 
 from which lines extended to the east 
 ward nearly to the bottom of the hill. 
 To the westward the works were less per 
 fect ; but the provincials were busily 
 employed in carrying them on, notwith 
 standing they were exposed to showers 
 of shot and shells, discharged from the 
 vessels in the harbour. The necessity 
 of driving the enemy from their position 
 was evident ; and for this purpose Gage 
 put 3000 men under the command of 
 General Howe. On this occasion the 
 British were not very alert in their pre 
 parations, as it was noon before their 
 troops were embarked in the boats which 
 were to convey them to Aloreton s Point, 
 at the southern extremity of Charlestown 
 
 23 
 
 Neck. At this awful crisis every elevated 
 spot in the town of Boston was covered 
 with spectators, who anxiously awaited 
 the event of the expected contest. .Their 
 attention was first arrested by a dense 
 smoke, which announced that the Bri 
 tish, fearing lest the houses of Charles- 
 town might afford shelter to the provin 
 cials, had set that place on fire. Pro 
 ceeding to Moreton s Point, the king s 
 troops formed in two lines, and marched 
 slowly up the hill, whilst their artillery 
 played on the American works. The 
 provincials stood firm and steady : they 
 reserved their fire till the British had 
 advanced to within sixty or seventy 
 yards of their lines ; they then made a 
 simultaneous discharge with so cool an 
 aim, and supported their fire with so 
 much steadiness, that the British gave 
 way, and fled to the water s edge. Here 
 they were rallied by their officers, and a 
 second time led to the charge. A second 
 time they retreated, and all seemed to be 
 lost, when General Howe, aided by Ge 
 neral Clinton, who, seeing his distress, 
 had crossed over from Boston to join 
 him, with difficulty persuaded them to 
 make another onset, which was success 
 ful. The Americans had expended their 
 ammunition, and were unable to procure 
 a fresh supply. Their redoubt being 
 forced, they were compelled to retreat ; 
 but though the road over Charlestown 
 Neck, by which they retired, was enfi 
 laded by the Glasgow man-of-war, they 
 withdrew with much less loss than might 
 have been expected : they left dead on 
 the field 139 of their comrades, and their 
 wounded and missing amounted to 314. 
 Amongst the valuable lives which were 
 sacrificed in this battle, the Americans 
 were sensibly affected by the loss of 
 Dr. Warren, who was slain whilst stand 
 ing on the redoubt, animating his fel 
 low soldiers to the most valorous exer 
 tions. Warren was a man of eminent 
 talents, and of most amiable manners 
 in private and domestic life. He ex 
 celled as an orator, and he was wise 
 and prudent in council, and the circum 
 stances of his death evinced that he could 
 act as well as speak, and that the mild 
 ness of his character was united with firm 
 determination and undaunted courage. 
 The British purchased their victory 
 dearly, their loss amounting to 226 
 killed and 828 wounded, including 79 
 officers : at this cost General Gage ob 
 tained little more than the field of battle. 
 At the conclusion of the engagement he 
 advanced to Bunker s Hill, which he for 
 
24 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 tified ; whilst the Americans entrenched 
 themselves on Prospect Hill, distant 
 about a mile and a half from his lines. 
 
 14. Union of the Thirteen Provinces 
 Hancock appointed President, and 
 Washington Commander -in- Chief. 
 
 When Colonel Allen appeared at the 
 gates of Ticonderoga, on the 10th of 
 May, he summoned that fortress " in 
 the name of the Great Jehovah and the 
 continental Congress." On the very day 
 on which this summons was given that 
 body assembled, and had the satisfaction 
 to find itself joined by delegates from 
 Georgia so that the union of the thirteen 
 provinces was now completed. Peyton 
 Randolph, Esq., was appointed president ; 
 but urgent business soon after requiring 
 his presence at home, he was succeeded 
 by Mr. Hancock. After mature delibe 
 ration, the Congress agreed on addresses 
 to the British nation, to the Canadians, to 
 Ireland, and to the Island of Jamaica, in 
 which they insisted upon the topics upon 
 which they had antecedently dwelt in 
 similar compositions. Fearful also lest, 
 in case of the continuance of hostilities 
 with the mother country, their frontier 
 should be devastated by the Indians, a 
 talk was prepared in which the contro 
 versy between Great Britain and her 
 colonies was explained in a familiar 
 Indian style. They were told that " they 
 had no concern in the family quarrel, 
 and were urged by the ties of ancient 
 friendship and a common birth place, to 
 remain at home, to keep their hatchet 
 buried deep, and to join neither side." 
 Such is the statement of Mr. Ramsay; 
 and so far as Congress is concerned, no 
 doubt that respectable historian is cor 
 rect. But had he carefully examined 
 the official correspondence of General 
 Washington, he would have found, from 
 a letter of his dated August 4, 1775, that 
 the American commander-in-chief did 
 not limit his views to neutrality on the 
 part of the Indians, but that he took 
 measures to secure the co-operation of 
 the Caghnewaga tribe, in the event of 
 any expedition being meditated against 
 Canada. Still aiming, with however 
 faint hopes, at conciliation, the Congress 
 drew up another humble and pathetic 
 petition to the King, which was deli 
 vered on the ensuing September by their 
 agents to Lord Dartmouth, the colonial 
 secretary of state, who informed them 
 that no answer would be returned to it. 
 They did not, however, confine them 
 
 selves to literary controversy, but took 
 measures for depriving the British troops 
 of supplies. They also resolved to raise 
 an army sufficient to enable them to cope 
 with the enemy, and issued, for its equip 
 ment and pay, bills of credit to the value 
 of two millions of dollars. With a happy 
 unanimity they appointed George Wash 
 ington commander-in-chief of their forces. 
 Soon after he received his commission, 
 the general repaired to the head quar 
 ters at Cambridge, in the vicinity of 
 Boston, where he arrived on the 3rd of 
 July, and was received with joyful accla 
 mations by the troops. The army con 
 sisted of 14,500 men, and occupied can 
 tonments so disposed as closely to be 
 leaguer the enemy within Boston. The 
 soldiers were hardy, active, and zealous. 
 But still, when the general had minutely 
 inspected the state of affairs, he found 
 ample matter for serious reflection. He 
 was destitute of a responsible commis 
 sariat to procure and dispense the ne 
 cessary supplies. Many of the soldiers 
 were ill-provided with arms. On the 
 4th of August he was apprized of the 
 alarming fact that his whole stock of 
 powder would afford little more than 
 nine rounds a man. On the settling of 
 the rank of officers, also, he had to en 
 counter the ill-humour of the ambitious, 
 who conceived that they were not pro 
 moted according to their merits. With 
 his characteristic patience and assiduity, 
 however, he overcame these difficulties. 
 By the influence of the respect which his 
 character inspired, he reduced these jar 
 ring elements to some degree of order. 
 His encampments were regularly sup 
 plied with provisions. By extraordinary 
 exertions he procured a sufficient stock 
 of ammunition and military stores ; and 
 though the well-dressed scouting parties 
 of the British who approached his lines 
 could not repress a smile on seeing his 
 soldiers equipped in hunting shirts, the 
 affair at Breed s Hill had taught them 
 that a handsome uniform is by no means 
 essential to bravery in battle. 
 
 On the 1 Oth of October, General Gage 
 resigned the command of the British 
 army to General Howe, and sailed for 
 England in a vessel of war. Had he 
 made the voyage in a transport, he would 
 have run some risk of being taken pri 
 soner; for towards the close of this year 
 (1775) Congress fitted out several pri 
 vateers, which were eminently successful 
 in capturing the store ships which had 
 been sent from Great Britain with sup 
 plies for the royal army. These captures 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 25 
 
 at once crippled the enemy and fur 
 nished the Americans with important 
 requisites for carrying on the war. 
 
 $ 15. Invasion of Canada Death of 
 Montgomery. 
 
 Nor were the offensive operations of 
 the provincials confined to the sea. Hav 
 ing, as has been before related, obtained 
 possession of Ticonderoga, which is the 
 key of Canada, the Congress determined 
 to invade that province, in the hope that 
 its inhabitants would welcome the forces 
 which they might send against it, as their 
 deliverers from the yoke of oppression. 
 They accordingly gave the command of 
 1000 men to Generals Schuyler and 
 Montgomery, with directions to march 
 into Canada. When the expedition had 
 advanced to the town of St. John s, 
 Schuyler, in consequence of the bad 
 state of his health, resigned the com 
 mand to his associate, and returned 
 home. In attacking St. John s, the 
 commander of which made a brave de 
 fence, Montgomery experienced consi 
 derable difficulties in consequence of his 
 want of the chief requisites for conduct 
 ing a siege ; but he vanquished them all, 
 and compelled the garrison, consisting 
 of 500 regulars and 100 Canadians, to 
 surrender. During the progress of the 
 siege, Sir Guy Carleton, the Governor 
 of Canada, had collected 800 men at 
 Montreal, for the purpose of attacking 
 the besieging army ; but he was driven 
 back by a body of the Vermont militia, 
 commanded by General Warner. Mont 
 gomery, therefore, proceeded to Mon 
 treal, the garrison of which attempted to 
 escape down the river, but were inter- 
 cepted and captured by the American 
 Colonel Easton: and Governor Carleton 
 himself was so hard pressed, that he was 
 glad to escape to Trois Rivieres, whence 
 he proceeded to Quebec. To this place 
 he was pursued by Montgomery, who, 
 in the course of his march, adopted the 
 wisest measures to gain over the inha 
 bitants of the province. With the pea 
 sants he succeeded ; but upon the priests 
 and the seigneurs, or feudal lords, who 
 foresaw that a revolution would be de 
 trimental to their interests, he made little 
 impression. 
 
 Whilst Montgomery was penetrating 
 into Canada by the St. Lawrence, Ge 
 neral Arnold, who afterwards rendered 
 himself infamous by his treachery, was 
 advancing to co-operate with him by 
 the way of the Kennebeck river and the 
 
 Chaudiere. This route appears upon 
 the map to be a very direct one ; but it 
 was beset with formidable difficulties. 
 In their voyage up the Kennebeck, Ar 
 nold and his comrades had to pull against 
 a powerful stream interrupted by rapids, 
 over which they were obliged to haul 
 their boats with excessive labour. The 
 space which intervenes between the 
 mouth of the Kennebeck and that of the 
 Chaudiere was a wild and pathless 
 forest, through a great part of which 
 they were compelled to cut their way 
 with hatchets ; and so scantily were 
 they furnished with provisions, that 
 when they had eaten their last morsel 
 they had thirty miles to travel before 
 they could expect any farther supplies. 
 In spite of these obstructions, Arnold 
 persevered in his bold enterprize ; and 
 on the 8th of November he arrived at 
 Point Levi, opposite Quebec ; and had 
 he possessed the means of immediately 
 passing the St. Lawrence, such was 
 the panic occasioned by his unexpected 
 appearance, that it is probable that the 
 city, in the absence of the Governor, 
 would have surrendered to him. But 
 whilst he was collecting craft to effect 
 his passage, the inhabitants recovered 
 from their consternation, the Governor 
 arrived, and the place was put in a pos 
 ture of defence. On the 1st of Decem 
 ber, Montgomery, having effected a 
 junction with Arnold, broke ground 
 before Quebec. But he laboured under 
 insuperable disadvantages. His forces 
 were inferior in number to those of the 
 garrison. He was destitute of a proper 
 battering train. His soldiers were daily 
 sinking under the hardships of a Cana 
 dian winter; and their term of enlist 
 ment was soon to expire. Seeing that 
 no hopes were left, but that of the suc 
 cess of a desperate effort, he attempted 
 to carry the city by assault, and had 
 penetrated to the second barrier, when 
 he fell by a musket shot, leaving behind 
 him the character of a brave soldier, an 
 accomplished gentleman, and an ardent 
 friend of liberty. Arnold was carried 
 wounded from the field; but on the 
 death of his friend he took the command 
 of the remnant of his forces, which he 
 encamped at the short distance of three 
 miles from the city. 
 
 $ 16. Evacuation of Bosto?i, March 17, 
 1776. 
 
 Whilst these transactions were car 
 rying on to the northward of the 
 
26 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 American continent, the inhabitants of 
 the middle and southern provinces were 
 employed in preparing for resistance 
 against the demands of the British go 
 vernment, and in general compelled 
 such of their governors as took any 
 active measures for the support of royal 
 authority, to consult for their safety by 
 taking refuge on board of ships of war. 
 In Virginia, the imprudence of Lord 
 Dunmore provoked open hostilities, in 
 the course of which he burned the town 
 of Norfolk. By this act, however, and 
 by a proclamation, in which he pro 
 mised freedom to such of the negroes 
 as should join his standard, he only 
 irritated the provincials, without doing 
 them any essential injury ; and being 
 finally driven from the colony, he re 
 turned to England. 
 
 Towards the close of this year, the 
 commander-in-chief of the American 
 forces found himself in circumstances 
 of extreme embarrassment. " It gives 
 me great distress," thus he wrote in a 
 letter to Congress of the date of Sept. 
 21, 1775, " to be obliged to solicit the 
 attention of the honourable Congress to 
 the state of this army, in terms which 
 imply the slightest apprehension of being 
 neglected. But my situation is inex 
 pressibly distressing, to see the winter 
 fast approaching upon a naked army ; 
 the time of their service within a few 
 weeks of expiring ; and no provision 
 yet made for such important events. 
 Added to these, the military chest is 
 totally exhausted: the paymaster has 
 not a single dollar in hand : the commis 
 sary-general assures me he has strained 
 his credit, for the subsistence of the 
 army, to the utmost. The quarter 
 master-general is precisely in the same 
 situation ; and the greater part of the 
 troops are in a state not far from mutiny 
 upon the deduction from their stated 
 allowance." The fact is, that the troops 
 had engaged in the service of their 
 country with feelings of ardent zeal ; 
 but, with a mistaken idea that the con 
 test would be decided by a single effort, 
 they had limited the time of their ser 
 vice to a short period, which was ready 
 to expire. Congress had appointed a 
 committee, consisting of Dr. Franklin 
 and two other individuals, to organize 
 an army for the year 1776. Butt when 
 these gentlemen repaired to head 
 quarters, and sounded the dispositions of 
 the troops as to a second enlistment, 
 they did not find in them the alacrity 
 which they expected. The soldiers 
 
 were, as they had evinced in all services 
 of danger, personally brave; but they 
 were unaccustomed to the alternate mo 
 notony and violent exertion of a military 
 life, and their independent spirit could 
 ill brook the necessary restraints of 
 discipline. From these causes so many 
 quitted the camp when the term of their 
 service was expired, that on the last day 
 of the year Washington s muster-roll 
 contained the names of only 9650 men. 
 By the exertions of the committee, 
 however, these were speedily reinforced 
 by a body of militia, who increased their 
 numbers to 17,000. Upon these cir 
 cumstances, the commander-in-chief, in 
 one of his despatches to Congress, made 
 the following striking remarks. " It is 
 not in the pages of history, perhaps, to 
 furnish a case like ours to maintain a 
 post within musket- shot of the enemy 
 for six months together without ammu 
 nition, and, at the same time, to disband 
 one army and recruit another, within 
 that distance of twenty odd British regi 
 ments is more, probably, than ever was 
 attempted. But if we succeed as well 
 in the last, as we have heretofore in 
 the first, I shall think it the most for 
 tunate event of my whole life." It may 
 be permitted us to conjecture that in 
 these circumstances the uneasiness of 
 Washington was enhanced by his con 
 sciousness of the risk which he ran in 
 thus communicating the secret of his 
 difficulties to so numerous a body as 
 the Congress. Had there been found 
 one coward, one traitor, or even one in 
 discreet individual in that assembly, the 
 British general would have been apprized 
 of the vast advantages which he had 
 over his antagonist; he would have 
 adopted the offensive, and the cause of 
 American independence would have 
 been lost. But every colonial senator was 
 faithful to his trust. Every one was silent 
 as to the real situation of the army ; and 
 the commander-in-chief still confidently 
 presented a bold front to the enemy. It 
 was well known that the British troops in 
 Boston were much straitened for provi 
 sions ; and the militia having joined the 
 army in expectation of immediate battle, 
 were eager for the onset, and murmured 
 at the delay of the general in giving the 
 signal for an assault on the town. They 
 were little aware of thedis resses by which 
 he was embarrassed. Notwithstanding 
 the Congress had even sent to the coast 
 of Africa to purchase gunpowder, his 
 magazines still contained but a scanty 
 stock of that essential article, and many 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 27 
 
 of his iroops were destitute of muskets. 
 But he kept to himself the important 
 secret of the deficiency of his stores, 
 and patiently submitted to the criticisms 
 which were passed on his procrastination, 
 till he had made the requisite prepara 
 tions. He then proposed to storm the 
 British lines ; but was advised by his 
 council of war, in preference to this 
 measure, to take possession of Dor 
 chester heights, an eminence which from 
 the southward commands the harbour 
 and city of Boston. To this advice lie 
 acceded, and having diverted the atten 
 tion of the British garrison by a bom 
 bardment, which was merely a feint, on 
 the night of the 4th of March he pushed 
 forward a working party of 1200 men, 
 under the protection of a detachment of 
 800 troops. The Americans were very 
 expert in the use of the spade and pick 
 axe, and by day-break they had com 
 pleted respectable lines of defence. 
 The British admiral no sooner beheld 
 these preparations, than he sent word to 
 General Howe, that if the Americans 
 were not dislodged from their works he 
 could not with safety continue in the 
 harbour. On the Gth, Howe had com 
 pleted his arrangements for the attack 
 of the enemy s lines, and a bloody 
 battle was expected; but the. transports 
 in which his troops were embarked for 
 the purpose of approaching the heights 
 by water were dispersed by a storm ; 
 and the enemy so industriously took 
 advantage of the consequent suspension 
 of his operations to strengthen their 
 position, that when the storm subsided 
 he despaired of success in attacking it. 
 Finding the town no longer tenable, he 
 evacuted it on the 1 7th of March, and 
 sailed with his garrison, which amounted 
 to 7000 men, to Halifax in Nova 
 Scotia. 
 
 ^ In consequence of an implied threat 
 on the part of General Howe, that if he 
 was interrupted by any hostile attack 
 during the embarkation of his troops, he 
 would set fire to the town, the British 
 were allowed to retire without molesta 
 tion, though their commander, imme 
 diately before his departure, levied con 
 siderable requisitions for the use of his 
 army upon the merchants who were 
 possessed of woollen and linen goods; 
 and though the soldiery, availing them 
 selves of the relaxation of military disci 
 pline which usually accompanies the 
 precipitate movements of troops, in 
 dulged themselves, in defiance of orders 
 issued to the contrary, in ail the license 
 
 of plunder. Previously to the evacuation 
 of the place, Howe spiked all the cannon 
 and mortars which he was obliged to 
 leave behind him, and demolished the 
 fortifications of Castle William. Imme 
 diately on the withdrawing of the royal 
 forces, Washington entering Boston in 
 triumph, was hailed as a deliverer by 
 the acclamations of the inhabitants. 
 He also received the thanks of the Con 
 gress and of the legislature of Massa 
 chusetts; and a medal was struck in 
 honour of his services in expelling the 
 invaders from his native land. 
 
 The exultation which the Americans 
 felt at the expulsion of the British from 
 Boston was tempered by the arrival of 
 sinister intelligence from Canada. In 
 sending an expedition into that country, 
 Congress had been influenced by two 
 motives : they wished at once to secure 
 the junction of the inhabitants of that 
 province to their union, and to protect 
 their own northern frontier from inva 
 sion. But the Canadians were little 
 prepared for the assertion of the prin 
 ciples of freedom ; and the rapacity of 
 the unprincipled Arnold, and the mis 
 conduct of his troops, had alienated their 
 affections from the common cause. 
 Congress, however, by extraordinary 
 exertions, sent to the camp before 
 Quebec reinforcements, which, by the 
 1st of May, increased Arnold s army to 
 the number of 3000 men. But his 
 forces were unfortunately weakened by 
 the ravages of the small- pox ; and rein 
 forcements from England having begun 
 to arrive at Quebec, he determined upon 
 a retreat. In this retrograde movement 
 the American army had to encounter 
 difficulties, which to ordinary minds 
 would have seemed insurmountable. 
 On their march through almost im 
 practicable roads, they were closely fol 
 lowed, and frequently brought to action, 
 by an enemy superior in number. In 
 an ill-advised attack on Trois Rivieres 
 they sustained considerable loss, and 
 their forces were for a time separated, 
 and almost dispersed. But notwith 
 standing these disasters, General 
 Sullivan, who conducted the retreat, 
 contrived to save his baggage, stores, 
 and sick, and led back a respectable 
 remnant of his army to Crown Point, 
 where he resolved to make a stand. 
 Being well aware of the necessity of 
 guarding this quarter of their frontier 
 against the incursions of the British, 
 the Congress sent thither an army of 
 12,000 men, under the command of 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 General Gates, who cast up strong 
 works at Ticonderoga, and endeavoured 
 to retain the command of Lake Cham- 
 plain by means of a flotilla, which was 
 built and equipped with a rapidity 
 hitherto unheard of. General Carleton, 
 however, was not behind-hand with him 
 in activity. He speedily fitted out a- 
 superior armament, by means of which 
 he took or destroyed almost the whole 
 of the American vessels. Having thus 
 made himself master of the lake, he 
 advanced to the vicinity of Ticonderoga ; 
 but finding that port too strongly for 
 tified, and too well garrisoned to be 
 taken by assault, he returned to Quebec. 
 Valour and military skill were not the 
 highest characteristics of Sir Guy Carle- 
 ton. The kindness which he mani 
 fested to his prisoners, and especially to 
 the sick and wounded of the Americans 
 who fell into his hands, entitle him to 
 the superior praise of humanity. 
 
 17. Declaration of Independence, kth 
 July, 1776. 
 
 When the British ministry took the 
 resolution to coerce the discontented 
 colonies by force of arms, they were 
 little aware of the difficulty of their un 
 dertaking ; and, consequently, the means 
 which they adopted for the execution 
 of their designs were by no means com 
 mensurate with the object which they had 
 in view. But when they met the par 
 liament in October, 1775, they were 
 obliged to confess that the spirit of re 
 sistance to royal authority was widely 
 diffused throughout the North American 
 provinces, that rebellion had assumed a 
 bold front, and had been alarmingly suc 
 cessful. To supply them with the means 
 of suppressing it, parliament readily 
 voted the raising and equipment of 
 28,000 seamen, and 55,000 land forces. 
 The bill which provided for this power 
 ful armament also authorized his ma 
 jesty to appoint commissioners, who 
 were to be empowered to grant pardons 
 to individuals, to inquire into and redress 
 grievances, and to receive any colonies, 
 upon their return to obedience, into the 
 king s peace. 
 
