This week in Revolutionary War History, let’s discuss what was going on 250 years ago in and around the colonial Province of Massachusetts Bay. The best way to figure out what was going on was to read Washington’s papers and General Orders of the time period, as there was daily correspondence and orders put out to his officers and troops. Last week, Washington, still focused on reorganization, was interrupted by a detachment of British ships leaving Boston and heading south. He sent warnings to Connecticut and Rhode Island to prepare for assault.

            On July 30, 1775, Washington’s General Orders appoint William Tudor of Massachusetts as Judge Advocate of the Continental Army. In another charge for discipline, he commands regiment drummers and fifers to attend to their Major at usual hours. Weighing on his mind, however, is not appointments but rather, his raid ordered the night prior. Washington was woken up today to alarms. A detachment of scouts came under fire, though were able to retreat after freeing two prisoners from British fortifications. He did not record much of this day as he was busy planning for the action ahead and awaiting a potential counterattack.

            Major General Philip Schuyler (father of Schuyler sisters and Hamilton’s father in-law) reports to Washington from Fort Ticonderoga, which was captured in May. The ongoing push into Canada is ill-fated, with Schuyler saying, “I am extremely anxious to hear from your part of the world, reports prevail that a body of troops have left Boston and are gone to Canada. If so I fear we shall not be able to penetrate Into Canada.” So, that detachment mentioned last week wasn’t going south, but instead is going north the resupply and reenforce the Canadian front.

            Finally, the raid! Little Brewster Island, then just called “Lighthouse Island,” sits at the mouth of the harbor coming into Boston. Minor raids on the island had happened before, but on July 31, 300 men under Major Benjamin Tupper of Sharon, Massachusetts. The lighthouse was destroyed with two Yankees killed and 43 British killed or captured.

            Washington would write, “The great advantage the enemy has of transporting troops by being masters of the sea will enable them to harass us by diversions of this kind; & should we be tempted to pursue them upon every alarm, The Army must either be so weaken’d as to expose it to destruction or a great part of the coast be still left unprotected.” Little victories, including the destruction of an already damaged lighthouse into Boston Harbor, was a large victory against British logistics. Washington would personally thank Major Tupper and his men. Prisoners captured were to be marched to Worcester.

            As was an issue for the entire war, Washington and the army needed supplies. On August 1, Elbridge Gerry of the Massachusetts Committee of Supplies informed the Commander that of 200,000 small arms cartridges requested, only 36,000 are available. He also states there are only 36 barrels of powder “this side of Maryland.” Though he states they are expecting shipments from the West Indies. Interestingly, though much of the Caribbean islands were loyal to Britain, they had many economic ties to the American colonies. Of course, the French and Dutch islands were heavily relied on for arms and ammunition. The following day, August 2, General John Sullivan writes Washington from Winter Hill northwest of Boston, saying he is low on powder and “scarcely any balls” of ammo.

            On August 3, Washington discusses looting, a timeless tradition of war. Basically, whatever troops pillage from the enemy in wartime must be brought back to headquarters and auctioned off, saying, “an auction will be held in the front of the encampment for the sale thereof – and the money arising therefrom, is to be equally divided between the officers and men, that took it.”

            Talks are now exclusively on supplies. Not enough powder, not enough ammunition, and not enough clothes for the troops. In his General Orders on August 4, Washington reminds his troops “with indignation and shame,” to stop firing guns in the camp and wasting ammunition. The severity of this shortage is a major subject of stress, with him adding, “Any person offending in this particular, will be considered in no other light, than as a common enemy, and the guards will have orders to fire upon them as such.” A daring plan is in the works, as Washington writes to Nicholas Cooke in Providence detailing the potential of a heist: the powder magazine on Bermuda.

            At this point, the Tri-Town (then, just the Town of Rochester), is also within the range of Washington’s orders. Young men would be able to leave town and in about a day’s time, be able to join up at headquarters in Cambridge. The orders to preserve ammunition would also hold in Rochester, as would the collection and purchase of food by use of the army up north.

This Week in Revolutionary History…

By Sam Bishop

I recently came across a study showing that eating 1 or 2 eggs a week modestly reduced the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, postulated to be due to the high choline content of egg yolks. (Choline goes to form a protein that carries signals between nerves.)

            My immediate reaction was to think “yes, but won’t that increase your heart risk?” so I decided to dig further.

            Eggs are nutrient rich, a good source of protein, lutein (important for eye health), choline and other nutrients and low in calories. (Leafy greens are another good source of lutein.) Eggs are also rich in cholesterol. One average egg yolk contains 186 mg of cholesterol, and standard diet advice is to limit our cholesterol to 300 mg/day.

            Things are not so simple, however. While lowering blood cholesterol has been proven to reduce heart attack risk, blood cholesterol is much more sensitive to saturated fat in the diet than to dietary cholesterol. Most of our circulating cholesterol is manufactured in the liver, and if we eat more cholesterol, the liver makes less.

            Most of us, some 70%, have no change in blood cholesterol after eating eggs. The other 30% do show an increase in cholesterol, but both HDL (good) and LDL (bad) rise.

            Multiple epidemiologic studies have shown no increased heart attack risk associated with egg consumption, and a small trial using controlled diets found that increasing saturated fat in the diet raised LDL (bad) cholesterol, but eating two eggs a day did not.

            So, if there is any heart risk from eating eggs, it seems to be the bacon, sausage and butter, all rich in saturated fats, that often accompany the eggs, that are the culprit.

            Replacing a high carbohydrate cereal or a muffin with a couple of poached eggs will generally improve your heart health.

            If you have heart disease or diabetes, get your doctor’s opinion. Otherwise, enjoy your eggs – just lay off the bacon!

            Edward Hoffer MD is Associate Professor of Medicine, part-time, at Harvard.

What Does The Doctor Say?

By Dr. Edward Hoffer