# The Adventures Of A Revolutionary Soldier/Chapter VI.

CHAPTER VI.
Campaign of 1780.
The soldier defending his country's rights, Is griev'd when that country his services slights; But when he remonstrates and finds no relief, No wonder his anger takes place of his grief.
The winter of 1779 and '80 was very severe; it has been denominated "the hard winter," and hard it was to the army in particular, in more respects than one. The period of the revolution has repeatedly been styled "the times that tried men's souls." I often found that those times not only tried men's souls, but their bodies too; I know they did mine, and that effectually.
Sometime in the month of January there happened a spell of remarkably cold weather; in the height of the cold, a large detachment from the army was sent off on an expedition against some fortifications held by the British on Staten Island. The detachment was commanded by Major-General John Sullivan. It was supposed by our officers that the bay before New-York was frozen sufficiently to prevent any succours being sent to the garrisons in their works. It was therefore determined to endeavour to surprise them and get possession of their fortifications before they could obtain help. Accordingly, our troops were all conveyed in sleighs and other carriages; but the enemy got intelligence of our approach (doubtless by some tory) before our arrival on the island. When we arrived we found Johnny Bull prepared for our reception; he was always complaisant, especially when his own honour or credit was concerned; we accordingly found them all waiting for us—so that we could not surprise them, and to take their works by storm looked ​ too hazardous; to besiege them in regular form was out of the question, as the bay was not frozen so much as we expected. There was an armed brig lying in the ice not far from the shore, she received a few shots from our fieldpieces for a morning's salutation; we then fell back a little distance and took up our abode for the night upon a bare bleak hill, in full rake of the northwest wind, with no other covering or shelter than the canopy of the heavens, and no fuel but some old rotten rails which we dug up through the snow, which was two or three feet deep; the weather was cold enough to cut a man in two.
We lay on this accommodating spot till morning when we began our retreat from the island. The British were quickly in pursuit; they attacked our rear guard and made several of them prisoners, among whom was one of my particular associates. Poor young fellow! I have never seen or heard any thing from him since. We arrived at camp after a tedious and cold march of many hours, some with frozen toes, some with frozen fingers and ears, and half starved into the bargain. Thus ended our Staten Island expedition.
Soon after this there came on several severe snowstorms. At one time it snowed the greater part of four days successively, and there fell nearly as many feet deep of snow, and here was the keystone of the arch of starvation. We were absolutely, literally starved;—I do solemnly declare that I did not put a single morsel of victuals into my mouth for four days and as many nights, except a little black birch bark which I gnawed off a stick of wood, if that can be called victuals. I saw several of the men roast their old shoes and eat them, and I was afterwards informed by one of the officer's waiters, that some of the officers killed and ate a favourite little dog that belonged to one of them.—If this was not "suffering" I request to be informed what can pass under that name; if "suffering" like this did not "try men's souls," I confess that I do not know what could. The fourth day, just at dark, we obtained a half pound of lean fresh beef and a gill of wheat for each man, whether we had any salt to season so delicious a morsel, I have forgotten, but I am sure we had no bread, (except the wheat,) but I will assure the reader that we had the best of sauce; that is, we had keen appetites. When the wheat was so ​swelled by boiling as to be beyond the danger of swelling in the stomach, it was deposited there without ceremony.
After this, we sometimes got a little beef, but no bread; we, however, once in a while got a little rice, but as to flour or bread, I do not recollect that I saw a morsel of either (I mean wheaten) during the winter, all the bread kind we had was Indian meal.
We continued here, starving and freezing, until, I think, some time in the month of February, when the two Connecticut Brigades were ordered to the lines near Staten Island. The small parties from the army which had been sent to the lines, were often surprised and taken by the enemy or cut to pieces by them. These circumstances, it seems, determined the Commander-in-chief to have a sufficient number of troops there to withstand the enemy even should they come in considerable force. And now a long continuance of our hardships appeared unavoidable. The first brigade took up its quarters in a village called Westfield, and the second in another called Springfield;—we were put into the houses with the inhabitants. A fine addition we were, doubtless, to their families, but as we were so plentifully furnished with necessaries, especially in the article of food, we could not be burdensome to them, as will soon appear.
I think it necessary before I proceed further, to prevent much repetition, to give some information of the nature and kind of duty we had to perform while here, that the reader may form a clearer idea of the hardships we had to encounter in the discharge of it. Well, then, I shall speak only of the first brigade, as I belonged to that; as to the second, I know no more of it, than that those who belonged to it doubtless had as hard duty and hard times as we had in the first. I say, as I belonged to the first brigade, I shall endeavour to describe some of the hardships and troubles we had to contend with.
We were stationed about six miles from Elizabethtown, which is situated near the waters which separate Staten Island from the main. We had to send a detachment to this place which continued on duty there several days, it consisted of about two hundred men, and had to form several guards while there. We had another guard, which consisted of about one hundred men, at a place called Woodbridge; this guard staid there two days ​ before they were relieved, and was ten miles from our quarters. Woodbridge also lay by the same waters. We likewise kept a quarter guard in every regiment at home, besides other small guards. Our duty all the winter and spring was thus—suppose I went upon the Woodbridge guard, I must march from the parade at eight o'clock in the morning, go a distance of ten miles and relieve the guard already there, which would commonly bring it to about twelve o'clock; stay there two days and two nights, then be relieved and take up the afternoon of that day to reach our quarters at Westfield,—where, as soon as I could get into my quarters, and, generally, before I could lay by my arms, warned for Elizabethtown the next day; thus it was the whole time we lay here, which was from the middle of February to the latter part of May following. It was Woodbridge and Elizabethtown, Elizabethtown and Woodbridge alternately, till I was absolutely sick of hearing the names mentioned.
And now I will relate some of the incidents and accidents that occurred during this very pleasant tour, that is, as far as I was concerned.
