ment of British troops.-With a view to procure the that without insisting upon a previous developement
exchange of that valuable officer, William Barton, of his plans, his proposal was immediately accepted.
then a Major in the Rhode-Island line, in the service-Major Barton experienced more difficulty in obtain-
of the continental Congress, and one of the most dar-
ing and patriotic soldiers of the revolution, projected
the bold and adventurous expedition, which is the
subject of the following narrative.

Some months elapsed, after the capture of General Lee, before an opportunity offered of effecting the object which Major Barton had in view. In the month following that of the capture of General Lee, the enemy took possession of the islands of RhodeIsland, Canonicut, and Prudence. Major Barton was then stationed at Tiverton; and for some months anxiously watched the motions of the enemy, with but feeble prospect of obtaining the opportunity he desired. At length, on the 20th June, 1777, a man of the name of Coffin, who made his escape from the British, was seized by some of the American troops, and carried to Major Barton's quarters. Major Barton availed himself of the opportunity to inquire respecting the disposition of the British forces. Coffin, on examination, stated that General Prescott had established his headquarters on the west side of Rhode-Island, and described minutely the situation of the house in which he resided, which he said was owned by a Mr. Pering, His account was a few days afterwards corroborated by a deserter from the ranks of the enemy.-Major Barton was now confirmed in his belief of the practicability of effecting his favourite object-but serious obstacles were first to be encountered and removed. -Neither his troops nor their commander had been long inured to service; and the intended enterprise was of a nature as novel as it was hazardous. Besides, Major Barton was aware that the undertaking, should it prove unsuccessful, would be pronounced rash and unadvised, and in its consequences, though his life should be preserved, would be followed by degradation and disgrace. Moreover, to involve in the consequences of an enterprise, devised and undertaken without previous consultation with his superiors in rank, the interest and perhaps the lives of a portion of his brave countrymen, was a subject that excited reflections calculated to damp the ardour and appal the courage of the bravest minds. Still, however, upon mature reflection, aided by a consciousness that his only motive was the interest of his country, he resolved to hazard his reputation and life in the at¡tempt.

The regiment to which Major Barton was attached was commanded by Colonel Stanton, a respectable and wealthy farmer in Rhode-Island, who in the spirit of the times, had abandoned the culture of his farm, I and the care of his family, and put at hazard his proIperty and his life, in defence of his country. To this gentleman Major Barton communicated his plan, and solicited permission to carry it into execution. Colonel Stanton readily authorised him "to attack the enemy when and where he pleased." Several officers in the confidence of Major Barton were then selected from the regiment for the intended expedition, on whose abilities and bravery he could rely: these were Captain Samuel Philips, Lieutenant James Porter, Lieutenant Joshua Babcock, Ensign Andrew Stanton, and John Wilcox, (Capt. — Adams subsequently volunteered his services, and took an active part in the enterprise.) These gentlemen were informed by Major Barton that he had in contemplation an enterprise which would be attended with great personal hazard to himself and his associates; but which, if success attended it, would be productive of much advantage to the country. Its particular object, he stated, would be seasonably disclosed to them. It was at their option to accept or decline his invitation to share with bim in the dangers, and, as he trusted, in the glory that would attend the undertaking. The personal bravery of Major Barton had been previously tested; and such was the esteem and confidence which he had acquired amongst the officers under his command,

