mediately upon this I caused two men to fire their pistols in the
wood, at two different places, as far asunder as I could. This I did
to give them an alarm, and amuse them; for being in the lane, they
would otherwise have got through before we had been ready, and I
resolved to engage them there, as soon as 'twas possible. After this
alarm, we rushed out of the wood, with about a hundred horse, and
charged them on the flank in a broad lane, the wood being on their
right. Our passage into the lane being narrow, gave us some difficulty
in our getting out; but the surprise of the charge did our work; for
the enemy, thinking we had been a mile or two before, had not the
least thoughts of this onset, till they heard us in the wood, and then
they who were before could not come back. We broke into the lane just
in the middle of them, and by that means divided them; and facing to
the left, charged the rear. First our dismounted men, which were near
fifty, lined the edge of the wood, and fired with their carabines upon
those which were before, so warmly, that they put them into a great
disorder. Meanwhile fifty more of our horse from the farther part of
the wood showed themselves in the lane upon their front. This put them
of the foremost party into a great perplexity, and they began to face
about, to fall upon us who were engaged in the rear. But their
facing about in a lane where there was no room to wheel, as one who
understands the manner of wheeling a troop of horse must imagine, put
them into a great disorder. Our party in the head of the lane taking
the advantage of this mistake of the enemy, charged in upon them, and
routed them entirely.

Some found means to break into the enclosures on the other side of the
lane, and get away. About thirty were killed, and about twenty-five
made prisoners, and forty very good horses were taken; all this while
not a man of ours was lost, and not above seven or eight wounded.
Those in the rear behaved themselves better, for they stood our charge
with a great deal of resolution, and all we could do could not break
them; but at last our men who had fired on foot through the hedges at
the other party, coming to do the like here, there was no standing
it any longer. The rear of them faced about and retreated out of
the lane, and drew up in the open field to receive and rally their
fellows. We killed about seventeen of them, and followed them to the
end of the lane, but had no mind to have an