Page:The Hessians and the other German auxiliaries of Great Britain in the revolutionary war.djvu/184

 164 Burgoyne then laid the following questions before the council: 1st. Whether there were examples in the history of war that an army in this condition had capitulated.

2d. Whether in such a condition a capitulation were dishonorable.

3d. If this army were really in a condition where it must capitulate.

To the first question all answered that the condition of the Saxon army near Pirna, of General Fink near Maxen, and of Prince Maurice of Saxony, had not been so bad nor so helpless as that in which this army now was; and that nobody had been able to blame the generals who had capitulated under such circumstances, in order to save their armies; only that the King of Prussia had cashiered General Fink; but that was done from personal disfavor.

To the second question all answered that for the reasons above given the capitulation could not be dishonorable. And as to the third question, all were agreed that if General Burgoyne saw the possibility of attacking the enemy they were ready to sacrifice their blood and their lives; but if this were not feasible they held it better to save the troops for the king, by an honorable capitulation, than to hold out longer and run the danger of having to surrender at discretion after exhausting all their provisions, or to be attacked in their bad position and scattered, and then destroyed in detail.

General Burgoyne thereupon produced the draft of a capitulation, the terms of which seemed favorable, and were unanimously approved of by his officers.