1. Source Question
This is an edited extract from an account by George Hewes of the Boston Tea Party. He was a member of the band of "Indians" that boarded the tea ships that evening.
"It was now evening, and I immediately dressed myself in the costume of an Indian, equipped with a small hatchet, I went to Griffin's quay, where the ships lay that contained the tea.
When we arrived at the quay, there were three of our number who assumed an authority to direct our operations. They divided us into three parties, for the purpose of boarding the three ships which contained the tea at the same time. The commander of the division to which I belonged …ordered me to go to the captain and demand of him the keys to the hatches and a dozen candles.
I made the demand accordingly, and the captain promptly replied, and delivered the articles. We then were ordered by our commander to open the hatches and take out all the chests of tea and throw them overboard, and we immediately proceeded to execute his orders, first cutting and splitting the chests with our hatchets, so as thoroughly to expose them to the effects of the water.
In about three hours from the time we went on board, we had thus broken and thrown overboard every tea chest to be found in the ship
Source: www.historywiz.com
http://www.historywiz.com/primarysources/george-hewes.htm
(a) Where were the ships located?
(b) Give two pieces of evidence from the account to show that the men were well organized?
(c) What did the author demand from the captain?
(d) Explain what happened to the tea on board the ships?
(e) Do you think the author was a patriot? Explain your answer.
2. Write a paragraph on two of the following:
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