Chapter XXV…

Chapter XXV

"When Freedom, from her mountain height,

Unfurl'd her standard to the air,

She tore the azure robe of night,

And set the stars of glory there.

She mingled with its gorgeous dyes

The milky baldrie of the skies,

And striped its pure celestial white

With streakings of the morning light;

Then from his mansion in the sun

She call'd her eagle-bearer down,

And gave into his mighty hand

The symbol of her choseth land."

Joseph Rodman Drake.

N the first of January, 1776, the new Continental army was organized, and on that day the Union FLAG OF THIRTEEN STRIPES was unfurled, for the first time, in the American camp at Cambridge. On that day the king's speech (of which I shall presently write) was received in Boston, and copies of it were sent, by a flag, to Washington. The hoisting of the Union ensign was hailed by Howe as a token of joy on the receipt of the gracious speech, and of submission to the crown. *. This was a great mistake, for at no time had Washington been more determined to attack the king's troops, and to teach oppressors the solemn lesson that "Resistance to tyranny is obedience to God."

After the arrival of Colonel Knox with military stores from the north, whither he had been sent in November, the commander-in-chief resolved to attack the enemy, either by a general assault, or by bombardment and cannonade, notwithstanding the British force was then nearly equal to his in numbers, and greatly superior in experience. Knox brought with him from Fort George, on forty-two sleds, eight brass mortars, six iron mortars, two iron howitzers, thirteen brass cannons, twenty-six iron cannons, two thousand three hundred pounds of lead, and one

* Washington, in a letter to Joseph Reed, written on the 4th of January, 1776, said, "The speech I send you. A volume of them was sent out by the Boston gentry, and, farcical enough, we gave great joy to them without knowing or intending it; for on that day, the day which gave being to the new army, but before the proclamation came to hand, we had hoisted the Union flag, in compliment to the United Colonies. But behold! it was received in Boston as a token of the deep impression the speech had made upon us, and as a signal of submission. So we hear by a person out of Boston last night. By this time, I presume, they begin to think it strange that we have not made a formal surrender of our lines." The principal flag hitherto used by the army was plain crimson. Referring to the reception of the king's speech, the Annual Register (1776) says, "So great was the rage and indignation [of the Americans], that they burned the speech, changed their colors from a plain red ground which they had hitherto used, to a flag with thirteen stripes, as a symbol of the number and union of the colonies." The blue field in one corner, with thirteen stars, was soon afterward adopted; and by a resolution of the Continental Congress, already referred to, passed on the 14th of June, 1777,* this was made the national flag of the United States.

*This flag bore the device of the English Union, which distinguishes the Royal standard of Great Britain. It is composed of the cross of St. George, to denote England, and St. Andrew's cross, in the form of an X, to denote Scotland. This device was placed in the corner of the Royal Flag, after the accession of James the Sixth of Scotland to the throne of England as James the First. A picture of this device may be seen on page 321, Vol. It. It must be remembered that at thia time the American Congress had not declared the colonies "free and independent" states, and that even yet the Americans proffered their warmest loyalty to British justice, when it should redress their grievances. The British ensign was therefore not yet discarded, but it was used upon their flags, as in this instance, with the field composed of thirteen stripes, alternate red and white, as emblematic of the union of the thirteen colonics in the struggle for freedom. Ten months before, "a Union flag with a red field" was hoisted at New York, upon the Liberty-pole on the "Common," bearing the inscription--"George Rex, and the Liberties of America," and upon the other side, "No Popery." It was this British Union, on the American flag, which caused the misapprehension of the British in Boston, alluded to by Washington. It was a year and a half later (and a year after the colonies were declared to be Independent states), that, by official orders, "thirteen white stars upon a blue field" was a device substituted for the British Union, and then the "stripes and stars" became our national banner.

Plan of Attack on Boston.--Re-enforcement of the Army.--Council of War.- -Number of the Troops.--Situation of Washington.

578barrel of flints. In the harbor of Boston the enemy had several vessels of war, * and upon Bunker Hill his works were very strong.

Washington's plan depended, in its execution, upon the weather, as it was intended to pass the troops over to Boston, from Cambridge, on the ice, if it became strong enough. The Neck was too narrow and too well fortified to allow him to hope for a successful effort to enter the town by that way. The assault was to be made by the Americans in two divisions, under Brigadiers Sullivan and Greene, the whole to be commanded by Major-general Putnam. Circumstances prevented the execution of the plan, and January passed by without any decisive movement on the part of either army. The American forces, however, were daily augmenting, and they were less annoyed by the British cannon than they had been, for Howe was more sparing of powder than Gage. **

The Provincial Congress of Massachusetts, at its winter session, organized the militia of the province anew. John Hancock, James Warren, and Azor Orne were appointed major generals, and thirteen regiments were formed. A new emission of paper money, to a large amount, was authorized, and various measures were adopted to strengthen the Continental army. Early in February, ten of the militia regiments arrived in camp; large supplies of ammunition had been received; intense cold had bridged the waters with ice, and Washington was disposed to commence operations immediately and vigorously. He called a council February, 1776 war on 16th, to whom he communicated the intelligence, derived from careful returns, that the American army, including the militia, then amounted to a little more than seventeen thousand men, while that of the British did not much exceed five thousand fit for duty. Many of them were sick with various diseases, and the small-pox was making terrible havoc in the enemy's camp. *** Re-enforcements from Ireland, Halifax, and New York were daily expected by Howe, and the present appeared to be the proper moment to strike. But the council again decided against attempting an assault, on account of the supposed inadequacy of the undisciplined Americans for the task. They estimated the British forces at a much higher figure; considered the fact that they were double officered and possessed ample artillery, and that the ships in the harbor would do great execution upon an army on the ice, exposed to an enfilading fire. It was resolved, however, to bombard and cannonade the town as soon as a supply of ammunition should arrive, and that, in the mean time, Dorchester Heights and Noddle's Island (now East Boston) should be taken possession of and fortified. The commander-in- chief was disappointed at this decision, for he felt confident of success himself. "I can not help acknowledging," he said, in a letter February 18, 1776 to Congress, "that I have many disagreeable sensations on account of my situation; for, to have the eyes of the whole Continent fixed with anxious expectation of hearing of some great event, and to be restrained in every military operation for the want of the necessary means for carrying it on, is not very pleasing, especially as the means

* The Boyne, sixty-four guns; Preston, fifty guns; Scarborough, and another sloop, one of twenty and the other of sixteen guns, and the Mercury.

** From the burning of Charlestown to Christmas day, the enemy had fired more than two thousand shot and shells, one half of the former being twenty-four pounders. They hurled more than three hundred bombs at Plowed Hill, and one hundred at Lochraere's Point. By the whole firing on the Cambridge side they killed only seven men, and on the Roxbury side just a dozen!--Gordon, i., 418.

*** Quite a number of people, sick with this loathsome disease, were sent out of Boston; and General Howe was charged with the wicked design of attempting thus to infect the American army with the malady.

* Journals, iii., 194.

Condition of the British Troops in Boston.--A Farce and its Termination.--Bombardment of Boston.--Industry of the Patriots.

579used to conceal my weakness from the enemy conceal it also from our friends, and add to their wonder." In the midst of these discouragements Washington prepared for a bombardment.

The British troops in Boston were beginning to be quite contented with their lot, and Howe felt almost as secure as if he was on the shores of Old England. He wrote to Dartmouth that he was under no apprehension of an attack from the rebels; and so confident were the Tories of the triumph of British arms, that Cecan Brush, a conceited and sycophantic Loyalist from New York, offered to raise a body of volunteers of three January 19, 1776 hundred men, to "occupy the main posts on the Connecticut River, and open a line of communication westward toward Lake Champlain," after "the subduction of the main body of the rebel force." * The enemy had also procured a plentiful supply of provisions, and the winter, up to the 1st of February, was tolerably mild. "The bay is open," wrote Colonel Moylan, from Roxbury. "Every thing thaws here except Old Put. He is still as hard as ever, crying out, 'Powder! powder! ye gods, give me powder!'" The British officers established a theater; balls were held, and a subscription had been opened for a masquerade, when Washington's operations suddenly dispelled their dream of security, and called them to lay aside the "sock and buskin," the domino, and the dancing-slipper, for the habiliments of real war. They had got up a farce called "Boston Blockaded they were now called to perform in the serio-comic drama of Boston bombarded, with appropriate costume and scenery.

The design of Washington to fortify Dorchester Heights was kept a profound secret, and, to divert the attention of Howe, the Americans opened a severe bombardment and cannonade, on the night of the 2d of March, from the several batteries at Lechmere's Point, Roxbury, Cobble and Plowed Hills, and Lamb's Dam. Several houses in the city were shattered, and six British soldiers killed. The fire was returned with spirit, but with out serious effect. In the course of the bombardment, the Americans burst the "Congress" thirteen inch mortar, another of the same size, and three ten inch mortars.

On Sunday and Monday nights a similar cannonade was opened upon the city. March 3,4, 1776 At seven o'clock on Monday evening, General Thomas, with two thousand men, and intrenching tools, proceeded to take possession of Dorchester Heights. A train of three hundred carts, laden with fascines and hay, followed the troops. Within an hour, marching in perfect silence, the detachment reached the heights. It was separated into two divisions, and upon the two eminences already mentioned they commenced throwing up breastworks. Bundles of hay were placed on the town side of Dorchester Neck to break the rumble of the carts passing to and fro, and as a defense against the guns of the enemy, if they should be brought to bear upon the troops passing the Neck. Notwithstanding the moon was shining brightly and the air was serene, the laborers were not observed by the British sentinels. Under the direction of the veteran Gridley, the engineer at Bunker Hill, they worked wisely and well. Never was more work done in so short a time, and at dawn two forts were raised sufficiently high to afford ample protection for the forces within. They presented a formidable aspect to the alarmed Britons. Howe, overwhelmed with astonishment, exclaimed, "I know not what I shall do. The rebels have done more in one night than my whole army would have done in a month." They had done more than merely raise embankments; cannons were placed upon them, and they now completely commanded the town, placing Britons and Tories in the utmost peril.

* Frothingham; from manuscripts in the office of the Secretary of State of Massachusetts.

* This play was a burletta. The figure designed to represent Washington enters with uncouth gait, wearing a large wig, a long, rusty sword, and attended by a country servant with a rusty gun. While this farce was in course of performance on the evening of the 8th of January (1776), a sergeant entered suddenly, and exclaimed, "The Yankees are attacking our works on Bunker Hill!" The audience thought this was part of the play, and laughed immoderately at the idea; but they were soon undeceived by the voice of the burly Howe shouting, "Officers, to your alarm-posts!" The people dispersed in great confusion. The cause of the fright was the fact that Majors Knowlton, Carey, had crossed the mill-dam from Cobble Hill, and set fire to some houses in Charlestown occupied by British soldiers. They burned fight dwellings, killed one man, and brought off five prisoners.

Astonishment of the British.--Insecurity of the Fleet and Army.-- Preparations for Bombarding Boston.

580The morning on which these fortresses were revealed to the enemy was the memorable 5th of March, the anniversary of the Boston Massacre. * The associations connected with the day nerved the Americans to more vigorous action, and they determined to celebrate and signalize the time by an act of retributive vengeance. Howe saw and felt his danger; and his anxiety was augmented when Admiral Shuldham assured him that the British fleet in the harbor must be inevitably destroyed when the Americans should get their heavy guns and mortars upon the heights. Nor was the army in the city secure. It was therefore resolved to take immediate measures to dislodge the provincials. Accordingly, two thousand four hundred men were ordered to embark in transports, rendezvous at Castle William, and, under the gallant Earl Percy, make an attack that night upon the rebel works. * Washington was made acquainted with this movement, and, supposing the attack was to be made immediately, sent a re-enforcement of two thousand men to General Thomas. Labor constantly plied its hands in strengthening the works. As the hills on which the redoubts were reared were very steep, rows of barrels, filled with loose earth, were placed outside the breastworks, to be rolled down upon the attacking column so as to break their ranks; a measure said to have been suggested by Mifflin. All was now in readiness. It was a mild, sunny day. The neighboring heights were crowded with people, expecting to see the bloody tragedy of Breed's Hill acted again. Washington himself repaired to the intrenchments, and encouraged the men by reminding them that it was the 5th of March. The commander-in-chief and the troops were in high spirits, for they believed the long-coveted conflict and victory to be near.

While these preparations were in progress on Dorchester Heights, four thousand troops, in two divisions, under Generals Sullivan and Greene, were parading at Cambridge, ready to be led by Putnam to an attack on Boston when Thomas's batteries should give the signal. They were to embark in boats in the Charles River, now clear of ice, under cover of three floating batteries, and, assaulting the city at two prominent points, to force their way to the works on the Neck, open the gates, and let in the troops from Roxbury.

Both parties were ready for action in the afternoon; but a furious wind that had arisen billowed the harbor, and rolled such a heavy surf upon the shore where the boats of the enemy were obliged to land, that it was unsafe to venture. During the night the rain came down in torrents, and a terrible storm raged all the next day. Howe abandoned his plan, and Washington, greatly disappointed, returned to his camp, leaving a strong force to guard the works on Dorchester Heights.

The situation of Howe was now exceedingly critical. The fleet and army were in peril, and the loyal inhabitants, greatly terrified, demanded that sure protection which Howe had March 1776 so often confidently promised. He called a council of officers on the 7th, when it was resolved to save the army by evacuating the town. This resolution spread great consternation among the Tories in the city, for they dreaded the just indignation of the patriots when they should return. They saw the power on which they had leaned as almost invincible growing weak, and quailing before those whom it had affected to despise. They well knew that severe retribution for miseries which they had been instrumental in inflicting, surely awaited them, when British bayonets should leave the peninsula and the excited patriots should return to their desolated homes. The dangers of a perilous voyage to a strange land seemed far less fearful than the indignation of the oppressed Americans, and the Loyalists resolved to brave the former rather than the latter. They began, therefore, to prepare for a speedy departure; merchandise, household furniture, and private property of every kind were crowded on board the ships. Howe had been advised by Dartmouth, in

* The day, usually observed in Boston, was now commemorated at Watertown, notwithstanding the exciting events occurring in the city and vicinity. The Reverend Peter Thacher delivered an oration on the occasion.--Bradford, 94.

** Three weeks previously, suspecting that the Americans were about to take possession of Dorchester Neck, Howe sent a detachment from Castle William, under Lieutenant-colonel Leslie, and some grenadiers and light infantry, under Major Musgrove, to destroy every house and other cover on the peninsula. They passed over on the ice, executed their orders, and took six of the American guard prisoners.

Condition of the Patriots in Boston.--Tacit Agreement to spare the Town.--Cannonade renewed.--Commission to plunder.

581November, to evacuate Boston, but excused himself by pleading that the shipping was inadequate. He was now obliged to leave with less, and, in addition to his troops, take with him more than one thousand refugee Loyalists, and their effects. Ammunition and warlike magazines of all kinds were hurried on board the vessels; heavy artillery, that could not be carried away, was dismounted, spiked, or thrown into the sea, and some of the fortifications were demolished. The number of ships and transports was about one hundred and fifty; but these were insufficient for the conveyance of the multitude of troops and inhabitants, their most valuable property, and the quantity of military stores to be carried away. *

The few patriots who remained in Boston now felt great anxiety for the fate of the town. They saw the preparations for departure, and were persuaded that the enemy, smarting under the goadings of disappointed pride and ambition, would perform some signal act of vengeance before leaving--probably set fire to the city. ** Actuated by these surmises (which were confirmed by the threat of Howe that he would destroy the town if his army was molested in departing), and by the fearful array of ships which the admiral had arranged around the city, a delegation of the most influential citizens communicated with the British commander, through General Robertson. The conference resulted in a promise, on the part of Howe, that, if Washington would allow him to evacuate quietly, the town should be spared. A communication to this effect, signed by four leading men--John Scoliay, Timothy Newell, Thomas Marshall, and Samuel Austin--was sent to the camp at Roxbury without any special address. It was received by Colonel Learned, who carried it to Washington. The commander-in-chief observed, that as it was an unauthenticated paper, without an address, and not obligatory upon General Howe, he would take no notice of it. Learned communicated this answer to the persons through whom the address from Boston was received. Although entirely non-committal, it was received as a favorable answer, and both parties tacitly consented to the arrangement.

Washington, however, did not relax his vigilance, and continued his preparations for an assault upon Boston if the enemy did not speedily leave. A battery was placed near the water on Dorchester Neck on the 9th, to annoy the British shipping. On the same March 1776 night a detachment marched to Nooks' Hill, a point near the city completely commanding it, and planted a battery there. A fire imprudently kindled revealed their labor in progress to the enemy. A severe cannonade was immediately opened upon the patriots from the British batteries in the city. This was a signal for a general discharge of cannons and mortars from the various American batteries, and until dawn there was a continual roar of heavy guns. More than eight hundred shot were fired during the night. It was a fearful hour for the people of Boston, and all the bright anticipations of a speedy termination of the dreadful suspense in which for months they had lingered were clouded. But the belligerents were willing to avoid bloodshed. Washington determined to have possession of Boston at all events, but preferred to take it peaceably; while Howe, too cautious to risk a general action, and desirous of employing his forces in some quarter of the colonics where better success might be promised, withheld his cannonade in the morning, and hastened his preparations for evacuation.

And now a scene of great confusion ensued. Those who were about to leave and could not carry their furniture with them, destroyed it; the soldiers broke open and pillaged many stores; and Howe issued an order to Crean Brush, ** who had fawned at his feet ever since the siege began, to seize all clothing and dry goods not in possession of Loyalists, and place

* General Howe's official account.

** Congress gave Washington instructions in the Autumn to destroy Boston if it should be necessary to do so in order to dislodge the enemy. This instruction was given with the full sanction of many patriots who owned much property in the city. John Hancock, who was probably the largest property holder in Boston, wrote to Washington, that, notwithstanding such a measure would injure him greatly, he was anxious the thing should be done, if it would benefit the cause. Never were men more devoted than those who would be the greatest sufferers.

*** This order, which is dated March 10th, 1776, is in the office of the Secretary of State of Massachusetts, and bears Howe's autograph.-- Frothingham.

Bad Conduct of the British Troops.--The Embarkation.--Entrance of the Americans into the City.--The Refugees.

582them on board two brigantines in the harbor. This authorized plunder caused great distress, for many of the inhabitants were completely stripped. Shops and dwellings were broken open and plundered, and what goods could not be carried away were wantonly destroyed.

These extremes were forbidden in general order the next day, but the prohibition March 12. was little regarded.

On the 15th, the troops paraded to march to the vessels, the inhabitants being ordered to remain in their houses until the army had embarked. An easterly breeze sprang up, and the troops were detained until Sunday, the 17th. In the mean while, they did much mischief by destroying and defacing furniture, and throwing valuable goods into the river. They acted more like demons than men, and had they not been governed by officers possessed of some prudence and honor, and controlled by a fear of the Americans, the town would doubtless have suffered all the horrors of sack and pillage.

