Preface to Third Edition 15 



Though the assailants, who lost 220 of their small 

 number, suffered much more than the Americans, 

 yet the latter were completely demoralized, and at 

 once retreated to Fort George. Soon afterward. 

 Col. Boerstler with about 600 men surrendered with 

 shamefully brief resistance to a somewhat smaller 

 force of British and Indians. Then about 300 Brit 

 ish crossed the Niagara to attack Black Rrck, which 

 they took, but were afterward driven off by a large 

 body of militia with the loss of 40 men. Later in 

 the season the American General McClure wantonly 

 burned the village of Newark, and then retreated 

 in panic flight across the Niagara. In retaliation 

 the British in turn crossed the river; 600 regulars 

 surprised and captured in the night Fort Niagara, 

 with its garrison of 400 men ; two thousand troop 

 ers attacked Black Rock, and, after losing over a 

 hundred men in a smart engagement with somewhat 

 over 1,500 militia whom they easily dispersed, cap 

 tured and burned both it and Buffalo. Before these 

 last events took place another invasion of Canada 

 had been attempted, this time under General Wil 

 kinson, "an unprincipled imbecile," as Scott very 

 properly styled him. It was mismanaged in every 

 possible way, and was a total failure; it was attend 

 ed with but one battle, that of Chrystler's Farm, in 

 which T,OOO British, with the loss of less than 200 

 men, beat back double their number of Americans, 

 who lost nearly 500 men and also one piece of artil 

 lery. The American army near Lake Champlain 

 had done nothing, its commander, General Wade 