The first thing I shall mention is one that has so very seldom been heard of by the reader, that, it may be, he has forgotten it; I mean, we had next to nothing to eat. As I have just before observed, we had no wheat flour, all the bread stuff we got was Indian corn meal and Indian corn flour. Our Connecticut Yankees were as ignorant of making this meal or flour into bread, as a wild Indian would be of making pound cake; all we had any idea of doing with it was, to make it into hasty-pudding, and sometimes (though very rarely) we would chance to get a little milk, or, perhaps, a little cider, or some such thing to wash it down with; and when we could get nothing to qualify it, we ate it as it was. The Indian flour was much worse than the meal, being so fine it was as clamy as glue, and as insipid as starch. We were glad to get even this, for nothing else could be had; flesh meat was nearly as scarce as wheaten bread, we had but very little of the former, and not any of the latter; there was not the least thing to be obtained from the inhabitants, they being so near the enemy, and many of them seemed to be as poor as ourselves.
The guard kept at Woodbridge, being so small, and ​so far from the troops, and so near the enemy that they were obliged to be constantly on the alert. We had three different houses that we occupied alternately, during the night; the first was an empty house, the second the parson's house, and the third a farmer's house; we had to remove from one to the other of these houses three times every night, from fear of being surprised by the enemy. There was no trusting the inhabitants, for many of them were friendly to the British, and we did not know who were or who were not, and consequently, were distrustful of them all, unless it were one or two. The parson was a staunch whig, as the friends to the country were called in those times, and the farmer, mentioned before, was another, and perhaps more that we were not acquainted with; be that as it would, we were shy of trusting them. Here, especially in the night, we were obliged to keep about one half of the guard upon sentry, and besides these, small patroling parties on all the roads leading towards the enemy; but with all the vigilance we could exercise, we could hardly escape being surprised and cut off by the enemy; they exerted themselves more than common, to take some of our guards, because we had challenged them to do it, and had bid them defiance.
I was once upon this guard, it was in the spring, after the snow had gone off the ground; myself and another young man took for our tour of duty to patrol upon a certain road during the night. About midnight or a little after, our guard being then at the farmer's house, which was the farthest back from the water's side of any of the houses we occupied; this distance caused some of our sentinels to be three miles from the guard. We patroled from the guard to the farthest sentries which, were two, (or in military phrase, a double sentinel,) who were standing upon a bridge. After we had visited these sentinels and were returning, we passed the parson's house; there was a muddy plash in the road nearly opposite the house, and as it happened, the man with me passed on the side next to the house, and I passed on the other; after we had got clear of the water and had come together again, he told me there were British soldiers lying in the garden and door yard; I asked him if he was sure of it, he said he was, for, said he, "I was near enough to have reached them with my hand, had there been no fence between." ​ We stopped and consulted what was best for us to do. I was for going back and giving them a starter, but my comrade declined, he thought it would be best to return to the guard and inform the officers what we had discovered, and let them act their pleasure. We accordingly did so, when the Captain of the guard sent down two horsemen that attended upon the guard to serve in such circumstances and to carry and fetch intelligence, to ascertain whether it was as we had reported; the horsemen finding it true, instead of returning and informing the officers, as they were ordered to, fired their carbines, one into the house, the ball lodging in the bedpost where the parson and his wife were in bed, and the other into the garden or door yard; the British finding they were discovered, walked off with themselves without even returning a single shot. We were sorry then that we had not given them a loving salute as we passed them, and thus saved the horsemen the trouble. This was one among many of the sly methods the British took to surprise and take our guards.
At another time I was upon the Elizabethtown station; being one night on my post as sentinel, I observed a stir among the troops composing the detachment; I inquired the cause, of a passing officer, who told me the British were upon Holstead's point, which was a point of land about two miles from the main body of the detachment, where we had a guard consisting of a sergeant, a corporal, and ten privates. The circumstances were as follows, the guard informed the man of the house where the guard was kept (a Mr. Holstead, the owner of the land that formed the point) that they had heard boats pass and repass at some distance below, during the night. He said they were the British, and that they had landed some of the Refugees, as that neighbourhood abounded with such sort of cattle, but that it would be next to impossible to detect them, as they had so many friends in that quarter, and many of the enemy belonging to those parts, they knew every lurking place in all the neighbouring country; the only way for the guard was, to be vigilant and prevent a surprise. When the guard was relieved in the morning, the new one was informed of these circumstances, and cautioned to be on the look out.
​ There was another young man belonging to the guard, on his post at the extremity of the point; when the Refugees came down to embark, they cut off this man's retreat, there being a sunken marsh on each side of the point, covered with dry flags and reeds; when he challenged them, they answered him the same as they did the other sentinel; but he paid as little attention to their threats as the other had done, although, apparently, in a much worse situation, but fired his musket, and sprang into the marsh among the reeds, where he sunk to his middle in the mud, and there remained unperceived, till they went off, and thus preserved his life.
Such manœuvres the British continued to exhibit the whole time we were stationed here, but could never do any other damage to us than killing poor Twist, (the name of the young man.) Unfortunate young man! I could not restrain my tears, when I saw him next day, with his breast like a sieve, caused by the wounds. He lost his own life by endeavouring to save the lives of others; massacred by his own countrymen, who ought to have been fighting in the common cause of the country, instead of murdering him. I have been more particular in relating this circumstance, that the reader may be informed what people there were in the times of the revolution. Mr. Holstead told me that almost the whole of his neighbourhood had joined the enemy and that his next door neighbour was in this very party. There was a large number in this place and its vicinity by the name of Hetfield who were notorious rascals. A certain Captain of Militia, resident in these parts, who, upon some occasion, had business to transact within the reach of these miscreants, they caught and hanged him up without ceremony, judge or jury. General Washington demanded the perpetrators of this infernal deed, of the British authorities in New-York, but they declined complying with his demand, he, therefore, selected a British Captain, a prisoner,—a son, and I believe an only son, of an opulent English lady, and put him in close confinement, threatening to execute him unless the murderers were given up to justice. But his distressed mother by her strong maternal intercession with the King and court of France prevailed on them; and their remonstrances to Gen. Washington, joined with his own benevolent ​feelings, so far wrought upon him that he set the Captain at liberty and thus these murderous villains escaped the punishment due to their infernal deeds.