Early on Sunday morning, the embarkation of the British army and of the Loyalists commenced. The garrison on Bunker Hill left it at about nine o'clock. Washington observed these movements, and the troops in Cambridge immediately paraded. Putnam with six regiments embarked in boats on the Charles River, and landed at Sewall's Point. The sentinels on Bunker Hill appeared to be at their posts, but, on approaching, they were observed to be nothing but effigies; not a living creature was within the British works. With a loud shout, that startled the retreating Britons, the Americans entered and took possession. When this was effected, the British and Tories had all left Boston, and the fleet that was to convey them away was anchored in Nantasket Roads, where it remained ten days. * A detachment of Americans entered the city, and took possession of the works and the military stores that were left behind. ** The gates on Boston Neck were unbarred, and General Ward, with five thousand of the troops at Roxbury, entered in triumph, Ensign Richards bearing the Union flag. General Putnam assumed the command of the whole, and in the name of the Thirteen United Colonies took possession of all the forts and other defenses which the a March 18, 1776 retreating Britons had left behind. (a) On the 20th, the main body of the army, with Washington at the head, entered the city, amid the joyous greetings of hundreds, who for ten months had suffered almost every conceivable privation and insult. Their friends from the country flocked in by hundreds, and joyful was the reunion of many families that had been separated more than half a year. On the 28th, a thanksgiving sermon was preached by the Reverend Dr. Elliot, from the words of Isaiah, "Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eye shall, see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down: not one of the stakes thereof shall be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken." *** It was a discourse full of hope for the future, and con-

* The whole effective British force that withdrew, including seamen, was about eleven thousand. The Loyalists, classed as follows, were more than one thousand in number: 132 who had held official stations; 18 clergymen; 105 persons from the country; 213 merchants; 382 farmers, traders, and mechanics: total 924. These returned their names on their arrival at Halifax, whither the fleet sailed. There were nearly two hundred more whose names were not registered. It was a sorrowful flight to most of them; for men of property left all behind, and almost every one relied for daily food upon rations from the army stores. The troops, in general, were glad to depart. Frothingham (page 312) quotes from a letter written by a British officer while lying in the harbor. It is a fair exhibition of the feelings of the troops: "Expect no more letters from Boston; we have quitted that place. Washington played upon the town for several days. A shell which burst while we were preparing to embark did very great damage. Our men have suffered. We have one consolation left. You know the proverbial expression, 'Neither Hell, Hull, nor Halifax can afford worse shelter than Boston.' To fresh provision I have for many months been quite an utter stranger. An egg was a rarity. The next letter from Halifax."

** So crowded were the vessels with the Loyalists and their effects that Howe was obliged to leave some of his magazines. The principal articles which were left at Castle Island and Boston were 250 pieces of cannon, great and small; four thirteen and a half inch mortars; 2500 chaldrons of sea coal; 2500 bushels of wheat; 2300 bushels of barley; 600 bushels of oats; 100 jars of oil, containing a barrel each, and 150 horses. Some of the ordnance had been thrown into the water, but were recovered by the Americans. In the hospital at Boston a large quantity of medicine was left, in which it was discovered that white and yellow arsenic was mixed! The object ean be easily guessed.--Gordon, ii., 32.

*** Isaiah, xxxiii., 20.

Condition of Boston after the Evacuation.--Troops sent to New York.-- Lingering of British Vessels.--Final Departure.

583firmed the strong faith of the hundreds of listeners in the final triumph of liberty in America.

Sadness settled upon the minds of the people when the first outburst of joyous feeling had subsided, for Boston, the beautiful city--the metropolis of New England--was a desolation. Many of the finest houses were greatly injured; shade-trees were cut down; churches were disfigured; ornamental inclosures were broken or destroyed; and the public buildings were shamefully defaced. The spacious old South meeting-house, as we have seen, was changed into a riding-school; and in the stove that was put up within the arena were burned, for kindling, many rare books and manuscripts of Prince's fine library. The parsonage house belonging to this society was pulled down for fuel. The old North Chapel was demolished for the same purpose, and the large wooden steeple of the West Church was converted to the same use. Liberty Tree, noticed on page 466, vol. i., furnished fourteen cords of wood. Brattle Street and Hollis Street churches were used for barracks, and Faneuil Hall was converted into a neat theater. * A shot from the American lines, which struck the tower of Brattle Street Church, was picked up, and subsequently fastened at the point where it first struck, and there it remains.

Ignorant of the destination of Howe, and supposing it to be New York, Washington sent off five regiments, and a portion of the artillery, under General Heath, for that March 13, 1776 city. They marched to New London, where they embarked, and proceeded to New York through the Sound. On the departure of the main body of the British fleet from Nantasket Roads, Washington ordered the remainder of the army to New York, except five regiments, which were left for the protection of Boston, under General Ward. Sullivan marched on the 27th; another brigade departed on the 1st of April; and the last brigade, under Spencer, marched on the 4th. Washington, also, left Cambridge for New. York on that day. April 4

A portion of the British fleet, consisting of five vessels, still lingered in the harbor, and was subsequently joined by seven transports, filled with Highlanders. The people of Boston were under great apprehension of Howe's return. All classes of people assisted in building a fortification on Noddles Island (now East Boston) and in strengthening the other defenses. These operations were carried on under the general direction of Colonel Gridley. In May, Captain Mugford, of the schooner Franklin, a Continental cruiser, captured the British ship Hope, bound for Boston, with stores, and fifteen hundred barrels of powder. May 17 On the 19th, the Franklin and Lady Washington started on a cruise, but got aground at Point Shirly. Thirteen armed boats from the British vessels attacked them, and a sharp engagement ensued. Captain Mugford, while fighting bravely, received a mortal wound. His last words were those used nearly forty years afterward by Lawrence, "Don't give up the ship! You will beat them off!" And so they did. The cruisers escaped, and put to sea.

In June, General Lincoln proposed a plan for driving the British fleet from the harbor. It was sanctioned by the Massachusetts Assembly, and was put in execution on the 14th. He summoned the neighboring militia, and, aided by some of General Ward's regular troops, took post on Moon Island, Hoff's Neck, and at Point Anderton. A large force also collected at Pettick's Island, and Hull; and a detachment with two eighteen pounders and a thirteen inch mortar took post on Long Island. Shots were first discharged at the enemy from the latter point. The fire was briskly returned; but the commander, Commodore Banks, perceiving the perilous situation of his little fleet, made signals for weighing anchor. After blowing up the light-house, he spread his sails and went to sea, leaving Boston harbor and vicinity entirely free from an enemy, except in the few dissimulating Tories who lurked in secret places. Through a reprehensible want of foresight, no British cruisers were left in the vicinity to warn British ships of the departure of the troops and fleet. The consequence was, that several store-ships-from England soon afterward arrived, and, sailing into the harbor

* Frothingham, page 328.

Capture of Campbell and Store-ships.--Effect of the Evacuation of Boston.--Medal awarded to Washington

584without suspicion, fell into the hands of the Americans. In this way, Lieutenant-colonel Campbell and seven hundred men were made prisoners in June.

The evacuation of Boston diffused great joy throughout the colonies, and congratulatory addresses were received by Washington and his officers from various legislative bodies, assemblages of citizens, and individuals.

The Continental Congress received intelligence of the evacuation, by express, on the 25th of March, and immediately, on motion of John Adams, passed a vote of thanks to the commander-in-chief and the soldiers under his command, and also ordered a gold medal to be struck and presented to the general. John Adams, John Jay, and Stephen Hopkins were appointed a committee to prepare a letter of thanks and a proper device for the medal. *

The intelligence of this and other events at Boston within the preceding ten months produced great excitement in England, and attracted the attention of all Europe. The British Parliament exhibited violent agitations, and party lines began to be drawn almost as definitely among the English people, on American affairs, as in the colonies. In the spring, strong measures had been proposed, and some were adopted, for putting down the rebellion, and these had been met by counter action on the part of the American Congress. ** During the summer, John Wilkes, then Lord Mayor of London, and his party, raised a storm of indignation against government in the English capital. He presented a violent address to the king in the name of the livery of London,

* Journals of Congress, ii., 104.

** Congress issued a proclamation, declaring that "whatever punishment shall be inflicted upon any persons in the power of their enemies for favoring, aiding, or abetting the cause of American liberty, shall be retaliated in the same kind, and in the same degree, upon those in their power, who had favored, aided, or abetted, or shall favor, aid, or abet the system of ministerial oppression." This made the Tories and the British officers cautious in their proceedings toward patriots in their power.

*** This drawing is the size of the medal. It was struck in Paris, from a die cut by Duvivier. The device is a head of Washington, in profile, with the Latin legend "Georgio Washington, supremo duci exercituum adsertori libertatis comitia Americana;" "The American Congress to George Washington, commander-in-chief of its armies, the assertors of freedom." Reverse: troops advancing toward a town; others marching toward the water; ships in view; General Washington in front, and mounted, with his staff, whose attention he is directing to the embarking enemy. The legend is "The enemy for the first time put to flight." The exergue under the device--"Boston recovered, 17th March, 1776."

Denunciations by John Wilkes.--The King tensed.--Boldness of the Common Council.--Governor Penn.--John Home Tooke

585in which it was asserted that it was plainly to be perceived that government intended to establish arbitrary rule in America without the sanction of the British Constitution, and that they were also determined to uproot the Constitution at home, and to establish despotism upon the ruins of English freedom. The address concluded by calling for an instant dismissal of the ministers. The king was greatly irritated, and refused to receive the address, unless presented in the corporate capacity of "mayor, aldermen, livery," &c. This refusal Wilkes denounced as a denial of the right of the city to petition the throne in any respectful manner it pleased; "a right," he said, "which had been respected even by the accursed race of Stuarts." Another address, embodying a remonstrance and petition, was prepared, and inquiry was made of the king whether he would receive it while sitting on the throne, it being addressed by the city in its corporate capacity. The king replied that he would receive it at his next levee, but not on the throne. One of the sheriffs sent by Wilkes to ask the question of his majesty, assured the king that the address would not be presented except when he was sitting upon the throne. The king replied that it was his prerogative to choose where he would receive communications from his subjects. The livery of London declared this answer to be a denial of their rights, resolved that the address and remonstrance should be printed in the newspapers, and that the city members in the House of Commons should be instructed to move for "an impeachment of the evil counselors who had planted popery and arbitrary power in America, and were the advisers of a measure so dangerous to his majesty and to his people as that of refusing to hear petitions." * The common council adopted a somewhat more moderate address and remonstrance, which the king received, but whether sitting upon the throne or at his levee is not recorded. **

On the 23d of August, the government, informed of the events of the 17th of June 1775at Charlestown, issued a proclamation for suppressing rebellion, preventing seditious correspondences, et cetera. Wilkes, as lord mayor, received orders to have this proclamation read in the usual manner at the Royal Exchange. He refused full obedience, by causing it to be read by an inferior officer, attended only by a common crier; disallowing the officers the use of horses, and prohibiting the city mace to be carried before them. The vast assembly that gathered to hear the reading replied with a hiss of scorn.

A few days afterward the respectful petition of the Continental Congress was laid before the king by Richard Penn. Earl Dartmouth soon informed Penn that the king had resolved to take no notice of it; and again the public mind was greatly agitated, particularly in London, at what was denominated "another blow at British liberty." The strict silence of ministers on the subject of this petition gave color to the charge that they had a line of policy marked out, from which no action of the Americans could induce them to deviate short of absolute submission. The Duke of Richmond determined to have this silence broken, and procured an examination of Governor Penn before the House of Lords. That examination brought to light many facts relative to the strength and union of the colonics which ministers would gladly have concealed. It revealed the truth that implicit obedience

* Pictorial History of England, v., 235.

** It was about this time that the celebrated John Horne Tooke, a vigorous writer and active politician, was involved in a proceeding which, in November, 1775, caused him to receive a sentence of imprisonment for one year, pay a fine of one thousand dollars, and find security for his good behavior for three years. His alleged crime was "a libel upon the king's troops in America." The libel was contained in an advertisement, signed by him, from the Constitutional Society (supposed to be revolutionary in its character), respecting the Americans. That society called the Lexington affair a "murder" and agreed that the sum of five hundred dollars should be raised "to be applied to the relief of the widows, orphans, and aged parents of our beloved American fellow- subjects" who had preferred death to slavery. This was a set-off against subscriptions then being raised in England for the widows and orphans of the British soldiers who had perished. The sum raised by this society was sent to Dr. Franklin, who, as we have seen, paid it over to the proper committee, when he visited the army at Cambridge, in October, under the direction of Congress. Out of the circumstance of Horne Tooke's imprisonment arose his letter to Counselor Dunning, which formed the basis of his subsequent philological work, The Diversions of Purley, published in 1780.

Strength of the Americans.--Political Change in the London Common Council.--Persecution of Stephen Sayre.

586to Congress was paid by all classes of men; that in Pennsylvania alone there were twenty thousand effective men enrolled for military service, and four thousand minute men; that the Pennsylvanians perfectly understood the art of making gunpowder; that the art of casting cannon had been carried to great perfection in the colonies; that small arms were also manufactured in the best manner; * that the language of Congress was the voice of the people; that the people considered the petition as an olive branch; and that so much did the Americans rely upon its effect, that if rejected, or treated with scorn, they would abandon all hope of a reconciliation.

On the 11th of October an address, memorial, and petition, signed by eleven hundred and seventy-one "gentlemen, merchants, and traders of London," was laid before his majesty, in which it was charged that all the troubles in America, and consequent injury to trade, arose from the bad policy pursued by Parliament; and the new proposition which had just leaked out, to employ foreign soldiers against the Americans, was denounced in unmeasured terms. A counter petition, signed by nine hundred and twenty citizens of London, was presented three days afterward, in which the conduct of the colonists was severely censured. This was followed by another on the same side, signed by ten hundred and twenty-nine persons, including the livery of London, who, a few months previously, under Wilkes, had spoken out so boldly against government. This address glowed with loyalty to the king and indignation against the rebels! Like petitions from the provincial towns, procured by ministerial agency, came in great numbers, and the government, feeling strengthened at home, contemplated the adoption of more stringent measures to be pursued in America. Suspected persons in England were closely watched, and several were arraigned to answer various charges against them. ** Lord North became the idol of the government party, and, in addition to bein feted by the nobility, and thoroughly bespattered with fulsome adulation by corporate bodies and the ministerial press, the University of Oxford had a medal struck in his honor.

Parliament assembled on the 26th of October, much earlier than common, on account of the prevalent disorders. The king, in his speech at the opening, *** after mentioning the rebellious position of the American colonies, expressed (as he had done before) his determination to act decisively. He alleged that the course of government hitherto had been moderate and forbearing! but now, as the rebellion seemed to be general, and the ob-

* I have in my possession a musket manufactured here in 1774, that date being engraved upon the breech. It is quite perfect in its construction. It was found on the battle field of Hubbardton, in Vermont, and was in the possession of the son of an American officer (Captain Barber) who was in that action. See page 146, of this volume.

** On the 23d of October (1775), Stephen Sayre, a London banker, an American by birth, was arrested on a charge of high treason, made against him by a sergeant in the Guard (also a native of America), named Richardson. He charged Sayre with having asserted that he and others intended to seize the king on his way to Parliament, to take possession of the town, and to overturn the present government. Sayre was known to be a friend to the patriots, and on this charge Lord Rochford, one of the secretaries of state, caused his papers to be seized and himself to be arrested. Sayre was committed to the Tower, from which he was released by Lord Mansfield, who granted a writ of habeas corpus. Sayre was subsequently tried and acquitted. He prosecuted Lord Rochford for seizing his papers, and the court awarded him a conditional verdict of five thousand dollars damages. The conditions proved a bar to the recovery of the money, and Sayre was obliged to suffer a heavy pecuniary loss in costs, besides the personal indignity.

*** This is the speech alluded to in the beginning of this chapter, which the British officers in Boston supposed had produced a determination on the part of the Americans to submit

Tenor of the King's Speech.--His false-Hopes.--Warm Debates in Parliament--Duke of Grafton in opposition.

587jects of the insurgents an independency of empire, they must be treated as rebels. He informed Parliament that he had increased the naval establishment, and greatly augmented the land forces, "yet in such a maimer as to be least expensive or burdensome to the kingdom." This was in reference to the employment of German troops, which I shall presently notice. He professed a desire to temper his severity with mercy, and for this purpose proposed the appointment of commissioners to offer the olive branch of peace and pardon to all offenders among "the unhappy and deluded multitude" who should sue for forgiveness, as well as for whole communities or provinces. He also expressed a hope that his friendly relations with other European governments would prevent any interference on their part with his plans. *

The address of Parliament responsive to the king's speech was, of course, but an echo of that document. It was firmly opposed by all the old leaders of opposition, and the management of the summer campaign in America was severely commented upon. Ministers were charged with placing their sovereign in a most contemptible position before the world, and with wresting from him the scepter of colonial power in the West. "They have acted like fools in their late summer campaign," said Colonel Barré. "The British army at Boston," he said, "is a mere wen--an excrescence on the vast continent of America. Certain defeat awaits it. Not the Earl of Chatham, nor Frederic the Great, nor even Alexander the Great, ever gained so much in one campaign as ministers have lost."

"They have lost a whole continent," said Fox; and at the same time he characterized North as "the blundering pilot who had brought the vessel of state into its present difficulties."

"It is a horrible idea, that the Americans, our brethren, shall be brought into submission to ministerial will by fleets and armies," said General Conway; and other members were equally severe upon ministers. In the Upper House, the Duke of Grafton, Lords Shelburne, Camden, Richmond, Gower, and Cavendish, and the Marquis of Rockingham, took decided ground against ministers. Chatham was very ill, and could not leave his country seat. The Duke of Grafton, one of the minority, was bold in his denunciations, and in the course of an able speech declared that he had been greatly deceived in regard to the Americans, and that nothing short of a total repeal of every act obnoxious to the colonists passed since 1763 could now restore peace. The Cabinet, of course, did not concur with his grace, and he resigned the seals of office, and took a decided stand with the opposition. ** Dr. Hinchcliffe, bishop of Peterborough, followed Grafton, and also became identified with the opposition. Thurlow and Wedderburne were North's chief supporters. The address was carried in both houses by large majorities.

Burke again attempted to lead ministers into a path of common sense and common justice, by proposing a conciliatory bill. It included a proposition to repeal the November 16, 1775 Boston Port Bill; a promise not to tax America; a general amnesty; and the calling of a Congress by royal authority for the adjustment of remaining difficulties. North was rather pleased with the proposition, for he foresaw heavy breakers ahead in the course

* The king did not reckon wisely when he relied upon the implied or even expressed promises of nonintervention on the part of other powers. He had made application to all the maritime powers of Europe to prevent their subjects from aiding the rebel colonics by sending them arms or ammunition; and they all professed a friendship for England, while, at the same time, she was the object of their bitterest jealousy and hate, on account of her proud commercial eminence and political sway. The court of Copenhagen (Denmark) had issued an edict on the 4th of October against carrying warlike articles to America. The Dutch, soon afterward, took similar action; the punishment for a violation of the edict being a fine of only four hundred and fifty dollars, too small to make shipping merchants long hesitate about the risk where such enormous profits were promised. In fact, large quantities of gunpowder were soon afterward shipped to America from the ports of Holland in glass bottles invoiced "gin." France merely warned the people that what they did for the Americans they must do upon their own risk, and not expect a release from trouble, if they should get into any, by the French admiralty courts. Spain flatly refused to issue any order.

