their rights as a tax upon all; so that the last act of Parliament was
additional proof that England meant to force taxation upon them. Of
course, as brave and fearless patriots, they resisted. Tea was
universally discarded. Ship-loads of it in Boston, New York, and other
ports were returned to England, or packed away to perish. In Boston
seventeen citizens disguised themselves as Indians, boarded an English
tea-vessel, and cast the tea into the dock. This act aroused the
British lion, and he shook his mane and roared. Soon an English fleet
appeared in Boston Harbor to reduce the inhabitants to subjection by
force of arms. At the same time, the Boston Port Bill was enforced,
thereby closing the harbor of that city to commerce.
The citizens refused to provide quarters for the English troops, and
declared, in public assembly, that quartering British soldiers in the
State House and Faneuil Hall, as the English officers had done, was a
still further and graver invasion of their rights.
We should have said that the day on which the Stamp Act went into
operation, Nov. 1, 1765, was observed throughout the Colonies as a day
of fasting and prayer. The day was ushered in by the tolling of bells,
as if the funeral ceremonies of the king himself were to be performed.
Ships displayed their colors at half-mast. Business was suspended, and
halls and churches were opened for prayer and addresses. Washington's
journal shows that he spent the day very much as he did his Sabbaths,
in devout worship in the house of God, and religious exercises at home.
In Boston a solemn procession bore along the streets effigies of the men
who were promoters of the Act, burying them with appropriate ceremonies.
In New York City a similar procession carried the printed Act itself
upon a pole, surmounted by a death's head, with a scroll bearing the
inscription,
"THE FOLLY OF ENGLAND AND RUIN OF AMERICA."
Lieutenant-Governor Colden, who had lent his influence to secure the
Act, fearing violence, fled to the fort, and garrisoned it with marines
from a ship of war. "The mob broke into his stable, drew out his
chariot, put his effigy into it, paraded it through the streets to the
Common (now the Park), where they hung it on a gallows. In the evening
it was taken down, put again into the chariot, with the devil for a
companion, and escorted back by torchlight to the bowling green, where
the whole pageant, chariot and all, was burnt under the very guns of the
fort."
The day on which the Boston Port Bill went into effect was also set
apart as a day of fasting, and similar demonstrations were made
throughout the Colonies.
It is necessary to turn aside at this point to speak of Washington's
visit to Ohio in the interest of his officers and soldiers. It will be
remembered that the Governor of Virginia pledged the Virginia troops led
by Washington to the Ohio, two hundred thousand acres of the best land
in that region. Years passed by, and this pledge was not redeemed. The
British ministry opposed redeeming the pledge. But Washington did not
forget the claim of his old associates in the hardships and perils of
war. He took the matter in hand, and seized upon an opportune moment to
carry out his purpose. He even performed a journey to the Ohio to select
the best land possible for his deserving comrades. The opportune moment
he chose for his journey is described as follows by Irving:
"The Six Nations, by a treaty in 1768, had ceded to the British Crown,
in consideration of a sum of money, all the lands possessed by them
south of the Ohio. Land offices would soon be opened for the sale of
them. Squatters and speculators were already preparing to swarm in, set
up their marks on the choicest spots, and establish what were called
preemption rights. Washington determined at once to visit the lands thus
ceded, affix his mark on such tracts as he should select, and apply for
a grant from government, in behalf of the 'soldiers' claim.'"
This expedition was attended by considerable danger, as the Delawares,
Shawnees, and Mingees considered that their rights were invaded by the
action of the Six Nations. The appearance of white men upon their
domains to claim lands was not at all agreeable to them.
In these circumstances Washington undertook the journey, accompanied by
his old friend Dr. Craik, and servant, with two servants of his own. All
were mounted, with an additional horse to carry the baggage.
They were twelve days on their way to Fort Pitt, where they took a large
canoe to descend the Ohio as far as the Great Kanawha. Colonel Croghan,
at the fort, engaged two Indians to conduct them thither, and John
Nicholson as interpreter.
It was during this trip down the Ohio that Washington enjoyed rare
sport. Such herds of deer upon the banks, and flocks of wild turkeys,
and such numbers of ducks and geese upon the river, he had never seen
before. The canoe was loaded with game.