We remained on this tedious duty, getting nothing to eat but our old fare, Indian meal, and not over much of that, till the middle of May, when we were relieved, but we remained at our quarters eight or ten days after that. Our duty was not quite so hard now as it had been, but that faithful companion, hunger, stuck as close to us as ever; he was a faithful associate, I will not say friend, for, indeed, poverty is no friend, nor has he many admirers, though he has an extensive acquaintance;—the soldiers were well acquainted with him during the whole period of the revolutionary war.
We were here at the time the "dark day" happened, (19th of May;) it has been said that the darkness was not so great in New-Jersey as in New-England. How great it was there I do not know, but I know that it was very dark where I then was in New-Jersey; so much so that the fowls went to their roosts, the cocks crew and the whip-poor-wills sung their usual serenade; the people had to light candles in their houses to enable them to see to carry on their usual business; the night was as uncommonly dark as the day was.
We left Westfield about the twenty-fifth of May, and went to Baskinridge to our old winter cantonments; we did not reoccupy the huts which we built, but some others that the troops had left, upon what account I have forgotten. Here, the monster Hunger, still attended us; he was not to be shaken off by any efforts we could use, for here was the old story of starving, as rife as ever. We had entertained some hopes that when we had left the lines and joined the main army, we should fare a little better, but we found that there was no betterment in the case. For several days after we rejoined the army, we got a little musty bread, and a little beef, about every other day, but this lasted only a short time and then we got nothing at all. The men were now exasperated beyond endurance; they could not stand it any longer; they saw no other alternative but to starve to death, or break up the army, give all up and go home. This was a hard matter for the soldiers to think upon; they were truly patriotic; they loved their country, and they had ​ already suffered every thing short of death in its cause; and now, after such extreme hardships to give up all, was too much; but to starve to death was too much also. What was to be done?—Here was the army starved and naked, and there their country sitting still and expecting the army to do notable things while fainting from sheer starvation. All things considered, the army was not to be blamed. Reader, suffer what we did and you will say so too.
We had borne as long as human nature could endure, and to bear longer we considered folly. Accordingly, one pleasant day, the men spent the most of their time upon the parade, growling like soreheaded dogs; at even-ening roll-call they began to show their dissatisfaction, by snapping at the officers, and acting contrary to their orders; after their dismissal from the parade, the officers went, as usual, to their quarters, except the Adjutant, who happened to remain, giving details for next day's duty to the orderly sergeants, or some other business, when the men (none of whom had left the parade) began to make him sensible that they had something in train; he said something that did not altogether accord with the soldiers' ideas of propriety, one of the men retorted, the Adjutant called him a mutinous rascal, or some such epithet, and then left the parade. This man, then stamping the butt of his musket upon the ground, as much as to say, I am in a passion, called out, "who will parade with me?" The whole regiment immediately fell in and formed. We had made no plans for our future operations, but while we were consulting how to proceed, the fourth regiment, which lay on our left, formed, and came and paraded with us. We now concluded to go in a body to the other two regiments that belonged to our brigade, and induce them to join with us; these regiments lay forty or fifty rods in front of us, with a brook and bushes between. We did not wish to have any one in particular to command, lest he might be singled out for a Court Martial to exercise its demency upon; we therefore gave directions to the drummers to give certain signals on the drums; at the first signal we shouldered our arms, at the second we faced, at the third we began our march to join with the other two regiments, and went off with music playing. By this time our officers had ​ obtained knowledge of our military manœuvreing, and some of them had run across the brook, by a nearer way than we had taken, (it being now quite dark,) and informed the officers of those regiments of our approach and supposed intentions. The officers ordered their men to parade as quick as possible without arms; when that was done, they stationed a camp guard, that happened be be near at hand, between the men and their huts, which prevented them from entering and taking their arms, which they were very anxious to do. Col. Meigs of the sixth regiment, exerted himself to prevent his men from obtaining their arms, until he received a severe wound in his side by a bayonet in the scuffle, which cooled his courage at the time. He said he had always considered himself the soldier's friend and thought the soldiers regarded him as such; but had reason now to conclude he might be mistaken. Col. Meigs was truly an excellent man and a brave officer;—the man, whoever he was, that wounded him, doubtless, had no particular grudge against him, it was dark, and the wound was given, it is probable, altogether unintentionally. Col. Meigs was afterwards Governor of Ohio, and Postmaster General.
When we found the officers had been too crafty for us we returned with grumbling instead of music, the officers following in the rear growling in concert. One of the men in the rear calling out, "halt in front," the officers seized upon him like wolves on a sheep, and dragged him out of the ranks, intending to make an example of him, for being a "mutinous rascal," but the bayonets of the men pointing at their breasts as thick as hatchel teeth, compelled them quickly to relinquish their hold of him. We marched back to our own parade and then formed again; the officers now began to coax us to disperse to our quarters, but that had no more effect upon us than their threats. One of them slipped away into the bushes, and after a short time returned, counterfeiting to have come directly from head-quarters; said he, "there is good news for you, boys, there has just arrived a large drove of cattle for the army;" but this piece of finesse would not avail; all the answer he received for his labour was, "go and butcher them," or some such slight expression. The Lieutenant-Colonel of the fourth regiment now came on to the parade; he could persuade ​ his men, he said, to go peaceably to their quarters; after a good deal of palaver, he ordered them to shoulder their arms, but the men taking no notice of him or his order, he fell into a violent passion, threatening them with the bitterest punishment, if they did not immediately obey his orders; after spending a whole quiver of the arrows of his rhetoric, he again ordered them to shoulder their arms, but he met with the same success that he did at the first trial, he therefore gave up the contest as hopeless, and left us and walked off to his quarters, chewing the cud of resentment all the way, and how much longer I neither knew nor cared. The rest of the officers, after they found that they were likely to meet with no better success than the Colonel, walked off likewise to their huts.
