cupy the paffes in fuch a manner, as to fhut Charles-Town up entirely.

As the arrival of a large reinforcement from New York, enabled the general confiderably to ftrengthen the corps under Webfter, fo the importance of the fituation induced Earl Cornwallis to take the command on that fide of Cooper's River. Under the conduct of this nobleman, Tarleton attacked, defeated, and ruined another body of cavalry, which the enemy had with infinite difficulty collected together.

In the mean time, the befiegers had completed their third parallel, which they carried clofe to the rebel canal; and by a fap, pufhed to the dam which fupplied it with water on the right, they had drained it in feveral parts to the bottom. On the other hand, the admiral, who had conftantly preffed and diftreffed the enemy, in every part within his reach, having taken the fort at Mount Pleafant, acquired from its vicinity, and the information of the deferters which it encouraged, a full knowledge of the flate of the garrifon and defences of Fort Moultrie, in Sullivan's Illand. In purfuance of this information, and determined not to weaken the operations of the army, he landed a body of feamen and marines, in order to form the place by land, while the fhips battered it in every poffible direction. In thefe circumftances, the garrifon (amounting to fomething more than 200 men) feeing the imminent danger to which they were expofed, and fenfible of the impoffibility of relief, were glad, by a capitulation,

to furrender themselves prifoners of war.

May 7th.

Thus enclosed on every fide, and driven to its last defences, the general withing to preferve Charles Town from deftruction, and to prevent that effufion of human blood, which must be the inevitable confequence of a form, opened a correfpondence on the following day with Lincoln, for the purpose of a furrender. But the conditions demanded by that commander being deemed higher than his prefent circumftances and fituation entitled him to, they were rejected, and hoftilities renewed. The batteries on the third parallel were then opened, and fo great a fuperiority of fire obtained, that the befiegers were enabled under it to gain the counterfcarp of the out-work which flanked the canal: which they likewife paffed; and then pufhed on their works direct-, ly towards the ditch of the place.

The objections to the late conditions required by Gen. Line ›ln, went principally to fome ftipulations in favour of the citizens and militia; but the prefent ftate of danger having brought thofe people to acquiefce in their being relinquished, as, the price of fecurity, that commander accordingly propofed to furrender upon. the terms which were then offered. The British commanders, befides their averfeness to the cruel extre-. mity of a torm, were not difpofed to prefs to unconditional fubmiffion, an enemy whom they wished to conciliate by clemency. They granted now the fame conditions which they had before offered; and the capiMay 11th. tulation was accordingly figned.

The

The garrifon were allowed fome of the honours of war; but they were not to uncafe their colours, nor their drums to beat a British march. The continental troops and feamen were to keep their baggage, and to remain prifoners of war until they were exchanged. The militia were to be permitted to return to their refpectives homes, as prifoners on parole; and while they adhered to their parole, were not to be molefted by the British troops in perfon or property. The citizens of all forts to be confidered as prifoners on parole; and to hold their property on the fame terms with the militia. The officers of the army and navy to retain their fervants, fwords, piftols, and their baggage, unfearched. Horfes were refufed, as to carrying them out of Charles Town; but they were allowed to difpofe of them in the town..

Seven general officers, ten continental regiments, and three battalions of artillery, became prifoners upon this occafion. The whole number of men, in arms who were taken, including town and country militia and French, amounted to 5611, exclufive of near a thousand feamen. The number of rank and file, which appear on this lift, bear no proportion to the clouds of commiffion and non-commiffion officers, which exceed nine hundred. The thinnefs of the continental regiments accounts partly for this circumftance; it appearing from Lincoln's return to congrefs, that the whole number of men of every fort, included in fo many regiments and battalions, at the time of the furrender, did not amount to quite 2500. He boats in that

letter, that he lot only twenty men by desertion, in fix weeks before the surrender.

As the fiege was not productive of fallies or defperate affaults, which were in a confiderable degree prevented by fituation, and the nature of the works, the lofs of men was not great on either fide, and was not very unequally fhared. A prodigious artillery was taken; amounting, of every fort, and including thofe in the forts and fhips, to confiderably more than 400 pieces. Of these, 311 were found in Charles Town only. Three ftout rebel frigates, one French, and a polacre of 16 guns, of the fame nation, which efcaped the operation of being funk to bar the river, fell likewife into the hands of the victors.