 When the colonists were apprized of the 
 bill having been passed into a law, they 
 treated the offer of pardon with contempt, 
 and contemplated with anger, but not 
 with dismay, the formidable preparations 
 announced by its provisions. Their irri 
 tation was excited to the highest pitch 
 when they were informed that Lord 
 
 North had engaged 16,000 German mer 
 cenaries to assist in their subjugation. 
 Nor did this measure escape severe 
 animadversion in the British parlia 
 ment. It was warmly censured by 
 many members of the opposition, espe 
 cially by Mr. Adair and Mr. Dunning, 
 who maintained that, in engaging the 
 services of foreign mercenaries without 
 the previous consent of parliament, 
 ministers had violated the provision of 
 the Bill of Rights, and that by this in 
 fringement of the Constitution they had 
 set a precedent which might be made 
 available by some future arbitrary mo 
 narch to the destruction of the liberties 
 of the country. 
 
 The command of the British forces was 
 given to General Howe, who, in arrang 
 ing the plan of the campaign, deter 
 mined, first, after driving the enemy from 
 Canada, to invade their country by the 
 north-western frontier. 2dly, to subdue 
 the southern colonies ; and, 3dly. to 
 strike at the centre of the union by con 
 quering the province of New York, from 
 which, by means of the Hudson river, he 
 should be able to co-operate with the royal 
 army in Canada. The latter province 
 having been already rescued from the 
 invaders by Sir Guy Carleton, General 
 Howe committed the execution of the 
 second part of his plan to General Clin 
 ton and Sir Peter Parker, who having 
 effected a junction at Cape Fear, re 
 solved to make an attack upon Charles- 
 town. They accordingly sailed up Ash 
 ley river, on which that place is situated ; 
 but they encountered so determined an 
 opposition from a fort hastily erected on 
 Sullivan s Island, and commanded by 
 Colonel Moultrie, that, after sustaining 
 considerable loss of men, and much 
 damage to their shipping, they gave up 
 their enterprize and sailed to New York. 
 The result of this attempt was highly 
 favourable to the Americans, as it con 
 soled them for their losses in the north, 
 inspired them with new confidence, and, 
 for the ensuing two years and a half, 
 preserved the southern colonies from 
 the presence of a hostile force. 
 
 The command of the principal British 
 fleet, destined toco-operate with General 
 Howe, had been bestowed upon his 
 brother Sir William, who, when his 
 equipment was finished, sailed directly 
 for Halifax. On his arrival at that 
 place, he found that the general, impa 
 tient of his delay, had proceeded on his 
 voyage towards New York, whither he 
 immediately followed him, and joined 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 him at Staten Island. On this junction 
 of the two brothers, their forces were 
 found to amount to 30,000 men ; and 
 never, perhaps, was an* army better 
 equipped, or more amply provided with 
 artillery, stores, and every requisite for 
 the carrying on of vigorous and active 
 hostilities. Far different was the condi 
 tion of the American commander-in- 
 chief. His troops, enlisted for short 
 periods, had acquired little discipline. 
 They were scantily clothed and imper 
 fectly armed. They were frequently in 
 want of ammunition ; and they were ill- 
 supplied with provisions. Disaffection 
 to the cause of their country was also 
 manifested by some of the inhabitants 
 of New York, who, at the instigation of 
 Governor Tryon, had entered into a 
 conspiracy to aid the king s troops on 
 their expected arrival. In this plot, 
 even, some of the army had been en 
 gaged ; and a soldier of the commander- 
 in-"chief s own guard had, by the unani 
 mous sentence of a court martial, been 
 sentenced to die for enrolling himself 
 among the conspirators, and enlisting 
 others in the same traitorous cause. In 
 these circumstances Washington could 
 not but regard the approaching contest 
 with serious uneasiness ; but he, as 
 usual, concealed his uneasiness within 
 his own bosom, and determined to fight 
 to the last in the cause of his country. 
 His firmness was participated by the 
 Congress, who, whilst the storm seemed 
 to be gathering thick over their heads, 
 beheld it with eyes undismayed, and 
 now proceeded with a daring hand to 
 strike the decisive stroke which for ever 
 separated thirteen flourishing colonies 
 from their dependence on the British 
 crown. It is possible, nay, it is probable, 
 that from the beginning of the disputes 
 with the mother country, there may 
 have been some few speculators among 
 the American politicians, who enter 
 tained some vague notions and some 
 uncertain hopes of independence. In 
 every age, and in every country, there 
 are individuals whose mental view ex 
 tends to a wider circle than that of the 
 community at large, and unhappy is 
 their destiny if they attempt to bring 
 their notions into action, or even to pro 
 mulgate them before the season is ripe 
 unto the harvest. But no such precipi 
 tancy was found amongst the partisans 
 of American liberty. Like Franklin, for 
 year after year, they limited their wishes 
 to an exemption from parliamentary 
 
 29 
 
 taxation, and to a preservation of their 
 chartered rights and privileges. But 
 the violent measures of the British mi 
 nisters altered their sentiments, and the 
 spectacle of their countrymen mustering 
 in arms to resist ministerial oppression, 
 prompted them to bolder daring. Find 
 ing that the British cabinet had hired 
 foreign troops to assist in their subjuga 
 tion, they foresaw that they might be 
 reduced to apply to foreign aid to help 
 them in their resistance against oppres 
 sion. But what power would lend them 
 aid whilst they retained the character of 
 subjects of his Britannic Majesty. Sen 
 timents such as these, having been in 
 dustriously and successfully dissemi 
 nated throughout the union, the Congress 
 on the 4th of July, 1776, whilst the 
 formidable array of the British fleet was 
 hovering on their coasts, on the motion 
 of Mr. Richard Henry Lee, representa 
 tive of Virginia, passed their celebrated 
 declaration of independence, by which 
 act they for ever withdrew their allegi 
 ance from the king of Great Britain. 
 This important document is couched in 
 the following terms : 
 
 " When, in the course of human 
 events, it becomes necessary for one 
 people to dissolve the political bands 
 which have connected them with ano 
 ther, and to assume among the powers 
 of the earth, the separate and equal 
 station to which the laws of nature and 
 of nature s God entitle them, a decent 
 respect to the opinions of mankind re 
 quires that they should declare the causes 
 which impel them to the separation. 
 
 " We hold these truths to be self-evi 
 dent, that all men are created equal ; that 
 they are endowed by their Creator with 
 certain unalienable rights, that among 
 these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of 
 happiness ; that to secure these rights, 
 governments are instituted among men, 
 deriving their just powers from the con 
 sent of the governed ; that whenever any 
 form of government becomes destructive 
 of these ends, it is the right of the people 
 to alter or to abolish it, and to institute 
 new government, laying its foundation 
 on such principles, and organizing its 
 power in such form, as to them shall 
 seem most likely to effect their safety 
 and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will 
 dictate that governments long esta 
 blished, should not be changed tor light 
 and transient causes ; and, accordingly, 
 all experience hath shewn, that mankind 
 are more disposed to suiter, while evils 
 
30 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 are sufferabie, than to right themselves 
 by abolishing the forms to which they 
 are accustomed. But when a long train 
 of abuses and usurpations, pursuing in 
 variably the same object, evinces a design 
 to reduce them under absolute despotism, 
 it is their right it is their duty, to throw 
 off such government, and to provide new 
 guards for their future security. Such 
 has been the patient sufferance of these 
 colonies, and such is now the necessity 
 which constrains them to alter their 
 former system of government. The 
 history of the present King of Great Bri 
 tain, is a history of repeated injuries and 
 usurpations, all having in direct object, 
 the establishment of an absolute tyranny 
 over these states. To prove this, let 
 facts be submitted to a candid world. 
 
 " He has refused his assent to laws 
 the most wholesome and necessary for 
 the public good. 
 
 " He has forbidden his governors to 
 pass laws of immediate and pressing 
 importance, unless suspended in their 
 operation till his assent should be ob 
 tained ; and when so suspended, he has 
 utterly neglected to attend to them. 
 
 " He has refused to pass other laws 
 for the accommodation of large districts 
 of people, unless those people would 
 relinquish the right of representation in 
 the legislature a right inestimable to 
 them, and formidable" to tyrants only. 
 
 " He has called together legislative 
 bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, 
 and distant from the depository of their 
 public records, for the sole purpose of 
 fatiguing them into compliance with his 
 measures. 
 
 " He has dissolved representative 
 houses repeatedly, for opposing, with 
 manly firmness, his invasions on the 
 rights of his people. 
 
 " He has refused, for a longtime after 
 such dissolutions, to cause others to be 
 elected, whereby the legislative powers, 
 incapable of annihilation, have returned 
 to the people at large for their exercise ; 
 the state remaining in the mean time 
 exposed to all the danger of inva 
 sion from without, and convulsions 
 within. 
 
 " He has endeavoured to prevent the 
 population of these states, for that pur 
 pose obstructing the laws for natuVali- 
 zation of foreigners, refusing to pass 
 others to encourage their migration 
 hither, and raising the conditions of new 
 appropriations of lands. 
 
 He has obstructed the administra 
 
 tion of justice, by refusing his assent to 
 laws for establishing judiciary powers. 
 
 " He has made judges dependent on 
 his will alone for the tenure of their offices 
 and the amount and payment of their 
 salaries. 
 
 " He has erected a multitude of new 
 offices, and sent hither swarms of officers 
 to harass our people, and eat out their 
 substance. 
 
 " He has kept among us, in time of 
 peace, standing armies, without the con 
 sent of our legislatures. 
 
 " He has affected to render the mili 
 tary independent of, and superior to, the 
 the civil power. 
 
 " He has combined with others to 
 subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our 
 constitution, and unacknowledged by our 
 laws, giving his assent to their acts of 
 pretended legislation ; 
 
 "For quartering large bodies of armed 
 troops among us ; 
 
 " For protecting them, by a mock trial, 
 from punishment for any murders which 
 they should commit on the inhabitants 
 of these states ; 
 
 " For cutting off our trade with all 
 parts of the world ; 
 
 " For imposing taxes upon us without 
 our consent ; 
 
 " For depriving us, in many cases, of 
 the benefits of trial by jury ; 
 
 " For transporting us beyond the seas 
 to be tried for pretended offences ; 
 
 " For abolishing the free system of 
 English laws in a neighbouring pro 
 vince, establishing therein an arbitrary 
 government, and enlarging its boun 
 daries, so as to render it at once an 
 example and fit instrument for intro 
 ducing the same absolute rule into these 
 colonies ; 
 
 " For taking away our charters, abo 
 lishing our most valuable laws, and 
 altering fundamentally the form of our 
 governments ; 
 
 " For suspending our own legisla 
 tures, and declaring themselves invested 
 with power to legislate for us in all 
 cases whatsoever. 
 
 " He has abdicated government here, 
 by declaring us out of his protection, 
 and waging war against us. 
 
 " He has plundered our seas, ravaged 
 our coasts, burnt our towns, and de 
 stroyed the lives of our people. 
 
 " He is, at this time, transporting 
 large armies of foreign mercenaries to 
 complete the works of death, desolation, 
 and tyranny already begun, with circum- 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLt TION. 
 
 31 
 
 stances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely 
 paralleled in the most barbarous ages, 
 and totally unworthy the head of t a ci 
 vilized nation. 
 
 " He has constrained our fellow 
 citizens, taken captive on the high seas, 
 to bear arms against their country, to 
 become the executioners of their friends 
 and brethren, or to fall themselves by 
 their hands. 
 
 " He has excited domestic insurrec 
 tions among us, and has endeavoured 
 to bring on the inhabitants of our fron 
 tiers, the merciless Indian savages; 
 whose known rule of warfare is an 
 undistinguished destruction of all ages, 
 sexes, and conditions. 
 
 " In every stage of these oppressions 
 we have petitioned for redress in the 
 most humble terms ; our repeated pe 
 titions have been answered only by 
 repeated injury. A prince, whose cha 
 racter is thus marked by every act 
 which may define a tyrant, is unfit to 
 be the ruler of a free people. 
 
 " Nor have we been wanting in at 
 tention to our British brethren. We 
 have warned them from time to time of 
 attempts made by their legislature to 
 extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction 
 over us. We have reminded them of 
 the circumstances of our emigration and 
 settlement here. We have appealed to 
 their native justice and magnanimity, 
 and we have conjured them, by the ties 
 of our common kindred, to disavow 
 these usurpations, which would inevi 
 tably interrupt our connexions and 
 correspondence. They too have been 
 deaf to the voice of justice and consan 
 guinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce 
 in the necessity, which denounces our 
 separation, and hold them as we hold 
 the rest of mankind enemies in war, 
 in peace, friends. 
 
 " We, therefore, the representatives 
 of the United States of America, in Ge 
 neral Congress assembled, appealing 
 to the Supreme Judge of the world 
 for the rectitude of our intentions, 
 do in the name, and by authority 
 of the good people of these colonies, 
 solemnly publish and declare, that 
 these united colonies are, and of right 
 ought to be, FREE and INDEPENDENT 
 STATES ; that they are absolved from all 
 allegiance to the British crown; and 
 that all political connexion between 
 them and the state of Great Britain is, 
 and ought to be, totally dissolved ; and 
 that, as free and independent states, 
 
 they have full power to levy war, con 
 clude peace, contract alliances, establish 
 commerce, and do all other acts and 
 things which independent states may, of 
 right, do. And, for the support of this de 
 claration, with a firm reliance on the pro 
 tection of Divine Providence,we mutually 
 pledge to each other our lives, our for 
 tunes, and our sacred honour. 
 
 18. Capture of Long Island, 26th 
 August, 1776. 
 
 Genefal Washington was well aware 
 that New York would be the first object 
 of attack on the part of the British ; and 
 despairing of being able to encounter 
 them in the open field, he resolved to 
 protract the approaching campaign by 
 carrying on a war of posts. With this 
 view, after fortifying Long Island, he 
 threw up various entrenchments on New 
 York Island, which is bounded on the 
 west by the Hudson, and on the south 
 and east by East River, whilst to the 
 north it is separated from the main land 
 by a narrow channel which unites these 
 two streams. He also constructed two 
 forts, the one on the Hudson named 
 Fort Washington, by which he proposed 
 to maintain his communication with 
 Jersey, whilst the other, called Fort Lee, 
 connected his defence with the province 
 of New York. Whilst he was making 
 these preparations he received from 
 Pennsylvania a seasonable reinforcement 
 of 10,000 men, raised for the express 
 purpose of forming a flying camp ; but 
 he was disappointed in his expectation 
 of the aid of a large body of militia. In 
 dependently of the flyingcamp, his forces, 
 at this moment of peril, amounted only 
 to 17,225 men. 
 
 Before commencing hostilities, the 
 Howes, with a view of conciliation, or 
 of detaching the wavering amongst the 
 colonists from the cause of the Con 
 gress, issued a proclamation, offering 
 pardon to such of his majesty s rebel 
 lious subjects as would lay down their 
 arms, and announcing their powers, on 
 the fulfilment of certain conditions, to 
 receive any colony, district, or place, 
 into the king s peace. This proclamation 
 produced no effect beyond the districts 
 from time to time occupied by the royal 
 army. General Howe also endeavoured 
 to open a correspondence with Wash 
 ington, for the purpose of laying a 
 ground for the amicable adjustment of 
 all differences between the colonies and 
 
32 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 the mother country ; but as the British 
 commander did not recognize the offi 
 cial character of Washington in the 
 address of his letter, it was returned 
 unopened, and thus this attempt at ne 
 gotiation failed. 
 
 Those who are accustomed to the 
 rapid proceedings of more modern war 
 fare, cannot give to General Howe the 
 praise due to activity. Though he 
 arrived at Staten Island on the 10th of 
 June, it was not till the 26th of August 
 that he commenced active operations 
 against the enemy by an attack on Long 
 Island, on the north-western part of 
 which a respectable force of Americans, 
 commanded by General Sullivan, occu 
 pied an entrenched camp. Their position 
 was protected in front by a range of hills 
 stretching across the island, from the 
 Narrows, a strait which separates it 
 from Staten Island, to the town of Ja 
 maica, situated on the southern coast. 
 Over the hills in question pass three 
 defensible roads, each of which was 
 guarded by 800 men. The pass by the 
 Narrows was attacked and carried by 
 General Grant the second, by Flatbush, 
 was cleared by General de Heister, in 
 retreating before whom the Americans 
 were encountered by General Clinton,who 
 with the right wing of the British army, 
 had made a detour by Jamaica. Thus 
 the provincials were driven into their lines 
 with the loss of upwards of 1000 men, 
 whilst the British loss did not amount 
 to more than 450. During the engage 
 ment Washington had sent strong 
 reinforcements into Long Island, and, 
 at its close, he repaired thither in 
 person with the greater part of his army. 
 This movement had nearly occasioned 
 his ruin. He soon found himself cooped 
 up in a corner, with a superior force in 
 front prepared to attack his works, 
 which were untenable. In these cir 
 cumstances his only safety lay in retreat. 
 It was a difficult operation to convey a 
 whole army across a ferry in the pre 
 sence of an enemy, whose working 
 parties could be heard by his sentries. 
 But favoured by the darkness of the 
 night, and by a fog which arose in the 
 morning, he transported the whole of 
 his force to New York, leaving nothing 
 behind him but some heavy cannon. 
 
 19. Evacuation of New York, 1st 
 September, 1776. 
 
 Among the prisoners taken by the 
 British on Long Island was General 
 
 Sullivan, whom General Howe sent on 
 his parole with a message to Congress, 
 renewing his offers to negociate for an 
 amicable accommodation. The Con 
 gress sent a committee of three of their 
 body Dr. Franklin, John Adams, and 
 Edward Rutledge, to confer with him 
 on the subject of his communication. 
 These deputies were received with great 
 politeness by General Howe ; but, after 
 a full discussion with the British com 
 mander, they reported to Congress that 
 his proposals were unsatisfactory, and 
 his powers insufficient. Their report 
 concluded in the following terms : " It 
 did not appear to your Committee that 
 his lordship s commission contained 
 any other authority than that expressed 
 by the act of parliament namely, that 
 of granting pardons, with such excep 
 tions as the commissioners shall think 
 proper to make, and of declaring Ame 
 rica or any part of it to be in the king s 
 peace on submission : for, as to the 
 power of inquiring into the state of 
 America, which his lordship mentioned 
 to us, and of conferring and consulting 
 with any persons the commissioners 
 might think proper, and representing 
 the result of such conversation to the 
 ministry, who, provided the colonies 
 would subject themselves, might, after 
 all, or might not, at their pleasure, 
 make any alterations in the former in 
 structions to governors, or propose in 
 parliament any amendment of the acts 
 complained of; we apprehend any ex 
 pectation from the effect of such a power 
 would have been too uncertain and pre 
 carious to be relied on by America, had 
 she still continued in her state of de 
 pendence." This attempt at negotia 
 tion having thus fruitlessly terminated, 
 nothing was left but to decide the dis 
 pute by arms. 
 
 The Congress embraced this alter 
 native in circumstances which would 
 have reduced men of less resolute spirits 
 to despair. Their army was so dispirited 
 by the events which had taken place in 
 Long Island, that the militia began to 
 desert, and the constancy of some of 
 the regulars was shaken. They were 
 apprized, too, that Washington foresaw 
 the necessity of making a series of 
 retrograde movements, which were 
 calculated to cloud the public mind 
 with despondency. The prognostics of 
 the general were soon verified. On the 
 15th of September, General Howe 
 effected a landing on New York Island, 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 and compelled him to evacuate the 
 city of New York, and to retire to the 
 north end of the island. Here Howe 
 unaccountably suffered him to remain 
 unmolested for nearly four weeks, at 
 the end of which time he manoeuvred 
 to compel him to give him battle on the 
 island. Dreading the being reduced to 
 this perilous necessity, the American 
 commander withdrew to the White 
 Plains, taking, however, every oppor 
 tunity to front the enemy, and engaging 
 in partial actions, which in some degree 
 kept the British in check. At length he 
 crossed the Hudson, and occupied some 
 strong ground on the Jersey shore of 
 that river, in the neighbourhood of Fort 
 Lee. He had no sooner evacuated New 
 York Island than General Howe at 
 tacked and took Fort Washington, in 
 which he made 2700 men prisoners, at 
 the cost, however, of 1 200 men on his side 
 killed and wounded. Fort Lee was shortly 
 after evacuated by its garrison, and 
 taken possession of by Lord Cornwallis. 
 Following up these successes, General 
 Howe pursued the flying Americans to 
 Newark, and from Newark to Bruns- 
 wick,and from Brunswick successively 
 to Princeton and Trenton, till at length 
 he drove them to the Pennsylvania 
 side of the Delaware. Nothing could 
 exceed the distress which the American 
 army suffered during this retreat through 
 the Jerseys. They were destitute of 
 blankets and shoes, and their clothing 
 was reduced to rags. They were coldly 
 looked upon by the inhabitants, who 
 gave up the cause of America for lost, 
 and hastened to make their peace with 
 the victors. Had General Howe been 
 able to maintain discipline in his army, 
 Jersey would have been severed from 
 the Union. But, fortunately for the 
 interests of the congress, his troops 
 indulged in all the excesses of military 
 violence, and irritated the inhabitants 
 of the country to such a degree, that 
 their new-born loyalty was speedily ex 
 tinct, and all their thoughts were bent 
 upon revenge. 
 
 20. Battle of Trenton, 28th December, 
 1776. 
 
 On the approach of the British to 
 the Delaware, congress adjourned its 
 sittings from Philadelphia to Baltimore, 
 and it was expected that General Howe 
 would speedily make his triumphal 
 entry into the Pennsylvanian capital. 
 But a bold manoeuvre of Washington 
 
 suddenly turned the tide of success. 
 On his arrival at the Delaware, his 
 troops were dwindled down to the number 
 of 3000 ; but having received some rein 
 forcements of Pennsylvanian militia, he 
 determined to endeavour to retrieve his 
 fortunes by a decisive stroke. The 
 British troops were cantoned in Bur 
 lington, Bordenton, and Trenton, wait 
 ing for the formation of the ice to cross 
 into Pennsylvania. Understanding that 
 in the confidence produced by a series 
 of successes, they were by no means 
 vigilant, he conceived the possibility of 
 taking them by surprise. He accord 
 ingly, on the evening of Christmas 
 Day, conveyed the main body of his 
 army over the Delaware, and falling 
 upon the troops quartered in Trenton, 
 killed and captured about 900 of them, 
 and recrossed into Pennsylvania with his 
 prisoners. On the 28th of December 
 he again took possession of Trenton, 
 where he was soon encountered by a 
 superior force of British, who drove in 
 his advanced parties, and entered the 
 town in the evening, with the intention 
 of giving him battle the next morning. 
 The two armies were separated only by 
 a narrow creek which runs through the 
 town. In such a position it should 
 seem to be impossible that any move 
 ment on the one side or on the other could 
 pass unobserved. But in the darkness 
 of the night, Washington, leaving his 
 fires lighted, and a few guards to attract 
 the attention of the enemy, quitted his 
 encampment, and, crossing a bridge 
 over the creek, which had been left 
 unguarded, directed his march to 
 Princeton, where, after a short but 
 brisk engagement, he killed 60 of the 
 British, and took 300 prisoners. The 
 rest of the royal forces were dispersed 
 and fled in different directions. Great 
 was the surprise of Lord Cornwallis, 
 who commanded the British army at 
 Trenton, when the report of the artillery 
 at Princeton, which he at first mistook 
 for thunder, and the arrival of breath 
 less messengers, apprized him that the 
 enemy was in his rear. Alarmed by 
 the clanger of his position, he com 
 menced a retreat ; and, being harassed 
 by the militia and the countrymen who 
 had suffered from the outrages perpe 
 trated by his troops on their advance, 
 he did not deem himself in safety till he 
 arrived at Brunswick, from whence, by 
 means of the Rariton, he had a com 
 munication with New York. 
 
