Identifier: washingtonhiscou00irvi (find matches)
Title: Washington and his country, being Irving's life of Washington, abridged for the use of schools; with introduction and continuation, giving a brief outline of United States history from the discovery of America to the end of the civil war
Year: 1888 (1880s)
Authors: Irving, Washington, 1783-1859 Fiske, John, 1842-1901
Subjects: Washington, George, 1732-1799 United States -- History
Publisher: Boston, Ginn & Company
Contributing Library: New York Public Library
Digitizing Sponsor: MSN

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
river with an easy south-ern breeze. At their approach, the galleys and the two ships in-tended to be sunk got under way with all haste, as did a schoonerladen with rum, sugar, and other supplies for the American army,and the sloop with Bushnells submarine machine. The Roebuck, Phoinix, and Tartar broke through the vauntedbarriers as through a cobweb, and kept on their course, the Amer-ican vessels scudding before them. The schooner was overhauledand captured; a well-aimed shot sent the sloop and Bushnellssubmarine engine to the bottom of the river. The British hadattained their object, which was to satisfy themselves that theHudson was passable for their ships and transports, so that troopsmight be landed, if need be, above Fort Washington. Having ascertained this point, Howe left Lord Percy in com-mand at New York, and took a considerable part of his army upthe East river to Throgs Neck, with the view of getting into therear of the American army, cutting off its supplies, which were
Text Appearing After Image:
aagj M ->• NEW YORK &VIGINITY 1776.-<- To face page 227. FIRST GREAT DEFENSIVE CAMPAIGN. 227 chiefly derived from the East, and interrupting its communicationwith the main country. Throgs Neck is a peninsula in West-chester County, stretching upwards of two miles into the Sound.It was separated from the mainland by a narrow creek and amarsh, and was surrounded by water every high tide. A bridgeacross a creek, connecting with a ruined causeway across themarsh, led to the mainland, and the upper end of the creek wasfordable at low water. Early in the morning of October 12, eighty orninety boats full of men had passed up the Sound and landed troopsto the number of four thousand on Throgs Point, the extremity ofthe Neck. Thence their advance pushed forward toward thecauseway and bridge, to secure that pass to the mainland. Wash-ington had been too quick for them. Colonel Hand and hisPhiladelphia riflemen, the same who had checked the Britishadvance on Long Island, had taken up

Note About Images