guineas; but in such a
moment even gold could not prevail upon a vulgar soul, and they rushed
unheeding on. Disgusted at such pusillanimity, and his heart big with
despair, Braddock refused to be removed, and bade the faithful friends
who lingered by his side to provide for their own safety. He declared
his resolution of leaving his own body on the field; the scene that had
witnessed his dishonor he desired should bury his shame. With manly
affection, Orme disregarded his injunctions; and Captain Stewart, of
Virginia, the commander of the light-horse which were attached to the
general's person, with another American officer, hastening to Orme's
relief, his body was placed first in a tumbrel, and afterward upon a
fresh horse, and thus borne away. Stewart seems to have cherished a
sense of duty or of friendship toward his chief that did not permit him
to desert him for a moment while life remained.

It was about five o'clock in the afternoon when the English abandoned
the field. Pursued to the water's edge by about fifty savages the
regular troops cast from them guns, accoutrements, and even clothing,
that they might run the faster. Many were overtaken and tomahawked here;
but where they had once crossed the river, they were not followed. Soon
turning from the chase, the glutted warriors made haste to their
unhallowed and unparalleled harvest of scalps and plunder. The
provincials, better acquainted with Indian warfare, were less
disconcerted; and though their losses were as heavy, their behavior was
more composed. In full possession of his courage and military instincts,
Braddock still essayed to procure an orderly and soldier-like retreat;
but the demoralization of the army now rendered this impossible. With
infinite difficulty, a hundred men, after running about half a mile,
were persuaded to stop at a favorable spot where Braddock proposed to
remain until Dunbar should arrive, to whose camp Washington was sent
with suitable orders. It will thus be seen how far was his indomitable
soul from succumbing in the discharge of his duties, beneath the
unexpected burthen that had been laid upon him. By his directions Burton
posted sentries here, and endeavored to form a nucleus around which to
gather the shattered remains of the troops, and where the wounded might
be provided for.

But all was idle. In an hour's time almost every soldier had stolen
away, leaving their officers deserted. These, making the best of their
way of