he arrived at Castleton,
thirty miles from Ticonderoga. His rear-guard halted about six miles
short, at Hubbardton, to await the arrival of stragglers. It was
composed of three regiments, under Colonels Seth Warner, Francis and
Hale; in all about thirteen hundred men. Early the next morning, a
sultry morning of July, while they were taking their breakfast, they
were startled by the report of fire-arms. Their sentries had
discharged their muskets, and came running in with word that the enemy
were at hand.

It was General Fraser, with his advance of eight hundred and fifty
men, who had pressed forward in the latter part of the night, and now
attacked the Americans with great spirit, notwithstanding their
superiority in numbers; in fact he expected to be promptly reinforced
by Riedesel and his Germans. The Americans met the British with great
spirit; but at the very commencement of the action, Colonel Hale, with
a detachment placed under his command to protect the rear, gave way,
leaving Warner and Francis with but seven hundred men to bear the
brunt of the battle. These posted themselves behind logs and trees in
'backwood' style, whence they kept up a destructive fire, and were
evidently gaining the advantage, when General Riedesel came pressing
into the action with his German troops; drums beating and colors
flying. There was now an impetuous charge with the bayonet. Colonel
Francis was among the first who fell, gallantly fighting at the head
of his men. The Americans, thinking the whole German force upon them,
gave way and fled, leaving the ground covered with their dead and
wounded. Many others who had been wounded perished in the woods, where
they had taken refuge. Their whole loss in killed, wounded and taken,
was upwards of three hundred; that of the enemy one hundred and
eighty-three.

The noise of the firing when the action commenced had reached General
St. Clair at Castleton. He immediately sent orders to two militia
regiments which were in his rear, and within two miles of the
battle-ground to hasten to the assistance of his rear-guard. They
refused to obey and hurried forward to Castleton. At this juncture St.
Clair received information of Burgoyne's arrival at Skenesborough, and
the destruction of the American works there: fearing to be intercepted
at Fort Anne, he immediately changed his route, struck into the woods
on his left, and directed his march to Rutland, leaving word for
Warner to follow him. The