** His office of Lord of the Privy Seal was given to Lord Dartmouth, and the office of that nobleman was filled hy his opponent, Lord George Germaine--"the proud, imperious, unpopular Sackville." Germaine had taken an active part in favor of all the late coercive measures, and he was considered the fit instrument to carry out the plans of government toward the Americans, in the capacity of Colonial Secretary.

The Colonies placed under Martial Law.--Augmentation of the Army and Navy.--Proposition to employ foreign Troops

588of the vessel of state; but he had abhorred concession, and this appeared too much like it. A large majority voted against Burke's proposition.

November 22 Lord North introduced a bill a few days afterward, prohibiting all intercourse or trade with the colonies till they should submit, and placing the whole country under martial law. This bill included a clause, founded upon the suggestion in the king's speech, to appoint resident commissioners, with discretionary powers to grant pardons and effect indemnities. * The bill was passed by a majority of one hundred and ninety-two to sixty-four in the Commons, and by seventy- eight to nineteen in the House of Lords. Eight peers protested. It became a law by royal assent on the 21st of December.

Having determined to employ sufficient force to put down the rebellion, the next necessary step was to procure it. The Committee of Supply proposed an augmentation of the navy to twenty-eight thousand men, and that eighty ships should be employed on the American station: The land forces necessary were estimated at twenty-five thousand men. The king, as Elector of Hanover, controlled the troops of that little kingdom. Five regiments of Hanoverian troops were sent to Gibraltar and Minorca, to allow the garrisons of English troops there to be sent to America. It was also proposed to organize the militia of the kingdom, so as to have an efficient force at home while the regulars should go across the Atlantic. For their support while in actual service it was proposed to raise the land-tax to four shillings in the pound. This proposition touched the pockets of the country members of Parliament, and cooled their warlike ardor very sensibly.

The peace establishment at home being small, it was resolved, in accordance with suggestions previously made, to employ foreign troops. The king wrote an autograph letter to the States General of Holland, soliciting them to dispose of their Scotch brigade for service against the Americans. The request was nobly refused. A message was sent to the Parliament of Ireland requesting a supply of troops; that body complied by voting four thousand men for the American service. They servilely agreed to send men to butcher their brethren and kinsmen for a consideration; while the noble Hollanders, with a voice of rebuke, dissented, and refused to allow their soldiers to fight the strugglers for freedom, though strangers to them in blood and language. **

The king was more successful with some of the petty German princes. He entered into a treaty with the Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel, the Duke of Brunswick, the Prince of Hesse, and the Prince of Waldeck, for seventeen thousand men, to be employed in America. On the 29th of February, 1776, Lord North moved "that these treaties be referred to the Committee of Supply." A most vehement debate ensued in the House of Commons. Ministers pleaded necessity and economy as excuses for such a measure. "There was not time to fill the army with recruits, and hired soldiers would be cheaper in the end, for, after the war, if native troops were employed, there would be nearly thirty battalions to claim half pay." Such were the ostensible reasons; the real object was, doubtless, not so much economy, as the fear that native troops, especially raw recruits, unused to the camp, might affiliate with the insurgents. The opposition denounced the measure as not merely cruel toward the Americans, but disgraceful to the English name; that England was degrading herself by applying to petty German princes for succors against her own subjects; and that nothing would so effectually bar the way for reconciliation with the colonists as this barbarous prep-

* This bill became a law, and under that clause General Howe, and his brother, Lord Howe, were appointed commissioners.

** can not forbear quoting the remarks of John Derk van der Chapelle, in the Assembly of the States of Overyssel, against the proposition. "Though not as principals, yet as auxiliaries our troops would be employed in suppressing (what some please to call) a rebellion in the American colonies; for which purpose I would rather see janisaries hired than troops from a free state. In what an odious light must this unnatural civil war appear to all Europe--a war in which even savages (if credit can be given to newspaper information) refuse to engage. More odious still would it appear for a people to take a part therein who were themselves once slaves, bore that hateful name, but at last had spirit to fight themselves free. But, above all, it must appear superlatively detestable to me, who think the Americans worthy of every man's esteem, and look upon them as a brave people, defending, in a becoming, manly, and religious manner, those rights which, as men, they derive from God, and not from the Legislature of Great Britain."

Reasons for employing German Troops.--Opposition to it in Parliament.-- Terms on which the Mercenaries were hired.

589aration to enslave them. It was also intimated that the soldiers to be hired would desert as soon as they reached America; for their countrymen were numerous in the colonies, were all patriots, and would have great influence over them that they would accept land, sheathe their swords, and leave the English soldiers to do the work which their German masters sent them to perform. On the other hand, ministers counted largely upon the valor of their hirelings, many of whom were veterans, trained in the wars of Frederic the Great, and that it would be only necessary for these blood-hounds to show themselves in America to make the rebellious people lay down their arms and sue for pardon. The opposition, actuated by a sincere concern for the fair fame of their country, pleaded earnestly against the consummation of the bargain, and used every laudable endeavor to arrest the incipient action. But opposition was of little avail; North's motion for reference was carried by a majority of two hundred and forty-two to eighty-eight.

Another warm debate ensued when the committee reported on the 4th of March; 1776and in the House of Lords the Duke of Richmond moved not only to countermand the order for the mercenaries to proceed to America, but to cease hostilities altogether. The Earl of Coventry maintained that an acknowledgment of the independence of the colonies was preferable to a continuance of the war. "Look on the map of the globe," he said; "view Great Britain and North America; compare their extent, consider the soil, rivers, climate, and increasing population of the latter; nothing but the most obstinate blindness and partiality can engender a serious opinion that such a country will long continue under subjection to this. The question is not, therefore, how we shall be able to realize a vain, delusive scheme of dominion, but how we shall make it the interest of the Americans to continue faithful allies and warm friends. Surely that can never be effected by fleets and armies. Instead of meditating conquest and exhausting our strength in an ineffectual struggle, we should, wisely abandoning wild schemes of coercion, avail ourselves of the only substantial benefit we can ever expect, the profits of an extensive commerce, and the strong support of a firm and friendly alliance and compact for mutual defense and assistance." ** This was the language of wise and sagacious statesmanship--of just and honorable principles--of wholesome and vigorous thought; yet it was denounced as treasonable in its tendency, and encouraging to rebellion. The report recommending the ratification of the bargain was adopted, and the disgraceful and cruel act was consummated. The Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel agreed to furnish twelve thousand one hundred and four men; the Duke of Brunswick, four thousand and eighty-four; the Prince of Hesse, six hundred and sixty-eight, and the Prince of Waldeck, six hundred and seventy; making in all seventeen thousand five hundred and twenty-six soldiers, including the officers. Perceiving the stern necessity which compelled the British government to negotiate with them, these dealers in fighting machines drove a hard bargain with Lord George Germaine and Lord Barrington, making their price in accordance with the principle of trade, where there is a small supply for a great demand. They asked and received thirty-six dollars for each man, and in addition were to receive a considerable subsidy. The whole amount paid by the British government was seven hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars! The British king also guarantied the dominions of these princes against foreign attack. It was a capital bargain for the sellers; for, while they pocketed the enormous poll-price for their troops, they were released from the expense of their maintenance, and felt secure in their absence. Early in the spring these mercenaries, with a considerable number of troops from England and Ireland, sailed for America, under convoy of a British fleet commanded by Admiral Lord Howe. ***The fierce German

* It was estimated that, when the Revolution broke out, there were about one hundred and fifty thousand German emigrants in the American colonies, most of whom had taken sides with the patriots.

** Cavendish's Debates.

*** Admiral Howe, who was a man of fine feelings, hesitated long before he would accept the command of the fleet destined to sail against his fellow-subjects in America. In Parliament, a few days before he sailed, he spoke with much warmth upon the horrors of civil war, and "declared that he knew no struggle so painful as that between a soldier's duties as an officer and a man. If left to his own choice, he should decline serving; but if commanded, it beeame his duty, and he should not refuse to obey." General Conway said a war with our fellow-subjects in America differed very widely from a war with foreign nations, and that before an officer drew his sword against his fellow-subjects he ought to examine well his conscience whether the cause were just. Thurlow declared that such sentiments, if once established as a doctrine, must tend to a dissolution of all governments.--Pictorial History of England, v., 248.

Parliament alarmed by a Rumor.--French Emissary in Philadelphia.-- Official Announcement of the Evacuation of Boston.

590warriors--fierce, because brutish, unlettered, and trained to bloodshed by the continental butchers--were first let loose upon the patriots in the battle of Long Island, * and thenceforth the Hessians bore a prominent part in many of the conflicts that ensued.

During the residue of the session of Parliament under consideration, American affairs occupied a good portion of the time of the Legislature, but nothing of great importance was done. The Duke of Grafton made an unsuccessful attempt to have an address to the king adopted, requesting that a proclamation might be issued to declare that if the colonists should, within a reasonable time, show a willingness to treat with the commissioners, or present a petition, hostilities should be suspended, and their petition be received and respected. He assured the House that both France and Spain were arming; and alarmed them by the assertion that "two French gentlemen had been to America, had conferred with Washington at his camp, and had since been to Philadelphia to confer with Congress. ** The duke's proposition was negatived.

A very brief official announcement of the evacuation of Boston appeared in the London Gazette of the 3d of May, 1776. *** Ministers endeavored to conceal full intelligence of the transaction, and assumed a careless air, as if the occurrence were of no moment. But Colonel Barré would not allow them to rest quietly under the cloak of mystery, but moved in the House of Commons for an address to his majesty, praying that copies of the dispatches of General Howe and Admiral Shuldham might be laid before the House. There, and in the House of Lords, the ministry were severely handled. Lord North declared that the army was not compelled to abandon Boston, when he well knew to the contrary; and Lord George Germaine's explanation was weak and unsatisfactory. The thunders of Burke's eloquent denunciations were opened against the government, and he declared that "every measure which had been adopted or pursued was directed to impoverish England and to emancipate America; and though in twelve months nearly one thousand dollars a man had been

* I intended to defer a notice of these German troops (generally called Hessians, because the greater portion came from Hesse and Hesse-Cassel) until the battle of Long Island should be under consideration; but the action relative to their employment occupies such a conspicuous place in the proceedings of the session of Parliament, where the most decided hostile measures against America were adopted, that here seemed the most appropriate place to notice the subject in detail. See note 2, page 164, vol. ii.

** Some time in the month of November, 1775, Congress was informed that a foreigner was in Philadelphia who was desirous of making to them a confidential communication. At first no notice was taken of it, but the intimation having been several times repeated, a committee, consisting of John Jay, Dr. Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson, was appointed to hear what he had to say. They agreed to meet him in a room in Carpenters' Hall, and, at the time appointed, they found him there--an elderly, lame gentleman, and apparently a wounded French officer. He told them that the French king was greatly pleased with the exertions for liberty which the Americans were making; that he wished them success, and would, whenever it should be necessary, manifest more openly his friendly sentiments toward them. The committee requested to know his authority for giving these assurances. He answered only by drawing his hand across his throat, and saving, "Gentlemen, I shall take care of my head." They then asked what demonstrations of friendship they might expect from the King of France. "Gentlemen," he answered, "if you want arms, you shall have them: if you want ammunition, you shall have it; if you want money, you shall have it." The committee observed that these were important, assurances, and again desired to know by what authority they were made. "Gentlemen," said he, again drawing his hand across his throat, "I shall take care of my head;" and this was the only answer they could obtain from him. He was seen in Philadelphia no more.--See Life of John Jay, written by his son, William Jay.

*** The official announcement in the Gazette was as follows: "General Howe, commander-in-chief of his majesty's forces in North America, having taken a resolution on the 7th of March to remove from Boston to Halifax with the troops under his command, and such of the inhabitants, with their effects, as were desirous to continue under the protection of his majesty's forces; the embarkation was effected on the 17th of the same month, with the greatest order and regularity, and without the least interruption from the rebels When the packet came away, the first division of transports was under sail, and the remainder were preparing to follow in a few days, the admiral leaving behind as many men-of-war as could be spared from the convoy for the security and protection of such vessels as might be bound to Boston."

Royal Approval of Howe's Course.--Opinions of the People.--Position of the Colonies.--Count Rumford. Fortifications.

591spent for salt beef and sour-krout, * the troops could not have remained ten days longer if the heavens had not rained down manna and quails."

The majority voted down every proposition to elicit full information respecting operations in America, and on the 23d of May his majesty, after expressing a hope "that his rebellious subjects would yet submit," prorogued Parliament.

The evacuation of Boston was approved by the king and his ministers, and on the day when the announcement of the event was made in London, Lord George Germaine May 3, 1776 wrote to Howe, deploring the miscarriage of the general's dispatches for the ministers, **

praising his prudence, and assuring him that his conduct had "given the fullest proofs of his majesty's wisdom and discernment in the choice of so able and brave an officer to command his troops in America."

Thus ended the Siege of Boston, where the first decided triumph of American arms over the finest troops of Great Britain was accomplished. The departure of Howe was regarded in England as a flight; the patriots viewed it as a victory for themselves. Confidence in their strength to resist oppression was increased ten-fold by this event, and doubt of final and absolute success was a stranger to their thoughts. "When the siege of Boston commenced, the colonies were hesitating on the great measures of war; were separated by local interests; were jealous of each other's plans, and appeared on the field, each with its independent army under its local colors. When the siege of Boston ended, the colonies had drawn the sword and nearly cast away the scabbard. They had softened their jealousy of each other; they had united in a political association; and the Union flag of thirteen stripes waved over a Continental army." ***

Few events of more importance than those at other large sea-port towns occurred at Boston after the flight of the British army. The Americans took good care to keep their fortifications in order, and a full complement of men to garrison them sufficiently. **** This fact

* A Dutch or German dish, made of cabbage.

*** It appears that Howe sent dispatches to England on the 23d of October, 1775. by the hands of Major Thompson, and those were the last from him that reached the ministry before the army left Boston for Halifax. Major Thompson was afterward the celebrated philosopher. Count Rumford. He was a native of Woburn, in Massachusetts, and was born on the 26th of March, 1753. He early evinced a taste for philosophy and the mechanic arts, and obtained permission to attend the philosophical lectures of Professor Winthrop at Cambridge. He afterward taught school at Rumford (now Concord), New Hampshire, where he married a wealthy young widow. In consequence of his adhesion to the British cause, he left his family in the autumn of 1775, went to England, and became a favorite of Lord George Germaine, who made him under secretary in the Northern Department. Near the close of the Revolution he was sent to New York, where he commanded a regiment of dragoons, and returning to England, the king knighted him. He became acquainted with the minister of the Duke of Bavaria, who induced him to go to Munich, where he became active in public affairs. The duke raised him to a high military rank, and made him a count of the empire. He added to his title the place of his marriage, and became Count Rumford. He was in London in 1800, and projected the Royal Institution of Great Britain. His wife, whom he abandoned, died in 1794 in New Hampshire. Count Rumford died August 20th, 1814, aged sixty-one vears. His scientific discoveries have made his name immortal. He bequeathed fifty thousand dollars to Harvard College.

*** Frothingham, page 334.

**** With the exception of Dorchester, Bunker Hill, and Roxbury, I believe there are few traces of the fortifications of the Revolution that can be certainly identified; and so much altered has been the fortress on Castle Island that it exhibits but little of the features of 1776. Every year the difficulty of properly locating the several forts becomes greater, and therefore to preserve, in this work, a record of those landmarks by which they may be identified, I condense from Silliman's Journal for 1822 an interesting article on the subject which was communicated by J. Finch, Esq., with such references as later writers have made. A recurrence to the map on page 566, vol. i., will assist the reader.

**** I. Breed's Hill and Bunker Hill.--These works were on the summits and slopes of the hills, looking toward Boston. Bunker Hill Monument now stands upon the spot where Prescott's redoubt was thrown up. II. Plowed Hill.--This fort was upon the summit of the eminence, commanding the Mystic River and the Penny Ferry. It was in a direct line from Charlestown Neck to Winter Hill, further northward. III. Cobble or Barrell's Hill.--In consequence of its strength, the fort on this hill was called Putnam's impregnable fortress. This was on the north side of Willis's Creek, in full view of Bunker and Breed's Hills, and commanding the whole western portion of the peninsula of Charlestown. IV. Lechmere's Point was strongly fortified at a spot one hundred yards from West Boston Bridge There was a causeway across the marsh, and a line of works along Willis's Creek to connect with those on Cobble Hill. V. Winter Hill.--The works at this point, commanding the Mystic and the country northward from Charlestown, were more extensive than any other American fortification around Boston. There rested the left wing of the army under General Lee, at the time of the siege of Boston. There was a redoubt near, upon the Ten Hill Farm, that commanded the Mystic; and between Winter and Prospect Hills was a re-doubt, where a quarry was opened about the year 1819. This was called White House Redoubt, in the rear of which, at a farm-house, Lee had his quarters. VI. Prospect Hill has two eminences, both of which were strongly fortified, and connected by a rampart and fosse, or ditch. These forts were destroyed in 1817. There is an extensive view from this hill. VII. The Cambridge Lines, situated upon Butler's Hill, consisted of six regular forts connected by a strong intrenchment. These were in a state of excellent preservation when Mr. Finch wrote. The Second Line of Defense might then be traced on the College Green at Cambridge. VIII. A semicircular Battery, with three embrasures, was situated on the northern shore of Charles River, near its entrance into the bay. It was rather above the level of the marsh. IX. Brookline Fort, on Sewall's Point, was very extensive. The ramparts and irregular bastion, which commanded Charles River, were very strong. The fort was nearly quadrangular. X. There was a battery on the southern shore of Muddy River, with three embrasures. Westward of this position was a redoubt; and between Stony Brook and Roxbury were three others. XI. Roxbury.--There were strong fortifications at this point, erected upon eminences which commanded Boston Neck, sometimes called Roxbury Neck. About three quarters of a mile in advance of these redoubts were The Roxbury Lines, situated northward of the town. There were two lines of intrenchments, which extended quite across the peninsula; and the ditch, filled at high water, made Boston an island. The works thrown up by Gage when he fortified Boston Neck were near the present Dover Street. Upon a higher eminence, in the rear of the Roxbury lines (at present [[1850]] west of Highland Street, on land owned by the Honorable B. F. Copeland), was Roxbury Fort,1 2 a strong quadrangular work, with bastions appears to have been on the southwest side, near which was a covered way and sally-port. I have nowhere seen a fortification of the Revolution so well preserved as this, except the old quadrangular fort or castle at Chambly, on Ground Plan of the Fort.3 the Sorel; and it is to be hoped that patriotic reverence will so consecrate the ground on which this relic lies, that unhallowed gain may never lay upon the old ramparts the hand of demolition. The history of the construction of Roxbury Fort is somewhat obscure. It is known to have been the first regular work erected by the Americans when they nearly circumvallated Boston. Tradition avers, that when the Rhode Island "Army of Observation," which hastened toward Boston, under Greene, after the skirmishes at Lexington and Concord, encamped at Jamaica Plains, a detachment was sent forward and commenced this redoubt at Roxbury. General Ward, who, by common consent, was captain-general of the accumulating forces, ordered them to desist, as he was about to commence a regular line of fortifications under the direction of Gridley. The Rhode Islanders, acknowledging no authority but their own Provincial Assembly, proceeded in their work; and when Washington took command of the army, he regarded this fort as the best and most eligibly located of all the works then in course of construction. During the siege of Boston, Roxbury Fort was considered superior to all others for its strength and its power to annoy the enemy. XII. Dorchester Heights.--The ancient fortifications there are covered by the remains of those erected in 1812, and have little interest except as showing the locality of the forts of the Revolution. XIII. At Nook's Hill, near South Boston Bridge, the last breast-work was thrown up by the American^ before the flight of the British. It was the menacing appearance of this suddenly-erected fort that caused Howe to hasten his departure. The engineers employed in the construction of these works were Colonel Richard Gridley, chief; Lieutenant-colonel Rufus Putnam, Captain Josiah Waters, Captain Baldwin, o! Brookfield, and Captain Henry (afterward general) Knox, assistants. These were the principal works erected and occupied by the Americans at Boston. When Mr. Finch wrote in 1822, many of these were well preserved, and he expressed a patriotic desire that they should remain so. But they are gone, and art has covered up the relics that were left. But it is not yet too late to carry out a portion of his recommendation, by which to preserve the identity of some of the localities. "The laurel, planted on the spot where Warren fell, would be an emblem of unfading honor; the white birch and pine might adorn Prospect Hill: at Roxbury, the cedar and the oak might yet retain their eminence; and upon the heights of Dorchester we would plant the laurel, and the finest trees which adorn the forest, because there was achieved a glorious victory, without the sacrifice of life!"

