Carleton arrived at Quebec. Determined to defend the place, his first step was to turn out the suspected, and all that would not engage to assist in the defence of the city; and nothing now remained for Arnold, but to wait the arrival of assistance from Montreal.

Encouraged and animated by the vigorous proceedings of Arnold, Montgomery made all the exertions in his power to join him. Having left some troops in Montreal and the forts, and sent detachments into the different parts of the province to encourage and secure the Canadians, he pushed on with as many men as could be spared, and such artillery and supplies as he could procure, to join the troops before Quebec; but his whole force did not amount to but a little more than three hundred men. Their march was in the winter, through bad roads, in a severe climate, amidst the falls of the first snows, and in the water and mire; but such was the activity and perseverance of Montgomery and his adherents, that on December the first, he joined Arnold at Point au Trembles, with three armed schooners, about three hundred men, and ammunition, clothing and provisions for the troops. On December the fifth, Montgomery with his army appeared before Quebec; his effective troops amounted to but a few more than eight hundred men, and he could have but little prospect of success. General Carleton was informed of the state of his army, and had made such preparations for defence, that he could have but little to apprehend from any attempts that could be made against the city, by so small a force, at that season of the year. His force consisted of Colonel Maclean's men, one hundred and seventy; a company of the seventh regiment, amounting to sixty; forty marines, four hundred and fifty seamen, belonging to the king's frigates, and to the merchantmen; and about eight hundred militia; amounting in the whole to fifteen hundred and twenty; but on the militia little dependence was to be placed. Montgomery attempted both to intimidate, and to persuade the British general to surrender; he also opened two small batteries, one of five mortars, and the other of six cannon, against the place; but his artillery was too small, and the season of the year too severe to have any hope of succeeding by a regular siege. Nothing remained but to put all to the risk of a general assault; and rather than to abandon the object it was determined to venture upon this desperate measure.

It was not till December the thirty-first, that circumstances would admit of an attack: on that morning there was a heavy storm of snow, and under this cover, Montgomery and Arnold led on their troops to storm the city, the garrison of which was much more numerous than their own army. The American troops were divided into four bodies, of which two were directed to make false attacks upon the upper, town, while the real ones were made by Montgomery and Arnold, against the lower part of the city. With undaunted resolution, Montgomery led on his men, about two hundred, to the first barrier, which they soon passed, and advanced boldly to the second; but here a violent discharge of grape shot from several well placed cannon, together with a well directed fire of musketry, put an end to the life

of this brave and enterprising officer. Most of the officers and others who were near their general, fell at the same time, and the command devolved on a Mr. Campbell; but he was so unused to this new kind of business, of storming a well fortified city, and so discouraged by the fall of Montgomery, that he retreated without any further exertions. Arnold, with his division, amounting to about three hundred, made a vigorous attack upon another part of the town, and after an hour's engagement carried a small battery. In this conflict, one or two men fell, and Arnold had his leg shattered, so that he was obliged to be carried off. His officers, however, continued the attack with much vigor, till the British having dispersed the Americans in every other quarter, directed their whole force against this small body, and entirely surrounded them. Nor did their courage forsake them even in these desperate circumstances. They continued the fight for three hours longer, till their numbers were much reduced, and they were fully convinced that some misfortune must have befallen Montgomery and his party. At length no hope or prospect of relief remaining, they were forced to submit to necessity, and surrendered themselves prisoners of war.

In this unfortunate affair, the Americans lost nearly half their troops. About one hundred were slain, and many more were in captivity; and not more than four hundred remained, who were fit for duty. A council of war determined that Arnold should take the command, and continue the blockade; but the troops immediately quitted their camp, and retired about three miles from the city, and placed themselves in the best situation they could; hoping for relief, but expecting an attack."-Williams' Hist. Vermont.

General Arnold, under all his discouragements, continued the blockade of Quebec through the winter. On the 5th of May, 1776, it was unanimously determined in a council of war that the troops were in no condition to risk an assault, and the Army was removed to a more defensible position. The Canadians at this period receiving considerable reinforcements, the Americans were compelled to abandon one post after another, and by the 18th of June they had evacuated Canada.

Siege and evacuation of Boston.-General Washington, soon after his appointment as commander in chief, repaired to the American army in the vicinity of Boston and established his head quarters at Cambridge. The want of powder and the necessity of re-enlisting the troops whose term of service had expired, rendered the army investing Boston inactive, during the summer and autumn of 1775. About the middle of February, 1776, a severe cold setting in, and the ice becoming sufficiently firm to bear the troops, Washington formed the plan of marching into Boston and dislodge the enemy. A council of war being summoned on this occasion, being almost unanimous against the measure, Washington reluctantly abandoned the project.

