The Virginia gazette — Williamsburg [Va.], 1777-01-24 00:00:00, page 3

Bxlrcct of a lemrffm : Gentlemen in lb: arm, to bdsrimd i: th': city,
datrdPluckemin, Famuu) 5, 1777.
" We have I number of officers prisoners. ] am just called on to
eommand-the insantry et the funeral ot Captain Lelhe, ; Bi'i-"ish officrr,
killed at Princeton. We bur him with military honours. On the
field I saw lying another Captam of the name of Mostyn, said to be the
next heir to an estate of twenty five thousand pounde per anuum in En
land."
( On the first inshn! Mr; Walter Crujse, who was taken at Charlestown
neck the :9th os Iune, arrived in this city, being exchangedpsier a tedi
ous imprisonment of seventeen mouths. The inte-grity c-t thus hrasse :ind
unfortunete man, who, though In Euroyean, treated With disdain the
romisea of person: sent to entire him into the British service, will, it is
oped, recommend him to me attention of those in power.
_ * ad. 9. Thin day : number of British prisoners, )ight-horse, and
in antry, were brou htinto this city from the jesties. _
Since the publieauon of 1an paper, no particulars have transprsixed eon
cerning the operations of General Washington's army in the jesties,
BALTIMORE, january 14.
EVERAL eourierl have errived since our las}, with despatchu to the
lion. Congrese, from hie Excellency General Washington, the con
tent. of which have not yet lranspired. All our aceounts, howevet,
: ee, the: his Excellency": head qaurters are now at Mosris town, where
his troope are in high spirits, in consequence of their late success", and
were determined to take example by their gailnnt leader, in patiently
bearin 'the tatiguee and hardshi e of :. wintefs campaign, rather sh'tn
suffer t eir count to be expos to the further ravages of : barbarous
vindictive foe. hat the enemy's hend quarters were [till at Brunswick,
but that they were takin every necessary precaution to secure a safe retreat
to New Yorksi Thlt : ere have been several recent shirmishel in various
parts of the ]ersey State, beN/een our troope and the enemy, in which
the former base always been successful; but the particulars me so varioufiy
relzced, that we muR defer szying more on the subject, till we hear fur
ther, than that we have taken a number of prisoners, a considerable quan
tit} of Corn, end that the enemy are now atcbing nothing but tartar:
est e
WeZen ther I number of Heman prisoners are on their way to this
ln
town. '
A letter ft'omsi Philadelphi: mentions, that :: confiderablc body of New
En land troope have landed on the east end of Long liland, and were on
theirmzreh towards New York; in consequence of which Generel Howe
hath been obliged to detaeh : considerahle body of troops that way, the
ss present inhabitants of New York having a great aversion to Anterican
thunder.
The Melliah trans ort, laden with clothing, &:c for Canada, taken
by the Alfred man o war, is safe arrived at Dai'tntuuth, in Massachu
sette Bay. .
it is reported, end credited, that Fort Cumberland, in Nova Scotia,
is in possession ,of Captain Eda, and company.
Since our last, two troopl of Iight-horse, from Virginin, commanded
by Clptalne Nelson and ]ameson, arrived in town, on their way to join
General Washington's army in ]ersey.
In a company which arrived yclierdny srom George town, on their
way-to join the American army, there is :\ cadct of 8: years of age; ::
Gentleman of fortune in thie State.
jay:. 16. Connt Donop, comtnandcr of the late Hessian cantonments
upon the Delaware, in ]L-rsey, published an invitation tothe people in the
. country to bring in prot-isu-m, &c. for his army; promising to pay for
' them to the value, to those _who would supply him Vuluntaiilyz and
threatening to take by force hom those who neglected to compl with his
nquisttion. In consequence of this advertisement many hroug t in their
slpplies to the Kin 'a horse, but there is no instance known of their
hnving received one arthing in recompence. Such is the truth, such the
justice and humanity of these invaders of peace and ioperty—and such
the treatment all must expect to suffer, and will n uredly find, if we
mit this uncivilized banditti to over-sun and possess our country.
lt since appears, hy General Howe's orders to the above commandxr,
which have been taken in ]ersey, that " all salted and me:] provisiom,
judged to exceed the quantity necesiary for the suhsiltence of an ordinary
samil , should be confidefed as : magnine of the enemy, and seized so:
the ]Zing, and given to the troop- as : saving for the ublic."
Extract osa Imtr from a Gentleman asgreal worth int : Amtriam army,
* to tln winter of lbi.! paper, daud near Princeton, jay:. 7, 17".
