“I reckon you may come aboard now, lads, for those curs who would serve the king but don’t dare to put on red coats, are headin’ for Bowling Green. We’ve shut their eyes for a few hours; but can count it as certain that they’ll make it their business to know if we come back within a reasonable length of time.” “Which is the same as sayin’ that it will soon be known to the king’s friends in New York that we have gone out spyin’,” Abe added grimly, and without any show of fear. “Wa’al, that’s not so certain. You’ve been through the Narrows before to-day in this sloop, an’ why shouldn’t you go agin? The Tories may have suspicions, but can’t set anythin’ down against us as a fact, though I’m willin’ to admit that they have a fair chance to make no end of trouble.” We had dug near to a barrel of clams while waiting to throw Luther Stedman off the track, and surely it was not time wasted if we would play the part of fishermen, for to go through the Narrows without a goodly supply of bait would have been folly. It was well that we had been forced to lay by in such manner, and the young Tories had really done us a favor, as we soon came to know, after getting into Gravesend bay shortly before sunset, for there before us, stretching away as far as the eye could reach, was the British fleet. I thought I had seen a brave showing of vessels before, but now it was as if all the ships in the world lay at anchor ’twixt us and Sandy Hook. “It looks as if the friends of the king counted on takin’ New York in a hurry!” Abe cried after gazing at the wondrous scene a few moments in silence. “There must be men enough aboard that fleet to over-run all the colonies, crushin’ us out of existence by very press of numbers.” “Ay, lad, an’ it begins to look as if Luther Stedman an’ his friends would have a chance to crow over us mighty soon,” Abel Grant said in a mournful tone. “There were few except Tories on Long Island yesterday, and now, after seein’ this gatherin’, I’m allowin’ you can’t find above twenty men there who’ll admit they ever believed the Americans had a right to the land.” To me, it was as if New York was already taken, for I had no question but that it could be only a matter of a few hours before our people would be captured or driven out, and I asked nervously: “Why don’t you put about, Abel Grant? We should be able to run up with this wind, before daylight to-morrow.” “Why would you have us turn tail before beginnin’ the work cut out for our doin’?” the “admiral” asked as if in surprise. “We must tell General Putnam of what we have seen. We were to put back, or send some one of the company whenever we had learned aught of importance, an’ of a verity a sight like that is of big moment to him.” “Did you think for a little minute that he didn’t know the fleet was there?” Abel asked with a grin. “How does it happen that he sent us down to spy out the strength, if he hadn’t a fairly good idee of what was hereabout?”