University of Virginia Library

CHAPTER IX.

January 1.—His Majesty intends to open this year's campaign
with ninety thousand Hessians, Tories, Negroes, Japanese,
Moors, Esquimaux, Persian archers, Lap-

landers, Feejee Islanders, and light horse. With
this terrific and horrendous armament, in conjunction with a
most tremendous and irresistible fleet, he is resolved to terminate
this unnatural war the next summer, as it will be impossible
for the rebels to bring an equal number in the field. His
Majesty has also the strongest assurances that France will cooperate
with him in humbling his seditious subjects; and as
his admiral and general are still extending the arms of mercy
for the gracious reception of those who will yet return to their
duty and allegiance, for Heaven's sake, ye poor, deluded, misguided,
bewildered, cajoled, and bamboozled Whigs! ye dumbfounded,
infatuated, back-bestridden, nose-led-about, priest-ridden,
demagogue-beshackled, and Congress-becrafted independents,
fly, fly, oh fly, for protection to the royal standard,
or ye will be swept from the face of the earth with the besom
of destruction, and cannonaded in a moment into nullities and
nonentities, and no mortal can tell into what other kind of
quiddities and quoddities.[2]

It is confidently reported in London, that the Congress have
devolved all their power upon Mr. Washington, and appointed
him dictator, in example of the Romans. The

reason, if the fact be true, is very apparent. They
find themselves in a slippery situation, and are glad to throw
their burden upon the first simpleton of consequence that would
take it. Washington has now no mean character to support.
He must be the first or last of men, who would accept power
upon such terms. But as the Congress are desperate, so is
this gentleman. As the first instance of this protectorship, he
has ordered all persons to take an active part in his concerns,
and for the support of his authority, under pain of confiscation
of all their properties.[4]

Ran away, from St. James's, an old servant called Common
Sense and Honesty, formerly belonging to his late Majesty,

George the Second, and by him imported from
Hanover. He served the old King faithfully, and
was of great service in procuring him the esteem and affection
of all his subjects; but being constantly made a laughing stock
by the Lords Bute and Mansfield, since his Majesty's demise,
he took the resolution suddenly to absent himself from court.
His present owner, it is said, is very indifferent whether he
ever returns or not, having, by the arts and misrepresentations
of these noblemen, and others, taken a prejudice against
him; but some of the people who knew the old King and the
regard he had for his useful servant, have authorized the printer
to promise five thousand pounds reward to any person who
shall bring him back to the palace, and prevail upon him to
continue only one month longer in his Majesty's service.[6]

January 5.—Amongst the worthies who have joined, or

put themselves under the protection of Howe and
company, at Trenton, we find the names of the following
noted personages, viz.:

John Allen, Esq., (son of the celebrated rhetorical, impartial,
learned judge, whose memory will outlive the five mile
stone,) late a member of the Philadelphia Committee of Observation,
Inspection, &c.

Andrew Allen, Esq., (brother to Jack,) late a member of
Congress, one of the Pennsylvania Committee of Safety, and,

at the same time, a sworn advocate for George III., of Britain,
and his creatures.

William Allen, Esq., (brother to Andrew,) late a lieutenant-colonel
in the Continental service, which station he resigned
—not because he was totally unfit for it, but because the Continental
Congress presumed to declare the American States
Free and Independent, without first asking the consent, and
obtaining the approbation of himself and wise family.[8]

Joseph Galloway, Esq., late a member of the Congress,
Speaker of the Pennsylvania Senate, and printer of a public
newspaper in Philadelphia.[9]

January 7.—On the second instant, intelligence was received
by express, that the enemy's army was advancing from
Princeton towards Trenton, where the main body

of the Americans were stationed. Two brigades
under Brigadier-Generals Stephen and Fermoy, had been detached
several days before, from the main body, to Maidenhead,
and were ordered to skirmish with the enemy during their
march, and to retreat to Trenton, as occasion should require.

A body of men under command of Colonel Hand, were also
ordered to meet the enemy, by which means their march was
so much retarded as to give ample time for our forces to form,
and prepare to give them a warm reception upon their arrival.
Two field-pieces, planted upon a hill, at a small distance above
the town, were managed with great advantage, and did considerable
execution for some time; after which they were
ordered to retire to the station occupied by our forces on the
south side of the bridge, over the little river which divides the
town into two parts, and opens at right angles into the Delaware.
In their way through the town, the enemy suffered
much by an incessant fire of musketry from behind the
houses and barns. Their army had now arrived at the northern
side of the bridge, whilst our army were drawn up, in
order of battle, on the southern side. Our cannon played very
briskly from this eminence, and were returned as briskly by
the enemy. In a few minutes after the cannonade began, a
very heavy discharge of musketry ensued, and continued for
ten or fifteen minutes. During this action, a party of men
were detached from our right wing, to secure a part of the
river, which, it was imagined, from the motions of the enemy,
they intended to ford. This detachment arrived at the pass
very opportunely, and effected their purpose; after this the
enemy made a feeble and unsupported attempt to pass the
bridge, but this likewise proved abortive. It was now near
six o'clock in the evening, and night coming on, closed the engagement.
Our fires were built in due season, and were very
numerous; and whilst the enemy were amused by these appearances,
and preparing for a general attack the ensuing day,
our army marched, at about one in the morning, from Trenton,
on the south side of the creek, to Princeton. When they arrived
near the hill, about one mile from the town, they found
a body of the enemy formed upon it, and ready to receive
them; upon which a spirited attack was made, both with field-pieces
and musketry, and, after an obstinate resistance, and
losing a considerable number of their men upon the field,
those of them who could not make their escape, surrendered
prisoners of war. We immediately marched on to the centre

of the town, and there took another party of the enemy near
the college. After tarrying a very short time in the town,
General Washington marched his army from thence, towards
Rocky Hill, and they are now near Morristown, in high spirits,
and in expectation of a junction with the rest of our forces, sufficiently
seasonable to make a general attack upon the enemy,
and prevent, at least, a considerable part of them from reaching
their asylum in New York. It is difficult precisely to
ascertain the loss we have sustained in the two engagements,
but we think we have lost about forty men killed, and had near
double the number wounded. In the list of the former are
the brave Colonel Hazlet, Captain Shippen, and Captain Neal,
who fell in the engagement upon the hill near Princeton;
amongst the latter was Brigadier-General Mercer,[12] who received
seven wounds—five in his body, and two in his head,
and was much bruised by the breech of a musket, of which
bruises he soon after died. The loss sustained by the enemy
was much greater than ours, as was easily discovered by viewing
the dead upon the field, after the action. We have near a
hundred of their wounded prisoners in the town, which, together
with those who surrendered, and were taken in small
parties endeavoring to make their escape, amount nearly to the
number of four hundred, chiefly British troops. Six brass
pieces of cannon have fallen into our hands, a quantity of ammunition,
and several wagons of baggage. A Captain Leslie
was found amongst the dead of the enemy, and was this day
buried with the honors of war. A number of other officers
were also found on the field, but they were not known, and
were buried with the other dead. According to information
from the inhabitants of Princeton, the number which marched
out of it to attack our army, amounted to seven thousand men,
under command of General Cornwallis. This body, as soon
as they discovered that they were out-generaled by the march
of General Washington, being much chagrined at their disappointment,
(as it seems they intended to have cut our army to
pieces, crossed the Delaware, and have marched immediately,
without any further delay, to Philadelphia,) pushed with the
greatest precipitation towards Princeton, where they arrived
about an hour after General Washington had left it; and imagining
he would endeavor to take Brunswick in the same
manner, proceeded directly for that place. Our soldiers were
much fatigued, the greatest part of them having been deprived
of their rest the two preceding nights; otherwise we might,
perhaps, have possessed ourselves of Brunswick. The enemy
appear to be preparing to decamp and retire to New York, as
they are much disgusted with their late treatment in New
Jersey, and have a great inclination to rest themselves a little
in some secure winter-quarters.[13]

January 9.—The enemy have abandoned Elizabethtown.
Our people have entered it and taken thirty Waldeckers and
fifty Highlanders, and about thirty baggage wagons fully
loaded. The enemy who had all the Jerseys, are now only in
possession of Amboy and Brunswick. This is a great reverse
in the course of a fortnight, to the British power. Whether
they mean to collect their whole force at Brunswick, and give
us battle, or whether they mean to push for Staten Island, and
abandon the Jerseys entirely, is matter of doubt. We shall
make a move towards them to-day, with a view to avail ourselves
of circumstances. The enemy appear to be panic-struck
in the extreme. God prospers our arms in an extraordinary
manner. There is to be an eclipse of the sun to-day; we mean,
if possible, to attack the Germans as soon as it begins, and
take the advantage of their ignorant superstition.[14]

Admiral Gayton has taken upon him publicly to declare,
in opposition to the author of Common Sense, and from his
own knowledge, that when he was in America forty years
since, "there never had been a man-of-war of any kind
built in New England."[15] It is but just that the public should
be informed, that in the year 1690 a fourth-rate ship-of-war
was launched at New Castle, in Piscataqua River: and in
the year 1696 another, whose force is not remembered.
The former was the Falkland, and the latter the Bedford
Galley.

