r communication was still possible between New
York and the rebel army proceeding toward Canada. He wrote Margaret
letters of which the rest of us never saw the contents; but he wrote
to Mr. Faringfield and me also. His history during this time was that
of his army, of which we got occasional news from other sources.
During part of September and all of October it was besieging St.
John's, which capitulated early in November. Schuyler's ill-health had
left the supreme active command to Montgomery. The army pushed on, and
occupied Montreal, though it failed to capture Governor Carleton; who
escaped to Quebec in a boat, by ingeniously disguising himself as a
countryman. At Montreal the jealousies and quarrels of officers, so
summarily created such, gave Montgomery much trouble, and when he set
forward for Quebec, there to join the force sent under Arnold through
the Maine wilderness from the rebel main army at Cambridge, he could
take with him but three hundred men--so had the patriot warriors of
New York fallen off in zeal and numbers! But you may be sure it was
not from Philip's letters that we got these items disadvantageous to
his cause.

Our last word from him was when he was in quarters before Quebec:
Cornelius was with him; and they were having a cold and snowy time of
it, waiting for Quebec to fall before them. He mentioned casually that
he had been raised to a captaincy: we afterward learned that this was
for brave conduct upon the occasion of a sally of Scotch troops from
one of the gates of Quebec to cut off a mortar battery and a body of
riflemen; Philip had not only saved the battery and the riflemen, but
had made prisoners of the sallying party.

Late in the Winter--that is to say, early in 1776--we learned of the
dire failure of the night attack made by the combined forces of
Montgomery and Arnold upon Quebec at the end of December, 1775; that
Arnold had been wounded, his best officers taken prisoners, and
Montgomery killed. The first reports said nothing of Winwood. When
Margaret heard the news, she turned white as a sheet; and at this
triumph of British arms my joy was far outweighed, Mr. Faringfield's
grief multiplied, by fears lest Philip, who we knew would shirk no
danger, had met a fate similar to his commander's. But subsequent news
told us that he was a prisoner, though severely wounded. We comforted
ourselves with considering that he was like to receive good nursing
from the French nuns of Quebec.