Johnny Tremain

One night in late August, the Lytes’ carriage returns to Boston pursued by a mob. The mob retreats at the sight of the British guards at the city gates. Mr. Lyte is seriously ill, and Lavinia tends to him with Isannah in tow. Mrs. Bessie warned the Lytes of the attack, allowing them to escape, but the family’s silver was left behind in their haste. Cilla blames herself for this omission, and she and Johnny return to Milton to retrieve the silver. The mob smashed the gates and windows, but the contents of the house are just as the Lyte household left them. Johnny discovers some private documents that will be of interest to Sam Adams.

He also finds a genealogy of the Lyte family that reveals his father was named Dr. Charles Latour and that Johnny himself is Mr. Lyte’s grandnephew. Cilla urges Johnny to take back the silver cup the merchant stole from him, but he no longer wants anything to do with the Lyte family. Cilla tidies the house in the hope that the Lytes will return, but Johnny embraces her, says the Lytes won’t come back, and predicts a war that will change everything. The mansion feels like a haunted house to the two teenagers, and they quickly take their leave of the place. On the drive back to Boston, they pass a company of Minute Men, and Johnny fears for the brave but ill-equipped farmers when he thinks of the British forces massed in the city.

Rab is caught attempting to buy a British private’s musket. Due to his youth, the officers release him without punishment, but they tar and feather the man who organized the sale and threaten to do the same to publishers of newspapers like the Boston Observer that support the rebellion. Rab already sees the British officers as targets in the inevitable war, but Johnny thinks of individuals like Lieutenant Stranger and Sergeant Gale and is frightened by his friend’s outlook.

With the Lytes back in Boston, Johnny’s Thursday visits with Cilla resume. She tells him that Madge ran away with Sergeant Gale and that her mother married Mr. Tweedie. Cilla and Johnny’s conversation turns to Rab, and Johnny is astonished to learn that Rab frequently strolls with her and buys her sweets. She assures the disconcerted Johnny that she could never be Cilla Silsbee and adds that “Priscilla Tremain is a fine name” (201). Johnny, suddenly realizing how mature and pretty Cilla has become, echoes the sentiment.

That fall, Sam Adams calls the Boston Observers together one last time because it is becoming too dangerous for large groups to gather in the city. Sam Adams and Paul Revere plan a spy system to help relay information on the British army’s movements. The Observers also discuss the upcoming Continental Congress in Philadelphia, which Sam and John Adams will attend. Sam Adams says that the time to speak of peace is over and that he “will work for war” so that “such a country as was never seen on this earth before” may rise from the destruction (207). James Otis, the Observers’ eccentric founder, arrives late to the meeting and gives a powerful speech, declaring that the Americans’ victory in the coming war will mean an end to tyranny all over the world. He calls upon his listeners to sacrifice their property, professions, and even their lives for the sake of this great cause. The orator’s words inspire Johnny, but it worries him that Otis looked directly at Rab when he spoke of laying down one’s life for liberty.

Paul Revere organizes a network of spies who keep a close watch on the British army. Lydia, a Black woman who works at the tavern where the Colonel and his regiment are staying, gives Johnny the discarded drafts of letters penned by Lieutenant Stranger. The letters reveal that the British will strike Portsmouth on December 15, mere days away. Paul Revere rides to Portsmouth, and the rebels seize Fort William and Mary before the British can.

Revere orders Johnny to stay close to Dove in the hope that his position as Colonel Smith’s horse boy will yield valuable information. During one of Dove’s frequent visits to the printing office, Rab and Johnny loosen his tongue with alcohol. Dove tells them that the British plan to strike Worcester and Concord before tearfully professing that the two are his best friends and that he doesn’t want them to hang even if they are rebels. Dove is too intoxicated to see to his duty at the stable, so Johnny completes his chores. Lieutenant Stranger sees Johnny and makes good on his promise to teach him equestrian tricks. Johnny admires Stranger greatly due to his horsemanship and his resemblance to Rab. However, it bothers him that his new friend treats him like an inferior when they’re not riding together and that, in Stranger’s eyes, “it was only where horses were concerned they were equals” (224).

Johnny often passes through the British encampment, but one Thursday in March, an officer seizes the copies of the Boston Observer he carries and orders him whipped for spreading sedition. With the help of a private named Pumpkin, Johnny escapes on Goblin before this punishment can be meted out. The spooked horse spirits Johnny off to the Lytes’ house, where Pumpkin has another job in the stables. Pumpkin explains to Johnny that many people in the British army sympathize with the Whigs and risk death by trying to desert as a result. He confides in him even further by expressing his desire to escape the army and have his own farm, a dream that is out of reach for the poor in England. Rab and Cilla help Johnny smuggle a disguise to Pumpkin, and the former private leaves his musket behind for Rab. Weeks later, Johnny witnesses Pumpkin’s execution by firing squad for deserting the army. The experience strikes the fear of death into Johnny, and he wonders if he is a coward.