fort Washington's fall -- the delinquency of general lee TIE divided British army, with its right resting on the road from White Plains to Mamaroneck, and its left on the Bronx River and Ghatterton's Hill, remained completely inactive not only during the rest of the 28th of October, but throughout the period of its continuance before Washington's As we have seen, it was deemed inexpedient by General position. Howe to move on the White Plains intrenchments with his forces But it has never been satisfactorily explained why thus separated. that separation of his army need have been protracted after the taking of the hill, or why he might not have promptly reunited the severed parts and fought the intended battle on the same afternoon or the next morning under substantially the original conditions. To hold Ghatterton's Hill after Inning secured it, only a small body of troops was required, since Washington, expecting a general assault upon his intrenchments, would not have dared weaken his army for such a hazardous and profitless object as an attempted recapture of a detached post. We think the only reasonable deduction from the known facts is that Howe grew faint-hearted while facing Washington after his halt; and indeed his personal explanation of his conduct in declining a general battle strongly suggests such an inference. In a letter to Lord George Germaine he accounted for his failure to attack Washington the next morning by representing that the Americans meantime had drawn back their encampment and strengthened their lines by additional works, which made it necesuntil re-enforcements could arsary to defer the purposed aggression rive. In other words, he sought counsel of his fears. It is true the Americans did strengthen their lines to every extent possible, thankfully taking advantage of the respite granted them; but when Howe marched from Scarsdale he was coming to assail intrenchments of entirely uncertain strength, and if willing to venture against them then he could hardly have changed his mind after the lapse of a few hours from any other circumstance than newborn discretion.