YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. BY ELIAS B. SANFORD. QUI TRANSTULIT SUSTINET. HARTFORD : S. S. SCRANTON AND COMPANY. 1887. Copyright, 1887, By S. S. scranton & 00. Gi44.l6 C^<^. IHr. EAND AVERY COMPANY, ELECTKOTYPERS AND PRINTERS, BOSTON. PEEFACE. "TT has been my endeavor, in writing this book, to tell the -*- story of Connecticut in a way that would be interesting, both to young and old. I trust it will meet the approval of the teachers in our public schools, who have felt the need of a history of the State suitable for use in the classroom, and for general reference ; and I also indulge the hope that it may be helpful in making this history better known in the homes of our Commonwealth. My work has been that of selection rather than discovery. The materials at hand have been so abundant, that I could give but little space to many interesting episodes. By placing notes at the end of the chapters, which I have made short, I have sought to throw light on the text, that would explain matters that might otherwise have been obscure. To those who may think I have given undue attention to the period of the French wars, I would commend the words of Dr. Bushnell, in his "Historical Estimate of Connecti cut," where he says, "We are accustomed to speak of the wars of the Revolution ; but these earlier wars, so little remembered, were far more adventurous, and required stouter endurance." The facts contained in this volume have been gathered from many sources. Besides a large number of town and '^l PKEFACE. county narratives, I have constantly consulted the histories of Trumbull, Hollister, Barber, Atwater, Palfrey, Bancroft, and Lodge. I desire, however, in this connection, to make special mention of the published volumes of the Colonial Records of the State, which have made available the most valuable and exact sources of historical information. Con necticut has been fortunate in the services rendered by J. Hammond Trumbull, LL.D., and Mr. Charles J. Hoadley, in editing these records. It remains for me to express my thanks to those who have so kindly given me personal assistance. I am under great obligation to Mr. VanName, the efficient librarian of Yale University; and Mr. Hoadley, our State librarian, who has called my attention to facts of peculiar interest. Henry Holt & Co. of New York, Brown & Gross of Hartford, the Rev. Edward E. Atwater of New Haven, aud others, have extended favors in the matter of maps and illustrations that are gratefully acknowledged. In conclusion, I make mention, with peculiar feeling, of the kindness of my friend, Mr. Joseph R. French, principal of the Skinner School, New Haven, at whose suggestion this work was undertaken, and who has aided me in many ways during its progress. E. B. SANFORD. Wbstbkook, May 27, 1887. CONTENTS. CHAPTER AHE I. The Indians of Connecticut 11 II. The Fir.st Settlement of Connecticut ... 15 III. The Pequot War 21 IV. First Settlement of New Haven. — Adoption OF Constitutions hy the New Haven and Con necticut Colonies 29 V. The Founding of New Towns. — Trouble with Indi.^ns 36 VI. The Civil and Dojiestic Life of the Early Settlers 40 - VII. The New-England Confederacy. — Death of MlANTONOMO 44 VIII. Troubles with the Dutch and the Indians. — The Purchase of Saybrook. — Farmington in corporated 49 IX. Discovery of an Indian Plot. — Law regarding Tobacco. — New London founded ... 55 X. Uncas and the Narragansetts. — Govebnok Stuyvesant at Hartford. — Norwalk and Middletown settled 59 XL Stamford and Fairfield threatened by the Dutch. — Norwich settled. — John 'Winthrop elected Governor 63 XII. The Story of the Regicide.s . . . . , . (iS XIII. The Union of the New-Haven Colony with Connecticut 75 XIV. Edmund Andros, Governor of New York. — Andros at Saybrook. — King Philip's War . 80 vii Vlll CONTENTS. chapter page XV. Report to the English Board of Trade. — Boundary Troubles. — Demands of Edward Kandolph 87 XVI. Andros assumes Authority. — Hiding of the Charter 93 XVII. Government resumed under the Charter. — Governor Fletcher at Hartfokd . . 07 XVIII. Colonial Prosperity. — Ashurst defends the Charter Rights of the Colony. — Mohegan Controversy . 102 XIX. Public Education. — Yale College founded. — Population and Trade 108 XX. Life of the People 115 XXI. Social Distinctions. — Marriage Customs.- FuNERAfc Services. — Negro Slavery . . 122 XXII. The Religious Life op the People. — Sab bath Observance. — Social Pleasures . . 127 XXIII. The Evolution of the Towns . . . .133 XXIV. Period of the Last French 'Wars, 1714-1748 . 139 XXV. Period of the Last French Wars, 1748-1755 . 148 XXVI. Period of the Last French Wars, 1756-1757 . 156 XXVII. Period of the Last French Wars, 1758 . . 161 XXVIII. Period of the Last French Wars, 1759-1763 . 167 XXIX. Revolt op the People against the Stamp Act 173 XXX. Determination of the People to resist Tax ation. — Boston Port Bill. — Battle of Lex ington. —The Capture of Ticonderoga . 181 XXXI. The Battle of Bunker Hill . . . .188 XXXII. Connecticut Troops at Cambridge. — Invasion of Canada.— Declaration of Independence, 196 XXXIII. Battle of Long Island. — Nathan Hale. — Surrender of Fokt Washington. — Bur- go-yne's Surisender 303 CONTENTS. IX CHAPTER XXXIV. xxxv. XXXVI. XXXVII. XXXVIII. XXXIX. XL. XLI. XLII. XLIII. PAQE Burning of Danbury. — The Fight at Ridge- field. — SuiiRENDER OP FORT MONTGOMERY. — The Encampment at Redding . . .211 Massacre at Wyoming. — British attack New Haven. — Burning of Fairfield and Norwalk 219 Washington at Hartford and Wethers field. — Arnold burns New London. — Massacre at Fort Griswold . . .225 Connecticut at the Close of the Revolu tion. — Jonathan Trumbull. — The Adop tion of the United-States Constitution. — Sale of Western Lands. — Death of Washington 232 Connecticut at the Dawn of the Nine teenth Century. — The War of 1812. — Destruction of Property at Essex. — Bombardment op Stonington. — The Hart- FOUD Convention .... . 240 Adoption of the Present Constitution op Connecticut. — The Growth op Philan thropic Enterprises. — Temperance. — The Anti-slavery Agitation . . . .247 Connecticut in the Civil War, I860 . . 254 Spirit of the People. — Enlistment op Troops. — Capture op Roanoke Island, 1862 261 Battle of Cedar Mountain. — Call fob Troops. — Antietam and Fredericksburg, 1862 264 Battle of Chancellobsville. — Gettysburg. — Poet Hudson. — Andersonville. — Re- enlistment OP Troops, 1863 . . . .269 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XLIV. XLV. XLVL XLVII. XLVIIL XLIX. L. LL LII. LIII. Battle of Drury's Bluff. — Spottsylvania. — Death of Sedgwick. — Battle of Cold Harbor. —Petersburg, 1864 .... 273 Battles op Winchester and Cedar Creek. — Capture op Fort Fisher. — Assault on the Forts near Richmond. — Surrender op Lee. -Close op the War, 1864-65 ..... 278 Era of Industrial Progress .... 284 Connecticut in Literature 296 The Public Schools of Connecticut . . 302 Yale University 309 Wesleyan University ...... 316 Trinity College 319 Connecticut in the Life op the Nation . 322 Boundary-Lines and Physical Geography op Connecticut 329 APPENDIX. The First Constitution of Connecticut .... 335 The Towns, Cities, and Boroughs of Connecticut . 340 Governors of Connecticut 355 Senators from Connecticut in the Congress of the United States 357 Brief Sketches op Connecticut Regiments and their Services in the Civil War 3.58 INDEX 371 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. CHAPTER I. 1614. THE INDIANS OF CONNECTICUT. SOON after Henry Hudson explored the beautiful river that bears his name, Adrian Block, another Dutch navi gator, followed him on a trading-voyage. He had loaded his ship with bear-skins, and was about to sail homeward, when the vessel caught fire, and he was com pelled to land on the island where the city of New York now stands. During the following winter his men built a small yacht ; and in the spring he sailed through Hellgate, and, skirting the shore, discovered the Housatonic, which ne ^ eakk of the seventeenth CENTURY. called the river of Red Hills. From thence he sailed east, and entered the Connec ticut River, which he explored for some distance. He saw parties of Pequots, and found an Indian tribe near the site of Wethersfield, and another just above Hartford. The Dutch traders, for a number of years after this, made fre- 11 12 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1614. quent trips along the shore of the Sound, and carried on a brisk trade with the Indians in furs. They also visited the charming valley through which flowed the river whose Indian narae, Connecticut (Long River) , was to designate the commonwealth, the foundations of which were soon to be laid in this wilderness. The territory included in the present boundaries of the State was, at this time, occupied by small bodies of Indians who were connected with independent tribes that were gen erally hostile to every other.* River Indians ^ was the name given to the Red men who dwelt on the banks of the Con necticut. Very little is known of those who lived in the forests west of the river ; " but the eastern part of the State was the home of two powerful tribes, the Pequots aud the Mohegans. With the exception of the meadows which here and there bordered the larger streams and the shores of the Sound, the hills and valleys were covered with a dense forest growth. The Indians cleared a few places for their hunting-grounds ; and the grass that grew in these spots was burned, with the underbrush of the forests, by fires that were kindled for this purpose, in the autumn. Many of the Indians, living in small collections of wig wams, were accustomed to remove twice a year ; in winter seeking sunny and sheltered spots, and at other seasons visiting the shores of tho Sound and the banks of the larger streams and lakes. Wild animals were numerous in the forests, and birds and water-fowl were abundant. The Indian men were tall, athletic, and graceful in their movements, but lacked endurance. The skins of wild ani mals furnished their dress ; and the chiefs wore costly and beautiful belts of curiously wrought shells, of varied colors. AEROW.UEAD. 1614.J THE INDIANS OF CONNECTICUT. 13 Proud and haughty in bearing, they cherished a cruel aud implacable spirit towards their enemies ; aud, never asking mercy when captured by their foes, they suffered the most excruciating torments with stoi- ^^v. „«s5^ cal composure. When they were ^=^^^^^^^^^^^^ not upon the warpath, they ^^arrows. "^ spent their time in hunting, fish ing, and lazy enjoyment. The women did all the heavy manual labor, turning the sod, planting the corn, and crush ing it, when harvested, with a stone pestle in a hollowed rock. The furniture of the wigwams, besides blankets of skins, consisted of a few cooking-vessels of wood and stone, knives fashioned of shells, aud axes and chisels made of stone. The weapons used in hunting and war fare were wrought with much skil^ and care. Sassafras was the favorite wood for making bows, that were strung with the sinews of the deer or with hempen strings. Reeds from the swamps largely furnished the arrows, that were loaded with pieces of flint, stone, or bone sharpened to a point. Their most cruel weapon, the tomahawk, was a short club of hard wood terminat ing in a heavy knob. Besides fish and game, the natives ate the nuts, roots, and berries which grew wild. canoe. Indian corn was a favorite article of food ; and they also raised the squash, the pump kin, aud the bean. A hoe made of a clam-shell or a moose's shoulder-blade was the only implement they emploj'cd in their work in the field. In fishing they used hooks made HATCUET ANU CLUB. 14 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1614. of the sharpened bones of fishes or birds. Their lines and rude nets were fashioned of the twisted fibres of the dog bane or the sinews of the deer. They cooked their meat by roasting it before a fire on the point of a stick, and also by broiling it on hot coals or stones. Sometimes they boiled it in their vessels of stone. Corn was prepared in several ways ; and, when boiled alone, was called hominy^ and when mixed with beans, succotash. Morally and intellectually, the Indian was degraded and stupid. The ties of famil}* and parental affection were feeble and easily broken. The men were lazy and improvi dent, and the women were the miserable slaves of these brute lords of creation. Altogether, the Indians, whom our fathers found in the wilds of Connecticut, were a low and 1 Indians were nuraerous at 'Sims bury, New Hartford, and Farraington. Along the shore of the Sound, there ' were small tribes; at Guilford, Bran- ford, and New Haven. Near the raouth of the Housatonic River, they built a strong fort as a defence against the Mo hawks. There were two clans in Derby : the one at Paugusset, about four miles below the mouth of the Naugatuck River, erected a strong fort. At Milford and Stratford the Indians were numerous. There were several tribes in Stamford, and two small clans in Norwalk. The neighborhood about Woodbury was a favorite resort of several tribes. The number of Indians in Connecticut at the time of its settlement, was probably about sixteen thousand. 2 River Indians. They were small bands scattered at different points along the river. They suffered frora tbe at tacks of the Mohawks from the West, and the Pequots from the East. For this reason they were anxious to have the English come into the valley. They sent sorae of their number all of the way to Boston to ask for help against the Pequots, and promised to give the English land if they would come and live among thera. This visit called the attention of the colonists for the first time to Con necticut. 3 The Indians in the western part of the State were tributary to the Mo hawks. If they ueglected to pay their tribute, the Mohawks would plunder, destroy, and carry thera away captive. The cry " A Mohawk ! a Mohawk!" was sufBcient to arouse the greatest alarm and fear. After the English came, the In dians in this neighborhood, if they could not take refuge in their forts, would flee into the homes of the settlers;, but the Mohawks would pursue, and sometimes kill them in the presence of the famijy. If the doors were shut, they would not attempt to open them by force ; and they never did the least injury to the Eng Ush. 1631.J FIEST SETTLEMENT OE CONNECTICUT. 15 CHAPTER II. 1631-1636. THE FIRST SETTLEMENT OF CONNECTICUT. TOURING the year 1631, eleven years after the landing of -I^ the Pilgrims, an Indian sachem visited the governors of the Plymouth and Massachusetts colonies, and urged them to send Englishmen to commence settlements in the valley of the Connecticut. Without' making any promises. Governor Winslow of Plymouth was so much interested in the description which the sachem gave of the country, watered by this beautiful river, that he soon afterwards visited it. In the following year, other parties from Massachusetts made a more extended exploration of the valley. Previous to this, the Dutch had been satisfied to carry on their trade with the Indians without takiug formal possession of any land. When they saw that the English were proposing to do this, they sent a company of men to build a fort, named "Good Hope," at Suckiag (Hartford), and also arranged for the purchase of the land along the river. By this time the Pilgrim pioneers were ready to begin their settlement in the valley. Having prepared the frame of a house, they put it on board a little bark, and sent it around to the river, from Plymouth, in command of William Holmes. When they came to the fort, the Dutch hailed them, and asked them where they were going. Holmes replied, " We are going up the river to trade." The Dutch threatened to fire into them 16 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l633. if they did not stop ; but the brave Pilgrims told them to fire away, and sailed on. They set up the trading-house near the mouth of the Tuuxis (Farmington) River, and were soon busy trading in furs with the Indians. When the Dutch governor at .Fort Amsterdam (New York) heard how the Pilgrims had sailed by the fort at Suckiag, he was very angry, and sent a com pany of seventy soldiers to destroy their trading-house. They found, however, that it was defended by a band of men determined to fight for their rights ; and they retired, leaving the Englishmen iu peaceable possession. The reports brought back to their friends and neighbors in Massachusetts, by those who visited the valley of the Con necticut, led to the agitation of further plans for its settle ment. In many ways the time seemed favorable. The strength of the Indian tribes had been weakened by a dread ful pestilence, by which they had died by hundreds. The crafty and cruel Pequots, finding that the Dutch were ready to mete out to them a stern punishment for the murder of some of their traders, while their hereditary enemies, the powerful Nanagansetts, were eager to fight them, concluded that it was best for them to be on good terms with the Eng lish. They promised to submit to their control, and ex pressed a wish that Englishmen should come to Connecticut. At this timo the English population of New England, numbering about two thousand, was confined to the vicinity of Boston and Plymouth. Now that the Indians seemed peaceable, and ready to welcome them, some of the people, living near Boston, thought it would be to their advantage to emigrate to the river whose fertile meadows would afford better pasture for their cattle and richer soil to till. There were many who opposed this plan, thinking it would weaken the colony ; and, before the consent of the General Court was obtained, there was much excitement and earnest discussion. The most influential advocate for emigration 1634.] FIRST SETTLEMENT OF CONNECTICUT. 17 was a minister of great eloquence and ability, the Rev. Thomas Hooker.^ While the matter was still under debate, a^few restive men banded together, in the fall of 1634, and sei out for the Connecticut valley, and settled at Pequag (Wethersfield), where they spent the winter in rude log huts. In May, of the following year. Hooker and his friends renewed their request ; and leave to remove was reluctantly granted them by the General Court. During the summer quite a number of people from Watertown joined their friends, who had already settled what is now Wethersfield. Several persons connected with the congregation of the Rev. John Wareham'' of Dorchester selected, for their home, a point on the river, not far from the Plymouth " trading-house, and here laid the foundations of the town of Windsor. In October a company of about sixty men, women, and children, from the neighborhood of Boston, came through the wilderness to the Connecticut River. The march was tedious, as they brought not only their household goods, but their cattle, horses, and swiue. They were detained some time, in building rafts for crossing the river ; aud before they could get their log huts erected, they were overtaken by au early winter. Most of those who came in this company settled at Suckiag (Hartford). During the autumn of this same j'ear, an important settle ment was made at the mouth of the Connecticut, that was entirely distinct from those in the upper part of the valley. John Winthrop, jun., the son of the famous governor of the Massachusetts Colony, followed his father to New England ih 1631. He soon returned to England, and was given a commission by Lords Say and Brook, and other distinguished men, to begin a settlement for them at the mouth of the Connecticut River. Men and money were placed at his dis posal ; and Lion Gardiner,* an able engineer, was engaged to assist in the enterprise. 18 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1634-5. Winthrop arrived at Boston in October. Learning that the Dutch were prepariug to take possession of the mouth of the river, he sent a company of twenty men in a small vessel, who reached there the last of November. Early in Decem ber a sloop, which the Dutch governor had sent from Man hattan, arrived at the river ; but the Englisii had already got two pieces of caunon on shore, and would not let the Dutch men land. Governor Winthrop arrived, soon after, bringing Lion Gardiner, who was expected to direct the work of building a fort, and laying out the site of a future city. In compliment to its two noble patrons, the settlement was called Saybrook.^ The winter opened early, and proved a terrible and sevei'e one to the settlers jn the upper valley. The river was frozen over by the middle of November ; and the vessels laden with beds, clothing, and provisions, for the Hartford settlers and others, were lost off the Atlantic coast. Benumbed with cold, famine soon stared them in the face. Delicate women and children suffered for the necessities of life, aud strong men were dismayed. Some crossed the river, and waded through the pathless snow to Massachusetts ; and a baud of seventy persons went down the river to Saybrook, hoping to find the vessels with provisions from Boston. About twenty miles above the fort, tliey met a small vessel caught in the ice. They were able to cut her loose, ancl after a dan gerous voyage arrived at Boston. The winter, as it passed, brought increasing suffering and loneliness to those who still remained iu the settlements. When their supply of food was exhausted, they were unable often to secure any game, and had to subsist, in part, upon the ground-nuts which they dug from the banks of the river, and acorns found beneath the snow. They endured with brave hearts the privations of the winter, and eagerly wel comed the first approach of spring with its promise of seed time and harvest. Before the end of May quite a number of those who had left the settlements returned. 1635.] FIRST SETTLEMENT OF CONNECTICUT. 19 "About the beginning of June, Mr. Hooker, Mr. Stone, and nearly one hundred men, women, and children, took their departure from Cambridge, and travelled more than one hundred miles through a hideous aud trackless wilderness to Hartford. They had no guide but their compass, and made their way over mountains, through swamps, thickets. and rivers which were not passable but with great ditliculty. They had uo cover but the heavens, nor any lodgings but those that simple nature afforded them. They drove with them a hundred and sixty head of cattle, and by the way subsisted on the milk of their cows. Mrs. Hooker was borne through the wilderness upon a litter. The people carried their packs, arms, and some utensils. They were nearly a fortnight on their journey." ^ It is pleasant to recall that they formed their flrst impressions of their wilderness-home in the month of song and flowers ; and we can imagine how cordial was the welcorae they received from those who had come before them, old friends and neighbors not only in Massachusetts, but in England. There was still further emigration from Massachusetts in the following year. William Pynchon led a party fi'om Rox bury to the great meadows, some miles above Windsor, called by the Indians, Agawam. They gave the name of Spring field, to the settlement, in honor of Mr. Pynchou's old home in England. 1 Thomas Hooker was born at Mar- tion, and in no wise turbulent or fac- field, England, July 7, 1586. He was tious." After a brief retirement, in which educated at Emanuel College, Cambridge, he was kindly provided for by his friend where for some time he was a Fellow. the Earl of 'Warwick, he determined to After leaving Carabridge, he preached leave his native land, and seek a home iu for a while in London and its vicinity ; Holland. Mr. lltjoker remained in Hol- and in 1626 he became assistant minister land three years. The emigraUon of the at Chelmsford. Faithful to the dictates Puritans from England to New England of conscieuce, he was silebced in 1630 for was increasing, and among those who nonconformity, against the protest of planned to go were many of Mr. forty-seven ministers in which they certi- Hooker's old friends. They desired fled "that they knew Mr. Hooker to be or- him to accompany them as their spirit- thodox in doctrine, honest iu his life and ual guide; and after spending a short conversation, peaceable iu his disposi- time in England, he sailed for Boston 20 HISTORY Ol^ CONNECTICUT. about the middle of July, 1633. " Mr. Hooker's company," as it was called, which afterwards constituted his church at Carabridge, had preceded him. Dur ing the two years and a half that he remained with the Massachusetts colony, his influence was marked. He became deeply interested in the plan of emigra tion to the beautiful valley of the Con necticut. It has been said that the sjiecial reason of his going was, because of the increase of the population about the Bay, and the necessity of the people finding more fruitful fields for their flocks, and better laud to till. But this was not the main reason in tbe mind of Hooker. There were many things in connection with the civil regulation of affairs in Massachusetts that did uot meet his approval. He believed in a governraent " by the people for the people; " aud it was to be his high ser vice and destiny to inspire, if his hand did not pen, the first constitution ever adopted by a people. From the time Mr. Hooker came to Hartford until his death he was a leader in public affairs. Of majestic person and noble mien, his words were both eloquent and powerful. Gentle and affectionate in spirit, his life was a beautiful illustration of the faith and doctrine he professed. Mr. Hooker fell a victim to epidcraifi disease at the age of sixty-one, dying at his home in Hartford, July 7, 1647. 2 John Wareham was an eminent minister in Exeter, England. After emigrating with his church to New England, and remaining at Dorchester for some tirae, he followed his people to Windsor the year after they made a set tlement there. He is said to have been tho first minister in New England who preached with notes. Cotton Mather gave testimony that "the whole colony of Connecticut considered him as a prin cipal pillar and father of the colony." 3 Both the Dutch and the Tilgrims at Plymouth were aunoyed at tbe coming of the Massachusetts people into the Connecticut valley, but the tide of emi gration was too strong for thera to resist. 4 Lion Gardiner had been a mas ter workman and engineer in the employ of the I'rince of Orange. He becarae owner of the island at the east end of Long Island which bears his name. ^ Saybrook Patent. In 1606 two great companies were formed in Eng land — one iu London, and the other in Plymouth — for tbe settlement of North America. To the Plymouth Company, King James gave the coast extending from about the mouth of the Hudson River to the eastern point of Maine. There was no western boundary to this grant, which extended across the conti nent to the Pacific Ocean. In 1620 the original company was broken up, and a new one formed, called " The Council of Plymouth for the governing of New England." The King gave this company control of the territory from about Phil adelphia to Nova Scotia. In 1630 the Council conveyed to its President, the Earl of Warwick, a territory supposed lo be bounded on the north and east by the grants that had already been sold to the Plymouth aud Massachusetts colo nies, and extending from Narragansett River forty leagues (a hundred and twenty miles) upon a straight line near the seashore, towards the south-west as the coast ran. These bounds were quite indefinite, but included rauch more than the present limits of the State. The patent thus given stopped the further encroachment of the Dutch. The first settlers of Hartford, Wethersfield, and Windsor occupied territory included within the Saybrook patent; but the colony at the mouth of the river was not strenuous in asserting its rights. ° Trumbull. 1637.J THE PEQUOT WAK. 21 CHAPTER III. »1637. THE PTOUOT WAR. WHILE the Connecticut settlers were busy in clearing fields for tillage, building rude but substantial houses of logs and stones, and opening roads, trouble wfth'-^jfee., Indians commenced. A band of roving Narragansetts had killed a trader named Oldham, at Block Island. Oldham belonged to Watertown, Mass., aud that colony took steps to punish the murderers. Some of them were killed ; and others fled to the Pequot country, as their own friends, the Narragansetts, would have nothing to do with them. Governor Vane and his council decided to send a party of soldiers to Block Island, with orders to put to death all the men, but to spare the women and children. In command of one hundred men, Captain Endicott sailed for the island in August, 1636. When the English attempted to land, the Indians did all they could to drive them back. They did not succeed in this, and finally took to flight after fourteen of their number were killed. Having set fire to the cornfields and wigwams, the expedition sailed to Pequot River.i Meeting a party of Pequots, Endicott talked with them ; but, finding them defiant and hostile, he told them to prepare to fight. In a skirmish that followed, two Indians were killed. Having burned a few wigwams, Endicott sailed for Boston. This action only enraged the Pequots. " You 22 HISTORY OP CONNECTICTTT. [l637. raise these wasps around us, and then fiee away," said the Connecticut men to their friends in Massachusetts. Within a few days, parties of Pequot warriors began to harass and murder the settlers. The arrow from some ambush struck down the farmer toiling in his fields, and helpless women and innocent children were killed with fiend ish cruelty. While a party of men were working outside the Saybrook fort, they were surprised by the Pequots, and four of their number killed. Lieutenant Gardiner was slightly wounded at the same time. The Indians, encouraged by their success, gathered in large numbers, and challenged those within the fort to fight, mocking them by imitat ing the dying groans and prayers of the poor prisoners whom they had tortured. A few charges of grape-shot scat tered them. The work of pillage and death still continued, until the settlers scarcely dared to stir outside their homes. The Pequots tried to get their old enemies, the Narragansetts, to unite with them in a league against the English. This plan was broken up by the ¦ influence of Roger Williams ^ and the strength of the old enmity. The Mohegans were on bad terms with the Pequots, and formed an alliance with the pjuglish. The Niautics, although friendly to the Pequots, were unwilling to fight. The colonists saw that it was a matter of life and death, and determined to make a desperate effort to break the power of the Pequots. A General Court was held in Hart ford, May 1, 1637; and this resolution was nnanimouslj' adopted. " It is ordered that there shall bo an offensive war agaiust the Pequots, and there shall be ninety men levied out of the three plantations of Hartford, Wethersfield, and Windsor." This number represented nearly one-third of the freemen of this little republic. Within ten days from the opening of the court, this com pany of men sailed from Hartford under the command of 1637,J THE PEQUOT WAR. 23 Captain John Mason.' With them was a band of seventy friendly Mohegan'' Indians, and Uncas ^ their chief. AVhen they reached the fort at Saybrook, Captain John Underhill, a brave and capaljle soldier, with the consent of Lieutenant Gardiner, commanding the fort, offered his services to Mason with nineteen men. For some days the wind was contrary, and the little fleet was detained at the mouth of the river. Pequot spies, swift of foot, were watching its movements from the opposite shore, and apprised Sassacus of his danger. Mason's orders were to sail directly to Pequot (New Loudon) Harbor, and attack the enemy in their stronghold. Now that the wily Indians were informed of this purpose, he saw that it would be dangerous and perhaps futile to undertake it. He suggested that it would be best to sail as far as Narragansett Bay, and, if possible, secure the aid of Miantonomo, the chief sachem of the Narragansetts, in surprising and destroying their mutual enemy. A council of war was held ; and, while they all recognized the force of their leader's arguments, they hesitated to assume the responsibility of changing the plan of the cam paign. They were under orders, aud it was their habit to obey without thought of personal consequences. It was finally suggested that they seek divine guidance ; and the matter was referred to their chaplain, Mr. Stone, the be loved and revered assistant pastor of the church in Hartford. Having spent the night in prayer, Mr. Stone the next morn ing said to Captain Mason, that " he was fully satisfied to sail for Narragansett." This was accepted as a final decision, and on Friday morning they set sail. They arrived in Narragapsett Bay Saturday evening, but the wind blew so strongly off shore that they were unable to land before Tuesday afternoon. Mason at once informed 'Miantonomo of his plans, which met the cordial approval of the sachem. He thought, how- 24 HISTORY OJ? CONNECTICUT. [1637. ever, that the little band of English soldiers were insuflicieut for such an undertaking. During the night an Indian runner brought a letter from Captain Patrick, who had been sent from Massachusetts with a few men to assist in the war against the Pequots. He wrote that he had reached Providence, and urged Mason to wait until he could join him. The Connecticut company had already met with vexatious delays, and they were im patient to return home ; and they decided to push on to the Pequot country at once. On Wednesday morning, May 24, the little army began their march, and before night reached the borders of the Pequot territory. Here was tho seat of a Narragansett sachem ; but he refused to treat with the English captain, and would not allow his men to encamp within the palisades of his fortress. In the morning another band of warriors, sent by Miantonomo, having appeared, the Narragansetts within the fort plucked up courage, and with much boasting desired to join the expedition. When Captain Mason began 1637.] THE PEQUOT WAR. 25 the march again on Thursday, he had about five hundred Indians with him. Most of them proved a cowardly lot, and those who had bragged the loudest were the first to desert. Uncas, with his band of Mohegans, showed the most courage ; and Wequash, a petty chief who had revolted from Sassacus, proved a trustworthy guide. Suffering from the lack of food and the oppressive heat, they finally reached the neighborhood of the Pequot fort about an hour after sunset. Here they encamped between two high rocks, still known as Porter's Rocks. It was a beautiful moonlight night ; and the sentinels could hear the distant cries of the enemy, who were having a carousal of savage joy over the flight, as they supposed, of Mason and his men, as they had seen the vessels sailing past their territory. An hour or two before daybreak the men were awakened from sleep ; and, after a fervent prayer by the chaplain, they started for the fort, following a path poiuted out by the Indians. The distance proved greater than they expected ; and they began to fear lest they were on the wrong trail, when they came to a cornfield at the foot of " a great hill." Their terror-stricken allies had fallen back ; and it was only in response to a messenger that Uncas and Wequash came up, and informed them that the fort was on the top of the hill. Sending the Indians word not to fly, but to keep at as safe a distance as they pleased, and see whether Englishmen would fight or not, they marched on, and soon came in sight of the Pequot's stronghold. The men were divided, for the purpose of storming the two entrances at the same time. Captain Mason was within a step of the north-east entrance, when the bark of a dog gave the first alarm to the sleeping enemy. The cry of an Indian, " Owcmwa;.' Owanux!" ("The English! the English!") startled the Pequots from the heavy slumber that had fol lowed the debauch of the previous night. 26 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l637. Completely surprised, atid paralyzed with fear, most of them huddled in their wigwams, even after the English had entered the palisades. A few tried to escape ; and after some hand-to-hand fighting. Captain Mason gave the order to burn the fort, and, seizing a firebrand, lighted the conflagra tion himself. The rest of the sad story is best told quickly. The flames spread rapidly, and in an hour six or seven hun dred poor creatures perished within the belt of fire. Only a handful escaped to tell the proud chief, in the fort not far away, of the terrible calamity that had overtaken the tribe. Only two of the English were killed, and twenty wounded. From the outlook of the hill they saw their vessels in the distance entering Pequot Harbor, and they at once took np their march in that direction. By this time the Indians from the neighboring " fort swarmed along the forest path, and in every possible way harassed the soldiers. Before the harbor was reached, however, the Pequots returned to their fort, and upbraided the proud Sassacus as the author of all their misfortunes. From that hour his power, and that of his tribe, was broken. Only the intercession of some of his chief counsellors saved his life. Panic-stricken, they burned their wigwams, destroyed their fort, and then fled. Sassacus, with seventy or eighty of his faithful warriors, sought refuge in the wilderness bordering the Hudson River. When the little army of Englishmen returned to tell the story of their victory, the colonists breathed more freely.' But they were still in fear lest the spirit of revenge kindled in the hearts of the survivors of the hated, tribe might break out in fierce and treacherous attacks, and arrangements were made to continue the war. Without passing judgment as to the right or wrong of this action, it is evident that the colonists felt that their lives were in constant jeopardy while a Pequot remained in the vicinity of their setllements. Cap tain Mason was put iu command of forty men, and in June united his force with that of Captain Stoughton, who had 1637.J THE PEQUOT WAR. 27 been sent to Pequot Harbor (New London) from Massachu setts. While the vessels sailed along the Sound, the troops hunted for the enemy along the shore. ^ It was on this march that the beauty of the location and surroundings of Quinnipiac (New Haven) was flrst discov ered by P!^nglish eyes. As they approached the place, they saw the smolte of what they supposed was a Pequot encamp ment ; but they found that the fire had been kindled by a party of friendly Indians. The vessels having entered the harbor, they went on board, and waited for several days, until the return of a Pequot spy, who reported that Sassacus and his party were concealed in a swamp a few miles to the westward. This hiding-place proved to be in a bog-thicket a short distance from the present village of Fairfield. It was not an easy raatter to dislodge the Pequots from this natural fortress. The soldiers found it very difficult to penetrate the tangled underbrush without sinking in the treacherous mire ; and in the attempt to advance, many of them were wounded by the sharp arrows, that flew in showers about thera. The Fairfleld Indians, who were in the swamp, sent one of their number to beg for quarter, which was granted ; and they came out with their women and children. The plan was then adopted of surrounding the band of desperate Pequots, who still clung to their hiding-place. During the night, which proved dark and heavy with mist, they attempted to break through this line ; but the watchful soldiers were prepared for a hand-to-hand fight, which ended in the death and capture of a large proportion of the Pequot warriors. Tho one hundred and eighty prisoners, with a large amount of booty consisting of wampum, bows, arrows, and other implements, were divided between Massachusetts and Connecticut. Sassacus probably was not present at this fight. Fleeing in the direction of the Hudson, he sought refuge among his old enemies, the Mohawks ; but the old feeling of hate con- 28 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1637, tinued, ancl, having beheaded him, they sent his scalp as a trophy to Connecticut. On the 21st of Septeniber, Uncas and Miantonomo, with the surviving Pequots numbering about two hundred, met the magistrates of Connecticut at Hartford. A treaty was arranged between the colony and the Mohegans and Narra gansetts, by the terms of which the tribes entered into a compact of peace, and agreed, that, in any case of wrong, justice should be meted out by the English. With consider able ceremony the remnant of the Pequots was divided among the chiefs who had given their aid in the war against the tribe now humbled and powerless. ^ Pequot Rivee. Thames River. 2 Roger Williams. The founder of Rhode Island. His influence over the Narragansetts was remarkable, and his efforts in behalf of peace were unremit ting. 3 John Mason had won reputation as a brave soldier in the Low Countries. He was a member of the company that removed from Dorchester to AViodsor. Oliver Cromwell offered him the j3osi- tion of major-general if he would return to England. For many years he held the highest position of military authority iu the colony. * The Mohegans appear to have been tributary to the Pequots, but at this time they were on bad terms with each other. They dwelt on the west side of the Thames River. c Uncas was a Pequot by birth; and his wife was a daughter of Sassacus, a Pequot sachem. At one time he was a petty chief under Sassacus, the great prince of the nation. They had quar relled; and at the time the English iirst came to Connecticut, his influence among the Indians was sraall. He had nothing to lose, and every thing to gain, through the friendship of the English. c The Neighboring Fort. Besides the fort at Mystic, the principal and royal residence of Sassacus was situated on Fort Hill in G-roton, about four miles north-east of New London. ¦^ Captain Mason and the Narragan sett Indians, after leaving Pequot Har bor, continued their march by land to the Connecticut River, where they ai'- rived on Saturday, " being nobly en tertained by Lieutenant Gardner with many great guns." Frora Saybrook the English volunteers in this expedi tion returned to their homes, whei-e they were received with great rejoi cing. 8 Uncas with his Indians and some of the soldiers, at a point about eighteen miles west of Saybrook, discovered the Pequot sachem, Mononotto, with a few of his followers. They attempted to escape by swimming acioss the mouth of a narrow harbor, but they were way laid and taken as they landed. Uncas shot the sachem, and, after beheading hira, stuck the head in the ci-otch of a large oak-tree, where it remained for many years. Since then the place "has been called Sachem's Head. 1638.] FIBST SETTLERS OP NEW HAVEN. 29 CHAPTER IV. X638-1639. FIRST SETTLERS OF NEW HAVEN. -ADOPTION OF CONSTITUTIONS BY THE NEW HAVEN AND CONNECTICUT COLONIES. ON the 26th of July, 1637, there arrived at Boston the most opulent company that had thus far emigrated from England. Every possible inducement was offered to keep them in Massachusetts, but they decided to found a distinct colony. Having learned of the beauty of the country lying west of the mouth of the Connecticut River, they sent a few of their number to spy out the land. This company, in charge of Theophilus Eaton, one of their prominent and wealthy men, selected, as the most attractive and eligible sjjot for the future home of the colony, the present site of the city of New Haven. Here they built a temporary hut, and left it in charge of a few servants for the winter. On the 30th of the follow ing March, the entire company set sail for the harbor of Quinnipiac, which they reached after a tedious voyage of two weeks. Their first sabbath was strictly kept with religious ser vices held under the spreading branches of an oak-tree, supposed to have stood near the piesent corner of College and George Streets. Tlie Rev. John Davenport,' whose name occupies a distingdished place in the early history of the colony, preached a sermon warning them of the trials of the wilderness, aud was followed in a discourse from his 30 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [1639. colleague, the Rev. Mr. Prudden, from the text, " The voice of one crying in the wilderness. Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight." In November, Theophilus Eaton, Mr. Davenport, and other gentlemen, made a contract with the Indian sachem Momaugin, in reference to a sale of lands. It is a curious document, being of the nature of a treaty as well as a deed of sale of Quinnipiac. According to its terms, the chief covenanted not to disturb or injure the Eng lish, who in return agreed to protect the tribe, and allow them the use of the lands on the east side of the harbor, both for hunting .ind tillage. On the llth of Deceraber another large tract of land was deeded to the same gentlemen by Montowese. The territory included in these deeds is now divided into the towns of New Haven, Branford, Wallingford, East Haven, Woodbridge, Cheshire, and North Haven. Twenty- three English coats, with sundry other articles, was the con sideration named in the deeds, with the right to hunt and plant aud fish with few restrictions ; but the protection of the colonists was of far more value to the little Indian tribe than gold or silver would have been. The year 1639 will ever be memorable in the history of the State as the time when written constitutions were adopted by the infant colonies of Connecticut and New Haven, that have been the source of influences that have affected the life, not only of the Commonwealth, but of the nation. The JOHN DAVENPORT. [From a portrait in possession of Yale College. J 1639.] FIRST SETTLERS OP NEW HAVEN. 31 band of earnest, thoughtful men and refined women, who laid the foundations of these two colonies, were many of them of gentle birth. Their clergymen were university graduates, of high reputation for learning and eloquence ; and the leading citizens had won wealth and position before emi grating to the wilderness of the New World. They did not leave homes of comfort in England to seek the advancement of their material fortune. The star of hope that led them across the ocean, and gave them courage to sub due the wilderness and endure privation, was luminous with the light of religious and civil liberty. Their earliest thought and care were given to laying the founda tions of communities that should embody and illustrate prin ciples of spiritual, ecclesiastical, and political freedom, dear to them as life. During the flrst year of the settlement of New Haven, the colonists lived under a simple compact to obey the Scrip tures. On the 4th of June, 1639, all of the free planters met in a large barn,^ and proceeded iu a formal manner to lay the foundations of government. The Bible was made the sole rule for ordering the affairs of the Commonwealth, and church members were alone admitted to the rights of citizenship. In October the court, as it was termed, composed of seven 3IEDAL COMMEMORATING THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW HAVEN. 32 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l639. church members called " the seven pillars," and duly elected for this purpose, met and instituted the civil government. All of those who were connected with approved churches were accepted as voting members of the Commonwealth, and Theophilus Eaton was chosen governor of the colony.