were questioned by Colonel Harrison, and informed him that they had come up the river, were going to Alexandria, and had landed a little below in two small boats. Those we understood to be Captain Conway, his Lieutenant, and two men. By this time ten row-boats, two tenders, and a gondola, were filled with men alongside of the Roebuck, which lay near four hundred yards from the Maryland shore. It was every moment expected the enemy would land and attack us. Colonel Harrison told Captain Mastin's company, that in case the enemy attempted to land there, he should instantly march down at their head and post them behind the beach; and after admonishing them, begged that if any one felt confused or under any panick, to candidly inform him, and turn out of the ranks; on which one of the privates turned out, and told him that he did not like to march down the hill. He was then ordered to give up his gun and ammunition to some other that would, and Colonel Harrison delivered his gun to Captain Conway's Lieutenant, who said he would march down with us. About ten o'clock the enemy's boats, tenders, and gondola, left the Roebuck, giving three cheers, and, contrary to our expectation, went over to Virginia, where they landed, and set fire to Mr. Brent's houses. Colonel Harrison marched the company down to the beach, in order to show them where he intended to post them, had the enemy attempted, or in case they should attempt, a landing at that place. Before the enemy returned from Virginia, we were reinforced with about one hundred and twenty men under Colonel Hanson. About five or six o'clock in the afternoon, the enemy's small tender and the gondola were observed to be manning, and in a few minutes left the Roebuck, and directed their course towards the Bay, where Captain Conway's boats were landed. Colonel Harrison immediately ordered the men to arms, and conceiving the enemy's design was to take off Captain Conway's boats, gave Captain Mastin orders to take about twenty of his best armed men, and follow him down, to watch the motions of the tender and gondola. This detachment we joined, with two other volunteers; in the whole, we think it consisted of twenty-five persons. We proceeded down towards the Bay with all haste, and near the head of a valley met with Captain Caraway and some of his men. Captain Conway went down the valley with Colonel Harrison, to show where his boats lay, and we followed close after in Indian file, and were halted at the mouth of the valley. He told the Colonel that one of his boats was drawn over the beach into a marsh; the other was on the shore staved, which was about fifty yards from us, though we could not see her from the mouth of the valley, on account of some bushes which grew on the beach. The tender had got in the Bay before we reached our post, and lay about one hundred and fifty yards off. As soon as we were halted, the tender fired one of her carriage-guns, which was presently succeeded by a discharge of grape-shot from the gondola; this load grounded within a few paces of us, and many of the shot, with several cannon-balls, were picked up the next day. Sundry great guns were discharged at us whilst we remained at this post. The gondola, after she came against the boat, rowed off and on, and, after a short time, seemed to be gradually getting more into the Bay, as if designing to open the valley and rake it. We heard Captain Conway say to Colonel Harrison that he thought she was endeavouring to rake the valley, and advised him to order a retreat, or words to the same purpose. The Colonel, after taking a view of the gondola, turned about, and, in a low tone, gave orders for a retreat to the head of the valley—the gondola being within seventy or eighty yards of us at the time. Five or six of the men who were in the rear, retreated some distance beyond the place intended, which we firmly believe proceeded from their not having heard the orders distinctly, as most of them returned immediately to the head of the valley, on being called to by some of the officers. From this place we observed the Roebuck had got under way and fallen down, and began to fire on us; also the tender, our situation being open to them both. The Colonel returned to the mouth of the valley, and we and others went different ways, to take another view of the gondola, which we found lying quite still, nearly opposite the boat, with her hatches close shut, and nothing visible but her oars and guns, though Captain Conway's Lieutenant had just before informed that her hatches were up and men exposed, which raised our hopes of getting a shoot. We recollect that, previous to our leaving the mouth of the valley, Captain Conway asked Colonel Harrison to let the gondola be fired at, to scare her off from the shore, which was refused, as there was no living object to shoot at. A retreat was then ordered to the main body by Colonel Harrison, and the detachment directed to scatter as they retreated through the old fields, to observe the flash of the enemy's cannon, and to fall down whenever they saw it. The fire from the Roebuck, armed schooner, and gondola, grew very warm, and the frequent falling down of the men occasioned a general laughter. We retreated to a fence at the edge of a wood, and lay behind it until the enemy's fire ceased, then returned to the main body, with which we remained until the ships went down the river, and the troops were discharged.

"JOHN MATTHEWS,

"WILLIAM STODDERT."

" Charles County, October 18, 1776.

"Then came Messrs. John Matthews and William Stoddert, gentlemen, and made oath on the Holy Evangelists of Almighty God, that the above is a true state of the transactions at Sandy-Point, under Colonel William Harrison, on the 23d of July last.

"G. R. BROWN."

" Charles County, October 20, 1776.

"Whereas we find, by sundry depositions published in the Baltimore Gazette, and by certificates under the hands of George Fraser Hawkins, Esq., Captain John H. Lowe, and Mr. John M. Burgess, that reports have been falsely and industriously propagated, reflecting on the courage, and tending to injure the character of the Twenty-Sixth Battalion of Maryland Militia, under the command of Colonel William Harrison: And whereas we think it a duty incumbent on us, and on every man, to rescue injured merit from undeserved reproach, and check any idle reports that may reflect disgrace on the American arms:

"We think it but common justice to declare, that many of the most injurious aspersions contained in the above mentioned publication and certificates, are within our knowledge, totally false, and in every sense groundless. And we do further assert, that we attended the said Militia from the Monday of the enemy's arrival at Sandy-Point until their departure from said place; and that said Militia appeared to us to assemble with cheerfulness and alacrity. And we have all the reason in the world to believe, that had the enemy attempted a landing, they would have been warmly and vigorously opposed; for, on two different occasions, the one on Monday during a thunder gust, when the men were obliged to take shelter in a small house, the sentries gave an alarm that the enemy were preparing to land, they, so far from exhibiting any symptoms or signs of fear, were, on the contrary, in our opinion, too warm and impetuous, by springing out of the house without waiting for orders, and running towards the shore in an irregular manner; the alarm proved groundless, and their too eager behaviour drew from the Colonel a gentle reprimand. The other instance happened on the Tuesday morning when the alarm was given that the enemy were manning their boats, and preparing to land; and the general opinion was, and every man expected, that they would attempt a landing at Sandy-Point; on which Colonel Harrison ordered the men to stand to their arms, and in a very short time after, ordered Captain Mastitis company to the head of a valley which led down to the shore where it was expected the enemy would land. On this trial (and we do not believe men can be put to a greater or severer one) the men behaved with the most undaunted courage and cool intrepidity. Upon the whole, not only in the above particularized instances, but in the whole of their conduct, they appeared spirited, brave, and ready to engage.

"HENRY FENDALL,

"WARREN DENT."

Were it necessary, a variety of other evidence could be procured to invalidate these idle tales; but I firmly trust that the testimony now offered will fully satisfy every impartial and well disposed person. I would observe, that the gentlemen who depose and certify are not of the battalion—three of them residing in Alexandria, Virginia—and can have no further interest in its character than as good members of community. What motive induced Captain Conway and his officers thus to assert, and thus solemnly to depose, I am at a loss to say, unless it was to divert their constitu-