The ship on the stocks and the naval stores were destroyed to prevent the Enemy from getting possession of them. [p. 8] An attempt to set fire to the Gloucester that was fitting out for purposes of transport, proved abortive; she was aground a mere hulk, her repairs not being half finished: I have been informed that the enemy succeeded in getting her off, and putting her into a state to be towed away; a number of shipwrights having arrived from Sackett's harbour with the expectation of employing them in a similar task on our new ship.
The accounts of the number of the Enemy landed vary from eighteen hundred and ninety to three thousand [!], our force consisted of a Bombardier and twelve Gunners of the Royal Artillery to assist whom men were drawn from other corps, two companies of the 8th or King's Regiment, one of them, the Grenadiers, being on its route for Fort George, about a company in number, of the Royal [p. 9] Newfoundland regiment, and one of the Glengary Light Infantry, and about three hundred Militia and Dock Yard men; the quality of some of these troops was of so superior a description, and their general disposition so good, that under less unfavourable circumstances we might have repulsed the Enemy in spite of his numbers, or have made him pay dearly for success; as it was, according to the reports that have reached me, his loss was much greater than ours, a return of which I have the honour of transmitting, except of that of the Militia, of which a return has not yet been received; but I believe it to have been inconsiderable: Donald McLean Esqr Clerk of the House of Assembly gallantly volunteered his services with a musket, and was killed.
[p. 10] Captain Jarvis of the Incorporated Militia, a meritorious Officer, who had a share in the successes at Detroit and Queenston, had been sent with a party of Militia in three batteaux for the Militia Clothing, which had been left on the road from Kingston, he came to me during the action to report his arrival, and soon afterwards he was severely wounded: a few of the Indians (Missasagus & Chipeways) were killed and wounded, among the latter were two chiefs.
Thinking it highly probable that the Enemy would pay an early visit to York, I had remained there long beyond the period I had originally assigned for my departure to fort George, in order to expedite the preparations which the means in my power enabled me to make for the defence of the place; Your [p. 11] Excellency knows that I had intended to place Colonel Myers, Acting Quarter Master General, in the command there, at least for a time; I afterwards learnt that Colonel Young was in movement towards me with the 8th or King's Regt. I then decided to give him the Command to avoid the inconvenience of seperating (sic) the head of a department from me, and being informed that he was to move up by himself as speedily as possible, I was for some time in daily expectation of seeing him; at length, having reason to believe that he was to accompany one of the divisions of his Regiment, I wrote to him both by the land and by the water route to come to me without delay; about the 25th of April I received certain intelligence, of what had been [p. 12] before rumoured, that he was detained at Kingston by a severe illness, and on the 26th I learnt that Colonel Myers was to leave Fort George that day for York, I therefore determined to wait for his arrival, and to leave him in the command until Colonel Young might be in a state to relieve him; it was in the evening of the same day that I heard of the approach of the Enemy: I have thought it proper to enter into this explanation, as Your Excellency may have expected that I had returned to Fort George before the period at which the attack was made on York. I propose remaining here until I shall have received Your Excellency's Commands.
I have the honour to be,
With great respect,
Your Excellency's
Most obedient
humble servant
[Signed] R. H. Sheaffe.
M. Gen. Command.
His Excellency
Sir. George Prevost. Bt
et. et. et.
Certified a true copy of the original letter in the Department of Archives, Ottawa.
[Signed] L. P. Sylvain, Assist. Libr., Nov. 2d, 1894.
Here is the clear and intelligible testimony of the British commanding general to the facts that there were two explosions, one of which was accidental and destructive to his own men, the other designed and executed by his own command. It is believed to have been a little premature, in the confusion of an evacuation that was nothing short of a rout, before the defenders were quite out of reach of its effects; but that they suffered little from what wrought such havoc with the Americans, is incontestable. The ethics of the catastrophe I leave to be discussed by professional military critics; but it seems to me that General Sheaffe was justified in inflicting the utmost possible injury upon the enemy, and that he would have been chargeable with culpable neglect of duty if he had allowed valuable munitions of war to fall into their hands.
Before resuming the main thread of this painful narration I will introduce two accounts, both by eye-witnesses.
One of these is contained in an extract of a letter from a field officer in the force which landed at York, name not given, to the War Department, as published in Niles' Register, IV. p. 193. It is explicit regarding both explosions, though loose in statement of numbers killed by each, and in some other respects: