Though gen. Howe made no capital stroke at the commander in chief of the Americans; yet he concerted an operation against the post which gen. M’Dougall occupied, and where a considerable quantity of provisions and stores was deposited. A detachment of 500 men under col. Bird was convoyed by the Brunc frigate to Peek’s-kill, near fifty miles from New-York. They landed on the 23d of March. As the general had but 250 men fit for duty, insted of 600 to guard the place, which lay in a bottom and was not tenable, he fired the principal store-houses, and then quitted the town in order to occupy the important pass through the highlands, on the east side of the river, about two miles and a half distant. The fire rendered useless the only wharf where it was practicable to embark the remaining stores in convenient time, which made it expedient to destroy the greater part. Col. Bird having done it, and hearing a reinforcement was expected by the Americans, re-embarked the same day. The loss of rum, molasses, flour, biscuit, pork, beef, wheat, oats, hay, tallow, iron pots, camp kettles, canteens, bowls, nails, waggons and carts, barracks, store-houses, sloops and pettiaugers laden with provisions, was very considerable, far beyond what was given out by the Americans, though not of that importance and magnitude, as to answer the expectations of gen. Howe. Gen. Washington had repeatedly guarded the commissary against suffering any large quantities of provisions to lie near the water, in such places as were accessable to the enemy’s shipping; but he had not been properly attended to. The want of muskets occasioned a delay in forwarding the new troops from the Massachusetts: but many of the militia from that state were persuaded to remain at Morristown for some weeks longer than the fixed time of service. Fifteen hundred of the new troops would have been upon their march, but the general court could not supply them with arms. The perplexity occasioned by this circumstance was however of short continuance. On the day of its commencement or the following, a vessel of fourteen guns from France arrived at Portsmouth with 364 cases, containing 11,987 stand: she had also on board a thousand barrels of powder, 11,000 gun-flints, 48 bales of woollens, and a small quantity of handkerchiefs, cottons, linens, and other articles. Congress were under a similar distress with the Massachusetts general court, as to the procuring of arms for gen. Washington’s army; but obtained a similar relief, by the arrival of a vessel, [March 24.] with 10,000 stand, beside a great number of gun-locks. These seasonable arrivals will furnish an ample supply of arms: the main difficulty will now be to get men to use them. Dr. Franklin arrived at Nantz the 13th of December.