"The effective regular force of the Americans now amounted to upward of fourteen thousand men; in addition to which the commander in chief called out about six thousand of the militia of Massachusetts. With these troops he determined to take possession of the heights of Dorchester, whence it would be in his power greatly to annoy the ships in the harbour and the soldiers in the town. By taking this position, from which the enemy would inevitably attempt to drive him, he expected to bring on a general action, during which he intended to cross over from Cambridge side with four thousand chosen men, and attack the town of Boston. To conceal his design, and to divert the attention of the garrison, a heavy bombardment of the town and lines of the enemy was begun on the evening of the second of March, and repeated the two succeeding nights. On the night of the fourth, immediately after the firing began, a considerable detachment, under the command of general Thomas, passing from Roxbury, took silent possession of Dorchester heights. The ground was almost impenetrably hard, but the night was mild, and by labouring with great diligence, their works were so far advanced by morning, as to cover them in a great measure from the shot of the enemy. When the British after day break discovered these works, which were magnified to the view by a hazy atmosphere, nothing could exceed their astonishment. Some of their officers afterward acknowledged, that the expedition with which they were thrown up, with their sudden and unexpected appearance, recalled to their minds those wonderful stories of enchantment and invisible agency, which are so frequent in the Eastern romances. Nothing now remained, but to abandon the town, or to dislodge the provincials. General Howe, with his usual spirit, chose the latter part of the alternative, and took measures for the embarkation, on that very evening, of five regiments with the light infantry and grenadiers, on the important but most hazardous service. The transports fell down in the evening toward the castle, with the troops, amounting to about two thousand men; but a tremendous storm at night rendered the execution of the design absolutely impracticable. A council of war was called the next morning, and agreed to evacuate the town as soon as possible. A fortnight elapsed before that measure was effected. Meanwhile the Americans strengthened and extended their works; and on the morning of the seventeenth of March the British discovered a breast work, that had been thrown up in the night at Nook's Hill, on Dorchester peninsula, which perfectly commanded Boston neck, and the south part of the town. Delay was no longer safe. By four in the morning, the king's troops, with those Americans, who were attached to the royal cause, began to embark; and before ten all of them were under sail. As the rear embarked, general Washington marched triumphantly into Boston, where he was joyfully received, as a deliverer. The British fleet, after a detention of nine days in Nantasket road, set sail for Halifax."

During the siege, "horse flesh was not refused by those who

could procure it. For want of fuel, the pews and benches of churches were taken for this purpose; the counters and partitions of warehouses were applied to the same use; and even houses, not inhabited, were demolished for the sake of the wood. The English left a great quantity of artillery and munitions. Two hundred and fifty pieces of cannon, of different calibre, were found in Boston, in Castle Island, and in the intrenchments of Bunker's Hill, and the Neck. The English had attempted, but with little success, in their haste, to destroy or to spike these last pieces; others had been thrown into the sea, but they were recovered. There were found, besides, four mortars, a considerable quantity of coal, of wheat, and of other grains, and one hundred and fifty horses."-Botta's Revolution.

Battle of Long Island.-"The command of the British force, destined to operate against New York, was given to admiral lord Howe, and his brother Sir William; who, in addition to their military powers, were appointed commissioners for restoring peace to the colonies. General Howe, after waiting two months at Halifax for his brother and the expected reinforcements from England, sailed with the force which he had previously commanded in Boston; and directing his course toward New York, arrived in the latter end of June off Sandy Hook. Admiral lord Howe, with part of the reinforcement from England, arrived at Halifax soon after his brother's departure; and, without dropping anchor, followed and joined him near Staten Island. These two royal commissioners, before they coinmenced military operations, attempted to effect a reunion between the colonies and Great Britain; but both the substance and the form of their communications for that purpose were too exceptionable, to be for a moment seriously regarded.

The British forces waited so long to receive accession from Halifax, South Carolina, Florida, the West Indies, and Europe, that the month of August was far advanced before they were in a condition to open the campaign. Their commanders, having resolved to make their first attempt on Long Island, landed their troops, estimated at about twenty-four thousand men, at Gravesend Bay, to the right of the Narrows. The Americans, to the amount of fifteen thousand, under major general Sullivan, were posted on a peninsula between Mill Creek, a little above Red Hook, and an elbow of East river, called Whaaleboght Bay. Here they had erected strong fortifica

* Provisions were become so scarce at Boston, that a pound of fresh fish cost twelve pence sterling, a goose eight shillings and four pence, a turkey twelve shillings and six pence, a duck four shillings and two pence, hams two shillings and a penny per pound. Vegetables were altogether wanting. A sheep cost thirty-five shillings sterling, apples thirty-three shillings and four pence per barrel. Fire wood forty-one shillings and eight pence the cord; and finally, it was not to be procured at any price.

tions, which were separated from New York by East river, at the distance of a mile. A line of intrenchment from the Mill Creek enclosed a large space of ground, on which stood the American camp, near the village of Brooklyn. This line was secured by abbatis, and flanked by strong redoubts. The armies were separated by a range of hills, covered with a thick wood, which intersects the country from west to east, terminating on the east near Jamaica. Through these hills there were three roads; one near the narrows, a second on the Flatbush road, and a third on the Bedford road; and these were the only passes from the south side of the hills to the American lines, excepting a road which led to Jamaica round the easterly end of the hills. General Putnam, agreeably to the instructions of General Washington, had detached a considerable part of his men to occupy the woody hills and passes; but in the performance of this service there appears to have been a deficiency either of skill or of vigilance.

When the whole British army was landed, the Hessians, under general Heister, composed the centre at Flatbush; major general Grant commanded the left wing, which extended to the coast; and the principal army, under the command of general Clinton, earl Percy, and lord Cornwallis, turned short to the right, and approached the opposite coast at Flatland. The position of the Americans having been reconnoitered, Sir William Howe, from the intelligence given him, determined to attempt to turn their left flank. The right wing of his army, consisting of a strong advanced corps, commanded by general Clinton and supported by the brigades under lord Percy, began at nine o'clock at night on the 26th of August to move from Flatland; and passing through the New Lots, arrived on the road that crosses the hills from Bedford to Jamaica. Having taken a patrol, they seized the pass, without alarming the Americans. At half after eight in the