It was on this trip, also, at the mouth of the Great Kanawha, that
Washington met the old sachem "who lay in ambush on the banks of the
Monongahela, and wrought such havoc in Braddock's army." The Indian
chief came to honor Washington, accompanied with other warriors. After
formal introduction, he addressed him thus, through Nicholson the
interpreter:
"I am a chief, and the ruler over many tribes. My influence extends to
the waters of the great lakes, and to the far blue mountains. I have
travelled a long and weary path that I might see the young warrior of
the great battle. It was on the day when the white man's blood mixed
with the streams of our forest that I first beheld this chief; I called
to my young men and said, "Mark yon tall and daring warrior? He is not
of the red-coat tribe: he hath an Indian's wisdom, and his warriors
fight as we do; himself is alone exposed. Quick, let your aim be certain
and he dies." Our rifles were levelled, rifles which, but for him, knew
not how to miss. 'Twas all in vain; a power mightier far than we
shielded him from harm. He cannot die in battle. I am old, and soon
shall be gathered to the great council-fire of my fathers, in the land
of shades; but ere I go, there is a something bids me speak in the voice
of prophecy. Listen! _The Great Spirit protects that man, and guides his
destinies. He will become the chief of nations, and a people yet unborn
will hail him as the founder of a mighty empire!_"
Washington successfully accomplished the object of his mission, and in
the end his old companions in arms received their just dues. "Fifteen
thousand acres were awarded to a field officer, nine thousand to a
captain, six thousand to a subaltern, and so on." Stobo and Van Braam,
who were with him at Great Meadows, received nine thousand acres
apiece. They were in London at the time, and subsequently Washington
purchased their claims through his London agent.
How perilous his journey was at the time may be inferred from the fact
that soon after his return there was another Indian outbreak on the
banks of the Great Kanawha, whither Washington went, and in the
engagement Colonel Lewis and other Virginians lost their lives.
The Virginia Assembly was in session when the Boston Port Bill took
effect, and the members voted to make the day one of fasting. They
voted, also, at that session, to call a Congress of the Colonies. Other
legislatures adopted a like measure; and the first American Congress
convened in Philadelphia on the 5th of September, 1774. Washington was a
member of this body, and took a leading part in addressing an able
memorial to the King of Great Britain.
Patrick Henry was asked who was the first man in the American Congress
at Philadelphia, and he answered:
"If you speak of eloquence, Mr. Rutledge of South Carolina is by far the
greatest orator; but if you speak of solid information and sound
judgment, Colonel Washington is unquestionably the greatest man on that
floor."
The patriots felt the need of divine guidance in their deliberations,
and elected Rev. Mr. Duche of Philadelphia, an Episcopal clergyman,
chaplain of Congress. A few mornings thereafter, news came that the enemy
was cannonading Boston. It so happened that the Psalter for that day
included the following passages:
"Plead my cause, O Lord, with them that strive with me. Fight against
them that fight against me. Take hold of shield and buckler, and stand
up for my help. Draw out also the spear, and stop the way of them that
persecute me. Say unto my soul, I am thy salvation."
The effect upon the Assembly was thrilling. John Adams wrote to his wife
about it:
"You must remember this was the morning after we heard the horrible
rumor of the cannonade of Boston. I never saw a greater effect upon an
audience. It seemed as if Heaven had ordained that Psalm to be read on
that morning.
"After this, Mr. Duche unexpectedly struck out into an extemporaneous
prayer, which filled the bosom of every man present. Episcopalian as he
is, Dr. Cooper himself never prayed with such fervor, such ardor, such
earnestness and pathos, and in language so eloquent and sublime for
America, for the Congress, for the Province of Massachusetts Bay, and
especially for the town of Boston."
Most of the members stood during the prayer, but Washington was on his
knees.
