And let us not forget that from that time on, Percy was in supreme command of the united British forces, amounting to nearly eighteen hundred men. To him belongs the credit of a masterly retreat, for his loss in killed and wounded was surprisingly small considering the number of American riflemen in pursuit. To him belongs the blame also for the burned homes of inoffensive non-combatants, for the killing of such helpless old men as Raymond; for the summary removal of Hannah Adams and her infant from child-bed; for the killing of feeble-minded William Marcy; for the killing of fourteen-year old Edward Barber. His entire march back to Charlestown was thickly dotted with just such incidents, unrelieved by any conspicuous merciful action, or by any deed of bravery. It was a masterly retreat, indeed,—and it was a brutal one, too. Happily for the American patriots in succeeding contests, no other British commander seemed inspired by such revengeful instincts. Happily for the British historian he has no other such brutal events to apologize or blush for. Percy occupies his one page in history, uniquely, at least. His services in America, terminated soon thereafter, and at his own request, and for some reason which we know not of. Possibly he was satisfied with the fame, such as it was, which he won on that glorious day.[276]
The next Lexington home to be destroyed by the incendiary belonged to the widow Lydia Mulliken and her son. It stood not far from Loring's, on the main road to Boston, nearly opposite the present Munroe School. The clock shop connected with the same estate was also burned. As in the previous cases such personal effects as were desired by the soldiers were first removed and subsequently carried away. The works of a valuable musical clock were found in the knapsack of a wounded Briton, when he was subsequently captured.[277] The Mulliken loss was £431.[278]
John Mulliken, cabinet-maker, son of the widow, and living in Concord, joined in the pursuit, and came as far as Lexington. There he saw his mother's house in flames, which affected him so deeply that he could proceed no farther.[279]
A modest little home and shop belonging to Joshua Bond, standing northwesterly from Munroe Tavern, and very near the present beginning of "Percy Road," were first looted, and then burned. His loss was £189, 16s. 7d.
The greater part of these happenings were within that first half hour after Percy took command of the united British forces, and before he began his retreat. This energetic destroyer of American homes had selected Munroe Tavern as his temporary headquarters, and ordered his wounded conveyed there also. While their wounds were being dressed his men demanded such refreshments as the place could provide, and unlike Smith's subordinates in Concord, were not considerate enough to pay for them. So landlord William Munroe's loss was £203, 11s. 9d., of which £90 was in the "retail shop," presumably of a liquid nature. As he was orderly sergeant in Captain Parker's Company, he was naturally absent on duty, and left a lame man, John Raymond, in charge, who waited upon the unbidden guests because he was compelled to. His last service was to mix a glass of punch for one of the red-coats, after which he essayed to escape through the garden. He was not alert enough, for two soldiers fired, and one of their bullets readily overtook him as he hobbled away.[280] Thus one more was added to the list of American dead, one of the easiest victims, of course, for he was simply an unarmed cripple. This probably happened at the rear of the Tavern.
A few rods from the Tavern, down the road towards Boston, were two more Lexington homes, on opposite sides of the street, and so quite near to each other. They are still standing (1912). In the one on the westerly side lived Samuel Sanderson, a member of Capt. Parker's Company. He was not at home, so they killed his cow instead, not for food, but for the pure pleasure of killing something. Evidently landlord Munroe's liquor was having some effect, if not in making men braver, then in making them more brutal. Sanderson did not report the amount of his loss to the Legislature. On the easterly side of the road lived John Mason and family. All were absent so the soldiers permitted themselves to carry away property to the value of £14, 13s. 4d.[281]
Many other homes in Lexington were ransacked, mostly during Percy's halt. The total loss, as reported to the Legislature in 1783, amounted to £1761, 1s. 5d.; nearly $9,000 as computed in money of to-day. Undoubtedly many minor losses were not reported at all.
While these events were happening, the American riflemen were not idle. From Mt. Vernon to the westward, and from the Munroe meadows to the eastward, came many leaden messengers, some of them effective. Among the British officers wounded, and probably most of them during the halt, were Lieut. Hawkshaw, Lieut. Cox, and Lieut. Baker, of the Fifth, Ensign Baldwin and Lieut. McCloud of the Forty-seventh; and Capt. Souter and Lieut. Potter of the Marines. Many privates were killed and wounded.[282]
Shortly after the meeting of Percy and Smith, Gen. William Heath of Roxbury arrived in Lexington, and endeavored to effect the organization of the American forces into the semblance of an army. Dr. Joseph Warren arrived on the scene at the same time. Heath's efforts were hardly successful, as the patriots chose to fight as they had from the beginning, singly and self-commanded. It appears that Heath had first gone to Cambridge, to meet the Committee of Safety, and from there intended to go to Lexington, but fearing the British were in possession of the road in that direction had taken one across to Watertown. Finding there some of the militia of the town awaiting orders, he directed them to Cambridge to take up the planks of the Boston bridge, barricade its southerly end and dispute the passage of the retreating British on their way home to Boston. Then he proceeded to Lexington and upon his arrival there was generally recognized as the commanding officer of the American forces. He found the people there aroused to great excitement caused by the bombardment of the meeting-house and the burning of so many homes.[283]
It must have been half past three, or perhaps nearly four o'clock, when Percy gave the order to march. He realized the distance to Boston, and the dangers along the way. "As it now began to grow pretty late," he says in his official report, "and we had 15 miles[284] to retire, and only our 36 rounds, I ordered the Grenadiers and Light Infantry to move off first,[285] and covered them with my Brigade, sending out very strong flanking parties."