THE WIFE OP BENEDICT AENOLD. 197 During the British occupation of Philadelphia, Major Andre* was one of those who were quartered in Dr. Frank- lin's house, from which the family had fled. Amateur theatricals were the reigning amusement of that winter, and it was Andre* who painted the drop curtain, and most of the scenery, some of which did duty in a Philadelphia theatre many years after the war. The drop curtain was in use until 1821. One of the plays in which he took part was " The Liar," which was revived a few years ago in the city of New York. Andre* amused the garrison also with various comic pieces of verse, in the style of Yankee Doodle, designed to cast ridicule upon the starv- ing and shivering patriot army at Valley Forge. With all his talents, he was one of the last men in the British army to be employed in any affair requiring nerve and duplicity. Brave and high-principled he was ; but he had not the toughness of fibre, the coolness of temperament, the fertility of resources, and the callous- ness of conscience requisite in a man who ventures into the lion's den with intent to deceive and entrap the lion. He was too talkative, too confiding, too sensitive, too quick in surrendering the game. He would have led a forlorn hope up into the breach of a beleagured city with the most splendid valor ; but he was not the man for the complicated, cool-blooded business of a spy. Peggy Shippen, as she was usually called, was one of the most beautiful young ladies in Philadelphia, and a member of one of its most distinguished and ancient families. Her father, Judge Edward Shippen, was a wealthy and hospitable gentleman of Quaker lineage, the owner of a fine mansion, the orchard and grounds of which were famed throughout the colonies. He was, like many of the old Quaker residents, a Tory in his feelings, and, prior to the arrival of the British, had been several times fined for his neglect of militia duty, to which, of
