"He
may _call_ us rebels now, if he will," he said to his son, "but why then
doesn't he hang his prisoners instead of exchanging them? By this act he
has virtually placed us on an equality, and acknowledged our _right_ of
resistance." That was one point gained by the general; another was, the
consent of the Committee of Safety to his plan of operations against the
British in Boston.
General Ward and Dr. Warren were in favor of moderation, and opposed to
the scheme advanced by Putnam, of forcing the enemy to either fight or
retire. They urged that they had no battering cannon and but little
powder, there being but sixty-seven barrels in the whole army, and no
mills to make any more when that was gone. And again, they feared for
the steadiness of the men, once they found themselves opposed by the
best of Britain's soldiers. But Putnam was persistent, not in advocating
the bombarding of Boston, or of a large expenditure of powder and ball
in trying to force the British from their position; but in fortifying
the heights of Dorchester and Charlestown, which completely commanded
the city.
Pages:
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131