Meanwhile, the war had made itself manifest in New York:  at first distantly, as by the passage of a few rebel companies from Pennsylvania and Virginia through the town on their way to Cambridge; by continued enlistments for the rebel cause; by the presence of a small rebel force of occupation; and by quiet enrolments of us loyalists for service when our time should come.  But in the beginning of the warm weather of 1776, the war became apparent in its own shape.  The king’s troops under Sir William Howe had at last evacuated Boston and sailed to Halifax, taking with them a host of loyalists, whose flight was held up to us New York Tories as prophetic of our own fate.  Washington now supposed, rightly, that General Howe intended presently to occupy New York; and so down upon our town, and the island on which it was, and upon Long Island, came the rebel main army from Cambridge; and brought some very bad manners with it, for all that there never was a finer gentleman in the world than was at its head, and that I am bound to own some of his officers and men to have been worthy of him in good breeding.  Here the army was reinforced by regiments from the middle and Southern provinces; and for awhile we loyalists kept close mouths.  Margaret, indeed, for the time, ceased altogether to be a loyalist, in consequence of the gallantry of certain officers in blue and buff, and several Virginia dragoons in blue and red, with whom she was brought into acquaintance through her father’s attachment to the rebel interest.  She expanded and grew brilliant in the sunshine of admiration (she had even a smile and compliment from Washington himself, at a ball in honour of the rebel declaration of independence) in which she lived during the time when New York abounded with rebel troops.

But that was a short time; for the British disembarked upon Long Island, met Washington’s army there and defeated it, so that it had to slip back to New York in boats by night; then landed above the town, almost in time to cut it off as it fled Northward; fought part of it on the heights of Harlem; kept upon its heels in Westchester County; encountered it again near White Plains; and came back triumphant to winter in and about New York.  And now we loyalists and the rebel sympathisers exchanged tunes; and Margaret was as much for the king again as ever—­she never cared two pins for either cause, I fancy, save as it might, for the time being, serve her desire to shine.

She was radiant and joyous, and made no attempt to disguise her feelings, when it was a settled fact that the British army should occupy New York indefinitely.

“’Tis glorious!” said she, dancing up and down the parlour before Tom and me.  “This will be some relief from dulness, some consolation!  The town will be full of gallant generals and colonels, handsome majors, dashing captains; there are lords and baronets among ’em; they’ll be quartered in all the good houses; there will be fine uniforms, regimental bands, and balls and banquets!  Why, I can quite endure this!  War has its compensations.  We’ll have a merry winter of it, young gentlemen!  Sure ’twill be like a glimpse of London.”