The Virginia gazette — Williamsburg [Va.], 1777-01-10 00:00:00, page 1

THE VIRGINlA GAZETTEsi.
The Freedom of the Pres: it one of the great Bnl'wm lex ofLi/si'r *ctlv, and can never be rcstraincssl [mt by despolic (z'owz nmenu.
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[JANUARY10, 1777.] WlLLlAMSBURG: Prince? by Dxon &? HUNTER. [No. 1327.]
'The AMERICAN CRISIS.
NUMBER 1.
BjtbemborquOMMON SENSE.
HESE are the time: that try men'l souls: The sum
mer sqldier and the snnshine patrint will, in this (] ilis,
shrink from the service of his country; but he that
shnda it now, deserves the love and thanks of man
lnd woman. Ty'mnny, like hell, is mctsi: emilsi. sinn
quexedj yet we lift": t' ?! ;onshhtim- with us, that the
bader the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.
What we obtain too chenp, we esteem too lightlyz—"I'is deamesa only
that gives everylthinsi its value. Hencn knowe how to set : proper price
upon in goode; an it would he strange indeed, if so celestial an articlc
nffltdou llldhld not be highly rated. Britain, with an army to enforce
her tyranny. hn declined, that she has : sight (no! only to lax) hut " lo
bind in in all use: wbdfiwfr," and is bein bound in that murm- is not
ssfllvery, then in there not shch l thin :: every on emh. Evenssihc
e: union ie impiom, for so unlimite : youres can belong only to Gd'n.
hether the independenee of the mdnent wao declared too soon, or
dehyed too long, ] will not now enter into an ugumem; my o-vn simple
opinionsiie, the! had it been eight mouthe when it would have been
much better; . We did notnake : proper use of lest winter, neither could
we, while we were in : dependent flute. However, the fault, if it were
one, was Ill our own; we have none t9 blame but ourselves". But no
grene deal ie lost yet; all that How: haa been doing for this month past
in sithes : range then : conquenss which the spirit of the )ersies : year
.;gq yould have quickly repulsed. and which time and a little resolution
\
will loon recover. __
[have as little superflition in me at any man living. but my secret
Lop'mion hae ever been, end still in, that Goo Almighty will not give up
5- a te mimy M. or leave them unlupponedly to perish,
had so eameKly and sorepeatedlf sought tosiavoid the ealumitiee of war,
by every decent method which wist om could tnvent. Neither have ! so
much of the infidel in me, it to suppose, that be it" relin uished the
si? fmmntcnt ofthejvpt'ld, and given ue up to the care of devi ly and as
doom. Innnu , what grounde the Kin ot Britain can look up to
pl
Reade for help : un A common mur erer, : highwayman, or
: bonsebmker, _ good a pretence as he.
]! i- susprism to see how npidly a panie will sometimes run through
: count . 'AI wine and lget have been l'ub'ect to them; Britam
_ _ltu trem led like an ague at the teportdf a Frenc fleet of flat bottomed
U hoatu- and in the fourteenth century the whole English army, after
ravaging the kingdom of France, wn driven back like men petrificd with
sun and thit brave exgloit waa performed by a few broken forces Col
Wndhelded by awmmtn. ]oan of Are. Would that Heaven mi ht
..ia; ' some ]ersey maid to spirit up her countrymen. and save her air
fel o- sufferers from ravage and ravishmemsil Yet paniel in some cases,
ln've their uses; they produce as much good at hurt. Their duration is
dwayi short; the mind soon goes through them. and acquiret :! fimter
habit than before. But their peculiar advantage ii, that they are the
muchfionee of smcesity and hypocrisy, and bring things and men to light,
, which mi ht otherwise have lain for ever undileovered. In fact, 'hty
.havectthe ame effect on secret traitors, which an imaginnry appsi-rition
!would upon a private mm-derer. They fist out the hidden thoughts of
{man, and ho'd them in public to the world. Many : disyuised Tory
fill} lately shewn his head, that shall penitentialiy solmnize with curses the
'fsidly on which Howe arrived upon the Dclaware.
As I was with the troops at sort Lee, and marched with them to the
=Cdge of Pennsylvania, ] am well acquainted with many circumtiuncca,
which those, who lived at a distance, know but little or nothing of. Our
situation there was exceedingly cramped, the place being on a narrow
'neckps land hettnreen the North river and the Hackinsaek. Our force
-Wll inconsiderable, being not one fourth so great as Howe coufd bring
i
"=. _" 77): present winter" (mixing the last) " i! wars}: an age, (s
" r! blly employed, bulisla , "neglected, the whole (eminentMil/[vnctml-r
" (! (be an]; and there i: no punishmm! that man doe: not drstrctue, [us he
" 'wlm, or what? or where he (will, l/Jd! ma) be the meam aj'sacrgfrilsi-g
dstasusopnmundzscjw." Common sense.
