 Perhaps Washington's reluctance was a result of Eddy's ill-fated mission to seize Fort Cumberland, which resulted in a tightening of British forces there and the destruction of patriots’ property, such as John Allan's.Allan's wife was also taken by the British to Halifax as a prisoner after Eddy's failed mission and she was interrogated for several months about her husband.Such happenings might have caused Washington to be reluctant about military action in Northeastern Maine and Nova Scotia, and to focus more on strategic relations with Indian tribes.