Prelude to Glory, Vol. 4
Page 1
© 2000 Carter, Ron.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without permission in writing from the publisher, Deseret Book Company, P.O. Box 30178, Salt Lake City Utah 30178. This work is not an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The views expressed herein are the responsibility of the author and do not necessarily represent the position of the Church or of Deseret Book. Deseret Book is a registered trademark of Deseret Book Company.
All characters in this book are fictitious, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
© 2000 Ron Carter
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without permission in writing from the publisher, Bookcraft, P. O. Box 30178, Salt Lake City, Utah 84130. This work is not an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The views expressed herein are the responsibility of the author and do not necessarily represent the position of the Church or of Bookcraft.
Bookcraft is a registered trademark of Deseret Book Company.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Carter, Ron, 1932–
The hand of providence / Ron Carter.
p. cm. — (Prelude to glory ; 4)
ISBN 1057345-783-3
1. United States—History—Revolution, 1775–1783—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3553.A7833 H36 2000
813'.54—dc21 00-037943
Printed in the United States of America 72082-6674
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This series is dedicated to the common people of long ago who paid the price.
For Melvin W. Carter and Birdie Ione Thueson Carter. My parents.
Table of Contents
The Hand of Providence
Preface
Chronology of Important Events Related to This Volume
CHAPTER I
CHAPTER II
CHAPTER III
CHAPTER IV
CHAPTER V
CHAPTER VI
CHAPTER VII
CHAPTER VIII
CHAPTER IX
CHAPTER X
CHAPTER XI
CHAPTER XII
CHAPTER XIII
CHAPTER XIV
CHAPTER XV
CHAPTER XVI
CHAPTER XVII
CHAPTER XVIII
CHAPTER XIX
CHAPTER XX
CHAPTER XXI
CHAPTER XXII
CHAPTER XXIII
CHAPTER XXIV
CHAPTER XXV
CHAPTER XXVI
CHAPTER XXVII
CHAPTER XXVIII
CHAPTER XXIX
CHAPTER XXX
CHAPTER XXXI
CHAPTER XXX
CHAPTER XXXI
CHAPTER XXXII
Acknowledgments
Bibliography
The Hand of Providence
These are the times that try men’s souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly:—’Tis dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to set a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed, if so celestial an article as Freedom should not be highly rated.
. . . My secret opinion has ever been, and still is, that God Almighty will not give up a people to military destruction, or leave them unsupportedly to perish, who had so earnestly and so repeatedly sought to avoid the calamities of war, by every decent method which wisdom could invent.
Thomas Paine
The American Crisis I
December 19, 1776
Preface
* * *
The reader will be greatly assisted in following the Prelude to Glory series if the author’s overall approach is understood.
The volumes do not present the critical events of the Revolutionary War in chronological, month-by-month, year-by-year order. The reason is simple. At all times during the eight years of the conflict, the tremendous events that shaped the war and decided the final result were happening simultaneously in two, and sometimes three, different geographical areas. This being true, it became obvious that moving back and forth, from one battle front to another, would be extremely confusing.
Thus, the decision was made to follow each major event through to its conclusion, as seen through the eyes of selected characters, and then go back and pick up the thread of other great events that were happening at the same time in other places, through the eyes of characters caught up in those events.
The reader will recall that volume I, Our Sacred Honor, followed the fictional family of John Phelps Dunson from the beginning of hostilities between the British and the Americans in April 1775, through the Lexington and Concord battles, and then moved into the experiences of Matthew Dunson, John’s eldest son, who was a navigator in the sea battles that occurred later in the war. In volume II, The Times That Try Men’s Souls, Billy Weems, Matthew’s dearest friend, survived the terrible defeats suffered by the Americans around New York and the disastrous American retreat to the wintry banks of the Delaware River. In volume III, To Decide Our Destiny, Billy and his friend Eli Stroud followed General Washington back across the Delaware on Christmas night, 1776, to storm and miraculously take the town of Trenton, and then Princeton.
Volume IV, The Hand of Providence, addresses the tremendous, inspiring events of the campaign for possession of the Lake Champlain–Hudson River corridor, wherein British General John Burgoyne, with an army of eight thousand, is sent by King George III to take Fort Ticonderoga, proceed to Albany, and in conjunction with the forces of General William Howe and Colonel Barry St. Leger, cut the New England states off from the southern states, and defeat them one at a time. To oppose Burgoyne, the United States sends General Arthur St. Clair, with less than half the army commanded by General Burgoyne. The heroics of men on both sides, the battles, the unbelievable tricks, the startling performance of General Benedict Arnold, all seen through the eyes of Billy and Eli, are probably among the most gripping stories in the entire Revolution. Historians have long since included the events of the summer of 1777 in the single term, Saratoga, and it is clear that this battle changed the history of the world.
