Johnny Tremain: Chapter 12 Summary & Analysis

1. Johnny hurries along back roads to get to the ferry slip, where wounded British soldiers are coming over from Charlestown. Only doctors and soldiers are allowed by the wharf, so Johnny is thankful for Pumpkin’s uniform—until he realizes that Pumpkin’s regiment has been out getting shot at for the last 12 hours, and Pumpkin’s uniform is far too clean. Johnny feels better after rolling in mud and mussing up the uniform a bit. Johnny speaks briefly with an officer on the wharf as townsfolk, hidden in the shadows to watch, begin whistling “Yankee Doodle.”

Creeping further out, Johnny watches soldiers unload boats filled with wounded privates. The men doing the unloading treat the injured men like firewood rather than people; one officer even hits a screaming man. Johnny thinks of James Otis. This is why they’re fighting: so all men, even lowly privates, receive fair treatment. The third boat bears a gray-faced Colonel Smith and Lieutenant Stranger, who’s seriously injured. Johnny fights his desire to help his sort-of friend. Major Pitcairn is the last to return. Johnny learns that Earl Percy and his brigade are still in Charlestown to resume fighting in the morning, so he realizes that now is his chance to cross. He asks two sailors to take him over, insisting he has a message for Percy. The soldiers argue, but an officer tells them to obey.

In Charlestown, Johnny sheds his uniform, washes his face, and begins wandering. Everyone is terrified to go to sleep, especially since British soldiers are sleeping in every tavern. At one tavern owned by a prominent Son of Liberty, Johnny learns what happened after Lexington. Colonel Smith marched to Concord, destroyed stores, and then there was a small battle at North Bridge. Minute Men began arriving in droves, though, and Percy’s reinforcements didn’t show up until the Minute Men had picked off many British soldiers. The British withdrew to Charlestown. Dr. Warren, the man explains, has been fighting and dressing wounds. And though seven or eight men died at Lexington, nobody knows their names.

2. Johnny waits until the soldiers have moved out of Charlestown the next morning and then begins walking. He marvels that he almost believed the British were invincible—but the Yankees beat them. As he walks, he notices signs of the retreat. He passes men trying to pull Colonel Smith’s Sandy out of a pit, and then he passes a burial party. When he comes to a tavern, he buys some food and someone tells him to try to find Dr. Warren in Cambridge. In Cambridge, Johnny finds hundreds of Minute Men, poorly outfitted and not sure what to do now. A colonel with handmade epaulets sewn to his shirt shares that Dr. Warren is at a house in town, but when Johnny gets there, Paul Revere says Dr. Warren is in Lexington.

Walking back toward Lexington, Johnny passes six grenadiers who have surrendered to an old woman out picking dandelions. He passes burial parties and houses with bullet holes. Finally, Johnny sees a young woman drawing water from a well. He asks her for a drink and from her, he learns that he’s reached Lexington—and she shares the names of the eight dead at Lexington. Rab isn’t one of the names, so Johnny smiles. She says the Silsbee women hid, but all the men fought. Grandsire Silsbee sat at home.

3. Finally, Johnny approaches Lexington Green, where the eight young men died. Recognizing Dr. Warren’s horse and chaise, Johnny approaches the doctor. He hands over the lists he made last night and then asks about Rab. Rab, Dr. Warren says, stood here when the British returned to Lexington. He refused to follow Major Pitcairn’s order to disperse, and he was wounded badly. Rab is at the tavern now, and Dr. Warren can take Johnny to see him. He cautions Johnny not to expect much and orders him to honor Rab by being mature and not crying.

4. Johnny follows Dr. Warren into the tavern and to a second-floor bedroom, where Rab is propped up in an armchair. He’s pale, but he looks alright. As Johnny explains that the British in Boston are furious, blood trickles from Rab’s mouth. Rab says he’s had a lot of time to think about his first meeting with Johnny. He’s silent for a bit, remembering things, and then says that a popgun would’ve done him as much good as his musket. He never got to fire his. Now, blood is streaming out of Rab’s mouth. After Dr. Warren settles Rab, Rab tells Johnny to take the musket and go see if the Silsbee women and Grandsire Silsbee are safe. Rab smiles as Johnny leaves the room.

5. Johnny finds no Silsbees at Silsbee’s Cove, but he finds several farm animals, Grandsire Silsbee’s favorite cat, and two hungry farm dogs. Picking up the cat, Johnny enters the house. It’s empty. Johnny feeds the cat and dogs and then notices that Grandsire Silsbee’s antique gun is gone. Heading back to the village, Johnny finds Dr. Warren outside the tavern. Dr. Warren says that Rab died; someday, they’ll know how to fix injuries like what killed him. Rab sent Johnny away because he knew it was his time to die. A woman brings a tray of food for Dr. Warren and sinking into a chair, Dr. Warren says that James Otis’s last speech gave him goosebumps. He’d said that “a man can stand up,” and they’ll stand up and die, like Rab did, so others can “stand on their feet like men.”

Dr. Warren asks the woman to fetch Rab’s musket and turns to his food. Johnny paces, unable to sleep or think. He picks up the musket, inspecting the changes Rab made to it. But Dr. Warren tells Johnny to put the gun down and let him look at his hand. Dr. Warren says the burn isn’t so bad; all that’s holding Johnny’s thumb to his palm is scar tissue. If Johnny wants, Dr. Warren can cut his thumb free. He can’t promise that Johnny will be able to do silver work again, but Johnny will be able to hold Rab’s musket. Johnny asks if Dr. Warren can do it now and says that he’s courageous enough to hold his hand still himself. Dr. Warren sends Johnny outside while he prepares.

Outside, Johnny looks around and listens to the people milling around, caring for their farm animals. “This [is] his land and these his people.” It feels like nothing can hurt him today, not even Rab’s death. From far away, Johnny hears drums. Somebody is playing “Yankee Doodle” on a fife. The village falls silent as 30 ragged, bloody men, without uniforms and with assorted weapons, march into town. Rab had been one of them. Hopefully, these men will always be willing to fight. Then, Johnny notices a chaise coming after the men—Grandsire Silsbee is in it, as he’s too old to ride or walk. Johnny almost runs to tell him that Rab is dead, but he knows Grandsire Silsbee must get his men to join the siege of Boston. Rab and other men died, but the thing they died for never will.