three hundred large boats were collected from every part of Spain, which were to be employed in landing the troops, so soon as a breach could be made.

The garrison having been effectually relieved, Admiral Darby, with Admiral Digby, in the Prince George, second in command, returned to England, and on the 21st they arrived at Spithead.

Prince William did not on this occasion leave his ship, for report was current at the time that the French fleet were in the chops of the channel, and Admiral Darby sailed in pursuit of them, but they were not to be found.

The theatre of Prince William's services was now to be changed, and he was on the point of entering upon a scene of busier warfare, for Admiral Digby having accompanied Admiral Darby to a certain latitude; they parted company, and Admiral Digby, with the Prince George, the Condor, of 74, the Lion, of 64, and the Perseverance, of 36, proceeded to America, and on the 24th of August, the fleet arrived at Sandy Hook.

The arrival of Prince William at New York, was hailed by the inhabitants with every token of loyalty and personal esteem. He was the first of the royal family of England, who had set a foot on the American soil, and his appearance amongst the Americans at this time, operated as a talisman to revive their sinking loyalty, and to stimulate them to fresh exertions in their arduous contests with the revolutionists.

Shortly after the arrival of Prince William at New York, the loyalists got up an address to his Royal Highness, in which the customary fulsome adulation was poured upon him with the utmost profusion, and a great deal of nonsense uttered in regard to his appearance effecting a conciliation between all parties, and putting an end to hostilities. The wrongs of America were, however, of too deep a nature to be cured by the simple appearance of a branch of the royal family of Great Britain, and in some respects, it acted in an inverse ratio; for royalty at that time was by no means in high estimation with the Bajority of the American people; on the contrary, they had

determined to shake off their allegiance to the Crown of England, and, therefore, to them, it was rather a matter of dislike, than of approval, to see an individual amongst them, who was one of the inheritors of that Crown, and who was actually come among them with the sword in his hand, to enforce their obedience to a government which they repudiated.

To the address of the loyalists, Prince William made a suitable reply, that is, he thanked them for their expressions of loyalty to his Royal Father, and for their determination to uphold the dignity of his Crown. He further informed the loyalists, that he would take the earliest opportunity of communicating their loyal sentiments to his father, who would, no doubt, properly appreciate them, which in other words, was saying, that just as much notice would be taken of them, as of many hundreds of the petitions of the people of England, which are murdered on the table of the House of Commons, without the slightest chance of ever being resuscitated.

The adulation of royalty by the clergy, is one of the surest ways to preferment, whether it be on the shores of America, or in the vicinity of Lambeth Palace on the banks of the Thames, and accordingly, we find that on the first visit of Prince William to the Episcopal church at New York, Dr. Inglis, the rector, seized the very first favourable opportunity of descanting largely on the blessings of royalty, and the great advantage which every country enjoys, which is subject to its sway. He impressed upon his auditors, the remembrance of the inextinguishable debt of gratitude which they owed to the King of England in sending one of his sons amongst them, who came to heal all dissensions, and to rivet closer the bonds of amity between the mother country, and her revolted colonies. Of the real character of Prince William, it may be said with truth, that the worthy divine knew little or nothing; nevertheless, he informed them that the royal Prince, who was then amongst them, was the paragon of every virtue, the focus all that is great and noble in the human character; and he so bespattered the royal youth with his fulsome flattery, that he became nauseated with it, and although it is by no means an uncommon

trait in royalty to swallow the boluses of flattery as fast as they can be administered, yet Prince William had not been much accustomed to have them administered to him on the quarterdeck of a man of war; and, therefore, he felt himself in rather an awkward position, when they were poured down upon him with such an unconscionable profusion by the servile minister of the episcopal church of New York.

It may, or it may not have been the effect of the zealous endeavours of the worthy minister to impress upon his auditors, a proper idea of the transcendent advantages of royalty; but we find Dr. Inglis a short time afterwards in the elevated post of Bishop of Nova Scotia, and it was not long before another opportunity presented itself to him of advocating the cause of royalty, and of telling the inhabitants of Halifax, as he had done those of New York, of the enormous debt of gratitude, which they owed to the King of England in sending another of his well beloved sons, in the person of the Duke of Kent, to be the guardian of their liberties, and the promoter of their national welfare; but respecting which, the records of history give a very different account.