^ For many reasons, the history of the first Constitution of Connecticut is of deep interest. During the first year after the settlement of Wethersfield, Windsor, and Hartford, the government was under a commission from Massachusetts. In April, 1636, Eoger Ludlow and four associates held a General Court in Hartford, and among other acts passed a law forbidding the sale of fire-arms to the Indians. In May of the following year, the towns appointed delegates to par ticipate with the magistrates in the counsels of tlie court. At the opening session of this body, May 31, 1638, the Rev. Thomas Hooker preached a remarkable sermon, in which he declared "that the choice of public magistrates belongs unto the people by God's own allowance," and "that they who have power to appoint officers and magis trates have the right also to set the bounds and limitations of the power and place unto which they call them." He gave two reasons for this assertion, — first, "Because the foundation of authority is laid iu the free consent of the people;" second, "Because by a free choice the hearts of the people will be more inclined to the love of the persons chosen, and more ready to yield obedience." On the 14th of January, 1639, all of the free planters of the colony met at Hartford, and adopted the Constitution which is now recognized as the flrst Constitution ever writ ten and adopted by the suffrages of a people. It will always, probably, be a matter of doubt as to whose pen draughted this remarkable document ; but there is every reason to believe that the principles which it contains were suggested by the far-seeing and liberty-loving mind of Thomas Hooker. Roger Ludlow acted as legal adviser, and may have prepared 1639.J CONSTITUTION ADOPTED BY CONNECTICUT. 33 the paper ; and we know that Governor Haynes was in hearty accord with the views of his beloved pastor ; but it is to the learned and eloquent minister of the flrst church in Hartford, that posterity will give its award of honor as the author of the first Constitution of Connecticut. riRST CHURCH IN HAl TFORD It is noteworthy that this document expressed no allegi ance to the British crown, but lodged the supreme power in the General Court. It contained the seed-truth of principles which were in time to produce the fruit of our independent national life. " More than two centuries have elapsed," says Bancroft, " but the people of Connecticut have found no reason to deviate essentially from the frame of government established 34 HISTOKY OF CONNECTICUT. [1639. by their fathers. Plistor}^ has ever celebrated the heroes who have won laurels in scenes of carnage. Has it no place for the wise legislators who struck the rock in the wilder ness, and the waters of liberty gushed forth iu copious and perennial streams? They who judge of men by their ser vices to the human race will never cease to honor the memory of Hooker, aud will join with it that of Ludlow, and still more that of Haynes." After the adoption of the Constitution, the freemen of the towns in the colony met at Hartford on the second Thursday in April, 1630, and elected their officers for the year ensuing. John Haynes ^ was chosen governor, and Roger Ludlow ^ deputy-governor. ^ John Davenport was born iu the city of Coventry, Euglaud, iu the year 1597. He graduated at the Uiiiverfiity of Oxford, aud entered on the active duties of the raiuistry when but nineteen years of age. In the year 1631 he was sura- nioned before Bishop Laud. Having decided to cast iu his lot with the uon- confonnists, he crosfsed over to Holland, where, for a time, he was assistant min ister of an English church at Amster dam. He had long been interested iu the emigration to New England, and he finally decided to come to the New World. With a number of innuential and tried friends he set sail in the ship " Hector," and arrived at Boston on the 26th of June, 1637. Mr, Davenport was an earnest preacher aud ripe scholar. He was known among the Indians about New Haven as " So big study man." 2 This barn, it is said, belonged to Robert Newmau, a prominent founder of the colony. Dr. Bacon (Hist. Disc. 20) gives good reasous for thinking it was located near Temple Street, between Elm and Grove Streets. 3 "The restiucted franchise, and the churchly aristocracy of New Haven, concealed a levelling principle. As the will of au Euglieh eovereigu can transform the meanest subject into a peer of the realm, so the lowliest dweller in the cellars at Quinnipiac could, by ad mission to church membership, become a ruler of the State. The day-laborer, the possessor of the good name which is more valuable than fine gold, might be a free burgess; while his neighbor, dwell ing iu one of the * stately houses,' and writing ' Mr.' before his name, might be forbidden to cast a vote. That a handful of exiles, gathered in a barn, could oftheir owu free motion, without a bishop or a royal sanction, form a Church of God; that the same men, with no charter but their own consent and that of their fel low-men, could organize a self-governing State, — these were the uovel and star tling ideas through which our modern political philosophy has mainly devel oped. In the light of these principles, Winthrop and Endicott, Hooker and Roger Williams, Davenport and Eaton, stand forth together as apostles of our liberty." (Livermore's The Republic of New Haven, p. 25.) * John Hatnes held the position of governor of Massachusetts in 1635. He was one of the most influential and able men among the pioneers of Counecticut. He was elected governor every other FIKST SETTLBES OF NEW HAVEN. 35 year until his death in 1654, alternating with Edward Hopkins. fi Roger Ludlow came from the west of England with the Rev. Johu Warham and his company. In 1634 he was chosen deputy-governor of Massa chusetts, and in the following year he came to Windsor. He was a man of ripe legal attainments, and rendered Mr. Hooker, Governor Haynes, and others, great assistance iu draughting the Cousti- tution of the infant colony. After his removal to Fairfield, he was requested to revise and prepare a body of laws for the colony. He finished this work in 1649, and the code was established by the as sembly during that year. After leaving Fairfieleb he returned to England, but the time aud place of his death are un known. 6 The Constitution provided that the freemen of each town should elect every year, by vote, four persons as deputies to the General Court. Each year a court of election was to assemble onthe second Thursday of April (after wards changed to May), for the purpose of choosing a governor aud six magis trates. Only those could be chosen as magistrates whose names had been pro posed at some preceding session of the court. No town could make more than two nominations, but the General Court added as raany as it thought best. At the court of election each freeman cast a ballot, upon which was written his choice for governor for the following year, u. plurality vote electing. The governor must be a church member; and the rule held until 1660, that no one could be chosen to the office two years in suc cession. At the court of election the secretary read the nominations for ma gistrates iu the order in which they had been received. When a uame was read, the freemen handed in either a blank bal lot counting agaiust the candidate, or one having his name upon it. The balloting continued until six names had received a majority of the votes cast. Iu case the full number were not thus obtained, thosfe naraes were added which had received the largest number of votes. The gov ernor, magistrates, and deputies met as a General Court on the second Thursday of September, to make laws, and attend to the affairs of the Commonwealth. The office of magistrate was very important, as the duties that now devolve upon the selectmen of the towns were in their charge; and, until the charter was Se cured, they exercised judicial functions, aud looked after other mattersas directed by the General Court. The constable was also an important officer, as he pub lished the laws, levied the town's share of the taxes for the Commonwealth, and notified the freeraen of the meetings of the General Court, and the time and place of election of deputies. Ei'ora 1656 Connecticut placed upon her common seal, vines to represent her towns. At first there were three for the original towns. On the fifth page of the first revision of tho laws of the colony made iu 1672, and published at Cam bridge, Mass., in 1673, the seal has fifteen vines. As the towns became more nu merous, the original three vines were placed on the seal. HlSTOKY OE CONNECTiCUT. [l639. CHAPTER V. 1639. THE FOUNDING OF NEW TOWNS. IN the year 1639 settlements were made at Milford^ (Wepowaug), Guilford (Menunkatuck) , Fairfield (Un- quo-wa), and Stratford. The residents of these towns have reason to be proud of the character and history of the fami lies that laid their foundations. " A more substantial com pany of emigrants," says Hollister, "never followed a clergyman into the wild woods of America than the fathers of Milford." The first settlers of Guilford were nearly all gentlemen of means. Their first magistrate, Samuel Desborough, re turned to'England in 1650, and six years later was appointed by Cromwell Lord Chancellor of Scotland. He held this position until the restoration of King Charles II. , who treated him with great kindness, and permitted him to retire to the enjoj'inent of his elegant estate at Elsworth, where he resided until his death. Roger Ludlow was one of the party that captured the Pequots at the "Swamp fight" at Un-quo-wa. He was charmed at the time with the beauty of the surrounding country ; and in 1639, in company with eight or ten famihes, his neighbors at Windsor, he emigrated to Fairfield. They were soon joined by parties from Watertown, Mass., and also from Concord. Southold on Long Island was settled about this time, and placed itself under the jurisdiction of New Haveu. 1639.] WAR WITH INDIANS AVOIDED. 37 During the summer (1039), Colonel George Fenwick,^ in charge of two ships, arrived at the mouth of the Connecticut accompanied by several gentlemen, who brought with them a number of servants and laboreis to aid in the f urtlier build ing up of Saybrook. The colony at Saybrook was entirely distinct from those of Connecticut and New Haven, and administered its owu affairs until 1644, when it was united with Connecticut. Another war with the Indians was happily avoided. The citizens of Wethersfield secured evidence that Sowheag, the sachem of Mattabesett (Middletown), had given aid to the Pequots in their murderous attacks upon their settle ment two years before ; and they demanded that the guilty Indians should be surrendered for trial and punishment. The General Court sought to bring about a just arrange ment between the chief and the aggrieved people of Wethers field ; but Sowheag treated their advice in such an insulting manner, that they decided to send one hundred men to take the murderers hy force. A messenger was sent to New Haven with the request that the authorities there should assist them iu the expedi tion. This they declined to do, expressing the fear that it might lead to a serious conflict with the Indians : as the result of this consultation, the plan was abandoned. Meanwhile word reached Hartford that a few of the Pequots, iu violation of the recent treaty, were rebuilding their wigwams on the old hunting-gronnds, and planting corn upon the fields they liad promised never to enter again. Captain Mason was at once sent with forty Englishmen, with instructions to drive off the Indians, " Imrn their wigwams, and bring away their corn." Uncas, with one hundred of his warriors, was permitted to join the expedition. When Mason arrived at Pawcatuck (Stonington), he met three Pequots, and kindly advised them to tell their people of bis coming, and have them go quickly and peaceably away. 38 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [1639. Either they failed to carry the report, or it was not heeded ; for, when the English captain and his men surrounded the little village, the Indians were so surprised that they had no time to carry off their corn, but fled, leaving the aged and helpless of their number behind. The following day the wigwams were destroyed ; and the corn, kettles, mats, wampum, and other treasures, filled not only the vessel, but fifty canoes, thirty of which were taken from the Indians. HEW HAVEN AND CONNECTICUT COLONIES. In August of this year (1639), the first steps were taken towards a union of the colonies for their mutual protection. The special purpose of this alliance was to guard the English settlements against the Dutch at New Netherlands (New York), whose recently appointed governor, William Kieft, had forbidden the English to carry on their trade at " Good Hope " (Hartford), and made a formal protest against their occupation of Quinnipiac (New Haven). At the October session of the General Court of Connecti cut, the towns were authorized to manage their own internal 1639.J TOWN REGULATIONS. 39 affairs ; and it was ordered that a careful description of all lands sold or mortgaged, sliould be recorded in l)ooks pro vided by tho towns, aud directions were given regarding the recording of wills and the settlement of estates. These were important matters, for the New-England system of town-government has had an important influence in shaping the destiny and government of the nation. ' MiLFOKD. Tho planters o£ Milford - Colonel Fenwick was one of Iho were most of them from the counties of original patentees of the colony, and Essex, Herefordshire, aad Yorli in Eng- acted in their behalf. lie instituted a land. A part of them removed from civil government for the S.aybrook col New Haveu, and others came from Weth. ony, which rem.ained indcpeudeut until erslield, and the Rev. Peter Prudden by purchase it was uuitcd with Connec became their pastor. Milford was an ticut iu 164i. inde]iendent Commonwealth until 1(342, wheu it united with New Haven. 40 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. CHAPTER VI. THE CIVIL AND DOIVIESTIC LIFE OF THE EARLY SETTLERS. WHAT was the every-day life of the people? How did they manage their public affaiis? These are more im portant questions than those that refer to the troubles the colonists had with their Dutch neighbors and the Indians. First of all, let us notice how the towns were formed. These little republics of freemen have had more influence than any other institution on the destinies of our couutry, and the history of their growth is of deep interest.' At the time the New-England colonies united in a league for mutual counsel and assistance, Connecticut (including Saybrook) had six towns, and New Haven five. The General Court of each colony exercised the right of ownership and jurisdiction over the territory within its bounds. When a company of persons wished to settle — or plant, as it was called — a new town, they made their purpose known to the Court. A tract of land was granted to the company : if it was found that they were able to support a minister, they were authorized to establish a plantation and a church. The Court a[)poiuted a coinmittee who fixed the bounds of the laud, that at first was held by the company as proprietors UOUSE or A PIUNEEU. LIFE OF THE EARI;Y SETTLERS. 41 in common. From this time they could assemble in town- meeting, and transact matters connected with their local affairs. Tlie location, size, aud cost of the meeting-house, and the support of the minister, was the flrst important business. Tlien tliey decided as to the admission of new associates, distributed the land among individuals, voted as to the location of new roads, and looked after tlie general interests of the community very much as the towns do now. After a time it was found very in convenient for the proprietors to eome together often enough to act upon all items of business, aud selectmen were chosen to administer the affairs of the township during the months that passed between the meetings. As this town system of government became more perfect in its working, not less tliau three nor more than nine selectmen were elected, according to the size of the township. Besides these, there were chosen a town clerk, a town ^3 treasurer, assessors of taxes, a scliool committee, constables, and other, officers. In the early history, both of the Connecticut and New- Haven colonies, the judicial authoritj' was exercised by a General Court of Magistrates. There were no professional Iflwyers. A friend might appear in behalf of a prisoner or sliitor, or they could plead their own cause. The Court looked after all matters that pertained to the welfare of the colony. Under the presiding care of Governor Haynes, the magistrates at Hartford listened to the farmer at Windsor, who complained that the Pequots had stolen his horse, and promised " as far as lay iu their power to deal with those Indians." 4'2 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. Swift punishment was meted out to evil-doers. One is' sentenced " to be whipt at a cart's tail upon a lecture day at Hartford," and another is "to stand upon the pillory from the ringing of the first bell to the end of the lecture," before receiving a whipping. A third criminal, more guilty than his companions, not only is to stand in the pillory and be whipped, but have the letter R burned upon his cheek. If the cattle of a farmer broke into the flelds of his neigh bor, " through defect in his fence," the Court saw to it that he paid for the " spoiled corn." In order to increase the supply of corn, so that they would not have to purchase it out of the colony, the Court granted one hundred acres of ploughed ground and twenty acres of meadow to any farmer with a team, provided he improved " twenty acres the flrst year, eighty acres the second year, and the whole hundred the third year." Attention was called to the necessity of raising hemp and flax for use in making " linen cloth," and it was ordered that every householder who kept a team should plant that year (1640) at least one spoonful of English hempseed "in some fruitful soil." The next year they were to sow one rood of hemp or flax ; and if this were not done, they fell under the censure of the Court. Complaint was made that hempseed could not be procured by some who desired it ; and it was ordered that any family that had more than a spoonful of the seed, and would not sell it, must plant as many spoonfuls as they refused to sell. The constables were requested to bring before the Court any persons who demanded an exorbitant price for the articles they had to sell, and a watchful eye was kept upon those individuals whose "apparel" exceeded their condition and rank. Labor troubles were brought to a speedy end by the Court, which made out a schedule of wages, and declared the number of hours that constituted a working-day. Carpen ters, plough-wrights, wheel-wrights, masons, joiners, smiths. LIFE OF THE EARLY SETTLERS. 43 and coopers could not ask more than twenty pence for a day's work from March 10 to October 11, nor above eighteen pence for the rest of the year. Eleven hours in summer, and nine in winter, constituted a working-day. After further particulars in regard to splitting and sawing boards, and the amount to be paid for the use of horses and cattle "with the tackling," it was ordered that any persons giving or taking larger wages than those mentioned, " should abide the censure of the Court." Turning to the records of the New-Haven colony, we find that the Court dealt in the same vigorous and paternal manner with the common interests of the communities repre sented. The system of trial by jury was in force in Con necticut, but New Haven could find nothing about jurymen in the Bible. In 1639 Connecticut accepted a brief code of " Capital Laws," which was almost a verbal copy of- those adopted by Massachusetts the year previous. For many years New Haven had no statute laws, but was guided by rules of equity, and the commands which they found in the Scripture. Regulations regarding temperance, family government, and the keeping of the sabbath, were rigidly enforced; but the so-called "Blue Laws" of New Haven never had an existence except in the imagination of Samuel Peters, the refugee loyalist. The humble homes of the Puritan settlers of Connecticut and New Haven reveal a domestic life of healthful toil and quiet happiness. The moral and religious character of the people developed earnest thought, and strength of purpose. They rejoiced in the civil liberty which the shelter of the wilderness made possible, and found their highest satisfac tion in serving God, and seeking to know and do his will. • "Evert Townsuip is au inferior 1810). "He that will understand the Republic; possessing, under the control political character of New England," of the Legislature, the necessary powers says Bancroft, " raust study the consti- lo adjust all its local and peculiar con- tution of its towus, its schools, and its corns " (President Timothy l>wight, militia." 44 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1640-43., CHAPTER VII. 1640-1643. THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY DEATH OF IVIIANTONOMO. IN the year 1640 Uncas sold most of his land to the Eng lish, with the understanding that his people should have the privilege of hunting and planting where they pleased. Tunxis (Farmington), with its beautiful meadows, and a part of Norwalk, were purchased and settled by a few fami lies. New Haven acquired the Indian title of Greenwich ; but those who settled there, influenced alike by threats and promises, put themselves under the protection of the Dutch governor at New York.^ Both Connecticut and New Haven secured large tracts of land upon Long Island ; and the latter colony gained possession of a strip of country on the shores of the Delaware Bay and River, where trading-houses were erected, and about fifty families sent to settle.^ Stamford was also settled this year by a party from Wethersfield that decided to emigrate on account of an unhappy division that had arisen in the church there. In 1643, at the suggestion of Connecticut, a league^ was formed among the New-England colonies for " mutual aid and service." Each colony liad the right to appoint two commissioners, and this body was to meet once a year. The power was given them of framing laws for the regulation and protection of the Confederacy. Notwithstanding the agreement made at the time of the 1643.] MIANTONOMO MARCHES AGAINST UNCAS. 45 division of the remnant of tlie Pequots, the Connecticut settlers gained information that led them to fear that Miantonomo, the Narragansett chief, was not only inciting his warriors to fight the Mohegans, Init to murder the English. There was an uneasy feeling among the settlers ; they went armed into their fields, and kept guard over their homes by night. Connecticut asked the Court at Boston to send one hun dred men to Saybrook Fort, but they declined to do so. Meanwhile Miantonomo, having collected a picked army of six hundred warriors, marched for the Mohegan country.* Uncas, with his usual foresight, had stationed spies upon the mountain heights that overlooked the surrounding valleys. Tliey discovered the Narragansetts as they were crossing a ford in the Shetucket River, and at once hastened to inform their chief. Accompanied by about four hundred warriors, Uncas started to meet the enemy. He had reached the spot in the eastern part of the town of Norwich, now known as Sachem's Plain, when he learned that the Narragansetts were only a short distance away. They soon came in sight ; and Uncas sent a messenger to Miantonomo, asking for an interview. This was granted, aud the two chiefs met at a point between their armies. Uncas opened the conversation, according to tradition, in these words : "You have a number of stout men with you, and so have I with me. It is a great pity that such brave warriors should be killed in a private quarrel between us only. Come like a man, as you profess to be, and let ns fight it out. If you kill me, my men shall be yours ; but if 1 kill you, j'our meu shall be mine." " My men came to fight, and thej' shall fight," replied the Narragansett chief. Uncas instantly dropped to the ground, as a signal for his men to open the battle. Tlie unexpected shower of ari'ows put the enemy to sudden flight ; and the Mohegans, with exultant cries, drove them o\er the rocks aud precipices. Some of the swift- footed braves overtook 46 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1643. Miantonomo, and in various ways impeded his flight until Uncas came up, and put his hand upon his shoulder.* He made no further resistance, but sat down upon the ground, and, without saying a word, looked his captor sullenly in the face. , Uncas gave an Indian whoop that called his warriors about him. The victory was complete. The proud Narragansett chief made no request for mercy to himself or his men. Uncas asked him why he did not speak. " Had you taken me," he said, "I should have besought you for my life." The captives were taken to the Mohegan fort, and treated with kindness. Uncas was shrewd enough to know that it would be best to consult with the English as to what should be done with Miantonomo. Having taken his prisoner to Hartford, the time at length came for his trial. The charge that made the most impression upon the commissioners was that he had arranged a plan for cutting off tlie entire P^nglish population at a single blow. Had they not believed this 1643.] DEATH OF MIANTONOMO. 47 charge was sustained l:)y the evidence, it is difficult to exon erate the colonists for their action towards the fallen chief who had done them many favors in times past. The matter was finally referred to five leading clergymen of the several colonies, who advised that sentence of death should be passed upon the accused. This advice was fol lowed by the commissioners, and the execution of the penalty was left with Uncas. The common tradition has been, that, having taken the captive chief back to the spot where he had been seized as a prisoner, the brother of Uncas, who was marching behind Miantonomo, with a single blow of his hatchet killed him. In the same spot, still known as "Sachem's Plain," he was buried. An immense heap of stones long marked the grave, placed there by the hands of his tribe, who visited it at each anniversary of the death of their chief, and with loud lamentations expressed their grief. Some years ago a block of granite, inscribed with his name and the year of his death, was placed over the grave of the brave and o;ifted Narraorausett chief. 1 Greenwich, seven years after this, ^A League. This New -England was ceded back to New Haven by the Confederacy was very helpful to the boundary treaty, which was made with interests of the colonies, and especially Stuyvesant. to Connecticut. The trouble with the 2 Delaware Bat. The attempt to Dutch threatened hostilities, while the form a settlement raet with opposition, Swedes were annoying the colony that both from the Swedes and Dutch, who had been sent to Delaware Bay. The claimed the country. After the forma- Indians were restless, and the struggle tion of the union between the New-Eng- in England between the King and Par- land colonies, New Haven, through the liamcnt made the colonists more anxious commissioners, sought to gain some sat- to unite for their mutual protection. isfaction for the injury the Dutch had Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connecticut, done the property of English settlers. and New Haven signed the articles of In 1651 another attempt wae raade to union. " The Confederates took the send il company to form a plantation. narae of 'The United Colonies of New They were stopped by Governor Stuy- England.' It was a league for both war vesant at New York, and compelled to and peace, as mutual interest might do- return. The union failed to give any mand. Each colony retained its own assurance of protection; and, while the independence in all things, though it matter of establishing a permanent plan- was bound to help all others at need. tation was agitated for a number of And the relative nuraber of men that years, the plan was finally given up. each should furnish was agreed upon. 48 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. If two hundred were wanted, Massachu- Bctts waa to j-aise one hundred, while the quotas of the others were fixed at forty- live each. This agreement was given effect by goosing two commissioners from each colony, who formed a board for settling all questions' that should come before it" (Drake). * Miantonomo felt that the English had treated hiiu wrongfully; but his anger was directed towards Uncas as the one who had not only sought to arouse the ill feeling of tbe English agaiuf^t hira by false reports, but as the foe of his tribe and friends. Uncas had made war on Sequasson, a Connecticut sachem, who was a relative and ally of Miantonomo, and, after killing raany of his men, had burnt their wigwams. When tidings of this attack upon his, kinsman reached Miantonomo, he has tened at once to march against Uncas, giv ing notice of his intention to the English. 0 Palfrey says (Hist. N. E., vol. ii. 125), "Miantonomo, encumbered in his flight by some * armor,' was dragged by two of his owu captains to Uncas, who, with a sense of their treachery different from what they had expected, laid them dead at his feet." 1643.] THE DUTCH AND THE INDIANS. 49 CHAPTER VIII. 1643-1645. TROUBLES WITH THE DUTCH AND THE INDIANS. THE early governors of New Netherlands (New York) persistently asserted the claim of Holland to the valley of the Connecticut and the adjoining country, on the ground that they had explored the coast and river, and bought lands, and traded with the Indians, both at " Good Hope " (Hart ford), Saybrook (" Kievit's Hook"), and "Red Mount" (New Haven), some time before their settlement by the Eng lish. A good deal of bad temper was stirred up, but fortu nately it never developed into an open contest of arms. Their coramon danger from the Indians made thera allies at the very tirae letters of fiery discussion were passing between the authorities. The sale of intoxicating liquors to the natives was the source of a veiy profitable trade to the Dutch raerchants; but then, as now, it proved a terrible curse. The ignorant savages were made more brutal and bloodthirsty by the kindling of this awful appetite. The murder of a Dutch man by a drunken Indian, aud the massacre, soon after, of thirty friendly natives, by the Mohawks, led the governor of New Amsterdam to commission one of his captains to kill as many of the hostile tribe as he could flnd. This was the beginning of a guerilla warfare, in which tlie Indians set fire to farm and store houses, and sometimes killed their occupants. Tlie Dutch governor found himself 50 HISTOKY OF CONNECTICUT. [1644-45. in a very uncomfortable position. He asked Captain Under hill of Stamford to assist him, which so enraged Marine, his own hot-tempered commander, that he tried to kill him ; and the feeling among the people was snch that his excellency hired a guard of fifty Englishmen to protect his person. Among the victims of this war was the notorious Mrs. Hutchinson. After her banishment frora Massachusetts on account of her strange religious beliefs, she found refuge in Rhode Island, where she remained until the death of her husband, when she emigrated to the wilderness beyond Stamford. It was here, while seeking to gain the good will of the natives, that she with her entire family, and several neighbors, were treacherously murdered by the Indians, with the exception of a single daughter, who was carried into captivity. In the year 1644 the colonists were depressed by raany anxieties. Tidings came of the civil war that was raging in England ; and at home the savages, on every side, were turbulent and threatening. The Narragansetts, eager and determined, sought to avenge the death of Miantonomo ; and the Indians in the western part of the State, who had been heretofore peaceable, seemed to catch the fierce and warlike spirit of their neighbors, and committed terrible crimes against life and property. In the following year (1645) whole settlements in Virginia were destroyed at a single stroke ; and the settlers had reason to believe that the New-England Indians were arranging an alliance with the Southern tribes, with the purpose of de stroying the entire English population. Steps were taken to quell the quarrel between the Narra gansetts and Mohegans. At the request of the commission ers, then in session at Hartford, the Narragansetts sent one of their chiefs, and Uncas came in behalf of the Mohegans. Uncas denied the principal grievance of the Narragansetts, — that he had received a ransom for the life of Miantonomo, 1644^45.] THE PUKCIJASE OP SAYBROOK. 51 and after his death had refused to return it. The decision of the commissioners was in his favor ; and the Narragansett chief agreed that his people should defer hostilities until after the next year's planting-time, and that thirty days' notice should be given to the governors of Massachusetts and Con necticut before the war comraenced. That the Indians stood in peculiar awe of the English is illustrated by a visit that was made, about this time, to Hart ford by four sachems from the east end of Long Island. They appeared before the coraraissioners, and said that their tribes had paid tribute to the white men ever since the Pequot war, and they desired a certificate of their good behavior, and the assurance of the protection of the English as long as they were peaceable. The paper was cheerfully given, and the delegation returned home highly gratified. In December, 1644, a matter was settled, that not only in creased the strength of the Connecticut colony, but decided questions in regard to title, that might have made much trouble. The General Court purchased from Colonel Fen- wick, and those he represented, the fort at Saj'brook, with the adjoining lands and buildings, and also every claira that they had to the surrounding country.^ It was agreed that Colonel Fenwick should be allowed the use of all the houses belonging to the fort for a period of ten years, and that a duty for the same length of time should be paid to him on all beaver, grain, and biscuit exported from the river. ^ The fort was at once put in good repair ; and Colonel Fenwick was requested to act as the agent of the colony in England, for tlie purpose of securing an " enlargement of the patent, and to furnish other advantages." In violation of the recent treaty, the Narragansetts, in the summer of 164.5, marched to the Mohegan country, and at tacked Uncas in his fort. So determined were they to an nihilate their old enemy, that Connecticut and New Haven sent a few soldiers to aid the Mohegans. A special meeting 52 HISTOBY OF CONNECTICUT. [1645, of the commissioners was called ; and messengers were de spatched by thera to the sachcras of the contending tribes, asking their presence in person, or by representatives, to give their reasons for making war. This they declined to do, and the Narragansett chiefs returned a threatening and in sulting answer. Even Roger Williams of Rhode Island, whose voice was generally on the side of peace, felt that it was necessary to prepare for an impending war. Three hundred men were gathered by formal proclamation, and placed under the command of Major Edward Gibbons. Cap tain Mason and Lieutenant Robert Seeley had charge of the Connecticut and New-Haven forces. KING PHILIP'S WAMPUM BELT Alarmed by the prompt action of the colonies, the Narra gansetts sent a present to Governor Winthrop of Massachu setts, asking for peace, but begging the privilege of fighting tlie Mohegans, and avenging the death of Miantonomo. The present was returned by the commissioners, who sent word to Pessacus, Canonicus, and the other sachems of the Narra gansetts and Niantics, that they would accept neither gift nor terms of peace until they had atoned for past offences, and given pledges of future good behavior. The sachems, with Pessacus at their head, soon came to Boston, and appeared before the commissioners. They denied that they had been guilty of violating the old treaty, and renewed their accusa tions against Uncas, while giving assurance that they would- not begin the war against the Mohegans before the next planting-time. 1645. FABMINGTON INCORPOKATED. 53 The commissioners, in a few plain, indignant words, gave the proofs that their statement regarding tlie keeping of tlie treaty was false, and assured them that they did not pro pose to let matters go on as they had done. The Indians finally acknowledged their treachery, and one of the leading chiefs humbly presented a stick to the commissioners as a token of submission. A new treaty was made, by which the hostile tribes restored to Uncas all tjie captives and canoes they had taken from him, and, as a pledge of good faith, gave hostages to the English , and agreed to pay '* two thou sand fathom of good white wampum," ^ in four instalments. The settleraent made on the Tunxis (Farmington) River in 1640 was incorporated in 1045, and given the name of Farm ington. The township included the territory that has since been divided into the towns of Southington, Berlin, New Britain, Bristol, Burlington, Avon, and Plainville. George Wyllys,^ elected governor of Connecticut in 1642, died in 1645. 1 This sale, on the part of Fenwick, included the fort at Saybrook and the land upon the river, with a jjledge, on his part, to convey to the colony, " if it come into his power," all the land be tween Saybrook and Narragansett River, included in the old patent. This convey ance does not ai^pear to have been raade. As late as 1661 the colony did not have even a copy of the patent. When Gov- ei'nor Winthrop went to England to procure the charter of 1662, he was re quested by the General Court to secure, if possible, a copy to aid him in assert ing the rights of the colony. Through the kindness of the executor of Mr. Hopkins, a copy was found araong the papers that were left by this gentleman on his death. Winthrop brought it horae with him, and some years since it was discovered araong the old files iu the State Department by Dr. J. H. Trum bull. " The settlers of the river towns had not — before or after the agreement with Mr. Fenwick — any right of juris diction except such as grew out of oc cupation, purchase from the native proprietors, or (in the case of the Pequot territory) of conquest. Their policy sceras to have been to dispose as (fuiethj and cheaply as possible of the clairas of such as challenged their title, — into the exact nature of which they were not dis posed to provoke too close an investiga tion " (J. H. Trumbull, Ool. Rec. of Conn., vol. ii. 569). - The " Saybrook impost " was the occasion of a very serious difference be tween Massachusetts and Connecticut. Of the settlements then existing on the river, one town, Springfield, was within the jurisdiction of Massachusetts. The people of Springfield refused to pay any duties to the ofiicers appointed to collect them, clairaing that, as they belonged to Massachusetts, they ought uot to be 54 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. taxed for the benefit of Connecticut. The question was referred to the cora raissioners of thecoionifK for their decis ion. New Haven and Plymouth acted as arbitrators. The matter carae up for hearing, under various pretexts, during the three following years; and each time the decision was, that the " impost " ought to be paid by the Springfield traders aw well ns by those in Connecti cut. Massachusetts was not pleased by this decision, and sought to retaliate by placing .'i duty on all goods imported from Connecticut, as well as New Haven aud Plymouth, to Boston, or exported from there to these colonies. This act was repealed the next year (1650). The entire discussion caused a good deal of ill feeling, and has been a fruitful topic for historians of later times to dwell upon. 3 Wampum. Drake, in his " Making of New England," says, "Among the New-England Indians the manufacture and use of wampum, or shell-money, seems to have begun with the Narragan setts, who sold it to the whites, who again used it the same as money in buy ing furs of the Eastern Indians, by whora wampum came to be . highly prized. In short, it represented the wealth of a tribe. But wampura had for the Indian a higher raeaning. Beautifully wrought, the belts, or strings, of shells stood, not only as his highest work of art and workraanship, but were his records, his tokens or pledges of friendship, or his credentials to other peoples or tribes. The Indians had no written records; and belts of warapura were exchanged be tween tribes to ratify treaties of peace or war, or as pledges of the good faith of the parties. Hence, they not only bore a character of sacredness, but syra- ^bolized the whole history of a war, a great council, or other reraarkable event ^n the history of a tribe. No two belts were exactly alike. Some are very beau tiful indeed, and show the Indian's ap- l>reciation of art, as the idea of the belt itself does the poetic side of his nature. At certaiu seasons the Indians used to raeet, in order lo study the meaning, and renew the memories, of tbe wampura belts. Seated in a circle, the belts were passed from hand to hand, while the story of each was being repeated by the old raen of the tribe. Id this way what each belt stood for was made familiar to old and young. Boys who were the sons of chiefs were adraitted to these talks, in order that they might get ac quainted with the concerns of their tribe, at a time when such things irapress theraselves raost. Warapura also was soraetiraes given in pledge for private friendship. There is no instance of such a proraise ever having been broken by an Indian. Warapura was raade frora the inner wreath of the cockle or peri winkle, some shells being white, and others blue, veined with purple. The white beads were used by the Indians for stanching ihe flow of blood from a wound. Its comraercial value differed as rauch as gold and silver, being first determined by the quality, and next by Ihe workraanship. In trade the strings passed at so rauch a fathom (six feet). Having little gold and silver, the whites soon adopted wampura as a medium of trade." * George Wyllys was of an old and honored English family, aud in herited a valuable estate in the county of Warwick. In 1636 Mr. Wyllys sent over his steward, with twenty men, with orders to purchase a site, and build a house, in Hartford for his use. Two years after tbis he left England, and came to Connecticut. He held a promi nent position in the colony, and was elected a magistrate annually until the time of his death. 1646.] DISCOVEKY OF AN INDIAN PLOT. 55 CHAPTER IX. 1646-1647. DISCOVERY OF AN INDIAN PLOT. THE wise leaders of affairs in Connecticut early saw that it was desirable to have a written code of laws. In 1646 the Court " desired " Eoger Ludlow " to take some pains in drawing forth a body of laws for the government of this Commonwealth." Three years passed before his work was completed and tbe code adopted.' The year was marked by a renewal of the controversy between Governor Kieft of New Netherlands and the colo nial authorities. This warfare of words did uot trouble them, however, as seriously as the treachery of once friendly tribes of Indians. The inhabitants of Windsor suffered severe losses from the destruction of property ; and a plot to murder Governor Haynes, Governor Hopkins, and Mr. Whiting, a prominent magistrate, was traced to Sequasson, a River Indian. Fortunately the Waranokc brave, whom he had hired to do the deed, betrayed his employer, and in formed the authorities at Hartford of their danger. The Mohawks constantly harassed the weak Indian tribes, scattered through the western part of the State ; but they were shrewd in keeping on good terms with the English. An interesting story, illustrating Indian character, is con nected with the early history of Milford. A company of Mohawks came within the borders of the town, and lay in the ambush of a swamp waiting to attack the Milford 56 HISTOKY OF CONNECTICUT. [l646. Indians. The English discovered their hiding-place, and apprised their neighbors of the danger. They gathered in large numbers, and suddenly surrounded the Mohawks, who were taken by surprise, aud easily defeated. Among the prisoners was a stalwart warrior, wJiom his captors tied to a stake, aud left in the tall grass of the swamp to die of starvation. An Englishman found the poor savage in this cruel plight, and, cutting the thongs that bound his limbs, set him at liberty. Having given him food and shelter, he aided his escape. This kindness was ucN'er forgotten by the Moliawks. They always treated the citizens of Milford with marked civility, and iu various ways sought to show their gratitude to the one who had giveu his aid. Tobacco was first brought into use about this time ; and the Connecticut colony passed a curious law in regard to it, that we give as it stands on the original records. "TOBACKO. "FouASsiucir as it is observed, that many abuses are crept in, and committed, by frequent taking of tobacko: "It (¦« ordered hij ihe authority of thin Coiirte, That no person under the age of twenty years, nor any other, tliat hath not ah'eady accustomed himselfe to the use thereof, sliall take any tobacko, untill hee hath brought a cirtificate under the hand of some who are ap proved for knowledge and skill in phisick, that it is usefull for him, and allso, that hee hath received a lycense from the Courte, for the same, — And for the regulating of those, who either by theire former taking it, have to their own apprehensions, made it necessary to them, or upon due advice, are persuaded to the use thereof: " It is ordered. That no man within this colonye, after the publica tion hereof, shall take any tobacko, publicquely, in the street, nor shall any take it in the fields or woo(Js, unless when they be on their travel or journey at least 10 miles, or at the ordinary tyme of repast called dynner, or if it be not then taken, yet not above once in the day at most, & then not in company with any other, under the pen alty of six-pence for each offence against this order, in any the perticulars thereof, to bee paid without gainesaying uppon conviction, by the testimony of one witness, that is without just exception." 1547.] NEW LONDON FOUNDED. 