tober; it had on board a body of troops under General Clinton. After having ascertained that the succour was too late, it put to sea again; and the fleet of M. de Grasse, sailed for the West Indies on the 4th of November. He sent back to Saint Domingo, the body of troops which he had borrowed from the governor, and left at York a light squadron, of which the frigate Romulus was the largest vessel, under M. de la Villebrune. General Washington returned to his head-quarters on the river Hudson, opposite to New York, with the detachment from the northern states. He sent the troops which had been under the command of M. de la Fayette, to reinforce General Greene in the south. The French remained at York, Gloucester, Hampton, and Williamsburg, where they took up the quarters which the enemy had expected to occupy, and rebuilt the houses destroyed during the siege.

The congress, as soon as they heard of the surrender of Cornwallis, passed a resolution, to have a marble column erected at York, in Virginia, adorned with emblems, commemorating the alliance between the United States and France, with a succinct account of the surrender of the army of Cornwallis to Generals Washington, Rochambeau, and De Grasse. They voted also to present two colours to General Washington, and four pieces of cannon, taken from the English army, to count de Rochambeau and count de Grasse, with an inscription declaring the gratitude of the United States, for the glorious part which they had acted in this brilliant expedition.

General Greene obtained new successes in the south: he descended from the mountains of the Santee, passed the Wateree and Congaree, marched to Dorchester, and forced the enemy to abandon all the posts which he had in the open country, and to retire within the lines of Charleston. The English, at the end of this campaign, which had commenced so unfavourably for the Americans, held nothing on the continent of North America, but Charleston, Savannah, and the islands of New York. All these successes contributed not a little to the overthrow of the English ministry, when the news of the capture of Cornwallis reached Europe, and induced Parliament to relinquish all offensive operations on the continent of America. *****

During the month of May, 1782, we were informed of the defeat of the count de Grasse, by a published account of admiral Rodney, which the English at New York took good care to circulate. This was the more important, as congress, and the assemblies of several of the states, were convoked to determine whether they should listen to the proposals of General Carleton, who had succeeded Sir Henry Clinton in the command of the English army. He proposed to the United States, in the name of his government, the acknowledgment of their independence, without restriction, provided they would renounce the

alliance which they had contracted with France. The congress refused to receive Carleton's secretary, who came with these offers; and the state of Maryland published a resolution, denouncing as an enemy to the state, whoever should propose to treat without the concurrence of France; accompanying this proclamation with declarations of the gratitude which they owed her. This example was followed by the general assembly of Virginia, and afterwards by all the other states, at the usual times of holding their assemblies. The English general having, at the same time, despatched a body of troops from Charleston to Jamaica, proposed a suspension of hostilities to General Greene, who as well as the legislature of South Carolina, refused it. The chevalier de la Luzerne, sent accounts of all these transactions to France, by the chevalier Clouard. They confirmed the good opinion which had been entertained there of the firmness of the Americans, and of their gratitude towards their ally.

The chevalier de la Luzerne, had succeeded M. Gérard, as minister plenipotentiary in America. His frank and conciliating manners, gained the esteem and confidence of the Americans to such a degree, that although he was apparently unwilling to take any part in their internal affairs, yet there were few matters of consequence in which he was not consulted.

The unhealthiness of the season in Virginia, began to cause much sickness in the army: the chevalier de la Luzerne, received letters at this time from M. de Vaudreuil, who, after the capture of M. de Grasse, had succeeded to the command of the fleet. This admiral requested him to make preparations for refitting it at Boston. We were also informed, that a body of troops was about embarking at New York, which was supposed to be destined against some of the French colonies. These circumstances induced me to put the French army in motion, to bring it nearer to New York. I requested a conference at Philadelphia with General Washington. It was there resolved, that the two armies should unite on the Hudson, should approach as near as possible to New York, to threaten the place, and prevent it from sending out any detachment against our colonies. During this time the army under the chevalier de Chatelus, and the chevalier de Viomenil, marched during the night, and reposed in the daytime. Through the judicious precautions of these generals, it arrived in health and safety at Baltimore, where it was joined by a detachment under M. de la Vallette, whom I had left at York and Gloucester, to demolish the fortifications, after removing the artillery. Although these troops had been conveyed up the bay by the little squadron of M. de la Villebrune, while the rest of the army was proceeding slowly by land; yet from the commander to the lowest soldier, they arrived every man sick.

During the stay which the army was obliged to make at Bal

timore, to recruit the sick, and to allow the great summer-heats to pass by, we were informed of the evacuation of Savannah in Georgia; a part of the garrison had returned to New York, and the rest was sent to Charleston, from which place also the enemy was preparing to withdraw his magazines. I received at the same time a letter from M. de Vaudreuil, who was on his way to Boston, with the remains of the fleet of M. de Grasse, requesting the assistance necessary for his protection, while refitting. He had detached M. de la Peyrouse, towards Hudson's bay, who destroyed all the British establishments there. I sent M. de Choisy, to command his land forces, and the officers of artillery and engineers whom he wanted.

