"The engineer author of this imperfect draugh begg endulgence for it; considering that he has not paper, pen, rule, neither circel, and being disturbed by good many shells or cannon balls flying in the fort. Lewis Fleur."
The reverse also bears an "Explanation" in French in Fleury's hand, and beneath an English translation in another hand, seemingly made at the time. This last is as follows:—
"Explanation—All marked A are new works. A 1, 2, 3. Traverses to defend the battery from ricochet shot. A 4, 5. Ditches to close the left of the battery, which was open. A 6. A double iron chain which encloses the right of the battery. A 7. Pits with sharp upright stakes to defend the approaches to our enclosure. A 8. Banquet raised round the wall. A 9. Ditches and parapet of reunion between our barracks, which will make a second inclosure and be furnished with loop-holes. A 10. Last retreat in the middle of the Fort, made when we had only 120 men in garrison. A 11. Demilunes to flank the front, substituted to [sic] the block house, which was blown up. A 12, 13, 14. Fraisework.
"15. Enemy's battery of 2 mortars. 16. [Ditto] 5 pieces large cannon, 1 mortar. 17. [Ditto] 2 pieces cannon, 1 mortar. 18. Unfinished Redoubt at a mile and a third from the fort, near the road. 19. A pretty extensive work at about the same distance. 20. Epaulements for the guards."
ATTACK ON FORT MIFFLIN.
Note.—This map is reduced in fac-simile from one of Fleury's pen-and-ink sketches among the Sparks maps at Cornell University. It is endorsed "Mudd Island", but not by Washington, as the Sparks Catalogue (p. 207) says. There are noted in the same catalogue (p. 207) two other pen-and-ink drafts of the fort and its vicinity, both apparently the work of Fleury, also. One is smaller, covering much the same ground as the present fac-simile except that it does not show the ships and Hog Island. It is entitled: "Figuré aproximatif de fort island et des ouvrages des assiégeans. 16 octobre, 1777." It has an "Explanation" in French on the reverse, accompanied by a statement that it had been scrawled on a gun-carriage, without compasses, rule, or scale, and under difficulties arising from the bursting of one bomb which carried away his inkstand, and of another which ploughed the ground where he sat.
The other plan is larger, and has been folded like a letter, and is addressed on the outside, "His Excellency General Washington, Headquarters." It shows only the west edge of Mud Island, but marks particularly the distance, range, and armament of the attacking batteries, and is called, "Figuré aproximatif des ouvrages des assiégeans 14 9bre, 1777." It marks the distance from the redoubt on the highland to Fort Mifflin as "1 mile 1-4 5 p." The wharf on the island is described as "où l'enemie déscendra, quoi que nous l'ayons detruite."