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Head winds, which began with a fresh breeze off King's Ferry and culminated in a three days' hurricane, knocked us about the Tappan Zee, driving us frounboats, under bare poles, tossing on the gray fury of the Hudson, and a sloop of war, sprit on the rocks, buried under the sprouting spray below Dobbs Ferry Safer had we been in the open ocean off the Narrohere the great winds drive bellowing froales that burst froes of cannon, and the Wind-Flower staggered and heeled, reeling through the Tappan Zee as a great water-fowl, crippled and stung to terror, drives blindly into the spindrift, while shot on shot strikes, yet ends not the frantic struggle

Once ere beaten back so far that, in the dark ind of dawn, I saw a fire-ball go whirring aloft and spatter the eastern horizon Then, through the shrilling of the teun to port booe of the British lines, and the batteries on Cock Hill opened on us, and a guard-ship to the west had joined in Southeast a red glare leaped, and died out as Fort Tryon fired a mortar, while the Wind-Flower, bulwarks awash, heeled and heeled, staggering to the shelter of Tetard's Hill South the beacons ablaze,the chevaux de frise below Fort Lee, and on the Jersey shore the patrol's torches flashing along the fort road But we had set a bit o' rag under Tetard's Hill, and sloe crept north again past Yonkers, struggling desperately at Phillips, butBoar's Hill and Dobbs Ferry by ht the wind shifted so suddenly that from Tappan to Tarrytoas but a jack-snipe's twist, and we lay snug in Haverstraw Bay, under the lee of the Heights of North Castle, scarce an hour's canoe-paddle from the wharf where we had eunboat holding us twenty-four hours at Dobbs Ferry--why, I never knew--and, at the Chain, two days' delay were required before they let us pass

When at last we signaled West Point, at the close of one long, cal mountain sunset, the black fortress beckoned us to anchor, nor had we any choice but to obey the silent suainst the cinders of the dying sun