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L. f. MILLEDGEVILLE, G. TUESDAY,; MARCH 17,- 1818. NO. 19. MISCELLANY. ATTLB OV BUNKER'S 1ULL. traveller who, visits Boston, can fail to associate in ltis mind the Acid 'c where the early heroes of the revo- first established Uie character of that marked as it was hy undaunted rcso- the offspring of a determined pur* From the state house of Massaehn- [conspicuously seated on an eminence, : ranges over Charlestown, a consider* wn that now q^joins Boston hy a spa- bridge. The patriot will scarcely con- iinself with a remoto view of this im ve scene, designated hy a monument memory of general Warren, who fell guished on that occasion. At a dis- of about two miles, some hills ime ned, viz. Prospect Ilill. Plowed lull, ’sHill, and Bunker's Hill. As you ce on the road in rear of the navy i Charlestown, Breed's Hill rears its able brow on the left. Here it was that chmcntfrom the American army of one " men under colonel i’rcacott* began i o’clock' in the night of the 16th of 1775, to throw up some works extend- m Charlestown to the river which sc- 3 that town from Boston. They pro- with such secrecy and despatch that ccrs of a ship of war then in the river, ed their astonishment when in the ng they,saw entrenchments reared and ed in the space of a few hours, where, the contiguity of the situation, they expected the Americans would look, in the face. ic alarm being immediately given, or- wcrc issued that a continual lire should cpt playing upon the unfinished works, the ships, the floating batteries in the •, and Copp’s Hill, a fortified post of British in Boston, directly .opposite the ricatl redoubt j hut, with extraodinary cvcijance, the Americans continued to ngthen their works, not returning a shot noon, when a number of boats and bar- filled with regular troops from Cotton reached Charlestown. Tho day was cx- ingly hot. Ten companies of grena- s, ten of light infantry, with a propor- of field artillery landed at Mpreton’s t, the whole commanded hy mnjor-gene- Howc and brigadier-general Pigot.— e troops having formed remained in that ion till joined by a second detachment of infantry and grenadier companies, the regiment, and a battalion of marines, ing in the whole near 3000 men. 'he Americans hadnot a rifleman amongst not one being yet arrived from the hward, nor had they any rifle pieces : had but common muskets, and these tly without bayonets ; but they were al- t all marksmen, being accustomed to •ting of one kind or other from thcii th. A reinforcement of Massachusetts ps was posted in a rc doubt, ami in pari he breast work nearest it. The left of breast work, and the open ground streteh- h:yond its point to the water side, alon ch time did not admit of accomplishing work, were occupied partly hy the Mas- usetts, and partly by the Connecticut, under captain Nolton of Ashford, and New Hampshire under colonel Stark, the do amounting to about one thousand five dred men. By direction of the officers troops upon the open ground pulled up post and rail fence, and carrying it for- 1 to another of the same kind, and plac- some clods of grass between, formed ; ht defence in some parts, critical scene now opened to the view British regulars, formed in two lines anced slowly, frequently halting to give sc for the artillery to fire. The light iu- ,ry w ere directed to force the left point of breast work, ami to tiikc the American in flank. The grenadiers advanced to rkin front, supported by two battalions, cr general Howe, while the left, under eral Pigot, inclined to the right of the cricnn line. As the British advanced rer and nearer to the attack, a carcass i discharged from Copp's Ilill, which set fire an old house in Charlestown, and the mes quickly spread to others. Thcjiouses tho eastern end of Charlestown were set lire by seamen from the boats. TJic whole vn consisting of about three hundred dw ell- houses, and nearly two hundred other [filings, speedily became involved in one at Tilaze, being chiefly of timber. The 'c meeting house, by its aspiring steeple med a pyramid of fire above the rest.— c houses, heights &. steeples in Boston were cred with spectators of this scene, and surrounding hills were occupied hy others The slow movement of the British troops advancing to the attack, afforded to the Ame ricans the, advantage of taking a surer, and more deliberate Aim. Tho wind having shifted, carried the smoke from the confla gration in such a direction that tho British had not the cover of it in their approach.