to prevent and punish treafon and traitors, martial law fhould take place, and be executed throughout the colony; and requiring all perfons capable of bearing arms to repair to his Majefty's ftandard, or to be confidered as traitors. He alfo declared all indented fervants, negroes, and others, appertaining to rebels, who were able and willing to bear arms, and who joined his Majefty's forces, to be free.

This meafure of emancipating the negroes, excited lefs furprife, and probably had lefs effect in exciting the defired infurrection, from its being fo long threatened and apprehended, than if it had been more immediate and unexpected. It was, however, received with the greatest horror in all the colonies, and has been feverely condemned elsewhere, as tending to loofen the bands of fociety, to deftroy domeftic fecurity, and encourage the moft barbarous of mankind, to the commiffion of the moft horrible crimes, and the most inhuman cruelties; that it was confounding the innocent with the guilty, and expofing those who were the beft friends to government, to the fame lofs of property, danger, and deftruction, with the most incorrigible rebels. It was faid to establish a precedent of a most dangerous nature in the new world, by giving a legal fanction to the arraying and embodying of African negroes, to appear in arms against white men, and to encounter them upon an equal footing in the field: for however founded diftinctions with refpect to colour may appear, when examined by the tests of nature, reason, or philofophy, while things continue in their prefent ftate, while commerce, luxury, and ava

rice, render flavery a principal object in the political fyftem of every Eoropean power that poffeffes dominion in America, the idea of a pre-eminence mult always be cherished, and confidered as a neceffary policy. This meafure is perhaps liable to be charged with another political fault, which has attended too many others that have been lately adopted with refpect to America, viz. that of violent irritation, without affording any adequate benefit.

The proclamation, however, with Lord Dunmore's prefence, and the encouragement of the fmall marine force he had with him, produced, for the prefent, fome effect in the town of Norfolk, and the adjoining country, where many of the people were well affected to go vernment. He was accordingly joined by fome hundreds both of blacks and whites, and many others, who did not chufe to take an active part, publicly abjured the Congrefs, with all its acts, and all conventions and committees, whatever. It is probable that Lord Dunmore now hoped, that the facility and good difpofition which he experienced here, would have been fo general, as to enable him to raife a confiderable armed force, and thus, perhaps, without any foreign affi tance, to have the glory of reducing one part of the province by the means of the other.

This pleafing hope was interrupted by intelligence, that a party of the rebels were marching towards them with great expedition. To obftruct their defigns, and protect the well-affected, he took poffeffion of a poft called the GreatBridge, which lay at fome miles distance from Norfolk, and was a

pals

pafs of great confequence, being the only way by which they could approach to that town. Here he conftructed a fort on the Norfolk fide of the bridge, which he furnifhed well with artillery, and rendered as defenfible as the time would admit. Notwithstanding the loyalty of the people in this quarter, which included two fmall counties, it does not appear that his force was at all confiderable, either as to number or quality; he had indeed about 200 regulars, including the grenadiers of the 14th regiment, and a body called the Norfolk volunteers; the reft were a motley mixture of blacks and whites. The enemy, under the command of a Colonel Woodford, fortified themselves alfo, within lefs than cannon fhot of our people; they had a narrow caufeway in their front, which must be paffed to come at their works, fo that both parties feemed pretty well fecured from furprize.

In this state they continued quiet on both fides for fome days, until at length a defign was formed, of furprizing the rebels in their enDec. 9th. trenchments. This was undertaken before daylight. Capt. Fordyce, at the head of his grenadiers, amounting to about fixty, led the attack. They boldly paffed the caufeway, and marched up to the entrenchments with fixed bayonets, and with a Coolness and intrepidity, which firft excited the astonishment, and afterwards the praife of their enemies; for they were not only expofed naked to the fire in front, but enfiladed by another part of the works. The brave Captain, with feveral of his men, fell; the Lieutenant, with others, were taken,

and all the furvivors of the grenadier company, whether prifoners or not, were wounded.

The fire of the artillery from the fort, enabled our people to retire without purfuit, as well as to carry off many of their dead and wounded. It will excite no great furprize, that the flaves in this engagement, did more prejudice to our own people, than to the enemy. It has been faid, that we were led into this unfortunate affair, through the defigned falfe intelligence of a pretended deferter, who was tutored for the purpose: however that may be, it was grievous, that fuch uncommon bravery thould be fquandered to no purpose. Capt. Fordyce was interred with every military honour by the victors, who fhewed due refpect to his former merit, as well as to the gallantry which fignalized his laft moments. The English prisoners were treated with great kindness; the Americans who had joined the king's ftandard, with equal rigour.

