The king’s plan to punish Boston because the East India Company’s tea had been destroyed was not working very satisfactorily. Ten thousand troops were cooped up in the town with little to eat. They could obtain no fresh provisions. Lord North was sending many ships, and the ship-owners were asking high prices for the use of their vessels; for the Yankee skippers of Marblehead, Captain Manly and Captain Mugford, were darting out from that port in swift-sailing schooners, with long eighteen-pounders amidships, and the decks swarming with men who had braved the storms of the Atlantic and knew no fear, capturing the ships dispatched from England with food and supplies for the army. The ministers had paid twenty-two thousand pounds for cabbages, potatoes, and turnips; as much more for hay, oats, and beans; half a million pounds for flour, beef, and pork. They purchased five thousand oxen, fourteen thousand sheep, and thousands of pigs, that the army three thousand miles away might have something to eat. There were plenty of cattle, sheep, and pigs within fifty miles of Boston, but General Howe could not lay his hand on one of them. The winter storms were on, and the ships sailing down the Thames or from Bristol Channel had a hard time of it before losing sight of the hills of Devon. The people along the Cornwall shores beheld the seashore strewn with carcasses of cattle, sheep, and pigs, tossed overboard from the decks of foundering vessels. The few cattle that survived the six weeks’ tossing on the sea were but skin and bones when the ships dropped anchor by Castle William.

In contrast, Tom Brandon and the soldiers under General Washington had plenty of good food. It was a tantalizing handbill which Benjamin Edes printed on his press at Watertown.

Tom Brandon, on picket at Charlestown Neck, hailed the Britisher a few rods distant.

“How are you, redcoat?”

“How are you, rebel?”

“Say, redcoat, if you won’t pop at me, I won’t at you.”

“Agreed.”

“Wouldn’t ye like a chaw of tobacco, redcoat?”

“I wouldn’t mind.”

“All right. Here’s a plug with my compliments; ’tain’t poisoned. Ye needn’t be afraid of it,” said Tom, tossing it to him.

The Britisher opened the paper and read:—

Other pickets besides Tom were tossing the handbills to the Britishers. Abraham Duncan, going here and there along the streets, saw the redcoats reading them, and night after night soldiers disappeared, never again to shoulder a musket in the service of the king.

Shut up in the town with nothing to do, the troops became lawless, breaking into houses and plundering the people. In vain were the efforts of General Howe, by severe punishments, to prevent it; giving one soldier four hundred lashes on his bare back; another six hundred; hanging a third.

Hard times had come to the people of Boston. In the autumn, General Howe had issued a proclamation, threatening with execution any one who should attempt to steal away from the town without his consent; but now he would gladly have them go, only they must obtain permission. He could not supply them with food, neither with fuel. He gave the soldiers leave to rip the boards from the Old North Meetinghouse, and cut its timbers into kindlings. After much hacking they leveled the Liberty Tree, not only to obtain the wood, but to manifest their hatred of the tree. Not being able to feed the people, he sent three hundred and fifty from the town, landing them at Point Shirley, to make their way over the marshes to Lynn as best they could. Others were directed to go.

“We shall not go. I do not propose to let the redcoats make themselves at home in this house,” said Berinthia to the sergeant who asked if the family would like to leave the town.

“What will you live on? Butcher Thurbal, whom General Howe has appointed to take charge of all the cattle, says he has but six left, and here it is December, with winter only just begun. You will starve before spring,” the sergeant replied.

“We have a little flour, and there is a bit of mackerel; a layer of pork is still left in the barrel. We will not go till the last mouthful of food is gone,” Berinthia said resolutely.

The knocker rattled.

“One of Massa Genral Howe’s ossifers,” said Mark Antony.

A young lieutenant entered; but seeing a fair-faced young lady he removed his cap.

“I would like to see the mistress of the house,” he said.

“I am mistress. What is it you wish?”

“I come to inform you that Colonel Hardman desires to occupy these premises for himself and staff, of which I have the honor to be a member. I am directed to inform you that you can have twenty-four hours to effect your removal.”[75]

“Colonel Hardman desires to take our house, does he?”

“That is his wish.”

“Has he ordered you to take possession of it for him?”

“No, he has directed me to inform you of what he intends to do, that you may make preparations at once for your removal.”

“You will please say to Colonel Hardman that we cannot accede to his wish.”