— Tile destruction of the place- served to pre vent their opponents from effecting a lodge ment in the houses whence they might have annoyed to advantage. General Warren, who had been appointed by congress a major general in their armies only fourdnys before, was every where aiding and encouraging his men. General Pomeroy commundcu.a brig ade, and general Putnam, a brave and me ritorious officer, directed the whole on the fall of general Warren. The troops were ordered to reserve their fire uptil the close approach of the British. They strictly obey ed, with a steadiness and composure that would have done honor to the most approved veterans, and when the enemy had arrived within ten or twelve rods poured in a dis charge, of small arms which arrested and so staggered their foes, that they could only for a time return it, without advancing a step. Finding the stream of the American fire so incessant as to mow down whole sections, they retired in disorder to the ri ver. Rallying as well as their extraordi nary loss of officers would admit of, the Brit ish again advanced with an apparent resolu tion of forcing their way, whatever loss of lives it might have cost them. The Ameri cans again reserved their fire till the enemy adva; & d within five or six rods, when, dis charging their pieces, which were admirably pointed, threw the opposing ranks again in to confusion. General Clinton, who, with general Gage, the commander in chief of the British forces in Boston, was on Copp’s Hill, observing the events of the day, when he perceived the disconcerted state of the troops ssed over and joined just in time to be of service. The united and strenuous efforts >f the different officers were again success ful, and the columns were advanced a third time to the attack, with a desperation in creased by the unshaken opposition they ex perienced. It is probable from the nature of the resistance, that every effort to dislodge the Americans would have been ineffectual, had not their ammunition failed ; on sending for a supply none could be procured, as there wfis but a barrel and a half in the magazine. This deficiency prevented them from making the same defence as before $ while tho Brit ish enjoyed a farther advantage by bringing some cannon tp hear so as to rake tho inside of the breast work fin in end to end, upon which the Americans wore compelled to re treat within their redoubt. The British now made a decisive movement, covered by the When faiure generatiops shall enquire, where are men who gained the highest prize of glory' in the ar ils contest which ushered in our naj ion’s birth, upon scott end his companions inarms will the eyeol'his- beam. The military annals of the world rarely fur- an achievement which cnnals the firmness and cour- , cm displayed on that proud day hy the gallant band of ericans i anil it certainly stands first in the brilliant ta of our war.—oem. tcr’s memoiu^ fire of the ships, batteries and field artillery. The Americans disputed possession of their works With the but end of their muskets, until the, redoubt, easily mounted and attack ed on three sides at once, was taken, and their defences, the labor or only a few hours, had been prostrated by artillery. Whilst these operations were going on at the breast work and redoubt, the British light infantry were engaged in attempting to force the left point of the former, through the space be tween that and the water, that they might take the American line in flank. The resist ance they met with was as formidable and fatal in its effects as experienced in the other quarter; For here, also, the Americans by command, reserved their fire till the enemy’s dose approach, and then poured in a dis charge so well directed and with such execu tion, that wide chasms were made in every rank. Some of the Americans were slight ly guarded by the rail fences, hut others w ore altogether exposed, so that tljclr bravery in close combat was put to the test, independ ent of defences neither formed by military rules nor workmen. The most determined assaults of their regular opponents, who were now brought to the charge with re doubled fury, could not, after all, compel them to retreat, tili they observed that their main body had left the hill, when they re- trogaded. but with a regularity that could scarcely have been expected of troops newly embodied, and who in general never before saw an engagement. Overpowered hy num bers, and seeing all hope of reinforcement cut.off by the incessant fire of the ships a- cross a neck of land that .separated- them front the country, they were compelled to quit the ground. The staunch opposition of this band of pa triots saved their comrades, who must oth erwise have been cut off, as the enemy, but for them, would have been in rear of the wlfatc. While these brave heroes retired disputing every inch of .ground, and taking up every new position successively that admitted of defence, their leader, the the gallant Warren, unfortunately received a ball through the right sale of the skull and mechanically clapping his hand to the wound, droptdown dead The British, taught by the experience of this day to respect their rustic adversaries, contented themselves with .taking post at Bunker’s. Hill, which they fortified. The Americans with the enthusiasm of men de termined to be free, did