The matrons who remained at home, con-consulted policy and humanity alike. They placed before these visitors the best food at their command. Some of the housewives baked all day long, supplying with bread first the British soldiers and then the American. At a large farm house in Wilton, a party of the royal officers invaded with suc-cess, the milk room, where they robbed the pans of their cream, performing the manipulations of the skimmer quite as adroitly as they practiced assaults with the sword.

THE DANBURY EXPEDITION 115

Soon after eleven o'clock, the vanguard of the British forces, halted at a point about two miles from Saugatuck-bridge over which their route lay. The possession of this bridge being considered indispensable, a party of officers rode forward immediately to reconnoitre. After the action at Ridgefield, Arnold had moved rapidly toward Saugatuck, in the neighborhood of which place he spent most of the night in preparations for the next day's encounter. Finding that the British shipping still lay off Compo Point, he justly concluded the King's troops would re-embark where they had landed. About one mile and a half north of Saugatuck-bridge, the road to Danbury passed grounds somewhat elevated, which were covered at that time with a thick growth of wood. Here, in conjunction with General Silliman, Arnold proposed to stop the further retreat of the enemy. At nine o'clock in the forenoon of the 28th, the two generals had collected at this place about six hun-dred men. They were for the most part militia men belonging to Fairfield County but among them were some troops of a superior description, and upon which the American com-manders placed a strong and well founded reliance. These last forces consisted of a small detachment from Lamb's Artillery, with three field-pieces, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Oswald; part of the artillery company belonging to Fairfield village with another gun; sixty Con-tinental recruits, and three companies of volunteers from New Haven.