Two days
later he presented him with his commission as a _Major-General_ in the
Continental Army, which had been unanimously bestowed by Congress on the
19th of June, two days after the battle of Bunker Hill, and which he
received on the 4th of July. Putnam's commission was the only one then
presented in person by Washington, though three others had been
appointed major-generals under him: Lee, Ward, and Schuyler. A great
deal of jealousy and heart-burning resulted from the appointments, one
of the brigadiers, General Spencer, over whom Putnam had been advanced,
threatening to resign.
In these days began the friendship which existed between the
Commander-in-Chief and Major-General Putnam during the remainder of
their lives. Putnam's honesty, industry, frankness, and integrity
interested General Washington, who was delighted with this bluff old
soldier who wore his laurels so modestly. "You'll find," wrote a
contemporary to a friend, "that Generals Washington and Lee are vastly
fonder and think higher of Putnam than any man in the army; and he truly
is the hero of the day!"
On the 6th of July, 1775, the Continental Congress sent out its formal
Statement, which was read at headquarters in Cambridge on the 15th, and
to Putnam's division, then at Prospect Hill, on the 18th.
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