The General's Christmas (8 page)

"The wind has not stopped howling all night,"
Elizabeth remarked as she ate.

"Yes. I wonder how Corporal Baylor and the
others are managing in this storm. It's a pity that they had to
spend most of Christmas Day marching in bad weather."

"I just hope they'll bring father back,"
Elizabeth said.

"They will," Anna assured her, "I have a
strong feeling that they will."

As dawn broke, General Greene's regiment was
turning onto Scotch Road, which would lead them to Pennington Road.
They were marching into the wind once again. Hunched over and
covered with snow, they continued to plod through the storm,
hopeful that the march would soon be over. Some were tempted to ask
an officer where they were or how much longer they would march in
this fierce storm, but none broke the code of silence, fearing the
consequences.

The deepening snow was now
over their calves and nearly to their knees. It had been coming
down swiftly all night, drifting into deep mounds by the tree
lines. A small dim light began to define the shapes of trees
nearby. Visibility was still extremely poor, but they marched with
more heart now that they were seeing the hope of day.

The ground here was
relatively flat. Each one marched with the hope that there would be
a warm fire and some food waiting for them after the battle, for no
one doubted there would be a battle.

At Pennington Road, they turned south toward
Trenton. Once more the wind was at their backs and the marching
seemed easier, although the storm did not show any signs of
lessening. Washington rode back among the regiments, speaking to
the officers and the soldiers.

"Press on, men! It won't be much longer. Stay
together and keep by your officers!"

He drew up beside General Greene, who was
coughing deeply and spitting in the snow.

"Are you all right, General?" asked
Washington.

"Yes, sir. Just a bit of
asthma…all this cold, wet weather bothers it. But it's nothing to
worry about."

"I'm glad to hear it. I
would hate to see you miss out on the action. Send some of your men
ahead to scout the area. Also set up road blocks here. Make sure no
one gets in or out of town along this road between here and
Princeton. Detain anyone who tries to pass until further notice. I
still have hopes of making a surprise attack."

"Yes, sir!" Greene replied
and turned to the officers behind him, shouting,

"Lieutenant Monroe! Captain William
Washington!"

The lieutenant and the
general's nephew trotted to the front of the line. Parties of
scouts were sent ahead on horseback and would report back
immediately. Several officers ordered their men to set up the road
blocks.

The rest of the company
continued along Pennington Road as the sky began to brighten. A
heavy cloud cover and thick snow maintained a gloomy daybreak, but
visibility was improving. Each time the wind decreased, it was
followed by a thrashing of stronger blows, hurling ice and
snow.

Ten more minutes had passed
before General Washington spotted a group of men on horseback
riding towards them. Wondering if they were part of a Hessian
scouting party or his own, he waited until they came closer.
Finally seeing that they were from his own regiment, he trotted
ahead to meet them.

"General Washington!" one of
the men exclaimed in surprise, "Captain George Wallis,
sir!"

Washington was puzzled, "Are you part of the
scouting party?"

"No, sir. We're just
returning from Trenton."

"Trenton!" Washington exclaimed, "Why were
you there?"

"Well, sir," Captain Wallis
began proudly, "A few days ago, one of our men was in a boat going
by Trenton and one of them Hessians shot him. Our Brigadier General
Stephen wanted to teach them Hessians a lesson, so he sent us out
to raid one of the outposts. We killed at least four, I think, and
wounded almost a dozen more. They chased us, but we got clean away
in this storm!"

Washington's face turned beet red and his
knuckles strangled the reins in his hands.

"I gave no such order!" he shouted, "General
Stephen should have informed me of this action! This completely
ruins all my plans for a surprise attack! Now they're on their
guard!"

"Sir, I'm sorry, I was just
obeying orders-" Captain Wallis began.

"Yes! Yes, you did as you were told. I shall
take this matter up with your commanding officer. Please go to him
and tell him I want to see him immediately! And send General Greene
as well."

"Yes, sir!" Wallis replied
and rode quickly along the column of marching men.

Washington heaved a sigh of
frustration. Another setback. Now the Hessians would be armed and
ready to fight, perhaps even on this road. The advantage of
surprise was now lost. His men would have to face a full scale
attack against battle-ready troops. This realization dawned with
disappointment, and he shook his head in dismay.

The two riders pulled up beside him.
Brigadier General Stephen asked,

"You wanted to see me,
sir?"

"Did you send out a party to Trenton without
informing me or making a request to take such an action?"

Stephen's face darkened as he drew himself
up.

"Yes, sir! I joined the army
to fight these devils! They killed one of my men, and I ain't
letting them get away with that! We taught them a
lesson!"

"I have taken great pains to keep this march
on Trenton as quiet as possible," raged Washington, "and you have
sent out a party to announce our presence! Our advantage of
surprise has been compromised, thanks to you!"

Stephen sat up straight in
his saddle and squinted his eyes defiantly. General Greene
anxiously awaited the man's reply. They had clashed on prior
occasions, and he expected a similar row.

"I took action," Stephen rebutted, "Something
this army should've been doin' long ago!"

"But
you
are not the Commander in
Chief!
I am!
And
until you are Commander, you will follow my orders and you will
take no actions without my permission! Is that
understood?"

Stephen screwed his face up against the wind
and hesitated before delivering a sarcastic reply.

"Understood.....Sir!"

In defiance, Stephen hurled a spit of brown
tobacco onto the snow beside Washington's horse.

"That is all. You may rejoin your regiment,"
Washington replied. Stephen's mouth twisted angrily as he turned
his horse and rode away.

As he witnessed the scene,
General Greene was worried. He had spent a great deal of time with
Washington and had rarely seen him as angry as he was
now.

