In an example of foreshadowing, the horned man tells Robin that Major Molineux will, in an hour’s time, “pass by” the spot in the street where they are having their conversation. The content and tone of this interaction foreshadow the riotous parade to come, as seen in the following passage (which opens with Robin speaking):
“No, no, I’m not the fool you take me for, nor do you pass, till I have an answer to my question. Whereabouts is the dwelling of my kinsman, Major Molineux?”
The stranger, instead of attempting to force his passage, stept back into the moonlight, unmuffled his own face and stared full into that of Robin.
“Watch here an hour, and Major Molineux will pass by,” said he.
Here, Robin forcefully asks the horned man to tell him where Major Molineux lives and, in responding that “Major Molineux will pass by” this spot in an hour, the horned man foreshadows the fact that he will be responsible for capturing, tarring, feathering, and then imprisoning the Major in a caged cart, ultimately dragging him by the same spot while leading an anarchic mob through the streets.
The way in which the man “step[s] back into the moonlight, unmuffle[s] his own face and stare[s] full into that of Robin” before speaking demonstrates how he hopes, upon seeing his face painted in the red and black colors of war, that Robin will understand the sinister meaning beneath his words. Being the innocent young man that he is, Robin does not understand this, and finds a place nearby to wait.
In an example of foreshadowing, Robin smells tar in the air soon after arriving in Boston and beginning his search for his cousin Major Molineux. The following passage captures the subtle foreshadowing in this moment:
He now became entangled in a succession of crooked and narrow streets, which crossed each other, and meandered at no great distance from the water-side. The smell of tar was obvious to his nostrils, the masts of vessels pierced the moonlight above the tops of the buildings, and the numerous signs, which Robin paused to read, informed him that he was near the centre of business.
Here, Robin wanders through this unfamiliar town searching for his cousin and “the smell of tar” is suddenly “obvious to his nostrils.” This is an example of foreshadowing because, near the end of the story, Robin learns that Major Molineux has been tarred and feathered by a mob of townspeople. Though Hawthorne doesn’t explicitly state why the Major has been targeted in this way, it is likely because, as a military leader, he represents Britain’s control over the colonists. As the story demonstrates, by the 1730s, colonists were pushing back against this sort of rule-from-abroad. In this way, the tar represents the chaos of revolution versus the orderliness of British-ruled civilization.
This is a subtle example of foreshadowing in that Hawthorne doesn’t pause for too long or have Robin wonder to himself what the source of the tar might be. Instead, he mentions it as one of many elements of the town that Robin notices, such as “the masts of vessels pierc[ing] the moonlight” and signs that indicated he was in the business center of town.
