liO NATURAL AND CIVIL 



measures of the enemy had been foreseen, or 

 properly guarded against ; every part of St. 

 Clair's plans proved abortive, and he had not 

 the genius which finds relief in instantaneous 

 resource, decisive counsel, or animating action ; 

 and the retreat, both by water and by land, 

 proved ruinous to the Americans, and contrary 

 to the expectations of the general. It ought 

 however to be allowed that his own observation 

 on the matter was just ; it was better to save 

 the army and loose his own character, than it 

 would have been to have saved his charac^ter 

 and lost the army. The misfortune was, that 

 in ihe manner in which the business was con- 

 ducted, both the army and the general's charac- 

 ter, if they were not lost, did at least suffer se- 

 verely, and were greatly impaired and injured. 

 When St. Clair had joined Schuyler at fort 

 Edward, and for three days after, their whole 

 ■force did not exceed four thousand and four 

 hundred men. In this state of their affairs, the 

 business of the American generals was to con- 

 trive to retard the march of the British army as 

 much as possible ; in order to gain time to col- 

 lect their troops, and recover their affairs. For 

 this purpose, the day after the action at fort 

 Anne, Sclmyler ordered a brigade of militia to 

 destroy the roads ; to begin the work as near as 

 possible to the place where the fort stood, to fall 

 the trees, take up the bridges, burn the timber 

 and materials, and throw all the obstruction in 

 the roads that was possible. On July the six- 

 teenth, a brigade of continental troops was also 

 ordered on the same business ; and they labor- 

 ed with much industry and good success ia 



