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204 wished to hire a man to take his place; my friend persuaded me (although against my inclinations) to take this man's place, telling me that at the expiration of our service, we would go together into the western parts of the State of New-York, where there was a plenty of good land to be had as cheap as the Irishman's potatoes; (for nothing at all, fath, and a little farther on, cheaper nor all that,) and there we would get us farms and live like heroes; the other man offering me sixteen dollars in specie, with several other small articles, I consented; and now I had got hobbled again, though but for a short time. After I had been in this regiment about a month or six weeks, this "friend of mine" told me that he had taken an affront at something, I have forgotten what, and was determined not to stay there any longer, and endeavoured to persuade me to go with him. I told him I had so short a time to serve, and as there was a prospect that I should not have to stay so long as I had engaged to do, I would not go off like a scoundrel, get a bad name, and subject myself to suspicion and danger. I laboured to persuade him to relinquish his foolish resolution, and I thought I had; but he a few days after set off with himself, and I have never heard of him since. I hope he did well, for he was a worthy young man.

Soon after this, an order was issued, that all who had but four months to serve, should, after they had cut two cords of wood near the garrison, for firewood, be discharged; accordingly, I cut my two cords of wood, and obtained an honourable discharge, which the other man might have done if he had not been so hasty in his determination.

I now bid a final farewell to the service. I had obtained my settlement certificates and sold some of them, and purchased some decent clothing, and then set off from West point. I went into the Highlands, where I accidentally came across an old messmate, who had been at work there ever since he had left the army in June last, and, as it appeared, was on a courting expedition. I stopped a few days with him and worked at the farming business; I got acquainted with the people here, who were chiefly Dutch, and as winter was approaching, and my friend recommended me to them, I agreed to teach a