It was said with such firmness and quiet dignity that the lieutenant was amazed. He waited to hear some reason why she would not comply with the demand. She stood silent before him, composedly looking him in the face. Not being able to find words to reply, the lieutenant bowed stiffly and departed.

“You haven’t got through with Colonel Hardman,” said Abraham. “He likes the looks of this house, evidently. He is a new officer just arrived.”

“He will find that an American girl can make some resistance to force,” Berinthia replied.

Once more the knocker rattled, and the lieutenant entered.

“I believe I have the honor to address Miss Brandon,” he said, bowing.

“That is my name.”

“I am extremely sorry, Miss Brandon, to be obliged to execute an order of this kind, but I am directed by Colonel Hardman to take possession of these premises, as you will see by this order,” he said, handing her a paper.

“By what right does Colonel Hardman seize these premises?”

“Well, really—I suppose—because you are a—a rebel, you know,” the lieutenant replied.

“How does he know that I am a rebel?”

“I don’t mean exactly that. Of course, you are not in arms personally against his majesty, King George, but then, the people are, you know.”

“You mean, that because the king’s troops began a war, firing upon the people at Lexington and Concord, your colonel proposes to turn me, my invalid father and mother, out of our home, that he may take possession and live in comfort.”

“It is awfully bad business, Miss Brandon, but I can’t help it, you know.”

“I do not doubt, sir, that it is mortifying to you, personally, to be compelled to execute an order of this sort. Please say to Colonel Hardman that this is our home, and we shall not leave it voluntarily. If he desires to occupy it, he will do so only by force of arms.”

The lieutenant took his hat, not knowing what to make of a young lady so calm and self-possessed, who did not cry or wring her hands.

“Oh, Ruth, you are just the one I want to see,” said Berinthia, as Miss Newville entered a few minutes later. “Just look at this! Colonel Hardman proposes to turn us out of doors, that he may take possession of our home.”

“Aren’t you going to protest?”

“I have protested.”

“Aren’t you going to do something?”

“What can I do?”

“We will see. General Howe is to dine with us this afternoon, and I have come to get you to help me entertain him and the others. We will ask him what he thinks of such arbitrary action on the part of his subordinate officer.”

“I will be there to hear what he has to say,” Berinthia said.

The hard times and the want of fresh provisions ruffled the temper of Phillis in the Newville kitchen. No longer could she baste a fat turkey roasting by the fire, or a joint of juicy beef, and yet the dinner she was preparing for his excellency General Howe, and Mr. Newville’s other guests, was very appetizing,—oysters raw and fried, clam soup, broiled halibut, fresh mackerel, corned beef and pork, plum-pudding and pie.

Lord William Howe, commander-in-chief of his majesty’s forces in America, was a gentleman, polite, affable, who delighted to make himself agreeable to beautiful ladies. At Bunker Hill he had shown the army that he could be brave on the battlefield. The other guests were Brigadier-General Timothy Ruggles, appointed commander of the militia, loyal to the king, and Captain John Coffin of his staff. General Howe solicited the honor of escorting Miss Newville to the dinner-table; Captain Coffin, possibly preferring the society of the girl with whom he often had romped to that of the mother, offered his arm to Berinthia, leaving to General Ruggles the honor of escorting the hostess.

“The state of the times,” said Mr. Newville, “does not enable me to provide an elaborate repast, but Phillis has done her best with what she had.”

“I am sure your dinner will be far more elaborate than anything I have upon my own table,” said General Howe. “There being no fresh provisions in the market, I have to put up with salt junk.”

“Do you think the present scarcity of food will continue long?” Ruth inquired.

“I trust not. It will be some time before the government supplies reach me from England, but I have dispatched vessels to Halifax and the West Indies, which, with fair winds, ought to be here in the course of a week.”

“It is tantalizing to know there are abundant supplies of vegetables in the farmers’ cellars, not twenty miles away, that droves of cattle and sheep come to Mr. Washington, and we cannot get a joint of mutton or a cabbage,” said Mr. Newville.

“If the provincial pirates do not intercept the vessels, we shall have fresh provisions soon; but they are a daring set of rebels who live down towards Cape Ann. A schooner darted out the other day from Marblehead, and captured the brig Nancy and a rich cargo which I could ill afford to lose,—two thousand muskets, one hundred thousand flints, thirty thousand cannon-balls, and thirty tons of musket-balls, and a thirteen-inch mortar. I understand Mr. Washington is greatly elated by the capture, as well he may be.”

