er cowardly rascals ran off and cleared themselves for home, with all the speed possible for cowards to muster or call to their aid, to assist them in sacrificing honor, country, Liberty and all.

On the night of the bombardment of Fort McHenry, large fires were built by the British in order as was supposed to deceive the Americans. We could distinctly see them whilst they were walking around them. Whilst this was done at the British camp, a large body of troops was despatched on board of boats with muffled oars to enter the city by the Spring Gardens. The boats were discovered by the commanders of the batteries, who ordered a brisk fire to be kept up against them. After the first discharge of cannon, the cries of the British for quarters were loud and piteous indeed; but our brave buckskins had no time to listen to their cries for quarters, but gave it to them hotter and hotter until the whole detachment consisting of about twelve hundred men were either driven to the bottom, there to find a watery grave or retreated precipitately by descending the stream, as none were captured, and judging from the unprecedented numerous cries for quarters it is to be supposed and justly, that the whole body perished in its wild and hazardous scheme.

CHAPTER XXVI.

During the battle, bombardments and skirmishes, our regiments with many others, laid in waiting within the intrenchments. These were filled with mud and water almost mid-leg deep, for it rained much of the time and the nights were very dark and foggy. At other times, I could see a good many more company officers, as well as more field officers. I did not behold a single officer belonging to the county troops during those nights of suffering and danger, but Major George Timanus. I may do others injustice, but not willingly; he only min

istered to our necessities and had it not been for this manly, kind hearted and brave officer, our men would have suffered much more than they did. He came along the intrenchments with baskets, containing bread and liquor and ordered the sergeants to give every man to eat and to drink. The Major always asked for me. I recollect that on one occasion, the Major asked for me, and was told that my Drummer and myself had gotten muskets and were standing in the intrenchments. He then called out Dewees! Dewees! I answered him. Coming along the embankment, opposite to where I was, he asked me what I was doing there. I told him we thought we could make music and fight a little too, if it should be necessary. He then bade us to come up on the embankment and take something to eat and something to drink, which I can assure my readers we very willingly did, for a more acceptable thing could not have been then offered to us. He then asked us to play, "Yankee Doodle." There was more danger in being up there than there was perhaps in being down in the intrenchments, but we did not care for that, so we went to work and played and beat the Major's favorite air in our best style, which pleased him very much.

There was a very lengthy rope-walk near to the intrenchinents, this it was thought the British might get behind or into, and use as a kind of bulwark, which had they done, they could have annoyed us very much by their fires, and by its aid could have prevented us from playing properly upon them in return. This walk, was fired by orders of the commanding General at Baltimore. As soon as day-light appeared next morning, there was a great laugh raised among the soldiers in the intrenchments, one would say to another you look as black as cuffee-just like a negro, and that one would reply, and say, you are as black as the devil yourself. Properly speaking one could not laugh at another without laughing at himself. It is true we were a dark looking set of fellows. That we were thus blacked, was owing to the black smoke created by the burning of such great quan

tities of rope, rosin, tar, pitch, &c. &c, deposited in the rope-walk. The very black smoke being swept by the current of air all along the intrenchments alighted upon our faces in its aerial flight, and caused the metamorphose as above stated. The burning of this rope-walk created a very brilliant light, whilst it lasted, and was the occasion (no doubt) of great alarm to many of the inhabitants of the city and surrounding country, that beheld it at a distance, and knew not the cause. And perhaps it gave accelerated speed to the heels of some great cowards too.

