“HISTORY OF EUROPE. 
marched to the frontiers, though 
for the most part without tents, did 
not arrive at the place of general 
rendezvous, Tulezyn, till the Rus- 
s’ans had passed Ostrog,inVolhinia, 
and Vilna, in Lirhuania. When 
rince Joseph Poniatowski, wholeft 
Warsaw onthe twenty-sixth of May 
1792, arrived at Tulczyn, his mus- 
ter fe!! shortof 20,000 men. The 
troops by which he was joined were 
to be assembled from a distance of 
fifty German, that is, two hundred 
English miles. The length of the 
frontier, the defence of which was 
entrusted to the prince, extended 
from Mohilow, in Podolia, as far as 
Lojow, a distance cf one hundred 
German miles: for the prote¢tion of 
which he had the command of no 
more than about 24,000 men, at a 
time when the Russians were march- 
ing against him in three bodies, 
each of which was equal to the 
whole of his force. 
The first meeting of the Poles 
and the Russians took place on the 
twenty-fourth of May, Alarge party 
of the Cossacs advanced into the 
open field, to reconnoitre the dispo- 
sition of the Polishforces. Desirous , 
ofsignalizing the commencement of 
hostilities by some aétion that might 
impress the Russians with a better 
opinion of Polish prowess than they 
seemed to entertain, the Poles 
marched boldly out of their en. 
campment, and attacked them with 
such unexpected vigour, that they 
were put to flight, and pursued to 
their own camp. Encouraged by 
this auspicious beginning the Poles, 
two days after, attacked a larger 
body of Cossacs, which they also 
defeated; but in theardour of their 
pursuit, they were suddenly arrested 
by a strong body of the enemy, am- 
buscaded in a wood, from which 
fit 
they issued out upon the Poles, and 
surrounded ‘them, In this extre. 
mity, they had no other resource 
than the most desperate exertions of 
valour. Drawing up in the com. 
pactest order, they forced their way 
through the Russians, who were 
near five to one, and revained theig 
quarters, after making a consider. 
able slaughter of the enemy with a 
much smaller loss on their ownside, 
These two actions did great honour 
tothe Poles; it was their firstessay 
in the field, and did not fail to con. 
vince their enemies, that they had 
to deal with men, whom only their 
own superiority in number, and in 
other advantages, would enable 
them to overcome. 
The intelligence brought to War. 
saw of these two brilliant ations 
filled the public with exultation, 
They were of no other importance 
than as they proved the innate bra. 
very of the Poles, and that with the 
aid of some experience and timely 
succours, they might prove a match 
for the Russians. But this alone 
was important in the critical situa. 
tionof their affairs, and encouraged 
all men to come forward with their 
warmest efforts to serve the public. 
The king in particular seized thig 
opportunity of addressing himself to 
the nation, and of reminding it of 
the many glorious aétions perform. 
ed by the Poles in former days, espe. 
cially in Russia itself. He exhort. 
ed it fo unite firmly inevery possible 
endeavour for the common cause, 
and to look on the present period as 
decisive of their future happiness or 
misery. If they could now stand 
their ground, their liberty would be 
secured for ages ; ifonthe contrary, 
through their own remissness, or the 
superior exertions of the foe, Poland 
were compelled to submit to the 
enslavement 