While we were under arms, the Pennsylvania troops, who lay not far from us, were ordered under arms and marched off their parades upon, as they were told, a secret expedition; they had surrounded us, unknown to either us or themselves, (except the officers,) at length, getting an item of what was going forward, they inquired of some of the stragglers, what was going on among the Yankees? Being informed that they had mutined on account of the scarcity of provisions,—"Let us join them," said they, "let us join the Yankees, they are good fellows, and have no notion of lying here like fools and starving." Their officers needed no further hinting; the troops were quickly ordered back to their quarters, from fear that they would join in the same song with the Yankees.—We knew nothing of all this for some time afterwards.
After our officers had left us to our own option, we dispersed to our huts, and laid by our arms of our own accord, but the worm of hunger knawing so keen kept us from being entirely quiet, we therefore still kept upon the parade in groups, venting our spleen at our country and government, then at our officers, and then at ourselves for our imbecility, in staying there and starving in detail for an ungrateful people, who did not care what became of us, so they could enjoy themselves while we were keeping a cruel enemy from them. While we were thus venting our gall against we knew not who, Colonel Stewart of the Pennsylvania line, with two or ​ three other officers of that line came to us and questioned us respecting our unsoldierlike conduct, (as he termed it;) we told him he needed not to be informed of the cause of our present conduct, but that we had borne till we considered further forbearance pusillanimity; that the times, instead of mending, were growing worse, and finally, that we were determined not to bear or forbear much longer. We were unwilling to desert the cause of our country, when in distress; that we knew her cause involved our own; but what signified our perishing in the act of saving her, when that very act would inevitably destroy us, and she must finally perish with us. "Why do you not go to your officers?" said he, "and complain in a regular manner;" we told him we had repeatedly complained to them, but they would not hear us. "Your officers," said he, "are gentlemen, they will attend to you, I know them, they cannot refuse to hear you. But," said he, "your officers suffer as much as you do, we all suffer, the officers have no money to purchase supplies with any more than the private men have, and if there is nothing in the public store we must fare as hard as you. I have no other resources than you have to depend upon; I had not a sixpence to purchase a partridge, that was offered me the other day. Besides," said he, "you know not how much you injure your own characters by such conduct.—You Connecticut troops have won immortal honour to yourselves the winter past, by your perseverance, patience, and bravery, and now you are shaking it off at your heels. But I will go and see your officers, and talk with them myself." He went, but what the result was, I never knew.—This Colonel Stewart was an excellent officer, much beloved and respected by the troops of the line he belonged to. He possessed great personal beauty, the Philadelphia ladies stiled him the Irish Beauty.
Our stir did us some good in the end, for we had provisions directly after, so we had no great cause for complaint for some time.
About this time there were about three thousand men ordered out for a particular field day, for the Prussian General Baron de Stuben to exercise his manœuvreing functions upon. We marched off our regimental parades at dawn of day, and went three or four miles, to ​ Morristown, to a fine plain, where we performed a variety of military evolutions. We were furnished with a plenty of blank cartridges, had eight or ten fieldpieces, and made a great noise, if nothing more. About one or two o'clock we ceased, and were supplied with a gill of rum each; having had nothing to eat since the night before, the liquor took violent hold, and there were divers queer tricks exhibited both by officers and men. I saw a Pennsylvania soldier staggering off with three espontoons on his shoulder, that he had gleaned up after some of his officers. This day was nearly equal to the whiskey scrape at the Schuylkill, in 1777.
In the month of June five thousand British and Hessian troops advanced into New-Jersey, burnt several houses in Elizabethtown and the Presbyterian meeting house and most of the village of Springfield; they also barbarously murdered, by shooting, Mrs. Caldwell, the wife of the Minister of that place;—what their further intentions were could not be ascertained by our commanders. Sometimes it was conjectured that they were aiming at a quantity of public stores deposited in Morristown; sometimes that it was for a diversion in favour of their main army, by endeavouring to amuse us till their forces could push up the North river and attack West point. Our army was accordingly kept in a situation to relieve either in case of an attack. While we remained in this situation our army was infested by spies from the British;—I saw three of those vermin, one day, hanging on one gallows. The enemy soon after recoiled into their shell again at New-York.
During these operations, we were encamped at a place called the Short-hills. While lying here, I came near taking another final discharge from the army in consequence of my indiscretion and levity. I was one day upon a camp guard; we kept our guard in the fields, and to defend us from the night dew, we laid down under some trees which stood upon the brink of a very deep gully; the sides and tops of the banks of this gully were covered with walnut or hickory saplings, three, four, or five inches diameter at their butts, and many of them were fifty or sixty feet in height. In the morning before the guard was relieved, some of the men (and I among the rest, to be sure, I was never far away when such kind ​ of business was going forward) took it into our heads to divert ourselves by climbing these trees as high as they would bear us, and then swinging off our feet, the weight would bring us by a gentle flight to the ground, when the tree would resume its former position. After exercising ourselves some time at this diversion, I thought I would have one capital swing; accordingly, I climbed one of the tallest trees that stood directly on the verge of the gully, and swung off over the gully; when the tree had bent to about an horizontal position, it snapped off as short as a pipestem; I suppose I was nearly or quite forty feet from the ground, from which distance I came, feet foremost, to the ground at quick time; the ground was soft, being loamy and entirely free from stones, so that it did me but little hurt, but I held the part of the tree I had broken off firmly in my grasp, and when I struck the ground with my feet, I brought it with all the force of my weight and its own directly upon the top of my unthinking skull, which knocked me as stiff as a ringbolt. It was several minutes before I recovered recollection enough to know or remember what I had been about, but I weathered the point, although it gave me a severe headache for several days afterwards, as a memento to keep upon the ground, and not attempt to act the part of a flying squirrel.
