1775 at was every where received with horror, it produced an CHAP. addition of feveral hundreds to the force now poffefdy XII his lordship; fo that he began to entertain hopes of being able to reduce the whole province, by means of a force raifed within itself. But, while he pleafed himself with this expectation, intelligence was received, that a party of provincials were marching with the utmost expedition against the new-raifed forces, which determined lord Dunmore to take poffeffion of a poft called Great-Bridge, lying fome miles from Norfolk, and which was a pass of great confequence, being the only way by which they could approach that town, the inhabitants of which were generally well affected to government. Here he conftructed a fort on the Norfolk fide, which he furnished with artillery, and put in as good pofture of defence as the time would admit. It does not appear, however, that his force was at all confiderable, either as to the number or quality of the troops. He had, indeed, about two hundred regulars, including the grenadiers of the 14th regiment, and a body called the Norfolk volunteers; the reft were a motley mixture of blacks and whites. The enemy greatly fuperior in number, were alfo fortified within lefs than a cannon fhot of Dunmore's forces, having a narrow causeway in their front; fo that both parties were pretty well fecured from a furprife. Having continued in this itate for fome days, captain Fordyce was difpatched, on the 9th of December, at the head of the grenadiers, to Dec. 9force the intrenchments of the provincials. This rafh attempt, it was faid, had been occafioned by false intelligence from a pretended deferter; and, as the captain's force was totally inadequate to the enterprise, his party was entirely defeated; he himself, with feveral officers, and a number of common foldiers, being killed on the spot, many others taken, and not one escaping without a wound. After this difaftér, his lordship thought proper to return on board the fhips with his people, who were now confiderably increased in number, as many of the well-affected, or Tories, as they were called by the Americans, were now obliged to feek the fame afylum, whither they alfo carried fuch of their effects as could moft eafily be brought off. This additional number, however, initead of forwarding his lordship's operation, proved exceedingly detrimental to them. The veffels were crowded by thofe who could not aflift even in navigating them; and difeases, the certain confequence of confinement, began to take place among the unhappy wretches thus cooped up. CHAP. The provincials now took poffeffion of Norfolk, and the XII. feet removed to a greater diftance. 1775. In the midft of thefe difturbances, which gave ample fcope for the genius of such adventurers as wish to profit Plan of by the deftruction of mankind, one Connelly, a native of Connelly a gainst the Pennfylvania, projected a scheme for the fubjection of colonies de- his countrymen, by the inhuman means of fetting the In teated. dians against them. The plan was communicated to lord Dunmore; and Connelly, with great labour and difficulty, having found means to conclude a treaty with the Ohio Indians, returned to his lordship, by whom he was sent to Bofton, with proper recommendations to General Gage. Here he was invefted with a commiffion to act as colonelcommandant, with affurances of support and affistance, at the time, and in the manner appointed; and here the plan was fully explained and fettled. The purport of it was, that Connelly fhould return to the country from whence he had come; where he should excite the Indians, in conjunction with the loyalifts, to fall upon the back parts of Virginia. The garrifons of Fort Detroit, and others in that remote country, were to co-operate with him as far as poffible, to fupply his troops with their artillery and ammunition; and fome affiftance was expected from the nearest parts of Canada. Connelly himself was to grant all the commiffions to the officers, and to have the fupreme direction in every thing relative to the new-raised forces. As foon as they were in proper-condition for the enterprife, he was to penetrate through Virginia in such a manner as to meet lord Dunmore, in the month of April, near the town of Alexandria, on the river Potowmac. His lordfhip was to bring with him a fufficient naval force; fo that by their joint operation, the communication between the northern and fouthern colonies might be effectually cut off, and Virginia, in all probability, reduced to fubjection. This plan, fo precarious in its nature, as depending on the fuccefs of a fingle man paffing unfufpected from almost one end of British America to the other, was fruftrated by that accident, which of all others, might have been moft cafily fufpected. Connelly was met on the road by fome perfon of his acquaintance, by whom, as he could not with fufficient perfpicuity anfwer the common queftions afked of each other by travellers, he was informed on, and brought before the committee of the prcvincial congrefs of Maryland. Here his papers were feized; among which were found the general fcheme of the defign, a letter from lord Dunmore to one of the In XII. dian chiefs, with fuch other authentic vouchers, as left CH AP. not the least room for doubt on the one part, or excufe on the other. The papers were published by order of the Congrefs, and Connelly, with two of his affociates, who were taken along with him, fent to prison. 1775. In the mean time, the people on board the fleet began to fuffer greatly by want of provifions, which could no longer be obtained from Norfolk, as the proyincial party now prevailed there. The royalifts, who had not indeed used their own power with great moderation, now began to feel the vengeance of their adverfaries; and the provincial troops, ftationed along the coaft, had the cruelty to amuse themselves with fhooting at the people of those fhips which approached nearest the fhore. This could not fail to produce the utmost refentment; and, on the arrival of the Liverpool man of war, measures were taken to inflict a proper chastisement. They were now fimply afked, whether they would fupply his Majesty's fhips with provifions? which being anfwered in the negative, the inhabitants were warned to remove from the place with their effects, as a refolution was taken to destroy it. The first day of the year 1776, was pitched Jan. 1. upon for this fervice; a violent cannonade from the Liverpool, two floops of war, and the governor's