HE- AMERICAN
REVOLUTION
56-13656
BBf Anerican revolution
THE
AMERICAN REVOLUTION
By JOHN FISKE
IN TWO VOLUMES
VOLUME I
THE
ILLUSTRATED WITH
PORTRAITS MAPS FACSIMILES
CONTEMPORARY VIEWS PRINTS AND
OTHER HISTORIC MATERIALS
IN TWO VOLUMES
VOLUME I
Washington, fighting for one King George, did
well , Washington, fighting against another King
George, did better FREEMAN, Lecture in
the University of Oxford, February 22, 1886
BOSTON AND NEW YORK
HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN & COMPANY
Copyright, iRgi,
BY JOHN FlbKE.
Copyright, i8<>6,
BY HOUGH r ION, MIFFLIN & CO.
reserved*
TO
MRS. MARY HEMENWAY
IN RECOGNITION OF THE RARE FORESIGHT AND PUBLIC SPIRIT
WHICH SAVED FROM DESTRUCTION ONE OF THE NOBLEST
HISTORIC BUILDINGS IN AMERICA, AND MADE IT A
CENTRE FOR THE TEACHING OF AMERICAN
HISTORY AND THE PRINCIPLES OF
GOOD CITIZENSHIP
J JDJS&ICATJS TfflS BOOK
PREFACE
IN view of the remarkable favour with which this histori-
cal sketch of the American Revolution has been received
by the public, it has seemed worth while to issue a new
edition, enriched with illustrations of the sort that possess
real historical value. Such are maps and diagrams, authen-
tic portraits, facsimiles of documents and autograph signa-
tures, caricatures and satirical prints, contemporary views of
localities and buildings, reproductions of historical paintings,
photographs of seals, medals, monuments, antique furniture,
arms and weapons, etc. Nothing has been admitted into
the book for the mere purpose of embellishment.
The work of gathering these illustrations, many of which
are here made public for the first time, has been very pleas-
ant, though not unattended with difficulties. It has all been
done under my personal direction and supervision. For
help of various sorts from public libraries and learned
societies I have especially to thank Messrs A. R Spofford,
Library of Congress ; S. A. Green, Massachusetts Historical
Society ; W. E Foster, Public Library, Providence, R I ;
J. A. DeBoer, Vermont Historical Society; W De Loss
Love, Connecticut Historical Society; D V. R. Johnston,
State Library of New York; W Eames, Lenox Library;
F. D. Stone, Pennsylvania Historical Society ; H. E. Hay-
den, Wyoming Historical and Geological Society, R G.
vi PREFACE
Thwaites, Wisconsin Historical Society ; W. W. Scott, State
Library of Virginia ; P. A. Bruce, Virginia Historical So-
ciety; F. W. Page, Library of the University of Virginia;
T J. Kiernan, Library of Harvard University; H. M.
Brooks, Essex Institute, Salem ; Miss Florence E. Whitcher,
Gary Library, Lexington. For some valuable contributions
I am indebted to the kindness of Hon. Mellen Chamberlain,
of Boston, whose collection of MSS. and prints is of great
interest. For information on various points I must thank
Gen. James Grant Wilson, of New York, Col William
Leete Stone, of Mount Vernon, N. Y. , and Gen. John
Watts De Peyster, of Tivoh, N. Y. As for the " Memorial
History of Boston " and the "Narrative and Critical His-
tory of America," both edited by my friend and formci col-
league, Dr. Justin Wmsor, the extent and nature of my obli-
gations are carefully indicated in my "Notes on the Illus-
trations," prefixed to each volume of the present work.
In the same annotated list I have made specific acknowledg-
ments of the many favours and courtesies received from
kind friends in the United States and in England.
But there is one of these to whom my indebtedness is
so great as to call for a distinct paragraph. Many persons
have heard of the artistic and antiquarian treasures, illus-
trative of American history, collected by Dr. Thomas Addis
Emmet, of New York ; but few have had the opportunity
to form an idea of their extent and value. From Dr.
Emmet's wealth I have taken far less than he would gladly
have bestowed upon me, for the plan of my book had a
limit, while to his generosity there was none.
Since I wrote the preceding paragraph I have been in-
formed that Dr. Emmet's collection has been placed in the
Lenox Library.
PREFACE vii
It is an obvious comment upon the present work, that a
story of the American Revolution which stops with the sur-
render of Cornwalhs and the consequent fall of Lord North's
ministry is incomplete. One might reply, in general, that
any historical narrative must needs be incomplete wherever
it may happen to stop ; but on the present occasion a more
suitable answer is that the story is continued in my book
entitled "The Critical Period of American History/' the
first chapter of which deals with the Results of Yorktown.
The text of this edition has been thoroughly revised, and
in many places new matter has been added.
CAMBRIDGE, September 10, 1896.
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION
IN the course of my work as assistant librarian of Har-
vard University in 1872 and the next few years, I had occa-
sion to overhaul what we used to call the "American Room,"
and to superintend or revise the cataloguing of some twenty
thousand volumes and pamphlets relating to America. In
the course of this work my attention was called more and
more to sundry problems and speculations connected with
the transplantation of European communities to American
soil, their development under the new conditions, and the
effect of all this upon the general progress of civilization
The study of aboriginal America itself had already pre-
sented to me many other interesting problems in connec-
tion with the study of primitive culture.
In 1879, 1 88 1, and 1882 I gave courses of lectures at the
Old South Meeting-House in Boston, in aid of the fund
for the preservation of that venerable building, and in pur-
suance of Mrs. Hemenway's scheme for making it a place
for the teaching of American history. As to the success
of that scheme we may now speak with some satisfac-
tion The preservation of the noble old church may be
regarded as assured ; the courses of instruction there given
in American history and cognate subjects are attended by
thousands, old and young, especially by school-teachers and
their pupils; and similar courses of study have already
x PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION
been inaugurated in several other cities and towns. It is
believed that the good results of this work will be mani-
fold, and I shall always take pleasure in recollecting that
it started with my lectures of 1879
The general title of those lectures which were after-
ward repeated in London and Edinburgh, and in many
American cities was "America's Place in History " They
dealt chiefly with the discovery and colonization of Amer-
ica, and contained sundry generalizations since embodied
in "American Political Ideas" and in the first chapter of
" The Beginnings of New England " Some further gen-
eralizations of a similar sort will be worked out in my
forthcoming book now in press "The Discovery of
America." 1
While busy in this work, the plan occurred to me in 1881
of writing a narrative history of the United States, neither
too long to be manageable nor too brief to be interesting,
something that might comprise the whole story from 1492
to (say) 1865 within four octavos, like the book of my
lamented friend, the late John Richard Green. Plans of
this sort, to be properly carried out, require much time, and
a concurrence of favourable circumstances, as Mr. Cotter
Morison has pointed out in his sketch of Gibbon. If my
plan is ever fully realized, it can only be after many years,
especially since its dimensions have been greatly expanded
Meanwhile it has seemed to me that fragments of the work
1 The Discovery of 'America, with some Account of Ancient
ica and the Spanish Conquest, 2 vols., crown 8vo, was published in
1892. This book originated in studies of Spanish and Mussulman
history in 1862-64, long before I had begun to feel especially inter-
ested in American history, and I should probably have written it even
if the later interest had never arisen.
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION xi
might as well be published from time to time as to be lying
idle in manuscript in a cupboard. It was with this feeling
that "The Critical Period of American History " and "The
Beginnings of New England " were brought out, and it is
with the same feeling that these volumes on " The Ameri-
can Revolution " are now offered to the public
In writing the story of this period my design was not so
much to contribute new facts as to shape the narrative in
such a way as to emphasize relations of cause and effect
that are often buried in the mass of details. One is con-
stantly tempted, in such a narrative, to pause for discussion,
and to add item upon item of circumstantial description
because it is interesting in itself; but in conformity with
the plan of the book of which this was to have been a part,
it was necessary to withstand such temptations I have
not even undertaken to mention all the events of the Rev-
olutionary War. For example, nothing is said about the
Penobscot expedition, which was a matter of interest to the
people of Massachusetts, but of no significance in relation
to the general history of the war.
The present work is in no sense " based upon " lectures,
but it has been used as a basis for lectures When I had
nearly finished writing it, in 1883, I happened to read a
few passages to some friends, and was thereupon urged to
read a large part of the book in public. This was done in
the Old South Meeting-House early in 1884 The lec-
tures were afterward given in many towns and cities, from
Maine to Oregon, usually to very large audiences. In
Boston, New York, and St Louis the whole course was
given from two to five times; and single lectures were
repeated in many places. I was greatly surprised at the
interest thus shown in a plain narrative of events already
xii PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION
well known, and have never to this day understood the
secret of it
On some accounts I should have been glad to withhold
this book some years longer, in the hope of changing its
plan somewhat and giving the subiect a fuller treatment,
now that it is not to appear as part of a larger work But
so many requests have been made for the story 111 book
form that it has seemed best to yield to them
I have not thought it worth while to add to the present
work a bibliographical note, because, in view of the exist-
ence of Mr. Justin Winsor's "Reader's Handbook of the
American Revolution," such a note would be quite super-
fluous Mr. Wmsor's book contains a vast amount of biblio-
graphical information, most lucidly arranged, within a very
small compass, and costs but a trifle From it the general
reader can find out "where to go " for further information
concerning any and all points that may come up in these
volumes , and if then he still wants more, he may con-
sult the sixth and seventh volumes of Winsor's " Narrative
and Critical History of America," and the appendix to the
eighth volume
ST Louis, April 14, 1891.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
THE BEGINNINGS
PAGE
Relations between the American colonies and the British govern-
ment in the first half of the eighteenth century i
The Lords of Trade ... .... 2
The governors' salaries 3
Sir Robert Walpole 4
Views of the Lords of Trade as to the need for a union of the
colonies 5
Weakness of the sentiment of union 6
The Albany Congress . 6
Franklin's plan for a federal union (1754) . 7, 8
Rejection of Franklin's plan . 9
Shirley recommends a stamp act 10
The writs of assistance II
The chief justice of New York 12
Otis's " Vindication " 13
Expenses of the French War 14
Grenville's resolves . 15
Reply of the colonies 16
Passage of the Stamp Act 17
Patrick Henry and the Parsons' Cause 18
Resolutions of Virginia concerning the Stamp Act . . 19, 20
The Stamp Act Congress 20-22
Declaration of the Massachusetts assembly 22
Resistance to the Stamp Act in Boston 23
And in New York 24
Debate in the House of Commons 25, 26
Repeal of the Stamp Act 26, 27
The Duke of Grafton's ministry 28
Charles Townshend and his revenue acts .... 29-31
Attack upon the New York assembly . ... 32
xiv CONTENTS
Parliament did not properly represent the British people . 32, 33
Difficulty of the problem ... .... 34
Representation of Americans in Parliament 35
Mr. Gladstone and the Boers 36
Death of Townshend 37
His political legacy to George III 37
Character of George III 3$, 39
English parties between 1760 and 1784 .... 40, 41
George III. as a politician 42
His chief reason for quarrelling with the Americans . . .42, 43
CHAPTER II
THE CRISIS
Character of Lord North . 44
John Dickinson and the ' Fanner's Letters " .... 45
The Massachusetts circular letter 46,47
Lord Hillsborough's instructions to Bernard .... 48
The "Illustrious Ninety-Two'* 48
Impressment of citizens 49
Affair of the sloop Liberty 49-5 1
Statute of Henry VIII. concerning " treason committed abroad " . 52
Samuel Adams makes up his rnmd (1768) 53-5^5
Arrival of troops in Boston 56, 57
Letters of "Vindex" 58
Debate in Parliament 59, 60
All the Townshend acts, except the one imposing a duty upon tea,
to be repealed 6l
Recall of Governor Bernard 61
Character of Thomas Hutchinson 61,62
Resolutions of Virginia concerning the Townshend acts . 63
Conduct of the troops in Boston 64
Assault on James Otis 64
The "Boston Massacre" 65-68
Some of its lessons 69-73
Lord North becomes prime minister 72
Action of the New York merchants 73
Assemblies convened in strange places 74
Taxes in Maryland 74
The " Regulators " in North Carolina 74
Affair of the schooner Gaspee 75, 76
The salaries of the Massachusetts judges 76
Jonathan Mayhew's suggestion (1766) 77
CONTENTS xv
The committees of correspondence in Massachusetts ... 78
Intercolonial committees of correspondence 79
Revival of the question of taxation So
The king's ingenious scheme for tricking the Americans into buy-
ing the East India Company's tea 81
How Boston became the battle-ground 82
Advice solemnly sought and given by the Massachusetts towns 82-84
Arrival of the tea ; meeting at the Old South . . . 84, 85
The tea-ships placed under guard 85
Rotch's dilatory manoeuvres 86
Great town meeting at the Old South 87, 88
The tea thrown into the harbour 88, 89
Moral grandeur of the scene 90, 91
How Parliament received the news 91-93
The Boston Port Bill 93
The Regulating Act 93~95
Act relating to the shooting of citizens 96
The quartering of troops in towns 96
The Quebec Act 96
General Gage sent to Boston 97, 98
CHAPTER III
THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS
Protest of the Whig Lords 99
Belief that the Americans would not fight 100
Belief that Massachusetts would not be supported by the other
colonies 101
News of the Port Bill 101, 102
Samuel Adams at Salem 103, 104
Massachusetts nullifies the Regulating Act . . . .105
John Hancock and Joseph Warren 1 06, 107
The Suffolk County Resolves 108
Provincial Congress in Massachusetts 109
First meeting of the Continental Congress (September 5,
1774) no, TII
Debates in Parliament 112,113
William Howe appointed commander-in-chief of the forces in
America .... 113
Richard, Lord Howe, appointed admiral of the fleet . . .114
Franklin returns to America 115
State of feeling in the middle colonies 116
Lord North's mistaken hopes of securing New York . . .117
xvi CONTENTS
Affairs m Massachusetts u8
Dr. Warren's oration at the Old South 119
Attempt to corrupt Samuel Adams 120
Orders to arrest Adams and Hancock 121
Paul Revere's ride 122,123
Pitcairn fires upon the yeomanry at Lexington . . . 124, 125
The troops repulsed at Concord , their dangerous situation 1 26, 1 27
The retreating troops rescued by Lord Percy . . . .128
Retreat continued from Lexington to Charlestown . . . .129
Rising of the country, the British besieged in Boston . 130
Effects of the news in England and in America . . . 130-133
Mecklenburg County Resolves . 133
Legend of the Mecklenburg " Declaration of Independence " 133-135
Benedict Arnold and Ethan Allen 135
Capture of Ticonderoga and Crown Point . . . 136-140
Second meeting of the Continental Congress 141
Appointment of George Washington to command the Continental
army . 142-144
The siege of Boston 145
Gage's proclamation 145
The Americans occupy Bunker's and Breed's hills . . .146
Arrival of Putnam, Stark, and Warren 147
Gage decides to try an assault 148, 149
First assault repulsed 140
Second assault repulsed 150
Prescott's powdei gives out ijo
Third assault succeeds ; the British take the hill * . i$i
British and American losses 151^53
Excessive slaughter , significance of the battle . , . . ' 153
Its moral effects
CHAPTER IV
INDEPENDENCE
Washington's arrival in Cambridge . . . . . I5S
Continental officers : Daniel Morgan i^f,
Benedict Arnold, John Stark, John Sullivan 157
Nathanael Greene, Henry Knox I 5 H
Israel Putnam ? c f j
Horatio Gates and Charles Lee 160
Lee's personal peculiarities 161,163
Dr. Benjamin Church ifo
Difficult work for Washington ' . * . 164
CONTENTS xvii
Absence of governmental organization . . 165
New government of Massachusetts Quly, 1775) J 66
Congress sends a last petition to the king 167
The king issues a proclamation, and tries to hire troops from
Russia ... . 168-170
Catherine refuses ; the king hires German troops . 170
Indignation in Germany ... ... 171
Burning of Falmouth (Portland) . . .171
Effects of all this upon Congress . . . . 172,173
Montgomery's invasion of Canada and capture of Montreal . 174, 175
Arnold's inarch through the wilderness of Maine . .176
Assault upon Quebec (December 31, 1775) 177
Total failure of the attempt upon Canada . 178
The siege of Boston . 179
Washington seizes Dorchester Heights (March 4, 1776) . 180, 181
The British troops evacuate Boston (March 17) .182, 183
Movement toward independence, a provisional flag (January i,
1776) 184
Effect of the hiring of "myrmidons" 185
Thomas Paine 185
His pamphlet entitled " Common Sense " . . . 186, 187
Fulmmations and counter-fulmmations 188
The Scots in North Carolina 188
Sir Henry Clinton sails for the Carolmas .... 189
The fight at Moore's Creek, North Carolina declares for inde-
pendence . . 189
Action of South Carolina and Georgia .... 190
Affairs in Virginia, Lord Dunmore's proclamation . . 190
Skirmish at the Great Bridge, and burning of Norfolk 191
Virginia declares for independence 192
Action of Rhode Island and Massachusetts . . . .192
Resolution adopted in Congress May 15 .... 193
Instructions from the Boston town meeting ... .194
Richard Henry Lee's motion in Congress 194
Debate on Lee's motion I95 3C 9^
Action of the other colonies ; Connecticut and New Hampshire . 196
New Jersey *97
Pennsylvania and Delaware 197-199
Maryland *99
The situation in New York 200
The Tryon plot 201
Final debate on Lee's motion 202
Vote on Lee's motion 203
Form of the Declaration of Independence 204
xviii CONTENTS
Thomas Jefferson . 204,205
The declaration was a deliberate expression of the sober thought
of the American people . 206, 207
CHAPTER V
FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE
Lord Comwallis arnves upon the scene 208
Battle of Fort Moultrie (June 28, 1776) .... 209-211
British plan for conquering the valley of the Hudson, and cutting
the United Colonies in twain . . . 212
Lord Howe's futile attempt to negotiate with Washington unoffi-
cially ... ... . 213,214
The military problem at New York 214-216
Importance of Brooklyn Heights 21 7
Battle of Long Island (August 27, 1776) 218-220
Howe prepares to besiege the Heights 220
But Washington slips away with his army 221
And robs the British of the most golden opportunity ever offered
them ... 221-223
The conference at Staten Island ... . 223, 224
General Howe takes the city of New York September 15 . . 224
But Mrs Lindley Murray saves the garrison .... 225
Attack upon Harlem Heights 325
The new problem before Howe 225, 226
He moves upon Throg's Neck, but Washington changes base . 227
Baffled at White Plans, Howe tries a new plan .... 228
Washington's orders in view of the emergency .... 228
Congress meddles with the situation and muddles it 229
Howe takes Fort Washington by storm (November 16) , . 230
Washington and Greene 23 1
Outrageous conduct of Charles Lee 23*, 232
Greene barely escapes from Fort Lee (November 20) , . 233
Lee intrigues against Washington 233, 234
Washington retreats into Pennsylvania 234
Reinforcements come from Schuyler 235
Fortunately for the Americans, the British capture Charles Lee
(December 13) 235-238
The times that tried men's souls 238, 239
Washington prepares to strike back '33,,
He crosses the Delaware, and pierces the British centre at Trenton
(December 26) 240, 241
Cornwallis comes up to retrieve the disaster . 242
CONTENTS xix
And thinks he has run down the "old fox" at the Assunpink
(January 2, 1777) 242
But Washington prepares a checkmate 243
And again severs the British line at Princeton (January 3; . . 244
General retreat of the British upon New York .... 245
The tables completely turned 246
Washington's superb generalship 247
Effects in England 248
And in France . 249
Franklin's arrival in France 250
Secret aid from France 251
Lafayette goes to America 252
Efforts toward remodelling the Continental army . . 252-255
Services of Robert Morris 255
111 feeling between the states 256
Extraordinary powers conferred upon Washington . . 257-258
CHAPTER VI
SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE
Invasion of New York by Sir Guy Carleton 259
Arnold's preparations ... 260
Battle of Valcour Island (October 11, 1776) . . . 260-262
Congress promotes five junior brigadiers over Arnold (February
19, 1777) 262
Character of Philip Schuyler 263
Horatio Gates 264
Gates intrigues against Schuyler . 265
His unseemly behaviour before Congress 266
Charges against Arnold 267, 268
Arnold defeats Tryon at Ridgefield (April 27, 1777) . . . 269
Preparations for the summer campaign 269
The military centre of the United States was the state of New
York 270
A second blow was to be struck at the centre , the plan of cam-
paign 271
The plan was unsound ; it separated the British forces too widely,
and gave the Americans the advantage of interior lines . 272-274
Germain's fatal error, he overestimated the strength of the Tories 274
Too many unknown quantities 275
Danger from New England ignored 276
Germain's negligence ; the dispatch that was never sent . . 277
Burgoyne advances upon Ticonderoga .... 277, 278
xx CONTENTS
Phillips seizes Mount Defiance 279
Evacuation of Ticonderoga . 279
Battle of Hubbardton (July 7) 280
One swallow does not make a summer .... 280-282
The king's glee , wrath of John Adams . .... 282
Gates was chiefly to blame . ... 282
Burgoyne's difficulties beginning 283
Schuyler wisely evacuates Fort Edward .... 284
Enemies gathering m Burgoyne's rear .... . 285
Use of Indian auxiliaries .... 285
Burgoyne's address to the chiefs . . . 286
Burke ridicules the address . 286
The story of Jane McCrea .... . 287, 288
The Indians desert Burgoyne . . . 289
Importance of Benmngton, Burgoyne sends a German force
against it .... . . 2<;o
Stark prepares to receive the Germans . .291
Battle of Benmngton (August 16) , nearly the whole Gciman .umy
captured on the field . . 292, 293
Effect of the news ; Burgoyne's enemies multiply . . . 294
Advance of St. Leger upon Fort Stanwix . . . 294, 295
Herkimer inarches against him ; He rkimer's plan . . . 2<j6
Failure of the plan . ... ... 297
Thayendanegea prepares an ambuscade 298
Battle of Onskany (August 6) 298-300
Colonel Willett's sortie, first hoisting of the stars and stripes 300-301
Death of Herkimer . . ... 301
Arnold arrives at Schuyler's camp . ... 302
And volunteers to retrieve Fort Stanwix 30$
Yan Yost Cuyler and his stratagem 304
Flight of St. Leger (August 22) 305
Burgoyne's dangerous situation. . . , . . 30f>
Schuyler superseded by Gates 30^
Position of the two armies (August ip-Septcmber 12) . . . 307
CHAPTER VII
SARATOGA
Why Sir William Howe went to Chesapeake Bay . . . .308
Charles Lee in captivity ... ... 308-310
Treason of Charles Lee 311-314
Folly of moving upon Philadelphia as the " rebel capital " 314, 3 1 5
Effect of Lee's advice 315
CONTENTS xxi
Washington's masterly campaign in New Jersey (June, 1777) 316, 317
Uncertainty as to Howe's next movements . . . 317,318
Howe's letter to Burgoyne . ... 318
Comments of Washington and Greene . . 319*320
Howe's alleged reason trumped up and worthless . 320
Burgoyne's fate was practically decided when Howe arrived at
Elkton 321
Washington's reasons for offering battle 321
He chooses a very strong position . ... 322
Battle of the Brandy wine (September 1 1) . . . 322-326
Washington's skill m detaining the enemy .... 326
The British enter Philadelphia (September 26) ... 326
Significance of Forts Mercer and Mifflin 327
The situation at Germantown 327, 328
Washington's audacious plan . 328
Battle of Germantown (October 4) 329-332
Howe captures Forts Mercer and MiflElm 333
Burgoyne recognizes the fatal error of Germain .... 333
Nevertheless he crosses the Hudson River 334
First battle at Freeman's Farm (September 19) . . . 335
Quarrel between Gates and Arnold . . . 33^-337
Burgoyne's supplies cut off . . . 338
Second battle at Freeman's Farm (October 7) , the Bntish totally
defeated by Arnold 338-340
The British army is surrounded ... ... 341
Sir Henry Clinton comes up the river, but it is too late . . . 342
The silver bullet 343
Burgoyne surrenders (October 17) 343,344
Schuyler's magnanimity 345
Bad faith of Congress . 346-349
The behaviour of Congress was simply inexcusable . 350
What became of the captured army 3So35i
NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS
All the maps, except inhere otherwise specified ', have been made from my drawings
or under my direction.
GEORGE WASHINGTON {photogravure) Frontispiece
After the Houdon bust At Franklin's invitation, the celebrated sculptor,
Jean Antome Houdon, came to America in 1785, and while in this country
he visited Washington at Mount Vernon A result of this visit was the
statue m the Capitol at Richmond, which Houdon finished in 1788. From a
mould by Houdon the bust here shown was made for Rufus King, and
passed from his hands, through those of Oliver Wolcott and Heniy Kirke
Brown, into the possession of the late Hamilton Fish, secretary of state in
the cabinet of President Grant The painter Gilbert Stuart is said to have
admitted that this bust was a better likeness of Washington than his own
canvas For the kind permission to copy it I am indebted to Hon. Nicholas
Fish, of New \ ork The autograph is from Washington's signature to a
bill of exchange.
Page
SIR ROBERT WALPOLE 4
After an original painting in enamel by Zmcke, engraved by Bovi for
Coxe's Memoirs of Walpole, London, 1798.
WALPOLE'S AUTOGRAPH 5
From Doyle's Official Baronage of England.
UNITE OR DIE .... 6
From the Pennsylvania Gazette^ 1754 Many other papers used the
device twenty years afterward
WILLIAM SHIRLEY 10
From an engraving in Dr Emmet's collection, after the original painting
by Thomas Hudson. Autograph from Memorial History of Boston.
JAMES OTIS . . . . 12
After the statue by Crawford, in the chapel at Mount Auburn cemetery,
Cambridge. Autograph from Memorial History of Boston
GEORGE GRENVILLE 14
From the beautiful engraving by Ridley, in The Letters of Junius, Lon-
don, 1797. Autograph from the Memorial History of Boston
A STAMP 16
From the Memorial History of Boston
xxiv NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS
CHARLES THOMSON . . .... 17
From Du Sunitiere's Thirteen Portraits, London, 1783 Autograph
from Thomson's signature (as Secretary of Congress) to Arnold's commis-
sion as major-general, facsimile in Smith and Watson's Mistoncal and
Literary Curiosities, Series I plate xlu
SPEAKER'S CHAIR IN THE HOUSE OF BURGESSES 18
From a photograph The chair is pieserved in the State Library of Vn-
ginia, at Richmond The royal arms, foimcrly emblazoned on it, weic
stnpped off in the Revolution
PATRICK HENRY MAKING HIS TARQUIN AND CESAR SPEEC ir . 19
From an engraving in the possession of theVngmia Ilistoncal Society,
after the original painting by Peter Fiedeuck Rothcnncl
TABLE OF PRICES OF SIAMPED PARCHMENT AND PAPER . . 21
From a broadside in Dr Emmet's collection
DEATH'S HEAD IN THE PLACE OF A STAMP . . ... 23
From the Boston Gazette and Country Journal, Oct 7, 1765, in the
Library of the Massachusetts Historical bociety
FUNERAL PROCESSION OF THL, STAMP ACT. . . . . 27
From an excessively rare print in the collection of Dr. Thomas Addis
Emmet
The burial place is decoiated with the skulls of the recent icbelhons of
1715 and 1 745, and over it is the insciiption "Within this Rinnlj Vault
lie mtened, it is to be hoped never to rise again, the htai Chambei court,
Ship money, Excise money, Public Impost without Parliament, the Act dt
Heretico comburcndo, Health money, Guncial Warrants, and . . [other
things] which tended to alienate the affections of Englishmen to [wt ] tlu'u
Country " As the procession appi caches the vault, the buiial MM vice is i e.ul
by Anti-Sejanus, z e, Rev James Scott, authoi of asetuisof virulent new s-
paper articles signed Anti-Sejanus, attacking the Kind's politj as repie-
sented by his hated " Sejanus," the late prime minister, Lord Hutu. The
banners have stamps on thorn, the fuithcr one is cairidl by Loid Minis-
field, the Lord Chief Justice, with " Scotch Appeal " sticking out <ii his
pocket, in allusion to the fact that his fortune had been largely nude through
appeals from Scotch courts to the House of I ords ; the nearer standard-
bearer is probably Lord Henley, who had been Grenville's Lend Chancellor.
The little coffin (whose bearer must of course be Grcnvillu himself) is labelled
"Miss Amenc Stamp, born 1765, died 1766" The mourner behind (Jren-
ville, with the Scotch cap and plaid waistcoat, is lUite, and the otheis an*
members of Grenville's ministry, probably the Karls of Halifax, Kgremont,
Gower, and Sandwich A couple of bishops bring up the icnr. On the
right are bales labelled "Stamps from America " and " Hluck Cloth hum
America" At tbe wharf are three large .ships, the Ctmww, the Knrklnif
ham, and the Grafton, preparing to sail, while on the front of the ShrHield
and Birmingham Warehouse it is announced that " CJoods are now shipped
for Amenca " A box containing a <( statue of Mr Pitt," which is being
lowered into a boat, will doubtless meet with a warm welcome from hln
transatlantic friends The other warehouses are marked " Liverpool/*
" Leeds," " Halifax," and Manchester."
NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS xxv
AUTOGRAPH OF THE DUKE OF GRAFTON 28
From the Memorial History of Boston.
CHARLES TOWNSHEND . . . ... 29
From Walpole's Memoirs of the Reign of George III, edited by Sir Dems
Le Marchant, London, 1845, vol in. The engraving is by Cook, after the
original painting by Sir Joshua Reynolds Autograph from Correspondence
of the Earl of Chatham, London, 1839
j HOUSE OF COMMONS IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY ... 31
| HOUSE OF LORDS IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY .... 33
Both from old prints in Dr Emmet's collection
PATRICK HENRY (photogravure). . ... .facing 34
After the painting by Sully Autograph from a MS collection in Library
of Boston Athenaeum
GEORGE III ... ... 38
From an engraving in Dr Emmet's collection, after the original portrait
painted by Thomas Frye, about 1760
AUTOGRAPH OF GEORGE III . . 39
Fiom Lossmg's Field-Book of the Revolution.
EDMUND BURKE . . 41
From the engraving in Lodge's Gallery of 'Portrait 'j, after the painting by
Sir Joshua Reynolds. Autograph from Burke's Works, vol i
LORD NORTH 44
From Murray's Impartial History of the Present War, London, 1780
AUTOGRAPH OF LORD NORTH. . ... 45
From Doyle's Official Baronage of England
JOHN DICKINSON ... .46
From Du Simitiere's Thirteen Portraits^ London, 1783. Autograph
from Wmsor's America
LIST OF BOSTON MERCHANTS INFRINGING THE NON-IMPORTA-
TION AGREEMENT 47
From Edes' and Gill's North American Almanack, 1770.
FANEUIL HALL, THE " CRADLE OF LIBERTY " . 50
From an old print. The appeal ance of the budding and neighbourhood
has greatly changed
SIR FRANCIS BERNARD . .... 51
From the original painting by Copley, in the hall of Christ Church,
Oxford , by permission of the Dean and Canons of Christ Church, and
through the kindness of my friends, Messrs Macmillan & Co , of London
Autograph from the Memorial History of Boston
LANDING OF THE TROOPS IN BOSTON, 1768 54
From Edes' and Gill's North American Almanack^ 1770, facsimile of
an engraving by Paul Revere
xxvi NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS
CASTLE WILLIAM, BOSTON HARBOUR ... . 55
From Wmsor's America, after a photograph of a view preserved m the
Bntish Museum
SAMUEL ADAMS (photogravure) facing 56
From the original painting by Copley, in the Museum of Fine Arts, Bos-
ton, representing Adams in 1771, at the age of 49 Autograph from the
Declaration of Independence
HENRY SEYMOUR CONWAY 58
From an engraving in the London Magazine^ April, 1782, after the ori-
ginal painting by Gainsborough, in the possession of the Duke of Argyle.
For his autograph see below, vol 11 p 304
ISAAC BARR 59
Fiom the photogravure in Walpole's Memoirs of the Reign of George III ,
edited by Russell Barker, London and New York, 1894, by permission of
Messrs G. P Putnam's Sons The photogravure is from a mezzotint by
Houston, after the oiigmal painting by Hamilton. Autograph from Memo-
rial History of Boston
THOMAS HUTCHINSON 61
From the painting attributed to Copley, in the possession of the Massa-
chusetts Historical Society Autograph from Hutchmson'b Diary atitf
Letters^ vol. i
CAPITOL AT WILLIAMSBURGH, VIRGINIA 62
From the Magazine of American History^ vol xi.
APOLLO ROOM IN THE RALEIGH TAVERN AT WILLIAMSBURGH 63
From the same
STOVE USED IN THE HOUSE OF BURGESSES 64
From a photograph. The stove is preserved in the State Library of Vir-
ginia, at Richmond
OLD BRICK MEETING-HOUSE, BOSTON 66
From an old print
PAUL REVERE'S PLAN OF KING STREET, BOSTON 67
Reduced facsimile of Paul Revere's plan, used as evidence in the trial of
Captain Preston and the soldiers The oiigmal manuscript plan is in the
collection of Hon Mellen Chamberlain, of Boston. It is printed, with a full
descnption and Key, m Wmsor's America^ vi 47, 48.
OLD STATE HOUSE IN BOSTON, WEST FRONT 69
From an old print
PAUL REVERE'S PICTURE OF THE BOSTON MASSACRK (coloured
engraving) f*et*K 7
From one of the very scarce original prints, in my library, at Cambridge
It belonged to my great-great-grandfather, Benjamin Francis, of Meclfnrd,
who was one of the minute-men in the Concord-Lexington fight, and cousin
to Col Ebenezer Francis, who commanded, with Seth Warner, at the battle
NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS xxvii
of Hubbardton (see below, p 280) The picture is still in perfect condi-
tion, in its original black and gold frame, and age has given to its colouring
a mellowness and refinement which the copy is very far from reproducing.
AUTOGRAPH OF WILLIAM TRYON 74
From Wmsor's America.
STEPHEN HOPKINS 75
From Trumbull's painting, in the collection at Yale University "In
1790 Trumbull formed the design of painting an historic memorial,
on a canvas of heroic proportions, of the signers of the Declaration of Inde-
pendence Where it was possible, the faces and figures there introduced
were painted either from the living figures or from some authentic portrait
Mr Trumbull found nothing which could be taken as a representation of
Stephen Hopkins , and so, says Mr Seaman, 'his son, Judge Rufus Hopkins,
who much resembled his father, was taken for him ' " Foster's Stephen
Hopkins^ Providence, 1884, p 198 , cf C C Beaman, in Essex Institute
Hist Coll H 121 Mr Foster tells me that Stephen Hopkms's step-
daughter, Ruth Smith, testified that no portrait of him was ever known to be
in existence, " not even a silhouette " I give the Trumbull " portrait " for
its intrinsic interest as a study for the face which appears, surmounted in
Quaker fashion by the hat, in the background of the famous historical pic-
ture, see below, p 200 It has sometimes been given, in popular books,
without explanation The autograph is from the Declaration of Independ-
ence
JONATHAN MAYHEW ... . . . . . 77
From the portrait in Wmsor's America^ vi 71, which is copied from a
mezzotint by Richard Jennys, in the Library of the American Antiquarian
Society, at Worcester. Autograph from the Memorial History of Boston.
AUTOGRAPH OF DANIEL LEONARD 79
From the same
AUTOGRAPH OF THE EARL OF DARTMOUTH 81
From Winsor's America.
LORD NORTH POURING TEA DOWN COLUMBIA'S THROAT . 83
From a print in Dr Emmet's collection The original engraving, by Paul
Revere, was published m the Royal American Magazine, 1774, under the
title of "The Able Doctor, or America swallowing the Bitter Draught"
Lord North, with the Boston Port Bill sticking out of his pocket, is pouring
scalding tea down the throat of Columbia, whose arms are held by Lord
Mansfield, while weeping Bntanma turns her head aside
OLD SOUTH MEETING-HOUSE, BOSTON 86
From a photograph
TABLE AND CHAIR FROM GOVERNOR HUTCHINSON'S HOUSE
AT MILTON 8 7
Photographed by the kind permission of Miss Rosalie G Russell, the
present owner of the estate.
xxviii NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS
JOHN ADAMS . . . 89
From the original painting by Copley, in Memorial Hall, Harvard Univer-
sity Autograph from a group of manuscript signatures of the judgcb and
counsel in the trial of Captain Preston and his men, in the collection of
Hon Mellen Chamberlain
LORD GEORGE GERMAIN - 9 2
From an engraving in the possession of Dr Thomas Addis Emmet, after
the original painting by Sir Joshua Reynolds Autograph fiom MS collec-
tion in Library of Boston Athenaeum.
VIRTUAL REPRESENTATION, 1775. ... . , 94
From a satirical print in the possession of the Massachusetts Historical
Society
THOMAS GAGE 99
From an engraving in Dr Emmet's collection, after a family portrait be-
longing to the heirs of the general's younger son, the late \dimral ^n \Vil-
ham Gage Autograph from Sumnei s Histoiy of East Boston
Fox AND BURKE DENOUNCING LORD NORTH 101
A caricature by James Gillray, reproduced in Wright's ffoitit, of Ifatu rcvr,
London, 1842, vol. 11
JOHN HANCOCK . . . . . ... 104
From the original painting by Copley, in the Museum of Fine Arts, Bos-
ton Autograph fiom his signature to A mold's commission is majoi gen-
eral , facsimile in Smith and Watson's Historical and Ltfft aty Curiosities
Series I plate xlu This is slightly reduced , whereas his signature to the
Declaration of Independence was somewhat exaggerated in si/e
JOSEPH WARREN . I0 rt
From Winsor's Amenca, vi 54, after a pastel m the possession of tht*
heirs of the late Hon Charles Francis Adams Autograph from Afrmonat
History of Boston
SUFFOLK RESOLVES HOUSE AT MILTON 107
From a photograph
NOTICE OF THE BOSTON COMMITTEE OF CORRESPONDENCE: . . 108
From Winsor's America.
PEYTON RANDOLPH no
From a contemporary painting in the Library of thti Virginia Historical
Society Autograph from Appleton's Cyclopedia of AmerUan
by permission of Messrs D. Appleton & Co.
CARPENTERS' HALL, PHILADELPHIA
From Scharf '$ History of Philadelphia, by permission.
SIR WILLIAM HOWE
From Murray's Impartial History of the Present War, London,
Autograph from Wmsor's America
NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS xxix
RICHARD, LORD HOWE . . . . . ... 115
From a contemporary English engraving, large folio, in Dr Emmet's col-
lection Autograph from Doyle's Official Baronage of England
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN (photogravure) facing 116
From the original portrait by Duplessis in the Museum of Fine Arts, Bos-
ton Autograph from the Declaration of Independence
INTERIOR OF OLD SOUTH MEETING-HOUSE, BOSTON . . . . 118
From an old print, showing the church as it -was before the pulpit and
pews were taken out The place of the pulpit is now occupied by an ordi-
nary platform for lectures The old sounding board still lemains
OLD NORTH CHURCH, SALEM STREET, BOSTON . . . .120
From a photograph The true name of this Episcopal building is Chnst
Church. It is the oldest public edifice now standing in Boston, having been
built in 1723, six years before the present Old South Meeting-House An-
other building (Congregational), situated m North Square, was known as the
Old North Meeting-House, and the similarity of name has been a sourc&*of
confusion. It was in the steeple of this Episcopal church on Salem Street
that the signal lanterns for Paul Revere were hung by his fnend the sexton,
Robert Newman From this same steeple Gage is said to have watched the
battle of Bunker Hill
AUTOGRAPH OF FRANCIS SMITH ... 121
From the collection of Dr T. A. Emmet
JONAS CLARK'S HOUSE AT LEXINGTON 122
From a drawing after a photograph, with the old-fashioned features re-
stored after suggestions from old prints The house, which was built in
1698, is still standing, and in good condition
PAUL REVERE . . 123
After a crayon drawing from life by St Me*mm, in the possession of Re-
vere's great-granddaughters, the Misses Riddle, of Hmgham Autograph
from a MS collection in Library of Boston Athenaeum
AUTOGRAPH OF JOHN PARKER 124
Facsimile of the signature to his MS deposition concerning the Lexington
affair, in the Arthur Lee Papers in the Library of Harvard University.
JONATHAN HARRINGTON'S HOUSE, ON LEXINGTON COMMON. . 124
From a recent photograph, showing the boulder placed as a monument at
the line where the minute-men stood
STATUE OF THE MINUTE-MAN, BY DANIEL FRENCH ... 125
Fiom a photograph
THE OLD MANSE AT CONCORD 126
From a photograph
LORD PERCY 127
From Murray's Impartial History ', London, 1780 Autograph from the
Memorial History of Boston
xxx NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS
PITCAIRN'S PISTOLS 128
From a photograph The pistols, taken from Pitcairn's hoise, were a few
days afterward presented to Israel Putnam, who carried them to the end of
his military service In 1879 they were presented by his grandson's widow
to the Gary Library in the Town Hall at Lexington
FANCIFUL PICTURE OF THE CONCORD-LEXINGTON FIGHT . 129
This extremely melodramatic and ridiculous representation is from a con-
temporary French pnnt, preserved in the Library of Congress.
ISRAEL PUTNAM 131
From Wmsor's America, after an engraving published by C Shepherd in
September, 1775, an< * reproduced m Smith's British Me,zzotinto Portraits.
Autograph also from Wmsor
ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, RICHMOND 132
From an old pnnt preserved in the Virginia State Library.
FACSIMILE OF SIGNATURES OF THE MECKLENBURG COMMITTEE 134
From Cooke's Revolutionary History of North Carolina.
PLAN OF FORT TICONDEROGA . 136
From Rocque's Set of Plans and Forts in Awcnca, London, 1765 , in
the State Library of New York, at Albany
STATUE OF ETHAN ALLEN 137
From a photograph of the statue by Larkin Goldsmith Mead, m the State
House at Montpelier, Vermont Autograph from Winsofh Amenta.
PLAN OF THE FORT AT CROWN POINT 138
From Rocque's Set of Plans, etc
FACSIMILE OF ETHAN ALLEN'S LF-TTER ANNOUNCINCJ THE
CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA 139, 140
Half-tone reproduction of a photograph of the original letter, kindly lent
me by Colonel D S. Lamson, of Weston, Mass.
WASHINGTON AT THE AGE OF FORTY 143
From an engraving, after the original portrait, painted at Mount Vernon
in 1772 by Charles Wilson Peale, and now in the possession of Gener.il
Custis Lee The uniform is that of a colonel of Virginia militia. The
gorget shown in the picture is now owned by the Massachusetts Historical
Society.
ARTEMAS WARD . . 145
From an engraving given me by his greafrgrandson, the late Henry Dana
Artemas Ward, of Middletown, Connecticut Autograph from \Vinstr*8
America.
AUTOGRAPH OF WILLIAM PRESCOTT 146
From Wmsor's America
VIEW OF THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL, FROM BEACON HILL 148
From the original sketch in Dr. Emmet's collection. It was made on the
NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS xxxi
spot for Lord Rawdon, by Henry De Bermere, of the 14* regiment An
engraving of it was published in the Analectic Magazine, Philadelphia, 1818
BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL (coloured map) facing 150
MERCY WARREN 152
From the frontispiece to Mrs Ellet's Women of the American Revolt
tion % vol i , after the original painting by Copley. Autograph from a MS.
letter, kindly lent by Hon. Winslow Warren.
THE WASHINGTON ELM 155
From a photograph taken m 1863, kindly lent by my classmate, Captain
Nathan Appleton, of Boston Since this was taken, the change m the looks
of the spot has been much greater than during the two centuries before
DANIEL MORGAN (photogravure) facing 156
From a miniature by John Trumbull, in the Art Gallery of Yale Univer-
sity Autograph from the Memorial History of Boston
SILHOUETTE OF JOHN STARK .... 157
After a silhouette given in Rev Albert Tyler's Benmngton Centennial
Celebration^ 1877.
NATHANAEL GREENE ... 158
From a miniature by John Trumbull, now in the possession of the gen-
eral's great-granddaughter, Mrs. Anna M. Greene Carpenter, of Warren,
Rhode Island, to whom I am indebted for the kind permission to copy it.
HENRY KNOX . . 159
From the original portrait by Gilbert Stuart, m the Museum of Fine Arts,
Boston. Autograph from Wmsor's America
WASHINGTON'S HEADQUARTERS AT CAMBRIDGE . . . . 161
Froin a recent photograph. This famous house, the finest of the noble
colonial mansions on Brattle Street, was built by Colonel John Vassall, in
1759 Early in 1775, Colonel Vassall left it and joined the British in Bos-
ton, his estate was then confiscated General Washington occupied the
house from July, 1775, until after the capture of Boston m March, 1776.
In later times this house has been the home of the historian Jared Sparks,
the orator Edward Everett, and the dictionary maker Joseph Worcester. In
1837 it became the home of the poet Longfellow, and it is now (1896) occu-
pied by his eldest daughter. The room at the extreme right of the picture,
on the first floor, was Washington's office and Longfellow's study.
CHARLES LEE 162
From Murray's Impartial History, 1780 Autograph from Moore's
Treason of Major-General Charles Lee> New York, 1860,
AUTOGRAPH OF DR. BENJAMIN CHURCH 163
From the Memorial History of Boston
VIEW OF HARVARD COLLEGE IN 1775 165
After a copper-plate engraving by Paul Revere, m the possession of the
Esbex Institute, Salem.
xxxii NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS
THE KING'S PROCLAMATION OF AUGUST, 1775 169
Reduced facsimile of one of the original broadsides, in Dr Emmet's col-
lection
THE BURNING OF FALMOUTH (PORTLAND) . . .. 172, 173
Reduced copy of an excessively quaint contemporary sketch, kindly lent
me by Dr C E Banks, U S. Marine Hospital, Portland, Maine
SIR GUY CARLETON . . . ... .174
From the Political Magazine, June, 1782 Autograph from Winsoi'b
America
RICHARD MONTGOMERY . ... . 175
From the engraving in Longacre and Herring's National PM trait Gal-
lery of Distinguished Americans, Philadelphia, 1834-39, 4 vols , after the
painting by Chappel Autograph from the facsimile of the signature to his
will, in Winsor's America
JOHN HANCOCK'S HOUSE ON BEACON HILL, BOSTON . 179
After a photogiaph. This noble stone house was built in 1737, bj Thomas
Hancock, upon whose death, m 1764, it became the property of his nephew,
John Hancock In 1859 the Legislatuie of Massachusetts \\as urged to bu>
and preserve it This attempt unfortunately failed, and in liSfi^ the estate
was sold by the heirs, and the house was presently pulled down. Its place
is now occupied by two dismal " brown-stone fronts," such as one may see
anywhere Had it not been for Mrs. Mary Hemenway, a similar act ot van-
dalism would have destroyed Boston's noblest historic building, the Old
South Meeting-House
MAP OF BOSTON, WITH ITS ENVIRONS, IN 1775 AND 1776 . . i8r
From Sparks's Life of Washington
MEDAL GRANTED TO WASHINGTON FOR HIS CAP TURK OK
BOSTON i,S2, 183
Prom the Memorial History of Boston The original gold medal is now
in the Boston Public Library.
EVOLUTION OF THE UNITED STATES FLAG 184
THOMAS PAINE . . r#5
From a miniature at Paine Memorial Hall, Boston The painter is siucl
to be " not known " Autograph from Applcton's Cyclopedia of Amcrtcatt
Biography.
A PAGE FROM "COMMON SENSE** 187
From the original in the Library of Harvard University.
LORD DUNMORE'S SKAL AND AUTOGRAPH 191
From Valentine's New York City Manual, 1831.
INDEPENDENCE HALL, PHILADELPHIA 193
From the Columbian Magazine^ July, 1787. This building was tlu nUl
State House of Pennsylvania, built in 1729-34 Here the Declaration of Indc-
NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS xxxiii
pendence was adopted, and here, in 1787, from May to September, sat the
convention which framed the Constitution of the United States The general
appearance of the neighborhood has changed almost beyond recognition.
RICHARD HENRY LEE. z ^
From his portrait by C W Peale, in Independence Hall Autograph, by
kind permission of Dr Edmund Jennings Lee, from his Lee of Virginia
SAMUEL CHASE ... . . ^g
From the engraving by Forrest, m the National Portrait Gallery, aftei
the original painting by Jams Autograph from the Declaration of Inde-
pendence
CHARLES CARROLL OF CARROLLTON ipp
From the engraving by Durand, in the National Portrait Gallery, after
the original painting by Chester Harding Autograph from the Declaration
of Independence
THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE (photogravure) facing . 200
From the engraving, by Durand, of the picture painted by John Trum-
bull for the rotunda of the Capitol at Washington
EDWARD RUTLEDGE . . . 203
From a club print in Dr Emmet's collection, taken from a family portrait
Autograph fiom the Declaration of Independence.
THOMAS JEFFERSON (photogravure) facing 204
From the statue by Gait, m the Library of the University of Virginia
Autograph from the Declaration of Independence
BATTERY AND BOWLING GREEN, NEW YORK, IN 1776 . . . 206
From the Manual of the Common Council of New York, 1858, where a
full account of Bowling Green may be found
JOHN RUTLEDGE 209
From the engraving by Storm, m the National Portrait Gallery, after the
original painting by Trumbull Autograph from the same book.
WILLIAM MOULTRIE ... . 210
From the engraving in Moultne's own book, Memoirs of the American
Revolution, New York, 1802, 2 vols Autograph from the signature to a
military order, among the Tucler Papers in the Library of Harvard Uni-
versity.
MAP OF THE BATTLE OF FORT MOULTRIE 211
From Johnson's Traditions and Reminiscences of the American Revo-
lution in the South, Charleston, 1851.
JONATHAN TRUMBULL 215
Fiom the engraving by Mackenzie in the National Portrait Gallery, after
the original painting by his son, John Trumbull Autograph from MS
collection m the Library of Boston Athenaeum.
VIEW OF NEW YORK IN 1776 217
From a rare old print in Dr Emmet's collection.
xxxiv NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS
BAT'TLE OF LONG ISLAND (coloured map} .... facing 218
BEDFORD CORNERS, LONG ISLAND, IN 1776 222
From a rare old print in Dr Emmet's collection
MAP OF MANHATTAN ISLAND IN 1776 226, 227
Epitomized and greatly abridged fiom a large folding map by H P John-
ston, m Memoirs of the Long Island Historical Society, vol m
REMAINS OF FORT WASHINGTON, NEW YORK, IN 1856 ... 230
From a print in Dr Emmet's collection
GREENE'S HEADQUARTERS, FORT LEE, NEW JERSEY .... 232
From a print in Dr Emmet's collection
AUTOGRAPH OF JAMES BOWDOIN 233
From Wmsor's America
MAP OF OPERATIONS IN NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY . 236, 237
GEORGE WASHINGTON 240
After Durand's engraving m the National Portrait Gallery. The original
painting, by Trumbull, is in the Art Gallery of Yale University.
WASHINGTON CROSSING THE DELAWARE (photogravure) facing 242
From an engraving by F Merckel, after the original painting by Emanucl
Leutze, m the collection of the late Marshall Owen Roberts, of Ncxv York.
The United States flag shown in the picture is, of course, an anachronism
The stars and stripes were first adopted by Congress in June, 1777 ; and any
flag earned by Washington's army m December, 1776, would have consisted
of the crosses and stripes, as shown in the illustration on page 184.
LORD CORNWALLIS 243
From the London Magazine^ June, 1781.
HUGH MERCER 244
After a pencil sketch by Trumbull. Autograph from Appleton's Cycle-
feedia of American. Biography^ by permission
BEAUMARCHAIS 248
After a pastel by Perronneau, reproduced in Lintilhac, Btaitmarckais et
ses CEuvres, Pans, 1887. Autograph from the MS. collection of lion. Mel-
Ian Chamberlain.
AUTOGRAPH OF SILAS DEANE 249
From Wmsor's America
ARTHUR LEE 250
From his portrait by C W Pealc, in Independence Hall. Autograph, by
kind permission of Dr. Edmund Jennings Lee, from his Lee of Virginia.
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, AT A TABLE, READING 251
From an engraving in possession of the late I>r. Charles Deane, of Cam-
bridge, by land permission of Mrs. Deane. The engraving is a reissue
(London, 1824) of the original engraving by Rider, after a painting by
Elmer*
NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS xxxv
LAFAYETTE 253
From a French print made in 1781, now in the possession of Dr. T. A.
Emmet Autograph from Winsor's Amertca
ROBERT MORRIS 255
From an engraving by Phillibrown, in tns National Portrait Gallery^
after the painting by Chappell Autograph from th% Declaration of Inde-
pendence
LORD CORNWALLIS (photogravure) facing 256
After the portrait by Copley, in the Guildhall, London Autograph from
a MS collection in the Library of the Boston Athenaeum.
VIEW OF THE NAVAL BATTLE OF VALCOUR ISLAND .... 261
From a rare old print in Dr. Emmet's collection.
HORATIO GATES 265
From a print in the Library of Harvard University Autograph from a
MS collection in Library of Boston Athenaeum.
ARTHUR ST. CLAIR 267
From a print in Dr Emmet's collection, after a sketch by Trumbull, in
the Art Gallery of Yale University. Autograph from the National Portrait
Gallery.
JOHN BURGOYNE 270
After the frontispiece to Fonblanque's Life of Burgoyne t London, 1876.
The original, painted by Ramsey, at Rome, m 1750, is at Hampton Court
Palace
AUTOGRAPH OF BURGOYNE 271
From Wmsor's America
MAP OF BURGOYNE'S INVASION OF NEW YORK 273
RUINS OF TlCONDEROGA IN l8l8 275
From the Analectic Magazine, Philadelphia, 1818
BARON RIEDESEL 278
After the original painting by Bach, engraved as frontispiece to Eelking's
Leben und Wirken des Fnedrich Adolf h Rtedesel, Leipzig, 1856, 3 vols.
Autograph from the same work.
WILLIAM PHILLIPS 279
From a contemporary English folio mezzotint, in Dr. Emmet's collection ;
cf. Smith's British Mezzotinto Portraits^ vol 11 p. 577. Autograph from
Lossmg's Fields-Book.
TRUMBULL'S PLAN OF TICONDEROGA AND MOUNT DEFIANCE . 281
From Winsor's America.
JOHN TRUMBULL 283
From the original painting by Gilbert Stuart, by the kind permission of
Mrs William Forbes Morgan, of New York, its present owner. Autograph
from a MS collection in the Library of the Boston Athenaeum
xxxvi NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS
LORD NORTH 286
From the engraving by Ridley, m the Letters of Jumus^ London, 1797.
The artist has given the face a quizzical expression, which may well have
been characteristic of the light-hearted statesman
THE ALLIES PAR NOBILE FRATRUM 289
From Wright's House of Hanover, London, 1842
JOHN STARK (photogravure) facing 292
From a painting, after original sources, by W D Tenney (1876), in the
Mayor's office at Manchester, N H. Autograph fiom \Vinsor 's Ametica
CANNON CAPTURED AT BENNINGTON 293
From a photograph. The cannon are preserved in the Library of the Ver-
mont Historical Society.
BARRY ST. LEGER 295
From a miniature by Cosway, engraved in the European Magazine^
March, 1795
PLAN OF FORT STANWIX . . . 296
From Rocque's Set of Plans, etc , in the State Library of New York, at
Albany
PETER GANSEVOORT 297
From an engraving by Prud'homme, in W L Stone's Life of Jwph
Brant, after the original painting by Stuart. Autograph from the same book.
BAS-RELIEF ON THE HERKIMER MONUMENT AT ORISKANY . . 299
From a photograph.
JOSEPH BRANT: THAYENDANEGEA 301
After a portrait belonging to the Earl of Warwick, painted by George
Romney
MARINUS WILLETT 302
From an engraving in the State Library of New York, after the original
portrait in the New York City Hall, painted while Willett was mayor of the
city. Autograph from Appleton's Cyclopedia of American Ihografhy.
HERKIMER'S HOUSE AT LITTLE FALLS 303
From a drawing, made with the aid of a modern photograph and an old
print, so as to reproduce the old look of the house.
SIR JOHN JOHNSON 304
From an engraving which Dr Emmet had copied from the woodcut in
Stone's Campaign ofLteutenant-GeneralJofin Rurgoyne, p 169 Its origin
is traceable to a large portrait in black and white probably a crayon in
the possession of Dr Mackay, whose father, Colonel Mackay, was a near
relative or connection of Lady Johnson. General J. Watts De Pcyster, a
grandnephew of Lady Johnson, is satisfied that it is a correct likeness of the
baronet. At the same time General De Peyster tells me that he now enter-
tains a suspicion that the portrait by Bartolozzi, prefixed to Stone's Orderly
NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS xxxvii
Book, is really a likeness of Guy Johnson, and not of Sir John The auto-
graph is from Stone's Orderly Book of Sir John Johnson, Albany, 1882.
PHILIP SCHUYLER (photogravure) . . . facing 306
From the original painting by Trumbull (1792), by the kind permission of
the present owner, Philip Schuyler, Esq , of Irvmgton-on-Hudson. Auto-
graph from Wmsor's America
OLD CITY HALL, IN WALL STREET, NEW YORK .... 309
From an old pnnt in Dr. Emmet's collection
FACSIMILES OF CHARLES LEE'S HANDWRITING .... 312, 313
Abridged copy of the facsimiles m Moore's Treason of Major-General
Charles Lee, New York, 1860 A comparison of the first lines of Lee's
letter to Gates, of Dec. 13, 1776, with the first lines of " Mr. Lee's Plan,
March 29, 1777," is enough to prove that the two documents were written
by the same person
WASHINGTON'S HEADQUARTERS AT CHADD'S FORD . . . .319
From the Miller collection of photographs, now owned by J Howard
Avil, of Philadelphia This picture, as well as some of the others taken
from the Miller collection, gives a good idea of the solid style in which the
best Pennsylvania country houses were built at the time.
BATTLE OF THE BRANDYWINE (coloured map) . . . . facing 322
VIEW OF BRANDYWINE BATTLEFIELD 323
From a rare old pnnt in Dr Emmet's collection
BIRMINGHAM MEETING-HOUSE 325
From the Miller collection of photographs.
BATTLE OF GERMANTOWN (coloured map) facing 328
JUDGE CHEW'S HOUSE AT GERMANTOWN 329
From an old pnnt m Dr Emmet's collection.
A HOUSE AT GERMANTOWN OCCUPIED BY THE BRITISH . . .331
From the Miller collection.
THE WHITHALL HOUSE AT FORT MERCER, WHERE DONOP
DIED 332
From the same.
FIRST BATTLE OF FREEMAN'S FARM (coloured map) . facing 334
THADDEUS KOSCIUSZKO 336
After an engraving by H B Hall, for living's Life of Washington The
original seems to be the lithographed portrait by Valentin Shvicki, in
Portreiy Wslawtonych Polakow, Warsaw, 1820. See Falkenstem, Thad-
daus Kosciuszko, Leipzig, 1827, p. 292 Autograph from MS. collection in
Library of Boston Athenaeum
SECOND BATTLE OF FREEMAN'S FARM (coloured map) facing 338
xxxviu NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS.
SIMON FRASER . 339
From a contemporary English folio mezzotint in Dr. Emmet's collection ,
cf Smith's British Mezsotmto Portraits, vol iv. p 1508 Autograph from
MS collection in Library of Boston Athenaeum
BARONESS RIEDESEL . . . . . 341
After an engraving in Stone's Campaign of Lieutenant-Genet at John
Burgoyne, from the original painting by Tischbem (with Colonel Stone's
kind permission). Autograph from the same book.
SURRENDER OF BURGOYNE (coloured maf) facing 344
AUTOGRAPH OF WILLIAM HEATH 347
From the Memorial History of Boston.
ENCAMPMENT OF THE CONVENTION TROOPS IN VIKINGIA . 349
From a sketch by a British officer, now in Dr. Emmet's collection
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAPTER I
THE BEGINNINGS
DURING the seventy years which elapsed between the
overthrow of the Stuart dynasty and the victory of Wolfe
on the Heights of Abraham, the relations between the
American colonies and the British government were, on the
whole, peaceful , and the history of the colonies, except for
the great and romantic struggle with New France, would
have been almost destitute of striking incidents. In view of
the perpetual menace from France, it was clearly unwise for
the British government to irritate the colonies, or do any-
thing to weaken their loyalty; and they were accordingly
left very much to themselves. Still, they were not likely
to be treated with any great liberality, for such was not
then, as it is hardly even yet, the way of governments,
and if their attachment to England still continued strong, it
was in spite of the general demeanour of the mother-coun-
try. Since 1675 the general supervision of the colonies
had been in the hands of a standing committee of the Privy
Council, styled the " Lords of the Committee of Trade and
Plantations," and familiarly known as the "Lords The L 0r a s
of Trade " To this board the governors serit fre- of Trade
quent and full reports of the proceedings in the colonial
legislatures, of the state of agriculture and trade, of the
revenues of the colonies, and of the way in which the pub-
lic money was spent. In private letters, too, the governors
2 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, i
poured forth their complaints into the ears of the Lords of
Trade, and these complaints were many and loud Except
in Pennsylvania and Maryland, which were like hereditary
monarchies, and in Connecticut and Rhode Island, where
the governors were elected by the people, the colonial gov-
ernors were now invariably appointed by the Crown In
most cases they were inclined to take high views regarding
the royal prerogative, and in nearly all cases they were
unable to understand the political attitude of the colonists,
who on the one hand gloried in their connection with Eng-
land, and on the other hand, precisely because they were
Englishmen, were unwilling to yield on any occasion what-
soever one jot or tittle of their ancient liberties. Moreover,
through the ubiquity of the popular assemblies and the
directness of their control over the administration of public
affairs, the political life of America was both really and
ostensibly freer than that of England was at that time , and
the ancient liberties of Englishmen, if not better preserved,
were at least more conspicuously asserted As a natural
consequence, the royal governors were continually trying to
do things which the people would not let them do, they
were in a chronic state of angry warfare with their assem-
blies, and they were incessant in their complaints to the
Lords of Trade. They represented the Americans as a fac-
tious and turbulent people, with their heads turned by queer
political crotchets, unwilling to obey the laws and eager to
break off their connection with the British Empire. In
this way they did much to arouse an unfriendly feeling
toward the colonies, although eminent Englishmen were not
wanting who understood American affairs too well to let
their opinions be thus lightly influenced. Upon the Lords
of Trade these misrepresentations wrought with so much
effect that now and then they would send out instructions to
suspend the writ of habeas corpus, or to abridge the freedom
of the press Sometimes their acts were absurdly arbitrary.
