as he had matters of importance to communicate.

The next morning, Washington was early in the saddle, having sent word beforehand to Arnold that he would breakfast with him. It was a bright autumnal morning, and the whole party in high spirits pushed rapidly forward through the gorges of the Highlands. As they came opposite West Point, Washington, instead of continuing on to Arnold's quarters, which were on the same side, turned his horse down a narrow road toward the river. Lafayette observing this, exclaimed

"General, you are going in the wrong direction; you know Mrs. Arnold is waiting breakfast for us, and that road will take us out of the way."

Jameson, commanding at North Castle, announcing the capture of Andre, and who had been brought in to Jameson's post, by three militiamen, Paulding, Williams, and Van Wart, his captors, whom the gallant but unfortunate man vainly endeavored to bribe, in order to his release. They knew him to be a spy, but were ignorant of his military rank.

Merely remarking that his presence at West Point was necessary, Arnold requested the aids to say to Washington on his arrival that he was unexpectedly called over the river, and would be back soon. Repairing to his wife's chamber, he sent for her at the breakfast table, and told her that he must instantly leave her and his country forever, for death was his certain doom if he did not reach the enemy before

"Ah!" replied Washington, laughingly, "I know you young men are all in love with Mrs. Arnold, and wish to get where she is as soon as possible. You may go and take breakfast with her, and tell her not to wait for me. I must ride down and examine the redoubts on this side of the river, and will be there in a short time."

The officers preferring not to proceed without him, two aids were dispatched to tell Arnold not to wait breakfast. The latter, therefore, with his family and the two aids sat down to the table. While they were conversing on indifferent topics, a messenger entered and handed a letter to Arnold, who opened and read it in presence of the company, without, of course, divulging its contents. It was from Colonel

he was detected.

he was detected. Paralyzed by the sudden blow, she fell senseless at his feet. Not daring to call for help, Arnold left her in that state, and rapidly descending to the door, mounted one of the horses belonging to Washington's aids, and taking a by-way pushed for the river, where his barge was moored. Jumping in, he ordered his six oarsmen to pull for Teller's Point. Stimulating them to greater efforts by the promise of two gallons of rum, he swept rapidly past Verplanck's Point, and as he approached the British ship Vulture, waved a white handkerchief, and was soon on board. In the meantime, Washington, having finished his survey, rode on to Arnold's house. Taking a hasty breakfast, and being informed that

Mrs. Arnold was in her room, unwell, he said he would not wait for Arnold to return, but cross over to West Point and meet him there. As the boat swept over the water, he remarked

"Well, gentlemen, I am glad on the whole that General Arnold has gone before us, for we shall now have a salute, and the roaring of the cannon will have a fine effect among these mountains."

At this moment an officer was seen coming down the rocky hill-side, to meet the barge. It was Colonel Lamb, who looked confounded on seeing the commander-in-chief. He commenced an apology, declaring that he was wholly ignorant of his excellency's intention to visit West Point.

"How is this, sir," broke in Washington, "is not General Arnold here?"

"No, sir," replied the colonel, "he has not been here these two days, nor have I heard from him in that time."

"This is extraordinary," replied Washington; "he left word that he had crossed the river. However, our visit must not be in vain. Since we have come, we must look around and see in what state things are with you."

And now it was that Hamilton broke the astounding news to his chief. The latter, stunned and bewildered, ordered Hamilton to mount a horse and ride as for life to Verplanck's Point, and stop Arnold, if possible; he called in Knox and Lafayette, and told them what had occurred, merely remarking at the close, "Whom can we trust now?" His countenance was calm as ever, and being informed that Arnold's wife was in a state bordering on insanity, he went up to her room to soothe her. In her frenzy she upbraided him with being in a plot to murder her child. One moment she raved, another she melted into tears. Sometimes she pressed her infant to her bosom and lamented its fate, occasioned by the imprudence of its father, in a manner that would have pierced insensibility itself. It was four o'clock in the afternoon when these disclosures of

Arnold's treason and Andre's capture were made to Washington, and, an hour later, dinner being announced, he said

"Come, gentlemen, since Mrs. Arnold is unwell and the general is absent, let us sit down without ceremony."

