They went forth from Wildwyck about ten o'clock at night, and had a Dutchman named Jacob Jansen Stoutenborgh for a guide.

19th ditto. Was this morning with fifty men and sixteen wagons to the burnt Village to fetch grain ; came back to -Wildwyck aboyt eight o'clock. Did not see anything. About noon Ensign Niessen returned with his troop from the Indian maize

land. Neither saw nor noticed any Indians. About three ¥

SECOND ESOPUS WAR. 63

» oclock in the afternoon Christoffel Davids came from the Manhatans ina canoe. Brought with him a letter from the Heer General, dated 14 August, brought also a letter from Pieter Couwenhoven who lay with the Sloop in the Danskamer.1 The letter was dated 17th August, and addressed to me. Its contents were, That I should be on my guard for he was advised that-the Esopus Indians together with the Manissings and Wappingers were prepared to attack and surprize our fort in about two days with four hundred men, and that they also daily threatened him in an insufferable manner ; he daily expected the arrival of the Sachem who had already been four days gone about the captured Christians to learn what he should then do and what should be the issue of it. But,he had not received any intelligence in all that time. He also writes--That the Indians who lay thereabout on the river side made a great uproar every night, firing guns and kintekaying,? so that the woods rang again ; and he hoped to be with me in two days.--His letter contains divers other circumstances. Christoffel Davids informs us, that he slept one night with the Indians in their wigwams --that some Esopus Indians and Sachems were there who had four Christian captives with them, one of whom, a female | captive, had secretly told him, Davids, that forty Esopus Indians had already been near our fort to observe the reapers and the other people.