trust.

passed:-"Mr. President,-Though I am truly sensible of the high honour 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 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, unfavourable 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 honoured 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. Those, I doubt not, they will discharge; and that is all I desire."

It was harder work to write home and break the news to his wife.

His letter to her runs thus :

"MY DEAREST,-I am now set down to write to you on a subject which fills me with inexpressible concern, and this concern is greatly aggravated and increased when I reflect upon the uneasiness I know it will give you. It has been determined in Congress that the whole army raised for the defence of the American cause shall be put under my care, and that it is necessary for me to proceed immediately to Boston, and take upon me the command of it.

"You may believe me, my dear Patty, when I assure you in the most solemn manner that, so far from seeking this appointment, I have used every endeavour in my power to avoid it, not only from my unwillingness to part with you and the family, but from a consciousness of its being a trust too great for my capacity; and that I should enjoy more real

FAREWELL TO HIS WIFE.

89

happiness in one month with you at home than I have the most distant prospect of finding abroad if my stay were to be seven times seven years. But as it has been a kind of destiny that has thrown me upon this service, I shall hope that my undertaking it is designed to answer some good purpose. It was utterly out of my power to refuse this appointment without exposing my character to such censures as would have reflected dishonour upon myself, and given pain to my friends. This, I am sure, could not, and ought not, to be pleasing to you, and must have lessened me considerably in my own esteem. I shall rely, therefore, confidently on that Providence which has heretofore preserved and been bountiful to me, not doubting but that I shall return safe to you in the fall. I shall feel no pain from the toil or danger of the campaign; my unhappiness will flow from the uneasiness I know you will feel from being left alone.

In writing to his brother, he says: "I am embarked on a wide ocean, boundless in its prospect, and in which, perhaps, no safe harbour is to be found. I have been called upon by the unanimous voice of the Colonies to take the command of the Continental army-an honour I neither sought after nor desired, as I am thoroughly convinced that it requires greater abilities and much more experience than I am master of." And he afterwards adds: "I shall hope that my friends will visit and keep up the spirits of my wife as much as they can, for my departure will, I know, be a cutting stroke upon her."

John Adams wrote at this time :-"There is something charming to me in the conduct of Washington-a gentleman of one of the first fortunes upon the Continent, leaving his delicious retirement, his family and friends, sacrificing his ease, and hazarding all in the cause of the country. His views are noble and disinterested. He declared, when accepting the mighty trust, that he would lay before us an exact account of his expenses, and not accept a shilling for pay."

Washington arrived at Cambridge, where the headquarters of the army were assembled, on July 2nd. On July the 3rd the troops were drawn up on the common to receive the new general. He rode forward, brought his horse up under a great elm tree which still stands, drew his sword, and assumed the command of the American army. "Washington was then forty-three years of age. In stature he little exceeded six feet; his limbs were sinewy and well-proportioned, his chest broad, his figure stately, blending dignity of presence with ease. His robust constitution had been tried and invigorated by his early life. of the wilderness, his habit of occupation out of doors, and his rigid temperance; so that few equalled him in strength of arm or power of endurance. His complexion was florid, his hair dark brown, his head in its shape perfectly round. His broad nostrils seemed formed to give expression and escape to scornful anger. His dark blue eyes, which were deeply set, had an expression of resignation, and an earnestness that was almost sadness."*

• From Bancroft's "History of the United States.

CHAPTER X.

MEANWHILE, events had been taking place near Boston which showed how thoroughly both English and Americans were in earnest about claiming what they respectively considered their rights. On May 25th large forces had arrived from England, under the command of Generals Howe, Burgoyne, and Henry Clinton. "By this accession, the whole force under General Gage, as commander-in-chief, was raised to nearly 10,000 men. But the Provincial troops had mustered strongly round Boston, and had cut off the supplies of food; so that the city was almost in a state of siege. The Americans also proceeded to intrench themselves on Bunker's Hill. Opposite to Boston stands the small town or suburb of Charleston, severed from the capital by an arm of the sea, which for breadth has been compared to the Thames at London Bridge. Charleston, like Boston itself, is built at the extremity of a peninsula, which is joined to the continent by a neck or narrow strip of land. Within this peninsula of Charleston the ground rises in two uneven ridges: the one nearest to Boston is called Bunker's Hill; the other, more remote, Breed's Hill. The crests of the two hills are about seven hundred yards apart.”

A detachment of Americans, under Colonel Prescott, reached the top of Breed's Hill undiscovered; all through the night they worked at fortifications on it, and threw up a square redoubt before morning. At daybreak they were

discovered, and fired upon from the sloop Lively, and from a hill in Boston; "but this the Americans sustained very calmly, and, in spite of it, completed their intrenchment."

The cannonading roused Boston. "The works must be carried," said General Gage, when he found out what had been done in the night; and he dispatched a strong force, under Generals Howe and Pigot, for the attack. Meanwhile, General Putnam had behaved with great spirit. He had gone in person to General Wade, who was in command of the Boston Provincial forces, and urged the expediency of sending supplies of men at once; he then returned to Breed's Hill, and took a detachment of men to Bunker's Hill, throwing up a breastwork there. Part of this breastwork, it is said, was formed of wooden post-and-rail fences, placed at a little distance from each other, the space between them being filled up with new-mown hay.

At two o'clock the British attack commenced; the left wing under General Pigot, the right wing under General Howe. General Pigot steadily advanced up the hill, his men commencing a fire of musketry from the first. The Americans reserved their fire until the enemy were within eighty yards of them, and then did deadly work. The flank of the left wing was also fired upon by a party of American rifles in Charleston, whereupon General Howe gave orders that the town was to be set on fire at once. The scene was described by General Burgoyne in a letter to England. He was watching it from one of the batteries at Boston, and says: "Now ensued one of the greatest scenes of war that can be conceived. If we look to the height, Howe's corps ascending the hill, in the face of the intrenchments, and in a very disadvantageous ground, was much engaged; to the left the enemy pouring in fresh troops by thousands