1777.] HISTORY OF DKLAWARE COUNTY. 807 



received. Even lifjlit horsemen, specially sent to reconnoitre, 

 had failed to get sight of the enemy, and, by their re|)ort, suc- 

 ceedeil in deeeiviiig their General to such an extent that he was 

 lunvilliiig to credit correct intelligence when it arrived. This 

 intelligence was brought about 2 o'clock by Mr. Thos. Cheyney, 

 a Justice of the Peace of the neighborhood. Being unae(|uainted 

 with the scjuire, Washington, at first, discredited his story, and 

 it was not until the excellent ciiaracter of Esq. Cheyney, and his 

 devotion to the American cause, had l)een made known to the 

 General, that he yielded a reluctant belief in the important in- 

 telligence he comniunieated.' 



Tlie division of the British army under Cornwallis had taken 

 a very long and circuitous route, crossing the Brandywine con- 

 siderably above its forks — the west branch at 'rrinible's For<l, 

 and the east branch at Jefferis' Ford. As soon as Washington 

 became convinced that a large division of the enemy had crossed 

 the Brandywine above, he immediately made a change in the 

 disposition of his force.- The divisions commanded by Generals 

 Sullivan, Stirling and Stephens, advanced farther up the Bran- 

 dywine, and fronted the I3ritisli columns marching down that 

 stream. The division commanded by Gen. Wayne remained at 

 Chadds' Ford, to keep Knyphausen in check, in which service 

 Maxwell was to co-operate. Greene's division, accompanied by 

 Gen. Washington in person, formed a reserve, and took a cen- 

 tral position between the right and left wings. 



The divisions detached against Lord Cornwallis formed on an 

 advantageous piece of ground above Birmingham Friends' Meet- 

 ing-house, chietiy within what is now the lawn surrounding the 

 dwelling of Mrs. Pepper; both flanks being covered with a thick 

 wood. Stirling's detachment advanced to within a short distance 

 of the meeting-house, where he awaited the approach of the 

 enemy. After waiting for some time, the near approach of the 

 British was announced, when Stirling endeavored to secure the 

 highest ground in the immediate vicinity of the meeting-house, 

 but when he reached that point the British had so nearly 

 gained it, that he could not have formed before they would 

 have been upon him. In this dilemma he threw a small force 

 into the graveyard, which was enclosed with a stone wall, for 

 the purpose of giving the enemy employment until he could form 



1 The earnest manner of the .Squire probably had ita influence in convincing the 

 General. In reply to his doublings, it is said the Squire exclaimed, "take my life, 

 General, if I deceive you." It is also said that the General required him to alight from 

 his horse and make a draft of the roads. Hist. Chester Co. by .1. J. Leiris, Esi/. 



* Gen. Sullivan, who commanded the right of the American army, has been much 

 censured for failing to obtain correct knowledge of the diversion of a part of the Brit- 

 ish forces at the Battle of Brandywine. that resulted in our defeat. The charges made 

 against that officer, and his defence, will be found in the Bulletin of the Hist. Society 

 of Penna. vol. i. No. 8. 