It is not probable that Admiral Gayton had any
knowledge of these ships having been built here, so that he
cannot be charged with falsehood, but it is hoped if he should
publish any thing further relating to this country, he will
express himself not quite so positively, especially if he
undertakes to prove a negative.

The evidence of the above facts depends on an original
manuscript letter from Mr. Emerson, formerly minister of

New Castle, to the late Mr. Prince, and is to be found among
the collection of manuscripts relating to the history of New
England, made by fifty years' industry of that worthy gentleman,
unless it has been pilfered or destroyed by the Saracenlike
barbarity of the late occupiers of the Old South meetinghouse
in Boston, in an apartment of which those valuable
manuscripts were deposited.[16]

January 19.—General Howe has discharged all the
privates, who were prisoners in New York; one-half he sent

to the world of spirits for want of food—the
other he hath sent to warn their countrymen
of the danger of falling into his hands, and to convince
them by ocular demonstration, that it is infinitely better to
be slain in battle, than to be taken prisoners by British brutes,
whose tender mercies are cruelties.[18]

The following account of the sufferings of these unfortunate
men was obtained from the prisoners themselves:—As soon as
they were taken they were robbed of all their baggage, of
whatever money they had, though it were of paper, and could
be of no advantage to the enemy, of their silver shoe-buckles,
and knee-buckles, &c., and many were stripped almost naked
of their clothes. Especially those who had good clothes,
were stripped at once, being told that such clothes were too
good for rebels. Thus deprived of their clothes and baggage
they were unable to shift even their linen, and were obliged to
wear the same shirts for even three or four months together,
whereby they became extremely nasty; and this of itself was
sufficient to bring on them many mortal diseases.

After they were taken, they were in the first place put
on board the ships and thrust down into the hold, where
not a breath of fresh air could be obtained and they were
nearly suffocated for want of air. Particularly some who
were taken at Fort Washington, were first in this manner
thrust down into the holds of vessels in such numbers,
that even in the cold season of November they could

scarcely bear any clothes on them, being kept in a constant
sweat. Yet these same persons, after lying in this situation
awhile, till the pores of their bodies were as perfectly opened
as possible, were of a sudden taken out and put into some of
the churches in New York; without covering or a spark of fire,
where they suffered as much by the cold as they did by the
sweating stagnation of the air in the other situation; and the
consequence was, that they took such colds as brought on the
most fatal diseases, and swept them off almost beyond
conception.

Besides these things, they suffered extremely for want of
provisions. The commissary pretended to allow half a pound
of bread and four ounces of pork per day; but of this pittance
they were much cut short. What was given them for three
days was not enough for one day; and in some instances, they
went for three days without a single mouthful of food of any
sort. They were pinched to that degree, that some on board
the ships would pick up and eat the salt which happened to
be scattered there; others gathered up the bran which the
light horse wasted, and ate it, mixed with dirt and filth as it
was. Nor was this all, both the bread and pork which they
did allow them was extremely bad. For the bread, some of it
was made out of the bran which they brought over to feed
their light horse, and the rest of it was so muddy and the
pork so damnified, being so soaked in bilge water in the
transportation from Europe, that they were not fit to be eaten
by human creatures; and when they were eaten, were very
unwholesome. Such bread and pork as they would not
pretend to give their own countrymen, they gave to our poor
sick, dying prisoners.

Nor were they in this doleful condition allowed a
sufficiency of water. One would have thought that water
was so cheap and plentiful an element, that they would not
have grudged them that. But there are, it seems, no bounds
to their cruelty. The water allowed them was so brackish
and withal nasty, that they could not drink it, till reduced to
extremity. Nor did they let them have a sufficiency even of
such water as this.

When winter came on, our people suffered extremely for
want of fire and clothes to keep them warm. They were
confined in churches where there were no fireplaces, that
they could make fires even if they had wood. But wood
was only allowed them for cooking their pittance of victuals;
and for that purpose very sparingly. They had none to keep
them warm even in the extremest of weather, although they
were almost naked, and the few clothes that were left upon
them were their summer clothes. Nor had they a single blanket
or any bedding, not even straw, allowed them till a little
before Christmas.

At the time those were taken on Long Island, a considerable
part of them were sick of the dysentery, and with this
distemper on them were first crowded on board the ships,
afterwards in the churches in New York, three, four, or five
hundred together, without any blankets, or any thing for even
the sick to lie upon, but the bare floors or pavements.
In this situation that contagious distemper soon communicated
from the sick to the well, who would probably
have remained so, had they not in this manner been
thrust in together without regard to sick or well, or to the
sultry, unwholesome season, it being then the heat of summer.
Of this distemper numbers died daily, and many
others, by their confinement and the sultry season, contracted
fevers and died of them. During their sickness, with these
and other diseases, they had no medicines, nothing soothing
or comfortable for sick people, and were not so much as
visited by the physician by the month together.

Nor ought we to omit the insults which the humane
Britons offered to our people, nor the artifices which they
used to enlist them in their service and fight against their
country. It seems that one end of their starving our people
was to bring them, by dint of necessity, to turn rebels to their
own country, their own consciences, and their God. For while
thus famishing they would come and say to them, "This is the
just punishment of your rebellion. Nay, you are treated
too well for rebels; you have not received half you deserve
or half you shall receive. But if you will enlist into his

Majesty's service, you shall have victuals and clothes
enough."

As to insults, the British officers, besides continually cursing
and swearing at them as rebels, often threatened to hang
them all; and on a particular time, ordered a number, each man
to choose his halter out of a parcel offered, wherewith to be
hanged; and even went so far as to cause a gallows to be
erected before the prison, as if they were immediately to be
executed. They further threatened to send them all into the
East Indies, and sell them there for slaves. In these, and
numberless other ways, did the British officers seem to rack
their inventions to insult, terrify, and vex the poor prisoners.
The meanest upstart officers among them would insult and
abuse our colonels and chief officers.

In this situation, without clothes, without victuals or drink,
and even water, or with those which were base and unwholesome,
without fire, a number of them sick, first with a contagious
and nauseous distemper; these, with others, crowded by
hundreds into close confinement, at the most unwholesome
season of the year, and continued there for four months without
blankets, bedding, or straw; without linen to shift, or
clothes to cover their bodies. No wonder they all became
sickly, and having at the same time no medicine, no help of
physicians, nothing to refresh or support nature, died by scores
in a night; and those who were so far gone as to be unable to
help themselves, lay uncared for, till death, more kind than
Britons, put an end to their misery.

By these means, and in this way, fifteen hundred brave
Americans, who had nobly gone forth in defence of their injured,
oppressed country, but whom the chance of war had
cast into the hands of our enemies, died in New York, many
of whom were very amiable, promising youths, of good families—the
very flower of our land. And of those who lived to
come out of prison, the greater part, as far as I can learn, are
dead and dying. Their constitutions are broken, the stamina
of nature worn out, they cannot recover—they die. Even the
few that might have survived, are dying of the small-pox.
For it seems that our enemies determined that even these

whom a good constitution and a kind Providence had carried
through unexampled sufferings, should not at last escape
death, just before their release from imprisonment infected
them with that fatal distemper.

To these circumstances we subjoin the manner in which
they buried those of our people who died. They dragged them
out of their prisons by one leg or one arm, piled them up
without doors, there let them lie till a sufficient number were
dead to make a cart load; then loaded them up in a cart,
drove the cart thus loaded out to the ditches made by our people
when fortifying New York; there they would tip the cart,
tumble the corpses together into the ditch, and afterwards
slightly cover them with earth.

* * * * While our poor prisoners have been thus
treated by our foes, the prisoners we have taken have enjoyed
the liberty of walking and riding about within large limits,
at their pleasure; have been fully supplied with every necessary,
and have even lived on the fat of the land. None have
been so well fed, so healthy, so plump, and so merry as they;
and this generous treatment, it is said, they could not but remember.
For when they were returned in the exchange of prisoners,
and saw the miserable, famished, dying state of our
prisoners, conscious of the treatment they had received, they
could not refrain from tears.[19]

But it is not the prisoners alone who have felt the effects
of British humanity. Every part of the country through
which they have marched, has been plundered and ravaged.
No discrimination has been made with respect to Whig or
Tory; but all alike have been involved in one common fate.
Their march through New Jersey has been marked with
savage barbarity. But Westchester witnesseth more terrible
things. The repositories of the dead have ever been held sacred
by the most barbarous and savage nations. But here,
not being able to accomplish their accursed purposes upon the
living, they wreaked their vengeance on the dead. In many
places, the graves in the church-yards were opened, and the

bodies of the dead exposed upon the ground for several days.
At Morrisania, the family vault was opened, the coffins broken,
and the bones scattered abroad. At Delancey's farm, the body
of a beautiful young lady, which had been buried for two years,
was taken out of the ground, and exposed for five days in a
most indecent manner. Many more instances could be mentioned,
but my heart sickens at the recollection of such inhumanity.
Some persons try to believe that it is only the Hessians
who perpetrate these things, but I have good authority
to say that the British vie with, and even exceed the auxiliary
troops in licentiousness. After such treatment, can it be
possible for any persons seriously to wish for a reconciliation
with Great Britain?[20]