In New Hampshire, the people maintained that as free-
born Englishmen they had the right to choose their repre-
1689-1759 THE BEGINNINGS 3
sentatives , but the governor held, on the contrary, that this
was no right, but only a privilege, which the Crown might
withhold, or grant, or revoke, all at its own good pleasure
To uphold the royal prerogative, the governor was instructed
to issue writs for elections to some of the towns, while
withholding them from others; but the resistance of the
people to this piece of tyranny was so determined that the
Lords of Trade thought it best to yield. In Massachusetts,
for more than thirty years, there went on an unceasing con-
troversy between the General Court and the successive
royal governors, Shute, Burnet, and Belcher, with reference
to the governor's salary. The Lords of Trade The
insisted that the governor should be paid a fixed governor's
salary , but lest this should make the governor too sa ary
independent, the General Court obstinately refused to estab-
lish a salary, but made grants to the governor from year to
year, in imitation of the time-honoured usage of Parliament
This method was, no doubt, inconvenient for the govern-
ors ; but the colonists rightly valued it as one of the safe-
guards of popular liberty, and to their persistent refusal the
Crown was obliged to give way. Similar controversies, in
New York and South Carolina, were attended with similar
results , while in Virginia the assembly more than once
refused to vote supplies, on the ground that the liberties of
the colony were in danger
Such grievances as these, reported year by year to the
Lords of Trade, and losing nothing in the manner in which
they were told, went far to create in England an opinion
that America was a lawless country, and sorely in need of
a strong government From time to time various schemes
were proposed for limiting the powers of the colonial assem-
blies, for increasing the power of the governors, for intro-
ducing a titled nobility, for taxing the colonists by act of
Parliament, or for weakening the feeling of local independ-
ence by uniting several colonies into one. Until after the
French troubles had been disposed of, little came of any of
these schemes. A plan for taxing the colonies was once
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP I
proposed to Sir Robert Walpole, but the sagacious old states-
Sir Robert man dismissed it with a laugh, "What'" said
Walpole 6 he. " I have half of Old England set against me
already, and do you think I will have all New England like-
S1R ROBERT WAI POI 1
wise ? " From time to time the liberal charters of Rhode
Island and Connecticut were threatened, but nothing came
of this. But in one direction the Lords of Trade were more
active One of their most cherished plans was to bring
about a union of all the colonies under a single head ; but
this was not to be a union of the kind which the Americans,
with consummate statesmanship, afterward wrought out for
themselves. It was not to be a union based upon the idea
of the sacredness of local self-government, but it was a
union to be achieved, as far as possible, at the expense of
local self-government To bring all the colonies together
1752 THE BEGINNINGS 5
under a single viceroy would, it was thought, dimmish seri-
ously the power of each local assembly, while at the same
time such a union would no doubt make the military strength
of the colonies much more available in case of war. In
1764, Francis Bernard, Governor of Massachusetts, wrote
that "to settle the American governments to the greatest
possible advantage, it will be necessary to reduce the num-
ber of them, in some places to unite and consolidate; in
others to separate and transfer, and in general to divide
by natural boundaries instead of
imaginary lines If there should
be but one form of government
established for the North Ameri-
can provinces, it would greatly
facilitate the reformation of
them." As long ago as 1701,
Robert Livingston of New Yprk
had made similar suggestions,
and in 1752, Dinwiddie of Virginia recommended that the
Northern and Southern colonies be united respectively into
two great confederacies
The desirableness of bringing about a union of the col-
onies was also recognized by all the most liberal-minded
American statesmen, though from a very different point of
view. They agreed with the royal governors and with the
Lords of Trade as to the urgent need for concentrating
the military strength of the colonies, and they thought that
this end could best be subserved by some kind of federal
union. But at the same time they held that the integrity
of the local self-government of each colony was of the first
importance, and that no system of federation would be prac-
ticable which should in any degree essentially impair that
integrity. To bring about a federal union on such terms
was no easy matter ; it was a task fitted to tax the greatest
of statesmen at any time. At that time it was undoubtedly
a hopeless task The need for union was not generally
felt by the people. The sympathies between the different
6 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP. I
colonies were weak and liable to be overborne by prejudices
Weakness arising from rivalry or from differences m social
sentiment structure. To the merchant of Boston, the Vir-
of union gmian planter was still almost a foreigner, though
both the one and the other were pure-blooded Englishmen.
Commercial jealousies were very keen. Disputes about
boundaries were not uncommon In 1756, Georgia and
South Carolina actually came to blows over the navigation
of the Savannah river. Jeremiah Dummer, in his famous
"Defence of the New England Charters," said that it was
impossible that the colonies should ever be brought to unite ;
and Burnaby thought that if the hand of Great Britain were
once taken off, there would be chronic civil war all the way
from Maine to Georgia
In 1754, the prospect of immediate war with the French
led several of the royal governors to call for a congress of
all the colonies, to be held at Albany. The pri-
Aibany mary purpose of the meeting was to make sure of
Congress ^ fnendship of the Six Nations, and to organize
a general scheme of operations against the French. The
secondary purpose was to prepare some plan of confedera-
tion which all the colonies might be persuaded to adopt.
New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecti-
cut, New York, Pennsylvania, and Maryland only seven
colonies of the thirteen sent commissioners to this con-
gress. The people showed little interest in the movement.
It does not appear that any public
meetings were held in favour of it.
L -V
rp
UNITE OR DIE
MY
S c m ^ ^ Among the newspapers, the only
"^ one which warmly approved of it
seems to have been the " Pennsyl-
vania Gazette/ 1 edited by Ben-
jamin Franklin, which appeared
with a union device and the motto " Unite or Die ! "
The circumstances of Franklin's life, no less than the wide
sweep of his intelligence, had fitted him for sounder views
of the political needs of the time than were taken by most
1754 THE BEGINNINGS 7
of his contemporaries As a native of Massachusetts who
dwelt in Pennsylvania, he may be said to have belonged to
two very different colonies ; and he had spent time enough
in London to become well acquainted with British ideas.
During the session of the Albany Congress, a first attempt
was made to establish a permanent union of the thirteen
colonies. It was to Franklin that the plan was Frankhn , s
chiefly due. The legislative assembly of each col- plan of
ony was to choose, once m three years, represen- umon ' I754
tatives to attend a federal Grand Council , which was to
meet every year at Philadelphia, a town which could be
reached by a twenty days' journey either from South Caro-
lina or from New Hampshire. This Grand Council was to
choose its own speaker, and could neither be dissolved nor
prorogued, nor kept sitting longer than six weeks at any one
time, except by its own consent or by especial order of the
Crown. The Grand Council was to make treaties with the
Indians and to regulate the Indian trade , and it was to have
sole power of legislation on all matters concerning the col-
onies as a whole To these ends, it could levy taxes, enlist
soldiers, build forts, and nominate all civil officers Its laws
were to be submitted to the king for approval, and the royal
veto, in order to be of effect, must be exercised within three
years
To this Grand Council each colony was to send a number
of representatives, proportioned to its contributions to the
continental military service ; yet no colony was to send less
than two or more than seven representatives. With the
exception of such matters of general concern as were to be
managed by the Grand Council, each colony was to retain
its powers of legislation intact. On an emergency, any
colony might singly defend itself against foreign attack, and
the federal government was prohibited from impressing sol-
diers or seamen without the consent of the local legislature.
The supreme executive power was to be vested in a presi-
dent or governor-general, appointed and paid by the Crown
He was to nominate all military officers, subject to the
8 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, i
approval of the Grand Council, and was to have a veto on
all the acts of the Grand Council. No money could be
issued save by joint order of the governor-general and the
council.
This plan, said Franklin, "is not altogether to my mind,
but it is as I could get it." It should be observed, to the
credit of its author, that this scheme, long afterward known
as the "Albany Plan," contemplated the formation of a self-
sustaining federal government, and not of a mere league
As Frothingham well says, " It designed to confer on the
representatives of the people the power of making laws
acting directly on individuals, and appointing officers to exe-
cute them, and yet not to interfere with the execution of the
laws operating on the same individuals by the local officers."
It would have erected " a public authority as obligatory in its
sphere as the local governments were in, their spheres." In
this respect it was much more complete than the scheme of
confederation agreed on in Congress in 1777, and it afforded
a valuable precedent for the more elaborate and perfect
Federal Constitution of 1787 It was in its main features
a noble scheme, and the great statesman who devised it
was already looking forward to the immense growth of the
American Union, though he had not yet foreseen the sepa-
ration of the colonies from the mother-country. In less than
a century, he said, the great country behind the Allogha-
nies must become "a populous and powerful dominion;"
and he recommended that two new colonies should at once
be founded in the West, the one on Lake Erie, the other
in the valley of the Ohio, with free chartered govern-
ments like those of Rhode Island and Connecticut.
But public opinion was not yet ripe for the adoption (if
Franklin's bold and comprehensive ideas. Of the royal
governors who were anxious to see the colonies united on
any terms, none opposed the plan except Delancey of New
York, who wished to reserve to the governors a veto upon
all elections of representatives to the Grand Council. To
this it was rightly objected that such a veto power would
1754 THE BEGINNINGS 9
virtually destroy the freedom of elections, and make the
Grand Council an assembly of creatures of the Rejectloll
governors. On the popular side the objections of the plan
were many. The New England delegates, on the whole,
were the least disinclined to union , yet Connecticut urged
that the veto power of the governor-general might prove
ruinous to the whole scheme , that the concentration of all
the military forces in his hands would be fraught with dan-
gers to liberty , and that even the power of taxation, lodged
in the hands of an assembly so remote from local interests,
was hardly compatible with the preservation of the ancient
rights of Englishmen. After long debate, the assembly at
Albany decided to adopt Franklin's plan, and copies of it
were sent to all the colonies for their consideration But
nowhere did it meet with approval. The mere fact that the
royal governors were all in favour of it though their advo-
cacy was at present, no doubt, determined mainly by sound
military reasons was quite enough to create an insuper-
able prejudice against it on the part of the people. The
Massachusetts legislature seems to have been the only one
which gave it a respectful consideration, albeit a large town
meeting in Boston denounced it as subversive of liberty.
Pennsylvania rejected it without a word of discussion None
of the assemblies favoured it On the other hand, when
sent over to England to be inspected by the Lords of Trade,
it only irritated and disgusted them. As they truly said, it
was a scheme of union "complete in itself , " and ever since
the days of the New England confederacy the Crown had
looked with extreme jealousy upon all attempts at concerted
action among the colonies which did not originate with
itself. Besides this, the Lords of Trade were now consider-
ing a plan of their own for remodelling the governments of
the colonies, establishing a standing army, enforcing the
navigation acts, and levying taxes by authority of Parlia-
ment. Accordingly little heed was paid to Franklin's ideas.
Though the royal governors had approved the Albany plan,
in default of any scheme of union more to their minds, they
10
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. I
had no real sympathy with it. In 1756, Shirley wrote to
the Lords of Trade, urging upon them the paramount neces-
sity for a union of the American colonies, in order
to withstand the French , while at the same time
^ Q disparaged Franklin's scheme, as containing
principles of government unfit even for a single colony like
Rhode Island, and much more unfit for a great American
confederacy. The union, he urged, should be effected by
stamp act
act of Parliament, and by the same authority a general fund
should be raised to meet the expenses of the war, an end
which Shirley thought might be most speedily and quietly
attained by means of a "stamp duty/' As Shirley had
been for fifteen years governor of Massachusetts, and was
now commander-in-chief of all the troops in America, his
opinion had great weight with the Lords of Trade; and
the same views being reiterated by Dinwiddie of Virginia,
Sharpe of Maryland, Hardy of New York, and other gov*
1761 THE BEGINNINGS n
ernors, the notion that Parliament must tax the Americans
became deeply rooted in the British official mind
Nothing was done, however, until the work of the French
war had been accomplished. In 1761, it was decided to
enforce the Navigation Act, and one of the revenue officers
at Boston applied to the superior court for a " writ Wnts of
of assistance," or general search-warrant, to enable assistance
him to enter private houses and search for smuggled goods,
but without specifying either houses or goods Such general
warrants had been allowed by a statute of the bad reign of
Charles II , and a statute of William III , in general terms,
had granted to revenue officers in America like powers to
those they possessed in England. But James Otis showed
that the issue of such writs was contrary to the whole spirit
of the British constitution. To issue such universal war-
rants allowing the menials of the customhouse, on mere
suspicion, and perhaps from motives of personal enmity, to
invade the home of any citizen, without being held responsi-
ble for any rudeness they might commit there, such, he
said, was "a kind of power, the exercise of which cost one
king of England his head and another his throne ; " and he
plainly declared that even an ajct of Parliament which should
sanction so gross an infringement of the immemorial rights
of Englishmen^ would be treated as null and void Chief
Justice Hutchinson granted the writs of assistance, and as
an interpreter of the law he was doubtless right in so doing ;
but Otis's argument suggested the question whether Ameri-
cans were bound to obey laws which they had no share in
making, and his passionate eloquence made so great an im-
pression upon the people that this scene in the court room
has been since remembered and not unjustly as the
opening scene of the American Revolution
In the same year the arbitrary temper of the government
was exhibited in New York. Down to this time The chief
the chief justice of the colony had held office only justice of
during good behaviour, and had been liable to w
dismissal at the hands of the colonial assembly. The chief
12
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP I,
justice was now made removable only by the Crown, a meas-
ure which struck directly at the independent administration
of justice m the colony. The assembly tried to protect
itself by refusing to assign a fixed salary to the chief jus-
tice, whereupon the king ordered that the salary should be
1763 THE BEGINNINGS 13
paid out of the quit-rents for the public lands At the
same time instructions were sent to all the royal governors
to grant no judicial commissions for any other period than
"during the king's pleasure," and to show that this was
meant in earnest, the governor of New Jersey was next year
peremptorily dismissed for commissioning a judge " during
good behaviour "
In 1762, a question distinctly involving the right of the
people to control the expenditure of their own money came
up in Massachusetts Governor Bernard, without authority
from the assembly, had sent a couple of ships to the north-
ward, to protect the fisheries against French privateers, and
an expense of some ^400 had been thus incurred. The
assembly was now ordered to pay this sum, but it refused to
do so " It would be of little consequence to the Obg , g
people," said Otis, in the debate on the question, ' Vindica-
" whether they were subject to George or Louis,
the king of Great Britain or the French king, if both were
arbitrary, as both would be, if both could levy taxes without
Parliament" A cry of " Treason !" from one of the less
clear-headed members greeted this bold statement; and
Otis, being afterward taken to task for his language, pub-
lished a "Vindication," in which he maintained that the
rights of a colonial assembly, as regarded the expenditure
of public money, were as sacred as the rights of the House
of Commons.
In April, 1763, just three years after the accession of
George III , George Grenville became Prime Minister of
England, while at the same time Charles Townshend was
First Lord of Trade. Townshend had paid considerable
attention to American affairs, and was supposed to know
more about them than any other man in England. But his
studies had led him to the conclusion that the colonies ought
to be deprived of their self-government, and that a standing
army ought to be maintained in America by means of taxes
arbitrarily assessed upon the people by Parliament. Gren-
ville was far from approving of such extreme measures as
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. I
Ex
these, but he thought that a tax ought to be imposed upon
the colonies, in order to help defray the expenses
of the Frencl1 war Yet m P int of fact > as Frank-
1m truly said, the colonies had "raised, paid, and
clothed nearly twenty-five thousand men during the last
war, a number equal to those sent from Great Britain,
and far beyond their proportion. They went deeply into
debt in doing this ; and all their estates and taxes arc mort-
gaged for many years to come for discharging that debt/'
That the colonies had contributed more than an equitable
share toward the expenses of the war, that their contribu-
tions had even been in excess of their ability, had been
1764 THE BEGINNINGS 15
freely acknowledged by Parliament, which, on several occa-
sions between 1756 and 1763, had voted large sums to be
paid over to the colonies, in partial compensation for their
excessive outlay. Parliament was therefore clearly estopped
from making the defrayal of the war debt the occasion for
imposing upon the colonies a tax of a new and strange char-
acter, and under circumstances which made the payment of
such a tax seem equivalent to a surrender of their rights as
free English communities In March, 1764, Gren- G renviiie's
ville introduced in the House of Commons a series Resolves
of Declaratory Resolves, announcing the intention of the
government to raise a revenue in America by requiring vari-
ous commercial and legal documents, newspapers, etc., to
bear stamps, varying in price from threepence to ten pounds.
A year was to elapse, however, before these resolutions
should take effect in a formal enactment
It marks the inferiority of the mother-country to the
colonies in political development, at that time, that the only
solicitude as yet entertained by the British official mind,
with regard to this measure, seems to have been concerned
with the question how far the Americans would be willing
to part with their money With the Americans it was as far
as possible from being a question of pounds, shillings, and
pence ; but this was by no means correctly understood in
England The good Shirley, although he had lived so long
in Massachusetts, had thought that a revenue might be most
easily and quietly raised by means of a stamp duty Of all
kinds of direct tax, none, perhaps, is less annoying But
the position taken by the Americans had little to do with
mere convenience ; it rested from the outset upon the deep-
est foundations of political justice, and from this foothold
neither threatening nor coaxing could stir it.
The first deliberate action with reference to the proposed
Stamp Act was taken in the Boston town meeting in May,
1764. In this memorable town meeting Samuel Adams
drew up a series of resolutions, which contained the first for-
mal and public denial of the right of Parliament to tax the
i6
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP I
colonies without their consent ; and while these resolutions
were adopted by the Massachusetts assembly, a circular
letter was at the same time sent to all the other colonies,
setting forth the need for concerted and harmo-
nious action in respect of so grave a matter. In
nies response, the assemblies of Connecticut, New
York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and South Carolina joined with
Massachusetts in remonstrating against the proposed Stamp
Act. All these memorials were remarkable for clearness of
argument and simple dignity of language. They all took
their stand on the principle that, as free-born Englishmen,
they could not rightfully be taxed by the House of Com-
mons unless they were represented
in that body. But the proviso was
added, that if a letter from the secre-
tary of state, coming in the king's
name, should be presented to the colo-
nial assemblies, asking them to con-
tribute something from their general
resources to the needs of the British
Empire, they would cheerfully, as
heretofore, grant liberal sums of
money, in token of their loyalty and
of their interest in all that con-
cerned the welfare of the mighty empire to which they be-
longed. These able and temperate memorials were sent to
England , and in order to reinforce them by personal tact
and address, Franklin went over to London as agent for the
colony of Pennsylvania
The alternative proposed by the colonies was virtually the
same as the system of requisitions already in use, and the
inefficiency of which, in securing a revenue, had been abun-
dantly proved by the French war. Parliament therefore
The stamp rejected it, and early in 1765 the Stamp Act was
Act passed. It is worthy of remark that the idea that
the Americans would resist its execution did not at once
occur to Franklin. Acquiescence seemed to him, for the
A STAMP
1765
THE BEGINNINGS
present, the only safe policy. In writing to his friend Charles
Thomson, he said that he could no more have hindered the
passing of the Stamp Act than he could have hindered the
sun's setting. "That," he
says, " we cpuld not do. But
since it is down, my friend,
and it may be long before it
rises again, let us make as
good a night of it as we can.
We may still light candles.
Frugality and industry will
go a great way towards in-
demnifying us " But Thom-
son, in his answer, with truer
foresight, observed, " I much
fear, instead of the candles
you mentioned being lighted,
you will hear of the works of
darkness ' " The news of the
passage of the Stamp Act
was greeted in America with
a burst of indignation In New York, the act was reprinted
with a death's-head upon it in place of the royal arms, and
it was hawked about the streets under the title of "The
Folly of England and the Ruin of America " In Boston,
the church-bells were tolled, and the flags on the shipping
put at half-mast
But formal defiance came first from Virginia A year
and a half before, a famous lawsuit, known as the The pa ^
"Parsons' Cause," had brought into public notice sons*
a young man who was destined to take high rank
among modern orators The lawsuit which made Patrick
Henry's reputation was one of the straws which showed how
the stream of tendency in America was then strongly set-
ting toward independence. Tobacco had not yet ceased to
be a legal currency m Virginia, and by virtue of an old stat-
ute each clergyman of the Established Church was entitled
i8
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. I
to sixteen thousand pounds of tobacco as his yearly salary.
In 1755 and 1758, under the severe pressure of the French
war, the assembly had passed relief acts, allowing all public
dues, including the salaries of the clergy, to be paid either
in kind or in money, at a fixed rate of twopence for a pound
of tobacco. The policy of these acts was thoroughly un-
sound, as they involved a partial repudiation of debts , but
the extreme distress of the com-
munity was pleaded in excuse, and
every one, clergy as well as laymen,
at first acquiesced in them. But
in 1759 tobacco was worth sixpence
per pound, and the clergy be-
came dissatisfied. Their complaints
reached the cars of Sherlock, the
Bishop of London, and the act of
1758 was summarily vetoed by the
king in council. The clergy brought
suits to recover the unpaid portions
of their salaries , in the test case of
Rev James Maury, the court de-
cided the point of the law in their
favour, on the ground of the royal
veto, and nothing remained but to
settle before a jury the amount of
the damages. On this occasion,
Henry appeared for the first time
in court, and after a few timid and
awkward sentences burst forth with
an eloquent speech, in which he asserted the indefeasible
right of Virginia to make laws for herself, and declared that
in annulling a salutary ordinance at the request of a favoured
class in the community " a king, from being the father of
his people, degenerates into a tyrant, and forfeits all right
to obedience." Cries of "Treason ! " were heard m the court
room, but the jury immediately returned a verdict of one
penny in damages, and Henry became the popular idol of
SPEAKER'S CHAIR, HOUSE OF
BURGESSES
1765
THE BEGINNINGS
PATRICK HENRY MAKING HIS TARQUIN AND C/GSAR SPEECH
Virginia. The clergy tried m vain to have him indicted for
treason, alleging that his crime was hardly less heinous than
that which had brought old Lord Lovat to the block. But
the people of Louisa county replied, in 1765, by choosing
him to represent them in the colonial assembly
Hardly had Henry taken his seat in the assembly when
the news of the Stamp Act arrived. In a committee of the
20 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, i
whole house, he drew up a series of resolutions, declaring
that the colonists were entitled to all the liberties
Hemy'a and privileges of natural-born subjects, and that
resolutions t( ^ taxa t lon of the people by themselves, or by
persons chosen by themselves to represent them, ... is
the distinguishing characteristic of British freedom, with-
out which the ancient constitution cannot exist " It was
further declared that any attempt to vest the power of
taxation in any other body than the colonial assembly was
a menace to British no less than to American freedom ; that
the people of Virginia were not bound to obey any law
enacted in disregard of these fundamental principles , and
that any one who should maintain the contrary should be
regarded as a public enemy. It was in the lively debate
which ensued upon these resolutions, that Henry uttered
those memorable words commending the example of Tar-
quin and Caesar and Charles I to the attention of George III.
Before the vote had been taken upon all the resolutions,
Governor Fauquier dissolved the assembly, but the reso-
lutions were printed in the newspapers, and hailed with
approval all over the country.
Meanwhile, the Massachusetts legislature, at the sugges-
tion of Otis, had issued a circular letter to all the colonies,
Th sta ca -lli n g f r a general congress, in order to concert
Act Con- measures of resistance to the Stamp Act. The
gress first cordial response came from South Carolina,
at the instance of Christopher Gaclsden, a wealthy merchant
of Charleston and a scholar learned in Oriental languages, a
man of rare sagacity and most liberal spirit. On the jth of
October, the proposed congress assembled at New York,
comprising delegates from Massachusetts, South Carolina,
Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware, Mary-
land, New Jersey, and New York, in all nine colonies, which
are here mentioned in the order of the dates at which they
chose their delegates. In Virginia, the governor succeeded
in preventing the meeting of the legislature, so that this
great colony did not send delegates ; and, for various reasons,
1765 THE BEGINNINGS 21
STAMP. OFFICE,
Lincoln* s-Itw, 1765.
TABLE
Of the Prices of Parchment and Paper for the Service
of America.
Parchment. " Paper.
Skins 18 Inch, by 13, at FOI/TPGDW -j Xfap ttSvcn-penc&
22 -by 16, at Six-pence / Fools Cap at Nine- pence
26 - by 20, at Eight-pence >each. D with printed Notices 1 at
28 by 23, at Ten-pence \ for Indentures J i s.
3 1 by 26, atThiricen-pence 3 Foho Poft at One Shilling
Demy at Two Shillings
Medium at Three Shillings
Rojal at Four Shillings
Super Royal at Six Shillings .
Paper for Printing
News. Almanacks.
each Quire*
Double Crown at 145 ~\ . n Book Crown Paper at 108 fid }
Double Demy at 19 s. J cach Resun - Book Fools Cap at 6s. 6d ( & R
Pocket Folio Pod at 20 a. C
Book Fools Cap at 6s. 6d (
Pocket Folio Pod at 20 a. C
Sheet Demy at 135. J
New Hampshire, North Carolina, and Georgia were likewise
unrepresented at the congress. But the sentiment of all
the thirteen colonies was none the less unanimous, and
those which did not attend lost no time in declaring their
full concurrence with what was done at New York At
this memorable meeting, held under the very guns of the
British fleet and hard by the headquarters of General Gage,
the commander-in-chief of the regular forces in America, a
series of resolutions were adopted, echoing the spirit of
22 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
Patrick Henry's resolves, though couched in language some-
what more conciliatory, and memorials were addressed to the
king and to both Houses of Parliament Of all the dele-
gates present, Gadsden took the broadest ground, in behalf
both of liberty and of united action among the colonies He
objected to sending petitions to Parliament, lest thereby itb
paramount authority should implicitly and unwittingly be
acknowledged. " A confirmation of our essential and com-
mon rights as Englishmen/ 1 said he, "may be pleaded from
charters safely enough, but any further dependence on
them may be fatal We should stand upon the broacl
common ground of those natural rights that we all feel and
know as men and as descendants of Englishmen. I wish
the charters may not ensnare us at last, by drawing different
colonies to act differently m this great cause Whenever
that is the case, all will be over with the whole There
ought to be no New England man, no New Yorker, known
on the continent , but all of us Americans." So thought
and said this broad-minded South Carolinian.
While these things were going on at New York, the
Deciara- Massachusetts assembly, under the lead of Samuel
gm of the Adams, who had just taken his scat in it, drew up
setts assem- a very able state paper, in which it was declared,
y among other things, that "the Stamp Act wholly
cancels the very conditions upon which our ancestors, with
much toil and blood and at their sole expense, settled this
country and enlarged his majesty's dominions. It tends to
destroy that mutual confidence and affection, as well as that
equality, which ought ever to subsist among all his ma-
jesty's subjects in this wide and extended empire ; and what
is the worst of all evils, if his majesty's American subjects
are not to be governed according to the known and stated
rules of the constitution, their minds may in time become
disaffected." This moderate and dignified statement was
applauded by many in England and by others derided as
the "raving of a parcel of wild enthusiasts," but from the
position here taken Massachusetts never afterward receded
1765
THE BEGINNINGS
But it was not only in these formal and decorous proceed-
ings that the spirit of resistance was exhibited. The first
announcement of the Stamp Act had called into existence a
group of secret societies of workmgmen known as " Sons of
Liberty," in allusion to a famous phrase in one of Resistance
Colonel Barrd's speeches. These societies were stamJ, Act
solemnly pledged to resist the execution of the Boston
obnoxious law. On the I4th of August, the quiet town of
Boston witnessed some extraordinary proceedings. At day-
break, the effigy of the stamp officer, Oliver, was seen hang-
ing from a great elm-tree, while near it was suspended a boot,
to represent the late prime minister, Lord Bute ; and from
the top of the boot-leg there issued a grotesque head, gar-
nished with horns, to represent the devil. At nightfall the
Sons of Liberty cut down these figures, and bore them on
a bier through the streets until they reached King Street,
where they demolished the frame of a house which was
supposed to be erecting for a stamp office. Thence, carry-
ing the beams of this frame to Fort Hill, where Oliver
lived, they made a bonfire of them in front of his house,
and in the bonfire they burned up the effigies Twelve days
after, a mob sacked the splendid house of Chief Justice
Hutchmson, threw his plate into the street, and destroyed
the valuable library which he had
been thirty years in collecting,
and which contained many man-
uscripts, the loss of which was
quite irreparable. As usual with
mobs, the vengeance fell in the
wrong place, for Hutchmson had
done his best to prevent the pas-
sage of the Stamp Act. In most
of the colonies, the stamp officers
were compelled to resign their
posts. Boxes of stamps arriving by ship were burned or
thrown into the sea. Leading merchants agreed to import
no more goods from England, and wealthy citizens set the
&3t^&^^
Place to affix ..the
24 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP I
example of dressing in homespun garments Lawyers agreed
to overlook the absence of the stamp on legal documents,
while editors derisively issued their newspapers with a death's-
head in the place where the stamp was required to be put.
In New York, the presence of the troops for a moment
and m New encouraged the lieutenant-governor, Golden, to
York take a bold stand in behalf of the law He talked
of firing upon the people, but was warned that if he did so
he would be speedily hanged on a lamp-post, like Captain
Porteous of Edinburgh. A torchlight procession, carrying
images of Golden and of the devil, broke into the governor's
coach-house, and, seizing his best chariot, paraded it about
town with the images upon it, and finally burned up chariot
and images on the Bowling Green, in full sight of Golden
and the garrison, who looked on from the Battery, speech-
less with rage, but afraid to interfere. Gage did not dare
to have the troops used, for fear of bringing on a civil war ;
and the next day the discomfited Golden was obliged to sur-
render all the stamps to the common council of New York,
by whom they were at once locked up in the City Hall.
Nothing more was needed to prove the impossibility of
carrying the Stamp Act into effect. An act which could
be thus rudely defied under the very eyes of the commandei-
in-chief plainly could never be enforced without a war. But
nobody wanted a war, and the matter began to be recon-
sidered in England In July, the Grcnville ministry had
gone out of office, and the Marquis of Rockingham was
now prime minister, while Conway, who had been one of
the most energetic opponents of the Stamp Act, was secre-
tary of state for the colonies. The new ministry would
perhaps have been glad to let the question of taxing Amer-
ica remain in abeyance, but that was no longer possible.
Debate m The debate on the proposed repeal of the Stamp
S^oSh* 6 Act was one of the keenest that has ever been
mons heard in the House of Commons. Grcnville and
his friends, now in opposition, maintained in all sincerity that
no demand could ever be more just, or more honourably
i;66 THE BEGINNINGS 25
intended, than that which had lately been made upon the
Americans Of the honest conviction of Grenville and his
supporters that they were entirely in the right, and that
the Americans were governed by purely sordid and vulgar
motives m resisting the Stamp Act, there cannot be the
slightest doubt To refute this gross misconception of the
American position, Pitt hastened from a sick-bed to the
House of Commons, and delivered those speeches in which
he avowed that he rejoiced in the resistance of the Ameri-
cans, and declared that, had they submitted tamely to the
measures of Grenville, they would have shown themselves
only fit to be slaves. He pointed out distinctly that the
Americans were upholding those eternal principles of politi-
cal justice which should be to all Englishmen most dear,
and that a victory over the colonies would be of ill-omen
for English liberty, whether in the Old World or in the
New. Beware, he said, how you persist in this ill-considered
policy " In such a cause your success would be hazardous.
America, if she fell, would fall like the strong man with his
arms around the pillars of the Constitution " There could
be no sounder political philosophy than was contained in
these burning sentences of Pitt From all the history of
the European world since the later days of the Roman
Republic, there is no more important lesson to be learned
than this, that it is impossible for a free people to govern
a dependent people despotically without endangering its own
freedom. Pitt therefore urged that the Stamp Act should
instantly be repealed, and that the reason for the repeal
should be explicitly stated to be because the act "was
founded on an erroneous principle." At the same time he
recommended the passage of a Declaratory Act, in which the
sovereign authority of Parliament over the colonies should
be strongly asserted with respect to everything except
direct taxation. Similar views were set forth in the House
of Lords, with great learning and ability, by Lord Camden ;
but he was vehemently opposed by Lord Mansfield, and
when the question came to a decision, the only peers who sup-
26 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP i
ported Camden were Lords Shelburne, Cornwalhs, Paulet,
and Torrington. The result finally reached was the uncon-
ditional repeal of the Stamp Act, and the simulta-
the P stamp neous passage of a Declaratory Act, in which the
Act views of Pitt and Camden were ignored and Parlia-
ment asserted its right to make laws binding on the colonies
"in all cases whatsoever " By the people of London the
repeal was received with enthusiastic delight, and Pitt and
Conway, as they appeared on the street, were loudly
cheered, while Grenville was greeted with a storm of hisses
In America the effect of the news was electric. There
were bonfires in every town, while addresses of thanks to
the king were voted in all the legislatures. Little heed was
paid to the Declaratory Act, which was regarded merely as
an artifice for saving the pride of the British government.
There was a unanimous outburst of loyalty all over the
country, and never did the people seem less in a mood for
rebellion than at that moment.
The quarrel had now been made up. On the question of
principle, the British had the last word. The government
had got out of its dilemma remarkably well, and the plain
and obvious course for British statesmanship was not to
allow another such direct issue to conic up between the
colonies and the mother-country. To force on another such
issue while the memory of this one was fresh in everybody's
mind was sheer madness. To raise the question wantonly,
as Charles Townshend did in the course of the very next
year, was one of those blunders that are worse than crimes.
In July, 1766, less than six months after the repeal of
the Stamp Act, the Rockingham ministry fell, and the
formation of a new ministry was entrusted to Pitt, the man
who best appreciated the value of the American colonies.
But the state of Pitt's health was not such as to warrant his
The Duke taking upon himself the arduous duties of prime
o n ? ? raf " minister. He took the great seal, and, accepting
ministry t h e ear ldom of Chatham, passed into the House of
Lords. The Duke of Grafton became prime minister, undei
I
28 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, i
Pitt's guidance; Conway and Lord Shelburne were secre-
taries of state, and Camden became Lord Chancellor,
all three of them warm friends of America, and adopting
the extreme American view
of the constitutional ques-
tions lately at issue , and
along with these was Charles
Townshend, the evil spirit of
the administration, as chan-
cellor of the exchequer. From such a ministry, it might at
first sight seem strange that a fresh quarrel with America
should have proceeded. But Chatham's illness soon over-
powered him, so that he was kept at home suffering excru-
ciating pain, and could neither guide ,nor even pay due
attention to the proceedings of his colleagues. Of the rest
of the ministry, only Conway and Townshend were in the
House of Commons, where the real direction of affairs
rested ; and when Lord Chatham was out of the way, as the
Duke of Grafton counted for nothing, the strongest man in
the cabinet was unquestionably Townshend Now when an
act for raising an American revenue was proposed by Town-
shend, a prejudice against it was sure to be excited at once,
simply because every American knew well what Town-
shend's views were. It would have been difficult for such a
man even to assume a conciliatory attitude without having
his motives suspected , and if the question with Great Britain
had been simply that of raising a revenue on statesmanlike
principles, it would have been well to entrust the business
to some one like Lord Shelburne, m whom the Americans
had confidence. In 1767, Townshend ventured to clo what
in any English ministry of the present clay would be im-
possible In flat opposition to the policy of Chatham and
the rest of his colleagues, trusting in the favour of the king
and in his own ability to coax or browbeat the House of
Commons, he brought in a series of new measures for taxing
America. " I expect to be dismissed for my pains, 1 * he said
in the House, with flippant defiance ; and indeed he came
1767 THE BEGINNINGS 29
very near it. As soon as he heard what was going on, Chat-
ham mustered up strength enough to go to London and in-
sist upon Townshend's dismissal. But Lord North was the
only person that could be thought of to take Townshend's
place, and Lord North, who never liked to offend the king,
declined the appointment Before Chatham could devise
a way out of his quandary, his malady again laid him pros-
trate, and Townshend was not only not turned out, but
was left practically supreme in the cabinet The new
measures for taxing America were soon passed In the
debates on the Stamp Act, it had been argued that while
Parliament had no right to impose a direct tax upon the
Americans, it might still properly regulate American trade
by port duties The distinction had been insisted upon by
Pitt, and had been virtually acknowledged by the Ameri-
3 o THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP i
cans, who had from time to time submitted to acts of Par-
liament imposing duties upon merchandise imported into
the colonies. Nay, more, when charged with inconsistency
for submitting to such acts while resisting the Stamp Act,
The Town- several leading Americans had explicitly adopted
shend Acts the distinction between internal and external taxa-
tion, and declared themselves ready to submit to the latter
while determined to resist the former. Townshcnd was
now ready, as he declared, to take them at their word. By
way of doing so, he began by laughing to scorn the dis-
tinction between internal and external taxation, and declar-
ing that Parliament possessed the undoubted right of taxing
the Americans without their own consent ; but since objec-
tions had been raised to a direct tax, he was willing to resort
to port duties, a measure to which the Americans were
logically bound to assent. Duties were accordingly imposed
on wine, oil, and fruits, if carried directly to America from
Spain or Portugal; on glass, paper, lead, and painters 7
colours ; and lastly on tea. The revenue to be derived from
these duties was to be devoted to paying a fixed salary to
the royal governors and to the justices appointed at the
king's pleasure The Crown was also empowered to create
a general civil list in every colony, and to grant salaries and
pensions at its arbitrary will. A board of revenue com-
missioners for the whole country was to be established at
Boston, armed with extraordinary powers ; and general writs
of assistance were expressly legalized and permitted.
Such was the way in which Townshend proceeded to take
the Americans at their word. His course was a distinct
warning to the Americans that, if they yielded now, they
might expect some new Stamp Act or other measures of
direct taxation to follow ; and so it simply invited resistance.
That no doubt might be left on this point, the purpose for
which the revenue was to be used showed clearly that the
object of the legislation was not to regulate trade, but to
assert British supremacy over the colonies at the expense
of their political freedom. By providing for a civil list in
THE BEGINNINGS
HOUSE OF COMMONS
each colony, to be responsible only to the Crown, it aimed
at American self-government even a more deadly blow than
had been aimed at it by the Stamp Act. It meddled with
the " internal police " of every colony, and would Attack on
thus have introduced a most vexatious form of Y^JJ
tyranny as soon as it had taken effect. A special sembl y
act by which the Townshend revenue acts were accompanied
still further revealed the temper and purposes of the British
32 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP. I
government. The colony of New York had been required
to provide certain supplies for the regular troops quartered
in the city, under command of General Gage ; and the colo-
nial assembly had insisted upon providing these supplies in
its own way, and m disregard of special instructions from
England For this offence, Parliament now passed an act
suspending the New York assembly from its legislative
functions until it should have complied with the instructions
regarding the supplies to the army. It need not be said
that the precedent involved in this act, if once admitted,
would have virtually annulled the legislative independence
of every one of the colonial assemblies
We may perhaps wonder that a British Parliament should
have been prevailed on to pass such audacious acts as
these, and by large majorities But we must remember
that in those days the English system of representation was
Parliament so imperfect, and had come to be so overgrown
with abuses, that an act of Parliament was by no
means sure t represent the average judgment of
people the people The House of Commons was so far
under the corrupt influence of the aristocracy, and was so
inadequately controlled by popular opinion, that at almost
any time it was possible for an eloquent, determined, and
unscrupulous minister to carry measures through it such
as could never have been carried through any of the re-
formed Parliaments since 1832. It is not easy, peihaps,
to say with confidence what the popular feeling in England
was in 1767 with reference to the policy of Charles Town-
shend. The rural population was much more ignorant than
it is to-day, and its political opinions were strongly influ-
enced by the country squires, a worthy set of men, but
not generally distinguished for the flexibility of their minds
or the breadth of their views But as a sample of the most
intelligent popular feeling in England at that time, it will
probably not be unfair to cite that of the city of London,
which was usually found arrayed on the side of free govern-
ment No wiser advice was heard in Parliament, on the
1 767
THE BEGINNINGS
33
subject of the New York dispute, than was given by Alder-
man Beckford, father of the illustrious author of Vathek,
when he said, "Do like the best of physicians, and heal the
disease by doing nothing." On many other important occa-
sions in the course of this unfortunate quarrel, the city of
HOUSE OF LORDS
London gave expression to opinions which the king and
Parliament would have done well to heed But even if the
House of Commons had reflected popular feeling in 1767
as clearly as it has done since 1832, it is by no means sure
that it would have known how to deal successfully with the
American question. The problem was really a new one in
political history , and there was no adequate precedent to
guide the statesmen in dealing with the peculiar combma-
34 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, r
tion of considerations it involved. As far as concerned the
relations of Englishmen in England to the Crown and to
Parliament, the British Constitution had at last reached a
point where it worked quite smoothly. All contingencies
likely to arise seemed to have been provided for But when
it came to the relations of Englishmen in Ameiica to the
Crown and to Parliament, the case was very different. The
case had its peculiar conditions, which the British Constitu-
tion in skilful hands would no doubt have proved elastic
enough to satisfy , but just at this time the British Consti-
tution happened to be in very unskilful hands, and wholly
Diffi it f ai l e d to meet the exigencies of the occasion. The
of the chief difficulty lay in the fact that while on the
pio em Qne hand the American principle of no taxation
without representation was unquestionably sound and just,
on the other hand the exemption of any part of the British
Empire from the jurisdiction of Parliament seemed equiva-
lent to destroying the political unity of the empire. This
could not but seem to any English statesman a most
lamentable result, and no English statesman felt this more
strongly than Lord Chatham.
There were only two possible ways in which the difference
could be accommodated. Either the American colonies
must elect representatives to the Parliament at Westmin-
ster , or else the right of levying taxes must be left where it
already resided, in their own legislative bodies. The first
alternative was seriously considered by eminent political
thinkers, both in England and America. In England it
was favourably regarded by Adam Smith, and in America
by Benjamin Franklin and James Otis. In 1774, some of
the loyalists in the first Continental Congress recommended
such a scheme In 1778, after the overthrow of Burgoyne,
t " ie king himself began to think favourably of such
a wa y out of the c l uarrcl * But this alternative was
doubtless from the first quite visionary and un-
men practical. The difficulties in the way of securing
anything like equality of representation would probably have
1767 THE BEGINNINGS 35
been insuperable ; and the difficulty in dividing jurisdiction
fairly between the local colonial legislature and the Amer-
ican contingent in the Parliament at Westminster would far
have exceeded any of the difficulties that have arisen in
the attempt to adjust the relations of the several States to
the general government in our Federal Union Mere dis-
tance, too, which even to-day would go far toward rendering
such a scheme impracticable, would have been a still more
fatal obstacle in the days of Chatham and Townshend. If,
even with the vast enlargement of the political horizon
which our hundred years' experience of federalism has
effected, the difficulty of such a union still seems so great,
we may be sure it would have proved quite insuperable
then. The only practicable solution would have been the
frank and cordial admission, by the British government, of
the essential soundness of the American position, that, in
accordance with the entire spirit of the English Constitu-
tion, the right of levying taxes in America resided only in
the colonial legislatures, in which alone could American
freemen be adequately represented Nor was there really
any reason to fear that such a step would imperil the unity
of the empire. How mistaken this fear was, on the part of
English statesmen, is best shown by the fact that, in her
liberal and enlightened dealings with her colonies at the
present day, England has consistently adopted the very
course of action which alone would have conciliated such
men as Samuel Adams in the days of the Stamp Act. By
pursuing such a policy, the British government has to-day a
genuine hold upon the affections of its pioneers in Australia
and New Zealand and Africa. If such a statesman as
Gladstone could have dealt freely with the American ques-
tion during the twelve years following the Peace of Paris,
the history of that time need not have been the pitiable
story of a blind and obstinate effort to enforce submission
to an ill-considered and arbitrary policy on the part of the
king and his ministers. The feeling by which the king's
party was guided, in the treatment of the American ques-
36 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, i
tion, was very much the same as the feeling which lately
inspired the Tory criticisms upon Gladstone's policy in
South Africa. Lord Beaconsfield, a man in some respects
not unlike Charles Townshend, bequeathed to his successor
a miserable quarrel with the Dutch farmers of the
stone and" Transvaal ; and Mr. Gladstone, after examining
the Boeis ^ case Qn j tg mcn t Sj had the moral courage to
acknowledge that England was wrong, and to concede the
demands of the Boers, even after serious military defeat at
their hands. Perhaps no other public act of England in
the nineteenth century has done her greater honour than
this. But said the Jingoes, All the world will now laugh at
Englishmen, and call them cowards. In order to vindicate
the military prestige of England, the true policy would be,
forsooth, to prolong the war until the Boers had been once
thoroughly defeated, and then acknowledge the soundness
of their position. Just as if the whole world did not know,
as well as it can possibly know anything, that whatever
qualities the English nation may lack, it certainly does not
lack courage, or the ability to "win victories in a good cause !
All honour to the Christian statesman who dares to leave
England's mihtaiy prestige to be vindicated by the glorious
records of a thousand years, and even in the hour of well-
merited defeat sets a higher value on political justice than
on a reputation for dealing haid blows ! Such incidents as
this are big with hope for the future. They show us what
sort of political morality our children's children may expect
to see, when mankind shall have come somewhat neirer
toward being truly civilized.
In the eighteenth century, no such exhibition of good
sense and good feeling, in the interest of political justice,
could have been expected from any European statesman,
unless from a Turgot or a Chatham. But Charles Town-
shend was not even called upon to exercise any such self-
control Had he simply taken Alderman Beckford's advice,
and done nothing, all would have been well ; but his med-
dling had now put the government into a position which it
1767 THE BEGINNINGS 37
was ruinous to maintain, but from which it was difficult to
retreat. American tradition rightly lays the chief blame
for the troubles which brought on the Revolutionary War to
George III. , but, in fairness, it is well to remember that he
did not suggest Townshend's measures, though he zealously
adopted and cherished them when once propounded The
blame for wantonly throwing the apple of discord belongs to
Townshend more than to any one else. After doing this,
within three months from the time his bill had passed the
House of Commons, Townshend was seized with a _ f f
Death of
fever and died at the age of forty-one A man of Town-
extraordinary gifts, but without a trace of earnest
moral conviction, he had entered upon a splendid career;
but his insincere nature, which turned everything into jest,
had stamped itself upon his work. He bequeathed to his
country nothing but the quarrel which was soon to deprive
her of the grandest part of that empire upon which the sun
shall never set.
If Townshend's immediate object in originating these
measures was to curry favour with George III., and get the
lion's share in the disposal of the king's ample corruption-
fund, he had doubtless gone to work in the right way. The
king was delighted with Townshend's measures, and after
the sudden death of his minister he made them his
own, and staked his whole political career as a
monarch upon their success. These measures were in
the fatal legacy which the brighter political charlatan left
to the duller political fanatic. The fierce persistency with
which George now sought to force Townshend's measures
upon the Americans partook of the nature of fanaticism,
and we shall not understand it unless we bear in mind the
state of political parties in England between 1760 and 1784.
When George III. came to the throne, in 1760, England
had been governed for more than half a century by the great
Whig .families which had been brought into the foreground
by the revolution of 1688. The Tories had been utterly
discredited and cast out of political life by reason of their
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP I
willingness to conspire with the Stuart pretenders in dis-
turbing the peace of the country Cabinet government, in
its modern form, had begun to grow up during the long and
prosperous administration of Sir Robert Walpole, who was
the first English prime minister in the full sense Under
Walpole' s wise and powerful sway, the first two Georges
had possessed scarcely more than the shadow of sovereignty.
It was the third George's ambition to become a real king,
like the king of France or the king of Spain From earliest
babyhood, his mother had forever been impressing upon him
GEORGE HI
the precept, " George, be king ! " and this simple lesson had
constituted pretty much the whole of his education. Popu-
lar tradition regards him as the most ignorant king that ever
sat upon the English throne ; and so far as general culture
is concerned, this opinion is undoubtedly correct. lie used
to wonder what people could find to admire in such a
1767 THE BEGINNINGS 39
wretched driveller as Shakespeare, and he never was capable
of understanding any problem which required the slightest
trace of imagination or of generalizing power.
Nevertheless, the popular American tradition un- of George
doubtedly errs in exaggerating his stupidity and
laying too little stress upon the worst side of his character.
George III. was not destitute of a certain kind of ability,
which often gets highly rated in this not too clear-sighted
world. He could see an immediate end very distinctly, and
acquired considerable power from the dogged industry with
which he pursued it. In an age when some of the noblest
English statesmen drank their gallon of strong wine daily,
or sat late at the gambling-
table, or lived in scarcely
hidden concubinage, George
III. was decorous in per-
sonal habits and pure in
domestic relations, and no
banker's clerk in London
applied himself to the de-
tails of business more industriously than he. He had a
genuine talent for administration, and he devoted this talent
most assiduously to selfish ends Scantily endowed with
human sympathy, and almost boorishly stiff in his ordinary
unstudied manner, he could be smooth as oil whenever he
liked. He was an adept in gaining men's confidence by a
show of interest, and securing their aid by dint of fair
promises ; and when he found them of no further use, he
could turn them adrift with wanton insult Any one who
dared to disagree with him upon even the slightest point of
policy he straightway regarded as a natural enemy, and pur-
sued him ever afterward with vindictive hatred As a nat-
ural consequence, he surrounded himself with weak and
short-sighted advisers, and toward all statesmen of broad
views and independent character he nursed the bitterest
rancour. He had little faith in human honour or rectitude,
and in pursuing an end he was seldom deterred by scruples.
40 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP. I
Such was the man who, on coming to the throne in 1760,
had it for his first and chiefest thought to break down the
growing system of cabinet government in England For
the moment circumstances seemed to favour him The
ascendancy of the great Whig families was endangered on
two sides On the one hand, the Tory party had outlived
that idle, romantic love for the Stuarts upon which it found
English it impossible to thrive. The Tones began coming
SST^So to court a s am > and the y s ave thc new kin a11 the
and 1784 benefit of their superstitious theories of high pre-
rogative and divine right. On the other hand, a strong popu-
lar feeling was beginning to grow up against parliamentary
government as conducted by the old Whig families. The
House of Commons no longer fairly represented the people.
Ancient boroughs, which possessed but a handful of popula-
tion, or, like Old Sarum, had no inhabitants at all, still sent
their representatives to Parliament, while great cities of
recent growth, such as Birmingham and Leeds, were unrep-
resented To a great extent, it was the most progressive
parts of the kingdom which were thus excluded from a share
in the government, while the rotten boroughs were disposed
of by secret lobbying, or even by open bargain and sale. A
few Whig families, the heads of which sat in the House of
Lords, thus virtually owned a considerable part of the House
of Commons , and, under such circumstances, it was not at
all strange that Parliament should sometimes, as in the
Wilkes case, array itself in flat opposition to the will of the
people. The only wonder is that there were not more such
scandals. The party of "Old Whigs/* numbering in its
ranks some of the ablest and most patriotic men in England,
was contented with this state of things, upon which it hzul
thrived for two generations, and could not be made to under-
stand the iniquity of it, any more than an old cut-ancl-
dried American politician in our time can be made to under-
stand the iniquity of the "spoils system." Of this party
the Marquis of Rockmgham was the political leader, and
Edmund Burke was the great representative statesman. In
1767 THE BEGINNINGS 41
strong opposition to the Old Whig policy there had grown
up the party of New Whigs, bent upon bringing about some
measure of parliamentary reform, whereby the House of
Commons might truly represent the people of Greac Britain.
In Parliament this party was small in numbers, but weighty
in character, and at its head was the greatest Englishman of
the eighteenth century, the elder William Pitt, under whose
guidance England had won her Indian empire and estab-
lished her dominion over the seas, while she had driven the
French from America, and enabled Frederick the Great to
lay the foundations of modern Germany
Now when George III came to the throne, he took ad-
vantage of this division in the two parties in order Geor em
to break down the power of the Old Whig families, as apohti-
which so long had ruled the country To this end
he used the revived Tory party with great effect, and bid
against the Old Whigs for the rotten boroughs , and in play-
42 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, i
ing off one set of prejudices and interests against another,
he displayed m the highest degree the cunning and craft of
a self-seeking politician His ordinary methods would have
aroused the envy of Tammany While engaged in such
work, he had sense enough to see that the party from which
he had most to fear was that of the New Whigs, whose
scheme of parliamentary reform, if ever successful, would
deprive him of the machinery of corruption upon which he
relied Much as he hated the Old Whig families, he hated
Pitt and his followers still more heartily He was perpet-
ually denouncing Pitt as a "trumpeter of sedition," and
often vehemently declared in public, and m the most offen-
sive manner, that he wished that great man were dead.
Such had been his eagerness to cast discredit upon Pitt's
policy that he had utterly lost sight of the imperial interests
of England, which indeed his narrow intelligence was inca-
pable of comprehending. One of the first acts of his reign
had been to throw away Cuba and the Philippine Islands,
which Pitt had just conquered from Spain ; while at the
same time, by leaving Prussia in the lurch before the Seven
Years' War had fairly closed, he converted the great Fred-
erick from one of England's warmest friends into one of her
bitterest enemies.
This political attitude of George III. toward the Whigs
in general, and toward Pitt in particular, explains the fierce
obstinacy with which he took up and carried on Town-
HIS ciuef shend's quarrel with the American colonies. For
reason for if the American position, that there should be no
quarrelling ,
with the taxation without representation, were once to be
Americans g rante( ^ fa Qn j t wou i c i straightway become neces-
sary to admit the principles of parliamentary reform. The
same principle that applied to such commonwealths as Mas-
sachusetts and Virginia would be forthwith applied to such
towns as Birmingham and Leeds. The system of rotten
boroughs would be swept away ; the chief engine of kindly
corruption would thus be destroyed; a reformed House
of Commons, with the people at its back, would curb for-
ever the oretensions of the Crown ; and the detested Lord
1767 THE BEGINNINGS 43
Chatham would become the real ruler of a renovated Eng-
land, in which Geoige III would be a personage of very-
little political importance.
In these considerations we find the explanation of the
acts of George III which brought on the American Revolu-
tion, and we see why it is historically correct to regard him
as the person chiefly responsible for the quarrel. The
obstinacy with which he refused to listen to a word of reason
from America was largely due to the exigencies of the politi-
cal situation in which he found himself For him, as well
as for the colonies, it was a desperate struggle for political
existence He was glad to force on the issue in America
rather than in England, because it would be comparatively
easy to enlist British local feeling against the Americans as
a remote set of "rebels," with whom Englishmen had no
interests in common, and thus obscure the real nature of
the issue. Herein he showed himself a cunning politician,
though an ignoble statesman By playing off against each
other the two sections of the Whig party, he continued for
a while to carry his point ; and had he succeeded in over-
coming the American resistance and calling into England a
well-trained army of victorious mercenaries, the political
quarrel there could hardly have failed to develop into a
civil war A new rebellion would perhaps have overthrown
George III as James II had been overthrown a century
before. As it was, the victory of the Americans put an end
to the personal government of the king in 1784, so quietly
that the people scarcely realized the change 1 A peaceful
election accomplished what otherwise could hardly have
been effected without bloodshed So while George III lost
the fairest portion of the British Empire, it was the sturdy
Americans who, fighting the battle of freedom at once for
the Old World and for the New, ended by overwhelming
his paltry schemes for personal aggrandizement in hopeless
ruin, leaving him for posterity to contemplate as one of the
most instructive examples of short-sighted folly that modern
history affords
1 See my Critical Period of American Historv. chau i
CHAPTER II
THE CRISIS
TOWNSHEND was suc-
ceedcd in the exchequer
by Lord North, eldest
son of the Earl of Guild-
ford, a young man of
sound judgment, wide
knowledge, and rare
sweetness of temper,
but wholly lacking in
sympathy with popular
government. As leader
of the House of Com-
mons, he was suffi-
ciently able in debate to
hold his ground against
the fiercest attacks of
Burke and Fox, but he
had no strength of will
His lazy good-nature and his Tory principles made him a
great favourite with the king, who, through his influence
over Lord North, began now to exercise the power of a cab-
inet minister, and to take a more important part than hitherto
in the direction of affairs. Soon after North entered the
cabinet, colonial affairs were taken from Lord Shelburnc
and put in charge of Lord Hillsborough, a man after the
king's own heart. Conway was dismissed from the cabinet,
and his place was taken by Lord Weymouth, who had voted
against the repeal of the Stamp Act. The Earl of Sandwich,
who never spoke of the Americans but in terms of abuse,
LORD NORTH
1768 THE CRISIS 45
was at the same time made postmaster-general ; and in the
following year Lord Chatham resigned the privy seal.
While the ministry, by these important changes, was be-
coming more and more hos-
tile to the just claims of the
Americans, those claims were
powerfully urged in Amer-
ica, both in popular literature
and in well-considered state
papers. John Dickinson, at
once a devoted friend of England and an ardent American
patriot, published his celebrated Farmer's Letters, which
were greatly admired in both countries for their John
temperateness of tone and elegance of expression
In these letters, Dickinson held a position quite similar to
that occupied by Burke Recognizing that the constitutional
relations of the colonies to the mother-country had always
been extremely vague and ill-defined, he urged that the same
state of things be kept up forever through a genuine Eng-
lish feeling of compromise, which should refrain from push-
ing any abstract theory of sovereignty to its extreme logical
conclusions At the same time, he declared that the Town-
shend revenue acts were "a most dangerous innovation"
upon the liberties of the people, and significantly hinted,
that, should the ministry persevere in its tyrannical policy,
"English history affords examples of resistance by force."
While Dickinson was publishing these letters, Samuel
Adams wrote for the Massachusetts assembly a The Mas,
series of addresses to the ministry, a petition to SSS?* 8
the king, and a circular letter to the assemblies of letter
the other colonies In these very able state papers, Adams
declared that a proper representation of American interests
in the British Parliament was impracticable, and that, in
accordance with the spint of the English Constitution, no
taxes could be levied in America except by the colonial
legislatures. He argued that the Townshend acts were un-
constitutional, and asked that they should be repealed, and
4 6
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. II
that the colonies should resume the position which they had
occupied before the beginning of the present troubles The
petition to the king was couched in beautiful and touching
language, but the author seems to have understood very well
how little effect it was likely to produce. His daughter,
Mrs. Wells, used to tell how one evening, as her father had
just finished writing this petition, and had taken up his hat
to go out, she observed that the paper would soon be touched
by the loyal hand. " More
likely, my dear," he replied,
"it will be spurned by the
royal foot ! " Adams rightly
expected much more from the
circular letter to the other
colonies, in which he invited
them to cooperate with Mas-
sachusetts in resisting the
Townshend acts, and in peti-
tioning for their repeal. The
assembly, having adopted all
these papers by a huge ma-
jority, was forthwith pro-
rogued by Governor Beinard,
who, in a violent speech, called
them demagogues to whose
happiness " everlasting con-
tention was necessary." But the work was done. The
circular letter brought encouraging replies from the other
colonies. The condemnation of the Townshend acts was
unanimous, and leading merchants in most of the towns
entered into agreements not to import any more Knghsh
goods until the acts should be repealed. Ladies formed
associations, under the name of Daughters of Liberty, pledg-
ing themselves to wear homespun clothes and to abstain from
drinking tea The feeling of the country was thus plainly
enough expressed, but nowhere as yet was there any riot or
disorder, and no one as yet, except, perhaps, Samuel Adams,
1768 THE CRISIS 47
had begun to think of a political separation from England
Even he did not look upon such a course as desirable, but
the treatment of his remonstrances by the king and the
ministry soon led him to change his opinion
The petition of the Massachusetts assembly was received
by the king with silent contempt, but the circular letter
threw him into a rage. In cabinet meeting, it was pro-
nounced to be little better than an overt act of rebellion,
and the ministers were encouraged in this opinion by let-
ters from Bernard, who represented the whole affair as the
W
\ A LIST of the Names of thoft\
1? whoA^i>AciousiYcontiniieiQcoTmteraatheiTniT- J?
lj ED SENTIMENTS of the Bopr of Merchants UmArat Tj
T? MOUTH- AMERICA 5 by importing firitiih Goods.
t contrary to the 'Agreement* _
\ John Bernard,
% (In King-Street, almoft oppofite Vernon'sHeatL ^
Jamcr McMafters, \
3 (On Treart Wharf, \
% Patrick McMafters, \
*h (Oppofite-the Sign pf fte Lamb. %
I John Met*, I
(Oppofrte'the WWte-Hor^ Bnd'in King-Street. ^
. Inches- Store Jower End t?
n^-Street. J?
t
TfaopMus Little, I
^ (^earMr.Pe(nberton*sMeetiflg-HonfiNotth-End. ^
i? >&* 2^/or, g
^ (^ady oppose Ae Heart i^Crown JnCprnhilL ^
fe ^w^ 6* Elizabeth Cumming^ \
^ (OppDf>te,4tie Old Brick Meeting Howfe, ail of'Bofton.
\ Ifrael Williams, Efq; 6 a Son,
j? (Traders in -the Town of Hatfield*
g And, Henry Barnes,
1? (Trader in the Town of 3\\
48 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP n
wicked attempt of a few vile demagogues to sow the seeds
of dissension broadcast over the continent. We have before
had occasion to observe the extreme jealousy with which
the Crown had always regarded any attempt at concerted
action among the colonies which did not originate
with itself. But here was an attempt at concerted
action in flagrant opposition to the royal will. Lord
Bernard Hillsborough instructed Bernard to command the
assembly to rescind their circular letter, and, in case of their
refusal, to send them home about their business. This was
to be repeated year after year, so that, until Massachusetts
should see fit to declare herself humbled and penitent, she
must go without a legislature At the same time, Hills-
borough ordered the assemblies in all the other colonies to
treat the Massachusetts circular with contempt, and this,
too, under penalty of instant dissolution. From a constitu-
tional point of view, these arrogant orders deserve to be
ranked among the curiosities of political history. They
serve to mark the rapid progress the ministry was making
in the art of misgovernment. A year before, Townshcnd
had suspended the New York legislature by an act of Par-
liament. Now, a secretary of state, by a simple royal order,
threatened to suspend all the legislative bodies of America
unless they should vote according to his dictation.
When Hillsborough' s orders were laid before the Massa-
chusetts assembly, they were greeted with scorn. "We
are asked to rescind," said Otis "Let Britain rescind her
Theiiius- measures, or the colonies are lost to her forever."
Ninety- Nevertheless, it was only after nine days of discus-
Two'' s i on that the question was put, when the assembly
decided, by a vote of ninety-two to seventeen, that it would
not rescind its circular letter. Bernard immediately dis-
solved the assembly, but its vote was hailed with delight
throughout the country, and the " Illustrious Ninety-Two "
became the favourite toast on all convivial occasions. Nor
were the other colonial assemblies at all readier than that
of Massachusetts to yield to the secretary's dictation. They
1768 THE CRISIS 49
all expressed the most cordial sympathy with the recom*
mendations of the circular letter ; and in several instances
they were dissolved by the governors, according to Hills-
borough's instructions
While these fruitless remonstrances against the Town-
shend acts had been preparing, the commissioners of the
customs, in enforcing the acts, had not taken sufficient pains
to avoid irritating the people In the spring of 1768, the
fifty-gun frigate Romney had been sent to mount guard in
the harbour of Boston, and while she lay there several of
the citizens were seized and impressed as seamen, a law-
less practice long afterward common in the British
navy, but already stigmatized as barbarous by *rf r
public opinion in America. As long ago as 1747,
when the relations between the colonies and the home
government were quite harmonious, resistance to the press-
gang had resulted in a not in the streets of Boston. Now
while the town was very indignant over this lawless kidnap-
ping of its citizens, on the loth of June, 1768, John Han-
cock's sloop Liberty was seized at the wharf by a boat's
crew from the Romney, for an alleged violation of the
revenue laws, though without official warrant Insults and
recriminations ensued between the officers and the citizens
assembled on the wharf, until after a while the excitement
grew into a mild form of riot, in which a few windows were
broken, some of the officers were pelted, and finally a
pleasure-boat, belonging to the collector, was pulled up out
of the water, carried to the Common, and burned there,
when Hancock and Adams, arriving upon the scene, put a
stop to the commotion. A few days afterward, a town
meeting was held in Faneuil Hall ; but as the crowd was
too great to be contained in the building, it was adjourned
to the Old South Meetmg-House, where Otis addressed the
people from the pulpit. A petition to the governor was
prepared, in which it was set forth that the impressment
of peaceful citizens was an illegal act, and that the state of
the town was as if war had been declared against it ; and the
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, n
FANfcUIL HALL, "THE CRADLE OP LXI!I.KT\ "
governor was requested to order the instant removal of the
frigate from the harbour. A committee of twenty-one lead-
ing citizens was appointed to deliver this petition to the
governor at his house in Jamaica Plain In his letters to
the secretary of state Bernard professed to live in constant
fear of assassination, and was always begging for troops to
protect him against the incendiary and blackguard mob of
Boston. Yet as he looked clown the beautiful load from his
open window, that summer afternoon, what he saw was not
a ragged mob, armed with knives and bludgeons, shouting
" Liberty, or death ! " and bearing the head of a revenue
collector aloft on the point of a pike, but a quiet procession
of eleven chaises, from which there alighted at his door
twenty-one gentlemen, as sedate and stately in demeanour
as those old Roman senators at whom the Gaulish chief so
marvelled There followed a very affable interview, during
which wine was passed around. The next day the gov-
ernor's answer was read in town meeting, declining to
1768 THE CRISIS 51
remove the frigate, but promising that in future there should
be no impressment of Massachusetts citizens ; and with this
compromise the wrath of the people was fora moment
assuaged.
