The National tribune., 1881-10-22
SURRENDER OF LORD CORVALLIS.

! tOga was not unexpected His march from Canada
| through New York to the Hudson was wild
enterprise at the best and its utter failure did
not much astonish either friends foes. Quite
| different was Cernwalliss grand overthrow in
| that northeastern corner OF Virginia He had
gained the reputation Of being the abest British
commander the war had produced. His conquest
| of the CarOlinaS had shown him to be both dar-
! ing and cautious. Lafayette had given him the
name OF the terrible Britisher who made no mis-
! takes, > and both Generals Greene and Gates, who
had commanded the American forces opposed to
| him, had to acknowledge his skill leader.
! How, then, did it come to pass that he allowed
| himself to be caught like rat in trap?
| The answer to this question has puzzled his
! tOrians not little, and the acrimonious cores
| pondence concerning il which in after years
! passed between CORVALLIS and Sir Henry Gin
/ ton, his then chief rather obscures than illumi-
mates the subject Three years and half after
| the beginning of actual armed resistance to the
British domination the effort to overcome that
resistance at the North was contessedly failure.
| Although the efforts OF the combined American
and French forces to drive the English from
| Rhode Island in the previous August had proved
unsuccessful, the close OF 1918 saw the American
cause far stronger than at any time since the
outbreak of actual hostilities. 1t was therefore
| decided to try another plan than that hitherto
pursued by the British The war was to be
| transferred to the South in the hope that after
Georgia. the Carolinas and Virginia had been
subdued the Middle and New England States
could be more easily handled. An army and
cboIf Co Sot}or i.
another to Charleston, and in both places success
crowned the movement. Cornwalis's operations
in North and South Carolina followed and Tarle-
tons troopers ravaged both States. Successive
generals who had been sent by Congress to oppose
CORVALLIS were defeated and although Kings
Mountain and Cowpens gave the Americans hope
the outlook at the South especially was dark in
the spring of 1881. The battle of Guilford Court
house fought in March and was almost a
necessary antecedent TO Yorktown. 1t was q
British victory but il was bought dearly, and it
led Corvallis to decide that before the more
southerly States could be thoroughly subiugated
Virginia would have to be conquered Hence his
march northward in Maya march which his
superior at New York Sir Henry Clinton did not
! approve Of however
Clinton had sent two expeditions to ratage the
coast. To oppose them Washington had dis
patched Lafayette with 200 men On Nav 90.
1871, CORVALLIS arrived at Petersburg from Viii
mington, and there the expeditionary forces were
Joined to his own, thus giving him a body Of
$3.50 veteran troops wherewith to operate in the
State. Lafayette retreated before him without
an engagement, to North Anna where CORVALLIS
turned southwest and made for the upper James
river, there to cover cavalry raid upon some
stores at the Point OF Fork, which Steuben was
guarding with some 500 militia In the mean
time Lafayette had received reintorcements in the
shape OF 1000 Pennsylvania infantry, under
Wayne's command. He followed CORVALLIS and
prevented any further destruction of stores
Steubens troops were Joined to his own, and
CORVALLIS went to Richmond He did not re-
main there long, though, but moved to Williams
burg, closely watched all the time by Lafayette
Exactly why CORVALLIS went to this extreme
corner Of the peninsula it is difficult to under
stand. It was not because he could not hold his
own elsewhere, for his troops greatly out num-
bered those OF Lafayette. Presumably he in
tended to wait further developments and to ma
ture his plan for completely subiugating Virginia.
Whatever his intentions were, he was given no
opportunity to carry them out. At Williams
burg he found orders from Sir Henry Clinton to
send 3,0G0 of his men North, and to establish
defensive post on the coast. Before the troops
had actually been embarked, another order al
lowed him to keep them, and told him definitely
10 t0rtify Old Point Comfort q basis for future
naval operations. He found that the point could
not be defended, and pushed on to Yorktown.
where he began throwing up Notifications. This
was in the first week OF August, Isl.
Sir Henry Clinton's orders we're the result of
the junction oil the American and French
armies, and the consequent threatening aspect of
affairs around New York. The allied army was
at least & match tjs the British stationed around
New York, the capture Of which city was gener-
ally supposed to he its object. When Washing
ton, however, heard that CORVALLIS was intrench-
ing himself on the Virginia peninsula. he began
to entertain Il scheme for & movement southwark
The scheme was adopted, when it was learned
that the Count De tfraSSe, commander OF the
French feet then in the West Indies would sail
no further North than the Chesapeake Bay.
1t was late IL August when, by Il dexterous
feint, Sir Henry Clinton deceived about the
real plan 81 campaign adopted by the allies. The
Americans and French far on their way to
Virginia when the British commander discovered
the truth, 1t too late to pursue the allies