The King's forces retired from the poft at the Great-Bridge the enfuing night, without any other lofs than a few pieces of cannon, and fome trifling flores which they left behind; and as all hopes in this quarter were now at an end, Lord Dunmore thought it neceffary to abandon the town and neighbourhood of Norfolk, and retired again with his people on board the fhips, which were confiderably increafed in number, by thofe which they found in that port. Many of the well-affected, (or Tories, which was the appellation now given to them throughout America) thought it prudent, with their families, to feek the fame afylum, whither they alfo carried

the

the most portable and valuable of their effects. Thus his Lordfhip formed a confiderable fleet, with refpect to the number of veffels and tonnage, and thefe were alfo crouded with people; but the fhips were without force, and contained mouths without hands fit to navigate them. The rebels took poffeffion of Norfolk, and the fleet moved to a greater diftance.

During thefe tranfactions a fcheme had been in agitation, for raifing a confiderable force at the back of the colonies, particularly in Virginia and the Carolinas, where it was known there were many well affected to the King's government; it was hoped that fome of the Indian nations might be induced to become parties in this defign; and that thus united, they not only would make fuch a diverfion, as muft greatly alarm and diftrefs the rebels, but that they might penetrate fo far towards the coafts, as to form a junction with Lord Dunmore. One Connelly, a native of Pennfylvania, an active enterprizing man, who feems to have been well calculated for fuch an undertaking, was the framer of this defign; and his project being approved by Lord Dunmore, he with great difficulty and danger carried on a negoci ation with the Ohio Indians, and his friends among the back fettlers, upon the fubject. This having fucceeded to his fatisfaction, he returned to Lord Dunmore, who fent him with the neceffary credentials to Boston, where he received a commiffion from General Gage, to act as colonel commandant, with affurances of fupport and affiftance, at the time and in the manner appointed. It was in

tended, that the garrifons which we had at Detroit, and fome other of the remote back forts, with their artillery and ammunition, fhould be fubfervient to this defign, and the adventurer expected to draw some assistance, at least, of volunteers and officers, from the nearest parts of Canada. He was to grant all commiffions to the officers, and to have the fupreme direction in every thing of the new forces, and as foon as they were in fufficient condition, he was to penetrate through Virginia in fuch a manner, as to meet Lord Dunmore, at a given time in the month of April, in the vicinity of Alexandria, upon the river Potowmac, who was to bring fuch a naval force, and other affiftance, as was deemed neceffary for the purpose. It was also a part, and not the least comprehenfive, of this plan, to cut off the communication between the northern and fouthern colonies.

Thus far, affairs feemed to look well with our adventurer; but on his road through Maryland to the scene of action, and when he was fo far advanced that the worst feemed nearly over, the vigilance, or fufpicious temper of one of the committees unfortunately fruftrated all his hopes. Being taken up on fufpicion, with two of his affociates who travelled along with him, his papers betrayed every thing; among thefe was the general fcheme of the defign, a letter from Lord Dunmore to one of the Indian chiefs, with fuch other authentic vouchers, as left nothing to be doubted. The papers were publifhed by the Congrefs, and the undertakers fent to prifon. As it does not appear that the loyalifts

loyalists were very lenient to thofe who differed with them in political opinions, during the fhort time their fuperiority in the country adjoining to Norfolk, fo now, upon the turn of affairs, the obtaining a plausible fhew of justice, under the colour of retaliation, afforded fuch a favourable opportunity for the practice of feverity, and the gratification of private pique, and natural malignity, on the other fide, as is never known to be neglected by any party in fimilar circumstances. For though many had taken fhelter on board the ships, a much greater number remained behind; fome being willing to hazard fome danger, rather than abandon their property; others hoping that their conduct, from its moderation, would bear enquiry; and the majority, from their having no profpect of fubfift ence if they quitted home, and an expectation that their obfcurity would fave them from notice. To conclude, fuch charges of oppreffion, injuftice, and cruelty, were made on both fides, as are ufually done in fuch cafes.

