In the introductory paragraph, Hawthorne states: “The reader, in order to avoid a long and dry detail of colonial affairs, is requested to dispense with an account of the train of circumstances, that had caused much temporary inflammation of the popular mind” (1). Before commencing the story’s action, the author wants the reader to disregard common narratives that uncritically portray colonists as heroic, God-fearing patriots.

As the story progresses, we see many instances in which colonists’ behavior is depicted as rude, sinful, or barbarous. The first example occurs when the old man threatens Robin with being “acquainted with the stocks” (3). Soon thereafter, the innkeeper insults Robin. These men are colonists who later attend the procession and revel in the torture of Molineux. The author depicts them as being more interested in reveling in depravity than helping a fellow countryman who is new to the city.

The horned man leads the procession. Though he is a colonist fighting against British rule, he sadistically exhibits the elderly Major Molineux, who has been tarred and feathered. Through this barbaric conduct, the author suggests that colonial patriots are not uniformly moral people.