In the hearts of the original natives, the British army was an invincible force. Just like the trust citizens of any powerful nation have in their own country's army, no American had ever doubted this.
However, during the Seven Years' war between Britain and France (contending for Canada), Americans eagerly participated in the fight against the French, and many American militiamen personally witnessed thousands of British troops being defeated by a few hundred natives. As for defeats against the French army, those were even more countless.
At that time, the conflict between Americans and the British was not yet severe; even if defeated, they inwardly resented the natives for being cunning and despicable.
But today, after the war with the British army began, their stance became very different; they desperately wanted to distance themselves from Britain and tried every means to belittle Britain and the British army. No matter how much fear they felt inside, they refused to show it on their faces.
This was also clearly reflected in Paine's book, common sense. He listed a large number of realities about the British army's strength, and then, using lighthearted and humorous language, he denied each of these powerful existences one by one. It seemed like a very reasonable denial, but in reality, it was entirely an idealistic assertion.
And after the Continental army achieved a series of victories recently, more people chose to accept Paine's view, believing that the British army could be completely defeated. Many people had even established another monument in their hearts, believing that the Continental army was invincible.
These statements could not be refuted; any refutation would require saying things that would hurt the feelings of these revolutionaries, insult the self-esteem of these Americans, and undermine the confidence of these Americans.
Many people, like Adams, realized the error in the words of that elderly representative. Unfortunately, an old politician like him also dared not come forward to refute; refuting would inevitably hurt the other party's feelings and even undermine the Americans' confidence in defeating the British army. So, even though he knew it was wrong, he dared not speak.
After seeing the reactions of those around him, Charles knew that no one else would object, so he had to stand up and speak, saying as tactfully as possible:
"Gentlemen, the British army has naval superiority. If we hold New York City, we will be at a great disadvantage. Councilor Adams' suggestion to hinder their landing as much as possible is very good. We should not immediately decide to defend a specific city, but rather prioritize hindering the British army's landing and randomly choose sniping locations."
At this time, the navy was mainly a sea combat force, and its attacks on land were primarily artillery bombardment. The requirements for landing anywhere, anytime were not yet high. However, Charles certainly understood that the navy's advantage over land was its ability to choose the timing and location for land attacks first.
The worst strategy for dealing with a naval landing was to stay put in one place. That representative's suggestion would absolutely allow the Continental army to be attacked by the British army from the rear or flank at any time.
"Councilor Charles, I think you are intimidated by the powerful fleets in mainland Britain. In fact, we don't need to worry too much about those naval ships," that representative replied with a smile to Charles' suggestion, as if comforting a timid companion.
"Oh! Esteemed Councilor, then do you know the specific strength of the British Navy? Do you know how many large warships they have? Do you know how much money the British spent to build such a fleet?" Charles was very angry internally.
What a bunch of military illiterates! The British Navy should be at its strongest right now. Sending just a few cruisers would be enough to sink all of America's navy to the bottom of the sea, yet they dare say there's no need to worry. If you fail, then fail, but now I am one of you, and a real failure will drag me down.
"Sir! You think the British Navy is very powerful, but it is actually very hollow." That representative was not bothered by Charles' objection. Pointing to a plump middle-aged man who clearly looked like a scholar, he said to Charles: "We have many experts here who are very knowledgeable about the strength of the British Navy. If you don't believe me, ask Harrison."
Charles looked at the middle-aged man in confusion. This fellow, who didn't look like a soldier at all, could he be a special military scholar?
Perhaps it was due to Charles' skeptical gaze, but the representative named Harrison said to Charles with a slightly subdued tone:
"Councilor Charles, I am an accountant, and I have calculated the strength of the British Navy very clearly, down to every warship they possess. If you don't believe me, I can present it to you."
The accountant nodded slightly, a hint of pride in his expression, his eyes scanning those around him, and he skillfully began to recite figures:
"The cost of building a ship of each class, including the equipment cost for masts, spars, sails, and rigging, as well as eight months' provisions for sailors and shipwrights stored proportionally, according to Mr. Boucher, the British Navy Minister, is calculated as follows: a ship with one hundred guns is 35,553 pounds, a ship with ninety guns is 29,886 pounds, a ship with eighty guns is 23,638 pounds, a ship with seventy guns is 17,785 pounds, a ship with sixty guns is 14,197 pounds, a ship with fifty guns is 10,606 pounds, a ship with forty guns is 7,558 pounds, a ship with thirty guns is 5,846 pounds, and a ship with twenty guns is 3,710 pounds.
