The Carbon County news. [volume] (Red Lodge, Mont.) 1924-1931, 1929-07-11

"forlOrn hope" of twenty each, led by Lieu.
tenants Knox and Gibbons. They were to sacri-
fee their lives if need be to remove the abattis
through which the two columns to rush to
the attack. Pompey, who had learned that the
countersign for that night was to be 'rhe fort
is our own!" not only told Wayne that fact but
volunteered to guide the Americans and he went
ahead with two stout soldiers, disguised as
farmers.
At about half past eleven that night the Amer
leans advanced to the attack. Each wore in his
hat something white so that friend might be dis
tinguished from foe in the darkness. Pompey
and his two companions were halted by the first
two sentnels and while he engaged them in
versaton his companions seized them and gagged
them. However, they found the causeway flooded
and the water deeper than they had expected
A British sentry heard a splash in the water and
opened fire, which was Immediately returned by
Murfrees men, as had been planned. This
brought the British commander down to the
center, as it was intended to do. Immediately
the two assauting forces swept forward. The
"fororn hopes rushed upon the abattis and tore
a way through them one party losing eighteen
of it's twenty in doing so. Through these
openings poured the Americans and, although the
garrison was bewildered at first, they Immediately
opened plunging fire of grape shot from the can,
non on the bastions, which however, oyershot
their mark
Sweeping forward under q storm of mus
kerry, to which the only response was the clash
Of steel as Wayne's men drove their bayonets
home when the fight came to close quarters, the
Americans sprang upon the walls of the fort
shouting the countersign which had become their
watchword for the nght-"The fort is our own !
The fort is our ownl" Colonel Fleury was the
first man over the ramparts and with his own
hands he lowered the British flag Convinced
that resistance useless thp british bppan
surrenderng in squads Their commander,
Johnson, returning from the slope where he had
been drawn by the fire of Murfrees men imme-
dately surrendered to Febiger. SO well. timed
had been the movements of the two columns
that they were only few minutes apart in reach
ing the middle Of the fort. And swift and
successful had been the attack that sleepy-eyed
British soldiers were still tumbling out of their
barracks when the Americans were in full pos
session of the fort.
During the brief fighting at the inner abattis
Wayne was struck down by musket shot which
grazed his head. With the blood streaming down
his face and thinking that he has received his
death wound, he cried "Carry me into the fort
and let me die at the head of the column" His
aides picked him up, hastily bandaged Lis wound
and carried him the ramparts on their Shout.
ders while he waved his men with his sword.
Febger was wounded in the face, Captain Selden
WAS SUOl III Tue sue anu IdpldlH iHelpS, Lieu
tenant Palmer and Ensign Hall were also wound
ed. The British loss GO killed, 70 wounded
and 543 taken prisoner.
At daybreak the guns of the fort were turned
upon the British ships in the river and they at
once cut their cables and dropped down the
Hudson, carrying the message of disaster to Clin-
ton 1t was a much different message from the
one which Wayne sent to Washington telling of
his success. "Our officers and men behaved like
men determined to be Free" he said Clinton
then moved up the river to tempt Washington in
hazarding battle to hold Stony Point.
Washington inspected the fort carefully and
decided that 1t would take at least 1900 men to
hold it, force which he could not spare. So
after removing the cannon and destroying the
works, he took away stores and other property
to the value of 100000 and abandoned the post
Since Wayne had demonstrated that this little
Gibraltar was not impregnable, its usefulness
at an end