ing the necessary number of boats, as there were but
two in the vicinity. But this difficulty, though it
caused a few days' delay, was at length obviated, and
five whale-boats were procured and equipped for ser-
vice. Major Barton had purposely postponed procur-
ing the necessary number of men until the last mo-
ment, from an apprehension that their earlier selection
might excite suspicion, and defeat the object of their
enterprise. Desirous that his little band might be
composed entirely of volunteers, the whole regiment
was now ordered upon parade. In a short but ani-
mated address, Major Barton informed the soldiers
that he had projected an expedition against the enemy,
which could be effected only by the heroism and
bravery of those who should attend him; that he de-
sired the voluntary assistance of about forty of their
number, and directed those "who would hazard their
lives in the enterprise to advance two paces in front."
Without one exception or a moment's hesitation the
whole regiment advanced.-Major Barton, after be
stowing upon the troops the applause they merited,
and stating that he required the aid of but a small
portion of their number, commenced upon the right,
and, passing along the lines, selected from the regi
ment to the number of thirty-six, those who united to
bravery and discipline a competent knowledge of sea-
manship for the management of the boats. Having
thus obtained an adequate number of officers and
men, and every thing being ready, the party on the
4th of July, 1777, embarked from Tiverton for Bristol.
While crossing Mount Hope Bay, there arose a severe
storm of thunder and rain, which separated three
boats from that of their commander. The boat con-
taining Major Barton, and one other, arrived at Bristol
soon after midnight. Major Barton proceeded to the
quarters of the commanding officer, where he found
a deserter who had just made his escape from the
enemy at Rhode-Island. From this man he learned
that there had been no alteration for the last few days
in the position of the British. On the morning of the
5th, the remaining boats having arrived, Major Barton
and his officers went to Hog Island, not far distant
from Bristol, and within view of the British encamp-
ment and shipping. It was at this place that he dis-
closed to his officers the particular object of the en-
terprise, his reasons for attempting it, and the part
each was to perform. Upon reconnoitring the posi
tion of the enemy, it was thought impracticable, with-
out great hazard of capture, to proceed directly from
Bristol to the head-quarters of the British general. It
was determined, therefore, to make Warwick Neck, a
place opposite to the British encampment, but at a
greater distance than Bristol, the point from which
they should depart immediately for Rhode-Island.
The most inviolable secrecy was enjoined upon his
officers by Major Barton, and the party returned to
Bristol.

On the evening of the 6th, about nine o'clock the
little squadron again sailed, and, crossing Naraganset
Bay, landed on Warwick Neck. On the 7th, the wind
changing to E. N. E. brought on a storm, and retarded
their plan. On the 9th, the weather being pleasant,
it was determined to embark for the Island. The
boats were now numbered, and the place of every
officer and soldier assigned. At nine o'clock in the
evening Major Barton assembled his party around
him, and in an address, in which were mingled the
feelings of the soldier and the man, he disclosed to
them the object of the enterprise. He did not attempt
to conceal the danger and difficulties that would in-
evitably attend the undertaking: nor did he forget to
remind them, that should their efforts be followed by
success, they would be entitled to, and would receive,
the grateful acknowledgments of their country.—" It
is probable," said he, "that some of us may not sur-
vive the daring attempt; but I ask you to hazard no

1

proceeded in silence. There was a door on the south, the east, and west sides of the house in which he resided. The first division was ordered to advance upon the south door, the second on the west, and the third on the east, the fourth to guard the road, and the fifth to act on emergencies. In their march they passed the guard-house of the enemy, on their left, and on their right a house occupied by a company of cavalry, for the purpose of carrying with expedition the orders of the general to remote parts of the island. On arriving at the head-quarters of the enemy, as the gate of the front yard was opened they were challenged by the sentinel on guard. The party was at the distance of about twenty-five yards from the sentinel, but a row of trees partially concealed them from his view, and prevented him from determining their number. No reply was made to the challenge of the sentinel, and the party proceeded on in silence. The sentinel again demanded, “Who comes there?" "Friends," replied Barton. "Friends," said the sentinel, "advance and give the countersign."

