America yet remained in the breaft of the EngJish general. A great part of the summer had now elapsed, and the primary object of the campaign had proved wholly abortive. In vindication of the conduct of fir William Howe it was alleged, that to bring the enemy to action was impoffible; and to advance to the Delawar, through a country entirely hoftile, and with fuch a force in his rear, would be no better than madness. But if fo, the war itself was evidently no better than madness, as thefe difficulties were precifely fuch as they had every reafon previously to expect. Another project, however, was now to be tried, and preparations were made for a grand naval expedition. On the 23d of July the whole army, leaving only a fufficient force for the defence of New York, embarked on board the fleet, and after a long and tedious voyage the troops were landed at Elk Ferry, at the head of Chesapeak Bay. General Washington, who had for many weeks been kept in anxious fufpenfe as to the destination of the British army, upon this intelligence took poffeffion of the heights on the eastern fide of the river Brandywine, which falls into the Delawar below Philadelphia, with an intention to difpute the paffage. By daybreak on the 11th of September the British army advanced in two columns: the right, commanded manded by general Knyphaufen, marching directly to Chadsford; and the other column, under lord Cornwallis, taking a circuit to the left, in order to cross the forks of the Brandywine, and attack the enemy on the right flank. Both were in a confiderable degree fuccefsful; the first after a severe conflict forcing the paffage of the ford, and the latter furprifing and totally difcomfiting the brigades commanded by Sullivan, which compofed the right wing of the American army. The approach of night prevented the royal army from pursuing its advantages, and the lofs of the Americans did not exceed thirteen hundred men in killed, wounded, and prifoners; to which that of the British bore a very large proportion. The marquis de la Fayette, a young French nobleman, who had recently entered as a volunteer into the American fervice, and count Pulawski, a native of Poland, diftinguished themselves by their gallantry on this occafion. General Washington, on the difafter of Brandywine, retreated towards Philadelphia; but on the advance of general Howe, not deeming it expedient fo foon to risk a fecond engagement, he withdrew, and the English army paffed the Schuylkil without oppofition; and on the 26th of September general Howe entered Philadelphia in triumph, the congrefs having previously removed their fittings to York town town in Virginia. About the fame time a detached corps of Americans, commanded by general Wayne, was surprised and totally routed by major-general Grey, at the head of two regiments and a body of light-infantry. The attack being made with fixed bayonets, the execution was terrible. No fooner was it known to lord Howe that the English army was in poffeffion of Philadel phia, than he moved round with the fleet from the Chesapeak to the Delawar, the navigation of which the Americans had endeavoured to render impracticable by works and batteries conftructed on a low marfly ifland, formed near the junction of the Delawar and the Schuylkil; and on the opposite shore, by a strong fort erected at a place called Red Bank. Acrofs the midchannel they had in various parts funk vast machines, compofed of tranfverfe beams firmly united and pointing in various directions, ftrongly headed with iron, to which, from the resemblance of form, the appellation was given of chevauxde-frize. The head-quarters of the army at this time were at a place called German-town, fix miles from Philadelphia-the encampment croffing the village at right angles about the centre. General Washington, who was pofted in a ftrong pofition at the diftance of about fixteen miles on the banks of the Schuylkil, and who had kept kept a watchful eye on the movements of the enemy, thinking this a favorable opportunity of attack, decamped in the evening of the 3d of October, and, marching all night, arrived at three in the morning at German-town. The fortieth regiment, commanded by colonel Mufgrave, who were first attacked, made fo gallant a refiftance, that the whole army had time to form; and major-general Grey bringing up the left wing by a rapid and feasonable movement, the Americans were reduced to act on the defenfive, and, after a conflict maintained for feveral hours in darknefs and confufion, were compelled to retreat, but with fo little lofs that they carried off with them their whole train of artillery. Though the difappointment of the enemy was great, the English commander had little reafon to boast of his victory; the killed and wounded in this engagement confiderably exceeded the lofs of Brandywine, and it was perceived with fenfible chagrin that the Americans had become no mean proficients in the art of war.. A neceffary work of very great importance and no small difficulty was now to be attempted in the attack of the works at Red Bank and the oppofite island, which commanded the paffage of the Delawar, without the free navigation of which neither fleet nor army could winter at Philadelphia. On the 22d of October an effort was made, by a numerous body of Heffians, commanded by colonel Donop, to form the fortrefs of Red Bank; but, after displaying much bravery, they were repulfed with prodigious flaughter. An unusually fierce attack was at the fame time made by the fhipping on the works of Fort Island, on which they made little impreffion; and the Augufta man of war, and Merlin floop, in avoiding the cheveaux-de-frize, were ftranded, and the Augufta by accident blown up. On the 15th of November the attack was renewed with a more formidable force; and the works being now nearly demolished, the garrifon retired in the night across the river in boats to Red Bank, which was alfo foon afterwards evacuated, for reafons which do not fufficiently appear. The chevaux-de frize were now weighed with great difficulty, and the free navigation of the river reftored; but winter was by this time approaching, the feafon for action had elapfed, and no farther military or naval enterprises of moment were attempted during the fhort remainder of the campaign. While fuch was the difappointment refulting from a fucceffion of victories in the fouth, it will now be neceffary to advert to the terrible confequences of defeat and difafter in the North. After the evacuation of Canada by the Americans, in the |