 This splendid success inspired the 
 
34 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 Americans with renewed spirits. Re 
 cruits were readily raised for their 
 army, which took up its winter quar 
 ters at Morristown, about thirty miles 
 to the northward of Brunswick : here 
 both the officers and soldiers were in 
 oculated for the small-pox. During this 
 interval of comparative leisure, Wash 
 ington urgently renewed the represen 
 tations which he had before frequently 
 made to the congress, of the necessity of 
 abandoning the system of enlisting men 
 for limited terms of service. The dread 
 justly entertained by that body of a stand 
 ing army had hitherto induced them to 
 listen coldly to his remonstrances on this 
 point. But the experience of the last 
 campaign corrected their views, and 
 they resolved to use their utmost exer 
 tion to raise an army pledged to serve 
 till the conclusion of the war. The free 
 spirit of the Americans, however, could 
 not brook enlistment for a time so un 
 defined, and the congress therefore is 
 sued proposals for a levy of soldiers to be 
 engaged for three years, at the same time 
 offering a bounty of 100 acres of land 
 to those who would accept their first 
 proposals. Though these measures in 
 the end proved effectual, their accom 
 plishment was slow, and in the spring of 
 1777, Washington s whole force did not 
 amount to more than 1500 men; but 
 with these inconsiderable numbers he so 
 disposed his posts, that with the occa 
 sional assistance of the New Jersey mili 
 tia and volunteers, he for some weeks 
 kept the British in check at Brunswick. 
 At this period, the difficulties under 
 which he had so long laboured from the 
 want of arms and military stores, were 
 alleviated by the arrival of upwards of 
 20,000 muskets and 1000 barrels of 
 powder, which had been procured in 
 France and Holland by the agency of 
 the celebrated dramatist, Carron de 
 Beaumarchais. 
 
 Late in the spring of 1777, however, 
 the utmost exertions of congress in for 
 warding the recruiting service could put 
 no more than 7272 effec* ve men at the 
 disposal of General Wa nington. With 
 this small force it w .s manifestly his 
 policy to gain time, and by occupying 
 advantageous ground, to avoid being 
 forced to a general engagement. With 
 a view, however, of inspiriting his coun 
 trymen, he took the field before the 
 enemy had quitted their winter-quarters, 
 and towards the end of May he made a 
 movement from Morristown to Middle- 
 brook, where he encamped in a strong 
 
 position. General Howe no sooner 
 heard that the Americans were in mo 
 tion, than he advanced from Brunswick 
 to Somerset-court House, apparently 
 with an intention of pushing for the 
 Delaware ; but the country rising in 
 arms on every side of him, he was de 
 terred from prosecuting this design, and 
 hastily measured back his steps to his 
 former position. On their retreat, his 
 troops committed great ravages, and 
 particularly incensed the inhabitants by 
 burning some of their places of worship. 
 After frequently trying in vain to entice 
 Washington from his strong position, 
 GenerarHowe at length retired to Am- 
 boy. There learning that his adversary 
 had descended to Quibbletown, he has 
 tened back to attack him ; but had the 
 mortification on his arrival at the spot 
 lately occupied by the Americans, to 
 learn that his vigilant foe had withdrawn 
 into his fastnesses. Despairing of being 
 able to penetrate into Pennsylvania by 
 the way of the Jerseys, he passed over 
 into Staten Island, from which point he 
 resolved to prosecute the future views of 
 his campaign by the assistance of his 
 fleet. What those views might be, it 
 was difficult for Washington to ascer 
 tain. The whole coast of the United 
 States was open to the British com- 
 mander-in- chief. He might at his plea 
 sure sail to the north or to the south. 
 General Washington was inclined to be 
 lieve that his intention was to move up 
 Hudson s river to co-operate with Ge 
 neral Burgoyne, who was advancing 
 with a large army on the Canadian fron 
 tier ; and, impressed with this idea, he 
 moved a part of his army to Peek s Kill, 
 whilst he posted another portion at 
 Trenton, to be ready, if required, to 
 march to the relief of Philadelphia. 
 Whilst he was in this state of uncer 
 tainty, he received intelligence that Howe 
 had embarked with 16,000 men, and 
 had steered to the southward. Still ap 
 prehending that this might be a feint, 
 he cast an anxious eye to the north 
 ward, till he was further informed that 
 the British general, after looking into 
 the Delaware, had proceeded to the 
 Chesapeak. The plans of the invaders 
 were then clearly developed. It was 
 evident that they intended to march 
 through the northern part of the state 
 of Delaware, and take possession of 
 Philadelphia. Much time was lost to 
 the British by their voyage, in conse 
 quence of unfavourable winds. Though 
 they set sail on the 23rd of July, they 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 35 
 
 did not arrive at Elk-ferry, the place 
 fixed upon for their landing, till the 
 25th of August. General Howe had no 
 sooner disembarked his troops than he 
 advanced through the country hy forced 
 marches, to within two miles of the 
 American army, which, having pro 
 ceeded rapidly from Jersey to the pre 
 sent scene of action, was stationed at 
 Newport. 
 
 21. Capture of Philadelphia, 
 26th September, 1776. 
 
 On the approach of the enemy Gene 
 ral Washing! on resolved to dispute their 
 passage over the Brandywine Creek. 
 In taking this step he appears to have 
 acted contraiy to his better judgment. 
 By throwing himself upon the high 
 ground to his right, he might have 
 brought on a war of posts, much better 
 adapted to the capacities of his undisci 
 plined forces, than a battle fought on 
 equal terms. But he dreaded the im 
 pression which would be made upon 
 the public feeling, should he leave the 
 road to Philadelphia open, and yielded 
 to the general voice which called upon 
 him to fight for the preservation of the 
 seat of the American government. The 
 action was fought at Chadd s ford, on 
 the Brandywine, on the llth of Sep 
 tember. On this occasion Howe shewed 
 his generalship by the skilfulness of his 
 combinations. "While a part of his army, 
 under the command of General Knyp- 
 hausen, made a false attack at the ford, 
 a strong column, headed by Lord Corn- 
 wallis, crossing the Brandywine at its 
 York, turned the left of the Americans, 
 and Knyphausen forcing a .passage at 
 that moment of alarm and confusion, 
 the Americans gave way, and retired to 
 Chester, their retreat being covered by 
 Wooster s brigade, which preserved its 
 ranks unbroken. Their loss in killed 
 and wounded amounted to 1200. 
 Among the latter was the Marquis de 
 la Fayette, who, inspired with zeal for 
 the cause of freedom, had, at the age of 
 nineteen, quitted his country at con 
 siderable hazard, and entered into the 
 American army, in which he at once 
 obtained the rank of major-general. 
 By the event of the battle of the Brandy- 
 wine the country was in a great degree 
 open to the British. Washington in 
 vain made one or two attempts to im 
 pede their progress, and on the 26th of 
 September, General Howe made his 
 triumphant entry into Philadelphia, On 
 
 his approach the congress, who had 
 returned thither from Baltimore, once 
 more took flight, and withdrew first to 
 Lancaster and afterwards to York 
 town. 
 
 General Howe, on marching to the 
 Pennsylvanian capital, had left a con 
 siderable number of troops at German- 
 town, a few miles from that place. As 
 these were unsupported by the main 
 body of his army, General Washington 
 determined upon an attempt to cut them 
 off. His plan was well laid, and the 
 forces which he despatched on this ex 
 pedition took the enemy by surprise, 
 and at first drove all before them. But 
 a check having been given them by a 
 small party of the British who had 
 thrown themselves into a stone house, 
 they were soon opposed by the fugitives 
 who had rallied in force, and obliged to 
 retreat with loss. 
 
 When General Howe quitted New 
 York for the purpose of gaining pos 
 session of Philadelphia, he was deterred 
 from making his approaches by the 
 Delaware, by the preparations made by 
 the Americans to obstruct the naviga 
 tion of that river. The principal of 
 these consisted of a fort erected on Mud 
 Island, which is situated in the middle of 
 the river, about seven miles below the 
 city. On a height on the Jersey side of 
 the river, called Red Bank, they had 
 erected a strong battery. The Channels 
 on both sides of Mud Island were closed 
 by strong and heavy chevaux de frize, 
 through which was left a single passage 
 closed by a boom. As it was absolutely 
 necessary to make himself master of 
 these works, in order to open a com 
 munication with his fleet, General Howe 
 gave orders that they should be forced. 
 In his first attack he was unsuccessful. 
 In storming the battery of Red Bank, 
 Count Donop was mortally wounded, 
 and his troops were repulsed with con 
 siderable loss. But the bulk of the 
 chevaux de frize having, by diverting the 
 current of the river, deepened the chan 
 nel on the Pennsylvania side of Mud 
 Island, a ship of war mounted with 
 twenty-four pounders was warped 
 through it into a position where she 
 could enfilade the fort, which, being no 
 longer tenable, the] garrison retired from 
 it to Red Bank. By these operations 
 General Howe obtained full command 
 of the Delaware, and by its means every 
 facility for the conveyance of supplies 
 to his army. 
 
 Mr, Hancock having on the 29th of 
 D 2 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 36 
 
 October of this year resigned the 
 presidency of congress, on the 1st of 
 November ensuing;, Mr. Henry Laurens 
 was appointed to succeed him. 
 
 $22. Burgoyne s Expedition. 
 
 When the news of General Howe s 
 successes arrived in England, the great 
 majority of the nation were transported 
 with joy. In the defeat of Washington, 
 the capture of Philadelphia, and the ex 
 pulsion of the congress, the members of. 
 which were represented as miserable 
 fugitives, seeking in trembling anxiety 
 for a temporary shelter from the ven 
 geance of the law, they fondly saw an 
 earnest of the termination of the war by 
 the submission of the rebels. But their 
 exultation was speedily damped by the 
 annunciation of the capture by these 
 very rebels of a whole British army. 
 
 A cursory inspection of the map of 
 the United States will suffice to shew, 
 that for the purpose of their sub 
 jugation it was at this period of high 
 importance to the British to form a 
 communication with Canada by means 
 of Hudson s River. This would have 
 intersected the insurgent provinces, 
 and by cutting off their intercourse 
 with each other, and by hemming 
 in the eastern states, which the Bri 
 tish ministry regarded as the soul of 
 the rebellious confederacy, would have 
 exposed them to be overrun and con 
 quered in detail. General Howe, 
 therefore, was directed by the ministry 
 to operate with a part of his army north 
 wards from New York, whilst General 
 Burgoyne was instructed to enter the 
 state of New York by its north-western 
 frontier, and to make his way good to 
 Albany, where it was intended that he 
 should form a junction with the forces 
 which Howe should send to co-operate 
 with him. The expediency of this plan 
 was so obvious that it did not escape the 
 foresight of the Americans, who, in 
 order to obviate it, had strongly fortified 
 Ticonderoga, and the adjacent height of 
 Mount Independence. They had also 
 taken measures to obstruct the passage 
 from Lake Champlain, and had more 
 over strengthened the defences of the 
 Mohawk river. For garrisoning these 
 posts, and for conducting the requisite 
 operations in the field, they gave orders 
 to raise an army of 13,600 men. 
 
 The British army destined to act 
 under Burgoyne consisted of 7000 re 
 gulars, furnished with every requisite 
 
 for war, especially with a fine train of 
 artillery. These were supported by a 
 number of Canadians, and a consider 
 able body of Indians. It w r as ar 
 ranged in the plan of the campaign, 
 that whilst Burgoyne, at the head of 
 these forces, should pour into the state 
 of New York, from Lake Champlain, 
 a detachment under the command of 
 Colonel St. Leger should march to 
 wards Lake Ontario, and penetrate in 
 the direction of Albany, by the Mohawk 
 river, which falls into the Hudson a 
 little above that town. 
 
 General Burgoyne arrived at Quebec 
 on the 6th of May, and immediately 
 putting himself at the head of his army, 
 he proceeded up Lake Champlain to 
 Crown Point. Here he was joined by 
 the Indians, to whom he made a speech, 
 in which he inculcated upon them the 
 virtue of mildness, and strictly forbade 
 them to destroy any persons except in 
 battle. An ancient Iroquois chieftain, 
 in the name of his comrades, promised 
 strict compliance with the general s 
 injunctions. From Crown Point the 
 royal army directed its march to Ticon 
 deroga. Here General Burgoyne ex 
 pected to encounter a powerful oppo 
 sition, as he well knew that the Ameri 
 cans had flattered themselves that by 
 the fortifications which they had erected 
 on it, they had rendered it almost im 
 pregnable. But the forces which had 
 been destined to its defence had not 
 arrived. General St. Clair had not 
 men enough to man his lines. He saw 
 his position nearly surrounded by the 
 enemy, who were erecting a battery on 
 a hill which commanded his intrench- 
 ments. In these circumstances, a 
 council of war unanimously recom 
 mended to their commander the evacu 
 ation of Ticonderoga, which he effected 
 with such good order and secresy, that 
 he was enabled to bring off a great part 
 of the public stores. He left behind 
 him, however, ninety-three pieces of 
 ordnance, which fell into the hands of 
 the British. The retreating Americans 
 took the road to Skeensborough, which 
 is situated at the southern extremity of 
 Lake George. In their flight they were 
 briskly pursued by General Fraser by 
 land, whilst Burgoyne attacked and 
 destroyed their flotilla on Lake George ; 
 and so closely were they pressed by this 
 combined movement, that they were 
 compelled to set fire to their stores and 
 boats at Skeensborough, and take 
 refuge in Fort Anne, a few miles to the. 
 
REESf 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVO 
 
 southward of that place. Here, how 
 ever, they did not Ions find shelter. $ 23 Failure of Burgoynes Expedition. < 
 
 they did not long 
 
 Their rear guard was attacked and 
 routed by Colonel Fraser, at Hubberd- 
 ton ; and Lieutenant- Colonel Hill hav 
 ing been sent forward from S keens - 
 borough, by General Burgoyne, with 
 the 9th regiment of foot, to make an 
 assault on Fort Anne, the provincials, 
 after a short, but brisk engagement, 
 withdrew to Fort Edward, which is 
 situated on the Hudson river. Here 
 their scattered forces being collected, 
 were found to amount to no more than 
 4400 men, who being unable to cope 
 with their victorious pursuers, soon 
 found themselves under the necessity of 
 making another retrograde movement 
 in the direction of Albany. This long 
 series of successes filled the minds of 
 the British with exultation. They had 
 beaten the enemy in every encounter ; 
 had forced them from their fastnesses, 
 and entertained sanguine hopes of driving 
 them before themlill the co-operating 
 force which they presumed General 
 Howe was sending up the Hudson 
 should intercept their retreat, and put 
 them between two fires. Burgoyne 
 issued proclamations in the style of a 
 conqueror, summoning the inhabitants 
 of the district in which he was opera 
 ting to aid his pursuit of the fugitive 
 rebels. The assistance which he called 
 for was very necessary, not for pur 
 suit, but defence his difficulties were 
 now commencing. Instead of falling 
 back from Skeensborough to Ticonde- 
 "roga, and advancing from the latter 
 place by Lake George, (a movement 
 which he declined, as having the appear 
 ance of a retreat,) he determined to 
 march across the country from Skeens 
 borough to Fort Edward ; but the road 
 was so broken up it was so intersected 
 with creeks and rivulets, the bridges 
 over which had been broken down, and 
 so much embarrassed with trees cut 
 down on each side, and thrown across 
 it with entangled branches, that it 
 was with immense labour he could ad 
 vance a mile a day. When he had at 
 length penetrated to Fort Edward, 
 which he reached on the 30th of July, 
 he found it abandoned by the enemy, 
 who by their retreat left free his com 
 munication with Lake George, from 
 which he obtained supplies of stores 
 and provisions conveyed by land from 
 Fort George to Hudson s river, and 
 thence floated down to his camp. 
 
 This delay gave the Americans tim^f 
 to recover from the consternation into 
 which they had been thrown by the 
 loss of Ticonderoga, and the subse 
 quent misfortunes of their army. De 
 termined to make amends for their 
 previous dilatoriness by instant activity, 
 they flew to arms. The plundering of 
 Jersey had taught them that peaceable 
 conduct and submission aifbrded no 
 protection against British rapine; and 
 they were persuaded, that whatever 
 might be the wishes of General Burgoyne, 
 he had not power to restrain his Indian 
 auxiliaries from practising their ac 
 customed savage mode of warfare. Look 
 ing for safety, then, only to their swords, 
 and judging from their knowledge of the 
 country, that the farther the British 
 commander advanced, the greater would 
 be his difficulties, they hastened their 
 reinforcements from every town and 
 hamlet in the vicinity of the seat of war, 
 and soon increased the army of St. 
 Clair to the number of 13,000 men. 
 
 Whilst General Burgoyne was making 
 his way to the Hudson, Lieutenant- 
 Colonel St. Leger had arrived at the 
 Mohawk river, and was laying siege to 
 Fort Schuyler. Receiving intelligence 
 that General Harkimer was hastening 
 at the head of a body of troops to the 
 relief of the place, he sent a detachment 
 with instructions to lie in ambush on his 
 line of march, and to cut him off. 
 These instructions were so well obeyed, 
 that Harkimer fell into the snare, his 
 troops were dispersed, and he himself 
 was killed. St. Leger now entertained 
 sanguine hopes of speedily taking the 
 fort ; but the Indians who composed a 
 considerable part of his little army, 
 taking alarm at the news of the ap 
 proach of General Arnold, at the head 
 of a detachment, whose numbers were 
 purposely exaggerated by an American 
 emissary in their camp, insisted on 
 an immediate retreat. This mutiny 
 compelled St. Leger to raise the siege, 
 and to retire to Canada, leaving be 
 hind him a great part of his artillery 
 and stores. 
 
 When General Burgoyne was in 
 formed of the arrival of St. Leger before 
 Fort Schuyler, he thought it very expe 
 dient to make a forward movement 
 towards Albany, for the purpose of co 
 operating with that officer, and also 
 with the British troops who were, as he 
 
38 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 expected, advancing up the Hudson. 
 The principal objection to this step 
 was, that it would necessarily re 
 move him to a perilous distance from 
 his supplies, which were collected at 
 Fort Edward. With a view, there 
 fore, of procuring a plentiful stock of 
 provisions from a nearer point, he de 
 spatched Lieutenant-Col. Baum with 
 600 men, of whom 100 were Indians, 
 with instructions to seize and convey to 
 his camp a considerable magazine of 
 flour and other supplies which the Ame 
 ricans had established at Bennington, 
 in the district of Vermont. Baum, 
 being erroneously informed that the in 
 habitants of that part of the country 
 were favourably disposed towards the 
 British, marched forwards without due 
 precaution, till, on approaching Benning 
 ton, he found the enemy assembled in 
 force in his front, In this exigency he 
 took possession of an advantageous 
 post, where he entrenched himself, and 
 sent to Burgoyne for succour. Colonel 
 Breyman was detached to reinforce him ; 
 but before the arrival of that officer, 
 the fate of his countryman was decided. 
 Baum had been attacked by the Ame 
 rican general Starkie, had lost his field- 
 pieces, and had witnessed the death or 
 capture of most of his detachment. On 
 his arrival at the scene of slaughter, 
 Breyman was also vigorously assailed, 
 and compelled to retreat with the loss 
 of his artillery. 
 
 The failure of this expedition was 
 most disastrous to the British com 
 mander- in-chief, who, being disappointed 
 of receiving the expected supplies from 
 Vermont, was obliged to await the 
 arrival of provisions from Foil George, 
 by which he was delayed from the 15th 
 of August to the 13th of September. 
 This interval of time was well improved 
 by the Americans, who, flushed with 
 their success against Baum and Brey 
 man, pressed on the British with in 
 creased numbers and increased con 
 fidence. They were also cheered to 
 vigorous exertion by the arrival at 
 this critical moment of General Gates, 
 who was commissioned by Congress 
 to take the command of the Northern 
 army. 
 
 After most anxious deliberation, Ge 
 neral Burgoyne, having by extraordinary 
 exertions collected provisions for thirty 
 days, crossed the Hudson river on the 
 13th of September, and advanced to 
 within two miles of General Gates s 
 
 camp, which was situated about three 
 miles to the northward of Stillwater. 
 Gates boldly advanced to meet him, and 
 a hard fought battle ensued, which, 
 though not decisive, was very detri 
 mental to the British, as it shook the 
 fidelity of their Indian allies arid of the 
 Canadians, who now began to desert in 
 great numbers. The desertion of the 
 Indians was accelerated by the follow 
 ing tragical incident. Miss M Rea, an 
 American lady, who resided in the vici 
 nity of the British encampment, being 
 engaged to marry Captain Jones, an 
 officer of Burgoyne s army, her lover, 
 being anxious for her safety, as he un 
 derstood that her attachment to himself 
 and the loyalty of her father had ren 
 dered her an object of persecution to 
 her countrymen, engaged some Indians 
 to escort her within the British lines, 
 promising to reward the person who 
 should bring her safe to him, with a 
 barrel of rum. Two of these emissaries 
 having found the destined bride, and 
 communicated to her their commission, 
 she, without hesitation, consented to ac 
 company them to the place of meeting 
 appointed by Captain Jones. But her 
 guides unhappily quarrelling on the way, 
 as to which of them should present her 
 to Mr. Jones and receive the promised 
 recompense, one of them, to terminate 
 the dispute, cleft her skull with his 
 tomahawk, and laid her dead at his feet. 
 This transaction struck the whole Bri 
 tish army with horror. General Bur 
 goyne, on hearing of it, indignantly de 
 manded that the murderer should be 
 given up to condign punishment. Pru 
 dential considerations, however, pre 
 vented his being put to death, as he well 
 deserved. Burgoyne was of opinion, that 
 his pardon upon terms would be more 
 efficacious in preventing further barbari 
 ties than his execution : he, therefore, 
 spared his life, upon condition that his 
 countrymen would, from that time forth, 
 abstain from perpetrating any cruelties 
 on the unarmed inhabitants, or on those 
 whom they had vanquished in battle. 
 As the Earl of Harrington at a subse 
 quent period stated in his examination 
 before the House of Commons, he told 
 their interpreter " that he would lose 
 every Indian rather than connive at their 
 enormities." The savages at first seemed 
 willing to comply with his renewed in 
 junctions; but resentment rankled in 
 their breasts at his interference with 
 their habits of warfare, the respect with 
 
HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 39 
 
 which they had once looked up to him 
 was impaired by their knowledge of the 
 difficulties of his situation, and they soon 
 began to quit the camp, loaded with their 
 accumulated plunder. Thus checked 
 in his progress, and deserted by his 
 allies, Burgoyne sent urgent letters 
 to Sir Henry Clinton, who commanded 
 at New York, entreating him to hasten 
 forwards the co-operative forces on which 
 he relied for safety and success, and 
 apprizing him that want of provisions 
 would preclude him from remaining in 
 his present position beyond the 12th of 
 October. This renewed delay dispirited 
 his own troops, and swelled the numbers 
 of the hostile army, which received re 
 cruits from every quarter. On the 7th 
 of October, Burgoyne in person, accom 
 panied by Generals Phillips, Reidesel, 
 and Fraser, issued from his camp at 
 the head of 1500 men, for the purpose of 
 making a reconnoissance and of foraging. 
 This movement brought on a general 
 engagement, at the close of which the 
 British were driven within their lines, and 
 a part of them was forced. This circum 
 stance compelled Burgoyne to change 
 his position, which manreuvre he per. 
 formed in a masterly manner, and with 
 out sustaining any loss. It was, indeed, 
 from this time, the policy of the Ameri 
 can general to avoid a pitched battle, 
 and to reduce his enemy by harassing 
 him and cutting off his retreat, and de 
 priving him of supplies. 
 
