The reflector. (Milledgeville, Ga.) 1817-1819, January 27, 1818, Image 1

Georgia Historic Newspapers

The reflector., January 27, 1818, Image 1

About The reflector. (Milledgeville, Ga.) 1817-1819 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 27, 1818)

Page of 4

Prev Issue Next Issue

Text PDF JP2 (2.1 MB) Clip/Print Image

Page of 4

Prev Issue Next Issue

Return to Top

Newspaper Page TextTHE REFLECTOR. MILL ■H* rv iv VILLE, G. ’fUESBAY* JANUARY 37, 1818. ■ ■ -i’ . ::=ga±M)|b; N 1 '*. 12. NARRATIVE. IHO» WlUaXubs', MIM0IH9. ( shall conclude this chapter, says Gen. Wilkinson, with the following extract from u narrative published in the German language at Berlin, in 1800. It is from tlio pm of tin amiable, the accomplished and dignified Ba roness Reidesel, whose charming blue eyes I have more than once seen bedewed with tears at the recital of her sufferings. This lady, with two infant children, necompaniee Ik-c husband Major-General tlie Baron Reid esel from Germany to England, from Eng land to Canada, and from the last place to the termination of General Burgoyne’s cam- I iaign, in which she suftfewd more than the lorrors of the grave In their most frightful aspect; an imperfect translation does not render justice to the style of Madame ltcide- sel, but the artless-interesting tale ftirnishcs strong proof of its authenticity. I trust 1 shall be pardoned for presenting it to my fair readers, and while it serves to explain and wind up some of the distressing scenes which Were passing in the enemy’s camp, at and af- ter the actions I have been describing, it fur nishes a glimpse bf the horrors of war. 1 trust it may w arn my charming country wo men against the miseries to which the high ly accomplished authoress, and her interest ing friend and fellow sulfefer, lady Harriet Acklaod, were aft imminently exposed.— Would to heaven lt.migftt produce another effect, which I consider vitally essential to the permanent tranquility of these states: were my honored countrywomen to consult patriot duty and personal happiness, they would avert their eyes from, and shut their caN to “The neighing steed and the loud trump, The spirit stirring drum, and the shrill fife, The roy&l banner, and all quality, ^Prole, pomp, and circumstance of glorious war,” And then no more would exterior trappings and a flippant.air seduce the heart from the contemplation of the social virtues, of im proved understanding and refined sensibility a-robbed of their praise and their patronage, the overwhelming thirst for military glorj Would be allayed, and excellence in the mor ■olid and useful pursuits of civil life wool excite the rivalry of the rising generation and the great cause of morality and religion would be promoted to support the constitu tioa of our country ; and to the honor of the American fair it might be said, that they tamed m ————— the spirit of wild war, That like a lion fostered up at hand, It may lie gently at the foot of peace.** tfltOM TflF. DAWftONESS REIDf.SEL*S If AIIII \TIT?J. « As we had to march still further, I or dered a large calash to be built capablo of holding my three children, myself, and two female servants; in this manner we moved with the army in the midst of the soldiery, who were very merry, singing songs and panting for artion. We had to travel thro’ almost impassible woods and a most pictu resque and beautiful country, which was a- baiidoned by its inhabitants who had repair ed to the standard of General Gates ; they added much to his strength, as they were all good marksmen, and fitted by habit for the species of warfare the contending parties Were then engaged in—.and the love of their country inspired them with more than ordi nary courage. The army had shortly to en camp : 1 generally remained about an hour’s march in the rear, wlicro I received daily visits from my husband ; the army was fre quently engaged in small affairs, but nothing of importance took place; and as the sea son was getting cold, Major Williams the artillery proposed to have a house built for me with a chimney, observing that it would not cost more than five or six guineas find that tho frequent change of quarters was very inconvenient to me: it was accordingly built, and was called the block house, from its square fornj, and the resemblance it bore to those buildings. Onthe 19th of September, an affair hap pened, which, although it turned out to om advantage, yet obliged us to halt at a place called Freeman’s farm ; l was an eye witness ' i the whole affair, and as my husband was engaged in it, 1 was full of anxiety, and trembled at every shot I heard ; 1 saw a rcat number of the wounded, and what added to the distress of the scene, three of them were brought into the house in which j took shelter ; one ws;s a Major Harnage of the 69(1 British regiment, the husband of a ady ofroy acquaintance, another was alieul. arriedto a lady with whom I had the Im- or to be on terms of intimacy, and the bird was an officer of the name of Young. “ In a short time afterwards I heard groans roceeding from a room near mine, and new they must have been occasioned by the offerings of the last mentioned ollii or, who }f writliingin his wounds. “ His iihmrpful situation Interested in eh, and tho more so, because the recol Bon of Qiafiy polite attentions; received from a family of that na no during my visit England, was still forcibly impressed on my mind. 1 sent to him and begged him to accept my best services, and afterwards fur nished him with tuna and refreshments ; tie xpressed great desire* to sre me, jmlttcly ailing me lqs heneftktress. 