pal officers of his fleet.
The fact is, that he was properly a land officer, and they had been
indignant at his having a nautical command over their heads. They were
glad, therefore, of any opportunity to thwart and mortify him; and now
insisted on his complying with his letter of instructions and sailing
for Boston.

At the sailing of the ships there was a feeling of exasperation
throughout the camp. Sullivan gave vent to his vexation in a general
order on the 24th, wherein he observed: "The general cannot help
lamenting the sudden and unexpected departure of the French fleet, as
he finds it has a tendency to discourage some who placed great
dependence upon the assistance of it; though he can by no means
suppose the army or any part of it, endangered by this movement. He
yet hopes the event will prove America able to procure that by her own
arms which her allies refuse to assist in obtaining." On cooler
reflection he thought proper in subsequent orders, to explain away
this rash imputation on French loyalty, but a general feeling of
irritation against the French continued to prevail in the army.

The departure of the fleet was a death-blow to the enterprise. Between
two and three thousand volunteers abandoned the camp in the course of
four and twenty hours; others continued to go off; and in a few days
the number of besiegers did not exceed that of the besieged. All
thoughts of offensive operations were now at an end. The question was
how best to extricate the army from its perilous position. On the 28th
it was determined, in a council of war, to fall back to the military
works at the north end of the island, and fortify there, until it
should be known whether the French fleet would soon return to their
assistance, the Marquis Lafayette setting off with all speed to have
an interview with the Count D'Estaing, and ascertain the fact.

General Sullivan broke up his camp, and commenced his retreat that
very night, between nine and ten o'clock. Their retreat was not
discovered until daylight, when a pursuit was commenced. The covering
parties behaved gallantly, making frequent stands. After a series of
skirmishes they were pressed back to the fortified grounds on the
north end of the island; but Sullivan had already taken post there, on
Batt's Hill, the main body of his army being drawn up in order of
battle, with strong works in their rear, and a redoubt in front of the
right wing.

The British now took post on an ad