To the melancholy picture already exhibited of the brutal
behavior of the Britons, (who vainly boast being ever preeminent
in mercy,) aided by Hessian and Waldeck mercenaries,
in New York and New Jersey, it gives us pain to add
that they have not only outraged the feelings of humanity, to
many people who were so unhappy as to fall into their hands,
particularly the fair sex, but have degraded themselves beyond
the power of language to express, by wantonly destroying the
curious water works at New York, an elegant public library
at Trenton, and the grand orrery, made by the celebrated Rittenhouse,
which was placed in the college at Princeton, a piece
of mechanism which the most untutored savage, staying the
hand of violence, would have beheld with wonder, reverence,
and delight! Thus are our cruel enemies warring against liberty,
virtue, and the arts and sciences. "How are the mighty
fallen."[21]

January 24.—At a crisis when America is invaded by one
of the most powerful fleets and armies that ever the world beheld
arrayed in order of battle; when the hand

of tyranny is uplifted to fell the glorious plant of
liberty, which our ancestors have cherished from the earliest
ages as the tree-of life; when war, with all its horrors, is invading
this once happy land, and every sacred right is at
stake; when every filial and affectionate sentiment should engage
us to step forth in support of those who have been the
guardians of our tender years, or the sweet companions of our
halcyon days, must not that soul be frozen even to apathy that
is not roused by such important and irresistible impulses! Our
country, our lives, our liberties, our parents, our children, and
our wives, &c., are the sacred pledges for which we are now
contending. We stand on the brink of a precipice, from which
we cannot advance without the noblest exertions of virtue,
unanimity, and fortitude. A single false step may precipitate
us from the enjoyment of the inestimable blessings of liberty,
peace, and independence, to the abyss of slavery and woe.
But, on the contrary, whilst we are animated by the glorious
cause we are engaged in; whilst we with cheerfulness embark
in the defence of the most valuable of sublunary blessings;
whilst we are united in our sentiment, vigilant in our duty,
and active in our operations, we need not dread the thunder
of cannon, nor tremble at the names of heroes arrayed in all
the splendor of a corrupt court, or crowned with the faded
laurels which have been plucked by the hand of tyranny.

Such, my countrymen, is the present state of America;
such the consequence of slumbering in the arms of peace,
whilst your enemy is at your gates; and such the glorious reward
of those who nobly stand forth and oppose the progress
of a mercenary army, more venal than a court favorite, more
savage than a band of Tartars, and more spiritless than the
sorry, sooty sons of Afric, when opposed by men animated by
liberty and the sacred love of their country.

Should any one among you require the force of example to
animate you on this glorious occasion, let him turn his eyes to
that bright luminary of war, in whose character the conduct
of Emillus, the coolness of a Fabius, the intrepidity of a Hannibal,
and the indefatigable ardor and military skill of a Cæsar,
are united. Let not the name of Brutus or Camillus be
remembered whilst that of Washington is to be found in the
annals of America. Great in the cabinet as in war, he shines
with unrivalled splendor in every department of life; and

whilst his abilities as a statesman and a general excite our wonder,
his disinterested patriotism and domestic virtues command
universal veneration. When sent out by Governor Dinwiddie
to order the French to desist from their encroachments on Virginia,
view him in the early period of life, traversing in the
service of his country the dreadful wilds of America, through
nations of savages, with no other attendant but an interpreter.
Behold him at the head of a handful of his gallant countrymen,
engaged for many hours with more than treble the
number of French, at the Meadows, where the fire first ceased
on the side of the enemy, who previously proposed a parley;
and though surrounded by numbers, yet, a stranger to the impulses
of fear, he capitulated on the terms of retiring with the
honors of war. Follow him to that tremendous scene which
struck a universal panic in the bravest of the British troops,
when, as aide-de-camp to the intrepid Braddock, amidst the
dreadful carnage of that day, he was engaged in giving out
the orders of that unfortunate general with a coolness that
marked the hero, and at length brought him off the field of
battle, after he had received his mortal wound. Again, behold
him exchanging the din of arms for the calmer scenes of
life, still active in the service of his country in the senate, until
the impending storm, which is now bursting on America,
called him forth as the guardian protector of his country.
Behold him abandoning the delights of peace, the enjoyment
of affluence, and the pleasures of domestic felicity, and entering
with ardor upon a military life again. Let imagination
paint him at the head of a few raw, undisciplined troops, destitute
of arms and ammunition, besieging an army of veterans
supported by a powerful navy; consider with what unparalleled
fortitude he withstood the difficulties that surrounded
him on every side; behold him embracing the earliest opportunities
of driving the enemy from their advantageous post,
and obliging them to abandon the long persecuted town of
Boston. Again, survey the plains of Long Island, whither he
flew like a guardian angel to protect and bring off his brave
troops, surrounded on every side by a host of foes, and with
a conduct unparalleled in history, secured their retreat across
a river of which the enemy's ships were in full possession.
Surely Heaven interposed in behalf of America on that day,
by permitting such numbers to escape with glory from such a
superior force! Behold his glorious struggles on the heights
of Harlem, and at the White Plains, counteracting the best
concerted plans of the ablest generals of the age; in thought
attend him, (if thought does not lag behind,) when, as it were,
he bounded from the White Plains to the Jersey shore, covering
the retreat of his men from Fort Lee, and throwing himself
with them before the enemy, and with the scattered remains
of his disbanded army, now amounting to only three thousand
men, checking at every step the progress of the British
army, and often halting to offer battle to numbers vastly superior
to his own. Gracious Heaven! can any Virginian—his countrymen,
or can any American who regards him as the saviour of
the States, reflect on his situation at that juncture without horror?
Would he not rather share his fortunes for the rest of the
war, than hazard the salvation of his country by a short enlistment,
at the end of which his general might be left without an
army to support him? Yet, even in such a situation, his calmness
and intrepidity never forsook him, but he appeared still greater
in proportion to the dangers that surrounded him. At length,
when the enemy flattered themselves with the pleasing expectations
of a speedy accomplishment of their darling wish, we
behold him by coup de main dissipating the fears of his country,
and striking terror into troops who, the day before, conceived
themselves on the eve of a triumph. Whilst each
effeminate son of peace was revelling in luxury, his active
mind was employed in preparing for scenes equally glorious
to himself, and terrible to his enemies. Success attended this
matchless enterprise, and Philadelphia, with the rest of America,
hailed him her deliverer and guardian genius.

Such, my countrymen, is the general who directs the military
operations of America; such the glorious leader of her
armies; such the hero whose bright example should fire every
generous heart to enlist in the service of his country. Let it
not be said you are callous to the impressions of such noble
considerations, but, by following his glorious example, show

yourselves worthy of possessing that inestimable jewel, Liberty,
and reflect that you have nothing to dread whilst you are engaged
in so glorious a cause, and blessed with a Washington
for a leader.[23]

January 25.—The following proclamation was this day
published by the Lord Protector, Mr. George Washington:

"Whereas several persons, inhabitants of the United States
of America, influenced by inimical motives, intimidated by the
threats of the enemy, or deluded by a proclama-

tion issued the 30th of November last, by Lord
and General Howe, styled the King's Commissioners for granting
pardons, &c., (now at open war, and invading these States,)
have been so lost to the interest and welfare of their country,
as to repair to the enemy, sign a declaration of fidelity, and in
some instances have been compelled to take the oaths of allegiance,
and engage not to take up arms, or encourage others
so to do, against the King of Great Britain: And whereas it
has become necessary to distinguish between the friends of
America and those of Great Britain, inhabitants of these States,
and that every man who receives protection from, and is a
subject of any State, (not being conscientiously scrupulous
against bearing arms,) should stand ready to defend the same
against hostile invasion: I do, therefore, in behalf of the United
States, by virtue of the powers committed to me by Congress,
hereby strictly command and require every person, having subscribed
such declaration, taken such oaths, and accepted such
protection and certificate, to repair to head-quarters, or to the
quarters of the nearest general officer of the Continental army or
militia, (until further provision can be made by civil authority,)
and there deliver up such protection, certificate, and passports,
and take the oath of allegiance to the United States of America;
nevertheless, hereby granting full liberty to all such as prefer the
interest and protection of Great Britain to the freedom and happiness
of their country, forthwith to withdraw themselves and
families within the enemy's lines. And I do hereby declare, that
all and every person who may neglect or refuse to comply with
this order, within thirty days from the date hereof, will be
deemed adherents to the King of Great Britain, and treated
as common enemies of these American States."

'Tis hardly possible to read over this miserable proclamation
without pity and astonishment. That Mr. Washington, who

once was esteemed a gentleman, should forfeit that
character by becoming the tool of an impracticable
ambition, is a matter of commiseration; but, that he
should be so contaminated by the vice of his associates as to
lose all regard to the common forms of morality, all dignity
of sentiment, and decency of conduct, was not to have been
expected from a man who owned the least pride, or felt the least
consciousness of virtue. His desperate situation may be his
apology, but it cannot be his excuse. He might have been
mistaken in respect to his notions of civil polity; but he could
not have been deceived in those actions and ideas of moral
turpitude, which is the disgrace of human nature. 'Tis an old
and true observation, Magistratus indicat Virum, "the Ruler
shows the Man;" and we have now nothing more to learn of
this famous Mr. Washington.