Lord Chatham was still alive, an old man, feeble and disabled, when that
memorial was laid before Parliament, and he "crawled" from his sick room
into that body to plead for the American cause. The old orator kindled
with patriotic fervor as he rose to defend the cause of the oppressed,
and he gave utterance to one of the most eloquent and impassioned
appeals ever delivered in Parliament. Our space will allow but a brief
extract from it:
"For God's sake then, my lords, let the way be instantly opened for
reconciliation; I say instantly, or it will be too late forever. The
Americans tell you--and remember it is the language of the whole
continent--they tell you they will _never submit_ to be taxed without
their own consent. They insist on a repeal of your laws. They do not ask
it as a favor: they claim it as a _right_; they _demand it_. And I tell
you the acts must be repealed; they _will_ be repealed: you cannot
enforce them. But bare repeal will not satisfy this enlightened and
spirited people. What! satisfy them by repealing a bit of paper? by
repealing a piece of parchment? No! you must declare you have _no right
to tax_ them; then they may trust you, then they will confide in you.
There are, my lords, three millions of Whigs in America. Three millions
of Whigs, with arms in their hands, are a _formidable body_! There are,
I trust, double that number of Whigs in England; and I hope the Whigs in
both countries will join and make a common cause. They are united by the
strongest ties of sentiment and interest, and will therefore, I hope,
fly to support their brethren. In this most alarming and distracted
state of our affairs, though borne down by a cruel disease, I have
crawled to this house, my lords, to give you my best advice, which is,
to beseech his Majesty that orders may instantly be despatched to
General Gage to remove the troops from Boston; their presence is a
source of perpetual irritation and suspicion to those people. How can
they trust you with the bayonet at their breasts? They have all the
reason in the world to believe that you mean their death or slavery. Let
us then set to this business in earnest. There is no time to be lost:
every moment is big with danger. Nay, while I am now speaking, the
decisive blow may be struck, and millions involved in the dreadful
consequences! The very first drop of blood that is drawn will make a
wound perhaps never to be healed--a wound of such rancorous malignity,
as will, in all probability, mortify the whole body, and hasten, both on
England and America, that dissolution to which all nations are
destined....
"My lord, if the ministers thus persevere in misadvising the king, he
will be undone. He may, indeed, still wear his crown, but the American
jewel out of it, it will not be worth the wearing."
Although Chatham was supported by Lord Camden, Lord Shelburne, and the
Marquis of Rockingham, his motion was rejected by a large majority, and
nearly seven thousand more troops were forwarded to Boston as soon as
possible.
Mr. Weems states, what we should have mentioned before, that when
England resolved to enforce the tax on tea, and sent a fleet of vessels
loaded with the article to Boston, and other American ports, in order to
test the matter, Lord Fairfax called upon Washington at his home.
"A letter from my agent," said Washington, "announces that several
vessels with cargoes of gunpowder tea are about to set sail to this
country. Parliament is determined to tax our tea."
"Why do you call it _gunpowder_ tea?" asked Fairfax.
"Why, I am afraid, my lord," replied Washington, "it will prove
inflammable, and produce an explosion that will shake both countries."
His prediction was fulfilled, showing that he took in the situation,
with that sagacity for which he was renowned.
General Gage was in command of the royal forces in Boston. When the Port
Bill went into operation, he removed the Legislature to Salem. But such
was the indignation of the Colonists that, when the time of opening its
session arrived, he did not dare to proceed thither. The members
assembled, however, and, after waiting in vain for General Gage, they
adjourned to Concord, where, immediately, the patriots began to collect
arms, ammunition, and other supplies for war.
The military force of General Gage in Boston was increased to such an
extent that he soon exhausted his supplies. For relief, he sent out
small foraging parties secretly, to seize and appropriate whatever they
could lay their hands upon. Hearing that there was a magazine of
supplies at Concord, on the night of April 18, 1775, he sent out eight
hundred picked men, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Smith, to
destroy it. By some means Dr. Warren of Boston learned of General Gage's
intentions, and, by a previously concerted signal, gave the alarm. A
light in the steeple of the Old North Church was the signal to certain
patriots that the people must be called to arms.
A courier on horseback dashed away from Charlestown, at breakneck speed,
to give the alarm to the sleeping inhabitants of villages between that
place and Concord. At the top of his voice he cried, to startle the
minute-men from their beds, "The regulars are coming!"