 The situation of General Burgoyne 
 was most distressing. By extraordinary 
 efforts he had forced his way to within 
 a few miles of Albany, the point of 
 his destination, and had he been se 
 conded by correspondent exertions on 
 the part of the British Southern army, 
 he would have effected the object of 
 his campaign. Sir Henry Clinton 
 seems to have had no precise or 
 early instructions .as to co-operating 
 with him. Certain it is, that it was 
 not till the third of October that he 
 moved up the Hudson to his assistance. 
 Sir Henry easily surmounted every 
 obstacle which presented itself on his 
 route. He took Fort Montgomery by as 
 sault, and by removing a boom and chain 
 which was stretched from that fortress 
 across the Hudson, he opened the navi 
 gation of that river to his flotilla, which, 
 with a fair wind might have speedily made 
 its passage to Half Moon, within sixteen 
 miles of Gates s encampment. But 
 instead of hastening to the relief of their 
 countrymen, the several divisions of 
 
 Clinton s army employed themselves in 
 plundering and burning the towns and 
 villages situated on the banks of the river, 
 and in the adjacent country. Amongst 
 those who distinguished themselves in 
 this predatory warfare, General Vaughan 
 rendered himself pre-eminently conspi 
 cuous. Having been ordered to advance 
 up the river, by Sir Henry Clinton, he 
 landed at the town of yEsopus, and finding 
 it evacuated by the American forces, to 
 whom its defence had been intrusted, 
 though he did not encounter the slight 
 est opposition on the part of the inhabi 
 tants, he permitted his troops to plunder 
 it, and afterwards so completely reduced 
 it to ashes, that he did not leave a single 
 house standing. This outrage excited a 
 cry of indignation throughout the United 
 States, and drew from General Gates a 
 letter of severe remonstrance. But the 
 British had much more reason to incul 
 pate Vaughan than the Americans. His 
 delay at ^sopus sealed the ruin of the 
 Royal cause. Vaughan was at ^sopus 
 on the 13th of October. The tide of 
 flood would have borne him, in four 
 hours, to Albany, where he might have 
 destroyed Gates s stores, and thus have 
 reduced the American general to the 
 necessity of liberating General Burgoyne, 
 who did not surrender till the 16th, and 
 of retreating into New England. Upon 
 such narrow turns of contingencies does 
 the i,ssue of the combinations of warfare 
 frequently depend ? 
 
 24. Convention of Saratoga, 
 13th October, 1777. 
 
 In the mean time, the difficulties in 
 which Burgoyne was involved were 
 hourly accumulating. With a view of 
 cutting off his retreat, Gates posted 1400 
 men opposite the fords of Saratoga, and 
 2000 more on the road from that place 
 to Fort Edward. On receiving intelli 
 gence of this, Burgoyne retreated to 
 Saratoga, leaving his sick and wounded 
 to the humanity of the enemy. Finding 
 it impossible to force his way over the 
 fords of Saratoga, he attempted to open 
 to his army a passage to Lake George ; 
 but the artificers whom he sent under 
 a strong escort to repair the bridges 
 on the road thither were driven away 
 by the American forces. The road to 
 Fort Edward, also, was found by the 
 scouts who had been sent to reconnoitre 
 in that direction, to be strongly guarded. 
 When the 13th day of October arrived, 
 Burgoyne had received no satisfactory 
 
40 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 tidings from Clinton s army. He saw 
 himself in a manner surrounded by the 
 enemy, whose cannon-shot flew in every 
 direction through his camp. Though 
 he had for some time past put his troops 
 on short allowance, he found on inspec 
 tion that he had only three days rations 
 left in his stores. In these trying cir 
 cumstances, with heavy heart he sum 
 moned a council of war, which came to 
 a unanimous resolution, that in their 
 present position they would be justified 
 in accepting a capitulation on honour 
 able terms. A negociation was ac 
 cordingly opened. The first proposal of 
 Gates, namely, that the royal forces 
 should ground their arms in their lines, 
 and surrender prisoners at discretion, 
 was indignantly rejected. After further 
 discussion, a convention was at length 
 agreed upon, the principal conditions of 
 which were, " that the British troops 
 were to march out of their camp with the 
 honours of war and the artillery of the 
 entrenchments to the verge of the river, 
 where the arms and the artillery were 
 to be left; the arms to be piled by word 
 of command from their own officers; 
 and that a free passage was to be granted 
 to the army to Great Britain, upon 
 condition of not serving again in North 
 America during the present contest." 
 Though the first proposals of General 
 Gates were harsh, his subsequent con 
 duct was marked with the character 
 istics of conciliation and delicacy. 
 When the convention was signed, he 
 withdrew his troops into their lines, to 
 spare the British the pain of piling their 
 arms in the presence of a triumphant 
 enemy. He received the vanquished 
 general with the respect due to his 
 valour and to his military skill ; and in 
 an entertainment which he gave at his 
 quarters to the principal British officers, 
 his urbanity and kindness soothed the 
 mortification which could not but em 
 bitter their spirits. 
 
 By the convention of Saratoga, 5790 
 men surrendered as prisoners ; and 
 besides the muskets piled by these 
 captives, thirty-five brass field-pieces, 
 and a variety of stores were given up 
 to the victors. 
 
 25. Treaty with France, Mh February, 
 
 1778. 
 
 Immediately after the surrender of 
 Burgoyne, Gates moved down the 
 Hudson to put a stop to the devastation 
 of the country by Clinton s army, which, 
 
 on his approach, retired to New York. 
 He then sent forward a considerable 
 reinforcement to General Washington, 
 who soon after its arrival advanced to 
 White Marsh, within fourteen miles of 
 Philadelphia, where he encamped in a 
 strong position. When General Howe 
 received intelligence of this movement, 
 he marched out of his quarters on the 
 night of the 4th of December ; but after 
 various manoeuvres, finding that he 
 could gain no advantage over his vigi 
 lant adversary, he returned to Phila 
 delphia. Washington then took up 
 his winter-quarters about sixteen miles 
 from the city, at a place called Valley 
 Forge, where his men, ill- supplied as 
 they were with clothing, blankets, and 
 other comforts, cheerfully constructed 
 huts to shelter themselves from the in 
 clemency of the season. By taking up 
 this position he protected the province 
 of Pennsylvania from the incursions of 
 the enemy, and reduced the fruits of 
 Howe s various successes to the occu 
 pation of a single additional city an 
 advantage by no means calculated to 
 console the British for the loss of an 
 able general, and a gallant army. 
 
 General Burgoyne had drunk deep of 
 the bitter cup of affliction at Saratoga; 
 but he was doomed to suffer still farther 
 mortification. As the British regarded 
 the Americans as rebels, they did not 
 always in the course of hostilities ob 
 serve towards them those rules which 
 guide the conduct of nations engaged in 
 war against a foreign enemy. The truth 
 of history, indeed, cannot suppress the 
 melancholy fact, that at the beginning 
 of the contest, and, occasionally, during 
 its progress, the treatment of the Ame 
 rican prisoners, on the part of the Bri 
 tish authorities, was extremely harsh 
 and severe ; and that capitulations made 
 with such portions of the patriotic army, 
 as had by the fortune of war been re 
 duced to a surrender, had not always 
 been observed with courtesy, or even 
 with a due and strict regard to their 
 essential provisions. The Congress, 
 reflecting on these incidents, felt no 
 small apprehension that if the army 
 which had surrendered at Saratoga 
 should be allowed to embark, instead 
 of sailing for England, according to the 
 terms of the capitulation, it would join 
 the forces of General Howe. They 
 therefore studied to find a pretext for 
 breaking the convention. For this 
 purpose" they addressed a number of 
 queries to General Gates, as to the man- 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 ner in which the British had fulfilled 
 the conditions of their surrender, but he 
 assured them that on the part of the Bri 
 tish the convention had been exactly ob 
 served. The pretext, however, which they 
 could not obtain from their gallant coun 
 tryman, was supplied by the imprudence 
 of Burgoyne. Among other articles of 
 the convention, it had been stipulated 
 that the captive British officers should, 
 during their stay in America, be accom 
 modated with quarters correspondent to 
 their rank. This stipulation having been 
 but ill observed in the crowded barracks 
 at Cambridge, near Boston, where the 
 surrendered army was quartered, Bur 
 goyne addressed to Gates a letter of 
 remonstrance on this subject, in which 
 he declared that by the treatment which 
 his officers had experienced, " the 
 public faith plighted at Saratoga, had 
 been broken on the part of the United 
 States." Gates, in the discharge of his 
 duty, transmitted this letter to congress, 
 who read it with joy ; and affecting to 
 find in the phrase above quoted, a pre 
 text set up by the British general to vin 
 dicate a meditated violation of the con 
 vention, they resolved that " the em 
 barkation of General Burgoyne and the 
 troops under his command should be 
 suspended till a distinct and explicit 
 ratification of the convention of Sara 
 toga should be properly notified by the 
 court of Great Britain." In vain did 
 Burgoyne remonstrate against this re 
 solution in vain did he explain his 
 phraseology, and offer to give any con 
 ceivable pledge of the sincerity of his 
 intentions to fulfil his engagements. 
 The congress was inexorable his troops 
 remained as prisoners ; and after wasting 
 some time in vain endeavours to pro 
 cure them redress, he sailed on his pa 
 role for England, where he was refused 
 admittance into the presence of his 
 sovereign, denied the justice of a 
 court-martial on his conduct, and sub 
 jected to a series of ministerial persecu 
 tions grievous, indeed, to a sensitive 
 mind, but, in effect, more disgraceful to 
 their inflictors than to their victim. 
 
 At the time when the American 
 leaders contemplated the declaration of 
 independence, they entertained sanguine 
 hopes that the rivalry which had so 
 long subsisted between France and 
 England would induce the former 
 power to assist them in throwing off the 
 yoke of the mother country ; and early 
 in the year 1775, the congress sent 
 Silas Deane as their accredited agent to 
 
 41 
 
 Paris, where he was afterwards joined 
 by Dr. Franklin and Arthur Lee, and 
 instructed to solicit the French court to 
 enter into a treaty of alliance and com 
 merce with the United States. The 
 celebrity of Franklin gained him the 
 respect, and his personal qualities ob 
 tained him the esteem of individuals of 
 the highest rank in the French capital. 
 But the Comte de Vergennes, then 
 prime minister, acted with caution. He 
 gave the Americans secret aid, and con 
 nived at various measures which their 
 agents took to further their cause, by the 
 procuring of arms and military stores, 
 and by annoying the British commerce. 
 The encouragement which Franklin, 
 and his associates received varied ac 
 cording to the success or disasters of 
 the American forces. But the capture 
 of Burgoyne s army decided the hesi 
 tating councils of France ; and on the 
 6th of February, 1778, his Most 
 Christian Majesty acknowledged and 
 guaranteed the independence of the 
 United States, and entered into a treaty 
 of alliance and commerce with the in 
 fant republic of North America. Of 
 this circumstance the French ambas 
 sador, on the 13th of March, gave official 
 notice to his Majesty s ministers in a 
 rescript couched in respectful terms, but 
 concluding with an intimation, " that 
 the French king, being determined effec 
 tually to protect the lawful commerce of 
 his subjects, and to maintain the dignity 
 of his flag, had, in consequence, taken 
 effectual measures for these purposes, 
 in concert with the United States of 
 America." With whatever urbanity this 
 communication might be made by the 
 ambassador, the British ministers re 
 garded it, as it was intended to be, as a 
 declaration of war; and on the 17th of 
 March they notified its reception to the 
 House of Commons. Their notification 
 was accompanied by a message from 
 the king, expressing the necessity he 
 was under to resent this unprovoked 
 aggression, and his firm reliance on the 
 zealous and affectionate support of his 
 faithful people. To this message the 
 Commons returned a dutiful answer, 
 assuring his Majesty that they would 
 stand by him in asserting the dignity of 
 the crown, and the honour of the nation. 
 
 26. Rejection of Lord North s Over 
 tures, June 1778. 
 
 The intelligence of the surrender of 
 General Burgoyne and his army over- 
 
42 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 whelmed Lord North with dismay ; 
 and the annunciation of the treaty 
 between the United States and France 
 at once dissipated the feeble hope which 
 he might yet have entertained of sub 
 duing the revolted colonies by force of 
 arms. His only remaining resource, 
 then, to prevent that jewel from being 
 for ever torn from the British crown, 
 was to form, by an act of parliament, a 
 kind of federal union with the North 
 American provinces, which, whilst it 
 reserved their allegiance to the British 
 sovereign, should virtually concede to 
 them the entire management of their 
 internal concerns. With this view, on 
 the 17th of February, 1778, he introduced 
 into the House of Commons two con 
 ciliatory bills, by which he proposed to 
 concede to the colonies every thing which 
 they had demanded before their declara 
 tion of independence, viz., exemption 
 from internal parliamentary taxation, 
 the appointment of their own governors 
 and superior magistrates; and more 
 over, an exemption from the keeping up 
 of any military force in any of the colo 
 nies without the consent of their re 
 spective assemblies. It was provided 
 that commissioners should be appointed 
 by the crown, to negociate with the con 
 gress on the basis of these propositions. 
 The speech in which his lordship intro 
 duced these bills into the House of 
 Commons was marked by a curious 
 mixture of humiliation of tone, and 
 affected confidence and courage. The 
 coercive acts, which under his influence 
 had been passed into laws, were, said 
 he, such as appeared to be necessary at 
 the time, though in the event they had 
 produced effects which he had never 
 intended. As soon as he found that 
 they had failed in their object, before a 
 sword was drawn he brought forward a 
 conciliatory proposition (meaning the 
 act for admitting to the king s peace 
 any individual colonies which might 
 make the requisite concessions) ; but 
 that, in consequence of the proposition 
 having been made the subject of debate 
 in parliament, it went damned to Ame 
 rica, so that the congress conceived, or 
 took occasion to represent it, as a 
 scheme for sowing divisions, and intro 
 ducing taxation among them in a worse 
 mode than the former. Then, making 
 a fatal admission of the trifling nature 
 of the object, which had produced so 
 much ill blood between the colonies and 
 the mother-country, he confessed that his 
 idea never had been to draw any con 
 
 siderable revenue from America; that 
 his wish was, that the colonists should 
 contribute in a very low proportion to 
 the expenses of Great Britain. He was 
 very well aware that American taxation 
 could never produce a beneficial re 
 venue, and that many taxes could not 
 be laid or collected in the colonies. The 
 Stamp Act, however, seemed to be 
 judiciously chosen as a fiscal experiment, 
 as it interested every man who had any 
 dealing or property to defend or recover, 
 in the collection of the tax and the exe 
 cution of the statute ; but this experi 
 ment had failed in consequence of the 
 obstinacy of the Americans in trans 
 acting all business without using the 
 stamps prescribed by law. The act 
 enabling the East India Company to 
 send tea to America on their own ac 
 count, and with the drawback of the 
 whole duty in England, was a relief 
 instead of an oppression ; but this mea 
 sure had been defeated by contraband 
 traders, who had too successfully mis 
 represented it as an invasion of colonial 
 rights. Having thus detailed the diffi 
 culties with which ministers had been 
 called to struggle in legislating for so 
 perverse a generation as the Americans 
 had proved themselves to be, his lord 
 ship then proceeded to open his plan, 
 the outline of which has been given 
 above ; and, in descanting on the ample 
 powers with which he proposed to 
 invest the commissioners, and foreseeing 
 that the Americans might refuse to 
 treat with these agents of the Sovereign 
 without a previous acknowledgment of 
 their independence, he humbled himself 
 so far as to say that he would not insist 
 on their renouncing their independence 
 till the treaty should receive its final 
 ratification from the King and parlia 
 ment of Great Britain ; and then, in a 
 manner confessing that, instead of a 
 sovereign assembly the parliament was 
 reduced to the condition of a supplicant 
 to the mutinous colonies, he proposed 
 that the commissioners should be in 
 structed to negociate with them for 
 some reasonable and moderate contri 
 bution towards the common defence of 
 the- empire when reunited; but, to take 
 away all pretence for not terminating 
 this unhappy difference, the contribution 
 was not to be insisted on as a sine qua 
 non of the treaty ; but that if the Ame 
 ricans should refuse so reasonable and 
 equitable a proposition, they were not 
 to look for support from that part of the 
 empire to whose expense they had re- 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 43 
 
 fused to contribute. Weakly attempting 
 to obviate the imputation that these 
 pacific measures were the fruit of fear, 
 occasioned by the recent successes of 
 the insurgents, he called the House to 
 \vitness that he had declared for conci 
 liation at the beginning of the session, 
 when he thought that the victories of 
 General Howe had been more decisive, 
 and when he knew nothing of the mis 
 fortunes of Burgoyne. He acknow 
 ledged that the events of the war had 
 turned put very differently from his 
 expectation, but maintained that for the 
 disappointment of the hopes of the pub 
 lic no blame was imputable to himself; 
 that he had promised that a great army 
 should be sent out, and a great army, 
 an army of upwards of 60,000 men, 
 had been sent out ; that he had pro 
 mised that a great fleet should be em 
 ployed, and a great fleet had been 
 employed; that he had engaged that 
 this army and this fleet should be pro 
 vided with every kind of supply, and 
 that they had been supplied most amply 
 and liberally, and might be so for years 
 to come ; and that if the House was 
 deceived, they had deceived themselves. 
 The prime minister, having thus by 
 implication attributed the failure of his 
 plans to the commanders of the British 
 forces employed to conduct the war, 
 concluded his speech by a boastful 
 assertion, that the strength of the na 
 tion was still entire ; that its resources 
 were ample, and that it was able, if it 
 were necessary, to carry on the war 
 much longer. The disavowal on the 
 part of Lord North of any intention to 
 raise a revenue in America, seems to 
 have given no little umbrage to the 
 country gentlemen, whose organ, Mr. 
 Baldwin, exclaimed, that he had been 
 deceived by the minister ; that three 
 years ago he had asked him whether a 
 revenue was meant by the measures 
 which he then proposed to enforce ; that 
 he was answered it was, and that upon 
 that ground alone he had hitherto voted 
 with the ministry. The regular opposi 
 tion were, upon the whole, more mode 
 rate than the landed aristocracy. Mr. 
 Fox approved of Lord North s proposi 
 tions, which, he reminded him, were in 
 substance the same as those which were 
 in vain brought forward by Mr. Burke 
 about three years before. He did not, 
 however, restrain himself from making 
 some severe animadversions on the 
 policy of the Premier, all whose argu 
 ments, he asserted, might be collected 
 
 into one point, his excuses all reduced 
 to one apology his total ignorance. 
 " He hoped," "exclaimed the indignant 
 orator, " he hoped, and was disap 
 pointed ; he expected a great deal, and 
 found little to answer his expectations. 
 He thought the Americans would have 
 submitted to his laws, and they resisted 
 them. He thought they would have 
 submitted to his armies, and they were 
 beaten by inferior numbers. He made 
 conciliatory propositions, and he thought 
 they would succeed, but they were re 
 jected. He appointed commissioners to 
 make peace, and he thought they had 
 powers ; but he found they could not 
 make peace, and nobody believed they 
 had any powers. He had said many 
 such things as he had thought fit in his 
 conciliatory propositions ; he thought it 
 a proper method of quieting the Ameri 
 cans upon the affair of taxation. If any 
 person should give himself the trouble 
 of reading that proposition, he would 
 find not one word of it correspondent to 
 the representation made of it by its 
 framer. The short account of it was, that 
 the noble lord in the proposition assured 
 the colonies, that when Parliament had 
 taxed them as much as they thought 
 
 ? roper, they would tax them no more." 
 n conclusion, however, Mr. Fox said 
 "that he would vote for the present 
 proposition, because it was much more 
 clear and satisfactory, for necessity had 
 caused him to speak plain." The conci 
 liatory bills, in their passage through 
 the two Houses, excited many ani 
 mated debates, in the course of which 
 Lord North was exposed to much 
 animadversion, which he seems to 
 have borne with great equanimity. At 
 length, all points relative to them being 
 settled by Parliament, they were sanc 
 tioned by the Royal assent. But the 
 urgency of danger would not allow mi 
 nisters to wait till they were passed into 
 a law ; and the same statesmen who had 
 a little time before treated the petitions 
 of the colonies with scorn and contempt, 
 hastened to communicate their proposi 
 tions, whilst yet in the shape of bills, to 
 the congress, in hopes that the adoption 
 on their part of a milder policy might 
 be met with a similar spirit of concilia 
 tion on the other side of the Atlantic. 
 These documents were despatched in such 
 haste, that they arrived at New York 
 in time to be presented by Sir Wil 
 liam Howe to the congress, before that 
 assembly had received intelligence of the 
 signature of their treaty of alliance with 
 
44 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 France. The American legislators did 
 not, however, hesitate as to the line of 
 conduct which in these circumstances 
 it became them to pursue. They per 
 emptorily rejected the proposals of Lord 
 North as insidious and unsatisfactory. 
 During the progress of the conciliatory 
 bills, and after their passing, frequent 
 and animated debates took place in both 
 houses of parliament, relative to the 
 foreign and domestic policy of the coun 
 try. In the House of Lords, the Duke 
 of Richmond took the lead in discussing 
 these subjects, and on the 7th of April 
 he made an impressive speech on the 
 state of the nation, in which he main 
 tained, that the salvation of the country 
 required the withdrawing of the British 
 troops from North America, and even 
 not obscurely hinted that, for the acqui 
 sition of peace, it would be politic to 
 agree to the independence of the colonies. 
 As his grace s sentiments on the latter 
 point were no secret, and as it was to be 
 expected that he would propound them 
 on this occasion, Lord Chatham, now 
 labouring under the weight of seventy 
 years, rendered more heavy by acute 
 bodily suffering, regardless of his infir 
 mities, attended in his place for the pur 
 pose of raising his voice against the 
 duke s proposition. " My Lords," ex 
 claimed the venerable orator, " I rejoice 
 that the grave has not closed upon me, 
 and that I am still alive to lift up my 
 voice against the dismemberment of this 
 ancient and most noble monarchy." He 
 then proceeded, in the most energetic 
 terms, to urge his auditors to the most 
 vigorous efforts against their new enemy, 
 the house of Bourbon ; and concluded 
 by calling upon them, if they must fall, 
 to fall like men. The Duke of Rich- 
 mond having replied to this speech, 
 Lord Chatham attempted to rise for the 
 purpose of rebutting his grace s argu 
 ments, and of proposing his own plan 
 for putting an end to the contest with 
 America, which is understood to have 
 been the establishment with the colonies, 
 upon the most liberal terms, of a kind 
 of federal union under one common 
 monarch. But the powers of nature 
 within him were exhausted : he fainted 
 under the effort which he made to give 
 utterance to his sentiments, and being 
 conveyed to his favourite seat of Hayes, 
 in Kent, he expired on the llth of May. 
 This firmness on the part of congress 
 augured ill for the success of the British 
 commissioners, Lord Carlisle, Mr. Eden, 
 and Governor Johnstone, who arrived 
 
 at New York on the 9th of June, and 
 without loss of time attempted to open 
 a negociation with the congress. Their 
 overtures were officially answered by 
 President Laurens in a letter, by which 
 he apprized them that the American 
 government were determined to main 
 tain their independence ; but were will 
 ing to treat for peace with his Britannic 
 Majesty on condition of his withdrawing 
 his fleets and armies from their country. 
 Thus foiled in their attempt at public 
 negociation, the commissioners had re 
 course to private intrigue. Governor 
 Johnstone, from his long residence in 
 America, was personally acquainted 
 with many of the leading members of 
 congress, to some of whom he addressed 
 letters, vaguely intimating the great 
 rewards and honours which awaited 
 those who would lend their aid in put 
 ting an end to the present troubles ; 
 and in one instance, he privately offered 
 to an individual, for his services on this 
 behalf, the sum of 10,000/. sterling, and 
 any place in the colonies in his majesty s 
 gift. These clandestine overtures of 
 the governor were uniformly rejected 
 with contempt, and the congress having 
 been apprized of them, declared them 
 direct attempts at corruption ; and re 
 solved that it was incompatible with 
 their honour to hold any correspondence 
 or intercourse with him. This reso 
 lution, which was adhered to, notwith 
 standing the explanations and denials of 
 Johnstone, and the disavowal of his pro 
 ceedings by his brother commission 
 ers, drew forth from these pacificators 
 an angry manifesto, in which they vir 
 tually threatened the Union with a war 
 of devastation, declaring that " if the 
 British colonies were to become an ac 
 cession to France, the laws of self-pre 
 servation would direct Great Britain to 
 render the accession of as little avail as 
 possible to the enemy." "Whilst con 
 gress gave notice that the bearers of 
 the copies of this manifesto were not 
 entitled to the protection of a flag, they 
 shewed how little they dreaded the im 
 pression which it might make, by giving 
 it an extensive circulation in their news 
 papers. 
 