the same upon Pros pect Hill, a mile in Front. It was here that general Putnam regaled the precious remains of his army after their fatigues, with seve ral hogsheads of beer. Owing to sonic un accountable error, tho working parties who hhd been incessantly laboring the whole of tho preceding night, were neither relieved nor supplied with rfcfreshmci**, but left to en gage under all these disadvantages. This battle was generally admitted by ex perienced officers of the British army who witnessed it and had served at Mindon, I)ct- tingcn,and throughout the campaigns in Ger many, to have been unparalleled for the time it lasted, and tho numbers engaged. There was a continued sheet of fire from the breast, work for near half an hour, and the action 1 was hut for near double that period. In this short space of time, the, loss of the Brit ish, according to general ’Gage, amounted to 1054, of whom 226 were killed ; of these 19 were commissioned officers, including a, lieut. colonel, 2 majors, and 7 captains ; 70 other officers were wounded. .> The battle of Quebec, in a former war, with all its glory, and the vastness of the consequences attending it, was not so disas trous in the loss of,officers as this affair oi an American entrenchment, the work of hut a few hours. Tho fact was, the Americans, accustomed to aim with precision and to se lect objects, directed their skill principally against the officers of the British army, just ly conceiving that much confiftion would en sue on their fall. Nearly all the officers a- round the person of general Hon e wore kill ed or disabled, aiid the general himself nar rowly escaped. At the battle of, Mindcn, where the British regiments sustained the force of the whole French army for a consi derable time, the number of officers killed, including two who died somi after of thcii wounds was only 13, and the wounded G6 ; the total loss of the army on that occasion was 291 in killed, and 1037 wounded. The jti ritish arknowlcded the valor of their opponents, which, though hy no means new to them, surpassed on this occasion what could have been expected of an handful of cottagers, «s they termed them, under officers of little military knowledge and still less ex perience, whom they affected to hold in con tempt, They pretended "to forget that many of the- common soldiers who gained such laurels hy their singular bravery on the Plains of Abra ham, when Wolfe died in the arms of victo ry, were natives of the Massachusetts Bay. When Martinique was attacked in 1761, and the British force was greatly reduced;bv’ sickness and mortality, t.hc timely arrival <»f ti.c New England troops enabled the British commander to prosecute the reduction of the island to a happy issue. A part of the troops being sent on an expedition to the Havanna, heavy fire from tlie enemy’s ships, a number of floating batteries, besides fortifications which, poured upon them an incessant shower of shot and shells, and left incomplete, own ing to the intolerable cannonade. We shall close.this account, as illustrative of the engraving, with an extract from gen., Wilkinson’s memoirs, vol. I. In the temper .of the colonists, the dcliben. rate attack on the Provincials at Breed's Hill, the 17th of June, 1775, under the or ders of general Gage, became the signal for a general appeal to arms. These, indeed, were times which tried men’s souls, but they have passed away, and may they never ho forgotten. The personal services and suf ferings of those days ought ever to obtain that consideration, which the blessings of li berty and independence secured, should in spire. * _ ,• • ‘ On the evacuation. of Boston hy the en emy, I accompanied cnlogpls Stack and Reed (,o take a view of Bunker’s Hill,—that me morable theatre of .action, where the.sword dissevered the tics of consanguinity, and cut isunder tlie social bonds that united tlie A- merrean colonies to the parent state. ‘ Arrived oh, tlie ficldof battle, where those '■Ulcers had performed conspicuous parts, with anxious enquiry I traced the general disposition of our yeomanry on that event ful day, and the particular station of each corps ; I marked the vestiges of the post and ••ail fence on the 1 left,,and 1 the breast work thrown up on the beach of Mystic river, 1 which covered our armed citizens. I paced the distance to the point from whence the British light infantry, after three successive gallant charges, were finally repulsed. I examined the redoubt, the entrenchment, the landings and approaches of the enemy, and every point of attaek and- defence,— Resting on tlie parapet where, nine months before, « valor’s self, might have stood ap. palled.’ I surveyed the whole ground at a glance, anil eagerly devoured the . informa tion imparted by my brave companions.