BATTLE OF LONG ISLAND. which we must pass
151
On
to get over the mill clam to our fort.
getting
saw the enemy into the road, as near the school-house we were, drawn up in line viewing our works. The enemy saw us
over the fence as
I
and ran ahead and
fired
After
school-house.
we
;
nevertheless I got nearly
all
my men
past the
passed them 100 yards, they huddled together
my men to face about, give them one well disaw from the staggering had taken good effect. After we got in our fort there came on a dreadful heavy storm with thunder and lightning, and the rain fell in such torrents that the wa!er was soon ankle-deep in the fort. With all these inconveniences, and an enemy just without musket-shot, our men could not be kept awake. They would sit down and fall asleep, though Lt. Col. Cornell threatened on the road.
rected
fire,
I
ordered
which
I
make daylight shine through them. All that seemed to prevent the enemy taking our main fort was a scarecrow row of palisades from the fort to low water in the cove, which Major Box had set up that morning. On our retreat to N. Y., we had to take our baggage, camp-equipage, &c, on our shoulders to the boats, and tedious was the operation through mud and mire." Page 170-5. to
[The above account, as well as many of the fused,
owing
ginal letters
to
would clear up some obscure passages
Major Popham's account of
On
818.
or about
Haslet's regiment
regiment
saw
the
;
Aug to
the part he took in the Battle of L.
Next day,
Y. a 2d
was ordered with
L. L, on Saturday,
Maryland regiment reviewed by fort.
quite con-
is
Perhaps the
Col.
I
I.
Lt. in Col.
the
Delaware
On Sunday
believe.
Smallwood
or next but one, I
ori-
— Ed.]
21, '76, I arrived in N.
a few days after I
over
to cross
Corkscrew
others,
Olney's ignorance of the localities.
I
in front of the
marched toward
the
ground occupied by our army, in the summit of the high ground in front of
Gowanus, near
the edge of the river,
where the enemy were landing
from their ships, [Bennet's Cove,] one or two lying near the shore cover the landing.
enemy. hill
Many
shots were exchanged between us and
About 12 o'clock Gen.
Stirling
came
and ordered the Delaware regiment up.
order to load with ball, and take care that our
to
the east
to
the
brow of the
Here we received the
first
men (who were awkward
We then marched up first. and joined the army which was drawn up in line, my regiment and my company on the left. The whole bay was covered with the enemy's
Irishmen and others) put in the powder
shipping.
we
The
lost several
firing
men.
continued
About
this
all
the time of the
time the
enemy's landing, and
enemy began
to
send detach