He has the boldness to declare, that there are "some instances"
of persons who "have been compelled to take the
oath of allegiance." This is an absolute falsehood in fact, and
he knew it was a falsehood; he knew such conduct was repugnant
to the genius and spirit of the British nation, or he
would have produced one instance to confirm his assertion.
The bravery of Britons, which sooner or later will make him
tremble, disdains any but voluntary professions of allegiance,
and above all things, despises the dastardly subterfuges of
falsehood and slander.

The next material circumstance in this Proclamation, is
sufficient to make an honest man shudder. It may be styled,
a Proclamation for the encouragement of Perjury. Mr.
Washington "strictly commands and requires every person,"
who has taken a solemn oath of Allegiance to the King, and
called God to witness the truth and sincerity of it, to repair
to him or his officers, and take another solemn oath, and call

God to witness the sincerity and truth of his adherence to
the cause of rebellion. Such an impious disregard, such a
flagrant violation of all that is serious and sacred among
men, has rarely been seen in any age, country, or profession.

For the honor of human nature, it may be said, that it
was left for rebels to their King and destroyers of their
country, to give a public sanction to Wilful Perjury.

'Tis no wonder that a principle of this kind should be
attended with a suitable practice. Mr. Washington grants
by this proclamation "full liberty" to all such as prefer the
protection of Great Britain to his own, "forthwith to withdraw
themselves and families within the enemy's lines."
This is only a trap to discover those who are not affected to
the rebellion; and even this mean idea has been followed
by a conduct of which a common Turk would have been
ashamed. Doctor Brown, of Newark, in the Jerseys, relying
not merely upon Mr. Washington's word as a gentleman, but
upon his public faith pledged in the foregoing paper as a
public man, immediately wrote to him, desiring leave to withdraw
himself and family to New York, pursuant to his
proclamation. Instead of complying with the Doctor's
wishes, he sent a party of his rebels to drag him away to
Morristown. He is now confined there in jail, his family
is almost distracted, and all his property seized. So much
for the public faith of Mr. Washington!

He seems indebted for the last cruel idea of his proclamation
to the worthy author of "Common Sense," and the
"American Crisis." This gentleman is for seizing all the
property of people who refuse to join in his measures, for the
sake of the spoil; and has the confidence to declare, that such
a seizure would enable his rebellious adherents to carry on
the war for two years longer. 'Tis to be hoped, for the honor
and safety of America, that the good people of this country
will give an exact account of him and some of his associates
in half the time. It is every man's interest, who has any
thing to lose, to take care of a person who has the impudence
to profess himself a public robber and destroyer, and can
call this unheard of cruelty and devastation by the name of

"soft resentment." However, if men who can encourage
perjury by proclamation, and plunge thousands of families
into irretrievable ruin, only for the purpose of answering their
dark ambition; if men who can have the consummate boldness
to break their public faith, and, calling the gentle government
of Britain, tyranny, can become the most insolent and
outrageous tyrants themselves; if such can possibly arrive
at the rule of this once happy country, it will be the interest
of every one who loves the enjoyment of liberty more than
the sound, to retire from America as speedily as he can. In
such an event, (which, however, is not likely to happen,) he
would escape the anarchy, riot, and bloodshed, which these
"unprincipled impostors" sooner or later would spread over
the land, and which would then become the vengeance of
Providence itself on this most ungrateful and unnatural
rebellion.[26]

January 26.—Last evening, the little theatre in John
street, in New York, was opened, with the celebrated burlesque

entertainment of Tom Thumb, written by the late
Mr. Fielding to ridicule the bathos of several
dramatic pieces that at his time, to the disgrace of the British
stage, had engrossed both the London theatres. The characters
were performed by gentlemen of the navy and army.
The spirit with which this favorite piece was supported by
the performers, proves their taste and strong conception of the
humor. The performance convinces us that a good education
and knowledge of polite life, are essentially necessary to
constitute a good actor. The play was introduced by a
prologue written and spoken by Captain Stanly. We have
great pleasure in applauding this first effort of his infant muse,
as replete with true poetic genius. The scenes, painted by
Captain De Lancey, have great merit, and would not disgrace a
theatre, though under the management of a Garrick. The house
was crowded with company, and the ladies made a brilliant
appearance.[28]

The defeat of the Hessians at Trenton, was primarily
owing to a dispute which existed between the English and
German troops. Colonel Rahl, apprehending

that he should be attacked by superior numbers,
required of Lord Cornwallis a reinforcement. Two regiments,
under Colonel Grant, were detached for that purpose. The
English troops showed a reluctance to assist the Hessians. They
halted a few hours, during which interval Colonel Rahl was
defeated.

The disputes between the English and the Hessians troops
originated from the following incident: An officer of the
regiment of Losberg engaged some English officers at Princeton
in a conversation respecting military discipline. An
English officer, whether heated by liquor, or irascible through
passion, replied to the German by throwing a punch bowl at
his head. The insult was properly resented. But the seeds
of discord being thus unhappily sown, a crop of evils ensued.
The private men, adopting the quarrels of their officers, indulged
themselves in frequent rencounters.[30]

February 1.—An anonymous correspondent living in
London, says: We have received, through the indefatigable
assiduity of Lord Stormont, the English ambassa-

dor at the court of France, a copy of Doctor
Franklin's proposals[32] from the American Congress to the
French court, which are as follows:

May it please your Majesty:—We, the most puissant,
high and invincible of States of North America, have empowered

our trusty and well-beloved Benjamin Franklin, one
of the principal members of our Commonwealth, to make the
following overtures of a treaty with your most christian Majesty,
in behalf of, and for us the above States, upon the subsequent
honorable principles and conditions.

That being now to our sorrow convinced of the dastardly
and cowardly behavior of the army of this commonwealth, in
not daring to face the troops of our once parent state, and at
the same time sensible of having drawn God's curse and
heavy displeasure upon us for our enormous ingratitude and
disobedience towards our Mother country; we came to a
resolution of applying to your Majesty's aid in this our sad
inability and disappointment in striving against such power,
that as your Majesty is styled "The Most Christian," for
whose religion and laws we the Independents of America, as
well as our ancestors, always had the most high and cordial
esteem and reverence, as they are framed and calculated for
the security and promotion of the purest and most extensive
liberty, both religious and civil. We flatter ourselves that
your arms may be more successful in this our just and
laudable cause, so conformable to the laws of God and man.
And should your most christian Majesty's arms prove victorious
against those our cruel enemies, and we thereby be
reinstated in the enjoyment of our most equitable rights,
and reassuming, and once more clothing ourselves with that
Heaven descended power which we exercised over said States,
we shall condescend to requite and acknowledge your effort
and expense in the said war and conquest, with giving you
our permission and liberty to conquer also for your own use and
dominion your ancient colony of Canada, which when there
was no risk and resistance against us, we so justly and bravely
invaded, and partly conquered, but at the appearance of the
troops of our late parent State, we so heroically evacuated
again, of which the bearer, Mr. Franklin, is a living instance,
having escaped out of a window, without even breaking his neck,
owing to the assistance of his guardian spirit, who probably
intends him for a more conspicuous and exalted death, as a
reward for his shining public virtues.

You shall have our sovereign consent and permission also
to conquer both the Floridas, which were exchanged for the
territories on the Mississippi, which, with the province of
Quebec, the British nation, at a considerable expense of blood
and treasure, conquered for us last war, as a small return for
the inestimable benefits which they had derived from our
commerce and friendship.

As another instance of our acknowledgment for these
your signal services, we the aforesaid most powerful States
surrender you the full property and dominion of the British
West India islands, which are now, and ever have been,
dependent on these States for the common necessaries of life,
and are therefore naturally subordinate to them, and at their
control and disposal.

As a further motive and encouragement, we also covenant
and engage, that such sums of money in our own
specie shall be transmitted and delivered into your most
christian Majesty's coffers, as shall be adequate to the
expense you may incur in assisting us, and as shall appear
equal to the gratitude and dignity of these States to give.
We lastly permit our subjects to carry on trade with yours,
as long as it suits their conveniency and interests.

These our most gracious concessions, we hope, will induce
you to accept our offers, and most amply satisfy and
reimburse you for the troubles and difficulties you may
undergo in conquering our said enemies, and reinstating us
in the possession and dominion of the countries which have
been discovered and protected at the expense of the British
nation, and we have a just right and claim to by virtue of
our charters granted us by said nation, and by the laws of
God and nature.[33]

Lord Stormont, whose time is chiefly employed in
circulating reports to discredit the Americans, having in a
very serious manner lately told a French noble-

man, that six battalions in Washington's army
had laid down their arms, the nobleman applied to Doctor
Franklin, to know whether the story was a truth, (une vérité,)
to which the Doctor answered, "Non, Monsieur, ce n'est pas
vérité, c'est seulement un Stormont. No, Sir, it is not a truth,
it is only a Stormont." This answer was afterwards handed
about amongst the wits of Paris, and the word Stormont has
since become the cant phrase for a lie.[35]

February 6.—It may be relied on as a matter of fact, that
when the enemy took possession of Newport, in Rhode Island,

a person who lived on the island, and had been a
lieutenant of a privateer, was taken up and carried
before Lord Percy, Sir Peter Parker, and Colonel (or as
some call him) General Prescott. Says Prescott, "What are
you?" "I have been a lieutenant of a privateer." "A lieutenant
of a privateer, ha! Damn your blood, one of the
damn'd thieves," and immediately made up to him and hit
him a knock in the jaws, and said he should be hanged. He
told the colonel he, too, had had prisoners in his power, and
always had used them well; and even when he himself had
short allowance the prisoners had a full allowance of provisions.
"Yes, damn you, I have been a prisoner among you
and know how I was treated;" and hit him another knock.
Lord Percy desired the colonel not to proceed in that way, as
he was a prisoner; the colonel told the prisoner he should be
chained neck and heels, and be fed with nothing but oatmeal
and wetel, and while he lived his life should be miserable, and
hit him another knock, which Lord Percy again disapproved
of, and ordered him to be put into prison, which he said was
enough without blows or irons.

