John Anderson and Colonel Beverly Robinson were the agents on the part of the British, and with them Arnold opened "a regular channel of communication." The correspondence becoming protracted, a personal interview was demanded by Arnold to bring the matter to a final settlement, at which he was to furnish plans of West Point, and returns of its armament and garrison. With this object in view, John Anderson left New York on horseback, and proceeded up the river with the intention of holding the proposed interview on board the British sloop-of-war "Vulture," anchored off Teller's, now called Croton Point. Difficulties having been thrown in the way of this arrangement, Anderson was induced to leave the vessel and go ashore at midnight, in a boat sent by Arnold, and meet the latter on the west bank of the Hudson, a little below the village of Haverstraw. He had been directed by Sir Henry Clinton not to enter the American lines, and not to assume any disguise, but under a pressure of circumstances, he did both, and thus became exposed to the character of a spy, violating the laws of war. The meeting between Anderson and Arnold, while discussing their infamous plans, was prolonged until the dawn of day, when the state of the tide and the risk of being discovered by the American pickets, so alarmed the boatmen, that neither the threats nor entreaties of the two principals could induce them to return to the "Vulture." In the hope of making a successful return to the vessel on the next night, both parties sought refuge in the house of a noted Tory, living in Haverstraw, named Joshua Hett Smith. They had scarcely found themselves safe within the house, when an event occurred which seriously threatened the whole object of the interview. The proximity of the "Vulture" to the American lines was such, that a fire was opened upon her by a battery on shore, and she was compelled to drop down the river, thus preventing Anderson from returning to New York by that opportunity. In the afternoon Arnold returned in his barge to his headquarters, while Anderson, filled with thoughts of the great advantage the arrangement must confer upon his King and country, and with the glory and promotion awaiting himself, could not avoid reflecting upon the great personal danger to which he was exposed, surrounded by enemies, and having concealed about his person the proofs of his character as a spy. He had been furnished by Arnold with two passports, one to return by water in case that method again became practicable, and the other by a land route on the east side of the river, authorized him "to go to the lines at White Plains, or lower if he thought proper, being on public business." Choosing the latter mode, in the evening Anderson, accompanied by Smith, crossed the Hudson at Stony Point, and commenced his hazardous journey.