“Our people knew not the hardships & calamities of war when they so boldly dared Britain to arms,” Robert Morris added in his letter to the Paris commissioners. “Dejection of spirits is an epidemical disease, and unless some fortunate event or other gives a turn to the disorder, in time it may prevail.” It was rumored, for instance, that unless Charles Lee landed a decisive stroke against Howe’s rear, Congress would authorize Washington to accept the best surrender terms he could get from the British.
