220 7\umhull Gallery of Paintings in Yale College. 



powerful essays on the origin, nature, and obligation of govern- 

 ment, that had ever before been submitted to the examination of 

 the human understanding. All tended to one point ; and error 

 after error on the one hand, confirming the profound reasonings 

 which had thus been provoked on the other, the result became 

 inevitable. 



Hostilities commenced at Lexington, on the 19th of April, 1775. 

 On the first news of this affair, the youth and yeomanry of New 

 England hurried to Boston " en masse," with such arms as they 

 could command, and the British troops were shut up in the town, 

 by a numerous assemblage of enthusiastic men, brave, but undis- 

 ciplined, badly armed, ill-supplied with ammunition, destitute of 

 military uniforms or equipments ; cartridges and cartridge-boxes 

 were rare, bayonets almost unknown, and a great proportion of 

 these heroic men possessed only fowling-pieces, with some pow- 

 der in their horns, and a few bullets in their pockets. 



Science was as imperfect among the ofiicers high in command, 

 as was discipline among the inferior officers and troops. 



Little was or could be done during the sixty days which elaps- 

 ed between the 19th of April and the 17th of June, to reduce 

 this assemblage to order and discipline ; yet, such was the zeal of 

 the moment, that the determination was taken to advance from 

 Cambridge, and to establish a post on Breed's Hill, the nearest 

 point of approach to Boston, distant a little more than half a mile 

 from the north part of the town ; and on the evening of the 16th 

 of June, a detachment of 12 or 1500 men, commanded by Gen. 

 Putnam and Col. Prescott, marched for this purpose, arrived at 

 the spot selected at 10 o'clock, and commenced throwing up a 

 small redoubt, traces of which were visible a few years since, 

 and probably may still be found on the ground now marked by 

 the monument. 



The British had no knowledge of this movement until day- 

 light exposed to their view the progress which had been made ; 

 from the moment of this discovery, they opened a heavy fire 

 from ships and batteries, which was continued incessantly through 

 the day, until the attack of the works was made in form by the 

 troops under the command of Gen. Howe, in the afternoon of 

 June 17th. Thus, from 10 o'clock in the evening until 4 o'clock 

 in the morning, six hours, was all the time which this gallant de- 

 tachment had to prosecute their work without interruption. They 