Another affair happened soon after this which did not set very well on my stomach at the time. I had been on a detached party for four or five days and had had nothing to eat, for at least eight and forty hours of the latter part of the time. When I came to camp there was nothing there; I strolled off to where some butchers were killing cattle, as I supposed, for the General officers, (for they must have victuals, let the poor men fare as they would,) and by some means procured an old ox's liver; I then went home and soon had a quantity of it in my kettle; the more I seethed it the harder it grew, but I soon filled my empty stomach with it, and, it being night, I turned in; I had not slept long before I awoke, feeling much like Jonathan when he had the dry bellyache for want of some fourth proof Jamaica spirits; that is, I felt "dreadfully." I worried it out till morning, when, as soon as I thought I could call upon the doctors, without too much disturbing their honours, I applied to one for relief; he gave me a large ​dose of tartar-emetic, the usual remedy in the army for all disorders, even sore eyes, though he could not have given me a better one for my then present malady. He gave me ample directions how to proceed, a part of which was, to take one half or two thirds of the potion, and wait a given time, and if it did not operate, then to swallow the remainder; it did not work till I had the whole in my crop, nor then neither. I waited sometime for it, but growing impatient, I wandered off into the fields and bushes to see what effect exercise would have; I had not strolled a half or three fourths of a mile from camp, when it took full hold of my gizzard; I then sat down upon a log, or stone, or something else, and discharged the hard junks of liver like grapeshot from a fieldpiece. I had no water or any other thing to ease my retchings. O, I thought I must die in good earnest. The liver still kept coming, and I looked at every heave for my own liver to come next, but that happened to be too well fastened to part from its moorings. Perhaps the reader will think this a trifling matter, happening in the ordinary course of things, but I think it a "suffering," and not a small one neither, "of a revolutionary soldier."
After the British had retreated to New-York, our army marched for West point. We passed through the Highlands, by the Clove, a remarkable chasm in the mountains, and came out on the bank of the Hudson river, at a place called Buttermilk-falls, where a small stream falls into the river over a high craggy bank, forming a pretty cascade. We halted here, it was in the morning, and I well remember our Colonel's orders on the occasion, "men," said he, "you have one hour allowed you to refresh yourselves!" Had we been herbaceous animals, we might have refreshed ourselves on browse, for there was no deficiency of that, but as to victuals fit for human beings, I question if there was five pounds weight in the whole regiment; I had none, nor had I had any for twenty-four hours; we were, at this time, ruminating animals, but our ruminating was mentally, not by the teeth. Had the falls been real buttermilk, the Colonel's order might have been given with some propriety, but as it was not so, we were forced to be patient, for we did not expect to be fed by a miracle.
We passed on to West point; the Connecticut forces ​crossed the river to the eastern side, and encamped opposite to West point, upon what was called Nelson's point. It was now very hot weather, being the latter part of June; here, for a considerable length of time, our rations, when we got any, consisted of bread and salt shad; this fish, as salt as fire, and dry bread, without any kind of vegetables, was hard fare in such extreme hot weather as it was then. We were compelled to eat it as it was; if we attempted to soak it in a brook that ran close by the camp, we were quite sure to lose it; there being a great abundance of Otters and Minks in and about the water, four legged and two legged, (but much the largest number of the latter,) so that they would be quite sure to carry off the fish, let us do what we would to prevent it.
Soon after we were encamped here I was sent off with a working party to work upon some fortifications on Constitution Island, a mile or two higher up the river. We had our allowance of salt shad and bread, and were to remain there a week; our duty was, chiefly, wheeling dirt upon a stone building intended for a magazine. We had to wheel to the top of the wall, which was about twenty feet high, upon a way two planks wide, and in the passage we had to cross a chasm in the rocks thirty or forty feet wide and perhaps as many deep. None of us happened to take a dive into it, but it often made my head swim when crossing it at such a rate, and I thought it would not be strange if some of us should feel the bottom before we left there. From the planks, which we wheeled upon, to the bottom of the hole, could not be less than sixty feet; if any one had fallen into it he would have received his discharge from the army without further trouble. We continued at this business two or three days, when the weather became so hot that it was difficult to breathe; the rays of the sun reflected from the bare rocks (all that part of the island where we were, being mostly so) was stifling in the extreme, and to complete a bad business, there was not a drop of water on the island, except the brackish water of the river, and that was as warm as milk and almost as nauseous as the waters of the Nile after it had felt the effects of Moses' rod. There was no shade, and we had no tents; we could get no refreshment but in a place where were ​ two high points of rocks butting upon the shore, which caused a small draught of wind (when there was any air stirring) from the river; here we repaired two or three hours, in the heat of the day, and then went to work again till dark.
After we had been two or three days at this invigorating business, the troops were inspected by General Stuben; when he found out our situation, he ordered us off immediately. "You may as well knock those men on the head," said he, "as keep them there, they will die if kept there much longer, and they can do no more if you knock their brains out." He had more sense than our officers; but they did not feel the hardships which we had to undergo, and of course, cared but little, if any thing at all, about us. We were called off, and I never was so glad to get clear of any duty as I was to get clear of that. A state-prison would be preferable to it, for there one might chance to get something to eat, or at least to drink.
And now there was to be a material change in my circumstances, which, in the long run, was much in my favour. There was a small corps to be raised by enlistments, and in case of the failure of that, by drafts from the line; these men were called "Sappers and Miners," to be attached to the engineer's department. I had known of this for some time before, but never had a thought of belonging to it, although I had heard our Major (to whose company I belonged) tell some of our officers (after I had neatly marked his name upon his chest) that if there was a draft from our regiment, he intended I should go, although, he added, he did not wish to part with me. I, however, thought no more about it, till a Captain of that corps applied for a draft of one man from each regiment throughout the whole army present. This Captain was personally acquainted with our Major and told him he would like to have him furnish him with a man from the regiment that he knew was qualified for a non-commissioned officer; the Major then pitched upon me. How far he was to be justified in his choice the reader may, perhaps, be enabled to judge by the construction of this present work; I give him my free consent to exercise his judgment upon it.
I was accordingly, transferred to this corps and bid a farewell forever to my old comrades, as it respected any ​ further associating with them, or sharing in their sufferings or pleasures. I immediately went off with this (now my) Captain and the other men drafted from our brigade, and joined the corps in an old meetinghouse at the Peekskill. It was after dark when we arrived there. I had now got among a new set, who were, to a man, entire strangers to me; I had, of course, to form new acquaintances, but I was not long in doing that; I had a pretty free use of my tongue, and was sometimes apt to use it when there was no occasion for it. However, I soon found myself at home with them. We were all young men and therefore easy to get acquainted.