dangers which will not be shared with you by your commander; and I pledge you my honour, that in every difficulty and danger I will take the lead." He received the immediate and unanimous assurance of the whole party, that they would follow, wherever their beloved commander should lead them. Major Barton then reminding them how much the success of the enterprise depended upon their strict attention to orders, directed that each individual should confine himself to his particular seat in the boat assigned him, and that not a syllable should be uttered by any one. He instructed them, as they regarded their character as patriots and soldiers, that in the hour of danger they should be firm, collected, and resolved fearlessly to encounter the dangers and difficulties that might assail them. He concluded by offering his fervent petition to the Great King of Armies, that he would smile upon their intended enterprise, and crown it with success. The whole party now proceeded to the shore. Major Barton had reason to apprehend that he must be discovered in his passage from the main to Rhode-Island, by some of the ships of war Major Barton, affecting to be angry, said to the senthat lay at a small distance from the shore. He there- tinel, who was now near him, "D-you, we have no fore directed the commanding officer of the port at countersign-have you seen any rascals to-night?” Warwick Neck, that if he heard the report of three and before the sentinel could determine the character distinct muskets, to send the boats to the north end of of those who approached him, Major Barton had Prudence Island to his aid. The whole party now seized his musket, told him he was a prisoner, and took possession of the boats in the manner directed. threatened in case of noise or resistance to put him to That which contained Major Barton was posted in instant death. The poor fellow was so terrified, that front, with a pole about ten feet long in her stern, to upon being demanded if his general was in the house, the end of which was attached a handkerchief, in he was, for some time, unable to give any answer. order that his boat might be distinguished from the At length, in a faltering voice, he replied that he was. others, that none might go before it. In this manner By this time each division having taken its station, they proceeded between the islands of Prudence and the south door was burst open by the direction of Patience, in order that they might not be seen by the Major Barton, and the division there stationed, with shipping of the enemy that lay off against Hope Isl- their commander at their head, rushed into the headand.-While passing the north end of Prudence Isl-quarters of the general. At this critical moment, one and, they heard from the sentinels on board the shipping of the enemy the cry of "all's well." As they approached the shore of Rhode Island, a noise like the running of horses was heard, which threw a momentary consternation over the minds of the whole party; but in strict conformity to the orders issued, not a word was spoken by any one. A moment's reflection satisfied Major Barton of the utter impossibility that his designs could be known by the enemy, and he pushed boldly for the shore. Apprehensive that if discovered the enemy might attempt to cut off his retreat, Major Barton ordered one man to remain in each boat and be prepared for departure at a moment's warning. The remainder of the party landed without delay. The reflections of Major Barton at this interesting moment were of a nature the most painful. The lapse of a few hours would place him in a situation in the highest degree gratifying to his ambition, or overwhelm him in the ruin in which his rashness would involve him. In the solemn silence of the night, and on the shores of the enemy, he paused a moment to consider a plan which had been projected and matured amidst the bustle of a camp, and in a place of safety. The night was excessively dark; and a stranger to the country, his sole reliance upon a direct and expeditious movement to the headquarters of the British General, so essential to success, rested upon the imperfect information he had acquired from deserters from the enemy! Should he surprise and secure General Prescott, he was aware of the difficulties that would attend his conveyance to the boat; the probability of an early and fatal discovery of his design by the troops on the island; and even should he succeed in reaching the boats, it was by no means improbable that the alarm might be seasonably given to the shipping, to prevent his retreat to the main. But regardless of circumstances, which even then would have afforded an apology for a hasty retreat, he resolved at all hazards to attempt the accomplishment of his design.

To the head-quarters of General Prescott, about a mile from the shore, the party, in five divisions, now

of the British soldiers effected his escape and fled to the quarters of the main guard. This man had no article of clothing upon him but a shirt, and having given the alarm to the sentinel on duty, passed on to the quarters of the cavalry, which was more remote from the head-quarters of the general. The sentinel roused the main guard, who were instantly in arms and demanded the cause of the alarm. He stated the information which had been given him by the soldier, which appeared so incredible to the serjeant of the guard, that he insisted he had seen a ghost. The sentinel, to whom the account of his general's capture appeared quite as incredible as to his commanding officer, admitted that the messenger clothed in white; and after submitting to the jokes of his com panions as a punishment for his credulity, was ordered to resume his station, while the remainder of the guard retired to their quarters. It was fortunate for Major Barton and his brave followers, that the alarm given by the soldier was considered groundless. Had the main guard proceeded without delay to the relief of their commanding general, his rescue certainly, and probably the destruction of the party, would have been the consequence.

The first room Major Barton entered was occupied by Mr. Pering, who positively denied that General Prescott was in his house. He next entered the room of his son, who was equally obstinate with his father in denying that the General was there. Major Barton then proceeded to other apartments, but was still disappointed in the object of his search. Aware that longer delay might defeat the object of his enterprise, Major Barton resorted to stratagem to facilitate his search. Placing himself at the head of the stair-way, and declaring his resolution to secure the General dead or alive, he ordered his soldiers to set fire to the house. The soldiers were preparing to execute his orders, when a voice which Major Barton at once suspected to be the General's, demanded what's the matter. Major Barton rushed to the apartment from whence the voice proceeded, and discovered an elderly man just rising from his bed, and clapping his

by General Spencer to convey General Prescott and
his aid-de-camp prisoners for Providence. They were
accompanied by Major Barton, who related to Gene- Matthew is of an old yeomanry family, who
ral Spencer, on their arrival, the particulars of the have a pedigree of their own, and are as proud
enterprise, and received from that officer the most of having been for many generations the he-
grateful acknowledgments for the signal services hereditary tenants of the owners of Lanton Park,

Matthew and Andrew Shore are as unlike as two brothers well can be in all but their strong manly affection for each other, and go on together all the better for their dissimilarity of taste and character. Andrew is a bluff frank merry Benedict, blest in a comely bustling wife, and five rosy children; somewhat too loud and boisterous in his welcomings, which come upon one like a storm, but delightful in his old-fashioned hospitality and his hearty good-humour; for the rest, a good master, a steady friend, a jovial neighbour, and the best farmer and most sagacious dealer to be found in the country side. He must be a knowing hand who takes in Andrew Shore. He is a bold rider too, when the fox-hounds happen to come irresistibly near; and is famous for his breed of cocking spaniels, and for constantly winning the yeomanry cup at the B. coursing meeting. Such is our good neighbour Farmer Shore.