" On the ad inflant intelligence was received, by express, that the
enemy'e on:) wae ndvancing from Princeton towards Trenton, where
the min !) y of our forces wan then stationed. Two bli ades, under
Btigadier General: Stephen and Fermoy, had been detache fever}! days
before, from the main body. to Mlidenhezd, and were ordered to skir
mish with the enemy during their march, and to fettelt to'Ptentol ne ""
occasion lhuul-l require. A body of men, under command of Colonll
Hand, wess : also ordered to meet the enemy, by which means their march '
was so muct'h t't'larded, as to give ample time for our forceoto form, and
prt'ptue to give them a warm reception u n their arrival. Two fieLd
pieces, phrtsid upon a hill, at a small iflance above the town, **en
managed with great advantage, and did considerable execution for some
time, after which they were ordered to retire to the (tation occupied hsi
our forces on the south side of the bridge, over the little river whie
divides the town into two parts, and opens at right aught into the De
lawarc. in their way through the town, the enemy su and much !: an
incessant she of Musketty, trotn behind the houses and harm. T eir
army had now arrived at the northern side of the bi idge, whim our army
were drawn up, in order of battle, on the southern tide. Our cannot]
played vcisiy brifltly from thie eminence, and were returned as hrflkly by
the enemy. du : few minute: after the ctnnonade began. : very heavy
ditsicharge of mulketry enfued, and continued for ten or fifteen minnm;
during the action, : party of men were detaehed from an: right wing,
to fecure a part of the river, which it was ima 'ned, from the motion
of the enemy, they intended to fosd; thit deta'c ment arrived at the
very opportunely, and effected their purpose: After thie, the
made a teehie and unsu rted attempt to past the bridge, but thia'like
wise proved abortive. : was now near sut o'clock in the evening", end
night coming on, closed the engagement. Our fires were built m due
season, and very numerous, and whim the enemy were amused by these
appearances, and preparing for a general attack the ensuingmorning, our
army marched, at about one in_the morning, from Trenton, on the south
side of the creek, to Princeton. When th arrived near the hill, abont'
one mile from Princeton, they found a 1:on of the enemy formed upon
it, and read ' to receive them; upon which : spit'ited attack m mule
upon them, hoth with field piece: and mulket , end, after all oblinote
retiflance, and losing a considerable number o their men upon the field,
those of them who could not make their escape surrendered prisoner: of
war. We immediately marched on to the centre of the town, and there
took another paity of the enemy, near the college. After tarrying :
very short time in the town, General W'ashington marched his army from
thence, towards Rocky-Hil], and they are now near Morris town, in
high spirits, and in expectation of a junction with the resi of our force;,
sufficiently seasonable to make a general attack upon the enemy,
prevent, at least, a considelablc part of them from teaching their asyium
lssn New York. It is difficult, precisely, to ascertnin the loss we have
sustained in the two engagements, but as near as I can judge, lthink we
have lost nhout forty men killed, and had near double the number wound
ed. In the list of the former ztre the brave Col. sziet, Cept. Shippen,
and Capt. Nefd, who fell in the enpctagemcnt upon the hill near Pt'inceton;
among the latter, was Brigadier General Mercer, who received seven
wounds, tive in his body, and two in his head, and was much btsiuised
by the hreech of a mut'ket. .His life was, yesterday, almost despaired of,
but this morning ! find him much relieved, and some of the most danger
ous complaints removed, so that I still have hopes of his recovcry, and
of his being again restored to the arms of his grateful country. He io
now a prisoner upon patole. The loss sustained by the enemy was much
greater thuu ours, as was easily discovered by vi'ewing the dead upon the
field, n!tet' the action. We have near an hundred of their wounded,
prisoners in the town, which, together with those who surrendered, lad
were taken in small parties, endeavouring to make their escape} ! think
must ;tmonnt nearly to the number of four hundred, chiefly Butish troopi.
Six brass pieces of cannon have fallen into our hands, nqbanticy of
ammunitiun, ard several waggom of baggage. A Capt. Lesh'e m
found amorgst the dead of the enemy, and was. this dz , buried with the
honours rf war; a number of other officer: were also ound on the field,
but they were not known, and were buried with the other dead:
According to information from the inhabitants of Princeton, the mnnbu '
which marched out of it to amck om- lt'my, amounted to upon
men. under command of- General Comwallie. _ This body, :: foonn
they discovered that they were out-genefil'd by _the much of 6
Washington, being much chagrined at their dis 'ntment (as it W'
they intended to have cut our army to pieces, ere the Delamre, and
have marched immediately, without any further deity, lo Philadelphil)'
pushed, with the greatest preeipitation, toward! Prinquon, when
arrived about an hour after General Washington hid left it, and in:.
ginin he would endeavour to take Brunswick in dle some manner, pro
ceedeg directly for that piece. Our soDdiere were much fztigucssd, the
greatest part" of them hnving been deprived of their na the two pleading .
nighte, o'S'lerwise we might, perhape, hue poselsed ourselves d' Btuq
s vnck. e enemy zppear to be preparing to decamp, and retire to N."
York, as they are much disgufied With their lete treatment in New ]as , "
nd have a great inclhmion to te} We" ;, linle'in sum [Luna
d'.
\
en quiten." sisiss :
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