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The stakes were never higher than in 1782. Washington designed the camp at Verplanck’s Point to convince the French to support a continued war effort. The Continental Congress had no power to tax and could not pay the army, but the French had good silver coin. Anger over the lack of money simmered among the American troops. Enlisted soldiers were owed back pay, and in 1779 Congress promised Continental Army officers lifetime pensions, but now declared those payments were up to the states. If someone did not figure out how to pay the soldiers, there might be a rebellion against the Revolution. Though peace negotiations were underway in Paris, the British could back out of them. The United States might need the French Navy to drive the British out of New York City. Washington needed to put on a good show for the French, and he did. The picturesque encampment impressed the allies. One eyewitness said the scene “was truly a subject worthy of the pencil of the first artist.”