of Boston's hills, they poured a shower of shot upon the little earth fort. This failing of its object, two thousand of the king's best troops, commanded by Sir William Howe, crossed the river, and advanced up the hill against the patriots. "Powder is scarce," said Prescott; "fire low; wait till you see the white of their The British were eyes." driven back with fearful slaughter. Meanwhile, by Howe's orders, Charlestown was fired, and while its church and homes were being consumed by the flames, his soldiers again ascended the hill to make a second attack. Again they were repulsed. Other troops came to their assistance. Thus encouraged, they advanced once more; but the patriots, worn down with labor and fasting, and entirely out of powder, were no longer able to resist. Prescott gave the word to retreat; and as these raw recruits slowly descended the hill, the victors took possession of the wall of earth that had been so stoutly defended (June 17, 1775).

25. The British had won the battle, but at what a terrible cost! They had lost in killed and wounded more than a thousand men, and had killed or wounded nearly half that number of their opposers. Among the patriots who fell were several of rare worth, but no one's death was more lamented than that of the wise statesman, skilful physician, and fear

25. Repeat what is said of General Warren. Of Mrs. Adams's letter

less soldier, Joseph Warren. Mrs. John Adams, in a tearful letter, wrote: "We want him in the Senate, we want him in the profession, we want him in the field." And what had the British gained? A hill-nothing more. Would the men of America now consent to pay the threepence tax on tea? Would the women drink the tea?

Washington

in

Command.

26. While success on Lake Champlain, and almost a victory near Boston, were attending the patriot cause, delegates from the colonies were holding the Second General Congress in Philadelphia. On the 15th of June, two days before the Charlestown battle, General Washington, by the unanimous vote of the delegates, was chosen to command all the forces raised or to be raised by the united colonies. The next day, standing by his seat among the delegates, he modestly accepted the appointment, and promised to exert all his powers for the support of the glorious cause. At the same time he declared that he would not receive any pay whatever for his services. To assist him, Congress elected as generals, Artemas Ward, Charles Lee, Philip Schuyler (ski'-ler), Horatio Gates, Israel Putnam, Richard Montgomery (p. 115), Nathaniel Greene, and others. Lee, a soldier of fortune, and Gates, a hater of British rule, were born in England. Montgomery, next to Washington in merit, was an Irishman by birth.

27. On the 21st of the month Washington left Philadelphia to take command of the army that was watching Gage. He was escorted as far as New York by Lee, Schuyler, and others, all on horseback. They had scarcely gone twenty miles when they met a courier on his way to Congress, with

26. What important action was taken by Congress? Who nominated Washington for the position? Ans. Thomas Johnson, of Maryland. Who had previously suggested him for the place? Ans. John Adams, of Massachusetts. Where did Congress then meet? What did Washington do and say when accepting the appointment? What generals were also appointed? Which of them were born in Europe?

27. Give an account of Washington's journey, with the courier incident, to take command of the army.

the news of the battle fought four days before. The courier's hurried account made Washington sad, but, upon being told that the patriots fought bravely, a weight of anxiety was lifted from his heart as he exclaimed: "The liberties of the country are safe!"

28. At Cambridge, on the morning of the 3d of July, Washington took formal command of the army. Under the wide-spreading branches of an elm near the college, he sat on his horse while the troops passed before him, and a crowd of spectators raised shouts of rejoicing. His army was composed of brave soldiers, but it was without order or discipline. The men were enlisted for only short periods. Many had no muskets. Only a few had bayonets. Heavy cannon were needed. There was but a small quantity of powder. "In spite of all these difficulties, the eyes of the whole country were confidently fixed on Washington. He was expected to undertake some great enterprise against the hostile army."

29. "One of his most invaluable characteristics was the faculty of bringing order out of confusion. It was this faculty, more than any other, that made him so fit to ride upon the storm of the Revolution, when everything was unfixed and drifting about in a troubled sea. He had not long been at the head of the army before his soldiers thought as highly of him as if he had led them to a hundred victories. They knew that he was the very man the country needed, and the only one who could bring them safely through the great contest against the might of England."