67 In the spring of 164C, John AVinthrop, jun., under the auspices of Massachusetts, began a settlement near Pequot Harbor. This territory was claimed, both by Massachusetts and Connecticut. Mr. Winthrop removed his family from Boston in the fall of 164G. They spent the winter upon Fisher's Island, but in the spring they settled on the main land. This was the beginning of the city of New Loudon. In 1647 the territory was conceded to belong to Connecticut, and the General Court suggested that the place be called "Fair Harbor;" but the settlers flnally decided upon the narae of New London. The "Pequot River" was there after known as the " Thames." A romantic interest is attached to the death of the wife of Colonel Fenwick of Saybrook, that is supposed to have occurred not far from this time. Lady Fenwick was the daughter of Sir Edward Apsley of England, and came to this country, clierishing the hope with her husband, that a beautiful and flourishing city might spring up where the waters of the Connecticut flowed into the Sound. The great leaders of the Revolution iu England, lilie Cromwell aud Hampden, were among those who planned to make this spot their future home, should they be compelled to leave their native land. The friends whom Lady Fenwick expected to welcome did not come, and she spent the remaining years of her life in the loneliness of surroundings that must have often seemed sad and strange in contrast w'lth. those of otlier days. Her tomb of hewn blocks of sandstone, without name or inscription, stood in a conspicuous spot not far from the old fort. Some years since, iu building the Valley railroad, it was necessary to disturb this ancient memorial ; and it was removed with every care to the cemetery near at hand. The death of the Rev. Thomas Hooker,^ in the summer of 1647, was a severe affliction to the infant colony of Connecticut. Recognized as " the light of the Western churches," the historian Bancroft says, "He had no rival 58 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT, in public estimation but Cotton Mather, whom he surpassed in force of character, in liberality of spirit, in soundness of judgment, and in clemency. They who judge meu by their services to the human race, will never cease to honor the memory of Hooker." ^ "CTntil this code was established, punishment was left to the discretion of the Court, and was soraetiraes arbitrary and uncertain. The code was by no means an original composition on the part of Ludlow. It is a compilation from the code of Massachusetts and other existing law. 2 Mr, Hookek fell a victim to an epidemic disease that carried off many Indians aa well as Dutch and English. Cotton Mather has left an account of his deathj iu which he says, ".In the tirae of his sickness, he did uot say much to the 6tanders-by; but being asked that he would utter his apprehensions about some important things, especially about the state of New England, he answered, ' I have not that work now to do : I have already declared the counsel of the Lord.' And when one that stood weep ing by his bedside said to hira, ' Sir, you are going to receive the reward of all your labors,' he replied, ' Brother, I am going to receive mercy.' Closiug his eyes with his own hands, the glorious peace of soul which he had enjoyed without interruption for near thirty years together, so gloriously accorapa- -nied him, that a worthy spectator, writ ing to Mr. Cotton, a relative thereof, made this reflection : * Truly, sir, the sight of his death will make me have more pleasant thoughts of death than ever I yet had iu my life.* " 1649.] UNCAS AND THE NAraiAGANSETTS. 59 CHAPTER X. 1647-1651. UNCAS AND THE NARRAGANSETTS. THE Narragansett and Niantic Indians broke their pledge of peace at the first opportunity. They failed to furnish the wampum they had agreed to pay, and hired bands of Pocomtocks^ and Mohawks to assist them in. their war of extermination against the Mohegans. The governor sent Thomas Stanton to Pocomtock, at the head of a deputation that found the Indians armed, and waiting for their Mohawk allies. The stern threats of Stanton, that the English would avenge any wrong that Uncas suffered, had the desired effect ; and, the Mohawks failing to come, the Narragansetts gave up these plans of war, although they injured and wantonly de stroyed a large amount of property in Rhode Island. In 1649 the old feud broke out again. Enraged that they had been so often baffled in their attempts to destroy the hated Mohegans, the Narragansett and Niantic chiefs plotted the assassination of Uncas. The Indian whom they hired to do this deed went on board a vessel where Uncas was, and stabbed him in the breast. The wound did not prove fatal ; and as soon as Uncas was sufiiciently recovered, he appeared before the commissioners to tell the story of his wrongs. Ninigret, the Niantic chief, was summoned to appear, aud clear himself of the charge made against himself and Pes sacus, that they had hired the assassin of Uncas. His de fence proved very lame ; and the commissioners gave him 60 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l650. to understand, that, unless he kept the pledges heretofore given, he must suffer the consequences. Uncas started a rumor that caused considerable anxiety, to the effect that a son or brother of Sassacus was negotiat ing an alliance with Ninigret by marriage with his daughter, and that he was to receive the support of the Narragansetts and Niantics in assuming the position of chief over the Pequots. Uncas had so many reasons for wishing the Eng lish to believe this stoiy, that it looks as if it might have had a reality in his imagination alone. He had treated the captive Pequots in the most cruel manner ; and the wretched remnant of the once proud tribe, year after year, came before the commissioners with a narrative of wrongs that ought to have mitigated their condition long before it did. Uncas was faithful to the English, but his actions towards other tribes of Indians were marked by perfidy and cruelty. The Narragansetts still neglected to pay the wampum now long due ; and in the autumn of 1650, Captain Humphrey Atlierton of Massachusetts was sent .with twenty men to enforce the payment. Pessacus met the little company witli a long speech, which gave his warriors time to gather in increasing nuinber. Without waiting for the conclusion of the oration, the brave English captain rushed into the wigwam, and seized the Narragansett chief by the hair of his head, and, pointing a loaded pistol at his person, told him he would blow liis brains out if lie offered the least resistance. The cowed and trembling sachem then and there counted out the wampum that a moment before he had loudly protested was not in his possession. Having finished his errand witli Pessacus in this summary fashion, Atherton liastened to visit Ninigret, who was thor oughly intimidated by the message which he brought to him. His Excellency, Peter Stuyvesant, was now governor of New Netherlands. Soon after he assumed the duties of his 1650.J GOVERNOR STUYVESANT AT HARTFORD. 61 office, iu 1647, the commissioners, in the name of the colonies of New England, sent him a congratulatory letter, iu which they took occasion to call his attention to some matters in which they thought their Dutch neighbors had done them wrong. As time went by, the situation grew worse ; and on Sept. 11, 1650, the Dutch governor came to Hartford. He declined to attend the meetings of the commissioners, and his request that the business should be transacted by written communications was granted. The war of words that had so long been in progress now culminated in a substantial recognitiou of the claims of the colonists, and the estab lishment of a boundary ^ that was of great advantage to them. War having broken out between England and Holland, with prudent foresight, the General Court of Connecticut ordered that the fort at Saybrook should be put in readiness for attack, and that the families in the vicinity should be brought within the enclosure. It was reported that a plan was being concerted between hostile Indian tribes and the authorities of New Netlierlands for the extermination of the English. This report was indignantly and, no doubt, justly denied by Governor Stuyvesant ; but the colonists were in a very excited and distrustful state of mind. The tide of feeling ran high on both sides ; and the com missioners, with the exception of Bradstreet, were in favor of declaring war. That gentleman represented the position and wishes of the General Court of Massachusetts. The stubborn determination of their delegates against the will of the otlier colonies, then, as at otlier times, threatened the dissolution of the Union." Indignant at the action of Mas sachusetts, Connecticut and New Haven appealed to Eng land for help. This appeal was not in vain, and they were rejoiced to hear that ships and men would soon be sent to aid them. Norwalk, the eastern part of which was purchased by 62 HISTOKY OF CONNECTICUT. [1651. Roger Ludlow from the Indians in 1640, was incorporated by Connecticut at the General Court of 1651. The planters to whom the grant was given did uot remove to their new home until that year. During the same year (1651) Mattabesett was first settled by the English, and iu the fall of 1653 its name was changed to Middletown. I A TRIBE which held tho country about Deerfield in Massachusetts. 2 Boundary. The commissioners chose Bradstreet of Boston, and Prince of Plymouth, and Governor Stuyvesant chose Thomas Willet and George Bax ter, as arbitrators. They disposed of the boundary question in these tei-me : — "I. That upon Long Island, a line run frora the weeterraost part of Oyster Bay, and so ou a streight aud direct line to the sea, shall be the bounds betwixt the English and the Dutch there, the easterly to belong to tbe Euglieh, and tbe westermost to the Dutch. "IT. The bounds upon the Main to begin at the West side of Greenwich Bay, being about four miles from Stam ford, and BO to run a northerly line, twenty miles up into the country, and after, as it shall be agreed, by the two governments of the Dutch and New Ilaven, provided the said line corae not within ten miles of Hudson's River. And it is agreed, that the Dutch shall not at any time hereafter, build any house or habitation within six miles of the said line: the inhabitants of Green wich to remain (till further consideration thereof be had) under the government of the Dutch. " III. The Dutch shall hold and enjoy all the lands iu Hartford that, they are actually possessed of, known and set out by certaiu marks and bounds, aud all the remainder of the said land, on both sides of Connecticut River, to be and remain to the English there. 4-Uci it is agreed that the aforesaid bounds and limits, both upon the island and raain, shall be observed and kept inviolable, both by the English of the united colonies, and all the Dutch nation, without any eucroach- raent or molestation, until a full and final determination be agreed upon in Europe, by the mutual consent of the two states of England and Holland." 3 " So long as the Confederacy acted in accordance with the wishes of Massa chusetts, all weut well; but when she differed from the others, ahe was ready to dissolve the Union rathoi- than yield " (Lodge's History of the English Colonies in America). Mr. Lodge is a loyal son of Massachusetts ; but this frank observa tion, it seems to us, is in accord with the facts of history. 1653.] COLONIES THKEATENED BY THE DUTCH. 63 CHAPTER XI. 1653-1657. STAMFORD AND FAIRFIELD THREATENED BY THE DUTCH. rpi-IE hostile attitude of affairs between the Dutch and -i- English was especially trying and disastrous to the towns west of New Haven. Stamford aud Fairfield were exposed to imminent danger, and felt that the colonial au thorities did them a serious wrong in failing to send troops for their protection. Stamford threatened to discontinue the payment of taxes to Connecticut, aud place herself under the immediate protection of England. Fairfield went so far as to vote in town-meeting to raise troops without consulting the colony, aud carry ou war themselves.^ This independ ent and plucky action met with a severe reprimand. Not far from this time, the captain of a small armed vessel was arrested, under orders of the New-Haven colony, for carrying on an illegal trade wirth the Dutch at Manhattan. While the trial was in jarogress, the sailors pulled up anchor, and sailed out of Milford Harbor. A company of brave Milford citizens at once manned a vessel, and, arming it as best they could, started in pursuit. They pressed the fugi tive so hard that the crew betook themselves to their skiflF, and left their well-equipped vessel at the mercy of the gal lant pursuers, who brought it back to their harbor, where she was condemned, with her. cargo, as a lawful prize. The fleet which Cromwell had sent, at the request of Con necticut and New Haven, had arrived in Boston Harbor. 64 HISTOEY OE CONNECTICUT. [l654. Commissioners were at once despatched from both colonies to Boston, to make arrangements for the campaign. They were more than willing to raise their proportion of an army of fifteen hundred men. If Massachusetts was unwilling to take part in the war, " rather than the design should fall," they would engage to furnish four or five hundred men if they were put under commanders whom their agents ap proved. Tidings of peace in Europe put an end to the ex pedition, not without regret on the part of Connecticut and New Haven, for they had strong hopes that it would rid them of their troublesome Dutch neighbors. Ninigret continued to harass the Long-Island Indians ; and the commissioners sent a company of soldiers, under com mand of IMajor Willard, with orders, not only to compel the Niantic chief to desist from waging further war upon the Montauk Indians, but also to demaud payment of the tribute still due, and take from him the captive Pequots in trusted to his care. Willard found that Niuigret had anti cipated his visit, and taken refuge with his braves in a swamp several miles away. Without attempting to follow him, the English returned to Connecticut, followed by nearly one hundred miserable Pequots, whose prayer for protection was granted. Under the charge of an Indian governor, who ruled them bj' a code of laws specially prepared, they were given a tract of land ou the Paucatuck and Mystic Rivers, and were permitted to hunt in the forests west of the Mystic. Ninigret, as soon as he came out of his unmolested place of concealment, renewed the war against the Montauk tribe, and did great injury to the property of the English settlers at East Hampton and South Hampton. In response to a further appeal for help, an armed vessel, under command of Captain John Youngs, was sent to watch the movements of the Niantics. This, for the time, proved an effectual barrier agaiust the turbulent spirit aud plans of Ninigret. 1657.] NORWICH SETTLED. 65 The New-Haven colony recei\'ed an urgent invitation from Cromwell to emigrate to Jamaica, which met at first with a very favorable reception. The Protector held out the most liberal inducements, and the plan was very pleasing to those who had been disappointed in the New-England settlement as a place of trade. The towns outside of New Ilaven did not favor the scheme, and after much discussion the Court decided that it was not wise to make the change. The jear was marked by quarrels and wars between the scattered bands of Indians within the territoiy of the colonies. Uncas appears to have shown an ugly and treacherous temper, that sought iu every possible way to foment trouble. The feud still raged between his tribe aud the Narragansetts. Pessacus, by a stealthy and sudden approach, surrounded Uncas in his fort ; but the wily chief contrived to send word of his critical position to the garrison at Saybrook. Thomas Letlingwell, an ensign at the fort, was permitted to load a canoe with provisions, which, having paddled into the mouth of the Thames River under cover of the night, he brought to the famishing Mohegans. With courage and strength restored, Uncas led his warriors in such a furious charge that the Narragansetts were utterly' routed. There is a tradition that the Mohegan chief, as an expiessioji of his gratitude, gave Ensign Lefflngwell a deed of nearly the whole of the present town of Norwich. It is the truth of historic record, however, that in 1659 Uncas, for seventy pounds, gave a deed of a large tract of land to an English company at Saybrook, that included the same territory. Major Mason was at the head of the company, that in cluded the pastor of the Saybrook church and most of its members, which in the spring of IGGO settled at Norwich. During the few years covered by this chapter, the colonists were called to mourn the loss of some of their most distin guished citizens. John Haynes, the first governor of Con necticut, and who held that office every alternate year until 66 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l657. his decease, died in 1654. The owner of an elegant estate in England, with au annual income of five thousand dollars, he joined his fortunes with that of his intimate and admired friend. Hooker, and was a leader in the little band that settled Hartford. Pleasant in manner, and well balanced in character and judgment, he was universally respected and beloved. Edward Hopkins, an opulent London merchant, first came to this country with the company that settled at New Haven. He soon decided to remove to Hartford, and for eleven years was elected governor of Connecticut alternately with Ilaynes. The death of his brother, in 1653, made it necessary for hiin to visit Euglaud. He expected to return in a short time, but Cromwell required his services. He was appointed a warden of the fleet, and commissioner of the admiralty ; and at the time of his death, March, 1657,- he was a member of Cromwell's last Parliament. By his will, he gave most of his property to further the cause of education in New Eng land. The public grammar schools of New Haven, Hart ford, aud Hadley, and also Harvard College, were recipients of his generous gift. Hopkins was a mau of great executive ability, and trained in the practical mauagement of affairs. He was connected with the family of Governor Eaton by marriage, and the friendship between them was both strong and tender.^ Theophilus Eaton, who died at his home in New Haveu, Jan. 7, 1657, was the first governor of that colony, and con tinued in that office until his death. The sou of an English clergyman, he early entered upon a distinguished mercantile career. For a time he acted as an ambassador of the king at the court of Denmark, and upon his return accumulated large wealth as a merchaut in London. He held earnestly to the opinions that found expression in the constitution of the New-Haven colony, and did all that was in his power to sustain them. Active and wise in the guidance of public 1657.] JOHN WINTHROP ELECTED GOVERNOR. 67 affairs, his private life was marked by generous hospitality and consistent piety. ^ In the spring of 1657, John AVinthrop of New London • was chosen governor of Counecticut. Massachusetts had done all in its power to retain his services, aud for many years he was elected a magistrate of that colony. He de clined a flattering invitation to return and make his home with thera, and in 1651 he became a freeman of Connecticut. At the very beginning of his admiuistration of the high olHce in which he was to perform such signal and honored services, important changes were made. Every freeman was admitted on the vote of the central government of the colony. A troop of horse were for the first time enrolled. Important action was takeu, by which new churches could only be formed by the consent of the General Court and the approbation of neighboring churches. New interest was taken in the reli gious instruction of the Indians, and more care shown in making liberal contributions to the college at Cambridge. ' Roger Litdlow was raade com- following spring he left Connecticut, and mander of the town militia. This is probably sailed from Virginia to Eng- > about the last we hear of this gifted land, and spent his last daye there. man, whose faults of temper sadly de- - On his death-bed in England, he tracted, both from his judgment and said, " 1-Iow often have I pleased myself influence. At once ambitious and iras- with thoughts of a joyful meeting with cible, he failed to secure the positious he ray father Eaton ! I remember with coveted, although his ability was recog- what pleasure he would corae down the nized in many ways. lie left Massachu- street, that he raight meet rae when I setts, and joined his fortunes with the came from Hartford to New Haven ; but early settlers of Connecticut, because with how much greater pleasure shall he felt' that others less worthy than hira- we shortly meet one another iu heaven." self were preferred before hira. It would s The colony erected a monument to appear that the same reasons influenced his memory, bearing this inscription : — him in going to Fairfield. His impetuous ,,.^^^^^^ ^ ^^^^^^^ ^^ ^.^^ ^^ ^^^^ ^^ spirit broke out in full force against the jnst, Dntcb; and when both New Haven and tik, phoenix of our world, here hides his Connecticut showed their displeasure at dust: the action of Fairfield, he expressed bis This name forget, New England never indignatiou in the strongest terms. The must." 68 HISTORY OE CONNECTICUT. [I66O. CHAPTER XII. THE STORY OF THE REGICIDES. ON the '27th of July, 1660, a ship arrived in Boston, bring- ino- inteUigence that Charles II. had ascended the throne of England. Before his restoration, the king promised that forgiveness would be granted to all who should give their allegiance to his authority, except those who might be condemned by Parliament. The House of Commons was disposed to pardon, even the members of the court that had condemned Charles I. to death ; but the Lords insisted that they should be brought to trial. Following this advice, the king issued a proclama tion, declaring that such of the judges of his father as did not surrender within fourteen days would receive no pardon. Nineteen delivered themselves up ; while others, in the attempt to flee, were overtaken, and brought back to the trial that ended in the condemnation and execution of ten of these unhappy men. Of the regicides who escaped by flight, three found shelter iu New England. Edward Whalley and William Goffe ar rived at Boston in July, 1660, and John Dixwell came later. The romantic story of their life aud wanderings is in mauy ways woven into the history of the State. When thej' flrst Reached Boston, it was thought that their exile would be temporary, and that the}' would receive the royal forgive ness. Governor Endicott and other prominent citizens ex tended the hospitalities of their homes to these distinguished 1661.] THE STORY OF THE REGICIDES. 69 strangers, and they did not hesitate to appear in public places. When word was received, however, tliat they were looked upon as traitors by the king, the general feeling changed towards them. Having learned that the Massachusetts authorities were seriously considering the question of their apprehension, the alarmed regicides sought refuge among friends in New Haven. They found this shelter none too soon ; for a royal mandate reached Massachusetts, requiring the arrest of the fugitives. Tidings came by the same ship of the execution of ten of the regicides, and the authorities of the colonies could not fail to see that it would bring their loj'alty in question if they did not give earnest attention to the king's command. Two zealous j'oung officers were autiiorized to search for Whalley and Goffe as far as Manhattan. The promise of promotion gave zest to their errand. When they reached Hartford, Governor Winthrop very readily gave them a warrant to search within the jurisdiction of Connecticut, but assured them that it would be a vain quest. Hastening on to Guilford, the home of acting Governor Leete of the New-Haven colony, they asked for his official assistance. With great deliberation of action, the governor declined to issue any warrant until he had consulted with the other magistrates. This delay compelled them to remain at Guil ford over the sabbath ; and in the interval, it is supposed that a message was carried to New Haven, warning the judges of their danger. While the royal pursuers were chafing at their enforced stay at Guilford, Davenport, the warm friend of the regicides, was preaching to his people at New Haven, from the text, "Take counsel, execute judg ment; make thy shadow as the night in the midst of the noonday ; hide the outcasts ; bewray not him that wandereth. Let mine outcasts dwell with thee, Moab ; be thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler." The congregation under stood the sermon without any need of personal application. 70 HISTORY' OP CONNECTICUT. [I66I. Early Monday morning the officers rode into New Haven ; but his excellency. Governor Leete, was still very deliberate in his movements, and did not arrive in town until a later hour. He assured the young gentlemen, that, to the best of his belief, the persons they were so anxious to find were not in the colony. Still pressing their demand for a warrant, they asked the privilege of searching one or two houses where they had reason to think the regicides were hid ; but the governor said he could do nothing until he had called a meeting of the freemen. By this time the officers were thoroughly angry, and inti mated that the worthy governor would get himself and the colony into trouble by his dilatory action. These remarks made such a deep impression, that the governor convened the magistrates, and continued their deliberations for five or six hours. They decided that it would be necessary to call a General Court. The indignant officers were more out spoken in their wrath than ever, and accused the authorities of treason in attempting to hinder their service. To the question " whether he would obey the king, or no, in this affair," Leete replied, " We honor his majesty, but we have tender consciences." Finding themselves in a community not easily overawed, even by fine young gentlemen bearing a royal commission, the two disgusted officers journeyed as far as Manhattan, where they were politely received by Governor Stuyvesant, who promised them aid in arresting the fugitives, if they could be found in the Dutch territory. From Manhattan they soon took passage for Boston, without visiting again the authorities of New Haven and Connecticut. It is supposed that the regicides, when word came to them of the arrival of the pursuing officers at Guilford, were secreted at the home of William Jones, whose wife was a daughter of Governor Eaton. That night (May 11) they left New Haveu, and found refuge in a mill in the woods, 1661.] THE STORY OF THE REGICIDES. 71 two miles north of the town. Early Monday morning they were conducted by Mr. Jones and two other friends, three miles or more into the wilderness. Having found a hatchet on the spot that they had selected to build a rude shelter of branches, they called the place Hatchet Harbor. They spent two nights here ; and then, having loarned that the pursuers were on the way to IManhattan, they were guided to West Rock, or Providence Hill as they named it, by Richard Sperry, who had been one of the little party who had left them at Hatchet Harbor. Here they found a slight shelter, afforded by several large fragments of trap-Tock, that has ever since been known as the "Judges' Cave." The magnificent outlook from this spot takes in the surrounding country for many miles, with a wide sweep of the Sound. It was easy of access, and at the same time very secluded. Whalley and Goffe remained in this neighborhood from May 15 to June 11. They were furnished with food by Mr. Sperry, whose house was at the foot of the hill, about a mile away. The probabilities are, that they went down in the evening, and slept at Mr. Sperry's, returning early in the morning. Two days after the regicides had removed to West Rock, at a meeting of the General Court, Deputy-Governor Leete called attention to a copy of a letter from his Majesty, with another letter from the governor of the Massachusetts col ony, " for the apprehending of Colonel Whalley and Colonel Goffe." The Court declared, that, to the best of their knowl edge, these persons were not within the colony : they, how ever, ordered diligent search to be made, but without avail.' Learniug that Mr. Davenport was suspected of conceahng them, the regicides left their hiding-place on the llth of Juue, and appeared on the streets of New Haven. It is not known where they spent the next few days ; but on Saturday, June 22, they were in New Haven, and had word sent to Mr. Gilbert, now deputy-governor, that they were ready to 72 HISTORY' OP CONNECTICUT. [l664. surrender, if it was necessary, rather than place any of their friends in danger on their account. There were those who advised them not to surrender ; and on Monday, while the magistrates were preparing to arrest them, they quietly sought their old place of refuge at West Rock. They re mained here until the 19th of August, " when, the search for them being pretty well over, they ventured to the house of one Tomkins, near Milford, where they remained two years, without so much as going into the orchard. After that they took a little more liberty, and made themselves known to several persons in whom they could confide ; and each of them frequently praj-ed, and also exercised, as they term it, or preached, at private meetings iu their chamber." ^ Learning, in 1664, that new commissioners frora England had landed at Boston, charged, among other duties, with their arrest, the unfortunate regicides decided to seek a more secluded hiding-place. They retired at first to their cave on West Rock ; but the discovery of their retreat by a party of Indians, compelled them in a few days to go else where. From this unknown spot they journeyed by night to the frontier town of Hadley, Mass., where they were concealed in the home of the Rev. John Russell. Here the}' continued to reside until the death of Whalley, sorae ten years afterwards. The later years of Goffe are shrouded in mystery ; but the probabilities arc, that he died in Hadley, and was buried by the side of Whalley, in the cellar of the house that for so long a time kept the secret of their hiding. An interesting tradition of the regicides is a part of the history of Hadle}^ During the dark days of "King Philip's AVar," the people had gathered in their meeting-house to observe a fast. While the service was in progress, the alarm was given of the approach of a large body of Indians. It was the custom for a part Of the congregation to attend public worship under arms, and those who were on duty at this time bravely attempted to repel the sudden attack of 1665.] THE STORY OF THE REGICIDES. 73 the savages. The battle from the first was very unequal in numbers ; and the Indians were gaining the advantage, when a man, venerable in years, and singular in his dress and appearance, came upon the scene, and directed the move ments of the villagers with such skill, that the enemy were soon put to flight. The stranger at once disappeared, and the people very generally believed that an angel had been sent of God for their deliverance. Years afterwards it was known that the supposed heavenly messenger was Goffe the regicide. Another of the judges of King Charles, at a later date, lived and died at New Haven. It is not known where Colonel John Dixwell spent the early years of his enforced captivity. He visited Goffe and Whalley at Hadley in 1665, and some time after this took up his residence in New Haven, under the assumed name of James Davids. He found a devoted friend in the Rev. James Pierpont, the second successor of Mr. Davenport in the ministry there. Their home-lots adjoined iu the rear, and they were in the habit of meeting frequently for prolonged conversation at the fence that separated their yards. The minister's wife wondered that her husband should enjoy the company of this aged mau so much ; but the answer to her question as to his friend and neighbor was simply, " He is a very know ing and learned man." During a visit of Si*' Edmund Andros to New England, he spent a Sunday in New Haven. ^ While in attendance upon public worship, his attention was arrested by the face aud bearing of a venerable man sitting in one of the pews. At the close of the service he inquired of some one who the gentleman was. "He is a merchant living in town," was the reply. Sir Edmund, with his suspicions aroused, said, shaking his head, " I know he is not a merchant." Mr. Davids did not attend the afternoon service ! At the death of Colonel Dixwell, his real name and char- 74 HISTOUY OF CONNECTICUT. acter were made known ; but he requested that no monument should be erected at his grave giving his name and person, "lest his enemies might dishonor his ashes." In accordance with his wish, a plain stone marked his burial-place, in scribed simply with the initials ''J. D., Esq.," and giving his asre and the date of his death. ' A SEARCH-WARRANT was placed in the hands of persona in different towns. The writer of this note may be pardoned for taking interest in the fact that his ancestor, Thomas Sanford, one of the original planters of Milford, was ap pointed by Governor Treat to aid in this search within the limits of that town. 2 This story, as a tradition, is re lated by Hollister: "During their stay at Milford, there was brought over frora England a ballad, written by some haii- brained, cavalier rhymer, placing the regicides in such a ludicrous light that a loyalist might be excused for laughing, or a Puritan for biting his lip, at the recital of it. This ballad, a girl who was au inmate of Mr. Tomkins's family, or who was in the habit of visiting the house, had comraitted to memory, and had learned lo sing it, which she hap pened to do in the chamber above tho room occupied by the judges. They were ao delighted with the song, that they used to beg their host to have it re peated by the young ladies of the family) who little knew what an interested audi tory had been provided for thera." 3 Sir Edmund was never a welcorae viaitoratNew Haven or Hartford. There is a tradition, that, on this very Sunday, the deacon gave out the fifty-second paalra to be sung, as found in Stern- hold and Hopkins's veraion, which runa thus ; — " Why dost thou, tyrant, boast abroad. Thy wicked works to praise ? Dost thou not know there is a God, Whose mercies last always ? Why dost thy mind yet still devise Such wicked wiles to warp? Thy tongue untrue, in forging lies. Is like a razor sharp. Thou dost delight in fraud and guile, In mischief, blood, and wrong; Tbylips have learned the flattering style, O false, deceitful tongue ! " Andros called the deacon to an ac count; but he gave as an excuse, that it was the usage of the church to sing the psalms in course, and the matter wap dropped. 1662.] NEW-HAVEN AND CONNECTICUT COLONIES. 7.5 CHAPTER XIII. 1662-1664. THE UNION OF THE NEW- HAVEN COLONY WITH CONNECTICUT. WE come now to the history of the union of the New- Haven colony with that of Connecticut. Both of these colonies, in their original settlement, occupied lands included in the great patent given by King James I. to tlie famous Plymouth Company. In 1630 they conveyed their title to Robert Earl of War wick ; and he conveyed it to Lord S.ay and Seal, with other distinguished men associated with him. This was the patent under which tlie Saybrook colony claimed a right to the sur rounding country, that, while unrecognized by the people of Connecticut, no doubt made them more anxious to bring about the purchase from Colonel Fenwick, which has already been noticed. The colonists were deeply interested in the stormy revo lution in the mother country, of which Cromwell was the controlling spirit. They knew that the great Puritan leader cherished very kind feelings towards them, and at one time it seemed possible that he might make his home iu the New- England wilderness. With the restoration of Charles the Second, the colonists were reminded that a Iring was again upon the English throne ; and, having hastened to recognize the royal authority, some of the principal citizens of Con necticut thought that the time was ripe and opportune for 76 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l662. seeking a charter that should define their rights and relation to the crown of England. This important business was in trusted to the care of Governor Winthrop, as the agent of the colony.' He at once set sail, and arrived iu England in the summer of 1661. He met with a cordial welcome from old friends, and his polished manners and scholarly acquire ments soon gained him an entrance to the highest and most influential circles of society. Connecticut was indeed fortu nate in her representative, and in the time chosen to make her request. Although suffering from the disabilities of age and illness. Lord Say and Seal showed a fatherly solicitude in advancing the interests of the commonwealth beyond the sea, with which his name had been connected in its earliest history. Personally, and tlirough friends, he opened the way for Winthrop to meet the king in private consultation. A little incident, trivial in itself, is related in this connection. The i.iiiN wiMUivoi- grandfather of Winthrop received a ring from the hand of Cliarles the First, in token of his esteem. This heirloom the grandson c.irried with him, and, at his first interview with the king, begged the privilege of returning it to him as a memorial of his father. The incident, at least, illustrates the delicate tact of the worthy representative of Connecticut, who understood that the way to secure the good will and attention of Charles the Second was through his feelings, and not his intellect. On the 23d of April, 1662, the royal signature was ap pended to tlie charter, of which the historian Bancroft says, " In regard to powers of government, it was extraordinary. It conferred on the colonists unqualified power to govern 1662.] UNION OF NEW HAVEN AND CONNECTICUT. 77 themselves. They were allowed to elect all their own otflccrs, to enact their own laws, to administer justice with out appeals to England, to inflict punishments, to confer par dons, and, in a word, to exercise every power, deliberative and active,. The king, far from reserving a negative on the acts of the colony, did not even require that the laws should be transmitted for his inspection ; and no provision was made for the interference of the English Government in any event whatever. Connecticut was independent except in name." ^ The bounds of the territory, confirmed by the charter, were the same as in the patent of 1031, and included the whole of New Haven and a part of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New Netherlands. As soon as the character of the charter was known, a few towns, connected with the New-Haven colony, expressed their desire to come under the jurisdiction of Connecticut. The most prominent citizens, however, of New Haven aud adjacent townships, were sorely disturbed at what seemed to them an uujust attempt to destroy their commonwealth by a summary process of absorption. While manifest destiuy favored the union, we can but admire the courage, dignity, and ability with which the position and rights of New Haven were asserted.^ The arrival at Boston of three ships of the royal navy bearing commissioners, and the conquest not long after of the Dutch, brought the vexatious discussion to an end. Town after town had renounced allegiance to New Haven, and joined Connecticut, until only three remained with her. They still remained firm in their determination to resist what they deemed the encroachment of their sister colony ; but when they saw that they must either go with her, or be ab sorbed by New York, they decided that it was preferable to unite with Connecticut, than to remain under the direct rule of a royalist whom tliey thoroughly detested. The result that proved so happy in its after-blessings, was 78 HISTOKY OP CONNECTICUT. [l664. at the time a grievous affliction to many, and especially to the gifted Davenport, who in his old age mourned what seemed to him the ruin of his life-work and hopes. On the other side of the sea he had thought out tlie principles of the constitution of the colony, whicli he had helped to found in the wilderness, with those of like sentiments with himself. With untiring solicitude and marked ability, he had done his part as a leader in civil aud religious affairs. It is easy to understand his feeling at the unexpected turn of fortune that brought New Haven and Connecticut together, and blotted out the distinctive life of the colony. Against the earnest wish of his church and congregation, he accepted au invita tion to remove to Boston, where he died two years after wards. There is no name in the early history of New Haven that can ever occupy a more distinguished place than that of John Davenport. During the year 1664, in which the union was efl^'ected, the Dutch surrendered their possessions in New Netherlands to the English, and Connecticut gave up her claim to Long Island and Delaware in favor of the representatives of the Duke of York. ' Bancroft gives this beautiful trib- becarae impoverished, the sou, unao- ule to the character of Winthrop; "As licited and without recompense, relin- a child he had been the jiride of his quished his inheritance, that * it might be father's houae ; he had received the best spent in furthering the great work' in instruction which Carabridge and Dublin Masaachuaetts; himself , without wealth, could afford, and had perfected his edu- engaging in the enterprise of planting cation by visiting, in part at least, in the Connecticut. Care for posterity seemed public service, not Holland and France the motive to his actions. Understand- only, in the days of Prince Maurice aud ing the springs of action, and the prin Richelieu, but Venice and Conatantino- ciples that control affairs, be never pie. As he travelled through Europe, attempted impracticable things, aud he sought the eociely of men eminent noiaeleaaly aucceeded in all that he for learning. Returning lo England in undertook. The New World was full the bloom of life, with the fairest prom- of his praises. Puritans and Quakers iae of advancement, he preferred to and the freemen of Rhode Island were follow his "father to the New World, alike his eulogists. The Dutch at New regarding •diversities of countries but York had confidence in his integrhy, as so many inns,' alike conducting to and it is the beautiful testimony of his 'the Journey's end.' When his father own father, that ' God gave him favor in 1664.] UNION OF NEW HAVEN AND CONNECTICUT. 79 the eyes of al! with whora he had to do.' " 2 "The Charter procured from Charles II. was not regarded as a grant of new powers, but as a formal recogni tion of the rights and privileges they had cxeicised from the first. The first draught of the ebaitor itself, so far as it affected the liberties of the colony, was, in fact, prepared by the General Court in Hart ford" (J. Hammond Trumbull). 3 Winthrop showed great skill in his negotiations, but many things were in his favor. New Haven was disliked by the power near the throne on account of her Puritanism ; and her dilatory action iu recognizing the authority of Charles II. was remembered against her, as well as the fact that the regicides had found shelter within her borders. A deeper diplomatic reason for favoring Connecti cut is found iu that it may have been hoped that the union of the colonies would raise up a rival to Massachusetts, and result in breaking up the Confeder acy. The opposition of New Haven to the Union was a source of regret and trouble to Winthrop. He had given as surances that New Ilaven should have the liberty of choice; and he was not altogether pleased that his Connecticut friends, iu their joy at securing the char ter, should seek, by coercive methods, to compel their sister colony to unite with thera. It is to be remembered, that while Davenport was so strongly opposed to the matter, aud the pastor of the church iu Branford induced alraost hia entire congregation to remove to Newark, N.J., rather than submit to Connecticut, there were many like Governor Leete, who thought it waa perhaps for the best, aud still othera who were earnestly in favor of the Union. 80 HISTOKY OE CONNECTICUT. [1674-75. CHAPTER XIV. 1664-1675. EDMUND ANDROS, GOVERNOR OF NEW YORK. AFTER the Duke of York had taken possession of New Netherlands under the authority of the English crown, royal commissioners were appointed to look after its affairs. These gentlemeu were also directed to visit New England, and make certain demands of the colonies that would re mind the people that they were still the subjects of the king. These demands, being in accord with the spirit of the con- stitutiou of Counecticut, were at once obeyed. During the next eight years the most exciting topics of public interest pertained to questions of religious doctrine aud administra tion,^ and a fiery conflict of discussion with Rhode Island regarding boundary-lines.^ The reconquest of New York by the Dutch threatened to involve Connecticut in serious trouble ; but the stir of military preparations had scarcely begun when tidings came of the' treaty of Westminster, by which Holland ceded New Nether lands to England. The Dutch ships sailed out' of New- York Bay ; and the English frigates soon after sailed in. bringing the new governor of the province. Sir Edmund Andros. Within a short time, Andros sent word to the authorities at Hartford, that, in accordance with the patent recently given to the Duke of York, he considered all of the couutry lying west of the Connecticut River under his juris diction. 1675.] ANDROS AT SAYBKOOK. 81 Ten years had scarcely passed since the boundaries of Connecticut had been carefully defined, by royal commis sioners, as including New Haven and the towns west of it, and the demand of Andros was received with scornful aston ishment. The governor and his council stood firm in their determination to resist this assault upon the rights of the colony. News having come to Connecticut of threatened danger from some Indians living beyond the eastern bounds of the colony, a messenger was sent to Andros. He at once made reply that he would make " the best of his way to Connecticut River, his Royal Highness's bounds there." The authorities at Hartford surmised that he was seizing this opportunity as a pretext to set foot on Connecticut soil, and assert the claim of the Duke of York to the territory west of the' river. Captain Thomas Bull was at once sent, with one hundred men, to occupy the fort at Saybrook, with instructions to treat Major Andros with great personal courtesy, but to resist any attempt that he might make to gain possession of the fort. "You are, in his Majesty's name," wrote the governor, " required to avoid striking the first blow ; but if they begin, you are to defend j-ourselves, and do your best to secure his Majesty's interest and the peace of the whole Colony." ^ As soon as favoring winds could carry him, Andros with two snSall vessels arrived off Saybrook, and anchored at the mouth of the river. He saw that his coming had been antici pated, and that the colony proposed to resist his demands. At his request he was permitted to come on shore, where he was met by Captain Bull and his officers. After an ex change of military courtesies, in the face of a direct protest, Andros commanded his secretary to read the papers that gave him pretended authority over all of the colony west of the river. Captain Bull sternly commanded the clerk to stop. He still persisted. " Forbear," roared the doughty captain. 82 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l675. " What is 3'our name? " sarcastically inquired Andros. " My name is Bull, sir," was the dignified but somewhat irate reply. " Bull," responded the governor. " It is a pity that your horns are not tipped with silver. ' ' ^ As soon as the reading of the obnoxious paper began, the Connecticut officers moved aside, and would not listen. Andros, disturbed at this action, said he would set sail at once if they did not wish hira to stay. They told him that they " had no order to desire him to stay, but must now read something else ; ' ' and forthwith the protest that had been prepared was read in his heariug. His anger by this time found vent in the retort, that this paper was a slander, and that the Connecticut authorities had done him a great wrong when his only purpose was to aid them. The oflScers declined to give him a copy of the protest, which he desired, but they parted with outward courtesy. A guard of honor marched with him to the water, and, as his vessels passed the fort, salutes were fired on both sides. Soon after the visit of Andros at Saybrook, Connecticut was deeply agitated by the tidings that reached them of the opening tragedies of " King Philip's War." Philip was the son of Massasoit, the true friend of the early Massachusetts settlers. Unlike his father, his heart was filled with a spirit of murderous hate towards the whites. He was angry be cause of warnings and reprimands that he had received from the English, who more than suspected that he was plotting mischief. A savage thirst for blood and revenge seems to have been the motive that urged him to action. The coming of the colonists had been a help in many ways to the Indians. They had neither been crowded from their hunting-grQunds, nor treated unjustly. The facts do not warrant the theory that Philip sought to wage a war of extermination against the whites because of their encroachments. He hated the Eng lish, and certain fancied wrongs nursed the spirit of revenue 1675.] KING Philip's wak. 83 that made him eager to do all in his power to injure them. He visited the scattered tribes in various parts of New England, and easily infused his spirit in the breast of those who, like himself, had a brutal lust for blood. There is no doubt but they cherished the hope, by united action, of bringing dismay and desolation to the hearts and homes of the settlers. Having laid their plans with great secrecy, the war broke out with such concerted fury that within a few days the settlements along a line of two hundred miles suffered terri bly' ; the heaviest blows falling upon the scattered towns in Western Massachusetts. After a brief delay caused by the controversy with Andros, Connecticut responded, with her usual alacrity, to the call for assistance.