“Yes. I saw him fall,” Capt. Febiger replied. “The British assaulted our positions on the southeast side of Breed’s Hill, twice in the space of two hours. But when they came at us the third time, we had no powder or shot remaining. Dr. Warren’s bravery that afternoon—and that of my men—is something I will never forget. The Redcoats not only had ammunition, they had bayonets. We had neither.”

“What did you do?”

“I led my thirty-five survivors back to our original position on the southeast side of Bunker’s Hill. But by the time we got there, Colonel Gerrish had run . . . I’m sorry, he retreated.

“Before nightfall I led what was left of my little company to positions with the remnants of General Putnam’s Connecticut militia and Colonel Prescott’s Massachusetts men to keep the British from crossing Charlestown Neck and reaching any further onto the mainland.

“By dark we were re-supplied with powder, shot, and water. On Breed’s Hill, I lost six killed in action, eight wounded, and one taken prisoner who died of wounds. My little company had no further contact with the enemy. But no one deserted.”

“How did you end up as Adjutant for Colonel Arnold?”

“He knew I volunteered for his Ticonderoga expedition back in May. He heard stories from others about what happened at Breed’s and Bunker’s Hill and sought me out.”

This afternoon, as I made my way to our new “Advance Party Bivouac Area,” I brought with me three things for Capt. Morgan.

First, the background on Colonel Arnold’s Adjutant, Captain Hans Christian Febiger; and his humble description of his own, experience, and courage.

Second, Capt. Febiger’s and my conclusion—the Montresor/Goodwin map we faithfully copied—was hopelessly inaccurate. The scale, routing, and obstacles depicted simply could not match the estimated “200-mile River & Overland” route forecast in Goodwin’s notes. We estimated it might even be twice that distance.

Third, as directed, I brought with me the two best tracings of the original map, “Certified by Capt. H. C. Febiger as, ‘A True Copy of The Original, however inaccurate map, as Prepared by The Virginia Rifle Company Chief Cartographer, Ensign Nathanael Newman.’”

Colonel Arnold’s Headquarters,
Cambridge, Massachusetts

Sunday, September 10th, 1775

At 8:00 this morning, Rev. Spring, the Expedition Chaplain, held a prayer service in the center of the encampment. To my surprise, more than half the members of the Expeditionary Force attended. It lasted a little over a half hour and he focused on the courage of Paul in Acts of the Apostles, chapters 22 and 23 of the New Testament—ending with two words from Acts 23:11— “Take Courage!”

To which the crowd responded with a loud, “Amen!” And then, “Huzzah!”