artillery were to be mounted on a hill at the mouth of the
creek, and thence throw red-hot shot into the enemy's ships. The land
forces, however, rendered not the slightest assistance; and a too
cautious colonel posted the battery at such a point that no shot could
reach the enemy without first passing through a hill. Accordingly,
when Barney led his flotilla gallantly down to the attack, he found
that the issue of the conflict rested upon the sailors alone. From the
battery, which was expected to draw the enemy's fire, not a single
effective shot was fired. The sailors fought nobly, using their heavy
long twelves and eighteens with great effect. But they were sadly
hampered by their position; for the mouth of the creek was so narrow
that but eight barges could lie abreast, and the others coming down
from above soon packed the little stream from shore to shore, giving
the enemy a mark that the poorest gunner could hardly miss. Against
the storm of grape and canister that the British poured upon them, the
sailors had absolutely no protection. The barges were without
bulwarks, and the blue-jackets at the guns and at the oars were
exposed to the full force of the British fire. Yet in this exposed
situation the gallant fellows kept up the fight for nearly an hour,
only withdrawing when the last ray of hope for help from the shore
battery had vanished. Shortly after the Americans abandoned the
attack, the blockading squadron got under way and stood down the bay.
From the way in which one of the frigates was working her pumps, the
Americans saw that their fire had not been entirely without effect.

Barney's flotilla had now given the British so much trouble that they
determined to destroy it without delay; and an expedition of more than
five thousand men--composed of regulars, marines, and a few
negroes--was carried up the Patuxent, and landed at Benedict, where an
armed brig had been stationed to cover the disembarkation. It was
early dawn when the signal to land was given, and the river was
covered in an instant with a well-manned and warlike flotilla. It was
hard work for the British sailors, for a strong current was running;
but by three o'clock in the afternoon the whole army was landed, and
encamped in a strong position on a hill overlooking the village.
Though no American troops were anywhere in the vicinity, the landing
was conducted with the utmost caution. As the prow of each boat grated
on the sand, the soldiers le