1 accordingly isiled him, and found him lying on a tittle straw, us he had h/st his equipage. He' .mis a young man 18 or 19 years of age, and really the beloved ttophew of the Mr. Young, ilie head of thedamtfy I have* vt ramrmod, ad the only »»"< of lus pamit*. tins lust •ircumstanee was what lie lamented most, as to his pain he thought lightly of it. lie had lost much blood, and it was thought pe ssary to amputate the leg, but this lie would not consent to, and of course a mortification took place. I bent him cushions aqd cover ings, and my female friends sent him a mat- ress. I redoubled my attention to him, and isited him every day, for which 1 received a thousand wishes for my happiness. At last Ids limb was amputated, but it was too late, aid he died the following day. As lie lay in the next room to me, and tho partition was very thin, I distinctly heard his last sigh, when his immortal part quitted its frail tene ment, and 1 trust, winged its way to the mansions of. eternal bliss. “ But severer trials awaited us, and on the 7th October our misfortunes began ; 1 was at breakfast with my husband, and heard that something was intended. On the same day l exported Generals Burgoyne, Phillips and Fraser te dine with us. 1 saw a great move ment among the troops; my husband tolii me it was merely a reconuoisanrc, which avc me no concern, as it often happened. 1 walked out of the house and met several Indians in their war dresses, with guns in their hands. When l asked them where they were going, they cried out War! War ! (meaning that they were going to battle.) This filled me witfi apprehensions, and I had scarcely got home before l heard reports of minion and musketry, which grew louder by degrees, till at last the noise became exces sive. About 4 o’clock in the afternoon, in stead of the guests whom l expected, Gene ral Fraser was brought on a litter mortally wounded. The table, which was already set, was instantly removed, and a bed placed in its stead for the wounded general 1 sat trembling in a corner ; the noise grew louder, and tlm alarm increased ; the thought uiat my husband might perhaps he brought in, wounded in the same manner, was terri hie to me, and distressed me exceedingly General Fraser said to the surgeon, “ tell me if jny wound is mortal, do not Hatter me. The ball had passed through Ids body, and unhappily for the General, he had eaten very hearty breakfast, by which the stomach was distended, and tho ball as the surgeon said, had passed through it. I heard him often exclaim with a sigh, “ Oh fatal ambi tion ! Poor General Burgoyne ! Oil my poor wife !” lie u as asked if lie had any request to make, to which lie replied, that « If gen eral Burgoyne would permit it, lie should like to be buried at 6 o’clock in the evening, m tne top of a mountain, in a redoubt which had been built there.” I did not know which way to turn, all the rooms were full of sick. Towards evening I saw my hits- band coming, ilien I forgot all my sorrows, and thanked God that lie was spared to me. tie ate in great haste with me, and his aid- .lc-camp behind the house. We had been told that we had the advantage of the enemy, but tho sorrowful laces I beheld told a dii ferent tale, and before my husband went a- way he took me on one side, and said ever thing was going very bad, that I must keep myself in readiness to leave tho place, but not to mention it to any one. I made the pretence that I would move the next morn ing into my now house, and had every thing packed up ready. “ Lady H. Ackland had a tent not far from our house, in this she slept, and the rest ol the day she was in the camp. All of a sud den a man came to tell her that her husband was mortally wounded and taken prisoner on hearing this she became very miserable, ,ve comforted her by telling her that the wound was only slight, and at the same time gdvised her to go over to her husband, to do which she would certainly obtain permission, and then she could attend him herself; she was a charming woman, and very fond of him. 1 spent much of the night in comfort ing her, and then went again to my children whom 1 had put to Inal. I could not go to sleep .is I had General Fraser and all the other wounded gentlemen in my room, and I was sadly afraid my children would awake, and by their crying disturb the dying man in his last moments, who often addressed me and apo logised »• for the trouble he gave me.” About 3 o’clock in the morning 1 was told lie could not h-dd out much longer ; I had desired to lie informed of the near approach of this sad crisis, and 1 then wrapped up my children .in •lisir clothes, and went with them into the -room below. About 8 o’clock in the morn mg lie died. After ho was laid out and his corpse trapped up in a sheet we came again into tin room, and had this sorrowful sight before t» the whole day, and to add tb the nwlahc'tjy scene, almost every moment some ol rer of iny acquaintance was Im. ight in worn »>d. The cannonade commenced a- guin : :jretreat was spoken of, but not the sainJV'" notion was made towards it. About 4 oVIor.V i* the afternoon I saw the house which hid just been built for mein flames, and the enemy was now not far off. We kn?"