"It shall be done."
"And you, Baker, follow the same instruction in reference to the Mountain Boys. The small boat we will reserve for Col. Arnold and myself. When you reach the other side, remember that there must not be a sound. No word must be uttered, no fire made, but let every man lie in the long grass and wait for orders."
A crew was selected for each boat, and the work of transporting the little army across the lake was commenced.
The men pulled steadily and noiselessly across the waters of the beautiful lake which the Indians called "Troquois," [Transcriber's note: Iroquois?] and the early French settlers, who objected to honoring the explorer, Samuel de Champlain, "Mere les Iroquois," and still later, "Iracosia."
It was slow work, and the men asked permission to swim across, but Allen was afraid the swim would be too exhausting.
When day broke the work had to cease, for the men at the fort would have seen the boats and been put on their guard.
Arnold looked at the handful of men and predicted failure.
Allen counted the men and found eighty-three.
That was the strength of his little army.
It seemed absurd to think of attacking one of the strongest fortresses on the continent with such a handful of men.