nd but poorly armed, had, as it were, sent
the king's trained men home like whipped curs.

If the battle of Lexington was a victory for the lobster backs, then of
a verity when the king's men had won a dozen of a similar kind, we of
the colony were come off conquerors.

Archie's father was at home during the battle, but on the evening of
that day he was summoned to Cambridge, where, so it was stated, our
people were gathering in great numbers. His last command to my comrade,
and also advice to others of the company who called themselves Minute
Boys, was that he and we remain under cover as much as possible during
the next three or four days, for it was reasonable to suppose the
Britishers would be more severe in their rule than they had been; that
only the slightest provocation would be needed to lodge in jail those
who favored the Cause.

It was not in my mind that we lads would be allowed to go to Cambridge
where an army was gathering under the command of the Committee of
Safety, until we had in some way proven ourselves, and therefore, much
to my disappointment, I had made up my mind that by not having been in
Lexington at the time of the battle we had lost all opportunity for
taking part in active work.

Luckily, however, I had sufficient sense to give warning that all those
who had been enrolled as Minute Boys should stay near to their own homes
until it might be possible to know what our people intended to do, and
at the same time hold themselves in readiness for any summons which
might come.

It was on the second night after the Lexington butchery that Archie came
to my home, having the permission of his mother to sleep with me. We had
been earnestly trying to hit upon some way of showing what could be done
by lads such as us, and this visit of his to my home was planned that we
might have more time in which to discuss matters.

From noon until perhaps three hours after we had gone to bed, we lads
talked, suggesting one scheme after another only to discard each as
being impossible of execution, when there came a summons at the outer
door which brought both of us to our feet trembling with apprehension,
although we could not have said why.

Visitors did not often come at such a time, and there were so few among
our neighbors friendly to the Cause, who yet remained in Boston town,
that it did not seem probable any of them would be abroad so late while
the Tories were given over to rejoicing because of what