Page:The Adventures Of A Revolutionary Soldier.pdf/190

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188
THE ADVENTURES OF


at this time of night,—I should—so I should," said she. Before I could get to sleep again it was daybreak;—I wished the girl had been asleep and her wooer gagged, before I had seen or heard either of them. As soon as the day dawned, the man of the house came into the room where we were, and took a large jug, that had stood all night just at my head, and poured out a morning stimulater for himself and then put the jug into a closet; I was sorry I did not know it was so near me, that I might have taken a comforter for the trouble they had caused me.

We started before sunrise this morning, and walked forty-nine miles, when, just before sunset, we overtook our corps. I had eaten nothing all day, but drank several draughts of buttermilk which I begged of the farmer's ladies on the road. The next day we arrived at a large house near King's ferry, usually denominated by the army "The white house," belonging to —— Smith, the man who conducted Major Andre on his way towards New-York, when he was taken. Our troops staid here that night, and the next day and night, the officers in the house and the men in the barns. In the evening of the last day we were here, just at dark, one of our officers came and told me that two of the men had deserted, and had compelled another man to go with them. As they were all what we called "Old Countrymen," it was conjectured that they had gone to the enemy, and I was accordingly ordered to take nine men, who were then in readiness, and endeavour to overtake them before they could reach New-York. I immediately set off, having received my orders, which were, to go to what was called the "English neighbourhood," and if I could not find them, or hear of them, to return. The English neighbourhood was from forty-five to fifty miles distant from the place we were then at. We travelled so hard, that at daylight I had but three men of the nine left with me, the other six having given out by the way. We were now near our journey's end, when the men with me beginning to grow slack, and hearing no tiding of the deserters, we concluded to return. When we had got eight or ten miles on our retrograde movement, we met one of our Lieutenants, on his way to visit his friends who lived in that quarter. He had with him three men for