* This view is from the southwest angle of the fort. In the foreground a portion of the ramparts is seen. These are now overgrown, in part, with shrubbery. On the right is seen the house of Mr. Benjamin Perkins, on Highland Street, and extending across the picture, to the left, is the side of the fort toward Boston, exhibiting prominent traces of the embrasures for the cannons. It was a foggy day in autumn when I visited the fort, in company with Frederic Kidder, Esq., of Boston, to whose courtesy and antiquarian taste I am indebted for the knowledge of the existence of this well-preserved fortification. No distant view could be procured, and I was obliged to be content with the above sketch, made in the intervals of "sun and shower." The bald rocks on which the fort stands are huge bowlders of pudding-stone, and upon three sides these form natural revetments, which would be difficult for an enemy to scale. The embankments are from eight to fifteen feet in height, and within, the terre-plein, on which the soldiers and cannons were placed, is quite perfect.

** See map on page 566, vol. i.

*** This is a ground plan of the fort as it now appears. A is the parade; B, the magazine; C, the sally-port D, the side toward Boston.

Boston Harbor.--Remains of the Revolutionary Fortifications around Boston

592seemed to be well known to the enemy; for while Newport and the places adjacent suffered from the naval operations of British vessels, Boston Harbor was shunned by them. Some

The "Convention Troops."--Their Parole of Honor.--Picture of the Captives.--Burgoyne in Boston

593of the Tories who went with Howe to Halifax returned, and cast themselves upon the clemency of the new government. Those who possessed influence that might be dangerous were immediately arrested and thrown into prison, where they were confined for several months, until satisfactory arrangements were made for their release.

Boston was the place whither the captured troops of Burgoyne were sent in 1777, to embark for England on parole. * They entered Cambridge on the 7th of November, during the prevalence of a severe northeast storm. A graphic description of the appearance of the Hessians is given in a letter from Mrs. Winthrop to Mrs. Warren, printed on page 82. Speaking of the British portion of the captive army, the same writer says:

"Their baggage-wagons were drawn by poor half-starved horses; but to bring up the rear was a noble-looking guard of American, brawny, victorious yeomanry, who assisted in bring ing these sons of slavery to terms. Some of our wagons, drawn by fat oxen, driven by joyous-looking Yankees, closed the cavalcade. The generals and other officers went to Bradish's, where they quarter at present. The privates trudged through thick and thin to the hills, where we thought they were to be confined; but what was our surprise when, in the morning, we beheld an inundation of these disagreeable objects filling our streets." These captive troops were quartered in some of the best private houses, and the students of Harvard College were dismissed to make room for these foreign soldiers. Alluding to this fact. Mrs. Winthrop writes, "Is there not a degree of unkindness in loading poor Cambridge, almost ruined before this great army seemed to be let loose upon us? ** Surprising that our general [Gates], or any of our colonels, should insist on the first university in America being disbanded for their genteel accommodation, and we, poor oppressed people, seek an asylum in the woods against a piercing winter. General Burgoyne dined on Sunday in Boston with General. He rode through the town properly attended, down Court Street and through the Main Street, and on his return walked to Charlestown ferry, followed by as great a number of spectators as ever attended a pope." There must have been a great contrast between the feelings of Burgoyne at that time and when he walked the same streets two years before, a general covered with fresh laurels won upon the Spanish Peninsula. *** The captive army were sent to Charlottesville, in Virginia, at the beginning of 1779.

* I have before me the original paroles of honor, signed by all the surviving officers of Burgoyne's captured army. They are the property of J. Wingate Thornton, Esq., of Boston, who kindly placed them in my hands for use. The paroles are dated at Cambridge, December 13th, 1777. One is signed by 185 English officers, headed by Burgoyne; the other by 95 German officers, headed by Riedesel, the Brunswick general. Their names may be found in the Supplement, page 672.

** This sudden influx menaced the country about Boston with famine, for the five thousand prisoners of war had to be fed. Every article rapidly rose in price; wood was sold at twenty-seven and a half dollars a cord.

*** When Burgoyne left Boston for England, General Phillips was left in chief command of the captive troops, quartered on Prospect Hill. He was a conceited, irritable person, and often his haughty pride made him forget the relation in which he stood to the victorious Americans, whom he had been taught to despise. On one occasion, one of his officers was returning from Boston, with two females, to the British camp, and refused to answer the challenge of the sentinel. He was shot dead, and the act was justified by the rules of war. General Phillips was greatly enraged, and wrote the following impudent letter to General Heath, the commanding officer:

*** "Cambridge, June 17, 1778. "Murder and death have at length taken place. An officer, riding out from the barracks on Prospect Hill, has been shot by an American sentinel. I leave the horrors of that bloody disposition, whieh has joined itself to rebellion in these colonies, to the feelings of all Europe. I do not ask for justice, for I believe every principle of it has fled from this province. I demand liberty to send an officer to General Sir Henry Clinton, by way of the head- quarters of General Washington. Wm. Phillips, Major General." This was strange language for a prisoner of war to use toward his keeper! Before the insulting note had been received by Heath, the sentry had been put under guard to await the decision of a jury of inquest. Heath had also written a polite note to Phillips, informing him of the fact. As I have observed before, the haughty insolence of the British functionaries, civil and military, toward the Americans, did more to engender hatred and foster the rebellion than any other single eause. Phillips's conduct is a fair picture, among many others, of the haughty bearing of the Britons in authority. I have before me an autograph letter to General Heath, written at about the same time, by Lieutenant Kingston, Burgoyne's deputy adjutant general. It is marked by flippant insolence, although a little more polite than Phillips's letter.

--Expedition against Penobscot. Its Failure.--General Phillips.--General Wadsworth.--Close of the Chronicles of Boston.

594In July, 1779, the State of Massachusetts fitted out an expedition at Boston to go against the British troops at Penobscot, a small town on the east side of Penobscot River in Maine. The enemy were estimated to be one thousand strong. Fifteen hundred men were ordered to be raised for the expedition, but only about nine hundred were actually employed, and some of these were pressed into the service. Some were conveyed thither by a fleet, consisting of several sloops of war, carrying from sixteen to twenty-eight guns, one of thirty-two guns, seven armed brigs, and twenty-four other vessels, which served as transports. Other portions of the militia marched from the lower counties of Maine. Commodore Salstonstall commanded the fleet, and Generals Lovell and Wadsworth led the land forces. A disagreement arose between the commanders of the fleet and army, which greatly weakened the power of the expedition It was agreed, however, to attack the enemy. The American land force debarked, and rushed to the assault of the fort up a steep declivity, in the face of a storm of shot from the enemy. The marines did not come to their support, and a large naval re-enforcement for the British arriving at that moment, the assailants were repulsed and forced to abandon the expedition. The Americans destroyed many of their vessels to prevent them from falling into the hands of the enemy, and in scattered detachments, the troops, marines, and sailors, made their way back to their homes, suffering great hardships in their route through the almost unbroken wilderness. It was a most unfortunate affair The General Court of Massachusetts instituted an inquiry, which resulted in censuring the naval commander, and commending Lovell and Wadsworth. *

Here let us close the chronicles of Boston. Henceforth we shall only refer to them incidentally, as the elucidation of prominent events elsewhere shall make this necessary. We have seen the discontents of the colonies ripen into open rebellion in this hot-bed of patriotism; we have seen a Continental army organized, disciplined, and prepared for action, and those yeomanry and artisans, drawn from the fields and workshops, piling, with seeming Titan strength, huge fortifications around a well-disciplined British army, and expelling it from one of the most advantageous positions on the continent. Let us now proceed to places where other scenes in the great drama were enacted.

* Peleg Wadsworth was a native of Massachusetts, and graduated at Harvard College in 1769. After his unsuccessful attempt against the British fort at Penobscot in 1779, where his bravery was acknowledged, he was sent to command in the district of Maine, whither he took his family. In February, 1781, a party of the enemy eaptured him in his own house, and conveyed him to the British quarters at Bagaduce or Castin. In company with Major Burton, he effected his escape from the fort in June, crossed the Penobscot in a canoe, and traveled through the wilderness to his home. Of his capture, sufferings, and escape, Dr. Dwight has given a long and interesting account in the second volume of his Travels in New England. For many years Wadsworth was a member of Congress from Cumberland district. He died at Hiram, in Maine, in November, 1829, aged eighty years. His son, Lieutenant Henry Wadsworth, was blown up in a fire-ship in the harbor at Tripoli in September, 1804.--Allen's American Biography.

Departure from Boston.--Scenery on the Route.--Cochituate.--The Quinebaug.--Tradition of Mashapaug.

595

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Chapter XXVI

"Day wanes; 'tis autumn's eventide again;

And, sinking on the blue hill's breast, the sun

Spreads the large bounty of his level blaze,

Lengthening the shades of mountains and tall trees,

And throwing blacker shadows o'er the sheet

Of the dark stream, in whose unruffled tide

Waver the bank-shrub and the graceful elm,

As the gray branches and their trembling leaves

Catch the soft whispers of the evening air."

George Lunt.

T was in the afternoon of a warm, bright day in October, that I left Boston for Norwich and New London, upon the Thames, in Connecticut, where I purposed to pass two or three days in visiting the interesting localities in their respective neighborhoods. I journeyed upon the great Western rail-way from Boston to Worcester, forty-four miles westward, where the Norwich road branches off in the direction of Long Island Sound, and courses down the beautiful valleys of the French and Quinebaug Rivers. Every rood of the way is agreeably diversified. Hill and mountain, lake and streamlet, farm-house and village, charmed the eye with a kaleidoscope variety as our train thundered over the road at the rate of thirty miles an hour. Yet memory can fix upon only a few prominent points, and these appear to make the sum of all which the eye gazed upon. Thus I remember the sweet Lake Cochituate, whose clear waters now bless the city of Boston with limpid streams. I remember it stretching away north from the rail-way, pierced with many green headlands, and rippled by the wings of waterfowl. Thus, too, I remember the beautiful little Mashapaug, * lying in a bowl of the wooded hills of Killingly, sparkling in the slant rays of the evening sun as we swept by and became lost among the rugged heights and dark forests at twilight.

The Quinebaug is dotted with pretty factory villages at almost every rift in its course; and, as we halted a moment at the stations, the serried lights of the mills, and the merry laughter of troops of girls just released from labor, joyous as children bursting from school, agreeably broke the monotony of an evening ride in a close car. We reached the Shetucket Valley at about half past seven o'clock, and at eight I was pleasantly housed at the Mer-

* This sheet of water is now known by the unpoetical name of Alexander's Lake, from the circumstance that a Scotchman, named Neil Alexander, settled there, and owned all the lands in the vicinity in the year 1720. The Indians, who called it Mashapaug, had a curious tradition respecting the origin of the lake. I quote from Barber's Historical Collections of Connecticut, p. 431: "In ancient times, when the red men of this quarter had long enjoyed prosperity, that is, when they had found plenty of game in the woods and fish in the ponds and rivers, they at length fixed the time for a general powwow--a sort of festival for eating, drinking, smoking, singing, and dancing. The spot chosen for this purpose was a sandy hill, or mountain, covered with tall pines, occupying the situation where the lake now lies. The powwow lasted four days in succession, and was to continue longer, had not the Great Spirit, enraged at the licentiousness that prevailed there, resolved to punish them. Accordingly, while the red people, in immense numbers, were capering about on the summit of the mountain, it suddenly gave way beneath them and sunk to a great depth, when the waters from below rushed up and covered them all, except one good old squaw, who occupied the peak which now bears the name of Loon's Island. Whether the tradition is entitled to credit or not, we will do it justice by affirming that in a clear day, when there is no wind, and the surface of the lake is smooth, the huge trunks and leafless branches of gigantic pines may be occasionally seen in the deepest part of the water, some of them reaching almost to the surface, in such huge and fantastic forms as to cause the beholder to startle!"

Arrival at Norwich.--A literary Friend.--Indian History of Norwich.-- Uncas and Miantonomoh.

596chants' Hotel in Norwich, a city beautifully situated at the confluence of the Yantic and Shetucket Rivers, whose wedded waters here form the broad and navigable Thames.

Early in the morning I started in search of celebrities, and had the good fortune to meet with Edwin Williams, Esq., the widely-known author of the "Statesman's Manual" and other standard works. Norwich is his birth-place, and was his residence during his youth, and he is as familiar with its history and topography as a husbandman is with that of his farm. With such a guide, accompanied by his intelligent little son, an earnest delver among the whys and wherefores in the mine of knowledge, I anticipated a delightful journey of a day. Nor was I disappointed; and the pleasures and profit of that day's ramble form one of the brightest points in my interesting tour. I procured a span of horses and a barouche to convey us to Lebanon, twelve miles northward, the residence of Jonathan Trumbull, the patriot governor of Connecticut during the Revolution. While the hostler is harnessing our team, let us open the chronicles of Norwich and see what history has recorded there.

Like that of all the ancient New England towns, the Indian history of Norwich, commencing with the advent of the English in that neighborhood about 1643, is full of romance, and woos the pen to depict it; but its relation to my subject is only incidental, and I must pass it by with brief mention.

Norwich is in the midst of the ancient Mohegan country, and Mohegan was its Indian name. Uncas was the chief of the tribe when the English first settled at Hartford, and built a fort at Saybrook, at the mouth of the Connecticut River. He formed a treaty of amity with the whites; and so fair were his broad acres upon the head waters of the Pequot River, now the Thames, that the sin of covetousness soon pervaded the hearts of the Puritan settlers. Wawekus Hill, now in the center of Norwich, was a famous observatory for his warriors, for eastward of them were the powerful Narragansets, sworn enemies of the Mohegans, and governed by the brave Miantonômoh, also a friend of the white men. In the spring of 1643 the flame of war was lighted between these powerful tribes, and Miantonômoh led his warriors to an invasion of the Mohegan country. His plans were secretly laid, and he hoped to take Uncas by surprise. For this purpose six hundred of his bravest warriors were led stealthily, by night marches, toward the head waters of the Pequot. At dawn, one morning, they were discovered at the Shetucket Fords, near the mouth of the Quinebaug, by some of the vigilant Mohegan scouts upon the Wawekus. From the rocky nooks near the falls of the Yantic, a canoe, bearing a messenger with the intelligence, shot down the Thames to Shantock Point, where Uncas was strongly fortified. With three or four hundred of his best warriors he marched to meet Miantonômoh. They confronted at the Great Plains, a mile and a half below Norwich, on the west side of the Thames. A fierce conflict ensued. The advantage gained by Uncas by strategy * was maintained, and the Narragansets were put to flight, closely pursued by the Mohegans. Through tangled woods and over rocky ledges, across the Yantic, and over the high plain of Norwich toward the Shetucket Fords, the pursued and pursuers swept like a blast. Two swift- footed Mohegans pursued Miantonômoh with unwearied pertinacity, and finally outstripped him, he being encumbered with a heavy corselet. They impeded his progress, but did not attempt to seize him, that honor being reserved for their chief. As soon as Uncas touched Miantonômoh, the latter halted and sat down in silence. He was conducted in triumph to Shantock, where Uncas treated him with generous kindness and respect. The conflict had been brief, but thirty of the Narragansets were slain. Among the prisoners were a brother of the captive king, and two sons of Canonicus, his uncle Uncas, probably fearing that the Narragansets would make an attempt to recapture their

* When Uncas saw the superior number of Miantonômoh's warriors, he sent a messenger to that chief to say, in the name of Uncas, "Let us two fight single-handed. If you kill me, my men shall be yours; if I kill you, your men shall be mine." Miantonômoh, suspecting treachery, disdainfully rejected the proposition. Uncas then fell on his face, a signal previously agreed upon with his warriors, who, with bent bows, rushed upon the Narragansets, who were carelessly awaiting the result of the conference, and thus put them to flight.

Surrender of Miantonômoh to the English.--Unjust Decision.--Murder of Miantonômoh.--Settlement of New London

597chief, sent him to Hartford, and surrendered him into the custody of the English, agreeing to be governed in his future conduct toward his prisoner by their advice. Miantonômoh was imprisoned until September, when the commissioners of the United Colonies, at their meeting in Boston, after debating the question whether it would be lawful to take the life of Miantonômoh, referred his case to an ecclesiastical tribunal, composed of five of the principal ministers of the colonies. Their decision was in favor of handing him over to Uncas for execution, without torture, within the dominions of that sachem. Delighted with the verdict of his Christian allies, the equally savage Mohegan, with a few trusty followers, con-, ducted Miantonômoh to the spot where he was captured, and, while marching unsuspicious of present danger, a brother of Uncas, at a sign from that chief, buried his hatchet in the head of the royal prisoner. Uncas cut a piece of flesh from the shoulder of the slain captive and ate it, saying, "It is very sweet; it makes my heart strong." Satisfied revenge made it sweet; and no doubt his heart felt stronger when he saw his powerful enemy lying dead at his feet. The whole transaction was base treachery and ingratitude. Miantonômoh had been the firm friend of the whites on Rhode Island, and his sentence was a flagrant offense against the principles of common justice and Christianity. He was buried where he was slain, and from these circumstances the place has since been called the Sachem's Plain. *

The Narragansets, burning with revenge, and led by Pessacus, a brother of Miantonomoh, invaded the Mohegan country in the spring of 1645. Plantations were laid waste, and Uncas, with his principal warriors, was driven into his strong fortress at Shantock. There he was closely besieged, but found means to send a messenger to Captain Mason, the destroyer of the Pequots, then commanding the fort at Saybrook. As in duty bound, that officer sent succor to his ally, not in men, for they were not needed, but in provisions. Thomas Leffingwell, a young man of undaunted courage, paddled a canoe up the Pequot at night, laden with many hundred weight of beef, corn, pease, &c., and deposited them safely within the fort at Shantock. This timely relief was made known to the besiegers by hoist ing a piece of beef upon a pole above the ramparts of the fort. Unable to break down the fortress, the Narragansets raised the siege and returned to their own country. This invasion was repeated, and with almost fatal effect to Uncas. The English saved him, and, finally, after nearly twenty years of strife, the hatchet was buried between these tribes.