* Major Robert Treat was placed in command of the troops who did garri son duty above Springfield until called to march against the Narragansetts. In the attack upon the stronghold of the Narragansetts, hidden in an almost impenetrable swamp, the soldiers of Connecticut acted a foremost part. They pressed their way into the fort at points of extreme danger, where the fire was deadliest, aud fought with stubborn valor until their victory was complete. Out of three hundred meu, forty were killed, aud as many were wounded. The extreme cold added greatly to the suffering.' The power of Philip was broken ; and in the following summer he was tracked to his lair at Mount Hope, and killed by troops under the com mand of Major Church. During these months, many settle ments suffered from the raids ^ of the Indians ; and, even after the death of Philip, they attacked a few places. Governor Winthrop was chosen one of the commissioners to represent Connecticut in the Congress of the United Colo nies in May, 1676. He went to Boston upon this errand in the early spring, and was there taken sick, and died after a brief illness. The name of John Winthrop is inseparably woven into 84 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l676. some of the most interesting chapters in the early history of Connecticut. His influence, at a critical period, was great ; and with rare tact and wisdom he labored to advance the interests and welfare of the Commonwealth that he lived to see strong and prosperous. Time has added lustre to his fair fame, and the progress of events proved the ability with which he conducted difficult negotiations. It has been the fashion, in some quarters, to disparage the character and service of the younger Winthrop in comparing him with his distinguished father, the governor of Massachusetts. With out detracting iu the least from the reputation of that able and good man, we contend, that, measured by every standard of true greatness, the son does not stand in the shadow of his honored sire. His generous and affable spirit enabled him to win the friendship and good will of others, but this kindly feeling never moved him from the path of rectitude. With the courteous manners of a cavalier, he combined a Puritaii love and loyalty to truth and righteousness, that made him both a wise and successful leader. 1 These questions grew out of the the privilege of baptism for their house- agitation of matters of discipline respect- holds, and of access to the Lord's table." ing church membership and baptism. This was afterwards known as the //a(/'- In the early history of the colonial icay Covenant Plan, Davenport was churches, all of whora were Congrega- earnestly opposed to this innovation, tional in polity, only those who had made and its advocacy by certain prominent public profession of a personal spiritual parties in Connecticut added to his experience "were admitted to the privilege sorrow over the absorption of New of baptism for themselves and their chil- Haven into that colony. dren. At this period, there was a grow- 2 These discussions in regard to ing parly in Connecticut, especially at boundary-lines have little general inter- Ilartford, who favored the custom and est now; but, when under debate, they rights granted by the state churches of caused great excitement and rauch hard England and Scotland. This system feeling. Conuecttcut claimed, that, by provided that all persons of good raoral the Warwick patent and the charier of character in a parish, who raade "a cer- Charles II., the eastern bounds of the tain public profession of Christian faith Slate comraenced at Narragansett Bay. and Christian obedience, including a Rhode Island said very truthfully, that formal covenant with Ood and with the this left her a pitiful bit of territory. Church, which at the same time was to The Connecticut fathers did not consider be understood as implying no profession this argument very strong, and were of any Christian experience, might have alert in asserting their rights and driving THE NAKKAGANSETT EOKT. 85 out intruders. Tn 1671 a controversy between Massachusetts and Connecticut, regarding the northern boundary-line, was settled by the former colony, con senting to an addition of some miles of territory to Connecticut. Even down to the preaent day, the boundary-lines of the State remained undecided. Those inter ested in theae matters will find them fully and carefully stated in a beautiful monograph prepared by Mr. Clarence "VV. Bowen, entitled "The Boundary DiMputewof Connecticut." 3 The citizens of New York, catching the teraper of their hot-headed governor, at first declared that they would not "surrender, but keep up by fighting so long as they could stand on one leg, and fight with one hand." * The General Court came together the following day (July 9), and approved the action of Governor Winthrop and the Council. They unanimoualy passed a reaolutiou protesting against " Major Andros's challenge and attempts to aur- priae the main fort of the colony ; '* and they expressed themselves aa ready to " use their utmost power and en deavor (expecting therein tbe assistance of Almighty God) to defend the good people of the Colony from the said Major Andros's attempts" (Conn. Rec., ii. 262). 5 This episode is related by Dr. Trumbull (Hist. Conn. i. 330). Such conversations are matters of tradition; but the colonial records tell us that Major Bull was instructed not to allow Andfoa'a men to land except for refreshment, and that they were to come unarmed, and make but a short tarry. He was to " keep the king's colors standing, under his Majesty's lieutenant, tbe governor of Connecticut; and if any other colors were set up, he was not to suffer them to stand." The Connecticut authorities were not altogether pleased that a more vigorous protest had not been made. They could have wished that " he [Andros] had been interrupted iu doing tbe least thing, under pretence of his hav ing any thing to do to use his Majesty's name in comraanding there so usurp- ingly, which might have been done by ahouta, or aound of drum, etc., without violence" (Conn. Kee, ii, 5S4). c "The Council did further comrais- eionate Major Treat to take the conduct of our army, and to take special care of the Reverend Mr, Bulkly and Mr. Noyes : aod they also commanded all the cap tains aud lieutenants of the army to be tender and careful of Major Treat, that he be not exposed to too much hazard, and that they allot him a sufficient guard to attend his person at all tiraes; with an advice that they avoid whatever may be provoking to God, and that they be have themaelves valiantly and courage ously " (Conn. Rec, ii. 388). ' The site of tbis fort is in the town of South Kingston, K.I., about eighteen railes north-east of Stonington. During the fight, captains Gallup of New Lon don, and Marshall of Windsor, were ki ded .outright. Captain Seeley of Strat ford received wounds that proved mor tal; aud the same fate overtook Captain John Mason of Norwich, son of the leader against the Pequots. Samuel Hall of Fairfield petitioned the General Court for compensation for clothes lost in the " swamp fight." " When Captain Mason was shot down," he wrote, "I was just before him when he fell down, aud shook him by the hand, I being shot down in that very place, so that he fell very near rae. But Captain Mason got up again aud went forth, and I lay bleed ing there in the snow; and hearing the word comraanded to set fire on the wig- waras, I considered I ahould be burned if I did not crawl away. It pleased God to give rae strength to get up and get out, with ray cutlass iu ray hand, not- withstaudiug I had received at that tirae four bullets, two in each thigh, as was manifest afterwards'* (Conn. Kee, iii. 5). "The Connecticut troops, 'much dis abled with tedious storms, and no lodg ings, and frozen and swollen limbs," were withdrawn by their comraander 86 HISTOKY OF CONNECTICUT. to Stonington" (Palfrey, Hist. N. E., ill. 181). 8 John Talcott of Hartford was placed in command of a force of three hundred and fifty men, that marched early in June, 1676, to Hadley and Brook field, where they aurprised and routed partiea of Indiana. Other companies, from Windsor, Stonington, Norwich, and New London, went to the relief of the Maaaachusetts settlements earlier in the year. 1680.] AT THE CLOSE OP KING PHILIp's WAB. 87 CHAPTER XV. 1680-1686. REPORT TO THE ENGLISH BOARD OF TRADE. WHILE Connecticut, during "King Philip's War," hap pily escaped the horrors of savage attack and bloodshed within her borders, there was sorrow in many homes from which brave fathers and sons had gone, never to return alive. The necessary equipment of her militia, and the cost of building and repairiug forts aud palisades about the settle ments, with other expenses, left the colony burdened with a heavy debt. Such burdens, that had fallen with a crushing weight upon Massachusetts and Plymouth, did not, however, retard the progress and prosperity of Connecticut. There is on record a report made, four years after Philip's war, by the Governor and Secretary to the Lords of the Committee for Trade and Plantations. The militia is stated to consist of 2,507 foot-soldiers, besides " one troop of sixty horse." Mention is made of a "small fort at the mouth of the Connecticut River." " As for our Indian neighbors," they go on to say, " we compute them to be about five hundred fighting men. We are strangers to the French, and know nothing of their strength or commerce. Our chief trade for procuring clothing is by sending what provisions we raise to Boston, where we buy goods. The trade with our Indians is worth nothing, because their frequent wars hinder their getting peltry. . . . Our buildings are generally of wood ; some are of stone or brick ; and some of them are of good 88 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1680. Strength and comely, for a wilderness. . . . The commodi ties of the country are provisions, lumber, and horses. . . . We have no need of Virginia trade, as most people plant so much tobacco as they need. We have good materials for ship-building." The value ' ' of our annual imports probably araounts to £9,000. We raise no saltpetre. Our wheat hath been much blasted, and our pease spoiled with worms, for sundry years past. We have about twenty petty merchants ; some trade to Boston, some to the Indies, and other colonies; but few foreign merchants trade here. . . . There are but few ser vants, and fewer slaves ; not above thirty in the colony. There are so few English, Scotch, or Irish come in, that we can give no account of them. . . . The people are strict Congregationalists ; a few, more large Congregationalists ; and some, moderate Presbyterians. There are about four or five Seven-day men, and about as many Quakers. . . . We have twenty-six towns, and there are twenty-one churches in them ; and in every one there is a settled minister, except in two newly planted. The stipend, which is more or less according to duty, is from £50 to £100. Eveiy town main tains its own poor. But there is seldom any want, because labor is dear, being from two shillings to two shillings and sixpence a day for a laborer ; and because provisions are cheap. . . . Beggars and vagabonds are not suffered, but, when discovered, they are bound out to service : vagabonds who pass up and down are punished by law." For several years the chronic dispute between Rhode Island and Connecticut, regarding the boundary-line, caused much ill-feeling. Connecticut, at one time, made serious prepa rations to drive out the intruding Rhode-Islanders at the point of the bayonet. This vigorous menace was not with out effect ; and two years afterwards, the colonial commis sioners appointed by the king, after a careful hearing of the case, set aside the claim of Rhode Island.* 1685.] ACCESSION OP KING JAMES. 89 But the boundary trouble was by no means at an end. Edward Randolph, agent of the English Lords of Trade, an ambitious and mercenary man, who for some time had sought to gain the royal favor by pouring into the ears of the king and his counsellors false reports regarding the Massachusetts colonies, appeared before the commissioners, and urged an old claim of the Duke of Hamilton against Connecticut for lands. ^ Randolph had heretofore professed special friendship and good will towards the colonj^, because of its loyalty ; but the opportunity of serving a duke, and making a little money, was too great a temptation to resist ; and it is possible that the reception Andros liad received at Saybrook led him to doubt the quality of the loyalty that had found such fine expression iu words. Althougli the case was finally decided in favor of Connec ticut, it remained open for many years, and caused much annoyance. With the death of Charles II., and the accession of James II. to tlie English throne, the New-England colonies con tinued a struggle for their civil rights and liberties that cul minated, nearly a century afterwards, in the war of the Revolution and the independence of the United States. The part which Connecticut acted in that struggle is one of which her children may well be proud. Before the death of Charles, designing men had influenced the easj'-going and pleasure- loving monarch to sanction acts that had seriously encroached upon the rights of the colonies. With reckless thoughtless ness, if nothing worse, he had placed his signature to patents of lands that had long before been given to others. In truth, he seems to have had but a slight conception of the geography of the New World, and very likely signed papers that broke faith with former agreements without realizing the wrong he was doing. He was a man easily influenced bj' his favorites, and he was ready to gratify their wishes with slight regard to the effect it might have upon the rights of others. 90 HISTOKY OF CONNECTICUT. [l685. James II. was in almost every respect the opposite of his brother. Fond of authority, narrow and bigoted in his opinions, he looked with ill-concealed hatred upon those who sought liberty of thought and conscience for themselves and others. The New England that was springing up in the wilderness beyond the sea, appeared to him a refuge of Puritanism, where the seeds of hostility to royal authority that had begun to take root should be ruthlessly destroyed. Emissaries like Randolph, by outrageous misrepresentations, had succeeded iu arousing the prejudices and ill will of Charles II. to such an extent that the charters of some of the colonies had already been taken away. Connecticut was very wise and shrewd in her political action, and professions of loyalty ; and during the lifetime of Winthrop she was favored with a friend at court, who always held a high place in the esteem and good feeling of the king. It is difficult to believe that Charles realized the injustice he was doing when he gave the patent to his brother, that, in direct violation of other titles, included a large portion of Connecticut. Be this as it may, his brother, while Duke of York, showed the same spirit and purpose that actuated him when he came to the throne. As soon as the tidings reached New England that the duke had been proclaimed king under the title of James II., Connecticut hastened to send him a loyal address, expressing sentiments of condolence and congratulation, and humbly asking for a continuance of past favors. This letter reached England about the same time as did Edward Randolph, the malignant slanderer of the colonies. Heretofore he had brought his accusations, for the most part, against Massa chusetts, but he now thought it was a favorable time to attack Connecticut. In an elaborate paper he charged the colony with the crime of independent government, disloyalty to the laws of the mother country, and hostility to the Estab lished Church of England. 1686.] THE WKIT OF QUO WARRANTO. 91 Randolph was not a mischief-maker without a purpose. He had not, year after year, crossed and recrossed the storms- Atlantic simply for the pleasure of retailing a stock of false stories regarding the colonies. Beneath his hatred of Puri tan life and institutions, dwelt the ambition that hoped for personal advancement iu the breaking up of the colonies, aud uniting them under the rule of a governor-general. When James II. came to the throne, this plan had been almost ac complished, and he was eager to complete it. The charges made by Randolph were immediately referred by the king to his attorney-general, with orders to issue a quo 'warranto'^ against the governor and colony of Connecti cut. In July of the following year (168G), a special session of the General Assembly was called, to consider what it was best to do. The ink was scarcely dry upon the letter in which they humbly asked the king's favor, when Randolph sent word from Boston that he was the bearer of the writ.* Two weeks later he came to Hartford, and, in person, demanded the surrender of the charter of the colony. It was a dark hour, but the leadiiig citizens of the Commonwealth were firm in their determination to take advantage of every means to delay action. More wise and politic than Massachusetts, they refrained from any aggressive assertion of their rights, and appointed Mr. Whiting as their agent to present their petition to the king. ^ This was a very tangled dispute, Narragansett land as some slight com- because it was mixed up with other pensatiou for the expense they had claims by Massachusetts and the Ather- assumed. ton Company. Connectieut at this time ^ at the time of the dissolution of urged its claim to the Narragansett the Council for New England (1635), the country, not only because it was in- merabers tried to divide the property eluded in the grant of the charter, but among themselves. A portion of the also for the reason, that, while they had territory of Connecticut was set off to given blood and treasure to save the the Marquis ot Hamilton. This action country in Philip's war, Ehode Island was illegal, because the council long be- had held aloof, and done nothing. They fore had granted away its property. The felt that they had a right to hold the marquis lost his life iu the civil war, but 92 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. after the restoration, his daughter, whose husband had been created Duke of Hamilton, asked the king to give her possession of her father's alleged estate in America. 2 Quo Warranto. A writ requir- , ing their appearance at a certain date and place, to show by what authority they exercised certain powers and privi leges. * " His Majesty Intends," writes Randolph, " to bring all New England under one government; and nothing is now remaining on your part, but to think of an humble submission and a dutiful resignation of your charter, which if you are yo hardy as to offer to defend at law, whilst you arc contend ing for a shadow, you will in the first place lose all that part of your colony from Connecticut to New York, and have it annexed to that government, a thing you are certainly informed of already; and nothing wil! prevent, but your obviating so general a calamity to all New England by an hearty and timely application to his Majesty with an hum ble submission. . . , Sirs, bless not your selves with vain expectation of advantage, and spinning out of time by delay. I will engage, though the weather be warm, the writs will keep sound and as good as when first landed " (Conn. Rec, iii. 352-353). 1686.J ANDKOS ARRIVES AT BOSTON. 93 CHAPTER XVI. 1686-1689. ADMINISTRATION OF ANDROS. AT the time Randolph made his demands, Massachusetts was governed by a council of which Joseph Dudley was president. This gentleman sent a letter to Governor Treat, advising the surrender of the charter, and proffering his ser vices in behalf of the colony. The offer was declined, even at the risk of being annexed to New York. In the midst of these perplexities. Sir Edmund Andros arrived in Boston, bearing his commission as governor-general of New Eng land. The slight hope the colonists still cherished of securing justice from the English courts was at an end. Sir Edmund sent word that he expected the immediate surrender of the charter. His letter expressed a very ear nest desire to serve the interests of his friends in Connec ticut ; but we can imagine his memory still recalled his interview, some years before, with Captain Bull at Say brook. The General Court was at once convened ; and by its direction a letter was addressed to the Englisii secretary of state, earnestly piecing for tlie preserv.ition of the privi leges that had been granted to them. For the first time they admitted the possibility that their petition might be denied, and in that case requested to be united to Massachu setts. This was construed by Sir Edmund as a virtual sur render ; but as the days went by, he saw that he had mistaken the spirit and purpose of the colony. 94 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l687. Andros finally decided to go iu person to Connecticut. He arrived at Hartford the last day of October, attended by a retinue of sixty officers and soldiers. The Assembly, then iu session, received him with every outward mark of respect. After this formal exchange of courtesies, Sir Edmund publicly demanded the charter, and declared the colonial government dissolved. Tradition relates that Gov ernor Treat, in calm but earnest words, remonstrated against this action. His feeling swept on in a tide of eloquence as he recalled the story of the early settlers, and the hardships they had endured to secure the liberties granted to them by the charter that was as dear to them as life. The debate was continued until the shadows of the early autumnal evening had fallen. After candles were lighted, the governor and his council seemed to yield ; and the box supposed to contain the charter was brought into the room, and placed upon the table. Suddenly the lights were extin guished. Quiet reigned in the room, and in the dense crowd outside the building. The candles were soon relighted ; but the charter had disappeared, and after the most diligent search could not be found. The common tradition has been, that it was taken under cover of the darkness by Captain Joseph Wadsworth, and hidden by him in the hollow trunk of a venerable and noble oak-tree standing near the entrance- gate of Governor Wyllys's mansion. The charter taken by Captain Wadsworth was probably the duplicate,' and remained safely in his possession for many years. There is reason to believe, that, some time before the coming of Andros to Hartford, the original charter^ had been carefully secreted ; and the tradition of later times makes it probable, that, while the duplicate charter that was taken from the table was hidden elsewhere,^ the original charter found a safe resting-place in the heart of the tree that will always be remembered as "The Charter Oak." * This tree is said to have been preserved by the early settlers at the request of 1687.] ANDROS ASSUMES AUTHORITY. 95 the Indians. "It has been the guide of our ancestors for centuries," they said, " as to the time of pliinting our corn. When the leaves are the size of a mouse's ears, then is the time to put it in the ground." The record of the Court briefly states that Andros, having been conducted to the governor's seat by the governor him self, declared that he had been commissioned by his Majesty to take on him the government of Connecticut. The com mission having been read, he said that it was his Majesty's pleasure to make the late governor and Captain John Allyn members of his council. The secretary handed their com mon seal to Sir Edmund, and afterwards wrote these words in closing the record : ' ' His Excellency Sir Edmund Andros, Knight, Captain - General and Governor of his Majesty's Ter ritory and Dominion in New Eng land, by order from his Majesty, King of England, Scotland, and Ireland, the 31st of October, 1687, CHARTER OAK. took into his hands the govern ment of this colony of Connecticut, it being by his Majesty annexed to the Massachusetts and other colonies under his Excellency's government, finis." Andros soon disclosed a hand of steel beneath the velvet glove of plausible words and fair promises. His feeling was very bitter towards the ministers of the New-England churches. The fact that they were leaders of society, and held in universal esteem and respect, made them the special objects of his hatred. Connecticut suffered less, however, than the other colo nies, from the arbitrary rule of Andros. Governor Treat, as a member of his council, was in a position to exercise a quiet but thoughtful influence that proved a source of protec tion to his fellow-citizens, and fostered a spirit of patient * See page 106. 96 HISTORY OF CONNECTICXJT. [1687, endurance. Happily, the darkness of these hours was soon relieved by the dawn of a morning of joy and prosperity. ' The duplicate oharteii of the colony, which was secured by Captain Joseph Wadsworth of Hartford, wai^ safely kept and preserved by him until May, 1715. The original charterj which now hangs in the secretary's oflBce at Hartford, is engrossed on three skins : the duplicate was written on two. So much of the duplicate as remains, being about three-fourths of the second skin, is now in the library of the Connecticut Historical Society, where it was placed by lion. John Boyd, late secretary of this State. The story of its preservation, as told by Dr. J. Hammond Trumbull, is as follows: "In 1817 or 1818, while Mr. Boyd waa prepariug for college at the Hartford Grammar School, he boarded in the faraily of the liev. Dr. Flint of the South Church. Coming in one day from school, he noticed on the work- stand of Mrs. Bissell, the doctor's mother- in-law, a dingy piece of parchment, covered over on one side with black- lettered manuscript. In answer to his inquiries, Mrs. Bissell told him, that, hav ing occasion for some pasteboard, her friend and neighbor, Mrs. Wyllys, had sent her this. Mr. Boyd proposed to procure her a piece of pasteboard in ex change for the parchraent, to which Mrs. Bissell consented. It was not, however, until six or eight years had elapsed, that Mr. Boyd examined the parchment with care, when for the first tirae he learned what its contents were." The General Assembly held in Hart ford iu May, 1715, in its record says, *' Upon consideration of the faithful and good services of Captain Joseph Wads worth of Hartford, especially in secur ing the Duplicate Charter of this Colony in a very troublesome season when our Constitution was struck at, and in safely keeping and preserving the same ever since unto this day, this Assembly do, as a token of their grateful resentment of such his faithful and good service, grant' him out of the Colony treasury twenty shillings." This bill, it appears, originated iu the Lower House, and gave Captain Wadsworth four pounds. The Upper House thought the sum too large, and it was finally cut down to twenty shillings. Evidently the part that the good captain acted has become exagger ated with the romance of tradition. 2 OeiginalChakter. The minutes of the General Court held in Hartford, June 15, 1687, notes that " Sundry of the Court desiring that the Patent or Charter be brought into the Court, the Secretary sent for it, and informed the Governor and Court that he had the charter, and shewed it to the Court; and the Govern or bid hira put it into the box again, and lay it on the table, and leave the key in the box, which he did forthwith." This is certainly a very peculiar inci dent; and in view of after-events, it looks as if the leaving of the box on the table raade it very easy for some one to remove the precious parchment else where. 3 The tradition was handed down from an early date in the Wadsworth family, that the duplicate charter wan hidden in the house of Captain Wads worth. 4 The old oak was blown down dur ing a severe gale in the raonth of August, 1856. That part of the trunk of the tree in which the charter is sup posed to have been hidden, im preserved among ihc historical collections at the AtheuEeuni building in Hartford. 1689.] AFTER THE EEVOLUTION OP 1688. 97 CHAPTER XVII. 1689-1693. GOVERNMENT RESUMED UNDER THE CHARTER. IN May, 1689, a ship arrived in Boston Harbor, bringing welcome tidings. James II. had taken flight before the gathering storm of national wrath that threatened his de struction ; and William, Prince of Orange, having landed in England, had entered upon his noble and beneficent reign. Boston had never witnessed a day of excitement like this. The signal-fires were kindled ou Beacon Hill ; and the peo ple poured in from the country, eager to give vent to their hatred of Andros and his friends. If the excitement over the good news was less intense in Connecticut, tlie joy was as great. With thankful hearts tile people congratulated themselves upon the wise and pa tient manner in which they had clung persistently to the cliarter of their liberties, and, in the last extremity, saved it from the hands of "the tyrant whose power was now broken. Governor Treat and the old magistrates having resumed the government, a meeting of the Assembly was called. In a letter, overflowing with a spirit of devout thanksgiving for their deliverance, they told King William the story of tho wrongs that had been inflicted upon them by the oppressor. Having never surrendered the patent given them by Charles II., they informed his Majesty that they had taken the lib erty of resuming the reins of government until they could learn his good pleasure. 98 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l690. Connecticut was anxious to secure a formal confirmation of the charter, but this was never granted.' The law offi cers of the Crown, however, gave an opinion that the acts of usurpation on the part of Andros were illegal, and the charter intact. Eflforts were afterwards made to destroy it, and to annex the colony to New York, but in vain. Con necticut was to enjoy the proud distinction of having never surrendered her charter, until the war of the Revolution joined the destinies of the Commonwealth with that of the United States. For nearly a century from the accession of William and Mary, the internal history of the colony is marked by few startling events.^ The currents of life moved peacefully and prosperously along the line of political and religious princi ples and social and business customs that developed almost an ideal condition of common blessings. Seasons of adver sity, and times of threatened danger, were not infrequent ; but, while the alarm of war was often heard without, quiet reigned within her borders. In the struggles that brought great distress upon her sis ter colonies, Connecticut always gave her aid in generous measure. In answer to a call from Governor Bradstreet of Massachusetts to aid in the war with the Indians at the East, she sent some of her leading men to Boston, to consult with commissioners from the other colonies. Satisfied that the war was " lawful and just," two hundred of the militia were at once sent forward. This aid was all the more generous, since the colony was suffering at the time from an epidemic sickness of peculiar severity. A few men were sent to help Governor Leisler keep the peace in the village of New York, while he tried to carry out some new plans of government. When tidings came that the frontier towns of his province- were threatened by the French and their Indian allies, a part of this force, in command of Captain Bull, was sent to Schenectady ; and at the time of the attack upon the place. 1692.] PITZ JOHN WINTHROP VINDICATED. 99 and the massacre that followed, five of the Connecticut men were killed, and five captured. A re-enforcement of two hundred men at once marched to Albany. Early in the spring, an expedition was planned against Quebec. The land force was to consist of eight hundred Englishmen, and more than twice that number of Indians of the Five Nations. Connecticut furnished her full quota of soldiers, and the army was placed in command of Fitz John Winthrop. After reaching the place of rendezvous, at the southern end of Lake Champlain, Winthrop found that neither the Indians nor promised provisions were there ; and he thought it best to retreat at once. -Leisler, it is said, became so enraged at General Winthrop because of this action, that he caused his arrest, and placed him under guard, for the purpose of bringing him before a court-martial. This high-handed pro ceeding, it is also related, was brought to a summary close by a party of Mohawks, who crossed the river, and, break ing through the guards, released the prisoner, " to the uni versal joy of the army." Upon returning home. General Winthrop was cordially received ; and, after a careful inves tigation of his conduct, a vote of thanks and exoneration was passed by the Assembly.' Fearing that the French fleet, reported at one time to have anchored in Narragansett Bay, might visit the Connecticut coast, the fortifications at New London and Saybrooji were garrisoned and put in repair ; but the war was confined to attacks upon the western frontier, beyond the Hudson, and the settlements of Northern New England. In August, 1692, Fletcher, the recently appointed governor of New York, arrived from England with a commission that gave him command over the militia of Connecticut and the neigh boring provinces. This at once aroused the discussion of the old question of jurisdiction that had already caused so much trouble and anxiety. The spirit that had flamed up against the attempt of Andros to deprive them of their 100 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l693. charter liberties, was again rekindled. General Winthrop was appointed as the agent of the colony in bringing their protest before the king, and calling his attention to the wrong that would be done them in allowing Governor Fletcher to exercise control over their militia, in direct violation of privileges granted bj' their charter. The New- York governor would not listen to any concilia tory suggestions, and determined to visit Hartford, to en force his demands in person. He found the Assembly in session ; and, having with a great flourish of words asserted his authority, insisted that they should at once give a direct answer as to whether they would, or would not, obey his orders. The Assembly very dutifully complied with his command that the militia should be summoned under arms. Governor Fletcher desired this to be done in order that he might beat up for volunteers : the sequel proved that Gov ernor Treat and his advisers had a very different idea. The train-bands were no sooner called together than the authori ties more firmly than ever denied the right of any persons outside of the colony to direct their movements. Governor Fletcher now sought to accomplish his purpose by a more conciliatory policy. He sent a letter to the As sembly, in which he disclaimed any desire or purpose to in terfere with the civil rights of the colony. All that he asked was, that they should acknowledge that the king had author ity to appoint the commander-in-chief of the militia. The Assembly refused to give up their control of military affairs, and Governor Treat declined the commission that had been tendered to him. According to orders, the train-bands had gathered at Hartford ; and while they were being exercised by the senior officer, Captain Wadsworth, Governor Fletcher gave commands that his commission and instructions should be read to them. " Beat the drums," was the instant com mand of Captain Wadsworth. The uproar was so great that nothing else could be heard. Colonel Fletcher demanded 1693.] GOVERNOR FLETCHER AT HARTFORD. 101 silence, and his secretary attempted to read again. " Drum, drum, I say," was tbe renewed order of Wadsworth; and drum they did with lusty vigor, in spite of the angry remon strance of the royal governor, who cried, "Silence! Si lence!" When a pause came. Captain Wadsworth again gave the command to ''drum," and, turning to his excel lency, said, "If I am interrupted again, I will make the sun shine through you in a moment," No further attempt to read the instructions oreulist men was made. The disgusted and angry governor with his suite soon left town, and re turned to New York.^ 1 FiTZ-JoHN Winthrop was sent, four years after this, to England, to urge this matter; aud Increase Muthei', who was in England at the time the colony sent the Address, asking for the con- iirmatiou of the charter, proved au efficient friend. 2 The witchcraft mania that raged with such fury in Eastern Massachusetts made trouble in Connecticut. At a spe cial session of the Court of Oyer and Terminer, held at Fairfield in September, 1692, Mercy LUsborough of Compo, iu Fairfield, Goody Miller, goodwife, alias Elizabeth, Clawson, and Mrs. Staples, were indicted for familiarity with Satan. " The evidence," saysMr. G. H. Hoadley, " was much of the sarae nature as in other cases of this crime. The water- ordeal was resorted to, as it had been in Hartford in 1662. Four witnesses swore that Mercy Disborough, being bound hand and foot and put into the watei', swam like a cork, though one labored to press her down. Elizabeth Clawson also floated." At a session of the court held in the same place, Oct. 28, Mercy Die- borough was alone found guilty. Sen tence of death was passed ; but a memorial was sent to the General Assembly asking for her pardon, and there is good reason foi believing it was granted. (See Colo nial Records, vol. iv. p. 76.) 3 There is no doubt but that Leisler and his commissary Milborn were utterly remiss in giving the aid they had prom ised in this expedition. When the Connecticut magistrates learned that Vi^'inthrop had been arrested by Leisler at Albany, they sent a peremptory de mand for his release. * This is the story of tradition. The probabilities are, that, like many other stories, it has been exaggerated by repe tition. It hardly seems reasonable that the New-York governor and the Con necticut captain should have corae into such personal and angry collision. 102 HISTOKY^ OF CONNECTICUT. [l698. CHAPTER XVIII. 1698-1705. COLONIAL PROSPERITY. THE petition presented to the English Government by General Winthrop met with a favorable answer. It was decided that Connecticut might command her own militia, with the understanding that she should furnish a quota" of one hundred and twenty men to be under the orders of Governor Fletcher during the war. Until the session iu October, 1698, the General Assembly had consisted of one House, but thereafter it became two. The governor, or in his absence, the deputy-governor, and magistrates, composed the Upper House. The Lower House consisted of deputies, now called representatives, from the several towns in the colony. No public act could become a law without the consent of both Houses. The office of jus tice of the peace was instituted, and a carefully revised edi tion of the laws was published by authority. " Free from harassing Indian wars, and from the religious troubles of Ehode Island, with an independent government, , ^Connecticut was the most peaceful, the most prosperous, and the happiest, of the colonies. Her schools flourished, her towns throve, the franchise was extended, legislation improved, debt avoided, faithful magistrates continued long in office, and great attention was paid to every thing calcu lated to improve the welfare of the people " (Lodge). We have come now to the dawn of the eighteenth century. 1698.] EFFORTS TO DESTROY THE CHARTER. 103 The death of William of Orange in the spring of 1702 was followed by the accession of Queen Anne to the English throne. The colony continued to prosper in its domestic aff'airs ; but trouble and anxiety were caused by the plotting of enemies without, who were at times aided by certain dis affected citizens. The ambitious Dudley, then governor of Massachusetts, pushed his schemes by which he hoped to unite all of New England under his government. Governor Cornbury of New York endeavored to carry out the same plan in connection with the southern provinces. These men, in seeking to further their selfish interests, were especially anxious to humble Connecticut, and destroy the charter, which st6od in the way of their usurping the power they desired. Dudley, in his early official relations with Andros, had become an apt pupil in the school of mean and lying in trigue ; and he attempted to secure the concentration of the government in his hands by false accusations of various kinds. Soon after the accession of Queen Anne, a bill was introduced into Parliament, the purpose of which was to destroy the charters of the colonies. Connecticut was again fortunate in the character and ability of her agent in London, Sir Henry Ashurst. His plea in behalf of the rights of the colonj-, contained in a remonstrance to the Lords and a hearing at the bar of the House of Commons, made so deep an impression, that the bill was rejected by Parliament. With a persistence of purpose worthy of a better cause, Dudley, with the co-operation of Cornbury, still continued his misrepresentations, and sought to arouse prejudice against Connecticut, at the English court. Both of these men had influential friends within the royal circle, and they made all of the capital they could out of the grievances of a few disaffected persons who were displeased with certain decisions of the colonial courts that had been adverse to 104 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [|705. their demands and interests. At the very time Dudley was plotting the destruction of the colony, he wrote a letter thanking the General Assembly for the generous manner in which they had responded to his call for supplies. This piece of hypocritical duplicity, however, proved a weapon that Ashurst skilfully used in defending the colony. While the Counecticut authorities were ignorant of what was passing, the queen appointed a time for hearing the charges of Governors Dudley and Cornbury. There is no doubt but that they had succeeded in prejudicing those high in official power against the colony, and they hoped soon to consummate plans that would at last humble and destroy the commonwealth that had so long successfully retained her charter rights. Sir Henry endeavored to secure a delay that would give the colony time to make an answer. This was refused. Stung by the sense of injustice done his clients, and real izing more fully the responsibility that was thrust upon him self, in this exigency he sought the efficient aid of his brother-in-law. Lord Paget. On the day appointed for the hearing. Sir Henry, in an address before the queen and her council, with great eloquence and ability presented the cause of the colony. It was a good cause, and he knew full well the character of the false representations that had been dis seminated. He referred first of all to the charter under which Connecticut had so abundantly prospered. He showed, that, while those who enjoyed its privileges had stood sturdily for their rights, they had never for a moment for gotten their loyalty to the English throne. Even when wrong had been done them, they had been steadfast in meet ing every royal command. To the charge that the courts were irregular and unjust, Sir Henry replied, that, in every case of appeal to the crown, their decisions had been approved. To the bitter complaint of Governor Dudley that the col- 1705.] ASHURST DEFENDS THE COLONY. 105 ony had refused to furnish money and men when he called for them, it was shown that they had done all that the crown had commanded, and this was all that could be required of them under the charter. The defence of Sir Henry turned the tide of royal sympathy towards Connecticut. It was decided that the charges should be sent to the governor of Counecticut, and that all communications, both on the part of the colony and of Dudley and Cornbury, should be sent under seal, and certified. The court evidently was impressed with the fact that there had been a great many false reports set afloat in an irresponsible way. This action was a blow to the machinations of Dudley aud Cornbury. Connecticut was only too glad to state the real facts in the case. She had nothing to conceal, but many things which she was proud to bring to the attention of the queen and her councillors. Instead of declining to aid in the protection of her neighbors, she had then, and also iu the preceding year, from five hundred to six hundred men iu actual service, four hundred of them having been employed for the most part in the defence of Massachusetts and New York. To clinch the argument iu behalf of her loyalty to the general welfare of the colonies, the letter of Governor Dudley was enclosed, in which, only a year before, he had thanked Connecticut for her prompt and generous aid. One of the principal charges brought against the colony by Dud ley, was that of unjust treatment of the Mohegans in tak ing away their lands. The truth was, that great care had been taken to deal with this friendly tribe with scrupulous honor.2 The representations of John Mason and other aggrieved parties had, however, deceived the queen and her council to such an extent, that a commission was selected to look into the matter, and Governor Dudley was named as one of its members. Having been appointed president of the court, he called a meeting of the members at Stonington, Aug. 23, 1705. After a partial hearing of only a single 106 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l705. day, and in the face of a protest from a committee sent to act in behalf of Connecticut, aud with no evidence before them except that of interested persons, they pronounced judgment. A large tract was given to Owaneco, the Mo hegan chief, both in New London and Lyme, besides the whole of Colchester. Upon a further hearing of Owaneco and other complainants, the court represented to the queen that extensive tracts of land north of New London had been unlawfully taken from the Mohegans, and the tribe in many ways unjustly treated. It was a severe trial to the patience of the citizens of Connecticut to suffer from accu sations that were so unjust. Owaneco had always been treated kindljs and the government had paid liberally for the land it had purchased. At the time New London received its patent, between four and five thousand acres were reserved for the use of the Mohegans. The court adjourned until the following spring, but this proved to be its last meeting. Information was sent to Sir Henry Ashurst by a committee appointed by the General Assembly. The proofs were so strong in favor of the col ony, that the queen appointed a commission of review, that decided in favor of Connecticut. Nearly seventy years passed, however, before the case was entirely settled. ' John Alltn, secretary of Con- became governor, and Treat took the necticutfor thirty-three years, died Nov. second place. 