Thus, we can easily total the value or cost of the entire British Navy, because in its heyday in 1757, it possessed six hundred-gun battleships, twelve ninety-gun battleships, twelve eighty-gun battleships, forty-three seventy-gun battleships, thirty-five sixty-gun battleships, forty fifty-gun battleships, forty-five forty-gun battleships, fifty-eight twenty-gun battleships, and also eighty-five other sloops, bomb vessels, and fire ships.
All combined, adding the remaining balance for artillery, it only amounted to 3.5 million pounds. These numbers have constantly fluctuated over the years, generally maintaining the original quantity. However, Britain has a fatal flaw: it does not have enough shipbuilding materials itself."
"That's right!" the elderly Continental Congress Representative interjected, "No country in the world is as suitably positioned as America, and no country can build a fleet from within like America can. Tar, timber, iron, and rope are its natural products, and many of Britain's warships use American materials.
We don't need to buy anything from abroad. The Dutch rent their warships to the Spanish and Portuguese, thereby earning huge profits, but most of their raw materials have to be imported from abroad. Since building a fleet has superior natural conditions in America, we should view this matter as a business.
This is the most profitable investment we can make. A completed naval fleet is worth more than its cost; and a significant aspect of national policy lies in unifying commerce and defense. Let us build; if we don't need them, we can sell them, thereby replacing our paper money with cash and silver."
"Excellent! Excellent! We should build a large number of naval ships. We can earn a lot of money by renting them to other countries then."
"We can build a navy without paying military expenses."
Several other councilors actually came out to respond.
Charles almost fainted. These politicians were truly eloquent. They were originally only discussing how to resist the British Navy's landing attacks, and then, as they spoke, they somehow managed to get onto naval construction. Knowing that he couldn't make sense to these military illiterates, Charles simply sat down quietly in a chair and stopped speaking.
Although his influence had significantly increased after the Pittsburgh land sale incident, he was still only valued within Pennsylvania; other Continental Congress Representatives still treated him no differently than before. After Charles angrily refused to speak further, no one considered his opinion anymore.
However, the question of the extent of resistance in New York still caused serious debate, as many people also disagreed with the elderly representative's opinion.
The British army would certainly attack prosperous New York, and the Continental army must send troops to defend New York—this was the unanimous opinion of all Continental Congress Representatives. However, there was great controversy over the extent of the defense.
Most representatives believed that New York was the face of America, and also one of the largest and most prosperous cities, so it must be defended to the death by any means necessary. A minority believed that Washington should be given full authority to defend if possible, and retreat if not, allowing him to handle it at his discretion.
Charles knew a little about military matters and understood that the British army had naval superiority and could land in New York anytime, anywhere. Furthermore, the British army also had a concentrated advantage in troop strength, so New York absolutely could not be held.
Therefore, he internally advocated for not making a large-scale resistance in New York, only needing to set up artillery sniping positions in a few strategic locations in the rear. If they could hinder their landing, they should; if not, they should just slightly deplete the British army's combat strength, without strict requirements.
However, Charles' influence was simply too small, and the military experts in the eyes of the Continental Congress Representatives were completely different from Charles' serious military experts. They believed that only someone who could accurately calculate the enemy's strength anytime, anywhere, like a businessman, was a true expert.
In the eyes of those representatives, although Charles had studied for a few years at the French Artillery Academy, he could at most be considered an artillery commander, far from being a military expert.
The military foolishness of the Continental Congress was inherited by the U.S. Congress all the way to the 21st century, and Charles understood this very well.
The final decision of the meeting was to have Washington send troops to defend New York to the death.
Charles successfully extricated himself from the Continental Congress and prepared to depart for Boston to convey the Continental Congress' rewards and instructions to the Continental army.
Before leaving, Charles very smoothly resold the 100,000 acres of land he had temporarily bought to several influential figures in the Continental Congress at a low price of 100,000 pounds. Although he sold it below market price, he made many friends.
Furthermore, Charles had originally speculatively bought the land with a loan, planning to sell it at a high price once land prices rose. This time, he only earned a little less, but even so, within a few days, after repaying the bank loan, he netted 50,000 pounds, which was enough to satisfy him.
Biddle, who had just sent the technical workers back to Pittsburgh, returned to Charles with those wealthy individuals. In addition to delivering orders, he also brought back a portion of the herbal medicine commonly used by natives, as specified by Charles.
Charles simply had him take a portion of the money back to Pittsburgh and bring a few more militiamen to Philadelphia to protect himself.