In four pieces he cut the proclamation, and then handed it back to the sheriff, who dropped it as though it had been plague infected.
Ethan Allen picked up the four pieces.
"You did well not to receive it. I have a better use for it."
He took out his tinder box, and after a little effort, for the snow made the tinder damp, he got a light.
This he applied to the parchment, which sputtered and crinkled up in all sorts of strange shapes, until the great red seal, the token of authority, melted, and the wax ran on the ground.
"Now, let the sheriff acquaint the governor of New Hampshire with what I have done."
Ethan Allen stepped down, and walked through the crowd.
Not one person spoke to him, his act had so taken them by surprise.
It was a boldness that perhaps was criminal, they thought.
"What think you?" asked one.