It was a most unhappy circumstance, that with qualities of a high military order-brave, resolute, and ready in expedients-Arnold was continually exposed to charges of moral imperfection, through a want of prudence and regard for public opinion. And in this manner, having provoked reports against his character, he, as will appear, actually resorted to criminal designs, as a justifiable reprisal for what he felt to be the scorn of the world.

While suffering under real or imaginary wrongs, Arnold eagerly plunged into a new military movement. Under the orders of General Gates, he took the command of a small armament of vessels on Lake Champlain, with the view of attacking the British squadron. The American force was considerably inferior to the British, and it was felt by the former that they would require to depend mainly on their bravery and certain advantages in their position. The two fleets came to an engagement on the morning of the 11th of October. While the British were coming round Valcour Island, Arnold had ordered his three galleys, and a schooner called the Royal Savage, to get under-way, and advance upon the enemy. On their return to the line, the schooner grounded, and was afterwards destroyed, but the men were saved. At half-past twelve, the action became general and very warm, the British having brought all their gun-boats and one schooner within musket-shot of the American line. They kept up a heavy fire of round and grape shot till five o'clock, when they withdrew from the contest, and joined the ship and schooner, which a head-wind had prevented from coming into action.

During the contest, Arnold was on board the Congress galley, which suffered severely. It received seven shots between wind and water, was hulled twelve.times, the mainmast was injured in two places, the rigging cut in pieces, and the proportion of killed and wounded was unusually great. So deficient was the fleet in gunners, that Arnold himself pointed almost every gun that was fired from his vessel. The American force being greatly damaged, a consultation was held by the officers as soon as the engagement was over; and they agreed that, considering the exhausted state of their ammunition, and the great superiority of the enemy's force both in ships and men, prudence required them to return to Crown Point, and, if possible, without risking another attack. The British had anchored their vessels in a line within a few hundred yards of the Americans, stretching from the island to the main, apparently to frustrate any such design. The night was dark, but a favouring breeze blew from the north, and before morning Arnold had passed with his whole fleet through the British line entirely undiscovered. This manœuvre was not less bold in its execution than extraordinary in its success. Arnold himself brought up the rear in his crippled galley; and, before their departure was known to the enemy, they had ascended the lake ten or twelve miles to Schuyler's Island. Here they were obliged to cast anchor for half a day, in order to stop the leaks and

repair their sails. Two of the gondolas were abandoned and sunk. In the afternoon they set sail again; but the wind had died away in the morning, and it now sprung up from the south, equally retarding the pursuit of the enemy and their own progress.

On the morning of the second day, the scene was changed. The Congress and Washington galleys, with four gondolas, had fallen in the rear, all being too much disabled to sail freely. The advanced ships of the enemy's fleet, in one of which was General Carleton, were found to be gaining upon them, under a press of sail, and in a short time were alongside. After receiving a few broadsides, the Washington struck, having been extremely weakened by the loss of men, and injury received in the first engagement. The whole force of the attack now fell upon Arnold in the Congress galley. A ship of eighteen guns, a schooner of fourteen, and another of twelve, poured forth an unceasing fire within musket-shot. The contest was kept up with unparalleled resolution for four hours, when the galley was reduced almost to a wreck, and was surrounded by seven sail of the enemy. In this situation, Arnold ran the galley and the four gondolas into a small creek on the east side of the lake, about ten miles from Crown Point; and as soon as they were aground, and were set on fire, he ordered the marines to leap into the water, armed with muskets, wade to the beach, and station themselves in such a manner on the bank as to prevent the approach of the enemy's small boats. He was the last man that remained on board; nor did he leave his galley till the fire had made such progress that it could not be extinguished. The flags were kept flying; and he maintained his attitude of defence on the shore till he saw them consumed, and the whole of his flotilla enveloped in flames. There are few instances on record of more deliberate courage and gallantry than were displayed by him from the beginning to the end of this action.

Being no longer in a condition to oppose the enemy, he proceeded immediately through the woods with his men to Crown Point, and fortunately escaped an attack from the Indians, who waylaid the path two hours after he had passed. The same night he arrived at Ticonderoga. All his clothes, papers, and baggage had been burned in the Royal Savage at Valcour Island. Notwithstanding the signal failure of this enterprise, the valour and good conduct of the commander and his officers were themes of applause throughout the country.

While

After this affair, Arnold was employed some time in Boston, concerting plans with the legislature for raising fresh forces. engaged in this service, an incident happened which made him begin to talk of the ingratitude of his country, and which had an important bearing on his future destiny. In February 1777, Congress appointed five new major-generals, without including him in the list, all of whom were his juniors in rank, and one of them, General

Lincoln, was promoted from the militia. It may well be imagined what effect this tacit censure and public slight would have on a person so sensitive to military glory, and whose reputation and prospects rested on that basis alone. He was totally unprepared for such a testimony of the opinion of Congress, and his astonishment was not less than his indignation; but he had the self-command to conceal his emotions, and to demean himself with more moderation than might have been expected. Washington was surprised and concerned, as he feared the ill effects which such a proceeding might have upon the officers, knowing the extreme jealousy with which military men regard the subject of rank and promotion, and considering this feeling as essential to the vital interests of the army. He wrote to Arnold a soothing letter, begging him to take no hasty steps, and expressing his conviction that there was some mistake, which would in due time be rectified. He added assurances of his own endeavours to promote what he deemed in this case the claim of justice as well as of policy. Arnold was unwilling to submit to these temperate counsels, and he set out in person to challenge the procedure of Congress. While on the way, an occasion accidentally occurred for taking a part in attacking a detachment of British forces; and this he performed in so gallant a manner, that Congress at once promoted him to the rank of major-general. But unfortunately his relative rank was not restored, and he was left, by the date of his commission, below the five major-generals who had been raised over him. Still indignant at his misusage, he requested an inquiry into his conduct; and this being complied with, he was acquitted of all blame, and it was acknowledged that he had been groundlessly aspersed. Nevertheless, his rank was not restored; and thus matters remained very much where they were. Another circumstance gave fresh cause for irritation. He claimed a settlement of his accounts with Congress; and as it appeared, on examination, that he had introduced a series of extravagant charges in his own favour, settlement was refused, or at least delayed. Again he proposed to resign; but just at this crisis his services were required in a distant part of the country, and he set aside private considerations in favour of the public good. In this new career, he acquitted himself so satisfactorily, that Congress, retracting its unjust decision, gave him the full rank he had claimed, and General Washington presented him with a set of epaulets and sword-knot.

