The Glorious Cause - Jeff Shaara [151]
Washington waited for Lafayette to walk again, was close to his tent now, could see the staff at work, another campfire. Lafayette began to move away.
“With your permission, sir. I must tend to my bandage.”
The young man disappeared into a tent, and Washington could see the man’s shadow moving in the glow of candlelight. It would take a European officer to see war that way, he thought. They have been fighting the same enemies for centuries, and one more day of battle changes very little. If he is correct, then I have much to be thankful for. But there is still tomorrow, and we may awake to find ourselves closely pursued by the enemy. Surely they will not allow us to escape, while they celebrate their victory. If General Howe presses his advantage, how will we respond? And if these men will indeed make another stand, will their commander be up to the challenge?
He could smell something cooking, saw the staff gathering around a low crude table. There was laughter, surprising him, and he wanted to scold them, quiet them with some stern command. Is it not disrespect, after all? We have left men dead on the field today, and there must be respect. We must repay our debt.
He could not hold the anger, felt his eyes closing, forced them open. He backed away into the darkness, could not share their mood, thought, I am not yet ready to look past this day. Mr. Lafayette may be correct, and there will certainly be another opportunity for this army. But I have believed it would ultimately be decided by one sharp engagement, a single massive blow, that this war will be won or lost in one awful bloody day, on ground just like we lost today. Congress believes that, the entire nation seems to believe it. Our enemy has that capability, the power to accomplish that. But I am not certain that we do. And if we cannot strike such a blow, then we have but one other course. We must simply lengthen the war, test the resolve of our enemies by wearing them down. How much support will their Parliament give to an endless conflict? And the congress? He thought of Lafayette, the man’s enthusiasm, his willingness to do whatever is required. We need a great many more like him, officers, certainly, but soldiers as well. That spirit may be this army’s one salvation, since we are deficient in so many ways, so unlike those countries whose history is so shaped by war and professional armies. The British show no discomfort employing foreign soldiers to support their cause. It may be that our best hope of victory will come from a foreign shore as well. French ships filled with cloth and gunpowder are all well and good, but it may be that unless we are strengthened by the power and the spirit of their army, this war will simply drain this country dry.
HOWE RESUMED HIS PURSUIT OF WASHINGTON’S ARMY WITH THE same dedicated slowness that had marked his entire campaign. For two weeks the two tired armies parried in a tedious twisting dance through the Pennsylvania countryside, kept apart by Washington’s careful maneuvering and the deep waters of the Schuylkill River. If Washington’s army was indeed prepared for another hard fight, Howe seemed unwilling to expend the energy required to bring it to pass. Finally, with Washington unable to do anything to keep Howe from accomplishing his primary mission, on September 26, the British army made a joyful parade of marching unopposed into Philadelphia.
24. CORNWALLIS
PHILADELPHIA, OCTOBER 1777
HE HAD LED THE COLUMN THAT MARCHED INTO THE CITY, AND while the enthusiasm from the citizens was exactly as he had expected, he was surprised that the crowds who lined the streets were mostly women and children. But it was a grand show nonetheless, an outpouring of grateful relief, a city offering its salute, as though the king himself had brought liberation to their city, and with one swift blow had destroyed the rebellion. What