ed had expended their ammunition; some of the men unadvisedly calling out that their ammunition was spent, the enemy were so near that they overheard them, when they first made a stand and then returned upon our people, who, for want of ammunition and reinforcements, were obliged in their turn to retreat, which ultimately resulted in the route of the whole army.
There were several other circumstances which contributed to the defeat of our army on that day, but as I am narrating my own adventures, and not a history of the war, I shall omit to mention them. Those who wish to know more, may consult any or all the authors who have given the history of the revolutionary war.
I had now to travel the rest of the day, after marching all the day and night before and fighting all the morning. I had eaten nothing since the noon of the preceding day, nor did I eat a morsel till the forenoon of the next day, and I needed rest as much as victuals. I could have procured that if I had had time to seek it, but victuals was not to be found. I was tormented with thirst all the morning, (fighting being warm work,) but after the retreat commenced I found ample means to satisfy my thirst. "I could drink at the brook," but I could not "bite at the bank."
There was one thing in such cases as I have just mentioned, (I mean, in retreating from an enemy,) that always galled my feelings, and that was, whenever I was forced to a quick retreat to be obliged to run till I was worried down. The Yankees are generally very nimble of foot and in those cases are very apt to practice what they have the ability of performing. Some of our men at this time seemed to think that they could never run fast or far enough. I never wanted to run, if I was forced to run, further than to be beyond the reach of the enemy's shot, after which I had no more fear of their overtaking me than I should have of an army of lobsters doing it, unless it were their horsemen, and they dared not do it.
After the army had collected again and recovered from their panic, we were kept marching and countermarching, starving and freezing,—nothing else happening, although that was enough, until we encamped at a place called the White Marsh, about twelve miles to the north-