6, 1696. Mr. Allyn was a man of great ' The controversy with the Mohegan energy and force of character. Ilis wide Indians is thus stated by Dr. Palfrey : acquaintance with tho raen and affairs of *' Major John Mason, conqueror of the his times gave him a peculiar influence Pequots, had, in behalf of the colony, in in the political management and conduct 1659, bought of the sachem Uncas cer- of the colony. His pen was ever ready tain lands, which the colony, in its turn, to assert the rights of Connecticut, and had conveyed to the English proprietors. there was little doue in the long years His grandson, of the same name, associ- while he held oflice in which he did not ating with himself some other disaffected act a prominent and honorable part. persons, pretended that both the Mohe- (Jovernor Treat was elected governor gans and Major Mason's heirs had been year after year until 1698. He then asked overreached and wronged by the colonial to be relieved, on account of the infirrai- authorities, who, as they alleged, had oc- ties of age; and Fitz John Winthrop cupied more land of the former than they 1705.] THE MOHEGAN CONTROVERSY". 107 had bought, and had taken to themselves But Mason and his friends interfered, the benefit of a purchase made by Major resolved to obstruct any accoramodation." Mason on his private account. For tbe Mason went to England with this cora- sake of peace and the credit of magna- plaint against the colony for extortion niraity, the government offered to the frora the natives, and it was at his insti- chief Owaneco, who represented the In- gation the queen appointed a.coramiBsion diauS} to pay them again for the laud. to investigate the matter. 108 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l706. CHAPTER XIX. 1706-1717. PUBLIC EDUCATION. FROM the earliest settlement of Connecticut the sentimen prevailed among the people, that, next to the interests of religion, the prosperity of the community depended upon the school. As early as 1648 the Assembly passed a law pro viding for common education. Every town containing fifty families was required to sustain a good school, where reading and writing should be " well taught." A grammar school was established at each county-seat, and large tracts of land were appropriated for their permanent support. Great attention was given to the matter of family instruc tion. The selectmen were required to see that the children and servants of every home were taught to read, and ques tioned on matters of religion once a week. Bibles aud books were furnished the destitute at public expense, and a fine of twenty shiUings was imposed for the neglect of these duties. For many years, contributions were sent annually for the support of the college at Cambridge. The purpose was early formed, however, of founding a college within the New- Haven colony. An effort was made in this direction in 1654. It was at this time that Mr. Davenport interested Mr. Hopkins in the educational needs of the colony, and re ceived from him the donation that became an endowment of the grammar school established in 1659, and that still flour ishes under his name. As the number of young men desiring 1707-08.J YALE COLLEGE FOUNDED. 109 a liberal education increased, the matter of the college was more and more agitated. As the result of sundry deliber ations, ten ministers, who had been selected to act as trustees, met at Branford iu 1 700. They here founded the college by the contribution of some forty volumes, each saying, as he presented his books, "I give these books for the founding of a college in this colony." This was the grain of mustard-seed from whence has grown Yale University with its wonderful history. The college was first opened at Saybrook in 1701, but in 1716 was removed to New Haven. In September, 1718, the name of Yale College was given by the trustees to the school, in honor of the benefactions of Elihu Yale of London, who had recently held the position of Governof of Madras. During the short time that the college remained at Say brook,^ a convention of ministers and laymen, representing a large proportion of the churches, met at the commencement, in 1708, and adopted a confession of faith and certain rules of ecclesiastical order known as the Saybrook Platform. The first churches formed in Connecticut were congrega tional in polity ; and this convention was called, not only to bring these independent churches into closer fellowship, but also to provide for the more regular assembling of councils of advice. The close relation in which the churches stood to the State is illustrated iu the fact, that, after the report of the Saybrook convention had been received by the Assem bly, they proceeded to ratify its doings by a formal vote.^ Governor Fitz John Winthrop^ died in 1707 ; aud Gurdon Saltonstall, pastor of the church in New London, was elected in his place. Governor Saltonstall was a man of command ing presence and great executive ability, and his admiuis tration of affairs was marked by energetic action and wise foresight. Connecticut continued to prosper in all that per tained to her domestic affairs, but she was called upon again and again to make costly sacrifices of life and treasure in the 110 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1709-13. French and Indian wars. These wars are known in history as King William's War (1689), Queen Anne's War (1702), King George's War (1744), and "The Old French and Indian War" (1755 to 1763). In these conflicts, continued through so many years, Connecticut realized that it was being decided as to whether the French or the English should con trol the Western Continent. We have already noticed the part which the colony acted in King William's war. When hostilities were again re newed, soon after the ac cession of Queen Anne, Connecticut was not in clined to respond to the demands of Dudley, who was thoroughly detested by the people. Governor Saltonstall, as soon as he entered upon his office, inaugurated a more active policy. In the fruitless campaign of 1709, Con necticut furnished both men and money, and in the following year sent three hundred meu and five transports to join the expedition that captured Port Royai. The following year the colony responded, with its accustomed alacrity, in fur nishing troops and provisions for the army and fleet that, under the charge of Admiral Walker and General Hill, met with disaster and failure. The expense incurred in these expeditions led to the circulation of the first paper money ever issued by the colony. These bills of credit were secured with such care aud financial skill that they scarcely depre ciated at all, and the people found them a very convenient medium of exchange. A long and vexatious controversy over the Massachusetts boundary was amicably settled in 1713. The line was run EARLY FKENCH WAKS. 1713.] POPULATION AND TRADE. ' 111 by commissioners appointed by both parties ; and, in the final decision, Connecticut received over one hundred thousand acres that Massachusetts had laid claim to. This land was sold for six hundred aud eighty-three pounds currency, mak ing the price about six farthings an acre, and the money given to Yale College. The boundary question with Rhode Island still remained open. The tidings of the Peace of Utrecht was received with great joy by all the colonies. The draft upon their resources had been continuous aud severe. Connecticut, to be sure, had been more fortunate than her neighbors. The town of Simsbury had alone been destroyed, and that was burned after the inhabitants had found a place of safety. The seeds of religious training, moral habits, and educational advantages, sown in the hearts and homes of the people, had produced a harvest of character that was enjoying the bless ings of the prosperity that attends upon industry, morality, and mental enlightenment. The population of the colony in 1713 was probably be tween twenty-five thousand and thirty thousand. Thirty- eight towns sent forty delegates to the Assembly. There were four counties (Hartford, New Haven, Fairfield, New London) , and the militia consisted of a regiment of a thou sand men from each county. Considerable trade was carried on with Boston, New York, aud the West Indies. The only articles exported to Great Britain were turpentine, pitch, tar, and furs. Horses, pork, beef, and cattle were sent to the West Indies, aud in return they received rum, sugar, molasses, and cotton-wool. The entire shipping of the colony consisted of two small brigs and twenty sloops. There was but a single clothier, and all that he could do was to full the cloth ; and most of that which was manufactured was worn without shearing or pressing. Twice during the year the Assembly met ; but every thing was conducted upon so simple and economical a scale, that the entire expense 112 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1714-15. of government did not exceed probably thirty-five hundred dollars. The accession of George the First to the throne of Eng land fouud Connecticut on the flood-tide of a prosperity that continued for mauy years with little to check its course. Such days are uneventful in historic incidents, but pleasant to recall. The older towns, like swarming hives, sent out company after company to lay the foundations of new towns, until the valleys and forest wilderness on every side began to "bud and blossom as the rose." The fathers and mothers who had flrst settled the colony rested from their earthly labors, but their children proved worthy of the inheritance they had received. During the year following the accession of the House of Hanover, a bill was again brought into Parliament to repeal the charters of all the colonies. This attack was largely instigated by English merchants, who began to fear lest the growth of manufactures, fostered by the independent action of the colonies, might lessen their trade. Through the ener getic and wise action of Jeremiah Dummer, the king gave a favorable decision in behalf of the colonies ; and those who were jealous of the growth of industries in America, had to rest content with the declaration of the House of Commons, " that the erecting manufactories in the colonies tended to lessen their dependence upon Great Britain." The alarm of these English manufacturers and merchants did not abate. In 1731 they sent a petition to Parliament, and the Board of Trade were ordered to inquire and report regarding the matter. With the busy hum of industry that now fills the State, we can but smile as we read a part of this elaborate report, that among other things says, "It were to be wished that some expedient might be fallen upon to direct their thoughts from undertakings of this nature ; so much the rather, because these manufactures, in process of time, may be carried on in greater degree, unless an early stop be put to their progress." 1717-] DEATH OF GOVERNOR TREAT. 113 The war stirred up by Rasle, a French Jesuit, who had gained a commanding influence among the Penobscot In dians, caused Massachusetts much auxiety and suffering. Connecticut declined to have any thing to do with the conflict beyond sending a company of fifty men to protect her border. The venerable and beloved Governor Treat, '^ full of years and honors, died in 1710. ' Yale College was uot removed from Saybrook without earnest opposi tion. Even after the consent of the Assembly was secured, the sheriff, when he came to take the books tbat belonged to the college, found the house sur rounded by men deterrained to resist him. Having forcibly entered the build ing, he took the books, and kept them under guard tbat night. In the morning he found the carts, that had been pro vided to carry them to New Haven, broken, and the horses turned loose. Having secured new means of convey ance, they started for New Haven, but found sorae of the bridges broken ; and, before they reached their destination, many of the books were missing. The excitement gradually died away; aud within a few years, harmony was re stored, both in the colony and the board of trustees. 2 Appended to this law waa this provision, " That nothing herein shall be intended or construed to hinder or prevent any society or church that is or shall be allowed by the laws of this government, who soberly differ or dis sent from the united churches hereby established, from exercising worship and discipline in their owu way, accord ing to their conscieuce" (Conn. Col. Kee, V. 87). 3 Fitz Joun Winthkop, sou of Governor John Winthrop, was born in Ipswich, Mass., 1638. He received his education in England. He accepted a military coraraission under Kichard Cromwell, but ou tbe restoration re turned to Counecticut. He served in King Philip's war, and was a meraber of Governor Andros's council. In 1690 he was appointed raajor-general, in com mand of the Canada expedition; and in the controversies that grew out of this unfortunate campaign, he retained the confidence of Connecticut. He was sent to England in 1694, as the agent of the colony, and discharged bis duties with such faithfulness, that ihe Legislatury made him a present of twenty-five hun dred dollars. He was elected governor of Connecticut, and continued in this office until the tirae of his death. Like his distinguished father, he was a man of considerable scientific attainments, and was honored by being elected a member of the Royal Society of England. Of unblemished character and pious life, his narae is worthy of the high place it occupies in the annals of colonial tiraes. 4 KoEEBT Treat was born in Eng land in 1622. When a lad he came to this country with his father, who was among the first planters of Wethersfield. Soon after thia he removed to Milford; and, although but a youth of eighteen, he was chosen to aid in surveying and laying out the lauds of the new town. In 1S61 he was elected a magistrate, and con tinued to serve in thia oflice until 1664, when he declined to serve further under the existing state of affairs. He was an earnest advocate of the union of the colonies; and it waa to a great degree owing to his influeuce that Milford with drew from the jurisdiction of New Haven, and joined its fortunes to Con- 114 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. necticut. His warm friendship for Win throp, and sympathy with his plans, were shown in his efforts to forward them. In 1675 he was appointed colonel of the Connecticut troops. During King Philip's war, he won honorable dis tinction for military skill and bravery. Again and again he saved the border towns of Massachusetts from destruc tion, and proved equal to every emer gency. In 1676 he was elected deputy- governor, and governor in 1683. He held this position for fifteen years with distiuguished success. Warraly sympa thetic in his feelings, Governor Treat was also possessed of an excellent judg ment, keen diBcrimination, and knowl edge of men. The hospitalities of his home were open to all, and his benevo lence without stint. Beloved by those who knew him, and honored as a mau of fearless courage and Christian char acter, he died at the advanced age of eighty-eight. LIFE OP THE PEOPLE. 115 CHAPTER XX. LIFE OF THE PEOPLE. A T this point in our narrative, let us recall the every-day -ti- life and surroundings of the people. The temporary log huts which the first settlers built for shelter, were soon replaced by substantial frame houses. These structures, while devoid of ornament or architectural beauty, were well fltted to the wants of the self-reliant and industrious people who dwelt within them. The huge chimney, standing in the centre of the house, was built of stone, and, where it passed through the flrst floor, measured about ten feet in diameter. The front door opened into a hall which contained the prin cipal stairway. On each side were two large rooms used as parlors, but one or both of them were almost always fur nished with beds to meet the requirements of a hospitality that was unstinted and constant. The great kitchen in the rear of the chimney was the living-room of the family. Here they cooked and ate their food, and in winter gathered about the capacious fireplace with its iron crane and hang ing-kettles, and oven at one side. Stoves were an unknown luxury ; and in some of the houses of the more wealthy planters, the fireplaces were numerous. At flrst the roofs of their dwellings were covered with thatch, but they soon learned that shingles were far better. The floors were of thick oak boards fastened with wooden pins. The sides of the rooms were plastered, but the joists and floor above were exposed to view. In the parlors, the side next to the chimney was wainscoted, and the wide panels were from 116 HISTORY OP CONKECTICITT. WUITEFIELD HOUSE. the largest trees of the forest. The windows were made of small, diamond-shaped pieces of glass, set with lead ; and the frame was hung upon hinges that opened outward. Farm houses were usually built near a spring, which supplied the water for domestic use as well as for the cattle. If a well were dug, the water was drawn by the aid of a " well- sweep," some of which may still be found in almost every rural community. A few of the houses were built of stone. Of these, the house of the Rev. Mr. White- field of Guilford, built in 1639, is still standing, and is the oldest house in the United ' States north of Florida.^ The majority of the early frame houses were built with a long, steep roof on the rear side ; but this style, known as the " lean-to," was succeeded by the gambrel or hipped roofed houses, of which many still remain. Although the size and expensiveness of these houses varied in accordance with the wealth and position of their owners, they were all marked by the qualities of simplicity, solidity, and neatness. For a period of half a century and more after the settlement of the colonies, the household furniture, as a rule, was rude and scanty. The floors were bare of carpets ; and excepting the bedsteads, which were placed in almost every room, the most conspicuous piece of furniture in the house was the tall case or " chest " of drawers, that usually stood in the parlor. There were a few wealthy planters who had tapestry-hangings in their apartments, "and enjoyed the lux ury of carpets and other imported articles ; but in most houses, even up to the time of the Revolution, the furniture t SUN-DIAL. LIFE OP THE PEOPLE. 117 was plain and substantial. Sun-dia,ls served in the place of clocks, which were scarce and dear. Pewter and wooden dishes were used instead of china, which was kept for ex traordinary occasions. Almost every well-to-do family had more or less of handsome silver, which was seldom taken from the place where it was hoarded with scrupulous care, and handed down as heirlooms from generation to generation. The table was plainly but abundantly supplied. Indian meal was cooked in various ways, and eaten with molasses. Vegetables were used in large quantities, the turnip being more of a favorite than the potato. Meat was abundant ; and, before tea and coffee came into use, beer brewed after the English fashion was the common drink. With the growth of or chards, cider took the place of beer, and a generous supply of New-England rum was to be found on the side-board of every family. The disastrous effect of this habit was checked none too soon by the discus sions ih the early part of this century that entirely changed the opinions and attitude of the best people on this subject. The family meals were generally eaten in the great kitchen, where the food was cooked. At the end of tliis room, pew ter platters, porringers, and basins, when not in use, were displayed on open shelves ; and other utensils of tin and brass hung against the wide panels of the wainscot.^ It was in this room that the social life of the people appears in its most pleasant forms. Here it was that neighbors gathered in the long winter evenings about the great fireplace, and cracked nuts, or busied their hands in making brooms and other articles, while the merry laughter of children mingled with the story-telling of the elders. At first very few of the colonists settled upon isolated HANGING-LAMP. 118 HISTOBY OP CONNECTICUT. farms, but grouped themselves in little village communities. The church, the block-house, the school, the variety store, and blacksmith's shop were the centre from which the village- streets radiated. Here it was that the life of the people pulsated in its common interests. Each town was a little republic in itself. The habit of industry prevailed among all classes. There was no room for idlers ; and a shiftless, indolent person was regarded with contempt.' While the men toiled upon the farms, the women were busy at their A COLONIAL HOME. spinning-wheels, or engaged in household duties. The pros perity that in time smiled upon our thrifty forefathers, was won at the cost of unremitting toil. Large families were the rule ; and the sons were early taught some trade as well as the management of the farm, and the daughters received a practical training in the conduct of domestic affairs. It i* diflflcult for us to realize how simple and quiet were the social conditions of those early days. The steam-engine, the telegraph, the newspaper, and modern postal facilities, were then unknown. LIPE OP THE PEOPLE. 119 New Haven was a way-station in the monthly mail-trip that, after 1672, was made between New York and Boston. This service, however, was quite irregular until Benjamhi Franklin made a tour of the colonies, aud made more perfect arrangements. The first newspaper in New Haven, called "The Connecticut Gazette," was founded in January, 1755, but discontinued from lack of patronage in 1762. Three years after, it was revived by Benjamin Mecom, who gave notice that he had secured local correspondents, and had sent for " three kinds of English magazines, the ' Monthly Review of Books,' and one of the best London newspapers." He was confident that " these, with American intelligence from Nova Scotia to Georgia, and from Canada," would give his readers a " Stock of Momentous Materials." It was not until about the middle of the eighteenth cen tury thatcarriages and wagons were used by a few wealthy citizens in the larger towns. The first pleasure-carriage ever seen in Litchfield was brought there by Mr. Matthews, the English mayor of New York, who was confined in that town as prisoner-of-war in 1776. The people did not take kindly to this luxurious way of travelling, and the owner of the first chaise in Norwich was fined for riding in it to church. Ox-carts and sleds were used in farm-work, and in cann ing produce and supplies to market ; but journeys for pleas ure or business were made on horseback. Almost every family kept a horse ; and, in riding, the women and children sat behind on a pillion. Common furniture, and household and farm utensils, were made by the farmer and his sons ; and the clothing of the family, from dressing the flax to PRINTING-PRESS. 120 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. - cutting the cloth, was almost universally the handiwork of the women. The men wore homespun; and the women made their dresses, for ordinary service, of coarse, strong linen. Great pride and care were taken in providing more elegant and elaborate clothing for Sunday use. The men on that day donned cloth coats and beaver hats, and the women appeared in carefully preserved silk or brocade.^ The hair for a long time was powdered, and worn, by the women, in a simple braid ; but this fashion was followed by an extreme, in which the locks were combed over a cushion of horse-hair, so that it would often be a foot above the crown. During the reign of Charles II., wigs were very fashionable, both in Old and New England ; and it was not un common to see boys dressed in short clothes, wearing a wig surmounted by a three - cornered hat. GENT IN BOOTS. 1 The Whitefield House waa built of stone from a ledge sorae eighty rods distant. Atwater, in his History of the New-Haven Colony, says, "The Whitefield house differed from the typi cal New-England dwelling, both in the material of which it was built, and in its interior arrangements. Houses were usually supported, not by walls of stone, but by frames of heavy timber. White oak was a favorite wood for this purpose, and sorae of the larger pieces were considerably more than a foot square. Mr. Whitefield, though he was a man of wealth, had no more apart ments in his dwelling tJian the average New-England planter. It is not easy to conjecture where he had his study, nor where he lodged his ten children, sorae of whom were nearly or quite adult when he came to Guilford. His house seems small for the requirements of his farailj' and of his calling, and surpris ingly small in contrast with that of the minister of New Haven. Mr. Davenport had blit one child; but there were thir teen fireplaces in his house, while in Mr. Whitefield's there were but five." There were many who thought the New-Haven people were extravagant in building such ** fair and stately houses." 2 A letter written in 1780 by the Rev. Mr. Trowbridge of Southington, to his recently wedded wife, gives an idea of the household furnishing late in the cen tury : " I have purchased," he says, " a LIPB OP THE PEOPLE. I2l clock, brass kettle, iron pot, coffee-mill, pair of flats, pair of brass candle-sticks, brass andirons, and looking-glass; so I hope we shall be able, on the whole, to set up housekeeping with sorae little decency." In a postscript he adds, "A warming-pan I can borrow for the next winter." 3 At Hartford, New Haven, and New London were houses of correction, "for suppressing and punishing of rogues, vagabonds, comraon beggars, and other lewd, idle, dissolute, and disorderly per sons, and for setting them to work." They were punished by putting fetters or shackles upon them, and by moderate whipping, not exceeding ten stripes at once, ..." to be inflicted at their first coming in, and from time to time in case they be stubborn, disorderly, or idle, and do not perform their task, and that iu good condition." * The ordinary dress of the people was raore picturesque than iu these days. The doublet, as an outer garment, was universally worn by the raen, and was often of red or other bright color. The waistcoat was worn beneath the doublet, and was raade of cotton by the poorer classes: those who could afford it, often used silk. The sleeves were slashed, in order to display the arras. In Massa chusetts, as early as 1634, there was a law enacted against " slashed apparel, immoderate great sleeves, long wigs, gold, silver, or thread lace, knots of rib bon, double ruff or cuffs." Like other laws of the sort, it was virtually a dead letter as far as any si^ecial enforceraent was concerned. As a text for the Puri tan preachers, it was very earnestly and frequently inculcated. 122 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. CHAPTER XXI. SOCIAL DISTINCTIONS. — MARRIAGE CUSTOIVIS. — FUNERAL SERVICES.— NEGRO SLAVERY. AMONG the early settlers of Connecticut, a large propor tion of those known as " planters" were descended from the landed gentry of England. In many cases they traced their ancestry in a noble line from the time of William the Conqueror, and it is not strange that pride of birth con tinued to exert a peculiar influence in the social life and customs of the colony. Titles were used sparingly, and with careful discrimina-' tion. Only those who had possessed landed estates in Eng land, the 3'ounger sons of the nobility and the sons of baronets and knights, were addressed in writing with the title of "Esquire." The more common title of honor was " Master" or " Mr." Among those who received this mark of distinction were clergj-men, and planters of good families, and those suflSciently well-born who had enjoyed the advan tages of a liberal education. This appellation was seldom bestowed upon young men of whatever rank. "Sir" was a title employed in a limited sense to designate young gentle men who were students in college. The sons of men like Governor Winthrop or Governor Treat, when at home during their vacations, would be greeted by old companions as Sir Winthrop or Sir Treat. Those who, by thrift and force of character, won a worthy position in the community, were called "Goodman" and " Goodwife." Military titles were in high favor, and recog- SOCIAL DISTINCTIONS. 123 nized with becoming deference. Prior to 1654 the highest military office in the colony was captain, and John Mason of Pequot fame was the only one who bore this title. When in after-years he visited the militia of the different towns, bearing the insignia of his rank as major, he was " gazed at by the boys and girls of the settlement with eyes of wide wonder, as a man to be reverenced, but not approached." Ecclesiastical titles were highly esteemed, but the clerical prefix of Reverend was not employed in early colonial times. Ministers were recognized as Mr., Pastor, Teacher, or Elder. The legal and medical professions had but scant recogni tion in these early days. The doctor picked up what little knowledge he possessed from personal association and study with an older practitioner. His success y depended upon his natural skill and tact in dealing with people, and a wise sympathy in the suggestions and notions of the good house wives, who felt that the art of healing was a part of their domestic duties. The lawyers fared hard. No mention is made of them in the public records of the times, except in the statute which, having mentioned rioters, scolds, drunkards, and other evil doers, provides that "common barrators, which frequently move, stir up, and maintain suits of law in court, or quar rels and parts in the country, shall give security for their good behavior, or be sent to the common gaol." It was not until late in the eighteenth century that Connecticut lawyers depended upon their profession alone for a living. During Governor Talcott's administration, the attention of the As sembly was called to the fact, "that many persons had taken upon them to be attorneys at the bar, so that quarrels and lawsuits were multiplied, and the king's good subjects disturbed." It was enacted that there should be "allowed in the colony, eleven attorneys and no more ; namely, three in Hartford County, and two in each of the others." This law was, however, soon repealed. 124 History of Connecticut. Long before the Revolution, society had fallen into certain lines and orders that sharply defined personal influence and position. This order followed the gradations of gentlemen, yeomen, merchants, mechanics, and servants. The position of yeoman was every way honorable. Some of them bore the title of master, and were elected to fill important offices of trust. The educated class, however, formed the real aristocracy of society ; and it was not until after the Revo lution that their commanding influence began to wane. At the head of this aristocracy stood the clergy. While a few men of wealth, birth, and personal strength of char acter, held commanding positions, and officers who liad gained military renown were highly esteemed, there was no class of men who occupied as unique and powerful a vantage-ground of influence as the ministry. " The ministers of the Puritan emigration," says a recent historian, "were men of birth, education, and breeding. Many of them had been driven from the pulpits of the English Church, and all possessed the sternest courage and deepest convictions. They were, without exception, leaders in every way among the people ; formed the strongest class in the community, and were bold, vigorous, intolerant, able men, who set their mark indelibly upon the early institutions of New England. In accordance with their views, the laws were framed ; by their opinions, much of the public policy was directed ; for them the college was founded, and they alone were thought worthy of the highest education. To them the people looked up with a voluntary reverence, and with profound awe ; while from their pulpits, they wielded an authority, and exercised a power, which was simply over whelming " (Lodge). The Lord's Day began at sunset on Saturday. At this moment all unnecessary work ceased, and the time was passed with strict religious observance until sunset of the following day. Sunday evening was given to recreation and MAKKIAGE CUSTOMS. — PUNEEAL SERVICES. 125 social conversation and visiting. This was the time when the young men were in the habit of visiting the Puritan maidens without fear that parents or guardians would be displeased, if they were worthy. The marriages that resulted from these visits were solemnized by a magistrate. If a clergy man officiated, he was obliged to secure a special permit. Weddings in early colonial days were usually celebrated quietly at the home of the bride. With the increase of wealth, there was a marked change in this respect. Not only were the banns proclaimed in the church, but a general invitation was given from the pulpit to attend the ceremony. Friends and neighbors were entertained with lavish hospital ity at the bride's house. On the wedding- day, muskets were fired ; and those who attended the ceremony, marched in pro cession to the bride's home. The wed ding-feasts lasted sometimes for two or three days. At a grand wedding in New London, on the day after the marriage ninety-two ladies and gentlemen, it is said, proceeded to dance ninety- two jigs, fifty-two contra-dances, forty-five minuets, and seventeen hornpipes. Marriages were usually consummated at a very early period of 'life, many girls becoming wives at sixteen and seventeen. The early settlers made the flnal offices of respect to the dead as simple as possible. This custom changed in time, and, while the religious rites were brief, the obsequies were performed with much pomp and state. The grave was dug by friends, and, after the service, was also filled by their hands. Leading men of the community were selected as pall-bearers ; and besides a general distribution of scarfs, gloves, and rings, a feast of baked meats and drink was pro vided. This extravagance was carried so far that it was the custom in some of the towns to supply scarfs and gloves '¦ on the burial of a pauper. WEDDING SLIPPER. 126 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. It seems strange to think of Connecticut as a slave- holding State, but such was the case in colonial times. There are men still living who met in their childhood with persons who had seen a cargo of slaves placed in the old jail at Middletown, and afterwards sold at auction. At the time of the Revolution, several prominent citizens in this thriving village of about one hundred families were sea- captains engaged in the slave-trade. This business was very profitable for many years. Vessels going out to the West Indies carried horses, hoops, grain, and other articles, and on the return trips brought cargoes of Guinea negroes. They seem to have been treated kindly, as a rule ; and the characteristics that mark the race to-day were prominent then. Captive Indians, as well as negroes, were held for service in families ; and the colonial authorities enjoined a strict care in the training aud religious instruction of these bond-ser vants. Soon after the Revolution, steps were taken to bring about a gradual emancipation of slaves on the ground that it was not profitable to keep them. The conscience of the people evidently was not troubled in those days over the sin of slavery.^ 1 The almanac of Dr. Andrew Elliott latto Boys or men, from 14 to 24 years of discloses the fact that in thirty-two years age. Inquire of the printers, New he received twenty-nine hundred pairs of //aufiw, May 9, 1779." "To be Solp, a gloves at funerals, weddings, and bap- Mulatto Slave, about 21 years old, is tiema: of these he sold about six hun- healthy, strong, and active; well ac- dred aud forty dollars' worth. quainted with all kinds of farming busi- 2 Advertisements like the follow- ness, and can work at shoem.iker's trade- ing were frequent after the publication For further particulars, inquire of Ed- of newspapers began : ^' Vfatited to pur- ward Barker, of Branford, or the chase immediately. Two Negro or Mu- Printers hereof.*' THE RELIGIOUS LIFE OP THE PEOPLE. 127 CHAPTER XXII. THE RELIGIOUS LIFE OF THE PEOPLE. — SABBATH OBSERVANCE. — SOCIAL PLEASURES. THE story of Connecticut in colonial days would be incom plete indeed that did not make mention of the religious life of the people and their observance of the sabbath. The men and women who laid the foundations of our com monwealth were exiles from the land of their birth for con science' sake. "Freedom to worship God" was the joy and privilege of hearts that sought above all else to know and do His will. In a rude building of logs, often but a barn, the early settlers gathered on sabbath morning at the beat of a drum or the sound of a horn ; for nearly a hundred years passed away before bells were in general use. As soon as the peo ple were able to do so, they built churches with the' square tunnel roof, which, still later, were improved by the addition of a steeple. For many years, especially in the outlying towns, savages lurked near the villages ; and Sunday, when all were gathered in the church, was a time of peculiar dan ger. The minister at the desk was often armed, all the men in the congregation were armed, and sentinels were posted at the doors, while others kept watch outside. After this danger passed, the physical discomforts suffered by these earnest and devout worshippers were many. There was no way provided for heating the churches, and the doors were thrown open to let in the sun. Ministers often preached in their overcoats, with a muffler about the neck, and mittens 128 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. upon their hands. In severe winter weather the women car ried heated stones in their muffs, and, later, little hand-stoves ; while the men drew bags over their feet to keep them warm. The exercises were lengthy, continuing sometimes for hours. As better churches were built, pews took the place of the hard benches. The seating of the congregation was a matter of great importance. Below the pulpit sat the elders and deacons ; while in the body of the church, the men were ranged on one side, and the women on the other, according to age, rank, and social condition. In the back seats or iu the gallery were placed the children or negroes ; and " behind all the tithing- men, with long staves tipped with brass, with which they rapped unmercifully the heads of slumbering or disorderly men or boys ; while for delinquents of the fair sex, they con tented themselves with brushing their faces with a hare's foot appended to the rod. Strict discipline was alwaj's ob served, and auy tendency to fall asleep was promptly checked." ' In singing, the verses were given out by a leader, a line at a time, and chanted by the whole congregation, who did not know half a dozen difl'erent tunes. This singing " by rule," says a historian of those daj's, "sounded like five hundred different tunes roared out at the same time." This system of organized discord met with resistance ; and a reform was begun about 1700, to substitute singing by note for singing by rule, but this led to a prolonged struggle. As late as 1773, when the new singing was introduced into the church in Ilarwinton, Litchfield County, one of the deacons arose, aud left the church, crying, " Popery ! Popery ! " Because ' ' the evening and the morning were the flrst da}'," they commenced their observance of the Lord's Day on Saturday at sunSet.^ At this hour the busy housekeeper had arranged to lay aside all work, and a peculiar quiet reigned throughout the community and every home. Family SABBATH OBSERVANCE. 129 worship was generally followed by the religious instruction of children and servants. Ou sabbath morning every one went to church. Families living at a distance came pre pared to spend the entire day. The elders and children rode on horseback, and the young people walked. In summer MEETING-HOUSE OE TUE SEVENTEENTH CENTUUY. weather, it was a common custom for them, as a matter of economy, to go barefoot until near the church, when they would put on the shoes and stockings they had carried in their hands. Many of those who resided at a distance, spent the inter mission between the services in what were called " sabbath- 130 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. day houses." " These houses were small log or frame structures, having a single or double room with a fireplace, and furnished with a bench, a few chairs, and a table. Here the family aud other friends gathered to eat their lunch, and warm their chilled hands and feet. Days of public fasting and prayer were frequent, and family worship was a part of the home life. Strict discipline was enforced in all that pertained to the social and public affairs of the community. Respect for parental authority was universal, and the rules of a strict morality were en forced in the conduct of business. In New Haven a certain John Meigs, a currier and tanner, put such poor leather on the market, that he was brought into court to be punished for his offence. In giving judgment, the court said, " In a single pair of shoes, several evils appear ; such as contempt of court, continued unrighteousness, and other similar evils ; and how many shoes he had made and sold of such faulty materials, and so loaded with evils, the court say they know not." The cobbler soon after left the colony. We should gain a very wrong impression of the old tiraes, if we thought of our Puritan ancestors as always wearing long faces, never smiling, or enjoying innocent pastimes. On the contrary, their social life was marked by many fes tive days. Six times in a yesxv the whole military force of the plantation was called out. These general training-days brought together the old people, women and children, as spectators of the military exercises and athletic games that followed. "The enjoyment which they experienced in watch ing the manoeuvres of the soldiers, and the games of cudgel, backsword, fencing, running, leaping, wrestling, stool-ball, ninepins, and quoits, was enhanced by sharing the spectacle with the multitude, meeting old friends, and making ac quaintance with persons of congenial spirit." Election days were times of general gathering. "On these days the pil lion was fastened behind the saddle ; and the good wife rode SOCIAL PLEASURES. 131 with her good man to the seat of government, to truck some of the yarn she had been spinning, for ribbons and other foreign goods, as well as to gather up the gossip of the year. On such occasions a store of cake was provided beforehand, and ' election-cake ' is consequently one of the institutions received from our fathers " (Atwater). Thanksgiving was the great festal day of the year. In its general features and spirit, it is observed now very much as in colonial times. It was the day when children and grand children gathered in the old homestead with joy ous greetings. The table fairly groaned be neath the good things that had been provided by the noble mothers and daughters, who had reason to be proud of their skill in preparing all kinds of appetizing dishes. The male mem bers of the family were faithful in their attend ance upon the service of public worship in the morning, but the rest of the day was filled with home festivities. The gift of corri was especially remembered. The injunc tion of an old Puritan minister was common. " Of all other things on the table you maij eat, but of the Indian pudding you mwsf eat." It was of this dish that Joel Barlow, the famous Connecticut poet, wrote these lines : — " Ye Alps audacious, through the heavens that rise To cramp tlie day, and hide me from the skies, I sing not you. A softer theme I choose, A virgin theme, unconscious of the muse, But fruitful, rich, well suited to inspire The purest frenzy of poetic fire. A PORTRAIT wnlCH BELONGED TO THE EATON FA.llILY. 132 HISTOKY OF CONNECTICUT. I sing the sweets I know, the charms I feel, My morning incense, ancl my evening meal, The sweets of Hasty Pudding." 1 Sleeping in church was evi dently a besetting sin in those days, when a large part of the congregation were accustomed to an active outdoor life, that must have made it very difficult for thera to sit through the long-drawn- out services without physical drowsiness. But their consciences were tender re garding the reverence and attention that was due the service of the Lord's house. Cotton Mather, in his account of the death of Thomas Hooker, says, ** Some of hie most observant hearers noticed an astonishing cloud in his congregation, the last Lord's Day of his public minis try, when he administered the Lord's supper araong them; and u most un accountable heaviness and sleepiness^ even of the most watchful Christians of the place, not unlike the drowsiness of the disciples, when our Lord was going to die, for which one of the elders I'e- buked them. When those devout people afterwards perceived that this was the last sermon and sacrament wherein they were to have the presence of their pas tor with them, 'tis inexpressible how much they bewailed their inatteutive- ness to his farewell dispensations j and sorae of thera could enjoy no peace in their own souls, until they had obtained leave of the elders to confess before the whole congregation, with many tears, that inadvertency." ^ 2 This custom was observed until within the memory of those now living. Dr. BushneU, in bis Age of nomespuu, tells a story of his boyhood, when he was refused a load of apples which he had gone to buy ou Saturday, because the good neighbor, on consulting the sun, thought he would not be able to measure and load the fruit before the strict sabbath began. 3 Sabbatu-day houses. Dr. W. C. Fowler, in his History of Durham, gives this entertaining description of these unique structures: "These houses were from twenty to twenty-live feet in length, and from ten to twelve feet in breadth, and one story high, with a chimney in the middle, dividing the whole space into two rooms, with a partition between them, for the use of two families, who united in buiiding the houae. The fur niture consisted of a few chairs, a table, plates and dishes, some iron utensil, it may be, for warming food which had been cooked. Besides the Bible, there was sometimes a book on experimental religion, hke Baxter's Saints' liest, or Alloin's Alarra. On the morning of the sabbath, the raother of the family, with provident care, put up her store of coraforts for the dinner, substantial or Blight fare, as most convenient, a bottle of cider almost of course. The family then set off from their horae in a large two-horse sleigh, or on saddles and pillions. They stopped at the sabbath day house, Ivindled a blazing fire, and tbeu went forth to shiver in the cold during the morning services. At noon they hurried back to their warm room. After they had taken their meal, and by turns drunk from the pewter mug, thanks were returned- Then the ser-'. mon came under review, frora the notes taken by the father of the family; or a chapter was read from the Bible, or a paragraph from sorae favorite author, the services concluding with prayer or singing. After again visiting the sanc- ti,iary, the faraily would return to the sabbath -day house, if the cold was severe, before Lhey sought their horae. The fire was then extinguished, the door was locked, and the house remained undis turbed during the week." THE EVOLUTION OE THE TOWNS. 