The Sun.
London, England, 1822-11-01 00:00:00

Every arrangement being complete, Sir James Yco's squa-
dron, having on board 751) regular troops, arrived. off Sackett's.
Harbour about noon, on the 27th of May. The fleet lay to,
the troops were ready in boats for the landing, and the Commo-
dore carried Sir George Prevost towards the shore, to recon-
noitre. After some suspence, the troops were ordered on board
the vessels again, the ships put about, and the whole stood out
on the return to Kingston.. Here was an example of the
characteristic indecision of the Commander-in-Chief, and lie
would have assuredly made no attempt to land on the Ameri-
can shore, if about fifty Indians who accompanied the expedi-
tion, and could. see no reason to abandon their enterprise, had
not paddled in their canoes to attack some American soldiers.
These men were accidentally coasting the lake in boats to Sac-
kett's, when our force appeared off the port, and had landed to
avoid capture. As soon as they perceived the Indians approach-
ing, they hung out a white flag, and were brought off to the
squadron by the boats of the men of war. This accident being
received as a favourable omen, the Commander-in-Chief deter-
mined to stand back to Sackett's Harbour. He had lost nearly
two days, and the wind was no longer fair for a naval co-ope-
ration against the forts ; but this was not necessary, and the
assault would yet have succeeded if the generallail felt like his
soldiers. The landing was made with the utmost. spirit; the
troops separating in two columns, charged detachments of the
enemy through the woods surrounding Sackett's Harbour, at
the. point of the bayonet, and uniting again on the open ground
before the works, drove in the whole American force which had
there formed, to their loopholed barracks and forts. The enemy,
in consternation, themselves set fire to their new frigate, their
.naval barracks and arsenal, and destroyed the gun-brig and all
the stores which they had recently brought from the capture of
York. At this crisis, while the arsenal was in flames, the Ame-
ricans flying through the village, and no man among the as-
sailants doubted that success was within grasp, a momentary
resistance, which was'rnade by a party of the enemy who, in
the rout, bad sought refuge in the log barracks, was sufficient to
produce a precipitate order from the Commander-in-Chief for
the retreat of our force. Their gallant officers could with dif-
ficulty believe that it was the signal to retire which they heard ;
it was obeyed with indignation and reluctance, and the troops
withdrew to their boats in disappointment and shame at the dis-
grace with which their leader had covered them.
As soon as the Americans could credit their senses that the
British had retired, they. hastened to stop the conflagration.—
Their frigate, being built of green wood, was saved before the
fire had materially damaged her, but the navy barracks, all the
stores brought from York, and.several buildings in the arsenal,
were entirely consumed. How much reason they had to feli-
citate themselves at the escape which they owed to the miscon-
duct of ourCommander-in-Chief, may be gathered from the re-
marks of their countryman, Mr. Thomson. He observes, that
had the.place been captured,
Its effects would have been long and deplorably felt by the
American Government. Immense quantities of naval and mil-
' tary stores, which had,' from time to time, been collected at
that depot ; the frames and timbers which had been prepared
from the construction of vessels of war, and the rigging and
armaments which had been forwarded thither for their final
equipment ; as well as all, the army clothing, camp equigage,
provisions, ammunition, and implements of war, which had
' been previously captured from the enemy, would have fallen in-
to hia hands. 'I he destruction of the batteries, the ship then onthe
stocks, the extensive cantonments, and the public arsenal, have
retarded the building of another naval force ; and that which
was already on the lake in separate detachments, could have been
intercepted, in its attempt to return, find might have been captured
lin detail. The prize vessel which was then lying in the•harbour,
and which had been taken by•the Americans, and the two United
States' schooners, would have been certainly recaptured, and
the whole energies of the American Government, added to their
most vigorous and unwearried struggl,_-,inight never again
have attained any prospect of an ascendency on the lake.'—
(pp. 147, 148.) •
• Sir George Prevost was beyond all doubt the immediate com-
mander of this expedition. • But he found it convenient:not to
:appear in that chgraeter ; and the only detail of operations was
in the shape of aionspatch from his Adjutant-General to him-
self, obligingly •coittnunleating what' was already sufficiently
known to him. By this ingenious device; he in:same measure
averted exposure of miscarriage from himself, and generously
yielded his laurels, such as they were, to his grateful and sub-
missive follower. „

Sir James Yoe, after carrying Sir George and his force back
to Kingston,.. prepared to proceed to the head of .the lake with
reinforcements for Gen. Vincent, and the American Commodore,
hastened into Sackett's Harbour before the British fleet should
again appear on the waters, to equip the frigate which had been
rescued from the flames. As soon as as our squadron joined Gen..
Vincent, the enemy, who had never quite recovered from their
panic on the nocturnal surprize of their camp,. precipitately re-
treated, or rather fled along the lake shore, until they reached
Fort George, where Dearborn, evacuating all the Canadian
bank of the Niagara, shut himself up-in a strong entrenched
camp with 5,000 men. The British army took up a position
within a few miles of him, and Major-general De Rottenburgh
(Gmeral Sheaffe's successor in the government of Upper Ca-
nada) assuming the command, as General. Vincent's superior