that our stock of provisions is again exhausted; the soldiers have for several days drawn nothing but one pound of flour a man.

8th.--I had again the honor of dining at the table of Baron Steuben, in company with a number of officers. Notwithstanding the scarcity of provisions in camp, the baron's table continues to be well supplied; his generosity is unbounded.

10th. We are now lamenting the loss of Brigadier General Poor, who died last night of putrid fever. His funeral solemnities have been attended this afternoon. The corpse was brought this morning from Paramus, and left at a house about a mile from the burying yard at Hackinsack, whence it was attended to the place of interment by the following procession; a regiment of light infantry, in uniform, with arms reversed; four field pieces; Major Lee's regiment of light horse; General Hand and his brigade; the Major on horseback; two chaplains; the horse of the deceased, with his boots and spurs suspended from the saddle, led by a servant; the corpse, borne by four serjeants, and the pall supported by six general officers. The coffin was of mahogany, and a pair of pistols and two swords, crossing each other and tied with black crape, were placed on the top. The corpse was followed by the officers of the New Hampshire brigade; the officers of the brigade of light infantry, which the deceased had lately commanded. Other officers fell in promiscuously, and were followed by his Excellency General Washington, and other general officers. Having arrived at the burying yard, the troops opened to the right and left, resting on their arms reversed, and the procession passed to the grave, where a short eulogy was delivered by the Reverend Mr. Evans. A band of music, with a number of drums and fifes, played a funeral dirge, the drums were muffled with black crape, and the officers in the procession wore crape round the left arm. The regiment of light infantry, were in handsome

uniform, and wore in their caps, long feathers of black and red. The elegant regiment of horse, commanded by Major Lee, being in complete uniform and well disciplined, exhibited a martial and noble appearance. No scene can exceed in grandeur and solemnity a military funeral. The weapons of war reversed, and embellished with the badges of mourning, the slow and regular step of the procession, the mournful sound of the unbraced drum and deep toned instruments, playing the melancholy dirge, the majestic mien and solemn march of the war horse, all conspire to impress the mind with emotions which no language can describe, and which nothing but the reality can paint to the liveliest imagination. General Poor was from the state of New Hampshire. He was a true patriot, who took an early part in the cause of his country, and during his military career, was respected for his talents and his bravery, and beloved for the amiable qualities of his heart. But it is a sufficient eulogy to say, that he enjoyed the confidence and esteem of Washington.

11th. We had a most violent shower of rain, accompanied with tremendous peals of thunder and lightning; we were obliged to quit our beds in the night, but no part of our marquee could shield us from the drenching rain,-not a blanket about us remained dry.

12th.-A soldier was executed for robbery; he was one of five who broke into a house with their arms, and robbed the inhabitants of a sum of money and many valuable articles. He conducted with fortitude at the gallows.

13th. The army was paraded to be reviewed by General Washington, accompanied by a number of Indian chiefs. His Excellency, mounted on his noble bay charger, rode in front of the line of the army, and received the usual salute. Six Indian chiefs followed in his train, appearing as the most disgusting and contemptible of the human race; their faces

painted of various colors, their hair twisted into bunches on the top of their heads, and dressed in a miserable Indian habit, some with a dirty blanket over the shoulders, and others almost naked. They were mounted on horses of the poorest kind, with undressed sheep skins, instead of saddles, and old ropes for bridles. These bipeds could not refrain from the indulgence of their appetites for rum on this occasion, and some of them fell from their horses, on their return to head quarters. This tribe of Indians is friendly to America, and it is good policy to show them some attention, and give them an idea of the strength of our army.

20th. The army decamped from Steenrapie this morning, and encamped at Orangetown, or Tappan. His Excellency General Washington, with the Marquis de la Fayette and General Knox, with a splendid retinue, left camp on the 17th instant, bound to Hartford in Connecticut, to have an interview with the commanding officers of the French fleet and army, which have lately arrived at Rhode Island.

I have just been introduced to three young clergymen, from Connecticut, Mr. Lockwood, Mr. Ely, and Mr. Joel Barlow; the latter is a chaplain in the Connecticut line, and is said to possess a poetical genius. Being present when he made a prayer in public, it was remarked that his performance was very ordinary, and it was replied that the gentleman had not been much accustomed to public performances, and that he was more calculated to attain to eminence in the art of poetry, than in the clerical profession.

21st.-Major General Greene succeeds to the command of our army, in the absence of his Excellency General Washington. This gentleman is a native of the state of Rhode Island. His father was an anchor smith, and his business in that line was very extensive. He was a member of the society of Friends, and when about to engage in a military station, they remonstrated with him, as war was a violation of the

established principles of their sect. But his patriotism and ardent zeal for the cause of liberty, were irresistible, and he was, at the age of thirty, appointed a brigadier general, by his government, in the year 1775. After the battle of Lexington, actuated by a native martial ardor, he repaired to Cambridge, and with the troops under his command, joined the continental army under General Washington. General Greene has conducted in a manner to meet the expectations and full approbation of the public, and has been promoted to the rank of major general. By his military talents, skill and judgment, he has acquired a character of the highest order, and is held in respect and estimation throughout the army, as second only to the Commander in Chief. It is the prevailing sentiment, that if in any event of Providence we should be deprived of our chief commander, General Greene, is of all others, the most suitable character to be his successor; and in this sentiment there is the greatest reason to believe that the illustrious Washington himself would readily coincide.

26th. At three o'clock this morning, an alarm was spread throughout our camp. Two regiments, from the Pennsylvania line, were ordered to march immediately to West Point, and the whole army to be held in readiness to march at a moment's warning. It was soon ascertained that this sudden movement was in consequence of the discovery of one of the most extraordinary events in modern history, and in which the interposition of Divine Providence is remarkably conspicuous. It is the treacherous conspiracy of Major General Arnold, and the capture of Major John Andre, adjutant general to the British army. The army being paraded this morning, the following communication in the orders of General Greene, was read by the adjutants to their respective regiments. "Treason, of the blackest dye, was yesterday discovered. General Arnold, who commanded at West

Point, lost to every sentiment of honor, of private and public obligation, was about to deliver up that important post into the hands of the enemy. Such an event must have given the American cause a dangerous, if not a fatal wound; happily the treason has been timely discovered, to prevent the fatal misfortune. The providential train of circumstances, which led to it, affords the most convincing proofs that the liberties of America, are the object of Divine protection. At the same time that the treason is to be regretted, the general cannot help congratulating the army on the happy discovery. Our enemies, despairing of carrying their point by force, are practising every base art, to effect by bribery and corruption, what they cannot accomplish in a manly way. Great honor is due to the American army, that this is the first instance of treason of the kind, where many were to be expected from the nature of our dispute; the brightest ornament in the character of the American soldiers, is, their having been proof against all the arts and seductions of an insidious enemy. Arnold has made his escape to the enemy, but Major Andre, the adjutant general in the British army, who came out as a spy, to negotiate the business, is our prisoner."

West Point is situated in the midst of the highlands, on the west side of the Hudson, sixty miles above New York, and seven below Fishkill. It is a strongly fortified castle, which, with its dependencies, is considered by General Washington as the key which locks the communication between the eastern and southern states; and of all the posts in the United States, this is the most important. The position is remarkably well calculated by nature for a defensive post, being on a bend of the river with rocky ridges rising one above another, and the lofty summit is covered with a range of redoubts and batteries, planned by the most skilful engineers. The most elevated and formidable fortress, is erected on a natu