- I denari'l ISurgoyno would not re fuse tho last request of General Fraser, though by his acceding to it, an unnecessary delay was occasioned, by which the incon venience of 1be army Was much increased. At 6 o’clock the Corpse was brought out, and we saw all the Generals attehd it to the moun tain ; the chaplain, Mr. Brudenell, perform ed the funeral service, rendered unusually solemn and awful from its feeing accoinpany- od by constant peals from the enemy’s artil lery. Many cannon balls flew close by me, but I had my eyes directed towards the moun tain,* where my husband was standing midst the fire of the enemy, and of course I could not think of my own danger. “ General Gates afterwards said, that if he had known-it had been a funeral he would not have permitted it to be fired on, “ As soon as thefuncral service was finish ed, and the grave of General Fraser was clos ed, an order was issued that the army should retreat. My calash was prepared, but I would not consent to go before the troops. Major Homage, although Suffering from his wounds, crept from his bed, as lie did not wish to remain in the hospital, which was Tt with a flag of truce. When Gen. Reid esel saw me in the midst of danger, he or dered n,y women and children to be brought into the calash, and intimated to inc to depart without delay. I still prayed to remain, but tny husband knowing my weak side, said, “ well then your children must go, that at least they may bo safe from danger. I then agreed to enter the calash W ith them, and wc set off at 8 o’clock. “ The retreat was ordered to be conducted with the greatest silence, many fires were lighted, and several tents left standing; we travelled continually during tho night. At six o’clock in the morning we halted, which excited the surprise of all; General Burgoyne had the cannon ranged and' counted ; this delay accused to displease every body, for if wc could only have made another good march we should have been in safety. My husband, quite exhausted with fatigue, came into my calash and slept for three hours ; during that time Captain Willoe brought me a hag full of bauk notes, and Captain Goismar his ele gant watch, a ring, and a purse full of mo ney, which they requested me to take care of, and which 1 promised to do to the utmost of my power. We again marched, but had scarcely proceeded an hour before wc halted, as the enemy was ill sight; it proved to be nly a reconnoitering party of twa hundred men, w ho might easily have been made pri soners, if Gen. Burgoyne had given proper orders on the occasion. The Indians had now lost their courage, and were departing for their homes ; these people appeared to droop much under adver sity* and especially when they had no pros pectof plunder. One of my waiting women was in a state of despair which approached to madness ; she cursed and tore her hair and w hen 1 attempted to reason with her and to pacify her, she asked me if I was not griev ed at our situation, and upon my saying « was,” she tore her cap off her head and let her hair drop over her face, saying to me. “ it is very easy for you to he composed and talk, you have your husband with you, have none, and what remains to me hut tho prospect of perishing or losing all I have ;” 1 again bade her to take comfort, and assur ed her t would make good whatever she might happen to lose, and 1 made the same pro mise to Ellen, my other waiting woman, who though filled with apprehensions, made no complaints. * « About evening we arrived at Saratoga; my dress was wet through and through with rain, and in that state I had to remain the whole night, having no place to change it; I however got close to a large fire, and at last lay down oh some straw. At this moment Gen. Phillips came up to me, and I asked him why we had not continued our retreat, as my husband had promised to cover it and bring the army through ? “ Poor dear wo man,” said lie, “ I wonder how, drenched as you are, you have the courage still to perse vere and venture further in this kind of wea ther ; I wish,” continued lie, “ you was our commanding general, Gen. Burgoyne is tired, and means to halt here to-night and give us our supper.” On the morning of the 7th, at ten o’clock, Gen. Burgoyne ordered the retreat to be continued, and caused the handsome houses and mills of Gonreal Schuyler to be burnt; w« marched however but a short distance, and