How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
The rebels kept coming in, row after filthy row, most with their heads down, some limping with a crutch or an arm in a sling. Their uniforms were torn and tattered. A few walked barefoot over the icy cobblestones, flinch when hit square with mud or a rock. They carried neither flag nor weapons. Their breath billowed like they were hard-ridden horses. It hung around their heads like smoke. (33.25)
Isabel's observations of the Patriot prisoners of war captured at Fort Washington gives us a haunting picture of the conditions of battle. Clearly, Curzon's unit has already suffered a great deal, and they're going to suffer more in jail. The zeal of the toppling of King George's statue is gone, as seen by the absence of weapons or a flag.
Quote #8
"When the battle finally started, the men fired their guns so fast the barrels grew hot. The cannon smoke was thick as fog. I saw the most horrid sights, Country, not fit for the eyes of any person." (35.56)
Curzon's emotional description of the horrors he witnessed in battle is a poignant portrayal of the merciless bloodshed of war. What makes his story particular disturbing, though, is how fighting has changed Curzon. He's no longer the feisty kid in a red hat we met at the beginning of the story; he's been hardened by the blood sacrifice of conflict.
Quote #9
The British promised each prisoner would receive two pounds of pork and hardtack biscuit every week. They did not announce that the pork was often spoiled, nor that the men had to eat it raw for there was no fire to cook it over. (36.13)
Just to recap: These guys are already living in a freezing cold jail in the dead of winter with few possessions or provisions. It seems like the British are trying to appease the American military leaders by giving food of some kind to the prisoners, though their dishonesty in the actual quality of the donations reveals the low value they place on the lives of their enemy.