The Caroliniaus complained greatly of their not being properly affifted by their neighbours, particularly the Virginians, in this long and arduous struggle. If the complaint is at all founded, it can only relate to the not fending of reinforcements to the garrifon before the city was closely invefted; for the fouthern colonies poffefed no force, which was in any degree equal to the raifing, or even to the much incommoding of the fiege. Nor does it feem that the augmentation of the garrifon would have answered any effectual purpose. At the commencement of the fiege, an American lieutenant-colonel, of the name of Hamilton Ballendine, having the fortune of being detected in his attempt to pass to the English camp at night, with draughts of the town and works, immediately fuffered the unpitied death of a traitor.

The moft rapid and brilliant fuccefs

fuccefs now attended every exertion of the British arms; Lord Cornwallis, on hi march up the north fide of the great Santee river, having received intelligence that the remaining force of the rebels were collected near the borders of North Carolina, difpatched Colonel Tarleton, with the cavalry, and a new corps of light infantry, called the Legion, mounted on horfeback, in order to rout and difperfe that body, before it could receive any addition of force from the neighbouring

colonies.

The enemy being at fo great a distance, as not to apprehend almolt the poffibility of any near danger, had confidered other circumftances of convenience more, than the means of fecuring a good retreat, in their choice of fituation. No fuch negligence could pafs unpunished, under any circumftance of diftance, with fuch an enemy as they had now to encounter. Colonel Tarleton, upon this occafion, exceeded even his own ufual celerity; and having marched 105 miles in 54 hours, prefented himself fudMay 29th. denly and unexpectedly, at a place called Waxfaw, before an aftonished and difpirited enemy. They, however, pofitively rejected the conditions which were offered them, of furrendering upon the fame terms with the garrifon of Charles Town. The attack was highly spirited; the defence, notwithftanding the cover of a wood, faint; and the ruin complete. Above 100 were killed on the fpot; about 150 fo badly wounded as to be unable to travel, and about 50 brought away prifoners. Their

colours, baggage, with the remains of the artillery of the fouthern army, fell into the hands of the victors. The lofs on their fide, though the rebels were fuperior in number, was very trifling.

After this fuccefs, there was nothing to refit the arms of Lord Cornwallis; and the reduction of that extenfive colory of South Carolina was deemed fo complete, at the time of Sir Henry Clinton's June 5th. departure, on returning to his government of New York, that he informs the American minifter in his letter, that there were few men in the province who were not either prifoners to, or in arms with, the British forces; and he cannot reftrain his exultation, at the numter of the inhabitants who came in from every quarter, to tellify their allegiance, and to offer their fervices, in arms, in fupport of his Majesty's government; and who, in many instances, had brought as prifoners their former oppreffors or leaders.

That commander accordingly, in fettling the affairs and government of the province, adopted a fcheme of obliging it to contribute

largely to its own defence; and even to look forward, in prefent exertion, to future fecurity, by taking an active fhare in the fuppreffion of the rebellion on its borders. In this view, he feemed to admit of no neutrals; but that every man, who did not avow himfelf an enemy to the British government, fhould take an active part in its fupport. On this principle, all perfons were expected to be in readiness with their arms at a moment's warning; thofe who had families, to form a militia for

the

the home defence; but those who had none, to ferve with the royal forces, for any fix months of the enfuing twelve, in which they might be called upon, to affift in driving their rebel oppreffors, and all the miseries of war, far from the province." Their fervice was, however, limited, befides their own province, to North Carolina and Georgia, beyond the boundaries of which they were not to be marched; and, after the expiration of the limited term, they were to be free from all future military claims of fervice, excepting their local militia duties. So warm were the hopes of fuccefs then formed, that a few months were thought equal to the fubjugation of, at least, that part of the continent.