Affairs of this sort, reported with gross exaggeration by
the governor and revenue commissioners to the ministry,
produced in England the impression that Boston was a law-
less and riotous town, full of cutthroats and blacklegs, whose
violence could be held in check only by martial law. Of all
the misconceptions of America by England which brought
about the American Revolution, perhaps this notion of the
turbulence of Boston was the most ludicrous. During the
52 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP n
ten years of excitement which preceded the War of Inde-
pendence there was one disgraceful riot in Boston, that
in which Hutchmson's house was sacked, but m all this
time not a drop of blood was shed by the people, nor was
anybody's life for a moment in danger at their hands The
episode of the sloop Liberty, as here described, was a fair
sample of the disorders which occurred at Boston at peri-
ods of extreme excitement , and in any European town in
the eighteenth century it would hardly have been deemed
worthy of mention
Even before the affair of the Liberty, the government
had made up its mind to send troops to Boston, in order to
overawe the popular party and show them that the king and
Lord Hillsborough were in earnest. The news of the Lib-
erty affair, however, served to remove any hesitation that
might hitherto have been felt. Vengeance was denounced
statute of against the insolent town of Boston The most
Henry seditious spirits, such as Otis and Adams, must be
earning made an example of, and thus the others might
committed be frightened into submission. With such intent,
abroad" L OT & Hillsborough sent over to inquire "if any
person had committed any acts which, under the statutes
of Henry VIII. against treason committed abroad, might
justify their being brought to England for trial. " This
rakmg-up of an obsolete statute, enacted at one of the worst
periods of English history, and before England had any
colonies at all, was extremely injudicious. But besides all
this, continued Hillsborough, the town meeting, that nur-
sery of sedition, must be put down or overawed; and in
pursuance of this scheme, two regiments of soldiers and a
frigate were to be sent over to Boston at the ministry's
earliest convenience. To make an example of Boston,
it was thought, would have a wholesome effect upon the
temper of the Americans
It was now, m the summer of 1768, that Samuel Adams
made up his mind that there was no hope of redress from
the British government, and that the only remedy was to
1768 THE CRISIS S3
be found in the assertion of political independence by the
American colonies The courteous petitions and temperate
remonstrances of the American assemblies had Samue i
been met, not by rational arguments, but by insult-
ing and illegal royal orders; and now at last an
army was on the way from England to enforce 17
the tyrannical measures of government, and to terrify the
people into submission. Accordingly, Adams came to the
conclusion that the only proper course for the colonies was
to declare themselves independent of Great Britain, to unite
together in a permanent confederation, and to invite Euro-
pean alliances. We have his own word for the fact that
from this moment until the Declaration of Independence,
in 1776, he consecrated all his energies, with burning enthu-
siasm, upon the attainment of that great object. Yet in
1768 no one knew better than Samuel Adams that the time
had not yet come when his bold policy could be safely
adopted, and that any premature attempt at armed resist-
ance on the part of Massachusetts might prove fatal. At
this time, probably no other American statesman had
thought the matter out so far as to reach Adams's conclu-
sions No American had as yet felt any desire to terminate
the political connection with England Even those who most
thoroughly condemned the measures of the government did
not consider the case hopeless, but believed that in one
way or another a peaceful solution was still attainable. For
a long time this attitude was sincerely and patiently main-
tained. Even Washington, when he came to take command
of the army at Cambridge, after the battle of Bunker Hill,
had not made up his mind that the object of the war was to
be the independence of the colonies. In the same month
of July, 1775, Jefferson said expressly, "We have not raised
armies with designs of separating from Great Britain and
establishing independent states. Necessity has not yet
driven us into that desperate measure." The Declaration
of Independence was at last brought about only with diffi-
culty and after prolonged discussion. Our great-great-
54
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. II
grandfathers looked upon themselves as Englishmen, and
felt proud of their connection with England. Their deter-
mination to resist arbitrary measures was at first in no
way associated in their minds with disaffection toward the
mother-country Besides this, the task of effecting a sepa-
ration by military measures seemed to most persons quite
hopeless It was not until after Bunker Hill had shown
that American soldiers were a match for British soldiers
in the field, and after Washington's capture of Boston had
shown that the enemy really could be dislodged from a
whole section of the country, that the more hopeful patriots
began to feel confident of the ultimate success of a war for
independence. It is hard for us now to realize how terrible
the difficulties seemed to the men who surmounted them.
LANDING OF THE TROOPS IN BOSTON, 1768
Throughout the war, beside the Tories who openly sympa-
thized with the enemy, there were many worthy people who
thought we were "going too far," and who magnified our
losses and depreciated our gains, quite like the people
who, in the War of Secession, used to be called " croakers."
The depression of even the boldest, after such defeats as
that of Long Island, was dreadful. How inadequate was
the general sense of our real strength, how dim the general
1768 THE CRISIS 55
comprehension of the great events that were happening,
may best be seen in the satirical writings of some of the
loyalists. At the time of the French alliance, there were
many who predicted that the result of this step would be
to undo the work of the Seven Years' War, to reinstate the
French in America with full control over the thirteen colo-
nies, and to establish despotism and popery all over the
continent A satirical pamphlet, published in 1779, just ten
years before the Bastille was torn down in Paris, drew an
CASTLE WILLIAM, BOSTON HARBOUR
imaginary picture of a Bastille which ten years later was to
stand in New York, and, with still further license of fantasy,
portrayed Samuel Adams in the garb of a Dominican friar.
Such nonsense is of course no index to the sentiments or
the beliefs of the patriotic American people, but the mere
fact that it could occur to anybody shows how hard it was
for people to realize how competent America was to take
care of herself. The more we reflect upon the slowness
with which the country came to the full consciousness of its
power and importance, the more fully we bring ourselves
to realize how unwilling America was to tear herself asunder
from England, and how the Declaration of Independence
was only at last resorted to when it had become evident
that no other course was compatible with the preservation
of our self-respect ; the more thoroughly we realize all this,
the nearer we shall come toward duly estimating the fact
56 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP n
that in 1768, seven years before the battle of Lexington,
the master mind of Samuel Adams had fully grasped the
conception of a confederation of American states independ-
ent of British control. The clearness with which he saw
this, as the inevitable outcome of the political conditions of
the time, gave to his views and his acts, in every emergency
that arose, a commanding influence throughout the land.
In September, 1768, it was announced m Boston that the
troops were on their way, and would soon be landed There
happened to be a legal obstacle, unforeseen by the ministry,
to their being quartered in the town. In accordance with
the general act of Parliament for quartering troops, the reg-
ular barracks at Castle William in the harbour would have
to be filled before the town could be required to find quar-
ters for any troops. Another clause of the act provided
that if any military officer should take upon himself to quar-
ter soldiers in any of his Majesty's dominions otherwise than
as allowed by the act, he should be straightway dismissed
, , the service At the news that the troops were
Arrival of , , . _ *
troops m about to arrive, the governor was asked to convene
Boston . j t m ight be decided how to re-
ceive them On Bernard's refusal, the selectmen of Boston
issued a circular, inviting all the towns of Massachusetts to
send delegates to a general convention, in order that delib-
erate action might be taken upon this important matter.
In answer to the circular, delegates from ninety-six towns
assembled in Faneuil Hall, and, laughing at the governor's
order to "disperse," proceeded to show how, in the exercise
of the undoubted right of public meeting, the colony could
virtually legislate for itself, in the absence of its regular leg-
islature. The convention, finding that nothing was neces-
sary for Boston to do but insist upon strict compliance with
the letter of the law, adjourned In October, two regiments
arrived, and were allowed to land without opposition, but
no lodging was provided for them. Bernard, in fear of an
affray, had gone out into the country , but nothing could
have been farther from the thoughts of the people. The
1768 THE CRISIS 57
commander, Colonel Dalrymple, requested shelter for his
men, but was told that he must quarter them m the bar-
racks at Castle William. As the night was frosty, however,
the Sons of Liberty allowed them to sleep in Faneuil Hall.
Next day, the governor, finding everything quiet, came back,
and heard Dalrymple' s complaint But in vain did he apply
in turn to the council, to the selectmen, and to the justices
of the peace, to grant quarters for the troops ; he was told
that the law was plain, and that the Castle must first be
occupied. The governor then tried to get possession of an
old dilapidated building which belonged to the colony ; but
the tenants had taken legal advice, and told him to turn
them out if he dared. Nothing could be more provoking.
General Gage was obliged to come on from his headquarters
at New York ; but not even he, the commander-in-chief of
his Majesty's forces in America, could quarter the troops in
violation of the statute without running the risk of being
cashiered, on conviction before two justices of the peace.
So the soldiers stayed at night in tents on the Common,
until the weather grew so cold that Dalrymple was obliged
to hire some buildings for them at exorbitant rates, and at
the expense of the Crown. By way of insult to the people,
two cannon were planted on King Street, with their muzzles
pointing toward the Town House. But as the troops could
do nothing without a requisition from a civil magistrate, and
as the usual strict decorum was preserved throughout the
town, there was nothing in the world for them to do. In
case of an insurrection, the force was too small to be of any
use , and so far as the policy of overawing the town was
concerned, no doubt the soldiers were more afraid of the
people than the people of the soldiers.
No sooner were the soldiers thus established in Boston
than Samuel Adams published a series of letters Letters of
signed " Vindex," in which he argued that to keep "vd
up " a standing army within the kingdom in time of peace,
without the consent of Parliament, was against the law; that
the consent of Parliament necessarily implied the consent
58 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP n
of the people, who were always present in Parliament, either
by themselves or by their representatives, and that the
Americans, as they were not and could not be represented
in Parliament, were therefore suffering under military tyr-
anny over which they were allowed to exercise no control."
The only notice taken of this argument by Bernard and
GENERAL HENRY CONWAV
Hillsborough was an attempt to collect evidence upon the
strength of which its author might be indicted for treason,
and sent over to London to be tried , but Adams had been
so wary m all his proceedings that it was impossible to
charge him with any technical offence, and to have seized
him otherwise than by due process of law would have been
to precipitate rebellion in Massachusetts.
In Parliament, the proposal to extend the act of Henry
VIII. to America was bitterly opposed by Burke, Barr6,
Pownall, and Dowdeswell, as well as by Grenville, who char-
acterized it as sheer madness , but the measure was carried,
1769 THE CRISIS 59
nevertheless. Burke further maintained, in an eloquent
speech, that the royal order requiring Massachu- Debate m
setts to rescind her circular letter was unconstitu- Parllament
tional; and here again Grenville agreed with him. The
attention of Parliament, during the spring of 1769, was occu-
pied chiefly with American affairs Pownall moved that the
Townshend acts should be repealed, and in this he was
earnestly seconded by a petition of the London merchants ;
for the non-importation policy of Americans had begun to
bear hard upon business in London. After much debate,
Lord North proposed a compromise, repealing all the Town-
shend acts except that which laid duty on tea. The more
clear-headed members saw that such a compromise, which
yielded nothing in the matter of principle, would do no good.
Beckf ord pointed out the fact that the tea-duty did not bring
in ,300 to the government ; and Lord Beauchamp perti-
nently asked whether it were worth while, for such a paltry
60 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, n
revenue, to make enemies of three millions of people. Graf-
ton, Camden, Conway, Burke, Barr6, and Dowdeswell wished
to have the tea-duty repealed also, and the whole principle
of parliamentary taxation given up ; and Lord North agreed
with them in his secret heart, but could not bring himself to
act contrary to the king's wishes "America must fear you
before she can love you," said Lord North. . . "I am
against repealing the last act of Parliament, securing to us
a revenue out of America , I will never think of repealing
it until I see America prostrate at my feet." "To effect
this/' said Barr6, "is not so easy as some imagine, the
Americans are a numerous, a respectable, a hardy, a free
people. But were it ever so easy, does any friend
Band's to his country really wish to see America thus
speech humbled? In such a situation, she would serve
only as a monument of your arrogance and your folly For
my part, the America I wish to see is America increasing
and prosperous, raising her head in graceful dignity, with
freedom and firmness asserting her rights at your bar, vindi-
cating her liberties, pleading her services, and conscious of
her merit. This is the America that will have spirit to fight
your battles, to sustain you when hard pushed by some pre-
vailing foe, and by her industry will be able to consume
your manufactures, support your trade, and pour wealth and
splendour into your towns and cities. If we do not change
our conduct towards her, America will be torn from our
side . . . Unless you repeal this law, you run the risk of
losing America." But the ministers were deaf to Barry's
sweet reasonableness. "We shall grant nothing to the
Americans," said Lord Hillsborough, "except what they
may ask with a halter round their necks" "They are a
race of convicted felons," echoed poor old Dr. Johnson,
who had probably been reading Moll Flanders, " and they
ought to be thankful for anything we allow them short of
hanging."
As the result of the discussion, Lord North's so-called
compromise was adopted, and a circular was sent to Amer-
1769 THE CRISIS 61
ica, promising that all the obnoxious acts, except the tea-
duty, should be repealed. At the same time, Bernard was
recalled from Massachusetts to appease the indignation of
the people, and made a baronet to show that the ministry
approved of his conduct as governor. His place was filled
by the lieutenant-governor, Thomas Hutchinson, a man of
great learning and brilliant talent, whose " History
of Massachusetts Bay " entitles him to a high rank Hutchm-
among the worthies of early American literature.
The next year Hutchinson was appointed governor. As a
native of Massachusetts, it was supposed by Lord North
that he would be less likely to irritate the people than his
somewhat arrogant predecessor. But in this the govern-
ment turned out to be mistaken. As to Hutchmson's sin-
cere patriotism there can now be no doubt whatever. There
was something pathetic in the intensity of his love for New
England, which to him was the goodliest of all lands, the
62
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP II
paradise of this world. He had been greatly admired for his
learning and accomplishments, and the people of Massachu-
setts had elected him to one office after another, and shown
him every mark of esteem until the evil days of the Stamp
Act. It then began to appear that he was a Tory on prin-
ciple, and a thorough believer in the British doctrine of the
absolute supremacy of Parliament, and popular feeling pres-
ently turned against him. He was called a turncoat and
traitor, and a thankless dog withal, whose ruling passion was
avarice His conduct and his motives were alike misjudged.
He had tried to dis-
suade the Grenville
ministry from passing
the Stamp Act, but
when once the obnox-
ious measure had be-
come law, he thought
it his duty to enforce
it like other laws.
For this he was
charged with being
recreant to his own
convictions, and in
the shameful riot of
August, 1765, he was
the worst sufferer No public man in America has ever
been the object of more virulent hatred. None has been
more grossly misrepresented by historians. His appoint-
ment as governor, however well meant, turned out to be
anything but a wise measure.
While these things were going on, a strong word of sym-
pathy came from Virginia. When Hillsborough made up
his mind to browbeat Boston, he thought it worth while to
cajole the Virginians, and try to win them from the cause
which Massachusetts was so boldly defending. So Lord
Botetourt, a genial and conciliatory man, was sent over to be
governor of Virginia, to beguile the people with his affable
CAPITOL AT WILLIAMSBURGH, VIRGINIA
1769 THE CRISIS 63
APOLLO ROOM IN THE RALEIGH TAVERN
manner and sweet discourse. But between a quarrelsome
Bernard and a gracious Botetourt the practical difference
was little, where grave questions of constitutional right were
involved. In May, 1769, the House of Burgesses Vir . m
assembled at Williamsburgh Among its members resolutions,
were Patrick Henry, Washington, and Jefferson. 17 9
The assembly condemned the Townshend acts, asserted that
the people of Virginia could be taxed only by their own rep-
resentatives, declared that it was both lawful and expedient
for all the colonies to join in a protest against any violation
of the rights of Americans, and especially warned the king
of the dangers that might ensue if any American citizen
were to be earned beyond sea for trial. Finally, it sent
copies of these resolutions to all the other colonial assem-
blies, inviting their concurrence. At this point Lord Bote-
tourt dissolved the assembly , but the members straightway
met again in convention at the famous Apollo room of the
Raleigh tavern, and adopted a series of resolutions prepared
by Washington, in which they pledged themselves to con-
tinue the policy of non-importation until all the obnoxious
acts of 1767 should be repealed. These resolutions were
adopted by all the southern colonies
All through the year 1769, the British troops remained
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. II
quartered in Boston at the king's expense According to
Samuel Adams, their principal employment seemed to be
to parade in the streets, and by their merry-andrew tricks to
excite the contempt of women and children But the sol-
diers did much to annoy the peo-
ple, to whom their very presence
was an insult. They led brawl-
ing, riotous lives, and made the
quiet streets hideous by night
with their drunken shouts Scores
of loose women, who had followed
the regiments across the ocean,
came to scandalize the town for a
while, and then to encumber the
almshouse. On Sundays the sol-
diers would race horses on the
Common, or play Yankee Doodle
just outside the church-doors dur-
ing the services Now and then
oaths, or fisticuffs, or blows with
sticks, were exchanged between
soldiers and citizens, and once
or twice a more serious affair oc-
curred One evening m Septem-
ber, a dastardly assault was made
upon James Otis, in the British
Coffee House, by one Robinson,
a commissioner of customs, as-
sisted by half a dozen army officers It reminds one of the
Assault on assault upon Charles Sumner by Brooks of South
James Otis Carolina, shortly before the War of Secession.
Otis was savagely beaten, and received a blow on the head
with a sword, from the effects of which he never recovered,
but finally lost his reason The popular wrath at this out-
rage was intense, but there was no disturbance. Otis
brought suit against Robinson, and recovered 2,000 in
damages, but refused to accept a penny of it when Robinson
STOVE USED IN THE HOUSE OF
BURGESSES
1770 THE CRISIS 65
confessed himself in the wrong, and humbly asked pardon
for his irreparable offence.
On the 22d of February, 1770, an informer named Rich-
ardson, being pelted by a party of schoolboys, withdrew into
his house, opened a window, and fired at random into the
crowd, killing one little boy and severely wounding another.
He was found guilty of murder, but was pardoned. At last,
on the 2d of March, an angry quarrel occurred between a
party of soldiers and some of the workmen at a ropewalk,
and for two or three days there was considerable excite-
ment in the town, and people talked together, standing about
the streets in groups; but Hutchmson did not even take
the precaution of ordering the soldiers to be kept within their
barracks, for he did not believe that the people intended
a riot, nor that the troops would dare to fire on the citizens
without express permission from himself On the evening
of March 5th, at about eight o'clock, a large crowd collected
near the barracks, on Brattle Street, and from bandying
abusive epithets with the soldiers began pelting them with
snow-balls and striking at them with sticks, while the soldiers
now and then dealt blows with their muskets Presently
Captain Goldfinch, coming along, ordered the men Th
into their barracks for the night, and thus stopped " Boston
the affray But meanwhile some one had got into
the Old Brick Meeting-House, opposite the head of King
Street, and rung the bell , and this, being interpreted as an
alarm of fire, brought out many people into the moonlit
streets. It was now a little past nine The sentinel who
was pacing in front of the Custom House had a few minutes
before knocked down a barber's boy for calling names at the
captain, as he went up to stop the affray on Brattle Street.
The crowd in King Street now began to pelt the sentinel,
and some shouted, "Kill him ! " when Captain Preston and
seven privates from the twenty-ninth regiment crossed the
street to his aid: and thus the file of nine soldiers con-
fronted an angry crowd of fifty or sixty unarmed men, who
pressed up to the very muzzles of their guns, threw snow
66
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP, n
OLD BRICK MEETING-HOUSE
at their faces, and dared them to fire. All at once, but
quite unexpectedly and probably without orders from Pres-
ton, seven of the levelled pieces were discharged, instantly
killing four men and wounding seven others, of whom two
afterwards died. Immediately the alarm was spread through
the town, and it might have gone hard with the soldiery,
had not Hutchinson presently arrived on the scene, and
quieted the people by ordering the arrest of Preston and
his men. Next morning the council advised the removal
of one of the regiments, but m the afternoon an immense
town meeting, called at Faneiul Hall, adjourned to the Old
South Meeting-House , and as they passed by the Town
House (or what we now call the Old State House), the
lieutenant-governor, looking out upon their march, judged
" their spirit to be as high as was the spirit of their ances-
tors when they imprisoned Andros, while they were four
i * /I * i c \ jj\
X
H
<\
f
no
PAUL REVERE'S PLAN OF KING STREET IN 1770
( Used in ike trial of the soldiers)
68 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, n
times as numerous." All the way from the church to the
Town House the street was crowded with the people, while
a committee, headed by Samuel Adams, waited upon the
governor, and received his assurance that one regiment
should be removed As the committee came out from the
Town House, to carry the governor's reply to the meeting
in the church, the people pressed back on either side to let
them pass, and Adams, leading the way with uncovered
head through the lane thus formed, and bowing first to one
side and then to the other, passed along the watchword,
"Both regiments, or none!" When, m the church, the
question was put to vote, three thousand voices shouted,
"Both regiments, or none ! " and armed with this ultimatum
the committee returned to the Town House, where the
governor was seated with Colonel Dalrymple and the mem-
bers of the council Then Adams, in quiet but earnest
tones, stretching forth his arm and pointing his finger at
Hutchinson, said that if as acting governor of the province
he had the power to remove one regiment he had equally
the power to remove both, that the voice of three thousand
freemen demanded that all soldiery be forthwith removed
from the town, and that if he failed to heed their just de-
mand, he did so at his peril "I observed his knees to
tremble," said the old hero afterward, " I saw his face grow
pale, and I enjoyed the sight!" That Hutchinson was
agitated we may well believe, not from fear, but from a
sudden sickening sense of the odium of his position as king's
representative at such a moment He was a man of invin-
cible courage, and surely would never have yielded to
Adams, had he not known that the law was on the side of
the people and that the soldiers were illegal trespassers in
Boston Before sundown the order had gone forth for the
removal of both regiments to Castle William, and not until
then did the meeting m the church break up From that
day forth the fourteenth and twenty-ninth regiments were
known in Parliament as "the Sam Adams regiments."
Such was the famous Boston Massacre. All the mildness
THE CRISIS
69
OLD STATE HOUSE, WEST FRONT
of New England civilization is brought most strikingly
before us in that truculent phrase. The careless shooting
of half a dozen townsmen is described by a word which
historians apply to such events as Cawnpore or the Sicilian
Vespers Lord Sherbrooke, better known as Robert Lowe,
declared a few years ago, in a speech on the uses of a classi-
jo THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, n
cal education, that the battle of Marathon was really of less
account than a modern colliery explosion, because only one
hundred and ninety-two of the Greek army lost their lives !
From such a point of view, one might argue that the Boston
Massacre was an event of far less importance than an ordi-
nary free fight among Colorado gamblers. It is needless to
say that this is not the historical point of view. Historical
events are not to be measured with a foot-rule. This story
Someies- of the Boston Massacre is a very trite one, but it
"Mas- fthe k as lts l essons ft furnishes an instructive illus-
sacre" tration of the high state of civilization reached by
the people among whom it happened, by the oppressors
as well as those whom it was sought to oppress. The
quartering of troops in a peaceful town is something that
has in most ages been regarded with horror Under the
senatorial government of Rome, it used to be said that
the quartering of troops, even upon a friendly province and
for the purpose of protecting it, was a visitation only less
to be dreaded than an inroad of hostile barbarians. When
we reflect that the British regiments were encamped in
Boston during seventeen months, among a population to
whom they were thoroughly odious, the fact that only half
a dozen persons lost their lives, while otherwise no really
grave crimes seem to have been committed, is a fact quite
as creditable to the discipline of the soldiers as to the
moderation of the people. In most ages and countries, the
shooting of half a dozen citizens under such circumstances
would either have produced but a slight impression, or, on
the other hand, would perhaps have resulted on the spot in a
wholesale slaughter of the offending soldiers. The fact that
so profound an impression was made in Boston and through-
out the country, while at the same time the guilty parties
were left to be dealt with in the ordinary course of law, is
a striking commentary upon the general peacefulness and
decorum of American life, and it shows how high and severe
was the standard by which our forefathers judged all lawless
proceedings And here it may not be irrelevant to add
1770 THE CRISIS 71
that, throughout the constitutional struggles which led to
the Revolution, the American standard of political right and
wrong was so high that contemporary European politicians
found it sometimes difficult to understand it And for a
like reason, even the most fair-minded English historians
sometimes fail to see why the Americans should have been
so quick to take offence at acts of the British govern-
ment which doubtless were not meant to be oppressive. If
George III had been a bloodthirsty despot, like Philip II.
of Spain ; if General Gage had been another Duke of Alva ;
if American citizens by the hundred had been burned alive
or broken on the wheel in New York and Boston , if whole
towns had been given up to the cruelty and lust of a beastly
soldiery, then no one not even Dr. Johnson would have
found it hard to understand why the Americans should have
exhibited a rebellious temper. But it is one signal char-
acteristic of the progress of political civilization that the
part played by sheer brute force in a barbarous age is fully
equalled by the part played by a mere covert threat of
injustice in a more advanced age. The effect which a blow
in the face would produce upon a barbarian will be wrought
upon a civilized man by an assertion of some far-reaching
legal principle, which only in a subtle and ultimate analysis
includes the possibility of a blow in the face From this
point of view, the quickness with which such acts as those
of Charles Townshend were comprehended in their remotest
bearings is the most striking proof one could wish of the
high grade of political culture which our forefathers had
reached through their system of perpetual free discussion in
town meeting. They had, moreover, reached a point where
any manifestation of brute force in the course of a political
dispute was exceedingly disgusting and shocking to them.
To their minds, the careless slaughter of six citizens con-
veyed as much meaning as a St. Bartholomew massacre
would have conveyed to the minds of men in a lower stage
of political development. It was not strange, therefore,
that Samuel Adams and his friends should have been ready
?2 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP ir
to make the Boston Massacre the occasion of a moral lesson
to their contemporaries. As far as the poor soldiers were
concerned, the most significant fact is that there was no
attempt to wreak a paltry vengeance on them. Brought to
trial on a charge of murder, after a judicious delay of seven
months, they were ably defended by John Adams and
Josiah Quincy, and all were acquitted save two, who were
convicted of manslaughter, and let off with slight punish-
ment. There were some hotheads who grumbled at the
verdict, but the people of Boston generally acquiesced in it,
as they showed by immediately choosing John Adams for
their representative in the assembly a fact which Mr.
Lecky calls very remarkable. Such an event as the Boston-
Massacre could not fail for a long time to point a moral
among a people so unused to violence and bloodshed. One
of the earliest of American engravers, Paul Revere, pub-
lished a quaint coloured engraving of the scene in King
Street, which for a long time was widely circulated, though
it has now become very scarce. At the same time, it was
decided that the fatal Fifth of March should be solemnly
commemorated each year by an oration to be delivered in
the Old South Meetmg-House , and this custom was kept
up until the recognition of American independence in 1783,
when the day for the oration was changed to the Fourth of
July.
Five weeks before the Boston Massacre the Duke of
Lord Grafton had resigned, and Lord North had become
North's prime minister of England The colonies were
mims ry ^^ under Hillsborough, and that great friend of
arbitrary government, Lord Thurlow, as solicitor-general,
became the king's chief legal adviser. George III was now,
to all intents and purposes, his own prime minister, and
remained so until after the overthrow at Yorktown. The
colonial policy of the government soon became more vexa-
tious than ever. The promised repeal of all the Townshend
acts, except the act imposing the tea-duty, was carried
through Parliament in April, and its first effect in America,,
The BLOODY MASSACRE ^t^m Kin*
tew Ewcatwnjon this Plate tafcrib'd .
$?$&$ QtocSAdMw&HX. J^C4tevm,CMSPwMocK5VE^T*CAW
1770 THE CRISIS 73
as Lord North had foreseen, was to weaken the spirit of
opposition, and to divide the more complaisant colonies from
those that were most staunch. The policy of non-importa-
tion had pressed with special seventy upon the commerce
of New York, and the merchants there complained that
the fire-eating planters of Virginia and farmers of Massa-
chusetts were growing rich at the expense of their neigh-
bours In July, the New York merchants broke ,,
. 1 ne mer-
the non-importation agreement, and sent orders to chants of
England for all sorts of merchandise except tea.
Such a measure, on the part of so great a seaport, virtually
overthrew the non-importation policy, upon which the pa-
triots mainly relied to force the repeal of the Tea Act. The
wrath of the other colonies was intense At the Boston
town meeting the letter of the New York merchants was
torn in pieces. In New Jersey, the students of Princeton
College, James Madison being one of the number, assembled
on the green in their black gowns and solemnly burned the
letter, while the church-bells were tolled. The offending
merchants were stigmatized as " Revolters," and in Charles-
ton their conduct was vehemently denounced. " You had
better send us your old liberty-pole," said Philadelphia to
New York, with bitter sarcasm, "for you clearly have no
further use for it."
This breaking of the non-importation agreement by New
York, left no general issue upon which the colonies could be
sure to unite unless the ministry should proceed to force an
issue upon the Tea Act. For the present, Lord North saw
the advantage he had gained, and was not inclined to take
any such step Nevertheless, as ]ust observed, the policy
of the government soon became more vexatious than ever.
In the summer of 1770, the king entered upon a series of
local quarrels with the different colonies, taking care not to
raise any general issue Royal instructions were Assemblies
sent over to the different governments, enjoining at^tnmge
courses of action which were unconstitutional and P laces
sure to offend the people The assemblies were either dis-
74 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, n
solved, or convened at strange places, as at Beaufort in South
Carolina, more than seventy miles from the capital, or at
Cambridge in Massachusetts. The local governments were
as far as possible ignored, and local officers were appointed,
with salaries to be paid by the Crown In Massachusetts,
these officers were illegally exempted from the payment of
taxes In Maryland, where the charter had expressly pro-
Taxes m vided that no taxes could ever be levied by the
Maryland British Crown, the governor was ordered to levy
taxes indirectly by reviving a law regulating officers 7 fees,
which had expired by lapse of time. In North Carolina,
excessive fees were extorted, and the sheriffs in many cases
collected taxes of which they rendered no account. The
upper counties of both the Carohnas were peopled by a hardy
set of small farmers and herdsmen, Presbyterians, of Scotch-
Irish pedigree, who were known by the name of " Regula-
tors," because, under the exigencies of their rough frontier
Me, they formed voluntary associations for the regulation
of their own police and the condign punishment of horse-
The North thieves and other criminals In 1771, the North
^Reguia- Carolina Regulators, goaded by repeated acts of
tors " extortion and of unlawful imprisonment, rose in re-
bellion. A battle was fought at Alamance, near the head-
waters of the Cape Fear river, in which the Regulators were
totally defeated by Governor Tryon, leaving more than a
hundred of their number dead
/ j~* f an( ^ woun( led upon the field :
W/$- ifif)//T71 and six of their leaders ' taken
/]/ tS * ] *^ prisoners, were summarily
** J hanged for treason After this
achievement Tryon was pro-
moted to the governorship of New York, where he left his
name for a time upon the vaguely defined wilderness beyond
Schenectady, known in the literature of the Revolutionary
War as Tryon County
In Rhode Island, the eight-gun schooner Gaspee, com-
manded by Lieutenant Duddington, was commissioned to
1772 THE CRISIS 75
enforce the revenue acts along the coasts of Narragansett
Bay, and she set about the work with reckless Affair of
and indiscriminatmg zeal. " Thorough " was Dud- the Gas P ee
dmgton's motto, as it was Lord Stafford's. He not only
stopped and searched every vessel that entered the bay, and
seized whatever goods he pleased, whether there was any
evidence of their being contraband or not, but, besides this,
he stole the sheep and hogs of the farmers near the coast,
cut down their trees, fired upon market-boats, and behaved
in general with unbearable insolence. In March, 1772, the
people of Rhode Island complained of these outrages. The
matter was referred to Rear-Admiral Montagu, commanding
the little fleet in Boston harbour Montagu declared that
the lieutenant was only doing his duty, and threatened the
Rhode Island people in case they should presume to inter-
fere For three months longer the Gaspee kept up her
76 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, n
irritating behaviour, until one evening in June, while chasing
a swift American ship, she ran aground. The following
night she was attacked by a party of men in eight boats, and
captured after a short skirmish, in which Duddmgton was
severely wounded The crew was set on shore, and the
schooner was burned to the water's edge This act of re-
prisal was not relished by the government, and large rewards
were offered for the arrest of the men concerned in it , but
although probably everybody knew who they were, it was
impossible to obtain any evidence against them By a royal
order m council, the Rhode Island government was com-
manded to arrest the offenders and deliver them to Rear-
Admiral Montagu, to be taken over to England for trial ;
but Stephen Hopkins, the venerable chief justice of Rhode
Island, flatly refused to take cognizance of any such arrest if
made within the colony.
The black thunder-clouds of war now gathered quickly.
In August, 1772, the king ventured upon an act which went
The saia f urt h er than anything that had yet occurred toward
nesofthe hastening on the crisis. It was ordered that all
ju ges the Massachusetts judges, holding their places dur-
ing the king's pleasure, should henceforth have their sala-
ries paid by the Crown, and not by the colony This act,
which aimed directly at the independence of the judiciary,
aroused intense indignation. The people of Massachusetts
were furious, and Samuel Adams now took a step which
contributed more than anything that had yet been done
toward organizing the opposition to the king throughout
the whole country The idea of establishing committees
of correspondence was not wholly new The great preacher
Jonathan Mayhew had recommended such a step to James
Otis in 1766, and he was led to it through his experience
of church matters Writing in haste, on a Sunday morning,
Jonathan ^ Sa ^' "^ a 00( * man a ^ t ^ me * S ^Oly enou gh J
Mayhew's and none is too holy to do good, or to think upon
it Cultivating a good understanding and hearty
friendship between these colonies appears to me so neces-
1772
THE CRISIS
77
sary a part of prudence and good policy that no favourable
opportunity for that purpose should be omitted. . . . You
have heard of the communion of clmrches . . . while I
was thinking of this in my bed, the great use and importance
of a communion of colonies appeared to me in a strong light,
which led me immediately to set down these hints to trans-
mit to you." The plan which May hew had in mind was
the establishment of a regular system of correspondence
whereby the colonies could take combined action in defence
of their liberties. In the grand crisis of 1772, Samuel
Adams saw how much might be effected through commit-
tees of correspondence that could not well be effected
7 8 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP n
through the ordinary governmental machinery of the colo-
nies. At the October town meeting in Boston, a committee
was appointed to ask the governor whether the judges'
salaries were to be paid in conformity to the royal order ;
and he was furthermore requested to convoke the assembly,
in order that the people might have a chance to express their
views on so important a matter. But Hutchinson told the
committee to mind its own business : he refused to say what
would be done about the salaries, and denied the right of
the town to petition for a meeting of the assembly. Massa-
chusetts was thus virtually without a general government at
a moment when the public mind was agitated by a question
of supreme importance. Samuel Adams thereupon in town
meeting moved the appointment" of a committee of corre-
spondence, "to consist of twenty-one persons, to state the
rights of the colonists and of this province in particular, as
The com- men and Christians and as subjects; and to com-
municate and publish the same to the several towns
an( * to *ke wor ^ as the sense of this town, with
setts the infringements and violations thereof that have
been, or from time to time may be, made." The adoption
of this measure at first excited the scorn of Hutchinson,
who described the committee as composed of "deacons/ 1
"atheists," and "black-hearted fellows," whom one would
not care to meet in the dark. He predicted that they would
only make themselves ridiculous, but he soon found reason
to change his mind. The response to the statements of the
Boston committee was prompt and unanimous, and before
the end of the year more than eighty towns had already
organized their committees of correspondence. Here was a
new legislative body, springing directly from the people, and
competent, as events soon showed, to manage great affairs.
Its influence reached into every remotest corner of Massa-
chusetts, it was always virtually m session, and no governor
could dissolve or prorogue it Though unknown to the law,
the creation of it involved no violation of law. The right
of the towns of Massachusetts to ask one another's advice
1773 THE CRISIS 79
could no more be disputed than the right of the freemen of
any single town to hold a town meeting. The power thus
created was omnipresent, but intangible. "This," said
Daniel Leonard, the great Tory pamphleteer, two years
afterwards, " is the foulest,
subtlest, and most venom- s~
ous serpent ever issued ^
from the egg of sedition
It is the source of the rebellion. I saw the small seed when
it was planted : it was a grain of mustard. I have watched
the plant until it has become a great tree The vilest rep-
tiles that crawl upon the earth are concealed at the root ;
the foulest birds of the air rest upon its branches I would
now induce you to go to work immediately with axes and
hatchets and cut it down, for a twofold reason, because
it is a pest to society, and lest it be felled suddenly by a
stronger arm, and crush its thousands in its fall "
The system of committees of correspondence did indeed
grow into a mighty tree , for it was nothing less Intercolo .
than the beginning of the American Union, maicom-
Adams himself by no means intended to confine correspona-
his plan to Massachusetts, for in the following ence
April he wrote to Richard Henry Lee of Virginia urging
the establishment of similar committees in every colony.
But Virginia had already acted in the matter. When its
assembly met in March, 1773, the news of the refusal of
Hopkins to obey the royal order, of the attack upon the
Massachusetts judiciary, and of the organization of the com-
mittees of correspondence was the all-exciting subject of
conversation The motion to establish a system of inter-
colonial committees of correspondence was made by the
youthful Dabney Carr, and eloquently supported by Pat-
rick Henry and Richard Henry Lee. It was unanimously
adopted, and very soon several other colonies elected com-
mittees, in response to the invitation from Virginia.
This was the most decided step toward revolution that
had yet been taken by the Americans. It only remained
8o THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, n
for the various intercolonial committees to assemble together,
and there would be a Congress speaking in the name of the
continent To bring about such an act of union, nothing
more was needed than some fresh course of aggression on
the part of the British government which should raise a gen-
eral issue zn all the colonies , and, with the rare genius for
blundering which had possessed it ever since the accession
of George III , the government now went on to provide such
an issue It was preeminently a moment when the question
of taxation should have been let alone Throughout the
American world there was a strong feeling of irritation,
which might still have been allayed had the ministry shown
a yielding temper. The grounds of complaint had come
to be different in the different colonies, and in some cases,
in which we can clearly see the good sense of Lord North
prevailing over the obstinacy of the king, the ministry had
gained a point by yielding. In the Rhode Island case, they
had seized a convenient opportunity and let the matter drop,
Theques- to the manifest advantage of their position. In
taxation Massachusetts, the discontent had come to be
revived alarming, and it was skilfully organized. The as-
sembly had offered the judges their salaries in the usual
form, and had threatened to impeach them if they should
dare to accept a penny from the Crown The recent action
of Virginia had shown that these two most powerful of the
colonies were in strong sympathy with one another It was
just this moment that George III. chose for reviving the
question of taxation, upon which all the colonies would be
sure to act as a unit, and sure to withstand him to his face
The duty on tea had been retained simply as a matter of
principle It did not bring three hundred pounds a year
into the British exchequer. But the king thought this a
favourable time for asserting the obnoxious principle which
the tax involved.
Thus, as in Mrs. Gamp's case, a teapot became the cause
or occasion of a division between friends. The measures
now taken by the government brought matters at once to a
1773 THE CRISIS 81
crisis. None of the colonies would take tea on its terms.
Lord Hillsborough had lately been superseded as colonial
secretary by Lord Dartmouth, an amiable man like the
prime minister, but like
him wholly under the in-
fluence of the king. Lord
Dartmouth's appointment
was made the occasion of
introducing a series of new
measures The affairs of the East India Company were in
a bad condition, and it was thought that the trouble was
partly due to the loss of the American trade in tea. The
Americans would not buy tea shipped from England, but
they smuggled it freely from Holland, and the smuggling
could not be stopped by mere force The best way to
obviate the difficulty, it was thought, would be to make
English tea cheaper in America than foreign tea, while still
retaining the duty of threepence on a pound. If this could
be achieved, it was supposed that the Americans would be
sure to buy English tea by reason of its cheapness, and
would thus be ensnared into admitting the principle involved
in the duty. This ingenious scheme shows how _ . .
11 i i T " 6 km 5 S
unable the king and his ministers were to imagine ingenious
that the Americans could take a higher view of the sc eme
matter than that of pounds, shillings, and pence. In order
to enable the East India Company to sell its tea cheap in
America, a drawback was allowed of all the duties which
such tea had been wont to pay on entering England on its
way from China In this way, the Americans would now
find it actually cheaper to buy the English tea with the duty
on it than to smuggle their tea from Holland. To this
scheme, Lord North said, it was of no use for any one to
offer objections, for the king would have it so. "The king
meant to try the question with America " In accordance
with this policy, several ships loaded with tea set sail in the
autumn of 1773 for the four principal ports, Boston, New
York, Philadelphia, and Charleston. Agents or consignees
82 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP n
of the East India Company were appointed by letter to
receive the tea in these four towns
As soon as the details of this scheme were known in
America, the whole country was in a blaze, from Maine to
Georgia. Nevertheless, only legal measures of resistance
were contemplated. In Philadelphia, a great meeting was
held in October at the State House, and it was voted that
whosoever should lend countenance to the receiving or un-
loading of the tea would be regarded as an enemy to his
country. The consignees were then requested to resign
their commissions, and did so. In New York and Charles-
How BOS- ton, also, the consignees threw up their commis-
the battST s i ns - * n Boston, a similar demand was made, but
ground th e consignees doggedly refused to resign , and thus
the eyes of the whole country were directed toward Boston
as the battlefield on which the great issue was to be tried.
During the month of November many town meetings were
held in Faneml Hall. On the I7th, authentic intelligence
was brought that the tea-ships would soon arrive. The next
day, a committee, headed by Samuel Adams, waited upon
the consignees, and again asked them to resign. Upon their
refusal, the town meeting instantly dissolved itself, without
a word of comment or debate ; and at this ominous silence
the consignees and the governor were filled with a vague
sense of alarm, as if some storm were brewing whereof none
could foresee the results. All felt that the decision now
rested with the committees of correspondence. Four days
afterward, the committees of Cambridge, Brookline, Rox-
bury, and Dorchester met the Boston committee at Faneuil
The five Hall, and it was unanimously resolved that on no
towns ask account should the tea be landed. The five towns
also sent a letter to all the other towns in the col-
ony, saying, " Brethren, we are reduced to this dilemma:
either to sit down quiet under this and every other burden
that our enemies shall see fit to lay upon us, or to rise up
and resist this and every plan laid for our destruction, as
becomes wise freemen In this extremity we earnestly
I
ffl
I
u
M
pj
I
Pt
84 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP n
request your advice." There was nothing weak or doubtful
in the response. From Petersham and Lenox perched on
their lofty hilltops, from the valleys of the Connecticut and
the Merrimack, from Chatham on the bleak peninsula of
Cape Cod, there came but one message, to give up life
and all that makes life dear, rather than submit like slaves
to this great wrong. Similar words of encouragement came
from other colonies. In Philadelphia, at the news of the
bold stand Massachusetts was about to take, the church-
bells were rung, and there was general rejoicing about the
streets. A letter from the men of Philadelphia to the men
of Boston said, " Our only fear is lest you may shrink. May
God give you virtue enough to save the liberties of your
country "
On Sunday, the 28th, the Dartmouth, first of the tea-
ships, arrived in the harbour The urgency of the business
in hand overcame the Sabbatarian scruples of the people.
The committee of correspondence met at once, and obtained
Amval of ^ rom Francis Rotch, the owner of the vessel, a
the tea, promise that the ship should not be entered be-
theoil fore Tuesday Samuel Adams then invited the
South committees of the five towns, to which Charles-
town was now added, to hold a mass-meeting the next morn-
ing at Faneuil Hall. More than five thousand people as-
sembled, but as the Cradle of Liberty could not hold so
many, the meeting was adjourned to the Old South Meet-
ing-House. It was voted, without a single dissenting voice,
that the tea should be sent back to England in the ship
which had brought it. Rotch was forbidden to enter the
ship at the Custom House, and Captain Hall, the ship's mas-
ter, was notified that " it was at his peril if he suffered any
of the tea brought by him to be landed/* A night-watch
of twenty-five citizens was set to guard the vessel, and so
the meeting adjourned till next day, when it was understood
that the consignees would be ready to make some proposals
in the matter. Next day, the message was brought from
the consignees that it was out of their power to send back
1773 THE CRISIS 85
the tea ; but if it should be landed, they declared themselves
willing to store it, and not expose any of it for sale until word
could be had from England. Before action could be taken
upon this message, the sheriff of Suffolk county entered the
church and read a proclamation from the governor, warning
the people to disperse and "surcease all further unlawful
proceedings at their utmost peril " A storm of hisses was
the only reply, and the business of the meeting went on.
The proposal of the consignees was rejected, and Rotch and
Hall, being present, were made to promise that the tea
should go back to England in the Dartmouth, without being
landed or paying duty Resolutions were then passed, for-
bidding all owners or masters of ships to bring any tea from
Great Britain to any part of Massachusetts, so long as the
act imposing a duty on it remained unrepealed Whoever
should disregard this injunction would be treated as an
enemy to his country, his ships would be prevented from
landing by force, if necessary and his tea would be sent
back to the place whence it came It was further voted that
the citizens of Boston and the other towns here assembled
would see that these resolutions were carried into effect, "at
the risk of their lives and property." Notice of these reso-
lutions was sent to the owners of the other ships, now daily
expected And, to crown all, a committee, of which Adams
was chairman, was appointed to send a printed copy of these
proceedings to New York and Philadelphia, to every sea-
port in Massachusetts, and to the British government.
Two or three days after this meeting, the other two ships
arrived, and, under orders from the committee of corre-
spondence, were anchored by the side of the Dartmouth,
at Griffin's Wharf, near the foot of Pearl Street. A military
watch was kept at the wharf day and night, sentinels were
placed in the church belfries, chosen post-riders, with horses
saddled and bridled, were ready to alarm the neigh- The tea-
bouring towns, beacon-fires were piled all ready for ^ed tm-
lighting upon every hilltop, and any attempt to der guard
land the tea forcibly would have been the signal for an
86
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP II
instant uprising throughout at least four
counties. Now, in accordance with the
laws providing for the entry and clearance
of shipping at custom houses, it was ne-
cessary that every ship should land its
cargo within twenty days from its arrival
In case this was not done, the revenue
officers were authorized to seize the ship
and land its cargo themselves. In the case
of the Dartmouth,
the captain had
promised to take
her back to Eng-
land without un-
loading ; but still,
before she could
legally start, she
must obtain a clear-
ance from the col-
lector of customs,
or, in default of
this, a pass from
the governor. At
sunrise of Friday,
the 1 7th of Decem-
ber, the twenty days
would have expired.
On Saturday, the i ith, Rotch was summoned before the
committee of correspondence, and Samuel Adams asked
him why he had not kept his promise, and started his ship
off for England. He sought to excuse himself on the
ground that he had not the power to do so, whereupon he
was told that he must apply to the collector for a clearance.
Hearing of these things, the governor gave strict orders at
the Castle to fire upon any vessel trying to get out to sea
without a proper permit; and two ships from Montagu's
fleet, which had been laid up for the winter, were stationed
THE OLD SOUTH MEETING-HOUSE
1773 THE CRISIS 87
at the entrance of the harbour, to make sure against the
Dartmouth's going out Tuesday came, and Rotch, having
done nothing, was summoned before the town meeting, and
peremptorily ordered to apply for a clearance. Samuel
Adams and nine other gentlemen accompanied him to the
Custom House to witness the proceedings, but the collector
refused to give an answer until the next day. The meeting
then adjourned till Thursday, the last of the twenty days.
On Wednesday morning, Rotch was again escorted to the
Custom House, and the collector refused to give a clearance
unless the tea should first be landed.
On the morning of Thursday, December i6th, the assem-
bly which was gathered in the Old South Meetmg-House,
TABLE AND CHAIR FROM GOVERNOR HUTCHINSON'S HOUSE AT MILTON
and in the streets about it, numbered more than seven
thousand people. It was to be one of the most momentous
days in the history of the world. The clearance having
been refused, nothing now remained but to order Rotch to
request a pass for his ship from the governor. But Town
the wary Hutchinson, well knowing what was about SeO?f at
to be required of him, had gone out to his country South
house at Milton, so as to foil the proceedings by his absence.
But the meeting was not to be so trifled with Rotch was
enjoined, on his peril, to repair to the governor at Milton,
and ask for his pass ; and while he was gone, the meeting
88 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP u
considered what was to be done in case of a refusal. With-
out a pass it would be impossible for the ship to clear the
harbour under the guns of the Castle , and by sunrise, next
morning, the revenue officers would be empowered to seize
the ship, and save by a violent assault upon them it would
be impossible to prevent the landing of the tea. "Who
knows," said John Rowe, "how tea will mingle with salt
water ? " And great applause followed the suggestion. Yet
the plan which was to serve as a last resort had unques-
tionably been adopted in secret committee long before this.
It appears to have been worked out in detail in a little back
room at the office of the " Boston Gazette," and there is no
doubt that Samuel Adams, with some others of the popular
leaders, had a share in devising it But among the thou-
sands present at the town meeting, it is probable that very-
few knew just what it was designed to do At five in the
afternoon, it was unanimously voted that, come what would,
the tea should not be landed It had now grown dark, and
the church was dimly lighted with candles Determined not
to act until the last legal method of relief should have been
tried and found wanting, the great assembly was still wait-
ing quietly in and about the church when, an hour after
nightfall, Rotch returned from Milton with the governor's
refusal. Then, amid profound stillness, Samuel Adams
arose and said, quietly but distinctly, " This meeting can do
nothing more to save the country " It was the declaration
of war ; the law had shown itself unequal to the occasion,
and nothing now remained but a direct appeal to force.
Scarcely had the watchword left his mouth when a war-
whoop answered from outside the door, and fifty men in the
guise of Mohawk Indians passed quickly by the entrance,
The tea and hastened to Griffin's Wharf Before the nine
into the o'clock bell rang, the three hundred and forty-two
harbour chests of tea laden upon the three ships had been
cut open, and their contents emptied into the sea Not a
person was harmed ; no other property was injured , and
the vast crowd, looking upon the scene from the wharf in
1773
THE CRISIS
89
the clear frosty moonlight, was so still that the click of
the hatchets could be distinctly heard. Next morning, the
salted tea, as dnven by wind and wave, lay in long rows on
Dorchester beach, while Paul Revere, booted and spurred,
was riding post-haste to Philadelphia, with the glorious
news that Boston had at last thrown down the gauntlet for
the king of England to pick up
This heroic action of Boston was greeted with public
rejoicing throughout all the thirteen colonies, and the other
principal seaports were not slow to follow the example. A
ship laden with two hundred and fifty-seven chests of tea
had arrived at Charleston on the 2d of December , but the
consignees had resigned, and after twenty days the ship's
9 o THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP n
cargo was seized and landed ; and so, as there was no one
to receive it, or pay the duty, it was thrown into a damp
cellar, where it spoiled In Philadelphia, on the 25th, a
ship arrived with tea ; but a meeting of five thousand men
forced the consignees to resign, and the captain straightway
set sail for England, the ship having been stopped before it
had come within the jurisdiction of the custom house
In Massachusetts, the exultation knew no bounds. " This,"
said John Adams, "is the most magnificent movement of
all. There is a dignity, a majesty, a sublimity, in this last
effort of the patriots that I greatly admire." Indeed, often
Grandeur as it has been cited and described, the Boston Tea
Boston Tea I >art y was an event so great that even American
Party historians have generally failed to do it justice.
This supreme assertion by a New England town meeting of
the most fundamental principle of political freedom has been
curiously misunderstood by British writers, of whatever
party The most recent Tory historian, Mr. Lecky, 1 speaks
of "the Tea-riot at Boston," and characterizes it as an
"outrage." The most recent Liberal historian, Mr. Green,
alludes to it as "a trivial riot." Such expressions betray
most profound misapprehension alike of the significance of
this noble scene and of the political conditions in which it
originated. There is no difficulty in defining a riot The
pages of history teem with accounts of popular tumults,
wherein passion breaks loose and wreaks its fell purpose,
unguided and unrestrained by reason No definition could
be further from describing the colossal event which occurred
in Boston on the i6th of December, 1773. Here passion
was guided and curbed by sound reason at every step, down
to the last moment, in the dim candle-light of the old
church, when the noble Puritan statesman quietly told his
hearers that the moment for using force had at last, and
through no fault of theirs, arrived. They had reached a
point where the written law had failed them ; and in their
1 In his account of the American Revolution, Mr. Lecky inclines to
the Tory side, but he is eminently fair and candid.
1774 THE CRISIS 91
effort to defend the eternal principles of natural justice,
they were now most reluctantly compelled to fall back upon
the paramount law of self-preservation. It was the one
supreme moment in a controversy supremely important to
mankind, and in which the common-sense of the world has
since acknowledged that they were wholly in the right. It
was the one moment of all that troubled time in which no
compromise was possible. "Had the tea been landed,"
says the contemporary historian, William Gordon, " the union
of the colonies in opposing the ministerial scheme would
have been dissolved; and it would have been extremely
difficult ever after to have restored it." In view of the
stupendous issues at stake, the patience of the men of Bos-
ton was far more remarkable than their boldness For the
quiet sublimity of reasonable but dauntless moral purpose,
the heroic annals of Greece and Rome can show us no
greater scene than that which the Old South Meetmg-House
witnessed on the day when the tea was destroyed.
When the news of this affair reached England, it was
quite naturally pronounced by Lord North a fitting HOW Par-
culmmation to years of riot and lawlessness This,
said Lord George Germain, is what comes of
their wretched old town meetings The Americans have
really no government. These "are the proceedings of a
tumultuous and riotous rabble, who ought, if they had the
least prudence, to follow their mercantile employments, and
not trouble themselves with politics and government, which
they do not understand. Some gentlemen say, ' Oh, don't
break their charter ;* don't take away rights granted them
by the predecessors of the Crown.' Whoever wishes to
preserve such charters, I wish him no worse than to govern
such subjects" "These remarks," said Lord North, "are
worthy of a great mind." "If we take a determined stand
now," said Lord Mansfield, "Boston will submit, and all
will end in victory without carnage" "The town of Bos-
ton," said Mr. Venn, " ought to be knocked about their ears
and destroyed You will never meet with proper obedience
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP II
to the laws of this country until you have destroyed that
nest of locusts " General Gage, who had just come home on
a visit, assured the king that the other colonies might speak
fair words to Massachusetts, but would do nothing to help
her , and he offered with four regiments to make a speedy
end of the whole matter. "They will be lions," said Gage,
" while we are lambs , but if we take the resolute part, they
will prove very meek, I promise you " It was in this spirit
and under the influence of these ideas that the ministry
took up the business of dealing with the refractory colony
of Massachusetts. Lord North proposed a series of five
measures, which from the king's point of view would serve,
not only to heal the wounded pride of Great Britain, but
also to prevent any more riotous outbreaks among this law-
less American people Just at this moment, the opposition
ventured upon a bold stroke Fox said truly that no plan
for pacifying the colonies would be worth a rush unless the
unconditional repeal of the Tea Act should form part of it
1774 THE CRISIS 93
A bill for the repealing of the Tea Act was brought in by
Fuller, and a lively debate ensued, in the course of which
Edmund Burke made one of the weightiest speeches ever
heard in the House of Commons ; setting forth in all the
wealth of his knowledge the extreme danger of the course
upon which the ministry had entered, and showing how little
good fruit was to be expected from a coercive policy, even
if successful. Burke was ably supported by Fox, Conway,
Barrd, Savile, Dowdeswell, Pownall, and Dunning But the
current had set too strongly against conciliation. Lord
North sounded the keynote of the whole British policy
when he said, " To repeal the tea-duty would stamp us with
timidity" Come what might, it would never do for the
Americans to get it into their heads that the government
was not all-powerful. They must be humbled first, that
they might be reasoned with afterwards The tea-duty,
accordingly, was not repealed, but Lord North's five acts
for the better regulation of American affairs were all passed
by Parliament
By the first act, known as the Boston Port Bill, no ships
were to be allowed to enter or clear the port of B
Boston until the rebellious town should have indem- ton Port
nified the East India Company for the loss of its
tea, and should otherwise have made it appear to the king
that it would hereafter show a spirit of submission Marble-
head was made a port of entry insjfcead of Boston, and Salem
was made the seat of government
By the second act, known as the Regulating Act, the
charter of Massachusetts was annulled without TheRegu-
preliminary notice, and her free government was ktm s Act
destroyed. Under the charter, the members of the council
for each year were chosen m a convention consisting of the
council of the preceding year and the assembly Each
councillor held office for a year, and was paid out of an
appropriation made by the assembly. Now, hereafter, the
members of the council were to be appointed by the gov-
ernor on a royal writ of mandamtis, their salaries were to
1774 THE CRISIS 95
be paid by the Crown, and they could be removed from
office at the king's pleasure. The governor was empowered
to appoint all judges and officers of courts, and all such
officers were to be paid by the king and to hold office during
his pleasure The governor and his dependent council
could appoint sheriffs and remove them without assigning
any reason, and these dependent sheriffs were to have the
sole right of returning juries But, worse than all, the town-
meeting system of local self-government was ruthlessly
swept away. Town meetings could indeed be held twice a
year -for the election of town officers, but no other business
could be transacted in them. The effect of all these changes
would, of course, be to concentrate all power in the hands
of the governor, leaving no check whatever upon his arbi-
trary will. It would, in short, transform the commonwealth
of Massachusetts into an absolute despotism, such as no
Englishman had ever lived under in any age And this
tremendous act was to go into operation on the first day
of the following June.
The king's friends were fond of asserting that the Americans were
" virtually represented " in Parliament, through their British fnends in
that body. On the back of the copy of this broadside, " Virtual Rep-
resentation," in the possession of the Massachusetts Historical Society,
is the following explanation, in the handwnting of the time :
" A full explanation of the within print. No. i intends the K g
of G B , to whom the House of Commons (4) gives the Americans'
money for the use of that very H of C, and which he is endeavouring
to take away with the power of cannon No 2, by a Frenchman signi-
fies the tyranny that is intended for America. No 3, the figure of a
Roman Catholic priest with his crucifix and gibbet, assisting George
in enforcing his tyrannical system of civil and religious government.
Nos. 5 and 6 are honest American yeomen, who oppose an oaken staff
to G } s cannon, and determine they will not be robbed No 7 is
poor Britannia blindfolded, falling into the bottomless pit which her
infamous rulers have prepared for the Americans Nos 8, 9 repre-
sent Boston in flames and Quebec triumphant, to show the probable
consequence of submission to the present wicked ministerial system,
that popery and tyranny will triumph over true religion, virtue, and
liberty."
96 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP n
By the third act a pet measure of George III., to which
Lord North assented with great reluctance it was provided
that if any magistrate, soldier, or revenue officer in Massa-
chusetts should be indicted for murder, he should be tried,
not in Massachusetts, but m Great Britain This measure
though doubtless unintentionally served to
The shoot- & , , _ ^ J , - ..
mg of encourage the soldiery in shooting down peaceful
citizens crtfcen^ an d it led by a natural sequence to the
bloodshed on Lexington green. It was defended on the
ground that in case of any chance affray between soldiers
and citizens, it would not be possible for the soldiers to
obtain a fair trial in Massachusetts Less than four years
had elapsed since Preston's men had been so readily ac-
quitted of murder after the shooting in King Street, but
such facts were of no avail now The momentous bill
passed in the House of Commons by a vote of more than
four to one, in spite of Colonel Barry's ominous warnings.
By the fourth act all legal obstacles to the quartering of
troops in Boston or any other town in Massachusetts were
swept away
By the fifth act, known as the Quebec Act, the free
TheQue- exercise of the Catholic religion was sanctioned
bee Act throughout Canada, a very judicious measure of
religious toleration, which concerned the other colonies but
little, however it might in some cases offend their prejudices.
But this act went on to extend the boundaries of Canada
southward to the Ohio river, in defiance of the territorial
claims of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, and Vir-
ginia This extensive region, the part of North America
which was next to be colonized by men of English race, was
to be governed by a viceroy, with despotic powers ; and
such people as should come to live there were to have neither
popular meetings, nor habeas corpus, nor freedom of the
press. "This," said Lord Thurlow, "is the only sort of
constitution fit for a colony," and all the American colo-
nies, he significantly added, had better be reduced to this
condition as soon as possible
1774 THE CRISIS 97
When all these acts had been passed, in April, 1774, Gen-
eral Gage was commissioned to supersede Hutchin- G sent
son temporarily as governor of Massachusetts, and to Boston
was sent over with as little delay as possible, together with
the four regiments which were to scare the people into sub-
mission. On the first day of June, he was to close the port
of Boston and begin starving the town into good behaviour ;
he was to arrest the leading patriots and send them to Eng-
land for trial , and he was expressly authorized to use his
own discretion as to allowing the soldiers to fire upon the
people. All these measures for enslaving peaceful and law-
abiding Englishmen the king of England now contemplated,
as he himself declared, "with supreme satisfaction "
In recounting such measures as these, the historian is
tempted to pause for a moment, and ask whether it could
really have been an English government that planned and
decreed such things From the autocratic mouth of an
Artaxerxes or an Abderrahman one would naturally expect
such edicts to issue. From the misguided cabinets of Spam
and France, in evil times, measures in spirit like these had
been Renown to proceed But our dear mother-country had
for ages stood before the world as the staunch defender of
personal liberty and of local self-government , and through
the mighty strength which this spirit of freedom, and no-
thing else, had given her, she had won the high privilege
of spreading her noble and beneficent political ideas over
the best part of the habitable globe. Yet in the five acts
of this political tragedy of 1774 we find England arrayed in
hostility to every principle of public ]ustice which English-
men had from time immemorial held sacred. Upon the
great continent which she had so lately won from the French
champions of despotism, we see her vainly seeking to estab-
lish a tyrannical regime no better than that which but yes-
terday it had been her glory to overthrow. Such was the
strange, the humiliating, the self -contradictory attitude into
which England had at length been brought by the selfish
Tory policy of George III !
98 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, n
But this policy was no less futile than it was unworthy of
the noble, freedom-loving English people. For after that
fated ist of June, the sovereign authority of Great Britain,
whether exerted through king or through Parliament, was
never more to be recognized by the men of Massachusetts.
CHAPTER III
THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS
THE unfortunate meas-
ures of April, 1 774, were not
carried through Parliament
without earnest opposition
Lord Rockingham and his
friends entered a protest on
the journal of the House of
Lords, on the grounds that
the people of Massachusetts
had not been heard in their
own defence, and that the
lives and liberties of the
citizens were put absolutely
into the hands of the gov-
ernor and council, who were
thus invested with greater
powers than it had ever
been thought wise to entrust to the king and his privy coun-
cil in Great Britain They concluded, therefore, that the
acts were unconstitutional. The Duke of Richmond could
not restrain his burning indignation "I wish," said he in
the House of Lords, "I wish from the bottom of my heart
that the Americans may resist, and get the better of the
forces sent against them. 1 ' But that the Americans really
would resist, very few people in England believed. The con-
duct of the ministry was based throughout upon the absurd
idea that the Americans could be frightened into submission
General Gage, as we have seen, thought that four regiments
would be enough to settle the whole business. Lord Sand-
ioo THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP ra
wich said that the Americans were a set of undisciplined
cowards, who would take to their heels at the first sound of
Belief that a cannon. Even Hutchmson, who went over to
cans A ^u?d England about this time, and who ought to have
not fight known of what stuff the men of Massachusetts were
made, assured the king that they could hardly be expected
to resist a regular army. Such blunders, however, need not
surprise us when we recollect how, just before the war of
secession, the people of the southern and of the northern
FOX AND BURKE DENOUNCING LORD NORTH
(A contemporary cartcatiere)
states made similar mistakes with regard to each other. In
1860, it was commonly said by Southern people that North-
ern people would submit to anything rather than fight ; and
in support of this opinion, it was sometimes asked, "If the
Northern people are not arrant cowards, why do they never
have duels ? " On the other hand, it was commonly said at
the North that the Southern people, however bravely they
might bluster, would never enter upon a war of secession,
because it was really much more for their interest to remain
in the Federal Union than to secede from it, an argument
which lost sight of one of the commonest facts in human
1774 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 101
Me, that under the influence of strong passion men are un-
able to take just views of what concerns their own interests.
Such examples show how hard it often is for one group of
men to understand another group, even when they are all
of the same blood and speech, and think alike about most
matters that do not touch the particular subject in dispute
Nothing could have been surer, either in 1860, or in 1774,
than that the one party to the quarrel was as bold and brave
as the other.