against us. We had no lrmy at hand to have relieved the gunison, l.:td
we shut oursehsies u and stood on the defence. Out mnntu:,]:ton, light
artillery, and the {sin part of our florec, had bxtn runucsii upon the
apprehenston that [lowe would endeavour to pcn-ss-ttatc the je: lies, in v— hich
case sort Lee could bees no use to us; for it must occur to : th)' thtnLinss
ngan, whether in th't army or not, that these kinds of sitsiht tum .tze only
for temporary purposee, end llfl in use no lpngel than the uum) dirsiCh
his force against the particular ob'ect, which such sum are nitssed to
defend. Such was our sttuntion m condition at fort Lee on the morning
.of the zoth of Novembtsir, when an officer arrived with information, that
the enemy with 'oo bowe, had landed about seven or eight mites above:
Majm' General nen, who commanded the rrison, immediately or.
detect them underume, and sent express to his xeellency General VVash
anton at the- town of Hackinsack, diflant by wa of the fenx fix miles.
Our first object 'I! to secure the bridge over the sinkinsuck, "Which laid
up the river hetiiien the enemy and us, about six thiles from m and three
l't'om thcm. General Washingtott arrived in About three'qssttarten of on
hour and marched at the head of the troopl toward. the hridge, which
place ] expected we should have : bt'ush for; however they did not chose
to dispute it with on, and the greatest art of our troops went earthe
Z-vidae, the rett dver the fury, except umc which passed at : mill end
tnaff ereek, between the bridqe and the ferry, and made their way'
tnrongh snme me'rthy grounde u , to the town of Haektnszck, end there
passed the rivel'. We brought of} as much haggage as the" wag na could
r'ontain, the se} me IuR. 'she simple oh't-ct wan to bring o the irri
s- n, and tgssnereh them on till they eoul be thengthened by the ersey"
or Pennsyfisssslnia militin, so as to be enabled to make] flmd. We (kid
f-ur days ah'Newark, collected in our out pofls, with some oftlie ]ert'
militia, agsid marched out twice to meet the enemy on insomation ostheu'
b ctng advming, though nue numhen wete great]! inferiour to mien.— "
)sisivc, in my little opinion committed : (rent error'm genenlbipss
nnght have kind I" our ttorel It Brunswtek, end {mer W'flsi'
into Penns lmia: But. if we believe the power of he! to be!
we must li ewise believe that their agente ere under some '
controu]. , ssss ss ss ss _ ' "
I shall mit now attempt to give all the particulars of our renne lo the
Delaware; suffice it for the rescnt to say, thnt both officer! did it",
though greatly hamssed and ii.:tigued, frequently withoutsiu'", moved", . .
or provifion, the incvitable consequenccs of a long (("O-, mumu
manly and martial spirit. All their wishel were one, Mm II- IKI -
country would him out and heathcm to diive the enemy back. Vd
mite has remarked. that King .illiam never appenred w svtl
but in difficultica and in action; the same remain]: mny be M-"M
neral Washington, for the character sin him. Theze is I IW
nesa in some mind: which cannot be unlocked by nifles, but whiche"—
pniocked, discoven : cahinct of fortitndcz and I reckon it Mole" ct'
kind of ublic bleffingl, which we do not immddinteiy see, th!" -'
hath bid? him with uninterrupted health, and given him : mind tNM-ct f
!
evcn flourilh u on care. . - - &
I shall conc ude this paper with some misccllaneom remark- u'm .-'ss
Ratc of our affairs; and shall begin with alking the following-Wss * . ,
Why is it that the enemy hath left the New England provinceu, ud ' ?
these middle ones the (cut of war? The answer is us,: New ! '
it not inscfied with 'I'orieo, and we :ue. ] have.- been tender in ni '
the cr - against these men, and used numherlcst argument. to shew"
their tiger, but it will not do to sacrifice : world to eithcrtheiv
their hascness. The peimd is now arrived, in which eithest . " 'f -
musi change our sentimeme, or one or both must fail. And ' &
Toty? Good Gon! twsissct is he? ] should not he afraid M' .
hundred Whi 5 3 :iinl a thousand Toriel, were 'I! (on _ -' *'
into arms. Efil'y gsory is a ctsiwurd, sorn servile, flZish, EHM ss'siv
fear it the ftluiidibfinn of Toiyilm; and a man undet suds"
?
though he may be and, never can be brave. __ t. _
But hctnn the fine of ii'rccnvuahle sc-paration be drawn g.
]et us least:" the matter toguhcr. Your conduct is an inv" _ ss
enemy, )ctzt not one- in a thousand of you has has! enutgh to ct' , " ss'
Home ir- ue ninth terciHli hy you I! the Amefican cause i: ' 7 *
wru. "t expecfi'ts you will nil take up arms and flock to his Wfl "".
inulkcts on )our shoulders. Yc ur opinions me of no lust to hsi ' si '
yuu suppen him perstssnaily; for it isoldien, and not? ;
w'nia. " si ' '