LITMIR.BIZ

Скачать книгу

nor was it half the trouble to have reloaded them, for we had wherewithal to do that, but not so with our stomachs.

      Just at dusk, I, with one or two others of our company, went off to a barn, about half a mile distant, with intent to get some straw to lodge upon, the ground and leaves being drenched in water, and we as wet as they; it was quite dark in the barn, and while I was fumbling about the floor some one called to me from the top of the mow, inquiring where I was from; I told him. He asked me if we had not had an engagement there, (having heard us discharging our guns,) I told him we had and a severe one too;—he asked if many were killed;—I told him that I saw none killed, nor any very badly wounded. I then heard several others, as it appeared, speaking on the mow. Poor fellows, they had better have been at their posts, than skulking in a barn on account of a little wet, for I have not the least doubt but that the British had possession of their mortal parts before the noon of the next day.

      I could not find any straw, but I found some wheat in the sheaf, standing by the side of the floor; I took a sheaf or two and returned as fast as I could to the regiment. When I arrived the men were all paraded to march off the ground; I left my wheat, seized my musket and fell into the ranks. We were strictly enjoined not to speak, or even cough, while on the march. All orders were given from officer to officer, and communicated to the men in whispers. What such secrecy could mean we could not divine. We marched off in the same way that we had come on to the island, forming various conjectures among ourselves as to our destination. Some were of opinion that we were to endeavour to get on the flank, or in the rear of the enemy. Others, that we were going up the East river, to attack them in that quarter; but none, it seems, knew the right of the matter. We marched on, however, until we arrived at the ferry, where we immediately embarked on board the batteaux, and were conveyed safely to New-York, where we were landed about three o'clock in the morning, nothing against our inclinations.

      The next day the British showed themselves to be in possession of our works upon the island, by firing upon some of our boats, passing to and from Governor's Island. Our regiment was employed, during this day, in throwing up a sort of breastwork, at their alarm post upon the wharves, (facing the enemy,) composed of spars and logs, and filling the space between with the materials of which the wharves were composed,—old broken junk bottles, flint stones, &c. which, had a cannon ball passed through, would have chanced to kill five men where the ball would one. But the enemy did not see fit to molest us.

      We staid several days longer in the city, when one morning we discovered that a small frigate had advanced up, and was lying above Governor's Island, close under the Long-Island shore; several other ships had come up, and were lying just below the town. They seemed to portend evil. In the evening, just at dark, our regiment was ordered to march to Turtle Bay, a place about four miles distant, on the East river, where were a large warehouse or two, called (then) the King's stores, built for the storing of marine stores belonging to the government, before the war. There was at this time about twenty-five hundred barrels of flour in those storehouses, and it was conjectured that the design of the forementioned frigate, or rather the officers and crew of her, was to seize on this flour; we were, therefore ordered to secure it, before the British should have an opportunity to lay their unhallowed hands upon it. We arrived at the place about midnight, and by sunrise, or a little after, had secured the whole of it, by rolling it up a steep bank, and piling it behind a ledge of rocks. While we were employed in doing this, some other troops were constructing a small battery on a point of land opposite the frigate, (she having arrived during the night, and anchored just below us, not being able to get quite up, by the failure of the wind;) and as soon as we had finished our work at the flour, the battery opened upon her with two long twelve pounders, which so galled her ribs that her situation began to grow rather uneasy to her. She never returned a shot at the battery, but got under weigh as quick as possible and ran by us, (there being then a little wind.) We all stood gazing at her, as she passed, when she sent us a nine pound shot, (perhaps the best she had to send us,) which passed through amongst us without injuring any one: she ran a little way up the river and came to anchor again.

      We continued here some days to guard the flour. We were forbidden by our officers to use any of it, except our daily allowance; we used, however, to purloin some of it to eat and exchange with the inhabitants for milk, sauce, and such small matters as we could get for it, of them. While we lay here I saw a piece of American workmanship that was (as I thought) rather remarkable. Going one evening upon a piquet guard, in a subaltern officer's command, a mile or two farther up the river, we had to march through the inclosures close upon the bank of the river. There was a small party of British upon an island in the river, known, generally, by a queer name, given it upon as queer an occasion, which I shall not stop now to unfold. These British soldiers seemed to be very busy in chasing some scattering sheep, that happened to be so unlucky as to fall in their way. One of the soldiers, however, thinking, perhaps, he could do more mischief by killing some of us, had posted himself on a point of rocks, at the southern extremity of the Island, and kept firing at us as we passed along the bank. Several of his shots passed between our files, but we took little notice of him, thinking he was so far off that he could do us but little hurt, and that we could do him none at all, until one of the guard asked the officer if he might discharge his piece at him; as it was charged and would not hinder us long, the officer gave his consent. He rested his old six feet barrel across a fence and sent an express to him. The man dropped, but as we then thought it was only to amuse us, we took no further notice of it but passed on. In the morning, upon our return, we saw the brick coloured coat still lying in the same position we had left it in the evening before: it was a long distance to hit a single man with a musket, it was certainly over half a mile.

      One evening, while lying here, we heard a heavy cannonade at the city; and before dark saw four of the enemy's ships that had passed the town, and were coming up the East river; they anchored just below us. These ships were the Phœnix, of forty-four guns; the Roebuck, of forty-four; the Rose, of thirty-two; and another, the name of which I have forgotten. Half of our regiment was sent off under the command of our Major, to man something that were called "lines," although they were nothing more than a ditch dug along on the bank of the river, with the dirt thrown out towards the water. They staid in these lines during the night, and returned to the camp in the morning unmolested.

      The other half of the regiment went the next night, under the command of the Lieut. Colonel, upon the like errand. We arrived at the lines about dark, and were ordered to leave our packs in a copse wood, under a guard, and go into the lines without them; what was the cause of this piece of wise policy I never knew; but I knew the effects of it, which was, that I never saw my knapsack from that day to this; nor did any of the rest of our party, unless they came across them by accident in our retreat. We "manned the lines," and lay quite as unmolested during the whole night, as Samson did the half of his in the city of Gaza, and upon about as foolish a business, though there was some difference in our getting away; we did not go off in so much triumph quite as he did. We had a chain of sentinels quite up the river, for four or five miles in length. At an interval of every half hour they passed the watchword to each other—"all is well." I heard the British on board their shipping answer, "We will alter your tune before to-morrow night;"—and they were as good as their word for once.

      It was quite a dark night, and at daybreak, the first thing that "saluted our eyes," was all the four ships at anchor, with springs upon their cables, and within musket shot of us. The Phœnix lying a little quartering, and her stern towards me, I could read her name as distinctly as though I had been directly under her stern. What is the meaning of all this, thought I, what is coming forward now?—They appeared to be very busy on shipboard, but we lay still and showed our good breeding by not interfering with them, as they were strangers, and we knew not but they were bashful withal. As soon as it was fairly light, we saw their boats coming out of a creek or cove, on the Long-Island side of the water, filled with British soldiers. When they came to the edge of the tide, they formed their boats in line. They continued to augment their forces from the Island until they appeared like a large clover field in full bloom. And now was coming on the famous Kipp's Bay affair, which has been criticised so much by the Historians of the Revolution. I was there, and will give a true statement of all that I saw during that day.

      It was on a Sabbath morning, the day in which the British were always employed about their deviltry, if possible; because,

Скачать книгу