Another fatal error under which the ministry laboured
was the belief that Massachusetts would not be Belie f t hat
supported by the other colonies. Their mistake Massachu-
rjr ; setts would
was not unlike that which ruined the plans of Na- not be sup-
poleon III, when he declared war upon Prussia in fhToth J
1870 There was no denying the fact of strong colomes
jealousies among the American colonies in 1774, as there
was no denying the fact of strong jealousies between the
northern and southern German states in 1870 But the
circumstances under which Napoleon III made war on
Prussia happened to be such as to enlist all the German
states in the common cause with her And so it was with
the war of George III against Massachusetts As soon as
the charter of that colony was annulled, all the other colo-
mes felt that their liberties were in jeopardy; and thence,
as Fox truly said, " all were taught to consider the town of
Boston as suffering in the common cause "
News of the Boston Port Bill was received in America on
the loth of May. On the I2th the committees of several
Massachusetts towns held a convention at Faneuil Hall, and
adopted a circular letter, prepared by Samuel Adams, to be
sent to all the other colonies, asking for their sympathy and
cooperation The response was prompt and emphatic. In
the course of the summer, conventions were held in nearly
all the colonies, declaring that Boston should be Newsof
regarded as "suffering m the common cause " the Port
The obnoxious acts of Parliament were printed on
paper with deep black borders, and in some towns were pub-
102 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, in
hcly burned by the common hangman. Droves of cattle
and flocks of sheep, cartloads of wheat and maize, kitchen
vegetables and fruit, barrels of sugar, quintals of dried fish,
provisions of every sort, were sent overland as free gifts to
the people of the devoted city, even the distant rice-swamps
of South Carolina contributing their share The over-cau-
tious Franklin had written from London, suggesting that
perhaps it might be best, after all, for Massachusetts to in-
demnify the East India Company, but Gadsden, with a
sounder sense of the political position, sent word, " Don't
pay for an ounce of the damned tea" Throughout the
greater part of the country the ist of June was kept as a
day of fasting and prayer , bells were muffled and tolled in
the principal churches , ships in the harbours put their flags
at half-mast Marblehead, which was appointed to super-
sede Boston as port of entry, immediately invited the mer-
chants of Boston to use its wharfs and warehouses free of
charge m shipping and unshipping their goods A policy of
absolute non-importation was advocated by many of the colo-
nies, though Pennsylvania, under the influence of Dickinson,
still vainly cherishing hopes of reconciliation, hung back,
and advised that the tea should be paid for As usual, the
warmest sympathy with New England came from Virginia.
" If need be," said Washington, " I will raise one thousand
men, subsist them at my own expense, and march myself at
their head for the relief of Boston "
To insure concerted action on the part of the whole
country, something more was required than these general
expressions and acts of sympathy The proposal for a Con-
tinental Congress came first from the Sons of Liberty in
New York ; it was immediately taken up by the members
of the Virginia House of Burgesses, sitting in convention at
the Raleigh tavern, after the governor had dissolved them
as a legislature ; and Massachusetts was invited to appoint
the time and place for the meeting of the Congress. On
the ;th of June the Massachusetts assembly was convened
at Salem by General Gage, in conformity with the provi-
1774 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 103
sions of the Port Bill. Samuel Adams always preferred to
use the ordinary means of transacting public busi- Sgmuel
ness so long as they were of avail, and he naturally Adams at
wished to have the act appointing a Continental Salem
Congress passed by the assembly. But this was not easy
to bring about, for upon the first hint that any such busi*
ness was to come up the governor would be sure to dissolve
the assembly In such case it would be necessary for the
committees of correspondence throughout Massachusetts to
hold a convention for the purpose of appointing the time
and place for the Congress and of electing delegates to at-
tend it. But Adams preferred to have these matters de-
cided in regular legislative session, and he carried his point.
Having talked privately with several of the members, at last
on the 1 7th of June a day which a twelvemonth hence
was to become so famous the favourable moment came.
Having had the door locked, he introduced his resolves,
appointing five delegates to confer with duly appointed dele-
gates from the other colonies, in a Continental Congress at
Philadelphia on the ist of September next Some of the
members, astonished and frightened, sought to pass out ;
and as the doorkeeper seemed uneasy at assuming so much
responsibility, Samuel Adams relieved him of it by taking
the key from the door and putting it into his own pocket,
whereupon the business of the assembly went on. Soon
one of the Tory members pretended to be very sick, and
being allowed to go out, made all haste to Governor Gage,
who instantly drew up his writ dissolving the assembly, and
sent his secretary with it. When the secretary got there,
he found the door locked, and as nobody would let him in
or pay any attention to him, he was obliged to content him-
self with reading the writ, in a loud voice, to the crowd
which had assembled on the stairs. The assembly mean-
while passed the resolves by 117 to 12, elected Samuel and
John Adams, Thomas Gushing, and Robert Treat Paine as
delegates, assessed the towns in the commonwealth for the
necessary expenses, passed measures for the relief of Boston,
104
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP III
and adjourned sine die All the other colonies except
Georgia, in the course of the summer, accepted the invita-
tion, and chose delegates, either through their assemblies or
through special conventions. Georgia sent no delegates,
but promised to adopt any course of action that should be
determined upon
1774 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 105
Before the time appointed for the Congress, Massachu-
setts had set the Regulating Act at defiance. On the i6th
of August, when the court assembled at Great Barrmgton,
a vast multitude of farmers surrounded the court house and
forbade the judges to transact any business. Two or three
of the councillors newly appointed on the king's
writ of mandamus yielded in advance to public setts nuih-
opimon, and refused to take their places Those
who accepted were forced to resign. At Worces- Act
ter 2,000 men assembled on the common, and compelled
Timothy Paine to make his resignation m writing. The
councillor appointed from Bridgewater was a deacon ; when
he read the psalm the congregation refused to sing. In
Plymouth one of the most honoured citizens, George Wat-
son, accepted a place on the council ; as he took his seat in
church on the following Sunday, the people got up and
began to walk out of the house. Overcome with shame, for
a moment his venerable gray head sank upon the pew before
him ; then he rose up and vowed that he would resign. In
Boston the justices and barristers took their accustomed
places in the court house, but no one could be found to serve
as juror in a court that was illegally constituted Gage
issued a proclamation warning all persons against attending
town meeting, but no one heeded him, and town meetings
were more fully attended than ever He threatened to
send an armed force against Worcester, but the people there
replied that he would do so at his peril, and forthwith began
to collect powder and ball At Salem the people walked to
the town house under the governor's nose and in the very-
presence of a line of soldiers On the ist of September
a party of soldiers seized two hundred kegs of powder at
Charlestown and two field-pieces at Cambridge, and carried
them to Castle William As the news spread about the
country, rumour added that the troops had fired upon the
people, and within forty-eight hours at least 20,000 men were
marching on Boston ; but they turned back to their homes
on receiving word from the Boston committee that their aid
was not yet needed
io6
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. Ill
During these stirring events, in the absence of Samuel
Adams, who had gone to attend the Congress at Phila-
delphia, the most active part m the direction of affairs at
John Han- Boston was taken by Dr Joseph Warren. This
Joseph" 1 gentleman one of a family which has produced
Warren three very eminent physicians was graduated at
Harvard College in 1759 He had early attracted the atten-
tion of Samuel Adams, had come to be one of his dearest
friends, and had been concerned with him in nearly all of
his public acts of the past seven years. He was a man of
1774 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 107
knightly bravery and courtesy, and his energy and fertility
of mind were equalled only by his rare sweetness and mod-
esty With Adams and Hancock, he made up the great
Massachusetts triumvirate of Revolutionary leaders. The
accession of Hancock to the Revolutionary cause at an
early period had been of great help, by reason of his wealth
and social influence. Hancock was graduated at Harvard
College in 1754. He was a gentleman of refinement and
grace, but neither for grasp of intelligence nor for strength
of character can he be compared with Adams or with War-
ren His chief weakness was personal vanity, but he was
generous and loyal, and under the influence of the iron-willed
Adams was capable of good things. Upon Warren, more
SUFFOLK RESOLVES HOUSE AT MILTON
than any one else, however, Adams relied as a lieutenant,
who, under any circumstances whatever, would be sure to
prove equal to the occasion
On the 5th of September Gage began fortifying Boston
Neck, so as to close the only approach to the city by land.
Next day the county assize was to be held at Worcester ;
but 5,000 armed men, drawn up in regular military array,
io8 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, in
lined each side of the mam street, and the unconstitutionally
appointed judges were forbidden to take their seats On
the same day a convention of the towns of Suffolk county
The was held at Milton, and a series of resolutions,
county drawn up by Dr. Warren, were adopted unani-
Resoives, mO usly The resolutions declared that a king who
1774 ' violates the chartered rights of his people forfeits
their allegiance , they declared the Regulating Act null and
void and ordered all the officers appointed under it to resign
their offices at once , they directed the collectors of taxes to
refuse to pay over money to Gage's treasurer , they advised
the towns to choose their own militia officers , and they
BOSTON, September, 27, 1774.
GENTLEMEN,
THE committees of correfpondence of this and feveral of the
neighbouring towns, having taken into confuieration the
vaft import? nee of withholding from the troops now here,
labour, flraw, timber, flitworh, boards, and in fliort every
article excepting provifions neceflary for their fubfiftance $
and being under a necefficy from their conduct of coafickring
them as real enemies, we are fully facisfied that it is our boundcn
duty 10 Withhold from them every thing but what nicer humani-
ty requires ; and therefore we muft beg your cloJe and icribns at*
tentiori to the inclofed refolves which were patted unarnlmoufly ;
and as unanimity in all our xnealures in this day of (cvere trial,
is of the utmoft confequence, we do earnellly recommend your
co-operation, in this mealure, as conducive to- the good of the
whole.
We are,
Your Friends and Fellow Countrymen,
Signed by Order of the joint Committee*
Ckrfc.
i^v v .
<f*^
NOTICE OF THE COMMITTEE OP CORRESPONDENCE
1774 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 109
threatened the governor that, should he venture to arrest
any one for political reasons, they would retaliate by seizing
upon the Crown officers as hostages. A copy of these
resolutions, which virtually placed Massachusetts in an at-
titude of rebellion, was forwarded to the Continental Con-
gress, which enthusiastically indorsed them, and pledged
the faith of all the other colonies that they would aid Mas-
sachusetts in case armed resistance should become inevitable,
while at the same time they urged that a policy of modera-
tion should be preserved, and that Great Britain should be
left to fire the first shot
On receiving these instructions from the Congress, the
people of Massachusetts at once proceeded to organize a
provisional government in accordance with the spirit of the
Suffolk resolves Gage had issued a writ convening the as-
sembly at Salem for the ist of October, but before the day
arrived he changed his mind, and prorogued it. In dis-
regard of this order, however, the representatives met at
Salem a week later, organized themselves into a provincial
congress, with John Hancock for president, and provincial
adjourned to Concord On the 2/th they chose ?S2t
a committee of safety, with Warren for chairman, chusetts
and charged it with the duty of collecting military stores.
In December this Congress dissolved itself, but a new one
assembled at Cambridge on the ist of February, and pro-
ceeded to organize the militia and appoint general officers.
A special portion of the militia, known as " minute-men/ 7
were set apart, under orders to be ready to assemble at
a moment's warning ; and the committee of safety were
directed to call out this guard as soon as Gage should
venture to enforce the Regulating Act Under these in-
structions every village green in Massachusetts at once
became the scene of active drill. Nor was it a population
unused to arms that thus began to marshal itself into com-
panies and regiments. During the French war one fifth of
all the able-bodied men of Massachusetts had been in the
field, and in 1757 the proportion had risen to one third.
no THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP in
There were plenty of men who had learned how to stand
under fire, and officers who had held command on hard-
fought fields , and all were practised marksmen It is quite
incorrect to suppose that the men who first repulsed the
British regulars in 1775 were a band of farmers, utterly
unused to fighting Their little army was indeed a militia,
but it was made up of warlike material
While these preparations were going on in Massachusetts,
Meeting of the Continental Congress had assembled at the
nenta? r *" Hall of the Company of Carpenters, in Philadel-
Septfr* P hia ' on the 5 th of September Peyton Randolph,
"774 ' of Virginia, was chosen president, and the Ad-
amses, the Livingstons, the Rutledges, Dickinson, Chase,
Pendleton, Lee, Henry, and Washington took part in the de-
1774
THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS
in
CARPENTERS' HALL, PHILADELPHIA
bates. One of their first acts was to dispatch Paul Revere
to Boston with their formal approval of the action of the
Suffolk Convention. After four weeks of deliberation they
agreed upon a declaration of rights, claiming for the Ameri-
can people "a free and exclusive power of legislation in their
provincial legislatures, where their rights of legislation could
112 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP m
alone be preserved in all cases of taxation and internal
polity " This paper also specified the rights of which they
would not suffer themselves to be deprived, and called for
the repeal of eleven acts of Parliament by which these rights
had been infringed. Besides this, they formed an associa-
tion for insuring commercial non-intercourse with Great
Britain, and charged the committees of correspondence with
the duty of inspecting the entries at all custom houses
Addresses were also prepared, to be sent to the king, to the
people of Great Britain, and to the inhabitants of British
America The loth of May was appointed for a second
Congress, in which the Canadian colonies and the Floridas
were invited to join , and on the 26th of October the Con-
gress dissolved itself
The ability of the papers prepared by the first Conti-
nental Congress has long been fully admitted in England
as well as in America Chatham declared them unsur-
passed by any state papers ever composed in any age or
country But the king's manipulation of rotten boroughs
in the election of November, 1774, was only too successful,
and the new Parliament was not in the mood for listen-
ing to reason. Chatham, Shelburne, and Camden urged in
vain that the vindictive measures of the last April should
be repealed and the troops withdrawn from Boston On
the ist of February, Chatham introduced a bill which, could
it have passed, would no doubt have averted war, even at
the eleventh hour Besides repealing its vindictive meas-
Debates in ures, Parliament was to renounce forever the right
Parliament of taxing ^ co i omes> ^Je retaining the right of
regulating the commerce of the whole empire, and the
Americans were to defray the expenses of their own gov-
ernments by taxes voted in their colonial assemblies A
few weeks later, in the House of Commons, Burke argued
that the abstract right of Parliament to tax the colonies
was not worth contending for, and he urged that on large
grounds of expediency it should be abandoned, and that the
vindictive acts should be repealed But both Houses, by
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 113
large majorities, refused to adopt any measures of concilia-
tion, and in a solemn joint address to the king declared
themselves ready to support him to the end in the policy
upon which he had entered Massachusetts was declared
to be in a state of rebellion, and acts were passed closing all
the ports of New England, and prohibiting its fishermen
from access to the Newfoundland fisheries. At the same
time it was voted to increase the army at Boston to 10,000
men, and to supersede Gage, who had in all these months
accomplished so little with his four regiments. As people
in England had utterly failed to comprehend the magnitude
of the task assigned to Gage, it was not strange that they
should seek to account for his inaction by doubting his zeal
and ability No less a person than David Hume saw fit to
speak of him as a "lukewarm coward" William Howe,
member of Parliament for the liberal constituency of Not-
tingham, was chosen to supersede him. In his speeches as
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, m
candidate for election only four months ago, Howe had
Wiiham declared himself opposed to the king's policy, had
Howe asserted that no army that England could raise
would be able to subdue the Americans, and, in reply to a
question, had promised that if offered a command in America
he would refuse it When he now consented to take Gage's
place as commander-in-chief, the people of Nottingham
scolded him roundly for breaking his word
It would be unfair, however, to charge Howe with con-
scious breach of faith in this matter. His appointment was
itself a curious symptom of the element of vacillation that
was apparent in the whole conduct of the ministry, even
when its attitude professed to be most obstinate and deter-
mined. With all his obstinacy the king did not really wish
for war, much less did Lord North ; and the reason for
Howe's appointment was simply that he was a brother to
the Lord Howe who had fallen at Ticonderoga, and whose
memory was idolized by the men of New England. Lord
North announced that, in dealing with his misguided Ameri-
can brethren, his policy would be always to send the olive
branch in company with the sword , and no doubt Howe
really felt that, by accepting a command offered in such a
spirit, he might more efficiently serve the interests of
humanity and justice than by leaving it open for some one
of cruel and despotic temper, whose zeal might outrun even
the wishes of the obdurate king At the same time, his
Richard, brother Richard, Lord Howe, a seaman of great
Lord Howe g^ty was appointed admiral of the fleet for
America, and was expressly entrusted with the power of
offering terms to the colonies. Sir Henry Clinton and
John Burgoyne, both of them in sympathy with the king's
policy, were appointed to accompany Howe as lieutenant-
generals.
The conduct of the ministry, during this most critical and
trying time, showed great uneasiness. When leave was
asked for Franklin to present the case for the Continental
Congress, and to defend it before the House of Commons,
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 115
it was refused Yet all through the winter the ministry
were continually appealing to Franklin, unofficially and in
private, in order to find out how the Americans might be
appeased without making any such concessions as would
hurt the pride of that Tory party which was now misgov-
erning England Lord Howe was the most conspicuous
agent in these fruitless negotiations How to conciliate the
Americans without giving up a single one of the false posi-
tions which the king had taken was the problem, and no
wonder that Franklin soon perceived it to be msolvable, and
made up his mind to go home. He had now stayed in
England for several years, as agent for Pennsyl- Frankhn
vania and for Massachusetts He had shown him- returns to
self a consummate diplomatist, of that rare school
which deceives by telling unwelcome truths, and he had
some unpleasant encounters with the king and the king's
friends Now in March, 1775, seeing clearly that he could
be of no further use in averting an armed struggle, he
n6 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, in
returned to America Franklin's return was not, in form,
like that customary withdrawal of an ambassador which her-
alds and proclaims a state of war But practically it was
the snapping of the last diplomatic link between the colonies
and the mother-country
Still the ministry, with all its uneasiness, did not believe
that war was close at hand It was thought that the middle
colonies, and especially New York, might be persuaded to
support the government, and that New England, thus iso-
lated, would not venture upon armed resistance to the over-
whelming power of Great Britain The hope was not wholly
unreasonable, for the great middle colonies, though con-
spicuous for material prosperity, were somewhat lacking in
force of political ideas In New York and Pennsylvania the
non-English population was relatively far more considerable
The middle t ^ ian in Virginia or the New England colonies,
colonies A considerable proportion of the population had
come from the continent of Europe, and the principles of
constitutional government were not so thoroughly inwrought
into the innermost minds and hearts of the people, the pulse
of liberty did not beat so quickly here, as in the purely Eng-
lish commonwealths of Virginia and Massachusetts. In
Pennsylvania and New Jersey the Quakers were naturally
opposed to a course of action that must end in war , and
such very honourable motives certainly contributed to
weaken the resistance of these colonies to the measures of
the government In New York there were further special
reasons for the existence of a strong loyalist feeling. The
city of New York had for many years been the headquar-
ters of the army and the seat of the principal royal govern-
ment in America It was not a town, like Boston, governing
itself in town meeting, but its municipal affairs were ad-
ministered by a mayor, appointed by the king Unlike
Boston and Philadelphia, the interests of the city of New
York were almost purely commercial, and there was nothing
to prevent the little court circle there from giving the tone
to public opinion. The Episcopal Church, too, was in the
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 117
ascendant, and there was a not unreasonable prejudice against
the Puritans of New England for their grim intolerance of
Episcopalians and their alleged antipathy to Dutchmen
The province of New York, moreover, had a standing dis-
pute with its eastern neighbours over the ownership of the
Green Mountain region. This beautiful country had been
settled by New England men, under grants from the royal
governors of New Hampshire , but it was claimed by the
people of New York, and the controversy sometimes waxed
hot and gave rise to very hard feelings Under these cir-
cumstances, the labours of the ministry to secure Lord
this central colony seemed at times likely to be
crowned with success The assembly of New
York refused to adopt the non-importation policy New York
enjoined by the Continental Congress, and it refused to
choose delegates to the second Congress which was to be
held in May The ministry, in return, sought to corrupt
New York by exempting it from the commercial restrictions
placed upon the neighbouring colonies, and by promising to
confirm its alleged title to the territory of Vermont. All
these hopes proved fallacious, however. In spite of appear-
ances, the majority of the people of New York were opposed
to the king's measures, and needed only an opportunity for
organization In April, under the powerful leadership of
Philip Schuyler and the Livingstons, a convention was held,
delegates were chosen to attend the Congress, and New
York fell into line with the other colonies. As for Pennsyl-
vania, in spite of its peaceful and moderate temper, it had
never shown any signs of willingness to detach itself from
the nascent union.
News travelled with slow pace in those days, and as late
as the middle of May, Lord North, confident of the success
of his schemes m New York, and unable to believe that the
yeomanry of Massachusetts would fight against regular
troops, declared cheerfully that this American business was
not so alarming as it seemed,, and everything would no doubt
be speedily settled without bloodshed !
n8
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP III
Great events had meanwhile happened in Massachusetts
All through the winter the resistance to General Gage had
been passive, for the lesson had been thoroughly
Affairs in . c , , , -
Massachu- impressed upon the mind of every man, woman,
setts and child in the province that, in order to make sure
of the entire sympathy of the other colonies, Great Britain
INTERIOR OF OLD SOUTH MEETING-HOUSE
must be allowed to fire the first shot. The Regulating Act
had none the less been silently defied, and neither coun-
cillors nor judges, neither sheriffs nor jurymen, could be
found to serve under the royal commission. It is striking
proof of the high state of civilization attained by this com-
monwealth, that although for nine months the ordinary func-
tions of government had been suspended, yet the affairs of
every-day life had gone on without friction or disturbance
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 119
Not a drop of blood had been shed, nor had any one's prop-
erty been injured The companies of yeomen meeting at
eventide to drill on the village green, and now and then the
cart laden with powder and ball that dragged slowly over
the steep roads on its way to Concord, were the only out-
ward signs of an unwonted state of things Not so, how-
ever, in Boston There the blockade of the harbour had
wrought great hardship for the poorer people. Business was
seriously interfered with, many persons were thrown out of
employment, and in spite of the generous promptness with
which provisions had been poured in from all parts of the
country, there was great suffering through scarcity of fuel
and food. Still there was but little complaint and no dis-
order The leaders were as resolute as ever, and the people
were as resolute as their leaders. As the 5th of March drew
near, several British officers were heard to declare that any
one who should dare to address the people in the Old South
Church on this occasion would surely lose his life. As soon
as he heard of these threats, Joseph Warren solicited for
himself the dangerous honour, and at the usual warren's
hour delivered a stirring oration upon "the baleful SS*^ 8 *
influence of standing armies in time of peace " South
The concourse in the church was so great that when the
orator arrived every approach to the pulpit was blocked up ;
and rather than elbow his way through the crowd, which
might lead to some disturbance, he procured a ladder, and
climbed in through a large window at the back of the pulpit.
About forty British officers were present, some of whom sat
on the pulpit steps, and sought to annoy the speaker with
groans and hisses, but everything passed off quietly.
The boldness of Adams and Hancock in attending this
meeting was hardly less admirable than that of Warren in
delivering the address. It was no secret that Gage had been
instructed to watch his opportunity to arrest Samuel Adams
and "his willing and ready tool/' that "terrible desperado,"
John Hancock, and send them over to England to be tried
for treason. Here was an excellent opportunity for seizing
120
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP in
all the patriot leaders at once , and the meeting itself, more-
over, was a town meeting, such as Gage had come to Bos-
ton expressly to put down Nothing more calmly defiant
can be imagined than the conduct of people and leaders
under these circumstances But Gage had long since learned
the temper of the people so well that he was afraid to pro-
Attempt ceed too violently At first he had tried to cor-
samuei 1 ^ **& Samuel Adams with offers of place or pelf ;
Adams b u t he found, as Hutchmson had already declared,
that such was "the obstinate and inflexible disposition of
OLD NORTH CHURCH, IN WHICH SIGNAL WAS HUNG
this man that he never would be conciliated by any office or
gift whatsoever " The dissolution of the assembly, of which
Adams was clerk, had put a stop to his salary, and he had
so little property laid by as hardly to be able to buy bread
for his family. Under these circumstances, it occurred to
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 121
Gage that perhaps a judicious mixture of threat with persua-
sion might prove effectual So he sent Colonel Fenton
with a confidential message to Adams The officer, with
great politeness, began by saying that "an adjustment of
the existing disputes was very desirable , that he was au-
thorized by Governor Gage to assure him that he had been
empowered to confer upon him such benefits as would be
satisfactory, upon the condition that he would engage to
cease in his opposition to the measures of government, and
that it was the advice of Governor Gage to him not to incur
the further displeasure of his Majesty , that his conduct had
been such as made him liable to the penalties of an act of
Henry VIIL, by which persons could be sent to England
for trial, and, by changing his course, he would not only
receive great personal advantages, but would thereby make
his peace with the king" Adams listened with apparent
interest to this recital until the messenger had concluded.
Then rising, he replied, glowing with indignation . " Sir, I
trust I have long since made my peace with the King of
kings No personal consideration shall induce me to aban-
don the righteous cause of my country Tell Governor
Gage it is the advice of Samuel Adams to him no longer to
insult the feelings of an exasperated people "
Toward the end of the winter Gage received peremptory
orders to arrest Adams and Hancock, and send orders to
them to England for trial. One of the London Adams and
papers gayly observed that in all probability Tern- Hancock
pie Bar " will soon be decorated with some of the patriotic
noddles of the Boston saints." The provincial congress met
at Concord on the 22d of March, and after its adjournment,
on the isth of April,
Adams and Hancock ~
stayed a few days at Q </* nj^
Lexington, at the house ^""^ " s
of their friend, the Rev.
Jonas Clark It would doubtless be easier to seize them
there than in Boston, and, accordingly, on the night of the
122
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. Ill
REV JONAS CLARK'S HOUSE
1 8th Gage dispatched a force of 800 troops, under Lieuten-
ant-Colonel Francis Smith, to march to Lexington, and, after
seizing the patriot leaders, to proceed to Concord, and cap-
ture or destroy the military stores which had for some time
been collecting there. At ten in the evening the troops were
rowed across Charles river, and proceeded by a difficult and
unfrequented route through the marshes of East Cambridge,
until, after four miles, they struck into the highroad for Lex-
ington. The greatest possible secrecy was observed, and
stringent orders were given that no one should be allowed
to leave Boston that night But Warren divined the purpose
Paul Re- f t* 16 movement, and sent out Paul Revere by
vere's nde wav o f Charlestown, and William Dawes by way of
Roxbury, to give the alarm At that time there was no
bridge across Charles river lower than the one which now
connects Cambridge with Allston Crossing the broad river
in a little boat, under the very guns of the Somerset man-
of-war, and waiting on the farther bank until he learned,
THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS
123
lantern suspended in the belfry of the North Church,
way the troops had gone, Revere took horse and
id over the Medford road to Lexington, shouting the
t the door of every house that he passed. Reaching
lark's a little after midnight, he, found the house
d by eight minute-men, and the sergeant warned him
make a noise and disturb the inmates. "Noise!"
Revere. " You 11 soon have noise enough ; the regu-
e coming!" Hancock, recognizing the voice, threw
5 window, and ordered the guard to let him in. On
ig the news, Hancock's first impulse was to stay and
ommand of the militia ; but it was presently agreed
lere was no good reason for his doing so, and shortly
daybreak, in company with Adams, he left the vil-
nwhile, the troops were marching along the main
124
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP III
road; but swift and silent as was their advance, frequent
alarm-bells and signal-guns, and lights twinkling on distant
hilltops, showed but too plainly that the secret was out.
Colonel Smith then sent Major Pitcairn forward with six
companies of light infantry to make all possible haste in
securing the bridges over Concord river, while at the same
time he prudently sent back to
Boston for reinforcements When
Pitcairn reached Lexington, just
as the rising sun was casting long
shadows across the village green, he found himself con-
fronted by some fifty minute-men under command of Cap-
tain John Parker, grandfather of Theodore Parker, a
hardy veteran, who, fifteen years before, had climbed the
heights of Abraham by the side of Wolfe " Stand
your ground," said Parker. "Don't fire unless
fired upon , but if they mean to have a war, let it
1775 begin here " " Disperse, ye villains ! " shouted Pit-
cairn. "Damn you, why don't you disperse?" And as
they stood motionless he gave the order to fire. As the
soldiers hesitated to obey, he discharged his own pistol and
IONATHAN HARRINGTON'S HOUSE
1775
THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS
125
repeated the order, whereupon a deadly volley slew eight of
the minute-men and wounded ten One of the victims,
Jonathan Harrington, was just able to stagger across the
green to his own house
(which is still there), and
to die in the arms of his
wife, who was standing at
the door At this mo-
ment the head of Smith's
own column seems to have
come into sight, far down
the road The minute-men
had begun to return the
fire, when Parker, seeing
the folly of resistance,
ordered them to retire
While this was going on,
Adams and Hancock were
walking across the fields
toward Woburn , and as the
crackle of distant musketry
reached their ears, the
eager Adams his soul
aglow with the prophecy
of the coming deliverance
of his country exclaimed, THE MINUTE . MAN i
" Oh, what a glorious morn-
ing is this ' " From Woburn the two friends went on their
way to Philadelphia, where the second Continental Congress
was about to assemble
1 On the pedestal of this statue, which stands in front of the North
Bridge at Concord, is engraved the following quotation from Emerson's
"Concord Hymn."
By the rude bridge that arched the flood,
Their flag to April's breeze unfurled,
Here once the embattled farmers stood,
And fired the shot heard round the world
The poet's grandfather, Rev William Emerson, watched the fight
nrom a window of the Old Manse.
126
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. Ill
THE OLD MANSE AT CONCORD
Some precious minutes had been lost by the British at
Lexington, and it soon became clear that the day was to be
one in which minutes could ill be spared. By the time they
reached Concord, about seven o'clock, the greater part of
the stores had been effectually hidden, and minute-men
were rapidly gathering from all quarters. After posting
small forces to guard the bridges, the troops set fire to
the court-house, cut down the liberty-pole, disabled a few
cannon, staved in a few barrels of flour, and hunted unsuc-
cessfully for arms and ammunition, until an unexpected inci-
P ut a st P to ^^ P rocee dings. When the
xiie troo s
repulsed at f orce of minute-men, watching events from the hill
beyond the river, had become increased to more
than 400, they suddenly advanced upon the North Bndge,
which was held by 200 regulars. After receiving and
returning the British fire, the militia, led by Major But-
trick, charged across the narrow bridge, overcame the regu-
lars by dint of weight and numbers, and drove them back
1 775
THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS
127
past the Old Manse into the village They did not follow
up the attack, but rested on their arms, wondering, perhaps,
at what they had already accomplished, while their numbers
were from moment to moment increased by the minute-men
from neighbouring villages. A little before noon, though
none of the objects of the expedition had been accomplished,
Colonel Smith began to realize the danger of his position,
and started on his retreat to Boston His men were in no
mood for fight They had marched eighteen miles, and had
eaten little or nothing for fourteen hours. But now, while
companies of militia hovered upon both their flanks, every
clump of trees and every bit of rising ground by the road-
side gave shelter to hostile yeomen, whose aim was true and
deadly. Straggling combats ensued from time to time, and
the retreating British left nothing undone which brave men
could do; but the incessant, galling fire at length threw
128 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP in
PITCAIRN'S PISTOLS
them into hopeless confusion Leaving their wounded scat-
Retreating tered along the road, they had already passed by
Sed p by res " the village green of Lexington in disorderly flight,
Lord Percy w hen they were saved by Lord Percy, who had
marched out over Boston Neck and through Cambridge to
their assistance, with 1,200 men and two field-pieces Form-
ing his men in a hollow square, Percy inclosed the fugitives,
who, in dire exhaustion, threw themselves upon the ground,
"their tongues hanging out of their mouths," says Colonel
Stedman, "like those of dogs after a chase" Many had
thrown away their muskets, and Pitcairn had lost his horse,
with the elegant pistols which fired the first shots of the
War of Independence, and which may be seen to-day, along
with other trophies, in the town library of Lexington.
Percy's timely arrival checked the pursuit for an hour, and
gave the starved and weary men a chance for food and rest.
A few houses were pillaged and set on fire, but at three
o'clock General Heath and Dr Warren arrived on the scene
and took command of the militia, and the irregular fight was
renewed. When Percy reached Menotomy (now Arlington),
seven miles from Boston, his passage was disputed by a
fresh force of militia, while pursuers pressed hard on his
1775
THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS
129
rear, and it was only after an obstinate fight that he suc-
ceeded in forcing his way. The roadside now Retreat
fairly swarmed with marksmen, insomuch that, as
one of the British officers observed, "they seemed
to have dropped from the clouds." It became im-
possible to keep order or to carry away the wounded ; and
when, at sunset, the troops entered Charlestown, under the
welcome shelter of the fleet, it was upon the full run. They
were not a moment too soon, for Colonel Timothy Picker-
ing, with 700 Essex militia, on the way to intercept them,
had already reached Winter Hill , and had their road been
blocked by this fresh force they must in all probability
have surrendered
On this eventful day the British lost 273 of their number,
while the Americans lost 93. The expedition had been a
failure, the whole British force had barely escaped capture,
and it had been shown that the people could not be fright-
ened into submission It had been shown, too, how efficient
the town system of organized militia might prove on a sud-
FANCIFUL PICTURE OF THE CONCORD-LEXINGTON FIGHT
(From a contemporary French prwf)
I 3 o THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, m
den emergency. The most interesting feature of the day
Rising of is the rapidity and skill with which the different
t^VthT bodies of minute-men, marching from long dis-
banmlm tances WCre massed at tllOSe P oints On ttie road
Boston m where they might most effectually harass or im-
pede the British retreat The Danvers company marched six-
teen miles in four hours to strike Lord Percy at Menotomy.
The list of killed and wounded shows that contingents from
at least twenty-three towns had joined in the fight before
sundown But though the pursuit was then ended, these
men did not return to their homes, but hour by hour their
numbers increased. At i\oon of that day the alarm had
reached Worcester. Early next morning, Israel Putnam was
ploughing a field at Pomfret, in Connecticut, when the news
arrived. Leaving orders for the militia companies to follow,
he jumped on his horse, and riding a hundred miles in eigh-
teen hours, arrived in Cambridge on the morning of the 2ist,
just in time to meet John Stark with the first company from
New Hampshire At midday of the 2Oth the college green
at New Haven swarmed with eager students and citizens,
and Captain Benedict Arnold, gathering sixty volunteers
from among them, placed himself at their head and marched
for Cambridge, picking up recruits and allies at all the
villages on the way And thus, from every hill and valley
in New England, on they came, till, by Saturday night,
Gage found himself besieged in Boston by a rustic army of
16,000 men.
When the news of this affair reached England, five weeks
later, it was received at first with incredulity, then with
astonishment and regret. Slight as tKe contest had been,
it remained undeniable that British troops had been defeated
by what in England was regarded as a crowd of "peasants;"
and it was felt besides that the chances for conciliation had
now been seriously diminished. Burke said that now that the
Americans had once gone so far as this, they could hardly
help going farther ; and in spite of the condemnation that
had been lavished upon Gage for his inactivity, many people
132
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. Ill
ST JOHN'S CHURCH, RICHMOND 1
were now inclined to find fault with him for having precipi-
Effects of tated a conflict just at the time when it was hoped
the news ^^ ^-^ the ^ Q f ^ New y ork l y a li stSj some
sort of accommodation might be effected. There is no
doubt that the news from Lexington thoroughly disconcerted
the loyalists of New York for the moment, and greatly
strengthened the popular party there In a manifesto ad-
dressed to the city of London, the New York committee of
correspondence deplored the conduct of Gage as rash and
violent, and declared that all the horrors of civil war would
never bring the Americans to submit to the unjust acts of
1 It was in this church on March 23, 1775, that Patrick Henry made
the famous speech m which he said, " It is too late to retire from the
contest. There is no retreat but m submission and slavery. The war
is inevitable, and let it come! The next gale that sweeps from the
north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms ! I know not
what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me
death."
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 133
Parliament When Hancock and Adams arrived, on their
way to the Congress, they were escorted through the city
with triumphal honours. In Pennsylvania steps were imme-
diately taken for the enlistment and training of a colonial
militia, and every colony to the south of it followed the
example.
The Scotch-Irish patriots of Mecklenburg county, in
North Carolina, ventured upon a measure more decided
than any that had yet been taken in any part of Meckien-
the country. On May 3ist, the county committee county
of Mecklenburg affirmed that the joint address of ff* l s '
the two Houses of Parliament to the king, in Feb- 1775 '
ruary, had virtually "annulled and vacated all civil and
military commissions granted by the Crown, and suspended
the constitutions of the colonies ; " and that consequently
" the provincial congress of each province, under the direc-
tion of the great Continental Congress, is invested with all
the legislative and executive powers within their respective
provinces, and that no other legislative or executive power
does or can exist at this time in any of these colonies " In
accordance with this state of things, rules were adopted
" for the choice of county officers, to exercise authority by
virtue of this choice and independently of the British Crown,
until Parliament should resign its arbitrary pretensions."
These bold resolves were entrusted to the North Carolina
delegates to the Continental Congress, but were not formally
brought before that body, as the delegates thought it best
to wait for a while longer the course of events.
Some twenty years later they gave rise to the legend of
the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence,
The early writers of United States history passed
over the proceedings of May 3ist in silence, and "Deciara-
presently the North Carolina patriots tried to sup- independ-
ply an account of them from memory Their tradi- ence "
tional account was not published until 1819, when it was
found to contain a spurious document, giving the substance
of some of the foregoing resolves, decorated with phrases
134
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP, in
borrowed from the Declaration of Independence. This
document purported to have been drawn up and signed at
a county meeting on the 2Oth of May. A fierce contro-
versy sprang up over the genuineness of the document,
which was promptly called in question For a long time
many people believed in it, and were inclined to charge
c ^s$r^' wz?*
&%*Jb*M
SIGNATURES OF MECKLENBURG COMMITTEE
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 135
Jefferson with having plagiarized from it in writing the
Declaration of Independence. But a minute investigation
of all the newspapers of May, 1775, throughout the thirteen
colonies, has revealed no trace of any such meeting on the
2Oth, and it is clear that no such document was made public.
The story of the Mecklenburg Declaration is simply a legend
based upon the distorted recollection of the real proceedings
of May 3 ist
Meanwhile, in New England, the warlike feeling had be-
come too strong to be contented merely with defensive
measures No sooner had Benedict Arnold reached Cam-
bridge than he suggested to Dr. Warren that an expedition
ought to be sent without delay to capture Ticonderoga and
Crown Point. These fortresses commanded the northern
approaches to the Hudson river, the strategic centre of the
whole country, and would be of supreme importance either
in preparing an invasion of Canada or in warding off an in-
vasion of New York. Besides this, they contained Benedict
a vast quantity of military stores, of which the Ethan dand
newly gathered army stood in sore need. The idea Anen
found favour at once Arnold received a colonel's commis-
sion from the Massachusetts Congress, and was instructed
to raise 400 men among the Berkshire Hills, capture the
fortresses, and superintend the transfer of part of their arma-
ment to Cambridge. When Arnold reached the wild hill-
sides of the Hoosac range, he found that he had a rival in
the enterprise The capture of Ticonderoga had also been
secretly planned in Connecticut, and was entrusted to Ethan
Allen, the eccentric but sagacious author of that now-for-
gotten deistical book, " The Oracles of Reason " Allen was
a leading spirit among the " Green Mountain Boys," an asso-
ciation of Vermont settlers formed for the purpose of resist-
ing the jurisdiction of New York, and his personal popularity
was great. On the gth of May Arnold overtook Allen and
his men on their march toward Lake Champlain, and claimed
the command of the expedition on the strength of his com-
mission from Massachusetts ; but the Green Mountain Boys
136 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP in
were acting partly on their own account, partly under the
direction of Connecticut They cared nothing for the au-
thority of Massachusetts, and knew nothing of Arnold , they
had come out to fight under their own trusted leader. But
few of Arnold's own meii had as yet assembled, and his
commission could not give him command of Vermonters, so
he joined the expedition as a volunteer On reaching the
lake that night, they found there were not nearly enough
row-boats to convey the men across But delay was not to
be thought of. The garrison must not be put on its guard.
Accordingly, with only eighty-three men, Allen and Arnold
crossed the lake at daybreak of the loth, and entered Ticon-
deroga side by side The little garrison, less than half as
Capture of many in number, as it turned out, was completely
" surprised, and the stronghold was taken without a
blow. ^ s t ^ ie commandant jumped out of bed,
10,1775 half awake, he confusedly inquired of Allen by
whose authority he was acting " In the name of the Great
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 137
Jehovah and the Continental Congress f " roared the bel-
licose philosopher, and the commandant, seeing the fort al-
ready taken, was fain to acquiesce At the same time Crown
Point surrendered to another famous Green Mountain Boy,
Seth Warner, and thus more than two hundred cannon, with
a large supply of powder and ball, were obtained for the
New England army. A few days later, as some of Arnold's
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP III
own men arrived from Berkshire, he sailed down Lake
Champlain, and captured St. John's with its garrison , but
the British recovered it m the course of the summer, and
planted such a force there that in the next autumn we shall
see it able to sustain a siege of fifty days
Neither Connecticut nor Massachusetts had any authority
over these posts save through right of conquest. As it was
Connecticut that had set Allen's expedition on foot, Massa-
chusetts yielded the point as to the disposal of the fortresses
and their garrisons Dr Warren urged the Connecticut
government to appoint Arnold to the command, so that his
commission might be held of both colonies ; but Connecti-
cut preferred to retain Allen, and in July Arnold returned
to Cambridge to mature his remarkable plan for invading
Canada through the trackless wilderness of Maine His
slight disagreement with Allen bore evil fruit. As is often
the case in such affairs, the men were more zealous than
their commanders ; there were those who denounced Arnold
'<*>?
'
FACSIMILE OF ETHAN ALLEN'S LETTER ANNOUNCING THE CAPTURE OF
TICONDER.OGA
fc
4 k
' ' ft' ' I , ' , I '
't.
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 141
as an interloper, and he was destined to hear from them
again and again
On the same day l on which Ticonderoga surrendered, the
Continental Congress met at Philadelphia. The Second
Adamses and the Livingstons, Jay, Henry, Wash- Sfcont?
ington, and Lee were there, as also Franklin, just JJJjjf ""
back from his long service in England Of all the *, W5
number, John Adams and Franklin had now, probably, come
to agree with Samuel Adams that a political separation from
Great Britain was inevitable ; but all were fully agreed that
any consideration of such a question was at present prema-
ture and uncalled for. The Congress was a body which
wielded no technical legal authority ; it was but a group of
committees, assembled for the purpose of advising with each
other regarding the public weal. Yet something very like a
state of war existed in a part of the country, under conditions
which intimately concerned the whole, and in the absence
of any formally constituted government something must be
done to provide for such a crisis. The spirit of the assembly
was well shown in its choice of a president Peyton Ran-
dolph being called back to Virginia to preside over the colo-
nial assembly, Thomas Jefferson was sent to the Congress
in his stead ; and it also became necessary for Congress to
choose a president to succeed him The proscribed John
Hancock was at once chosen, and Benjamin Harrison, in
conducting him to the chair, said, "We will show Great
Britain how much we value her proscriptions." To the
garrisoning of Ticonderoga and Crown Point by Connecti-
cut, the Congress consented only, after much hesitation,
since the capture of these posts had been an act of offensive
warfare But without any serious opposition, in the name
of the " United Colonies," the Congress adopted the army
1 In the letter, of which a facsimile is here given, Allen gives the
date of the capture of Ticonderoga as the nth, but a minute survey of
the contemporary newspaper and other sources of information makes
it clear that this must be a slip of the pen. In his personal " Narra-
tive," Allen gives the date correctly as the loth
142 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP in
of New England men besieging Boston as the " Continental
Army," and proceeded to appoint a commander-in-chief to
direct its operations Practically, this was the most impor-
tant step taken in the whole course of the War of Independ-
ence. Nothing less than the whole issue of the struggle,
for ultimate defeat or for ultimate victory, turned upon the
A omt- selection to be made at this crisis For nothing
mentTf ca n be clearer than that in any other hands than
ton to 1 aim- those of George Washington the military result
5Sxaa of the war must have been speedily disastrous to
taiarm} tfae Americans. In appointing a Virginian to the
command of a New England army, the Congress showed
rare wisdom. It would well have accorded with local preju-
dices had a New England general been appointed John
Hancock greatly desired the appointment, and seems to have
been chagrined at not receiving it. But it was wisely decided
that the common interest of all Americans could in no way
be more thoroughly engaged in the war than by putting the
New England army in charge of a general who represented
in his own person the greatest of the Southern colonies.
Washington was now commander of the militia of Virginia,
and sat in Congress in his colonel's uniform His services
in saving the remnant of Braddock's ill-fated army, and
afterwards in the capture of Fort Duquesne, had won for
him a military reputation greater than that of any other
American Besides this, there was that which, from his
early youth, had made it seem right to entrust him with
commissions of extraordinary importance. Nothing in
Washington's whole career is more remarkable than the fact
that when a mere boy of twenty-one he should have been
selected by the governor of Virginia to take charge of that
most delicate and dangerous diplomatic mission to the Indian
chiefs and the French commander at Venango. Consum-
mate knowledge of human nature as well as of wood-craft, a
courage that no threats could daunt and a clear intelligence
that no treachery could hoodwink, were the qualities abso-
lutely demanded by such an undertaking; yet the young
1775
THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS
143
man acquitted himself of his perilous task not merely with
credit, but with splendour. As regards booklore, his educa-
tion had been but meagre, yet he possessed in the very high-
est degree the rare faculty of always discerning the essential
facts in every case, and interpreting them correctly. In the
Continental Congress there sat many who were superior to
him in learning and eloquence , but "if," s^id Patrick Henry,
WASHINGTON AT THE AGE OF FORTY
"you speak of solid information and sound judgment, Colo-
nel Washington is unquestionably the greatest man upon
that floor." Thus did that wonderful balance of mind so
great that in his whole career it would be hard to point out
a single mistake already impress his ablest contemporaries.
144 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP m
Hand in hand with this rare soundness of judgment there
went a completeness of moral self-control, which was all the
more impressive inasmuch as Washington's was by no means
a tame or commonplace nature, such as ordinary power of
will would suffice to guide He was a man of intense and
fiery passions. His anger, when once aroused, had in it
something so terrible that strong men were cowed by it like
frightened children. This prodigious animal nature was
habitually curbed by a will of iron, and held in the service
of a sweet and tender soul, into which no mean or unworthy
thought had ever entered. Whole-souled devotion to public
duty, an incorruptible integrity which no appeal to ambition
or vanity could for a moment solicit, these were attributes
of Washington, as well marked as his clearness of mind and
his strength of purpose. And it was in no unworthy temple
that Nature had enshrined this great spirit. His lofty stat-
ure (exceeding six feet), his grave and handsome face, his
noble bearing and courtly grace of manner, all proclaimed
in Washington a king of men.
The choice of Washington for commander-m-chief was
suggested and strongly urged by John Adams, and when,
on the 1 5th of June, the nomination was formally made by
Thomas Johnson of Maryland, it was unanimously con-
firmed. Then Washington, rising, said with great earnest-
ness: "Since the Congress desire, I will enter upon the
momentous duty, and exert every power I possess m their
service and for the support of the glorious cause. But I
beg it may be remembered by every gentleman in the room
that I this day declare, with the utmost sincerity, I do not
think myself equal to the command I am honoured with."
He refused to take any pay for his services, but said he
would keep an accurate account of his personal expenses,
which Congress might reimburse, should it see fit, after the
close of the war.
While these things were going on at Philadelphia, the
army of New England men about Boston was busily pressing,
to the best of its limited ability, the siege of that town,
1775
THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS
The army extended in a great semicircle of sixteen miles,
averaging about a thousand men to the mile, Siegeof
all the way from Jamaica Plain to Charlestown BostOQ
Neck. The headquarters were at Cambridge, where some
of the university buildings were used for barracks, and the
chief command had been entrusted to General Artemas
Ward, under the direction
of the committee of safety.
Dr. Warren had succeeded
Hancock as president of the
provincial congress, which
was in session at Water-
town. The army was ex-
cellent in spirit, but poorly
equipped and extremely de-
ficient in discipline. Its
military object was to com-
pel the British troops to
evacuate Boston and take
to their ships , for as there
was no American fleet, any-
thing like the destruction
or capture of the British force was manifestly impossible.
The only way in which Boston could be made untenable for
the British was by seizing and fortifying some of the neigh-
bouring hills which commanded the town, of which the most
important were those in Charlestown on the north and in
Dorchester on the southeast. To secure these hills was
indispensable to Gage, if he was to keep his foothold in
Boston; and as soon as Howe, Clinton, and Burgoyne
arrived, on the 2Sth of May, with reinforcements which
raised the British force to 10,000 men, a plan was laid for
extending the lines so as to cover both Charlestown and
Dorchester. Feeling now confident of victory, e?s
Gage issued a proclamation on June I2th, offering prociama
free pardon to all rebels who should lay down their
arms and return to their allegiance, saving only those ring
I 4 6 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, m
leaders, John Hancock and Samuel Adams, whose crimes
had been "too flagitious to be condoned." At the same
time, all who should be taken in arms were threatened with
the gallows. In reply to this manifesto, the committee of
safety, having received intelligence of Gage's scheme, or-
dered out a force of 1,200 men, to forestall the governor,
and take possession of Bunker Hill in Charlestown At
sunset of the i6th this brigade was paraded on Cambridge
Common, and after prayer had been offered by Dr. Langdon,
president of the university, they set out on their enterprise,
under command of Colonel Prescott of Pepperell, a veteran
of the French war, grand-
father of one of the most
eminent of American his-
torians. On reaching the
grounds, a consultation
was held, and it was decided, in accordance with the general
purpose, if not in strict conformity to the letter of the order,
to push on farther and fortify the eminence known as
Breed's Hill, which was connected by a ridge with Bunker
Hill, and might be regarded as part of the same locality.
Americans The position of Breed's Hill was admirably fitted
Bunker ^ or annoying the town and the ships in the harbour,
Hl11 and it was believed that, should the Americans
succeed in planting batteries there, the British would be
obliged to retire from Boston. There can be little doubt,
however, that in thus departing from the strict letter of his
orders Prescott made a mistake, which might have proved
fatal, had not the enemy blundered still more seriously.
The advanced position on Breed's Hill was not only exposed
to attacks in the rear from an enemy who commanded the
water, but the line of retreat was ill secured, and, by seizing
upon Charlestown Neck, it would have been easy for the
British, with little or no loss, to have compelled Prescott to
surrender. From such a disaster the Americans were saved
by the stupid contempt which the enemy felt for them.
Reaching Breed's Hill about midnight, Colonel Prescott 's
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 147
men began throwing up intrenchments. At daybreak they
were discovered by the sailors in the harbour, and a lively
cannonade was kept up through the forenoon by the enemy's
ships ; but it produced little effect, and the strength of the
American works increased visibly hour by hour. It was a
beautiful summer day, bathed in brightest sunshine, and
through the clear dry air every movement of the spadesmen
on the hilltop and the sailors on their decks could be dis-
tinctly seen from a great distance The roar of the cannon
had called out everybody, far and near, to see what was
going on, and the windows and housetops in Bos- Amvai of
ton were crowded with anxious spectators. Dur- ftari^Tnd
ing the night General Putnam had come upon the j^"'
scene, and turned his attention to fortifying the 1775
crest of Bunker Hill, in order to secure the line of retreat
across Charlestown Neck In the course of the forenoon
Colonel Stark arrived with reinforcements, which were
posted behind the rail fence on the extreme left, to ward off
any attempt of the British to turn their flank by a direct
attack. At the same time, Dr Warren, now chief executive
officer of Massachusetts, and just appointed major-general,
hastened to the battlefield ; replying to the prudent and affec-
tionate remonstrance of his friend Elbridge Gerry, " Dulce
et decorum est pro patna mon " Arriving at the redoubt,
he refused the command expressly tendered him, saying
that he should be only too glad to serve as volunteer aid,
and learn his first lesson under so well tried a soldier as
Prescott. This modest heroism was typical of that memo-
rable day, to the events of which one may well apply the
Frenchman's dictum, "C'est magnifique, mais ce n'est pas
la guerre!" A glorious day it was in history, but char-
acterized, on both the British and the American sides, by
heroism rather than by military skill or prudence.
During the forenoon Gage was earnestly discussing with
the three new generals the best means of ousting the Amer-
icans from their position on Breed's Hill. There was one
sure and obvious method, to go around by sea and take
I
i
o
s
r
O
w
I
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 149
possession of Charlestown Neck, thereby cutting off the
Americans from the mainland and starving them out. But
it was thought that time was too precious to admit of so slow
a method. Should the Americans succeed, in the course of
the afternoon, in planting a battery of siege guns on Breed's
Hill, the British position in Boston would be endangered
A direct assault was preferred, as likely to be more
speedily effective. It was unanimously agreed that ades to try
these "peasants" could not withstand the charge anassault
of 3,000 veteran soldiers, and it was gravely doubted if they
would stay and fight at all. Gage accordingly watched the
proceedings, buoyant with hope. In a few hours the dis-
grace of Lexington would be wiped out, and this wicked
rebellion would be ended. At noonday the troops began
crossing the river in boats, and at three o'clock they pre-
pared to storm the intrenchments. They advanced in two
parties, General Howe toward the rail-fence, and General
Pigot toward the redoubt, and the same fate awaited both
The Americans reserved fire until the enemy had come
within fifty yards, when all at once they poured forth such a
deadly volley that the whole front rank of the British was
mowed as if by the sudden sweep of a scythe. _
For a few minutes the gallant veterans held their sauit re-
ground and returned the fire ; but presently an in- pu se
describable shudder ran through the line, and they gave way
and retreated down the hillside in disorder, while the Amer-
1 This sketch was made on the spot for Lord Rawdon, who was then
on Gage's staff. The spire in the foreground is that of the Old West
Church, where Jonathan Mayhew preached, it stood on the site since
occupied by Dr. BartoPs church on Cambridge Street, now a branch
of the Boston Public Library. Its position in the picture shows that
the sketcher stood on Beacon Hill, 138 feet above the water. The
first hill to the right of the spire, on. the further side of the river, is
Bunker Hill, no feet high. The summit of Breed's Hill, 62 feet high,
where Prescott's redoubt stood, is nearly hidden by the flames of
burning Charlestown. At a sale of the effects of the Marquis of
Hastings, descendant of Lord Rawdon, this sketch was bought by my
friend Dr Thomas Addis Emmet
i S o THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, m
leans raised an exultant shout, and were with difficulty re-
strained by their officers from leaping over the breastworks
and pursuing
A pause now ensued, during which the village of Charles-
town was set on fire by shells from the fleet, and soon its
four hundred wooden houses were in a roaring blaze, while
charred timbers strewed the lawns and flower-beds, and the
sky was blackened with huge clouds of smoke If the pur-
pose of this wholesale destruction of property was, as some
have thought, to screen the second British advance,
usaSt the object was not attained, for a light breeze drove
repulsed ^ smo ke the wrong way As the bright red
coats, such excellent targets for trained marksmen, were
seen the second time coming up the slope, the Americans,
now cool and confident, withheld their fire until the distance
was less than thirty yards Then, with a quick succession
of murderous discharges, such havoc was wrought in the
British lines as soon to prove unendurable After a short
but obstinate struggle the lines were broken, and the gal-
lant troops retreated hastily, leaving the hillside covered
with their dead and wounded All this time the Americans,
in their sheltered position, had suffered but little.
So long a time now elapsed that many persons began to
doubt if the British would renew the assault. Had the
organization of the American army been better, such rein-
forcements of men and ammunition might by this time have
arrived from Cambridge that any further attack upon the
hill would be sure to prove fruitless. But all was confusion
at headquarters General Ward was ill furnished with staff
officers, and wrong information was brought, while orders
were misunderstood. And besides, in his ignorance of the
extent of Gage's plans, General Ward was nervously afraid
of weakening his centre at Cambridge Three regiments
mean "
Prescott's
powder while Prescott, to his dismay, found that his stock
gives ou ^ powder was nearly exhausted. While he was
making ready for a hand-to-hand fight, the British officers
BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL
June 17, 1775
I7 75 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 151
were holding a council of war, and many declared that to
renew the attack would be simply useless butchery. On
the other hand, General Howe observed, "to be forced to
give up Boston would be very disagreeable to us all " The
case was not so desperate as this, for the alternative of an
attack upon Charlestown Neck still remained open, and every
consideration of sound generalship now prescribed that it
should be tried But Howe could not bear to acknowledge
the defeat of his attempts to storm, and accord- Third as-
mgly, at five o'clock, with genuine British per-
sistency, a third attack was ordered. For a mo-
ment the advancing columns were again shaken
by the American fire, but the last powder-horns were soon
emptied, and by dint of bayonet charges the Americans were
slowly driven from their works and forced to retreat over
Charlestown Neck, while the whole disputed ground, includ-
ing the summit of Bunker Hill, passed into the hands of the
British.
In this battle, in which not more than one hour was spent
in actual fighting, the British loss in killed and wounded was
1,054, or more than one third of the whole force engaged,
including an unusually large proportion of officers The
American loss, mainly incurred at the rail-fence _ . , ,
J British and
and during the final hand-to-hand struggle at the American
redoubt, was 449, probably about one fourth of the
whole force engaged. On the British side, one company
of grenadiers came out of the battle with only five of its
number left unhurt. Every officer on General Howe's staff
was cut down, and only one survived his wounds. The
gallant Pitcairn, who had fired the first shot of the war, fell
while entering the redoubt, and a few moments later the
Americans met with an irreparable loss in the death of
General Warren, who was shot in the forehead as he lin-
gered with rash obstinacy on the scene, loath to join in the
inevitable retreat. Another volunteer aid, not less illustri-
ous than Warren, fought on Bunker Hill that day, and came
away scatheless. Since the brutal beating which he had
i S 2 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, m
received at the coffee-house nearly six years before, the
powerful mind of James Otis had suffered well-nigh total
wreck. He was living, harmlessly insane, at the house of
his sister, Mercy Warren, at Watertown, when he witnessed
the excitement and listened to the rumour of battle on the
Jl
morning of the I7th of June With touching eagerness to
strike a blow for the cause in which he had already suffered
so dreadful a martyrdom, Otis stole away from home, bor-
rowed a musket at some roadside farmhouse, and hastened
to the battlefield, where he fought manfully, and after all
was over made his way home, weary and faint, a little before
midnight.
Though small in its dimensions, if compared with great
1775 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS 153
European battles, or with the giant contests of our own civil
war, the struggle at Bunker Hill is memorable and
^ r , Excessive
instructive, even from a purely military point of slaughter,
view. Considering the numbers engaged and the
short duration of the fight, the destruction of life tattle
was enormous Of all the hardest-fought fields of modern
times, there have been very few indeed in which the num-
ber of killed and wounded has exceeded one fourth of the
whole force engaged. In its bloodiness and in the physical
conditions of the struggle, the battle of Bunker Hill resem-
bles in miniature the tremendous battles of Fredericksburg
and Cold Harbor. To ascend a rising ground and storm
well-manned intrenchments has in all ages been a difficult
task ; at the present day, with the range and precision of
our modern weapons, it has come to be almost impossible.
It has become a maxim of modern warfare that only the
most extraordinary necessity can justify a commander in
resorting to so desperate a measure. He must manoeuvre
against such positions, cut them off by the rear, or deprive
them of their value by some flanking march ; but he must
not, save as a forlorn hope, waste precious human lives in
an effort to storm them that is almost sure to prove fruit-
less. For our means of destroying life have become so
powerful and so accurate that, when skilfully wielded from
commanding positions, no human gallantry can hope to
withstand them. As civilization advances, warfare becomes
less and less a question of mere personal bravery, and more
and more a question of the application of resistless physical
forces at the proper points , that is to say, it becomes more
and more a purely scientific problem of dynamics. Now at
Bunker Hill though the Americans had not our modern
weapons of precision, yet a similar effect was wrought by
the remarkable accuracy of their aim, due to the fact that
they were all trained marksmen, who waited coolly till they
could fire at short range, and then wasted no shots in ran-
dom firing. Most of the British 1 soldiers who fell in the two
disastrous charges of that day were doubtless picked off as
154 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, in
partridges are picked off by old sportsmen, and thus is
explained the unprecedented slaughter of officers Probably
nothing quite like this had yet been seen in the history of
war, though the principle had been similar in those wonder-
ful trials of the long-bow in such mediaeval battles as Crcy
and Dupplin Moor Against such odds even British pluck
and endurance could not prevail Had the Americans been
properly supplied with powder, Howe could no more have
taken Bunker Hill by storm than Burnside could take the
heights of Fredericksburg
The moral effect of the battle of Bunker Hill, both in
America and Europe, was remarkable. It was for the Brit-
ish an important victory, inasmuch as they not only gamed
the ground for which the battle was fought, but by so doing
its moral they succeeded in keeping their hold upon Boston
effect or nme mon ths longer. Nevertheless, the moral
advantage was felt to be quite on the side of the Americans.
It was they who were elated by the day's work, while it was
the British who were dispirited The belief that Americans
could not fight was that day dispelled forever. British offi-
cers who remembered Fontenoy and Minden declared that
the firing at Bunker Hill was the hottest they had ever
known, and, with an exaggeration which was pardonable as
a reaction from their former ill-judged contempt, it was as-
serted that the regulars of France were less formidable foes
than the militia of New England It was keenly felt that
if a conquest of a single strategic position had encountered
such stubborn resistance, the task of subjugating the United
Colonies was likely to prove a hard one. " I wish we could
sell them another hill at the same price," said General
Greene. Vergennes, the French minister of foreign affairs,
exclaimed that with two more such victories England would
have no army left in America Washington said there
could now be no doubt that the liberties of the people were
secure. While Franklin, taking extreme ground, declared
that England had lost her colonies forever.
