The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1920-06-18

TO have been obtained from the dis
bursement of the Quaker loan. 1t
is certain that soon after Rivingtons
second arrival in New York from Eng
land, the campaign against the Brit
ish in New York took on a new .Vlg-
or and Washington was able to fore
stall the most carefully guarded plans
of the British generals, who were I'M
able to fathom the sources of his in
formation. The "King's Printer" was
the last man they were inclined to
suspect and, in fact, he never did fall
under their suspicion, so adroitly did
he camouhage his operations.
Wined and dined by the officers of
the British army and the trusted con-
fidante of the loyalist groups, he was
in a position to acquire at all times
lust the information that the Amer
lean army needed.
Rivington's method of conveying in
telligence of the enemy's plans and
movements to Washington was ingen-
ious and was probably a pre-arranged
plan, devised by Washington. Wash
ington was a great reader of books on
agriculture and he would often send
for books of this character to Rivlng-
toms book store to be forwarded to
him through his friends in New York.
Rivington wrote his secret commune
cations on thin paper and bound them
in the covers of these books which he
always managed to sell to those spies
of Washington who were constantly
visiting New York, and who, he know,
would carry the volumes direct to the
headquarters Of the American army.
During all the time that Rivington
was in the secret service as Washing
toms personal spy, he continued to
run his "Royal Gazette" and no 10y
alist editor was more INSCRIPTIONS or
more virulent in his abuse of the pa
triots and their cause than Rivington.
Without regard, apparently, to truth
or decency, he belabored the republic
can leaders and their contemplate
little army" in season and out of sea-
son. Not only did he live in hourly
peril of exposure from the British
side, but he was most cordially de-
spised by the patriotic Americans and
no man of the period was more scath-
ingly scored or more bitterly hated
by the Wing orators and writers, who,
even long after the war ended, con-
tinued to denounce him as loyalist
traitor and a scoundrel who had sold
his country for British gold"
When Washington entered New
York in 1888 a conqueror, the loyalists
fled to Nova Scotia, but Rivington re-
manned undisturbed at his old book
store on Wall street. One day Wash
{ ington amazed his staff by proposing
they pay visit with him to Riving-
toms store and still more astounded
when Rivington greeted them cordial
ly and they all sat down in Rivington's
back parlor to enjoy few bottles Of
that old Madeira which had had such
soothing effect upon the leader OF
the Green Mountain Boys. Not even
then, however, was the secret of theii
connection entirely disclosed. Riving'
ton and Washington withdrew to q
private room for consultation anc
Washington had little more to say
upon leaving him than to tell his Of
fcers that "Rivington was very
pleasant fellow" Perhaps there were
reasons on Rivington's side why the
secret should be still further kept and
it remained undisclosed for many
years after peace was signed.
All contemporary accounts, whether
British or American, agree that, aside
from his political subtleties, Riving.
ton was, as Washington said, "a very
pleasant fellow" indeed. He is de
scribed as a "fine looking portly man