The Hudson had long been the chief object of Washington's anxiety
and now it looked as if the British intended some new movement up
the river, as indeed they did. Clinton had not expected Rodney's
squadron, but it arrived opportunely and, when it sailed up to
New York from Sandy Hook, on the 16th of September, he began at
once to embark his army, taking pains at the same time to send
out reports that he was going to the Chesapeake. Washington
concluded that the opposite was true and that he was likely to be
going northward. At West Point, where the Hudson flows through a
mountainous gap, Washington had strong defenses on both shores of
the river. His batteries commanded its whole width, but shore
batteries were ineffective against moving ships. The embarking of
Clinton's army meant that he planned operations on land. He might
be going to Rhode Island or to Boston but he might also dash up
the Hudson. It was an anxious leader who, with La Fayette and
Alexander Hamilton, rode away from headquarters to Hartford.
The officer in command at West Point was Benedict Arnold. No
general on the American side had a more brilliant record or could
show more scars of battle. We have seen him leading an army
through the wilderness to Quebec, and incurring hardships almost
incredible.
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