Certain leading patriots on the way must be aroused and told the story
of their danger. So, with a furious pound upon their door, and the wild
cry, "The regulars are coming!" the heroic patriots were routed from
their beds.
At Lexington Mrs. Harrington, a brave and trusty heroine, heard the
midnight cry, and she sprang from her bed, ran to the chamber door, and
shouted to her son, who was a minute-man, "John, get up! The regulars
are coming!"
By the time day-light began to dawn, the minute-men were in arms, and
the whole region round about was fired with the courage and enthusiasm
of men resolved to be free or die. When the British troops reached
Lexington at five o'clock on the morning of April 19, they found a
hundred minute-men drawn up in battle array. Major Pitcairn rode up
to them, and shouted:
"Disperse, you rebels! Throw down your arms and disperse!"
His order was followed by a volley of musketry right into the faces of
the Lexington soldiers, killing four and wounding several others. The
minute-men dispersed, and the British troops hurried on to Concord. Here
they met with an unexpectedly hot reception by several hundred
minute-men, who had come through the darkness to defend their supplies
and the town. Every hour their number increased by the accession of
heroes, who came from even twenty miles away to meet the foe.
The British commander was forced to order a retreat, in which his army
suffered even more than it did in the battle. The minute-men, from
behind trees, houses, barns, and stone walls, picked off the red-coats,
so that when the invaders reached Lexington, on their retreat, they were
exhausted, depleted, and disheartened. But for the arrival of
reinforcements under Lord Percy, the Yankees would have killed or
captured Colonel Smith and all his force.
Notwithstanding Colonel Smith was reinforced by "sixteen companies of
foot, a corps of marines, and two pieces of artillery," the retreat was
continued. All the way from Lexington to Boston, minute-men, who lived
remote from the route, and heard the startling news too late to hurry to
Concord, annoyed the retreating army by pouring the contents of their
muskets into their ranks from covert places where they concealed
themselves for bloody work. When the British reached Charlestown, they
had sustained a loss of sixty-five killed, one hundred and eighty
wounded, and twenty-eight prisoners. The Americans lost fifty killed and
thirty-four wounded.
That was the opening of the Revolutionary War, in which independence was
achieved. On that nineteenth day of April, 1775, was fired the first gun
which, John Adams said, "was heard around the world." From that moment
Americans armed themselves, and an army of defence was hastily rallied
at Cambridge. The Assembly of Massachusetts was in session at the time,
and voted to raise thirteen thousand men in the Colony, and ask the
other New England Colonies to increase the number to thirty thousand.
There was scarcely any need of such action by the Legislature, however,
for the patriotism of the people was unbounded. The Concord fight
obliterated the last vestige of apathy, and drew forth a spirit of
heroism before unknown. From every quarter men rushed to arms
voluntarily, ready to sacrifice even life in the common cause. As an
example of the unparalleled devotion to the country, Israel Putnam of
Connecticut was ploughing in the field when the news of the Concord
fight reached him. Without stopping to go to his house, he jumped upon
the back of his horse, instructed his son to carry the intelligence to
his mother, and galloped away to join the troops at Cambridge. With such
courage and patriotism Americans rallied for the defense of the country,
coming even from the most distant hamlets of New England.
The second American Congress met in Philadelphia about four weeks after
the battle of Concord. Washington was in his seat promptly, wrought up
to the highest pitch of determination in the cause of liberty. He had
just come from a convention in Virginia, in which Patrick Henry stirred
the hearts of all true patriots by one of his indescribable harangues
for the American cause, in which he closed with the memorable words:
"We must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight! An appeal to arms and
to the God of hosts is all that is left us!"
In that deep and solemn conviction Washington met his associates in the
second Congress at Philadelphia. What were his opinions regarding the
situation at that time may be learned from his familiar conversation
with John Adams:
"The decisive blow is struck," remarked Adams; "the Concord fight has
made our duty plain."
"It could not possibly be made plainer," replied Washington, "and the
Concord fight must convince our oppressors that Americans will never
yield to their domination."