CHAPTER IV
INDEPENDENCE
ON the 2d of July, 1775, after a journey of eleven days,
General Washington arrived in Cambridge from Philadel-
phia, and on the following day, under the shade of the
great elm-tree which still stands hard by the Com- washmg-
mon, he took command of the Continental army, j n c . ves
which as yet was composed entirely of New Eng- bnd s e
landers. Of the 16,000 men engaged in the siege of Boston,
Massachusetts furnished 11,500, Connecticut 2,300, New
Hampshire 1,200, Rhode Island 1,000. These contingents
were arrayed under their local commanders, and under the
local flags of their respective commonwealths, though Arte-
mas Ward of Massachusetts had by courtesy exercised the
chief command until the arrival of Washington. During
156 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP iv
the month of July, Congress gave a more continental com-
plexion to the army by sending a reinforcement of 3,000
men from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia, including
the famous Daniel Morgan, with his sturdy band of sharp-
shooters each man of whom, it was said, while marching at
double-quick, could cleave with his rifle-ball a squirrel at a
distance of three hundred yards The summer of 1775
thus brought together in Cambridge many officers whose
names were soon to become household words throughout
the length and breadth of the land, and a moment may be
fitly spent in introducing them before we proceed with the
narrative of events
Daniel Morgan, who had just arrived from Virginia with
his riflemen, was a native of New Jersey, of Welsh descent
Damei Moving to Virginia at an early age, he had won a
Morgan ^^ re p u t a tion for bravery and readiness of re-
source in the wild campaigns of the Seven Years' War. He
was a man of gigantic stature and strength, and incredible
powers of endurance In his youth, it is said, he had re-
ceived five hundred lashes by order of a tyrannical British
officer, and had come away alive and defiant. On another
occasion, in a fierce woodland fight with the Indians, in
which nearly all his comrades were slain, Morgan was shot
through the neck by a musket-ball Almost fainting from
the wound, which he believed to be fatal, Morgan was
resolved, nevertheless, not to leave his scalp in the hands of
a dirty Indian , and falling forward, with his arms tightly
clasped about the neck of his stalwart horse, though mists
were gathering before his eyes, he spurred away through
the forest paths, until his foremost Indian pursuer, unable
to come up with him, hurled his tomahawk after him with
a yell of baffled rage, and gave up the chase With this
unconquerable tenacity, Morgan was a man of gentle and
unselfish nature , a genuine diamond, though a rough one ;
uneducated, but clear and strong in intelligence and faithful
in every fibre. At Cambridge began his long comradeship
with a very different character, Benedict Arnold, a young
1775 INDEPENDENCE 157
man of romantic and generous impulses, and for personal
bravery unsurpassed, but vain and self-seeking, and lacking
in moral robustness ; in some respects a more pol- Benedict
ished man than Morgan, but of a nature at once Arnold
coarser and weaker. We shall see these two men associated
in some of the most brilliant achievements of the war ; and
we shall see them persecuted and
insulted by political enemies, un-
til the weaker nature sinks and is
ruined, while the stronger endures
to the end
Along with Morgan and Ar-
nold there might have been seen
on Cambridge Common a man
who was destined to play no less
conspicuous a part in the great
campaign which was to end in
the first decisive overthrow of
the British For native shrewd-
ness, rough simplicity, and daunt-
less courage, John Stark was
much like Morgan. What the
one name was in the great woods
of the Virginia frontier, that was
the other among the rugged hills
- - XT T-L i i SILHOUETTE OF JOHN STARK
of northern New England, a
symbol of patriotism and a guarantee of victory Great as
was Stark's personal following in New Hampshire, he had
not, however, the chief command of the troops of that colony
The commander of the New Hampshire contingent was
John Sullivan, a wealthy lawyer of Durham, who had sat in
the first Continental Congress Sullivan was a gentleman
of culture and fair ability as a statesman. As j hn
a general, he was brave, intelligent, and faithful, SuUlvan
but in no wise brilliant Closely associated with Sullivan
for the next three years we shall find Nathanael Greene, now
in command of the Rhode Island contingent. For intellec-
I5 8 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP iv
tual calibre all the other officers here mentioned are dwarfed
in comparison with Greene, who comes out at the end of
the war with a military reputation scarcely, if at ail, infe-
Nathanaei rior to that of Washington. Nor was Greene less
Greene notable f or the sweetness and purity of his charac-
ter than for the scope of his intelligence 1 He had that
rare genius which readily assimilates all kinds of know-
NATHANAEL GREENE
ledge through an inborn correctness of method What-
ever he touched, it was with a master hand, and his
weight of sense soon won general recognition. Such a
Henry man was not unnaturally an eager book-buyer, and
Knox m this way he had some time ago been brought
into pleasant relations with the genial and intelligent Henry
1 [Of a family always prominent in Rhode Island, he had early come
to be the most admired and respected citizen of the colony His father,
a narrow-minded Quaker, though nch in lands, mills, and iron forges,
was averse to education, and kept his son at work in the forges But
the son had an intense thirst for knowledge, and, without neglecting his
duties, he bought books and became well versed in history, philosophy,
and general literature ]
1775 INDEPENDENCE i$%
Knox, who from his bookshop in Boston had come to join
the army as a colonel of artillery, and soon became one of
Washington's most trusty followers
Of this group of officers, none have as yet reached very
high rank in the Continental army. Sullivan and Greene
stand at the end of the list of brigadier-generals ; older
the rest are colonels. The senior major-general, officerb
Artemas Ward, and the senior brigadiers, Pomeroy Heath,
Thomas, Wooster, and Spencer, will presently pass into the
background, to make way for these younger or i sra ei
more vigorous men. Major-General Israel Putnam, Putnam
the picturesque wolf-slayer, a brave and sterling patriot,
160 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
but of slender military capacity, will remain in the fore-
ground for another year, and will then become relegated
mainly to garrison duty
With the exception of Morgan, all the officers here noticed
are New England men, as is natural, since the seat of war is
in Massachusetts, and an army really continental in com-
plexion is still to be formed. The Southern colonies have
as yet contributed only Morgan and the commander-in-chief
New York is represented in the Continental army by two
of the noblest of American heroes, Major-General ]Phihp
Schuyler and Brigadier-General Richard Montgomery ; but
these able men are now watching over Ticonderoga and the
Indian frontier of New York. But among the group which
m 1775 met for consultation on Cambridge Common, or in
Horatio the noble Tory mansion now hallowed alike by
chafes* memories of Washington and of Longfellow, there
Lee were yet two other generals, closely associated with
each other for a time in ephemeral reputation won by false
pretences, and afterwards in lasting ignominy. It is with
pleasure that one recalls the fact that these men were not
Americans, though both possessed estates in Virginia , it
is with regret that one is forced to own them as English-
men. Of Horatio Gates and his career of imbecility and
intrigue, we shall by and by see more than enough. At
this time he was present in Cambridge as adjutant-general
of the army. But his friend, Charles Lee, was for the
moment a far more conspicuous personage , and this eccen-
tric creature, whose career was for a long time one of the
difficult problems in American history, needs something
more than a passing word of introduction
Although Major-General Charles Lee happened to have
acquired an estate in Virginia, he had nothing m common
with the illustrious family of Virginian Lees beyond the
Lee's per- accidental identity of name. He was born in Eng-
soaaipecui- land, and had risen in the British army to the rank
0X1 * of lieutenant-colonel. He had served in America
in the Seven Years' War, and afterward, as a soldier of for-
1775
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161
WASHINGTON'S HEADQUARTERS
tune, he had wandered about Europe, obtaining at one time a
place on the staff of the king of Poland A restless adven-
turer, he had come over again to America as soon as he saw
that a war was brewing here There is nothing to show
that he cared a rush for the Americans, or for the cause in
which they were fighting, but he sought the opportunity of
making a name for himself. He was received with enthu-
siasm by the Americans. His loud, pompous manner and
enormous self-confidence at first imposed upon everybody.
He was tall, lank, and hollow-cheeked, with a discontented
expression of face. In dress he was extremely slovenly.
He was fond of dogs, and always had three or four at his
heels, but toward men and women his demeanour was
morose and insulting. He had a sharp, cynical wit, and
was always making severe remarks in a harsh, rough voice.
But the trustful American imagination endowed this un-
pleasant person with the qualities of a great soldier. His
reputation was part of the unconscious tribute which the
162 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP iv
provincial mind of our countrymen was long wont to pay to
the men and things of Europe , and for some time his worst
actions found a lenient interpretation as the mere eccen-
tricities of a wayward genius. He had hoped to be made
commander-in-chief of the army, and had already begun to
nourish a bitter grudge against Washington, by whom he
regarded himself as supplanted In the following year we
shall see him endeavouring to thwart the plans of Washing-
ton at the most critical moment of the war, but for the
present he showed no signs of insincerity, except perhaps in
an undue readiness to parley with the British commanders.
As soon as it became clear that a war was beginning, the
hope of winning glory by effecting an accommodation with
the enemy offered a dangerous temptation to men of weak
virtue in eminent positions. In October, 1775, the Ameri-
can camp was thrown into great consternation by the discov-
1775 INDEPENDENCE 163
ery that Dr. Benjamin Church, one of the most conspicu-
ous of the Boston leaders, had engaged in a secret Benjamin
correspondence with the enemy. Dr. Church Church
was thrown into jail, but as the evidence of treasonable
intent was not absolutely complete, he was set free in the
following spring, and al-
lowed to visit the West
Indies for his health. The
ship in which he sailed
was never heard from
again. This kind of temptation, to which Church succumbed
at the first outbreak of the war, beset Lee with fatal effect
after the Declaration of Independence, and wrought the
ruin of Arnold after the conclusion of the French alliance.
To such a man as Charles Lee, destitute of faith in the
loftier human virtues or in the strength of political ideas, it
might easily have seemed that more was to be hoped from
negotiation than from an attempt to resist Great Britain
with such an army as that of which he now came to com-
mand the left wing. It was fortunate that the British gen-
erals were ignorant of the real state of things Among the
moral effects of the battle of Bunker Hill there was one
which proved for the moment to be of inestimable value.
It impressed upon General Howe, who now succeeded to
the chief command, the feeling that the Americans were
more formidable than had been supposed, and that much
care and forethought would be required for a successful
attack upon them In a man of his easy-going disposition,
such a feeling was enough to prevent decisive action It
served to keep the British force idle in Boston for months,
and was thus of great service to the American cause. For
in spite of the zeal and valour it had shown, this army of
New England minute-men was by no means in a fit condi-
tion for carrying on such an arduous enterprise as the siege
of Boston. When Washington took command of the army
on Cambridge Common, he found that the first and most
trying task before him was out of this excellent but very
164 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
raw material to create an army upon which he could depend
The battle of Bunker Hill had just been lost, under circum-
stances which were calculated to cheer the Americans and
Difficult make them hopeful of the future ; but it would
WashuT not ^ to r * s k anot h er tattle, with an untrained
ton 5 mg staff and a scant supply of powder. All the work
of organizing an army was still to be done, and the circum-
stances were not such as to make it an easy work. It was
not merely that the men, who were much better trained in
the discipline of the town meeting than in that of the camp,
needed to be taught the all-important lesson of military sub-
ordination . it was at first a serious question how they were
to be kept together at all. That the enthusiasm kindled on
the day of Lexington should have sufficed to bring together
16,000 men, and to keep them for three months at their
posts, was already remarkable ; but no army, however patri-
otic and self-sacrificing, can be supported on enthusiasm
alone The army of which Washington took command was
a motley crowd, clad in every variety of rustic attire, armed
with trusty muskets and rifles, as their recent exploit had
shown, but destitute of almost everything else that belongs
to a soldier's outfit From the Common down to the river,
their rude tents were dotted about here and there, some
made of sail-cloth stretched over poles, some piled up of
stones and turf, some oddly wrought of twisted green
boughs ; while the more fortunate ones found comparatively
luxurious quarters in Massachusetts Hall, or in the little
Episcopal church, or in the houses of patriotic citizens.
These volunteers had enlisted for various periods, for the
most part short, under various contracts with various town
or provincial governments It was not altogether clear how
they were going to be paid, nor was it easy to see how they
were going to be fed. That this army should have been
already subsisted for three months, without any commissa-
riat, was in itself an extraordinary fact. Day by day the
heavy carts had rumbled into Cambridge, bringing from the
highlands of Berkshire and Worcester, and from the Mer-
1775
INDEPENDENCE
Holden Chapel
rimac and Connecticut valleys, whatever could in any wise
be spared of food, or clothing, or medicines, for the patriot
army; and the pleasant fields of Cambridge were a busy
scene of kindness and sympathy
Such means as these, however, could not long be efficient.
If war was to be successfully conducted, there must be a
commissariat, there must be ammunition, and there must be
money. And here Washington found himself confronted
with the difficulty which never ceased to vex his noble soul
and disturb his best laid schemes until the day when he
swooped down upon Cornwalhs at Yorktown He Absence of
had to keep making the army, with which he was
too often expected to fight battles ere it was half
made ; and in this arduous work he could get but little sys-
tematic help from any quarter. At present the difficulty
was that there was nowhere any organized government
competent to support an army. On Washington's arrival,
the force surrounding Boston owed allegiance, as we have
seen, to four distinct commonwealths, of which two, indeed,
Connecticut and Rhode Island, preserving their ancient
charters, with governors elected by themselves, were still in
their normal condition In New Hampshire, on the other
166 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP iv
hand, the royal governor, John Wentworth, whose personal
popularity was deservedly great, kept his place until August,
while Stark and his men had gone to Cambridge in spite of
him In Massachusetts the revolutionary Provincial Con-
gress still survived, but with uncertain power, even the
Continental Congress which adopted the Cambridge army
in the name of the United Colonies was simply an advisory
body, without the power to raise taxes or to beat up recruits.
From this administrative chaos, through which all the colo-
nies, save Connecticut and Rhode Island, were forced to pass
New TOV- * n these trying times, Massachusetts was the first
emmlntof to emerge, in July, 1775, by reverting to the provi-
Massachu- -,,* i /
setts, July, sions of its old charter, and forming a government
1775 in which the king's authority was virtually disal-
lowed. A representative assembly was chosen by the peo-
ple in their town meetings, according to time-honoured pre-
cedent , and this new legislature itself elected an annual
council of twenty-eight members, to sit as an upper house
James Bowdom, as president of the council, became chief
executive officer of the commonwealth, and John Adams
was made chief justice Forty thousand pounds were raised
by a direct tax on polls and on real estate, and bills of credit
were issued for 1,000 more. The commonwealth adopted a
new seal, and a proclamation, issued somewhat later by
Chief Justice Adams, enjoining it upon all people to give
loyal obedience to the new government, closed with the
significant invocation "God save the people," instead of the
customary "God save the king "
In taking this decisive step, Massachusetts was simply the
first to act upon the general recommendation of the Conti-
nental Congress, that the several colonies should forthwith
proceed to frame governments for themselves, based upon
the suffrages of the people. From such a recommendation
as this to a formal declaration of independence, the distance
to be traversed was not great Samuel Adams urged that
in declaring the colonies independent Congress would be
simply recognizing a fact which in reality already existed,
1775 INDEPENDENCE 167
and that by thus looking facts squarely in the face the in-
evitable war might be conducted with far greater efficiency.
But he was earnestly and ably opposed by John Dickinson
of Pennsylvania, whose arguments for the present prevailed
in the Congress It was felt that the Congress, as a mere
advisory body, had no right to take a step of such supreme
importance without first receiving explicit instructions from
every one of the colonies. Besides this, the thought of
separation was still a painful thought to most of the dele-
gates, and it was deemed well worth while to try the effect
of one more candid statement of grievances, to be set forth
in a petition to his majesty For like reasons, the Congress
did not venture to take measures to increase its congress
own authority , and when Franklin, still thinking p e e tS n to
of union as he had been thinking for more than the ^ng
twenty years, now brought f orward a new scheme, somewhat
similar to the Articles of Confederation afterwards adopted,
it was set aside as premature The king was known to be
fiercely opposed to any dealings with the colonies as a united
body, and so considerate of his feelings were these honest
and peace-loving delegates that, after much discussion, they
signed their carefully worded petition severally, and not
jointly. They signed it as individuals speaking for the peo-
ple of the American colonies, not as members of an organic
body representing the American people To emphasize still
further their conciliatory mood, the delivery of the petition
was entrusted to Richard Penn, a descendant of the great
Quaker and joint-proprietary in the government of Pennsyl-
vania, an excellent man and an ardent loyalist. At the
same time that this was done, an issue of paper money was
made, to be severally guaranteed by the thirteen colonies,
and half a million dollars were sent to Cambridge to be used
for the army.
Military operations, however, came for the time to a stand-
still. While Washington's energies were fully occupied in
organizing and drilling his troops, in providing them with
powder and ball, in raising lines of fortification, in making
168 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP iv
good the troublesome vacancies due to short terms of enlist-
ment, and above all in presenting unfailingly a bold front to
the enemy ; while the encampments about Boston were the
daily scene of tedious works, without any immediate pros-
pect of brilliant achievement, the Congress and the people
were patiently waiting to hear the result of the last petition
that was ever to be sent from these colonies to the king of
Great Britain.
Penn made all possible haste, and arrived in London on
the 1 4th of August ; but when he got there the king would
neither see him nor receive the petition in any way, directly
or indirectly. The Congress was an illegal assembly which
had no business to send letters to him : if any one of the
colonies wanted to make terms for itself separately, he might
be willing to listen to it. But this idea of a united America
was something unknown either to law or to reason, some-
thing that could not be too summarily frowned down. So
The king while Penn waited about London, the king issued
a P roc l amat i n > setting forth that many of his
subjects in the colonies were in open and armed
rebellion, and calling upon all loyal subjects of the
Russia realm to assist in bringing to condign punishment
the authors and abettors of this foul treason Having
launched this thunderbolt, George sent at once to Russia to
see if he could hire 20,000 men to aid in giving it effect, for
the "loyal subjects of the realm" were slow in coming for-
ward. A war against the Americans was not yet popular
in England Lord Chatham withdrew his eldest son, Lord
Pitt, from the army, lest he should be called upon to serve
against the men who were defending the common liberties
of Englishmen. There was, moreover, in England as well
as in America, a distrust of regular armies Recruiting was
difficult, and conscription was something that the people
would not endure unless England should actually be threat-
ened with invasion The king had already been obliged to
raise a force of his Hanoverian subjects to garrison Minorca
and Gibraltar, thus setting free the British defenders of
By the KING,
A PROCLAMATION.
For fuppreffing Rebellion and Sedition*
GEORGE R 4
HEREAS many of Our Subjects- in divers Parts of Our Colonies and Plantations
I in North AmtrtM) muled by dangerous and ill-defigning Men, and forgetting
, the Allegiance which they owe to the Power that has protected and Attained
I them, after various duorderly Acts committed in Difturbance of the Pablick.
I Peace, to the Obftruction of lawful Commerce, and to the Oppreffioa of Our
loyal Subjects carrying on the lame, have at length proceeded to an open and
avowed Rebellion, by arraying thcmfelves in hoftile Manner to withfland the
Execution of the Law, and traitoroufly preparing, ordering, and lewwigr War
- againft Us- And whereas there is Reafen to apirtAcfld tjat tucn Rebellion hath
Been orach promoted and encouraged by the traitorous Correlpondence, Connlels, and Comfort of
divers wicked and acfpcrate Perfons within this Realm. To the End therefore that none of Our Subjects
may neglect or violate their Duty through Ignorance thereof, or through any Doubt of the Protection
which the Law will afford to their Loyalty and Zeal, We have thought fit, by and with the Advice of
Our Privy Council, to ifliie this Our Royal Proclamation, hereby declaring that not only all Oar
Officers Civil and Military are obliged to exert their utmoft Endeavours 10 fopprefs fuch Rebellion, and
to bring the Traitors to Jufhce, but that all Our Subjects of this Realm and the Dominions thereunto
belonging are bound by Law to be aiding and affilhng in the Suppreffion of fuch Rebellion, and to-
difclofe and make known all traitorous Confpiracics and Attempts againft Us, Oar Crown and Dignity;
And We do accordingly^ ftrictly charge and command all Our Officers as well Civil as Military*
and all other Oar obedient and loyal Subjects, to ufe their utmoft Endeavours to withftand and
fuppreis fuch Rebellion, and to difclofe and make known all Treafons and traitorous Confpi-
racics which they (hall know to be againft Us, Our Crown and Dignity ; and for that Purpofe,
that they tranfmit to One of Our Principal Secretaries of State, or other proper Officer, due and
full Information of all Perfons who mall be found carrying on Corrdpondence with, or in any
Manner or Degree aiding or abetting the Perfons now in open Arms and Rebellion againft Our
Government within any of Our Colonies and Plantations in North dounco, in order to bring tc*
condign Punifhment the Authors, Perpetrators, and Abettors of fuch traitorous Defigns.
Given at Our Court at St. Jmts\ the Twenty-third Day of Avguf^ One thoufand
feven hundred and ieventy-iive, in the Fifteenth Year of Our Reign.
God feve the King*
LONDON:
^tinted by tfxrlo Eyre and JTWom $troh*> Printers to the King's moft Excellent Majefty. 1775*
THE KING'S PROCLAMATION
170 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP iv
these strongholds for service in America. He had no further
resource except in hiring troops from abroad But his at-
Cathenne t 6111 ?* m R ussia was not successf ill, f or the Empress
refuses Catherine, with all her faults, was not disposed to
sell the blood of her subjects. She improved the occasion
as sovereigns and others will sometimes do by asking
George, sarcastically, i he thought it quite compatible with
his dignity to employ foreign troops against his own sub-
jects, as for Russian soldiers, she had none to spare for
such a purpose. Foiled in this quarter, the king applied to
the Duke of Brunswick, the Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel, the
princes of Waldeck and Anhalt-Zerbst, the Margrave of
Anspach-Bayreuth, and the Count of Hesse-Hanau, and suc-
ceeded in making a bargain for 20,000 of the finest
hires be?- infantry in Europe, with four good generals,
man troops R ie( j ese ] O f Brunswick, and Knyphausen, Von
Heister, and Donop of Hesse. The hiring of these troops
was bitterly condemned by Lord John Cavendish in the
House of Commons, and by Lords Camden and Shelburne
and the Duke of Richmond in the House of Lords ; and
Chatham's indignant invectives at a somewhat later date are
familiar to every one It is proper, however, that in such
an affair as this we should take care to affix our blame in
the right place. The king might well argue that in carry-
ing on a war for what the majority of Parliament regarded
as a righteous object, it was no worse for him to hire men
than to buy cannon and ships. The German troops, on their
part, might justly complain of Lord Camden for stigmatizing
them as "mercenaries," inasmuch as they did not come to
America for pay, but because there was no help for it It
was indeed with a heavy heart that these honest men took
up their arms to go beyond sea and fight for a cause in
which they felt no sort of interest, and great was the mourn-
ing over their departure The persons who really deserved
to bear the odium of this transaction were the mercenary
princes who thus shamelessly sold their subjects into slavery.
It was a striking instance of the demoralization which had
1775 INDEPENDENCE 171
been wrought among the petty courts of Germany in the
last days of the old empire, and among the German
people it excited profound indignation The popu- tion m
lar feeling was well expressed by Schiller, in his Gemany
" Cabale und Liebe " Frederick the Great, in a letter to
Voltaire, declared himself beyond measure disgusted, and
by way of thriftily expressing his contempt for the transac-
tion he gave orders to his custom house officers that upon
all such of these soldiers as should pass through Prussian
territory a toll should be levied, as upon " cattle exported
for foreign shambles "
When the American question was brought up in the
autumn session of Parliament, it was treated in the manner
with which the Americans had by this time become familiar.
A few far-sighted men still urged the reasonableness of the
American claims, but there was now a great majority against
them. In spite of grave warning voices, both houses de-
cided to support the king ; and in this they were upheld by
the university of Oxford, which a century ago had burned
the works of John Milton as "blasphemous," and which
now, with equal felicity, m a formal address to the king,
described the Americans as "a people who had forfeited
their lives and their fortunes to the justice of the state."
At the same time the department of American affairs was
taken from the amiable Lord Dartmouth, and given to the
truculent Lord George Germain. These things were done
in November, 1775, an( i * n t ^ e preceding month they had
been heralded by an act of wanton barbarity on the part of
a British naval officer, albeit an unwarranted act, which the
British government as promptly as possible dis- Burning of
owned. On the i6th of October, Captain Mowatt ^ d '
had sailed with four small vessels into the harbour ws
of Portland (then called Falmouth), and with shells and
grenades set fire to the little town St. Paul's Church, all
the public buildings, and three fourths of all the dwellings
were burned to the ground, and a thousand unoffending
men, women, and children were thus turned out-of-doors just
173
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. IV
as the sharp Maine winter was coming on to starve and
freeze them
The news of the burning of Portland reached Philadelphia
on the same day (October 31) with the news that George III.
was about to send foreign mercenaries to fight against his
American subjects, and now the wrath of Congress was
thoroughly kindled, and the party which advised further
temporizing was thrown into helpless minority
"Well, brother rebel," said a Southern member to Sam-
uel Ward of Rhode Island, " we have now got a
sufficient answer to our petition : I want nothing
more, but am ready to declare ourselves independ-
ent " Congress now advised New Hampshire, Virginia, and
South Carolina to frame for themselves new republican
Effects
upon
Congress
A CONTEMPORARY SKETCH OF
1775
INDEPENDENCE
173
governments, as Massachusetts had already done ; it urged
South Carolina to seize the British vessels in her waters ; it
appointed a committee to correspond with foreign powers ;
and above all, it adopted unreservedly the scheme, already
partially carried into operation, for the expulsion of the Brit-
ish from Canada.
At once upon the outbreak of hostilities at Lexington,
the conquest of Canada had been contemplated by the
Northern leaders, who well remembered how, in days gone
by, the valley of the St Lawrence had furnished a base for
attacks upon the province of New York, which was then
the strategic centre of the American world. It was deemed
an act of military prudence to secure this region at the out-
set. But so long as the least hope of conciliation remained,
THE BURNING OF F4J.MOUTH
174 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
Congress was unwilling to adopt any measures save such as
The Amen- were purely defensive in character. As we have
S^ad^ Seei1 ' lt WaS nly With reluCtanCe that il: had SanC '
Sept., 1775 tioned the garrisoning of Ticonderoga by the Con-
necticut troops. But in the course of the summer it was
learned that the governor of Canada, Sir Guy Carleton, was
about to take steps to recover Ticonderoga ; and it was credi-
bly reported that intrigues were going on with the Iroquois
tribes, to induce them to harry the New England frontier
and the pleasant farms on the Hudson : so that, under these
circumstances, the invasion of Canada was now authorized
by Congress as a measure of self-defence. An expedition
down Lake Champlain, against Montreal, was at once set
1775 INDEPENDENCE 175
on foot. As Schuyler, the commander of the northern
department, was disabled by ill health, the enterprise was
confided to Richard Montgomery, an officer who had served
with distinction under Wolfe. Late in August, Montgomery
started from Ticonderoga, and on the I2th of September,
with a force of two thousand men, he laid siege to the
fortress of St. John's, which commanded the approach to
Montreal. Carleton, whose utmost exertions could bring
together only some nine hundred men, made heroic but
fruitless efforts to stop his progress. After a siege of fifty
days, St. John's surrendered on the 3d of November, and
176 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
on the 1 2th Montgomery entered Montreal in triumph.
The people of Canada had thus far seemed favourably dis-
posed toward the American invaders, and Montgomery
issued a proclamation urging them to lose no time in choos-
ing delegates to attend the Continental Congress.
Meanwhile, in September, Washington had detached from
the army at Cambridge one thousand New England infantry,
with two companies of Pennsylvania riflemen and Morgan's
famous Virginia sharpshooters, and ordered them to advance
upon Quebec through the forests of Maine and by way of
the rivers Kennebec and Chaudi&re The expedition was
commanded by Colonel Benedict Arnold, who seems to have
Arnold's beCn ne f the firSt ' ff n0t the firSt ' t0 SU SS est it: -
mSch s Such plans of invading an enemy's territory, in-
wSderness 6 volving the march of independent forces upon con-
of Maine ver g e nt lines from remote points, were much more
in favour with military men a century ago than to-day.
The vice of such methods was often illustrated during our
Revolutionary War The vast distances and total lack of
communication made effective cooperation between Mont-
gomery and Arnold impossible ; while a surprise of Quebec
by the latter, with force sufficient to capture it unaided, was
almost equally out of the question But the very difficulty
of the scheme commended it to the romantic and buoyant
temper of Benedict Arnold The enterprise was one to call
for all his persistent daring and fertile resource. It was an
amphibious journey, as his men now rowed their boats with
difficulty against the strong, swift current of the Kennebec,
and now, carrying boats and oars on their shoulders, forced
their way through the tangled undergrowth of the primeval
forests. Often they had to wade across perilous bogs, and
presently their shoes were cut to pieces by sharp stones,
and their clothes torn to shreds by thorns and briers.
Their food gave out, and though some small game was shot,
their hunger became such that they devoured their dogs
When they reached the head of the Chaudifere, after this
terrible march of thirty-three days, two hundred of their
1775 INDEPENDENCE 177
number had succumbed to starvation, cold, and fatigue,
while two hundred more had given out and returned to Mas-
sachusetts, carrying with them such of the sick and disabled
as they could save. The descent of the Chaudiere in their
boats afforded some chance for rest, and presently they
began to find cattle for food. At last, on the I3th of
November, the next day after Montgomery's capture of
Montreal, they crossed the broad St. Lawrence, and climbed
the Heights of Abraham at the very place where Wolfe had
climbed to victory sixteen years ago. There was splendid
bravado in Arnold's advancing to the very gates with his
little, worn-out army, now reduced to seven hundred men,
and summoning the garrison either to come out and fight,
or to surrender the town. But the garrison very properly
would neither surrender nor fight. The town had been
warned in time, and Arnold had no alternative but to wait
for Montgomery to join him.
Six days afterward, Carleton, disguised as a farmer, and
ferried down stream in a little boat, found his way into
Quebec ; and on the 3d of December, Montgomery made
his appearance with a small force, which raised the number
of the Americans to twelve hundred men. As Carleton
persistently refused to come out of his defences, it was
resolved to carry the works by storm, a chivalrous, nay,
one might almost say, a foolhardy decision, had it not been
so nearly justified by the event. On the last day Assault
of 1775, England came within an ace of losing
Quebec. At two o'clock in the morning, in a
blinding snowstorm, Montgomery and Arnold began each
a furious attack, at opposite sides of the town ; and aided
by the surprise, each came near carrying his point. Mont-
gomery had almost forced his way in when he fell dead,
pierced by three bullets ; and this so chilled the enthusiasm
of his men that they flagged, until reinforcements drove
them back. Arnold, on his side, was severely wounded
and carried from the field, but the indomitable Morgan
took his place, and his Virginia company stormed the bat-
178 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP iv
tery opposed to them, and fought their way far into the
town Had the attack on the other side been kept up
with equal vigour, as it might have been but for Montgom-
ery's death, Quebec must have fallen As it was, Morgan's
triumphant advance only served to isolate him, and pres-
ently he and his gallant company were surrounded and
captured.
With the failure of this desperate attack passed away the
Total golden opportunity for taking the citadel of Canada,
failure of Arnold remained throughout the winter in the
theattempt ,,r^i 1-1
upon neighbourhood of Quebec, and in the spring the
ana enterprise was taken up by Wooster and Sullivan
with fresh forces. But by this time many Hessians had
come over, and Carleton, reinforced until his army num-
bered 13,000, was enabled to recapture Montreal and push
back the Americans, until in June, after a hazardous retreat,
well conducted by Sullivan, the remnant of their invading
army found shelter at Crown Point Such was the disas-
trous ending of a campaign which at the outset had prom-
ised a brilliant success, and which is deservedly famous for
the heroism and skill with which it was conducted. The
generalship of Montgomery received the warm approval of
no less a critic than Frederick the Great , and the chival-
rous bravery of Arnold, both in his march through the
wilderness and in the military operations which followed,
was such that if a kind fate could then and there have cut
the thread of his life, he would have left behind him a
sweet and shining memory. As for the attempt to bring
Canada into the American union, it was one which had no
hope of success save through a strong display of military
force. The sixteen years which had elapsed since the vic-
tory of Wolfe had not transformed the Canadian of the old
regime into a free-born Englishman. The question at pres-
ent for him was only that of a choice of allegiance, and
while at first the invaders were favourably received, it soon
became apparent that between the Catholic and the Puritan
there could be but little real sympathy. The Quebec Act,
1776
INDEPENDENCE
179
which legalized Catholic worship in Canada, had done much
toward securing England's hold upon this part of her Amer-
ican possessions. And although, in the colourless political
condition of this northern province, the capture of Quebec
might well have brought it into the American union, where
it would gradually have taken on a fresh life, as surely as
THE HANCOCK HOUSE, BEACON HILL, BOSTON
it has done under British guidance, yet nothing short of
such a military occupation could have had any effect in
determining its languid preferences.
While Canada was thus freed from the presence of the
Continental troops, the British army, on the other hand,
was driven from Boston, and New England was cleared of
the enemy. During the autumn and winter, Washington
had drawn his lines as closely as possible about the town,
while engaged in the work of organizing and equipping his
army. The hardest task was to collect a sufficient quantity
of powder and ball, and to bring together siege-guns. As
i8o THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
the season wore on, the country grew impatient, and Wash-
ington sometimes had to listen to criticisms like those that
The siege were directed against McClellan in Virginia, at
of Boston the beginning of 1862, or against Grant before
Vicksburg, in the spring of 1863 President Hancock, who
owned a great deal of property in Boston, urged him to set
fire to the town and destroy it, if by so doing he could drive
the British to their ships But Washington had planned
much more wisely. By the ist of March a great quantity
of cannon had been brought in by Henry Knox, some of
them dragged on sledges all the way from Ticonderoga, and
so at last Washington felt himself prepared to seize upon
Dorchester Heights. This position commanded the town
and harbour even more effectually than Bunker Hill, and
why in all these months General Howe had not occupied it
one would find it hard to say. He was bitterly attacked
for his remissness by the British newspapers, as was quite
natural
Washington chose for his decisive movement the night of
the 4th of March Eight hundred men led the way, escort-
ing the wagons laden with spades and crowbars, hatchets,
Washing- hammers, and nails ; and after them followed twelve
Dorchester hundred men, with three hundred ox-carts, carry-
Ma!lh ts> ^S timbers and bales of hay ; while the rear was
1776 brought up by the heavy siege-guns From Som-
erville, East Cambridge, and Roxbury, a furious cannon-
ade was begun soon after sunset and kept up through the
night, completely absorbing the attention of the British,
who kept up a lively fire in return. The roar of the
cannon drowned every other sound for miles around, while
all night long the two thousand Americans, having done
their short march in perfect secrecy, were busily digging
and building on Dorchester Heights, and dragging their
siege-guns into position. Early next morning, Howe saw
with astonishment what had been done, and began to realize
his perilous situation. The commander of the fleet sent
word that unless the Americans could be forthwith dis*
BOSTON, WITH ITS ENVIRONS, IN 1775 AND 1776
182
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. IV
lodged, he could not venture to keep his ships in the har-
bour. Most of the day was consumed in deciding what
should be done, until at last Lord Percy was told to take
three thousand men and storm the works. But the slaugh-
ter of Bunker Hill had taught its lesson so well that neither
Percy nor his men had any stomach for such an enterprise.
A violent storm, coming up toward nightfall, persuaded
them to delay the attack till next day, and by that time it
had become apparent to all that the American works, con-
tinually growing, had become impregnable Percy's orders
were accordingly countermanded, and it was decided to
abandon the town immediately. It was the sixth anniver-
sary of the day on which Hutchinson had yielded to the
demand of the town meeting and withdrawn the two British
regiments from Boston. The work then begun was now
consummated by Washington, and from that time forth the
deliverance of Massachusetts was complete. Howe caused
MEDAL GRANTED TO WASHINGTON
INDEPENDENCE
183
it at once to be known among the citizens that he was about
to evacuate Boston, but he threatened to lay the town in
ashes if his troops should be fired on. The selectmen con-
veyed due information of all this to Washington, The Bnt-
who accordingly, secure in the achievement of his
purpose, allowed the enemy to depart in peace. By
the 1 7th, the eight thousand troops were all on
board their ships, and, taking with them all the Tory citizens,
some nine hundred in number, they sailed away for Halifax
Their space did not permit them to carry away their heavy
arms, and their retreat, slow as it was, bore marks of hurry
and confusion. In taking possession of the town, Wash-
ington captured more than two hundred serviceable cannon,
ten times more powder and ball than his army had ever
seen before, and an immense quantity of muskets, gun-car-
riages, and military stores of every sort. Thus was New
England set free by a -single brilliant stroke, with very slight
FOR HIS CAPTURE OF BOSTON
184 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
EVOLUTION OF THE UNITED STATES FLAG 1
injury to private property, and with a total loss of not more
than twenty lives.
The time was now fairly ripe for the colonies to declare
themselves independent of Great Britain The idea of a
separation from the mother-country, which in the autumn
had found but few supporters, grew in favour day by day
through the winter and spring. The incongruousness of
A provi- t ^ ie P re sent situation was typified by the flag that
sionaiflag Washington flung to the breeze on New Year's
Day at Cambridge, which was made up of thirteen stripes,
to represent the United Colonies, but retained the British
crosses in the corner Thus far, said Benjamin Harrison,
they had contrived to " hobble along under a fatal attach-
ment to Great Britain," but the time had come when one
must consider the welfare of one's own country first of all.
As Samuel Adams said, their petitions had not been heard,
1 The first stage was the change from the solid red of the British
ensign to the alternate red and white stripes, as seen in the flag on the
right, which typified the thirteen confederated colonies. After alle-
giance to the British crown had been thrown off, the union of red St
George and white St. Andrew crosses upon the blue corner became
inappropriate, and m June, 1777, Congress substituted the circle of
thirteen white stars on a blue ground, to signify the rise of a new con-
stellation of states.
1776
INDEPENDENCE
and yet had been answered by armies and fleets, and by
myrmidons hired from abroad Nothing had made a greater
impression upon the American people than this hiring of
German troops It went farther than any other Effect of
single cause to npen their minds for the declara-
tion of independence. Many now began to agree dons "
with the Massachusetts statesman ; and while public opinion
was in this malleable condition, there appeared a pamphlet
which wrought a prodigious effect upon the people, mainly
because it gave terse and vigorous expression to views
which every one had already more than half formed for
himself.
Thomas Paine had come over to America in December,
1774, and through the favour of Franklin had secured em-
ployment as editor of the "Pennsylvania Magazine." He
was by nature a dissenter and
a revolutionist to the marrow
of his bones. Full of the
generous though often blind
enthusiasm of the eighteenth
century for the " rights of
man," he was no respecter of
the established order, whether
in church or state. To him
the church and its doctrines
meant slavish superstition, and
the state meant tyranny Of
crude undisciplined mind, and
little scholarship, yet endowed
with native acuteness and sa-
gacity, and with no mean
power of expressing himself,
Paine succeeded in making
everybody read what he wrote, and achieved a popular repu-
tation out of all proportion to his real merit. Among devout
American families his name was for a long time a name
of horror and opprobrium, and uneducated free thinkers still
i86 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP.IV
build lecture-halls in honour of his memory, and celebrate
the anniversary of his birthday, with speeches full of harm-
less but rather dismal platitudes. The "Age of Reason,"
which was the cause of all this blessing and banning, con-
tains, amid much crude argument, some sound and sensible
criticism, such as is often far exceeded in boldness in the
books and sermons of Unitarian and Episcopalian divines
of the present day, but its tone is coarse and dull, and
Trith the improvement of popular education it is fast sinking
into oblivion. There are times, however, when such caus-
tic pamphleteers as Thomas Paine have their uses. There
are times when they can bring about results which are not
so easily achieved by men of finer mould and more subtle
intelligence. It was at just such a time, in January, 1776,
that Paine published his pamphlet, "Common Sense," on
"Common ^ e suggestion of Benjamin Rush, and with the
Sense" approval of Franklin and of Samuel Adams. The
pamphlet contains some irrelevant abuse of the English
people, and resorts to such arguments as the denial of the
English origin of the Americans. Not one third of the peo-
ple, even of Pennsylvania, are of English descent, argues
Paine, as if Pennsylvania had been preeminent among the
colonies for its English blood, and not, as in reality, one
of the least English of all the thirteen. But along with all
this there was a sensible and striking statement of the
practical state of the case between Great Britain and the
colonies. The reasons were shrewdly and vividly set forth
for looking upon reconciliation as hopeless, and for seizing
the present moment to declare to the world what the logic
of events was already fast making an accomplished fact.
Only thus, it was urged, could the States of America pur-
sue a coherent and well-defined policy, and preserve their
dignity in the eyes of the world.
It was difficult for the printers, with the clumsy presses
of that day, to bring out copies of " Common Sense " fast
enough to meet the demand for it. More than a hundred
thousand copies were speedily sold, and it carried conviction
COMMON SENSE
The Sun never ihined on a eaufe of greater worth*
3 TIs-not the affair of a, City, a County, a Provinceor
a Kingdom ; but of a Continent -of at leaft One eight
part of the habitable Globe, *TIs aot the concern of
a day, a year, or an age , pofterity are virtually jbavolv-
cd m the conreft, and will be more or Jets affectecf e-
ven to the end of time by the proceedings now: Now
is the feed- time of Continental nnion, faith, and honor.
The leaft fra&urc now > will be like a name engravedi
with the point of a pin oa the tender rind of a young
oak * ihe ivound wjlJ enlarge with the tree, and poftc*
jity read it in full growjo characters.
By referring the matter from argument to arms, a
new sera for politics is ftruck anew method of thinjs-
ing hath ariiea. All.plans, propolals^ &c, pxior 10
the ipth of Aprfl^ i. & to the commencement of hof*
tiltties, are Lke the almanacks of the laft yeai ; which
tho* proper then, are fuperfrded and u&lcfs now*
"Whatever was advanced by the advocates on either
fide of the queft on. the% terminated ii^ one. and the
feme point, viz* a union v/ith Great-Britain ; the only
difference, between the parries, was the method of
nfiprt ; the one propofing force, the other friend-
imt it hath fo far happened that the firft hath
* and the iecond hath withdrawn her influence.
As tiroch.hach beealaid of the advantages of"fecon-
oHation, which like an agreeable clre&m* hath palled
away, and left us as we were, it is but rigfit that we
fiiould examine the contrary fide of the argtt cneni^ and
enquire into fomeof the many material injuries which.
thele Colonies fuftam, and always will Juftain, by being
connected with, and dependant on Great4kifam.~-
To examine thac conne&ion and depcndanc^ oa the
principles of nature and common ffeaft* to lee what we
have to truft to if ¶tcd* and what we are to exjxcfc
$ dependant* I
A PAGE FROM "COMMON SENSE 7
i88 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP iv
wherever it went. At the same time, Parliament did its
best to reinforce the argument by passing an act f o close all
American ports, and authorize the confiscation of all Amer-
ican ships and cargoes, as well as of such neutral vessels as
might dare to trade with this proscribed people. And, as
if this were not quite enough, a clause was added by which
British commanders on the high seas were directed to im-
Fuimma- press the crews of such American ships as they
count-fui- mig^ meet > and to compel them, under penalty of
mmations death, to enter the service against their fellow-
countrymen. In reply to this edict, Congress, in March,
ordered the ports of America to be thrown open to all na-
tions ; it issued letters of marque, and it advised all the colo-
nies to disarm such Tories as should refuse to contribute to
the common defence. These measures, as Franklin said,
were virtually a declaration of war against Great Britain.
But before taking the last irrevocable step, the prudent
Congress waited for instructions from every one of the
colonies.
The first colony to take decisive action in behalf of inde-
pendence 'was North Carolina, a commonwealth in which
the king had supposed the outlook to be especially favour-
able for the loyalist party. Recovered in some measure
from the turbulence of its earlier days, North Carolina was
fast becoming a prosperous community of small planters,
and its population had increased so rapidly that it now
ranked fourth among the colonies, immediately after Penn-
sylvania Since the overthrow of the Pretender at Culloden
The Scots there had been a great immigration of sturdy
m North Scots from the western Highlands, in which the
clans of Macdonald and Macleod were especially
represented. The celebrated Flora Macdonald herself, the
romantic woman who saved Charles Edward in 1746, had
lately come over here and settled at Kingsborough with
Allan Macdonald, her husband. These Scottish immigrants
also helped to colonize the upland regions of South Carolina
and Georgia, and they have considerably affected the race
1776 INDEPENDENCE 189
composition of the Southern people, forming an ancestry of
which their descendants may well be proud. Though these
Highland clansmen had taken part in the Stuart insurrec-
tion, they had become loyal enough to the government of
George III., and it was now hoped that with their aid the
colony might be firmly secured, and its neighbours on either
side overawed. To this end, in January, Sir Henry clmton
Clinton, taking with him 2,000 troops, left Boston sails for the
and sailed for the Cape Fear river, while a force aro mas
of seven regiments and ten ships-of-war, under Sir Peter
Parker, was ordered from Ireland to cooperate with him.
At the same time, Josiah Martin, the royal governor, who
for safety had retired on board a British ship, carried on
negotiations with the Highlanders, until a force of 1,600
men was raised, and, under command of Donald Macdonald,
marched down toward the coast to welcome the arrival of
Clinton. But North Carolina had its minute-men as well as
Massachusetts, and no sooner was this movement perceived
than Colonel Richard Caswell, with 1,000 militia, The fight
took up a strong position at the bridge over Moore's
Creek, which Macdonald was about to pass on his 2 ?>
way to the coast After a sharp fight of a half hour's dura-
tion the Scots were seized with panic, and were utterly
routed. Nine hundred prisoners, 2,000 stand of arms, and
; 1 5,000 in gold were the trophies of Caswell's victory.
The Scottish commander and his kinsman, the husband of
Flora Macdonald, were taken and lodged in jail, and thus
ended the sway of George III. over North Carolina. The
eff ect of the victory was as contagious as that of Lexington
had been in New England. Within ten days 10,000 militia
were ready to withstand the enemy, so that Clinton, on his
arrival, decided not to land, and stayed cruising about Albe-
marle Sound, waiting for the fleet under Parker, N
which did not appear on the scene until May. A Carolina
provincial congress was forthwith assembled, and independ- r
instructions were sent to the North Carolina dele- ence
gates in the Continental Congress, empowering them "to
I 9 o THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
concur with the delegates in the other colonies in declaring
independency and forming foreign alliances, reserving to
the colony the sole and exclusive right of forming a consti-
tution and laws for it."
At the same time that these things were taking place, the
colony of South Carolina was framing for itself a new gov-
Action of eminent, and on the 23d of March, without directly
dm^aST ^^dmg to independence, it empowered its dele-
Georgia gates to concur in any measure which might be
deemed essential to the welfare of America. In Georgia
the provincial congress, in choosing a new set of delegates
to Philadelphia, authorized them to "join in any measure
which they might think calculated for the common good."
In Virginia the party in favour of independence had been
in the minority, until, in November, 1775, the royal gov-
ernor, Lord Dunmore, had issued a proclamation, offering
freedom to all such negroes and indented white servants as
v . might enlist for the purpose of "reducing the col-
^ Dun- ony to a proper sense of its duty " This measure
prodama- Lord Dunmore hoped would " oblige the rebels to
taon disperse, in order to take care of their families and
property." But the object was not attained The relations
between master and slave in Virginia were so pleasant that
the offer of freedom fell upon dull, uninterested ears. With
light work and generous fare, the condition of the Virginia
negro was a happy one. The time had not yet come when
he was liable to be torn from wife and children, to die of
hardship in the cotton-fields and rice-swamps of the far South.
He was proud of his connection with his master's estate and
family, and had nothing to gain by rebellion. As for the in-
dented white servants, the governor's proposal to them was
of about as much consequence as a proclamation of Napo-
leon's would have been if, in 1805, he had offered to set free
the prisoners in Newgate on condition of their helping him
to invade England. But, impotent as this measure of Lord
Dunmore's was, it served to enrage the people of Virginia,
setting their minds irretrievably against the king and his
1776
INDEPENDENCE
191
cause. During the month of
November, hearing that a party
of "rebels" were on their way
from North Carolina to take pos-
session of Norfolk, Lord Dun-
more built a rude fort at the
Great Bridge over Elizabeth riv-
er, which commanded the south-
ern approach to the town. At
that time, Norfolk, with about
9,000 inhabitants, was the prin-
cipal town in Virginia, and the
commercial centre of the colony
The loyalist party, represented
chiefly by Scottish merchants, was so strong there and so
violent that many of the native Virginia families, finding it
uncomfortable to stay in their homes, had gone away into
the country. The patriots, roused to anger by Skirmish
Dunmore's proclamation, now resolved to capture SndgS;*"*
Norfolk, and a party of sharpshooters, with whom JJJ^Sk*.
the illustrious John Marshall served as lieutenant, folk
occupied the bank of Elizabeth river, opposite Dunmore's
fort On the gth of December, after a sharp fight of fifteen
minutes, in which Dunmore's regulars lost sixty-one men,
while not a single Virginian was slain, the fort was hastily
abandoned, and the road to Norfolk was laid open for the
patriots. A few days later the Virginians took possession
of their town, while Dunmore sought refuge in the Liver-
pool, ship-of-the-line, which had just sailed into the harbour.
On New Year's Day the governor vindictively set fire to the
town, which he had been unable to hold against its right-
ful owners. The conflagration, kindled by shells from the
harbour, raged for three days and nights, until the whole
town was laid in ashes, and the people were driven to seek
such sorry shelter as might save them from the frosts of
midwinter.
This event went far toward determining the attitude of
192 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
Virginia In November the colony had not felt ready to
comply with the recommendation of Congress, and frame for
herself a new government. The people were not yet ready
Virginia to sever the links which bound them to Great Brit-
-i s / or ain. But the bombardment of their principal town
independ- , *
ence w as an argument of which every one could appre-
ciate the force and the meaning. During the winter and
spring the revolutionary feeling waxed in strength daily.
On the 6th of May, 1776, a convention was chosen to con-
sider the question of independence. Mason, Henry, Pendle-
ton, and the illustrious Madison took part in the discussion,
and on the I4th it was unanimously voted to instruct the Vir-
ginia delegates in Congress " to propose to that respectable
body to declare the United Colonies free and independent
States," and to "give the assent of the colony to measures
to form foreign alliances and a confederation, provided the
power of forming government for the internal regulations
of each colony be left to the colonial legislatures." At the
same time, it was voted that the people of Virginia should
establish a new government for their commonwealth. In
the evening, when these decisions had been made known to
the people of Williamsburgh, their exultation knew no
bounds. While the air was musical with the ringing of
church-bells, guns were fired, the British flag was hauled
down at the State House, and the crosses and stripes
hoisted in its place
This decisive movement of the largest of the colonies was
hailed throughout the country with eager delight ; and from
Action of other colonies which had not yet committed them-
htadand selves responses came quickly. Rhode Island,
Massachu- which had never parted with its original charter,
did not need to form a new government, but it had
already, on the 4th of May, omitted the king's name from
its public documents and sheriff's writs, and had agreed to
concur with any measures which Congress might see fit to
adopt regarding the relations between England and America,
In the course of the month of May town meetings were
1776
INDEPENDENCE
193
INDEPENDENCE HALL, PHILADELPHIA
held throughout Massachusetts and it was everywhere unan-
imously voted to uphold Congress in the declaration of
independence which it was now expected to make.
On the isth of May, Congress adopted a resolution recom-
mending to all the colonies to form for themselves independ-
ent governments, and in a preamble, written by John Adams,
it was declared that the American people could no longer
conscientiously take oath to support any govern- Resolution
ment deriving its authority from the Crown, all ofMa -y i 5
such governments must now be suppressed, since the king
had withdrawn his protection from the inhabitants of the
United Colonies Like the famous preamble to Town-
shend's bill of 1767, this Adams preamble contained within
itself the gist of the whole matter To adopt it was virtu-
ally to cross the Rubicon, and it gave rise to a hot debate.
James Duane of New York admitted that if the facts stated
in the preamble should turn out to be true, there would not
be a single voice against independence; but he could not
yet believe that the American petitions were not destined
194 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
to receive a favourable answer. "Why," therefore, "all
this haste ? Why this urging ? Why this driving ? " James
Wilson of Pennsylvania, one of the ablest of all the dele-
gates in the revolutionary body, urged that Congress had
not yet received sufficient authority from the people to jus-
tify it in taking so bold a step The resolution was adopted,
however, preamble and all , and now the affair came quickly
to maturity. "The Gordian knot is cut at last ! " exclaimed
John Adams. In town meeting the people of Boston thus
instructed their delegates : "The whole United Colonies are
upon the verge of a glorious revolution We have seen the
petitions to the king rejected with disdain For the prayer
of peace he has tendered the sword ; for liberty, chains , for
safety, death. Loyalty to him is now treason to our coun-
instmc tr y ^ e *" un ^ rt absolutely impracticable for these
tions from colonies to be ever again subject to or dependent
upon Great Britain, without endangering the very
existence of the state Placing, however, unbounded con-
fidence in the supreme council of the Congress, we are
determined to wait, most patiently wait, till their wisdom
shall dictate the necessity of making a declaration of inde-
pendence. In case the Congress should think it necessary
for the safety of the United Colonies to declare them inde-
pendent of Great Britain, the inhabitants, with their lives
and the remnant of their fortunes, will most cheerfully sup-
port them in the measure."
This dignified and temperate expression of public opinion
Lee's mo- was Polished ' m a Philadelphia evening paper, on
ton in the 8th of June On the preceding day in accord-
ongress mce ^.^ t k e ms tnictions which had come from
Virginia, the following motion had been submitted to Con-
gress by Richard Henry Lee .
" That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to
be, free and independent States; that they are absolved
from all allegiance to the British Crown ; and that all politi-
cal connection between them and the state of Great Britain
is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.
1776 INDEPENDENCE 195
" That it is expedient forthwith to take the most effectual
measures for forming foreign alliances.
"That a plan of confederation be prepared and transmitted
to the respective colonies, for their consideration and appro-
bation."
In these trying times the two greatest colonies, Virginia
and Massachusetts, had been wont to go hand in hand;
and the motion of Richard Henry Lee was now promptly
tfle^di**st^#t^
seconded by John Adams, It was resisted by Dickinson
and Wilson of Pennsylvania, and by Robert Livingston of
New York, on the ground that public opinion in the middle
colonies was not yet ripe for supporting such a measure ; at
the same time these cautious members freely acknowledged
that the lingering hope of an amicable settlement with
196 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP iv
Great Britain had come to be quite chimerical. The pros-
pect of securing European alliances was freely dis-
ES te011 cussed. The supporters of the motion urged that
motion a declaration o f independence would be nothing
more than the acknowledgment of a fact which existed
already, and until this fact should be formally acknow-
ledged, it was not to be supposed that diplomatic courtesy
would allow such powers as France and Spain to treat with
the Americans On the other hand, the opponents of the
motion argued that France and Spain were not likely to
look with favour upon the rise of a great Protestant power
in the western hemisphere, and that nothing would be
easier than for these nations to make a bargain with Eng-
land, whereby Canada might be restored to France and
Flonda to Spain, in return for military aid in putting down
the rebellious colonies. The result of the whole discussion
was decidedly in favour of a declaration of independence ;
but to avoid all appearance of undue haste, it was decided,
on the motion of Edward Rutledge of South Carolina, to
postpone the question for three weeks, and invite the judg-
ment of those colonies which had not yet declared them-
selves.
Under these circumstances, the several colonies acted
Connect*- with a promptness that outstripped the expecta-
New nd tions of Congress. Connecticut had no need of a
Hampshire new government, for, like Rhode Island, she had
always kept the charter obtained from Lord Clarendon in
1662, she had always chosen her own governor, and had
always been virtually independent of Great Britain. Nothing
now was necessary but to omit the king's name from legal
documents and commercial papers, and to instruct her dele-
gates in Congress to support Lee's motion ; and these things
were done by the Connecticut legislature on the I4th of
June. The very next day, New Hampshire, which had
formed a new government as long ago as January, joined
Connecticut in declaring for independence.
In New Jersey there was a sharp dispute. The royal
1776 INDEPENDENCE 197
governor, William Franklin, had a strong party in the col-
ony; the assembly had lately instructed its dele- New j er .
gates to vote against independence, and had resolved se **
to send a separate petition to the king. Against so rash
and dangerous a step, Dickinson, Jay, and Wythe were sent
by Congress to remonstrate; and as the result of their
intercession, the assembly, which yielded, was summarily
prorogued by the governor. A provincial congress was at
once chosen in its stead. On the i6th of June, the governor
was arrested and sent to Connecticut for safe-keeping ; on
the 2ist, it was voted to frame a new government ; and on
the 22d, a new set of delegates were elected to Congress,
with instructions to support the declaration of independence.
In Pennsylvania there was hot discussion, for the whole
strength of the proprietary government was thrown
into the scale against independence. Among the vama and
Quakers, too, there was a strong disposition to
avoid an armed conflict on any terms A little while be-
fore, they had held a convention, in which it was resolved
that "the setting up and putting down kings and govern-
ments is God's peculiar prerogative, for causes best known
to himself, and that it is not our business to have any hand
or contrivance therein ; nor to be busybodies above our
station, much less to plot and contrive the ruin or overturn
of any of them, but to pray for the king and safety of our
nation and good of all men ; that we may lead a peaceable
and quiet life in all goodness and honesty, under the govern-
ment which God is pleased to set over us. May we, there-
fore, firmly unite in the abhorrence of all such writings
and measures as evidence a desire and design to break
off a happy connection we have hitherto enjoyed with the
kingdom of Great Britain, and our just and necessary subor-
dination to the king and those who are lawfully placed in
authority under him." This view of the case soon met with a
pithy rejoinder from Samuel Adams, who, with a quaint use
of historical examples, proved that, as the rise of kings and
empires is part of God's special prerogative, the time had now
198
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. IV
come, in the course of divine providence, for the setting up
of an independent empire in the western hemisphere. Six
months ago, the provincial assembly had instructed its dele-
gates to oppose independence ; but on the 2Oth of May a
great meeting was held at the State House, at which more
than seven thousand people were present, and it was unani-
mously resolved that this act of the assembly "had the
dangerous tendency to withdraw this province from that
happy union with the other colonies which we consider both
our glory and our protection." The effect of this resolution
was so great that on the i8th of June a convention was held
1776
INDEPENDENCE
199
to decide on the question of independence ; and after six
days of discussion, it was voted that a separation from Great
Britain was desirable, provided only that, under the new
federal government, each state should be left to regulate its
own internal affairs. On the I4th of June, a similar action
had been taken by Delaware.
In Maryland there was little reason why the people should
wish for a change of government, save through their hon-
ourable sympathy with the general interests of the
United Colonies. Not only was the proprietary gov-
ernment deeply rooted in the affections of the people, but
Robert Eden, the governor holding office at this particular
time, was greatly loved and respected Maryland had not
been insulted by the pres-
ence of troops. She had
not seen her citizens shot
down in cold blood like
Massachusetts, or her chief
city laid in ashes like Vir-
ginia; nor had she been
threatened with invasion
and forced to fight in her
own defence like North
Carolina Her direct griev-
ances were few and light,
and even so late as the 2ist
of May, she had protested
against any action which
might lead to the separa-
tion of the colonies from
England. But when, in
June, her great leaders,
Samuel Chase and Charles
Carroll of Carrollton, de-
termined to "take the sense of the people," a series of
county meetings were held, and it was unanimously voted
that "the true interests and substantial happiness of the
xr>
200 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP iv
United Colonies in general, and this in particular, are insep-
arably interwoven and linked together." As soon as the
colony had taken its stand upon this broad and generous
principle, the governor embarked on a British man-of-war
before Annapolis, bearing with him the kindly regrets and
adieus of the people, and on the 28th of June the delegates
in Congress were duly authorized to concur in a declaration
of independence
Peaceful Maryland was thus the twelfth colony which
formally committed itself to the cause of independence, as
turbulent North Carolina, under the stimulus of civil war
and threatened invasion, had been the first. Accordingly
on the ist of July, the day when the motion of Richard
Henry Lee was to be taken up in Congress, unanimous in-
structions in favour of independence had been received from
The situ ever 7 one ^ ^ e colonies, except New York. In
tionmNew approaching this momentous question New York
was beset by peculiar difficulties. Not only was
the Tory party unusually strong there, for reasons already
stated, but the risks involved in a revolutionary policy were
greater than anywhere else. From its commanding military
position, it was clear that the British would direct their main
efforts toward the conquest of this central colony ; and while
on the one hand the broad, deep waters about Manhattan
Island afforded an easy entrance for their resistless fleet,
on the other hand the failure of the Canadian expedition
had laid the whole country open to invasion from the north,
and the bloodthirsty warriors of the Long House were not
likely to let slip so fair an opportunity for gathering scalps
from the exposed settlements on the frontier. Not only was
it probable, for these reasons, that New York would suffer
more than any other colony from the worst horrors of war,
but as a commercial state with only a single seaport, the
very sources of her life would be threatened should the
British once gain a foothold upon Manhattan Island. The
fleet of Lord Howe was daily expected in the harbour, and
it was known that the army which had been ousted from
The Declaration of Independence
1776 INDEPENDENCE 201
Boston, now largely reinforced, was on its way from Halifax
to undertake the capture of the city of New York To
guard against this expected danger, Washington had some
weeks since moved his army thither from Boston ; but his
whole effective force did not exceed eight thousand men,
and with these he was obliged to garrison points so far apart
as King's Bridge, Paulus Hook, Governor's Island, and
Brooklyn Heights. The position was far less secure than it
had been about Boston, for British ships could here come
up the Hudson and East rivers, and interpose between these
isolated detachments. As for Staten Island, Washington
had not troops enough to occupy it at all, so that when Gen-
eral Howe arrived, on the 28th of June, he was allowed to
land there without opposition. It was a bitter thing for
Washington to be obliged to permit this, but there was no
help for it. Not only in numbers, but in equipment, Wash-
ington's force was utterly inadequate to the important task
assigned it, and Congress had done nothing to increase its
efficiency beyond ordering a levy of twenty-five thousand
militia from New England and the middle colonies, to serve
for six months only
Under these circumstances, the military outlook, in case
the war were to go on, was certainly not encouraging, and
the people of New York might well be excused for some
tardiness in committing themselves irrevocably on the ques-
tion of independence, especially as it was generally under-
stood that Lord Howe was coming armed with plenary
authority to negotiate with the American people. To all
the other dangers of the situation there was added _ _
i TneTryon
that of treachery in the camp. Governor Tryon, plot, June,
like so many of the royal governors that year, had im
taken refuge on shipboard, whence he schemed and plotted
with his friends on shore A plan was devised for blowing
up the magazines and seizing Washington, who was either
to be murdered or carried on board ship to be tried for
treason, according as the occasion might suggest. The
conspiracy was discovered in good time ; the mayor of New
202 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
York, convicted of correspondence with Tryon, was thrown
into jail, and one of Washington's own guard, who had been
bribed to aid the nefarious scheme, was summarily hanged
in a field near the Bowery. Such a discovery as this served
to throw discredit upon the Tory party. The patriots took
a bolder stand than ever, but when the ist of July came it
found the discussion still going on, and the New York
delegates in Congress were still without instructions.
On the ist of July Congress resolved itself into a com-
mittee of the whole, to " take into consideration the resolu-
tion respecting independency." As Richard Henry Lee
was absent, John Adams, who had seconded the motion,
was called upon to defend it, which he did in a powerful
speech He was ably opposed by John Dickinson, who
urged that the country ought not to be rashly committed
Final to a position, to recede from which would be mfa-
debateon mouSj while to persist in it might entail certain
motion ruin A declaration of independence would not
strengthen the resources of the country by a single regi-
ment or a single cask of powder, while it would shut the door
upon all hope of accommodation with Great Britain. And
as to the prospect of an alliance with France and Spain,
would it not be well to obtain some definite assurances from
these powers before proceeding to extremities ? Besides all
this, argued Dickinson, the terms of confederation among
the colonies were still unsettled, and any declaration of
independence, to have due weight with the world, ought to
be preceded by the establishment of a federal government.
The boundaries of the several colonies ought first to be
fixed, and their respective rights mutually guaranteed , and
the public lands ought also to be solemnly appropriated for
the common benefit. Then, the orator concluded, "when
things shall have been thus deliberately rendered firm at
home and favourable abroad, then let America, attollens
humens f amain et fata nepotum, bearing up her glory and
the destiny of her descendants, advance with majestic steps,
and assume her station among the sovereigns of the world"
1776 INDEPENDENCE 203
That there was great weight in some of these considera-
tions was shown only too plainly by subsequent events.
But the argument as a whole was open to the fatal objec-
tion that if the American people were to wait for all these
great questions to be settled before taking a decisive step,
they would never be able to take a decisive step at all The
wise statesman regards half a loaf as better than no bread.
Independent action on the part of all the colonies except
New York had now become an accomplished fact. All
were really in rebellion, and their cause could not fail to
gain in dignity and strength by announcing itself to the
world in its true character. Such was now the general feel-
ing of the committee. When the question was put to vote,
the New York delegates were excused, as they Voteon
had no sufficient instructions Of the three dele- Lee's
gates from Delaware, one was absent, one voted mo lon
yea, and one nay, so that the vote of the colony was lost
Pennsylvania declared in the negative by four votes against
204 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
three. South Carolina also declared in the negative, but
with the intimation from Edward Rutledge that it might
not unlikely reverse its vote, in deference to the majority.
The other nine colonies all voted in the affirmative, and the
resolution was reported as agreed to by a two thirds vote.
On the next day, when the vote was formally taken in
regular session of Congress, the Delaware members were
all present, and the affirmative vote of that colony was
secured , Dickinson and Morris stayed away, thus reversing
the vote of Pennsylvania , and the South Carolina members
changed for the ssdke of unanimity.
Thus was the Declaration of Independence at last resolved
upon, by the unanimous vote of twelve colonies, on the 2d
of July, 1776 ; and this work having been done, Congress
at once went into committee of the whole, to consider the
form of declaration which should be adopted. That no time
might be lost in disposing of this important matter, a com-
mittee had already been selected three weeks before, at the
time of Lee's motion, to draw up a paper which might be
worthy of this great and solemn occasion. Thomas Jeffer-
son, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and
Robert Livingston were the members of the committee,
and Jeff erson, as representing the colony which had intro-
duced the resolution of independence, was chosen to be the
author of the Declaration. Jefferson, then but thirty-three
years of age, was one of the youngest delegates in Con-
gress ; but of all the men of that time, there was, perhaps,
Thomas none f W1 <ler culture or keener political instincts.
Jefferson Inheriting a comfortable fortune, he had chosen
the law as his profession, but he had always been passion-
ately fond of study for its own sake, and to a wide read-
ing in history and in ancient and modern literature he
added no mean proficiency in mathematics and in physical
science. He was skilled in horsemanship and other manly
exercises, and in the management of rural affairs; while
at the same time he was sensitively and delicately organ-
ized, playing the violin like a master, and giving other evi-
1776 INDEPENDENCE 205
dences of rare musical talent. His temper was exceedingly
placid, and his disposition was sweet and sympathetic. He
was deeply interested in all the generous theories of the
eighteenth century concerning the rights of man and the
perfectibility of human nature , and, like most of the con-
temporary philosophers whom he admired, he was a sturdy
foe to intolerance and priestcraft. He was in his way a
much more profound thinker than Hamilton, though he had
not such a constructive genius as the latter ; as a political
leader he was superior to any other man of his age ; and his
warm sympathies, his almost feminine tact, his mastery of
the dominant political ideas of the time, and, above all, his
unbounded faith in the common-sense of the people and in
their essential rectitude of purpose served to give him one
of the greatest and most commanding positions ever held
by any personage in American history.
On the evening of the 4th of July, 1776, the Declara-
tion of Independence was unanimously adopted by twelve
colonies, the delegation from New York still remaining
unable to act But the acquiescence of that colony was so
generally counted upon that there was no drawback to the
exultation of the people. All over the country
the Declaration was received with bonfires, with
the ringing of bells and the firing of guns, and 4 1776
with torchlight processions Now that the great question
was settled there was a general feeling of relief. "The peo-
ple," said Samuel Adams, "seem to recognize this resolu-
tion as though it were a decree promulgated from heaven "
On the gth of July it was formally adopted by New York,
and the soldiers there celebrated the occasion by throwing
down the leaden statue of George III. on the Bowling Green,
and casting it into bullets.
