Page:History of the United States of America, Spencer, v1.djvu/325

 end. Let us weigh and consider before we advance to those measures which must bring on the most trying and terrible struggle this country ever saw." Roused by such an appeal, the question was put to the assembled multitude—"Will you abide by your former resolutions with respect to not suffering the tea to be landed?" A unanimous shout was, the reply, and the excitement attained its utmost pitch. It was growing dark, and there was a cry for candles, when a man disguised as a Mohawk Indian raised the war-whoop in the gallery, which was responded to in the street without. Another voice suddenly shouted, "Boston harbor a tea-pot to-night! Hurra for Griffin's wharf!" The meeting instantly adjourned, and the people hurried down to the harbor to see the result. It was now six o'clock, but a fine still evening. Some fifty men, in the guise of Mohawks, boarded the tea vessels, and while the dense crowd silently watched the proceeding, they drew up from the holds of the vessels three hundred and forty-two chests of tea, deliberately broke them open, and emptied their contents into the water. This occupied between two and three hours. No damage was done to anything else, and when the tea had been destroyed, the crowd dispersed, without further noise or trouble, to their homes. Singularly enough, the naval and military force was entirely apathetic, and did not at all interfere to prevent the destruction of the tea; probably they were not very sorry at being relieved from the necessity of attempting to force the obnoxious article on shore. Admiral Montague, it is related, was, on the evening of the 16th, at the house of a friend, and as the party marched from the wharf, he raised the window, and said, "Well, boys, you've had a fine night for your Indian caper, hav'n't you? But mind, you've got to pay the fiddler yet." "O, never mind," shouted Pitt, one of the leaders, "never mind, squire! just come out here, if you please, and we'll settle the bill in two minutes!" The admiral wisely shut down the window, while the crowd went on its way, without further demonstration of popular feeling.

In New York, November 25th, the consignees of the expected tea, declined to act in the capacity, having been