John Adams, being near at hand at the time, was consulted, and strongly endorsed the proposed measure, considering as a sufficient warrant the extraordinary authority with which Washington had recently been invested by Congress. Lee w^as thereupon commissioned to raise volunteers in Connecticut, secure military aid from New ycrse^^ disarm the Tories in the neighbourhood of New York, and to put the city and river in a condition for defence against the contemplated attack of the British. After some difficult}' he succeeded in accom|;)lishing the greater part of this task, and proceeded to take possession of New York. But the first movement in that

direction brought a hornet's nest buzzing about his ears. Clearly the citizens dreaded nothing so much as being defended. The merchants and householders saw in the impetuous and often impolitic Lee and his hastily gathered levies of raw troops a menace to their well being much greater than they discovered in the ships of his Majesty that were in the harbour. That staunch patriot, Pierre Van Cortlandt, Chairman of the Committee of Safety, addressed a letter to General Lee, protesting that the city was not capable of acting

i64 The Hudson River

hostilely against the British ships, as it lacked both military works and munitions. He urged the advisability ofdoing nothing to provoke attack and more than hinted that his correspondent's room would just then be greatly preferred to his company. We, therefore [continued the letter], ardently wish to remain in peace for a little time, and doubt not we have assigned sufficient reasons for avoiding at present, a dilemma, in which the entrance of a large body of troops into the city, will almost certainly involve us. Should you have such an entrance in design, we beg at least the troops may halt on the western confines of Connecticut, till we have been honoured by you with such an explanation on this important subject, as you may conceive your duty may permit you to enter upon with us, the grounds of which, you may easily see, ought to be kept an entire secret.