The Newport Gazette

Extract of a letter from Philadelphia, dated February 13:

Could you but look into this once flourishing place, and see the many distressed dejected countenances, no business, war with its train of miseries, is but too justly feared on the brows of many of our acquaintance; nor are they so stupid but to know they must be subjected to British government, though they wilfully persist in their own destruction. We have been very high-spirited here for some time, but dare not shew the least outward appearance of it. Taking the Hessians at Trenton, gave the Rebel army new life, together with the little success they met with from your foraging party: though it is not even a drop in the bucket to the cause, yet this small matter serves the ends of the Congress, or all would have been lost to them before this. The Congress, prior to the Trenton affair, thought proper to move themselves, with their papers, to Lancaster, 40 miles from this city: but not thinking it convenient there, have moved to Baltimore, 20 miles into Maryland; but judging, if they ran away so fast from the fighting folks, their army would not think themselves safe, therefore they have what they call a Committee of Congress sitting here, to transact small matters. The Congress, when your army advanced near the Delaware, grew very uneasy, being advised they were unsafe amongst the disaffected, as I assure you we do not decrease in this city, but, like a ball of snow, by being tumbled about, grow larger.

There is a large body of people in arms in the hither part of Virginia, by what I can learn, bear 2000, determined to rout those Birds of Darkness, the Congress at Baltimore; in consequence of which all the Lower Counties are in arms, to quell the insurrection, as they call it, from that quarter. You could not but laugh, though pity them, to see how they are obliged to train every rope in the ship, to prevent being wrecked: we imagine March winds will be very near stranding them. I am sorry they began in Virginia to move before your army, as I fear they will be obliged to give over, as there is betwixt 3 and 4000 men gone to disperse them.