30. While Washington was making preparations to drive the British from Boston, the governor of Canada was inciting

28. When and where did his formal act of assuming command take place? In what condition was the army at that time? Where is Cambridge? What college is there (p. 132) ?

29. What is said of Washington's character, and how he was soon regarded by his soldiers?

30. What measure did Congress decide upon? What places did Montgomery take ? Where are they (map p. 159)? Give an account of Montgomery's defeat and death. Give the further history of the defeated expedition.

Expedition against Canada.

the Indians to take up the hatchet against the patriots, and to join him in an attempt to recover Ticonderoga. In selfdefence, Congress decided upon a plan to occupy Canada. Two forces were sent, one, under Schuyler, by way of Lake Champlain; the other, under Arnold, by the Kennebec River. Schuyler becoming sick, Montgomery succeeded to the command, and, after capturing St. John's and Montreal, proceeded against Quebec, near which he was joined by Arnold (December, 1775). In the early morning of the last day of the year, while darkness prevailed and a furious snow-storm was raging, the Americans attacked the town, but were defeated. The brave and generous Montgomery was among the slain. Daniel Morgan, of Virginia, of whom we shall hear again, was among the prisoners (§ 91). Arnold, though severely wounded, escaped, and in command of about five hundred men, formed a camp of snow ramparts, where, through the winter, he menaced Quebec.

31. Troops were sent to the relief of Arnold, but not for a moment was Washington diverted from the task of freeing Boston from the king's grasp. Having considered one plan after another, he thought it was possible to gain the end by means of batteries on Dorchester Heights. To occupy these, throw up breastworks, and place guns in position, was the work of a single night. The next morning, to the surprise of the British, the Americans were ready to fire upon their quarters in the town, and upon their ships in the harbor. At once General Howe, Gage's successor, made preparations to drive his enemy from

31. Give an account of the manner in which the British were driven from Boston, How many Tories went? Who were they? Where did they go?

the dangerous position, but delay, caused by a violent storm, gave Washington an opportunity to erect batteries so near the town that it was impossible for Howe to remain in it any longer. Consequently, his army of eight thousand men, with more than eleven hundred Tories, hastened on board the ships. The Tories were persons of American birth who adhered to the king's cause. The people of Boston, from the hills, house tops, and wharfs, saw with delight the fleet in a long line sail out of the harbor (March, 1776).

Battle
of

Fort Moultrie.

32. When Howe was next heard from he was in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Before leaving Boston, he had sent Sir Henry Clinton to go against the southern colonies. Clinton, being joined by a fleet and troops from England, sailed for Charleston, South Carolina. The patriots there, by intercepted letters, had been warned of his coming, and on Sullivan's Island, at the entrance to the harbor, were busy erecting a fort of palmetto logs when the hostile ships hove in sight.

33. On the morning of the 28th of June, a rapid fire from the ships was opened upon the fort, which was defended by less than five hundred men commanded by Colonel Moultrie. Shot and shell made little impression upon the soft, fibrous, spongy palmetto wood. The fire from the fort was slowly delivered, and with good aim. Every one of the balls was sent on a mission of certain destruction. In the fury of the fight, the fort's flag-staff was shattered and the flag fell outside the works, on the beach near the edge of the water. Sergeant Jasper, braving the enemy's shower of shot and shell, leaped through an embrasure to the ground, picked up the flag, fastened it to a wooden gun-rod, and climbing to the top of the log wall, fixed it firmly in place. At night, after

32. What movement was made by General Clinton? How were the Charleston people prepared for resistance? Where is Charleston (map 2)? Fort Moultrie ?

33. Describe the battle of Fort Moultrie. What is said of the importance of that battle? How did the fort get its name?