Connecticut western news., 1873-03-21

slight Work very dry and liable to be set on fire as the approaches are very easy, without de- fense save slight abattis.
 Fort Wyllys built of stone feet high the Work above plank filled with Earth the stone work 15 feet the Earth feet thick.-No Bomb Proofs, the Batteries without the Fort.
 Redoubt No, 1. On the south side wood feet thick, no cannon in the works, slight and single Abetters, no ditch or Picket, Cannon on two Batteries. No Bomb Proofs.
 Redonbt No. 2. The same as No. l. No Bomb Proofs.
 Redoubt Mo- 8, a slight Wood Work Feet thick very dry no bomb Proofs, single Abat- ters, the work easily set on fire-no cannon.
 Redoubt No. 4. A Wooden work about 10 feet high and four or five feet thick, the West side faced with stone wall feet high and four thick. No Bomb Proof, two six pounders, slight Abatter, Commanding piece of ground 800 yards Vt.
 The North Redoubt on the East side built of stone feet high, above the stone wood filled in with Earth. Very Dry, no ditch Bomb Proof, three Batteries without the Fort, & poor Abat- ter, Rising piece of ground 500 yards So, the approaches under Cover to within 20 yards. The work easily fired with Faggots dpted in Pitch &c.
 South Redoubt much the same as the North, Commanding piece of ground 500 yards due East-3 Batteries without the Fort. (In Arnolds hand-wrting)
 L1uuO1ncu. SOpy O1 d SOujlCll Ol NdI A0lu Sept. 9th 1790.
 At a Council of War held in camp Bergen County Sept 17S0
 Present the Commander-in-chief. The Com mander-in-chief states to the Council that since he had the honor of laying before the General Officers. at Morristown, the 9th of June last, a general view of our circumstance. several inn portant events have occurred, which have materially changed tho prospect of the Cam paign. That tba u,,ccaSe oxpaotad fro,,o Ero,oa in stead of coming out in one body, and producing 8 Naval Superiority in these Seas has been divided into two Divisions, the first of which only consisting of seven ships of the line, one forty-four and three smaller Frigates, with five thousand land forces, had arrived at Rhode Island.
 That a Reinforcement of six ships of the line from England having reinforced the enemy, had made their Naval Force in these seas amount to Nine Sail of the Lne Two tifties two forty fours, and number of smaller Frig- aties, 8 Force completely superior to that of our Allies, and which has in consequence held them Blocked up in the harbor of Rhode Island till the 29th ut. at which Period the British Fleet disappeared, and no advice of them has since been received.
 That Accounts received by the Alliance Frigate, which left France in July, announces the Second Division to be confined in Brest, with several other Ships, by British Fleet of thirty-two sail of the line, and Fleet of the Allies of Thirty-six or thirty-eight Ships of the line, ready to put to sea from Cadie, to relieve the Port of Brest.
 That most of the States, in their answers to the acquisitions made of them, give the strong est assurances of doing every thing in their power to furnish the men and the supplies quired for the expected Cooperation. The effect of which. however, has been far short of our expectations, for not much above one-third of the Levies demanded for the Continental Battalions, nor above the same proportion of Militia have been assembled, and the supplies have been so inadequate that there was necessity of dismissing all the Militia, whose immediate service, could be dispensed with, to lessen our Consumption, notwithstanding which, the Troops now in the Field are severely suffering for want of Provision.
 That the army of this Post and in the vicinity, | in operating Force, consists of 10, 400 Conti- mental Troops and about 400 Militia, besides which is Regiment of Continental Troops of about 500 at Rhode Island, left there fer the assistance of our Allies against any attempt of the enemy that way, and two Connecticut State | Regiments, amounting to 800, at North Castle. The Times of Service for which the Levies | are engaged will expire the first of January, which, if not replaced, allowing for the usual Casualties, will reduce the Continental Army | to less than 6 1000 men.
 That since the state to the Council above re- | ferred to, the Enemy have brought detach- ment of about 5000 men from Charles Town to New York, which makes the present oper- ating Force in this Quarter between Ten and | Eleven thousand men.
 | That the Enemies Force, now in the Southern States, has not been lately ascertained by any distinct accounts, but the General supposes it can not be less than 7,000 (of which about D. 900 are at Savannah) in this estimate the Dlminution by the Casualties of the Climate is supposed to be equal to the increase of Force derived from the Disappointed.
 That, added to the loss of Charles Town and it's Garrison. accounts of Q recent misfortune has just been received from Major Generol Gates, giving advice of general action which | happened on the 18th of August, near Campden
 in which the army under his Command met with total defeat, and in all probability the whole of the Continental Troops, and a Con siderable part of the Militia would be cut off. That the State of Virginia has been some time exerting itself to raise Body of 5000 Troops to serve till the end of December, 1791, but how far it has succeeded isTnot known.
 That Maryland has Resolved to raise 2000 Men of which sufficient number to compose ono Battalion was to have come to this army The remainder to recruit the Maryland line but ill consequence of the late advices. an order has been sent to march the whole Southward.
 That the Enemies Force ill Canada, Halifax, | St. Augustine, and at Penobscot, remains much the same as stated in the preceding Council
 That there is still reason to believe the Court of France will prosecute it's Original Intention of giving effectual succor to this Country, as soon as Circumstances will permit; and it is | hoped the second Division will certainly arrive in the course of the fall.
 That Fleet greatly superior to that of the Enemy in the West Indies, and formidable | land Force had sailed some time since from Martinique to make Combined attack upon the Island of Jamaica, that there is possibility of reinforcement frem this quarter also, to the Fleet of our Ally at Rhode Island.
 The Commander-in-Chief having thus given the Council full view of our present Situation and future prospects. requests the opinion of each member in writing, what plan it will be ad- visable to pursue, to what oblect our attention ought to be directed in the course of this fall and winter, taking into consideration the alter native of having or not having 8 Naval Super 1I iority whether any offensive operations can be immediately undertaken and against what Point, what ought to be our immediate Prepara- tions and dispositions, particularly whether we can afford or ought to send any Achievements from this Army to the Southern States, and to what amount, the General requests to be favor ed with these opinions by the 10th instant at farthest.
 This concludes the famous "Andre Papers." A more remarkable set of documents no man ever set foot on be- before.-The papers themselves look yellow, are much crumbled and worn, and bear evident marks of age.
 Every reader can at once see the in- finite importance of these papers. Had they been permitted to reach their ulti- mate destination, in the boot of Major Andre, according to the hopes of the high contracting parties, Benedict, Ar mold and Major Andre, what change would have come over the destinies of these United States. Everlasting grati-