 27. Arrival of the French Fleet. 
 
 General Howe spent the spring of the 
 year 1778 nearly in a state of inaction, 
 confining his operations to the sending 
 out of foraging and predatory parties, 
 which did some mischief to the country, 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 45 
 
 but little service to the royal cause. 
 From this lethargy he was roused by 
 the receipt of orders from the British 
 ministry, to evacuate Philadelphia with 
 out delay. These orders were sent 
 under the apprehension, that if a French 
 fleet should block up his squadron in 
 the Delaware, whilst Washington in 
 closed him on the land side, he would 
 share the fate of Burgoyne. On the 
 18th of June, therefore, he quitted the 
 Pennsylvanian capital, and crossed into 
 New Jersey, whither he was speedily 
 followed by Washington, who, keeping 
 a strict watch on his movements, had 
 taken measures to harass him on his 
 march, which was encumbered with 
 baggage. The American commander, 
 on his arrival at Princeton, hearing 
 that General Clinton, with a large divi 
 sion of the Brtiish forces, had quitted 
 the direct road to Staten Island, the 
 pla-ce of rendezvous appointed for Gene 
 ral Howe s army, and was marching for 
 Sandy Hook, sent a detachment in pur 
 suit of him, and followed with his whole 
 army to support it ; and as Clinton 
 made preparations to meet the meditated 
 attack, he sent forward reinforcements 
 to keep the British in check. These 
 reinforcements were commanded by 
 General Lee, whom Washington, on his 
 advancing in person, met in full retreat. 
 After a short and angry parley, Lee 
 again advanced, and was driven back ; 
 but Clinton s forces next encountering 
 the main body of the American army, 
 were repulsed in their turn, and taking 
 advantage of the night, the approach of 
 which in all probability saved them from 
 utter . discomfiture, they withdrew to 
 Sandy Hook, leaving behind them such 
 of their wounded as could not with 
 safety be removed. For his conduct on 
 this occasion, Lee was brought to a 
 court-martial, and sentenced to be sus 
 pended from any command in the 
 armies of the United States for the 
 term of one year. After this engage 
 ment Washington marched to White 
 Plains, which are situated a few miles 
 to the north-eastward of New York 
 Island. Here he continued unmolested 
 by the neighbouring enemy, from the 
 beginning of July, till the latter end of 
 autumn, when he retired to take up his 
 winter quarters in huts which he had 
 caused to be constructed at Middlebrook 
 in Jersey. 
 
 According to the prognostic of the 
 British ministry, the Count d Estaing, 
 with a fleet of twelve ships of the line and 
 
 three frigates, arrived off the mouth of 
 the Delaware in the month of July ; but 
 found to his mortification, that eleven 
 days before that period Lord Howe had 
 withdrawn from that river to the har 
 bour of New York. D Estaing imme 
 diately sailed for Sandy Hook ; but after 
 continuing at anchor there eleven days, 
 during which time he captured about 
 twenty English merchantmen, finding 
 that he could not work his line-of- battle 
 ships over the bar, by the advice of 
 General Washington he sailed for New 
 port, with a view of co-operating with 
 the Americans in driving the British 
 from Rhode Island, of which province 
 they had been in possession for upwards 
 of a year and a half. This project, how 
 ever, completely failed. Lord Howe ap 
 pearing with his fleet off Newport, the 
 French admiral came out of the harbour 
 to give him battle ; but, before the hostile 
 armaments could encounter, a violent 
 storm arose, which damaged both fleets 
 so much, that the British were compelled 
 to return to New York, whilst D Estaing 
 withdrew to refit in Boston harbour. 
 His retirement subjected the American 
 army, which had entered Rhode Island 
 under General Sullivan, to great peril ; 
 but by the skill of its commander, it was 
 withdrawn from the province with little 
 loss. Towards the latter end of this 
 year the British arms were signally suc 
 cessful in Georgia, the capital of which 
 province was taken by Lieutenant-Colo 
 nel Campbell, who conducted himself 
 with such prudence, and manifested so 
 conciliatory a spirit, that he made no 
 small advances in reconciling the Geor 
 gians to their ancient government. 
 
 The arrival of the French fleet had 
 filled the Americans with sanguine ex 
 pectations that they should now be able 
 to put an end to the war by some de 
 cisive stroke ; and in proportion to the 
 elevation of their hopes was the bitter 
 ness of their mortification, that the only 
 result of the co-operation of their ally 
 was the recovery of Philadelphia. On 
 the other hand, the British ministry 
 were grievously disappointed on learning 
 that the issue of this campaign, as far 
 as regarded their main army, was the 
 exchange by General Howe of his nar 
 row quarters in the Pennsylvanian capi 
 tal for the not much more extended ones 
 of New York island. Hitherto they 
 seem to have carried on the war under 
 the idea that the majority of the inhabi 
 tants of the colonies were favourably 
 disposed towards the royal government, 
 
46 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 and were only restrained from manifest 
 ing their loyalty by a faction whom it 
 would be easy with their assistance to 
 subdue, but from this period they ap 
 pear to have conducted their hostilities 
 in a spirit of desperation and revenge. 
 
 28. Campaign of 1779. 
 
 With a view of alarming the insurgent 
 colonies by subjecting them to the un 
 mitigated horrors of war, Sir Henry 
 Clinton, on the 10th of May, 1779, sent 
 an expedition into Virginia ; under the 
 command of Sir George Collyer and 
 General Matthews, who, landing at 
 Portsmouth, proceeded to Suffolk, which 
 town they reduced to ashes, and after 
 burning and capturing upwards of 130 
 vessels of different sizes, and devastating 
 the country in their line of march, sailed 
 back loaded with booty to New York. 
 About five weeks after their return, Go 
 vernor Tryon, having received orders to 
 attack the coast of Connecticut, landed 
 at East Haven, which he devoted to the 
 flames, in violation of his promise of 
 protection to all the inhabitants who 
 should remain in their homes. Thence 
 he proceeded to Fairfield and Nor walk, 
 which were given up to plunder, and 
 then destroyed. He effected this mis 
 chief with little loss in the space of ten 
 days, at the end of which time he re 
 turned to the British head-quarters to 
 make a report of his proceedings to the 
 commander-in-chief. Whilst this mode 
 of warfare was carrying on, Washington 
 could spare very few men for the defence 
 of the invaded districts. His attention was 
 engrossed by the main army of the Bri 
 tish, to keep which in check he posted 
 his forces at West Point, and on the 
 opposite back of the Hudson, pushing 
 his patrols to the vicinity of his adver 
 sary s lines. As the British occupied 
 with a strong garrison Stoney Point, 
 some miles to the south of his position, 
 he, on the 15th of July, despatched 
 General Wayne with a competent force 
 to dislodge them from that important 
 post. This attempt was crowned with 
 success. Wayne took the British works 
 by storm, and brought off 543 prisoners, 
 fifteen pieces of cannon, and a consider 
 able quantity of military stores. Wash 
 ington did not, however, think it pru 
 dent for the present to attempt to esta 
 blish himself at Stoney Point, and it was 
 speedily re-occupied by the British. 
 Another instance of the enterprising 
 boldness of the Americans soon after 
 
 occurred in the surprise of the British 
 garrison at Povvles-Hook, opposite to 
 New York, which was attacked on the 
 1 9th of July, by Major Lee, who stormed 
 the works and took 160 prisoners, whom 
 he brought safely to the American lines. 
 The joy which the Americans felt at the 
 success of these daring enterprises was, 
 however, damped by the failure of an 
 expedition undertaken by the state of 
 Massachusetts to dispossess the British 
 of a fort which they had erected at Pe- 
 nobscot in the district of Maine. They 
 here lost the whole of their flotilla, which 
 was destroyed or captured by Sir George 
 Collyer, whilst their land forces were 
 compelled to seek for safety by retreat 
 ing through the woods. 
 
 Spain having now declared war 
 against Great Britain, it was hoped by 
 sanguine politicians, favourable to the 
 cause of the new republic, that this addi 
 tional pressure of foreign foes would 
 compel the British ministry to withdraw 
 their forces from North America. But 
 the energies of the mother country were 
 roused in proportion to the increase of 
 her peril. Her fleets maintained their 
 wonted sovereignty over the ocean, and 
 her monarch was determined to strain 
 every nerve to reduce his revolted colo 
 nies to obedience ; and at this period 
 the ease with which the reduction of 
 Georgia had been effected, and the 
 advantages which it might atford in 
 making an attack upon the rest of the 
 southern states, induced his ministers to 
 renew their efforts in that quarter. 
 The back settlements, as well as those 
 of the Carolinas, abounded with enter 
 prising men of desperate fortunes, as also 
 with tories, who had been compelled, 
 by the persecution which they sustained 
 from the more ardent republicans, to 
 withdraw into these wilds from the more 
 settled part of the country. These 
 adventurers and loyalists having joined 
 the royal forces under the command of 
 Major-general Prescot, which had also 
 received reinforcements from Florida, 
 that officer found himself in a condition 
 to commence active operations. His 
 preparations filled the neighbouring 
 states with alarm. The American re 
 gular troops had, with few exceptions, 
 been sent from the Carolinas to rein 
 force the army of General Washington ; 
 and the only reliance of the republicans 
 in this portion of the Union rested on the 
 militia, the command of which was 
 delegated by congress to General Lin 
 coln. On inspecting his forces, Lincoln 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 47 
 
 found them ill equipped and very defi 
 cient in discipline. In these circum 
 stances the activity of the enemy did not 
 allow Jiim any time to train them. Soon 
 after his arrival at head-quarters, a 
 division of the royal army advanced 
 under the command of Major Gardiner 
 to take possession of Port Royal, in 
 South Carolina, but was driven back 
 with loss by General Moultrie. This 
 repulse for a while suspended the enter 
 prise of the British, who took post at 
 Augusta and Ebenezer, situated on the 
 Savannah River, which forms the 
 boundary between Georgia and South 
 Carolina. Here they waited in expec 
 tation of being joined by a body of 
 tories, who had been collected in the 
 upper parts of the latter province. But 
 these obnoxious allies, giving way to 
 long-smothered resentment, were guilty 
 of such atrocities on their march, that 
 the country rose upon them, and they 
 fell an easy prey to a detachment com 
 manded by Colonel Picken, sent to 
 intercept them at Kettle Creek. Five 
 of the prisoners taken on this occasion 
 were tried and executed for bearing 
 arms against the government of the 
 United States. This proceeding led to 
 acts of retaliation on the part of the 
 tories and the king s troops, which for 
 a long time gave in the southern states 
 additional horror to the miseries of war. 
 Emboldened by his success, Lincoln 
 sent an expedition into Georgia, with a 
 view of repressing the incursions of the 
 enemy, but his forces were surprised by 
 General Prevost, from whom they sus 
 tained so signal a defeat, that, of 1500 
 men, of which the expedition consisted, 
 only 450 returned to his camp. In this 
 emergency, the legislative body of South 
 Carolina invested their governor, Mr. 
 John Rutledge, and his council, with an 
 almost absolute authority, by virtue of 
 which a considerable force of militia 
 was embodied and stationed in the 
 centre of the state, to act as necessity 
 might require. Putting himself at the 
 head of these new levies, Lincoln again 
 determined to carry the war into the 
 enemy s quarters ; and, crossing the 
 Savannah near Augusta, marched into 
 Georgia, and - proceeded towards the 
 capital of that province. Prevost in 
 stantly took advantage of this move 
 ment to invade South Carolina, at the 
 head of 2400 men; and, driving Moul 
 trie before him, pushed forward towards 
 Charleston, At this time his supe 
 
 riority appeared to be so decisive, that 
 Moultrie s troops began to desert in 
 great numbers, and many of the inha 
 bitants, with real or affected zeal, 
 embraced the royal cause. On his 
 appearance before Charleston, the 
 garrison of that place, which consisted 
 of 3300 men, sent commissioners to 
 propose a neutrality on their part during 
 the remainder of the war. This pro 
 posal he rejected, and made preparations 
 to attack the town, which was respect 
 ably fortified. But, whilst he was 
 wasting time in negotiations, Lincoln 
 w as hastening from Georgia to the relief 
 of the place ; and on the near approach 
 of the American army, fearing to be 
 exposed to two fires, he withdrew his 
 forces across Ashley River, and en 
 camped on some small islands bordering 
 on the sea-coast. Here he was attacked 
 by Lincoln, who was, however, repulsed 
 with loss, in consequence of the failure 
 of a part of his combinations. Not 
 withstanding this success, the British 
 general did not think it advisable to 
 maintain his present position, but re 
 treated to Port Royal, and thence to 
 Savannah. 
 
 The Americans retired to Sheldon, 
 in the vicinity of Beaufort, which is 
 situated at about an equal distance from 
 Charleston and Savannah. Here they 
 remained in a state of tranquillity till the 
 beginning of September, when they were 
 roused from their inaction by the ap 
 pearance off the coast of the fleet of 
 D Estaing, who had proceeded towards 
 the close of the preceding year from 
 Boston to the West Indies, whence, 
 after capturing St. Vincent s and Gra 
 nada, he had returned to the assistance 
 of the allies of his sovereign. At the 
 sight of this armament, which consisted 
 of 20 sail of the line, and 13 frigates, 
 the republicans exulted in the sanguine 
 hope of capturing their enemies, or of 
 expelling them from their country. The 
 militia mustered with alacrity in con 
 siderable force, and marched under the 
 command of General Lincoln to the 
 vicinity of Savannah. Before their 
 arrival, D Estaing had summoned the 
 town, and had granted to General Pre 
 vost a suspension of hostilities for 
 24 hours, for the purpose of settling 
 the terms of a capitulation. But during 
 that interval the British commander 
 received a reinforcement of several 
 hundred men, who had forced their 
 way from Beaufort ; encouraged by 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 48 
 
 which seasonable aid, he determined to 
 hold out to the last extremity. The 
 allied forces, therefore, commenced the 
 siege of the place in form ; but D Es- 
 taing, finding that much time would be 
 consumed in regular approaches, and 
 dreading the hurricanes which prevail 
 on the southern coast of America at 
 that season, resolved on an assault. In 
 conjunction with Lincoln, he led his 
 troops to the attack with great gal 
 lantry ; but the steadiness of the British 
 won the day ; and, after having received 
 two slight wounds, he was driven back 
 with the loss of 637 of his countrymen, 
 and 200 of the Americans killed and 
 wounded. At the close of the engage 
 ment D Estaing retired to his ships, and 
 departed from the coast, whilst Lincoln 
 crossed the Savannah River, and re 
 turned, with his forces daily diminishing 
 by desertion, to South Carolina. In 
 proportion to the joy of the inhabitants 
 of the southern states at the arrival of 
 the French fleet, was their mortification 
 at the failure of their joint endeavours 
 to rid their provinces of an active 
 enemy. The brave were dispirited by 
 defeat, and the sanguine began to de 
 spair of the fortunes of their country. 
 Those, however, who thought more 
 deeply, took comfort from the consi 
 deration that the enemy had effected 
 little in the course of the campaign, 
 except the overrunning and plundering 
 of an extensive tract of territory, and 
 that they had been compelled to ter 
 minate their excursions by again con 
 centrating themselves in Savannah. 
 
 29. Siege and Capitulation of 
 Charleston, 12th May, 1780. 
 
 The events which had occurred in 
 South Carolina having persuaded Sir 
 Henry Clinton that the cause of inde 
 pendence was less firmly supported there 
 than in the northern states, he deter 
 mined to make that province the prin 
 cipal theatre of the war during the 
 ensuing campaign. Leaving, therefore, 
 the command of the royal army in New 
 York to General Knyphausen, on the 
 26th of December, 1779, he sailed from 
 that city with a considerable force, and, 
 after a stormy passage, on the llth of 
 the ensuing month he arrived at Tybee, 
 in Georgia, at the mouth of Savannah 
 River. "Hence he proceeded to Ashley 
 River, and encamped opposite to Charles 
 ton. On his arrival, the assembly of 
 
 the state of South Carolina broke up its 
 sitting, after having once more delegated 
 a dictatorial authority to Governor Rut- 
 ledge, who immediately issued his orders 
 for the assembling of the militia. These 
 commands were ill obeyed. The dis 
 asters of the last campaign had almost 
 extinguished the flame of patriotism ; 
 and each man seemed to look to his 
 neighbours for those exertions which 
 might have justly been expected from 
 himself. On reconnoitring the works of 
 Charleston, however, Sir Henry Clm- 
 ton did not think it expedient to attack 
 them till he had received reinforcements 
 from New York and Savannah, on the 
 arrival of which he opened the siege in 
 form. Charleston is situated on a 
 tongue of land, bounded on the west by 
 Ashley, and on the east by Cooper s, 
 Rivers. The approach to Ashley River 
 was defended by Fort Moultrie, erected 
 on Sullivan s Island ; and the passage 
 up Cooper s River was impeded by a 
 number of vessels, connected by cables 
 and chains, and sunk in the channel 
 opposite to the town. On the land side 
 the place was defended by a citadel and 
 strong lines, extending from one of 
 the above-mentioned rivers to the other. 
 Before these lines Clinton broke ground 
 on the 29th of March, and on the 10th 
 of April he had completed his first pa 
 rallel. On the preceding day, Admiral 
 Arbuthnot, who commanded the British 
 fleet, had passed Fort Moultrie with little 
 loss, and had anchored near the town. 
 About the 20th of April the British 
 commander received a second reinforce 
 ment of 3000 men ; and the place was 
 soon completely invested by land and 
 sea his third parallel being advanced 
 to the very edge of the American works. 
 General Lincoln, who commanded in 
 Charleston, would not have shut him 
 self up in the town, had he not con 
 fidently expected relief from the militia, 
 who had been called out by Governor 
 Rut ledge, and by whose assistance he 
 imagined that he could, if reduced 
 to extremity, have effected a retreat 
 by crossing Cooper s River. But the 
 few who, in this hour of difficulty, ad 
 vanced to his aid, were cut off or kept 
 in check; and the river. was possessed 
 by the enemy. In these distressful 
 circumstances, after sustaining a bom 
 bardment which set the town on fire in 
 different places, on the 12th of May he 
 surrendered on a capitulation, the prin 
 cipal terms of which were, that " the 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 49 
 
 militia were to be permitted to return to 
 their respective homes, as prisoners on 
 parole, and while they adhered to their 
 parole were not to be molested in person 
 or property." The same conditions were 
 also imposed on all the inhabitants of 
 the town, civil as well as military. 
 
 Sir Henry Clinton now addressed him 
 self to the important work of re-establish 
 ing the royal authority in the province ; 
 as a preliminary step to which, on the 
 1st of June, he issued a proclamation, 
 offering to the inhabitants at large, on 
 condition of their submission, pardon for 
 their past offences, a reinstatement in 
 their rights, and, what was of the most 
 weighty importance, exemption from tax 
 ation, except from their own legislature. 
 This proclamation was followed up by 
 the posting of garrisons in different parts 
 of the country, to protect the loyal and 
 to awe the disaffected, and by the march 
 of 2000 men towards North Carolina, 
 on whose advance the American forces, 
 who had tardily marched from that pro 
 vince to the relief of Charleston, re 
 treated with loss. Thus crowned with 
 success, Clinton, early in June, em 
 barked, with the principal part of his 
 forces, for New York, having delegated 
 the completion of the subjugation of 
 South Carolina to Lord Cornwallis, to 
 whom he apportioned, for that purpose, 
 an army of 4000 men. 
 
 $ 30. Defeat of Gates s Army, by Lord 
 
 Cornwallis, 1 5th August, 1780. 
 When Lord Cornwallis took the com 
 mand in South Carolina, the insurgents 
 had no army in the field within 400 
 miles of that province, and the great 
 body of the inhabitants had submitted 
 either as prisoners or as subjects ; and 
 had they been suffered to remain in this 
 state of quiet neutrality, they would have 
 been happy to abide in peace the issue 
 of the contest in the northern states. 
 But his Lordship s instructions did not 
 permit him to be contented with this 
 passive obedience, and he proceeded to 
 take measures to compel the South 
 Carolinians to take up arms against 
 their countrymen. With this view, he 
 issued a proclamation, absolving from 
 their parole all the inhabitants who had 
 bound themselves by that obligation, 
 and restoring them " to all the rights 
 and duties belonging to citizens." What 
 was meant by the ominous word " duties" 
 was explained by another part of the 
 proclamation, whereby it was declared 
 " that it was proper i or all persons to 
 
 take an active part in settling and secur 
 ing his majesty s government," and that 
 " whoever should neglect so to do should 
 be treated as rebels." The Carolinians 
 were indignant at this violation of the 
 terms of their submission. Many of 
 them resumed their arms ; and though 
 more, under the impression of fear, en 
 rolled themselves as subjects, they 
 brought to the royal cause a hollow 
 allegiance which could not be trusted in 
 the day of trial. A considerable num 
 ber quitted the province, and hastened 
 to join the army which congress was 
 raising for the purpose of wresting it 
 out of the hands of the enemy. 
 