Thus, after eleven years of irritation, and after such tem-
perate discussion as befitted a free people, the Americans
had at last entered upon the only course that could preserve
their self-respect, and guarantee them in the great part
which they had to play in the drama of civilization. For the
206 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, iv
BATTERY AND BOWLING GREEN IN 1776
dignity, patience, and moderation with which they had borne
selves throughout these trying times, history
as yet scarcely afforded a parallel. So extreme
been their forbearance, so great their unwill-
thou 6 ht of ing 11688 to appeal to brute force while there yet
the Amen- remained the slightest hope of a peaceful solution,
can peop e British historians have gone quite astray
in interpreting their conduct. Because statesmen like Dick-
inson and communities like Maryland were slow in believing
that the right moment for a declaration of independence had
come, the preposterous theory has been suggested that the
American Revolution was the work of an unscrupulous and
desperate minority, which, through intrigue mingled with
violence, succeeded in forcing the reluctant majority to
sanction its measures Such a misconception has its root
in an utter failure to comprehend the peculiar character of
American political life, like the kindred misconception which
ascribes the rebellion of the colonies to a sordid unwilling-
ness to bear their due share of the expenses of the British
Empire. It is like the misunderstanding which saw an
angry mob in every town meeting of the people of Boston,
and characterized as a "riot" every deliberate expression of
1776 INDEPENDENCE 207
public opinion. No one who is familiar with the essential
features of American political life can for a moment suppose
that the Declaration of Independence was brought about by
any less weighty force than the settled conviction of the peo-
ple that the priceless treasure of self-government could be
preserved by no other means. It was but slowly that this
unwelcome conviction grew upon the people ; and owing to
local differences of circumstances it grew more slowly in
some places than in others. Prescient leaders, too, like the
Adamses and Franklin and Lee, made up their minds sooner
than other people. Even those conservatives who resisted
to the last, even such men as John Dickinson and Robert
Morris, were fully agreed with their opponents as to the
principle at issue between Great Britain and America, and
nothing would have satisfied them short of the total aban-
donment by Great Britain of her pretensions to impose taxes
and revoke charters. Upon this fundamental point there
was very little difference of opinion in America. As to the
related question of independence, the decision, when once
reached, was everywhere alike the reasonable result of free
and open discussion ; and the best possible illustration of
this is the fact that not even in the darkest days of the war
already begun did any state deliberately propose to recon-
sider its action in the matter. The hand once put to the
plough, there was no turning back. As Judge Drayton of
South Carolina said from the bench, " A decree is now gone
forth not to be recalled, and thus has suddenly risen in the
world a new empire, styled the United States of America."
CHAPTER V
FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE
THROUGHOUT a considerable portion of the country the
news of the Declaration of Independence was accompanied
by the news of a brilliant success at the South. After the
defeat of Macdonald at Moore's Creek, and the sudden arm-
ing of North Carolina, Clinton did not venture to land, but
cruised about in the neighbourhood, awaiting the arrival of
Sir Peter Parker's squadron from Ireland. Harassed by
violent and contrary winds, Parker was three months in
Lord Com- making the voyage, and it was not until May that
rifes S uon &Q arrived, bringing with him Lord Cornwallis.
the scene As North Carolina had given such unmistakable
evidence of its real temper, it was decided not to land upon
that coast for the present, but to go south and capture
Charleston and Savannah. Lord William Campbell, refugee
governor of South Carolina, urged that there was a great
loyalist party in that colony, which would declare itself as
soon as the chief city should be in the hands of the king's
troops. That there would be any serious difficulty in taking
Charleston occurred to no one But Colonel Moultrie had
thrown up on Sullivan's Island, commanding the harbour, a
fortress of palmetto logs strengthened by heavy banks of
sand, and now held it with a force of twelve hundred men,
while five thousand militia were gathered about the town,
under command of General Charles Lee, who had been sent
down to meet the emergency, but did little more than to
meddle and hinder. In his character of trained European
officer, Lee laughed to scorn Moultrie' s palmetto strong-
hold, and would have ordered him to abandon it, but that
he was positively overruled by John Rutledge, president of
1776
FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE
209
the provincial congress, who knew Moultrie and relied upon
his sound judgment The British commanders, Clinton and
Parker, wasted three weeks in discussing various plans of
attack, while the Americans, with spade and hatchet, were
rapidly barring every approach to Charleston, and fresh
regiments came pouring in to man the new-built Battle of
intrenchments. At last Clinton landed three thou- tajune ul ~
sand men on a naked sand-bank, divided from 28,1776
Sullivan's Island by a short space of shallow sea, which he
thought could be forded at low tide At the proper time
Sir Peter Parker was to open a lively fire from the fleet,
210
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. V
which it was expected would knock down the fort in a few
minutes, while Clinton, fording the shoals, would drive out
the Americans at the point of the bayonet. The shoals,
however, turned out to be seven feet deep at low water, and
the task of the infantry was reduced to a desperate conflict
with the swarms of mosquitoes, which nearly drove them
frantic. The battle thus became a mere artillery duel be-
tween the fort and the fleet. The British fire was rapid
and furious, but ineffective Most of the shot passed harm-
lessly over the low fortress, and those which struck did no
harm to its elastic structure. The American fire was very
slow, and few shots were wasted. The cable of Parker's
1776
FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE
211
flagship was cut by a well-aimed ball, and the ship, swinging
around, received a raking fire which swept her deck with
terrible slaughter. After the fight had lasted ten hours,
the Bntish retreated out of range. The palmetto fort had
suffered no serious injury, and only one gun had been
silenced. The American loss in killed and wounded was
thirty-seven On the other hand, Sir Peter's flagship had
lost her mainmast and mizzen-mast, and had some twenty
shots in her hull, so that she was little better than a wreck.
The British loss in killed and wounded was two hundred
and five. Of their ten sail, only one frigate remained sea-
worthy at the close of the action. After waiting three
weeks to refit, the whole expedition sailed away for New
York to cooperate with the Howes. Charleston was saved,
and for more than two years the southern states were freed
BATTLE OF PORT MOULTRIE, JUNE 28, 1776
212 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP v
from the invader. In commemoration of this brilliant vic-
tory, and of the novel stronghold which had so roused the
mirth of the European soldier of fortune, the outpost on
Sullivan's Island has ever since been known by the name of
Fort Moultrie
It was with such tidings of good omen that the Declara-
tion of Independence was sent forth to the world But it
was the last news of victory that for the next six months
was to cheer the anxious statesmen assembled at Philadel-
phia. During the rest of the summer and the autumn,
disaster followed upon disaster, until it might well seem as
if fickle fortune had ceased to smile upon the cause of
liberty. The issue of the contest was now centred in New
British York. By conquering and holding the line of the
Hudson river, the British hoped to cut the United
m and 1 " Colonies in two, after which it was thought that
cutting the Virginia and New England, isolated from each
Colonies other, might be induced to consider the error of
m twain t fr eir wavg anc j re p en t. Accordingly, General
Howe was to capture the city of New York, while General
Carleton was to descend from Canada, recapture Ticonder-
oga, and take possession of the upper waters of the Hud-
son, together with the Mohawk valley. Great hopes were
built upon the cooperation of the loyalists, of whom there
was a greater number in New York than in any other state,
except perhaps South Carolina. It was partly for this rea-
son, as we shall hereafter see, that these two states suffered
more actual misery from the war than all the others put
together. The horrors of civil war were to be added to the
attack of the invader Throughout the Mohawk valley the
influence of Sir John Johnson, the Tory son of the famous
baronet of the Seven Years' War, was thought to be
supreme , and it turned out to be very powerful both with
the white population and with the Indians. At the other
end of the line, in New York city, the Tory element was
strong, for reasons already set forth. On Long Island, the
people of Kings and Queens counties, of Dutch descent,
1776 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 213
were Tories almost to a man, while the English population
of Suffolk was solidly in favour of independence.
Before beginning his attack on New York, General Howe
had to await the arrival of his brother , for the ministry had
resolved to try the effect of what seemed to them a " con-
ciliatory policy" On the I2th of July Lord Howe arrived
at Staten Island, bringing with him the " olive-branch " which
Lord North had promised to send along with the sword.
This curious specimen of political botany turned out to con-
sist of a gracious declaration that all persons who should
desist from rebellion and lend their " aid in restoring tran-
quillity " would receive full and free pardon from
their sovereign lord the king As it would not do Howe's
to recognize the existence of Congress, Lord Howe tempt a to
inclosed this declaration in a letter addressed to
" George Washington, Esq.," and sent it up the ington
harbour with a flag of truce But as George un ^ y
Washington, in his capacity of Virginian landholder and
American citizen, had no authority for dealing with a royal
commissioner, he refused to receive the letter. Colonel
Reed informed Lord Howe's messenger that there was no
person in the army with that address. The British officer
reluctantly rowed away, but suddenly, putting his barge
about, he came back and inquired by what title Washington
should be properly addressed Colonel Reed replied, " You
are aware, sir, of the rank of General Washington in our
army?" "Yes, sir, we are," answered the officer; "I am
sure my Lord Howe will lament exceedingly this affair, as
the letter is of a civil, and not of a military nature. He
greatly laments that he was not here a little sooner " This
remark was understood by Colonel Reed to refer to the
Declaration of Independence, which was then but eight
days old. A week later Lord Howe sent Colonel Patterson,
the British adjutant-general, with a document now addressed
to "George Washington, Esq, etc, etc." Colonel Patter-
son begged for a personal interview, which was granted.
He was introduced to Washington, whom he describes as a
216 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
Monmouth, the disparity of numbers would still have told
powerfully in favour of the British. As it was, in view of
the crudeness of his material, Washington could hardly hope
to do more with his army than to make it play the part of a
detaining force. To keep the field in the face of over-
whelming odds is one of the most arduous of military prob-
lems, and often calls for a higher order of intelligence than
that which is displayed in the mere winning of battles
Upon this problem Washington was now to be employed
for six months without respite, and it was not long before
he gave evidence of military genius such as has seldom been
surpassed m the history of modern warfare. At the outset
the city of New York furnished the kernel of the problem.
Without control of the water it would be well-nigh impossi-
ble to hold the city. Still there was a chance, and it was
the part of a good general to take this chance, and cut out
as much work as possible for the enemy. The shore of
Manhattan Island was girded with small forts and redoubts,
which Lee had erected in the spring before his departure
for South Carolina. The lower end of the island, along the
line of Wall Street, was then but little more than half its
present width, as several lines of street have since been
added upon both sides From Cortlandt Street across to
Paulus Hook, the width of the Hudson river was not less
than two miles, while the East river near Fulton Ferry was
nearly a mile in width The city reached only from the
Battery as far as Chatham Street, whence the Bowery Lane
ran northwestwardly to Bloomingdale through a country
smiling with orchards and gardens. Many of the streets
were now barricaded, and a strong line of redoubts ran
across from river to river below the side of Canal Street.
At the upper end of the island, and on the Jersey shore,
were other fortresses, with which we shall shortly have to
deal, and out in the harbour, as a sort of watch-tower from
which to inspect the enemy's fleet, a redoubt had been
raised on Governor's Island, and was commanded by Col-
onel Prescott, with a party of the men of Bunker Hill.
1776
FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE
217
VIEW OP NEW YORK IN 1776!
In order to garrison such various positions, it was neces-
sary for Washington to scatter his 18,000 men, and this
added much to the difficulty of his task, for Howe could at
any moment strike at almost any one of these points with
his whole force. From the nature of the case the immense
advantage of the initiative belonged entirely to Howe. But
in one quarter, the most important of all, Washington had
effected as much concentration of his troops as importance
was possible. The position on Brooklyn Heights y n Brook ~
was dangerously exposed, but it was absolutely Heights
necessary for the Americans to occupy it ]f they were to
keep their hold upon New York. This eminence com-
manded New York exactly as Bunker Hill and Dorchester
Heights commanded Boston. Greene had, accordingly,
spent the summer in fortifying it, and there 9,000 men
one half of the army were now concentrated under com-
1 This view is taken from the Hudson river, and shows Fort George
at the extreme right. The street facing upon the river was Greenwich
Street, from which the descent to the water was abrupt. The cliff-like
look of the banks has since been destroyed by the addition of new land
sloping gently down to the water level at West Street. The church
most conspicuous in the picture is the old Trinity, which was burned
in 1776
2i8 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
mand of Putnam Upon this exposed position General
Howe determined to throw nearly the whole of his force
He felt confident that the capture or destruction of half the
American army would so discourage the rebels as to make
them lend a readier ear to the overtures of that excellent
peacemaker, his brother. Accordingly, on the 22d of Au-
gust, General Howe landed 20,000 men at Gravesend Bay.
From this point the American position was approachable by
four roads, two of which crossed a range of densely wooded
hills, and continued through the villages of Bedford and
Flatbush. To the left of these the Gowanus road followed
the shore about the western base of the hills, while on the
right the Jamaica road curved inland and turned their east-
ern base.
The elaborate caution with which the British commander
now proceeded stands out in striking contrast with the
temerity of his advance upon Bunker Hill in the preceding
year. He spent four days in reconnoitring, and then he
sent his brother, with part of the fleet, to make a feint upon
New York, and occupy Washington's attention. Before
daybreak of the 27th, under the cover of this feint, the
British advance had been nearly completed. General Grant,
with the Highland regiments, advanced along the coast road,
where the American outposts were held by William Alexan-
Battieof der of New Jersey, commonly known as Lord
fcndf lug. Stirling, from a lapsed Scotch earldom to which he
27, 1776 had claimed the title The Hessians, under Gen-
eral von Heister, proceeded along the Bedford and Flatbush
roads, which were defended by Sullivan ; while more than
half of the army, under Howe in person, accompanied by
Clinton, Percy, and Cornwallis, accomplished a long night
march by the Jamaica road, in order to take the Americans
in flank. This long flanking march was completed in per-
fect secrecy because the people of the neighbourhood were
in sympathy with the British, and it encountered no obsta-
cles because the American force was simply incapable of
covering so much territory. The divisions of Stirling and
*
* ,* V
'.*, CO.
BATTLE OF LONG ISLAND
August 27, 1776
Z776 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 219
Sullivan contained the 5,000 men which were all that Put-
nam could afford to send forward from his works. A patrol
which watched the Jamaica road was captured early in the
morning, but it would not in any case have been possible to
send any force there which could materially have hindered
the British advance Overwhelming superiority in numbers
enabled the British to go where they pleased, and the battle
was already virtually won when they appeared on the Jamaica
road in the rear of the village of Bedford Scarcely had the
fight begun on the crest of the hill between Sullivan and
the Hessians in his front when he found himself assaulted
in the rear. Thrown into confusion, and driven back and
forth through the woods between two galling fires, his divi-
sion was quickly routed, and nearly all were taken prisoners,
including the general himself. On the coast road the fight
between Stirling and Grant was the first in which Americans
had ever met British troops in open field and in regular line
of battle Against the sturdy Highland regiments Stirling
held his ground gallantly for four hours, until he was in turn
assaulted in the rear by Lord Cornwallis, after the rout of
Sullivan It now became, with Stirling, simply a question
of saving his division from capture, and after a desperate
fight this end was accomplished, and the men got back to
Brooklyn Heights, though the brave Stirling himself was
taken prisoner In this noble struggle the highest honours
were won by the brigade of Maryland men commanded by
Smallwood, and throughout the war we shall find this hon-
ourable distinction of Maryland for the personal gallantry of
her troops fully maintained, until in the last pitched battle,
at Eutaw Springs, we see them driving the finest infantry of
England at the point of the bayonet
The defeat of Sullivan and Stirling enabled Howe to
bring up his whole army in front of the works at Brooklyn
Heights toward the close of the day. To complete the
victory it would be necessary to storm these works, but
Howe's men were tired with marching, if not with fighting,
and so the incident known as the battle of Long Island
220 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
came to an end. A swift ship was at once dispatched to
England with the news of the victory, which were some-
what highly coloured. It was for a while supposed that
there had been a terrible slaughter, but careful research has
shown that this was not the case About 400 had been
killed and wounded on each side, and this loss had been
incurred mainly in the fight between Stirling and Grant.
On other parts of the field the British triumph had consisted
chiefly in the scooping up of prisoners, of whom at least
1,000 were taken. The stones of a wholesale butchery by
the Hessians which once were current have been completely
disproved. Washington gave a detailed account of the
affair a few days afterward, and the most careful investiga-
tion has shown that he was correct in every particular. But
to the American public the blow was none the less terrible,
while in England the exultation served as an offset to the
chagrin felt after the loss of Boston 'and the defeat at Fort
Moultne, and it was naturally long before facts could be
seen in their true proportions.
Heavy as was the blow, however, General Howe's object
was still but half attained. He had neither captured nor
destroyed the American forces on Long Island, but had
only driven them into their works. He was still confronted
by 8,000 men on Brooklyn Heights, and the problem was
how to dislodge them In the evening Washington came
over from New York, and made everything ready to resist a
storm. To this end, on the next day, he brought over rein-
forcements, raising his total force within the works to 10,000
men. Under such circumstances, if the British had at-
tempted a storm they would probably have been repulsed
Howe pre- with great slaughter. But Howe had not forgotten
Ssglthe Bunker Hill, and he thought it best to proceed by
Heights; wa y O f s i e g ei AS soon as Washington perceived
this intention of his adversary, he saw that he must with-
draw his arrny. He would have courted a storm, in which
he was almost sure to be victorious, but he shrank from a
siege, in which he was quite sure to lose his whole force.
1776 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 221
The British troops now invested him m a semicircle, and
their ships might at any moment close in behind and cut off
his only retreat. Accordingly, sending trusty messengers
across the river, Washington, collected every sloop, yacht,
fishing-smack, yawl, scow, or row-boat that could be found
in either water from the Battery to King's Bridge or Hell
Gate , and after nightfall of the 2gth, these craft were all
assembled at the Brooklyn ferry, and wisely manned by the
fishermen of Marblehead and Gloucester from butwash-
Glover's Essex regiment, experts, every one of
them, whether at oar or saU All through the
night the American troops were ferried across the broad
river, as quietly as possible and in excellent order, while
Washington superintended the details of the embarkation,
and was himself the last man to leave the ground. At seven
o'clock in the morning the whole American army had landed
on the New York side, and had brought with them all their
cannon, small arms, ammunition, tools, and horses, and all
their larder besides, so that when the bewildered British
climbed into the empty works they did not find so much as
a biscuit or a glass of rum wherewith to console themselves
This retreat has always been regarded as one of the most
brilliant incidents in Washington's career, and it Hjs
would certainly be hard to find a more striking ex- vigilance
i - . ., TT j TTT -L- .j. n 11- robbed the
ample of vigilance Had Washington allowed him- Bntish of
self to be cooped up on Brooklyn Heights he would goid?n S op-
have been forced to surrender , and whatever was gJJS*
left of the war would have been a game played forded
tnsiTi
without queen, rook, or bishop. For this very rea-
son it is hardly creditable to Howe that he should have let
his adversary get away so easily At daybreak, indeed, the
Americans had been remarkably favoured by the sudden
rise of a fog which covered the East river, but during the
night the moon had shone brightly, and one can only won-
der that the multitudinous plash of oars and the unavoidable
murmur of ten thousand men embarking, with their heavy
guns and stores, should not have attracted the attention of
1776 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 223
some wakeful sentinel, either on shore or on the fleet. A
storming party of British, at the right moment, would at
least have disturbed the proceedings. So rare a chance of
ending the war at a blow was never again to be offered to
the British commanders Washington now stationed the
bulk of his army along the line of the Harlem river, leaving
a strong detachment in the city under Putnam ; and pres-
ently, with the same extraordinary skill which he had just
displayed in sending boats under the very eyes of the fleet,
he withdrew Colonel Prescott and his troops from their ex-
posed position on Governor's Island, which there was no
longer any reason for holding
Hoping that the stroke just given by the British sword
might have weakened the obstinacy of the Americans, Lord
Howe again had recourse to the olive-branch The cap-
tured General Sullivan was sent to Congress to hold out
hopes that Lord Howe would use his influence to get all the
obnoxious acts of Parliament repealed, only he would first
like to confer with some of the members of Congress in-
formally and as with mere private gentlemen A lively de-
bate ensued upon this proposal, in which some saw an insult
to Congress, while all quite needlessly suspected treachery.
John Adams, about whom there was so much less of the
suaviter in modo than of the fortiter in re> alluded to Sulli-
van, quite unjustly, as a "decoy duck," who had better have
been shot in the battle than employed on such a business.
It was finally voted that no proposals of peace from Great
Britain should receive notice, unless they should be con-
veyed in ^ writ ing, and should explicitly recognize Theconfer .
Congress as the legal representative of the Amer- ence at
ican States. For this once, however, out of per- land^Sept.
sonal regard for Lord Howe, and that nothing "
might be disdained which really looked toward a peaceful set-
tlement, they would send a committee to Staten Island to
confer with his lordship, who might regard this committee in
1 This Is a contemporary view of the road by which Howe advanced
upon Sullivan's rear
224 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
whatever light he pleased In this shrewd, half-humorous
method of getting rid of the diplomatic difficulty, one is
forcibly reminded of President Lincoln's famous proclama-
tion addressed " To whom it may concern " The committee,
consisting of Franklin, Rutledge, and John Adams, were
hospitably entertained by Lord Howe, but their conference
came to nothing, because the Americans now demanded a
recognition of their independence as a condition which must
precede all negotiation There is no doubt that Lord Howe,
who was a warm friend to the Americans and an energetic
opponent of the king's policy, was bitterly grieved at this
result. As a last resort he published a proclamation an-
nouncing the intention of the British government to recon-
sider the various acts and instructions by which the Ameri-
cans had been annoyed, and appealing to all right-minded
people to decide for themselves whether it were not wise to
rely on a solemn promise like this, rather than commit
themselves to the dangerous chances of an unequal and un-
righteous war
Four days after this futile interview General Howe took
possession of New York. After the loss of Brooklyn
Howetakes Heights, Washington and Greene were already
NCTM?^ aware that the cit 7 could not be held Its capture
Sept. 15 was vei y easily effected Several ships-of-the-line
ascended the Hudson as far as Bloommgdale, and the East
river as far as Blackwell's Island ; and while thus from either
side these vessels swept the northern part of Manhattan
with a searching fire, General Howe brought his army across
from Brooklyn in boats and landed at Kipp's Bay, near the
present site of East Thirty-Fourth Street. Washington
came promptly down, with two New England brigades, to
reinforce the men whom he had stationed at that point, and
to hinder the landing of the enemy until Putnam should
have time to evacuate the city To Washington's wrath
and disgust, these men were seized with panic, and suddenly
turned and fled without firing a shot. Had Howe now
thrown his men promptly forward across the line of Thirty-
1776 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 225
Fourth Street, he would have cut off Putnam's retreat from
the city. But what the New England brigades failed to do
a bright woman succeeded m accomplishing When Howe
had reached the spot known as Murray Hill, now the
centre of much brownstone magnificence in Park and
Madison and Fifth avenues, at that time a noble country
farmstead, Mrs Lmdley Murray, mother of the famous
grammarian, well knowing the easy temper of the British
commander, sent out a servant to invite him to stop but Mrs
and take luncheon A general halt was ordered ;
and while Howe and his officers were gracefully
entertained for more than two hours by their ac-
complished and subtle hostess, Putnam hastily marched his
4,000 men up the shore of the Hudson, until, passing Bloom-
ingdale, he touched the right wing of the main army, and
was safe, though his tents, blankets, and heavy Attack
guns had been left behind. The American lines upon Har-
now extended from the mouth of Harlem river Heights,
across the island, and on the following day the Sept l6
British attempted to break through their centre at Harlem
Heights, but the attack was repulsed, with a loss of sixty
Americans and three hundred British, and the lines just
formed remained, with very little change, for nearly four
weeks.
General Howe had thus got possession of the city of New
York, but the conquest availed him little so long as the
American army stood across the island, in the attitude of
blockading him. If this campaign was to decide the war,
as the ministry hoped, nothing short of the capture The new
or dispersal of Washington's army would suffice. brf^| m
But the problem was now much harder than it had Howe
been at Brooklyn. For as the land above Manhattan Island
widens rapidly to the north and east, it would not be easy
to hem Washington in by sending forces to his rear. As
soon as he should find his position imperilled, he would
possess the shorter line by which to draw his battalions
together and force an escape, and so the event proved.
226
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. V
W
JPort ,
Stirling
Still, with Howe's superior force and with his fleet, if he
could get up the Hudson to the rear of the American right,
and at the same time land troops from the Sound in the
rear of the American left, it was possible that Washington
might be compelled to surrender. There was nothing to
bar Howe's passage up the East river to the Sound ; but at
the northern extremity of Manhattan Island the ascent of
the Hudson was guarded on the east by Fort Washington,
under command of Putnam, and on the west by Fort Lee,
standing on the summit of the lofty cliffs known as the
Palisades, and commanded by Greene. It was still doubt-
ful, however, whether these two strongholds could effectu-
ally bar the ascent of so broad a river, and for further
security Putnam undertook to place obstructions in the bed
of the stream itself. Both the Continental Congress and
the State Convention of New York were extremely unwill-
ing that these two fortresses should in any event be given
up, for in no case must the Hudson river be abandoned.
Putnam and Greene thought that the forts could be held,
1776
FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE
227
but by the gth of October it was proved that they could not
bar the passage of the river, for on that day two frigates
ran safely between them, and captured some small Ameri-
can craft a short distance above.
This point having been ascertained, General Howe, on the
1 2th, leaving Percy in command before Harlem Heights,
moved the greater part of his army nine miles up Howe
the East river to Throg's Neck, a peninsula in
the Sound, separated from the mainland by a
narrow creek and a marsh that was overflowed
at high tide By landing here suddenly, Howe base
hoped to get in Washington's rear and cut him off from his
base of supply m Connecticut But Washington had foreseen
the move and forestalled it. When Howe arrived at Throws
Neck, he found the bridge over the creek destroyed, and
the main shore occupied by a force which it would be dan-
gerous to try to dislodge by wading across the inarsh
While Howe was thus detained six days on the peninsula
Washington moved his base to White Plains, and concen-
Neck, but
ton changes
228 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
trated his whole army at that point, abandoning everything
on Manhattan Island except Fort Washington Sullivan,
Stirling, and Morgan who had just been exchanged, now
rejoined the army, and Lee also arrived from South Caro-
lina
By this movement to White Plains, Washington had
foiled Howe's attempt to get in his rear, and the British
Baffled at general decided to try the effect of an attack in
Jggj front. On the 28th of October he succeeded in
Howf'tnes storming an outpost at Chatterton Hill, losing 229
a new plan ^^ while the Americans lost 140 But this
affair, which is sometimes known as the battle of White
Plains, seems to have discouraged Howe Before renewing
the attack he waited three days, thinking perhaps of Bunker
Hill ; and on the last night of October, Washington fell
back upon North Castle, where he took a position so strong
that it was useless to think of assailing him Howe then
changed his plans entirely, and moved down the east bank
of the Hudson to Dobb's Ferry, whence he could either
attack Fort Washington or cross into New Jersey and
advance upon Philadelphia, the "rebel capital." The pur-
pose of this change was to entice Washington from his
unassailable position.
To meet this new movement, Washington threw his
advance of 5,000 men, under Putnam, into New Jersey,
where they encamped near Hackensack , he sent Heath up
to Peekskill, with 3,000 men, to guard the entrance to the
Highlands; and he left Lee at North Castle, with 7,000
men, and ordered him to cooperate with him promptly in
whatever direction, as soon as the nature of Howe's plans
Washing- should become apparent. As Forts Washington
iS n vfew d e f s an( * ^ ee detained a large force m garrison, while
theemer- they had shown themselves unable to prevent
gency ships from passing up the river, there was no
longer any use in holding them. Nay, they had now be-
come dangerous, as traps in which the garrisons and stores
might be suddenly surrounded and captured. Washington
1776 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 229
accordingly resolved to evacuate them both, while, to allay
the fears of Congress in the event of a descent from Canada,
he ordered Heath to fortify the much more important posi-
tion at West Point.
Had Washington's orders been obeyed and his plans
carried out, history might still have recorded a retreat
through "the Jerseys," but how different a retreat Congress
from that which was now about to take place ' ^[th the
The officious interference of Congress, a vernal
error of judgment on the part of Greene, and gross
insubordination on the part of Lee, occurring all together
at this critical moment, brought about the greatest disaster
of the war, and came within an ace of overwhelming the
American cause in total and irretrievable rum. Washing-
ton instructed Greene, who now commanded both fortresses,
to withdraw the garrison and stores from Fort Washington,
and to make arrangements for evacuating Fort Lee also.
At the same time he did not give a positive order, but left
the matter somewhat within Greene's discretion, in case
military circumstances of an unforeseen kind should arise
Then, while Washington had gone up to reconnoitre the
site for the new fortress at West Point, there came a special
order from Congress that Fort Washington should not be
abandoned save under direst extremity. If Greene had
thoroughly grasped Washington's view of the case, he would
have disregarded this conditional order, for there could
hardly be a worse extremity than that which the sudden
capture of the fortress would entail But Greene's mind
was not quite clear ; he believed that the fort could be held,
and he dijd not like to take the responsibility of disregarding
a message from Congress. In this dilemma he did the
worst thing possible : he reinforced the doomed garrison,
and awaited Washington's return
When the commander-m-chief returned, on the I4th, he
learned with dismay that nothing had been done. But it
was now too late to mend matters, for that very night several
British vessels passed up between the forts, and the next
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP V
REMAINS OF FORT WASHINGTON, NEW YORK, 1856
day Howe appeared before Fort Washington with an over-
whelming force, and told Colonel Magaw, the officer in
charge, that if he did not immediately surrender the whole
garrison would he put to the sword Magaw replied that if
Howe Howe wanted his fort he must come and take it.
wSS? O n the l6th > after a sharp struggle, in which the
storm 7 Americans fought with desperate gallantry though
NOV Je they were outnumbered more than five to one, the
work's were carried, and the whole garrison was captured.
The victory cost the British more than 500 men in killed
and wounded. The Americans, fighting behind their works,
lost hut 150 ; but they surrendered 3,000 of the best troops
in their half-trained army, together with an immense quan-
tity of artillery and small arms. It was not in General
Howe's kindly nature to carry out his savage threat of the
day before , but some of the Hessians, maddened with the
stubborn resistance they had encountered, began murdering
their prisoners in cold blood, until they were sharply called
to order. From Fort Lee, on the 'opposite bank of the
river, Washington surveyed this woful surrender with his
usual iron composure ; but when it came to seeing his brave
men thrown down and stabbed to death by the Hessian
1776 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 231
bayonets, his overwrought heart could bear it no longer, and
he cried and sobbed like a child
This capture of the garrison of Fort Washington was one
of the most crushing blows that befell the American arms
during the whole course of the war. Washington's cam-
paign seemed now likely to be converted into a mere flight,
and a terrible gloom overspread the whole country. The
disaster was primarily due to the interference of Congress
It might have been averted by prompt and decisive Washin
action on the part of Greene But Washington, ton and
whose clear judgment made due allowance for all Greene
the circumstances, never for a moment cast any blame upon
his subordinate. The lesson was never forgotten by Greene,
whose intelligence was of that high order which may indeed
make a first mistake, but never makes a second. The
friendship between the two generals became warmer than
ever. Washington, by a sympathetic instinct, had divined
from the outset the military genius that was by and by to
prove scarcely inferior to his own
Yet worse remained behind Washington had but 6,000
men on the Jersey side of the river, and it was now high
time for Lee to come over from North Castle and join him,
with the force of 7,000 that had been left under his com-
mand. On the 1 7th, Washington sent a positive order for
him to cross the river at once ; but Lee dissembled, outrageous
pretended to regard the order in the light of mere gjj* of
advice, and stayed where he was He occupied an Lee
impregnable position : why should he leave it, and imperil a
force with which he might accomplish something memo-
rable on his own account ? By the resignation of General
Ward, Lee had become the senior major-general of the
Continental army, and in the event of disaster to Washing-
ton he would almost certainly become commander-in-chief .
He had returned from South Carolina more arrogant and
loud-voiced than ever. The northern people knew little
of Moultrie, while they supposed Lee to be a great military
light , and the charlatan accordingly got the whole credit of
2 3 2
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. V
the victory, which, if his precious advice had been taken,
would never have been won. Lee was called the hero of
Charleston, and people began to contrast the victory of Sulli-
van's Island with the recent defeats, and to draw conclusions
very disparaging to Washington From the beginning Lee
had felt personally aggrieved at not being appointed to the
chief command, and now he seemed to see a fair chance of
ruining his hated rival. Should he come to the head of the
army in a moment of dire disaster to the Americans, it
would be so much the better, for it would be likely to open
GENERAL GREENE'S HEADQUARTERS, FORT LEE, NEW JERSEY
negotiations with Lord Howe, and Lee loved to chaffer and
intrigue much better than to fight. So he spent his time
in endeavouring, by insidious letters and lying whispers, to
nourish the feeling of disaffection toward Washington, while
he refused to send a single regiment to his assistance.
Thus, through the villainy of this traitor in the camp, Wash-
ington actually lost more men, so far as their present use
was concerned at this most critical moment, than he had
1776 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 233
been deprived of by all the blows which the enemy had
dealt him since the beginning of the campaign.
On the night of the igth, Howe threw 5,000 men across
the river, about five miles above Fort Lee, and with this
force Lord Cornwallis marched rapidly down upon that
stronghold The place had become untenable, and it was
with some difficulty that a repetition of the catastrophe of
Fort Washington was avoided. Greene had barely Greene
time, with his 2,000 men, to gain the bridge over barely es-
- TT _ _ _ ,. capes from
the Hackensack and join the main army, leaving Fort Lee,
behind all his cannon, tents, blankets, and eatables. Nov 2
The position now occupied by the main army, between the
Hackensack and Passaic rivers, was an unsafe one, in view
of the great superiority of the enemy in numbers. A
strong British force, coming down upon Washington from
the north, might compel him to surrender or to fight at a
great disadvantage To avoid this danger, on the 2ist he
crossed the Passaic and marched southwestward to Newark,
where he stayed five days ; and every day he sent a messen-
ger to Lee, urging him
to make all possible haste
in bringing over his half
of the army, that they
might be able to con-
front the enemy on something like equal terms Nothing
could have been more explicit or more peremptory than
Washington's orders; but Lee affected to misunderstand
them, sent excuses, raised objections, paltered, argued, pre-
varicated, and lied, and so contrived to stay where he was
until the first of December To Washington he pretended
that his moving was beset by "obstacles," the nature of
which he would explain as soon as they should meet. But
to James Bowdoin, president of the executive Leem .
council of Massachusetts, he wrote at the same J"*^
time declaring that his own army and that under washing-
Washington " must rest each on its own bottom."
He assumed command over Heath, who had been left to
234 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
guard the Highlands, and ordered him to send 2,000 troops
to himself , but that officer very properly refused to depart
from the instructions which the commander-in-chief had left
with him. To various members of Congress Lee told the
falsehood that if his advice had only been heeded, Fort
Washington would have been evacuated ere it was too late ,
and he wrote to Dr. Rush, wondering whether any of the
members of Congress had ever studied Roman history, and
suggesting that he might do great things if he could only be
made Dictator for one week.
Meanwhile Washington, unable to risk a battle, was rapidly
retreating through New Jersey. On the 28th of November
Cornwallis advanced upon Newark, and Washington fell
back upon New Brunswick On the first of December, as
Cornwallis reached the latter place, Washington broke down
washing- the bridge over the Raritan, and continued his
into'pe- 8 retreat to Princeton. The terms of service for
syivania which his troops had been enlisted were now be-
ginning to expire, and so great was the discouragement
wrought by the accumulation of disasters which had befallen
the army since the battle of Long Island that many of the
soldiers lost heart in their work Homesickness began to
prevail, especially among the New England troops, and as
their terms expired it was difficult to persuade them to
reenhst. Under these circumstances the army dwindled
fast, until, by the time he reached Princeton, Washington
had but 3,000 men remaining at his disposal. The only
thing to be done was to put the broad stream of the Dela-
ware between himself and the enemy, and this he accom-
plished by the 8th, carrying over all his guns and stores,
and seizing or destroying every boat that could be found on
that great river for many miles in either direction. When
the British arrived, on the evening of the same day, they
found it impossible to cross. Cornwallis was eager to col-
lect a flotilla of boats as soon as practicable, and push on to
Philadelphia, but Howe, who had just joined him, thought
it hardly worth while to take so much trouble, as the river
1776 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 235
would be sure to freeze over before many days. So the
army was posted with front somewhat too far extended
along the east bank, with its centre at Trenton, under
Colonel Rahl, and while they waited for that "snap" of
intensely cold weather, which in this climate seldom fails to
come on within a few days of Christmas, Howe and Corn-
wallis both went back to New York.
Meanwhile, on the 2d of December, Lee had at last
crossed the Hudson with a force diminished to 4,000 men,
and had proceeded by slow marches as far as Morristown
Further reinforcements were at hand General Schuyler,
in command of the army which had retreated the last sum-
mer from Canada, was guarding the forts on Lake Cham-
plain ; and as these appeared to be safe for the present, he
detached seven regiments to go to the aid of Washington
As soon as Lee heard of the arrival of three of Remforce-
these regiments at Peekskill, he ordered them to
join him at Morristown As the other four, under
General Gates, were making their way through northern
New Jersey, doubts arose as to where they should find
Washington in the course of his swift retreat. Gates sent
his aid, Major Wilkinson, forward for instructions, and he,
learning that Washington had withdrawn into Pennsylvania,
reported to Lee at Morristown, as second in command
Lee had left his army in charge of Sullivan, and had
foolishly taken up his quarters at an unguarded tavern about
four miles from the town, where Wilkinson found him in
bed on the morning of the I3th After breakfast Lee
wrote a confidential letter to Gates, as to a kindred Fortu-
spirit from whom he might expect to get sympathy. ^Ameri-
Ternble had been the consequences of the disas- *i * he
ter at Fort Washington. "There never was so capture
damned a stroke," said the letter. " Entire no^t,s > a Lee* Dec
certain great man is most damnably deficient. He I3
has thrown me into a situation where I have my choice of
difficulties. If I stay in this province I nsk myself and
army, and if I do not stay the province is lost forever. . . .
OPERATIONS IN NEW YORK
AND NEW JERSEY, 1776 AND 1777
238 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP v
Our counsels have been weak to the last degree. As to
yourself, if you think you can be in time to aid the general,
I would have you by all means go. You will at least save
your army. . . . Adieu, my dear friend. God bless you "
Hardly had he signed his name to this scandalous document
when Wilkinson, who was standing at the window, exclaimed
that the British were upon them Sure enough A Tory
in the neighbourhood, discerning the golden opportunity,
had galloped eighteen miles to the British lines, and returned
with a party of thirty dragoons, who surrounded the house
and captured the vainglorious schemer before he had time
to collect his senses. Bareheaded, and dressed only in a
flannel gown and slippers, he was mounted on Wilkinson's
horse, which stood waiting at the door, and was carried off,
amid much mirth and exultation, to the British camp.
Crest-fallen and bewildered, he expressed a craven hope
that his life might be spared, but was playfully reminded
that he would very likely be summarily dealt with as a
deserter from the British army , and with this scant comfort
he was fain to content himself for some weeks to come.
The capture of General Lee was reckoned by the people
as one more in the list of dire catastrophes which made the
present season the darkest moment in the whole course of
the war. Had they known all that we know now, they
would have seen that the army was well rid of a worthless
mischief-maker, while the history of the war had gained a
curiously picturesque episode Apart from this incident
there was cause enough for the gloom which now over-
spread the whole country. Washington had been forced to
seek shelter behind the Delaware with a handful of men,
whose terms of service were soon to expire, and another
fortnight might easily witness the utter dispersal of this
poor little army At Philadelphia, where Putnam was now
The times * n comman 4 there was a general panic, and peo-
that tned pie began hiding their valuables and moving their
men's souls - , , , . , _.
wives and children out into the country. Con-
gress took fright, and retired to Baltimore. At the begin-
1776 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 239
ning of December, Lord Howe and his brother had issued
a proclamation offering pardon and protection to all citizens
who within sixty days should take the oath of allegiance to
the British Crown , and in the course of ten days nearly
three thousand persons, many of them wealthy and of high
standing in society, had availed themselves of this promise.
The British soldiers and the Tories considered the contest
virtually ended General Howe was compared with Caesar,
who came, and saw, and conquered For his brilliant suc-
cesses he had been made a Knight Commander of the Bath,
and New York was to become the scene of merry Christmas
festivities on the occasion of his receiving the famous red
ribbon. In his confidence that Washington's strength was
quite exhausted, he detached a considerable force from the
army in New Jersey, and sent it, under Lord Percy, to take
possession of Newport as a convenient station for British
ships entering the Sound. Donop and Rahl with their Hes-
sians and Grant with his hardy Scotchmen would now quite
suffice to destroy the remnant of Washington's army, and
Cornwalhs accordingly packed his portmanteaus and sent
them aboard ship, intending to sail for England as soon as
the fumes of the Christmas punch should be duly slept off
Well might Thomas Paine declare, in the first of the
series of pamphlets entitled "The Crisis/' which he now
began to publish, that " these are the times that try men's
souls." But in the midst of the general despondency there
were a few brave hearts that had not yet begun to despair,
and the bravest of these was Washington's At this awful
moment the whole future of America, and of all washing-
that America signifies to the world, rested upon JJJJ'J
that single Titanic will. Cruel defeat and yet more stnke **
cruel treachery, enough to have crushed the strongest, could
not crush Washington. All the lion in him was aroused,
and his powerful nature was aglow with passionate resolve.
His keen eye already saw the elements of weakness in
Howe's too careless disposition of his forces on the east
bank of the Delaware, and he had planned for his antagonist
240 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP v
such a Christmas greeting as he little expected Just at
this moment Washington was opportunely reinforced by
Sullivan and Gates, with the troops lately under Lee's com-
mand ; and with his little army thus raised to 6,000 men,
he meditated such a stroke as might revive the drooping
spirits of his countrymen, and confound the enemy in the
very moment of his fancied triumph.
Washington's plan was, by a sudden attack, to overwhelm
GEORGE WASHINGTON (BY TRUMBULL)
the British centre at Trenton, and thus force the army to
retreat upon New York The Delaware was to be crossed
in three divisions. The right wing, of 2,000 men, under
Gates, was to attack Count Donop at Burlington ; Ewing,
with the centre, was to cross directly opposite Trenton;
1776 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 241
while Washington himself, with the left wing, was to cross
nine miles above, and march down upon Trenton from the
north. On Christmas Day all was ready, but the begin-
nings of the enterprise were not auspicious. Gates, who
preferred to go and intrigue in Congress, succeeded in
begging off, and started for Baltimore. Cadwalader, who
took his place, tried hard to get his men and artillery across
the river, but was baffled by the huge masses of floating
ice, and reluctantly gave up the attempt. Ewing was so
discouraged that he did not even try to cross, and both
officers took it for granted that Washington must Re CTosses
be foiled in like manner. But Washington was the Deia-
desperately in earnest, and although at sunset,
just as he had reached his crossing-place, he was informed
by special messenger of the failure of Ewing and Cadwal-
ader, he determined to go on and make the attack with the
2,500 men whom he had with him The great blocks of
ice, borne swiftly along by the powerful current, made the
passage extremely dangerous, but Glover, with his skilful
fishermen of Marblehead, succeeded in ferrying the little
army across without the loss of a man or a gun. More
than ten hours were consumed in the passage, and then
there was a march of nine miles to be made in a blinding
storm of snow and sleet. They pushed rapidly on in two
columns, led by Greene and Sullivan respectively,
drove in the enemy's pickets at the point of the
bayonet, and entered the town by different roads Trenton,
soon after sunnse. Washington's guns were at
once planted so as to sweep the streets, and after Colonel
Rahl and seventeen of his men had been slain, the whole
body of Hessians, 1,000 in number, surrendered at discre-
tion. Of the Americans, two were frozen to death on the
march, and two were killed in the action. By noon of the
next day Cadwalader had crossed the river to Burlington,
but no sooner had Donop heard what had happened at
Trenton than he retreated by a circuitous route to Prince-
ton, leaving behind all his sick and wounded soldiers, and
242 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
all his heavy arms and baggage. Washington recrossed
into Pennsylvania with his prisoners, but again advanced,
and occupied Trenton on the 2gth
When the news of the catastrophe reached New York,
Cornwall* the hotiday feasting was rudely disturbed. Instead
comes up O f embarking for England, Cornwallis rode post-
to retrieve / r i TV ,
the disas- haste to Princeton, where he found Donop throw-
ter ing up earthworks On the morning of January
2d Cornwallis advanced, with 8,000 men, upon Trenton, but
his march was slow and painful He was exposed during
most of the day to a galling fire from parties of riflemen
hidden in the woods by the roadside, and Greene, with
a force of 600 men and two field-pieces, contrived so to
harass and delay him that he did not reach Trenton till
late in the afternoon. By that time Washington had with-
drawn his whole force beyond the Assunpink, a small river
which flows into the Delaware ]ust south of Trenton, and
had guarded the bridge and the fords by batteries admirably
placed. The British made several attempts to cross, but
were repulsed with some slaughter ; and as their day's work
had sorely fatigued them, Cornwallis thought best to wait
until to-morrow, while he sent his messenger post-haste
back to Princeton to bring up a force of nearly 2,000 men
and thinks which he had left behind there. With this added
dowfthe 11 strength he felt sure that he could force the pas-
old fox" sa g e O f the stream above the American position,
when by turning Washington's right flank he could fold him
back against the Delaware, and thus compel him to sur-
render. Cornwallis accordingly went to bed in high spirits.
"At last we have run down the old fox," said he, " and we
will bag him m the morning."
The situation was indeed a very dangerous one ; but when
the British general called his antagonist an old fox, he did
But Wash- him no more than justice. In its union of slyness
prepares a W1 ^ 1 audacity, the movement which Washington
checkmate ^ ow executed strongly reminds one of "Stone-
wall " Jackson. He understood perfectly well what Corn-
Washington crossing the Delaware
1777
FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE
243
LORD CORNWALLIS
wallis intended to do , but he
knew at the same time that
detachments of the British
army must have been left be-
hind at Princeton and New
Brunswick to guard the stores.
From the size of the army be-
fore him he rightly j udged that
these rear detachments must
be too small to withstand his
own force. By overwhelming
one or both of them, he could
compel Cornwallis to retreat
upon New York, while he him-
self might take up an impregnable position on the heights
about Morristown, from which he might threaten the British
line and hold their whole army in check, a most brilliant
and daring scheme for a commander to entertain while in
such a perilous position as Washington was that night ' But
the manner in which he began by extricating himself was
not the least brilliant part of the manoeuvre All night long
the American camp-fires were kept burning brightly, and
small parties were busily engaged in throwing up intrench-
ments so near the Assunpink that the Bntish sentinels
could plainly hear the murmur of their voices and the thud
of the spade and pickaxe. While this was going on, the
whole American army marched swiftly up the south bank
of the little stream, passed around Cornwallis's left wing to
his rear, and gained the road to Princeton. Toward sun-
rise, as the British detachment was coming down the road
from Princeton to Trenton, in obedience to Cornwallis's
order, its van, under Colonel Mawhood, met the foremost
column of Americans approaching, under General Mercer.
As he caught sight of the Americans, Mawhood thought
that they must be a party of fugitives, and hastened to
intercept them , but he was soon undeceived. The Ameri-
cans attacked with vigour, and a sharp fight was sustained,
244 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
with varying fortunes, until Mercer was pierced by a bay-
and agam onet > an( * ^ s men began to fall back in some con-
severs the fusion. Just at this critical moment Washington
British line ,, . ,/*., -, ,,.-,,
at Prince- came galloping upon the field and rallied the troops,
ton, jan 3 an ^ ^ entire forces on both sides had now
come up the fight became general In a few minutes the
British were routed and their line was cut in two ; one half
fleeing toward Trenton, the other half toward New Bruns-
wick. There was little slaughter, as the whole fight did not
occupy more than twenty minutes The British lost about
200 in killed and wounded, with 300 prisoners and their
cannon ; the American loss was less than 100.
Shortly before sunnse, the men who had been left in the
camp on the Assunpink to feed the fires and make a noise
beat a hasty retreat, and found their way to Princeton by
circuitous paths. When Cornwallis got up, he could hardly
believe his eyes. Here was nothing before him but an
empty camp: the American army had vanished, and whither
it had gone he could not imagine But his perplexity was
1777 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 245
soon relieved by the booming of distant cannon on the
Princeton road, and the game which the "old fox" had
played him all at once became apparent Nothing Gen erai
was to be done but to retreat upon New Bruns- gjj^^
wick with all possible haste, and save the stores toward
there His road led back through Princeton, and NewYork
from Mawhood's fugitives he soon heard the story of the
morning's disaster His march was hindered by various
impediments A thaw had set in, so that the little streams
had swelled into roaring torrents, difficult to ford, and the
American army, which had passed over the road before day-
break, had not forgotten to destroy the bridges. By the
time that Cornwallis and his men reached Princeton, wet
and weary, the Americans had already left it, but they had
not gone on to New Brunswick Washington had hoped to
seize the stores there, but the distance was eighteen miles,
his men were wretchedly shod and too tired to march rap-
idly, and it would not be prudent to risk a general engage-
ment whfen his main purpose could be secured without
one. For these reasons, Washington turned northward to
the heights of Mornstown, while Cornwallis continued his
retreat to New Brunswick. A few days later, Putnam
advanced from Philadelphia and occupied Princeton, thus
forming the right wing of the American army, of which the
main body lay at Morristown, while Heath's division on the
Hudson constituted the left wing Various cantonments
were established along this long line On the 5th, George
Clinton, coming down from Peekskill, drove the British out
of Hackensack and occupied it, while on the same day a
detachment of German mercenaries at Springfield was
routed by a body of militia. Elizabethtown was then taken
by General Maxwell, whereupon the British retired from
Newark.
Thus in a brief campaign of three weeks Washington had
rallied the fragments of a defeated and broken army, fought
two successful battles, taken nearly 2,000 prisoners, and
recovered the state of New Jersey He had cancelled the
246 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
disastrous effects of Lee's treachery, and replaced things
apparently in the condition in which the fall of Fort Wash-
ington had left them. Really he had done much more than
this, for by assuming the offensive and winning
completely victories through sheer force of genius, he had
tumed completely turned the tide of popular feeling. The
British generals began to be afraid of him, while on the
other hand his army began to grow by the accession of fresh
recruits. In New Jersey, the enemy retained nothing but
New Brunswick, Amboy, and Paulus Hook.
On the 25th of January Washington issued a proclama-
tion declaring that all persons who had accepted Lord Howe's
offer of protection must either retire within the British lines
or come forward and take the oath of allegiance to the
United States. Many narrow-minded people, who did not
look with favour upon a close federation of the states, com-
mented severely upon the form of this proclamation : it was
too national, they said But it proved effective However
lukewarm may have been the interest which many of the
Jersey people felt in the war when their soil was first in-
vaded, the conduct of the British troops had been such that
every one now looked upon them as enemies They had
foraged indiscriminately upon friend and foe ; they had set
fire to farmhouses, and in one or two instances murdered
peaceful citizens The wrath of the people had waxed so
hot that it was not safe for the British to stir beyond their
narrow lines except in considerable force Their foraging
parties were waylaid and cut off by bands of yeomanry, and
so sorely were they harassed in their advanced position at
New Brunswick that they often suffered from want of
food. Many of the German mercenaries, caring nothing
for the cause in which they had been forcibly enlisted,
began deserting; and in this they were encouraged by
Congress, which issued a manifesto in German, making a
liberal offer of land to any foreign soldier who should
leave the British service. This little document was inclosed
in the wrappers m which packages of tobacco were sold,
1777 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 247
and every now and then some canny smoker accepted the
offer.
Washington's position at Morristown was so strong that
there was no hope of dislodging him, and the snow-blocked
roads made the difficulties of a winter campaign so great
that Howe thought best to wait for warm weather before
doing anything more While the British arms were thus
held in check, the friends of America, both in England and
on the continent of Europe, were greatly encouraged. From
this moment Washington was regarded in Europe as a first-
rate general Military critics who were capable of washmg-
understanding his movements compared his bnl- g rb
Kant achievements with his slender resources, and generalship
discovered in him genius of a high order. Men began to call
him "the American Fabius ; " and this epithet was so pleas-
ing to his fellow-countrymen, in that pedantic age, that it
clung to him for the rest of his life, and was repeated in
newspapers and speeches and pamphlets with wearisome
iteration Yet there was something more than Fabian in
Washington's generalship For wariness he has never been
surpassed, yet, as Colonel Stedman observed, in his ex-
cellent contemporary history of the war, the most remark-
able thing about Washington was his courage. It would be
hard indeed to find more striking examples of audacity than
he exhibited at Trenton and Princeton. Lord Cornwallis
was no mean antagonist, and no one was a better judge of
what a commander might be expected to do with a given
stock of resources. His surprise at the Assunpink was so
great that he never got over it After the surrender at
Yorktown, it is said that his lordship expressed to Washing-
ton his generous admiration for the wonderful skill which
had suddenly hurled an army four hundred miles, from the
Hudson river to the James, with such precision and such
deadly effect "But after all," he added, "your excellency's
achievements in New Jersey were such that nothing could
surpass them " The man who had turned the tables on
him at the Assunpink he could well believe to be capable of
anything
248
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. V
In England the effect of the campaign was very serious.
Not long before, Edmund Burke had despondingly remarked
that an army which was always obliged to refuse battle
could never expel the invaders , but now the case wore a
different aspect. Sir William Howe had not so much to
show for his red ribbon, after all. He had taken New York,
and dealt many heavy blows with his overwhelming force,
unexpectedly aided by foul play on the American side ; but
as for crushing Washington and ending the war, he seemed
farther from it than ever. It would take another campaign
to do this, perhaps many. Lord North, who had little
heart for the war at any time, was discouraged, while the
king and Lord George Germain were furious with disap-
pointment. "It was that unhappy affair of Trenton/' ob-
served the latter, "that blasted our hopes."
In France the interest in American affairs grew rapidly.
Louis XVI. had no love for Americans or for rebels, but
revenge for the awful disasters of 1758 and 1759 was dear
1777 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 249
to the French heart. France felt toward England then as
she feels toward Germany now, and so long ago as the time
of the Stamp Act, Baron Kalb had been sent on a secret
mission to America, to find out how the people regarded the
British government. The policy of the French ministry
was aided by the romantic sympathy for America which was
felt in polite society. Never perhaps have the opinions cur-
rent among fashionable ladies and gentlemen been so directly
controlled by philosophers and scholars as in France during
the latter half of the eighteenth century. Never perhaps
have men of letters exercised such mighty influence over
their contemporaries as Voltaire, with his noble enthusi-
asm for humanity, and Rousseau, with his startling political
paradoxes, and the writers of the " Encyclopedic, " with
their revelations of new points of view in science and in
history. To such men as these, and to such profound polit-
ical thinkers as Montesquieu and Turgot, the preservation
of English liberty was the hope of the world, but they
took little interest in the British crown or in the imperial
supremacy of Parliament. All therefore sympathized with
the Americans and urged on the policy which the court
for selfish reasons was inclined to pursue. Vergennes, the
astute minister of foreign affairs, had for some time been
waiting for a convenient opportunity to take part in the
struggle, but as yet he had contented himself with furnish-
ing secret assistance. For
more than a year he had
been intriguing, through
Beaumarchais, the famous
author of "Figaro," with
Arthur Lee (a brother of
Richard Henry Lee), who
had long served in London as agent for Virginia. Just
before the Declaration of Independence Vergennes sent
over a million dollars to aid the American cause Soon
afterwards Congress sent Silas Deane to Paris, and presently
ordered Arthur Lee to join him there. In October Frank-
25
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. V
lin was also sent over, and the three were appointed com-
missioners for making a treaty of alliance with France
The arrival of Franklin was the occasion of great excite-
ment in the fashionable world of Paris By thinkers like
Diderot and D'Alembert
he was regarded as the
embodiment of practical
wisdom To many he
seemed to sum up in him-
self the excellences of the
American cause, justice,
good sense, and modera-
tion. Voltaire spoke quite
unconsciously of the Amer-
ican army as "Franklin's
troops.' 1 It was Turgot
who said of him, in a line
which is one of the finest
modern specimens of epi-
grammatic Latin, " Eripuit
coelo fulmen, sceptrumque
tyrannis." As symbolizing the liberty for which all France
was yearning, he was greeted with a popular enthusiasm
such as perhaps no Frenchman except Voltaire has ever
called forth As he passed along the streets, the shopkeep-
ers rushed to their doors to catch a glimpse of him, while
curious idlers crowded the sidewalk The charm of his
majestic and venerable figure seemed heightened by the
republican simplicity of his plain brown coat, over the
shoulders of which his long gray hair fell carelessly, inno-
cent of queue or powder. His portrait was hung in the
shop-windows and painted in miniature on the covers of
snuff-boxes. Gentlemen wore " Franklin " hats, ladies' kid
gloves were dyed of a "Franklin" hue, and ff0/*/f/to A la
Frankhn were served at fashionable dinners.
As the first fruits of Franklin's negotiations, the French
government agreed to furnish two million livres a year, in
1777
FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
quarterly instalments, to assist the American cause. Three
ships, laden with military stores, were sent over to America :
one was captured by a British cruiser, but the other two
arrived safely The Americans were allowed to fit out
privateers in French ports, and even to bring in and sell
their prizes there Besides this a million livres were ad-
vanced to the commissioners on account of a quantity of
tobacco which they agreed to send in exchange. Further
than this France was not yet ready to go. The British
252 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
ambassador had already begun to protest against the viola-
tion of neutrality involved in the departure of privateers,
and France was not willing to run the risk of open war with
England until it should become clear that the Americans
would prove efficient allies. The king, moreover, sympa-
thized with George III , and hated the philosophers whose
opinions swayed the French people; and in order to ac-
complish anything in behalf of the Americans he had to be
coaxed or bullied at every step
But though the French government was not yet ready to
send troops to America, volunteers were not wanting who
cast in their lot with us through a purely disinterested
enthusiasm. At a dinner party in Metz, the Marquis de
Lafayette, then a boy of nineteen, heard the news from
America, and instantly resolved to leave his pleasant home
and offer his services to Washington He fitted up a ship
at his own expense, loaded it with military stores furnished
by Beaumarchais, and set sail from Bordeaux on the 26th
of April, taking with him Kalb and eleven other officers.
While Marie Antoinette applauded his generous self-devo-
tion, the king forbade him to go, but he disregarded the
order. His young wife, whom he deemed it prudent to
leave behind, he consoled with the thought that the future
welfare of all mankind was at stake in the struggle for con-
stitutional liberty which was going on in America, and that
where he saw a chance to be useful it was his duty to go.
The able Polish officers, Pulaski and Kosciuszko, had come
some time before.
During the winter season at Morristown, Washington was
busy in endeavouring to recruit and reorganize the army.
Up to this time the military preparations of Congress had
been made upon a ludicrously inadequate scale. There had
been no serious attempt to create a regular army, but squads
of militia had been enlisted for terms of three or six months,
as if there were any likelihood of the war being ended within
such a period. The rumour of Lord Howe's olive-branch
policy may at first have had something to do with this, and
1777 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 253
even after the Declaration of Independence had made further
temporizing impossible, there were many who expected
Washington to perform miracles and thought that by some
crushing blow the invaders might soon be brought to terms.
But the events of the autumn had shown that the struggle
was likely to prove long and desperate, and there could be
no doubt as to the imperative need of a regular army. To
provide such an army was, however, no easy task. The
Continental Congress was little more than an advisory body
of delegates, and it was questionable how far it could exer-
254 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
cise authority except as regarded the specific points which
the constituents of these delegates had in view when they
chose them. Congress could only recommend to the dif-
ferent states to raise their respective quotas of 'men, and
each state gave heed to such a request according to its
ability or its inclination All over the country there was
then, as always, a deep-rooted prejudice against standing
armies Even to-day, with our population of seventy mil-
lions, a proposal to increase our regular army to fifty thou-
sand men, for the more efficient police of the Indian districts
in Arizona and Montana, has been greeted by the press with
tirades about military despotism A century ago this feeling
was naturally much stronger than it is to-day The presence
of standing armies in this country had done much toward
bringing on the Revolution; and it was not until it had
become evident that we must either endure the king's regu-
lars or have regulars of our own that the people could be
made to adopt the latter alternative Under the influence
of these feelings, the state militias were enlisted for very
short terms, each under its local officers, so that they re-
semblefd a group of little allied armies Such methods were
fatal to military discipline Such soldiers as had remained
in the army ever since it first gathered itself together on
the day of Lexington had now begun to learn something of
military discipline , but it was impossible to maintain it in
the face of the much greater number who kept coming and
going at intervals of three months. With such fluctuations
in strength, moreover, it was difficult to carry out any series
of military operations The Christmas night when Wash-
ington crossed the Delaware was the most critical moment
of his career , for the terms of service of the greater part
of his little army expired on New Year's Day, and but for
the success at Trenton, they would almost certainly have
disbanded. But in the exultant mood begotten of this vic-
tory, they were persuaded to remain for some weeks longer,
thus enabling Washington to recover the state of New Jer-
sey. So low had the public credit sunk, at this season of
1777 * FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 255
disaster, that Washington pledged his private fortune for
the payment of these men, in case Congress should be found
wanting , and his example was followed by the gallant John
Stark and other officers. Except for the sums raised by
Robert Morris of Philadelphia, even Washington could not
have saved the country
Another source of weakness was the intense dislike and
jealousy with which the militia of the different states re-
garded each other. Their alliance against the common
enemy had hitherto done little more toward awakening a
cordial sympathy between the states than the alliance of
256 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP v
Athenians with Lacedaemonians against the Great King ac-
complished toward ensuring peace and good-will throughout
the Hellenic world Politically the men of Virginia had
thus far acted in remarkable harmony with the men of New
England, but socially there was little fellowship between
them. In those days of slow travel the plantations of Vir-
ginia were much more remote from Boston than they now
are from London, and the generalizations which the one
people used to make about the other were, if possible, even
more crude than those which Englishmen and Americans
are apt to make about each other at the present day In
the stately elegance of the Virginian country mansion it
seemed right to sneer at New England merchants and
farmers as "shopkeepers" and "peasants," while many peo-
ple in Boston regarded Virginian planters as mere Squire
Westerns. Between the eastern and the middle states, too,
there was much ill-will, because of theological differences
and boundary disputes The Puritan of New Hampshire
had not yet made up his quarrel with the Churchman of
New York concerning the ownership of the Green Moun-
tains ; and the wrath of the Pennsylvania Quaker waxed hot
against the Puritan of Connecticut who dared claim jurisdic-
tion over the valley of Wyoming. We shall find such ani-
mosities bearing bitter fruit in personal squabbles among
soldiers and officers, as well as in removals and appointments
of officers for reasons which had nothing to do with their
military competence. Even in the highest ranks of the
army and in Congress these local prejudices played their
part and did no end of mischief.
From the outset Washington had laboured with Congress
to take measures to obviate these alarming difficulties. In
the midst of his retreat through the Jerseys he declared that
" short enlistments and a mistaken dependence upon militia
have been the origin of all our misfortunes," and at the same
time he recommended that a certain number of battalions
should be raised directly by the United States, comprising
volunteers drawn indiscriminately from the several states,
L <rr-v)fiiu4
1777 FIRST BLOW AT THE CENTRE 257
These measures were adopted by Congress, and at the same
time Washington was clothed with almost dictatorial powers
It was decided that the army of state troops should be in-
creased to 66,000 men, divided into eighty-eight battalions,
of which Massachusetts and Virginia were each to contribute
fifteen, "Pennsylvania twelve, North Carolina nine, Con-
necticut eight, South Carolina six, New York and New
Jersey four each, New Hampshire and Maryland three each,
Rhode Island two, Delaware and Georgia each one " The
actual enlistments fell very far short of this number of men,
and the proportions assigned by Congress, based upon the
population of the several states, were never heeded The
men now enlisted were to serve during the war, and were to
receive at the end a hundred acres of land each as bounty.
Colonels were to have a bounty of five hundred acres, and
inferior officers were to receive an intermediate quantity.
