The Freeman 1972 - The Ludwig von Mises Institute

350 THE FREEMAN Junewere also sent to Canada, theywere driven out in 1776.Washington vs.HoweEarly in the year of 1776, Washingtonsucceeded in placing cannonon Dorchester Heights overlookingthe British positions aroundBoston. Sir William Howe, now incommand of the British army,judged his position to be too exposed,and in March the Britishabandoned Boston. Howe withdrewby sea to Halifax to await reinforcements.Meanwhile, Washingtonmoved his army to New Yorkin the expectation of a British attackthere. It came in August.Howe drove Washington's armyfrom Long Island, from Manhattan,a:nd then from White Plains.It then became a near rout as theBritish under the field commandof Cornwallis followed Washingtonin a retreat through New Jersey.Washington managed to haltthe British advance at the DelawareRiver in early December. Hehad gathered all the boats in thevicinity to transport his armyacross the river; once he had theboats on the·other side, he keptthem there.In any case, Howe did not followup his advantage. He wentinto winter quarters in New YorkCity, leaving much of his armyspread out over New Jersey. Forthe Continentals, it had been ayear of defeats and withdrawals.On the heels of the Canadianlosses had come the ousting ofWashington's army from New·York. The British were now withina few miles from the capitol atPhiladelphia. Washington had onlythe remnant of an army to opposethe military and naval might ofBritain.Howe could retire to the comfortsof New York; he had victoriesenough to sustain himthrough the winter. No such pleasantoption was open to Washingtonwho was faced with the imminentdissolution of his army and,the way things were going, noprospects of another one. If theBritish would not attack, he must.Under the cover of darkness onChristmas night he crossed theDelaware with his army to attackthe Hessian army at Trenton atdaybreak. The Germans surrenderedshortly after the attack began.A few days later, Washingtonengineered another victory atPrinceton. From his base at Morristown,Washington continued todrive the British from their positions.The extent and impact ofthe continuation of this campaignis spelled out by Samuel Eliot Morison:"In a campaign lasting onlythree weeks, at a time of yearwhen gentlemen were not supposedto fight, the military genius ofAmerica's greatest gentleman, and