133 CHAPTER XXIII. THE EVOLUTION OF THE TOWNS. IN number, the men and women who laid the foundations of the Connecticut and New-Haven colonies were less than the emigrants that are now landed at Castle Garden twice or thrice a week Ijy some steamer from Liverpool or Hamburg. Wc have, however, seen that these early settlers were providentially' the pioneers of one of the most remark able emigrations that histoiy records. The story of this emi gration carries us back to England, and the struggle for civil and religious freedom that culminated in the Kevolution of 1642. For ten years after the landing of the Pilgrims, the emi gration exclusively confined to Massachusetts was small. About 1630 the tide increased, and it is estimated that within the next ten years about twenty thousand persons came to New England. At the breaking out of the Revolu tion, that gave asgendency to Pnritan power in England, the emigration almost entirely ce.ased. After the flrst companies came, and settled in the Connec ticut valley, and in the neighborhood of New Haven, they received but few accessions by emigration. The growth of the population of Counecticut, for nearly two hundred years, was from this parent stock. The result is, that, even now, almost every child in the State, whose ancestors were living in Connecticut iu the early part of this century, may trace its ancestry back to some one in the little handful of people who settled the New-Haven and Connecticut colonies. 134 HISTOEY OF CONNECTICUT. The gTowth of the tree illustrates the historic development of the Commonwealth. The two colonies, whose life was soon united, may represent the trunk, and the half-dozen towns that formed them the first branches, of the sturdy sap ling. As the growth of the tree develops fresh buds, and they form new branches, so the advancing and vigorous life of the early colonial towns put forth new shoots as the years passed by. Let us select the history of two or three towns, in differ ent parts of the State, to illustrate this process of evolution. The beautiful valley that lies a few miles west of Hartford early attracted attention, and in 1G40 some of the leading families that had come in Mr. Hooker's company commenced a settlement upon the meadows bordering the Tunxis River. The land was purchased of the Indians, and divided among the eighty-four proprietors. The town was incorporated in 1645 under the name of Farmington, and was about fifteen miles square. Since this period seven new towns have been taken from this territory, — Southington, Berlin, Bristol, Burlington, Avon, Plainville, and New Britain, within whose limits has sprung up the busy and prosperous city of the same name. In 1657 some of the inhabitants from Farmington, on a hunting excursion, wandered away from home as far as the Naugatuck Valley. They here discovered what they thought was a mine of black-lead. They purchased the right from the Indians to work it, and the deed they received included the land within eight miles of the hill from which the lead was to be taken. This territory covered the present town ships of Plymouth, Harwinton, Thomaston, Litchfield, and other towns. The mine did not prove a profitable invest ment, and no settlement was made in the Naugatuck Valley until sixteen years had passed away. In 1673 the meadow- lauds at Mattatuck (Waterbury) attracted the attention of some of the inhabitants of Farmington, and they asked the THE EVOLUTION OF THE TOWNS. 135 Assembly to appoint a committee to view them, and report upon the expediency of locating a plantation there. The committee reported that they thought Mattatuck could sustain a population of thirty families. Sundry citizens were appointed to regulate and establish the settlement ; but the breaking out of King Philip's war retarded the work, and it was not until 1677 that the pro prietors came with their families. The first site, known to this day as the " Town Plot," was laid out on the ridge of the hill, about a mile west of the present city of Waterbury. A building-lot of eight acres was giveu to each settler. The labor of drawing the hay from the meadows up the steep hill soon decided them to build in the valley ; and they chose the location now covered with the homes and busy industries of the beautiful and thriving city of Waterbury, with its thirty thousand inhabitants. The early settlers looked upon the river as only " an obstruction and peril." A recent local historian quaintly says, " In the result, Mattatuck, like most of the manufacturing towns of New England, has been saved, as was Noah and his family, ' by water ' rather than by land." The families that first made their home in Waterbury suf fered very much for want of a grist-mill. They had to carry all of their corn to Farmington, a distance of twenty miles, to be ground. The committee appointed by the State granted thirty acres of land to whoever would build and keep up a mill. These terms were accepted by Stephen Hopkins of Hartford, who built a mill, in 1680, on Mill River, where one has stood until the present day. This matter of securing mill privileges caused a great deal of trouble to the frontier towns. The first householders of Woodbury had no fiour or meal except what they could get from Stratford, where they formerly lived. Even on wedding occasions, the principal dishes at the dinner were bean-porridge for soup, bread made of pounded corn,, and an enormous plate of pork and 136 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. beans. The first set of mill-stones brought into the place, about 1674, were so small that they were carried from Strat ford on the back of a horse. The story of the settlement of the charming valley in which lie the villages of Woodbury and Southbury, gives another reason that sometimes led to the founding of new towns. For a long time, there had been a bitter dispute in the church at Stratford, over what was known as the "Halfway Cove nant" system of church membership. Each party chose a pastor, and an effort was made to keep peace by dividing the services of the Lord's Day between them ; but this plan did not work well. Governor Winthrop flnally advised the weaker party, with their pastor, the Rev. Mr. Walker, to choose a tract of land, and make a new plantation. This was in 1672. Thirteen years before this, an exploring party, visiting the valley of the Pomperaug, were solicited by some Derby Indians to purciiase the adjoining country. The deed given at the time of purchase covered a terri tory as large as Litchfield County. No use was made of the land until Mr. Walker's party decided to settle in the valley. At the May Assembly, in 1672, "liberty to erect a planta tion at Pomperoage " was granted. The original signers to the covenant to found a new town at Woodbury were but seventeen. Before they left Strat ford, they adopted articles of agreement. Only as many persons were to be admitted to the plantation as could be comfortably accommodated. All public expenses, civil and religious, were to be borne in proportion to their home-lots, the largest of which was twenty-five acres, and the smallest ten. A large tract of land was set apart for the preaching of the gospel, and also " a parsell of land for y' Incourigiug a Schoole, y' learning may not be neglected to children." The first shelter of the settlers was made of evergreen trees ; but by the time the cold weather set in, they had built rude log huts. Before the winter was over, their supply THE EVOLUTION OF THE TOWNS. 137 ¦ of food gave out ; aud some of the men went to Stratford, a distance of thirty miles, with hand-sleds, and drew them home laden with provisions. In 1674 the town received the name of Woodbury. Another illustration of the way new settlements sprung up takes us into the eastern part of the vState. In 1675, Joshua, the son of Uncas, the famous Mohegan sachem, by his last will, gave to Captain John Mason, and fifteen others, the tract containing the town of Windham, from which Mans field and Canterbury were also afterwards set off. In May, 1686, the main street of Windham was laid out, aud lots surveyed for the proprietors. The first person who dug a cellar, aud, with the help of his servant, raised a house, was Lieutenant John Gates. He held a commission under Cromwell ; and when Charles II. came to the throne, he fled to this country for safety. He first landed in Virginia ; but from fear of capture, he came to Norwich, and then sought this retired spot. Windham was made a county-seat iu 1726. The formation of new towns continued until most of the land within the bounds of the State was t.aken up. That much of this real estate was considered of little value, is illustrated in the disposal that was made of the territory now included in the town of East Lyme. This tract was first re served for the Indians ; but iu time the Legislature granted a petition giving it to New London and Lyme, but without deterinining a dividing line. New London proposed to take three miles iu width, and leave one to Lyme. Lyme made a similar proposal to New London. Rather than be to the trouble of going to Hart ford with their dispute, they agreed to settle their title to the land in controversy, by a wrestling-match between two champions to be chosen by each for this purpose. The victory turned in favor of Lyme, and that town held the controverted tract until the town of East Lyme was formed. 138 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. During the past fifty years, as the centres of population have increased, the old towns have been divided and sub divided, as in the case of Saybrook, from which Essex, Chester, Westbrook, and Old Saybrook have been set off' since 1836. 1714.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 139 CHAPTER XXrV. 1714-1748. PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. THE condition of society in Connecticut at this period was exceptionally happy and prosperous. The prayer of her people seemed realized, " that peace and unity might be con tinued among them, and that they might have the blessings of the God of peace upon them." Habits of frugality and industry were joined with rectitude of character, and devout religious life and feeling. The affairs of the Commonwealth were wisely and economically conducted by tried aud faith ful men. Thoughtful care was taken of the unfortunate poor, of soldiers who had returned from captivity, and of others suffering from mental and physical disabilities. To describe the condition of Connecticut in these years, as Bancroft has said, " is but to enumerate the blessings of self- . government, as exercised by a community of thoughtful freeholders, who have neither a nobility nor a populace. How dearly it remembered the parent island, is told by the English names of its towns. Could Charles II. have looked back upon earth, and seen what security his gift of a charter had conferred, he might have gloried in an act which re deemed his life from the charge of having been unproductive of public happiness. In a proclamation, Connecticut, under its great seal, told the world that its days under the charter were ' halcyon clays of peace.' Time, as it advances, may unfold scenes of more wealth and wider action, but not of more contentment and purity." 140 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1714, '21. Intelligence having been received of the death of the Queen and the accession of the Elector of Hanover (George I.) to the English throne, Connecticut at once sent an ad dress of congratulation to the new king. The prosperity of these days is seen in the rapid growth of the towns and the increase of population.^ The occupation of the people was mostly agricultural, but there was considerable shipbuilding at different points along the" Sound. Hartford, Wethers- fleld, and Middletown on the river ; and Stonington, New Loudon, New Haven, and other towns on the coast, — had FIRST STATE UOOSB IN HARTFORD. (lieguii in 1719; occupied in 1720.) vessels engaged in flshing, and carried on quite a brisk trade with the West Indies. A copper mine was opened in Sims bury ; but, like other ventures of the kind in after-years, it did not prove profitable. The excavated mine at Simsbury was used for a long time as a State prison. After the adoption of the Saybrook Platform, the power of the clergy was increased ; and the Assembly at different times called attention to the state of religion in the colony, and the necessity of a more rigorous enforcement of the laws regarding sabbath-breaking, and the sins of lying, swearing, and intemperance. Some trouble was caused by a sect known as Rogereiies, that flourished mostly in the neighbor hood of New London. While their doctrines were ob- 1724, '27.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 141 noxious to their neighbors, the principal annoyance came through the indecencies of dress and behavior that marked the more than eccentric action of this peculiar people.^ Their irregularities probably prompted the passing of a law by which a fine of twenty shillings was imposed upon per sons absenting themselves from their "lawful congrega tion," and assembling for worship in private houses. Governor Saltonstall died in 1724.^ For sixteen years he had performed the duties of his office with vigor and ability. The removal of the college from Saybrook to New Haven, and questions of ecclesiastical order, had required rare tact and wisdom on his part. But in these matters, as well as those that pertained to the civil welfare of the colony. Governor Saltonstall had proved master of the situation. Joseph Tal cott was elected as his suc cessor. During his term, which also continued for sixteen years, the history of Connecticut is a record of peaceful prosperity. " The general courts came and went year after year, made necessary and wholesome laws, kept the finances sound and pure, and free from the paper contagion, encouraged their college, looked after their rights in England, and carried on a steady, frugal government, which was probably one of the best the world has ever seen " (Lodge). During the administration of TalcOtt, new towns still con tinued to be rapidly settled.^ When the order came to pro claim King George II., the governor called a special session of the Legislature, and an address, earnest in its expressions of loyalty, was sent to the king.^ At the same time, the governor was instructed to forward to the agent of the colony in England a reply to a complaint, which it was understood GOVERNOR SALTONSTALL. 142 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l727, '41. that John Winthrop, nephew of the late governor, had brought before the king's council. Winthrop said that he had been unjustly treated by the courts of the colony in the division of his father's estate. He claimed that the colonial law which allowed daughters to receive real estate in the distribution of the property of an intestate person, was in violation of the law of England. The question was one of grave importance to the colony, as it involved the legality of titles to landed property from the earliest settlement. The king's privy council was inclined to the opinion that the law of Connecticut would not hold ; and the Assembly, hav ing received an order overruling the action of the courts in the case of Winthrop, proceeded to put him in possession of the land which he claimed. Connecticut would not accede to the decision of the privy council, although a doubt was thrown upon the title of property in the settlement of intes tate estates. Twenty years after, the colonial law was finally sanctioned by a decision of the council. There seemed to be so much uneasiness in England over the possible development of industries in the colonies, that it was thought best for the governor to assure the Board of Trade that they had not " by any premium encouraged any manuf.actory in this colony." This was true at this time; but it was not long before liberal bounties were offered for the production of silk and hemp, and for manufacturing " canvas, duck, and fine linen cloth." During the last ses sion of the Assembly in which Governor Talcott served. Acts for the regulation of the militia, and " for the encour agement and better supporting of the schools," were passed. Upon the death of Governor Talcott, in 1741, Jonathan Law, who had been lieutenant-governor during his entire term of office, succeeded him. The stable character of tlie people proved itself in the way they treated those whom they placed in positions of trust. A faithful and efficient public servant was seldom removed from office. I 1739, '44.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 143 The peace policy of Robert Walpole, the great English prime minister, gave the colony rest for many years from the French wars that had proved so serious a drain upon its resources. This condition of affairs was changed by the breaking out of hostilities between England and Spain in 1739. The colonies were required to furnish four regiments to join the British force .at Jamaica. Connecticut at once called for volunteers, for whom she provided transports and food until they arrived at the island. Of the fifteen thou sand seamen and twelve thousand soldiers gathered there under the command of Admiral Vernon, four thousand were from the colonies. Thwarted in the endeavor to intercept a French fleet, and defeated in an attack upon Carthagena, they sailed for Cuba. Havana was easily taken, but the scourge of j-ellow-fever proved more terrible than any enemy. Of the thousand stalwart men who had enlisted from New England, not one hundred returned. From the opening of hostilities, France had been in full sympathy with Spain; and on the 4th of March, 1744, she made a formal declaration of war against England. The New-England colonies were thoroughly aroused at the im pending sense of danger. The French still held Canada' and Cape Breton, aud claimed all of the vast interior region from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the mouth of the Mississippi. If they could make this claim good, it is easy to understand that the colonists felt that the security of the strip of coun try which they held along the Atlantic coast would be con stantly endangered. Louisburg, on Cape Breton Island, at the entrance of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, was the strongest fortress on the American continent, and well termed " the Gibraltar of North America." It was the central station from which the French privateers and men-of-war sailed, that hovered all along the New-England coast, and seized upon sailing and trading vessels. This was ruinous to the maritime interests 144 HISTORY OF CONNECTICXJT. [l744. of the colony. Nova Scotia had come into the possession of the English in 1713, but this province was again threatened by the French. Canso was surprised and taken ; and the same fate probably would have overtaken Annapolis ( Port Royal), had it not just before been re-enforced by troops from Massachusetts. There was a common feeling throughout New England, that Louisburg must be captured at all hazards. Having waited in vain for aid from England, sorae of the leaders in military and civil affairs began to discuss the possibility of ^ accomplishing this work without assistance from the mother country. Governor Shirley of Massachusetts was especially active in these negotiations. He did all that he could to learn the exact condition of the fortress, and its preparation in case of a siege. Having urged the home government to send sloops-of-war to guard Annapolis, with the view of protecting the provincial troops while besieging Louisburg, he then made known his plans to the General Court. The matter was earnestly debated for several days. All were agreed as to the danger that menaced the colonies as long as this stronghold remained in the hands of the French ; but the difficulties which confronted them in carrying out the plan suggested seemed so great, that, upon the final vote, the measure was lost. The matter before long was agitated in other quarters. Some of the leading merchants and most infiuential citizens petitioned the Court to revive and pass the bill. A com mittee of investigation was appointed, and, after the consid eration of the report, the measure was carried by a single \ote. From this point the tide of general enthusiasm began to rise. Despatches were at once sent to the different colonies, soliciting their assistance. All but New England declined to engage in the hazardous enterprise. Connecticut immedi ately proceeded to raise her quota of five hundred men. Roger Wolcott, the lieutenant-governor, was appointed 1745.] PERIOD OP THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 145 commander-in-chief of the Connecticut forces. Within a few days ample supplies were gathered, and the troops em barked. Before the close of April, a gallant little army of four thousand New-England men, under command of Colonel Pepperell of Massachusetts, had arrived at Canso, Nova Scotia. To the great joy of the provincial soldiers. Commo dore Warren, who, at the last moment, had been ordered by the home government to assist Governor Shirley in this expe dition, sailed into the harbor with three ships-of-war, and the same day was joined by another from Portsmouth. Without delaj' the army embarked, and, under convoy of the fleet, sailed for Louisburg Harbor. The garrison were taken completely by surprise, as thej' saw the transports beating into the bay. The governor at once sent a company of his best troops to oppose the landing of the English. In the skirmish that followed, their commanding officer was taken prisoner; and those who were not killed or wounded, fled, and left the enemy to effect an easy landing. The following morning a detachment of four hundred men, under cover of a range of hills, marched to the north-east side of the harbor, to within a mile of the general battery. During the progress of their march, they had set fire to the houses and stores along the way ; and the dense volume of smoke hid their movements, so that the enemy was at an entire loss as to their numbers and strength. Panic-stricken with the belief that the whole army was approaching, they threw their powder into a well, and deserted the battery. With exultant hearts the little band of provincial soldiers hastened forward, and took possession of the guns without the loss of a man. The work of reducing the fortress was still before them. In order to get their guns in position, they had to drag them a distance of two miles. A deep morass stretched part of the waj' ; and as oxen and horses sank too deep in the treach erous bog to permit of their use, the men were compelled, under cover of the night, to drag the heavy guns, mortars, 146 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l745. and timbers to the place where they erected the temporary batteries. It was an herculean task, but they did not falter ; and in less than twenty days they had prepared five fascine batteries. Meanwhile the fieet was not inactive. By a shrewd manoeuvre, the "Mermaid," a forty-four-gun ship in command of Captain Douglas, captured the "Vigilant," a French sixty-four-gun ship. The loss of this vessel with her abundant stores, and five hundred and sixty men, was a heavy blow, and hastened the final victory. Four days after the " Vigilant" had struck her colors, two other ships joined the English fleet. The garrison within the fortress was disheart ened. The western gate of the town was broken down, and breaches were visible. The only battery that com manded the town, and could defend it against ships, was in ruins. On the 15th of June the officers of the garrison asked for a cessation of hostilities, that terms of capitulation might be arranged. This was granted, and on the 17th of June " The Gibraltar of North America " was surrendered to England. The provincial troops were determined to push the siege, although they had suffered very much from exposure and hardships. For their sake the final surrender came none too soon. It was a remarkable victory, and its intelligence car ried joy into every New-England home. It was a terrible blow to the French power in North America, all the more disheartening and severe because it was unexpected. Of the five thousand colonial troops who had taken part in the expedition, eleven hundred were from Connecticut. The effect of this victory was to encourage England in the determination to wrest from France her provinces in the New World. France in the following year planned a campaign for the retaking of Louisburg and the punishment of New Eng land. The large and well-equipped fleet that set sail for the shores of North America was scattered and disabled by 1748.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FKENCH WARS. 147 storms ; pestilence swept away the men ; its commander and his successor died suddenly, and nothing was accomplished. It is not strange that the colonists felt that a protecting Providence through mysterious ways had broken the power of the enemj', and turned them away from their shores. In 1748 a congress convened at Aix-la-Chapelle to consider terms of peace that should restore tranquillity to the dis tracted nations of Europe. England once more was at peace with France and Spain, and their possessions in the New World had rest from the horrors of war for a little season. 1 At the time of the Revolution of 1688, and the deposition of Audro8,Con- uecticut had twenty-eight towns. With in thirty-seven years twenty-two were added; viz., Danbury (1693), Lebanon C1697J, Colchester aud Durham (1699), Voluntown (1700), Mansfield and Can terbury (1703), Hebron (1704), Killingly (1708), Coventry and Ridgefield (1709). Newtown (1711), East Haddam, Pomfret, and New Milford (1713), Ashford (1714), Tolland (1715), StafCord (1719), Litch field (1721), Wlllingtou and Bolton (1720), and Somers (1726). In 1726 Windham County was formed of tho eleven towns in the north-eastern corner of the colony, - The founder of this btrange sect waa John Rogers of New London. Hold ing the views of the Seventh-Day Bap- ti.'its, they added notions of their own, both eccentric and immoral. 3 Saltons-Tall, at the time he was elected governor, was pastor of the Con gregational Church in New London. His close relations with Governor Fitz John Winthrop and other prominent men had given him great influence In public affairs. A born leader, and gifted with marked business ability, he was recognized as perhaps the most learned lawyer in the colony. Winthrop leaned upon him as hia principal adviser, and it is not strange that at his death he was chosen his successor. Palfrey (Hist New Eng., vol.iv. p. 495) speaksin these terms of the administration of Saltonstall: "Its wisdom and vigor moulded the senti ments of a transition period; and no raan raeraorable ou the bright vol! of Connecticut worthies did more to estab lish for her that character which was in dicated by the name, appropriated to her through raany generations, of 'the land of steady habits.' " * Between the years 1726 and 1739 the following towns were established : Somers, New Fairfield, East Haddam, Union, Barbhamstead, Colebrook, Hart land, Winchester, New Hartford, Tor rington, Kent, Goshen, Canaan, Salis bury, and Cornwall. 5 It was ordered that the celebration which had taken place at Hartford, be repeated at New Haven ; " that the troops in the county of New Haven, five of the oldest foot-corapanies in the town of New Haven, and two foot-companies iu Milford, attend that day's service; that a treat of thirty pounds be made for their refreshment; that a quarter of a pound of powder be delivered to each sentinel; that a sufficient quantity of powder be provided for discharging three of the great guns; . . . that the sheriff provide ten pounds of candles for illuminating the court-house; . . . and also, that he procure a barrel of good wine, at the charge of the colony, for refreshment of the Assembly." 148 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l748. CHAPTER XXV. 1748-1755. PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. THE peace of Aix-la-Chapelle was followed by a cessation of hostilities between England and France that con- tinned for nearlj- ten years. It was the brief lull before the breaking out of a more furious and decisive struggle for the control of North America. Vigorous and united in its inde pendent government, Connecticut prospered abundantly. New towns were settled, and old ones increased in popula tion and wealth. The life of the people was earnest and thoughtful ; and the interests of religion, morality, and edu cation were nourished with jealous care. While peace and prosperity reigned within her borders, the people of Connecticut were fully alive to the progress of events that linked their destiny with that of the other colo nies in the struggle against the French. The military spirit was kept alive by the frequent gatherings of the train-bands for exercise ; and in almost every home-circle, there were those who could tell a story of personal adventure in the wars that had so frequently called for volunteers. From the settlement of the colony, a militant disposition was fostered by necessity ; and the blood of the hardy sous of the fathers who flrst subdued the wilderness, possessed a martial strain that was easily stirred to heroic action. It was now seen that France was seeking with consummate skill to gain imperial power in North America. Having 1748-54.] l^ERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 149 secured a firm foothold in Canada aud Louisiana, the French claimed the whole country west of the Alleghanies. From the Great Lakes to the mouth of the Mississippi, they were busy erecting a line of forts and trading-posts, and furnish ing them with materials of war. The English Government realized that something must be done to stay the progress of the French in their plan to hem in and confine the colonies to a narrow strip of country along the Atlantic coast. An English colony was planted in Nova Scotia ; and at the begin ning of the war that soon broke out, the original French settlers were driven from the peninsula. The sad story of their exile from their Acadian homes is told by Longfellow in his poem of "Evangeline." In 1749 the city of Halifax was founded, under the direc tions of Lord Halifax, then at the head of the British Board of Trade. A company, also of English noblemen and mer chants, with some Virginia planters, formed an association to occupy a part of the beautiful valley of the Ohio. Al ready the French governors of Louisiana and Canada had given orders that all English settlers and merchants should be driven from the vallej's of the Ohio and the Mississippi. The flames of the last great struggle between these nations for the control of North America were kindled at several points. From the shores of Lake Erie a force of twelve hundred men drove the English settlers from their colony on the Ohio, and built Fort Duquesne where the city of Pitts burg now stands. This commanding position had been selected as the site of an English fort by a young Virginian planter, aud some work had been done upon it when it was seized by the French. The same youthful officer was or dered not long after to make the attempt to dislodge the enemy, but it proved a hazardous and unavailing effort. This was the beginning of the military career of George Washington. The French had gained a wonderful influence over most 150 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l754. of the Indian tribes, and this was a great help to them in carrying out their projects of conquest. Fortunately for the English, the powerful Iroquois tribes, who lived west of the Hudson River, still continued friendly to them, and hostile to the French. In 1754, under instructions from the home government, a convention of delegates from the colo nies met at Albany to make a treaty with these friendly tribes, known as the " Six Nations," and to form a union for self-defence. The twenty-five colonial delegates first met a hundred and fifty Indian chiefs, and made a treaty with them. Then Benjamin Franklin, who had been influen tial in calling the convention, proposed a plan of union. The Philadelphia editor and printer, who was to link his name and fame so closely with the new nation that was to rise in the near future, was successful in gaining the approval of a majority of the convention to his plan. The three representatives from Connecticut — William Pitkin, Roger Wolcott, and Elisha Williams — did not al together favor this scheme of union, and so reported when they returned home. It would have been strange had they done so. With unfaltering determination the colony had always resisted every attempt to lessen the control of its charter government. They were more than willing to do their share in the common defence, but they did not pro pose to give the management of their affairs into other hands. They were suspicious that this plan, that created a council with a head appointed by the crown, with power to make general laws, and raise money in all the colonies for the defence of the whole, might prove an entering- wedge that would finally destroy their charter government. More than this, they argued that the attempt to carry ou a defensive war along so extended a frontier under the management of such a council as was proposed, would be impracticable and dangerous. The plan of union met with opposition in other directions, and was given up. A bill 1755.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 151 was then introduced into Parliament by Lord Halifax, that provided for an assembly of the governors and one or two delegates from each colony with authority to direct the mili tary force, and draw the money for their expense from Eng land, which should afterwards be repaid by taxes on the colonists. This project met not only with the earnest pro test of Connecticut, but of all the colonies. The bill was dropped, but the discussion which it aroused was the stirring of thought and opinion that culminated in the war of the Revolution. Meanwhile the gifted Marquis of Montcalm, who was now governor of Canada, had uuited the French strongholds of Duquesne at the head waters of the Ohio, of Niagara near Lake Ontario, and of Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain, by a chain of smaller forts. The British ministry saw that the question of uniting the colonists for their common defence, taxation, and control by the home government, must be de ferred, and active measures takeu to resist the encroachments of France in the great interior of America. A campaign was marked out ; and it was decided that an expedition in command of General Braddock should march against Fort Duquesne, while another should make an attack upon Crown Point. iSfforts at the same time were to be made to wrest Niagara « from the enemy. About the middle of January, General Braddock embarked for Virginia with fifteen hundred troops. In the early spring, the governors of the colonies met the English general in council, and it was agreed that the campaign against the French should be earnestly sustained. The ill-fated attack of Braddock upon Fort Duquesne, in wliich he was slain, and the remnant of his little army saved from utter destruction by the skill of his young staff-oflBcer, Colonel Washington, caused great excitement, both in Eng land and the colonies. This crushing defeat was the work of Indian allies, and taught the British that warfare on American soil was very different from that upon the open 152 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1755. battle-fields of Europe. The French, elated with this vic tory, were now in possession of all the region west of the Alleghanies ; and scenes of massacre and pillage filled the hearts of many with dismay and fear. The colonists dreaded the horrible tactics of Indian warfare, and the influence the French had gained over them, more than all else. Preparations had already been made to push the campaign against the enemy in their stronghold on Lake Champlain. THE FRENCH WAR. Connecticut raised a thousand men to join the provincial army that was to proceed to Crown Point, and the governor was authorized to enlist flve hundred more troops if they were needed. Williara Johnson of New York was made commander-in-chief of the army ; and the New-England troops were placed in command of Phineas Lyman of Con necticut, who had been appointed major-general. Before the end of June an army of six thousand men was gathered at Albany, together with a large body of Mohawk Indians, under Hendrick their sachem. 1755.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 153 General Lyman, with the main part of the troops, marched along the banks of the Hudson, as far as the " carrying- place," fourteen miles south of Lake George. Six weeks were consumed in building a rude fort at this point to pro tect the military stores, and provide a safe place of retreat if the army was compelled to fall back. It was late in August before an advance was made to Lake George. Before they were scarcely settled in their new camp, Indian runners brought tidings that the enemy iu large numbers was advancing from Ticonderoga, by South Bay, to Fort Edward. This important post was held by five hundred troops from New York and New Hampshire. Word was sent to them of their danger. While on the alert, awaiting the movements of the enemy, a courier brought news to General Johnson that they were on the march, and within a few miles of Fort Edward. It was decided at once to send a thousand men, under the command of Colonel Williams of Massachu setts, and Colonel Whiting of Connecticut, with the Mohawk warriors, to intercept the enemy. It was the design of Dieskau to march against Fort Ed ward ; but the guides took a false route, and he found after a four days' march that they were on the road to Lake George. His Indian allies refused to attack the fort, but were willing tq^ go against the army at the lake, whom they supposed were without artillery or defences. Mean while the troops in command of Colonel Williams had marched but a short distance, iu the early morning, on their way to relieve Fort Edward, when they were discovered by the French scouts. Dieskau at once ordered his entire force to lie in ambush, and surround them. Even the wary Mo hawks were caught in the snare, and did not suspect the pres ence of the enemy until a flame of deadly fire burst from the muskets hidden in the forest thickets. Colonel Wil liams^ Hendrick the Mohawk chief, and other brave officers and men, were killed upon the spot. 154 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l755. With great presence of mind, Nathan Whiting of New , Haven, the next ofBcer in command, rallied the panic- stricken troops. Among the most efficient of his aids was Israel Putnam, who had recently received a commission of lieutenant from the Legislature of Connecticut. The first fatal volley of musketry had been heard at the camp, and the preparations for defence were hastened. Two or three cannon were drawn up from the shore of the lake. The wagons and baggage were placed inside a rude breastwork of trees. As the retreating companies came into the camp, they took the strongest position they could, and waited the onset of the enemy. It had been the purpose of Dieskau to rush forward, and open fire as soon as possible. The cowardice of his Iroquois allies delayed the attack. It was about noon when the battle commenced. Johnson was slightly wounded early iu the action, and the chief command fell upon Lyman. Under his dh'ections " the New- Englaud people kept up the most violent fire that had as yet been known iu America." No sooner did the enemy begin to retreat, than the English leaped over their breastworks, and pursued them on every side. Of the two thousand men in the attacking force, seven hundred lay dead upon the field. Nearly all of the French regulars perished. Dieskau was discovered danger ously wounded, a short distance from the camp, and while attempting to get his watch, was again shot, by a soldier who thought he was reaching for his pistol. The unfortunate officer was carried to England as a prisoner-of-war, and was afterwards liberated, but never fully recovered from his wounds. The victory gained upon the shores of Lake George en couraged the northern colonies to respond to the call that had already been made for re-enforcements. Connecticut raised two regiments, and sent them forward at once. She now had between two and three thousand men in active 1755.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WAKS. 155 service. Johnson proved unequal to the opportunity. Afraid of a sudden attack of the enemy, he allowed them to in trench themselves at Ticonderoga. While re-enforcements poured in from New England eager to advance, he busied the troops in building Fort William Henry, near Lake George. The autumn passed without any forward movement ; and when winter set in, the Connecticut militia returned home. In recognition of his services. General Johnson was made'a baronet, and Parliament voted him five thousand pounds ; while the brave and gifted General Lyman, ^ who had really saved the day at Lake George, received no reward. Governor Shirley, at tlie head of the expedition against Niagara, did not get beyond Oswego. The news of the defeat of Braddock led so many of his boatmen to desert, that he was unable to transport his soldiers and material of war across the lake. Having erected two small forts commanding the entrance of the harbor, he left a force of seven hundred men to garrison them, and with the rest of his army returned to Albany. Thus far the chain of French fortresses had not been broken at a single point ; and, owing to a lack of vigorous action and co-operation on the part of the southern colonies, their borders had been the scene of many cruel massacres. * Phineas Ltman was born in Dur- England, seeking to get a tract of land ham in 1716. After graduating at Yale along the Mississippi frora the govern- College, he was adraitted to the bar. As ment. A tract in the vicinity of Natchez comraander-in-chief of the Connecticut was granted to the company of which forces in the French war, he proved him- he was agent, in 1774. He took over a self a brave and capable military leader. company of emigrants, but died, soon In 1762 he was at the head of the colo- after reaching this country, in West nial troops in the expedition against Florida. Havana. From 1763 to 1774 he was in 156 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l756. CHAPTER XXVI. 1756-1757. PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. BOTH France and England realized that the struggle upon which they had again entered would be sh.arp and de cisive. Formal declaration of war was made in the spring of 1756. Previous to this the colonial governors had met at New York, and marked out a vigorous campaign. It was decided to raise a larger army than before, and renew the attack upon Crown Point and Niagara, while the southern colonies were to make another attempt to seize Fort Du quesne. The colonists were encouraged by the evident de termination of the home government to give them a larger measure of aid. The Earl of Loudon was sent to take the command-in- chief of the army, while acting as governor of Virginia. Governor Shirley was removed, and General Abercrombie appointed in his place. With her usual enthusiasm, Con necticut responded with double the number of men called for ; and two thousand well-equipped troops were soon ready aud eager for action. The campaign that opened with every promise of success proved a failure through the culpable ineflSciency of the Eng lish commanders. Abercrombie did not reach Albany until midsummer, and even then the army of ten thousand men gathered there remained inactive. Tidings came that Fort Oswego was besieged by Montcalm ; but relief was not 1757.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 157 sent in time to save it from the French, who secured not only a large supply of military stores, but took sixteen hun dred prisoners-of-war. General Winslow, with seven thou sand men, had proceeded to Lake George, impatient and anxious to march against Ticonderoga and Crown Point. There is little doubt that the colonial general could ha\'e taken these fortresses had the British oflScers allowed him to advance. Orders were given, however, by the Earl of Lou don, that the campaign should be pushed no farther for the season ; and most of the provincial army returned home to spend the winter. The discussions around the firesides of Connecticut homes in these days were far from complimen tary to British valor and generalship. The feeling was "strong that it would be better to stay at home, and abandon the campaign, if all their sacrifice and effort were to come to naught by the stupid interference of titled incompetency. The humiliation of this worse than fruitless campaign was keenly felt in England, and every preparation was made to prosecute the war with vigor as soon as the spring opened. In May a fleet of fifty transports, with six thousand regular troops on board, sailed from Cork for America. This fleet, with eleven ships of the line, arrived at Halifax early in July. The colonies had already raised their quota of soldiers, and Connecticut was prepared to send double the number of men required of her. The disappointment was wide-spread when it became known that the chief object of the expedi tion that demanded the aid of the colonial troops, was the capture of Louisburg. Even this plan was finally given up, for the delay of the English commanders enabled the French to re-enforce this stronghold with almost as many soldiers as the British could lead against it. , The withdrawal of troops from the vicinity of Lake George gave an opportunity for an aggressive movement against Fort William Henry, that Montcalm hastened to seize. The English general, Webb, whose halting, timorous spirit had 158 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l757. been shown in the campaign of the previous year, was still in command of the colonial and regular forces, having head quarters at Fort Edward. A few days before Montcalm reached Lake George, with an army of about eight thousand men. General Webb ordered Major Israel Putnam of Connecticut, with two hundred meu, to escort him to Fort William Henry. This young officer alr^dy gave promise of a distinguished career, aud had received at the last session of the Assembly a gratuity of fifty Spanish milled dollars for extraordinary service and good conduct " in ranging and scouting " in the vicinit}- of Crown Point. The English general did not suspect the approach of the enemy, or he would hardly have allowed Putnam to go down the lake to learn what he could of the condition of things at Ticonderoga. With three whale- boats manned by eighteen volunteers, the fearless colonial major proceeded up the lake until he discovered a party of men on an island. Quietly leaving two of the boats to fish at a safe distance, he hastened back to tlie fort with the tidings. The general was in a tremor of excitement, and it was only after the most earnest pleading that he allowed Putnam to retiu'n for his companions. Passing the spot where the men were still fishing, as if no other business was on hand, he pushed still farther on, and by the aid of his field-glass saw a large army in motion upon the shore of North-west Bay. While intently watching their movements, several canoes filled with Indians had come near enough to discharge their arrows. Not until these shafts were flying thick about him did Putnam dash tlirough the midst of them, and, with the now alert fishing-party, return to the camp. It was evident that the enemy were marching upon Fort William Henry. General Webb at once prepared to return to Fort Edward. "I hope your excellency does not intend to neglect so fair an opportunity of giving battle should the enemy pre- 1757.