Agreable to your Excellency’s Orders, I have visited the posts below, from whence I have this instant return’d, the wheather, since I arrived here, being remarkably dull, put it out of my power to report, before, with that accuracy that you wish—I lay last night with 12 men between fort Lee & Bulls ferry, the Troops on the Island were remarkably quiet, & but two small fires to be seen, one kept by a Water Guard encamp’d in 9 tents & one marque upon the point obliquely in front of fort Washington, where in 76 we erected a half-moon Battery, & the other, in rear of Cartrights House inclining towards the entrance (by water) of McGowen’s Pass.

As soon as it was light this morning, I tooke post above fort Lee, & remain’d there untill I had satisfy’d myself with respect to every thing exposed to view—within the work at fort Washington is a large Barrack, with 3 Stack of Chimnies, & a House in its rear, which I suppose is occupied by the Officers Station’d in the fort—the construction of the fort, I presume your Excellency is acquainted with, it is defended by a ditch, & strong pointed Pallisadoes thickly planted in the face of the work nearly horizontal, part of the right Curtain of the salient Angle towards the City appears to be considerably defaced & neglected, it is defended by three Embrazures & the five of the opposite Curtain, only viewing it obliquely, I cannot assent whether they are furnish’d with Cannon or not—the Gorge of the work fronts the City, & is upon the right of the rentrant Angle, it is large, & the ditch appears filled at its entrance, the Barracks fronts Kings bridge, in which front appears their parade for roll-call &c.—the Esplanade must be small when we consider the proportion the Barracks bear to the work—If an attack should be made upon an unexpected Quarter I think confusion must ensue, in consequence of the Houses occupying the Centre, & the troops pressing to the point of attack thro’ a contracted space.

The fort in front that supports the left of the Barrier appears in good order—Near the blue Bell are Hutts in line, & two marques—as they kindled their fires I traced the smoak, & discovered Hutts on the left of the fort, from the Idea I have of the ground, I immagine these Hutts run parallel to the road between fort Washington & Laurel Hill, the Chimnies are to be seen the whole distance, except where the sumit of the Hill & the work intercepts the view—there is also a Barack near the Barrier, standing some distance from & at right angles with the last of the Hutts mentioned, this has 5 stack of Chimnies and appears new. I could discover but very little of any of the works on laurel Hill, I observed two Centinels on works over & some distance from fort washington, with a small number of Hutts, irregularly built—the Centinels appear to be Hessian.

From the Blue Bell to Cortrights or the Brick House, there are no troops, not even a pickett or a Centinel, that I could discover—there appear to be officers quarter’d at this House, & 5 very small Hovels in different parts of the open field in rear, but do not appear as a guard or to have any particular business, or connection with the House—on the west of the road about 200 yards upon the right in front of the house are barracks, that are partly screen’d from the view by a Hill. In The House where General Greene quarterd in 76 appears to be occupied by officers, & from the south side of the Hill facing it, where we fortify’d after the action of the 16th of Septr 76 regular Smoaks arose in the morning & continued, from this I conclude there are Baracks there also. The Hollow way across the Island is entirely open & free from troops—The western face of the Island is free from troops excepting the two small guards mentioned—The guard on the shore in rear of Cortrights, appears to furnish but one Centinel & the water guard I belive, rely upon the vigilence of their boats & ships for their security—From the smoaks that arose I am of opinion, there is another Cantoonment somewhere near the 7 mile stone.

Under these Circumstances the most favourable place for landing in case of an attack, is upon a small flatt, about midway between Morris’s House and Cortrights, where by all the troops, excepting those, immediately in the vicinity of the forts, will be thrown a considerable way in rear, & no apparent difficulty with respect to picketts or Centinels, in short, the passage from this flatt to the defaced angle of fort washington is open, & perhaps sufficiently in rear of the troops at the Blue bell, to pass unobserved, should not the alarm take, previous to our arrival at that point—The advance upon laurel Hill may be less difficult, as there is more ground between the front of the troops & the margin of Harlem Creeck, than there is from their rear, to the No. River, but the nature of the ground is such, that I was not able to fix an opinion only on conjecture.

The two ships lay opposite Spiten-Devil, & a Brig. under fort Washington, whose Station is unsettled—The ships seem equally to divide the distance from Shore to Shore, and in their present position, I think it scarcely possible for a single boat to pass unobserv’d, this however I shall attempt, & land upon the Island, & reconnoitre towards fort Washington, as far as prudence will Justify; provided it meets with your Excellency’s approbation.

There are four ships lay at the mouth of the river & several heavy guns fir’d at the Hooke; between 10 & 11 A.M. one of the ships fired 10 Guns destinctly, this I observ’d but cannot account for.

I am under the necessity of observing that keeping my Horses without a forage master is very expensive & I am out of Cash—I am with the greatest respect Your Excellency’s most devoted & obliged Servt