Greene ventured to ask,
"Sir, if the outposts have been warned of our attack, what should
we do?"

Washington heaved a sigh of
frustration and replied, "We press on, General. We just press
on."

Chapter 10

The light of dawn was muted
under heavy clouds and snow. As they marched, sharp winds tore
through their clothes, and efforts to hide exposed skin were
futile. The regiment made good time across the snowfield towards
Trenton with only one delay, a wagon stuck in deep snow. Once it
was freed, they marched on.

Washington’s scouts
returned. The leader wore a three-day old beard, and his tan
buckskin jacket was white with snow.

“The nearest outpost is just
over this ridge, sir. The land slopes downward there. They won’t
see us coming until we reach that ridge. Trenton is just beyond the
outpost. Everything seems quiet down there.”

“Then you saw no Hessian scouts riding
about?”

“No, sir. They must be
indoors, staying out of this storm,” the scout
confirmed.

Washington nodded in satisfaction and turned
to General Greene.

“Tell Colonel Knox to bring the artillery
forward for the attack. I’ll give the signal to advance.”

“Yes, sir!” Greene replied
enthusiastically.

As he galloped away,
Washington looked back at the men, and signaled the officers to
prepare for battle. They rode among the men passing the word
quietly as the heavy artillery was brought to the front. The
soldiers loaded their weapons.

When Washington deemed that everyone was in
position and ready, he gave the signal to advance.

“Perhaps you should wait here, General,”
suggested General Greene, “Until we’ve secured the area.”

Washington shook his head, “I’ve come this
far with my regiment and I shall finish with them.”

He started his horse and
galloped across the wide expanse through blowing and drifting snow.
As they moved across the snowfield, Washington looked back at his
men. Whatever fatigue or infirmities they suffered on the march
were now absent. Their faces showed determination, ready and eager
to fight.

He reached the end of the
snowfield overlooking Trenton. A cooper’s shop and barn, now used
as a Hessian outpost, lay covered in snow.

Inside the cooper’s shop, a
few of the Hessian guards warmed themselves by the fire. They had
been out in the storm for several hours, looking for Stephen’s
raiding party that had ridden off after wounding several men. They
had chased them east, lost sight of them in the storm, and then
returned back to the outpost. They poured themselves cups of hot
coffee. One man awoke when the others came in. He took his time
getting dressed and pulling on his coat and boots. It was time to
visit the outhouse.

As soon as he opened the
door, the bitter wind flung ice and snow in his face. He put his
head down and pulled the door shut behind him. It was only a ten
yards to the outhouse, but as he walked, he felt rather than heard,
a low, muffled vibration. The rumble of horses’ hooves galloping in
snow intensified. He looked up.

A line of men on horseback
crested over the ridge. The rider in front was a large man with a
cloak billowing out behind him as he rode. Through thick snowfall,
the Hessian began to see others, some on horses, and others on foot
carrying long muskets with bayonets. He couldn’t tell who they were
at first, but as the big rider came nearer, he recognized an
American uniform.

“Der fiend! Der
fiend!”
he shouted, running back to the
outpost. He burst through the door, announcing the
enemy.

Everyone scrambled for their weapons at once.
They took positions behind the cooper’s shop and opened fire.

They soon realized that this
was no small raiding party, but a full regiment. They fired and the
Americans fired back. The regiment fanned out to surround the
outpost, and the Hessians fell back, retreating behind nearby
houses. They fired several shots but missed their running
targets.

A strangled cry erupted from
one of the Hessian guards as he fell back, spurting crimson over
the white snow. The Americans moved closer, shooting at will.
Another Hessian went down before the others fell back again,
running for the safety of the town.

Washington told Colonel Knox
to position his artillery at the top of the hill at the north end
of Trenton, where King Street and Queen Street converged. As they
positioned the artillery, he sent foot soldiers into the town. From
the upstairs windows of abandoned houses, they had clear views of
the street below.

In the occupied houses,
women grabbed their children and hid. Tory men took up their
muskets to fight the enemy. A woman fired from her upstairs
window.

The American cannons
exploded, and iron balls flew through the center of Trenton. A
second cannon boomed from the west side of town and Washington
realized that General Sullivan’s forces were attacking at the same
time. He sighed with relief as a weight lifted from his shoulders.
At least part of his plan was working, and he thanked
God.

The Hessians sounded the
alarm. Church bells rang out in warning as Hessian soldiers rushed
to Colonel Rall’s headquarters along Queen Street. They hastily
tried to form a line, but American cannon boomed out, crashing into
nearby buildings, and sending them in every direction.

Colonel Knox shouted orders
to the gun crews. One of the carriages on the cannons was shattered
by enemy iron, rendering the gun useless. After seeing that the
crewmen were not injured, Knox shouted, “There’s an enemy cannon
right in the middle of town. Go take it!”

“Come on, lads! Let’s go get it!” shouted the
gun captain.

Knox shouted for the
infantry to provide cover for the men running towards the enemy.
Soon, the Hessians were driven away from their cannon by heavy
musket fire from both flanks. Knox’s gun crew chased them off and
took control. After two attempts to light the fuse, they turned the
gun around and fired at the Hessian troops.

“How do you like this end of
her?” they shouted at the Hessians. The crewmen laughed and
reloaded the gun.

The Hessian troops took a
position farther back, but were fired upon by foot soldiers hiding
among the houses. They managed to get a few rounds off before the
crew at two of the field guns were shot down and the remaining men
fled. Bodies flew into the air, landing on the ground, mingled with
blood and mud.

Colonel Rall came running out of his
headquarters, shouting to his officers. They tried to assemble the
troops, but the continuous bombardment scattered men
everywhere.