then Uaulted. The gruatest misery at this time prevailed hi the army, and muro than thirty officers came to me, for whom tea and coffee was prepared, and with whom I shared all my provisions, with which my calash was in general well supplied ; for l had a t ook who was an excellent caterer, and who often in the night crossed small rivers and foraged on tho-inhdhilants, bringing in with him sheep, small pigs, afti* poultry, €>pwfeh'VV» very often forgot to pay, though he received good pay from me as long as I had any, and was ultimately handsomely rewarded. Our provisions now failed us for want of proper conduct in f! ; commissary’s department, and 1 began to desp -lr. About 2 o’clock in tho afternoon wc again heard a firing of cannon anil small arms; instantly all wax alarm* anil every thing ife motion. My husband told me to go to a house not far;iff; I immediate* ly seated myself in my calash with my chil dren, and drove off; but scarcely had wo reached it before I discovered five or six armed men on the other side of the Hud son ; instinctively I threw my children down in the calash, and theft concealed myself with them ; at that moment the fellows fired and wounded an already wounded English sol dier, who was behind me ; poor fellow, I pi tied him exceedingly, but at tiiat moment had no means or power to relievo him. A terri ble g.nnonade was commenced by the ene my, which was directed against the house in which 1 sought to obtain shelter for myself and children, under the mistaken idea that all the generals were in it. Alas! it contain ed none but wounded and women ; we were at last obliged to resort to the cellar Tor re fuge, and in one corner of this I remained the whole day, my children sleeping on tha earth with tli7ir heads in my lap ; and in tho same situation I passed a Sleepless night.-— Elev on cannon balls passed through the houftfi and wc could distinctly hear them roll away. One poor soldier who was lying on a tabic, for the purpose of having his leg amputated, was struck by a shot which carried away his other : his comrades had left him, and when we went to his assistance we found him in a corner of the room, into which he had crept more dead than alive, scarcely breathing. My reflections on the danger to which my husband was exposed now agonized me ex ceedingly, and the thoughts of- i»y children and the necessity of struggling for their pre servation alone sustained me. “ The ladies of the army who were with ine were, Mrs. Harnagp, a Mrs. Kennels, tho widow of a lieutenant who was killed, and the lady of the commissary. Major Har nage, his wife, and Mrs. Kennels, made a little room in a corner with curtains to it, and wished to do the same for me, but I pre ferred being noar the door in case of fire. Not far off my women Slept, and opposite to three English officers, who, though wound ed, were determined not to be left behind ; one of them was Captain Green, an aid-de cam to Major-General Phillips, a very valu able officer and most agreeable man. They each made me a most sacred promise not to leave me behind, and in case of a sudden re treat, that they would each of tlie«n take one of my children on his horse, and for my self, one of my husband’s was in constant readiness. “ Our cock, whom I have before mention ed, procured us our ineals, hut we were in want of water, and I was often obliged to drink wine and to give it to my children. It was the only thing my husbaud took, which made our faithful hunter (Rocklo) express one day his apprehensions, that “ the Gene ral was weary of his life, or fearful of being taken, as lie drank so much wine.” The con stant danger which my husband was in kept me in a state of wretchedness, and l asked myself if it was possible 1 should be the only happy one, and have my husband spared to me unhurt, exposed as ho was to so many pe rils. lie never entered his tent, but laid down whole nights by tho watch fires ; this alone was enough to have killed him, the cold was so intense. “The want of water distressed usmueh: at length wo found a soldier’s wife who had cou rage enough to fetch us some from the river, an office no body else would undertake, as the Americans shot at every person who ap proached it, but out of respect for her sex they never molested her. “ 1 now occupied myself through the day in attending the wounded ; I made them tea and coffee, and often shared my dinner with them, for which they offered me a thousand expressions of gratitude. One day a Cana dian officer came to our cellar, who had scarcely the power of holding himself up right, and we Concluded he was dying for want of nourishment; I was happy in differ ing him my dinner, which strengthened him, and procured me his friendship. I now un dertook the cure of Major Bloomfield,* yno- • The height occupied by liurgoyneon tlie 18th, which ran parallel with the river until it approached General Gatos’ camp. •Now member of Parliament for Plymouth, major-g*n, eral in the army, lieutenant-colonel of tlie royal an tjlety. chief equerry and cicrjc-mart-d to the Wng.