Merchant Morris regarded them with his shrewd eyes. He knew every man of them; they were persons of means and circumstance; none in the entire city more capable than they when matters of credit or ready money were discussed.
“So,” spoke Mr. Morris, carefully, “you desire a victory, do you, my friends? Very good. Not one of you is more desirous of it than I. And no one more willing to point out to you how it can be gotten than I.”
“What,” demanded Friend Sharpless, “has there not been a fight won, then?”
“A fight won!” replied Robert Morris, scornfully. “A fight won! And with what, pray?” He looked from one to the other of them. “Would you ask a man to dig and give him no spade? Would you require a man to build and provide him with no bricks? You would not! You are all too shrewd for that—too well acquainted with the wisdom of practical things. But still you would have a general win battles without an army; you would have him face the ice of winter without shoes or blankets for his scanty force; you would have him keep the field in all the rigor of the season with no medical help for his sick; you would have him front a powerful foe with only a few muskets and artillery of the poorest.”
To this there was no answer, save a look of gloom from each of the circle. Robert Morris went on:
“You have the cause and you have the general. Put the power into the general’s hands, and the cause is won.” There was a pause, and the speaker drew out the dispatch which Ben Cooper had brought from Trenton. “It is, perhaps, in your minds,” proceeded the financier, “as to what form this paper is to take. My reply is simple. Funds! Hard money! I do not expect you to fill the empty treasure chest. Merely cover its bottom and it will suffice for a time.”
“Times,” spoke one with a shake of the head, “are hard.”
“Ready money is difficult to come by,” added another.
“The war has ruined trade,” bemoaned another. “A gold or silver coin is a rarity nowadays.”
“Here,” said Robert Morris, apparently paying no heed to their complaints, “is the letter of His Excellency.” He read the lines with proper emphasis and clearness, and as he was refolding the sheet continued: “You see, sirs, it is a rather large sum that is required; but consider, also, that the need of it is much larger still. A crisis has been reached in the country’s affairs that must be met with swiftness and generosity; if it is not, then never look for a sign of peace until all the sources of supply whatsoever have been drained. By lending a part to the cause at this time, you may save the whole, eventually.”