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 159 sume to land," said Major Putnam, who believed that an easy victory could be won, if the troops were concentrated at the fort. " What do you think we should do here? " was the reply of the dismayed English general. The following day General Webb returned to headquarters, and sent Colonel Moore with his regiment to re-enforce the garrison. A few hours after their arrival, Montcalm lauded his troops, and opened the siege. Monroe sent messenger after mes senger to Fort Edward, asking for assistance. The force under General Webb was increased by the arrival of Sir William Johnson with his troops, but he did nothing for the relief of the beleaguered fort. Putnam and Johnson urged the frightened and irresolute general to allow them to go to the aid of Monroe. Permission was finally granted ; and the provincials, with Putnam's rangers, started with glad hearts to relieve the garrison. They had advanced about three miles when a messenger overtook, them, with orders to return to Fort Edward. Already an Indian scout had carried word to Montcalm that a large body df troops were on the way to re-enforce the garrison. The French general at once pre pared to raise the siege ; but when he learned that for some reason the re-enforcements had turned back, he renewed the attack with fresh vigor. Colonel Monroe, who had fought bravely in hope of receiving aid from day to day, saw that he could not hold out longer ; and having received a letter, advising him to surrender, from the ineflJicient, if not cow ardly, officer, who might so easily have relieved him, he made the best terms possible with the enemy. The treaty was in every respect favorable, but it was violated in the most horrible manner. The Indians who fought under Montcalm stripped the English of every article of personal property they could lay tlieir hands upon. But they were not satisfied with pillage, and with savage atro city began an indiscriminate massacre of men, women, and 160 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l757. children, the incidents of which are horrible in the extreme. While the English fled towards Fort Edward, the blood thirsty savages followed them, until they were finally driven off by the soldiers of INIontcalm. As we read the terrible story of the massacre of Fort William Henry, our indigna tion is kindled against the weak and incompetent general, who might so easily have saved from defeat the brave men within the garrison, and rescued the helpless women and children from the tomahawk of savages. The surrender and massacre upon the shore of Lake George carried sorrow into every part of the northern col onies. The feeling against the English officers was in creased ; but they realized the threatening danger, and were determined to stay the further advance of Moutcalm. Con necticut, in a few daj's, raised, and sent into the field, five thousand men, iu addition to those she had already fur nished. The English army at Albany and Fort Edward soon numbered some twentj' thousand men. With this army, and the large body of provincials that were ready for action, Webb accomplished nothing. 1758.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 161 CHAPTER XXVII. 1758. PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. NOT only in North America, but elsewhere, disaster and defeat had overtaken the armies of England in the struggle with France. It was a dark hour, but the genius of a single man was soon to bring about a turn in the tide of affairs tliat proved the ability of Great Britain to regain and hold a victorious position under wise guidance. The quali ties that caused the royal and aristocratic class to dislike William Pitt, made him the idol of the people. Uncorrupti ble and fearless, his far-reaching mind grasped the situation ; and his patriotic spirit and indomitable energy aroused a public feeling that enabled him to rescue England from the perilous condition into which the nation had fallen, through the weakness of those who had the direction of civil and military affairs. " I want to call England," he said, as he entered upon office, " out of that enervate state in which twenty thousand men from France can shake her." With joy the people recognized the voice of a true leader, and met his call with eager response. One of the flrst of his official acts was to remove the incompetent Earl of Loudon. The same ship that brought word of this welcome change, carried letters from Mr. Pitt to the colonies. The letter addressed to Connecticut was read at a special meeting of the Assembly called at New Haven on the Sth of 162 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l758. March, 1758. Its words were admirably fitted to stir the hearts of the liberty-loving aud strong-willed men who lis tened to it. They were in full sympathy with the spirit that animated its sentiments, and the address aroused intense enthusiasm. The suggestion was made in the letter, that the New-England colonies, together with New York and New Jersey, should raise twenty thousand men. Connecticut had already been over-generous in giving of her life and treasure, but this call was answered by a vote to raise five thousand men, — one-quarter of the whole number asked for. Boun ties were offered to every volunteer, and provision was made for the equipment and supply of this large body of troops. In February a British fleet sailed for Halifax, consisting of one hundred and fifty-seven sail, and fourteen thousand soldiers. On the 28th of May they left Halifax for Louis burg, and dropped anchor in that harbor on the 2d of June. Admiral Boscawen was in charge of the fleet, and General Amherst was in command of the land forces. After a siege that continued until the last of July, the garrison of five thousand men was surrendered, with all its munitions of war. While these events were in progress, the troops from Con necticut and other colonies had joined the army under General Abercrombie, and were eager to march against Ticonderoga. On the fifth day of July, nearly sixteen thousand men, the best-equipped army that had thus far been gathered in Amer ica, embarked at the southern landing of Lake George, and in the evening rested at Sabbath-day Point. An hour before midnight they again started on the march for Ticonderoga. Their guides proved inefficient ; and the columns marched as well as they could, with confused and broken ranks, through the thick underbrush. They had proceeded about two miles, when the right centre, led by the gallant Lord Howe, acci dentally met the advanced guard of the French, who, in at tempting to get back into their own camp, had lost their way. 1758.J PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 163 They at once opened fire upon the English ranks, although they numbered but a handful of three hundred men. Lord Howe, against the advice of M.ajor Putnam, who stood by his side, pushed eagerly forward. He was shot at the very beginning of the skirmish, and expired immediately. The British regulars, unaccustomed to fighting in the woods, and dismayed by the death of their leader, might have been routed but for the prompt and cool action of Putnam and other colonial officers, who ralhed their men, and soon put tlie enemy to flight. The death of Lord Howe was universally lamented. He had won the esteem and affection of the colonial soldiers by his affable and courteous manners, and gained their confidence as a brave and able officer. Having spent the following night in the forest, Abercrom bie in the morning ordered the troops to return to the land ing-place. The next day he sent his chief engineer to reconnoitre the French lines. He reported, contrary to the judgment of several of the New-England oflficers, that their works were of flimsy construction. Abercrombie decided to make another movement forward, and storm the fort that very day. Halting, himself, at a spot about two miles from Ticonderoga, his brave and impatient troops hurried towards the fort. The retreat to the lake-shore, after the skirmish in which Lord Howe was killed, had given Montcalm every opportunity to intrench his forces to the best advantage. Abercrombie, with a strange ignorance of the situation, had left his artillery at the shore of the lake, and pushed forward his infantry, with the regulars at the front. With fixed bayonets the English attempted to rush through the lines of the enemy. The French opened with a murderous fire that swept away platoon after platoon of the English, while they were almost entirely protected by their intrench ments, and the screen of fallen trees. The colonial troops might have been effectively used, could they have been permitted to follow tactics to which they 164 HISTORY* OF CONNECTICUT. [l758. were accustomed : as it was, the Connecticut troops did val orous duty as sharp-shooters ; and Major Putnam, who acted as aid, showed both skill and discretion. After heavy losses, that numbered man}- of the sons of Connecticut, the army withdrew to a safe distance. Putnam and other officers urged Abercrombie, who still remained at a safe distance, to bring forward his artillery, and make another attack ; but, instead of attempting any further effort, he beat a hasty retreat. The contempt and indignation of the provincial army was more deeply stirred than ever against the incom petent general at their head. In the familiar talk of the camp, he was seldom mentioned by the name of General Abercrombie, but was spoken of as "Mrs. Nabby crombie." The capture of Fort Frontenac by Colonel Bradstreet of Massachusetts, the surrender of Fort Duquesne to General Forbes, and the splendid achievements of Amherst and Wolfe at Louisburg, only strengthened the conviction of these brave men, that, but for the incompetence of their general, victory, and not defeat, would have crowned their efforts. In the month of August, Major Rogers and Major Put nam, with six hundred men, were sent on a scouting expedi tion to the vicinity of Ticonderoga. Finding that the French were aware of their movements, they decided to return to Fort Edward. The flrst night they pitched their camp on the banks of the Clear River. The following morning. Major Rogers foolishly tested his capacity as a good marks man by indulgiug in a shooting-match with an English officer. As Putnam predicted, the firing gave the enemy knowledge of their camping-place. Five hundred men in command of Marin, the famous French scout, lay in ambuscade a short distance away, and fell upon the right division of the Eng lish soon after they had commenced their march. Putnam quickly rallied his men for the attack, and the Connecticut soldiers fought bravely. Rogers, whose indiscretion had brought them into danger, kept at a safe distance. In the 1758.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 165 midst of the fight, an Indian rushed towards Putnam, whose musket missed fire. Springing upon him with uplifted tom ahawk, the athletic warrior, with frenzied strength, made him prisoner, and bound him fast to a tree. For a time he was exposed to the fire of both parties ; at last, after escaping injury from the bullets, some of which passed through the sleeves and skirts of his coat, he was approached by a young Indian brave, who amused himself by hurling a tomahawk as near his head as possible without hitting it. A French oflBcer came up, and pointed a musket at his heart ; but it missed fire. Putnam claimed protection as a captive, but the only answer of the brutal soldier was a blow upon the mouth with the heavj' end- of his gun. The enemy finally retreated ; and Putnam, stripped of his clothing, and loaded with packs, was forced to march over the rough paths for many miles without halting. Every out rage that Indian cruelty could devise, added to his suffering ; and he carried through life the scar of a tomahawk-blow given without provocation. After several days, the Indians made a halt ; and Putnam soon suspected their purpose. Stripping him of the few articles of Indian dress that had been given him in place of his own, they bound him fast to a tree, and piled dry branches about him in a circle. With horrible incantations they completed their preparations, and then set fire to the brush. A sudden shower extinguished it. Again it was kindled ; and as the fire touched the quivering fiesh, the Indians gave wild yells of delight. With thoughts of loved ones whom he would never meet again, and the solemn realities of the life upon which he was about to enter, he be came insensible to pain, and calmly waited the end. But his earthly work was not yet done. Guided by the cries of the savage band, Marin, the leader of the French and Indian scouts, rushed through the circle of flame, and unbound the half -dead captive. He was taken to Ticonderoga, where he had an interview 166 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l758. with Montcalm, who ordered him to be sent to Montreal. The capture of Fort Frontenac led to an exchange of pris oners, and Putnam was set at liberty. Upon the pages of the colonial records of Connecticut, there is a " Memorial of Israel Putnam of Pomfret," setting forth, that being taken prisoner, and carried to Canada, he suffered much hardship, and was obliged to spend about sixty guineas for his neces sary support, and asking that this sum be refunded him. In answer to this petition, the Assembly ordered that seventy pounds lawful money be paid the said Putnam. But this brave officer was not the only one whose story is full of romantic interest and hairbreadth escapes. It was in the stress of these severe experiences that men were being trained to fight the battles that should win the independence of a new nation. 1759.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 167 CHAFPER XXVIII. 1759-1763. PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. THE repulse of Abercrombie by Montcalm at Ticonderoga was a great disappointment. The colonies that had re sponded so generously in the supply of men and material for the campaign, again felt that all of their efforts had been frustrated by the incompetence of the English general. The energetic policy and wise guidance of Pitt did not fail elsewhere. The capture of Louisburg had given control of the whole province of Cape Breton ; and George Washing ton, at the head of a gallant company of colonial soldiers, from Pennsylvania and Virginia, had taken Fort Duquesne. Encouraged by these victories, Pitt decided upon an ag gressive campaign, that, if successful, would expel the French from Canada, and the country about the great lakes. When the General Assembly of Connecticut met, on the Sth of March, 1759, a letter was read from the British prime minister, in which, with his accustomed frankness and elo quence, he unfolded his plans, and asked their assistance. There was no lack of loyal and hearty response to this letter, but many thought it would be impossible to raise and equip the number of soldiers called for. The ranks of the strong men who had already gone forth from the colony had been sadly depleted by death, and others were no longer fit for service. The burden of debt was falling with crushing weight upon the people. It was necessary to send flve thou- 168 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l759. sand soldiers into the field, if they did all that Pitt asked of them. The words of any other man would have aroused but little response : as it was, many felt the demand laid upon them was beyond the resources of the colony. The earnest plea of Governor Fitch finally overcame every objec tion ; and the Assembly, at its meeting in May, decided to levy the full number of troops. By the end of May the provincial army had joined the forces of General Amherst at Albany. In July the English general began the march towards Crown Point, over ground that was sadly familiar to the Connecticut troops. Mont calm realized that it would not now do for him to run great risks at any distance from Quebec, the stronghold of the French power. A handful of men might repulse a general like Abercrombie, but he knew that Amherst was an oflBcer worthy to lead the brave men who were anxious to wipe out the record of past incompetence and defeat. Follow ing the orders of Montcalm, the French troops, did not op pose the march of the English, but withdrew behind the fortifications of Ticonderoga. After a brief cannonade, that did but little execution, the enemy blew up their magazine, and retired to Crown Point. General Amherst at once sent forward his light rangers in pursuit ; and without making any resistance, the English troops were permitted to take posses sion. The French, however, were unwilling to leave the country. Thirty-five hundred men strongly fortified Isle- aux-Noix, and four large armed vessels were on Lake Cham plain. General Amherst did not think it safe to advance towards Quebec until the enemy were driven from the lake. Under his direction. Captain Loring built a sloop of sixteen guns, and a large raft to carry six cannon. Meanwhile the army was busily employed in repairing the forts at Ticon deroga and Crown Point. It was a summer of fatiguing work for the Connecticut troops ; but they endured it with brave hearts, thankful that at last thej^ had won the strong- 1759.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. l69 holds of the enemy. After the sloop and raft were launched, an attack was made upon the French ships, and two of them destroyed. One of the prominent actors in this enterprise was Israel Putnam, now lieutenant-colonel of the Fourth Connecticut Regiment. While these almost bloodless victories were being won. Fort Niagara was besieged and taken by Sir William John son. But the great and flnal triumph of this remarkable campaign was the capture of Quebec. An expedition under General Wolfe, a young soldier of thirty-three years, whose genius Pitt had discerned, entered the St. Lawrence, and anchored below the city. Unable to draw Montcalm from the inaccessible heights bordering the river, it seemed as if there was nothing for him to do but to retire, and leave the country in the enemy's hands. He had learned of a narrow path by which it was possible to reach the summit of the Heights of Abraham, overlooking Quebec. In the silence and darkness of the night, the long line of boats dropped • down the river, to the spot where this narrow path was to be found. As the boat bearing Wolfe and other officers moved along the stream, in the solemn hush of the hour, he repeated the stanzas of Gray's " Elegy in a Country Churchyard," and as he closed, quietly said, " I would rather be the author of that poem than take Quebec." At the head of his brave soldiers he guided the way up the narrow path, where two men could not go abreast. The morning found them upon the heights. Montcalm, with rash courage, made an attack, which the English easily repulsed. Wolfe ordered a charge against the French lines. While leading his men in this onset, and at the very moment of vic tory, a ball pierced his breast, and he fell mortally wounded. " They run," said the oflBcer who held the dying general in his arms. "Who run?" he faintly asked. When told it was the French, he replied, " Then, I die happy." The capture of Quebec, and the submission of Canada 170 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1760. after Montreal was taken by Amherst in 1760, effectually broke the power of France in America. In the campaign of 1760, Connecticut again furnished her full number of five thousand men. The glad tidings of victories that made the year 1759 memorable in English history, infused new courage into tlie hearts of the colonists. Among the heroic sons of Connecticut who were with Amherst when Montreal sur rendered, we find the names of Major-General Phineas Lyman ; Colonels, Nathan Whiting, David Wooster,^ and Eleazer Fitch ; Lieutenant-Colo nels, Nathan Payson, Joseph Spencer, James Smedley, and Israel Putnam. The characteristic courage and genius of Putnam found oppor tunity to do good service. After Amherst had entered the St. Lawrence from Lake Ontario, he found two armed vessels pre pared to contest his passage. The English were in open boats, and the channel was so narrow that they would have been ex posed to a deadly fire in attempt ing to pass the French ships. Putnam, with a thousand men, undertook to get them out of the way. With a picked crew of old comrades, he led the long line of boats. A beetle and some wedges were the strange weapons that he proposed to use in fastening the rudders of the French vessels, and ren dering them useless. By his orders, the men were stripped naked to their waists ; and as they silently, but with sinewy strength, rowed their boats near the ships, the commander of one, in his alarm, ran it aground, and the other struck her colors without firing a gun. The way was now clear until they reached Isle Royal, OENEKAL DAVID WOOSTER. 1761.] PERIOD OF THE LAST FRENCH WARS. 171 where the river was commanded by a fortress of consider able strength. While the English general was undecided as to the best plan of attack, Putnam made a suggestion that was at once acted upon. As usual, it involved great risk on his own part. A number of boats were fitted with a net work of stout sticks on each side, that were bullet-proof, and afforded a screen for the men within. A plank, twenty feet in length, was provided for each boat, and fixed so that it could be raised or lowered with ropes. This was to serve as a sort of scaling-ladder, when the boats were run against the sides of the rude earth and wood works of the fortress, that was close to the water. As soon as his preparations were completed, Putnam at once advanced ; but in this case, the very novelty of the attack struck terror to the hearts of the enemy, and they surrendered without the slightest re sistance. The occupation of Montreal by General Amherst, early in September, was the virtual conquest of Canada. Days of public thanksgiving were celebrated throughout New England, and Connecticut sent congratulations to his Majesty on the various triumphs of British valor. The war was not yet over. In the spring of 1761 Pitt asked for two-thirds the number of men that Connecticut had furnished in the previous year. The main purpose of this campaign was to put in order all of the forts and mili tary posts that had fallen into the hands of the English. The service was arduous, if not dangerous, and was cheer fully performed. At the close of the campaign of 1761, most of the regulars, with a large body of provincial troops, embarked for the West Indies, where they were met by a fleet from Great Britain. One thousand men were from Connecticut, in command of General Lyman, and next under him was Lieutenant-Colonel Putnam. The transport that carried Putnam, with flve hundred men, was overtaken by a storm that drove them upon the rocks off the coast of Cuba. By means of a rude raft, the men were safely landed. 172 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l763. After the storm had abated, they were taken on board an other vessel, and carried to Havana. The climate proved more fatal than the clangers of ambuscade and battle. Only a little remnant of the brave men who had come from Connecticut lived to return. With the peace of 1763 the last of the French wars came to an end. Connecticut, in proportion to her population, had furnished more men, and given of her treasure more freely, than any other colony. The eight years in which this struggle was prolonged proved a school of stern discipline, that was to prepare for a greater conflict in the near future. 1 David Wooster was born at Strat- oga early in 1775, and the sarae year he ford, 1711, and graduated at Yale Col- was appointed brigadier-general in the lege in 1738. He was captain of a sloop- Continental Army. He succeeded Mont- of-war at the siege of Louisburg, and goraery in Canada, and was mort-ally was a brigadier-general in the campaign wounded at Kidgefield, in a skirmish of 1758-60. He was one of the first to with Tryon, after the burning of Dan- suggest the expedition against Ticouder- bury. 1764.] THE STORY OF THE STAMP ACT. 173 CHAPTER XXIX. 1764-1765. THE STORY OF THE STAMP ACT. THE war of the Revolution was not a sudden Uprising. The causes that finally led the colonies to take up arms against the mother country, maj' be traced back to their early history. It was the struggle of a liberty-loving people against the tyranny that sought to dictate and govern them without regard to their consent or will. At the close of the French war, the loyalty of the colonies to the mother country was still strong in sentiment and feeling. Had the policy and views of Pitt prevailed in the councils of Great Britain, this might have continued. He was wise enough to see that a people who had contended so vigorously for their rights in times of weakness, would not submit to arbitrary control now that they were conscious of their growing strength. The accession of George III. placed a king upon the Eng lish throne who had neither the wisdom nor desire to follow the advice of the great statesman of whose power he was jealous. He determined to impress upon the colonists a sense of dependence upon the royal will, and enforce a system of direct taxation. King George and his advisers claimed that it was no more than just that America should be taxed to pay a portion of the enormous debt that had been partly incurred in the defence of the colonies. But this plea was only a pretext for carrying out plans that would 174 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1764. have destroyed their independent existence, and placed all of their interests at the mercy of the king and his counsellors. The colonists did not object to raising money to be used for the common welfare, but they were unwilling to be taxed by a Parliament in which they had no direct representation. It was in the spring of 1764 that Lord Grenville brought before the House of Commons a plan of taxing the colonies. The House advised the passage of an Act requiring that all deeds, receipts, and other legal documents, should be written FIKST STATE HOUSE IN NEW HAVEN. (Begun in 1763; occupied in 1764.) or printed on stamped paper ; this paper to be sold by tax- collectors, and the money to be paid into the royal treasury. King George, and many prominent leaders in oflBcial power, would have been glad to destroy the colonial charters, and give the control of the colonies into the hands of military officers. Lord Grenville was wise enough to see that any extreme measures of this kind would be disastrous ; but he thought the Stamp Act would meet with but slight opposi tion, and afford the needed financial relief. He little under stood the temper of the colonies. When the news reached New England of the proposed law, Connecticut was the first to take action in regard to the matter.-' A committee was ap- 1765.] DISCUSSION OF STAMP-TAX. 176 pointed to assist Governor Fitch in preparing a protest. This paper was sent to Richard Jackson, the agent of the colony in England, with directions to " firmly insist on the exclusive right of the colonies to tax themselves, and on the privilege of trial by jury." Jared IngersoU was sent to London to aid Jackson in the effort to secure the rejection of the obnoxious bill. Being asked by one of the secretaries of the treasury to give his views regarding the proposed measure, he made answer in a letter in which he said, " The people think, if the precedent of a Stamp Act is once established, you will have it in your power to keep us as poor as you please. The people's minds, not only here, but in the neighboring provinces, are filled with the most dreadful apprehension from such a step taking place ; from . ,! i^,^ H' ijff'^U' whence I leave you to guess how easily |' ^ 'f^, .r,',^ ^%/' a tax of that kind would be collected." , ItV^"' . '"-'j.i'i'jT'r Farther on he writes, "As for your i 'f^Lt~' ^iiji ^i allied plan of enforcing the Acts of ' \'- Au^\Ji\c,.\'^ i trade and navigation; ancl preventing \> '" ¦ i ' ' '" s .J smuggling, let me tell you that enough 3,,..„,„ ,.,^^p. would not be collected here in the course of ten years to defray the expense of fitting out one, the least frigate for an American voyage ; and that the whole labor would be like burning a barn to roast an egg." In homely, blunt terms like these, the freemen of Connecticut warned the British ministers of the folly of attempting, by arbitrary and unjust measures, to fill the royal treasury. When Mr. IngersoU reached England, in the winter of 1764, he fouud the Stamp Act already drawn, but was successful in securing a revision of some of its worst fea tures. While the bill was under discussion, the cause of the colonists did not lack eloquent advocates. The reply of Colonel Barre to Townshend, one of the crown ministers, was a masterpiece of impassioned eloquence. In February, 1765, 176 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1765. the Stamp Act passed through both Houses. Illness pre vented Pitt from raising his voice in protest against this unjust proceeding. " When the resolution was taken to tax America, I was ill and in bed," he afterwards said. "If I could have endured to be carried in my bed, so great was the agitation of my mind for the consequences, I would have solicited some kind hand to have laid me down on this floor, to have borne my testimony against it." The English Government understood very well that the colonies were earnestly opposed to the Stamp Act, but they had no thought of the storm of wrath and resistance which it would arouse. It was a surprise to many of the leaders of public affairs in America. Franklin, who had with great zeal and wisdom represented the interests of colonial rights in England while the bill was under discussion, after its pas sage saw no other way open than to quietly submit. Gov ernor Fitch ancl Jared IngersoU, with other prominent citizens who had done all in their power to oppose the scheme of taxation that struck a deadly blow at the liberties of the colony, counselled submission. They mistook the feeling of the people. During the two years that the Stamp Act had been under discussion, there was but little manifestation of public interest. They were unwilling to believe that Eng land would do so great a wrong. These days of waiting proved but a calm before a furious storm. When the pas- sage of the Act was known, the colonies were stirred as never before. Connecticut was among the first to give ex pression to the fixed determination to resist what she consid ered an act of outrageous tyranny. The clergy were still the leaders of public opinions, and they were united in de nunciation of the great wrong. ^ Societies were organized under the name of " Sons of Liberty," the secret purpose of which was to resist the Stamp Act by violent measures, if necessary. This powerful organization spread rapidly through the northern colonies, ancl did efficient service. 1765=] THE STAMP ACT REPUDIATED. 177 Public meetings were held in every part of the colony to protest against the offensive law, and many of the towns went so far as to authorize their clerks to receive and record deeds and other legal documents without regard to the Stamp Act. Newspapers and pamphlets, filled with paragraphs of keen satire and bold denunciation, were scattered everywhere. Copies of the Act were carried in processions, ancl buried with derisive funeral ceremonies ; and caricatures of the British ministers were openly circulated with defiant bold ness. Governor Fitch still thought it the best and prudent course to sustain the law. This opinion was not shared by all of his council. When the proposition was raade to take the oath. Colonel Trumbull refused to witness the ceremony, and, rising, indignantly left the room, followed by a majority of those present. Mr. IngersoU, who had done all in his power to oppose the bill, after its passage decided to accept the position of stamp agent for Connecticut, Franklin urged him to take the place, and no one doubted his motives in accepting it. The people of Connecticut, however, were not pleased with this action. They did not propose to pay stamp-duties, or allow one of their citizens to act as an agent of the odious law. IngersoU in vain attempted to conciliate his fellow-townsmen of New Haven, and show them that it was for their interest to buy the stamps. He was visited by a crowd of citizens, who inquired impatiently if he would resign. " I know not if I have power to resign," was his evasive reply. ^ He promised, however, if he received any stamps, to reship them, or leave his doors open so that the people could do as they pleased with them. Not long after this, a company of the " Sons of Liberty " irom Norwich, New London, Windhara, Lebanon, and other towns, started out on horse back, with eight days' provisions, determined to flnd the stamp-master, and compel him to resign. He had set out 178 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l765. for Hartford, accompanied by Governor Fitch, to attend the Assembly that was soon to open. On the way they were raet by two men with peeled clubs, who stated that a large com pany were not far away. The governor ordered them to return, and tell their associates to disperse. To his surprise, they refused to do so. " We look upon this," they said, "as the cause of the people: we will not take directions from any one." They withdrew after IngersoU sent a mes sage that he would meet them at Hartford. The clay on which the Assembly was to open, IngersoU resumed his journey alone. He had reached a point two or three miles frora Wethersfield when four or five raen ap peared, and soon after an escort of thirty persons. They rode on in silence until they saw the road before them fllled with a crowd of five hundred stalwart men on horseback, each bearing a ponderous peeled club in imitation of the baton carried in those claj's by ofiicers of the peace. Two militia officers in full dress headed the procession, and three trumpeters awoke the echoes with their blasts. The com pany rode two abreast, and with military courtesy opened ranks to receive Mr. IngersoU. Having reached Wethers field, they demanded his resigntition. " Is it fair," he re- pUed, " that the counties of New London and Windham should dictate to aU the rest of the colony?" — " It don't signify to parley," they answered : " here are a great raany people waiting, and you raust resign." — "I wait," he said, " to know the sense of the governraent." He was allowed the privilege of entering a house near by, but the doors were carefully guarded. He managed to send word to the governor ancl the Asserably of his situation, and hoped to receive relief. For three hours he was able to keep off the people by evasive proposals. "This delay," said some of them, " is his artifice to wheedle the matter along tUl the Assembly shall get insnared in it." The impatient crowd outside was growing more angry, and threats of violence 1765.] INGERSOLL'S RESIGNATION. 179 were freely uttered. Durkee, the leader of the Sons of Lib erty, finally came to the house where IngersoU was waiting in hope that the crowd would disperse, and gave him warning that he could " keep the people off no longer." The stairway and hall were filled with stalwart men, whose faces showed their determination. "The cause is not worth dying for," said the intrepid man, who would never have flinched had he not felt that after all this band of earnest men were in the right. A formal resignation was given him to sign, which reads as follows : — " Wethersfield, Sept. 19, 1765. " I do hereby promise, that I never will receive any stamped papers wbich may arrive from Europe, in consequence of an Act lately passed in the Parliament of Great Britain; nor officiate as stamp-mas ter or distributer of stamps, within tbe colony of Connecticut, either directly or indirectly. Aud I do hereby notify to all the inhabitants of his Majesty's colony of C6nnecticut (notwithstanding the said office or trust has been committed to me), not to apply to me ever after, for any stamped paper; hereby declaring that I do resign the said office, and execute these presents, of my own free will and accord, without any equivocation or mental reservation. " In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand. "J. Ingersoll." After he had signed his narae, the crowd cried out, "Swear to it ! " He begged to be excused frora taking an oath. " Then shout ' Liberty and Property,' " said the now good- natured corapany. To this he had no objection, and waved his hat enthusiasticaUy as he repeated the words. Having giveu three cheers, the now hilarious party dined together. By this time they were ready to start for Hartford with a thousand horsemen in the ranks. The highway was crowded with people curious to see the strange procession. Having reached the Capitol, Durkee drew up his cavalry four abreast, aud, while the trumpeters blew their loudest blasts, they formed around the court-house in a semicircle. IngersoU again read his resignation as stamp-officer, and shouted 180 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l765. "Liberty and Property." With three exultant cheers the crowd quietly dispersed to their homes. Colonel Putnam was a prime mover in this affair, but was unable to be present when it was carried out. Not long after, he was commissioned to wait on Governor Fitch, and inform him of the sentiments of the people. The following dialogue is said to have passed between them : — Governor, "What shall I do if tbe stamped paper should be sent to me by the king's authority ? " Putnam. " Lock it up until we sball visit you again." Governor. " And what will you do then ? " Putnam. " We shall expect you to give us the key of the room in which it is deposited; and if you think fit, in order to screen yourself from blame, you may forewarn us, upon our peril, not to enter tbe room.' ' Governor. "And what will you do afterwards ? " Putnam. " Send it safely back again." Governor. " But if I sbould refuse admission ? " Putnam, " Your bouse will be levelled with tbe dust in five minutes." While the colonies were in these vigorous ways expressing their determination to resist the execution of the unjust law, Pitt, now Earl of Chatham, with others, was unwearied in his efforts to secure its repeal. This was accomplished in just a year from its passage. The joy throughout New Eng land found expression in da^'s of thanksgiving, and various public demonstrations. 1 At the October session of the Legis- 2 ijj Connecticut, says Bancroft, " the lature, an elaborate paper was adopted, Calvinist miuisters nursed the flame of which, in connection with a full and just piety and civil freedom. Of that vener- statement of the services of the colony able band, none did better service than iu tbe war with the French, argued that the Araericau-boru Stephen Johnson, " charging stamp-duties, or other inter- pastor of the First Church of liyme." nal duties, by authority of Parliament, 3 The town-meeting, after electing would be such an infringement of the Eoger Sherraan as the representative of rights, privileges, and authorities of the New Haven, by public vote " earnestly colonies, that it raight be humbly and desired IngersoU to resign his etarap- firraly trusted, aud even relied upon, olEce immediately." The answer he that the supreme guardians of the liber- made was, "I shall await to see how ties of the subject would not suffer the the General Assembly is iuclined." sarae to be doue." 1768.] THE REPEAL OF THE STAMP ACT. 181 CHAPTER XXX. 1766-1775. THE PEOPLE OF CONNECTICUT REPEL THE ACTION OF PARLIAMENT. THE joj' over the repeal of the Stamp Act was short-lived. The doctrine that Parliament was everywhere supreme, had been more strongly asserted than ever. At the time the obnoxious bill was suppressed, they declared that they had a perfect right " to bind the colonies in all cases whatsoever." The Stamp Act was gone, but others stUl continued in force that in principle were the sarae. A year or two passed iu comparative quiet. Broken in health, the Earl of Chatham was unable to contend in Parliament for the rights of America as he had once done. The bitter hatred of the king, who already looked upon the colonists as " rebels," and the active efforts of Lord Grenville and others, soon created irri- , tation, and aroused the old feeling. Among those who saw that a crisis was approaching that might result in the separa tion of the colonies from the mother country, was Jonathan TrumbuU, the respected and beloved deputy-governor of Connecticut. He expressed the opinion, that, if " methods tending to violence should be taken to maintain the depend ence of the colonies, it would hasten a separation." The attempt, under what was known as the Meeting Act, to quarter British troops in New York at the expense of the colonies, was unsuccessful. As a punishment for their dis obedience. Parliament suspended the legislative powers of 182 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1769-73. New York. Not long after, a Revenue Bill was passed, laying port-duties on wine, oil, and fruit from Spain and Portugal, and on glass, paper, lead, colors, and tea. The opposition to these raeasures was so great at the commercial centres of New York and Boston, that soldiers were sent to both cities to keep the people quiet. The excitement, how ever, did not decrease. Early in 1769 a British sloop-of-war was stationed near New London to watch vessels entering and leaving the port, and see that the revenue laws were not violated. This did not prevent considerable smuggling. While Massachusetts, New York, and Virginia were the prominent points of active disturbance, Connecticut was eager aud ready to unite in every plan suggested for the common welfare and union of the colonies. The British ministry were alarmed at the re bellious and defiant attitude of the colonists, and promised to repeal the duties on every article except tea. This did not satisfy the people ; for they well understood, as long as one tax remained, they had gained nothing. In no colony was the agreement more faithfully kept not to use imported articles than in Connecticut. The women with earnest pur pose encouraged by their personal industry this determination. The spinning-wheel did active duty in their dwellings, and " homespun " clothing was the badge of patriotism worn by rich and poor. Committees of inspection were appointed, to see that the agreement not to use imported goods was sacredly kept. The discovery of unfaithfulness was enough to ostracize the culprits, whatever might be their position. During the years 1771 and 1772, the popular sentiment in favor of active resistance increased. In December, 1773, some English ships laden with tea were sent to Boston. The citizens were determined that it should never be landed upon their wharves. They did not propose to have a taxed article forced upon them. We need not repeat the story of the dis cussions that were flnally brought to an end by a party of 1774.] THE BOSTON PORT BILL. 183 Bostonians, who, in the disguise of Indians, boarded the ves sels, and flung their contents into the sea. It was the act of a mob ; but the colonies understood the spirit that had prompted it, and generally approved it. When the news reached England, the liing exulted in the opportunity that now offered of crushing the rebellious spirit of the Americans, and bringing them into full subjection to the royal authority. " The die," he wrote his minister, Lord North, " is cast. The colonies must either triumph or submit." "If we take the resolute part," he sagely re marks, "they wiU undoubtedly be very meek." Even this narrow-minded and stubborn specimen of royal incompetence soon realized his mistake. In the beginning of 1774 a bill was introduced into Parliament to punish riotous Boston by closing its port against all commerce. At the same time the charter of Massachusetts was altered. The Crown was here after to choose its council ; and the governor was not only to nominate the judges, but had the right to send all persons charged with a share in the recent disturbances, to England for trial. The blow struck at the liberties of Massachusetts was felt by all the colonies as if directed against their own life. If Parliament could cancel the charter of Massachusetts, and destroy the trade of her great seaport town, how long had they reason to expect that they would escape the same fate ? The British Government could not have done more to hush the jealousies of the colonies, aud unite them for their com mon protection. The town-meetings of Connecticut that had so vigorously denounced the Stamp Act, again gathered to express their abhorrence of the action of Great Britain towards Massachusetts. Sympathy for their sister colony took a very practical form. Almost every town sent dona tions to Boston for the relief of the poor. Two hundred and fifty fat sheep were sent from Windham ; and besides money, wheat, and corn, ^orwich sent a flock of three hundred and 184 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l774. ninety sheep. Other towns were equaUy liberal and thought ful. Letters were sent from, these little republics to their brethren in Boston, breathing sentiraents of lofty patriotism and earnest purpose. The day when the law took effect was observed in Hartford as a day of public mourning. The town-house was draped in black, and the bells tolled all day. Early in September news was received that Boston had been attacked, and several citizens killed. Before the rumor could be contradicted, it was estimated that twenty thousand men were on their march for Boston. The country was in deed ripe for revolution. As soon as the passage of the Boston "Port Bill" was announced, steps were taken to call a convention of dele gates frora the colonies. All of the legislatures, save that of Georgia, sent representatives to this Congress, which assera bled in Philadelphia on the 4th of September. Eliphalet Dyer, Roger Sherman, and Silas Deane were in attendance from Connecticut. Massachusetts meanwhile took a defiant and rebellious stand. Disregarding the orders of the royal governor, its Assembly met as usual, and voted arms and ammunition to the militia. The Congress at Philadelphia, under the influence of the delegates from Virginia, passed resolutions that were moderate and conciliatory in tone. This was an encouragement to those in England who were anxious to avert open hostilities. Chatham once more raised his voice for peace. In consultation with Frankliu, he intro duced a bill providing for the repeal of the Acts which the Americans deemed unjust aud oppressive. The troops were to be recalled, and the decision left to a colonial Assembly as to the way in which they might contribute towards the payment of the public debt. "It is not cancelling a piece of parchment," he said, "that can win back America: you must respect her fears and her resentments." The conciliatory measure of Chatham was rejected by the Lords ; and a similar measure, introduced by Edmund Burke 1775.] THE BATTLE OF LEXINGTON. 