Arizona state miner., 1925-03-14
Mansion Where Surrender
Plot Was Hatched to
Be Raced.

New York.-There are four scenes
to this story:
In an upper room Of a house that
overlooks the sunlit waters of the Hud-
son two men are sitting at table.
1t is early morning. They have just
had breakfast. One poses rather deb
onairly and dashingly. He is a young
man of thirty, gay, handsome and win
ming. His uniform Is the red, laced
coat of British officer. The other
man is fully ten years his senior.
His face is strong, powerful, bitter,
the smoldering fires Of anger cloud his
eyes. His uniform is the buff and
blue of high ranking officer in the
continental army. His hand makes
notes on sheets Of paper. He passes
them over to his companion. Garry
them In your shoe," he says. 81 think
everything is arranged now"
Some weeks later From a stone
building in his shirt-sleeves emerges
the same British officer. silent
crowd is assembled. Pity and sympa-
thy for brave man are written on
the faces of all. The young British
officer takes his place between two
continental officers and they begin to
walk forward-toward a gallows and
a cart.
Years later on his dedth-bed in Lon
don the older man is tossing. Memo
ries haunt him of a land where his
name is an eXecration. His fevered
mind goes back to the days before
certain black morning when he was a
leader of gallant men on many a
stricken field. Bring it out" he NUT
ters. Let me die in my old American
uniform. God forgive me for what
have done to my country"
The last scene is of the present day.
A group Of men are comforting. One
of them is the head of state institu-
ton. The state requires a site for a
new building. 1t is determined upon.
The papers are drawn. The old house
that stands on the grounds will come
down to make way for a modern struc-
ture. With its demolition there will
pass a landmark that stands for one
of the blacklist pages in American his
tory.
That, in brief, is the story of Urea
son House." the old Joshua Hett Smith
mansion in West Haverstraw, Rock
land county, which is to be torn down
in order to erect a new state ortho-
pedic hospital on its site. In Treason
House" Benedict Arnold and Major
John Andre sat at breakfast after
hot I'll fcrI&
of the Hudson. In Treason House"
they perfected the last details Of Ar
nOld's traitorOus plan to surrender
West Point to the British. From
Treason House" Andre emerged to
meet capture and death, and from it
Arnold went forth to blot an hon
Orable career with the stigma of the
traitor.
Arnold and Andre Meet
Raging at the treatment meted out
to him by congress and the supreme
executive council at Philadelphia,
Benedict Arnold had come to West
Point as commander of the post He
was the hero of Quebec and of Sara
tOga. One leg wounded in two places
bore witness to his bravery on the
field. He was Washington's most
trusted general. He had a record for
leadership and sacrifice in the Cont
mental cause second to none.
Writing under the name of Gus
tavus," he entered into communication
with Sir Henry Clinton, commander
of the British forces in New York, and
was answered by an aid, Andre, who
assumed the name of John Ander-
son." Arnold offered to station his
troops SO that the British would en-