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January 11
On the 14th December there came an express to our worthy General Jackson to inform of the enemy being In the Bay of St. Louis. The general had not been here then but few days and consequently nothing In readyness to receive them. The confusion of course was great as their fleet consisted of between 50 and 60 vessels and our force had not yet arrived yet but was hourly expected. Of course all the citysans were called to arms and everyone that was capable of carrying a gun was called on duty, and nothing but invalids and old white bearded men appointed to watch and guard the city. All the stores were immediatly Bhut in town and everyone was exercising the greater part of the day. We expected the attack on the river and there was stricked watch kept and the fortifications made very strong and every precaution took to repel them,	when	low	and behold on	the 23rd about two	in the afternoon an
express came in town to say the enemy were landed and only two leagues from town, -it seems there was a little canal that led out of the swamp into Lake Ponchetrain. There by the treachery of some ????? Frenchman, It is presumed, they were conducted allmost to our very doors, and consequently avoided all of our strong forts. The alarm was extreme. Every	soul	was	called to arms	in an Instant, but	fortunatly for	us,
three days previous to their landing, General Coffe had arrived with three thousand riflemen from Tenessee who were encamped A miles above town.	The	alarm	and confusion	is better immagined	than described,	and
what added	much	distress to my	feeling was parting with my Husband,	who
had attached himself to a choir of riflemen to avoid the disagreeable company of militia. It was a company composed of merchants of the city. There was 62 of them. They marched in advance or rather ran* at 4 oclock In the afternoon they started and arrived at the encampment of the enemy a little after twilight where they found them all arouind their fires with their arms grounded and reveling in mirth. I suppose at the idea of having taken us such easy prey. They had no idea of being attacked that night and before next morning would have been in town. But their plans were interupted. Our people commenced amost galling fire on them and the action commenced most violently. Two vessels of war had been sent down the river to rake them with cannon which played on them an hour and then they retreated back. They suffered considerably and so did we, but none so much as the choir that Henry belonged to as they opened the action and were in the heart of it and nothing to obstruct the bullets. Out of the 62 there is only 25 returned but we have not heard of the deaths of but	three. The	others were	wounded	and	taken prisoner. Henry
was wounded in	the leg, a	ball passed	through	and	injured the small bone
but he Is now almost well. After he was wounded he took a prisoner made him through away his gun and carry him off the field. Had It not been for that circumstance he would have been taken prisoner two. Our people took near a hundred of the British that night. The next morning every thing was opperating in the defensive. There went a requisition from General Jackson in the country for 6 hundred negros to work on our fortifications. They are now as strong as its possible to make them. The lowest is 4 miles below the city and they have made another a convenient distance above and another still above that. The enemy is fortifiing to and seem making preparations for a long siege I am affraid. After their repulse on the 23rd, they attempted again on the 28th and were again repulsed. Our	force was	then pretty strong	and	is dayly increasing.
Everyone here	within three hundred	miles	that	can be spared from