1781.pieces, To cherish this idea he ordered his men to open their files to favor their paffage. The Virginians behaved much better than the Carolinians, did great execution, and kept up their fire till they were ordered to retreat. Stevens had pofted forty riflemen at equal distances, twenty paces in the rear of his brigade, with orders to fhoot every man who should leave his post. That brave officer, though wounded through the thigh, did not quit the field. The continental troops were last engaged, and fought with great fpirit. The conteft was long and fevere: but the British carried their point by fuperior difcipline. They broke the fecond Maryland regiment, turned the American left flank, and got into the rear of the Virginia brigade, and appeared to be gaining Greene's right, which would have encircled the whole of the continental troops, fo that he thought it advisable to order a retreat. About this time Washington made a charge with the horse on a part of the brigade of British guards, and the first regiment of Marylanders following the horfe with their bayonets, near the whole of the party fell a facrifice. Huger with the Virginia brigade was the last that engaged; and gave the enemy a check. After a hard battle of near two hours, the Americans retreated in good order to the Reedy Fork, and croffed the river, about three miles from the field of action. They halted, drew up till they had collected moft of the ftragglers, and then retired to Speedwell's Iron Works ten miles diftant from Guildford. Greene loft his artillery (the two fix pounders that Morgan had lately recovered, with two others) and two ammunition waggons, the greateft part of the horfes being killed before the retreat began. This victory coft the British dear. Their killed and 1781. wounded exceeded 600 men, befide officers. The guards loft col. Stuart, with the captains Schutz, Maynard and Goodriche, befide fubalterns. Col. Webster, a brave experienced and diftinguished officer, died of his wounds to the regret of the royal army. Brigadier generals O'Hara and Howard, and col. Tarleton, with several other officers, were wounded. About 300 of the continentals and 100 of the Virginia militia were killed and wounded, among the former was major Anderfon of the Maryland line, a most valuable officer. Among the latter was Huger, befide Stevens already mentioned. Of the North Carolina militia fix were killed and three wounded, and 552 miffing. Of the Virginia militia 294 were mifling. Few of the miffing were made prifoners. They returned home, and never rejoined the camp; fo that gen. Greene's army fuftained a greater diminution than the British. It was however foon apparent, that the advantages of the engagement were on his fide. Though lord Cornwallis iffued out a proclamation Mar. three days after the battle, fetting forth his complete 18. victory, and calling on all loyal fubjects to stand forth and take an active part in reftoring good government, and offering pardon and protection to all rebels, murderers excepted; yet on the 19th he decamped, abandoning all his boasted advantages, and his hofpital at the Quaker meeting-house, containing between 70 and 80 wounded British officers and foldiers. He also left behind him all the wounded Americans taken on the 15th, and retreated toward Crofs Creek. Greene expected that he would have advanced, and therefore had pre 1781. prepared for another action; but upon hearing that his lordship was attempting to avoid it, he pursued him the next day with all poffible expedition. Greene having no means of providing for the wounded of his own and the British forces, wrote a letter to the neighbouring inhabitants of the quaker perfuafion, in which he mentioned his being brought up a quaker, and obferved that an opportunity offered for the exercife of their humanity, without confining themselves to either party, by taking care of the wounded both British and Americans, who must otherwise perish. His recommendations and arguments prevailed, and the quakers fupplied the hofpitals with all that was wanting till the fick and wounded recovered. 28. So great was the avidity of the Americans to renew the conflict with Cornwallis, that notwithstanding the weather was very wet and the roads deep, they marched almost constantly without any regular fupply of proviMar. fions. On the morning of the 28th, they arrived at Ramfay's mills on Deep river, a ftrong pofition which his lordship evacuated a few hours before, by croffing the river on a bridge erected for that purpose. Evident figns of precipitation were found in and about his lordfhip's encampment. Several of the dead were left on the ground unburied. Beef in quarters was found in the slaughter pen on which the hungry continentals fed greedily; but that not being fufficient to allay their keen appetites, they eat without a murmur the garbage which was meant for the buzzards*. Cornwallis had now. fairly the ftart of Greene, and was in a fituation to maintain his advantage. He was on the fouth fide of Deep * Col. O. H. Williams, river, with Cape Fear on his left, and fupplies for his 1781. army in front: whereas Greene was too far advanced to expect any immediate fuccour from the country behind him; he was therefore under the neceffity of giving up the purfuit*. Nothing but blood and flaughter has prevailed among the whigs and tories in that part of the country which has been the fcene of the late tranfactions, and their inveteracy against each other muft depopulate it if continued. Here let us close our account of the operations under lord Cornwallis and gen. Greene, and enter upon those that relate to Virginia. General Arnold, with near 50 fail of veffels, arrived in the Chesapeak by the end of December. He landed, with about 1500 men and a few light horse, 15 miles below Richmond, and marched into that town about 12 Jand o'clock on the 5th of January. The public ftores and 5. buildings were deftroyed; together with the rope walk, and the rum and falt in the merchants hands. The troops went on eight miles to destroy the foundery and magazine at Weft-Ham; but the arms and ammunition had been removed to Manchester, in Powhatan county, where the governor was, with baron Steuben, who had arrived from the northward by the beginning. of December. The next day at noon they retreated the fame way they came; with the defign of committing those destructions in other places, that might difable the ftate as far poffible from making effectual oppofition to The advantage of col. O. H. Williams's official papers; of private letters, and of fubfequent converfation with gen. Greene, for. the purpose of information, has occafioned a variation in divers parts of the above narrative from Dr. Ramsay and others, the B 1781. the plans of the British ministry. They afterward landed on the 15th and marched to Smithfield; and from thence they proceeded to Portsmouth by land. Here Arnold took poft, and began to fortify by the 20th, as the militia were collecting apace, under baron Steuben, generals Nelson, Weedon and Muhlenburgh: but it was the unhappiness of the ftate to be deftitute of arms, and (by bad management) of almost every thing else neceffary for defence. Gen. Washington laid a plan for catching Arnold and his detachment, which was ferviceable, though unsuccessful in the main point. The general was the more eager in it, having been confirmed by letters found on board captured vessels, in the intelligence he had before received of a British project, to make a lafting establishment in Virginia. Four ships of the British fleet, which had been lying for fome time Jan. 22. in Gardener's-bay, failed on the 22d as far eastward as Narraganset-bay. A gale of wind and a very thick fnow coming on at night, the Culloden was totally loft, and the Bedford difmafted, each carrying 74 guns. No fooner did the general receive a certain account of the fame, than he put in motion, under the command of the marquis de la Fayette, 1200 light infantry, as large a part of his fmall force as he could, with prudence, detach to Virginia. He at the fame time intimated to count de Rochambeau the poffibility and importance of improving the opportunity in an attempt upon Arnold; and requested of him and the chevalier d'Eftouches (to whom the command of the French fleet had devolved upon the death of adm. Ternay) to fend the whole fleet, and a detachment of their land force to the Chefapeak. Inftead of the whole, a part only of the fleet was |