Montross who had constantly held on to his saddle prize by the bridle, now secured him, together with his trappings and his master's pistols, but the horse persisted to the last in refusing to swim, and the cap-tor at length was compelled to take him to New York Island in a boat. The combined forces then commenced their return march, passing west of Mill-Brook, through the fields of Morrisania and Fordham, and stopping from time to time as they moved along, to enable the generals and engineers to examine the grounds along Harlem River. At sundown they reached the heights near Fort Independence, where an encampment had been marked out for them, and there terminated the

80 THE MCDONALD PAPERS operations that distinguished the first day of the grand recon-noissance. Toward the end of February, 1782, Cornelius Oakley planned an attack upon the refugees of Morrisania, which was submitted to and approved of by Major Woodbridge of the Second Connecticut regiment, who then commanded upon the lines, and was carried into execution a few days afterward. Captain Israel Honeywell at the head of his company of Westchester light horse with volunteers and guides, amounting in the whole to nearly one hundred men, was ordered to strike at the refugees, in their settlement below the British redoubt No. 8, while Major Woodbridge himself with one hundred and fifty Continental infantry, would be ready to support the former in his operations. The American detachment marched from near Pinesbridge about mid-day on the 3d of March. At Eastchester Major Woodbridge halted with his infantry for the purpose of tak-ing a position by which he might cover Honeywell's retreat, while the latter pushed forward toward Morrisania, and pass-ing down between the quarters occupied by the refugees and redoubt No. 8 turned the left flank of the former between daylight and sunrise, and suddenly entered the settlement of the royalists.