That little, however, was precisely of the kind to prove the value of
correct information. For the want of it, he had seen General Braddock
lead an army into the jaws of destruction, and he may have still
possessed in some closet of Mount Vernon the coat with four bullet-holes
in it which he had himself worn on that occasion. There are no warriors
so skillful either at getting or concealing information as Indians, and
all his experience hitherto had been in the Indian country and with
warlike methods of an Indian character.
Hence it is not surprising to discover that the first important act
which he performed at Cambridge was to engage a person to go into the
city of Boston for the purpose of procuring "intelligence of the enemy's
movements and designs." An entry in his private note-book shows that he
paid this unknown individual $333.33 in advance.
A person who serves as a spy takes his life in his hand. It is a curious
fact of human nature that nothing so surely reconciles a man to risking
his life as a handsome sum in cash. General Washington, being perfectly
aware of this fact, generally contrived to have a sum of what he called
"hard money" at headquarters all through the war. Spies do not readily
take to paper money.
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