Washington made a general movement of his army, and established them on strong ground in the rear of the Plains. General Howe, who had hitherto been occupied in throwing up entrenchments, as if expecting to be attacked, resolved to make a movement, with the view of inducing the enemy to quit their strong position. In consequence of this determination, the army embarked on the 12th of October, in flat-bottomed boats, and, passing through the intricate passage called Hell Gate, landed the same evening at Frogsneck, near West Chester. Here it was found that they could not proceed, as a bridge, by which this latter place was connected with the mainland, had been destroyed by the enemy. The troops, therefore, re-embarked on the 13th, and, proceeding along the coast, landed on Pell's Point, at the mouth of Hudson's River. Moving forward, they lay that night on their arms, their left being on a creek opposite to East Chester, and their right near Rochelle; and, the following day, reached White Plains, where the enemy had concentrated their whole force. Both armies being now in front of each other, it was determined to begin the attack by forcing a rising round where the enemy had posted 4000 men. This post was carried with great spirit by the 28th and 35th regiments; but the position was found too distant to allow any impression to be made from it on the enemy's camp. General Howe, after a few ineffectual movements to bring the enemy to action, gave up the attempt, and proceeded against Fort Washington and Kingsbridge, the former being very strong by nature, and rendered considerably more so by art. As it cut off the communication between New York and the continent, to the eastward and northward of Hudson's river, and prevented supplies from being sent by the way of Kingsbridge, it was necessary to reduce it, in order to open the communication. The garrison consisted of nearly 3000 men, and the strong grounds round the fort were covered with lines and works. The principal attack was to be made by General Knyphausen with the Hessians, supported by Major-General Earl

Percy, with the whole of the reserve, except the 42d, who were ordered to make a feint on the east side of the fort. On this side, the hill was so steep and rugged, that the enemy, thinking its summit inaccessible, had taken no measures to secure it. Before day-break of the 16th of November, the 42d marched from their encampment, and embarked in boats, to be conveyed to a small creek at the foot of the rock, where they were to land, and to make demonstrations to ascend the hill, for the purpose of diverting the attention of the enemy from the principal attack. The morning was well advanced before the boats with the 42d reached their station. The enemy, seeing their approach, opened a smart fire, which could not be returned, owing to the perpendicular height of the enemy's position. The instant the Highlanders landed, they formed hastily, and forgetting that their duty was intended only as a feint, they resolved to attempt an assault, and scrambled up the precipice, assisted by each other, and by the brushwood and shrubs which grew out of the crevices of the rocks. On gaining the summit, they rushed forward, and attacked the enemy with such rapidity, that upwards of 200, who had no time to make their escape, threw down their arms; while the Highlanders, pursuing their advantage, penetrated across the table of the hill, and met Lord Percy, as he was mounting on the opposite side; and thus the Highlanders, with their characteristic impetuosity, turned a feint into a real attack, and facilitated the success of the day. The enemy, seeing General Knyphausen approach in another direction, surrendered at discretion. Of the enemy 2700 men were made prisoners. The loss of the British was 1 captain, 2 serjeants, and 17 rank and file, killed; and 4 subalterns, 8 serjeants, 1 drummer, and 88 rank and file, wounded: the proportion of the Royal Highlanders being 1 serjeant and 10 privates killed, and Lieutenants Patrick Græme, (Inchbrackie,) Norman Macleod, *

This hill was so perpendicular, that the ball which wounded Lieutenant Macleod, entering the posterior part of his neck, ran down on the

and Alexander Grant, and 4 serjeants and 66 rank and file, wounded.

The next attempt was to get possession of Fort Lee, in order to secure the entire command of the North River, and to open an easy communication into the Jerseys. With the grenadiers, light infantry, Royal Highlanders, and 33d regiment, Lord Cornwallis was ordered to attack this post. Landing in the Jerseys, on the 18th November, eight miles above Fort Lee, his Lordship instantly pushed forward, in the hope of surprising the enemy; but they were apprised of his approach, (by a deserter,) and retreated in great confusion, leaving guns, ammunition, and stores behind them. On the following day, the enemy retired from Newbridge, at the approach of the grenadiers and light infantry, uuder Major-General Vaughan. Lord Cornwallis, reinforced at this place by the two battalions of Fraser's Highlanders, continued the pursuit to Elizabeth Town, Newark, and Brunswick. In the latter town he was ordered to halt, to the great relief of the enemy, who were flying before him, unable to make the least resistance, and having apparently no other object than to keep a day's march a-head of their pursuers. Lord Cornwallis halted for eight days at Brunswick, when the Commander-in-Chief, with the army, moved forward, and reached Prince Town in the afternoon of the 17th of November, an hour after it was evacuated by General Washington, who calculated with such exactness,

