Sunday, June 2, 2013

Day 127, June 2

Another man figures prominently in the ride to warn Americans of the British invasion.  The day after Revere's aborted ride, 23 year old Israel Bisell was tasked with warning the citizens that the English soldiers had landed at Cambridge and were marching toward Lexington. 

Bisell rode so hard on his first day that his horse dropped dead beneath him.  He took another horse and raced across Massachusetts, into Connecticut, and on into New York.  He rode for four days without rest, covering more than 300 miles before arriving in Philadelphia.

Why did Longfellow immortalize Revere in his epic poem rather than Bisell or Dawes?  It is speculated by some that the poet couldn't think anything to rhyme with Bisell or Dawes!

No comments:

Post a Comment