Matthew is one of the very few deaf people worth talking to. He is what is becoming scarcer every day, a florist of the first order, and of the old school, not exactly of Mr. Evelyn's time,* for in the gardening of that period, although greens were, flowers were not, but of thirty or forty years back, the reign of pinks, tulips, auriculas, and ranunculuses, when the time and skill of the gardener were devoted to produce, in the highest imaginable perfection, a variety of two or three favoured tribes. The whole of this large garden, for the potatoes and cabbages have been forced to retreat to a nook in the orchard, dug up in their behoof;-the whole ample garden is laid out in long beds, like those in a nursery ground, filled with these precious flowers, of the rarest sorts and in the highest culture; and as I have arrived in the midst of the hyacinth, auricula, and anemone season, with the tulips just opening, I His wife is not a little like her husband; may consider myself in great luck to see what a laughing, bustling, good-humoured woman, is called in gardening language, “so grand a famous for the rearing of turkeys and fatten- show." It is worth something too, to see ing of calves, ruling the servants and children Matthew's delight, half compounded of vanity within doors, with as absolute a discretion as and kindness, as he shows them, mixed with that with which he sways the out-door sceptre, courteous cffers of seedlings and offsets, and and complaining occasionally of the power biographical notices of the more curious flowshe likes so well, and which, with an ingrati-ers; "How the stock of this plant came from tude not uncommon in such cases, she is pleased to call trouble. In spite of these complaints, however, she is one of the happiest women in the parish, being amongst the very few who are neither troubled by poverty or finery-the twin pests of the age and country. Her expenses are those of her grandmother's days; she has fourteen-shilling hyson, and double-refined sugar for any friend who may drop in to tea, and a handsome silk gown to wear to Church on Sundays. An annual jaunt to Ascot is all her dissipation, and a taxed cart her sole equipage. Well may Mrs. Shore be a happy woman.

The only spot about the place sacred from her authority, is that which I am come to visit, the garden; my friend Matthew's territory, in which he spends all his days, and half his nights, and which, in spite of his strong fraternal affection, he certainly loves better than brother or sister, nephew or niece, friend or comrade; better in short than he loves any thing else under the sun.

Matthew is an old bachelor of fifty-five, or thereaway, with a quick eye, a ruddy cheek, a delightful benevolence of countenance, a soft voice and a gentle manner. He is just what he seems, the kindest, the most generous, and the best-natured creature under the sun, the universal friend and refuge of servants, children, paupers, and delinquents of all descriptions, who fly to him for assistance and protection in every emergency, and would certainly stun him with their clamorous importunity, if he were not already as deaf as a post.

that noted florist, Tom Bonham, the B. taylor, commonly called tippling Tom, who once refused fifty guineas for three auriculas! and how this tulip was filched" (Matthew tells this in a particularly low and confidential tone)" from a worthy merchant of Rotterdam, by an honest skipper of his acquaintance, who abstracted the root, but left five pounds in the place of it, and afterwards made over the bargain for a couple of pounds more, just to pay him for the grievous bodily fear which he had undergone between the time of this adventure, for there was no telling how the Burgomaster might relish the bargain, and his embarkation in the good schooner, the Race-horse of Liverpool."

Perhaps the tulips, especially this pet root, are on the whole Matthew's favourites; but he is a great man at pink shows and melon feasts; and his carnations, particularly those of a sort called "the Mount Etna," which seldom comes to good in other hands, as regularly win the plate as Andrew's greyhounds. It is quite edifying to hear him run over the bead-roll of pink names, from Cleopatra to the Glory of New York. The last-mentioned flowers are precisely my object to-day; for I am come to beg some of his old plants, to the great endangerment of my character as a woman of taste, I having, sooth to say, no judgment in pinks, except preferring those which are full of bloom, in which quality these old roots, which he was about to fling

* See note at the end of the sketch for a most curious account of the gardens round London in 1691.

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