We shall leave it to our readers to make their own reflections
on this treatment, and to determine from it the character
of Colonel Prescott, and whether it does not indicate him to be
a blustering coward: for according to an established maxim,
the brave are always generous, and treat with humanity those
whom the fortune of war has made their prisoners.[37]

The characteristic virtue of the natives of Rhode Island is
liberality, and it should seem (at least it is hoped) Heaven
favors this sequestered isle. It were a pity human blood
should stain the most beautiful spot in all America, where, till
the commencement of the unhappy war, the inhabitants lived
in all that reciprocal friendship, that harmony and happiness,
which minds undisturbed by ambition, or uninfluenced by
prejudice, so fully and amply enjoy.[38]

A correspondent thinks the following new catechism will
amply repay an attentive perusal:[39]

What is war?—It is the curse of mankind, the mother of
pestilence and famine, and the undistinguishing

destroyer of the human species.

How is war divided?—Into offensive and defensive.

What is the chief end of offensive war?—Sometimes it is
to regain by the sword what had been unjustly taken away
from the rightful possessor; but, for the most part, it is to
gratify the ambition of a tyrannic prince, by subjecting to his
arbitrary will a people whom God had created free, and giving
their hard-earned possessions to support him in luxury, idleness,
and sensuality.

Are there any instances of such princes?—Yes, many,
both in ancient and modern times. History is filled with the
wicked lives and miserable deaths of tyrants. The present
King of Great Britain, whose history is not yet completed, is
a living example of such a prince. He carried an offensive
war into the East Indies, and deprived many thousands of
those innocent people of their lives and properties, that he
might snuff the spices of the east, and repose his sluggard
limbs on the sofa of a nabob. He is now carrying an offensive
war into America, without one specious plea for so doing,
most wickedly aiming at the absolute disposal of that extensive
country and all its numerous inhabitants; for this purpose
he has spread desolation and death through their peaceful
habitations, pursuing his iniquitous designs with every aggravated
species of obstinacy, cruelty, and horror.

What may be said of such a prince?—That he looks upon
mankind as created only for his use, and makes their misery
his support; that the spirits of thousands, who have fallen a
sacrifice to his ambition, cluster around the polished points of
his imperial crown, and daily cry aloud to Heaven for justice;
that his throne is built of the bones of his fellow creatures,
and rests on the skulls of the slain; that his unhallowed feasts
are sprinkled with human blood, and that the groans of widows
and orphans attend him with innumerable curses at every
rising sun.

What will be the probable end of such a prince?—That
history will do justice to his memory, in spite of all the fawning
sycophants of his court, and hand his name to posterity
with infamy and detestation; that whilst his royal carcass fattens
the common worms of the earth, his miserable soul shall
give an account to God for the wanton slaughter of his creatures,
whose blood will most assuredly be required at his
hands; and that the vaults of hell shall ring with, Hail, thou
great destroyer of the human species!

What is a defensive war?—It is the taking up arms to resist
tyrannic power, and bravely suffering present hardships,
and encountering present dangers, to secure lasting liberty,
property, and life to future generations.

Is a defensive war justifiable in a religious view?—The
foundation of war is laid in the wickedness of mankind.
Were all men virtuous, just, and good, there would be no
contention, or cause of contention, amongst them; but as the
case is far otherwise, war is become absolutely necessary, as
many other things are which are only the product of the
weaknesses or iniquity of men. Even the invaluable blessings
of a constitutional government would be unnecessary incumbrances,
were there no open violence or secret treachery to be
guarded against. God has given to man wit to contrive, power
to execute, and freedom of will to direct his conduct. It cannot
be, therefore, but that some will abuse these great privileges,
and exert these powers to the ruin of others. The oppressed
will then have no way to screen themselves from injury
but by executing the same powers in their defence, and it is

their duty so to do. If it were otherwise, a few miscreants
would tyrannize over the rest of mankind, and make them
abject slaves of oppression and pensioners of their will. Thus
it is that a just defensive war is not only necessary, but an indispensable
duty, and consistent with religion, accommodated
as it must be to our present imperfect state of existence.

Is it upon these principles that the people of America are
now resisting the arms of England, and opposing force by
force?—Strictly so. The Americans had nothing in view but
to live peaceably and dutifully in a constitutional submission
to Great Britain. They suffered patiently, for a long time,
many unjust encroachments of power, being loath to offend
their rulers by a too strict attention to every right, till at last
the designs of the court became too evident to be mistaken,
and they were pushed to the distressing necessity of choosing
one of two evils, viz., either to enlist themselves and their unborn
posterity the avowed unconditional slaves of a corrupt
and wicked administration, or to brave the horrors of war
in a noble contest for liberty and life. They have wisely determined
on the latter; and after solemnly appealing to God
and the world for the justice of their cause, they are prosecuting
the war under the favor of Heaven, and with the most
promising hopes of success. Supported by the equity of their
principles, they have surmounted the greatest difficulties, and
exhibited instances of bravery not exceeded by the heroes of
antiquity—and may Heaven prosper their virtuous undertaking.

But it has often been said that America is in a state of
rebellion: tell me, therefore, what is rebellion?—It is when a
great number of people, headed by one or more factious leaders,
aim at deposing their lawful prince, without any just cause
of complaint against him, in order to place another on his
throne.

Is this the case of America?—By no means. They have
repeatedly declared, with all sincerity, that they were ever
ready to support, with their lives and fortunes, the present
King of Great Britain on the throne of his ancestors, and only
requested in return the enjoyment of those inestimable rights

which the British Constitution confirms to all its subjects, and
without which the boasted freedom of that constitution is but
a solemn mockery, and an empty name.

To whom has the British court committea the conduct of
the present war?—To Lord and General Howe.

Who are these gentlemen?—They are the brothers of a
Colonel Howe, who fought bravely by the side of the Americans
in a former war, and fell in battle; who, by his amiable
character, endeared himself to those people so much, that they
lamented his fate with unfeigned sorrow, and erected, at their
own expense, a costly monument to his memory. But these
gentlemen, with unrelenting hearts and sacrilegious hands,
have defiled their brother's monument with the blood of those
whose affection reared it to his honor, and plunged their murderous
weapons into bosoms glowing with love and esteem for
their mother's son.[41]

What progress have the English made in subduing America?—Very
little. They got possession of Boston by the tacit
consent of its inhabitants, but could not hold it long. They
were but tenants at will, strictly speaking, for their landlords
turned them out without any warning, and distrained upon certain
military stores, &c., although they had sat there at a rent
of about five hundred pounds per day.

What did they next?—They took Staten Island, where
there was nothing to oppose them, and a part of Long Island,
by an exertion of almost their whole force against a small part
of the American army, and then ferried themselves over to the
city of New York; from thence they crept into the Jerseys,

and taking advantage of a critical period, when the American
army was disbanded by the terms of enlistment, and before a
new force could be raised, they heroically advanced to the
banks of the Delaware, well knowing there was nothing to
oppose their progress. On the banks of the Delaware they set
them down, settled, as they thought, for the winter season, and
plundered the adjacent country. In the mean time these extraordinary
conductors of the war published a wonderful and
gracious proclamation, offering such protection as they could
afford to all those who would accept of it, upon the easy terms
of absolute, unconditional submission. But the Americans,
whose resources are endless, soon found a spirited militia to
supply the place of the disbanded troops until a new army
could be raised. This militia crossed the Delaware in a snow
storm at midnight, and after marching ten miles, very uncivilly
attacked the enemy before they had breakfasted, and
drove them from the banks of the Delaware in the utmost consternation,
and with a loss of twelve hundred men. The American
army then recrossed the Delaware and suffered the enemy
to return to their post, where they anxiously waited the arrival
of an expected reinforcement. But the American general, by
a stroke of policy above their comprehension, once more passed
the river with his army, and kindled a few fires in the night
near their station; and whilst they were foolishly gazing at
the beauty of the curling flames, he marched on, attacked,
routed, and entirely defeated the said reinforcement. The
shattered remains of General Howe's army are now close confined
in Brunswick, where they are doing penance on salt meat
and musty biscuit.

Where are injustice, obstinacy, and folly united in one
character in an eminent degree?—In George the Third. He
is unjust, because he endeavors to gain by force what is denied
him by the laws of the realm over which he presides, in direct
violation of his coronation oath, and pursues his unconstitutional
claims to the effusion of human blood; he is obstinate,
because he refuses to hear the humble petitions and modest
reasonings of an oppressed people, and will not yield to
the forcible convictions of truth; and his folly is conspicuous

in quarrelling with a people who loved and honored him, who
were the chief supporters of his crown and dignity, and a never-failing
source of increasing wealth.

Who is the soggiest man in the world?—Lord Howe.