“Cannot Admiral Graves protect the transports?” Mr. Newville asked.

“Perhaps a little more enterprise on the part of the marine force would be commendable. The provincials, I must admit, show far greater zeal than is seen in the king’s navy.”

“It is commonly remarked that the navy is not doing much,” said General Ruggles.

“The army, although it is not marching into the country, is far more active, judging from the firing which I hear through the day,” Berinthia remarked.

General Howe scanned her face, wondering if there was not a trifle of sarcasm in the words. He knew he was being criticised by the Tories for his inactivity; that Admiral Graves and the officers of the navy were asking when the army was going to scatter Mr. Washington’s rabble.

“I was relying upon the muskets captured in the Nancy,” said General Howe, “to supply the gentlemen in General Robertson’s command; also the loyal Irish Volunteers under Captain Forest, and the Fencibles under Colonel Graham, and those whom Colonel Creen Brush, a loyalist from New York, expects to raise. I am greatly gratified by this exhibition of loyalty on the part of the citizens. Doubtless other vessels will soon be here with arms, provided that audacious Captain Manly does not slip out from Marblehead and nab them while the warships are getting up their anchors. I have sent several ships along the shore to obtain supplies if possible, but it seems the madness of the people in revolting against our gracious sovereign is widespread. I learn there are many who are still loyal, but who do not dare to sell provisions through fear of their neighbors.”

“I do not doubt it,” General Ruggles remarked. “If it were not for the presence of the troops, we who are loyal would have a rough time. Even as it is, I see scowls upon the faces of my old-time friends whenever I go along the street.”

“Since I accompanied your excellency to Bunker Hill and manifested my loyalty,” said Captain Coffin, “and especially since I have taken part in organizing the loyal citizens to aid in upholding the government, I find some of my former friends, notably some of the young ladies, shutting their doors in my face.”

“I suppose you can hardly wonder at it?” Ruth remarked.

“Why should they? I have not changed. Everybody knows how I have stood from the beginning,” the captain replied.

“It is not that Captain Coffin is not as agreeable and entertaining as ever, but they regard the king as attempting to deprive the people of their rights and liberties; the appeal to arms has been made; if you actively support his majesty, do you not cut yourself off from their society? Can you expect them to be as gracious as in former days?” said Berinthia.

“Perhaps not, from the standpoint you have taken; but it is rather uncomfortable to have a young lady who has welcomed you to her fireside pass you by on the street as if you were a cold-blooded villain.”

“It comes to this,” said Ruth. “One cannot be loyal to the king, neither to liberty, without suffering for it. Miss Brandon’s brother Tom had to give up his lady-love because he sided with the provincials. Young ladies shut the door in Captain Coffin’s face because he adheres to King George. If his majesty only knew the disturbance he is making over here in love affairs, perhaps he would withdraw the army.”

“Of course he would,” exclaimed General Howe. “I don’t believe that side of the question has ever been laid before him. I am sure, Miss Newville, if you were to go as special envoy and present the case, showing him how the sword is cutting young heartstrings asunder, he would at once issue an order for us to pack up and be off, that the course of true love might run smoothly once more.”

The company laughed heartily.

“Perhaps,” continued General Howe, “we may have to pack up any way, for want of something to eat. Before I succeeded to the command, General Gage seriously thought of evacuating the town, but had not enough vessels to transport the troops. I could not, when I was invested with the command, send a portion away; to do so would invite an attack upon those remaining.”

Berinthia saw a startled look upon Mr. Newville’s face.

“Do you think, your excellency, the time will ever come when his majesty’s troops will take their departure?”

“I trust not; but this rebellion, which we thought would be confined to this Province, has become a continental question. Neither the king nor his ministers anticipated it, but it is upon us, and we shall be obliged to treat it in all its vastness. Large reinforcements are to be sent. An agreement is being made to employ several thousand Hessian troops, and everything will be done to put down the rebellion.”

“I expect to see,” said General Ruggles, “the army of Mr. Washington crumble to pieces very soon. I hear that the Connecticut troops demanded a bounty as the condition of their staying any longer, and when it was refused, broke ranks and started for their homes.”

“So I am informed,” General Howe remarked, “though, to tell the truth, two thousand fresh men came from the New Hampshire province to take their places. I must say the provincials, thus far, have shown commendable zeal and persistence in maintaining the rebellion. They have constructed formidable earthworks on Cobble Hill, so near my lines that they have compelled the warships to drop down the river to a safer anchorage.”

