mar 25, 1780 - Skirmish at Dorchester Road

Description:

Hessin Capt. Johann Ewald ordered to fire on the flanks of Patriot cavalry approaching their post, and his men managed to only hit one man, a sergeant of the 3rd Regiment of Continental Light Dragoons. The sergeant was so far in front of the rest that he was an easy target, getting hit in the stomach.
Capt. Ewald asked the dying sergeant why he had acted so rashly and he replied: "Sir, Colonel Washington promised me that I would become an officer right away if I could discover whether the Jaegers were supported by infantry and had cannon with them, because if not, he would try to harass the Jaegers."
The British surgeon told the sergeant that his wound was mortal. The sergeant replied, "Well then, I die for my country and for its just cause." Capt. Ewald gave the dying man a glass of wine, "which he drank with relish, and then died."

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