. The works of Washington Irving. e was encamped on FordhamHeights, not far from Kings Bridge, untilpreliminary steps should be taken. In thenight of the 14th, thirty flat-bottomed boatsstole quietly up the Hudson, passed the Ameri-can forts undiscovered, and made their waythrough Spyt den Duivel Creek into HarlemRiver. The means were thus provided forcrossing that river and landing before unpro-tected parts of the American works. On the 15th, General Howe sent in a sum-mons to surrender, with a threat of extremitiesshould he have to carry the place by , in his reply, intimated a
. The works of Washington Irving. e was encamped on FordhamHeights, not far from Kings Bridge, untilpreliminary steps should be taken. In thenight of the 14th, thirty flat-bottomed boatsstole quietly up the Hudson, passed the Ameri-can forts undiscovered, and made their waythrough Spyt den Duivel Creek into HarlemRiver. The means were thus provided forcrossing that river and landing before unpro-tected parts of the American works. On the 15th, General Howe sent in a sum-mons to surrender, with a threat of extremitiesshould he have to carry the place by , in his reply, intimated a doubt thatGeneral Howe would execute a threat sounworthy of himself and the British nation;but give me leave, added he, to assure hisFxcellency, that, actuated by the most gloriouscause that mankind ever fought in, I am de-termined to defend this post to the very lastextremity. Apprised by the colonel of his peril. GeneralGreene sent over reinfortrements, with an ex- Fort Lee at the Time of the RevolutionRedrawn from an Old Print. fdl /-^l *<* ^ J attach on ffoct masblngton 329 hortation to him to persist in his defense ; anddespatched an express to Washington, whowas at Hackensack, where the troops whichhad crossed from Peekskill were was nightfall when Washington arrived atFort I<ee. Greene and Putnam were over atthe besieged fortress. He threw himself intoa boat, and had partly crossed the river, whenhe met those generals returning. They in-formed him of the garrisons having beenreinforced, and assured him that it was in highspirits, and capable of making a good was with difficulty, however, they couldprevail on him to return with them to theJersey shore, for he was excessively excited. Early the next morning (i6th), Magawmade his dispositions for the expected forces, with the recent addition, amountedto nearly three thousand men. As the fortcould not contain above a third of that number,most of them were stationed about the out-works.
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