But they
were gone, with the swiftness and silence of magic! The magician was
Washington, who had not slept from the hour of defeat until his men were
safe again in New York. But they were not to remain there long, as more
exciting work was before them.
CHAPTER XXVI
THE BRITISH OCCUPY NEW YORK
Miles and miles above the little city of New York, on a road which led
up through the Island of Manhattan, there was a stately house in a
stretch of country and forest land overlooking the Hudson River. This
was the house of Charles Ward Apthorpe and was known as the Apthorpe
mansion. Here General Washington went after the retreat from Long
Island, to devise a plan for the battles that were to come.
The city was well fortified, but Washington understood full well that
it could not be held long against a British attack. For the British
soldiers were already on the islands of the East River, and the British
ships held possession of the harbor and of both rivers. So Washington
sent the main body of his army to Harlem Heights at the northern end of
the Island of Manhattan, and left only a force of 4,000 men, under
General Putnam, in New York.
Washington desiring to learn the plans of the enemy, called for someone
who would be willing to go into the British lines.
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