. Our greater country; being a standard history of the United States from the discovery of the American continent to the present time ... of the highest import-ance that something should be done to re-vive the confidence of the country beforethese men should be lost to the army. Thecircumstances in which Washington wasplaced required a blow to be struck in somequarter. A victory would be productive ofthe most important moral results; a defeatcould do no more than ruin the cause, and apolicy of inaction was sure to accomplish that. An opportunity at once presented British had ceased
. Our greater country; being a standard history of the United States from the discovery of the American continent to the present time ... of the highest import-ance that something should be done to re-vive the confidence of the country beforethese men should be lost to the army. Thecircumstances in which Washington wasplaced required a blow to be struck in somequarter. A victory would be productive ofthe most important moral results; a defeatcould do no more than ruin the cause, and apolicy of inaction was sure to accomplish that. An opportunity at once presented British had ceased their pursuit, andthough they held New Jersey in strongforce, had scattered their detachmentsthrough the state. General Howe was inNew York, and Lord Cornwallis was at thesame place, and was about to sail for England. Both commanders believed the Ame-rican army to be too seriously crippled toassume the offensive during the winter. TheHessians, who constituted the advance-guardof the royal forces, were stationed along theDelaware. Colonel Donop had his head-quarters at Burlington, and Colonel Rahl ^ o O COC/5)—1 Z o H fflW owf>. 46 401 402 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. was at Trenton with a force of fifteen hun-dred men. Rahl was a brave and competentofficer, but he entertained such a thoroughcontempt for the Americans that he neglectedto protect his position by earthworks orother defences. The Hessians kept thecountry in terror; they were inveteratethieves, and plundered both patriot androyalist without mercy. They had earnedthe deep and abiding hatred of the Ameri-can soldiers by bayoneting the wounded inthe battles in which they had been engaged. Midnight Marches. Washington now determined to re-crcsthe Delaware and attack the Hessians atdifferent points. A force of twenty-fourhundred picked troops under his own com-mand was to cross the river a few milesabove Trenton and attack the enemy at thatplace; and the same time another detach-ment under Reed and Cadwallader were tocr
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