In the mean time, the people in the fleet were diftreffed for provifions and neceffaries of every fort, and were cut off from every kind of fuccour from the shore. This occafioned conftant bickering between the armed fhips and boats, and the forces that were ftationed on the coaft, particularly at Norfolk. At length, upon the arrival of the Liverpool man of war from England, a flag was fent on fhore, to put the queftion, whether they would fupply his majefty's fhips with provifions? which being anfwered in the negative, and the fhips in the harbour being con

tinually annoyed by the fire of the tebels, from that part of the town which lay next the water, it was determined to dislodge them by deftroying it. Previous notice being accordingly given to the inhabitants, that they might remove from the danger, the firft day of the new year was fignalized by the attack, when a violent cannonade, from the Liverpool frigate, two loops of war, and the Governor's armed fhip the Dunmore, feconded by parties of the failors and marines, who landed and fet fire to the nearest houses, foon produced the defired effect, and the whole town was reduced to afhes.

It appears from a gazette publifhed in the Governor's fhip, (who had removed the printing prefs and materials thither from Norfolk) that it was only intended to deftroy that part of the town which was next the water; but that the rebels compleated the deftruction, by fetting fire to the back and remote ftreets, which, as the wind was in their favour, would have otherwife been fafe from the fury of the flames. It is not, however, eafy to prefcribe limits to the progrefs of a fire in fuch, or indeed in any circumftances. A few of thofe who landed, as well as of the rebels, were killed and wounded.

Such was the fate of the unfor

tunate town of Norfolk, the most confiderable for commerce in the colony, and fo growing and flourifhing before thefe unhappy troubles, that in the two years from 1773 to 1775, the rents of the houfes increafed from 8000 to 10.000 pounds a year. The whole lofs is eftimated at above 30,000l. However jaft the cause, or urgent the neceflity, which induced this

meafure,

measure, it was was undoubtedly a grievous and odious task to a governor, to be himself a principal actor, in burning and deftroying the best town in his government. The rebels, after this tranfaction, to cut off every refource from the fhips, and partly perhaps to punith the well-affected, burnt and deftroyed the houtes and plantations within reach of the water, and obliged the people to remove, with their cattle, provifions, and portable effects, farther into the

country.

Nor was the fituation of other governors in America, much more eligible than that of Lord Dunmore. In South Carolina, Lord William Campbell, having, as they faid, entered into a negociation with the Indians, for coming in to the fupport of government in that province, and having alfo fucceeded in exciting a number of those back fettlers, whom we have heretofore feen diftinguished in the Carolinas, under the title of Regulators, to efpoufe the fame caufe, the difcovery of these measures, before they were fufficiently ripe for execution, occafioned fuch a ferment among the people, that he thought it neceffary to retire from CharlesTown on board a fhip of war in the river, from whence he returned no more to the feat of his government. In the mean time a Mr. Drayton, who was judge of the fuperior court, and one of the most leading men in the colony, marched with a ftrong armed force to the back fettlements, where a treaty was concluded between him and the leaders of the Regulators, in which the differences between them were attributed to misinformation, a mifunderstanding of each others

views and defigns, and a tender nefs of confcience on the fide of the latter, which prevented their figning the affociations, or puríuing any meatures against government; but as they now engaged, neither by word nor act to impede or contravene fuch proceedings as fhould be adopted and purfued by the province in general, nor to give any information, aid, or affiftance, to fuch British troops as fhould at any time arrive in it, fo they were to be entirely free in their conduct otherwife, to enjoy a fafe neutrality, and to fuffer no moleftation, for their not taking an active part in the present troubles.

The government of the province was lodged in a council of fafety confifting of 13 perfons, with the occafional affiftance of a committee of ninety-nine. As they had intelligence that an armament was preparing in England, which was particularly intended against it, no means were left antried for its defence, in difciplining the forces, procuring arms and gunpowder, and particularly in fortifying and fecuring Charles-Town.

Similar measures were purfued in North-Carolina, (with the difference that Governor Martin was more active and vigorous in his proceedings) but attended with as little fuccefs. The Provincial Congrefs, Committees, and Governor, were in a continued state of the moft violent warfare. Upon a number of charges, particularly of fomenting a civil war, and exciting an infurrection among the negroes, he was declared an enemy to America in general, and to that colony in particular, and all perions forbidden from holding any

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