kind of men with whom I am to defend America?'

"Next day our troops behaved better and succeeded in repulsing the
enemy. This put new spirit in them. Putnam got his forces out of New
York and well up the shore of the North River. For weeks we lay behind
our trenches on Harlem Heights, building up the fighting spirit of our
men and training them for hard service. The stables, cabins and sheds
of Harlem were full of our sick. Smallpox had got among them. Cold
weather was coming on and few were clothed to stand it. The
proclamation of Admiral Lord Howe and his brother, the General,
offering pardon and protection to all who remained loyal to the crown,
caused some to desert us, and many timid settlers in the outlying
country, with women and children to care for, were on the fence ready
to jump either way. Hundreds were driven by fear toward the British.

"In danger of being shut in, we crossed King's Bridge and retreated to
White Plains. How we toiled with our baggage on that journey, many of
us being yoked like oxen to the wagons! Every day troops, whose terms
of enlistment had expired, were leaving us. It seemed as if our whole
flying camp would soon be gone. But there were many like Solomon and
me who were willing to give up everything for the cause and follow our
beloved Commander into hell, if necessary. There were some four
thousand of us who streaked up the Hudson with him to King's Ferry, at
the foot of the Highlands, to get out of the way of the British ships.
There we crossed into Jersey and dodged about, capturing a thousand men
at Trenton and three hundred at Princeton, defeating the British
regiments who pursued us and killing many officers and men and cutting
off their army from its supplies. We have seized a goodly number of
cannon and valuable stores and reclaimed New Jersey and stiffened the
necks of our people. It has been, I think, a turning point in the war.
Our men have fought like Homeric heroes and endured great hardships in
the bitter cold with worn-out shoes and inadequate clothing. A number
have been frozen to death. I loaned my last extra pair of shoes to a
poor fellow whose feet had been badly cut and frozen. When I tell you
that coming into Morristown I saw many bloody footprints in the snow
behind the army, you will understand. We are a ragamuffin band, but we
have taught the British to respect us. Send all the shoes and clothing
you can scare up.

"I have seen incidents