Volume V will also address the events of the summer of 1777, following General George Washington as he seeks a way to stop General William Howe on the eastern seaboard. Caleb Dunson, age sixteen, the rebellious runaway son of John Dunson, has already joined Washington’s army and is rapidly learning the brutalities of camp life and war. Mary Flint, the beautiful, plucky widow of wealthy Marcus Flint, now destitute and seeking a new life, is desperately trying to find Eli and Billy, the only two persons she can look to for help and understanding.
And, reader, be patient. Matthew and Kathleen are going to be reunited, and the wait will make it all the sweeter. Mary Flint has realized her strong feelings for Eli, feelings he shares for her. Billy has given his heart to Brigitte; however, she sees him only as a dear friend of the family. These wonderful young people are going through that painful but exciting time of finding each other and experiencing the blossoming of young love into mature love. It’s all yet to come.
Chronology of Important Events Related to This Volume
* * *
1775
April 19. The first shot is fired at Lexington, Massachusetts, and the Revolutionary War begins. (See volume 1
)
June 15. The Continental Congress appoints George Washington of Virginia to be commander in chief of the Continental army.
June 17. The Battle of Bunker Hill and Breed’s Hill is fought, which the British win at great cost, suffering numerous casualties before the colonial forces abandon the hills due to lack of ammunition. (See volume 1)
September. King George III of England and his cabinet agree upon a strategy for putting down the rebellion in the American colonies, as well as the British officers who shall command and the armed forces that will be necessary.
1776
February–March. Commodore Esek Hopkins leads eight small colonial ships to the Bahamas to obtain munitions from two British forts, Nassau and Montague. (See volume 1)
March 17. General Sir William Howe evacuates his British command from Boston. (See volume 1)
July 9. On orders from General Washington, the Declaration of Independence (adopted by the Continental Congress on July fourth) is read publicly to the entire American command in the New York area, as well as the citizens. (See volume 2)
Late August–Early December. The British and American armies clash in a series of battles at Long Island, Kip’s Bay, Harlem Heights, White Plains, and Fort Washington. Though the Americans make occasional gains in the battles, the British effectively decimate the Continental army to the point that Washington has no choice but to begin a retreat across the length of New Jersey. He crosses the Delaware River into Pennsylvania and establishes a camp at McKonkey’s Ferry, nine miles north of Trenton. (See volume 2)
September 21. An accidental fire burns about one-fourth of the city of New York.
October 11. General Benedict Arnold leads a tiny fleet of fifteen hastily constructed ships to stall the British fleet of twenty-five ships on Lake Champlain. The hope is that Arnold’s forces can at least delay the movement of thirteen thousand British troops south until the spring of 1777 and thus save George Washington’s Continental army. (See volume 1)
December 10. Benjamin Franklin travels to France to persuade the French government to support America in the Revolution.
December 14. General William Howe closes the winter campaign, and the British troops retire into winter quarters. Howe stations General James Grant at Princeton with a small force of British soldiers. Colonel Carl Emil Kurt von Donop is given command of three thousand Hessians along the Delaware River opposite the American camp, and he quarters fourteen hundred of his men in Trenton under the command of Colonel Johann Gottlieb Rall.
December 22. John Honeyman, an American spy posing as a British loyalist, is under orders from General Washington and makes a reconnaissance journey to Trenton, is later “captured” by the Americans, and reports his findings to Washington directly.
December 25. Washington’s three-point attack of Trenton begins as he and his army cross the Delaware River at McKonkey’s Ferry at night and during a raging blizzard. General James Ewing attempts a crossing at the Trenton Ferry, and General John Cadwalader moves into position at Dunk’s Ferry.
December 26. The Battle of Trenton is fought to a dramatic conclusion.
December 29. Benjamin Franklin meets with Comte de Vergennes to discuss French aid for the Americans.
December 31. Enlistments for the majority of soldiers in the Continental army are due to expire at midnight.
1777
January 2. General Charles Cornwallis leads a British force of 8,000 men out of Princeton with orders to destroy what is left of Washington’s army. Colonel Edward Hand and a small force of 600 Pennsylvanian riflemen are dispatched to stop the British before they can reach Trenton.
January 3. Washington and his army of over four thousand men endure a midnight march out of Trenton and into Princeton, where they surprise British colonel Charles Mawhood’s command shortly after sunrise. The Battle of Princeton is fought with surprising results.
January 7. The Continental army establishes winter quarters in Morristown, New Jersey.
February 25. As the political relationships between England, France, and America tighten, Comte de Vergennes receives news regarding the outcome of the battles of Trenton and Princeton and plans a course of action for France.
May 6. British General John Burgoyne arrives in Canada to begin his campaign down the Champlain–Hudson region.
