The Glorious Cause - Jeff Shaara [325]
SIR, WITH ALL RESPECT TO YOUR ORDERS, I MUST REPORT THAT IT WILL not be suitable.” The man was nervous, and Cornwallis said, “Lieutenant Sutherland, you may stand at ease. I will not strike you.” Sutherland seemed to jump at his words, was more stiff now than before. “My word, Lieutenant, do I inspire this much fear in all my officers?”
“I don’t know, sir. I mean . . . by no means, sir. My apologies. I was concerned that the general would find my report most distressing.”
“I find a great many things distressing, Lieutenant. Engineering reports are not among them. If Old Point Comfort is unsuitable, then you will find another location. My orders are to locate a suitable port, and construct a deepwater base.”
“Yes, sir, I understand. That place is not Old Point Comfort. There is no suitable material available for fill, and there is no protection for shipping from the shelter of a natural harbor. I have made some notes, if I may, sir.”
“By all means, Lieutenant.”
Sutherland scanned his paper.
“There is no existing port in this part of Virginia which offers every advantage. I have considered the sites available to us, sir, and examined the ground. There are details on this map . . . here, sir, with your permission.”
Sutherland placed the paper on Cornwallis’ desk, turned it toward him, and Cornwallis saw the precise lines, the writing of a trained engineer, numbers and formulas.
“What am I looking at, Lieutenant?”
“The location I believe is best suited, sir. With your permission, we can begin work immediately.” The young man leaned forward, put his finger on the paper, said, “Here, sir. Yorktown.”
AUGUST 30, 1781
Clinton’s orders continued to arrive, but there was less contradiction, and more of a tone of caution to Cornwallis that soon, any part of the British command might be under threat of attack. Clinton and Admiral Graves seemed to accept the choice of Yorktown as a base of naval operation, and Cornwallis ordered the construction of wharves, fortifications, and shore batteries.
Clinton’s orders were specific in another way as well, that Cornwallis was not to commence any new offensive in Virginia. Though Lafayette’s rebels sat astride the peninsula just beyond his reach, Cornwallis was under direct orders to place his army into a defensive posture. As the engineers focused their labors on constructing the seaport, Cornwallis had no choice but to fortify the town against land assault as well. While Sutherland worked the waterfront, O’Hara supervised the digging of fortifications in a wide perimeter around the town. Cornwallis could find only one ray of optimism through the gloom of his assignment. If Lafayette made any attempt to assault him there, the rebels would meet with disaster.
By the third week of August, the laborers and soldiers were toiling in a scorching sun, molding Yorktown into a formidable British port. As he paced the waterfront, he appreciated the engineer’s eye, could see the aspects of Yorktown that might be a disadvantage for a seaport. The York River was wide, could be passed easily by ships under sail. But across from Yorktown the river was squeezed like an hourglass by the intrusion of a point of land, Gloucester Point. The only way effectively to block the river to ship traffic was by placing an outpost on the other side, separating them from the protection of the main army. It was dangerous, and those troops would have to be strong enough to withstand an assault on their own. Cornwallis felt he had no choice. He ordered batteries to be placed at Gloucester Point as well. Once that work was completed no one could pass up the York River without taking serious damage from British cannon.
He waited each day for some new bit of torment from Clinton. He fully expected that the work around Yorktown would suddenly be stopped, some outrageous orders suddenly calling for another mad scramble to New York. There was still fear of the French warships, intelligence received from