It was in the midst of these hostilities that the younger Winthrop and others commenced a settlement at Pequot Harbor, now New London; and in 1659 Uncas and his two sons signed a deed at Say-brook, conveying a tract of land, "lying at the head of the Great River," nine miles square, to Thomas Leffingwell and others, for a value consideration of about three hundred and fifty dollars. Leffingwell had thirty-five associates, and there founded the city of Norwich, at the head of the plain now known as the old town, or up town. It is not my province to trace the progress of settlement, but simply to note the prominent points

* The spot where Miantonômoh was buried is a little northward of the village of-Greenville, on the west bank of the Shetucket, and about a mile and a half from Norwich. A pile of stones was placed upon his grave, and for many years a portion of his tribe came, in the season of flowers, and mourned over his remains, each one adding a stone to the tumulus. At length their visits ceased, and the voice of tradition being seldom heard at that isolated spot, the proprietor of the land, ignorant of the fact that the pile of stones was sepulchral and sacred to patriotism, used them in the construction of the foundation of a barn. On the 4th of July, 1841, the people of Greenville celebrated, by a festival, the erection of a monument to Miantonômoh, on the spot where he was slain. It is a block of granite eight feet high, and about five feet square at the base, hearing the inscription Miantonômoh. 1643. I did not visit the spot, but, from description, I think the initial letter I, at the beginning of this chapter, is a fair representation of it.

** Owaneko was a bold warrior in his youth, and was distinguished in King Philip's War. In maturity, having lost the stimulus of war, "he used to wander about with his blanket, metonep, and sandals, his gun, and his squaw," says Miss Caulkins, "to beg in the neighboring towns, quartering himself in the kitchens and outhouses of his white friends, and presenting to strangers, or those who could not well understand his imperfect English, a brief, which had been written for him by Mr. Richard Bushnell. It was as follows

"'Oneco king, his queen doth bring To beg a little food; As they go along their friends among To try how kind, how good. Some pork, some beef, for their relief; And if you can't spare bread, She'll thank you for your pudding, as they go a gooding, And carry it on her head.'"

Settlement of Norwich.--Mohegan Cemetery.--Uncas's Monument.-- Revolutionary Spirit.--Owaueko

1659.

598in the colonial history of a people who were among the earliest and most ardent supporters of the Revolution. *

It was a charming spot where the Puritan settlers founded the city of Norwich, a name given to it in honor of the English birth-place of some of them. "Birds and animals of almost every species belonging to the climate were numerous to an uncommon degree; and the hissing of snakes, as well as the howling of wolves and bears must soon have become familiar to their ears.

To complete the view, it may be added, that the streams swarmed with fish and wild fowl; in the brooks and meadows were found the beaver and the otter, and through the whole scene stalked at intervals the Indian and the deer." ** The planting of this settlement greatly pleased Uncas, but irritated the Narragansets; the former regarding it with pleasure, as the latter did with anger, as a barrier to the meditated invasions of the Mohegan country by the tribe of Miantonômoh. Uncas remained a firm friend to the whites until his death, which occurred soon after the close of King Philip's War, probably in 1683. He died at Mohegan (Norwich), and was interred in the burial-ground of his family, situated upon the high plain just above the falls of the Yantic. The royal cemetery has been inclosed, and a granite monument erected therein to the memory of the celebrated sachem.November 1, 1660 The first male white child born in Norwich was Christopher Huntington, afterward recorder of the town. The name of Huntington is intimately connected with the whole history of that settlement, and is prominent in our revolutionary annals. Several of that name were engaged in the army, and one. Samuel Huntington, was President of Congress. Indeed, the whole population seemed to be thoroughly imbued with the spirit of freedom, and from the Stamp Act era until the close of the war for independence, almost every patriotic measure adopted was an act of the town, not of impromptu assemblages of the friends of liberty or of committees. **** Like

* The reader is referred to a well-written volume of 360 pages, A History of Norwich, Connecticut, from its Settlement in 1660, to January, 1845: by Miss F. M. Caulkins. It is carefully compiled from the town records, old newspapers, and well-authenticated traditions, many of the latter being derived from then living witnesses of the scenes of the Revolution. I am indebted to this valuable little work for much interesting matter connected with Norwich.

** Miss Caulkins, page 40.

***This monument is on the south side of Prospect Street, and stands within a shaded inclosure surrounded by a hedge of prim, upon the estate of Judge Goddard. The obelisk is a single block of granite, and, with the pedestal, is about twenty feet high. The monument was erected by the citizens of Norwich. The foundation-stone was laid by President Jackson, while visiting Norwich during his Eastern tour in 1832. Several small tomb-stones of those of the royal line of Uncas are within the inclosure. The name has now become extinct, the last Uncas having been buried there about the beginning of the present century. A descendant of Uncas, named Mazeon, was buried there in 1827, on which occasion the wife of Judge Goddard (he being absent) invited the remnant of the Mohegan tribe, then numbering about sixty, to partake of a cold collation.

**** On the 7th of April, 1765, on the receipt of intelligence of the passage of the Stamp Act, the people, in town-meeting assembled, voted unanimously "that the town clerk shall proceed in his office as usual, and the town will save him harmless from all damage that he may sustain thereby."

Norwich Liberty Tree.--Celebration under it.--Honors to John Wilkes.-- Patriotic Town Meeting.--Benevolence of the People.

599those of Boston, the people of Norwich had their Liberty Tree, under which public meetings were held in opposition to the Stamp Act. It was brought from the forest, and erected in the center of the open plain. Ingersoll, the stamp distributor for Connecticut, was burned in effigy upon the high hill overlooking the plain, just above the site of the old meetinghouse. The repeal of the Stamp Act was celebrated, on the first anniversary of the event, on the 18th of March, 1767, with great festivity, under Liberty Tree, which was decked with standards and appropriate devices, and crowned with a Phrygian cap. A tent, or booth, was erected under it, called a pavilion. Here, almost daily, people assembled to hear news and encourage each other in the determination to resist every kind of oppression. *

The inhabitants of Norwich entered heartily into the scheme of non- importation from Great Britain. The pledge was generally signed, and almost all were strictly faithful. On the 7th of June, 1768, an entertainment was given at Peck's tavern, ** to celebrate the election of John Wilkes to a seat in Parliament. Every thing was arranged in excellent taste. All the table furniture, such as plates, bowls, tureens, tumblers, and napkins, were marked "45," the number of the North Briton, Wilkes's paper, that drew down upon his head the ire of the British government, and, consequently, as a persecuted patriot, obtained for him a seat in the House of Commons. The Tree of Liberty was decorated with new banners and devices, among which was a flag inscribed "No. 45, Wilkes and Liberty." Another celebration was held there in September, avowedly to ridicule the commissioners of customs at Boston; and in various ways the people manifested their defiance of British power, where it wielded instruments of oppression. The margins of their public records, for a series of years, were emblazoned with the words Liberty! Liberty! Liberty! Every man was a self-constituted member of the committee of vigilance, and none could drink tea, or use other proscribed articles with impunity. Some who offended were forced publicly to recant. The conduct of such persons was under the special inspection of the Sons of Liberty, of whom Captain Joseph Trumbull, eldest son of Governor Trumbull, was one of the most active.

On the 6th of June, 1774, a town meeting was held in Norwich, to take into consideration "the melancholy state of affairs." Honorable Jabez Huntington was chosen moderator; a series of resolutions, drawn up by Captain Trumbull and Samuel Huntington, were adopted, *** and a standing committee of correspondence, composed of some of the leading pa triots of the town, was appointed. **** The people of Boston, in their distress, consequent upon the closing of the port, (a) received substantial testimonies of the sympathy of those of a June 1 Norwich; (v) and when the rumor which went abroad that the British soldiers were massacring the people of Boston, reached Norwich, a multitude gathered around the September 3, 1774 Liberty Tree, and the next morning (Sunday) four hundred and sixty-four men,

* Miss Caulkins, page 208.

** This building, though somewhat altered, is yet standing on one side of the green in the upper town, not far from the court-house. Belah Peek, Esq., son of the proprietor of the house at that time, and then a half-grown boy, was yet living. I met him upon the road, when returning from Lebanon, sitting in his wagon as erect as most men at seventy. He died toward the close of 1850, in the ninety-fifth year of his age.

*** One of these resolutions, looking favorably to a general Congress, was as follows: "That we will, to the utmost of our abilities, assert and defend the liberties and immunities of British America; and that we will co-operate with our other brethren, in this and the other colonics, in such reasonable measures as shall, in general Congress or otherwise, be judged most proper to release us from burdens we now feel, and secure from greater evils we fear will follow from the principles adopted by the British Parliament respecting the town of Boston." This was one of the earliest movements in the colonics favorable to a general Congress.

**** The committee consisted of Captain Jedediah Huntington, C. Leffingwell, Dr. Theophilus Rogers, Captain William Hubbard, and Captain Joseph Trumbull. Captain Huntington was afterward aid to General Washington, and brigadier general in the Continental army.

*( v ) The inhabitants of Norwich sent cash, wheat, corn, and a flock of three hundred and ninety sheep, for the relief of the suffering poor of Boston. This liberality was greatly applauded in the public prints of the day. A further instance of the liberal devotion of the people of Norwich to the cause may be mentioned. The Connecticut Gazette for January, 1778, published at New London, says, "On the last Sabbath of December, 1777, a contribution was taken up in the several parishes of Norwich for the benefit of the officer and soldiers who belonged to said town, when they collected 386 pairs of stockings, 227 pairs of shoes, 118 shirts, 78 jackets, 48 pairs of overalls, 208 pairs of mittens, 11 buff caps, 15 pairs of breeches, 9 coats, 22 rifle frocks, 19 handkerchiefs, and £258 17s. 8d. [about $1295], which was forwarded to the army. Also collected a quantity of pork, cheese, wheat, rye, Indian corn, sugar, rice, flax, wood, &c., &c., to be distributed to the needy families of the officers and soldiers. The whole amounted to the sum of £1400," or about $7000.

March of Militia to Boston.--General Huntington.--The French Officers.-- Benjamin Huntington.

600a large proportion of them well mounted, started for the oppressed city, under Major John Durkee. The report proved to be false; but the following year, when the skirmish at Lexington inflamed all Anglo- America, a large proportion of these same men hastened to Cambridge, and Durkee and others were in the battle of Bunker Hill. * A company of one hundred choice men, raised by Durkee in Norwich, marched thither under Lieutenant Joshua Huntington, and were annexed to Putnam's brigade.

In the spring of 1776, the Continental army that left Boston for New York after the British evacuation of the former place, passed through Norwich to embark for New London.

There General Washington met Governor Trumbull by appointment, and both dined together at the table of Colonel Jedediah Huntington. The dwelling of that active patriot, pictured in the engraving, is well preserved in its original character. It is in the present possession of his nieces, the daughters of Colonel Ebenezer Huntington. Its roof at different times sheltered several of the foreign officers--La Fayette, Steuben, Pulaski, the Duke de Lauzun, and the Marquis de Chastellux.

While Lauzun's legion was cantoned at Lebanon, in the winter of 1780-- 81, General Huntington invited that nobleman and his officers to a banquet at his house. The noble and brilliant appearance of these men when they rode into the town attracted great attention. After the dinner was over, the whole party went into the yard, now adorned with flowering shrubs, and gave three loud huzzas for liberty *

Our vehicle is at the door; let us take the reins and depart for Lebanon.

Before leaving Norwich, we called upon Jonathan G. W. Trumbull, Esq., a grandson of the patriot governor of that name, who kindly furnished us with a letter of introduction to the oldest inhabitant" of Lebanon, Captain Hubbard Dutton. Mr. Trumbull is a lineal descendant, through his grandmother, of the Reverend John Robinson, the Puritan divine whose flock were the Pilgrim Fathers. Among other relies, Mr. Trumbull showed us a

* This was the Colonel Durkee engaged in affairs at Wyoming, and known as "the bold Bean Hiller", See note, page 345,

** This pleasant mansion is situated in Old Norwich, or "up town," a few rods eastward of that of Governor Huntington. The original owner, Jedediah Huntington, was one of five sons of General Jabez Huntington, who were in the Continental army 'at different times during the war. He was born at Norwich, August 15, 1745, and graduated at Harvard College in 1763. The address which he delivered upon that occasion was "the first English oration ever heard upon the commencement boards" of that institution. When opposition to British rule began, young Huntington was aroused, and at once espoused the cause of the colonists. He was an active Son of Liberty, and was one of the earliest captains of militia in his native town. He raised a regiment, and with it joined the Continental army in 1775. In 1777, Congress commissioned him a brigadier, which office he held until the close of the war. Washington highly esteemed him, and appointed him collector of the port of New London in 1789. He resided there until his death, which occurred on the 25th of September, 1818. His first wife was daughter of Governor Trumbull. She died at Dedham, while her husband was on his way to Cambridge, in 1775. His second wife was sister to the late Bishop Moore of Virginia. She died in 1831. Benjamin Huntington, of another family, was the first mayor of Norwich, and was a representative in the Continental Congress from 1784 to 1787 inclusive; also during Washington's administration. His son Benjamin married a daughter of General Jedediah Huntington, who became the mother of Huntington, our distinguished artist. He was at one time one of the most eminent of New York brokers. He died on the 3d of August, 1850, at the age of seventy- three years.

A precious Heir-loom.--The Road to Lebanon.--Bozrah and Fitchville.-- Situation of Lebanon.--Governor Trumbull

601silver cup, with a richly-wrought handle, and bearing the initials I. R., which belonged to Mr. Robinson. It is properly preserved as a most precious heir-loom.

The road to Lebanon passes through a broken but fertile country, every where thoroughly cultivated where tillage is practicable. We passed through Old Norwich and over Bean Hill, but, mistaking the Colchester road for the Lebanon turnpike, found ourselves at Fitchville, in Bozrah, nearly two miles from our most direct way. * The ride along the high banks of the winding Yantic, coursing in a deep bed among stately trees, was ample compensation for the loss of time, and we had no inclination to chide the road-fork that deceived us.

The gentle hills rise one above another toward Lebanon, until they are lost in a high, rolling plain, on which the old town is situated. The land throughout that region has ever been held in the highest estimation for its fertility; and around Lebanon, the focus of Connecticut patriotism and vigilance during the Revolution, cluster associations of the deepest interest. Here was the residence of Governor Trumbull, whose name and deeds are worthily associated with those of Washington, on the records of our war for independence.

No man during that contest acted with more

* The origin of this name is a little amusing. A plain man, who lived where Fitchville now is, was not remarkable for quoting Scripture correctly. On one occasion, in quoting the passage from Isaiah, "Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah," &c., he stated that the Prophet Bozrah said thus and so. He was afterward called the Prophet, and the place of his residence Bozrah. When the town was incorporated, that name was given to it.--Barber, 302.

** Jonathan Trumbull was born at Lebanon, Connecticut, on the 10th of June (O. S.), 1710. He graduated at Harvard in 1727, and commenced the study of theology with the Reverend Solomon Williams, of Lebanon. The death of an elder brother, who was engaged in a mercantile business with his father at Lebanon, caused him to become a merchant instead of a clergyman. At the age of twenty-three he was elected a member of the Connecticut Assembly, where his business capacities raised him rapidly in public estimation. He was elected lieutenant governor of the colony in 1766, and by virtue of that office became chief justice of the Superior Court. His first bold step in opposition to Great Britain was in refusing to take the oath enjoined in 1768, which was an almost unconditional submission to all the power claimed by Parliament; nor would he be present when others, more timorous than he, took it. Because of his firmness he was chosen governor of the colony in 1769, and he has the proud distinction of being the only colonial governor at the commencement of the Revolution who espoused the cause of the colonies. He was considered the whin; leader in New England while the Adamses and Hancock were legislating in the Continental Congress; and during the whole contest no man was more implicitly relied upon as a firm, consistent, and active friend of liberty than Governor Trumbull. "General Washington relied on him," says Sparks, "as one of his main pillars of support." In 1783, when peace for the colonies returned, Governor Trumbull, then seventy-three years old, declined a re-election to the office of governor, which he had held fourteen consecutive years. He retired from public life, but did not live long to enjoy the quiet he so much coveted in the bosom of his family. He was seized with a malignant fever in August, 1785, and on the 17th of that month died. His son was afterward Governor of Connecticut, and in 1849 his grandson filled that responsible office. The Marquis de Chastellux, who came to America with Rochambeau in 1780, has left behind him a charming, life- like description of his sojourn here. He thus pleasantly alludes to Governor Trumbull. "I have already painted Governor Trumbull. At present you have only to represent to yourself this little old man, in the antique dress of the first settlers in this colony, approaching a table surrounded by twenty huzzar officers, and, without either disconcerting himself or losing any thing of his formal stiffness, pronouncing, in a loud voice, a long prayer in the form of a benedicite. Let it not be imagined that he excites the laughter of his auditors; they are too well trained; you must, on the contrary, figure to yourself twenty Amens, issuing at once from the midst of forty mustaches, and you will have some idea of the little scene."--Travels, i., 458.

Character and Services of Governor Trumbull.--His Dwelling and War Office.--Settlement of Lebanon.--Lauzun.

602energy, or plied his talents and resources with more industry than he. During the whole war, the responsible duties and services of governor of the state rested upon him, yet he performed immense labors in other departments of the field to which he was called, notwithstanding he was more than threescore years old.

His correspondence was very extensive, and he sat in council no less than one thousand days during the war. Washington never applied to him for supplies of any kind without receiving an immediate response. It is a fact worthy of record that, although Connecticut can not point to any brilliant battle field within her borders, she furnished for that war more troops and supplies than any other colony, except Massachusetts. If the old war office of Governor Trumbull, yet standing at Lebanon, had a tongue to speak, it might tell of many a scheme elaborated there, which, in its consummation, may have been the act that turned the scale of destiny in favor of the Americans. There the illustrious owner discussed with Washington, Franklin, Rochambeau, and others, the gravest questions which then occupied the attention of two hemispheres.

Such a spot is like consecrated ground, and the shoes of irreverence should never press the green-sward around it.

We dined at the upper end of the village, and then proceeded to visit the relics of the era of the Revolution which remain. I have called Lebanon an old town. A portion of the tract was pur chased about 1698, of Owaneko, the son of Uncas There were several tracts purchased by the whites in the vicinity, all of which were united in the year 1700. The village is situated principally upon a street thirty rods wide, and more than a mile in length. Several well-built houses erected before or about the time of the Revolution yet remain. Among them is that of Governor Trumbull. It is a substantial frame building, and is now (1849) owned by Mrs. Eunice Mason, a widow eighty years of age. We were denied the pleasure of an interview with her on account of her feeble health. The house is on the west side of the street, near the road running westward to Colchester. Sixty or seventy rods southwest from the Trumbull House is the "barrack lot," the place where Lauzun's legion of cavalry were encamped.2 His corps consisted of about five hundred horsemen. Rocham-

* This was the building in which Governor Trumbull transacted his public business. It formerly stood near his dwelling, but is now several rods northwest of it, on the same side of the Common. For many years it was occupied as a post-office. This sketch was taken from the open field in the rear, looking north.