"The British meeting the reception they did when Ross fell their reception by General Stricker and his men when Colonel Brooke led the British on to the attacktheir imbecile efforts to reduce Fort's McHenry and Covington by bombardment--the destruction of their barges and the British troops they contained-the complete failure in their attempt to storm our works and enter the city. In short, their failing in every attempt (by being opposed and foiled in every quarter in which they made an effort) so completely enshrouded them in the mantle of disappointment and gloom, that they shrunk back discouraged and disheartened, and with the deepest mortification imaginable, betook themselves silently to their shipping, and retreated gladly, no doubt, from the waters of the Chesapeake. But if they did, it was for a fate, if not more awful, full as certain to very many of them in the battle-field before New Orleans, (when beaten in an unparalleled slaughter by an unscared and well qualified Jackson, and his brave officers and companions in arms) as fell to the lot of their fallen comrades before the city of Baltimore."-Hanna's Glory of Columbia.

After the British had embarked on board the shipping, the farmers near to the battle ground at North Point, gathered up two wagon-bodies full of dead bodies that had lain scattered and unburied through the woods.These dead soldiers had belonged to both armies. The farmers brought them to camp, and laid them upon the ground in the form of a ring. This, I think, was the

cause of a good many soldiers deserting the night after. I observed one of the Red-Coats that had a face as large as the top of a half-bushel; he had been a large bodied man when living, but now, by being so swollen, he was a much larger one. There were a number of women came to search for husbands, sons and brothers. There was one, as she neared the ring of dead bodies, recognized the body of her husband. She screamed awfully, and exclaimed "My God, there is the body of my dear husband." His bowels were lying beside his body.Others were recognized by other women as belonging to them in different relations. I cleared myself, for I could not endure the heart-rending cries of the women when in possession of their insupportable grief. Some of these dead bodies may have been taken away by friends and interred in grave-yards, but most of them were buried immediately in "Potter's Field," that was close to where they had been placed for recognition by their friends.

There were a number of British soldiers that had deserted shortly after the British had first landed, who had came and joined the American standard. When the British prisoners captured at or after the battle of North Point were marched through the American camp, some of the deserters that had enlisted in the American service, either spoke to the British prisoners or were recognized by them. The captured British soldiers commenced to curse and damn the deserters in round terms for traitors, cowards, &c. "Oh you d-d turn-coats," "You treacherous cowards, let a man always stick to his country," "Let a man be a man, and not turn against his country and his fellow soldiers, and act the d-d coward and traitor," &c. &c.

Here I must relate a circumstance or two of rather a humorous cast, that transpired one evening when we were occupying the intrenchments. The whole of the men were made to go through their exercises of shamfiring. This was to drill them, and prepare them for receiving the British in their attack, which was hourly

expected. There was one company, whose Captain was really sick, (some officers only feigned to be so,) and had been for a week previous. In the absence of the Captain, the Lieutenant had the command, but was so terribly scared that he could not give the word of command. I believe he tried to do so, but could not be heard by the men. One part to be performed was to step up out of the intrenchments and go through with the motion of firing. Seeing such a coward, and also, that the men were in a very awkward situation, I stepped up and said to the men, "I will give you the word of command, and the proffer was very readily accepted by the company. The arrangement was, that the front rank of each company was to advance, step up out of the intrenchment, and from behind a breastwork, go through the motions of firing. This done, the rear rank was then to advance and do likewise, whilst the front rank should retire to reload. This maneuvering was performed in a sham way, but for the purpose of perfecting the men in the art of firing. The company in accordance with my orders, had performed thus (the front and rear ranks,) alternately for some time, when Major Timanus, (who was passing along the line at the time) called out "Dewees, what are you doing here? Is there no officer here to command this company?" I answered "Yes, there is one, (pointing at the same time to the Lieutenant,) but he cannot speak, he is almost scared to death." "D-n him," said Timanus, then brandishing his sword, said "I have a notion to cut off his cowardly head." "No," said I, "I know that if the British-comes, he will run, but never mind, I have a good pistol in my belt, and it has a good bullet and three buckshot in it, and so I shall watch him, and as soon as he offers to run, I shall shoot him in his rear." "No," said Timanus, "D-n him, shoot him in the head, for cowards that wont stand for their country in the time of her greatest danger ought to be shot down as dead as bullocks." I am not to be understood as giving this as the Major's precise language, but it was tantamount