Who is the weakest?—General Howe.

Who is the greatest liar upon earth?—Hugh Gaine, of New
York, printer.[42]

Who is the most ungrateful man in the world?—Governor
Skinner.[43]

Why do you call him governor?—Because when Lord and
General Howe thought that they had conquered the Jerseys,
they appointed him lieutenant-governor of that State. Skinner
assumed that title over one-tenth part of the said State,
and continued his usurpation for six weeks, five days, thirty-six
minutes, ten seconds, and thirty hundred parts of a second,
and then was deposed.

Why is he called ungrateful?—Because he has joined the
enemies of his country, and enlisted men to fight against his
neighbors, his friends, and his kinsfolk; because he has endeavored
to transfer the soil that gave him bread from the
rightful possessors to a foreign hand; because he is doing all
he can to defraud the fruit of his body of their just inheritance;
and because, to gain present ease and transitory honors,
he would fasten the chains of slavery on three millions of
people and their offspring forever.

Who is the best man living?—His Excellency General
Washington, to whom the title of Excellency is applied with
the greatest propriety. He has left a peaceful habitation and
an affluent fortune to encounter all the dangers and hardships
of war, nobly stepping forth in the defence of truth, justice,
and his country. In private life he wins the hearts and wears
the love of all who are so happy as to live within the sphere
of his action. In his public character he commands universal
respect and admiration. Conscious that the principles on
which he acts are indeed founded on virtue, he steadily and

coolly pursues those principles, with a mind neither depressed
by disappointments nor elated by success, giving full exercise
to that discretion and wisdom which he so eminently possesses.
He retreats like a general and acts like a hero. If
there are spots in his character, they are like the spots in the
sun, only discernible by the magnifying powers of a telescope.
Had he lived in the days of idolatry, he had been worshipped
as a god. One age cannot do justice to his merit, but the
united voices of a grateful posterity shall pay a cheering tribute
of undissembled praise to the great asserter of their country's
freedom.[44]

February 18.—Our cruel enemies are still in possession of
Newport, Rhode Island, but by all appearances they will not
infest it three weeks hence. Percy, the person

so famous for his well-ordered retreat from Lexington,
is, since Clinton's departure, chief commander on the
island, and makes head-quarters at Mr. Levy's house, near the
parade. By the best accounts that can be collected, their
numbers do not exceed three thousand; they give out five or
six thousand. From two or three of their late villanous papers
it may easily be discovered they are not unacquainted
with the art of lying. One of them contains an address to
Clinton, signed by four hundred and forty-four of the inhabitants,
welcoming him to the island, desiring his protection,
swearing allegiance to George the Third, acknowledging him
as their true and lawful sovereign, and expressing their surprise
at the strange infatuation of a deluded people, who are led
into the present rebellion by the art of a few designing men.

By the most authentic information, one-half of the signers
were induced to put their names to the address by the persuasions
of the principal Tories, who, by the assistance of all the
powers of darkness and the father of liars at their head, in
order to carry their point, gave out that Philadelphia was in
their possession, and Connecticut had, to a man, laid down their
arms and sworn allegiance to George the Third.

There are one hundred flat bottom boats building with all
expedition in the different parts of Rhode Island. The other
day two or three scows with soldiers went from Providence to
quarter at Tiverton. Their appearance in passing through
Bristol ferry caused a general alarm on the island, and set the
Hessians to retreating with the utmost precipitancy with their
baggage, into the town. There is no doubt but that six thousand
troops could dispossess these sons of Belial with the greatest
ease; a trial of which we expect very shortly. Doctor
H—r's death and false character was lately published in one
of their papers. May it be the fate of every Tory scoundrel
that now infests this once happy land, to make his exit out of
America before the present month is closed.[46]

At the adjourned superior court lately held at Hartford, in
Connecticut, the following persons were convicted of the fol-

lowing crimes, viz.: Moses Dunbar, of Waterbury,
convicted of having a captain's commission
from General Howe, and enlisting men to serve in the ministerial
army—sentenced to suffer death, but the time of his execution
is not fixed upon. The Reverend Roger Viets, of
Simsbury, convicted of aiding and assisting Major French, and
a number of other prisoners, in making their escape, and
holding a traitorous correspondence with the enemy—sentenced
to pay twenty pounds to the State, and suffer one
year's imprisonment. Gurdon Whitmore, of Middletown,
found guilty of high treason by the jury, but an arrest of
judgment being pleaded in his favor, a final determination of
the trial was put off till March next. At the same time the
Reverend Mr. Nichols, of Waterbury, was tried for treasonable
practices against the United States, and acquitted.[48]

February 27.—By a passage from the London papers it
appears that the mildness of the Massachusetts government,

and the generosity of the Whigs to the Tories, is
attributed altogether to timidity, and an apprehension
that the cause of the Americans is gone. "It is now
very common," says the passage referred to, "to see the friends
of government walking arm in arm in the streets of Boston,
unnoticed; and they hold meetings and visit one another,
which they have not done since General Gage's army came
among them. In short, it is said they are very much disheartened."
It seems, then, that the Tories are allowed more
liberty under the present government than they were in Gage's
time, which is undoubtedly true; but then all is owing to fear.
It is in this manner our enemies construe all we say and do.
The humanity with which we have treated those who have
fallen into our hands by the fortunes of war, is ascribed to the
same principle of fear, and has been returned by the most barbarous
treatment of the subjects and friends of the United
States, who have fallen into their hands—even the sailors on
voyages of mere trade. They have been murdered in a systematical
way, by crowding them together in cells and dungeons,
and gradually starving them. This is not high painting; it is
literally true.

But we may venture to say, it is not the interest of our
enemies to treat us in this manner. If gratitude will not,
prudence ought to teach them better. Did the impartial
world know all the circumstances, and the unexampled provocations
we have met with, they would admire us as much for
our moderation and mildness, as for our bravery and love of
liberty.[50]

March 1.—A deserter from the rebel army at Westchester,
who came into New York this morning, says that the Congress
troops are suffering extremely for food and rum;

that there is not a whole pair of breeches in the
army, and that the last news from Mr. Washington's camp
was, that he had to tie his up with strings, having parted with
the buttons to buy the necessaries of life. There is a great
plenty of rag money, but since old Franklin went to France,
there is no one left to argue it into the favor of the Jerseymen,
who, though justly called republicans, are not willing to give
even bad provisions for Congress notes, or mere rebel promises
to pay. At a frugal dinner lately given by the under officers
in Heath's command, (supposed to be in honor of his demand
at Fort Independence,[52] ) but seven were able to attend; some
for the want of clean linen, but the most of them from having
none other than breeches past recovery.[53]

March 4.—This day at noon, "His Excellency Thomas
Wharton, jun., Esq., President of the Supreme Executive Coun-

cil of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Captain-General
and Commander-in-Chief in and over
the same," was proclaimed at the court house in Philadelphia,
in the presence of a vast concourse of people, who expressed the
highest satisfaction on the occasion by unanimous shouts of
acclamation.

The procession began at the state house, and was conducted
in the following order, viz.:—Constables with their
staves; Sub-Sheriffs; High-Sheriff and Coroner; His Excellency
the President and Vice-President; Members of the Supreme
Executive Council; Sergeant-at-Arms; the Honorable
Speaker of the House—Clerk of the House on his left hand;
Members of the General Assembly; gentlemen members of
the Council of Safety, and the Navy Board. These dined together
at the city tavern, where an entertainment was provided
by order of the House; the members of Congress then in the
city, and the general officers of the army of the United States
of America, being also present.

After dinner the following healths were drank, under the
discharge of cannon, &c.:—1. The United States of America.
2. The Congress. 3. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
4. General Washington, and the Army of the United States
of America. 5. The Navy of the United States. 6. The
Friends of Liberty in all parts of the world. 7. Perpetual
union and strict friendship among the States of America. 8.
The Arts and Sciences. 9. Agriculture. 10. Trade and Navigation.
11. The memory of the brave patriots, of all ranks,
who have gloriously fallen in their country's cause. 12. May
every American know his true interest. 13. May Justice,
Firmness, and Humanity, ever characterize Americans. 14.
May human Knowledge, Virtue, and Happiness, receive their
last perfection in America. 15. May every private consideration
give way to the means of our public defence. 16. General
Lee, and all our friends in captivity. 17. Doctor Franklin.

The bells of the city were rung, and the whole was conducted
with the utmost decency, and no accident happened of
any kind.[55]

Ran away from Isaac Harris, living in Pittsgrove, Salem
County, Pennsylvania, an English servant man, named William
Blackmore; about twenty-two years of age; five feet five, or
six feet high; light complexion, light straight hair; a very

clumsy fellow, turns the toe of his right foot very much out in
his walk; very much addicted to swearing and getting drunk;
he has run away several times, and has an iron collar round his
neck, marked I. H. and W. B., which he wears under his shirt,
but may be easily discovered. Had on, when he went away,
a brown cloth coat with blue sleeves, a light colored cloth
jacket, leather breeches, and blue stockings. All recruiting
officers are requested not to enlist him. He will endeavor to
get to the ministerial army if he has opportunity, as he is a
great Tory. Whosoever takes up and secures the said servant
in any gaol so that his master may have him again, shall
receive six dollars and reasonable charges paid if brought home.[56]

March 6.—Day before yesterday, departed this life, in
the fifty-sixth year of his age, the Reverend Samuel Auchmuty,
D. D., Rector of Trinity Church in New York, a gentleman
greatly beloved and respected.

