_Whitehall, December 30, 1776_ This morning, Captain Gardner, one of General Sir William Howe's aids de camps, arrived in his Majesty's ship _Tamar_ from New York, with the following dispatches from General Sir William Howe to Lord George Germain: MY LORD, _New York, November 30, 1776._ The service in which I have been employed since the departure of Captain Balfour with advice of the reduction of New York, would not allow of an earlier time to send an account to your Lordship of the progress made from that period. The very strong positions the enemy had taken on this island and fortified with incredible labour determined me to get upon their principal communication with Connecticut, with a view of forcing them to quit the strongholds in the neighborhood of King's Bridge, and if possible bring them to action. All previous arrangements having been made, the army embarked on the 12th of October, in flat boats and other craft, and passing through the dangerous navigation of Hell Gate in a very thick fog, landed on Frog's Neck, near the town of West Chester, about nine in the morning, the _Carysfort_ being placed to cover the descent. The presence of Lord Howe, the activity of Commodore Hotham, most of the Captains of the fleet, and of the navy officers in general, were infinitely conducive to the King's service in this difficult movement; only one artillery boat was overset, having three six-pounders on board, which were lost, and three men drowned. Lieutenant-General Earl Percy remained with two brigades of British and one of the Hessians in the lines near Haerlem, to cover New York. The army remained in this situation until the stores and provisions could be brought up, and three battalions of Hessians drawn from Staten Island, which, together with some bad weather intervening, caused a delay of five days. On the 18th several corps re-embarked in flatboats, and passing round Frog's Neck, landed on Pell's Point at the mouth of Hutchinson's River; after which the main body crossed the mouth of that river to the same place, advanced immediately and laid that night upon their arms, with the left upon a creek opposite to East Chester, and the right near to New Rochelle.