* » With n # throbbing breast I stepped from ibis ground of unequal conflict. Where A- m eric an farmers, ’contending for tlie right? of nature, for their Wives and children and posterity unbbrn, bared their bosoms to tho bayonets<oF veteran mercenaries, 4(terc vic tory so long balanced between natiTS cour age and disciplined bravery, between free men who contended for liberty, and the armi ed ruffian who fights for bread ; and follow ing my leaders, we traversed the ruins of CharlcBtown, lately the abode of thousand? animated by the bua of active industry and social happlficss, now buried in its own ashes. The resolution displayed by the provin cials on this memorable day, produced effects auspicious to the American cause, and co extensive w ith the war; for, although com pelled by superior numbers tp yield the ground, the obstinacy of their resitance put an end to th* confidence with which they had been ai first attacked, and produced the New Englanders, whose health had been. (Pleasures of caution, bordering on timidity, much impaired by service ami the climate, There can be no doubt that we were indebted were embarked in three ships for their na tive country, with a view to theft 1 recovefy. Before they had completed their voyage, they found themselves recovered, ordered the ships about, steered immediately fur the Ila- vanna, arrived when the British were too much weakened to expect success, and by their junction, contributed materially to the Surrender of the place. Their .fidelity, ac tivity and good conduct were such as to gain the approbation and unbounded confidence of the British officers. Of such elementary principles were the heroes of Bunker’s Hill composed. It surely was a misguided po licy. to rouse the opposition of men itiadc of these materials. , A spot so fertile in great associations, could not but attract the special notice of the president of the United States, during his late tour to the eastward. It was precisely where Barren fell that his excellency met the citizens of Charlestown on the occasion, and addressed them as follows : • It is highly gratifying to me to meet the committee of Charlestown upon a theatre so interesting to the United States. It is iin possible to approach Bunker’s Hjll, where the war of tho revolution commenced, with sti much honor to the nation, without being deeply affected. • The blood spilt" here, rous ed the whole American people, and united them in a common cause, in defence of their rights.—That union will never b? broken.’ Whether indeed we consider the action of the 17th June in itself, or as the prelude to suecceding events, we must pronounce it to be the most glorious of our history, for the numbers engaged & the defences made use of. If we except that of New Orleans, no par allel is to he found to it in the extent of im pression produced upon the enemy. But there, time had been afforded for maturing the works, which were constructed udder the supcrintendancc of skilful engineers and extended a cross a position that could not he outflanked. Twelve hours only were _ gained for those on Breed’s Hill, formed, | • surk commanded a company of jarovinciJb under during a great part of the time, under a gmcedWolfe. to these causes for the unmolested occupan cy of our position before Boston, which to complete the investment, was necessarily ex tended from Roxbury on tlie right,-to Mys tic river on the left, a rectilinear distance of about four miles. . * To the cool courage and obstinacy dis played oil the occasion, and the moral in fluence of the bloody lesson which sir Wil liam Hov.c received on that day, we must as cribe the military .phenomenon of a motly band of undisciplined American yeomanry, scarcely superior in number, bolding in an army of British veterans in close siege for nine months j and hence it might fairly ho inferred, that our independence was essen tially promoted by the consequence of this single battle.’—Jlnalectic Magazine. Some thirty or. forty years ago, the Rev. George Whitfield was preaching in a very lofty and animated sC-le, and in tho profu sion of his soul lifted up liis eyes towards Heaven, and cxdaiiped—Father Abraham, are there any Presbyterians in Hcavon ?— No.—Are there any Methodists there ?—No- Are tliere any Episcopalians there ?—No.— Are there any Quakers there ?—No—Are there any Anabaptists- there ?—No.—Arc there any Christians there ?—Yes. And" then turning .hi& eyes on the congregation, said, ♦« My brethren, let us all be Christians.” If all the professors of the Christian religion would take the advice of this good man how much more consistent would tliey appear in the eyes of the world, and in their own eyes. If all the professors of the Christian religion were to think more ofthe substance, the sha dow would be less important. If they were to attend more to essential points, the non- essentials would not be such ap impregnable barrier. Let all (00 profess to be the disci ples of Christ, dispute no more, about names and parties, but join in one formidable army under Christ, to pull down the strong holds of the devil.