Blood of Tyrants. Logan Beirne

and “their violations of all the humaner principles of war.”¹ One British officer decried how his compatriots in captivity were “experiencing every severity, perhaps famishing for want of food, and ready to perish with cold,” adding that these prisoners had “little to expect from the humanity of Americans.”² Reports circulated that bands of Americans were “stabbing and knocking out the brains of innocent [men].”³ Other witnesses lamented the “List of Barbarities which have been committed by Washington & his Savages.”⁴

      When General Howe pressed the issue, Washington responded delicately. He admitted, “’tis true, there are some who have been restricted to a closer confinement and severer treatment.”⁵ He did not elaborate on those severities, but confirmed that at least some of the British intelligence was accurate.