He was born at Boston, in the province of Massachusetts
Bay, and educated at the college of Cambridge, in the same

colony, where he took the usual degrees in the
liberal arts. He devoted himself early to the
sacred ministry, and soon after his ordination was fixed as assistant
minister of Trinity Church and catechist, in the year 1748;
in which stations he continued till 1764, when, on the death
of the late worthy Doctor Barclay,[58] he was chosen Rector.
About this time the degree of Doctor in Divinity was conferred
on him by the University of Oxford.

During his residence in New York, which was twenty-nine
years, he discharged the pastoral duties of his function with
assiduity and fidelity; of which, the respect showed to him
by the inhabitants, and the flourishing state of the Episcopal
congregations in the city when our public troubles broke out,
are incontestable proofs.

Firmly and conscientiously attached to the doctrines and
discipline of the Church of England, he was indefatigable in
promoting her interests; yet without any of that narrow spirit

of bigotry, which is the disgrace of religion. His sentiments
were generous and enlarged, which led him to prize
merit wherever he found it, and this disposition and conduct
will ever command the approbation of the rational and virtuous
part of mankind, and succeed where bigotry will assuredly
fail.

Christianity never appears more amiable or winning than
when accompanied with that easy-tempered cheerfulness
which rectitude and benevolence of heart naturally inspire.
In this he greatly excelled, and it gave him many advantages
to serve the cause of religion.

Few men ever possessed a more humane, benevolent, and
compassionate heart. He often melted into tears at the sight
of distress, which never sought his aid in vain. He was a
liberal, sympathizing friend to the indigent and afflicted, a
zealous promoter of every institution or scheme that could
contribute to the welfare of mankind, and was never more
happy than when alleviating the misfortunes of others, or employed
in some office of benevolence and friendship.

Such a temper and disposition must necessarily endear him
to his intimate acquaintances, and enable him to shine in
the more tender connections of social life. He was indeed a
sincere, warm friend, a most affectionate, tender husband and
father.

Those who were unfriendly to the Church of England and
to the British Constitution could hardly be well affected to him,
considering his station and principles. Yet no man had a
more placable, forgiving disposition under injuries or ill usage.
He pitied those misguided people; but as for malice, it found
no harbor in his bosom. He practised the Apostolic rule,—
Let not the sun go down upon your wrath.

During the troubles which have involved this country
in its present calamities, he took that part, as may be easily
supposed, which duty, truth, and reason pointed out. Unshaken
in his loyalty to our gracious sovereign, and in his
attachment to the Constitution, he spurned the breath of
popular applause where conscience forbid him to receive it.
This drew upon him much persecution, which, with the distress

he felt for the miseries of this country, greatly impaired
his constitution; the case could scarcely be otherwise with a
person of his extreme sensibility.

His ill state of health obliged him to reside in the country
the greatest part of last summer, and when New York was
reduced by his Majesty's forces in September, he applied
repeatedly to the rebels, in whose hands he was, for leave
to return, which was as often denied. This obliged him to
come away privately, and exposed him to such hardships,
while making his escape, that his constitution was reduced
still lower. With difficulty he got there; but how was he
shocked on viewing the ruins of so great a part of the city
consumed by the fire in September! especially those of
Trinity Church, that ancient and once venerable edifice. The
sight drew floods of tears from him; and although he lost by
the fire, private property to the amount of some thousands of
pounds, yet the destruction of Trinity Church, and of so much
of the property belonging to its corporation, which has
been estimated at forty thousand pounds, affected him much
more.

When the King's troops penetrated into Jersey, his family
was set at liberty to return. His spirits seemed to revive, his
health to mend, and he and his friends indulged themselves in
the pleasing expectation of peace and happiness at last, after
struggling through so much disquietude, anxiety, and persecution.
But alas! these flattering hopes were soon blasted! His
lungs had been weakened by constant exertions in preaching,
and other parochial duties: a severe cold which he caught at
a funeral, and could never wholly get the better of, weakened
them still more, and greatly injured his voice. On Tuesday,
February twenty-fifth, he was seized with a bilious fever,
which, by the assistance of physic, was removed in a great
measure, yet left him exceedingly weak, and the disorder settling
on his lungs, finally carried him off in a few days.

On his death-bed he behaved with that patience, calmness,
and fortitude which became a Christian, and which a well-grounded
hope of immortal happiness inspires. In his last
moments he retained the perfect use of his understanding and

reason, and joined fervently in prayer about four hours before
he expired. He died without a struggle or a groan.

To-day his remains were interred in the chancel of St.
Paul's church—a church which was built under his inspection,
consecrated by him to the service of Almighty God, and
where he preached his last sermon on Sunday, February twenty-third,
two days before he was seized by his last illness.

Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord, for they rest
from their labors, and their works do follow them. [59]

March 8.—This day, between the hours of twelve and one
o'clock, Brint Debadee, a soldier belonging to the tenth Pennsylvania
regiment, was shot upon the commons in

Philadelphia, pursuant to the sentence of a general
court-martial. This unhappy man was in his twentyfourth
year, in the vigor of life, and it is hoped his untimely
and dreadful end will be a warning to others, who, when they
desert, not only defraud their officer and abuse their country,
but are also guilty of the dreadful and heinous crime of perjury.
Of his past misconduct he appeared very sensible, and
behaved in his last moments with great resignation and calmness,
declaring that he sincerely forgave all his enemies, and
hoped that his example would be serviceable to some of his
thoughtless brother soldiers. He was attended by the Rev.
Mr. Coombe, and the Rev. Mr. Rogers. The last gentleman,
being a chaplain in the service, delivered to the soldiers present
a pathetic address, suitable to the melancholy occasion.[61]

March 9.—Yesterday, the British, supposed to be about
three thousand, came out from Amboy, and posted themselves
on Punk Hill. They brought artillery and a

number of wagons, as if to forage, though there
were none left in that neighborhood worth notice. General
Maxwell, with the troops under his command, was on a rising
ground to the northward, in plain view, though at a good distance.
The enemy were too well situated to be attacked.
Maxwell sent a party to the left to amuse them, while his real
design was to the right, on the heights towards Bonamtown.
He sent a strong party that way to examine their lines, if they
had any, and to fall in near the end of them, that he might
fall on their flank; this was performed by part of Colonel
Potter's battalion of Pennsylvania militia, and part of Colonel
Thacher's New England troops. Colonel Cook, of the
Pennsylvanians, had been ordered from Matuchin to come
down on Carman's Hill, and keep along the heights till he met
the enemy. About half a mile lower down, between Carman's
Hill, and Woodbridge, the two parties being joined, met
a strong advanced party of the enemy. On the first firing,
Colonel Martin and Lieutenant-Colonel Lindley were sent to
support them; they all behaved well and kept their ground
till they were supported from the main body, which immediately
marched that way. The enemy also sent out a reinforcement,
but on another regiment of Americans being sent on
the left to cut them off from their main body, the party gave
way in great confusion, and the flame catching their main
body, all went together. Our people pursued them and took
a prisoner and a baggage wagon close in their rear, a good way
down in the plain ground. Bonamtown lay too near on the
right, and a plain, open ground towards Amboy, to pursue far.
They left four dead on the field, and we took three prisoners.
By the quantity they carried off in sleds and wagons, it is
supposed they had near twenty killed, and twice that number
wounded.

General Maxwell says that by a soldier taken prisoner, he
learns that General Howe was at Bonamtown during the engagement,
till he saw his troops make the best of their way
home, when he thought it was time for him to go.[63]

March 15.—I am no prophet, nor the son of a prophet, yet
I believe in the prophecies of the Old and New Testaments, and
also in some other prophecies; nor can I forbear thinking

there is something prophetic and important in the number
seven—else why do the holy scriptures hold out the number
seven so frequently, and so remarkably? There
we may read that God rested from his work the
seventh day, that the seventh day is the Sabbath, of the seventh
year of release, of seven times seven being the year of the jubilee,
of seven vials, seven trumpets, seven golden candlesticks,
and of the seven spirits of God. In civil story, too, the number
seven is distinguished. Witness the seven wonders of the
world, seven wise men of Greece, and the seven champions of
Christendom. Seven days make a week; the seventh son is
of course a doctor, and nine sevens form the grand climacteric
year. If there should be, indeed, any peculiar significancy in
the number seven, which I believe no one will be hardy enough
to dispute, the oftener that number occurs in any subject, especially
in dates and eras, the more significant and important
must be the subject, date, or era; from hence the importance
of the present year, in which three sevens unite, may be fairly
deduced.

I have been led to these reflections by a tradition which
hath been handed down from the first settlement of New England:
that when three sevens should meet in the date of the
year, the American colonies would become independent States;
and a prophecy that was some years ago published—that in
the year 1777 there would be war throughout Europe. Whether
appearances favor this last prophecy or not, let those say
who are better acquainted with the European States than I
am, and know how the war between the United States of
America and Great Britain will affect them; but a great
number of circumstances concur to countenance the prophecy
respecting the establishment of American Independency, which
are too obvious to be mentioned.