** The Duke de Lauzun was an accomplished, but exceedingly voluptuous and unprincipled man. His personal beauty, talents, wit, wealth, and bravery were passports to the friendship of men who abhorred his profligacy. Why he espoused the cause of the Americans it is not easy to determine, unless, surfeited with sensual indulgences, he was desirous of engaging in new excitements, where he might regain the waning vigor of his body. His conduct here made him very popular. After his return to Europe he became acquainted with Talleyrand, and accompanied him on a mission to England in 1792. There one of his familiar associates was the Prince of Wales, afterward George IV. On the death of his uncle, the Duke de Biron, Lauzun succeeded to the title. He became involved in the stormy movements of the French Revolution, and being found guilty of secretly favoring the Vendeans, was executed on the 31st of December, 1793. Two officers in his regiment in America, named Dillon, brothers, also suffered death by the guillotine.

The Alden Tavern.--General Prescott horsewhipped there.--The Williams House.--The Trumbull Vault

603beau was there, with five regiments, for about three weeks, in the winter of 1780, and while he tarried Washington arrived, stayed a few days, and reviewed the French troops. A French soldier was shot for desertion, a few rods north of the "barrack lot."

Nearly opposite the Trumbull mansion is the old tavern kept during the Revolution by Captain Alden. It is famous generally as a place of rendezvous of the French officers, for drinking and playing, and more particularly as the house where General Prescott, the British officer who was captured on Rhode Island, stopped to dine, while on his way, under an escort, to Washington's camp, and received a horsewhipping from the landlord. *

Of the remarkable circumstances of Prescott's capture I shall hereafter write. Mr. Wattles, the present proprietor of the old tavern, is a descendant of Captain Alden. While making the annexed sketch we were joined by Captain Dutton, the venerable citizen to whom we bore a letter of introduction, but who was absent from home when we arrived in the village. He has a distinct recollection of all the revolutionary events about Lebanon and vicinity, and could direct us to every spot made memorable by those events.

On the corner of the road leading from Lebanon to Windham is the house once occupied by William Williams, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. It has been slightly modified, but its general appearance is the same as it was during the Revolution Its present occupant is Mr. Sim-eon Peckam. A biographical sketch of Mr. Williams will be found among those of the Signers, in another portion of this work, and the most prominent events of his life are also noticed in his epitaph, given on the next page.

We will pass on to the sacred inclosure containing the vault of the Trumbull family. It is in a cemetery a little eastward of the village, and near the Windham Road--a cemetery which probably contains the remains of more distinguished men of the Revolution than any other in the country. In the Trumbull tomb are the remains of two governors of Connecticut, the first commissary general of the United States, and a signer of the Declaration of Independence.

* While at table, Mrs. Alden brought on a dish of succotash (boiled beans and corn), a dish much valued in America. Prescott, unused to such food, exclaimed indignantly, "What! do you treat mo with the food of hogs?" and taking the dish from the table, strewed the contents over the floor. Captain Alden, being informed of this, soon entered With a horsewhip, and flogged the general severely. After Prescott was exchanged and restored to his command on Rhode Island, the inhabitants of Newport deputed William Rotch, Dr. Tupper, and Timothy Folger to negotiate some concerns with him in behalf of the town. They were for some time refused admittance to his presence, but the doctor and Folger finally entered the room. Prescott stormed with great violence, until Folger was compelled to withdraw. After the doctor had announced his business, and Prescott had become calm, the general said, "Was not my treatment to Folger very uncivil?" "Yes," replied the doctor. '"Then," said Prescott, "I will tell you the reason; he looked so much like a d-- d Connecticut man that horsewhipped me, that I could not endure his presence."--Thatcher's Journal, p. 175.

** The marble monument standing in front of the tomb is in memory of William Williams, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and bears the following inscription: "The remains of the Honorable William Williams are deposited in this tomb. Born April 8th, 1731; died the 2d of August, 1811, in the 81st year of his age. A man eminent for his virtues and piety. For more than 50 years he was constantly employed in public life, and served in many of the most important offices in the gift of his fellow-citizens. During the whole period of the Revolutionary war, he was a firm, steady, and ardent friend of his country, and in the darkest times risked his life and wealth in her defense. In 1776 and 1777 he was a member of the American Congress, and as such signed the Declaration of Independence. His public and private virtues, his piety and benevolence, will long endear his memory to his surviving friends; above all, he was a sincere Christian, and in his last moments placed his hope, with an humble confidence, in his Redeemer. He had the inexpressible satisfaction to look back upon a long, honorable, and well-spent life." On the pedestal upon the top of the tomb are the following inscriptions: "Sacred to the memory of Jonathan Trumbull, Esq., who, unaided by birth or powerful connections, but blessed with a noble and virtuous mind, arrived to the highest station in government. His patriotism and firmness during 50 years' employment in public life, and particularly in the very important part he acted in the American Revolution, as Governor of Connecticut, the faithful page of history will record. Full of years and honors, rich in benevolence, and firm in the faith and hopes of Christianity, he died, August 9, 1785, Ætates 75." "Sacred to the memory of Madam Faith Trumbull, * the amiable lady of Governor Trumbull, born at Duxbury, Mass., A.D. 1718. Happy and beloved in her connubial state, she lived a virtuous, charitable, and Christian life at Lebanon, in Connecticut, and died lamented by numerous friends A.D. 1780, aged 62 years." "Sacred to the memory of Joseph Trumbull, eldest son of Governor Trumbull, and first commissary general of the United States of America; a service to whose perpetual cares and fatigues he fell a sacrifice A.D. 1778, aged 42 years. Full soon, indeed! may his person, his virtues, and even his extensive benevolence be forgotten by his friends and fellow-men. But blessed be God! for the Hope that in his presence he shall be remembered forever." "To the memory of Jonathan Trumbull, Esq., ** late Governor of the State of Connecticut. He was born March 26th, 1740, and died August 7th, 1809, aged 69 years. His remains were deposited with those of his father."

* Her maiden name was Robinson, and she was a lineal descendant of the Reverend Mr. Robinson, pastor at Leyden of many of the Pilgrim Fathers.

** Son of the first governor

Return to Norwich.--Destruction of the Yantic Falls.--Birth-place of Arnold.--Inscription upon the Trumbull Monument.

604The day was waning when I finished my sketches, and bidding Lebanon and its interesting associations adieu, we returned to Norwich, stopping for a few minutes at the Sachem's Burial-ground, on the verge of the city, to delineate the monument of Uncas, printed on page 30.

On the following morning, accompanied by Mr. Williams, and his son in a light dearborn, I proceeded to visit the many points of historic interest within and around Norwich. We went to the plain and the upper town by the road that passes along the margin of the Yantic, to the once romantic falls near the mouth of that river. The natural beauties of this cascade were half hidden and defaced long ago by towering factories; but the chief spoiler was public improvement, which, with pick and powder-blast, hammer and trowel, has digged down the crown of the waterfall, and bridged it by a rail-way viaduct. A curve of a few rods might have spared the beautiful Yantic Falls; but what right has Nature to intrude her charms in the way of the footsteps of Mammon?

I saw at the house of Mr. Trumbull, in Norwich, a fine picture of these romantic falls, painted by the eminent artist John Trumbull, a son of the patriot governor, before a layer of brick or the sound of an ax had desecrated the spot. It was, indeed, a charming scene.

About half way between Norwich, city and the upper town, on the right or south side of the road, was the birth-place of Benedict Arnold, depicted in the annexed engraving. The view is from the road, looking southeast. The house had had some slight additions to its size since Arnold played in its garden in petticoats and bib, yet its general appearance was the same as at that time. Several circumstances bord-

Arnold's early Years.--Attempt to commit Murder.--A Ringleader in Mischief.--His Mother.--Scorching Acrostic.

605ering upon the marvelous, and viewed with a little superstition, gave the house an unpleasant notoriety, and for many years it was untenanted, because it was haunted! by what or whom rumor never deigned to reveal. When I visited it, only two or three rooms were occupied, the others being empty and locked. The room in which Arnold was born, in the southwest corner of the second story, was occupied, and the people seemed to be familiar with the traditions respecting the boyhood of that distinguished man. Arnold was blessed with a mother (Hannah King, of Norwich), who was, says her epitaph, "A pattern of patience, piety, and virtue," but her lessons seem to have been fruitless of good effect upon the headstrong boy. * He was wayward, disobedient, unscrupulous, and violent--traits of character which finally worked his ruin. He even attempted murder while a young man residing at Norwich, by shooting a youthful Frenchman, who paid court to Arnold's sister, Hannah, by whom his love was reciprocated. Young Arnold disliked him, and finding persuasion powerless on the mind of his sister to induce her to break off her engagement with the foreigner, vowed vengeance upon him if he ever caught him in the house again. The opportunity occurred, and Arnold discharged a loaded pistol at him as he escaped from a window, fortunately without effect. The young man left the place forever, and Hannah Arnold lived the life of a maiden. Arnold and the Frenchman afterward met at Honduras They fought a duel, in which the latter was severely wounded.

When a mere boy, Arnold's courage was remarkable, and among his playmates he was a perfect despot. A ringleader in every mischievous sport, he often performed astonishing feats of daring. On a gala-day, he set a field-piece upright, poured powder into it, and dropped from his own hand a firebrand into the muzzle. On another occasion, at the head of a number of boys, he rolled away some valuable casks from a ship-yard at Chelsea, ** to make a thanksgiving bonfire. An officer, sent by the owner to recover them, arrested the casks on their way. The stripling Arnold was enraged, and, taking off his coat upon the spot, dared the constable, a stout man, to fight him! Such was the boyhood of one of the most intrepid generals of our Revolution--such was the early type of the unscrupulous, violent man whose memory is black with the foulest treason. *** We have met him in preceding

* Miss Caulkins publishes the following letter from Mrs. Arnold to Benedict, while he was at school in Canterbury. It exhibits the character of his mother in strong contrast with his own in after life.

*"Norwich, April 12,1754. "Dear Child,--I received yours of the 1st instant, and was glad to hear that you was well. Pray, my dear, let your first concern he to make your peace with God, as it is of all concerns of the greatest importance. Keep a steady watch over your thoughts, words, and actions. Be dutiful to superiors, obliging to equals, and affable to inferiors, if any such there be. Always choose that your companions he your betters, that by their good examples you may learn. "From your affectionate mother, Hannah Arnold. "P.S.--I have sent you 50s. Use it prudently, as you are accountable to God and your father. Your father and aunt join with me in love and service to Mr. Cogswell and lady, and yourself. Your sister is from home."

** Chelsea is the old port of Norwich. The houses cluster chiefly at the mouth of the Shetucket.

*** Oliver Arnold, a cousin of Benedict, and also a resident of Norwich, was the reputed author of the following scorching acrostic, written after the treason of his kinsman. It is bad poetry and worse sentiment.

"Born for a curse to virtue and mankind, Earth's broadest realm ne'er knew so black a mind. Night's sable veil your crimes can never hide, Each one so great, 'twould glut historic tide. Defunct, your cursed memory will live, In all the glare that infamy can give. Curses of ages will attend your name, Traitors alone will glory in your shame. "Almighty vengeance sternly waits to roll Rivers of sulphur on your treacherous soul; Nature looks shuddering back with conscious dread On such a tarnish'd blot as she has made. Let hell receive you riveted in chains, Doom'd to the hottest focus of its flames!"

*** The author of the above had a peculiar talent for making extempore verses. Joel Barlow once met him in a book-store in New Haven, and asked him for a specimen of his talent. Arnold immediately repeated the following:

"You've proved yourself a sinful cre'tur.; You've murder'd Watts and spoil'd the meter, You've tried the Word of God to alter, And for your pains deserve a halter."

*** To understand the witty sarcasm of these lines, it must be remembered that Barlow, at that time, was en joying much notoriety by a publication of a revised and altered edition of Watts's Psalms and Hymns.

Residence of Governor Huntington.--Unpublished Letter written by Washington

606pages in his glorious career as a bold patriot; we shall meet him again presently amid the scenes of his degradation.

Leaving the Arnold House, we rode to the upper town, and halted at the spacious mansion of Charles Spaulding, Esq., formerly the residence of Governor Samuel Huntington, who was also a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and President of Congress. It was considered the finest dwelling in Norwich when occupied by the governor, and now presents an excellent specimen of the architecture of that era. Surrounded by shade- trees and adorned with shrubbery, it is a summer residence to be coveted by those who love spacious rooms and a quiet location. I saw in the possession of Mrs. Spaulding an autograph letter of General Washington, written to Governor Huntington, then President of Congress. It has never been published, and as its purport is of an interesting public nature, I give a copy of it here. *

"Sir.,

"I beg leave to introduce to your excellency Colonel Menonville, deputy adjutant general to the French army. This gentleman, who is charged by his excellency the Count de Rochambeau with matters respecting a contract entered into by Dr. Franklin, in behalf of the United States, for the supply of a quantity of provision, will, through your excellency, lay his business generally before Congress.

"He will also, agreeably to the wishes of Count Rochambeau, make an application for some heavy iron cannon for the use of the works at Newport, which he understands were imported into New Hampshire for the use of the seventy-four gun ship now upon the stocks. The brass artillery at present in them are the artillery of siege, and must be removed should the army remove. If there are such cannon in New Hampshire, and there is no probability of their being soon wanted for the purpose for which they were intended, I think a part of them can not be better applied.

"I recommend Colonel Menonville to your excellency's personal attention as a gentleman of peculiar merit.

"I have the honor to be, with great respect, your excellency's most obedient and humble servant, Geo. Washington.

"His Excellency the President of Congress."

In the rear of the Huntington mansion is the cemetery of the first Congregational society of Norwich. Within it lie the remains of many of the early inhabitants of the town, and

* The only letter written by Washington at this date, and published in his "Life and Writings" by Sparks, was addressed to the Count de Rochambeau, on the subject of an expedition to Penobscot. See Sparks, viii., 8.

Family Vault of Governor Huntington.--Tomb of General Jabcz Huntington.- -His five Sons.--The old Burying-ground

607upon the steep southern slope of a hill is the family vault of Governor Huntington. It is substantially built of brick. On the front, over the entrance, is an inscribed marble tablet. *

The tomb is somewhat dilapidated, and the ground overgrown with brambles. In the southern portion of the cemetery, separated from the others by a stone fence, is the family vault of General Jabez Huntington, ** formerly one of the leading men of Norwich, and peculiarly honored in contributing five hardy sons to the Continental army. Jedediah was a brigadier general; Andrew was a commissary; Joshua and Ebenezer were colonels. Zachariah, the youngest, was still living with his son, Thomas M. Huntington, Esq., a few rods north of the residence of General Jedediah Huntington, pictured on page 32. We called to see him, but indisposition prevented his receiving visitors. He was then nearly eighty-six years of age. He was drafted in the militia in 1780, but saw little of active military service. ***

General Jabez Huntington's tomb, like that of the governor, is constructed of brick, having an inscribed marble tablet in front; ****, unlike the other, it was not covered with brambles, nor was there a blade of grass upon the old graves that surround it. The ground had been burned over to clear it of bushes and briers, and the ancient tomb- stones were shamefully blackened by fire. A few yards from Huntington's tomb is the more humble grave of Diah Manning, who was a drummer in the Continental army. He was the jailer at Norwich during the French Revolution. When Boyer, afterward President of Hayti, was brought to Norwich, among other French prisoners, in 1797, he was treated with great kindness by Manning. The prisoner did not forget it, and when President of St. Domingo, he sent presents to Manning's family.

Leaving the ancient cemetery, we returned to the city, and called upon the almost centenarian Captain Erastus Perkins, residing on Shetucket Street. He is yet living (1850), in the ninety-ninth year of his age. We found him quite strong in body and mind. Many scenes of his early years are still vivid pictures in his memory, and he was able to reproduce them with much interest. He said he distinctly remembered the circumstance of quite a large body of men going from Norwich to New Haven, in 1765, to assist in compelling In-

* The following is a copy of the inscription: "Samuel Huntington, Esq., Governor of Connecticut, having served his fellow-citizens in various important offices, died the 5th day of January, A.D. 1796, in the 65th year of his age." "His consort, Mrs. Martha Huntington, died June 4th, A.D. 1794, in the 57th year of her age." A portrait and biographical sketch of Governor Huntington will be found among those of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, in another part of this work.

** Jabez Huntington was born in Norwich, in 1719. He graduated at Yale College in 1741, and soon afterward entered into mercantile business. At one time himself and sons owned and fitted ont at the port of Norwich twenty vessels for the West India trade. In 1750 he was elected a member of the Connecticut Assembly, was speaker for several years, and also a member of the Council. He lost nearly half his property by the capture of his vessels when the Revolution broke out. He was an ardent patriot, a very active member of the Council of Safety, and held the office of major general in the militia. He died at Norwich in 1786.

*** General Zachariah Huntington is no more. He died in June, 1850, at the age of eighty-eight. Thus one after another of those whom I visited has since gone to rest in the grave.

**** The following is a copy of the inscription: "The family tomb of the Honorable Jabez Huntington, Esq., who died October 5, 1786, aged 67 years."

Captain Perkins.--Old Men of Norwich.--Greenville.--Tory Hill.--Letter of General Williams

608gersoll, the stamp distributor, to resign his office. Captain Perkins went to Roxbury in 1775, and was a sutler in Colonel Huntington's regiment at the time of the battle of Bunker Hill. He was in New York about two years ago, and pointed out the spot

1848 in Wall Street where he stood and saw Washington take the oath as President of the United States, sixty-one years before. For many years Captain Perkins was surveyor of the port of Norwich, and throughout a long life has preserved the esteem of its citizens He is now the honored head of five generations. * A few friends of his youth are still living in Norwich, but most of that generation have long since departed. I was informed by Dr. W. P. Eaton that, the day before I visited Norwich, Captain Perkins and three other men were in his store, whose united ages were three hundred and fifty-seven years--an average of eighty-nine!

Toward evening we strolled up the Shetucket to Greenville, visited the extensive paper and cotton mills there, and returning, crossed, at Chelsea, to the Preston side of the river, and ascended by a winding road to the lofty summit of Tory Hill, so called from the circumstance that it was the confiscated property of a Tory of the Revolution. A magnificent prospect opens to the view from that bald, rocky pinnacle. Southward was visible the dark line of Long Island Sound; on the west, half hidden by groves, rolled the Thames; northward and eastward lay a vast amphitheater of cultivated hills, and the valleys of the Yantic, Quinebaug, and the Shetucket, and at our feet was Norwich city, in crescent form, clasping a high, rocky promontory, like the rich setting of a huge emerald, for in the midst rose the towering Wawekus, yet green with the lingering foliage of summer. A more picturesque scene than this grand observatory affords need not be sought for by the student and lover of nature. There we lingered until the sun went down behind the hills that skirt the great Mohegan Plain, and in the dim twilight we made our way back to the city. Between eight and nine o'clock in the evening I bade my kind friend Mr. Williams ** adieu, and left Nor-

* It is a rather singular faet that Captain Perkins and his wife were both born on Sunday. Their first child was born on Sunday. They had one born on every day of the week--the first on Sunday morning, and the last on Saturday evening; and the head of each of the five generations of which he is the eldest was born on Sunday.