I found nothing more here for bellytimber than I had in the line, and got nothing to eat till the second day after I had joined the corps. I have heard it remarked by the old farmers, that when beasts are first transferred from one place to another, that if they keep them without food for two or three days, it will go far towards wonting them to their new situation. Perhaps it might be so thought by our commanders. Be that as it would, I got nothing, as I have said, till the second day I had been with them; we then drew, if I remember right, two days rations of our good old diet, salt shad, and as we had not, as yet, associated ourselves into regular messes, as is usual in the army, each man had his fish divided out by himself. We were on the green before the meetinghouse, and there were several cows feeding about the place, I went into the house to get something to put my fish into, or some other business, and staid longer than I intended, or rather ought to have done, for when I came out again, one of the cows was just finishing her meal on my shad, the last I saw of it was the tail of a fish sticking out of the side of her mouth. I was vexed enough to have eaten the weight of it off her carcass, but she took care of that, and I had another opportunity (if well improved) of mortifying my body by fasting two days longer; but I got something among the men, as poorly as they were off, to sustain nature till I could get more by some means or other. Such shifts were nothing strange to us.
This corps of Miners was reckoned an honourable one; it consisted of three companies. All the officers were required to be acquainted with the sciences, and it ​ was desirable to have as intelligent young men as could be procured to compose it, although some of us fell considerably short of perfection. Agreeable to the arrangement between my former commander and my new Captain, I was appointed a sergeant in this corps, which was as high an office as I ever obtained in the army; and I had some doubts in my own mind, at the time, whether I was altogether qualified for that; however, I was a sergeant, and I think I did use my best abilities to perform the duties of the office according to my best knowledge and judgment. Indeed, I can say at this late hour of my life, that my conscience never did, and I trust never will accuse me of any failure in my duty to my country, but, on the contrary, I always fulfilled my engagements to her, however she failed in fulfilling her's with me. The case was much like that of a loyal and faithful husband, and a light heeled wanton of a wife. But I forgive her and hope she will do better in future.
Soon after I had joined this corps, the army moved down on the west side of the Hudson to Orangetown, commonly called by the inhabitants of those parts, Tappan, (pronounced Tap-pawn.) Just before arriving at our encamping ground, we halted in the road an hour or two; some four or five of our men, knowing that the regiments to which they formerly belonged were near, slipped off for a few minutes to see their old messmates. When we came to march again, they not having returned, I was ordered to remain with their arms and knapsacks till they came and then bring them on and join the corps again. I accordingly waited an hour or two before they all returned. As soon as I had got them all together we set off; but the troops arriving and passing in almost every direction, I knew not where to go to find our corps. After much trouble and vexation (being constantly interrogated by the passing officers, who we were, and how we came to be behind our troops,) I concluded, that as most or all the troops had passed us, to stay where I then was, and wait the coming up of the baggage of our troops, thinking that the guard or drivers might have directions where to find them. Our baggage happening to be quite in the rear, while we were waiting we had an opportunity to see the baggage of the army pass. When that of the middle States passed us, it was truly amusing to ​ see the number and habiliments of those attending it; of all specimens of human beings, this group capped the whole; a carravan of wild beasts could bear no comparison with it. There was "Tag, Rag and Bobtail;" "some in rags and some in jags," but none "in velvet gowns." Some with two eyes, some with one, and some, I believe, with none at all. They "beggared all description;" their dialect, too, was as confused as their bodily appearance was odd and disgusting; there was the Irish and Scotch brogue, murdered English, flat insipid Dutch and some lingos which would puzzle a philosopher to tell whether they belonged to this world or some "undiscovered country." I was glad to see the tail end of the train, and waited with impatience for the arrival of our baggage, which soon after made its appearance; but the men with the wagons knew no better than myself where to go;—we, however, proceeded and soon after met one of the sergeants coming to meet and conduct us to where our people were, which was at Dobb's ferry, and about three miles from any part of the rest of the army;—most of the Artillery belonging to the army was at the same place.
Here we lay till the close of the campaign. We built a strong blockhouse near the ferry, in which we were assisted by detachments from the main army, and erected a battery near it; but that fiend, scarcity, followed us here; and when we chanced to get any meat we had no salt. For a long time we had to go three fourths of a mile to the river to get water, which was somewhat salt, before we could cook our breakfasts,—this was trifling, however, compared with the trouble of having nothing to cook, which was too often the case with us. There was, indeed, a plenty of fruit to be had, and we being few in number, and so far from the main army, this resource was not soon or easily exhausted; but there were musquetoes enough to take a pound of blood from us, while we could make an ounce. We had some plague or other always to torment us;—says the reader, "who is without?"
​I was about this time ordered to return up the river, in company with one of our Lieutenants, after some clothing for our men. The Lieutenant rode in company with an officer of the Artillery, who was going that way upon business of his own, and I went on foot, and started early in the morning with only my blanket and provisions, (that is, if I had any;) it was very hot weather; and when I had travelled about ten miles on my way, being on a good road, in the heat of the day, and passing through a considerable wood, a young lady made her appearance at a turn of the road about forty rods ahead of me. The heat had induced her to divest herself of some of her outside garments. But upon discovering me in her immediate neighbourhood, she slipped on her clothes and came on towards me seemingly quite unconcerned; but, on thinking better of the matter, (as I supposed,) she concluded that it would not be quite safe to encounter a soldier in such a place; she accordingly turned about and made her escape as fast as possible through the bushes. When she first started from the road I saw her drop something and she partly turned about to take it up, but thinking that it would not do to stop for trifles when the enemy was so near, she resumed her race. I then hallooed to her which caused her to hasten her departure in double quick time. Upon coming to the place where she turned off from the road, I had the curiosity to see what she had dropped, it proved to be a knot of black ribbon, of about a yard and a half. Not knowing but the poor thing might take another fright if she came back after it, I concluded to save her the trouble, and accordingly took it with me. She seemed to be in a violent panic. But every Miss that I saw while in the army was not so easily frightened.
