Page:Familiar Letters of John Adams and his Wife, Abigail Adams, During the Revolution.djvu/182

 142 FAMILIAR LETTERS. [March,

week come on shore at Great Hill, both upon this and Weymouth side, lids of desks, mahogany chairs, tables, etc. Our people, I hear, will have liberty to enter Boston, those who have had the small-pox.

The enemy have not yet come under sail. I cannot help suspecting some design, which we do not yet comprehend. To what quarter of the world they are bound is wholly unknown ; but 't is generally thought to New York. Many people are elated with their quitting Boston. I confess I do not feel so. 'T is only lifting the burden from one shoulder to the other, which is perhaps less able or less willing to support it. To what a contemptible situation are the troops of Britain reduced ! I feel glad, however, that Boston is not destroyed. I hope it will be so secured and guarded as to baffle all future attempts against it. I hear that General Howe said, upon going on some eminence in town to view our troops, who had taken Dorchester Hill, unperceived by them till sunrise, “My God ! these fellows have done more work in one night than I could make my army do in three months.” And he might well say so ; for in one night two forts and long breastworks were sprung up, besides several barracks. Three hundred and seventy teams were employed, most of which went three loads in the night, besides four thousand men, who worked with good hearts.

From Penn's Hill we have a view of the largest fleet ever seen in America. You may count upwards of a hundred and seventy sail. They look like a forest. It was very lucky for us that we got possession of Nook's Hill. They had placed their cannon so as to fire upon the top of the hill, where they had observed our people marking out the ground ; but it was only to elude them ; for they began lower upon the hill and nearer the town. It was a very dark, foggy evening, and they had possession of the hill six hours before a gun was fired ; and when they did fire, they overshot our people, so that they were covered before morning, and not one man lost, which the enemy no sooner discovered, than Bunker Hill was abandoned, and every man decamped as soon as he could. They found