If the New York Times had been around to report on the
American Revolution, its coverage might have looked something like
this…
* Dec. 16, 1773: Sons of Liberty to raid East India Company
ships
BOSTON — Members of the undergound organization called the Sons
of Liberty are plotting to raid three East India Company ships
tonight and dump the cargo — thousands of pounds worth of
Darjeeling tea — into Boston Harbor, the Times has learned.
Contacted at his headquarters, Gov. Thomas Hutchinson said, “We’ll
be ready and waiting for them. Thanks, New York Times!”
The plot called for members of the shadowy group to dress as
Mohawk Indians, board the ship, and dump the tea into the harbor.
The move is portrayed as a protest of the Stamp Act, but some
analysts say it might be nothing but a racist plot to turn the
public against Indians.
* April 18, 1775: Hancock, Adams hiding in Lexington
BOSTON — Patriot leaders Samuel Adams and John Hancock, sought
by British authorities for fomenting rebellion, are hiding in the
Lexington home of the Rev. Jonas Clark, a Patriot sympathizer. The
two are protected by a secretive web of spies and messengers,
including well-known silversmith Paul Revere and physician Joseph
Warren.
Warren, in charge of dispatching messengers, intends to send
riders Revere and William Dawes to Lexington should Gov. Thomas
Gage make any move to arrest Hancock and Adams or seize the arms
Patriots have hidden in their homes and plowed under their fields
in Lexington and neighboring Concord, according to sources. Some
families have stored munitions in barrels on their farms, and at
least one set of cannons is buried in a field to prevent the
authorities from finding them.
* July 1, 1776: Continental Congress prepares divisive,
religiously based “declaration”
PHILADELPHIA — The all white, all male and all landed members
of the 2nd Continental Congress have written a document declaring
that “all men are created equal,” though it is unclear whether the
phrase includes women, minorities and people who don’t own
property.
“There is no mention in this document of women, indentured
servants, slaves, renters, or people of color,” according to
College of New Jersey professor Cornell East. “Nor does it include
any reference to affordable health care. That is appalling when an
estimated 100 percent of colonials lack health insurance.”
In what is sure to be offensive to many, the document contains
religious references and claims that God is the source of citizens’
rights. It also asserts that the colonies are independent of Great
Britain.
* Oct. 18, 1777: Generals call for Washington to resign
SARATOGA, N.Y. — Confidence in Gen. George Washington is
collapsing at the most senior government levels and some top Army
brass as well as New Englanders in Congress want the Commander in
Chief of the Continental Army replaced with the more successful
Gen. Horatio Gates, government sources say.
Gen. Washington has yet to win a single major battle against
British forces. His defeats at Long Island and Kip’s Bay allowed
the British to capture New York City, and during his retreat Gen.
Washington was again defeated at White Plains. The British routed
Gen. Washington’s forces at Fort Washington, leading to the capture
of 2,800 American soldiers.
Gen. Washington won two minor battles at Trenton and Princeton,
N.J., but in October suffered more setbacks at Brandywine and
Germantown. In the wake of yesterday’s stunning defeat here of
British Gen. John Burgoyne by American Gen. Horatio Gates, some in
the Army and in Congress are calling for Washington to be replaced
by the more militarily successful Gates.
Gen. Washington has little formal military training and has
never won a decisive battle. He prefers to play a game of cat and
mouse with the British rather than engage them in a major pitched
battle like the one Gen. Gates won here yesterday. Allies of Gen.
Gates say the hero of Saratoga is the obvious choice to replace the
unsuccessful Washington as Commander in Chief of the Army, and many
in Congress agree.
* July 23, 1780: American spies uncover British attack plans
NEW YORK — A spy network run here by Major Benjamin Tallmadge
of the 2nd Connecticut Light Dragoons has uncovered British plans
to attack the French Navy at Newport, R.I., The New York Times has
learned. A spy known only by his or her codename “Lady” reported
the plans to Maj. Tallmadge, who passed them on to Gen. George
Washington, Commander in Chief of the Continental Army.
Gen. Washington plans to prevent the British attack by drawing
up false plans for an assault on New York City and seeing that the
“plans” fall into the hands of British Gen. Sir Henry Clinton
stationed in New York, according to sources inside Gen.
Washington’s camp.
Tallmadge’s spies are known as the Culper ring and are reputed
to be the most successful and important spies in America’s service.
They have infiltrated the British command in New York City and
repeatedly deliver useful information to American forces on the
outside.
* Sept. 7, 1781: French fleet blocks British Navy from
Chesapeake Bay
YORKTOWN — French Admiral Francois Joseph Paul de Grasse, fresh
from a victory over the Royal Navy, has blockaded the Chesapeake
Bay, cutting off any hope that the British Army here could be
supplied, reinforced or rescued by sea.
British Gen. Lord Charles Cornwallis is encamped here in hopes
that the Royal Navy will be able to use the port. With the French
Navy blockading the bay, Gen. George Washington and French Lt. Gen.
Comte de Rochambeau are marching their armies from Philadelphia to
Yorktown at this moment. Meanwhile, Lord Cornwallis is busy
reinforcing his defenses at Yorktown, cementing his own trap.
*****
Good thing the New York Times was founded in 1851, and not
1751.