Arnold's next appointment was to the command of Philadelphia, which proved unfortunate; for he was brought into collision with the civil authorities, and charged with public oppression. Appealing to Congress in vindication of his conduct, he failed in procuring the anticipated redress (March 1779); and even a trial by a courtmartial, which he insisted on, was postponed, on account of the present exigencies of the service. At length, however, a trial was granted, and the judgment of the court was, that, while innocent of

the main charges, he had been guilty of certain irregularities meriting reprimand. He was reprimanded by Washington accordingly. The decision was received with an ill grace by Arnold; and concealing his resentment, he asked and received liberty to retire for a time into private life in Philadelphia.

The history of this extraordinary man now takes a downward direction towards ruin and infamy. In Philadelphia, he heedlessly indulged in a style of extravagant living far beyond his means; and had recourse to privateering enterprises, and various commercial speculations, to support his expenditure. On one occasion, he formed a copartnership with two other individuals for purchasing goods within the enemy's lines to the amount of £30,000 sterling. The results of these transactions were frequently unfortunate; and he thus contracted debts to a large amount. On one occasion, he attempted to borrow money from M. de Luzerne, the French ambassador in Philadelphia, with whom he had contracted an intimacy; but that gentleman refused to assist him, and pointed out the dangerous and improper course he was pursuing. This rebuff was acutely felt by Arnold, who now endured the mortification of having fruitlessly exposed his pecuniary difficulties. It was about this period that he formed designs of a decidedly treasonable nature. For some little time he had secretly carried on an intercourse with the British, without any definite aim; but now he had reached a point when it was necessary to form decisive resolutions, and follow out a line of policy seemingly the best calculated to promote his base and selfish ends. His mind was made up: he determined on betraying his country for gain.

Our authority in this strange narrative mentions that another circumstance contributed to the defection of Arnold. Shortly after coming to Philadelphia, he had married a young lady of charming accomplishments, who had been captivated with his splendid style of living and display. This lady's acquaintance lay chiefly among those inhabitants who were disposed to the British connection, and had no sympathy with the struggles of the Americans. By persons of this class with whom he now associated, Arnold's discontent was blown into a flame. They spoke of his ill-treatment, and persuaded him that nothing but ingratitude and injustice would be the reward of all his services. Brooding over his wrongs, and agitated by these dangerous expressions of sympathy, Arnold appears to have struck out a plan that would minister to his revenge, and bring him a rich reward. This plan consisted in his being appointed to take the command of West Point, a garrisoned post on the Hudson, and which was the key to some other posts of importance in possession of the Americans. By having West Point under his charge, he could deliver up a number of places to the British, and inflict a serious blow on the American cause.

To take the first step in this treasonous course, it was necessary

to procure the appointment to West Point, and for this purpose he visited General Washington. The general was glad to see Arnold, for whom he could find work suited to his energetic character; and he was somewhat disappointed to find that Arnold spoke of being disabled from active duty, and that the command of West Point would probably be better adapted to him than any other. On this occasion, Washington did not accede to these overtures; but soon afterwards the desired appointment was conferred, and Arnold proceeded to his assigned post in the highlands of the Hudson.

We may now introduce the second personage of our history. Mrs Arnold, as has been said, had formed intimacies among persons friendly to the British connection. Among these was a young English officer, Major John André, to whom she had become known during the occupancy of Philadelphia by a British army. After the departure of the English from the town, she carried on a friendly correspondence by letter with André. This correspondence continued after her marriage, and was ingeniously made use of by Arnold, without even exciting his wife's suspicions. Under cover of her letters, he entered upon and kept up an epistolary intercourse through André with Sir Henry Clinton. Fictitious names were employed on both sides. André affixed to his letters the signature of John Anderson, and Arnold assumed the name of Gustavus. They also wrote in a disguised hand, and used other devices to avoid detection.

André, who, on the part of the British commander, carried on this furtive correspondence, was descended from a respectable family from Geneva, which had removed from that place to London, where this son was born. Being designed for the mercantile profession, he entered the counting-house of a respectable establishment in London, where he continued three or four years. While thus entering on active life, he formed an attachment for a young lady, which was reciprocated; but the marriage was defeated by the opposition of the lady's father. The lady was afterwards married to another person; and from this time André became disgusted with his peaceful pursuits, and resolved to seek relief in the turmoils and dangers of war. He joined the British army in Canada, with a lieutenant's commission. In his first American campaign, he was taken prisoner. Afterwards released, he became aide-de-camp to General Guy; and from this officer he was transferred, in the same capacity, to Sir Henry Clinton.

Every account of André represents him as adding to a graceful and handsome person many accomplishments of mind and manners. He was passionately fond of the fine arts, and had attained very considerable skill in drawing and painting. A journal of his travels and campaigns in America, which he kept from the time of his first arrival in Canada, contained lively and picturesque sketches of the people, their dresses, houses, and other objects, illustrating the