I crossed King's ferry and went on to the foot of the Highlands, where there was a commissary, and wagoners, boatmen, &c. Here I again joined my Lieutenant, and obtained a ration or two of provisions, consisting of corned beef and hard bread, borrowed a pot, cooked my meat, ate my supper, turned in under an old wagon and slept soundly till about an hour before day, when the Lieutenant called me up to go on to Newburgh, about twenty miles further up the river. He had procured a batteau and five or six men to convey us up and bring ​down the clothing which we were after. We had a mile or two to go to reach the boat, over ledges, through brush, and as dark as Egypt. We then proceeded to Newburgh, where we got our clothing. While I was packing it away in empty hogsheads the Lieutenant gave me a hint to take care of my own interest, I accordingly picked from the best of each article what was allowed to each man and bundled them up by themselves; afterwards, when a distribution was made, some of the sergeants were a little inclined to cavil with me for my partiality to myself, but the Lieutenant interfered in my favour, telling them that I deserved the preference, as I had been at so much pains and trouble while they had remained at home at their ease.
We returned down the river on our way to camp until we came to where we took the boat, when I was set on shore to take the Lieutenant's and the other officer's horses to King's ferry, while the Lieutenant went down in the boat. I took the horses and went on alone to the ferry; on the way, being hungry, my provisions, if I had any, being in the boat, I saw some fine looking apples in a field and dismounted and filled my pockets with them and ate a considerable quantity; they were sweet and of rather a tough texture, and caused me considerable trouble, as I shall relate by and by. I crossed the ferry in a large scow; there were ten or twelve head of cattle, besides my horses, in the boat. About midway of the river a cow jumped out and took her departure directly down the river, it being ebb tide and the water rapid, she was soon out of sight. There was not the least exertion made to save her; she was continental property and consequently thought of but little consequence.
I landed and soon found my officer, who had arrived some time before me; he had got our baggage into a wagon, which had gone on, and he was waiting for me. We should have gone down to Dobb's ferry with the boat had it not been for the British brig Vulture, which was lying just below King's ferry, waiting upon Arnold and Andre. There was a large number of wagons, teamsters and soldiers at the ferry; every thing destined to the army, coming down the river, was obliged to be landed here on account of the abovementioned brig. When I had found the Lieutenant he took his horse, leaving the ​ other with me, and sent me back to the river's side on an errand; I did as ordered and then went on after him and our baggage. I had gone but a small distance before my apples began to operate; I had felt their effects some time before. I now began to think the game was up with me; my head ached as though it was splitting into ten thousand pieces and my sight entirely failed. I got, or rather tumbled, off my horse and lay on the ground, giving myself up for lost. The Lieutenant, finding I did not make my appearance, came back to seek me. He found me in a sad condition. I asked him to give me some water; he got some that was quite warm, and it was well for me that it was so, for I had no sooner swallowed it than it caused me to discharge the contents of my stomach, which quickly gave me ease. I then got upon his horse, which had a soft deer's skin for a saddle-cloth, and he walked by my side and led my horse. I again asked him for water; he went into a house a little distance from the road, in which was no person except an old man; the Lieutenant asked him for a vessel to dip some water from a spring near by, which was six or eight feet deep; but the old man refused, saying that he would not let a soldier have a cup to drink from if it were to save his life. The officer then took a glass pint mug and came out to me, the old man following him raving like a madman; the Lieutenant gave me some water and, after I had drank, he flung the mug into the spring with a motion that seemed to indicate that he was not well pleased; upon which the old man redoubled his abuse, when the Lieutenant, drawing his sword, swore that if he did not immediately shut his mouth, he would bleed him. The old man seeing the sword glitter, thought it best to shut up whilst his skin was whole, and walked off to the house, and we went on. This officer was a very mild man, but the old man had "raised his ideas" by abusing the soldiers, which he would not bear from any one.
We went on and overtook the wagons; but I felt very meagre all day. I never before thought myself so near death, and it was all occasioned by eating a few apples; but less things than these may deprive a man of life.—This was one "suffering" of a Revolutionary Soldier.
There were more than fifty wagons in company with ​ us, bound to the army. We halted at night at a cluster of houses; the Lieutenant took up his abode for the night in a farmer's house;—I staid out with the wagons. In the evening I strolled into a cornfield, upon some occa-casion or other, where I discovered a large patch of watermelons; I took one and went to the wagon and ate it, although the Lieutenant had given me a strict charge not to meddle with any kind of fruit until I had fully digested the apples. He insisted upon my lodging in the house from fear of taking cold, but I chose to keep out with the baggage, which I did till supper time, he then sent out to me to come in and get supper, I could not well refuse this invitation, and went in; the lady of the house provided me a rarity, homminy and milk; the Lieutenant again urged me to stay in the house, but I pretended that our clothing might be in danger unless I attended to it; he said no more to me but left me to regulate my own conduct. It was not the clothing I had so much at heart, though that bore some weight on my mind, but the thought of the luscious watermelons was what so strongly attracted my mind in that direction. Accordingly, when all was still, I went and took as many as I thought necessary, stowed them into the wagon and then lay down under it, and slept very contentedly till morning, without once thinking of the danger of the baggage. We started early next morning and arrived at Dobb's ferry about noon.
Soon after this journey, one night, the British brig came down the river with her precious cargo—Arnold—on board. There were several shots discharged at her as she passed the block-house, but she went by without paying us much attention. The next day it was reported that Gen. Arnold had deserted; I should as soon have thought West point had deserted as he; but I was soon convinced that it was true. Had I possessed the power of foreknowledge, I might twice have put Arnold asleep without any one knowing it and saved the life of, perhaps, a better man, and my country much trouble and disgrace. The first time was at the Peekskill in a barn, just before Andre came to his quarters and while their clandestine negotiation was in progress. I was upon a guard. "There are men," says Shakespear, "who, in their sleep mutter all their conceits." Such an one was ​ Arnold, and therefore afraid to sleep near any one lest he should "babble his conceits" in his sleep. He ordered me and my guard out of the barn, that he might have his bed upon the floor; I was so put out of my bias at the time, that had I known what plans he had in his head, I should have needed but little persuasion to have had a reckoning with him. The other time was but three or four days before his desertion; I met him upon the road a little distance from Dobb's ferry, he was then taking his observations and examing the roads, I thought that he was upon some deviltry; we met at a notch of the roads and I observed he stopped, and sitting upon his horse, seemed minutely to examine each road. I could not help taking notice of him, and thought it strange to see him quite alone in such a lone place. He looked guilty, and well he might, for Satan was in as full possession of him at that instant as ever he was of Judas; it only wanted a musket ball to have driven him out. I had been acquainted with Arnold from my childhood and never had too good an opinion of him.