This fyftem, of fubduing one part of the Americans by the other; and of establishing fuch an internal force in each fubjugated colony, as would be nearly, if not entirely, equal to its future prefervation and defence, had been often held out, and much fuggefted in England, as exceed, ingly practicable; and indeed, as requiring only adoption to infuse its fuccefs. And our preceding commanders on the American fervice had fuffered much obloquy and bitterness of reproach, for their fuppofed negligence, in not pro fiting of means which were reprefented as fo obvious, and which, as it was faid, would have been fo fortunately decifive with refpect to

became Sir Henry Clinton and his noble fucceffor, to ufe every method their genius fuggested to them, for fecuring or extending their conquefts; but the fuccefs of the measure in a partial experiment has been fuch, as will jef tify other commanders for not placing an intire and general dependence upon affurances of favourable difpofitions in the colonifts, extorted under the influence of fear, which have every where proved entirely delufive.

no

The departure of Sir Henry Clinton from New York had expofed that city to an apparent danger upon the outfet of his expedition, which, as it could not poffibly have been foreseen, wisdom could provide againft.A winter, unequalled in that climate for its length and feverity, had deprived New York, and the adjoining iflands, of all the defenfive benefits of their infular fituation; and while it alfo deprived them of their naval protection, expofed that protection itfelf to an equal degree of danger. The North river, with the traits and channels by which they are divided and furrounded, were every where cloathed with ice of fuch a ftrength and thicknefs, as would have admitted the paffage of armies, with their heaviest carriages and artillery ;fo that the islands, and the adjoining countries, prefented to the view, and in effect, one whole and unbroken continent.

In this alarming change, fo fuddenly wrought in the nature of the fituation, Major General Pattifon, who commanded at New York, with the Heffian General Knyphaufen, and other officers on

that

that ftation, took the moft prudential and fpeedy measures for the common defence. All orders of men in New York were embodied, armed and officered; and, including about 1500 feamen, amounted to fomething near tooo men. The officers and crews of the royal frigates, which were locked up in the ice, undertook the charge of a redoubt; and thofe of the transports, victuallers, and merchantmen, were armed with pikes, for the defence of the wharfs and fhipping.

It, however, happened fortunately, that General Washington was in no condition to profit of this unlooked for event. The fmall army which remained with him, hutted at Morris-Town, was inferior in ftrength to the royal military defenfive force, exclufive of the armed inhabitants and militia. He, notwithstanding, made fuch movements and preparations, as fufficiently indicated defign, and afforded caufe for alarm, An ineffective attempt was even made by Lord Stirling, with 2700 men and fome artillery, upon Staten Inland. But he continued on the ifland only one day, and retreated in the night. In a number of fmall fkirmishes and enterprizes, which took place during the winter, the British forces had continually the advantage.

During thefe tranfactions in North America, Captain Cornwallis, on the Jamaica ftation, acquired great honour, by the gallant defence which he made with a very inferior force, against M. de la Motte Piquet, who was himself wounded in the action. Being on a cruize off Monte Chrifti, in his own fhip, the Lion, of VOL. XXIII.

64 guns, with the March 20th. Bristol of 50, and

the Janus of 44, he fell in with, and was chaced by the French commander, who had four 74 gun fhips and two frigates. The enemy came within cannon fhot by five in the evening, and a running fight was maintained through the whole night, without the enemy's venturing to come along fide, which it was in their power to do. In the morning, the Janus being a good deal disabled, and at fome distance, the Lion and Bristol, through the defect of wind, were obliged to be towed by their boats to her affiftance. This brought on a general engagement, which lafted between two and three hours, and in which the enemy fuffered fo much, that they were obliged to lie by to repair. They, however, renewed the purfuit, and continued it during the night, without coming within gun fhot. But the appearance of the Ruby man of war, of 64 guns, with two British frigates, in the morning of the third day, fuddenly changed the face of things. The French commander was now, notwithftanding the fuperiority of force which he ftill retained, chaced in turn, and purfued for several hours, with the utmost exultation and triumph by the British commanders.

Sir George Rodney had arrived at St. Lucia, and taken the command of the fleet upon the Leeward Ifland ftation, by the latter end of March. Juft previous to his arrival, M. de Guichen, with 25 fhips of the line, and eight frigates, all full of troops, had paraded for several days before that ifland, with a view either of fur[*P]

prize,