There is t not known to have been any communication between the Westchester-county bank of the river and the ships, while the latter remained on their lower anchorage-ground, except thoBe referred to on page 208, ante ; but, subsequently, while the ships were off the Cortlandt Manor, their boats as we shall see, were very active, during every night ; and it is known the ships were visited by some of the neighboring inhabitants. The guards were less vigilaut, in the upper part of the County, than they had been, near Tarrytown.

WESTCHESTER COUNTY.

was carefully sounded, as far as the tenders went ; ' the inhabitants, especially those on the western bank of the river, were widely robbed, and, sometimes, their houses were burned ; * and the line of communication, between the City and the upper portions of the country, was effectually cut ; 3 but, if the purpose had been merely to cut off the supplies, since the supplies of the City which were taken from Westchestercounty, were drawn, during the harvest-season, only in very limited quantities and those from only the nearby farmers, possessing only limited means, the ships were anchored too far up the river; and that particular purpose of the expedition must have been, to some extent, defeated, by the mistake of the officer commanding it.

The Militia who were ordered out for the protection of the storehouses and the passes in the Highlands, responded with great promptitude, 4 so much so, indeed, that General Washington was warranted in calling to the main Army some Massachusetts troops who had been sent to that vicinity ; 5 and the vessels dropped down and anchored " a little below Ver- "planck's Point," and ceased to make any attempt to effect a landing, anywhere. 6