General Carleton made another attempt to obtain a truce; he announced the absolute and unqualified acknowledgment of the independence of America, which had passed the two houses of the English parliament, and the prospect of preliminaries of peace being signed immediately. At the same time however, we heard of the arrival at New York, of admiral Pigott, who had succeeded Rodney in the command of the enemy's fleet, and of the preparations which were making to embark troops for the French islands. This last. piece of news determined the speedy march of the French army, in order to effect a junction with that of Washington, and to present our united force before the place. This march was made in the same order and by the same road which we had taken the year before. The junction was effected at King's ferry, on the North river.

General Washington wishing to testify his respect and gratitude to France, made us pass between two lines of his soldiers dressed, equipped and armed completely, for the first time since the revolution, partly with clothes and arms sent from France, and partly from the English magazines taken with the garrison of Cornwallis, which the French army had relinquished to that of the Amercans. He made his drums beat the French march during the whole of this review, and the two armies met each other with marks of the greatest reciprocal satisfaction.

The council in France had directed that if the enemy should evacuate New York and Charleston, or either of those places, General Rochambeau should embark his army for Saint Domingo under the orders of a general officer, to be delivered over to M. de Galves, a Spanish lieutenant-general, who commanded the troops of the two nations, intended for a combined operation. All our information stated the immediate evacuation of Charleston; and the march of the French army from Virginia to the North River rendered it easy to execute the orders of the council. I communicated my instructions to M. de Vaudreuil, and informed him that I was ready to lead the army to Boston, whenever he should be ready to take it on board. M. de Vaudreuil answered, that his squadron could not be prepared before the end

of November, and that he could not transport more than four thousand men, comprising the officers and their suite. I proposed to the baron de Viomenil, and his brother, to take charge of the two brigades of infantry, and a part of the artillery, and conduct them to their destination. I left the corps of Lauzun, with the heavy artillery which was still at Baltimore, and I confided to the Duke de Lauzun, the command of that part of the French troops which remained in America, subject to the orders of General Washington.

At the period of the march of the French troops from Crampond, there happened between me and an American captain of militia, whose habitation I occupied as quarters, an affair, pleasantly characteristic of republican freedom. He came to ask from me, on the evening before the departure of the troops, a sum of fifteen thousand francs, (three thousand dollars) for wood which the brigade of Soissonnois had burnt on his property. I found the demand exorbitant, and referred him to the commissary Villemanzy, who was charged with the settlement of all accounts for articles consumed by the army throughout the camp. At the moment of beginning the march, the next day, when the roll had been beaten, and the troops were under arms, a man approached me with a very complaisant air, and told me that he was not ignorant of the services which I had rendered his country, that he respected me greatly, but that he was obliged to do his duty. He then served me with a paper, and afterwards laid his hand gently on my shoulder, telling me at the same time, that I was his prisoner. Well, sir, said I, laughing, take me away if you can. Not so, your excellency, answered the sheriff; but I beg of you, now that I have performed my duty, to let me go off unmolested. I sent the commissary Villemanzy, to the house of the American captain, and he found him in a crowd of his countrymen, who were all upbraiding him in the sharpest terms, for his proceeding. The commissary agreed with him to submit the matter to arbitration; and the result was, that the captain had to pay the costs, and to content himself with two thousnd, instead of fifteen thousand francs.

The army on its march passed through the whole of Connecticut. Governor Trumbull, and his council, issued a proclamation, requesting their fellow-citizens not to raise the price of provisions during our passage, and the inhabitants seconded his views with so much generosity, that every mess of soldiers obtained at a very low price, in addition to their ordinary rations, all kinds of provisions. The army arrived at Providence, where it was detained by some new accident happening to the squadron of M. de Vaudreuil, and remained in barracks during the rest of November.

I have not mentioned the multitude of addresses from all the towns and general assemblies of the states of America, present

ed to me, containing uniformly, the warmest acknowledgment of their obligations to France. I will cite but one of these addresses. A deputation from the Quakers of Philadelphia, waited on me, in all the simplicity of their costume. "General," said the oldest of them to me, "it is not on account of thy mi"litary qualities that we make thee this visit-those we hold m "little esteem; but thou art the friend of mankind, and thy army "conducts itself with the utmost order and discipline. It is this "which induces us to tender thee our respects."

At length, the army embarked at Boston, early in December, with the universal benedictions of our allies throughout the Thirteen States. I may mention as a proof of the wonderful discipline of this army, that during the course of three campaigns, there was not a blow nor a quarrel between a French and an American soldier.

I was obliged to return with the chevalier de Chatelus, M. de Belleville, M. de Choisy, all the staff and our respective aidesde-camp, to meet the frigate which I had selected to convey us to France. It was in the Chesapeake bay, as I had not chosen to deprive M. de Vaudreuil of any of his vessels, in which he was obliged to crowd all that he could embark of the army.

In returning to Virginia, we passed by New Windsor, where General Washington was. It was there that we took an affectionate farewell, and that I received from the American army, as did all the officers who accompanied me, the sincerest assu rances of perpetual remembrance.