"You are right in that view, Colonel Washington; the spirit of hostility
to tyranny is grander than I dreamed of. It augurs well for the future."
"There is no alternative left to the Colonies," continued Washington;
"the army of Great Britain has deliberately attacked us. The work of
this Congress should be to create an army, and provide for defence."
"In the most liberal manner, too, for that only is patriotic," added
Adams. "When Parliament resorts to belligerent measures against the
remonstrances of Chatham, Burke, Barre, Pitt, and other worthies, we are
justified in putting the worst construction upon their intentions."
"Nothing can be more obvious," responded Washington. "And the British
troops must be expelled from Boston by force, or our American Colonies
are reduced to a condition of vassalage. The army that precipitated the
attack at Concord must be paid for the effrontery, or we are slaves."
"Without appealing again to the king?"
"Yes, without appealing again to his Majesty. Our appeals have been
spurned. Our entreaties have been interpreted as the pleas of cowardice.
Our patience has been regarded as pusillanimity. Because British
oppression has been met by respectful remonstrance instead of indignant
denunciation, it has appealed to arms; and that appeal must be promptly
met by warlike preparations and the challenge to battle."
The second American Congress did send another appeal to the king, though
not with the vote of Washington. It was an able, patriotic paper,
setting forth the grievances of the Colonists in language that would
have moved the hearts of friends to pity. At the same time, however, the
members voted to put the Colonies upon a war basis. Many independent
military companies had been organized in the Colonies within a few
months; and these, by vote, were constituted the Continental Army, in
connection with others to be raised. Three millions of dollars were
appropriated for supplying arms and stores, and five hundred dollars a
month for the salary of a commander-in-chief, to be elected.
The provincial army around Boston was gathered entirely from the New
England Colonies, and was wholly without organization or discipline,
a motley multitude of men, who left their homes and rushed to camp upon
the impulse of patriotic sentiments. John Adams moved that Congress
adopt that army, provide for its support, and elect for it a suitable
commander. His speech on the occasion pointed so plainly to Washington
as the man of all others for commander-in-chief, that the latter
gentleman rose from his seat and left the hall. On the following day
Washington was unanimously elected commander-in-chief of the Continental
Army, a very unexpected honor to him.
With much diffidence, and his usual modesty, he arose in his seat to
accept the appointment, and said:
"Though I am truly sensible of the high honor done me in this
appointment, yet I feel great distress, from a consciousness that my
abilities and military experience may not be equal to the extensive and
important trust. However, as the Congress desire it, I will enter upon
the momentous duty, and exert every power I possess in their service,
and for the support of the glorious cause. I beg they will accept my
most cordial thanks for this distinguished testimony of their
approbation.
"But lest some unlucky event should happen, unfavorable to my
reputation, 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 honored with.
"As to pay, sir, I beg leave to assure the Congress, that, as no
pecuniary consideration could have tempted me to accept this arduous
employment at the expense of my domestic ease and happiness, I do not
wish to make any profit from it. I will keep an exact account of my
expenses; these, I doubt not, they will discharge, and that is all I
desire."
His acceptance was received with enthusiastic applause, followed by a
resolution, declaring that "they would _maintain_ and _assist_ him and
_adhere_ to him with their _lives_ and _fortunes_ in the same cause."
The same Congress appointed Artemas Ward, Charles Lee, Philip Schuyler,
and Israel Putnam major-generals; and Seth Pomeroy, Richard Montgomery,
David Wooster, William Heath, Joseph Spencer, John Thomas, John
Sullivan, and Nathaniel Greene brigadier-generals. Horatio Gates was
appointed adjutant-general. These appointments were made with
Washington's acquiescence, if not at his suggestion.
John Adams wrote to a friend: "There is something charming to me in the
conduct of Washington; a gentleman of the first fortunes on the
continent, leaving his delicious retirement, his family and friends,
sacrificing his ease, and hazarding all in the cause of his country.
His views are noble and disinterested. He declared, when he accepted the
mighty trust, that he would lay before us an exact account of his
expenses, and not accept a shilling pay."
XVII.
IN THE SIEGE OF BOSTON.