At his anchorage ground he found De Barras with the squadron from Newport, and fourteen transports laden with heavy artillery, and military stores proper for carrying on a siege.

The British admiral approaching the capes, found the entrance of the Chesapeake defended by a force with which he was unable to contend, and therefore bore away for New York.
[Sidenote: Plan of operations against Lord Cornwallis.] [Sidenote: The combined armies march for the Chesapeake.] General Washington had determined to entrust the defence of the Hudson to General Heath, and to command the southern expedition in person.
All the French, and a detachment amounting to upwards of two thousand men from the continental army, were destined for this service.

On the 19th of August, Hazen's regiment and the Jersey line, were directed to pass the Hudson at Dobbs' ferry, and take a position between Springfield and Chatham, where they were to cover some bake-houses to be constructed in the neighbourhood, for the purpose of veiling the real designs of the American chief, and of exciting fears for Staten Island.

On the same day, the whole army was put in motion; and on the twenty-fifth the passage of the river was completed.
[Sidenote: September 6.] To conceal as long as possible the real object of this movement, the march of the army was continued until the thirty-first, in such a direction as to keep up fears for New York; and a considerable degree of address was used to countenance the opinion that the real design was against that place.

The letters which had been intercepted by Sir Henry Clinton favoured this deception; and so strong was the impression they made that, even after it became necessary for the combined army to leave the route leading down the Hudson, he is stated to have retained his fears for New York, and not to have suspected the real object of his adversary until he had approached the Delaware;[83] and it had become too late to obstruct the progress of the allied army towards Virginia.