 In organizing this force, congress had 
 to struggle with the greatest difficulties. 
 Their treasury was exhausted, and they 
 were at this time occupied in making an 
 equitable adjustment as to their paper 
 money, on the strength of which they 
 had undertaken the war, and which was 
 now depreciated to the amount of forty 
 for one that is, one silver dollar was 
 worth forty American paper dollars. 
 Whilst their currency was in this state 
 they were perpetually embarrassed in 
 their purchases of arms, clothing, and 
 stores ; and when they had raised the 
 men for the southern army, some time 
 elapsed before they could procure the 
 necessary funds to put them in motion. 
 These difficulties being at length over 
 come, the Maryland and Delaware 
 troops were sent forward, and began 
 their march in high spirits on learning 
 that the expedition, of which they formed 
 a part, was to be commanded by General 
 Gates. The hero of Saratoga, on joining 
 the army in North Carolina, was advised 
 to proceed to the southward by a cir 
 cuitous route, where he would find 
 plenty of provisions ; but, conceiving it 
 to be his duty to hasten with all speed 
 to the scene of action, he preferred the 
 straightforward road to Camden, which 
 led through a desert pine barren. In 
 traversing this dreary tract of country, 
 his forces were worn out with fatigue 
 and extenuated with hunger. The few 
 cattle which his commissariat had pro 
 vided having been consumed, his only 
 resource for meat was the lean beasts 
 which were accidentally picked up in 
 the woods. Meal and grain were also 
 very scarce ; and as substitutes for 
 bread, the soldiers were obliged to have 
 recourse to the green corn and to the 
 fruits which they met with on their line 
 of march. The consequence of this 
 unwonted diet was, that the army was. 
 E 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 50 
 
 {binned by dysentery and other diseases 
 usually caused by the heat of the wea 
 ther and by unwholesome food. The 
 soldiers at first bore these hardships 
 with impatience, and symptoms of dis 
 satisfaction and even of mutiny began 
 to appear amongst them. But by the 
 conciliatory exertions of the officers, who 
 shared in all the privations of the com 
 mon men, the spirit of murmuring was 
 repressed, and the troops pursued their 
 weary way with patience and even with 
 cheerfulness. On their arrival at a place 
 called Deep Creek, their distresses were 
 alleviated by a supply of good beef ac 
 companied by the distribution of half a 
 pound of Indian corn meal to each man. 
 Invigorated by this welcome refresh 
 ment, they proceeded to the cross-roads, 
 where they were joined by a respectable 
 body of militia under the command of 
 General Caswell. Though Gates was 
 aware that another body of militia were 
 hastening to his assistance from the 
 state of Virginia, he was prevented from 
 waiting for their arrival by want of pro 
 visions, and, after staying for one day 
 only at the cross-roads, finding that the 
 enemy intended to dispute his passage by 
 Lynch s Creek, he marched to the right 
 towards Clermont, where the British had 
 established a defensible post. On his ap 
 proach to the latter place, however, Lord 
 Rawdon, who commanded the advance 
 of the British, concentrated all his forces 
 at Camden, whilst Gates mustered the 
 whole of his army at Clermont, which is 
 distant from Camden about thirteen 
 miles. These events occurred on the 
 13th of August, and on the next day the 
 American troops were reinforced by a 
 body of 700 of the Virginia militia. At 
 the same time Gates received an express 
 from Colonel Sumpter, who reported to 
 him that he had been joined by a num 
 ber of the South Carolina militia, at his 
 encampment on the west side of the 
 Wateree, and that an escort of clothing, 
 ammunition, and other stores, was on its 
 way from Charleston to Camden, and 
 must of necessity, on its way to its des 
 tination, cross the Wateree at a ferry 
 about a mile from that place. On re 
 ceiving this intelligence, Gates sent for 
 ward a detachment of the Maryland line, 
 consisting of 100 regular infantry and a 
 company of artillery, with two brass 
 field-pieces, and 300 North Carolina 
 militia, all under the command of Lieu 
 tenant-Colonel Woodford, who was in 
 structed to join General Sumpter, and 
 assist him in intercepting the convoy. 
 
 At the same time General Gates made 
 preparations for advancing still nearer 
 Camden, in the expectation that if Lord 
 Rawdon did not abandon that post as he 
 had done that of Clermont, his supplies 
 would be cut off by the bodies of militia 
 which were expected to pour forth from 
 the upper counties, and he would thus 
 be compelled to a surrender. On reach 
 ing the frontier of South Carolina, Gates 
 had issued a proclamation, inviting the 
 inhabitants to join his standard, and of 
 fering an amnesty to such of them as, 
 under the pressure of circumstances, 
 had promised allegiance to the British 
 Government. Though this proclama 
 tion had not been without effect, it had 
 not called forth the numbers upon which 
 the American general had been led to 
 calculate; and, after the departure of 
 Lieutenant-Colonel Woodford s detach 
 ment, the abstract of the field-returns 
 submitted to him by his deputy adjutant- 
 general indicated no more than between 
 4000 or 5000 men as constituting his 
 disposable force. Gates, disappointed 
 as he was by the scantiness of these re 
 turns, determined to persevere in his 
 plan of offensive operations, and marched 
 about ten at night on the 15th of August 
 to within half a mile of Sander s Creek, 
 about half-way between his encampment 
 and Camden. Lord Cornwallis, who 
 the day before had repaired to his head 
 quarters at Camden, and had taken the 
 command of the British army, was also 
 resolved, though his forces amounted 
 only to 2000 mjen, of whom 1700 were 
 infantry and 300 cavalry, to attack the 
 enemy in their camp, and advancing for 
 that purpose, at half-past two in the 
 morning, encountered their advanced 
 parties near Sander s Creek. Here some 
 firing took place with various success ; 
 but on the whole the British had the 
 advantage in this night rencontre. Early 
 on the ensuing morning both armies 
 prepared for battle. On the side of the 
 Americans, the second Maryland bri 
 gade, under the command of General 
 Gist, occupied the right, which was 
 flanked by a morass; the Virginia militia 
 and the North Carolina infantry, also 
 covered by some boggy ground, were 
 posted on the left, whilst General Cas 
 well, with the North Carolina division 
 and the artillery, appeared in the centre. 
 A corps de reserve, under the orders of 
 General Smallwood, was posted about 
 three hundred yards in the rear of the 
 American line. In arranging the Bri 
 tish forces Lord Cornwallis delegated 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 the command of the right to Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Webster, who had at his dis 
 posal the 23d and the 33d regiments of 
 foot. The left was guarded by some 
 Irish volunteers, the infantry of the 
 legion, and part of Lieutenant-Colonel 
 Hamilton s North Carolina regiment, 
 under the command of Lord Rawdon. 
 The cavalry of the legion was stationed 
 in the rear, where also the 7 1st regiment 
 was stationed as a reserve. The re 
 spective armies being thus disposed, the 
 action began by the advance of 200 of 
 the British in front of the American 
 artillery, which received them with a 
 steady fire. Gates then commanded the 
 Virginia militia to advance under the 
 command of Colonel Stevens, who cheer 
 fully obeyed the orders of his com 
 mander- in-chief, and, when he had led 
 his men within firing distance, urged 
 them to charge the enemy with their 
 bayonets. This portion of the Ameri 
 can army did not, however, emulate the 
 gallantry of their leader. Lord Corn- 
 wallis, observing their movement, gave 
 orders to Lieutenant- Colonel Webster 
 to attack them. The British infantry 
 obeyed his lordship s commands with a 
 loud cheer. The American militia, inti 
 midated by this indication of determined 
 daring, were panic- struck, and the Vir 
 ginians and the Carolinians threw down 
 their arms and hastened from the field. 
 The right wing and the corps de reserve , 
 however, maintained their position, and 
 even gained ground upon the enemy; 
 but Lord Cornwallis, taking advan 
 tage of a favourable moment, charged 
 them with his cavalry, and put them 
 completely to the rout. The victors 
 captured the whole of the baggage 
 and artillery of the Americans, who 
 were pursued by the British cavalry for 
 the space of twenty miles ; and so com- 
 plete was their discomfiture, that on the 
 second day after the engagement Gates 
 could only muster 150 of his fugitive 
 soldiers at Charleston, a town in the 
 south of North Carolina, from whence 
 he retreated still farther north to Salis 
 bury, and thence to Hillsborough. The 
 sickliness of the season prevented Lord 
 Cornwallis from pursuing the broken 
 remains of the enemy s army ; but he 
 employed the leisure now afforded him 
 in inflicting vengeance on such of the 
 inhabitants of South Carolina as had 
 been induced, by the presence of Gates s 
 army, to declare in his favour. The 
 militia-men who had joined the repub 
 lican standard, and had fallen inly his 
 
 hands as prisoners, he doomed to the 
 gallows. The property of the fugitives, 
 and of the declared friends of independ- 
 ance, he confiscated. These acts, though 
 severe, were perhaps justifiable by the 
 strictness of the law. But neither in 
 law nor in honour could his lordship 
 justify the seizure of a number of the 
 principal citizens of Charleston, and 
 most of the military officers residing 
 there under the faith of the late capitula 
 tion, and sending them to St. Augustin. 
 
 Reduced to desperation by these inju 
 dicious severities, the bold and active 
 among the disaffected formed themselves 
 into independent bands, under different 
 chieftains, amongst whom Marion and 
 S umpter were distinguished by their spirit 
 of enterprise. These harassed the scat 
 tered parties of the British, several of 
 which they cut off; and by their move 
 ments the loyalists to the north of the 
 Carolinas were kept in check. Eight of 
 these chieftains having united theirforces, 
 attacked Major Ferguson, who had 
 been sent to the confines of the two pro 
 vinces to assemble the friends of the 
 British government, and killed or 
 wounded 250 of his new levies, and 
 took 800 prisoners, Ferguson himself 
 being amongst the slain. This success 
 was followed by important results : 
 Lord Cornwallis had marched into 
 North Carolina, in the direction of Sa 
 lisbury ; but when he heard of the defeat 
 and death of Ferguson, he retreated to 
 Winnsborough in the southern province, 
 being severely harassed in his retrograde 
 movement by the militia and the inhabi 
 tants ; and when he retired into winter- 
 quarters Sumpter still kept the field. 
 
 In the mean time General Gates had 
 collected another army, with which he 
 advanced to Charlotte. Here he re 
 ceived intelligence that congress had 
 resolved to supersede him and to submit 
 his conduct to a court of inquiry. Mor 
 tified as he was by the ingratitude of his 
 country, on the notification of this re 
 solve of the supreme power he dutifully 
 resigned his command. But on his way 
 home from Carolina, his feelings were 
 soothed by an address from the legisla 
 ture of Virginia, assuring him that " the 
 remembrance of his former glorious ser 
 vices could not be obliterated by any 
 reverse of fortune." 
 
 31 . Arrival of the French Auxiliaries 
 under Rochambeau, 10th July, 1780. 
 
 Whilst these events were occurring 
 in the southern states, General Wash- 
 E 2 
 
52 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 ington was obliged to confine himself to 
 the irksome and inglorious task of 
 watching, from his encampment at 
 Morristovvn, the motions of the British 
 on New York Island, and of restraining 
 their incursions into the adjacent coun 
 try. Though the army opposed to him 
 was lessened by the detachment which 
 Sir Henry Clinton led into South Caro 
 lina, his own forces were proportionably 
 weakened by the reinforcements which 
 it was necessary for him to send to the 
 American army in the same quarter ; 
 and never did distress press more heavily 
 upon him. The depreciation of the cur 
 rency was at that time so great, that four 
 months pay of a private would not pur 
 chase a single bushel of wheat. His 
 camp was sometimes destitute of meat, 
 and sometimes of bread. As each state 
 provided for its own quota of troops, no 
 uniformity could be established in the 
 distribution of provisions. This circum 
 stance aggravated the general discontent, 
 and a spirit of mutiny began to display 
 itself in two of the Connecticut regi 
 ments, which were with difficulty re 
 strained from forcing their way home at 
 the point of the bayonet. Of these dis 
 contents the enemy endeavoured to take 
 advantage, by circulating in the Ame 
 rican camp proclamations offering the 
 most tempting gratifications to such of 
 the continental troops as should desert 
 the republican colours and embrace the 
 royal cause. But these offers were un 
 availing ; mutinous as they were, the 
 malcontents abhorred the thought of 
 joining the enemies of their country; 
 and on the seasonable arrival of a fresh 
 supply of provisions, they cheerfully re 
 turned to their duty. Soon after this, 
 when General Knyphausen, who com 
 manded the British forces in the absence 
 of Sir Henry Clinton, made an irruption 
 into Jersey, on the 16th of June, the 
 whole American army marched out to 
 oppose him; and though he was rein 
 forced by Sir Henry Clinton, who during 
 this expedition had arrived from Charles 
 ton, he was compelled to measure back 
 his steps. Both the advance and retreat 
 of the German were marked by the de 
 vastation committed by his troops, who 
 burnt the town of Springfield and most 
 of the houses o*h their line of march. 
 
 Alarmed by the representations made 
 by General Washington, of the destitute 
 condition of his army, congress sent 
 three members of their body with in 
 structions to inquire into the condition of 
 their forces, and with authority to re 
 
 form abuses. These gentlemen fully 
 verified the statements of the com- 
 mander-in-chief. No sooner was this 
 fact known in the city of Philadelphia, 
 than a subscription was set on foot for 
 the relief of the suffering soldiers, which 
 soon amounted to 300,000 dollars. This 
 sum was entrusted to the discretion of 
 a well chosen committee, who appro 
 priated it to the purchase of provisions 
 for the troops. The three commission 
 ers also applied themselves diligently to 
 the task of recruiting and reorganizing 
 the army. They prescribed to each 
 state the quota of forces which it was to 
 contribute towards the raising of 35,000 
 men, their deficiency in regulars being 
 to be supplied by draughts from their 
 respective militia. The states of New 
 England, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, 
 promptly listened to the call of their 
 country, and made extraordinary efforts 
 to furnish their several quotas of re 
 cruits. The other members of the union 
 exerted themselves to the best of their 
 ability; and though the general result 
 of these exertions did not produce the 
 number of troops which was deemed re 
 quisite for the public service, more could 
 not, in such circumstances, have been 
 well expected. 
 
 The congress were the more earnest 
 in their wishes to put their army on a 
 respectable footing, as they were in ex 
 pectation of the arrival of a body of 
 auxiliary forces from France. This wel 
 come aid appeared off Rhode Island on 
 the 10th of July, 1780, on which day Mon 
 sieur Ternay sailed into the harbour of 
 Newport with a squadron of seven sail 
 of the line, five frigates, and five schoon 
 ers, convoying a fleet of transports 
 having on board 6000 men, under the 
 command of the Count de Rochambeau. 
 Admiral Arbuthnot, who had under his 
 command, at New York, only four sail 
 of the line, on hearing of the arrival of 
 the French at Rhode Island, was appre 
 hensive of being attacked by their supe 
 rior force. But he was soon relieved 
 from his fears by the vigilance of the 
 British ministry, who, on the sailing of 
 the French fleet from Europe, had sent 
 to his assistance Admiral Graves, with 
 six ships of the line. On receiving this 
 reinforcement, he sailed for Rhode 
 Island for the purpose of encountering 
 the French squadron, whilst Sir Henry 
 Clinton proceeded with 8000 men to 
 the north of Long Island, for the pur 
 pose of landing on the opposite part of 
 the continent, and attacking their land 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 forces. But the British admiral found 
 the enemy s ships so well secured by 
 batteries and other land fortifications, 
 that he was obliged to content himself 
 with blocking them up in their harbour; 
 and Clinton, receiving intelligence that 
 General Washington was preparing to 
 take advantage of his absence by mak 
 ing an attack upon New York, hastened 
 back to the relief of that place. 
 
 $ 32. Treason of Arnold, and Death of 
 Andre. 
 
 Washington, on the retreat of Gene 
 ral Clinton, withdrew to West Point, 
 an almost impregnable position, situated 
 about fifty miles to the northward of 
 New York, on the Hudson River, by 
 means of which he kept up a communi 
 cation between the eastern and southern 
 states; and having occasion, towards 
 the end of the month of September, to 
 go to Rhode Island to hold a conference 
 with the French admiral and Count 
 Rochambeau, he left the command of 
 this important post to General Arnold, 
 unconscious that in so doing he en 
 trusted the fortunes of the infant repub 
 lic to a traitor. Arnold was brave and 
 hardy, but dissipated and profligate. 
 Extravagant in his expenses, he had 
 involved himself in debts, and having 
 had, on frequent occasions, the adminis 
 tration of considerable sums of the pub 
 lic money, his accounts were so unsatis 
 factory, that he was liable to an im 
 peachment on charges of peculation. 
 Much had been forgiven indeed, and 
 more would probably have been forgiven, 
 to his valour and military skill. But 
 alarmed by the terrors of a guilty con 
 science, he determined to get rid of 
 pecuniary responsibility by betraying 
 his country ; and accordingly entered 
 into a negociation with Sir Henry Clin 
 ton, in which he engaged, when a pro 
 per opportunity should present itself, to 
 make such a disposition of his troops as 
 would enable the British to make them 
 selves masters of West Point. The 
 details of this negociation were con 
 ducted by Major Andre, the adjutant- 
 general of the British army, with whom 
 Arnold carried on a clandestine corre 
 spondence, addressing him under the 
 name of Anderson, whilst he himself 
 assumed that of Gustavus. To facilitate 
 their communications, the Vulture sloop 
 of war was moved near to West Point, 
 and the absence of Washington, seeming 
 to present a fit opportunity for the final 
 
 53 
 
 arrangement of their plans, on the night 
 of the 21st of September, Arnold sent a 
 boat to the Vulture to bring Andre on 
 shore. That officer landed in his uni 
 form between the posts of the two armies, 
 and was met by Arnold, with whom 
 he held a conference which lasted till 
 day-break, when it was too late for 
 him to return to the vessel. In this 
 extremity, unfortunately for himself, he 
 allowed Arnold to conduct him within 
 one of the American posts, where he lay 
 concealed till the next night. In the 
 meantime the Vulture, having been in 
 commoded by an American battery, had 
 moved lower down the river, and the 
 boatmen now refused to convey the 
 stranger on board her. Being cut off 
 from this way of escape, Andre was 
 advised to make for New York by land ; 
 and, for this purpose, he was furnished 
 with a disguise, and a passport signed 
 by Arnold, designating him as John 
 Anderson. He had advanced in safety 
 near the British lines, when he was 
 stopped by three New York militia-men. 
 Instead of showing his pass to these 
 scouts, he asked them " where they be 
 longed to ? " and, on their answering 
 " to below," meaning to New York, 
 with singular want of judgment, he 
 stated that he was a British officer, and 
 begged them to let him proceed without 
 delay. The men, now throwing off the 
 mask, seized him ; and, notwithstanding 
 his offers of a considerable bribe if they 
 would release him, they proceeded to 
 search him, and found upon his person 
 papers which gave fatal evidence of his 
 own culpability and of Arnold s trea 
 chery. These papers were in Arnold s 
 handwriting, and contained exact and 
 detailed returns of the state of the forces, 
 ordnance, and defences of West Point 
 and its dependencies, with the artillery 
 orders, critical remarks on the works, 
 an estimate of the number of men that 
 were ordinarily on duty to man them, 
 and the copy of a state of matters that 
 had, on the sixth of the month, been laid 
 before acouncilof war by the commander- 
 in-chief. When Andre was conducted by 
 his captors to the quarters of the com 
 mander of the scouting parties, still as 
 suming the name of Anderson, he re 
 quested permission to write to Arnold, 
 to inform him of his detention. This 
 request was inconsiderately granted ; 
 and the traitor, being thus apprised of 
 his peril, instantly made his escape. At 
 this moment Washington arriving at 
 West Point, was made acquainted with 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 the whole affair. Having taken the 
 necessary precautions for the security of 
 his post, he referred the case of the 
 prisoner to a court-martial, consisting 
 of fourteen general officers. Before this 
 tribunal Andre appeared with steady 
 composure of mind. He voluntarily 
 confessed all the facts of his case. Being 
 interrogated by the Board with respect 
 to his conception of his coming on 
 shore under the sanction of a flag, he 
 ingenuously replied, that " if he had 
 landed under that protection he might 
 have returned under it." The court, 
 having taken all the circumstances of 
 his case into consideration, unani 
 mously concurred in opinion " that he 
 ought to be considered as a spy ; and 
 that, agreeably to the laws and usages 
 of nations, he ought to suffer death." 
 Sir Henry Clinton, first by amicable ne 
 gotiation, and afterwards by threats, 
 endeavoured to induce the American 
 commander to spare the life of his 
 friend; but Washington did not think 
 this act of mercy compatible with his 
 duty to his country, and Andre was 
 ordered for execution. He had peti 
 tioned to be allowed to die a soldier s 
 death; but this request could not be 
 granted. Of this circumstance, how 
 ever, he was kept in ignorance, till he 
 saw the preparations for his final catas 
 trophe, when, finding that the bitterness 
 of his destiny was not to be alleviated 
 as he wished, he exclaimed, " It is but a 
 momentary pang ! " and calmly submit 
 ted to his fate. 
 
 Soon after this sad occurrence, Wash 
 ington, in writing to a friend, expressed 
 himself in the following terms : " Andre 
 has met his fate, and with that fortitude 
 which was to be expected from an ac 
 complished gentleman and a gallant offi 
 cer ; but I am mistaken if Arnold is 
 not undergoing, at this time, the tor 
 ments of a mental hell." Whatever 
 might be the feelings of the traitor, his 
 treason had its reward. He was imme 
 diately appointed brigadier-general in 
 the service of the King of Great Bri 
 tain ; and, on his promotion, he had the 
 folly and presumption to publish an 
 address, in which he avowed, that, 
 being dissatisfied with the alliance be 
 tween the United States and France, 
 " he had retained his arms and com 
 mand for an opportunity to surrender 
 them to Great Britain." This address 
 was exceeded in meanness and insolence 
 by another, in which he invited his late 
 companions in arms to follow his ex 
 
 ample. The American soldiers read 
 these manifestoes with scorn ; and so 
 odious did the character of a traitor, as 
 exemplified in the conduct of Arnold, 
 become in their estimation, that " de 
 sertion totally ceased amongst them 
 at this remarkable period of the 
 war*." 
 