Even with these offers it was found hard to persuade men
to enlist for the war, so that it was judged best to allow the
recruit his choice of serving for three years and going home
empty-handed, or staying till the war should end m the hope
of getting a new farm for one of his children. All this
enlisting was to be done by the several states, which were
also to clothe and arm their recruits, but the money for their
equipments, as well as for the payment and support of the
troops, was to be furnished by Congress. Officers were to
be selected by the states, but formally commissioned by
Congress. At the same time Washington was authorized
to raise sixteen battalions of infantry, containing 12,000
men, three regiments of artillery, 3,000 light cavalry, and a
corps of engineers. These forces were to be enlisted under
Washington's direction, in the name of the United States,
and were to be taken indiscriminately from all parts of the
country. Their officers were to be appointed by Washing-
ton, who was furthermore empowered to fill all vacancies
and remove any officer below the rank of brigadier-general
in any department of the army. Washington was also au-
thorized to take whatever private property might anywhere
258 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, v
be needed for the army, allowing a fair compensation to the
owners ; and he was instructed to arrest at his own discre-
tion, and hold for trial by the civil courts, any person who
should refuse to take the continental paper money, or other-
wise manifest a want of sympathy with the American cause.
These extraordinary powers, which at the darkest moment
of the war were conferred upon Washington for a period of
six months, occasioned much grumbling, but it does not
appear that any specific difficulty ever arose through the
way in which they were exercised. It would be as hard,
perhaps, to find any strictly legal justification for the crea-
tion of a Continental army as it would be to tell just where
the central government of the United States was to be
found at that time Strictly speaking, no central govern-
ment had as yet been formed. No articles of confederation
had yet been adopted by the states, and the authority of the
Continental Congress had been in nowise defined. It was
generally felt, however, that the Congress now sitting had
been chosen for the purpose of representing the states in
their relations to the British crown. This Congress had
been expressly empowered to declare the states independent
of Great Bntain, and to wage war for the purpose of making
good its declaration And it was accordingly felt that Con-
gress was tacitly authorized to take such measures as were
absolutely needful for the maintenance of the struggle. The
enlistment of a Continental force was therefore an act done
under an implied "war power," something like the power
invoked at a later day to justify the edict by which President
Lincoln emancipated the slaves. The thoroughly English
political genius of the American people teaches them when
and how to tolerate such anomalies, and has more than once
enabled them safely to cut the Gordian knot which mere
logic could not untie if it were to fumble till doomsday. In
the second year after Lexington the American common-
wealths had already entered upon the path of their " mani-
fest destiny," and were becoming united into one political
body faster than the people could distinctly realize.
CHAPTER VI
SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE
EVER since the failure of the American invasion of Can-
ada, it had been the intention of Sir Guy Carleton, in
accordance with the wishes of the ministry, to invade New
York by way of Lake Champlam, and to secure the Mohawk
valley and the upper waters of the Hudson. The summer
of 1776 had been employed by Carleton m getting Carf
together a fleet with which to obtain control of m^ades n
the lake. It was an arduous task Three large NewYork
vessels were sent over from England, and proceeded up the
St Lawrence as far as the rapids, where they were taken
to pieces, carried overland to St John's, and there put
together again Twenty gunboats and more than two hun-
dred flat-bottomed transports were built at Montreal, and
manned with 700 picked seamen and gunners; and upon
this flotilla Carleton embarked his army of 12,000 men.
To oppose the threatened invasion, Benedict Arnold had
been working all the summer with desperate energy In
June the materials for his navy were growing m the forests
of Vermont, while his carpenters with their tools, his sail-
makers with their canvas, and his gunners with their guns had
mostly to be brought from the coast towns of Connecticut
and Massachusetts. By the end of September he had built
a little fleet of three schooners, two sloops, three galleys,
and eight gondolas, and fitted it out with seventy guns and
such seamen and gunners as he could get together. With
this flotilla he could not hope to prevent the ad- Arnold , s
vance of such an overwhelming force as that of the prepara-
enemy. The most he could do would be to worry
and delay it, besides raising the spirits of the people by the
260 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP vi
example of an obstinate and furious resistance To allow
Carleton to reach Ticonderoga without opposition would be
disheartening, whereas by delay and vexation he might hope
to dampen the enthusiasm of the invader With this end
in view, Arnold proceeded down the lake far to the north of
Crown Point, and taking up a strong position between Val-
cour Island and the western shore, so that both his wings
were covered and he could be attacked only in front, he
lay in wait for the enemy. James Wilkinson, who twenty
years afterward became commander-in-chief of the American
army, and survived the second war with England, was then
at Ticonderoga, on Gates's staff. Though personally hostile
to Arnold, he calls attention in his Memoirs to the remark-
able skill exhibited in the disposition of the little fleet at
Valcour Island, which was the same in principle as that by
which Macdonough won his brilliant victory, not far from
the same spot, in 1814.
On the nth of October, Sir Guy Carleton's squadron
approached, and there ensued the first battle fought be-
tween an American and a British fleet. At sundown, after
Battle of a desperate fight of seven hours' duration, the
Sand^oct British withdrew out of range, intending to renew
, 1776 the struggle in the morning Both fleets had suf-
fered severely, but the Americans were so badly cut up
that Carleton expected to force them to surrender the next
day. But Arnold during the hazy night contrived to slip
through the British line with all that was left of his crip-
pled flotilla, and made away for Crown Point with all pos-
sible speed. Though he once had to stop to mend leaks,
and once to take off the men and guns from two gondolas
which were sinking, he nevertheless, by dint of sailing and
kedgmg, got such a start that the enemy did not overtake
him until the next day but one, when he was nearing
Crown Point. While the rest of the fleet, by Arnold's
orders, now crowded sail for their haven, he in his schooner
sustained an ugly fight for four hours with the three largest
British vessels, one of which mounted eighteen twelve-
p
o
3
h
O
s
262 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
pounders. His vessel was wofully cut up, and her deck
covered with dead and dying men, when, having sufficiently
delayed the enemy, he succeeded in running her aground
in a small creek, where he set her on fire, and she perished
gloriously, with her flag flying till the flames brought it
down Then marching through woodland paths to Crown
Point, where his other vessels had now disembarked their
men, he brought away his whole force in safety to Ticon-
deroga When Carleton appeared before that celebrated
fortress, finding it strongly defended, and doubting his
ability to reduce it before the setting in of cold weather,
he decided to take his army back to Canada, satisfied for
the present with having gained control of Lake Champlain.
This sudden retreat of Carleton astonished both friend
and foe. He was blamed for it by his generals, Burgoyne,
Phillips, and Riedesel, as well as by the king; and when
we see how easily the fortress was seized by Phillips in the
following summer, we can hardly doubt that it was a grave
mistake.
Arnold had now won an enviable reputation as the " brav-
est of the brave " In his terrible march through the wil-
derness of Maine, in the assault upon Quebec, and in the
defence of Lake Champlain, he had shown rare heroism
and skill The whole country rang with his praises, and
Washington regarded him as one of the ablest officers in
Congress t ' ie a] y. Yet when Congress now proceeded to
a PP* nt ^ ve new maj or-generals, they selected
brigadiers Stirling, Mifflin, St Clair, Stephen, and Lincoln,
over Ar- A . . . * , . ,.
noid, Feb passing over Arnold, who was the senior brigadier.
19- 1777 None of the generals named could for a moment
be compared with Arnold for ability, and this strange action
of Congress, coming soon after such a brilliant exploit,
naturally hurt his feelings and greatly incensed him. Arnold
was proud and irascible in temper, but on this occasion he
controlled himself manfully, and listened to Washington,
who entreated him not to resign. So astonished was
Washington at the action of Congress that at first he could
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 263
not believe it He thought either that Arnold must really
have received a prior appointment, which for some reason
had not yet been made public, or else that his name must
have been omitted through some unaccountable oversight.
It turned out, however, on further inquiry, that state jeal-
ousies had been the cause of the mischief. The reason
assigned for ignoring Arnold's services was that Connecti-
cut had already two major-generals, and was not m fairness
entitled to any more' But beneath this alleged reason
there lurked a deeper reason, likewise founded in jealousies
between the states The intrigues which soon after dis-
graced the northern army and imperilled the safety of the
country had already begun to bear bitter fruit Since the
beginning of the war, Major-General Philip Schuyler had
been in command of the northern department, with his head-
quarters at Albany, whence his ancestors had a phihp
century before hurled defiance at Frontenac. His Schu y ler
family was one of the most distinguished in New York, and
an inherited zeal for the public service thrilled in every drop
of his blood. No more upright or disinterested man could
be found in America, and for bravery and generosity he
was like the paladin of some mediaeval romance. In spite
of these fine qualities, he was bitterly hated by the New
England men, who formed a considerable portion of his
army. Beside the general stupid dislike which the people
of New York and of New England then felt for each other,
echoes of which are still sometimes heard nowadays, there
was a special reason for the odium which was heaped upon
Schuyler. The dispute over the possession of Vermont had
now raged fiercely for thirteen years, and Schuyler, as a
member of the New York legislature, had naturally been
zealous in urging the claims of his own state. For this
crime the men of New England were never able to forgive
him, and he was pursued with vindictive hatred until his
career as a general was ruined. His orders were obeyed
with sullenness, the worst interpretation was put upon every
one of his acts, and evil-minded busybodies were continually
264 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
pouring into the ears of Congress a stream of tattle, which
gradually wore out their trust in him.
The evil was greatly enhanced by the fact that among
the generals of the northern army there was one envious
creature who was likely to take Schuyler's place in case he
should be ousted from it, and who for so desirable an object
was ready to do any amount of intriguing. The part sus-
tained by Charles Lee with reference to Washington was to
Horatio some extent paralleled here by the part sustained
Gates toward Schuyler by Horatio Gates. There is in-
deed no reason for supposing that Gates was capable of
such baseness as Lee exhibited in his willingness to play
into the hands of the enemy ; nor had he the nerve for such
prodigious treason as that in which Arnold engaged after
his sympathies had become alienated from the American
cause. With all his faults, Gates never incurred the odium
which belongs to a public traitor. But his nature was
thoroughly weak and petty, and he never shrank from false-
hood when it seemed to serve his purpose. Unlike Lee,
he was comely in person, mild in disposition, and courteous
in manner, except when roused to anger or influenced by
spite, when he sometimes became very violent. He never
gave evidence of either skill or bravery ; and in taking part
in the war his only solicitude seems to have been for his
own personal advancement. In the course of his campaign-
ing with the northern army, he seems never once to have
been under fire, but he would incur no end of fatigue to get
a private talk with a delegate in Congress. Like many
others, he took a high position at the beginning of the
struggle simply because he was a vetefkn of the Seven
Years' War, having been one of the officers who were
brought off in safety from the wreck of Braddock's army
by the youthful skill and prowess of Washington. At pres-
ent, and until after the end of the Saratoga campaign, such
reputation as he had was won by appropriating the fame
which was earned by his fellow-generals. He was in com-
mand at Ticonderoga when Arnold performed his venture-
1777
SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE
265
some feat on Lake Champlain, and when Carleton made
his blunder in not attacking the stronghold , and all this
story Gates told to Congress as the story of an advantage
which he had somehow gained over Carleton, at the same
time anxiously inquiring if Congress regarded him, in his
remote position at Ticonderoga, as subject to the orders
of Schuyler at Albany. Finding that he was thus regarded
as subordinate, he became restive, and seized the earliest
opportunity of making a visit to Congress. The retreat of
Carleton enabled Schuyler to send seven regiments to the
relief of Washington in New Jersey, and we have already
seen how Gates, on arriving with this reinforcement, de-
clined to assist personally in the Trenton campaign, and
took the occasion to follow Congress in its retreat to Bal-
timore.
The winter seems to have been spent in intrigue. Knowing
266 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
the chief source of Schuyler's unpopularity, Gates made it a
Gates m- point to declare, as often and as loudly as possible,
tngues * his belief that the state of New York had no title
3,g3JHSt
Schuyier to the Green Mountain country. In this way he
won golden opinions from the people of New England, and
rose high in the good graces of such members of Congress
as Samuel Adams, whose noble nature was slow to perceive
his meanness and duplicity. The failure of the invasion of
Canada had caused much chagrin m Congress, and it was
sought to throw the whole blame of it upon Schuyier for
having, as it was alleged, inadequately supported Montgom-
ery and Arnold. The unjust charge served to arouse a
prejudice in many minds, and during the winter some
irritating letters passed between Schuyier and Congress,
until late in March, 1777, he obtained permission to visit
Philadelphia and vindicate himself On the 22d of May,
after a thorough investigation, Schuyler's conduct received
the full approval of Congress, and he was confirmed in his
command of the northern department, which was expressly
defined as including Lakes George and Champlain, as well
as the valleys of the Hudson and the Mohawk
The sensitive soul of Gates now took fresh offence. He
had been sent back in March to his post at Ticonderoga,
just as Schuyier was starting for Philadelphia, and he flat-
tered himself with the hope that he would soon be chosen
to supersede his gallant commander Accordingly when he
found that Schuyier had been reinstated in all his old com-
mand and honours, he flew into a rage, refused to serve in
a subordinate capacity, wrote an impudent letter to Wash-
Gates visits ington, and at last got permission to visit Congress
congress again ^ whl j e General St Clair was appointed m
his stead to the command of the great northern fortress.
On the iQth of June, Gates obtained a hearing before Con-
gress, and behaved with such unseemly violence that after
being repeatedly called to order, he was turned out of the
room, amid a scene of angry confusion. Such conduct
should naturally have ruined his cause, but he had made so
1777
SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE
267
many powerful friends that by dint of more or less apolo-
getic talk the offence was condoned.
Throughout these bickerings Arnold had been the stead-
fast friend of Schuyler ; and although his brilliant exploits
had won general admiration, he did not fail to catch some of
the odium so plentifully bestowed upon the New York com-
mander In the chaos of disappointment and wrath which
ensued upon the disastrous retreat from Canada in 1776,
when everybody was eager to punish somebody else for the
ill fortune which was solely due to the superior resources of
the enemy, Arnold came in for his share of blame. Charges
No one could find any fault with his military con- agamst
duct, but charges were brought against him on the
ground of some exactions of private property at Montreal
which had been made for the support of the army. A
thorough investigation of the case demonstrated Arnold's
268 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
entire uprightness in the matter, and the verdict of Con-
gress, which declared the charges to be "cruel and un-
just," was indorsed by Washington Nevertheless, in the
manifold complications of feeling which surrounded the
Schuyler trouble, these unjust charges succeeded in arous-
ing a prejudice which may have had something to do with
the slight cast upon Arnold in the appointment of the new
major-generals In the whole course of American history
there are few sadder chapters than this. Among the scan-
dals of this eventful winter we can trace the beginnings of
the melancholy chain of events which by and by resulted in
making the once heroic name of Benedict Arnold a name
of opprobrium throughout the world We already begin to
see, too, originating in Lee's intrigues of the preceding
autumn, and nourished by the troubles growing out of the
Vermont quarrel and the ambitious schemes of Gates, the
earliest germs of that faction which erelong was to seek to
compass the overthrow of Washington himself.
For the present the injustice suffered by Arnold had not
wrought its darksome change in him. A long and com-
plicated series of influences was required to produce that
result To the earnest appeal of Washington that he
should not resign he responded cordially, declaring that no
personal considerations should induce him to stay at home
while the interests of his country were at stake He would
zealously serve under his juniors, who had lately been raised
Tryon's above him, so long as the common welfare was in
danger. An opportunity for active service soon
presented itself Among the preparations for the
coming summer campaign, Sir William Howe thought it
desirable to .cripple the Americans by seizing a large quan-
tity of military stores which had been accumulated at Dan-
bury in Connecticut An expedition was sent out, very
much like that which at Lexington and Concord had ushered
in the war, and it met with a similar reception. A force of
2,000 men, led by the royal governor, Tryon, of North Caro-
lina fame, landed at Fairfield, and marched to Danbury,
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 269
where they destroyed the stores and burned a large part of
the town The militia turned out, as on the day of Lexing-
ton, led by General Wooster, who was slain in the first
skirmish. By this time Arnold, who happened to Amold de _
be visiting his children in New Haven, had heard feats Tryon
of the affair, and came upon the scene with 600 field, 1 April
men. At Ridgefield a desperate fight ensued, in 27 ' I777
which Arnold had two horses killed under him. The British
were defeated. By the time they reached their ships, 200
of their number had been killed or wounded, and, with the
yeomanry swarming on every side, they narrowly escaped
capture. For his share in this action Arnold was made
a major-general, and was presented by Congress with a fine
horse , but nothing was done towards restoring him to his
relative rank, nor was any explanation vouchsafed. Wash-
ington offered him the command of the Hudson at Teekskill,
which was liable to prove one of the important points in the
ensuing campaign ; but Arnold for the moment declined to
take any such position until he should have conferred with
Congress, and fathomed the nature of the difficulties by
which he had been beset ; and so the command of this im-
portant position was given to the veteran Putnam.
The time for the summer campaign was now at hand.
The first year of the independence of the United States was
nearly completed, and up to this time the British had no-
thing to show for their work except the capture of the city
of New York and the occupation of Newport The army of
Washington, which six months ago they had regarded as
conquered and dispersed, still balked and threatened them
from its inexpugnable position on the heights of Morristown.
It was high time that something more solid should be ac-
complished, for every month of adverse possession added
fresh weight to the American cause, and increased the prob-
ability that France would interfere.
A decisive blow was accordingly about to be struck. After
careful study by Lord George Germain, and much consulta-
tion with General Burgoyne, who had returned to England
270
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. VI
The mill-
tary centre
umted
New York
for the winter, it was decided to adhere to the plan of the
preceding year, with slight modifications. The great object
was to secure firm possession of the entire valley of the
Hudson, together with that of the Mohawk It must be
borne in mind that at this time the inhabited part of the
state of New York consisted almost entirely of the Mohawk
and Hudson valleys. All the rest was unbroken wilderness,
save for an occasional fortified trading-post. With a total
population of about 170,000, New York ranked
seventh among the thirteen states; just after
Maryland and Connecticut, just before South Caro-
hna At the same time, the geographical position
Q f j^ ew York, whether from a commercial or from
a military point of view, was as commanding then as it has
ever been. It was thought
that so small a population,
among which there were
known to be many Tories,
might easily be conquered
and the country firmly held
The people of New Jersey
and Pennsylvania were re-
garded as lukewarm sup-
porters of the Declaration
of Independence, and it was
supposed that the conquest
of New York might soon
be followed by the subjec-
tion of these two provinces.
With the British power thus
thrust, like a vast wedge, through the centre of the con-
federacy, it would be impossible for New England to coop-
erate with the southern states, and it was hoped that the
union of the colonies against the Crown would thus be
effectually broken
With this object of conquering New York, we have seen
Carleton, in 1776, approaching through Lake Champlain,
GENERAL BURGONE
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 271
while Howe was wresting Manhattan Island from Washing-
ton. But the plan was imperfectly conceived, and the coop-
eration was feeble How feeble it was is well shown by the
fact that Carleton's ill-judged retreat from Crown Point
enabled Schuyler to send reinforcements to Washington in
time to take part in the great strokes at Trenton and Prince-
ton. Something,
however, had
been accom-
plished. In spite
of Arnold's des-
perate resistance
and Washington's consummate skill, the enemy had gained
a hold upon both the northern and the southern ends of
the long line But this obstinate resistance served to some
extent to awaken the enemy to the arduous character of
the problem The plan was more carefully studied, A second
and it was intended that this time the cooperation s truckat e
should be more effectual In order to take posses- xhe C p?anof
sion of the whole state by one grand system of campaign
operations, it was decided that the invasion should be con-
ducted by three distinct armies operating upon converging
lines. A strong force from Canada was to take Ticonder^
oga, and proceed down the line of the Hudson to Albany.
This force was now to be commanded by General Burgoyne,
while his superior officer, General Carleton, remained at
Quebec. A second and much smaller force, under Colond
St. Leger, was to go up the St. Lawrence to Lake Ontario,
land at Oswego, and, with the aid of Sir John Johnson and
the Indians, reduce Fort Stanwix ; after which he was to
come down the Mohawk valley and unite his forces with
those of Burgoyne At the same time, Sir William Howe
was to ascend the Hudson with the main army, force the
passes of the Highlands at Peekskill, and effect a junction
with Burgoyne at Albany. The junction of the three armies
was expected to complete the conquest of New York, and
to insure the overthrow of American independence.
272 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
Such was the plan of campaign prepared by the ministry.
There can be no doubt that it was carefully studied, or that,
if successful, it would have proved very disastrous to the
Americans. There is room for very grave doubt, however,
as to whether it was the most judicious plan to adopt The
method of invading any country by distinct forces operating
upon converging lines is open to the objection that either
force is liable to be separately overwhelmed without the
possibility of reinforcement from the other. Such
waava^ a plan is prudent only when the invaded country
sound k as g^ roa( j s ^ anc j w hen the invaders have a great
superiority in force, as was the case when the allied armies
advanced upon Paris in 1814 In northern and central New
York, in 1777, the conditions were very unfavourable to such
a plan The distances to be traversed were long, and the
roads were few and bad. Except in the immediate neigh-
bourhood of Albany and Saratoga, the country was covered
with the primeval forest, through which only the trapper
and the savage could make their way with speed. The
Americans, too, had the great advantage of operating upon
interior lines It was difficult for Burgoyne at Fort Edward,
St Leger before Fort Stanwix, and Howe in the city of
New York to communicate with each other at all ; it was
impossible for them to do so promptly; whereas nothing
could be easier than for Washington at Morristown to reach
Putnam at Peekskill, or for Putnam to forward troops to
Schuyler at Albany, or for Schuyler to send out a force to
raise the siege of Fort Stanwix In view of these considera-
tions, it seems probable that Lord George Germain would
have acted more wisely if he had sent Burgoyne with his
army directly by sea to reinforce Sir William Howe The
army thus united, and numbering more than 30,000 men,
would have been really formidable. If they had undertaken
to go up the river to Albany, it would have been hard to
prevent them. If their united presence at Albany was the
great object of the campaign, there was no advantage in
sending one commander to reach it by a difficult and dan-
BURGOVNE'S INVASION OF NEW YORK, JULY-OCTOBER, 1777
274 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
gerous overland march The Hudson is navigable by large
vessels all the way to Albany, and by advancing in this way
the army might have preserved its connections , and what-
ever disaster might have befallen, it would have been diffi-
cult for the Americans to surround and capture so large a
force Once arrived at Albany, the expedition of St. Leger
might have set out from that point as a matter of subse-
quent detail, and would have had a base within easy distance
upon which to fall back in case of defeat
It does not appear, therefore, that there were any advan-
tages to be gained by Burgoyne's advance from the north
which can be regarded as commensurate with the risk which
he incurred To have transferred the northern army from
the St. Lawrence to the Hudson by sea would have been
far easier and safer than to send it through a hundred miles
of wilderness in northern New York ; and whatever it could
have effected in the interior of the state could have been
done as well in the former case as in the latter. But these
considerations do not seem to have occurred to Lord George
Germain. In the wars with the French, the invading
armies from Canada had always come by way of Lake
Champlain, so that this route was accepted without ques-
tion, as if consecrated by long usage Through a similar
association of ideas an exaggerated importance was attached
Germain's to the possession of Ticonderoga The risks of
fatal error ^ enterprise, moreover, were greatly underesti-
mated. In imagining that the routes of Burgoyne and St
Leger would lie through a friendly country, the ministry
fatally misconceived the whole case. There was, indeed, a
powerful Tory party in the country, just as in the days of
Robert Bruce there was an English party in Scotland, just
as in the days of Miltiades there was" a Persian party in
Attika But no one has ever doubted that the victors at
Marathon and at Bannockburn went forth with a hearty
godspeed from their fellow-countrymen ; and the obstinate
resistance encountered by St Leger, within a short dis-
tance of Johnson's Tory stronghold, is an eloquent com-
1777
SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE
275
RUINS OF TICONDEROGA IN
mentary upon the error of the ministry in their estimate of
the actual significance of the loyalist element on the New
York frontier.
It thus appears that in the plan of a triple invasion upon
converging lines the ministry were dealing with too many
unknown quantities They were running a prodi- Too man
gious risk for the sake of an advantage which in unknown
itself was extremely open to question ; for should it quantlties
turn out that the strength of the Tory party was not suffi-
ciently great to make the junction of the three armies at
Albany at once equivalent to the complete conquest of the
state, then the end for which the campaign was undertaken
could not be secured without supplementary campaigns,
Neither a successful march up and down the Hudson river
nor the erection of a chain of British fortresses on that
river could effectually cut off the southern communications
of New England, unless all military resistance were finally
276 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
crushed in the state of New York The surest course for
the British, therefore, would have been to concentrate all
their available force at the mouth of the Hudson, and con-
tinue to make the destruction of Washington's army the
chief object of their exertions. In view of the subtle genius
which he had shown during the last campaign, that would
have been an arduous task ; but, as events showed, they had
to deal with his genius all the same on the plan which they
adopted, and at a great disadvantage
Another point which the ministry overlooked was the
effect of Burgoyne's advance upon the people of New Eng-
land. They could reasonably count upon alarming the yeo-
Danger manry of New Hampshire and Massachusetts by a
England* bold stroke u P on the Hudson, but they failed to
ignored see that this alarm would naturally bring about a
rising that would be very dangerous to the British cause.
Difficult as it was at that time to keep the Continental army
properly recruited, it was not at all difficult to arouse the
yeomanry in the presence of an immediate danger. In the
western parts of New England there were scarcely any
Tories to complicate the matter ; and the flank 'movement
by the New England militia became one of the most for-
midable features in the case.
But whatever may be thought of the merits of Lord
George's plan, there can be no doubt that its success was
absolutely dependent upon the harmonious cooperation of
all the forces involved in it. The ascent of the Hudson by
Sir William Howe, with the main army, was as essential a
part of the scheme as the descent of Burgoyne from the
north; and as the two commanders could not easily com-
municate with each other, it was necessary that both should
be strictly bound by their instructions. At this point a
fatal blunder was made. Burgoyne was expressly directed
to follow the prescribed line down the Hudson, whatever
might happen, until he should effect his junction with the
main army. On the other hand, no such unconditional
orders were received by Howe He understood the plan of
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 277
campaign, and knew that he was expected to ascend the
river in force , but he was left with the usual discretionary
power, and we shall presently see what an impru- The dis-
dent use he made of it. The reasons for this in- S^never
consistency on the part of the ministry were for a sent
long time unintelligible ; but a memorandum of Lord Shel-
burne, lately brought to light by Lord Edmund Fitzmaunce,
has solved the mystery. It seems that a dispatch, contain-
ing positive and explicit orders for Howe to ascend the
Hudson, was duly drafted, and, with many other papers,
awaited the minister's signature Lord George Germain,
being on his way to the country, called at his office to sign
the dispatches ; but when he came to the letter addressed
to General Howe, he found it had not been "fair copied."
Lord George, like the old gentleman who killed himself in
defence of the great principle that crumpets are wholesome,
never would be put out of his way by anything. Unwilling
to lose his holiday, he hurried off to the green meadows of
Kent, intending to sign the letter on his return. But when
he came back the matter had slipped from his mind. The
document on which hung the fortunes of an army, and per-
haps of a nation, got thrust unsigned into a pigeon-hole,
where it was duly discovered some time after the disaster at
Saratoga had become part of history.
Happy in his ignorance of the risks he was assuming,
Burgoyne took the field about the ist of June, with an army
of 7,902 men, of whom 4,135 were British regulars. His
German troops from Brunswick, 3,116 in number, were com-
manded by Baron Riedesel, an able general, whose accom-
plished wife has left us such a picturesque and charming
description of the scenes of this adventurous campaign Of
Canadian militia there were 148, and of Indians 503 The
regular troops, both German and English, were superbly
trained and equipped, and their officers were selected with
especial care. Generals Phillips and Fraser were regarded
as among the best officers in the British service. On the
278 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP vi
second anniversary of Bunker Hill this army began crossing
Burgoyne the lake to Crown Point , and on the ist of July
u^S- ft appeared before Ticonderoga, where St. Clair
conderoga was posted with a garrison of 3,000 men. Since its
capture by Allen, the fortress had been carefully strength-
ened, until it was now believed to be impregnable. But
while no end of time and expense had been devoted to the
fortifications, a neighbouring point which commands the
whole position had been strangely neglected. A little less
than a mile south of Ticonderoga, the narrow mountain ridge
between the two lakes ends abruptly in a bold crag, which
rises 600 feet sheer over the blue water. Practised eyes in
the American fort had already seen that a hostile battery
Phillips planted on this eminence would render their strong-
Knt hld untenable ; but it was not believed that siege-
Defiance guns cou i d be dragged up the steep ascent, and so,
in spite of due warning, the crag had not been secured when
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 279
the British army arrived General Phillips at once saw the
value of the position, and, approaching it by a defile that
was screened from the view of the fort, worked night and
day in breaking out a pathway and dragging up cannon.
" Where a goat can go, a man may go ; and where a man
can go, he can haul up a gun," argued the gallant general.
Great was the astonishment of the garrison when, on the
morning of July $th, they saw red coats swarming on the
hill, which the British, rejoicing in their exploit, now named
Mount Defiance. There were not only red coats there, but
brass cannon, which by the next day would be ready for
work. Ticonderoga had become a trap, from which st clajr
the garrison could not escape too quickly A Sgjjj^
council of war was held, and under cover of night oga, July
St Clair took his little army across the lake and 5 ' im
retreated upon Castleton in the Green Mountains. Such
guns and stores as could be saved, with the women and
wounded men, were embarked in 200 boats, and sent, under
280 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
a strong escort, to the head of the lake, whence they con-
tinued their retreat to Fort Edward on the Hudson. About
three o'clock in the morning a house accidentally took fire,
and in the glare of the flames the British sentinels caught a
glimpse of the American rear-guard ]ust as it was vanishing
in the sombre depths of the forest Alarm guns were fired,
and in less than an hour the British flag was hoisted over
the empty fortress, while General Fraser, with 900 men, had
started in hot pursuit of the retreating Americans. Riedesel
was soon sent to support him, while Burgoyne, leaving nearly
1,000 men to garrison the fort, started up the lake with the
^ . . main body of the army. On the morning of the
Battle of ** i i *
Hubbard- /th, General Fraser overtook the American rear-
ton, July 7 g uar( j Q j^ ooo men ^ un der Colonels Warner and
Francis, at the village of Hubbardton, about six miles be-
hind the mam army A fierce fight ensued, in which Fraser
was worsted, and had begun to fall back, with the loss of
one fifth of his men, when Riedesel came up with his Ger-
mans, and the Americans were put to flight, leaving one
third of their number killed or wounded. This obstinate
resistance at Hubbardton served to check the pursuit, and
five days later St Clair succeeded, without further loss, in
reaching Fort Edward, where he joined the main army under
Schuyler.
Up to this moment, considering the amount of work done
and the extent of country traversed, the loss of the British
had been very small. They began to speak contemptuously
One swai- of their antagonists, and the officers amused them-
not make a selves by laying wagers as to the precise number
summer o f days it would take them to reach Albany. In
commenting on the failure to occupy Mount Defiance, Bur-
goyne made a general statement on the strength of a single
instance, which is the besetting sin of human reasoning.
" It convinces me," said he, " that the Americans have no
men of military science " Yet General Howe at Boston, in
neglecting to occupy Dorchester Heights, had made just
the same blunder, and with less excuse; for no one had
282 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP vi
ever doubted that batteries might be placed there by some-
body.
In England the fall of Ticonderoga was greeted with ex-
The king's Citation, ag the death-blow to the American cause.
glee Horace Walpole tells how the king rushed into
the queen's apartment, clapping his hands and shouting, " I
have beat them ' I have beat all the Americans ' " Peo-
ple began to discuss the best method of reestablishing the
royal governments in the "colonies." In America there
was general consternation St. Clair was greeted with a
storm of abuse. John Adams, then president of
the Board of War, wrote, in the first white heat
Adams rf indignationj we shall never be able to defend
a post till we shoot a general ! " Schuyler, too, as com-
mander of the department, was ignorantly and wildly
blamed, and his political enemies seized upon the occasion
to circulate fresh stories to his discredit A court-martial
in the following year vindicated St Glair's prudence in giving
up an untenable position and saving his army from capture
The verdict was just, but there is no doubt that the failure
to fortify Mount Defiance was a grave error of judgment,
for which the historian may fairly apportion the blame be-
tween St. Clair and Gates It was Gates who had been in
command of Ticonderoga in the autumn of 1776, when an
attack by Carleton was expected, and his attention had been
called 'to this weak point by Colonel Trumbull, whom he
laughed to scorn Gates had again been in command from
March to June St Clair had taken command about three
weeks before Burgoyne's approach ; he had seriously con-
sidered the question of fortifying Mount Defiance, but had
Gates not been sufficiently prompt In no case could
chiefly to any blame attach to Schuyler. Gates was more at
ame fault than any one else, but he did not happen to
be at hand when the catastrophe occurred, and accordingly
people did not associate him with it. On the contrary, amid
the general wrath, the loss of the northern citadel was
alleged as a reason for superseding Schuyler by Gates ; for
1777
SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE
283
if he had been there, it was thought that the disaster would
have been prevented
The irony of events, however, alike ignoring American
consternation and British glee, showed that the capture of
Ticonderoga was not to help the invaders in the least. On
the contrary, it straightway became a burden, for it detained
an eighth part of Burgoyne's force in garrison at a time
when he could ill spare it. Indeed, alarming as his swift
advance had seemed at first, Burgoyne's serious
difficulties were now just beginning, and the harder
he laboured to surmount them the more completely
did he work himself into a position from which it was impos-
begin
284 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
*
sible either to advance or to recede. On the loth of July his
whole army had reached Skeneshorough (now Whitehall),
at the head of Lake Champlain. From this point to Fort
Edward, where the American army was encamped, the dis-
tance was twenty miles as the crow flies ; but Schuyler had
been industriously at work with those humble weapons the
axe and the crowbar, which in warfare sometimes prove
mightier than the sword The roads, bad enough at their
best, were obstructed every few yards by huge trunks of
fallen trees, that lay with their boughs interwoven. Wher-
ever the little streams could serve as aids to the march, they
were choked up with stumps and stones; wherever they
served as obstacles which needed to be crossed, the bridges
were broken down. The country was such an intricate laby-
rinth of creeks and swamps that more than forty bridges
had to be rebuilt in the course of the march. Under these
circumstances, Burgoyne's advance must be regarded as a
marvel of celerity He accomplished a mile a day, and
reached Fort Edward on the 3Oth of July.
In the mean time Schuyler had crossed the Hudson, and
Schuyler slowly fallen back to Stillwater. For this retro-
ratS y Fort" g ra <i e movement fresh blame was visited upon him
Edward by the general public, which at all times is apt to
suppose that a war should mainly consist of bloody battles,
and which can seldom be made to understand the strategic
value of a retreat. The facts of the case were also misun-
derstood. Fort Edward was supposed to be an impregnable
stronghold, whereas it was really commanded by highlands.
The Marquis de Chastellux, who visited it somewhat later,
declared that it could be taken at any time by 500 men
with four siege-guns Now for fighting purposes an open
field is much better than an untenable fortress. If Schuyler
had stayed m Fort Edward, he would probably have been
forced to surrender ; and his wisdom in retreating is further
shown by the fact that every moment of delay counted in
his favour The militia of New York and New England
were already beating to arms. Some of those yeomen who
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 285
were with the army were allowed to go home for the har-
vest , but the loss was more than made good by the numer-
ous levies which, at Schuyler's suggestion and by Washing-
ton's orders, were collecting under General Lincoln in.
Vermont, for the purpose of threatening Burgoyne in the
rear. The people whose territory was invaded Enemies
grew daily more troublesome to the enemy. Bur- gathering
goyne had supposed that it would be necessary goyne's
only to show himself at the head of an army, when rear
the people would rush by hundreds to offer support or seek
protection. He now found that the people withdrew from
his line of advance, driving their cattle before them, and
seeking shelter, when possible, within the lines of the
American army. In his reliance upon the aid of New York
loyalists, he was utterly disappointed , very few Tories joined
him, and these could offer neither sound advice nor personal
influence wherewith to help him. When the yeomanry
collected by hundreds, it was only to vex him and retard
his progress.
Even had the loyalist feeling on the Vermont frontier of
New York been far stronger than it really was, Burgoyne
had done much to alienate or stifle it by his ill-ad- Uge of In _
vised employment of Indian auxiliaries For this dian auxii-
blunder the responsibility rests mainly with Lord ianes
North and Lord George Germain Burgoyne had little
choice in the matter except to carry out his instructions
Being a humane man, and sharing, perhaps, in that view of
the " noble savage " which was fashionable in Europe in the
eighteenth century, he fancied he could prevail upon his
tawny allies to forego their cherished pastime of murdering
and scalping When, at the beginning of the campaign, he
was joined by a party of Wyandots and Ottawas, under com-
mand of that same redoubtable Charles de Langlade who,
twenty-two years before, had achieved the ruin of Braddock,
he explained his policy to them in an elaborate speech, full
of such sentimental phrases as the Indian mind was sup-
posed to delight in. The slaughter of aged men, of women
286
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. VI
Blirke
man.
and children and unresisting prisoners, was absolutely prohib-
ited , and " on no account, or pretense, or subtlety,
daSwto 8 or prevarication," were scalps to be taken from
the chiefs wounc j ec j or dying men. An order more likely
to prove efficient was one which provided a reward for every
savage who should bring his prisoners to camp in safety.
To these injunctions, which must have inspired them with
pitying contempt, the chiefs laconically replied that they
had "sharpened their hatchets upon their affections," and
were ready to follow their "great white father."
The employment of Indian auxiliaries was indignantly
denounced by the opposition in Parliament, and
when the news of this speech of Burgoyne's
reached England it was angrily ridiculed by Burke,
who took a sounder view of the natural instincts of the red
"Suppose," said Burke, "that there was a riot on
Tower Hill. What would
the keeper of his majesty's
lions do ? Would he not
fling open the dens of the
wild beasts, and then ad-
dress them thus ? ' My
gentle lions, my humane
bears, my tender-hearted
hyenas, go forth! But I
exhort you, as you are
Christians and members of
civilized society, to take
care not to hurt any man,
woman, or child/" The
House of Commons was
convulsed over this gro-
tesque picture; and Lord North, to whom it seemed irre-
sistibly funny to hear an absent man thus denounced for
measures which he himself had originated, sat choking with
laughter, while tears rolled down his great fat cheeks.
It soon turned out, however, to be no laughing matter.
LORD NORTH
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 287
The cruelties inflicted indiscriminately upon patriots and
loyalists soon served to madden the yeomanry, and array
against the invaders whatever wavering sentiment had
hitherto remained in the country. One sad incident in par-
ticular has been treasured up in the memory of the people,
and celebrated in song and story. Jenny McCrea, The gto
the beautiful daughter of a Scotch clergyman of of jane
Paulus Hook, was at Fort Edward, visiting her
friend Mrs. McNeil, who was a loyalist and a cousin of Gen-
eral Fraser. On the morning of July 27th, a marauding
party of Indians burst into the house, and carried away the
two ladies They were soon pursued by some American
soldiers, who exchanged a few shots with them. In the
confusion which ensued the party was scattered, and Mrs.
McNeil was taken alone into the camp of the approaching
British army Next day a savage of gigantic stature, a
famous sachem, known as the Wyandot Panther, came into
the camp with a scalp which Mrs McNeil at once recog-
nized as Jenny's, from the silky black tresses, more than a
yard in length A search was made, and the body of the
poor girl was found hard by a spring in the forest, pierced
with three bullet wounds. How she came to her cruel death
was never known. The Panther plausibly declared that she
had been accidentally shot during the scuffle with the sol-
diers, but his veracity was open to question, and the few
facts that were known left ample room for conjecture. The
popular imagination soon framed its story with a romantic
completeness that thrust aside even these few facts. Miss
McCrea was betrothed to David Jones, a loyalist who was
serving as lieutenant in Burgoyne's army. In the legend
which immediately sprang up, Mr Jones was said to have
sent a party of Indians, with a letter to his betrothed, en-
treating her to come to him within the British lines that
they might be married. For bringing her to him in safety
the Indians were to receive a barrel of rum. When she had
entrusted herself to their care, and the party had proceeded
as far as the spring, where the savages stopped to drink, a
288 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
dispute arose as to who was to have the custody of the
barrel of rum, and many high words ensued, until one of the
party settled the question offhajid by slaying the lady with
his tomahawk It would be hard to find a more interesting
example of the mushroom-like growth and obstinate vitality
of a romantic legend The story seems to have had nothing
in common with the observed facts, except the existence of
the two lovers and the Indians and a spring in the forest. 1
Yet it took possession of the popular mind almost immedi-
ately after the event, and it has ever since been repeated,
with endless variations in detail, by American historians.
Mr. Jones himself who lived, a broken-hearted man, for
half a century after the tragedy was never weary of point-
ing out its falsehood and absurdity ; but all his testimony,
together with that of Mrs McNeil and other witnesses, to
the facts that really happened was powerless to shake the
hold upon the popular fancy which the legend had instantly
gained. Such an instance, occurring in a community of
shrewd and well-educated people, affords a suggestive com-
mentary upon the origin and growth of popular tales in
earlier and more ignorant ages.
But in whatever way poor Jenny may have come to her
death, there can be no doubt as to the mischief which it
swiftly wrought for the invading army In the first place,
1 I leave this as I wrote it in June, 1883 Since then another version
of the facts has been suggested by W L Stone in Appleton's Cyclo-
paedia of American Biography. In this version, Mr Jones sends a
party of Indians under the half-breed Duluth to escort Miss McCrea to
the camp, where they are to be married by Mr. Brudenell, the chaplain.
It is to be quite a fine little wedding, and the Baroness Riedesel and
Lady Harriet Ackland are to be among the spectators. Before Duluth
reaches Mrs. McNeil's house, the Wyandot Panther (here known by
the name of a different beast, Le Loup) with his party attacks the
house and carries off the two ladies The Panther's party meets Du-
luth's near the spring, Duluth insists upon taking Jenny with him,
and high words ensue between him and the Panther, until the latter, in
a towering rage, draws his pistol and shoots the girl. This version, if
correct, goes some way toward reconciling the legend with the observed
facts.
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 289
it led to the desertion of all the Indian allies Burgoyne
was a man of quick and tender sympathy, and the fate of
this sweet young lady shocked him as it shocked the Ameri-
can people He would have had the Panther promptly
hanged, but that his guilt was not clearly proved, and many
of the officers argued that the execution of a famous and
popular sachem would enrage all the other Indians, and
might endanger the lives of many of the soldiers The
Panther's life was accordingly spared, but Bur- The
goyne made it a rule that henceforth no party of
Indians should be allowed to go marauding save
under the lead of some British officer, who might watch
and restrain them. When this rule was put in force, the
THE ALLIES PAR NOBILE FRATRUM 1
tawny savages grunted and growled for two or three days,
and then, with hoarse yells and hoots, all the five hundred
broke loose from the camp, and scampered off to the Adiron-
dack wilderness From a military point of view, the loss
was small, save in so far as it deprived the army of valuable
scouts and guides. But the thirst for vengeance which was
aroused among the yeomanry of northern New York, of
Vermont, and of western Massachusetts, was a much more
serious matter. The lamentable story was told at every
1 This contemporary British caricature represents the new allies,
"Noble Pair of Brothers," George III. and an Indian chief, seated
together at their cannibal banquet It expresses the lively disgust witn
which the employment of Indians was regarded in England.
290 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
village fireside, and no detail of pathos or of horror was for-
gotten. The name of Jenny McCrea became a watchword,
and a fortnight had not passed before General Lincoln had
gathered on the British flank an army of stout and resolute
farmers, inflamed with such wrath as had not filled their
bosoms since the day when all New England had rushed to
besiege the enemy in Boston.
Such a force of untrained yeomanry is of little use in pro-
longed warfare, but on important occasions it is sometimes
capable of dealing heavy blows. We have seen what it could
do on the memorable day of Lexington. It was now about
to strike, at a critical moment, with still more deadly effect.
Burgoyne's advance, laborious as it had been for the last
three weeks, was now stopped for want of horses to drag
the cannon and carry the provision bags , and the army,
moreover, was already suffering from hunger. The little
vflla S e of Bennington, at the foot of the Green
Mountains, had been selected by the New Eng-
land militia as a centre of supplies Many hun-
dred horses had been collected there, with ample
force ^ stores of food and ammunition To capture this
a * suns * village would give Burgoyne the warlike material
he wanted, while at the same time it would paralyze the
movements of Lincoln, and perhaps dispel the ominous cloud
that was gathering over the rear of the British army. Ac-
cordingly, on the 1 3th of August, a strong detachment of
500 of Riedesel's men, with 100 newly arrived Indians and
& couple of cannon, was sent out to seize the stores at Ben-
aington, Lieutenant-Colonel Baum commanded the expedi-
tion, and he was accompanied by Major Skene, an American
loyalist, who assured Burgoyne on his honour that the Green
fountains were swarming with devoted subjects of King
George, who would flock by hundreds to his standard as
soon as it should be set up among them. That these loyal
iecruits might be organized as quickly as possible, Burgoyne
$eat along with the expedition a skeleton regiment of loy-
alists, all duly officered, into the ranks of which they might
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 291
be mustered without delay. The loyal recruits, however,
turned out to be the phantom of a distempered imagination :
not one of them appeared in the flesh On the contrary,
the demeanour of the people was so threatening that Baum
became convinced that hard work was before him, and next
day he sent back for reinforcements. Lieutenant-Colonel
Breymann was accordingly sent to support him, with another
body of 500 Germans and two field-pieces
Meanwhile Colonel Stark was preparing a warm reception
for the invaders. We have already seen John Stark, a gal-
lant veteran of the Seven Years' War, serving with distinc-
tion at Bunker Hill and at Trenton and Princeton He was
considered one of the ablest officers in the army ; but he
had lately gone home in disgust, for, like Arnold, start pre-
he had been passed over by Congress in the list SJJJthe**
of promotions Tired of sulking in his tent, no Germans
sooner did this rustic Achilles hear of the invaders 1 presence
in New England than he forthwith sprang to arms, and in
the twinkling of an eye 800 stout yeomen were marching
under his orders. He refused to take instructions from any
superior officer, but declared that he was acting under the
sovereignty of New Hampshire alone, and would proceed
upon his own responsibility in defending the common cause
At the same time he sent word to General Lincoln, at Man-
chester in the Green Mountains, asking him to lend him the
services of Colonel Seth Warner, with the gallant regiment
which had checked the advance of Fraser at Hubbardton.
Lincoln sent the reinforcement without delay, and after
marching all night m a drenching rain, the men reached
Bennington in the morning, wet to the skin. Telling them
to follow him as soon as they should have dried and rested
themselves, Stark pushed on with his main body, and found
the enemy about six miles distant. On meeting this large
force, Baum hastily took up a strong position on some rising
ground behind a small stream, everywhere fordable, known
as the Walloomsac river. All day long the rain fell m tor-
rents, and while the Germans began to throw up intrench-
292 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
ments, Stark laid his plans for storming their position on
the morrow. During the night a company of Berkshire
militia arrived, and with them the excellent Mr. Allen, the
warlike parson of Pittsfield, who went up to Stark and said,
" Colonel, our Berkshire people have been often called out
to no purpose, and if you don't let them fight now they will
never turn out again." "Well/ 1 said Stark, "would you
have us turn out now, while it is pitch dark and raining
buckets ? " " No, not just this minute," replied the minister
"Then," said the doughty Stark, "as soon as the Lord shall
once more send us sunshine, if I don't give you fighting
enough, I '11 never ask you to come out again ! "
Next morning the sun rose bright and clear, and a steam
came up from the sodden fields It was a true dog-day,
sultry and scorching The forenoon was taken up in pre-
paring the attack, while Baum waited in his strong position
Battle of The New Englanders outnumbered the Germans
ton^Auf. two to one > but they were a militia, unfurnished
16,1777 with bayonets or cannon, while Baum's soldiers
were all regulars, picked from the bravest of the troops
which Ferdinand of Brunswick had led to victory at Creveld
and Mmden But the worthy German commander, in this
strange country, was no match for the astute Yankee on his
own ground Stealthily and leisurely, during the whole
forenoon, the New England farmers marched around into
Baum's rear. They did not march in military array, but in
little squads, half a dozen at a time, dressed in their rustic
blue frocks Theic was nothing in their appearance which
to a European veteran like Baum could seem at all soldier-
like, and he thought that here at last were those blessed
Tories, whom he had been taught to look out for, coming
to place themselves behind him for protection. Early in
the afternoon he was cruelly undeceived. For while 500
of these innocent creatures opened upon him a deadly fire
in the rear and on both flanks, Stark, with 500 more, charged
across the shallow stream and assailed him in front. The
Indians instantly broke and fled screeching to the woods,
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 293
while yet there was time for escape. The Germans stood
their ground, and fought desperately ; but thus attacked on
all sides at once, they were soon thrown into disorder, and
after a two hours' struggle, in which Baum was mortally
wounded, they were all captured. At this moment, as the
New England men began to scatter to the plunder of the
German camp, the relieving force of Breymann came upon
the scene; and the fortunes of the day might have been
changed, had not Warner also arrived with his 150 fresh
men in excellent order A furious charge was made upon
Breymann, who gave way, and retreated slowly The mvad _
from hill to hill, while parties of Americans kept mgfoice
, . , . , . . - f ^ annihilated
pushing on to his rear to cut him off By eight
in the evening, when it had grown too dark to aim a gun,
this second German force was entirely dispersed or cap-
tured Breymann, with a mere corporal's guard of sixty or
CANNON CAPTURED AT BENNINGTON
seventy men, escaped under cover of darkness, and reached
the British camp in safety. Of the whole German force of
1,000 men, 207 had been killed and wounded, and more than
700 had been captured. Among the spoils of victory were
1,000 stand of arms, 1,000 dragoon swords, and four field-
pieces. Of the Americans 14 were killed and 42 wounded.
The news of this brilliant victory spread joy and hope
throughout the land. Insubordination which had been
crowned with such splendid success could not but be over-
294 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
looked, and the gallant Stark was at once taken back into
the army, and made a brigadier-general. Not least among
the grounds of exultation was the fact that an army of
yeomanry had not merely defeated, but annihilated, an army
of the Brunswick regulars, with whose European reputation
for bravery and discipline every man in the country was
familiar. The bolder spirits began to ask the question
Effect of w ^y t k at which had been done to Baum and Brey-
thenews, } ma nn might not be done to Burgoyne's whole
3S^ 8 army; and in the excitement of this rising hope,
multiply rem f orce ments began to pour in faster and faster,
both to Schuyler at Stillwater and to Lincoln at Manches-
ter. On the other hand, Burgoyne at Fort Edward was
fast losing heart, as dangers thickened around him So far
from securing his supplies of horses, wagons, and food by
this stroke at Bennington, he had simply lost one seventh
part of his available army, and he was now clearly in need
of remforcements as well as supplies But no word had yet
come from Sir William Howe, and the news from St. Leger
was anything but encouraging It is now time for us to
turn westward and follow the wild fortunes of the second
invading column
About the middle of July, St Leger had landed at
Oswego, where he was joined by Sir John Johnson with his
famous Tory regiment known as the Royal Greens, and Colo-
nel John Butler with his company of Tory rangers. Great
Advance of efforts had been made by Johnson to secure the aid
upon e |ort f t^ 6 Iroquois tribes, but only with partial suc-
stanwix cess F or once the Long House was fairly divided
against itself, and the result of the present campaign did
not redound to its future prosperity The Mohawks, under
their great chief Thayendanegea, better known as Joseph
Brant, entered heartily into the British cause, and they were
followed, though with less alacrity, by the Cayugas and
Senecas; but the central tribe, the Onondagas, remained
neutral. Under the influence of the missionary, Samuel
1777
SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE
2 9S
Kirkland, the Oneidas and Tuscaroras actively aided the
Americans, though they did not take the field. After duly
arranging his motley
force, which amounted to
about 1,700 men, St.
Leger advanced very cau-
tiously through the woods,
and sat down before Fort
Stanwix on the 3d of
August. This strong-
hold, which had been
built in 1758, on the
watershed between the
Hudson and Lake Onta-
rio, commanded the main
line of traffic between
New York and Upper
Canada The place was
then on the very outskirts
of civilization, and under
the powerful influence of Johnson the Tory element was
stronger here than m any other part of the state. Even here,
however, the strength of the patriot party turned out to be
much greater than had been supposed, and at the approach
of the enemy the people began to rise in arms. In this part
of New York there were many Germans, whose ancestors
had come over to America in consequence of the devasta-
tion of the Palatinate by Louis XIV. , and among these
there was one stout patriot whose name shines conspicuously
in the picturesque annals of the Revolution. Gen- Herkuner
eral Nicholas Herkimer, commander of the militia JJJjJ?
of Tryon County, a veteran over sixty years of age, him
no sooner heard of St Leger's approach than he started out
to the rescue of Fort Stanwix , and by the 5th of August he
had reached Oriskany, about eight miles distant, at the head
of 800 men The garrison of the fort, 600 in number, under
Colonel Peter Gansevoort, had already laughed to scorn St.
COLONEL BARRY ST. LEGER
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP VI
Leger's summons to surrender, when, on the morning of
the 6th, they heard a distant firing to the eastward, which
they could not account for The mystery was explained
when three friendly messengers floundered through a dan-
gerous swamp into the fort, and told them of Herkimer's
approach and of his purpose. The plan was to overwhelm
St. Leger by a concerted attack in front and rear. The
garrison was to make a furious sortie, while Herkimer,
advancing through the forest, was to fall suddenly upon the
Herkimer's enemy 'from behind ; and thus it was hoped that
plan his army might be crushed or captured at a single
blow. To insure completeness of cooperation, Colonel Ganse-
voort was to fire three guns immediately upon receiving
the message, and upon hearing this signal Herkimer would
begin his march from Oriskany. Gansevoort would then
make such demonstrations as to keep the whole attention
of the enemy concentrated upon the fort, and thus guard
Herkimer against a surprise by the way, until, after the
proper interval of time, the garrison should sally forth in
full force.
1777
SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE
297
In this bold scheme everything depended upon absolute
coordination in time Herkimer had dispatched his mes-
sengers so early on the evening of the 5th that they ought
to have reached the fort by three o'clock the next morning,
and at about that time he began listening for the signal-
guns. But through some unexplained delay it was nearly
eleven in the forenoon when the messengers reached the
fort, as just described. Meanwhile, as hour after hour
passed by, and no signal-guns were heard by Herkimer's
men, they grew impatient, and insisted upon going ahead,
without regard to the preconcerted plan Much Failure of
unseemly wrangling ensued, in which Herkimer ^P 1 * 11
was called a coward and accused of being a Tory at heart,
until, stung by these taunts, the brave old man at length.
298 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
gave way, and at about nine o'clock the forward march was
resumed. At this time his tardy messengers still lacked
two hours of reaching the fort, but St Leger's Indian scouts
had already discovered and reported the approach of the
American force, and a strong detachment of Johnson's
Greens under Major Watts, together with Brant and his
Mohawks, had been sent out to intercept them
About two miles west of Oriskany the road was crossed
by a deep semicircular ravine, concave toward the east.
Thayen- The bottom of this ravine was a swamp, across
prapraan which the road was carried by a causeway of logs,
ambuscade an( j the steep banks on either side were thickly
covered with trees and underbrush. The practised eye of
Thayendanegea at once perceived the rare advantage of
such a position, and an ambuscade was soon prepared with a
skill as deadly as that which once had wrecked the proud
army of Braddock. But this time it was a meeting of Greek
with Greek, and the wiles of the savage chief were foiled by
a desperate valour which nothing could overcome. By ten
o'clock the main body of Herkimer's army had descended
into the ravine, followed by the wagons, while the rear-
guard was still on the rising ground behind At this mo-
ment they were greeted by a murderous volley from either
side, while Johnson's Greens came charging down upon
Battle of them in front, and the Indians, with frightful yells,
Aug!*6* y ' swarmed in behind and cut off the rear-guard,
1/77 which was thus obliged to retreat to save itself.
For a moment the main body was thrown into confusion,
but it soon rallied and formed itself in a circle, which neither
bayonet charges nor musket fire could break or penetrate.
The scene which ensued was one of the most infernal that
the history of savage warfare has ever witnessed. The
dark ravine was filled with a mass of fifteen hundred human
beings, screaming and cursing, slipping in the mire, pushing
and struggling, seizing each other's throats, stabbing, shoot-
ing, and dashing out brains. Bodies of neighbours were
afterwards found lying in the bog, where they had gone
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 299
down in a death-grapple, their cold hands still grasping the
knives plunged in each other's hearts.
Early in the fight a musket-ball slew Herkimer's horse,
and shattered his own leg just below the knee , but the old
hero, nothing daunted, and bating nothing of his coolness
in the midst of the horrid struggle, had the saddle taken
from his dead horse and placed at the foot of a great beech-
BAS-RELIEF ON THE HERKIMER MONUMENT AT ORISKANY
tree, where, taking his seat and lighting his pipe, he con-
tinued shouting his orders in a stentorian voice and directing
the progress of the battle. Nature presently enhanced the
lurid horror of the scene. The heat of the August morning
had been intolerable, and black thunder-clouds, overhanging
the deep ravine at the beginning of the action, had enveloped
it in a darkness like that of night. Now the rain came
pouring in torrents, while gusts of wind howled through
the treetops, and sheets of lightning flashed in quick suc-
cession, with a continuous roar of thunder that drowned the
noise of the fray. The wet rifles could no longer be fired,
300 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP vi
but hatchet, knife, and bayonet carried on the work of
butchery, until, after more than five hundred men had been
killed or wounded, the Indians gave way and fled in all direc-
Retreatof tions > and the Tor y soldiers > disconcerted, began
the Tones to retreat up the western road, while Herkimer's
little army, remaining in possession of the hard-won field,
felt itself too weak to pursue them
At this moment, as the storm cleared away and long rays
of sunshine began flickering through the wet leaves, the
sound of the three signal-guns came booming through the
air, and presently a sharp crackling of musketry was heard
from the direction of Fort Stanwix Startled by this omi-
nous sound, the Tories made all possible haste to join their
own army, while Herkimer's men, bearing their wounded on
litters of green boughs, returned in sad procession to Oris-
Retreat of kany. With their commander helpless and more
Herkimer t h an one third of their number slain or disabled,
they were in no condition to engage in a fresh conflict, and
unwillingly confessed that the garrison of Fort Stanwix
must be left to do its part of the work alone Upon the
arrival of the messengers, Colonel Gansevoort had at once
taken in the whole situation. He understood the myste-
rious firing in the forest, saw that Herkimer must have
been prematurely attacked, and ordered his sortie instantly,
to serve as a diversion. The sortie was a brilliant success.
Sir John Johnson, with his Tories and Indians, was com-
pletely routed and driven across the river Colonel Marinus
colonel Willett took possession of his camp, and held it
wiiiett's while seven wagons were three times loaded with
spoil and sent to be unloaded in the fort. Among
all this spoil, together with abundance of food and drink,
blankets and clothes, tools and ammunition, the victors cap-
tured five Bntish standards, and all Johnson's papers, maps,
and memoranda, containing full instructions for the pro-
jected campaign. After this useful exploit, Colonel Willett
returned to the fort and hoisted the captured British stand-
ards, while over them he raised an uncouth flag, intended to
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 301
represent the American stars and stripes, which Congress
had adopted in June as the national banner This r^st hoist-
rude flag, hastily extemporized out of a white stfrslSd
shirt, an old blue jacket, and some strips of red stll P es
cloth from the petticoat of a soldier's wife, was the first
American flag with stars and stripes that was ever hoisted,
and it was first flung to the breeze on the memorable day of
Onskany, August 6, 1777
Of all the battles of the Revolution, this was perhaps the
most obstinate and murderous. Each side seems to have
JOSEPH BRANT THA\ENDANEGEA
lost not less than one third of its whole number ; and of
those lost, nearly all were killed, as it was largely a hand-to-
hand struggle, like the battles of ancient times, and no
quarter was given on either side The number of surviving
wounded, who were carried back to Oriskany, does not seem
to have exceeded forty. Among these was the in- Death of
domitable Herkimer, whose shattered leg was so Herkuner
unskilfully treated that he died a few days later, sitting in
302
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. VI
bed propped by pillows, calmly smoking his Dutch pipe and
reading his Bible at the thirty-eighth Psalm
For some little time no one could tell exactly how the
results of this fierce and disorderly day were to be regarded.
Both sides claimed a vic-
tory, and St. Leger vainly
tried to scare the garri-
son by the story that
their comrades had been
destroyed in the forest.
But in its effects upon
the campaign, Onskany
was for the Americans
a success, though an in-
complete one St Leger
was not crushed, but he
was badly crippled. The
sacking of Johnson's
camp injured his prestige
in the neighbourhood,
and the Indian allies, who
had lost more than a hun-
dred of their best warriors on that fatal morning, grew daily
more sullen and refractory, until their strange behaviour
came to be a fresh source of anxiety to the British com-
mander. While he was pushing on the siege as well as he
could, a force of 1,200 troops, under Arnold, was marching
up the Mohawk valley to complete his discomfiture.
As soon as he had heard the news of the fall of Ticon-
deroga, Washington had dispatched Arnold to render such
assistance as he could to the northern army, and Arnold
Arnold had accordingly arrived at Schuyler's headquarters
sSuy S ies a ^out three weeks ago Before leaving Philadel-
cam P phia, he had appealed to Congress to restore him
to his former rank relatively to the five junior officers who
had been promoted over him, and he had just learned that
Congress had refused the request. At this moment, Colonel
1777
SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE
303
Willett and another officer, after a perilous journey through
the wilderness, arrived at Schuyler's headquarters, and bring-
ing the news of Onskany, begged that a force might be sent
to raise the siege of Fort Stanwix. Schuyler understood the
importance of rescuing the stronghold and its brave garri-
son, and called a council of war ; but he was bitterly opposed
by his officers, one of whom presently said to another, in an
audible whisper, "He only wants to weaken the army!"
At this vile insinuation, the indignant general set his teeth
so hard as to bite through the stem of the pipe he was
smoking, which fell on the floor and was smashed.
" Enough ' " he cried. " I assume the whole responsibility.
Where is the brigadier who will go ? " The brigadiers Edl
HERKIMER'S HOUSE AT LITTLE FALLS
sat in sullen silence ; but Arnold, who had been brooding
over his private grievances, suddenly jumped up. " Here ! "
said he. " Washington sent me here to make my- an d voiun-
self useful . I will go." The commander gratefully
seized him by the hand, and the drum beat for
volunteers. Arnold's unpopularity in New England was
34-
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP. VI
mainly with the politicians It did not extend to the com-
mon soldiers, who admired his impulsive bravery and had
unbounded faith in his resources as a leader Accordingly,
1,200 Massachusetts men were easily enlisted in the course
of the next forenoon, and the expedition started up the Mo-
hawk valley. Arnold pushed on with characteristic energy,
but the natural difficul-
ties of the road were such
that after a week of hard
work he had only reached
the German Flats, where
he was still more than
twenty miles from Fort
Stanwix. Believing that
no time should be lost,
and that everything
should be done to encour-
age the garrison and dis-
hearten the enemy, he
had recourse to a strat-
agem, which succeeded
beyond his utmost antici-
pation A party of Tory
spies had just been ar-
rested in the neighbourhood, and among them was a certain
Yan Yost Cuyler, a queer, half-witted fellow, not devoid of
cunning, whom the Indians regarded with that mysterious
awe with which fools and lunatics are wont to inspire them,
as creatures possessed with a devil. Yan Yost was sum-
marily condemned to death, and his brother and gypsy-like
mother, in wild alarm, hastened to the camp, to plead for his
life. Arnold for a while was inexorable, but presently offered
to pardon the culprit on condition that he should go and
spread a panic in the camp of St Leger. Yan Yost joyfully
consented, and started off forthwith, while his van Yost
brother was detained as a hostage, to be hanged in Cu y ler
case of his failure To make the matter still surer, some
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 305
friendly Oneidas were sent along to keep an eye upon him
and act in concert with him. Next day, St. Leger' s scouts,
as they stole through the forest, began to hear rumours that
Burgoyne had been totally defeated, and that a great Ameri-
can army was coming up the valley of the Mohawk They
carried back these rumours to the camp, and toward even-
ing, while officers and soldiers were standing about in anxious
consultation, Yan Yost came running in, with a dozen bullet-
holes in his coat and terror in his face, and said that he had
barely escaped with his life from the resistless American
host which was close at hand As many knew him for a
Tory, his tale found ready belief, and when interrogated as
to the numbers of the advancing host he gave a warning
frown, and pointed significantly to the countless leaves that
fluttered on the branches overhead. Nothing more was
needed to complete the panic It was in vain that Johnson
and St. Leger exhorted and threatened the Indian allies
Already disaffected, they now began to desert by scores,
while some, breaking open the camp chests, drank rum till
they were drunk, and began to assault the soldiers
All night long the camp was a perfect Pande- st Leger,
monium. The not extended to the Tories, and by ug 22
noon of the next day St Leger took to flight and his whole
army was dispersed All the tents, artillery, and stores fell
into the hands of the Americans The garrison, sallying
forth, pursued St. Leger for a while, but the faithless In-
dians, enjoying his discomfiture, and willing to curry favour
with the stronger party, kept up the chase nearly all the
way to Oswego ; laying ambushes every night, and diligently
murdering the stragglers, until hardly a remnant of an army
was left to embark with its crestfallen leader for Montreal.
