Evening star., 1932-11-02
LETTER DESCRIBES
BRADDOCK'S
Rare Manuscript Received At
National Museum Gives
Eyewitness Story.

manuscript lttltT COlltdAlliiS "lioO
Is perhaps the only unofficial eye-Wit- |
ness account Of Braddock's defeat ex-
tant has Just come into the custody OF
Miss Leila G. Forbes. librarian OF the
National Museum, after being found IN !
q collection of family papers.
The letter is from one Robert Orme, !
apparently an English civilian who ac-
companied the march. to Gov. MOTIFS
Of PENNSYLVANIA
Authentic accounts OF what nap |
pened that day, it is explained. are eX- /
tremely rare if not non-eXlstent pc
cause of the fact that BraddocKs Oh
ficers, who might have written the
story. were nearly all SLAIN ana the
enlisted men who escaped in many |
cases we're illiterate and for the most
part too confused to give a coherent |
story of what they had gone through. !
Text of Letter.
The letter, written from Fort Cum |
berland on July Is, 1855, follows:
u am so extremely i'll in Bed with
the Wound l have received in my
Thigh that I am under necessity OF |
employing my friend capt. Dopson 10
write for me
L conclude you have had some Ac- !
count of the Action near the Banks !
of the MOnOngahela, about Seven Miles 4!
from the French Fort: as the Reports 7,
spread are very imperfect what you |
have heard must consequently be SO /!
too You should have had more early !
Accounts of it. but every Officer whose |
Business is was to have informed you, |
was either killed or wounded, and our |
distressfull Scituation put 1t out OF our |
power to attend to it, SO much as we
would otherwise have done.
The 9th Instant we passed, and re- |
passed, the Monongahela by advancing |
first a party of 300 men, which was i'm |
mediately followed by another of 200. |
The General with the Column of Ar !
tiIlery, Baggage, and the Main Body !
of the Army, pass'd the River the last
time about one o'clock: AS soon as
the whole had got over the Fort side
of the MCnOngahela, We heard a very
heavy and quick fire in our Front. We
Immediately advanced in order to SuS-
tain them. but the detachment OF the
200. and 300 men, gave way and fell
back upon us which caused such con-
fusion, and Struck so great Panlck
among our men, that afterwards no
Military Expedient could be made use
Of that had any Effect upon them: |
The men were so extreamely deaf to
the EXhortations Of the General. and |
the Officers that they fired away in
the most irregular manner all their |
Ammunition. & then run off: leaving to |
the Enemy. the Artillery Ammunition. |
Provision and Baggage: nor could they !
be persuaded to stop. till they had got |
as far as Gist's Plantation. nor there |
only in part. man. of them proceeding |
as far as Colo Dunbar's Party who
lay Six miles on this Side.
Officers Sacrificed.
The officers were absolutely sacri- |
feed by their Unparalleled good Be- |
havour. advancing sometimes in Bodies, |
and sometimes separately, hoping by |
such example to engage the Soldiers to |
follow them, but to no purpose
The General had five Horses killed !
under him, and at last received a
wound thro' the Right Arm into his |
Lungs. of which he died the 18th In |
slant: Poor Shirley was shot thro the |
Head: Capt Morris wounded: Mr.. |
Washington had two Horses shot under !
him, and his Cloaths shot through in |
several places. behaving the whole time, |
with the greatest Courage. and Resolu- |
ton Sir Peter Halket was killed upon |
the Spot. Colo. Burton. g. Sir John !
St Clair, wounded. and inclosed |
have sent you a List of killed and |
wounded, according to as exact Account |
as We are yet able to get
Upon our proceeding with the whole |
Convoy to the Little Meadows it was |
found impracticable to advance in that |
manner: the General therefore ad- |
vanced with 1900 Men. with the neces- |
sarv Artillery. Ammunition and Pro- !
vision, leaving the main Body of the |
Convoy under the Command of Colo. |
Dunbar. with orders to join him as
soon OS possible: In this manner we |
proceeded with Safety and Expedition |
till the fatal day 1 have just related: |
and happy it was that this DISPOSE |
ton was made, otherwise the whole !
must either have starved or fallen into |
the Hands of the Enemy. as Numbers |
would have been Of no Service to us, |
and our Provision was all lost
Destroyed Ammunition.
"As our Number Of Horses were so
much reduced. and those extreamly
weak, and many Carriages being |
wanted for the Wounded Men, occa-
stoned our destroying the Ammunition,
& superf1uous part of the Provision,
left in Colo. Dunbar's Convoy. to pre-
vent it's falling into the Hands of the
Enemy
'As the whole of the Artillery is lost
and the Troops are SO eXtreamly weak
ened by Deaths Wounds, and Sick |
ness, it was judg'd impossible to make |
any further attempts. therefore Colo. !
Dunbar is returning to Fort Cumber- |
land, with every thing he is able to
bring up with him.
Il propose remaining here till my
Wound will suffer me to remove to |
Philadelphia, from thence shall pro-
ceed to England; whatsoever Com
mands you may have for me, You will |
do me the Favour to direct to me here. |
BY the particular disposition of the
French and Indians it was impossible |
to judge Of the Numbers they had that |
Day in the Field. I am. Dear Sir, yr |
most obedt. & most humb Svt. Robert |
Orme"