 Circumstances, however, took place 
 soon after the discovery of Arnold s trea 
 chery, which led that renegade to enter 
 tain delusive hopes that the army ]of 
 Washington would disband itself. The 
 Pennsylvanian troops now serving- on 
 the Hudson had been enlisted on the am 
 biguous terms of " serving three years, 
 or during the continuance of the war." 
 As the three years from the date of 
 their enrolment were expired, they 
 claimed their discharge, which was re 
 fused by their officers, who maintained 
 that the option of the two above-men 
 tioned conditions rested with the state. 
 Wearied out with privations, and in 
 dignant at what they deemed an attempt 
 to impose upon them, the soldiers flew 
 to arms, deposed their officers, and 
 under the guidance of others whom they 
 elected in their place, they quitted Mor- 
 ristown and marched to Princeton. 
 Here they were solicited by the most 
 tempting offers on the part of some 
 emissaries sent to them by Sir Henry 
 Clinton, to put themselves under the 
 protection of the British government. 
 But they were so far from listening to 
 these overtures, that they arrested Sir 
 Henry s agents, and, their grievances 
 having been redressed by the interposi 
 tion of a committee of congress, they 
 returned to their duty, and the British 
 spies, having been tried by a board of 
 officers, were condemned to death and 
 executed. 
 
 A similar revolt of a small body of the 
 Jersey line was quelled by the capital 
 punishment of two of the ringleaders of 
 the mutineers. The distresses which 
 were the chief cause of this misconduct 
 of the American soldiery were princi 
 pally occasioned by the depreciation of 
 the continental currency ; which evil, at 
 this period, effected its own cure, as the 
 depreciated paper was by common con 
 sent, and without any act of the legis 
 lature, put out of use ; and by a season 
 able loan from France, and by the revi 
 val of trade with the French and Spa 
 nish West Indies, its place was speedily 
 supplied by hard money. 
 
 * Kamsay. 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 55 
 
 $ 33. Campaign of 1781 Defeat of 
 
 Greene, by Lord Cornwallis. 
 Though the Spaniards and the Dutch 
 had united with France in hostility 
 against Britain, she, with dauntless 
 spirit, every where made head against 
 her foreign enemies; and his Ma 
 jesty s ministers were now, still more 
 than ever, determined, by an extension 
 of combined measures, to reduce the 
 North American provinces to submis 
 sion. The plan of the campaign of 1 78 1 , 
 accordingly, comprehended active ope 
 rations in the states of New York, 
 Georgia, South Carolina, and Virginia. 
 The invasion of the last mentioned 
 province was entrusted to Arnold, who, 
 taking with him a force of about 1600 
 men, and a number of armed vessels, 
 sailed up the Chesapeak, spreading 
 terror and devastation wherever he 
 came. An attempt to intercept him was 
 made by the French fleet, which sailed 
 from Rhode Island for that purpose; 
 but after an indecisive engagement with 
 the squadron of Admiral Arbuthnot, off 
 the capes of Virginia, was obliged to re 
 turn to Newport, leaving the invaded 
 province open to the incursions of the 
 British, who, making occasional ad 
 vances into the country, destroyed an 
 immense quantity of public stores, and 
 enriched themselves with an extensive 
 plunder of private property, at the same 
 time burning all the shipping in the 
 Chesapeak and- its tributary streams, 
 which they could not conveniently carry 
 away as prizes. The Carolinas also suf 
 fered severely by the scourge of war. 
 When Gates was superseded in the com 
 mand of the American forces in that 
 district, he was succeeded by General 
 Greene, to whose charge he transferred 
 the poor remains of his army, which were 
 collected at Charlotte, in North Caro 
 lina, and which amounted only to 2000 
 men. These troops were imperfectly 
 armed and badly clothed; and such 
 was the poverty of their military chest, 
 that they were obliged to supply them 
 selves with provisions by forced requi 
 sitions made upon the inhabitants of the 
 adjacent country. In these circum 
 stances, to encounter the superior num 
 bers of the enemy in pitched battle would 
 have been madness. Greene, therefore, 
 resolved to carry on the war as a par 
 tisan officer, and to avail himself of every 
 opportunity of harassing the British in 
 detail. The first enterprise which he 
 undertook in prosecution of this system 
 was eminently successful. Understand 
 
 ing that the inhabitants of the district of 
 Ninety- six, who had submitted to the 
 royal authority, were severely harassed by 
 the licensed acts of plunder committed 
 by the king s troops and the loyalists, 
 he sent General Morgan into that quar 
 ter with a small detachment, which was, 
 on its arrival, speedily increased by the 
 oppressed countrymen, who were burn 
 ing for revenge. Lord Cornwallis, who 
 was, at this moment, on the point of 
 invading North Carolina, no sooner 
 heard of this movement, than he sent 
 Lieutenant-Colonel Tarleton with 1100 
 men, to drive Morgan out of the district. 
 Tarleton was an excellent partisan offi 
 cer, and had gained great reputation by 
 his superior activity, and by his success 
 in various rencounters with detached par 
 ties of the republican troops. This suc 
 cess, however, and the superiority of his 
 numbers to those of Morgan s forces, 
 caused him too much to despise the 
 enemy. In pursuance of Lord Corn- 
 wallis s orders, he marched in quest of 
 his antagonist, and, on the evening of 
 the 16th of January, 1781, he arrived at 
 the ground which General Morgan had 
 quitted but a few hours before. At two 
 o clock the next morning he recom 
 menced his pursuit of the enemy, march 
 ing with extraordinary rapidity through 
 a very difficult country, and at daylight 
 he discovered the enemy in his front. 
 From the intelligence obtained from 
 prisoners who were taken by his scout 
 ing parties, he learned that Morgan 
 awaited his attack at a place called the 
 Cowpens, near Pacolet River. Here the 
 American commander had drawn up 
 his little army, two-thirds of which con 
 sisted of militia, in two lines, the first of 
 which was advanced about two hundred 
 yards before the second, with orders to 
 form on the right of the second in case 
 the onset of the enemy should oblige 
 them to retire. The rear was closed by 
 a small body of regular cavalry, and 
 about forty- five mounted militia men. 
 On the sight of this array, Tarleton 
 ordered his troops to form in line. But 
 before this arrangement was effected, 
 that officer, obeying the dictates of 
 valour rather than those of prudence, 
 commenced the attack, heading his 
 squadron in person. The British ad 
 vanced with a shout, and assailed the 
 enemy with a well-directed discharge of 
 musketry. The Americans reserved 
 their fire till the British were within 
 forty or fifty yards of their ranks, and 
 then poured among them a volley which 
 
56 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 did considerable execution. The British, 
 however, undauntedly pushed on and 
 swept the militia off the field. They 
 then assailed the second line, and com 
 pelled it to fall back on the cavalry. 
 Here the Americans rallied, and re 
 newed the fight with desperate valour : 
 charging the enemy with fixed bay 
 onets, they drove back the advance, and 
 following up their success, overthrew 
 the masses of their opponents as they 
 presented themselves in succession, and 
 finally won a complete and decisive 
 victory. Tarleton fled from the bloody 
 field, leaving his artillery and baggage in 
 the possession of the enemy. His loss 
 amounted to 300 killed and wounded, 
 and 500 prisoners, whilst that of the Ame 
 ricans was only twelve killed and sixty 
 wounded. Immediately after the action, 
 General Greene sent off his prisoners, 
 under a proper guard, in the direction 
 of Virginia ; and as soon as he had made 
 the requisite arrangements, he followed 
 them with his little army. On receiving 
 intelligence of Tarleton s disaster, Lord 
 Cornwallis hastened in pursuit of the 
 retreating enemy, and forced his marches 
 with such effect, that he reached the 
 Catawba River on the evening of the 
 day on which Morgan had crossed it ; 
 but here his progress was for a short 
 while impeded, as a heavy fall of rain 
 had rendered the stream impassable. 
 When the waters subsided, he hurried 
 on, hoping to overtake the fugitives be 
 fore they had passed the Yadkin ; but 
 when he had arrived at that river, he 
 found to his mortification that they had 
 crossed it, and had secured the craft and 
 boats which they had used for that pur 
 pose on the eastern bank. He therefore 
 marched higher up the stream, till he 
 found the river fordable. Whilst he 
 was employed in this circuitous move 
 ment, General Greene had united his 
 forces with those of Morgan, at Guild- 
 ford Court-house. Still, however, the 
 forces of the American commander were 
 so inferior to those of his pursuers, that, 
 not daring to risk an engagement, he 
 hastened straight onwards to the River 
 Dan ; whilst Lord Cornwallis, traversing 
 the upper country, where the streams 
 are fordable, proceeded, in the hope that 
 he might gain upon the enemy, so as to 
 overtake them, in consequence of their 
 being obstructed in their progress by 
 the deep water below. But so active 
 was Greene, and so fortunate in finding 
 the means of conveyance, that he 
 crossed the Dan into Virginia, with his 
 
 whole army, artillery, and baggage. So 
 narrow, however, was his escape, that 
 the van of Cornwallis s army arrived in 
 time to witness the ferrying over of his 
 rear. 
 
 Mortified as Lord Cornwallis was by 
 being thus disappointed of the fruits of 
 this toilsome march, he consoled him 
 self by the reflection that, the American 
 army being thus driven out of North 
 Carolina, he was master of that province, 
 and was in a condition to recruit his 
 forces by the accession of the loyalists, 
 with whom he had been led to believe 
 that it abounded. He therefore sum 
 moned all true subjects of his Majesty 
 to repair to the royal standard, which 
 he had erected at Hillsborough. This 
 experiment had little success. The 
 friends of government were in general 
 timid, and diffident of his lordship s 
 power ultimately to protect them. Their 
 terrors were confirmed, when they 
 learned that the indefatigable Greene had 
 re-crossed the Dan, and had cut off a 
 body of Tories who were on their march 
 to join the royal forces, and that he had 
 compelled Tarleton to retreat from the 
 frontier of the province to Hillsborough. 
 For seven days, the American com 
 mander manoeuvred within ten miles of 
 the British camp ; and" at the end of that 
 time, having received reinforcements 
 from Virginia, he resolved to give Lord 
 Cornwallis battle. The engagement 
 took place on the 15th of March, at 
 Guildford. The American army con 
 sisted of 4400 men, and the British of 
 only 2400; but notwithstanding this 
 disparity of numbers, disciplined valour 
 prevailed. The American militia gave 
 way with precipitation, and though the 
 regulars fought with spirit, they were 
 obliged to retreat, but only to the dis 
 tance of three miles. Lord Cornwallis 
 kept the field, but he had suffered such 
 loss in the action, that he was unable 
 to follow up his victory, and soon after 
 wards marched towards Wilmington, 
 leaving behind him his sick and wound 
 ed. On this march he was pursued by 
 Greene as far as Deep River. 
 
 34, Campaign of 1781 continued 
 Defeat of Lord Rawdon, by General 
 Greene. 
 
 At Wilmington, Lord Cornwallis made 
 a halt for three days, for the pur 
 pose of giving his troops some rest ; 
 and at the end of that time, resolving 
 to carry the war into Virginia, he 
 marched to Petersburg!!, an inland town 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 of that province, situated on James 
 River. Hither it was expected that he 
 would have been followed by the enemy ; 
 but Greene, being aware that his lord 
 ship had by this movement approached 
 nearer to the main army of the Ameri 
 cans, and confident that his motions 
 would be closely watched by the Vir 
 ginia militia, after mature consideration 
 adopted the bold measure of again pene 
 trating into South Carolina. That pro 
 vince was in the military occupation of 
 the British, who were, indeed, harassed 
 by the partisan troops of Marion and 
 Sumpter, but were in such apparent 
 strength, that there was reason to fear 
 that the republicans, if not aided by fur 
 ther support, would abandon the cause 
 of their country in despair. The British 
 had formed chains of posts, which, ex 
 tending from the sea to the western ex 
 tremity of the province, maintained a 
 mutual communication by strong pa 
 trols and bodies of horse. The first of 
 these lines of defence was established on 
 the Wateree, on the banks of which river 
 the British occupied the well-fortified 
 town of Camden, and Fort Watson, situ 
 ated between that place and Charleston. 
 The attack of the fort Greene entrusted 
 to Marion, who soon compelled its gar 
 rison to surrender on capitulation. In 
 encountering Lord Rawdon near Cam- 
 den, Greene was not so fortunate. In 
 consequence of the unsteadiness of a 
 few of his troops, he was defeated, but 
 moved off the ground in such good order, 
 that he saved his artillery, and though 
 wounded, he took up a position, at the dis 
 tance of about five miles from Camden, 
 from which he sent out parties to inter 
 cept the supplies, of which he was ap 
 prized that his antagonist was in the 
 utmost need. In consequence of the vigi 
 lance of Greene in cutting off his re 
 sources, and of the loss of Fort Watson, 
 which had been the link of his communi 
 cation with Charleston, Lord Rawdon, 
 after having in vain endeavoured to bring 
 on a second general engagement with the 
 Americans, was reduced to the necessity 
 of destroying a part of his baggage, and 
 retreating to the south side of the River 
 Santee. This retrograde movement en 
 couraged the friends of congress to re 
 sume their arms, and hasten to reinforce 
 the corps of Marion, who speedily made 
 himself master of the British posts on 
 the Congaree, the garrisons of which 
 were in general made prisoners, whilst 
 those which escaped that fate by a timely 
 evacuation of their positions, made good 
 
 their retreat to the capital of the pro 
 vince. Savannah River now presented 
 the last line of defence held by the Bri 
 tish, who there possessed the town of 
 Augusta and the post of Ninety-six. 
 The former of those places was attacked 
 by Lieutenant-Colonel Lee, and after a 
 defence of unprecedented obstinacy on 
 the part of its commander, Colonel 
 Brown, it surrendered on honourable 
 terms. The important post of Ninety- 
 six, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel 
 Cruger, was strongly fortified, and de 
 fended by 500 men. On reconnoitring 
 the place, General Greene, whose army 
 was not much more numerous than the 
 garrison, determined to besiege it in 
 form. He accordingly broke ground on 
 the 25th of May, and pushed his works 
 with such vigour, that he had approached 
 within six yards of the ditch, and had 
 erected a mound thirty feet high, from 
 which his riflemen poured their shot 
 with fatal aim upon the opposite para 
 pet of the enemy, who were hourly ex 
 pected to beat a parley. But this bright 
 prospect of success was at once over 
 clouded by the arrival of intelligence 
 that Lord Rawdon, having received re 
 inforcements from Ireland, was hasten 
 ing to the relief of his countrymen at the 
 head of 2000 men. In this extremity, 
 Greene made a desperate effort to carry 
 the place by assault, but was repulsed, 
 and evacuating the works which he had 
 constructed with so much labour, he 
 retreated to the northward across the 
 Saluda, from whence he was chased by 
 Lord Rawdon beyond the Ennoree. 
 
 The feelings of the American com 
 mander on seeing the fruit of his toils 
 thus suddenly and unexpectedly torn 
 from his grasp, must have been of a 
 most agonising nature. But Greene 
 was gifted with an elasticity of spirit 
 which prevented him from yielding to 
 the pressure of misfortune, and his op 
 ponents seldom found him more danger 
 ous than immediately after suffering a 
 defeat. On the present occasion, when 
 some of his counsellors, in the moment 
 of despondency, advised him to retreat 
 into Virginia, he firmly replied, that " he 
 would save South Carolina, or perish in 
 the attempt." On maturely deliberating 
 on the object of the campaign, and on 
 the relative situation of himself and the 
 enemy, he was well aware that though 
 Lord Rawdon was superior to him in 
 the number as well as the discipline of 
 his troops ; yet, if his lordship kept his 
 army concentrated, he could afford no 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 encouragement, or even protection, to 
 the royalists, and that if it were divided, 
 it might be beaten in detail. As he 
 expected, the British commander, find 
 ing that he could not bring him to an 
 engagement, took the latter course, 
 and withdrawing a detachment from 
 Ninety- six, re-established himself on 
 the line of the Congaree. Within 
 two days, however, after his arrival at 
 the banks o f that river, he was asto 
 nished to find his indefatigable enemy 
 in his front, with numbers so recruited, 
 that he thought it prudent to decline the 
 battle which was offered him, and re 
 treated to Orangeburgh, where he was 
 joined by Lieutenant-Colonel Cruger, 
 who, in the present circumstances, had 
 thought it expedient to evacuate his 
 post at Ninety-six. On the junction of 
 the forces of these two commanders, 
 Greene retired to the heights above 
 Santee, from whence he sent his active 
 coadjutors, Marion and Sumpter, with 
 strong scouting parties, to interrupt the 
 communication between Orangeburgh 
 and Charleston. As a last effort to 
 maintain their influence in the centre of 
 the province, the British took post in 
 force near the confluence of the Wa- 
 teree and the Congaree ; but on the 
 approach of Greene, they retreated for 
 the space of forty miles, and waited his 
 threatened attack at the Entan Springs. 
 Here an obstinate engagement took 
 place, in which the British were de 
 feated with the loss of 1100 men, and 
 were compelled to abandon the province 
 to the republicans, and take shelter 
 in Charleston. Of all the incidents of 
 the American revolutionary war, the 
 most brilliant is this campaign of Ge 
 neral Greene. At the head of a beaten 
 army, undisciplined, and badly equipped, 
 he entered the province of South Ca 
 rolina, which was occupied, from its 
 eastern to its western extremity, by an 
 enemy much superior to him in num 
 bers, in appointments, and in military 
 experience. But by his genius, his 
 courage, and his perseverance, he broke 
 through their lines of operation, drove 
 them from post to post, and though 
 defeated in the field, he did not cease to 
 harass them in detail, till he had driven 
 them within the fortifications of the 
 capital. Well did he merit the gold 
 medal and the British standard be 
 stowed upon him by a vote of congress 
 for his services on this occasion. By 
 his successes he revived the drooping 
 spirits of the friends of independence in 
 
 the southern states, and prepared the 
 way for the final victories which awaited 
 the arms of his country in Virginia, and 
 which led to the happy termination of 
 the war. 
 
 Whilst the American commander was 
 enjoying the honours bestowed upon him 
 by his grateful countrymen as the just 
 meed of his valour and skill in arms, 
 Lord Rawdon, soon after his return to 
 Charleston, by an example of severity 
 brought odium on the British cause, 
 and fired the breasts of the continentals 
 with indignation. Amongst the Ame 
 rican officers who distinguished them 
 selves in the defence of South Carolina 
 was Colonel Haynes, a gentleman of 
 fortune, and of considerable influence 
 in his neighbourhood. After the capi 
 tulation of Charleston, Haynes volun 
 tarily surrendered himself to the British 
 authorities, requesting to be allowed his 
 personal liberty on his parole. This in 
 dulgence, usually granted to officers of 
 rank, he could not obtain ; and was told 
 that he must either take the oath of 
 allegiance to his Britannic Majesty, or 
 submit to close confinement. In an evil 
 hour, induced by family considerations, 
 he chose the former alternative, and 
 signed a declaration of fealty to George 
 III., protesting, however, against the 
 clause which required him to support 
 the royal government with arms; 
 which clause the officer who received 
 his submission assured him it was not 
 intended to enforce. The officer in 
 question no. doubt in this assurance ex 
 ceeded his authority, and Haynes was 
 time after time summoned to join the 
 royal standard. Regarding this as a 
 breach of the contract into which he 
 had entered with the British, he again 
 took up arms on the side of independ 
 ence, and having been taken prisoner 
 in a skirmish with part of the royal 
 forces, he was, without the formality of 
 a trial, ordered for execution by Lord 
 Rawdon. To the petitions of this unfor 
 tunate officer s children, as well as those 
 of the inhabitants of Charleston, his 
 lordship turned a deaf ear, and Haynes 
 suffered death as a rebel and a traitor. 
 Though the death of this gallant soldier 
 may be vindicated by the strictness of 
 the law, its policy was, in the existing 
 circumstances, extremely questionable. 
 
 35. Further Events of the Campaign 
 Preparations for the Siege of New 
 York. 
 
 It has already been related that, after 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 59 
 
 defeating General Greene at Guildford, 
 Lord Cornwall!* marched to Peters- 
 burgh, in Virginia. His lordship did 
 not take this step without hesitation. 
 He well knew the enterprising character 
 of his opponent, and was aware of the 
 probability of his making an incursion 
 into South Carolina. He flattered 
 himself, however, that the forces which 
 he had left in that province under the 
 command of Lord Rawdon would suffice 
 to keep the enemy in check. In this 
 idea he was confirmed by the result of 
 the battle of Camden, and by the receipt 
 of intelligence that three British regi 
 ments, which had sailed from Cork, 
 might be expected speedily to arrive at 
 Charleston. No longer anxious, there 
 fore, for the fate of South Carolina, he 
 determined to march forwards, in the 
 confident hope of increasing his military 
 renown by the conquest of Virginia. 
 He accordingly advanced with rapidity 
 from Petersburgh to Manchester, on 
 James River, with a view of crossing 
 over from that place to Richmond, for 
 the purpose of seizing a large quantity 
 of stores and provisions, which had 
 been deposited there by the Americans. 
 But on his arrival at Manchester, he 
 had the mortification to find that, on 
 the day before, this depot had been re 
 moved by the Marquis de la Fayette, 
 who, at the command of congress, had 
 hastened from the Head of Elk to 
 oppose him. Having crossed James 
 River at Westown, his lordship marched 
 through Hanover County to the South 
 Anna River, followed at a guarded dis 
 tance by the marquis, who, in this 
 critical contingency, finding his forces 
 inferior to those of the enemy, wisely 
 restrained the vivacity which is the 
 usual characteristic of his age and 
 country. But having effected a junc 
 tion with General Wayne, which 
 brought his numbers nearly to an 
 equality with those of the British, and 
 having once more, by a skilful ma 
 noeuvre, saved his stores, which had 
 been removed to Albemarle old court 
 house, he displayed so bold a front, that 
 the British commander fell back to 
 Richmond, and thence to Williams- 
 burgh. On his arrival at the latter 
 place, Lord Cornwallis received de 
 spatches from Sir Henry Clinton, re 
 quiring him instantly to send from his 
 army a detachment to the relief of New 
 York, which was threatened with a 
 combined attack by the French and the 
 Americans. The consequent diminution 
 
 of his force induced his lordship to cross 
 James River, and to march in the di 
 rection of Portsmouth. Before, however, 
 the reinforcements destined for New 
 York had sailed, he received counter- 
 orders and instructions from Sir Henry 
 Clinton, in pursuance of which he con 
 veyed his army, amounting to 7000 
 men, to York Town, which place he 
 proceeded to fortify with the utmost 
 skill and industry. 
 