The news of this catastrophe reached Burgoyne before he
had had time to recover from the news of the disaster at
Bennington. Burgoyne's situation was now becom- Bu
ing critical. Lincoln, with a strong force of militia, dangerous
was hovering in his rear, while the main army be-
fore him was gaining in numbers day by day. Putnam had
306 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vi
just sent up reinforcements from the Highlands; Washing-
ton had sent Morgan with 500 sharpshooters ; and Arnold
was hurrying back from Fort Stanwix. Not a word had
come from Sir William Howe, and it daily grew more diffi-
cult to get provisions.
Just at this time, when everything was in readiness for
the final catastrophe, General Gates arrived from Philadel-
phia, to take command of the northern army, and reap the
glory earned by other men. On the first day of August,
before the first alarm occasioned by Burgoyne's advance had
Schuyier subsided, Congress had yielded to the pressure of
by P Gate? d Schuyler's enemies, and removed him from his
Au s 2 ' command , and on the following day Gates was
appointed to take his place. Congress was led to take this
step through the belief that the personal hatred felt toward
Schuyier by many of the New England people would pre-
vent the enlisting of militia to support him. The events of
the next fortnight showed that in this fear Congress was
quite mistaken. There can now be no doubt that the ap-
pointment of the incompetent Gates was a serious blunder,
which might have ruined the campaign, and did in the end
occasion much trouble, both for Congress and for Washing-
ton. Schuyier received the unwelcome news with the noble
unselfishness which always characterized him. At no time
did he show more zeal and diligence than during his last
week of command , and on turning over the army to Gen-
eral Gates he cordially offered his aid, whether by counsel
or action, in whatever capacity his successor might see fit to
suggest. But so far from accepting this offer, Gates treated
him with contumely, and would not even invite him to at-
tend his first council of war. Such silly behaviour called
forth sharp criticisms from discerning people. " The new
commander-in-chief of the northern department," said Gou-
verneur Morris, "may, if he please, neglect to ask or disdain
to receive advice , but those who know him will, I am sure,
be convinced that he needs it "
When Gates thus took command of the northern army;
1777 SECOND BLOW AT THE CENTRE 307
it was stationed along the western bank of the Hudson,
from Stillwater down to Halfmoon, at the mouth of the
Mohawk, while Burgoyne's troops were encamped along
the eastern bank, some thirty miles higher up, Positlon O f
from Fort Edward down to the Battenkill. For thetw
armies,
the next three weeks no movements were made on Aug. 19-
either side ; and we must now leave the two armies ep
confronting each other in these two positions, while we turn
our attention southward, and see what Sir William Howe
was doing, and how it happened that Burgoyne had as yet
heard nothing from him.
CHAPTER VII
.
SARATOGA
WE have seen how, owing to the gross negligence of Lord
George Germain, discretionary power had been left to Howe,
while entirely taken away from Burgoyne. The latter had
no choice but to move down the Hudson. The former was
instructed to move up the Hudson, but at the same time
why Howe was left free to depart from the strict letter of his
ChSsa- instructions, should there be any manifest advan-
peake Bay tage in so doing. Nevertheless, the movement up
the Hudson was so clearly prescribed by all sound military
considerations that everybody wondered why Howe did not
attempt it. Why he should have left his brother general in
the lurch, and gone sailing off to Chesapeake Bay, was a
mystery which no one was able to unravel, until some thirty
years ago a document was discovered which has thrown
much light upon the question Here there steps again
upon the scene that miserable intriguer, whose presence in
the American army had so nearly wrecked the fortunes of
the patriot cause, and who now, in captivity, pro-
Lee in ceeded to act the part of a doubly-dyed traitor. A
rap marplot and mischief-maker from beginning to end,
Charles Lee never faded to work injury to whichever party
his selfish vanity or craven fear inclined him for the moment
to serve. We have seen how, on the day when he was
captured and taken to the British camp, his first thought
was for his personal safety, which he might well suppose to
be in some jeopardy, since he had formerly held the rank
of lieutenant-colonel in the British army. He was taken to
New York and confined m the City Hall, where he was
treated with ordinary courtesy ; but there is no (doubt that
3io THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
Sir William Howe looked upon him as a deserter, and .was
more than half inclined to hang him without ceremony.
Fearing, however, as he said, that he might "fall into a law
scrape," should he act too hastily, Sir William wrote home
for instructions, and in reply was directed by Lord George
Germain to send his prisoner to England for trial In
pursuance of this order, Lee had already been carried on
board ship, when a letter from Washington put a stop to
these proceedings The letter informed General Howe that
Washington held five Hessian field-officers as hostages for
Lee's personal safety, and that all exchange of prisoners
would be suspended until due assurance should be received
that Lee was to be recognized as a prisoner of war. After
reading this letter General Howe did not dare to send Lee
to England for trial, for fear of possible evil consequences
to the five Hessian officers, which might cause serious dis-
affection among the German troops. The king approved
of this cautious behaviour, and so Lee was kept in New
York, with his fate undecided, until it had become quite
clear that neither arguments nor threats could avail one
jot to shake Washington's determination. When Lord
George Germain had become convinced of this, he persuaded
the reluctant king to yield the point ; and Howe was accord-
ingly instructed that Lee, although worthy of condign pun-
ishment, should be deemed a prisoner of war, and might be
exchanged as such, whenever convenient.
All this discussion necessitated the exchange of several
letters between London and New York, so that a whole
year elapsed before the question was settled. It was not
until December 12, 1777, that Howe received these final
instructions. But Lee had not been idle all this time while
his fate was in suspense Hardly had the key been turned
upon him in his rooms at the City Hall when he began his
intrigues. First, he assured Lord Howe and his brother
that he had always opposed the declaration of independence, 1
1 In the spring of 1776 Lee had written to Edward Rutledge : *' By
the eternal God ' If you do not declare yourselves independent, you
1777 SARATOGA 311
and even now cherished hopes that, by a judiciously arranged
interview with a committee from Congress, he might per-
suade the misguided people of America to return to their
old allegiance Lord Howe, who always kept one hand on
the olive-branch, eagerly caught at the suggestion, and per-
mitted Lee to send a letter to Congress, urging
that a committee be sent to confer with him, as he Charles
had " important communications to make " Could Lee
such a conference be brought about, he thought, his zeal for
effecting a reconciliation would interest the Howes in his
favour, and might save his precious neck. Congress, how-
ever, flatly refused to listen to the proposal, and then the
wretch, without further ado, went over to the enemy, and
began to counsel with the British commanders how they
might best subdue the Americans in the summer campaign
He went so far as to write out for the brothers Howe a plan
of operations, giving them the advantage of what was sup-
posed to be his intimate knowledge of the conditions of the
case. This document the Howes did not care to show after
the disastrous event of the campaign, and it remained hidden
for eighty years, until it was found among the domestic
archives of the Strachey family, at Sutton Court, in Somer-
set. The first Sir Henry Strachey was secretary to the
Howes from 1775 to 1778. The document is in Lee's well-
known handwriting, and is indorsed by Strachey as " Mr.
Lee's plan, March 29, 1777 " In this document Lee main-
tains that if the state of Maryland could be overawed, and
the people of Virginia prevented from sending aid to Penn-
sylvania, then Philadelphia might be taken and held, and the
operations of the "rebel government " paralyzed. The Tory
party was known to be strong in Pennsylvania, and the cir-
cumstances under which Maryland had declared for inde-
pendence, last of all the colonies save New York, were such
as to make it seem probable that there also the loyalist feel-
ing was very powerful. Lee did not hesitate to assert, as of
deserve to be slaves ! " In several such letters Lee had fairly bellowed
for independence.
X
$ ii' !
314 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vii
his own personal knowledge, that the people of Maryland
and Pennsylvania were nearly all loyalists, who only awaited
the arrival of a British army in order to declare themselves.
He therefore recommended that 14,000 men should drive
Washington out of New Jersey and capture Philadelphia,
while the remainder of Howe's army, 4,000 in number,
should go around by sea to Chesapeake Bay, and occupy
Alexandria and Annapolis. From these points, if Lord
Howe were to issue a proclamation of amnesty, the pacifi-
cation of the "central colonies" might be effected in less
than two months ; and so confident of all this did the writer
feel that he declared himself ready to stake his life upon
the issue," a remark which betrays, perhaps, what was up-
permost m his mind throughout the whole proceeding. At
the same time, he argued that offensive operations toward
the north could not "answer any sort of purpose," since the
northern provinces "are at present neither the seat of gov-
ernment, strength, nor politics ; and the apprehensions from
General Carleton's army will, I am confident, keep the New '
Englanders at home, or at least confine 'em to the east side
the [Hudson] river."
It will be observed that this plan of Lee's was similar to
that of Lord George Germain, in so far as it aimed at thrusting
the British power like a wedge into the centre of the confed-
eracy, and thus cutting asunder New England and Virginia,
the two chief centres of the rebellion. But instead of aim-
ing his blow at the Hudson river, Lee aims it at Philadel-
phia, as the " rebel capital ; " and his reason for doing this
shows how little he understood American affairs, and how
strictly he viewed them in the light of his military experi-
Foiiyof ence in Europe. In European warfare it is cus-
upcm]phiia- ternary to strike at the enemy's capital city, in
or< kr to get control of his whole system of admin-
istration; but that the possession of an enemy's
capital is not always decisive the wars of Napoleon have
most abundantly proved. The battles of Austerlitz in 1805
and Wagram in 1809 were fought by Napoleon after he had
1777 SARATOGA 315
entered Vienna ; it was not his acquisition of Berlin in 1806,
but his victory at Friedland in the following summer, that
completed the overthrow of Prussia ; and where he had to
contend against a strong and united national feeling, as in
Spain and Russia, the possession of the capital did not help
him in the least Nevertheless, in European countries,
where the systems of administration are highly centralized,
it is usually advisable to move upon the enemy's capital.
But to apply such a principle to Philadelphia in 1777 was
the height of absurdity. Philadelphia had been selected for
the meetings of the Continental Congress because of its
geographical position. It was the most centrally situated
of our large towns, but it was in no sense the centre of a
vast administrative machinery If taken by an enemy, it
was only necessary for Congress to move to any other town,
and everything would go on as before. As it was not an
administrative, so neither was it a military centre It com-
manded no great system of interior highways, and it was
comparatively difficult to protect by the fleet. It might be
argued, on the other hand, that because Philadelphia was
the largest town in the United States, and possessed of a
certain preeminence as the seat of Congress, the acquisition
of it by the invaders would give them a certain moral ad-
vantage It would help the Tory party, and discourage the
patriots. Such a gain, however, would be trifling compared
with the loss which might come from Howe's failure to
cooperate with Burgoyne ; and so the event most signally
proved.
Just how far the Howes were persuaded by Lee's argu-
ments must be a matter of inference. The course which
they ultimately pursued, m close conformity with the sug-
gestions of this remarkable document, was so disastrous to
the British cause that the author might almost seem to
have been intentionally luring them off on a false Effect f
scent One would gladly take so charitable a view Lee's
of the matter, were it not both inconsistent with advice
what we have already seen of Lee, and utterly negatived
3i6 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
by his scandalous behaviour the following year, after his
restoration to his command in the American army We
cannot doubt that Lee gave his advice in sober earnest.
That considerable weight was attached to it is shown by a
secret letter from Sir William Howe to Lord George Ger-
main, dated the 2d of April or four days after the date of
Lee's extraordinary document. In this letter, Howe, inti-
mates for the first time that he has an expedition in mind
which may modify the scheme for a joint campaign with
the northern army along the line of the Hudson. To this
suggestion Lord George replied on the 1 8th of May. "I
trust that whatever you may meditate will be executed in
time for you to cooperate with the army to proceed from
Canada." It was a few days after this that Lord George,
perhaps feeling a little uneasy about the matter, wrote that
imperative order which lay in its pigeon-hole in London
until all the damage was done.
With these data at our command, it becomes easy to
comprehend General Howe's movements during the spring
and summer. His first intention was to push across New
Jersey with the great body of his army, and occupy Phila-
delphia ; and since he had twice as many men as Washing-
ton, he might hope to do this in time to get back to the
Hudson as soon as he was likely to be needed there. He
began his march on the I2th of June, five days before Bur-
goyne's flotilla started southward on Lake Champlain. The
enterprise did not seem hazardous, but Howe was com-
Washiag- plenty foiled by Washington's superior strategy.
teS' s Sm- Before * e British commander had fairly begun to
paign m move, Washington, from various symptoms, divined
Newjer- , . . . - . J . . , . .._.
sey, June, his purpose, and coming down from his lair at Mor-
1777 nstown, planted himself on the heights of Middle-
brook, within ten miles of New Brunswick, close upon the
flank of Howe's line of march. Such a position, occupied
by 8,000 men under such a general, was something which
Howe could not pass by without sacrificing his communica-
tions and thus incurring destruction. But the position was
1777 SARATOGA * 317
so strong that to try to storm it would be to invite defeat.
It remained to be seen what could be done by manoeuvring.
The British army of 18,000 men was concentrated at New
Brunswick, with plenty of boats for crossing the Delaware
river, when that obstacle should be reached. But the really
insuperable obstacle was close at hand A campaign of
eighteen days ensued, consisting of wily marches and coun-
ter-marches, the result of which showed that Washington's
advantage of position could not be wrested from him.
Howe could neither get by him nor outwit him, and was too
prudent to attack him ; and accordingly, on the last day of
June, he abandoned his first plan, and evacuated New Jer-
sey, taking his whole army over to Staten Island.
This campaign has attracted far less attention than it
deserves, mainly, no doubt, because it contained no battles
or other striking incidents. It was purely a series of stra-
tegic devices. But in point of military skill it was, perhaps,
as remarkable as anything that Washington ever did, and it
certainly occupies a cardinal position in the history of the
overthrow of Burgoyne. For if Howe had been able to take
Philadelphia early in the summer, it is difficult to see what
could have prevented him from returning and ascending the
Hudson, in accordance with the plan of the ministry. Now
the month of June was gone, and Burgoyne was approach-
ing Ticonderoga. Howe ought to have held himself in
readiness to aid him, but he could not seem to get Philadel-
phia, the "rebel capital," out of his mind. His next plan
coincided remarkably with the other half of Lee's scheme.
He decided to go around to Philadelphia by sea, Uncej>
but he was slow in starting, and seems to have gJJJJJ* to
paused for a moment to watch the course of events next move-
at the north. He began early in July to put his
men on board ship, but confided his plans to no one but
Cornwallis and Grant ; and his own army, as well as the
Americans, believed that this show of going to sea was only
a feint to disguise his real intention Every one supposed
that he would go up the Hudson. As soon as New Jersey
3i8 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
was evacuated Washington moved back to Mornstown, and
threw his advance, under Sullivan, as far north as Pompton,
so as to be ready to cooperate with Putnam in the High-
lands, at a moment's notice. As soon as it became known
that Ticonderoga had fallen, Washington, supposing that
his adversary would do what a good general ought to do,
advanced into the Ramapo Clove, a rugged defile in the
Highlands, near Haverstraw, and actually sent the divisions
of Sullivan and Stirling across the river to Peekskill.
All this while Howe kept moving some of his ships, now
up the Hudson, now into the Sound, now off from Sandy
Hook, so that people might doubt whether his destination
were the Highlands, or Boston, or Philadelphia Probably
his own mind was not fully made up until after the news
from Ticonderoga Then, amid the general exultation, he
seems to have concluded that Burgoyne would be able to
take care of himself, at least with such cooperation as he
might get from Sir Henry Clinton In this mood he wrote
to Burgoyne as follows : " I have . . . heard from the rebel
army of your being in possession of Ticonderoga, which is a
great event, carried without loss. . . Washington
letter to is waiting our motions here, and has detached Sul-
Burgoyne g j
My intention is for Pennsylvania, where I expect to meet
Washington ; but if he goes to the northward, contrary to
my expectations, and you can keep him at bay, be assured I
shall soon be after him to relieve you After your arrival
at Albany, the movements of the enemy will guide yours ;
but my wishes are that the enemy be drove [sic] out of this
province before any operation takes place in Connecticut.
Sir Henry Clinton remains in the command here, and will
act as occurrences may direct. Putnam is in the Highlands
with about 4,000 men. Success be ever with you." This
letter, which was written on very narrow strips of thin
paper, and conveyed in a quill, did not reach Burgoyne till
the middle of September, when things wore a very different
aspect from that which they wore in the middle of July,
1777 SARATOGA 319
Nothing could better illustrate the rash, overconfident spirit
in which Howe proceeded to carry out his southern scheme.
A few days afterward he put to sea with the fleet of 228
sail, carrying an army of 18,000 men, while 7,000 were left
in New York, under Sir Henry Clinton, to garrison the city
and act according to circumstances Just before sailing
Howe wrote a letter to Burgoyne, stating that the destina-
tion of his fleet was Boston, and he artfully contrived that
this letter should fall into Washington's hands But Wash-
s i*e-
WASHINGTON'S HEADQUARTERS AT CHADD'S FORD
ington was a difficult person to hoodwink On reading the
letter he rightly inferred that Howe had gone southward.
Accordingly, recalling Sullivan and Stirling to the west side
of the Hudson, he set out for the Delaware, but proceeded
very cautiously, lest Howe should suddenly retrace his
course, and dart up the Hudson. To guard against such
an emergency, he let Sullivan advance no farther than Mor-
ristown, and kept everything in readiness for an instant
counter-march". In a letter of July soth he writes, " Howe's
in a manner abandoning Burgoyne is so unaccountable a
matter that, till I am fully assured of it, / cannot help casting
my eyes continually behind me" Next day, learning that
320 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
the fleet had arrived at the Capes of Delaware, he advanced
to Germantown , but on the day after, when he heard that
the fleet had put out to sea again, he suspected that the
whole movement had been a feint He believed that Howe
would at once return to the Hudson, and immediately
Comments ordered Sullivan to counter-march, while he held
mgton'and himself ready to follow at a moment's notice. His
Greene b es t generals entertained the same opinion. "I
cannot persuade myself," said Greene, "that General Bur-
goyne would dare to push with such rapidity towards Albany
if he did not expect support from General Howe." A
similar view of the military exigencies of the case was taken
by the British officers, who, almost to a man, disapproved
of the southward movement. They knew as well as Greene
that, however fine a city Philadelphia might be, it was "an
object of far less military importance than the Hudson
river."
No wonder that the American generals were wide of the
mark in their conjectures, for the folly of Howe's move-
ments after reaching the mouth of the Delaware was quite
beyond credence, and would be inexplicable to-day except
Howe's ai- as the result of the wild advice of the marplot Lee.
Howe alleged as his reason for turning away from
the Delaware > that there were obstructions in the
worthless river and forts to pass, and accordingly he thought
it best to go around by way of Chesapeake Bay, and land
his army at Elkton. Now he might easily have gone a lit-
tle way up the Delaware river without encountering any
obstructions whatever, and landed his troops at a point only
thirteen miles east of Elkton. Instead of attempting this,
he wasted twenty-four days in a voyage of four hundred
miles, mostly against headwinds, in order to reach the same
point ! No sensible antagonist could be expected to under-
stand such eccentric behaviour No wonder that, after it
had become clear that the fleet had gone southward, Wash-
ington should have supposed an attack on Charleston to be
intended. A council of war on the 2ist decided that this
1777 SARATOGA 321
must be the case, and since an overland march of seven
hundred miles could not be accomplished in time to prevent
such an attack, it was decided to go back to New York, and
operate against Sir Henry Clinton But before this decision
was acted on Howe appeared at the head of Chesapeake
Bay, where he landed his forces at Elkton. It was now the
25th of August, nine days after the battle of Bennington
and three days after the flight of St. Leger. Since entering
Chesapeake Bay, Howe had received Lord George Burgoyne's
Germain's letter of May i8th, telling him that eaif y P dt cti "
whatever he had to do ought to be done in time Clded
for him to cooperate with Burgoyne Now Burgoyne's
situation had become dangerous, and here was Howe at
Elkton, fifty miles southwest of Philadelphia, with Washing-
ton's army in front of him, and more than three hundred
miles away from Burgoyne '
On hearing of Howe's arrival at the head of Chesapeake
Bay, Washington had advanced as far as Wilmington to
meet him. The first proceeding of the British general, on
landing at Elkton, was to issue his proclamation of amnesty ;
but it did not bring him many recruits A counter-procla-
mation, drawn up by Luther Martin, sufficed to neutralize
it. Though there were many people in the neighbourhood
who cared little for the cause of independence, there were
but f dW who sympathized with the invaders enough to render
them any valuable assistance. It was through a country
indifferent, perhaps, but not friendly in feeling, that the
British army cautiously pushed its way northward for a fort-
night, until it reached the village of Kennett Square, six
miles west of the Brandywine Creek, behind which Wash-
ington had planted himself to oppose its progress.
The time had arrived when Washington felt it necessary
to offer battle, even though such a step might not Washmg .
be justified from purely military reasons The ton's rea-
-. r -m , - i * - i sons for
people were weary of a Fabian policy which they offenng
did not comprehend, and Washington saw that, battle
even if he were defeated, the moral effect upon the country
322 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP vn
would not be so bad as if he were to abandon Philadelphia
without a blow. A victory he was hardly entitled to expect,
since he had but 11,000 men against Howe's 18,000, and
since the British were still greatly superior in equipment
and discipline. Under these circumstances, Washington
ch ^se his ground with his usual sagacity, and took posses-
sion of it by a swift and masterly movement. The Brandy-
wine Creek ran directly athwart Howe's line of march to
Philadelphia. Though large enough to serve as a military
obstacle, in England it would be called a river, it was
crossed by numerous fords, of which the principal one,
Chadd's Ford, lay in Howe's way. Washington placed the
He chooses centre of his army just behind Chadd's Ford and
strong across the road His centre was defended in front
position by a corps of artillery under Wayne, while Greene,
on some high ground in the rear, was stationed as a reserve.
Below Chadd's Ford, the Brandywme becomes a roaring
torrent, shut in between steep, high cliffs, so that the
American left, resting upon these natural defences, was
sufficiently guarded by the Pennsylvania militia under Arm-
strong. The right wing, stretching two miles up the stream,
into an uneven and thickly wooded country, was commanded
by Sullivan.
This was a very strong position. On the left it was prac-
tically inaccessible. To try storming it in front wouW. be a
doubtful experiment, sure to result in terrible loss of life.
The only weak point was the right, which could be taken
in flank by a long circuitous march through the woods.
Battle of Accordingly, on the morning of the I ith of Sep-
wm*1p tember, the British right wing, under Knyphausen,
, W7 began skirmishing and occupying Washington's
attention at Chadd's Ford , while the left column, under the
energetic CornwaJlis, marched up the Lancaster road, crossed
the forks of the Brandywine, and turned southward toward
Birmingham church, with the intention of striking the rear
of the American right wing. It was similar to the flanking
movement which had been tried so successfully at the battle
BAtTLE OF THE BRANDYWINE
September u, 1777
1777
SARATOGA
323
VIEW OF BRANDYWINE BATTLEFIELD
of Long Island, a year before. It was quite like the splendid
movement of Stonewall Jackson at Chancellorsville, eighty-
five years afterward In Howe's time such flanking marches
were eminently fashionable. It was in this way that the
great Frederick had won some of his most astonishing vic-
tories They were, nevertheless, then as always, dangerous
expedients, as the stupendous overthrow of the Austro-
Russian army at Austerlitz was by and by to show. There
is always a serious chance that the tables may be turned.
Such flanking movements are comparatively safe, however,
when the attacking army greatly outnumbers the army at-
tacked, as at the Brandywine. But in all cases the chief
element in their success is secrecy ; above all things, the
party attacked must be kept in the dark.
These points are admirably illustrated m the battle of the
324 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
Brandywine. The danger of a flank attack upon his right
wing was well understood by Washington , and as soon as
he heard that Cornwallis was marching up the Lancaster
road, he considered the feasibleness of doing what Fred-
erick would probably have done, of crossing quickly at
Chadd's and Brinton's fords, in full force, and crushing
Knyphausen's division. This he could doubtless have ac-
complished, had he been so fortunate as to have inherited
an army trained by the father of Frederick the Great. But
Washington's army was not yet well trained, and its numeri-
cal inferiority was such that Knyphausen's division might
of itself be regarded as a fair match for it. The British
movement was, therefore, well considered, and it was doubt-
less right that Washington did not return the offensive by
crossing the creek. Moreover, the organization of his staff
was far from complete. He was puzzled by conflicting
reports as to the enemy's movements While considering
the question of throwing his whole force against Knyp-
hausen, he was stopped by a false report that Cornwallis
was not moving upon his flank So great was the delay in
getting intelligence that Cornwallis had accomplished his
long march of eighteen miles, and was approaching Bir-
mingham church, before it was well known where he was.
Nevertheless, his intention of dealing a death-blow to the
American army was forestalled and partially checked. Be-
fore he had reached our right wing, Washington had ordered
Sullivan to form a new front and advance toward Birming-
ham church. Owing to the imperfect discipline of the
troops, Sullivan executed the movement rather clumsily, but
enough was accomplished to save the army from rout In
the obstinate and murderous fight which ensued near Bir-
mingham church between Cornwallis and Sullivan, the latter
was at length slowly pushed back in the direction of Dil-
worth To save the army from being broken in two, it was
now necessary for the centre to retreat upon Chester by way
of Dilworth, and this movement was accomplished by Greene
with consum mate skill. It was now possible for Knyphausen
1777 SARATOGA 325
to advance across Chadd's Ford against Wayne's position ,
and he did so, aided by the right wing of Cornwalhs's divi-
sion, which, instead of joining in the oblique pursuit to-
ward Dilworth, kept straight onward, and came down upon
Wayne's rear Nothing was left for Wayne and Armstrong
but to retreat and join the rest of the army at Chester, and
so the battle of the Brandywine came to an end
This famous battle was admirably conducted on both
sides. The risk assumed in the long flanking march of
BIRMINGHAM MEETING-HOUSE
Cornwallis was fully justified. The poor organization of
the American army was of course well known to the British
commanders, and they took advantage of the fact. Had
they been dealing with an organization as efficient as their
own, their course would have been foolhardy On the
other hand, when we consider the relative strength of the
two armies, it is clear that the bold move of Cornwallis
ought not simply to have won the field of battle. It ought
to have annihilated the American army, had not its worst
consequences been averted by Washington's promptness,
aided by Sullivan's obstinate bravery and Greene's masterly
conduct of the retreat upon Dilworth. As it was, the
326 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP vn
American soldiers came out of the fight in good order.
Nothing could be more absurd than the careless statement,
so often made, that the Americans were "routed" at the
Brandywme. Their organization was preserved, and at
Chester, next day, they were as ready for fight as ever
They had exacted from the enemy a round price for the
victory. The American loss was a little more than 1,000,
incurred chiefly in Sullivan's gallant struggle ; rolls after-
ward captured at Germantown showed that the British loss
considerably exceeded that figure
So far as the possession of Philadelphia was concerned,
the British victory was decisive When the news came,
next morning, that the army had retreated upon Chester,
there was great consternation in the "rebel capital." Some
timid people left their homes, and sought refuge in the
mountains Congress fled to Lancaster, first clothing Wash-
ington for sixty days with the same extraordinary powers
which had been granted him the year before Yet there
Washm - was no neec * ^ suc ^ unseem ty haste, for Wash-
ton's skill ington detained the victorious enemy a fortnight
mgthe" 1 " on the march of only twenty-six miles; a feat
which not even Napoleon could have performed
with an army that had just been "routed." He had now
heard of Stark' s victory and St Leger's flight, and his let-
ters show how clearly he foresaw Burgoyne's inevitable fate,
provided Howe could be kept away from him. To keep
Howe's whole force employed near Philadelphia as long as
possible was of the utmost importance. Accordingly, dur-
ing the fortnight following the battle of the Brandywine,
every day saw manoeuvres or skirmishes, in one of which
General Wayne was defeated by Sir Charles Gray, with a
The British loss of three hundred men. On the 26th, while
ddphiaf 11 * Howe established his headquarters at German-
Sept. 26 town, Cornwallis entered Philadelphia in triumph,
marching with bands of music and flying colours, and all the
troops decked out in their finest scarlet array.
Having got possession of the "rebel capital," the ques-
1777 SARATOGA 327
tion now arose whether it would be possible to hold it
through the winter. The Delaware river, below the city,
had been carefully obstructed by chevaux-de-fnse, which
were guarded by two strong fortresses, Fort Mifflin on an
island in mid-stream, and Fort Mercer on the Jersey shore.
The river was here about two miles in width, but
it was impossible for ships to pass until the forts cance of
should have been reduced About the first of cer and er
October, after a rough return voyage of four hun- Mlfflin
dred miles, Lord Howe's fleet appeared at the mouth of
the Delaware. It was absolutely necessary to gain control
of the river, in order that the city might get supplies by sea ;
for so long as Washington's army remained unbroken, the
Americans were able to cut off all supplies by land. Sir
William Howe, therefore, threw a portion of his forces across
the river, to aid his brother in reducing the forts. The
quick eye of Washington now saw an opportunity for attack-
ing the main British army, while thus temporarily weakened ,
and he forthwith planned a brilliant battle, which was, how-
ever, fated to be lost by a singular accident.
The village of Germantown, by the bank of the Schuylkill
river, was then separated from Philadelphia by about six
miles of open country. The village consisted xhesitua-
chiefly of a single street, about two miles m length, Ge?man-
with stone houses on either side, standing about a town
hundred yards apart from each other, and surrounded by
gardens and orchards Near the upper end of the street,
in the midst of ornamental shrubbery, vases, and statues,
arranged in a French style of landscape gardening, stood the
massively built house of Benjamin Chew, formerly Chief
Justice of Pennsylvania About a mile below, at the Market
House, the main street was crossed at nght angles by the
Old School Lane. Beside the main street, running over
Chestnut Hill, the village was approached from the north-
ward by three roads. The Monatawny road ran down by
the bank of the Schuylkill, and, crossing the Old School
Lane, bore on toward Philadelphia The Limekiln road,
328 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
coming from the northeast, became continuous with the Old
School Lane. The Old York road, still farther eastward,
joined the main street at the Rising Sun tavern, about two
miles below the Market House.
The British army lay encamped just behind the Old
School Lane, in the lower part of the village : the left wing,
under Knyphausen, to the west of the main street ; the
right, under Grant, to the east. A strong detachment of
chasseurs, under Sir Charles Grey, covered the left wing
About a mile in advance of the army, Colonel Musgrave's
regiment lay in a field opposite Judge Chew's house ; and
yet a mile farther forward a battalion of light infantry was
stationed on the slight eminence known as Mount Airy,
where a small battery commanded the road to the north
Washington's plan of attack seems to have contemplated
nothing less than the destruction or capture of the British
army. His forces were to advance from the north by all four
washing- roads at once, and converge upon the British at the
daa"" Market House. The American right wing, under
pkn Sullivan, and consisting of Sullivan's own brigade,
with those of Conway, Wayne, Maxwell, and Nash, was
to march down the main street, overwhelm the advanced
parties of the British, and engage their left wing in front ,
while Armstrong, with the Pennsylvania militia, was to
move down the Monatawny road, and take the same wing
in flank. The American left wing, commanded by Greene,
was also to proceed in two columns. Greene, with his own
brigade, supported by Stephen and McDougal, was to march
down the Limekiln road, and assail the British right wing in
front and in flank ; while Smallwood and Forman, coming
down the Old York road, were to strike the same wing in
the rear. The flank attack upon the British left, entrusted
as it was to militia, was intended merely as a demonstration.
The attack upon their right, conducted by more than half
of the American army, including its best troops, was in-
tended to crush that wing, and folding back the whole Brit-
ish army upon the Schuylkill river, compel it to surrender.
BATTLE OF GERMANTOWN
October 4 1777
1777
SARATOGA
329
JUDGE CHEW'S HOUSE AT GERMANTOWN
Considering that the Americans had not even yet a su-
periority in numbers, this was a most audacious plan No
better instance could be given of the spirit of wild and ven-
turous daring which was as conspicuous in Washington as
his cautious vigilance, whenever any fit occasion arose for
displaying it. The scheme came surprisingly near to suc-
cess ; so near as to redeem it from the imputation of fool-
hardiness, and to show that here, as in all Washington's
military movements, cool judgment went along with fiery dash.
At seven in the evening of the 3d of October, the Battle of
night march upon Germantown began, Washing- ? ^'
ton accompanying Sullivan's column. At sunrise Oct 4
a heavy fog came up, and the darkness went on increasing.
Soon after the hour of daybreak the light infantry upon
Mount Airy were surprised and routed, and the battery was
captured. Musgrave was next overwhelmed by the heavy
American column ; but he, with a small force, took refuge
33 o THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
in Judge Chew's house, and set up a brisk fire from the
windows. The Americans opened an artillery-fire upon the
house, but its stone walls were too solid to be beaten down
by the three-pound and six-pound field-pieces of that day ;
and so Maxwell's brigade was left behind to besiege the
house, while the rest of the column rushed on down the
street. The chief effect of this incident was to warn the
enemy, while retarding and somewhat weakening the Amer-
ican charge Nevertheless, the fury of the attack was such
as to disconcert Knyphausen's veterans, and the British left
wing slowly gave way before Sullivan. At this moment,
Greene, who had also been delayed, attacked the right wing
with such vigour as presently to force it back toward the
Market House The British ranks were falling into con-
fusion, and Smallwood's column had already arrived upon
their right flank, when the accident occurred which changed
the fortunes of the day. From the beginning the dense fog
had been a source of confusion to both armies, and had seri-
ously interfered with the solidity of the American advance.
Now, as Stephen's brigade, on the right of Greene's column,
came into the village, the heavy firing at Judge Chew's
seems to have caused him to diverge more and more to the
west, in the belief that there was the thick of the battle
At the same time, Wayne, in driving the enemy before him,
had swayed somewhat to the east, so that his brigade stood
almost directly in the line of Stephen's progress. In this
position he was attacked by Stephen, who mistook him for
the enemy. This lamentable blunder instantly ruined the
battle. Wayne's men, thus fiercely attacked in the rear,
and struggling to extricate themselves, were thrown upon
the left flank of Sullivan's brigade, and a panic suddenly
ran through the army The confusion grew worse and
worse, till a general retreat began, and Grey, who had come
up to support the crumbling right wing of the British, was
now able to lead in. the pursuit of the Americans. He was
joined by Cornwallis, who had sprung from his bed In Phila-
delphia at the first sound of the cannon, and had brought
1777
SARATOGA
up two battalions with him at double-quick But the panic
had subsided almost as soon as the golden moment of vic-
tory was lost, and the retreat was conducted m excellent
order. One regiment in Greene's column was surrounded
and captured, but the army brought away all its cannon and
wounded, with several cannon taken from the enemy. The
loss of the Americans in killed and wounded was 673, and
the loss of the British was 535.
The fog which enshrouded the village of Germantown on
that eventful morning has been hardly less confusing to his-
torians than it was to the armies engaged. The reports of
different observers conflicted in many details, and particu-
larly as to the immediate occasion of the fatal panic. The
HOUSE AT GERMANTOWN OCCUPIED BY THE BRITISH
best accounts agree, however, that the entanglement of
Stephen with Wayne was chiefly responsible for the dis-
aster. It was charged against Stephen that he had taken
too many pulls at his canteen on the long, damp night march,
and he was tried by court-martial, and dismissed from the
service The chagrin of the Americans at losing the prize
so nearly grasped was profound The total rout of Howe,
coming at the same time with the surrender of Burgoyne,
332
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
CHAP vii
WHITHALL HOUSE AT FORT MERCER WHERE DONOP DIED
would probably have been too much for Lord North's min-
istry to bear, and might have brought the war to a sudden
close As it was, the British took an undue amount of comfort
in the acquisition of Philadelphia, though so long as Washing-
ton's army remained defiant it was of small military value to
them On the other hand, the genius and audacity shown
by Washington, in thus planning and so nearly accomplish-
ing the ruin of the British army only three weeks after the
defeat at the Brandywine, produced a profound impression
upon military critics in Europe Frederick of Prussia saw
that presently, when American soldiers should come to be
disciplined veterans, they would become a formidable in-
strument in the hands of their great commander ; and the
French court, in making up its mind that the Americans
would prove efficient allies, is said to have been influenced
almost as much by the battle of Germantown as by the
surrender of Burgoyne.
Having thus escaped the catastrophe which Washington
Howe cap- had designed for him, the British commander was
now able to P ut forth his utmost efforts for the
capture of the forts on the Delaware. His utmost
efforts were needed, for in the first attack on Fort Mercer,
October 22, the Hessians were totally defeated, with the
Mlfflm
1777 SARATOGA 333
loss of Count Donop and 400 men, while the Americans lost
but 37. But after a month of hard work, with the aid of
6,000 more men sent from New York by Clinton, both forts
were reduced, and the command of the Delaware was wrested
from the Americans. Another month of manoeuvring and
skirmishing followed, and then Washington took his army
into winter-quarters at Valley Forge The events which
attended his sojourn in that natural stronghold belong to a
later period of the war. We must now return to the upper
waters of the Hudson, and show how the whole period, which
may be most fitly described as a struggle for the control of
the great central state of New York, was brought to an end
by the complete and overwhelming victory of the Amer-
icans.
We have seen how it became impossible for Howe to act
upon Lord George Germain's order, received in August, in
Chesapeake Bay, and get back to the Hudson in time to be
of any use to Burgoyne. We have also seen how critical
was the situation in which the northern general was left,
after the destruction of Baum and St. Leger, and the accu-
mulation of New England yeomanry in his rear. Burgoyne
Burgoyne now fully acknowledged the terrible mis- r? co FJ^ es
take of the ministry in assuming that the resist- error of
ance of the Americans was due to the machinations ermam
of a few wily demagogues, and that the people would hail
the approach of the king's troops as deliverers. "The
great bulk of the country," said he, "is undoubtedly with
the Congress in principle and zeal, and their measures are
executed with a secrecy and dispatch that are not to be
equalled. . . . The Hampshire Grants, in particular, a coun-
try unpeopled land almost unknown last war, now abounds
in the most active and most rebellious race on the conti-
nent, and hangs like a gathering storm upon my left " The
situation had, indeed, become so alarming that it is hard to
say what Burgoyne ought to have done A retreat upon
Ticonderoga would have been fraught with peril, while to
334- THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
cross the Hudson and advance upon Albany would be doing
like Cortes, when he scuttled his ships But Burgoyne was
a man of chivalrous nature He did not think it right or
prudent to abandon Sir William Howe, whom he still sup-
posed to be coming up the river to meet him. In a letter
to Lord George Germain, written three days after the sur-
render, he says, " The difficulty of a retreat upon Canada
was clearly foreseen, as was the dilemma, should the retreat
be effected, of leaving at liberty such an army as General
Gates's to operate against Sir William Howe. This con-
sideration operated forcibly to determine me to abide events
as long as possible, and I reasoned thus : the expedition
which I commanded was at first evidently intended to be
hazarded, circumstances might require it should be de-
voted"
Influenced by these views, which were supported by all
his generals except Riedesel, Burgoyne threw a bridge of
Neverthe- boats across the Hudson, and passed over with
owes the his whole army on the i3th of September. The
Hudson Americans had taken a strong position on Bemis
Heights, where Kosciuszko had skilfully fortified their camp
with batteries and redoubts Burgoyne felt that the time
for desperate fighting had now come, and it seemed to him
that the American position might be turned and carried by
an attack upon its left flank. On the morning of the jgth,
he advanced through the woods, with the centre of his
army, toward the point where the Quaker road passed
Bemis Heights The right wing, under Fraser, proceeded
somewhat more circuitou^sly toward the same point, the
plan being that they should join forces and strike the rear
of the American camp, while Riedesel and Phillips, with
the left wing and the artillery, marching down the river
First battle road, should assail it in front. Three heavy guns,
man" 6 " announcing to the left wing the junction of Bur-
Iei 9 , gy ne and Fraser, were to give the signal for a
mdecisivi general assault. American scouts, lurking among
the upper branches of tall trees that grew on steep hillsides,
FIRST BATTLE AT FREEMAN'S FARM
September 19, 1777
1777 SARATOGA 335
presently caught glimpses of bright scarlet flitting through
the green depths of the forest, while the long sunbeams
that found their way through the foliage sent back quick
burning flashes from a thousand bayonets. By noon the
course of the British march and their plan of attack had
been fully deciphered, and the intelligence was carried to
Arnold, who commanded the left wing of the American
army. Gates appears ta have been unwilling to let any of
the forces descend from their strong position , but the fiery
Arnold urged and implored, until he got permission to take
Morgan's riflemen and Dearborn's infantry, and go forth to
attack the enemy Arnold's advance, under Morgan, first fell
upon Burgoyne's advance, at Freeman's Farm, and checked
its progress. Fraser then, hearing the musketry, turned
eastward to the rescue, while Arnold, moving upon Fraser's
left, sought to cut him asunder from Burgoyne. He seemed
to be winning the day, when he was attacked in flank by
Riedesel, who had hurried up from the river road Arnold
had already sent to Gates for reinforcements, which were
refused him Arnold maintained that this was a gross
blunder on the part of the commanding general, and that
with 2,000 more men he could now easily have crushed the
British centre and defeated their army In this opinion he
was probably right, since even as it was he held his own, in
a desperate fight, for two hours, until darkness put an end
to the struggle The losses on each side are variously esti-
mated at from 600 to 1,000, or from one fifth to one fourth
of the forces engaged, which indicates severe fighting.
Arnold's command had numbered about 3,000, and he had
been engaged, in the course of the afternoon, with at least
4,000 of Burgoyne's army; yet all this while some n,ooo
Americans most of the army in short had been kept
idle on Bcrnis Heights by the incompetent Gates. Bur-
goyne tried to console himself with the idea that he had
won a victory, because his army slept that night at Free-
man's Farm ; but in his testimony given afterward before
the House of Commons, he rightly maintained that his plan
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
of attack had been utterly defeated by the bold and skilful
tactics of "Mr" Arnold.
In the dispatches which he now sent to Congress, Gates
took to himself all the credit of this affair, and did not even
mention Arnold's name. The army, however, rang with
praise of the fighting general, until Gates, who never could
bear to hear any one but himself well spoken of, waxed
wroth and revengeful. Arnold, moreover, freely blamed
Gates for not supporting him, and for refusing to renew
1777 SARATOGA 337
the battle on the next morning, while the enemy were still
disconcerted. Arnold's warm friendship with Schuyler gave
further offence to the commander ; and three days after the
battle he sought to wreak his spite by withdrawing Mor-
gan's riflemen and Dearborn's light infantry from Arnold's
division. A fierce quarrel ensued, in the course of which
Gates told Arnold that as soon as Lincoln should arrive he
would have no further use for him, and he might go back to
Washington's camp as soon as he liked. Arnold, in a white
rage, said he would go, and asked for a pass, which his enemy
promptly gave him , but after receiving it, second thoughts
prevented him from going. All the general officers except
Lincoln who seems to have refrained from unwillingness
to give umbrage to a commander so high in the good graces
of Massachusetts as Gates united in signing a letter en-
treating Arnold to remain. He had been sent here by
Washington to aid the northern army, and clearly it would
be wrong to leave it now, on the eve of a decisive battle. So
the proud, fiery soldier, smarting under an accumulation of
injuries, made up his mind once more to swallow the affront,
and wait for a chance to make himself useful. He stayed
in his quarters, awaiting the day of battle, though it was not
clear how far he was entitled, under the circumstances, to
exercise command, and Gates took no more notice of him
than if he had been a dog
Nothing more was done for eighteen days. Just before
the crossing of the Hudson by the northern army, Sir Henry
Clinton, acting "as circumstances may direct," had planned
an expedition up the river in aid of it ; and Burgoyne, hear-
ing of this the day after the battle at Freeman's Farm,
thought it best to wait a while before undertaking another
assault upon the American lines. But things were swiftly
coming to such a pass that it would not do to wait. On the
2 ist, news came to the British camp that a detachment of
Lincoln's troops had laid siege to Ticonderoga, and, while
holding the garrison in check, had captured several ships
and taken 300 prisoners. A day or two later came the news
338 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP vn
that these New Englanders had embarked on Lake George
in the ships they had captured, and were cutting
Burgoyne's . , , f i A i 11
supplies off the last sources of supply And now, while even
mt off on shortest rations there was barely three weeks'
food for the army, Lincoln's main force appeared in front,
thus swelling the numbers of the American army to more
than 16,000. The case had become as desperate as that of
the Athenians at Syracuse before their last dreadful battle
m the harbour So, after eighteen weary days, no word yet
coming from Clinton, the gallant Burgoyne attempted, by a
furious effort, to break through the lines of an army that
now outnumbered him more than three to one
On the morning of October 7th, leaving the rest of his
army in camp, Burgoyne advanced with 1,500 picked men
to turn the American left Small as the force was, its
quality was superb, and with it were the best commanders,
Phillips, Riedesel, Fraser, Balcarras, and Ackland. Such
a compact force, so ably led, might manoeuvre quickly. If,
on sounding the American position on the left, they should
find it too strong to be forced, they might swiftly retreat.
At all events, the movement would cover a foraging party
which Burgoyne had sent out, and this was no small mat-
ter Arnold, too, the fighting general, it was reported, held
no command ; and Gates was known to be a sluggard. Such
thoughts may have helped to shape the conduct of
the British commander on this critical morning.
But the scheme was swiftly overturned. As the
British came on, their right was suddenly attacked
defeated by by Morgan, while the New England regulars with
m 3,000 New York militia assailed them in front.
After a short, sharp fight against overwhelming numbers,
their whole line was broken, and Fraser sought to form
a second line a little farther back, on the west border of
Freeman's Farm, though the ranks were badly disordered
aril all their cannon were lost. At this moment, Arnold,
who had been watching from the heights, saw that a well*
directed blow might not only ruin thfe retreating column*
SECOND BATTLE AT FREEMAN'S FARM
October 7, 1777
1777 SARATOGA 339
but also shatter the whole British army. Quick as thought
he sprang upon his horse, and galloped to the scene of ac-
tion He was greeted with deafening hurrahs, and the men,
leaping with exultation at sight of their beloved commander,
rushed upon Eraser's half -formed line. At the same mo-
ment, while Morgan was still pressing on the British right,
one of his marksmen shot General Eraser, who fell, mortally
wounded, just as Arnold charged with mad fury upon his
line. The British, thus assailed in front and flank, were
soon pushed off the field. Arnold next attacked Lord Bal-
carras, who had retired behind mtrenchments at the north
of Freeman's Farm; but finding the resistance here too
strong, he swept by, and charged upon the Canadian auxili-
aries, who occupied a position just north of Balcarras, and
covered the left wing of Breymann's forces at the extreme
340 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
right of the British camp. The Canadians soon fled, leav-
ing Breymann uncovered; and Arnold forthwith rushed
against Breymann on the left, just as Morgan, who had pro-
longed his flanking march, assailed him on the right. Brey-
mann was slam and his force routed , the British right wing
was crushed, and their whole position taken in reverse and
made untenable. Just at this moment, a wounded German
soldier, lying on the ground, took aim at Arnold, and slew
his horse, while the ball passed through the general's left
leg, that had been wounded at Quebec, and fractured the
bone a little above the knee As Arnold fell, one of his
men rushed up to bayonet the wounded soldier who had
shot him, when the prostrate general cried, " For God's sake,
don't hurt him , he 's a fine fellow ! " The poor German
was saved, and this was the hour when Benedict Arnold
should have died His fall and the gathering twilight
stopped the progress of the battle, but the American victory
was complete and decisive. Nothing was left for Burgoyne
but to get the wreck of his army out of the way as quickly
as possible, and the next day he did so, making a slow
retreat upon Saratoga, in the course of which his soldiers
burned General Schuyler's princely country-house, with its
barns and granaries.
As the British retreated, General Gates steadily closed in
upon them with his overwhelming forces, which now num-
bered 20,000. Gates to give him due credit knew how
to be active after the victory, although, when fighting was
going on, he was a general of sedentary habits. When
Arnold rushed down, at the critical moment, to complete
the victory of Saratoga, Gates sent out Major Armstrong to
stop him. "Call back that fellow," said Gates, "or he will
be doing something rash ! " But the eager Arnold had out-
galloped the messenger, and came back only when his leg
was broken and the victory won. In the mean time Gates
sat at his headquarters, forgetful of the battle that was
raging below, while he argued the merits of the American
Revolution with a wounded British officer, Sir Francis
1777 SARATOGA 341
Clerke, who had been brought in and laid upon the com-
mander's bed to die Losing his temper in the discussion,
Gates called his adjutant, Wilkinson, out of the room, and
asked him, "Did you ever hear so impudent a son of a
b h ? " And this seems to have been all that the com-
manding general contributed to the crowning victory of
Saratoga.
When Burgoyne reached the place where he had crossed
the Hudson, he found a force of 3,000 Americans, with
several batteries of cannon occupying the hills on the other
side, so that it was now impossible to cross. A TheBritlsh
council of war decided to abandon all the artillery army is sur-
and baggage, push through the woods by night,
and effect a crossing higher up, by Fort Edward, where the
great river begins to be fordable. But no sooner had this
342 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP vn
plan been made than word was brought that the Americans
were guarding all the fords, and had also planted detach-
ments in a strong position to the northward, between Fort
Edward and Fort George. The British army, in short, was
surrounded A brisk cannonade was opened upon it from
the east and south, while Morgan's sharpshooters kept up a
galling fire in the rear Some of the women and wounded
men were sent for safety to a large house in the neighbour-
hood, where they took refuge in the cellar , and there the
Baroness Riedesel tells us how she passed six dismal nights
and days, crouching in a corner near the doorway, with her
three little children clinging about her, while every now and
then, with hideous crashing, a heavy cannon-ball passed
through the room overhead The cellar became crowded
with crippled and dying men. But little food could be ob-
tained, and the suffering from thirst was dreadful It was
only a few steps to the river, but every man who ventured
out with a bucket was shot dead by Virginia rifles that never
missed their aim At last the brave wife of a British soldier
volunteered to go ; and thus the water was brought again
and again, for the Americans would not fire at a woman.
And now, while Burgoyne's last ray of hope was dying,
and while the veteran Phillips declared himself heartbroken
at the misery which he could not relieve, where was Sir
Henry Clinton ? He had not thought it prudent to leave
cimton New York until after the arrival of 3,000 soldiers
th^Hud- w k m h e expected from England These men
son, but it arrived on the 2gth of September, but six days
more elapsed before Sir Henry had taken them
up the river and landed them near Putnam's headquarters
at Peekskill. In a campaign of three days he outwitted
that general, carried two of the forts after obstinate resist-
ance, and compelled the Americans to abandon the others ;
and thus laid open the river so that British ships might
go up to Albany. On the 8th of October, Sir Henry wrote
to Burgoyne from Fort Montgomery : "Nous y void, and
nothing between us and Gates. I sincerely hope this little
1777 SARATOGA 343
success of ours will facilitate your operations." This dis-
patch was written on a scrap of very thin paper, and encased
in an oval silyer bullet, which opened with a tiny screw in
the middle. Sir Henry then sent General Vaughan, with
several frigates and the greater part of his force, to make
all haste for Albany. As they passed up the river, the
next day, they could not resist the temptation to land and
set fire to the pretty village of Kingston, then the seat of
the state legislature. George Clinton, governor of the state,
just retreating from his able defence of the captured forts,
hastened to protect the village, but came up only in time to
see it in flames from one end to the other Just then Sir
Henry's messenger, as he skulked by the roadside, was
caught and taken to the governor He had been seen swal-
lowing something, so they gave him an emetic, and obtained
the silver bullet. The dispatch was read ; the bearer was
hanged to an apple-tree , and Burgoyne, weary with waiting
for the news that never came, at last sent a flag of truce to
General Gates, inquiring what terms of surrender would be
accepted
Gates first demanded an unconditional surrender, but on
Burgoyne' s indignant refusal he consented to make terms,
and the more readily, no doubt, since he knew
what had just happened in the Highlands, though surrenders,
his adversary did not After three days of discus- ct * 7
sion the terms of surrender were agreed upon. Just as
Burgoyne was about to sign the articles, a Tory made his
way into camp with hearsay news that part of Clinton's
army was approaching Albany. The subject was then
anxiously reconsidered by the British officers, and an inter-
esting discussion ensued as to whether they had so far
pledged their faith to the surrender that they could not in
honour draw back. The majority of the council decided
that their faith was irrevocably pledged, and Burgoyne
yielded to this opinion, though he did not share it, for he
did not feel quite clear that the rumoured advance of Clinton
could now avail to save him in arty case. In this he was
344 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
undoubtedly right. The American army, with its daily
accretions of militia, had now grown to more than 20,000,
and armed yeomanry were still pouring m by the hundred
A diversion threatened by less than 3,000 men, who were
still more than fifty miles distant, could hardly have averted
the doom of the British army The only effect which it
did produce was, perhaps, to work upon the timid Gates,
and induce him to offer easy terms in order to hasten the
surrender. On the i/th of October, accordingly, the arti-
cles were signed, exchanged, and put in execution. It was
agreed that the British army should march out of camp with
the honours of war, and pile their arms at an appointed
place, they should then march through Massachusetts to
Boston, from which port they might sail for Europe, it
being understood that none of them should serve again in
America during the war ; all the officers might retain their
small arms, and no one's private luggage should be searched
or molested. At Burgoyne's earnest solicitation the Amer-
ican general consented that these proceedings should be
styled a "convention," instead of a surrender, in imitation
of the famous Convention of Kloster-Seven, by which the
Duke of Cumberland, twenty years before, had sought to
save his feelings while losing his army, beleaguered by the
French in Hanover The soothing phrase has been well
remembered by British historians, who to this day continue
to speak of Burgoyne's surrender as the "Convention of
Saratoga "
In carrying out the terms of the convention, both Gate?
and his soldiers showed praiseworthy delicacy. As the
British marched off to a meadow by the river side and laid
down their arms, the Americans remained within their lines,
refusing to add to the humiliation of a gallant enemy by
standing and looking on. As the disarmed soldiers then
passed by the American lines, says Lieutenant Anbury, one
of the captured officers, " I did not observe the least disre-
spect or even a taunting look, but all was mute astonishment
and pity." Burgoyne stepped up and handed his sword to
SURRENDER OP BURGOYNE AT SARATOGA
October 17, 1777
1777 SARATOGA 345
Gates, simply saying, " The fortune of war, General Gates,
has made me your prisoner." The American general in-
stantly returned the sword, replying, "I shall always be
ready to testify that it has not been through any fault of
your excellency " When Baron Riedesel had been presented
to Gates and the other generals, he sent for his wife and
children. Set free at last from the dreadful cellar, the
baroness came with some trepidation into the enemy's camp ;
but the only look she saw upon any face was one of sym-
pathy "As I approached the tents," she says, "a noble-
looking gentleman came toward me, and took the children
out of the wagon ; embraced and kissed them , and then,
with tears in his eyes, helped me also to alight. . . . Pres-
ently he said, ' It may be embarrassing to you to dine with
so many gentlemen If you will come with your children
to my tent, I will give you a frugal meal, but one that will
at least be seasoned with good wishes/ 'Oh, sir/ I cried,
' you must surely be a husband and a father, since you show
me so much kindness ! ' I then learned that it was General
Schuyler."
Schuyler had indeed come, with unruffled soul, to look on
while the fruit which he had sown, with the gallant aid of
Stark and Herkimer, Arnold and Morgan, was plucked by
an unworthy rival He now met Burgoyne, who was nat-
urally pained and embarrassed at the recollection of the
beautiful house which his men had burned a few days be-
fore In a speech m the House of Commons, some months
later, Burgoyne told how Schuyler received him.
" I expressed to General Schuyler," says Burgoyne, magnamm-
" my regret at the event which had happened, and
the reasons which had occasioned it He desired me to
think no more of it, saying that the occasion justified it,
according to the rules of war. . . He did more : he sent
an aide-de-camp to conduct me to Albany, in order, as he
expressed it, to procure me better quarters than a stranger
might be able to find. This gentleman conducted me to a
very elegant house, and, to my great surprise, presented me
346 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
to Mrs Schuyler and her family , and in this general's house
I remained during my whole stay at Albany, with a table of
more than twenty covers for me and my friends, and every
other possible demonstration of hospitality" Madame
Riedesel was also invited to stay with the Schuylers ; and
when first she arrived in the house, one of her little girls
exclaimed, "Oh, mamma ' Is this the palace that papa was
to have when he came to America?" As the Schuylers
understood German, the baroness coloured, but all laughed
pleasantly, and put her at ease.
With the generosity and delicacy shown alike by generals
and soldiers, it is painful, though instructive, to contrast
the coarseness and bad faith with which Congress pro-
ceeded to treat the captured army. The presence of the
troops in and about Boston was felt to be a hardship, and
Badfaithof General Heath, who commanded there, wrote to
Congress Washington, saying that if they were to stay till
cold weather he hardly knew how to find shelter and fuel
for them. Washington replied that they would not be likely
to stay long, since it was clearly for Howe's interest to send
them back to England as soon as possible, in order that they
might replace other soldiers who would be sent over to
America for the spring campaign. Congress caught up this
suggestion with avidity, and put it to uses quite remote from
Washington's meaning. When Sir William Howe proposed
Newport as a point from which the soldiers might more
speedily be shipped, Washington, for sound and obvious rei-
sons, urged that there should be no departure from the strict
letter of the convention. Congress forthwith not only acted
upon this suggestion so far as to refuse Sir William Ilowe's
request, but it went on gratuitously and absurdly to charge
the British general with bad faith* It was hinted that he
secretly intended to bring the troops to New York for imme-
diate service, in defiance of the convention, and Congress
proceeded to make this imputed treachery the ground for
really false dealing on its own part. When Lord Howe's
1777 SARATOGA 347
transports reached Boston, it was not only ordered that no
troops should be allowed to embark until all the accounts
for their subsistence should have been settled, but it was
also required that these accounts should be liquidated in
gold In the instructions given to General Washington a
year before, a refusal on the part of anybody to receive the
Continental paper money was to be treated as a high misde-
meanour Now Congress refused to take its own money,
which had depreciated till it was worth barely thirty cents
on a dollar. The captured army was supplied with provi-
sions and fuel that were paid for by General Heath with
Continental paper, and now Congress insisted that General
Burgoyne should make his repayment dollar for dollar in
British gold, worth three times as much In fairness to the
delegates, we may admit that in all probability they did not
realize the baseness of this conduct They were no doubt
misled by one of those wonderful bits of financial sophistry
by which the enacting mind of our countrymen has so often
been hopelessly confused. In an amusing letter to Wash-
ington, honest General
Heath naively exclaims,
'What an opinion must
General Burgoyne have
of the authority of these
states, to suppose that his money would be received at any
higher rate than our own in public payment ' Such pay-
ment would at once be depreciating our currency with a
witness." Washington was seriously annoyed and mortified
by these vagaries, the more so that he was at this very-
time endeavouring to arrange with Howe a general cartel for
the exchange of prisoners ; and he knew that the attempt to
make thirty cents equal to a dollar would, as he said, "de-
stroy the very idea of a cartel "
While these discussions were going on, Congress, like the
wicked king in the fairy tale, anxious to impose conditions
unlikely to be fulfilled, demanded that General Burgoyne
should make out a descriptive list of all the officers and
V\
348 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
soldiers in his army, in order that if any of them should
thereafter be found serving against the United States they
might be punished accordingly. As no such provision was
contained in the convention, upon the faith of which Bur-
goyne had surrendered, he naturally regarded the demand
as insulting, and at first refused to comply with it He
afterwards yielded the point, in his eagerness to liberate his
soldiers ; but meanwhile, in a letter to Gates, he had incau-
tiously let fall the expression, "Thepublick faith is broke
[sic] ; " and this remark, coming to the ears of Congress,
was immediately laid hold of as a pretext for repudiating
the convention altogether. It was argued that Burgoyne
had charged the United States with bad faith, in order to
have an excuse for repudiating the convention on his own
part; and on the 8th of January, Congress accordingly
resolved, " that the embarkation of Lieutenant-General Bur-
goyne and the troops under his command be suspended till
a distinct and explicit ratification of the Convention of Sara-
toga shall be properly notified by the court of Great Britain
to Congress " Now as the British government could not
give the required ratification without implicitly recognizing
the independence of the United States, no further steps
were taken in the matter, the "publick faith" was really
broken, and the captured army was never sent home.
In this wretched affair, Congress deliberately sacrificed
principle to policy. It refused, on paltry pretexts, to carry
out a solemn engagement which had been made by its ac-
credited agent ; and it did so simply through the fear that
the British army might indirectly gain a possible reinforce-
The behav- rc^nt. Its conduct can be justified upon no grounds
Coness save suc k as wou ^ equally justify firing upon flags
was simply of truce. Nor can it be palliated even upon the
mexcusa e j owest g roun( j s O f expediency, for, as it has been
well said, "to a people struggling for political life the moral
support derivable from the maintenance of honour and good
faith was worth a dozen material victories." This sacrifice
of principle to policy has served only to call down the con-
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350 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION CHAP, vn
damnation of impartial historians, and to dim the lustre of
the magnificent victory which the valour of our soldiers and
the self-devotion of our people had won in the field. It was
one out of many instances which show that, under any form
of government, the moral sense of the governing body is
likely to fall far below the highest moral standard recog-
nized in the community.
The captured army was never sent home The officers
were treated as prisoners of war, and from time to time
what be- were exchanged Burgoyne was allowed to go to
SptureV 116 England in the spring, and while still a prisoner on
aray parole he took his seat in Parliament, and became
conspicuous among the defenders of the American cause.
The troops were detained in the neighbourhood of Boston
until the autumn of 1778, when they were all transferred to
Charlottesville in Virginia Here a rude village was built
on the brow of a pleasant ridge of hills, and gardens were
laid out and planted Much kind assistance was rendered
in all this work by Thomas Jefferson, who was then living
close by, on his estate at Monticello, and did everything in
his power to make things comfortable for soldiers and
officers. Two years afterward, when Virginia became the
seat of war, some of them were removed to Winchester in
the Shenandoah valley, to Frederick in Maryland, and to
Lancaster in Pennsylvania. Those who wished to return to
Europe were exchanged or allowed to escape. The greater
number, especially of the Germans, preferred to stay in this
country and become American citizens. Before the end of
1783 they had dispersed in all directions.
Such was the strange sequel of a campaign which, whether
we consider the picturesqueness of its incidents or the mag-
nitude of its results, was one of the most memorable in the
history of mankind. Its varied scenes, framed in land-
scapes of grand and stirring beauty, had brought together
such types of manhood as the feathered Mohawk sachem,
the helmeted Brunswick dragoon, and the blue-frocked yeo-
man of New England, types of ancient barbarism, of the
1777 SARATOGA 351
militancy bequeathed from the Middle Ages, and of the
industrial democracy that is to possess and control the future
of the world. These men had mingled in a deadly struggle
for the strategic centre of the Atlantic coast of North
America, and now the fight had ended in the complete and
overwhelming defeat of the forces of George III. Four
years, indeed, four years of sore distress and hope de-
ferred, were yet to pass before the fruits of this great
victory could be gathered. The independence of the United
States was not yet won ; but the triumph at Saratoga set
in motion a train of events from which the winning of inde-
pendence was destined surely to follow.
ftifeetfifce
Ekctrotyped and printed by H 0. Hwghton d" C<a
Cambridge, Mass, USA.
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