During the residence of his Royal Highness at New York, he took up his residence with the Commander-in-chief, and his habit of sauntering about the city without any guard, and even sometimes without a companion, with the view of seeing everything that was remarkable in the city, exposed him to a most daring attempt, to obtain possession of his person, on the expectation that such an event would bring the war to a more speedy termination. In this affair the character of Washington does not appear in the most favourable light, nor is there any authentic information extant, as to the manner in which the scheme against his Royal Highness was frustrated. The account of the conspiracy, however, was published in America, of which the following are the particulars :—

"When his present Majesty William IV. served in the British navy, he was for some time on the coast of the North American colonies, then in a state of revolution, and passed the winter of 1781 and 1782 in the city of New York. He is still

borne in lively recollection by many of the elder inhabitants of of that city, as a fine bluff boy of sixteen; frank, cheery, and affable; and there are anecdotes still told of his frolicsome pranks on shipboard. Among these, is the story of a rough, though favourite nautical joke, which he played off upon a sailor boy, in cutting down his hammock while asleep. The sturdy sea urchin resented this invasion of his repose; and, not knowing the quality of his invader, a regular set-to of fisticuffs ensued in the dark. In this, it is said the Prince showed great bottom-and equal generosity on the following morning, when he made the boy a handsome present of money. His conduct, in this boyish affair, is said to have gained him the hearts of all his shipmates.

"The Prince manifested, when on shore, a decided fondness for manly pastimes. One of his favourite resorts was a small fresh-water lake in the vicinity of the city, which presented a frozen sheet of many acres; and was thronged by the younger part of the population, for the amusement of skating. As the Prince was unskilled in that exercise, he would sit in a chair fixed on runners, which was pushed forward with great velocity by a skating attendant, while a crowd of officers environed him, and the youthful multitude made the air ring with their shouts for Prince William Henry. It was an animating scene, in the bright sunny winter-days, so common in that climate, and probably it retained a place in his Majesty's memory.

"While the Prince was thus enjoying himself in the city of New York, a daring plan was formed, by some adventurous partisans of the revolutionary army, to pounce upon him, and carry him off from the midst of his friends and guards. The deviser of this plan was Colonel Ogden, a gallant officer, who had served with great bravery in the revolutionary army from the very commencement of the war, and whose regiment at that time was stationed in the province (now state) of New Jersey.

"The present statement is drawn up from documents still preserved by the family of Colonel Ogden, a copy of which has been obtained from one of his sons. The Prince, at that time;

was living on shore, with Admiral Digby, in quarters slightly guarded, more for form, than security, no particular danger being appehended. The project of Colonel Ogden, was to land secretly on a stormy night, with a small, but resolute force, to surprise and carry off the Prince and the Admiral to the boats, and to make for the Jersey shore. The plan was submitted to General Washington, who sanctioned it, under the idea that the possession of the person of the Prince would facilitate the adjustment of affairs with the mother country, and a recognition of the United States as an independent nation.

"The following is a copy of the letter of General Washing. ton to Colonel Ogden on the occasion. The whole of the original is in the handwriting of the general :—

"To Colonel Ogden, of the first Jersey Regiment.

'Sir-The spirit of enterprise so conspicuous in your plan for surprising in their quarters, and bringing off, the Prince William Henry and Admiral Digby, merits applause; and you have my authority to make the attempt in any manner, and at such a time, as your judgement shall direct.

'I am fully persuaded, that it is unnecessary to caution you against offering insult or indignity to the persons of the Prince or Admiral, should you be so fortunate as to capture them; but it may not be amiss to press the propriety of a proper line of conduct upon the party you command.

'In case of success, you will, as soon as you get them to a place of safety, treat them with all possible respect; but you are to delay no time in conveying them to Congress, and reporting your proceedings, with a copy of these orders. Given at Morris Town, this 28th day of March, 1782.

G. WASHINGTON. 'Note,-Take care not to touch upon the ground which is agreed to be neutral-viz., from Rayway to Newark, and four miles back.'

"Before relating the particulars of this plan, it may be expedient to state, that the city of New York is situated on the point of an island which advances into the centre of a capacious bay. A narrow arm of the sea, vulgarly called the East River, separates it on the left from Long or Nassau Island; and the Hudson, commonly called the North River, separates it from the state of New Jersey. The British army was in possession of the city, and was strengthened by a fleet; but the opposite bank of the Hudson, which is about two miles wide, was under