GENERAL HISTORY. 



[183 



with the loss of about 260 in killed, 

 wounded, and missing. 



On June 3rd, the British gun- 

 boats on lake Ontario, supported 

 by detachments from the garrison 

 of Isle au Noix, made prize of 

 two American armed vessels, of 1 1 

 guns and 50 men each. An action 

 greatly to the credit of the British 

 troops occurred on June 6th, at 

 Burlington Heights near the head 

 of the same lake, where colonel 

 Vincent was posted with a division 

 of troops. Receiving information 

 that the Americans had advanced 

 from Forty-mile Creek with 3,500 

 infantry and 250 cavalry, and 8 or 

 9 field pieces, for the purpose of 

 attacking him, he sent lieut -col. 

 Harvey with two light companies 

 to reconnoitre, and from his re- 

 port was led to determine upon a 

 nocturnal attack of the enemy's 

 camp, about seven miles distant. 

 A force not exceeding 704 fire- 

 locks was destined to this enter- 

 prize, which terminated in a com- 

 plete surprize of the enemy, who 

 were driven from their camp, with 

 the loss of three guns and a brass 

 howitzer, and two brigadier-ge- 

 nerals with more than 100 officers 

 and privates made prisoners. The 

 British afterwards marched back 

 to their cantonments, and the Ame- 

 ricans, still greatly superior in num- 

 bers, after re-occupying their camp 

 in order to destroy their incum- 

 brances, commenced a precipitate 

 retreat to the place whence they 

 came. 



The appearance of the squadron 

 of sir J. Yeo ofl' Forty-mile Creek 

 determined the Americans to a fur- 

 ther retreat, in which almost the 

 whole of tlieir camp equipage, 

 and a quantity of stores and pro- 

 visions, fell into the hands of their 



adversaries. General Dearborn then 

 concentrated his forces at Fort 

 George ; and colonel Vincent, in 

 consequence, made a forward move- 

 ment from the head of the lake in 

 order to support the light infantry 

 and Indians who were employed 

 in cutting off the supplies of the 

 Americans. On June 24ith, an 

 occurrence took place which gen. 

 Dearborn in his dispatch terms 

 *' unfortunate and unaccountable." 

 He had detached, on the evening 

 of the 23rd, lieut.-col. Bcestler, 

 with 570 men, to march by the 

 way of Queens-town to the Beaver 

 Dams, eight or nine miles thence, 

 in order to disperse a body of 

 British collected there for the pur- 

 pose of procuring provisions. This 

 detachment was attacked by the 

 Indians from an ambuscade in the 

 woods, and retired to clear ground, 

 whence the commander sent ex- 

 press for a reinforcement. In the 

 meantime lieut. Fitzgibbon arriv- 

 ing with a British force, the Ame- 

 rican leader seems to have lost his 

 presence of mind, and without 

 waiting for succours, agreed to a 

 capitulation, by which two field- 

 officers, 21 other officers, 27 non- 

 commissioned officers, and 482 pri- 

 vates, were surrendered prisoners 

 of war, with their colours and two 

 field-pieces. 



About this time, admiral sir 

 J. B. Warren lying in the Chesa- 

 peake, on the intelligence that the 

 enemy were fortifying Craney 

 island, the possession of which was 

 necessary to enable the light ves- 

 sels to proceed up the narrow 

 channel towards Norfolk, directed 

 a landing of the troops under sir 

 Sidney Beckwith, on the nearest 

 point to that place ; but upon ap- 

 proaching the island, the shoalncss 