The British had a block-house below, said to be garrisoned by a gang of fugitive Negroes, commanded by a black by the name of Cuff—Col. Cuff.—One night a black man, a runaway, came to one of our sentinels at our block-house; when he came up he addressed the sentinel with, "is this Col. Cuffee's brock-house?" The sentinel called the commander of the guard, who quickly undeceived poor Ceasar and sent him back to his master, where, no doubt, he got a striped jacket as part of his uniform suit, to remember Col. Cuff by.
Our people had a number of spy boats lying a little distance above the ferry. One night one of these boats went down the river and anchored not far from the western shore, which was there very high, placed a sentinel in the boat and lay down to rest. A British boat, getting intelligence of them, rowed up with muffled oars, keeping close under the highland, in the shadow of the mountains, (the moon being in that quarter,) till they had got above them, and then came directly down upon them. The sentinel immediately roused up the men in the boat; one of them having his musket charged with buckshot, (Yankee pease, as the British used to call them,) challenged them with, "who comes there?" they answered, ​ "we will quickly let you know." The man in our boat, answered, "here's give you Shelar McGira then," and gave them the contents of his musket, which caused a bitter lamentation in the British boat. Our people had now cut their cable and got to their oars, they rowed a small distance, and lay to for the enemy's boat to come up, when they all fired into her and again sprang to their oars. Our boat could row much faster than the other, which still followed her. They kept up a constant fire upon each other till they got nearly up to the ferry, where there were a few troops encamped, who, running down upon the bank of the river, prepared to give the English boat a seasoning, but the enemy, seeing them, gave over the chase and went back down the river. What execution our people did among them was not known, but one of our men received a musket ball directly in the middle of his forehead, which passed out behind his head; this was done about eleven o'clock at night, and I saw him at nine next morning, alive, and breathing just like a man in a sound sleep; he died in about an hour after.
About this time Major Andre was brought from the Highlands to head-quarters, where he was examined, condemned and executed. I saw him before his execution, but was on duty on that day and could not attend; otherwise I should. He was an interesting character. There has been a great deal said about him, but he was but a man, and no better, nor had he better qualifications than the brave Captain Hale, whom the British commander caused to be executed as a spy, upon Long-Island, in 1776, without the shadow of a trial; denying him the use of a Bible or the assistance a clergyman in his last moments, and destroying the letters he had written to his widowed mother and other relations. Andre had every indulgence allowed him that could be granted with propriety;—see the contrast—let all who pity Andre so much, look at it and be silent.
We were frequently alarmed while lying at Dobb's ferry; being so few and at a distance from the main army, we had constantly to be on the look out, but never happened to come in contact with the enemy, although they very frequently made us believe we should.
While lying here I was almost persuaded, once, that I ​ should have to take a trip to New-York, but was quite agreeably disappointed. One day my Captain sent me across the country to the western part of Connecticut, to bring him some mathematical instruments he had left there. He directed me which way to take, as it was dangerous travelling there on account of the small parties of British, or rather Refugees and Cowboys in their service. I knew the way very well, but I knew too, there was a way lower down, that was shorter. I determined after I had crossed the river, to take that road and hazard the consequences. I had got about half way on my journey, when just at night, I passed a house, which before the war had been a tavern. I passed by the house, thoughtlessly, and saw nobody, but as I passed the horse shed, I observed several horses standing under it, caparisoned like dragoon horses. I hurried on as fast as I could to get out of sight, but I had not got many rods by the house, when I saw a man come out with a fusee in his hand, and otherwise equipped like a soldier, who calling after me, bid me stop. I was so near him and entirely unarmed, that I dare not refuse his demand. He stepped along slowly a few paces towards me, inquiring where I was going and where I came from. I now inwardly cursed my indiscretion in not obeying my Captain's directions respecting the road I ought to have taken. I asked him the same questions he had asked me; he said that was nothing to the purpose, he had first interrogated me and I must answer him. He kept all the time advancing slowly towards me; I wished we were further apart. By this time two or three more of his party had come out of the house and were standing looking at us. I then told him to tell me who he was and where from, and keep me no longer in suspense. As he advanced I receded as much as I dared to, till he peremptorily told me not to go any further till I had satisfied him who I was and where I was going. By this time I began to gather courage; I thought that if he belonged to the enemy he would not stand so long without my knowing who he was by stronger arguments than words. I at last told him frankly who I was and where bound; well, said he, I thought you were upon some particular business, or you would not have been seen on this dangerous road. He then asked me to go back to the ​ house and take some refreshment; but I declined his invitation, being glad to find myself safe and in my own hands. I went on and accomplished my business, but took care to return on a safer road.
We lay at Dobb's ferry till the latter part of the month of October, when we marched to West point for winter-quarters. I left this place with regret, more so than any other during my continuance in the army. It was upon an account which I need not mention. Many young men have, doubtless, felt the same upon similar occasions. If they have, they know my feelings at the time I speak of. But that time has long since gone by and my affections with it, both "gone with the years beyond the flood," never more to return.
We marched for West point.—At the Peekskill we procured batteaux to convey ourselves and baggage up the river to the point, where we arrived in safety and went into the old barracks, until new ones could be built for us, which we immediately commenced. We had to go six miles down the river, and there hew the timber, then carry it on our shoulders to the river, and then raft it to West point. We, however, soon completed this part of the business ourselves, when the carpenters took it in hand, and by newyear's day they were ready to receive us; till then, we had been living in the old barracks, where there were rats enough, had they been men, to garrison twenty West points.
Our barracks being completed, and we safely stowed away in them, I shall here conclude the campaign of 1780.