The dispatches from the Culpers were generally written in invisible ink,
which was made legible by wetting the paper with another liquid. It was
a matter of no small difficulty to keep the spies in New York supplied
with the two fluids, and also with the guineas which were requisite for
their maintenance. At first the spies wrote their letters on a blank
sheet of paper; but that would never do. General Washington wrote:
"This circumstance alone is sufficient to raise suspicions. A much
better way is to write a letter in the Tory style, with some mixture of
family matters, and, between the lines and on the remaining part of the
sheet, communicate with the stain (the invisible ink) the intended
intelligence."
The Culpers served faithfully to the end of the war, and finally had the
happiness of sending to the general the glorious news that the British
army, the fleet, and the Tories were all evidently preparing to depart
from the city, which they had held for seven years. Who were these
adroit and faithful Culpers? The secret seems to have died with
Washington and Tallmadge.
AN HISTORIC CHRISTMAS NIGHT
"Christmas Day, at night, one hour before day, is the time fixed upon
for our attempt upon Trenton.
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