June 12. General Arthur St. Clair arrives at Fort Ticonderoga to take command of the American forces.
July 4. The British scale Mt. Defiance to mount cannon that are within range of Fort Ticonderoga.
July 5. The Americans discover the presence of the cannon and recognize that the British are now capable of destroying the fort at will, together with the men therein.
July 5–6. General St. Clair abandons Fort Ticonderoga to the British and retreats with his men, part of them moving south in boats to Skenesborough, the balance marching toward Hubbardton, intending to join the boats at Skenesborough.
July 6. The British fleet sinks every American boat at Skenesborough and scatters the Americans.
July 7. The Battle of Hubbardton is fought, in which the Americans make a good accounting until British reinforcements arrive, driving them from the field.
August 16. General John Stark leads his American New Hampshire militia against German Colonel Friedrich Baum in the Battle of Bennington and soundly defeats the German column and their reinforcements.
August 19. General Horatio Gates arrives at Stillwater to replace generals Philip Schuyler and Arthur St. Clair as American commander of the Northern Army. Congress has ordered Schuyler and St. Clair to explain their actions in abandoning Fort Ticonderoga, and they are to report to General Washington, ostensibly to face courts-martial.
September 19. The American and British forces clash at Bemis Heights, and the Battle of Freeman’s Farm is fought. Neither side claims victory.
October 7. The Battle of Barber’s Wheat Field is fought near Bemis Heights. General Benedict Arnold, against orders from General Horatio Gates and with spectacular leadership on the battlefield, leads the Americans to victory.
October 17. General John Burgoyne surrenders his army to General Horatio Gates.
December 2. King George III is informed of the surrender of Burgoyne’s army, and Horace Walpole reports that “the king fell into agonies.”
December 12. Benjamin Franklin, American ambassador to France, meets with Comte de Vergennes, French foreign minister, to persuade him, and eventually King Louis XVI, to enter the war on the side of the Americans.
1779
September 23. Commodore John Paul Jones, aboard the Bonhomme Richard, engages the larger British man-of-war Serapis off the east coast of England in the much-celebrated night battle in which Jones utters the now-famous cry, “I have not yet begun to fight!” (See volume 1)
Boston
May 24, 1777
CHAPTER I
* * *
His strong, square, homely face with the sandy red beard was suddenly there in the swirling sea mists, hovering just beyond her fingertips, and her heart leaped as she thrust her hand toward him. He was dressed in his seaman’s jacket with his first mate’s cap pulled low over eyes that, at the sight of her, were soft and yearning.
“Bartholomew,” she exclaimed, “you’ve come!”
Dorothy Weems tried to move her feet, but it was as though they were mired in something that would not let go. She reached for him with both hands, and he reached toward her with those thick wrists and strong, blocky hands, and she heard him murmur, “Dorothy. Dorothy.”
“Four o’clock. Fair weather. Four o’clock.”
The faint call came from behind, and Dorothy turned to look, but there was no one. She turned back to Bartholomew, who was drawing away from her, fading into the fog, his hands still reaching.
“Bartholomew,” she cried, and tried to follow him, but she could not make her feet move.
“Four o’clock. Fair weather. Four o’clock.” The voice was closer. Again she turned to look, but saw nothing. When she
turned back, there was only the swirling mist and the fog and deepening gloom.
“Bartholomew,” she shouted, and lunged wide-eyed. Instantly she was plunged into blackness, and then she was sitting upright, her feet snarled in something. She felt the beads of perspiration cold on her face, and she flailed her hands outward, but could feel nothing. Her hands dropped to her side, and the soft warmth of the great comforter of her bed was there. She clutched at it while her mind slowly came back to her small, sparse bedroom. Her shoulders slumped as she understood where she was.
Slowly her head tipped forward, and the tears came welling up. Her mouth formed the word Bartholomew before she fell silent, and the warm salt tears trickled. For a time her shoulders shook with her silent sobbing before a timid rap came at her door, and then it opened. The shape of her daughter was framed in the dim light, and then the nine-year-old voice came softly.
“Mama?”
Quickly she wiped at her eyes. “Trudy. Come, get in with me.”
The slender body bounded across the room and the thin arms circled Dorothy’s neck, clinging.
Dorothy held her close and smoothed her hair.
“Child, you’re shaking.”
“I heard something.”
“It was me. I had a dream and made a noise. Everything is all right.”
“A bad dream?”
“No, a good one.”
“Can I stay here with you?”
“Of course. Let me smooth the covers.” With a mother’s practiced hand, Dorothy quickly adjusted the comforter while Trudy curled into a ball, her back toward her mother as she waited for the sure, strong arm to circle her and draw her close. She smiled in the darkness, and her shivering stopped.