** Mr. Edwin Williams, and his elder brother, Mr. Joseph Williams, of Norwieh, are sons of General Joseph Williams, who, though a young man, was an active patriot during the Revolutionary war. He was a merchant, and, in connection with his partner, William Coit, whose daughter he married, was engaged in fitting out armed vessels from Norwich and New London. In one of these he made a voyage to the West Indies. The vessel was pursued by a British armed ship, and an action ensued in whieh the American vessel was the winner. General Williams spent much of the latter portion of his life in organizing and disciplining the militia of New London county; and until his death he was extensively engaged as a shipping and importing merchant. He died in October, 1800, aged forty- seven years. Mrs. Russell Hubbard, of Norwieh, daughter of General Williams, permitted me to have a copy of a letter of his, written in 1776, from near New York, to his business partner, Mr. Coit. Young Williams had accompanied the Connecticut Continental troops to New York, taking with him a supply of articles adapted to the use of the army. He was then only twenty-three years of age. The letter is interesting, as exhibiting a feature in the business life of the day, and the perfect coolness with which trade was earned on in the midst of the most imminent peril. The letter is written on the blank leaf of an account book.

** "New York, seven miles from the city, September 8,1776. Dear Sir, "Ever since I wrote you by Mr. Walden we have been in confusion. The enemy opened two batteries opposite to our fort at Hell Gate last Saturday evening, and began cannonading and bombarding early on Sunday morning. They fired several shot into the house where we kept our store. We thought it prudent to move a little back, whieh we have done, but have not got clear of their shot; they are flying about us continually. We have about £140 in value on hand, besides money that I have purchased since I came here with what was on hand before. "The enemy are now landing on the island between Hell Gate and the main, and 'tis supposed they mean to make a push for Kingsbridge, and cut us off from the main; but I believe they ean not do it, as we are prepared for them at Kingsbridge; but I make no doubt we shall soon have an engagement. "Colonel Sergeant, Dr. Hamans, and I, have sent what money we have to West Chester by Dr. Hamans's boy. I have sent about £150. It will not do to move our stores till the regiment is obliged to go, as they can not do without some necessaries here.

New London.--Its Settlement Fortifications.--The Harbor.--Revolutionary Movements.

609wich, in the cars, for Allyn's Point, seven miles below, whence I embarked for New London, eight miles further down the Thames, arriving there at ten.

New London is pleasantly situated upon a rocky slope on the right bank of the Thames, three miles from Long Island Sound, and one hundred and thirty-four miles eastward of New York city. From the high ground in the rear of the city, whereon many fine residences are built, a very extensive view of the Sound and the surrounding country is obtained Its earliest Indian name was Nameaug; but the first English settlers, John Winthrop and others, called it Pequot, from the people who had inhabited the country on the banks of the Pequot or Thames River. By an act of the Assembly of Connecticut, in March, 1658, it was named New London, to perpetuate in America the title of the capital of England. The river was also named Thames, by the same authority and for a similar reason. The harbor is one of the best in the United States. It is commanded by forts Griswold and Trumbull, situated, the former upon its east bank, at Groton, and the latter upon the west. The fortifications are upon the sites of those of the same name which were erected there in the time of the Revolution.

New London and Norwich were intimately associated in all political matters when the controversy with Great Britain arose. The latter, included within New London county, was regarded as the chief place; while the former, being the port of entry, became the point of most importance when British fleets and armies came to subdue the Americans. From an early period the harbor of New London was a favorite resort lor vessels navigating the Sound, on account of the depth of water and its sheltered position. Here the brigantines and other vessels of the famous buccaneers sometimes sought shelter from storms; and it is believed that therein lay the vessel of the notorious Captain Kidd about the time when his treasures were concealed on Gardiner's Island, on the opposite side of the Sound. Great efforts were made by the commanders of British ships to obtain possession of the city and harbor during the Revolution, and for a long time a fleet of some thirty vessels hovered along the coast in the vicinage, chiefly in Gardiner's Bay and the neighborhood of Fisher's Island. But the vigilant authorities and people of Connecticut kept them at bay. From the time of the Bunker Hill battle until the town was burned by British troops, headed by the then traitor, Benedict September c, Arnold, a strong military force was kept there, and every attention was paid to 1781fortifying the harbor.

In 1774 the people of New London held a town meeting, and passed strong resolutions in reference to the oppressive acts of the British Parliament. After expressing their sincere loyalty to the king, they resolved that "the cause of Boston is the common cause of all the North American colonies that a union of all the colonies was of the greatest importance; that they earnestly wished for, and would promote, the assembling

* "I shall send Isaac * out to-day. If we are taken or killed, you can send for the money I have sent out. I would not have this stop your sending the goods I wrote for, as far as it will do to come by water. "From your humble servant, "Joseph Williams. "P.S.--Commandant Serjeant tells me he has just received intelligence that our Congress has appointed a committee to wait on Lord Howe." **

* He was a brother of the writer of the letter, and was then about fifteen vears old. He served his country during a greater portion of the war, and was finally captured by the English and pressed into their naval service, in which he lost a leg. So great was his hatred of the English, that he engaged in the French marine service during the French Revolution, in consequence of which he was tried for violating the United States laws of neutrality, was found guilty, and fined and imprisoned. He died a Preston, when about eighty years of age. General Williams had two other brothers in the Continental army--Frederic, who died or was killed in New York in 1776, and was buried in St. Paul's church-yard; and Benjamin, who lost his life in the Jersey prison-ship, in 1781, at the age of twenty-three.

** The conference of this committee with Lord Howe was held on the 11th of September, 1776, at the house of Colonel Billop yet standing at the southwest end of Staten Island. A drawing of the building will be found on page 609, vol. ii.

Forts Griswold and Trumbull.--Prizes.--Clinton's Designs.--Arnold's Expedition.--Naval Force of Connecticut.

610of a general Congress; and that they would religiously observe and abide by the resolves of such a body. They also appointed a committee of correspondence for the town. *

In 1775 the erection of two forts for the defense of the harbor of New London was begun, one upon the rocky extremity of a peninsula on the west side of the Thames, about a mile below the city, and the other upon Groton Hill, on the opposite side of the harbor. The former, when completed, was called Fort Trumbull, and the latter Fort Griswold. Several vessels of the little naval armament of Connecticut were fitted out at New London; and into that port a number of prizes captured by American cruisers were taken, and their cargoes disposed of. ** In 1777, a frigate of thirty-six guns, ordered by the Continental Congress to be built in Connecticut, was constructed in the Thames, between New London and Norwich, under the direction of Captain Joshua Huntington. Several small armed vessels on private account sailed from this port, and greatly annoyed the enemy upon the coast, capturing their provision vessels, and injuring transports that happened to be separated from convoys. These things so irritated the British commanders here, that New London was marked for special vengeance, and Benedict Arnold was the chosen instrument to execute it.

I have already alluded to the junction of the American and French armies upon the Hudson, in the summer of 1781, and their departure for Virginia--the original design of attacking New York city having been abandoned, in consequence of the reception, by Clinton, of re- enforcements from abroad, and the intelligence that the Count de Grasse might not be expected from the West Indies in time for such an operation. **** When Sir Henry Clinton be came certain of the destination of the allied armies, and perceived that they were too far on their way for him to hope to overtake them in pursuit, he dispatched Arnold, who had just returned from a predatory expedition in Virginia, to make like demonstrations upon the New England coast. Clinton's hoped- for result of this measure was to deter Washington from his purpose of pushing southward, or, at least, to make him weaken his army by sending back detachments for the defense of the New England frontier upon the Sound. But he failed to effect his purpose, and the expedition of Arnold was fruitful only of misery for a few inhabitants, and of abundant disgrace and contumely for the perpetrators of the outrage.

At daybreak on the morning of the 6th of September, 1781, a British fleet, under Captain Beasly, consisting of twenty-four sail, bearing a considerable land and marine force under the general command of Benedict Arnold, appeared off the harbor of New London, having left the eastern end of Long Island the evening previous. A large proportion of the land forces consisted of Tories and some Hessians, the instruments employed when any thing cruel

* This committee consisted of Richard Law, Gurdon Salstonstall, Nathaniel Shaw, Jr., Samuel H. Parsons, and Guy Richards. The little village of Groton, opposite, also held a town meeting the week previous, and, after passing similar resolutions, appointed a committee of correspondence.--See Hinman's Historical Collections, p. 52-56.

** This little sketch shows the relative position of the forts. Fort Trumbull is seen on the left of the picture, and Fort Griswold, with the Groton Monument, is on the extreme right.

*** The following are the names of the war-vessels in the service of the State of Connecticut during the Revolution: Brigs Minerva, American, Silliman; ship Oliver Cromwell; frigates Trumbull, Bourbon; schooners Spy, Defense; sloops Dolphin, Mifflin, Resistance, Schuyler, Stark, Young Cromwell, Confederacy. Count de Grasse, Tiger, Alliance, Phoenix; and row-galleys Shark, Whiting, Crane, The Guilford, New Defense, Putnam, and Revenge.

**** See page 436, vol. i.

Landing of the Enemy.--March toward New London.--Destruction of the Town.--Property destroyed. "Fire Lands."

611was to be performed. * They landed in two divisions of about eight hundred each: one on the east or Groton side of the Thames, commanded by Lieutenant-colonel Eyre, and the other on the New London side, led by the traitor general, who debarked in the cove at Brown's Farm, near the light-house.

The militia hastened in small parties to oppose them, but were too few to produce much effect other than wounding some of the enemy on their march toward the town. The advance battery, situated about half way between Fort Trumbull and the light-house, in which were eight pieces of cannon, as well as the fort itself, was too feebly manned to offer resistance, and the troops of each evacuated, and crossed over to the stronger post of Fort Griswold, on Groton Hill. The city was thus left exposed to the enemy, whose great weapon of destruction was the torch. First, the stores upon the wharves were set on fire, and then the dwellings on Mill Cove were consumed. Nearly the whole town was laid in ashes, and several vessels were burned. *** Many inhabitants in comfortable circumstances were now houseless and wanderers, reduced to absolute beggary. None were permitted to save their furniture, and the soldiery were allowed free scope for brutality and plunder. It is said that Arnold stood in the belfry of a church,

* The division under Arnold consisted of the 38th regiment of regulars, the Loyal Americans, the American Legion, refugees, and a detachment of fifty Yagers. Colonel Eyre's was composed of the 40th and 54th regiments, the third battalion of Jersey volunteers, and a detachment of Yagers and artillery.

** This sketch is from the west side of the cove in which the troops under Arnold landed. In the distance, on the extreme right, is the point where the division under Eyre debarked, and near the center is seen the monument on Groton Hill, near Fort Griswold. The shores of the cove are sandy, but the projections which form them are bold promontories of granite rock.

*** The buildings burned in this expedition were 65 dwelling-houses containing 97 families, 31 stores, 18 shops, 20 barns, and 9 public and other buildings, among which were the court-house, jail, and church; in all 143. Fifteen vessels with the effects of the inhabitants escaped up the river. The value of propel ty destroyed was estimated at $485,980. This was the estimate of the committee which was appointed by the General Assembly of Connecticut, after the war, to ascertain the amount of loss sustained by the several towns in the state by conflagrations during the predatory inroads of the enemy. In 1793, the Assembly granted to the sufferers five hundred acres of land, lying within the precincts of the Western Reserve, in Ohio, and now included in the counties of Huron and Erie, and a small part of Ottawa. This tract is known as the "Fire Lands." I have noticed on page 371, vol. i., the settlement, by commissioners, who met at Trenton in 1782, of the question of jurisdiction over the Valley of Wyoming, and that it was decided in favor of Pennsylvania. Although Connecticut acquiesced in that decision, that state still claimed a right to the country westward of Pennsylvania, in extent north and south equal to its own limits in that direction and indefinitely westward, according to the letter of its charter. Connecticut, however, waived this claim by a sort of compromise, in 1786, by ceding to the United States all the lands thus included within its charter limits westward of Pennsylvania, except the reservation of a tract one hundred and twenty miles in length, adjoining that state. This tract w'as called the Western Reserve. After giving the half million of acres to the sufferers of Danbury, Fairfield, Norwalk, New Haven, and New London, the remainder was sold in 1795, and the proceeds were used as a school fund, for the support of schools in the state. Congress confirmed the title of Connecticut to the Reserve in 1800. It now forms a part of the State of Ohio, and is settled chiefly by New England people.

Infamy of Arnold.--Attack on Fort Griswold.--Its Defense and Capture.-- Murder of Colonel Ledyard.

612while the town was burning, and looked upon the scene with the apparent satisfaction of a Nero. Had he been content to be a traitor merely, the extenuating circumstances that have been alleged in connection with his treason might have left a feeling of commiseration in the bosoms of the American people; but this murderous expedition against the neighbors of his childhood and youth, and the wanton destruction of a thriving town, almost in sight of the spire of the church wherein he was baptized, present an act of malice too flagrant to be overlooked even by "meek-eyed pity" or loving charity. It was his last prominent blow against his country, and was such a climax to his treachery, that Britons, who "accepted the treason, but despised the traitor," shunned him as a monster of wickedness.

When the enemy landed, alarm-guns were fired; and before noon, while the town was burning, the militia collected in large numbers. Perceiving his peril, Arnold hastily retreated to his boats, closely pursued by the armed inhabitants. Five of the enemy were killed, and about twenty wounded. The Americans lost four killed, and ten or twelve wounded, some of them mortally.

When Fort Trumbull was evacuated, Arnold sent an order to Lieutenant- colonel Eyre to take immediate possession of Fort Griswold, in order to prevent the American shipping from leaving the harbor and sailing up the river. The militia hastily collected for the defense of the fort to the number of one hundred and fifty-seven--so hastily that many of them were destitute of weapons. Colonel William Ledyard was the commander of the fortress. The enemy approached cautiously through the woods in the rear, and captured a small advanced battery. Colonel Eyre then sent Captain Beckwith, with a flag, to demand a surrender of the fort, which was peremptorily refused. * An assault was begun; the American flag on the southwest bastion was shot down, and an obstinate battle of about forty minutes ensued, during which the British were repulsed, and were on the point of fleeing back to their shipping. The attack was made on three sides, the fort being square, with flanks. There was a battery between the fort and the river, but the Americans could spare no men to work it. The enemy displayed great coolness and bravery in forcing the pickets, making their way into the fosse, and scaling the revetment, in the face of a severe fire from the little garrison. When a sufficient number had obtained entrance thus far, they forced their way through the feebly- manned embrasures, and decided the conflict with bayonets, after a desperate struggle with "the handful of determined patriots, many of whom were armed only with pikes. The fort was surrendered unconditionally. Colonel Eyre was wounded near the works, and died within twelve hours afterward on ship-board. Major Montgomery was pierced through with a spear, in the hands of a negro, and killed as he mounted the parapet, and the command devolved upon Major Bromfield. The whole loss of the British was two commissioned officers and forty-six privates killed, and eight officers (most of whom afterward died), with one hundred and thirty-nine non-commissioned officers and privates, wounded. The Americans had not more than a dozen killed before the enemy carried the fort. When that was effected, Colonel Ledyard ordered his men to cease firing and to lay down their arms, relying upon the boasted generosity of Britons for the cessation of bloodshed. But instead of British regulars, led by honorable men, his little band was surrounded by wolflike Tories, infernal in their malice, and cruel even to the worst savagism, and also by the hired assassins, the German Yagers. They kept up their fire and bayonet thrusts upon the unarmed patriots, and opening the gates of the fort, let in blood-thirsty men that were without, at the head of whom was Major Bromfield, a New Jersey Loyalist. "Who commands this garrison?" shouted Bromfield, as he entered. Colonel Ledyard, who was standing near, mildly replied, "I did, sir, but you do now," at the same time handing his sword to the victor. The Tory miscreant immediately murdered Ledyard by running him through the body with the weapon he had just surrendered! ** The massacre continued in all parts

* There were several hundreds of the people collected in the vicinity, and an officer had been sent out to obtain re-enforcements. Upon these Colonel Ledyard relied; but the officer became intoxicated, and the expected aid did not arrive.

** Colonel Ledyard was a cousin of John Ledyard, the celebrated traveler, who was a native of Groton

His niece, Fanny, mentioned in the text, was from Southold, Long Island, and was then on a visit at the house of her uncle. The vest worn by Colonel L. on that occasion (as I have already noticed) is preserved in the cabinet of the Connecticut Historical Society.

Cruelties at Fort Griswold.--Fanny Ledyard.--Departure of the Enemy.-- Events in 1813.--Arnold's Dispatches.

613of the fort, until seventy men were killed, and thirty-five mortally or dangerously wounded. * The enemy then plundered the fort and garrison of every thing valuable. Their appetite for slaughter not being appeased, they placed several of the wounded in a baggage-wagon, took it to the brow of the hill on which the fort stands, and sent it down with violence, intending thus to plunge the helpless sufferers into the river. The distance was about one hundred rods, the ground very rough. The jolting caused some of the wounded to expire, while the cries of agony of the survivors were heard across the river, even in the midst of the crackling noise of the burning town! The wagon was arrested in its progress by an apple-tree, and thus the sufferers remained for more than an hour, until their captors stretched them upon the beach, preparatory to embarkation. Thirty-five of them were paroled and carried into a house near by, where they passed the night in great distress, a burning thirst being their chief tormentor. Although there was a pump in a well of fine water within the fort, the wounded were not allowed a drop with which to moisten their tongues, and the first they tasted was on the following morning, when Fanny Ledyard, a niece of the murdered colonel, came, like an angel of mercy, at dawn, with wine, and water, and chocolate. She approached stealthily, for it was uncertain whether the enemy had left. Fortunately, they had sailed during the night, carrying away about forty of the inhabitants prisoners. ** Thus ended the most ignoble and atrocious performance of the enemy during the war, and the intelligence of it nerved the strong arms of the patriots in the conflict at Yorktown, in Virginia, a few weeks later, which resulted in the capture of the British army of the South under Cornwallis.

During the war between the United States and Great Britain, from 1812 to 1815, New London was several times menaced with invasion by the enemy. In May, 1813, as Commodore

Decatur, then in command of the United States, with his prize, the Macedonian, fitted out as an American frigate, was attempting to get to sea, he was chased by a British squadron under Commodore Hardy, and driven into New London, where he was blockaded for some time. On one occasion the town and neighborhood were much alarmed on account of a report that the enemy were about to bombard the place. A considerable military force was stationed there, and preparations were made to repel the invaders. The forts were well garrisoned with United States troops, and the militia turned out in great numbers. The enemy, however, did not attempt an attack, and, becoming wearied of watching Decatur, the British squadron put to sea, soon followed by our gallant commodore. Since that time no event has disturbed the repose or retarded the progress of New London. The whaling business, and other commercial pursuits, have poured wealth into its lap, and spread its pleasant dwellings over more than thrice its ancient area.