 The object of Lord Cornwallis in thus 
 posting himself at York Town, was to 
 co-operate in the subjugation of Virginia 
 with a fleet which he was led to expect 
 would about this time proceed from the 
 West Indies to the Chesapeak. Whilst 
 his lordship was anxiously looking out 
 for the British penants, he had the 
 mortification, on the 30th of August, 
 to see the Count de Grasse sailing up 
 the bay with twenty-eight sail of the 
 line, three of which, accompanied by a 
 proper number of frigates, were imme 
 diately despatched to block up York 
 River. The French vessels had no sooner 
 anchored, than they landed a force of 
 3200 men, who, under the command of 
 the Marquis de St. Simon, effected a 
 junction with the army of La Fayette, 
 and took post at Williamsburg. Soon 
 after this operation, the hopes of the 
 British were revived by the appearance 
 off the Capes of Virginia, of Admiral 
 Graves, with twenty sail of the line, a 
 force which seemed to be competent to 
 extricate Lord Cornwallis from his diffi 
 cult position. These hopes, however, 
 proved delusive. On the 7th of Sep 
 tember, M. de Grasse encountered the 
 British fleet, and a distant fight took 
 place, in which the French seemed to 
 rely more on their manoeuvring than on 
 their valour. The reason of this was 
 soon apparent. In the course of the 
 night which followed the action, a squa 
 dron of eight line-of-battle ships safely 
 passed the British, and joined De Grasse, 
 in consequence of which accession of 
 strength to the enemy, Admiral Graves 
 thought it prudent to quit that part of 
 the coast, and retire to New York. 
 This impediment to their operations 
 having been removed, the Americans 
 and French directed the whole of their 
 united eiibrts to the capture of York 
 Town. 
 
 This had not, however, been the ori 
 ginal design of General Washington at 
 the commencement of the campaign. 
 Early in the spring he had agreed with 
 Count Rochambeau to lay siege to New 
 
GO 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 York, in concert with a French fleet 
 which was expected to reach the neigh 
 bourhood of Staten Island in the month 
 of August. He had accordingly issued 
 orders for considerable reinforcements, 
 especially of militia, to join his army in 
 proper time to commence the projected 
 operations. The French troops under 
 Rochambeau having arrived punctually 
 at his encampment near Peek s Kill, 
 General Washington advanced to King s 
 Bridge, and hemmed in the British in 
 York Island. Every preparation seemed 
 to be now in forwardness for the com 
 mencement of the siege ; but the militia 
 came in tardily. The adjacent states 
 were dilatory in sending in their quotas 
 of troops ; and whilst he was impatiently 
 awaiting their arrival, Washington had 
 the mortification to receive intelligence 
 that Clinton had received a reinforce 
 ment of 3000 Germans. Whilst his 
 mind was agitated by disappointment, 
 and chagrined by that want of zeal on 
 the part of the middle states which he 
 apprehended could not but bring dis 
 credit on his country, in the estimation 
 of his allies, he was relieved from his 
 distress by the news of the success of 
 Greene in driving Lord Cornwallis into 
 York Town ; and at the same time learn 
 ing that the destination of Count de 
 Grasse was the Chesapeak, and not 
 Staten Island, he resolved to transfer 
 his operations to the state of Virginia. 
 Still, however, he kept up an appear 
 ance of persevering in his original inten 
 tion of making an attack upon New 
 York, and in this feint he was aided by 
 the circumstance, that when this was in 
 reality his design, a letter, in which he 
 had detailed his plans, for its prosecu 
 tion, had been intercepted, and read by 
 Sir Henry Clinton. When, therefore, 
 in the latter end of August, he broke up 
 his encampment at Peek s Kill, and di 
 rected his march to the south, the British 
 commander, imagining that this move 
 ment was only a stratagem calculated to 
 throw him off his guard, and that the 
 enemy would speedily return to take ad 
 vantage of his expected negligence, re 
 mained in his quarters, and redoubled 
 his exertions to strengthen his position. 
 In consequence of this error, he lost the 
 opportunity of impeding the march of 
 the allied army, and of availing himself 
 of the occasions which might have pre 
 sented themselves of bringing it to action 
 before it could effect a junction with the 
 troops already assembled in the vicinity 
 of York Town. Thus marching onwards 
 
 without molestation, General Washing 
 ton reached Williamsburgh on the 14th 
 of September, and immediately on his 
 arrival, visiting the Count de Grasse on 
 board his flag- ship, the Ville de Paris, 
 settled with him the plan of their future 
 operations. 
 
 $36. Siege of York Town Surrender 
 of Lord Cornwallis. 
 
 In pursuance of this arrangement, 
 the combined forces, to the amount of 
 12,000 men, assembled at Williams- 
 burgh, on the 25th of September; and 
 on the 30th of the same month marched 
 forward to invest York Town, whilst 
 the French fleet, moving to the mouth 
 of York River, cut off Lord Cornwallis 
 from any communication with a friendly 
 force by water. His lordship s garrison 
 amounted to 7000 men, and the place 
 was strongly fortified. On the right it 
 was secured by a marshy ravine, extend 
 ing to such a distance along the front of 
 the defences as to leave them accessible 
 only to the extent of about 1500 yards. 
 This space was defended by strong lines, 
 beyond which, on the extreme left, were 
 advanced a redoubt and a bastion, which 
 enfiladed their approach to Gloucester 
 Point, on the other side of York River, 
 the channel of which is here narrowed 
 to the breadth of a mile, which post was 
 also sufficiently garrisoned, and strongly 
 fortified. Thus secured in his position, 
 Lord Cornwallis beheld the approach of 
 the enemy with firmness, especially as 
 he had received despatches from Sir 
 Henry Clinton, announcing his intention 
 of sending 5000 men in a fleet of twenty- 
 three ships of the line to his relief. 
 
 The allied forces on their arrival 
 from Williamsburgh immediately com 
 menced the investiture both of York 
 Town and of Gloucester Point; and on 
 the 10th of October they opened their 
 batteries with such effect, that their 
 shells, flying over the town, reached the 
 shipping in the harbour, and set fire to 
 the Charon frigate, and to a transport. 
 On this inauspicious day, too, Lord 
 Cornwallis received a communication 
 from Sir Henry Clinton, conveying to 
 him the unwelcome intelligence that he 
 doubted whether it would be in his 
 power to send him the aid which he had 
 promised. 
 
 On the following morning the enemy 
 commenced their second parallel, and 
 finding themselves, in this advanced po 
 sition, severely annoyed by the bastion 
 and redoubt which have been mentioned 
 
HISTORY OP THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 above, they resolved to storm them. 
 The reduction of the former of these 
 works was committed to the French, 
 whilst the attack of the latter was en 
 trusted to the Americans. Both parties 
 rushing to the assault with the spirit of 
 emulation which this arrangement was 
 calculated to inspire, the works in ques 
 tion were speedily carried at the point 
 of the bayonet. 
 
 It must be mentioned to the honour 
 of the American soldiers, that though 
 in revenge for a massacre recently com 
 mitted at New London, in Connecticut, 
 by a body of troops under the command 
 of the renegade Arnold, they had been 
 ordered to take no prisoners, they fore- 
 bore to comply with this requisition, 
 and when they had penetrated into the 
 redoubt, spared every man who ceased 
 to resist. On the 16th of October, a 
 sally was made from the garrison, but 
 with indifferent success ; and Lord 
 Cornwallis was now convinced that he 
 could avoid surrender only by effecting 
 his escape by Gloucester Point. Seeing 
 himself therefore reduced to the neces 
 sity of trying this desperate expedient, 
 he prepared as many boats as he could 
 procure, and on the night of the 16th of 
 October attempted to convey his army 
 over York River to the opposite pro 
 montory. But the elements were ad 
 verse to his operations. The first di 
 vision of his troops was disembarked in 
 safety ; but when the second was on its 
 passage, a storm of wind and rain arose, 
 and drove it down the river. 
 
 Though this second embarkation 
 worked its way back to York Town on 
 the morning of the 17th, Lord Corn 
 wallis was convinced, however unwil 
 lingly, that protracted resistance was 
 vain. No aid appeared from New 
 York his works were ruined the fire 
 from the enemy s batteries swept the 
 town ; and sickness had diminished the 
 effective force of the garrison. In these 
 painful circumstances, nothing remained 
 for him but to negociate terms of capi 
 tulation. He accordingly sent a flag of 
 truce, and having agreed to give up his 
 troops as prisoners of war to congress, 
 and the naval force to France, he, on 
 the 19th of October, marched out of his 
 lines with folded colours ; and pro 
 ceeding to a field at a short distance 
 from the town, he surrendered to 
 General Lincoln, with the same for 
 malities which had been prescribed to 
 that officer at Charleston, eighteen 
 months before. Another coincidence 
 
 was remarked on this occasion. The 
 capitulation under which Lord Corn 
 wallis surrendered was drawn up by 
 Lieutenant- Colonel Laurens, whose fa 
 ther had filled the office of president of 
 congress, and having been taken prisoner 
 when on his voyage to Holland, in 
 quality of ambassador from the United 
 States to the Dutch Republic, had 
 been consigned, under a charge of high 
 treason, to a rigorous custody in the 
 Tower of London, of which fortress his 
 lordship was constable. 
 
 Had Lord Cornwallis been able to 
 hold out five days longer than he did, 
 he might possibly have been relieved ; 
 for on the 24th of October, a British 
 fleet, conveying an army of 7000 men, 
 arrived off the Chesapeak ; but finding 
 that his lordship had already surren 
 dered, this armament returned to New 
 York and Sandy Hook. 
 
 37. Provisional Treaty of Peace, 30//4 
 November, 1782. 
 
 It was with reason that the congress 
 passed a vote of thanks to the captors 
 of York Town, and that they went in 
 procession, on the 24th of October, to 
 celebrate the triumph of their arms, by 
 expressing, in the solemnities of a reli 
 gious service, their gratitude to Al 
 mighty God for this signal success. 
 The surrender of Lord Cornwallis was 
 the virtual termination of the war. From 
 this time forward, to the signature of 
 the treaty of peace, the British were 
 cooped up in New York, Charleston, 
 and Savannah. From these posts they 
 now and then, indeed, made excursions 
 for the purpose of foraging and plunder ; 
 but being utterly unable to appear in 
 force in the interior of the country, they 
 found themselves incompetent to carry 
 on any operations calculated to promote 
 the main object of the war the subju 
 gation of the United States. Perse 
 verance, however, still seemed a virtue 
 to the British cabinet. Immediately 
 after the arrival of the intelligence of 
 the capture by the Americans of a 
 second British army, George III. de 
 clared, in a speech to parliament, " that 
 he should not answer the trust commit 
 ted to the sovereign of a free people, if 
 he consented to sacrifice, either to his 
 own desire of peace, or to their tempo 
 rary ease and relief, those essential rights 
 and permanent interests, upon the main 
 tenance and preservation of which the 
 future strength and security of the coun 
 try must for ever depend." When called 
 
62 
 
 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 upon in the House of Commons for an 
 explanation of this vague and assuming 
 language, Lord North avowed that it 
 was the intention of ministers to carry 
 on in North America " a war of posts ;" 
 and such was, at that moment*, the 
 state of the house, that, in despite of the 
 eloquence of Mr. Fox, who laboured to 
 demonstrate the absurdity of this new 
 plan, a majority of 218 to 129 concurred 
 in an address which was an echo of his 
 majesty s speech. But the loud mur 
 murs of the people, groaning beneath 
 the weight of taxation, and indignant 
 under a sense of national misrule, at 
 length penetrated the walls of the senate- 
 house. Early in the year 1782, motion 
 after motion was made in the House of 
 Commons, expressive of the general 
 wish for the termination of hostilities 
 with the United States. The minister 
 held out with obstinacy, though, on 
 each renewal of the debate, he saw his 
 majority diminish; till at length, on the 
 27th of February, on a motion of Ge 
 neral Conway, expressly directed against 
 the further prosecution of offensive war 
 on the continent of North America, he 
 was left in a minority of nineteen. This 
 victory was followed up by an address 
 from the house to his majesty, according 
 to the tenor of General Conway s motion. 
 To this address so equivocal an answer 
 was returned by the crown, that the 
 friends of pacification deemed it neces 
 sary to speak in still plainer terms ; and 
 on the 4th of March, the House of Com 
 mons declared, that whosoever should 
 advise his majesty to any further prosecu 
 tion of offensive war against the colonies 
 of North America should be considered 
 as a public enemy. This was the death 
 blow to Lord North s administration. 
 His lordship retired from office early in 
 the month of March, and was succeeded 
 by the Marquis of Rockingham, the 
 efforts of whose ministry were as much 
 and as cordially directed to peace as 
 those of Lord Shelburne s. On the 
 death of the Marquis, which took 
 place soon after he had assumed the 
 reins of government, the Earl of Shel- 
 burne was called on to preside over 
 his Majesty s councils, which, under his 
 auspices, were directed to the great ob 
 ject of pacification. To this all the 
 parties interested were well inclined. 
 The English nation was weary of a civil 
 war in which it had sustained so many 
 discomfitures. The king of France, 
 
 Nov. 27th, 1781. 
 
 who had reluctantly consented to aid 
 the infant republic of North America, 
 was mortified by the destruction of the 
 fleet of De Grasse, in the West Indies, 
 and found the expenses of the war press 
 heavily on refinances. The Spaniards 
 were disheartened by the failure of their 
 efforts to repossess themselves of Gib 
 raltar ; and the Dutch were impatient 
 under the suspension of their commerce. 
 Such being the feelings of the bellige 
 rents, the negociations for a peace be 
 tween Great Britain and the United 
 States were opened at Paris, by Mr. 
 Fitzherbert and Mr. Oswald on the part 
 of the former power, and by John 
 Adams, Doctor Franklin, John Jay, and 
 Henry Laurens, on behalf of the latter. 
 These negociations terminated in pro 
 visional articles of peace, which were 
 signed on the 30th November, 1782. 
 By this important instrument, the inde 
 pendence of the thirteen provinces was 
 unreservedly acknowledged by his Bri 
 tannic Majesty, who moreover conceded 
 to them an unlimited right of fishing on 
 the banks of Newfoundland and the 
 River St. Lawrence, and all other places 
 where they had been accustomed to fish. 
 All that the British plenipotentiaries 
 could obtain for the American loyalists 
 was, a provision that congress should 
 earnestly recommend to the legislatures 
 of the respective states the most lenient 
 consideration of their ease, and a resti 
 tution of their confiscated property. 
 
 38. Conclusion. 
 
 Thus terminated the American revo 
 lutionary war a war which might have 
 been prevented by the timely concession 
 of freedom from internal taxation, as 
 imposed by the British parliament, and 
 by an abstinence on the part of the 
 Crown from a violation in this import 
 ant particular of chartered rights. The 
 confidential letters of Doctor Franklin 
 evince that it was with extreme re 
 luctance the American patriots adoptee 1 
 the measure of severing the colonies 
 from the mother country. But when 
 they had taken this decisive step, by 
 the declaration of independence, they 
 firmly resolved to abide by the conse 
 quences of their own act ; and, with the 
 single exception of Georgia, never, even 
 in the most distressful contingencies of 
 the war, did any public body of the pro 
 vinces shew any disposition to resume 
 their allegiance to the king of Great 
 Britain. Still, it may be a matter of 
 doubt if, when we consider the conduct 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 (13 
 
 of the inhabitants of the Jerseys, when 
 Washington was flying before General 
 Howe, whether, had the British com 
 manders restrained their troops with the 
 strictness of discipline, and exercised 
 towards the American people the con 
 ciliatory spirit evinced in Canada by Sir 
 Guy Carleton, the fervor of resistance 
 might not have been abated and sub 
 dued. But civil wars are always con 
 ducted with cruelty and rancour. The 
 Americans were treated by the British 
 soldiery not as enemies entitled to the 
 courtesies of war, but as rebels, whose 
 lives and property lay at the mercy of 
 the victors. Hence devastation marked 
 the track of the invading forces, while 
 the inhabitants found their truest safety 
 in resistance, and their best shelter in the 
 republican camp. Nor will he who reads 
 with attention the minute details of this 
 eventful contest be surprised, that the 
 British ministry persevered in the war 
 when success might have appeared to be 
 hopeless. It is now well known that 
 George III. revolted from the idea of 
 concession to his disobedient subjects, 
 and was determined to put all to the 
 hazard, rather than acknowledge their 
 independence. Lord North, at an early 
 period of the war, had misgivings as to 
 its ultimate success, but he had not firm 
 ness enough to give his sovereign un 
 welcome advice ; whilst Lord George 
 Germaine and the other ministers fully 
 sympathised with the royal feelings, and 
 entered heartily into the views of their 
 master. They were apprised, from 
 time to time, of the destitute condition 
 of the American army, but living as they 
 did in luxury, and familiarized as they 
 were with the selfishness and venality 
 of courts and political parties, they 
 could not conceive the idea of men 
 sacrificing health, property, and life, 
 for their country s good. When Wash 
 ington was beaten in the field, such 
 men imagined that the affairs of the 
 Congress were desperate, and flattered 
 themselves that the great body of the 
 colonists, wearied and disheartened by 
 successive defeats, would be glad to 
 accept the royal mercy, and to return to 
 their allegiance. In these notions they 
 were confirmed by the loyalists, who, 
 giving utterance to their wishes, rather 
 than stating the truth, afforded the most 
 incorrect representations of the feelings 
 and temper of their countrymen. Some 
 of these coming over to England were 
 received with favour in high circles, and 
 
 by their insinuations kept up to the last a 
 fatal delusion. These individuals at 
 length fell the victims of their own 
 error. Traitors to their country, they 
 lost their property by acts of confisca 
 tion, and while they lived on the bounty 
 of the British crown, they had the 
 mortification to see the country which 
 they had deserted, rise to an exalted 
 rank amongst the nations of the earth. 
 
 It must also be admitted that the 
 people of England sympathized with 
 their Government up to a late period, in 
 the feelings which prompted perse 
 verance in this iniquitous war. Exces 
 sive loyalty to the Crown ; a certain un 
 defined appetite for military achieve 
 ments ; resentment against the Ame 
 ricans for questioning British supre 
 macy, strongly impressed the public 
 mind, and rendered the war disgrace 
 fully popular in many quarters. Such 
 sentiments were fostered and encouraged 
 by the accession of France, Spain, and 
 Holland to the cause of her revolted 
 states, and the prospect of naval victo 
 ries. We may reasonably indulge the 
 hope, that the lesson then, and during 
 the French revolutionary war, taught 
 by experience, and the subsequent im 
 provement of the public mind, will pre 
 vent it from ever again joining its go 
 vernment in such a conspiracy against 
 freedom and justice. 
 
 When the ministers of the king of 
 France incited their master to enter 
 into an alliance with the revolted colo 
 nies, they did so under the idea that the 
 separation of those provinces from the 
 parent state would ruin the resources of 
 Great Britain. Events have proved 
 how erroneous was their calculation. 
 From her commercial intercourse with 
 Independent America, Great Britain 
 has derived more profit than she could 
 have gained had her growth been stunted 
 by the operation of restrictive laws. In 
 a constitutional point of view, also, the 
 disjunction of the thirteen provinces 
 from the British empire will not be con 
 templated with any regret by those who 
 are jealous of the influence of the crown, 
 and who will reflect that, by the peace 
 of 1782, it was deprived of the appoint 
 ment of a host of governors, lieutenant- 
 governors, chief justices, and other 
 officers, selected from the scions of 
 powerful families, and protected from 
 the consequences of the abuse of their 
 trusts by the influence of those whose, 
 dependants they arc. 
 
HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 SOME doubts having arisen as to whether 
 the question which led to the separation of 
 the colonies from the mother-country was 
 really confined to the point, of taxation, and 
 did not also involve the claim of Parliament 
 to legislate generally for the colonies, the in 
 troduction into this note of a plain statement 
 of the fact and the law may not be thought 
 superfluous. 
 
 It will be clearly seen by a reference to the 
 preceding narrative, that in the lengthened 
 discussions which were carried on prior to 
 the breaking out of hostilities, the point at 
 issue was the right of Parliament to tax the 
 colonies, and not its general power of legisla 
 tion for them. This power no one seems at 
 that time to have thought of questioning for 
 a moment ; though all the colonies united in 
 strenuously maintaining the exclusive right 
 of taxing themselves, which they had enjoyed 
 by charter and by constant usage. This 
 was also the view of the subject uniformly 
 taken by the parliamentary advocates of the 
 American colonies; and had it not been 
 deemed constitutionally sound, the colonies, 
 jealous as they were of their political rights, 
 would not have been content silently to ac 
 quiesce in it. " I assert (said Lord Chatham 
 on the 17th December, 1765), I assert the 
 authority of this country over the colonies to 
 be sovereign and supreme, in every circum 
 stance of government and legislation." But 
 he added, " Taxation is no part of the go 
 verning or legislating power, taxes are a 
 voluntary grant of the people alone." 
 
 Such was then the undisputed theory and 
 practice of the constitution, even as recog 
 nised by the colonies themselves. 
 
 But it has been supposed that although, 
 prior to the revolution, the colonies never 
 questioned the supreme legislative authority 
 of the mother-country, yet that parliament 
 had by some act of its own divested itself of 
 this authority. This, however, is not the case. 
 On the contrary, the Act of 6 Geo. III. c. 12, 
 commonly called the Declaratory Act, dis 
 tinctly lays it down as the law of the realm, 
 " that the King, Lords, and Commons in 
 Parliament assembled, had, hath, and of 
 full right ought to have, full power and au 
 thority to make laws and statutes of suffi 
 cient force and validity to bind, in all cases 
 whatsoever, the colonies subject to the British 
 crown." 
 
 The Act remains unrepealed, and is still in 
 full force, with one single exception from the 
 universality of its declaration, which will be 
 found in the I8t/i George III. c. 12. A 
 clause in this statute enacts, that from and 
 after its passing, the king and parliament will 
 not impose any duty or tax on the colonies, 
 except such as may be required for the regu 
 lation of commerce, and that the net produce 
 of such duty or tax shall be applied to the 
 use of each colony respectively in which it is 
 levied, in such manner as the other duties 
 collected by the authority of the assemblies 
 of such colonies are applied. 
 
 That the practice of parliament has been 
 in accordance with the principle of these 
 declaratory enactments might be shewn by 
 a reference to numerous statutes subsequently 
 enacted, which directly legislate for the 
 colonies. 
 
 The authority of Mr. Burke may be added, 
 as that of the person most jealous on the 
 subject of colonial rights, for he, in fact, was 
 the parliamentary leader throughout the con 
 test against the rights of the mother-country, 
 and sacrificed his seat at Bristol to his opi 
 nions in favour of the colonies. But in his 
 celebrated speech on American taxation in 
 1774, he expressly maintains the supremacy 
 of parliament, and the full extent of the 
 rights claimed by the Declaratory Act, to 
 which he holds the abandonment of the 
 taxing power no exception. This forms the 
 conclusion of the speech. (See Works, vol. 
 ii., pp. 435 and 440, 8vo edition.) The same 
 doctrines he continued to hold in 1775, when 
 he renewed his resolutions of conciliation, 
 and in 1780, when he retired from the repre 
 sentation of Bristol. In his famous speech 
 upon the former occasion, he declares himself 
 to wish as little as any man being to impair 
 the smallest particle of the supreme authority 
 of parliament (Works, vol. iii., p 109), and in 
 1792, when he had become, impossible, more 
 attached to the colonial party, both here and 
 in France, he prepared a slave code, to be 
 enacted in England for our West India 
 colonies. 
 
 This statement proves, first, that the 
 mother-country never abandoned the legisla 
 tive authority, except as regards the right of 
 taxing ; and secondly, that the colonists never 
 even claimed any further exemption from 
 the jurisdiction of Parliament. 
 
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