No one at the table but Knox and Lafayette knew what had transpired, nor did Washington exhibit any change of demeanor, except that he was more than

GENERAL ARNOLD'S HEAD-QUARTERS.

usually stern in his voice and manner. But his mind, oppressed with nameless. fears, wandered far away from that dinner table, and no sooner was the quiet repast over than he addressed himself to the task before him. He wrote rapidly, and couriers were soon seen galloping in every direction. He announced the treason to Colonel Wade, commanding at West Point, in the absence of Colonel Lamb, in the single sentence," General Arnold is gone to the enemy." Having done all he could to arrest the tremendous evils that threatened to overwhelm him, Washington retired late at night to his bed, fearful that the sound of the enemy's cannon, under the auspices of Arnold's treacherous schemes, would awake him before daylight. It happily did not prove so.

A court-martial, having condemned Andre as a spy, Sir Henry Clinton, the British general, put forth every effort to avert the dreadful fate of his officer. He sent three commissioners to reason and remonstrate with the officers of the court. He appealed to Washington, while Arnold wrote him a threatening letter, declaring if Andre was hung he would revenge his death on every American prisoner that fell into his hands. Washington deigned no reply to the letter, but tenderly forwarded

Washington, though his heart was filled with the keenest sorrow for the fate of one so universally beloved, and possessed of such noble qualities of heart and mind, refused to arrest the course of justice. As in all cases where great trouble came upon him, so in this, he said but little, but

Arnold was made brigadier-general in the British service, and put on an official level with honorable men, who scorned, however, to associate with him. What golden reward he was to have received had he succeeded in delivering West Point to the enemy, is not known; £30,000, most probably.

highest pleasure and satisfaction, and had given me the happiest presages of success."

A glorious event, one eliciting the most unbounded demonstrations of joy throughout the United States, and which completely destroyed British military power at the south, thus setting the seal of American success upon the contest with the mother country,-was the capture, as announced in the above dispatch, of Lord Cornwallis and his splendid army, at Yorktown, Virginia, in October, 1781, by the combined American and French forces under General Washington and Counts de Rochambeau and Grasse.

In the summer of 1781, Cornwallis had taken possession of several places in the south, and, in the latter part of July, desirous of establishing himself firmly in Virginia, he accordingly selected Yorktown as a suitable defensive post and capable of protecting ships of the line. Little did he think, as he began leisurely to fortify the place, that it was a net which would entangle him in crushed hopes and ruined fortunes. Yorktown is situated at the narrowest part of the peninsula formed by the York and James rivers, where the distance across is but eight miles. By placing his troops, therefore, around the village, and drawing about them a range of outer redoubts and field works calculated to command this peninsula, Cornwallis had, as he thought, established himself well.

Lafayette, with an inferior number of troops, was at this time at Williamsburg, but was unable to make successful engagements with the superior force of the British. Seeing, at once, the importance of putting some check upon the progress of Cornwallis at the south, Washington determined to unite the American and French forces, then in the neighborhood of New York, and join Lafayette at Williamsburg. This junction was effected on the fourteenth of September, Washington being at the head of the American troops, and the Count de Rochambeau at the head of the French forces. At the same time the Count de Grasse, with his fleet, entered

the Chesapeake, after a slight engagement with Admiral Graves off the capes, and was joined by the squadron of the Count de Barras from Newport. Three thousand men, under the Marquis St. Simon, were also added to the troops under Lafayette's command; and these combined forces then moved toward Yorktown and Gloucester, where Corwallis was stationed.

The British general had been expecting aid from Sir Henry Clinton at the north, but so adroitly had Washington withdrawn his troops, that Sir Henry scarcely suspected his design, till it was too late to frustrate it. On the thirteenth of September, the allied army occupied the outer lines of Cornwallis, which that general had abandoned without a struggle. Yorktown was in a short time completely invested; the American army occupying the right, and the French the left, forming a semi-circle with each wing resting upon the river. On the night of the sixth of October the besieging army broke ground within six hundred yards of the British lines; and the first parallel was completed. with little loss. On the ninth and tenth, guns were mounted on the works, and the batteries began to play, with visible effect, on the lines of the enemy. Many of their guns were soon silenced, and their works damaged. By the eleventh, the enemy scarcely returned a shot. The shells and red-hot balls of the besiegers reached the shipping in the harbor, and set the Charon frigate of forty-four guns, and several large transports on fire, which were entirely consumed. On the night of the eleventh, the second parallel was begun within three hundred yards of the British lines. The working parties were not discovered until day-light, when the trenches were in a situation to cover the men.

But there were two redoubts in particular, in front of the British lines and which flanked the second parallel of the Americans, that gave great annoyance to the latter, and it was deemed necessary to carry them by storm. To prevent national jealousy, however, and to keep alive the