The most prominent point of attraction to the visitor at New London is the Groton Monument, on the eastern side of the Thames, which, standing upon high ground, is a conspicuous object from every point of view in the vicinity. I crossed the Thames early on the

* Arnold, in his dispatch to Sir Henry Clinton, gave the impression that the killed were victims of honorable strife. Of course he knew better, for his dispatch was written two days after the event, and every circumstance must have been known by him. Hear him: "I have inclosed a return of the killed and wounded, by which your excellency will observe that our loss, though very considerable, is short of the enemy's, who lost most of their officers, among whom was their commander, Colonel Ledyard. Eighty-five men were found dead in Fort Griswold, and sixty wounded, most of them mortally. Their loss on the opposite side (New London) must have been considerable, but can not be ascertained."

** See Arnold's Dispatch to Sir H. Clinton; Gordon, iii., 249; Sparks's Life of Arnold; The Connecticut Journal, 1781; Narrative of Stephen Hempstead. Mr. Hempstead was a soldier in the garrison at the time of the massacre, and was one of the wounded who were sent down the declivity in the baggage-wagon, suffered during the night, and experienced the loving kindness of Fanny Ledyard in the morning. His narrative was communicated to the Missouri Republican in 1826, at which time he was a resident of that state. Mr. Hempstead was a native of New London, and entered the army in 1775. He was at Dorchester during the siege of Boston, was in the battle of Long Island, and also in the engagement on Harlem Heights, where he had two of his ribs broken by a grape-shot.

The Groton Monument--Inscription upon it--Ascent of its Stair-case.-- View from the Top.

October 12, 1848614 morning after my arrival, and ascended to Fort Griswold, now a dilapidated fortress, without ordnance or garrison, its embankments breaking the regular outline of Groton Hill, now called Mount Ledyard.

A little northward of the fort rises a granite monument, one hundred and twenty-seven feet high, the foundation-stone of which is one hundred and thirty feet above tide-water. It was erected in 1830, in memory of the patriots who fell in the fort in 1781. Its pedestal, twenty-six feet square, rises to the height of about twenty feet, and upon it is reared an obelisk which is twenty-two feet square at the base, and twelve feet at the top. It is ascended within by one hundred and sixty-eight stone steps; and at the top is a strong iron railing for the protection of visitors. Marble tablets with inscriptions are placed upon the pedestal.2 The cost of its erection was eleven thousand dollars, which amount was raised by a lottery authorized by the state for that purpose.

I paid the tribute-money of a "levy," or York shilling, to a tidy little woman living in the stone building seen at the right of the monument, which procured for me the ponderous key of the structure, and, locking myself in, I ascended to the top, with the privilege of gazing and wondering there as long as I pleased. It was a toilsome journey up that winding staircase, for my muscles had scarcely forgotten a similar draught upon their energies at Breed's Hill; but I was comforted by the teachings of the new philosophy that the spiral is the only true ascent to a superior world of light, and beauty, and expansiveness of vision and so I found it, for a most magnificent view burst upon the sight as I made the last upward revolution and stood upon the dizzy height. The broad, cultivated hills and valleys; the forests and groves slightly variegated by the pencil of recent frost; the city and river at my feet, with their busy men and numerous sails; the little villages peeping from behind the hills and woodlands in every direction, and the heaving Sound glittering in the southern horizon, were all basking in the light of the morning sun, whose radiance, from that elevation, seemed brighter than I had ever seen it. It was a charming scene for the student of nature, and yet more charming for the student of the romance of American history. At the

* This is a view from the southwest angle of old Fort Griswold, looking northeast. The embankments of the fort are seen in the foreground; near the figure is the well, the same mentioned by Mr. Hempstead in his narrative; and just beyond this is the old entrance, or sally-port, through which the enemy, under Bromfield, entered the fort.

** Over the entrance of the monument is the following inscription: This Monument was erected under the patronage of the State of Connecticut, A.D. 1830, and in the 55th year of the Independence of the U. S. A., In memory of the brave Patriots who fell in the massacre at Fort Griswold, near this spot, on the 6th of September, A.D. 1781, when the British under the command of the traitor Benedict Arnold, burned the towns of New London and Groton, and spread desolation and woe throughout this region. On the south side of the pedestal, toward the fort, on a large tablet, are the names of the eighty-five persons who were killed in the fort, over which is the following: "Zebulon and Naphtali were a people that jeoparded their lives until the death in the high places of the field.--Judges, 5 chap., 18 verse."

*** See Swedenborg's Views of the Spiritual World, and Revelations of Davis, the clairvoyant.

A Retrospect.--The Pequots.--English Expedition against them.--Attack on their Fort--Pequot Hill.

615base of the monument were the ruined fortifications where patriot blood flowed in abundance; and at a glance might be seen every locality of interest connected with the burning of New London and the massacre at Groton. Here was Fort Griswold; there were Fort Trumbull and the city; and yonder, dwindling to the stature of a chessman, was the lighthouse, by whose beacon the arch-traitor and his murderous bands were guided into the harbor.

Let us turn back two centuries, and what do we behold from this lofty observatory? The Thames is flowing in the midst of an unbroken forest, its bosom rippled only by the zephyr, the waterfowl, or the bark canoe. Here and there above the tree tops curls of blue smoke arise from the wigwams of the savages, and a savory smell of venison and fish comes up from the Groton shore. Around us spreads the broad fair land known as the Pequot country, extending from the Nahantic, on the west, to the dominion of the Narragansets--the Rhode Island line--on the east, and northward it interlocks with that of the Mohegans, where Uncas, the rebel sachem, afterward bore rule. * On yonder hill, a little southeast from our point of view, crowned with the stately oak and thick-leaved maple, is the royal residence of Sassacus, the prince of the Pequots. Haughty and insolent, he scorns every overture of friendship from the whites, and looks with contempt upon the rebellious doings of Uncas. Near by is his strong fort upon the Mystic River, and around him stand seven hundred warriors ready to do his bidding. The English are but a handful, what has he to fear? Much, very much!

It is the season of flowers. The white sails of vessels flutter in Narraganset Bay (now the harbor of Newport), and Captain Mason and seventy-seven well-armed May 1637 men kneel upon their decks in devotion, for it is the morning of the Christian Sabbath. On Tuesday they land. Miantonômoh, the chief sachem, gives them audience, and a free passport through his country. Nor is this all; with two hundred of his tribe, Miantonômoh joins the English on their march of forty miles through the wilderness toward the Mystic River; and the brave Niantics and the rebellious Mohegans, led by Uncas, swell the ranks, until five hundred savage "bowmen and spearmen" are in the train of Captain Mason.

It is a clear moonlight night. Sheltered by huge rocks on the shore of the Mystic sleeps the little invading army, ** while the unsuspecting Pequots in their fort near by are dancing and singing, filled with joy, because they have seen the pinnaces of the English sail by without stopping to do them harm, and believe that the Pale-faces dare not come nigh them. Little do they think that the tiger is already crouching to spring upon his prey! On that high hill, upon the right, is the Pequot fort. *** It is early dawn, and the little army June 5, 1637is pressing on silently up the wooded slope. The Narragansets and Niantics, seized with fear, are lagging, while the eager English and Mohegans rush up to the attack. **** All but a sentinel are in a deep sleep. Too late he cries, "Owanux! Owanux!" "Englishmen! Englishmen!" The mounds are scaled; the entrance is forced; the palisades are

* Uncas was of the royal blood of the Pequots, and a petty sachem under Sassacus. When the English first settled in Connecticut, he was in open rebellion against his prince. To save himself and be revenged on his adversary, he sought and obtained the alliance of the English, and when the Pequot nation was destroyed, Uncas became the powerful chief of that tribe of Pequots called the Mohegans, from the circumstance of their inhabiting the place called Mohegan, now Norwich. The Pequot country comprised the present towns of Waterford, New London, and Montville, on the west side of the Thames, and Groton, Stonington, and North Stonington, on the east of that river. Windham, and a part of Tolland county, on the north, was the Mohegan country.

** These are called Porter's Rocks, and are situated near Portersville, on the west side of the Mystic. They are on the shore, about half a mile south of the residence of Daniel Eldridge.--See Barber's Hist. Coll, of Conn., p. 313.

*** This hill, eight miles northeast from New London, is known at the present day by the name of Pequot Hill. It is a spot of much interest, aside from the commanding view obtained from its summit, as the place where the first regular conflict between the English and the natives of New England took place. Such was the terror which this event infused into the minds of the Indian tribes, that for nearly forty years they refrained from open war with the whites, and the colonies prospered.

**** Sassacus was the terror of the New England coast tribes. A belief that he was in the fort on Pequol Hill was the cause of the fear which seized the Narragansets. "Sassacus is in the fort! Sassacus is all one god!" said Miantonômoh; "nobody can kill him."

Destruction of the Fort.--Terrible Massacre.--Departure of the English.- -Another Invasion.--Destruction of the Pequots.

616broken down; the mattings of the wigwams and the dry bushes and logs of the fort are set on fire, and seven hundred men, women, and children, perish in the flames or by the sword! It is a dreadful sight, this slaughter of the strong, the beautiful, and the innocent; and yet, hear the commander of the assailants impiously exclaiming, "God is above us! He laughs his enemies and the enemies of the English to scorn, making them as a fiery oven. Thus does the Lord judge among the heathen, filling the place with dead bodies!" *

From the other fort near the Pequot (Thames), where dwells Sassacus, three hundred warriors approach with horrid yells and bent bows. But the English are too skillful, and too strongly armed with pike, and gun, and metal corselet, for those bare-limbed warriors, and they are scattered like chaff by the whirlwind of destruction. The English make their way to Groton; and yonder, just in time to receive them, before the remnant of the Pequots can rally and fall upon them, come their vessels around the remote headland. With a fair breeze, many of the English sail for Saybrook, making the air vocal with hymns of praise and thanksgiving. Others, with the Narragansets, march through the wilderness to the Connecticut River, and then, in happy reunion, warriors, soldiers, ministers, and magistrates join in a festival of triumph! **

Stately and sullen sits Sassacus in his wigwam on yonder hill, as the remnant of his warriors gather around him and relate the sad fortunes of the day. They charge the whole terrible event to his haughtiness and misconduct, and tearing their hair, and stamping on the ground, menace him and his with destruction. But hark! the blast of a trumpet startles them; from the head waters of the Mystic come two hundred armed settlers from Massachusetts and Plymouth to seal the doom of the Pequots. Despair takes possession of Sassacus and his followers, and burning their wigwams and destroying their fort, they flee across the Pequot River westward, pursued by the English. What terrible destruction is wrought by the new invaders! Throughout the beautiful country bordering on the Sound wigwams and corn-fields are destroyed, and helpless men, women, and children are put to the sword. With Sassacus at their head, the doomed Pequots fly like deer pursued by hounds, and take shelter in Sasco Swamp, near Fairfield, where they all surrender to the English, except the chief and a few men who escape to the Mohawks. The final blow is struck which annihilated the once powerful Pequots, and the great Sassacus, the last of his royal race in power except Uncas, falls by the hand of an assassin, among the people who opened their protecting arms to receive him. ***

The dark vision of cruelty melts away; smiling fields, and laden orchards, and busy towns, the products of a more enlightened and peaceful Christianity than that of two centuries back, are around me. Russet corn-fields cover the hill--the royal seat of Sassacus--and in the bright harbor where the little English pinnaces, filled with bloody men, were just an-

* See Captain Mason's Brief History of the Pequot War, published in Boston in 1738, from which the principal facts in this narrative are drawn. It makes one shudder to read the blasphemous allusions to the interposition of God in favor of the English which this narrative contains, as if

"The poor Indian, whose untutor'd mind Sees God in clouds or hears him in the wind,"

* was not an object of the care and love of the Deity. Happily, the time is rapidly passing by when men believe that they are doing God service by slaughtering, maiming, or in the least injuring with vengeful feelings any of his creatures.

** The English lost only two men killed and sixteen wounded, while the Indians lost nearly six hundred men and seventy wigwams.

*** The ostensible cause of this destructive war upon the Pequots was the fact that in March of that year, Sassacus, jealous of the English, had sent an expedition against the fort at Saybrook. The fort was attacked, and three soldiers were killed. In April they murdered several men and women at Wethersfield, carried away two girls, and destroyed twenty cows. The English, urged by fear and interest, resolved to chastise them, and terrible indeed was the infliction. "There did not remain a sannup or a squaw, a warrior or a child of the Pequot name. A nation had disappeared in a day!" The Mohegans, under Uncas, then became the most powerful tribe in that region, and soon afterward, as we have seen, they and the Narragansets, who assisted in the destruction of the Pequots, began a series of long and cruel wars against each other.

Mrs. Anna Bailey.--Her Husband at Fort Griswold.--Her Mementoes and her Polities.

617chored, spreads many a sail of peaceful commerce. The sun is near the meridian; let us descend to the earth.

From the monument, after sketching the picture on page 46, I returned to the village of Groton, on the river bank, and visited the patriarch-ess of the place, Mrs. Anna Bailey, familiarly known as "Mother Bailey." Her husband, Captain Elijah Bailey, who died a few weeks previous to my visit, was appointed postmaster of the place by President Jefferson, and held the office until his death, a lapse of forty years. He was a lad about seventeen years old when New London was burned, and was in Fort Griswold just previous to the attack of Colonel Eyre. Young Bailey and a man named Williams were ordered by Led-yard to man a gun at the advanced redoubt, a little southeast of the fort. They were directed, in the event of not being able to maintain their ground, to retreat to the fort. They soon, found it necessary to abandon their piece. Williams fled to the fort and got within; but young Bailey, stopping to spike the gun, lost so much time, that when he knocked at the gate it was close barred, for the enemy were near. He leaped over the fence into a corn- field, and there lay concealed until the battle and massacre in the fort ended. "He was courting me at that very time, boy as he was," said Mrs. Bailey, who related this circumstance to me. She was then a girl six weeks older than her lover, and remembers every event of the "terrible day." I was agreeably surprised on being introduced to Mrs. Bailey, expecting to find a common, decrepit old woman. She sat reading her Bible, and received me with a quiet ease of manner, and a pleasant countenance, where, amid the wrinkles of old age, were lingering traces of youthful beauty. I had been forewarned that, if I wished to find any favor in her sight, I must not exhibit the least hue of Whiggery in politics--a subject which engrosses much of her thoughts and conversation. Her husband had been a Democrat of the old Jefferson school; and she possessed locks of hair, white, sandy, and grizzled, from the heads of Presidents Jackson and Van Buren, and of Colonel Richard M. Johnson, all of whom had honored her house by personal visits. With such precious mementoes, how could she be other than a Democrat? Almost, the first words she uttered on my entrance were, "What are Cass's prospects in New York?" Forewarned, forearmed, I summoned to the support of my conscience all the possibilities in his favor, and told her that Mr. Cass would doubtless be elected President--at any rate, he ought to be. These words unlocked her kind feelings, and I passed an hour very agreeably with her. Her mind was active, and she related, in an interesting manner, many reminiscences of her youth and womanhood, among which was the following, in which she was the chief heroine. When the British squadron which drove Decatur into the harbor of New London, in 1813, menaced the town with bombardment, the military force that manned the forts were deficient in flannel for cannon cartridges. All that could be found in New London was sent to the forts, and a Mr. Latham, a neighbor of Mrs. Bailey, came to her at Groton seeking for more. She started out and collected all the little petticoats of children that she could find in town. "This is not half enough," said Latham, on her return. "You

* While making this sketch, I remarked to Mrs. Bailey (and with sincerity, too) that I saw in her features evidence that Captain Bailey was a man of good taste. She immediately comprehended my meaning and the compliment, and replied, with a coquettish smile, "I was never ashamed of my face, and never mean to be." She lived happily with her husband for seventy years. Since the above was put in type, she has died. Her clothes took fire, and she was burned to death on the 10th of January, 1851, aged about 89

Mrs. Bailey's Patriotism.--Landing-place of Arnold.--Bishop Seabury's Monument.--First Printing in Connecticut

618shall have mine too," said Mrs. B., as she cut with her scissors the string that fastened it, and taking it off, gave it to Latham. He was satisfied, and hastening to Fort Trumbull, that patriotic contribution was soon made into cartridges. "It was a heavy new one, but I didn't care for that," said the old lady, while her blue eyes sparkled at the recollection. "All I wanted was to see it go through the Englishmen's insides!" Some of Decatur's men declared that it was a shame to cut that petticoat into cartridge patterns; they would rather see it fluttering at the mast-head of the United States or Macedonian, as an ensign under which to fight upon the broad ocean! This and other circumstances make Mrs. Bailey a woman of history; and, pleading that excuse, I am sure, if she shall be living when this page shall appear, that she will pardon the liberty I have taken. I told her that the sketch of her which she allowed me to take was intended for publication.

I recrossed the Thames to New London, and after an early dinner rode down to the lighthouse, near which Arnold landed, and made the drawing printed on page 43. Returning along the beach, I sketched the outlines of Fort Trumbull and vicinity, seen on page 42, and toward evening strolled through the two principal burial-grounds of the city. In the ancient one, situated in the north part of the town, lie the remains of many of the first settlers, in the other, lying upon a high slope, westward of the center of the city, is a plain monument of Bishop Seabury, whose name is conspicuous in our Revolutionary annals as that of an unwavering Loyalist. I shall have occasion to notice his abduction from West Chester county, and imprisonment in Connecticut, as well as his general biography, when I write of the events at White Plains.

We will now bid adieu to New London, not forgetting, however, in our parting words, to note the fact so honorable to its name and character, that the first printing-press in Connecticut was established there, according to Barber, forty-five years before printing was executed in any other place in the colony. Thomas Short, who settled in New London in 1709, was the printer, and from his press was issued The Saybrook Platform, ** in 1710, said to be the first book printed in the province. Short died in 1711, and there being no printer in the colony, the Assembly procured Timothy Green, a descendant of Samuel Green, of Cambridge, the first printer in America, to settle at New London. Samuel Green, the publisher of the "Connecticut Gazetteer" until 1845, the oldest newspaper in the state, is a descendant of this colonial printer.

Business demanding my presence at home, I left New London at ten in the evening, in the "Knickerbocker," and arrived in New York at nine the following morning.

* The following is the inscription upon the slab: "Here lieth the body of Samuel Seabury, D.D., bishop of Connecticut and Rhode Island, who departed from this transitory scene February 25th, Anno Domini 1796, in the 68th year of his age, and the 12th of his Episcopal consecration. "Ingenuous without pride, learned without pedantry, good without severity, he was duly qualified to discharge the duties of the Christian and the bishop. In the pulpit he enforced religion; in his conduct he exemplified it. The poor he assisted with his charity; the ignorant he blessed with his instruction. The friend of men, he ever designed their good; the enemy of vice, he ever opposed it. Christian! dost thou aspire to happiness? Seabury has shown the way that leads to it."

** This was a Confession of Faith or Articles of Religion arranged in 1708--Yale College was first established at Saybrook, and fifteen commencements were held there. To educate young men of talents and piety for the ministry was the leading design of the institution. The founders, desirous that the Churches should have a public standard or Confession of Faith, according to which the instruction of the college should be conducted, such articles were arranged and adopted after the commencement at Saybrook in 1708. and from that circumstance were called the Saybrook Platform. The standards of faith of the Congregational and Presbyterian Churches are substantially the same as the Saybrook Platform.

Voyage to Rhode Island.----Stonington.--Arrival at Providence

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