I cannot, however, leave this subject without acknowledging
my great obligations to an ingenious gentleman, who is
deeply read in prophecies, for furnishing me with the following
prophecy, which relates directly to my subject, and had
escaped my observation. Alexander Pedan, an eminent
Scotch divine, not more remarkable for his piety and sufferings

than his spirit of prophecy, hath left it on record, that
when three sevens should meet, a star of the first lustre and
magnitude would fall from the crown of Great Britain. Most
prophecies are delivered in enigmatical terms, which time only
can develop. However, may we not conjecture that the noted
divine, Alexander Pedan, had in idea the present year? And
does it require much skill in enigmatical learning to see
through these prophecies, and to conclude, with a degree of
confidence, that this very year, 1777, will be the grand jubilee
of American Freedom and Independency?

May He that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand accomplish
the prophecy! Thus devoutly wisheth and prayeth
Behman. [65]

A correspondent in London says, that since the ministry
have not been able, by their arms, to reduce America, a pro-

jector has delivered to them a scheme which will
soon bring the rebels to an unconditional submission;
and it is confidently reported that administration have
with great avidity adopted it, and mean to carry it into execution
by contract, proposals for which having already been
received from two Englishmen and eleven Scotchmen. It is
that sixty thousand barrels of lamp black be immediately
bought in Russia, Prussia, or Scotland, and that it be sent on
or before midsummer day to the respective colonies; that
commissioners be appointed in every such colony to paint the
faces, and every other part of the bodies of the Americans as
black as negroes; and that soon after this operation they shall
be sold, as negroes are, at public auction, twenty in a lot, to
the Creole planters of Jamaica, Barbadoes, Antigua, &c., and
that the money arising from such sales be principally applied
in improving his Majesty's loyal but barren kingdom of Scotland,
and the remainder in pensions to North, Bute, Mansfield,
the two Howes, the Minden hero, Governors Dunmore, Tryon,
and their heirs for three lives, and five pounds a year to every
Bostonian in Brompton Row, who will return thither and be
the negro drivers.[67]

March 17.—Last night, a detachment of the Queen's rangers,
and New York companies, with twenty of the Hessian
troops, and a subaltern, under the command of

Captains John Branden and Archibald Campbell,
were ordered out from New York to attack a party of the rebels
at De Lancey's Mills, in Westchester county; but they having
intelligence of the movement of our detachment, fled to the
house of Stephen Ward, about nine miles north from Kingsbridge,
where the party attacked them, about nine o'clock at
night, killed between forty and fifty, and took twenty-seven
prisoners, amongst whom were a major, a captain, (wounded,)
and a forage-master. They brought off at the same time
twenty-four head of cattle, and four horses, part of which the
rebels had robbed the friends of government of that day.
Our loss would have been very inconsiderable, had it not been
for the death of the brave Campbell, who, after the villains
had begged for quarters, went into the house, and was immediately
shot through the heart. We had five privates killed
on the spot, and six wounded, one of whom is since dead.[69]

March 20.—This morning, a young woman passing an evacnated
house in Woodbridge, New Jersey, saw through the
window a drunken Hessian soldier, who had straggled from
his party. There being no men within less than a mile of the
town, she went home, dressed herself in man's apparel, and
armed with an old firelock, returned to the house, entered it,
and took the Hessian prisoner, whom she soon stripped of his
arms and was leading off, when she fell in with the patrol
guard of a New Jersey regiment, stationed near Woodbridge,
to whom she delivered her prisoner.[70]

March 27.—The American post at Peekskill, New York,
since the removal of the militia of the Eastern States, has
been in a manner in a defenceless situation, there

being only part of two regiments stationed there,
under the care of General McDougal, amounting to about two
hundred and fifty men. The enemy having received intelligence
of this, formed an expedition thither with a view to
take or destroy the stores belonging to the continentals, that
were deposited there. Accordingly, on Sunday last, 23d, they
appeared with a frigate, four transports, and several other small
vessels, in the bay, and landed about one thousand men, with
several pieces of cannon. General McDougal not thinking it
prudent to hazard a battle with such an unequal force, and
not having seasonable advice of the enemy's movement, was
under the necessity of destroying the stores in order to prevent
their falling into their hands, and retired about two miles
into the pass in the Highlands, carrying with him his baggage
and military stores, his advanced guard being stationed at
Courtlandt's house, in the valley. The enemy the same day
took possession of the village, and remained close in their
quarters until the next day in the afternoon, when a party of
them, consisting of about two hundred men, possessed themselves
of a height a little south of Courtlandt's. The general
having received a reinforcement from Colonel Gansevoort's[72]
regiment of about eighty men, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel
Willett,[73] permitted them to attempt to dispossess
the enemy from that eminence.

Colonel Willett having accordingly made the necessary disposition,
advanced with his small party with the greatest firmness
and resolution, and made the attack. The enemy instantly
fled with the greatest precipitation, leaving three men dead on
the field, and the whole body, panic-struck, betook themselves
to their shipping, embarking under cover of the night; and
by the last accounts they had sailed down the river. Before
they embarked, they gave out that they intended to stop at
Tarrytown, on their way down, and attempt to destroy our
magazine of forage at Wright's mills. Upon their evacuating
the place, General McDougal took possession of his former
quarters, and detached a party of men to watch their motions.
The enemy on this occasion have been exceedingly disappointed,
as they have not been able to carry off any stores left behind

by our men, and no other stock than about forty sheep,
and eight or ten head of cattle, with which they were supplied
by our good friends, the Tories. Never did troops exhibit
more firmness and resolution than did our army on this occasion.
Notwithstanding the disparity of numbers was great,
and the measure absolutely necessary, it was with the utmost
reluctance they retired to the pass. As usual, these heroes of
Britain have burnt some houses, plundered the inhabitants of
what they could conveniently take with them, frightened the
women and children, and raised the spirits of their Tory
brethren in that quarter; but which, alas! as is always the
case when unnaturally elevated, are now again proportionately
depressed.[74]

A British officer in this expedition gives another account
of it:—On Saturday last and the two following days, an
important enterprise was effected upon a large magazine,
which the rebels had formed at Peekskill, near

the Highlands, under the conduct of Colonel
Bird and Major Hope, assisted by Lieutenant Durnford of
the Engineers, with only five hundred men. The troops were
embarked on board four transports on Saturday, with every
precaution of secrecy as to their destination, and proceeded
up the North River under the convoy of the Brune frigate,
Captain Ferguson, and an armed galley. They came upon
the rebels, almost unapprised of the adventure, on the
Sunday afternoon, who soon ran away from their post, (though
they were at least equal to the troops in number,) with the
greatest precipitation. Before they quitted the spot, they
set fire to the mills up Gregory's Creek, in which were
stored above five hundred barrels of flour, and eighty
hogsheads of rum, also to two large storehouses containing
an immense quantity of military stores; and to their forage
yard, with all the hay, straw, and corn. They likewise staved
a great number of hogsheads of rum, during the approach
of the ships.

Immediately upon landing, the troops advanced to the execution

of their design, and burnt and destroyed the whole
magazine, the barracks, the workshops, storehouses, and all
the appurtenances of this principal deposit of military furniture
and stores, which the rebels had been forming for a long
time with the greatest expense and labor. Besides the barracks,
which were exceedingly well constructed, and several
other buildings, above one hundred and fifty new wagons
were committed to the flames, together with a vast collection
of intrenching tools, carpenter's tools, and an immense quantity
of beef, pork, flour, rice, and biscuit, all in casks, and
above four hundred hogsheads of rum. Many casks of tallow,
boxes of candles, hogsheads of molasses, about a dozen
casks of coffee, some boxes of chocolate, chests of arms, artillery
stores, thirty casks of nails, twenty boxes of grape shot,
and a large quantity of bar and slit iron, were either conveyed
to the ships, or entirely destroyed. The camp equipage, belonging
to McDougal, who commands the rebels in that quarter,
was in part destroyed, and in part brought away, with
some officers' uniforms, and colors. In the conflagration,
which with such a collection of combustible matters may be
easily imagined to have been prodigious, a large quantity of
bark for tanning, and of leather for shoes and other purposes,
was consumed. In short, the destruction was complete and
effectual, scarce any thing escaping that could be of use either
to the troops or to the rebels. Several sloops and boats were
likewise destroyed, and others brought off laden with some of
the most valuable articles. A fine twelve-pounder, which the
rebels had placed there, was dismounted, and left without its
trunnions. The whole affair was carried on with the utmost
spirit and harmony, and to the honor of the soldiers it may be
said, that not one of them, among the streams of rum that run
about in every quarter, was in the least disordered in his duty.
They only expressed their disappointment in not having had
a brush with the rebels. Nothing could exceed the cool intrepidity
and precautions of the commanding officers throughout
the enterprise, nor the alacrity and vigor of the whole party.
Not a man was lost or hurt upon the occasion. The sailors
performed their part with equal spirit, and as British seamen
are used to do. The loss of the rebels cannot be easily calculated;
their disappointment and want, in consequence of it,
may be more easily guessed at, and the more, as that loss is
now irreparable.[76]

March 31.—This day, James Molesworth, a spy, was executed
on the commons near Philadelphia. It appears by sundry
evidences, and his own confession, that he had been sent
from New York to procure pilots for conducting the British
fleet up the river Delaware.[77]