To say that Dick was well pleased at receiving words of praise from the lips of the commander-in-chief is stating it mildly. And when he told Tom and Ben what General Washington had said, they were well pleased also, and declared that the commander-in-chief should have cause to be satisfied with all three of them many times before the end of the war, and, as friends will find, if they read the succeeding volume of the Dare Boys Series, which will be entitled, “The Dare Boys on The Hudson,” the brothers kept their word, and performed many, many wonderful deeds of daring while fighting for Liberty.
The British commander-in-chief now put in a week trying to get the patriot commander-in-chief to agree to peace, he stating that the king would make certain concessions, but as in accordance with the Declaration of Independence this was not to be thought of for a moment, the interviews came to naught, and so the British commander-in-chief began making preparations to continue the war. His next move, undoubtedly would be to capture New York City, and General Washington knew this would be an easy matter, so he made preparations to retreat to Harlem Heights, on the banks of the Hudson at the north end of Manhattan Island, where he would occupy a strategic position.
On the fifteenth of September the British made the move that was expected. Warships from Admiral Howe's fleet ascended the Hudson river as far as Bloomingdale, and the East River as far as Blackwell's Island, and while they bombarded the north end of the island, General Howe brought his army across from Brooklyn in boats, and landed at Kipp's Bay, near what is now the foot of 34th Street.
General Washington came down from the Heights with two brigades of patriot soldiers, with the purpose of holding the British in check long enough for General Putnam to evacuate the lower part of the city with the four thousand soldiers under him at that point. This was accomplished, and when Putnam and his men were safe on the Heights, the two brigades retired to the Heights also. The British then took possession of New York City, and so the two armies lay, the Continental on the Heights and the British in the city, confronting each other, on Manhattan Island.
It was an interesting situation, and especially so to Dick and Tom Dare and Ben Foster, who were now just beginning to feel that they were soldiers in the patriot army.
One evening, a few days after the British took possession of New York and the patriots took up their station on Harlem Heights, the commander-in-chief of the patriot army made the soldiers a stirring speech, as they were assembled at the center of the encampment, saying that he expected each and every soldier to do his full duty, and support the cause of Liberty with his life if need be. The speech made a great impression on Dick, Tom and Ben, and when they went to their quarters, they were enthusiastic about it.
“I'll tell you what, boys,” said Tom Dare, “it was wonderful, the way General Washington talked, wasn't it?”
“Yes, Tom,” agreed Dick, “and we'll come up to his expectations, too, or know the reason why.”
And in enthusiastic unison Tom and Ben exclaimed:
“Yes, yes! That we will, Dick!”