“If by any chance the town should be evacuated, what think you, your excellency, those of us who are loyal to the king ought to do?” Mr. Newville asked.

“That is really a very difficult question to answer. Your loyalty and that of all ladies and gentlemen who stand by the king undoubtedly will make you obnoxious to the rebels. The bitterness is increasing. I fear you will not be shown much leniency.”

“Would you think it strange, your excellency, if they were not lenient?” Ruth inquired.

“Why should they not be, Miss Newville?”

“Would they not be likely to regard those who support the king as their enemies?”

“Why should they? You have not taken up arms. Of course, General Ruggles and Captain Coffin might be regarded as obnoxious, and would have to take care of themselves.”

“But will they not say we have given moral support to their enemies, and is not moral support likely to be as heinous in their sight as the taking of arms? If we ask them to be lenient, will they not inquire if the king’s troops were merciful when they set Charlestown on fire?” Ruth asked.

A flush came upon the face of General Howe. Although he commanded the troops at Bunker Hill, he had not ordered the burning of the town. General Gage was responsible for that act. He felt a little uncomfortable over the question, for the latest newspapers from London told him the people of England condemned the destruction of the homes of so many inhabitants.

“I am free to say it was rather hard on them thus to have their homes destroyed without a moment’s notice,” he replied.

“Will not,” Ruth inquired, “the provincials think his majesty’s forces were wanting in leniency when they recall what was done at Falmouth a few days ago, where the inhabitants were given only two hours to remove from the town? Not one minute over that would Captain Mowatt grant them, though women went down on their knees before him. Was it not inhuman for him to fire bombs among the panic-stricken multitude, setting the buildings on fire, destroying the homes of five hundred people? If his majesty’s officers do these things, what may we not expect from the provincials, should it ever come our turn?”

“We will do what we can, Miss Newville, not to have it your turn.”

“I do not doubt it, my lord; but I was thinking of possible contingencies.”

Again Berinthia noticed a flush upon the face of General Howe.

“I will admit, Miss Newville, that in war, the unexpected may sometimes happen, and possibilities are not comforting subjects for contemplation. I do not anticipate disaster to the troops under my command.”

“Shall we drink the health of our gracious sovereign?” said Mr. Newville.

The others drained their glasses, but Miss Newville’s and Berinthia’s were not lifted from the table.

“What, daughter! What is the meaning of this? Not drink the health of the king!” Mr. Newville exclaimed.

“No, father. I could drink to his own personal welfare, wish him health, happiness, and long life, but our drinking to the sentiment means approval of his government. I cannot do that. I never can think it right to burn the homes of innocent people without a moment’s warning, as was done at Charlestown. The people of Falmouth never had done anything against the king except to prevent Captain Mowatt from loading masts and spars on board his ship for the use of the king’s navy. That was their offense, and yet the town was wantonly destroyed. I cannot think such a course is likely to restore the alienated affections of the people to the king. More, I fear the contingencies of war may yet compel us to suffer because of these unwarranted acts.”

Mr. Newville sat in silence, not knowing what to say. He had been outspoken in his loyalty. He never had contemplated the possibility of failure on the part of the king to put down the rebellion, but if General Howe were to evacuate Boston, what treatment could he expect from the provincials? The words of Ruth brought the question before him in a startling way.

“Those are my sentiments, also,” said Berinthia.

“I see, Miss Brandon, that you are of the same opinion, which, of course, I expected in your case, but hardly from Miss Newville,” said Captain Coffin.

“Yes, I am of the same way of thinking,” Berinthia replied.

“You will not, ladies, decline to drink the health of the queen, I trust?” said General Howe, as Pompey refilled the glasses.

“Oh no, I will drink it with pleasure. The queen, of course, does not stand for mismanagement, as does the king, and we will not spoil our dinner by talking about the sad events,” Ruth replied.

General Howe entertained them with an account of his boyhood days, his service with General Wolfe at Quebec, how the troops climbed the steep river bank at night and won the battle on the Plains of Abraham. Captain Coffin laughed with Berinthia and Ruth over good times he had enjoyed with them. Yet all were conscious that spectres unseen had come to the banquet. The ghost confronting General Howe was whispering of starvation, of possible humiliation through forced evacuation; the one glaring at Mr. and Mrs. Newville told of a possible departure from their home, to become aliens in a foreign land.