armed fhip, called the Dunmore, demolished that part nearest the water; and fome houses being fet fire to by a body of failors and marines, who landed for that purpose, the whole was foon involved in one general destruction. As the governor had removed the printing-prefs and types, Dunmore together with two fervants, employed in printing for one a printer's Holt in Norfolk, he was now enabled to publifh printed types and accounts of his own tranfactions in a true and impartial press, &c. manner, which he complained was not done before. In one of his gazettes, the rebels themselves were charged destroyed. with completing the deftruction of Norfolk; it having been intended, on the part of the governor, only to deftroy the lower part, from whence the shipping were annoyed by the fire of the troops. Be this as it will, the property destroyed on this occafion was faid not to be less than 300,000l. fterling. The rent of the houses amounted to 10,000l. annually. However neceffary or just the deftruction of this place might have been, nothing could have contributed more to render government univerfally odious through the colony. The provincials, that they might the more effectually cut off any prospect of supply from the ships; and, perhaps, alfo to punish the oppofite party, burned carries off Norfolk 1775. Miferable end of adhered to his lord ip. CHAP. and deftroyed all the houses and plantations within reach XII. of the water, obliging the people to remove farther up the country with their cattle, provifions, and fuch effects as they could carry. Lord Dunmore, with his fleet of fugitives, continued to hover about the coafts and rivers of Virginia for a great part of the year 1776; but every thefe who place being at laft ftrictly guarded, fo that no refreshments whatever could be had, thofe unhappy people who had put themselves under his protection, began to expeperience diftrefies which could no longer be borne. The heat of the climate increafed thofe difeafes which confinement had already begun; and the filth of the veffels in which they were inclofed, produced at last that dreadful diflemper known by the name of the jail fever, by which great havoc was made, efpecially among the negroes, who were almost entirely cut off by it. After varicus difagreeable adventures, feveral veflels were at laft forced on fhore by a gale of wind, where the unhappy fugitives fejl into the hands of their enraged countrymen. The remainder, driven from place to place, and from ifland to ifland, by the Virginians, were in danger of perifhing entirely, when the governor, in the beginning of Auguft, 1776, determined to burn the fmaller and leaft valuable part of the veffels, and to fend the remainder, confifting of between forty and fifty, with the exiles, to feek a retreat in Florida, Bermudas, and the Weft-Indies. Arguft. Thus ended the hopes entertained of fuppreffing the American rebellion in Virginia, by means of the ne groes; a measure which produced the moft violent refentment on the part of the colonifts, without adding any thing to the ftrength of the royal caufe; for, in the engagement at Great-Bridge, the only fervice in which they were employed, the negroes are faid to have done more hurt to their own party than to the enemy. As for the unhappy creatures themselves, they are faid to have perifhed almoft to a man. In the other fouthern colonies, matters alfo came to fuch extremities, that the governors were expelled by the people of their provinces, with this mark of difgrace atCarolinas tending their conduct, that they were charged with ex Governors of both driven out. citing, or attempting to excite, the Indians or negroes to murder those whom they could not reduce to obedience by the force which the mother country had entrusted in their hands. In South Carolina, lord William Campbell was faid to have entered into fome negociations with the Indians for the fupport of government, as well as with XII. 1776. thofe banditti called Regulators, in the back fettlements; CHAP. but before matters were ripe for execution, a discovery was made, which rendered it neceffary for his lordship to retire from Charlestown, on board a man of war in the river, from whence he never returned any more to his government. In the mean time, Mr. Drayton, the judge of the fuperior court, and one of the most popular leaders in that part of the country, marched with a confiderable force against the Regulators; with whom, however, he found means to conclude a treaty, by which, though they could not be prevailed upon to arm themfelves against Britain, they engaged not to impede or contravene, by word or action, fuch proceedings as fhould be adopted and purfued by the province in general; nor to give any information, aid, or affittance, to fuch British troops as fhould at any time arrive in it. In other refpects, they were to be entirely at liberty to enjoy a free neutrality, and to suffer no moleftation on account of their not taking an active part in the contest. In North-Carolina, governor Martin exerted himfelf with more activity, but with as little fuccefs as lord William Campbell, After a long warfare with the provincial congrefs and its committees, he was declared an enemy to America in general, to the colony he governed in particular; and all perfons were forbid to hold any communication with him. The charges alleged against him were, that he had fomented a civil war, and endeavoured to excite an infurrection among the negroes. To thefe he replied by a long proclamation, which by the provincial congress was declared a falfe, fcandalous, fcurrilous, malicious, and feditious libel, and ordered to be burnt by the hands of the common hangman. As the governor, however, expected, by means of the back fettlers, as well as of the Scotch inhabitants and Highland emigrants, who were numerous in the province, to be able to raise a confiderable force, he took great pains to fortify his pa lace, that he might thus be enabled to make it answer the double purpofe of a garrifon and magazine. But, before this could be accomplished, the moving of fome cannon occafioned fuch a ferment among the people, that he found it neceffary to abandon the palace, and take refuge on board a floop of war in Cape Fear river. his departure, the people found buried in the palace yard and garden, a quantity of powder, ball, and various other military ftores and implements, which inflamed them to fuch a degree, that they inftantly proceeded to fettle the government of the province VOL. V. I 2 On |