One of the

rock on the

outside of his ribs, and lodged in the lower part of his back. pipers, who began to play when he reached the point of a summit of the hill, was immediately shot, and tumbled from one piece of rock to another till he reached the bottom.

Major Murray being a large corpulent man could not attempt this steep ascent without assistance. The soldiers, eager to get to the point of their duty, scrambled up, forgetting the situation of Major Murray, when he, in a melancholy supplicating tone, cried, "Oh soldiers, will you leave me?" A party leaped down instantly, and brought him up, supporting him from one resting rock to another till they got him to the top.

that his rear-guard were retiring from Trenton at one end, while the British troops entered at another.

Winter having now set in, the army went into winterquarters. Fraser's Highlanders and the 33d regiment were quartered at Amboy. The Royal Highlanders serving independently, were stationed on the advanced posts. These were occupied, from Trenton to Mountholly, by the Hessians, the Highlanders being the only British regiment in the front. This force was under the command of the Hessian Colonel, Count Donop.

At this time the enemy were greatly dispirited by their late reverses, and were still apprehensive of continued pursuit. The advance of our troops, although hitherto slow, had been successful, and, if continued with spirit, would probably have reduced the Americans to the last extremity. But the British Commander suspended all active operations, and made another fruitless attempt at negotiation. General Washington availed himself of this opportunity for improing the discipline of his army, by partial attacks on the British posts. His occasional success reanimated the drooping spirits of his soldiers, who were rapidly acquiring experience, even from their defeats. The circumstance of the Hessians being in front greatly favoured Washington's plans. As they were ignorant of the language of the country, and indulged in habits of pillage, which rendered them hateful even to the Loyalists, who avoided all communication with them, it was impossible that their commanders could obtain accurate intelligence of the movements of their opponents. Accordingly, on the 22d of January 1777, General Washington, by a successful stratagem, surprised and completely defeated the detachment of Hessians stationed at Trenton. By this reverse the situation of the Royal Highlanders, who formed the left of the line of defence at Mountholly, became extremely critical, and they were, in consequence, ordered to fall back on the light infantry at Prince Town.

Lord Cornwallis, who was in New York, and on the eve

of embarking for England, returned to the army when he heard of the defeat of the Hessians; and, making immediate preparations to dislodge the Americans from Trenton, moved forward with a force consisting of the grenadiers, two brigades of the line, and the two Highland regiments. After much skirmishing in the advance, he found General Washington posted on some high ground beyond Trenton. A heavy cannonade commenced on both sides, which continued till night, with occasional skirmishing between the advanced guards. Lord Cornwallis determined to renew the attack next morning, but the Americans had decamped during the night, leaving large fires burning to deceive their adversaries; and, proceeding towards Prince Town by a road parallel to that by which our army had marched on the preceding day, and divided from it only by a small rivulet, they effected their retreat in safety and good order.

The object of Washington was to decline a general engagement, and, at the same time, to surprise that part of our army which Lord Cornwallis left at Prince Town. His Lordship had ordered the commander of this detachment, Colonel Mawhood, to follow him with the 17th, the 40th, and the 55th regiments. As he was preparing to execute this order, the Americans suddenly appeared on his flank and rear. Such was the secrecy and dispatch with which they had marched, that the report of a smart discharge of musketry in his rear was the first notice of their approach. By cutting away a bridge over a brook, which separated the two armies, the detachment might have avoided an engagement, and made good their retreat to Maidenhead. Conceiving, however, that some good might result from delaying the progress of the Americans, Colonel Mawhood resolved to hazard an action. Accordingly, he formed his regiments, and when the enemy advanced, he poured in a heavy discharge of artillery, which, as they were not yet formed, did great execution. The advanced body of the enemy being observed in some disorder, the 17th regi