“May I ask Miss Newville to favor us with music?” said General Howe, when they were once more in the parlor.

“With pleasure, your excellency,” said Ruth, seating herself at the harpsichord and singing “The Frog he would a-wooing go,” “The Fine Old English Gentleman,” and then with a pathos that brought tears to the eyes of the commander-in-chief, “True Love can ne’er forget.”

During the dinner, and while Ruth was singing, they could hear the deep reverberations of the cannonade. The provincials in Roxbury were sending their shot at General Howe’s fortifications on the Neck, and his cannon in reply were thundering towards the works at Cobble Hill.

“Miss Newville,” said General Howe, “I cannot express my thanks to you for your entertainment. While listening to your charming melodies I have been thinking of the strange, incongruous accompaniment, the uproar of the cannonade, but I have, in a measure, been able to forget for the moment the worries and perplexities that surround me. I trust I may be able to do something to add to your happiness some day.” He rose to take his departure.

“Thank you, your excellency; I am glad if I have been able in any way to make it a pleasant hour to you and General Ruggles, and my old acquaintance, Captain Coffin. Your excellency can add much to my happiness and that of Miss Brandon. One of your subordinate officers, who I think has not been long here, Colonel Hardman, has notified Miss Brandon that he is going to take possession of her home to-morrow and turn her and her invalid parents out of doors. Berinthia, you have the colonel’s order, I think?”[76]

Berinthia took the document from her pocket and handed it to General Howe, who ran his eye over it and seemed to be thinking.

“Is your father loyal to the king, Miss Brandon?” he asked.

“In the same sense that I am, your excellency. You know that I did not drink the health of the king because I protest against the course he is pursuing towards the Colonies; my father does the same.”

“You have a brother, I think, in the provincial army?”

“I suppose that Tom is there. He did what he could to defeat your excellency at Bunker Hill. Possibly it was his bullet that went through your excellency’s coat. He attempted to defeat the king’s troops just as they attempted to defeat him, and succeeded. You give your allegiance to the king; he gives his to liberty, and is fighting for it just as conscientiously as your excellency is fighting for King George and the crown.”

“As your father sides with the provincials, and as your brother is in arms against our most gracious sovereign, may I ask if you can give any good reason why my subordinate officer should not take possession of your home?”

“Pardon me, may I ask if your excellency will kindly favor me with any good reason why my parents should be driven from their beds in midwinter, that one of the king’s officers may have comfortable quarters? Does your excellency think such a course of conduct will tend to restore to the king the alienated affections of his late subjects?”

“Then, Miss Brandon, you do not consider yourself, at this moment, one of his subjects?”

“I do not. I cannot own allegiance to a sovereign who burns the homes of an inoffensive community, standing for their rights and ancient liberties.”

“I admire your frankness, Miss Brandon, as I do that of Miss Newville. Have you a pen at hand?”

Ruth brought a pen and ink-horn; General Howe wrote upon the document, and handed it to her.

“I cannot go back on my promise to do something for you, Miss Newville, to add to your happiness and Miss Brandon’s, and I trust I never shall do anything that will lead you to think I am insensible to the claims of humanity,” he said, bowing and taking his departure.

Berinthia read what he had written:—

In bright uniform, with stars upon his breast, Colonel Hardman, accompanied by the members of his staff, knocked at the door of the Brandon home. Mark Antony was unceremoniously pushed aside, and the officers entered the hall.

“You can inform the lady of the house, nigger, that Colonel Hardman and staff have come to take possession of the premises and”—

The sentence was not finished, for Berinthia, queenly in her dignity, stood before him. Colonel Hardman, obedient to etiquette, removed his hat. It was not an old woman, wrinkled and toothless, but a young lady, calm and self-possessed, confronting him.

“Is this Colonel Hardman?”

“I have the honor to bear that name, lady.”

“You have come to take possession of my house?”

“That is my errand. I trust it will not greatly inconvenience you. I see you have my order of yesterday in your hand, and so are not unprepared for my coming.”

“It is your order, and I am not unprepared, as you will see,” she said, handing him the paper.

He read the writing, bit his lips, grew red in the face, returned the document, bowed stiffly, and left the hall, followed by his astonished suite.

“Outwitted by a petticoat,” he muttered, with an oath, as he passed down the street.