Page:American History Told by Contemporaries, v2.djvu/501

No. 167] any intelligence to the Kings Troops. After giving this Parole I remain'd unmolested at home till about the middle of last Month, when a Body of Hessians under the command of Count Donop came to Burlington intending to take Post with us for the Winter. Some of my Neighbours thought it advisable to meet the Commandant on his approach to the Town and to request him to spare the Inhabitants from Insult and their property from pillage, they requested me to go with them & assist in this charitable Address as an Interpreter. I did so and had the pleasure to find that I had a pretty good prospect of being of real service to my peaceable Neighbours. But five Gondolas lying in the River began to cannonade the Town in order to prevent the Troops taking Quarter with us. Many Houses were damaged but nobody hurt. The Hessian Commandant however having with him no heavy Cannon thought proper to retire that Night to Bordentown intending to return with Artillery sufficient to make good his quarters. In the mean time tho' I believe every candid man will wonder why we should be punished for having been left defenceless and for having solicited safety from the Kings Troops in our defenceless condition, even supposing us to have assented to those measures which had brought the Troops into the country & even to our Doors ; yet true it is, that as soon as it was known on board of the Gondolas that the Troops had left us, the Town was cruelly insulted and from day to day kept in Alarm by those River Tyrants. Mr Lawrence, young Mr Hawlings & myself were in particular pursued by two captains & a number of armed men. We made our escapes & were under the necessity of taking refuge among the King's Troops, and as the design of taking Post at Burlington was soon after given up, I have been obliged to leave my wife & 3 children (the youngest not five weeks old) and to ramble as a Refugee God knows when to return.

In this situation I take the liberty to request that you will communicate the contents of this Letter to the Society ; perhaps I ought rather to have written to the Secretary, but my little narrative seemed to require a stile of more minute freedom than one can well use, unless to an inti mate acquaintance and I hope the Society will admit of this apology. I suppose it can hardly be necessary to tell you what I presume you will take for granted that I among most of my Brethren thought it my duty to shut up my Church and discontinue my attendance on the Public Worship from the fatal day of the Declaration of Independency.

Public news I need not give you as you will receive better intelligence