The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-10-27
Ill.

II will be remembered that after WASH
ington's defeat at Germantown and the
ensuing destruction Of the American notilla,
which gave the British possession Of the
Delaware. the wal stood still for the six
months hat elapsed between the beginning
Of December. I777. and the middle Of June.
ITS. The author points out that during
this period the question whether Great
Britain could oonciliate, pacify and govern
America permanently and smoothly was
tried out in a limited and securely protected
locality under every condition which could
be expected to insure success. h eastern
section Of Pennsylvania was a region sig
nally favored by nature. where agricultural
industry was ~intelligently pursued I'M
lavishly remunerated without any irksome
demand for excessive labor or over anxious
parsimony. We are told that the German
farmers employed between eight mi nine
thousand wagons in bringing their produce
to Philadelphia. The householders In the
counties Of eastern Pennsylvania had no
relish for war and little inclination toward
rebellion against Great Britain.
The Germans. indeed, were Wings almost
TO a man; but Tory sentiment prevailed
among the English speaking residents
in large villages and the occupiers Of ex-
tensive holdings. The loyalty Of the latter
was not demonstrative. however. but they
had enough OF it to make Washington's
existence q burden to him az long as King
Georges army remained in their ~neighbor-
hood. They gave Sir William Howe a good
deal q valuable military Information
gratis. and they sold him the pick Of their
stables at long prices. Above all. they
shirked service in the local republican
militia. offering as much as fifty suineas to
any one who would enlist 10 their stead;
and IL they could not provide themselves
with a substitute they stopped at home
whenever their regiment vas called into the
field. and persuaded their friends and
dependents to follow their example. Wash
ington In his letters complained that the
-disaifection Of the great part Of the in
habitants Of Pennsylvania. the languor Of
others and the internal distraction Of the
whole nave been among the great and
insuperable difficulties which have met
with. and have contributed not q little to
my embarrassment in this campaign
Sir George Trevelyan gives an interesting
account OF Philadelphia as It was at the time
when It was occupied by the British army
under Sir William Howe. He points out
that In material opulence. In smenity Of
aspect and In the political complexion Of
It's inhabitants the to~n closely resembled
the province Of which it was the capital
Already large enough TO be a centre Of
accumulated wealth and high civilization.
1t had not as yet outgrown the spacious and
convenient site which had been discovered
for il by the unerring judgment Of its
founder Travellers from Europe admired
the straight and uniform th~oroughfares.
sixty ora hundred feet broad. which crossed
each other AZ right angles in the city Of
William Penn. well paved, adequately
lighted. sc~rupulously clean and completely
though economically equipped with educa-
tional, scientific. social, medical and char-
table institutions, Philadelphia bore visible
witness in all its corners to the touch of
Benjamin Franklin. the most effective and
undoubtedly the moet rational and UMPIRE
tentious municipal reformer that the world
has ever seen
Our author goes on TO note that the eating
and drinking we're the beet and the clothes
the most expensive snd fanoifui to be found
in America. Up to the eve OF the Revolu-
ton many OF tho Quaker ladies had no dis
tinctive costume; and even when they
ceased TO wear colors the rich fabrics in
which they still INDUCED formed an i'm
posing background to brighter dresses.
Sir George Trevelyan records that Phila-
delphia's public assemblies, with their
abundance OF exceedingly eligible partners.
attracted dancers from all the central
colonies; and famous dancing masters came
over from Europe and throve as they could
not thrive at home"
In so rich q soil the seeds Of disaffection
and revolt were slow to terminate. John
Adams In n Of his sweeping generalizs-
tons described Philadelphia AZ a mass Of
cowardice and Toryism. The Quakers At
their ycs rlv meeting in the autumn % i77c
announce hemselves 10 be followers of
the Prince Of Peace, and Subsequently to
that date things had happened which we're
not OF "A nature to reconcile them Ia the
Revolution. The Fourth Of July, I777, had
been commemorated with every circum-
stance that they most disikcd; explosions
Of gunpowder all through the day and M
soon as night arrived a brisk smashing OF
Quaker windows. When tho British arnv
reached the Chesapeake and Philadelphia
became seriously Threatened Congress or
dered the arrest and deportation o! those
influential citizens who would No, profess
allegiance TO the new Constitution, OF
twenty recusant~ no fewer than sey. nteen
werc Friends. They we're removed from
their homes and conveyed in wagon, &C.
Winchester IN the shenandoah Valley,
where they We're detained during the winter.
Outside the Society Of Friends Philadel-
phian opinion WIS more equally distributed
between the Wings and Tories, The two