185 into the House of Commons, met the same fate. War was inevitable. Boston was full of British troops, and a skir mish between a party of English soldiers and the militia at Lexington opened the long struggle. The General Assem bly was in session at Hartford when news came of this battle. It was not a surprise, and there were many who rejoiced that the trial of arms had begun. The time was ripe for Connec ticut men to carry out a plan that should win a substantial victory at the very beginning of the war. This plan was to surprise and seize Fort Ticonderoga. A number of wealthy gentlemen borrowed the money from the Colonial Treasury that was necessary to defray the expenses of the expedition. Sixteen chosen meu proceeded to Berkshire, and, having laid the matter before some of the leading citizens, gained the aid of a re-enforcement of about forty soldiers. Proceeding to Bennington, they were there joined by Colonel Ethan Allen, Seth Warner, and not far from one hundred volunteers. The little army in command of Colonel Allen reached the shores of Lake Champlain, opposite Ticonderoga, towards evening on the 9th of May. There were but a few boats at their disposal, and the entire night was consumed in getting the oflficers ancl eighty-three of the men across the lake. The boats had been sent back to bring over the rear-guard in command of Colonel Warner, when Colonel Allen saw that the morning would soon break, and that no time could be lost if they surprised the sleeping garrison. Without waiting longer, he drew up his forces in three ranks not far from the walls of the fortress. " I now propose," he said, "to ad vance before you, and in person conduct you through the wicket-gate ; for we must this morning either quit our pre tensions to valor, or possess ourselves of this fortress in a few minutes ; and inasmuch as it is a desperate attempt, which none but the bravest of raen dare undertake, I do not urge it on auy contrary to his will. You that will undertake voluntarily, poise your flrelocks." 186 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l775. Every soldier brought his musket to position. In silence Colonel Allen advanced to the wicket-gate. A solitary sen tinel snapped his fusee. Allen rushed towards hira, and across a covered passage-way into the parade-ground within the fort. In a moment he had formed the ranks of his men facing the barracks in which the soldiers of the garrison were sleeping. The sentries within had given the alarm ; and one of them made a pass at an officer with his bayonet, and slightly wounded him. Allen raised his sword to kill him at a blow, but changed his purpose, and gave him a cut on the side of his head. The sentinel threw down his gun, and begged for his life. Allen granted the petition, and de manded where the commanding officer slept. The sentry pointed to a flight of stairs leading to rooms above the bar racks. Running up the steps, he shouted at the entrance, " Come forth instantly, or I will sacrifice the whole garri son ! " The astonished commander, in his night-dress, came to the door to discover the source of this strange summons. Confronted by the massive form of the colonial leader with drawn sword, he stood trembling aud speechless. " Deliver me the fort instantly," said Allen. " By whose authority? " inquired the British oflScer. " In the name of the great Jehovah ancl the Continental Congress." Captain de la Place was inclined to make further parley ; but Allen interrupted hira with a threatening flourish of his sword, and a demand for the instant surrender of the fort. This was immediately done, and orders were given that his men should parade without arms. A bloodless victory had been won in the name of the Continental Congress several hours before that body had held its opening session. Colonel Warner with the rear-guard did not reach the fort until after its surrender. Without delay he hastened with one hundred men to Crown Point. This fortress was held by a small garrison of twelve men and a single oflacer, ancl yielded at once. 1775,] THE CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA. 187 The fall of Ticonderoga was an important conquest, the credit of which must fall to Connecticut.-^ The money to defray the expenses of the expedition was furnished from her treasury. The plan of the campaign was suggested by her citizens. Both Allen and Warner were natives of Litch field County ; and among the bravest of the band of Green- Mountain Boys whom they led, were many from the same beautiful hill-country. Lieutenant Crampton, who entered the fort by the side of Allen, was a native of Litchfield, and resided there most of his life. At least one-half of the band of eighty-three men who " poised their firelocks," and fol lowed their intrepid leader in this memorable assault, were natives or inhabitants of Woodbury. In 1775 Connecticut sent a thousand men to garrison Ticonderoga and Crown Point. Of this number one hundred and fifty were from Woodbury ; and Colonel Hinman, having command of these important forts, was from the same town. 1 Bancroft says of the taking of aged by an exprese meseenger to raise Ticonderoga, "The great deed which, men chiufly iu the New-IIiimpehire iu the mean tirae, was achieved in the grante. On the raoruiug of the IsL cf North, was planned iu Connecticut, and May, the party, which had grown to the executed at her cost. Parsons of that number of sixteen, left Salisbury. At colony, ou his way to Hartford, crossing Pittsfield, in Massachusetts, the Couuec- Arnold, who was bound for Massachu- ticut party were joined by John Brown, setts, obtained of him an account of the the young lawyer of that village, by state of Ticonderoga, and the great nura- Colonel James Easton, and by volun- ber of its brass cannon. At Hartford, on teers from Berkshire. At Bennington the 27th of April, Parsons, taking as his they found Ethan Allen, who sent the advisers Samuel Wyllys and Silas Deane, alarra through the hills and valleys of with the assistance of three others, pro- Vermont; and on Sunday, the 7th of jected the capture of the fort; and, with- May, about one hundred Green-Moun- out forraally oouBulting the Asserably or tain boys, and near fifty soldiers from the governor and council, they, on their Massachusetts, under the command of own receipts, obtained raoney from the Easton, rallied at Castleton. Just then public treasury, and on the 28th sent arrived Arnold with only one attend- forward Noah Phelps aud Bernard Ro- ant. He brought a commifision from raans. The next day Captain Edward the Musaachusetts Coraraittee of Safety, Mott of Preston, chairman of the Con- which was disregarded; and the men necticut committee, followed with five unanimously elected Ethan Allen their associates. Ethan Allen was eucour- chief." 188 HISTOUY OF CONNECTICUT. [1775. CHAPTER XXXI. 1775. THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL. THE news of the battle of Lexington spread like wUdfire. As soon as the inteUigence reached Governor Trumbull,^ he sent a messenger to Israel Putnam, directing him to come at once to Lebanon. It was early morning, and Putnam was working in the field when this word came to him. Giving hurried directions to his ser vants, he hastened home, and, mounting his horse, rode away at full speed. After a brief interview with the governor, he immediately started for Concord, with the assurance that troops would at once be sent after him. This veteran of sixty years kept his saddle for eighteen hours, riding all night, and arriving at Concord at sunrise the next morning. The Connecticut militia were rapidly recruited, and the little parties that first hurried for ward were soon joined by larger and better equipped com panies. Putnam was stationed at Cambridge, ancl in a short time the ranks of his regiment were more than full. The General Assembly took active measures, and ordered that one-fourth of the militia should " be forthwith enlisted, JONATHAN Ti M r 1 L 1775.] THE BATTLE OP BUNKER HILL. 189 equipped, accoutred, and assembled for the safety and de fence of the colony." Six regiments were thus raised; and David Wooster, Joseph Spencer, and Israel Putnam were appointed as general oflScers. By the first of June, ten thousand veteran troops, the flower of the Britisli army, held the harbor and city of Boston. Day after day re-enforcements poured into the colonial camp at Cambridge. In outward appearance they presented a motley appearance in their homespun dress and equipments : but a large proportion of these men were not raw recruits ; they had performed valiant service in the French wars, and understood the serious nature of the business they had taken in hand. About fifteen thousand men soon gathered at Cam bridge. Of this number, three thousand were from Connecti cut. On the 27th of May, General Putnam,^ in charge of a skirmishing party on Hog Island, was attacked by a large body of British marines, who crossed over from Boston. They were supported by two vessels-of-war and some smaller boats. Putnam had but two diminutive pieces of ordnance ; but he was an excellent gunner, and handled his ordnance in a very effective manner. The firing con tinued after dark ; and one of the vessels ran aground, and was abandoned by her crew. Putnam the next morn ing gave orders to board her ; and, after taking what they could find of value, she was burned. The Ameri cans did not lose a single man in this skirmish, but the- enemy reported the loss of nearly a hundred killed and wounded. This successful action increased the desire of the troops at Cambridge to meet the enemy. The veteran general. Ward, ISRAEL PUTNAM. 190 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l775. who held the chief command, did not favor a forward move ment. Putnam, Prescott, and other oflScers, were of a differ ent mind. A plan suggested by Putnam was finally adopted. The battle of Bunker HiU followed on the 17th of June. Some days previous to this, Putnam had marched a company of troops from Cambridge to Charlestown, in order to gain a better knowledge of the neighborhood, and select the best place for throwing up intrenchments. Having returned to the camp, arrangements were at length completed ; and on the 16th of June, Colonel WUliam Prescott was ordered to proceed to Charlestown in the evening, with a detachment of about a thousand men,^ and take possession of Breed's Hill. The name of this gifted and brave officer has most frequently appeared in history as the central and ' prominent figure in this important engagement. There is no need of disparaging the part he acted ; but the impar tial testimony of many facts gives the first place in com mand and leadership on that memorable day, to Israel Putnam. A narrative of the battle of Bunker HiU that does not give prominence to the part he acted in it, fails to recognize the moving and guiding spirit in its eventful scenes.^ After reaching the heights above the then thriving village of Charlestown, Prescott and Putnam held a consultation with Colonel Gridley, a veteran military engineer ; and orders were given to fortify Breed's Hill, a little below Bunker HiU, and nearer the harbor. While the breastworks were being thrown up, an officer in command of some Connecticut and other troops, was sent down to watch the movements of the enemy. Putnam remained upon the hill, aiding and directing in the building of the redoubt ; while Prescott, with one of his aids, was seeking to learn if the British were aware of their movements. The droning cry of the sentries m^on the ships, "All's well," assured them that the enemy were sleeping in ignorance of the position the Americans had taken. 1775.] THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL. 191 With the breaking of the morning, the British oflScers opened their eyes in astonishment, as, by the aid of their field-glasses, they saw the outlines of the breastworks that had been thrown up during the night. A battery of heavy guns was mounted on Copp's Hill, and at once opened fire. This cannonade was the signal that ushered in the hostilities of the eventful day. The heat was oppressive ; and the men, suffering from their exhausting all-night labors in the trenches, begged for some thing to eat and drink, and expressed their anxiety that fresh troops should be sent to relieve them. Putnam was already on the way to Cambridge, to urge the sending of re-enforcements ; and Prescott did all he could to encourage the brave men about him, and allaj' their fears. General Ward was firm in his conviction that the main body of the British army would march on Cambridge, and for this reason hesitated to send additional troops to Charlestown. But for his hesitancy ancl failure to give the aid he might have done, the colonial army might not only have defeated the British, but have held the heights of Bunker Hill after the battle. It was noon before the British troops embarked from the wharf at Boston. Both Putnam ancl Prescott were busy in directing the movements of their men, and preparing for the attack of the enemy. The gallant Captain Knowlton, with a company of Connecticut men, had taken what proved to be an important position, and, following the orders of Putnam, had thrown up a rude breastwork of grass and fence-rails.'^ The Connecticut troops at Cambridge were eager to march, and sent a request to General Ward, asking the privilege of following their beloved leader. This was not granted, and others had to act the heroic part in which they earnestly desired to engage. As yet no works had been erected upon Bunker HUl. Putnam felt that it was absolutely necessary to fortify this spot, and, in spite of the remonstrance of Prescott, sent a 192 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l775. body of men to throw up a redoubt. Again he started for Cambridge, to hurry up the promised re-enforcements. Having received the cheering word that the New-Hampshire troops, under Colonel Stark, were on the way from Medford, he hastened back to meet them. Sending a part of the force to assist in throwing np the intrenchment on Bunker Hill, he ordered Stark, with the rest of his men, to join Captain Knowlton. By this time General Ward was satisfied that the main attack of the British was to be made upon the heights of Charlestown ; but he still kept some of the best regiments in Cambridge, and it was too late for those that were sent forward to give the aid they might have done at an earlier hour. The battle was commenced late in the afternoon by the British artillery, who opened a heavy fire upon the works on Breed's Hill. Prescott was in command at this point, and ordered his men to lie behind the earthworks, and not expose themselves. Putnam, mounted upon his white horse, was in every part of the field, now directing the still unfinished work on Bunker Hill, giving orders to Stark and Knowlton at the rail-fence, and again, in stormful passion, arresting an oflScer who showed signs of cowardice. The British colurans had formed, and were ready to march up the hill-. Under cover of a furious cannonade, directed at the redoubt, they moved forward. Putnam was at this moment looking after the works on Bunker Hill : ordering the drums to beat to arms, he hastened to join - Prescott at the redoubt below. Riding along the line, he gave strict commands that not a gun should be fired until the order was distinctly given. " Powder," he said to the men, " is scarce. Don't fire until you can see the whites of their e3'es. Fire low. Aim at the handsome coats — pick off their commanders." There was no experienced gunner in the line ; and Putnam dismounted, and assisted in getting the few pieces of artillery in position. He sighted the guns himself; and, while the 1775.] THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL. l9S ammunition lasted, they did fatal execution. When the British columns were about eight rods from the American lines, the order was given to fire. The front rank was swept away, and nearly every oflScer on the advance line was killed by the terrible voUej-. Every shot had told. The blaze of muskets from the redoubt and raU-fence poured another deadly fire into the now staggering and dismayed columns. The veteran troops, with true English courage, rallied again and again. After General Pigot on the left had ordered a retreat. General Howe still stubbornly held his ground. At length he was forced to retire, and a shout of victory ex pressed the joy of the Americans. Many of them wished to pursue the British, and were only restrained by their oflS cers. Re-enforcements from Cambridge had reached the neck of land leading to the heights where the battle was raging : this point was swept by the enemy's artUlery, aud the men did not dare to proceed. In vain did Putnam ride back and fortli to assure them that there was little danger : only a portion had courage to follow him. While the British were re-forming their broken ranks, Put nam hastened to Bunker Hill to secure the assistance of some troops still there : they proved skulkers, and neither threats nor commands avaUed to make them do their duty. General Howe, having re-organized his troops, again marched up the hill. They were permitted to come wilhin six rods of the American line before the order was given to fire. As before, the aim of these veteran marksmen was deadly, and sent the columns reeling backwards. After a thousand men, the flower of the British army, had fallen, they slowly retreated towards the shore. General Clinton, who had been watching the battle from Copp's Hill, crossed over to the place where the British troops were trying to make a last rally ; and a new plan of attack was ordered, and the columns again moved forward. Putnam saw that he must have re-enforcements and a fresh 194 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT'. [l775. supply of ammunition if he held his position. It was at this moment that three companies from Connecticut, in com mand of Captains Chester, Clark, and Coit, crossed the Neck, and advanced up the hill. With them was Major Durkee of stamp-act fame. Unfortunatelj', some of the colonial troops sent forward from Cambridge were, demoral ized by the sight and sound of the battle, and refused to do their duty. Worst of all, the brave men within the redoubt had only a fey charges of powder left. When these were expended, they still attempted to hold their ground ; but it was impossible. With sad heart Prescott sounded the re treat. The brave, noble-hearted, and gifted Warren, who, notwithstanding his rank as general, had gone into the battle as a volunteer, was reluctant to forsake the field. While slowly retreating, he was struck iu the head by a bullet, aud fell lifeless. As the Americans fell back, Putnam called to them to rally, and make another stand against the enemy on Bunker Hill ; but their ammunition was spent, and the brave men could only retreat. The Connecticut troops, that had just arrived on the ground, were eager for service ; and Putnam ordered them to cover the retreat as far as possible. With steady aim they fired volley after volley into the British ranks. The enemy, having gained possession of the redoubt, were now pressing forward in pursuit. A murderous fire com pletely routed the right wing of the American lines : the left wing still remained firm, but was soon forced to retire. All that could be done was to conduct the retreat as successfully as possible. While the army was hastening from the heights which they had held with such stul)born courage, the re-en forcements from Cambridge, for which Putnam had pleaded so earnestly, came iu sight : it was too late to save the field from falling into the hands of the enemy. Nevertheless, the battle of Bunker Hill was a victory for the Araericans. Twice they had driven back a force three times as great as 1775.] THE BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL. 195 their own, the pick and flower of the British army. With comparatively small loss on their part, one-quarter of the enemy had fallen dead or wounded upon the field. Not until their ammunition was exhausted, did they retreat a single step. " Are the Yankees cowards?" shouted the hardy sons of New England, as the British troops staggered and re treated before their fearful volleys of fire. Men learned that dajr that valor and strength was the common inheritance of those in whose veins ran English blood. It is said, that, when Washington heard of the battle, he asked, "Did the railitia stand fire?" When told that they reserved their own until the enemy were within eight rods, he quietlj' said, " The liberties of the country are safe." -I ^ Governor Fitch, onaccountof hiB and Coraraander-in-chief at the engage- Tory sentiments and actions, lost favor ment on Buncker's Hill, near Boston, in the eyes of the people. He Avas sue- 17 June, 1775. Published as the Act ceeded, iu 1766, by William Pitkin. He directs by C. Shephard, 9 Sept., 1775. held the office for three years, when London." Jonathan Trumbull was elected (1769). ^ The position held by Knowlton 2 Putnam had been appointed briga- was about two hundred yards in the dier-general in the Connecticut militia. rear of the breastworks. The posts of Of the soldiers of the colony, several the two-rail fence were set in a low hundred were under his command at stone wall that extended down the hill Uambiidge, and a part were with Spencer toward the Mystic. By building a at Roxbury. temporary fence iu front, and filliug the ~ s Thomas Knowlton of Ashford space with new-mown hay, they made a commanded two hundred Connecticut breastwork for a short distance It was men in this party. here that Putuam raet Warren, and of- * An engraving iniblished iu London, fered to give the coraraand into his hands, three months after the battle, haa al the as Warren was a major-general, aud he foot these words: "Israel Putnam, Esq., but a brigadier. Warreu declined the Major General of the Connecticut forces, responsibility. 196 ^HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. "[fS- CHAPTER XXXII. 1775-1776. WASHINGTON AT CAMBRIDGE. BEFORE the battle of Bunker HiU, the Continental Con-'' gress, in session at Philadelphia, had recognized the army at Boston as the national army, and voted to raise ad ditional troops in all the colonies. On the very day the memorable battle was fought, the Congress, upon the rec ommendation of the New-England delegates, unanimously chose George Washington commander-in-chief of the Araeri can forces. At the same time, Artemas Ward and Charles Lee were elected major-generals ; and when news came of the battle of Bunker Hill, Israel Putnam and Philip Schujder receivecLa like honor. Washington arrived at Cambridge early in July. His fame as a brave and capable oflicer had already spread far ancl wide, and the Continental army gave him a hearty wel come. His flrst great task was to bring order and systera out of the mixed and tangled condition in which he found affairs. In this work he was at once struck with the eflS- ciency of Putnam. " You seem to have the faculty," he remarked to him one day, "of infusing your own industri ous spirit into all the workmen you employ." When the message from the Continental Congress, giving their reasons for taking up arms, reached Cambridge, Putnam ordered his division to parade on Prospect Hill, and there listen to its reading. As soon as it was ended, aU of the troops shouted 1775.] INVASION OF CANADA. 197 three times the word, " Amen : " at this moment, as a signal- gun was fired, a beautiful flag, that had just come from Con- n^icHt, was unfurled, and floated in the breeze. On one side, in letters of gold, were the words, "An Appeal to Heaven;" and on the other, the armorial bearings of the colony, with the shield and its three vines symbolizing knowledge, liberty, and religion. Under the watchful eye and guidance of Washington, the army was soon brought into a condition of order and discipline. The difiiculties that he had to face in other directions were very great. The food furnished was poor and scanty, and there was only powder enough to supply a few rounds of ammunition. This lack was the source of grave anxiety to Washington. In the following winter an oflScer wrote, " The bay is open. Every thing thaws here except old Put. He is still as hard as ever, crying out for ' Powder, powder ! ' Ye gods, give us powder ! " This scarcity was one of the chief reasons why Washington did union flag. not attempt to take Boston. AVhile he kept the British army of ten thousand men cooped up in the city, an important movement was made on Canada. In this raid, which flnally met with repulse before Quebec, Cou necticut soldiers and ofiicers acted a prominent part.' The troops that first enlisted did not expect to be away from home for any great length of time. Thej' had hoped that the war would be short and decisive in gaining a recog nition of their rights and liberties. It is not strange that the toil and sufferings of camp-life led them to desire to return as soon as possible to their comfortable homes and pleasant farms. The term of service of the Connecticut troops expired about the first of December, and few of them were inclined to re-enlist. This was a source of deep regret aud anxiety to Washington. The desire to return home on 198 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l776. the part of some of the men was so great, that they left the lines before their time was out. This action was keenly felt by Governor Trumbull, who expressed his " grief, sur prise, and indignation." Most of the troops consented to remain until the 10th of January. By this time the General Assembly had met, and taken prompt measures to fill the places of those who had returned. It was voted to raise and equip one-fourth of the militia of the colony, and the estates of persons guilty of aiding or informing the enemy were confiscated. Towards the close of February the British prepared to evacuate Boston. After they left the city, their ships lay for ten days in Nantasket Roads ; and Washington was doubtful as to their destination. For this reason he sent at first only a few regiments to New York. The rest soon fol lowed, marching to Norwich, where they embarked in sailing- vessels. The work of completing the fortifications that had been commenced by General Lee, was given to the care of Gen eral Putnam. Washington set out for New York April 4, meeting Governor Trumbull at Norwich. A large body of Connecticut militia did good service in throwing up intrench ments on Staten and Long Islands. Their term soon ex pired ; and they felt, as the spring opened, that it was neces sary for them to return home and look after their farms. Again Washington wrote to Trumbull, that he should be very anxious unless a picked body of men were organized, and ready to march from Connecticut at a moment's notice. The weary years that followed proved with what alacritj' the summons of danger was answered again and again. The leaders of public opinion in Connecticut were among the flrst to recognize that the course of events had made it impossible for them to hope longer to retain their allegiance to the British throne.^ On the 14th of June, at a special session of the Assembly, it was unanimously resolved, " that 1776.] DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 199 ROGER SHERMAN. the delegates of this colony in General Congress be, and they are hereby, instructed to propose to that respectable body, to declare the United American Colonies free and independent states, absolved from all allegiance to the king of Great Britain, and to give the as sent of this colony to such declara tions." On the 4th of July the Congress in session at Philadelphia adopted the Act that was the beginning of the history of a new nation. " We," they said, "the representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, solemnly publish and declare that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States." The delegates from Connecticut who signed this immortal paper were Roger Sherman,^ Samuel Huntington,* WiUiam Williams,^ and Oliver Wolcott." The Declaration of Independ ence was received throughout Connectieut with many mani festations of public rejoicing. The patriotism of the people found energetic expression in the equipment of the militia, and preparing powder, car tridges, and other articles, for their use. An incident of the times illustrates the enthusiasm and spirit with which the women engaged in this work. An equestrian statue of King George III. stood for some years on Bowling Green, in New- York City. It was made of lead, richly gilded to .y^n. Oliivjiit wuluutT. 200 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l776. resemble gold. On the night of July 11, 1776, it was overthrown by a company of the Sons of Liberty. As lead was scarce, the statue was broken in pieces, and transported to Litchfield for safe keeping. General Wol cott, who had returned home from Philadelphia, built a shed iu an apple-orchard near his house, in which his leaden majesty was melted into bullets. This labor was per formed by some of the most prominent ladies in the vil lage. A careful account, in the handwriting of Oliver Wolcott, that is still preserved, shows that over forty-two thousand cartridges were made by these loyal women. On the 5th of August Governor Trumbull wrote a letter to Washington, at New York, in which he said, "Knowing our cause righteous, I do not greatly dread what our numer ous enertiies can do against us." Washington in his answer informed the governor fully of the weakness of his army, and said, "To trust in the justice of our cause without our owu utmost exertion would be tempting Providence." Trumbull at once called together his Council of Safety. Five regiments had already gone forward from the counties near New York. Nine regiments more were ordered to march ; and to those not enrolled in any train-band, the governor said, " Join yourselves to one of the companies now ordered to New York, or form yourselves into distinct companies, and choose captains forthwith. March on : this shall be your warrant ; may the God of the armies of Israel be your leader ! " Leaving the grain half gathered in the fields, the farmers of Connecticut departed frora their homes, and hastened to the scene of action.' 1 Canada was invaded in the sum- diet Arnold. They united in an .attack mer of 1775 by troops led by Schuyler upon Quebec, but were repulsed, aud aud Moutgomei-y. Wooster joined Mont- Montgoraery was killed. The chief cora- gomery, and took part in the capture of mand now fell upon Wooster, under the the fort in Chambly where 168 prisoners raost distaearteniug conditions. His re- wei'e sent to Connecticut. On Nov. 12 lations with Schuyler were unhappy, and Montreal was taken. Here they were led to accusations agaiust his patriotism joiued by troops in command of Bene- that were iuvestigated by Congress, aud SIGNERS OF DECLARATION. 201 declared groundlees and unjust. In the Bpring of 1776 the Americans were driven out of Canada, and it remained a British province. In the autumn of 1775 (Sept. 30) a British mau-of-war gave chaee to a small American vessel, and probably would have takeu her if she had uot taken refuge in Stonington Ilaibor. The en raged English eaptaia opened fire on the town, aud wounded one citizen. Many houses were damaged, and he seized two small sloops aud a schooner loaded with molasses. 2 In May, 1770, formal action was taken, by which the people were released from their allegiance to the crown. At the October session of the Assembly it was enacted, "That the ancient form of civil government, contained in the char ter frora Charles the Second, King of England, and adopted by the people of this State, shall be and reraain the civil Constitution of this State, uuder the sole authority of the people thereof, in dependent of any King ov Prince what ever. And that this Republic is, and shall foi'evcr be and remain, a free, sov ereign, and independent State, by the name of the State of Connecticut." 3 Roger Sherman was one of tho most remarliablo men of his times. Tie was but nineteen years of age when the death of his father bvouyht upon him the entire care and support of a large family. Having removed to New Mii- foid from Stonington, in 1744, he worked at his trnde as a shoemaker until he en gaged in mercantile pursuits with a brother. Gifted with a naturally strong and active mind, he made the best use of limited advantages. Pursuing the study of law in his leisure moments, he became eo proficient, that he was ad mitted to the bar in 1754. The following year he was sent to the Legislature, and not long after appointed judge of the county court of Litchfield County. Re moving to New Haven, in 1761, he con- tinned in this oflice, and was elected trt-asuier of Yale College, from which institution he received the degree of A.M. He was a member of the Stale Senate at the time the Stamp Act was passed, and took a position of fearless courage in opposition lo this and other mea-surcs of oppression on the part of the mother country. From this time on, he was a recognized leader. lie was one of the most influential members of the First Continental Congress, and was apiioinled one of the committee that draughted the Declaration of Independ ence. His services were invaluable dur ing the war ; and after its close, he was a prominent delegate in the Convention of 1787, that framed the present Constitution of the United States, After the organiza- .tion of the government, he was elected a member of the House of Representa tives, frora which he was soon proraoted to the Senate, in which otBce he was continued during the remainder of his life. When New Ilaven became a city, he was elected mayor, and held the posi- tiou uutil his death, July 23, 1793, in the seventy -thiid year of his age. ^ Samuel Huntington was born at Windham, July 2, 1732. He was a studious lad, .and, while working on his father's faini, commenced the study of law. He hnd gained a good practice in bis native town before he removed to Norwich, at the age of twenty-eight. In 1774 he was appointed an associate jutlire of the Superior Court, and the following year was sent to the Conti nental Congress. His reputation was such that in 1779 he was appointed to succeed John Jay as president of the CongroKs, then the highest ofllcein the nation. Impaired health compelled him to resign this position, but he again took u seat in the Congress of 1783. The next year he was appointed chief jus tice of the Superior Court; and in 1786 he was elected governor of the State, in which office he continued until his death, Jan. 0, 1796. Governor Huntington was a devoted and siiicere Christian, beloved and esteemed by all who knew him. Thoughtful and wise ia judgment, he 202 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. possessed a will that was strong and vigorous in carrying out the purposes he formed. Few men have served their day and generation witb more consistent faithfulness. f"' William Williams. The grand father aud father of Mr. Williams were both clergymen, and the latter was for more than half a century pastor of the Congregational church and parish of Leb anon. His distinguished son was born in this town, April 18, 1731. Having gradu ated with honor from Harvard College, be commenced the study of theology with his father. The French war called for volunteers; and he entered the ranks under hia relative, Colonel Ephraim Wil liams, who was killed near Lake George, Upon his return home he entered upon raercantile pursuits in his native town. He held tbe position of town clerk for nearly fifty years, and was chosen as a representative lu the General Assembly foi- the long period of forty-five years. As a delegate to the Congress at Phila delphia, he earnestly advocated the Dec laration of Independence; and during the war, his time and fortune were em ployed to further the cause of colonial freedora. After a long and useful life he died, Aug. 2, 1811. 6 Oliver Wolcott was born iu Windsor, Nov. 26, 1720. He- graduated at Yale College in 1747, and the sarae year received a captain's commission, and with his company marched to the northern frontier. During the time he *was connected with the army, he rose step by step until be became a major- general. On his return home, after studying medicine for a time with his uncle. Dr. Alexander Wolcott, he was ap pointed sheriff of the recently organized county of Litchfield. In 1775 Wolcott waa elected as one of the delegates from Counecticut to Congress, and was in earnest sympathy with his colleagues in the signing of the Declaration. Upon Ids return horae he was appointed a member of the Council of Safety by Governor Trumbull, aud was put in com mand of the detachment of Connecticut militia that marched to the defence of New York. After the battle of Long Island he again resuraed bis seat in Con gress. In 1776 he aided in sending a large body of recruits to General Put uam, then on the Hud.son River, and took command himself of «. force that joined General Gates at Saratoga, He was with the army at the tirae of the cap ture of Burgoyne and his troops. In the summer of 1779 he was in command of a division of militia, and acted proraptly in defending the State at the time of the Bi'itisb invasion under Ti'y- on. General Wolcott was elected lieu tenant-governor of Connecticut in 1786, and was re-elected every ypar until 1796, when he was chosen governor. He con tinued in tbis olfice until the time of his death, Dec. 1, 1797. 7 Tue General Assembly at the De cember session (1776) formed the militia of the State into six brigades. David Wooster and Jabez Huntington were appointed raajor-generals; and Eliphalet Dyer, Gurdon Saltonstall, Oliver Wol cott, Erastus Wolcott, James Wads worth, and Gold S, Silliman, brigadier- generals. The following persons had previously been appointed colouels : Charles Webb, Philip B. Bradley, Jede diah Ilnntington, Fisher Gay, Comfort Sage, John Douglas, Sarauel Selden, Williara Douglas, John Chester. Dur ing this year Connecticut sustained uo less than five drafts. > 1776.] WAR OF THE REVOLUTION. 203 CHAPTER XXXIII. 1776-1777. BATTLE OF LONQ ISLAND. ON the 24th of August, Israel Putnam, second in rank to Washington, took command of the forces on Long Island.^ The British army of twenty thousand men, under General Howe, was supported by raore than four hundred ships and transports. The Americans did not number over eight thou sand. Early on the morning of the 27th, the British began their movement towards the American lines from three dif ferent directions. The battle proved a series of skirmishes at several points, in which the Continental troops were far outnumbered. They fought bravely, but were compelled to retreat. Washington, as soon as he saw that the enemy did not purpose to attack New York, repaired to Long Island ; but the day was already lost. The Connecticut militia did nobly, but it was impossible for the Americans to stand against the overwhelming numbers of the British. Putnam has been accused, both of rashness and incapacity in this battle. He may not have shown any special strategic ability, but under the circumstances it is difficult to see how he can be blamed for the disasters of the day. On the night of the following day, the army, under the directions of Washington, crossed the East River to the New- York side. " Considering the difficulties," wrote General Greene, " the retreat from Long Island was the best effected retreat I ever read or heard of." 204 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l776.. Washington was very anxious to gain information regard ing the numbers and position of the British forces. Colonel Knowlton was requested to find Some one who would accept this service. In answer to his appeal. Captain Nathan Hale of South Coventry was the only officer who offered to under take the hazardous enterprise. Having received his instruc tions from Washington, in a private interview, he made his way across the Sound to Huntington Baj', and within a few days secured the desired information. After visiting the British camps on both sides of the river, he iiiade his way back to Huntington, where he was expecting to meet the party who were to take him across to the Connecticut shore. Seeing a boat approaching that he supposed was coming for him, he walked down to the water's edge to wait for it. It was too late for him to turn aud escape when he found that it was in charge of British marines. He was taken on board the guard- ship that was near at hand, and conveyed to New York. When brought before General Howe, Captain Hale frankly confessed that he was an American officer and a spy. He did not expect mere}', and with calm, fearless spirit, awaited the verdict. , The decision soon came that con demned him to be hung at daybreak of the following morn ing. These brief hours, it would seem, might have been given to him for preparation for death, and the sending of his last messages of affection to those he loved. But this was not permitted. During the night he was treated with barbarous cruelty. His request for the use of a Bible to read was dis regarded with sneers, and the letters he wrote to his mother and other friends were torn in pieces before his eyes. His heroic spirit did not for a moment fail him. Calm and dig nified in bearing, he ascended the scaffold, and with unfalter ing voice said, "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country." Thus died Nathan Hale. History has no story of faithfulness unto death more sublime in its heroism than this. 1776.J NATHAN HALE. 205 Attractive in person, and winning in his manners. Captain Hale was beloved by a large circle of devoted friends, who mourned his untimely end. Nor were his graces of mind less than those of his person. Yale College had crowned him with academic honors, and his teachers prophesied for him a career of eminent success and usefulness. At the breaking out of the war, he was principal of the Union Grammar School in New London. Feeling that it was his duty to enlist in the service of his country, he asked to be BIRTHPLACE OP NAIHAN HALE released from his engagement, and his request was granted. The parting from his pupils was full of tender interest, as with words of earnest counsel he offered a prayer, and, taking each one by the hand, bade thera an affectionate farewell. From the position of lieutenant he was soon promoted to be captain. He had seen but little active service when he re sponded to the call frora which others shrank because of its dangers. Death carae to him in its most terrible and cruel form ; but, conscious of the rectitude of his action, he met his fate without fear. His name deserves the monumental tribute soon to be erected by the citizens of his native State.^ 206 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l776. After anxious consultation with Congress, Washington decided that it was best to retire from New York, and in trench his forces upon the heights north and east of the city. General Howe, suspecting this movement, sent troops up the river to intercept him. They landed at Kip's Bay, about three miles north of the city ; and the truth of history must admit that the Connecticut troops, with others stationed there, proved sharaefuUy recreant to their duty. At the sight of the moving columns of well-drilled British soldiers, they were seized with panic, and fled, while Washington vainly sought to rally them. Meanwhile the troops in the city were march ing out under the direction of Putnam. Had the British officers at once followed up their advantage at Kip's Bay, it would have been difficult for them to make their escape. On the following morning, Sept. 16, Colonel Knowlton, with a party of volunteer rangers, most of whom were from Connecticut, advanced through the woods to reconnoitre the enemy's line. He was soon discovered by the British general, who sent a force to meet him. A discharge of musketry gave warning of a sharp skirmish. Washing ton at once sent re-enforcements to the relief of Colonel Knowlton, who advanced, and made an attack upon the ex posed flank of the enemy's line. The flghting was at close range ; and in the thick of the conflict, pierced by several bullets, Knowlton, at the head of his men, fell mortally wounded. Inspired with the determination to avenge the death of their beloved leader, they fought with desperate courage until the enemj- were driven back. The loss of their brave and able commander was deeply deplored. General Washington, in his orders the daj^ after he fell, spoke of him as " the gallant and brave Colonel Knowlton, who would have been an honor to any country." On the 12th of October an advance was made by General Howe for the purpose of cutting off Washington's retreat. In this he was disappointed ; and the American forces fell 1776.] FORT WASHINGTON SURRENDERED. 207 back in good order to White Plains, leaving a garrison to hold Fort Washington. At White Plains, after some severe fighting, Washington again fell back to a position on high ground, near at hand, that was so strong that the British general did not dare to attack hira. Returning to the upper part of Manhattan Island, Howe made an assault upon Fort Washington, and compelled its surrender after heavy losses. In the garrison of twenty-six hundred men, who were made prisoners of war, were many from Connecticut. They were treated with inhuman cruelty. Crowded together in miser able quarters, they suffered from the want of food, water, and fresh air. Disease, famine, and brutal treatment ended the life of large numbers. Those who survived, told a story of almost incredible suffering. It was a dark hour in the history of the people that had declared but not achieved their independence. The fall of Fort Washington made it impossible to hold Fort Lee, and the Hudson was open to the British. The American array was reduced bj^ the return to their homes of many of the militia who had enlisted for a short tirae. The British gen erals were elated by their success, and anticipated a speedy end of the conflict. In the raidst of these depressing cir curastances, Washington stood calm and undisraayed. Con fident that the British would soon march in the direction of Philadelphia, he left only a few troops on the shore of the Hudson above New York, and with the raain body of his array started for New Jersey. No sooner had Washington left his encampment than he was followed by Lord Corn wallis. The American army was now reduced to a little remnant of three thousand raen. While they continued their retreat, in sight, most of the time, of the pursuing enemy, Washington sent messages in every direction, calling for more troops. The country was thoroughly alarraed. Con gress deemed discretion the better part of valor, and was preparing to leave Philadelphia. In this dark hour Trum- 208 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l777. bull stood undisraayed, and said for Connecticut and himself, ' ' Wc are determined to maintain our cauae to the last ex tremity." Determined to strike a blow that would help to restore the confidence of the people as well as his army, Washington crossed the Delaware, above Trenton, ou Christmas night, and attacked a body of several hundred Hessians posted there. The surprise was complete. General Rail, their coramander, was mortally wounded ; and after a sharp and desperate charge of the Continental forces, they surrendered. Nearly a thousand men, with a large number of guns and cannon, were taken. Eight days later the battle bf Princeton was fought, aud the regiments left there by Cornwallis com pletely routed. The enemy had been driven from every post it had occu pied in New Jersey, except Brunswick aud Amboy ; and Philadelphia was once more safe. The army spent the win ter at Morristown, and there was little fighting for several months. During the following summer, the English fleet and arra3- sailed from New York, and appeared in the Chesapeake. Washington hastened to meet it, and the battle of Brandy wine was fought. The Araericans were forced to retire, and the British advanced towards Philadelphia. After a sharp attack on the enemy at Germantown, Washington withdrew to Valley Forge, aud Lord Howe occupied Philadelphia. The memorable victory of the summer of 1777 was won in the north, — a victory in which Connecticut soldiers acted an honorable part. The English general, Burgoyne, with eight thousand raen and a large nuinber of Indians, came down from St. John, New Brunswick, with the purpose of attack ing Albany, and cutting off New England from the other colonies. Ticonderoga was taken ; and General Schuyler, who was in coraraand of the northern departraent, fell back to Fort Edward. The country was filled with alarm fit the progress of the British, and re-enforcements began to pour in 1777.] BORGOYNES SURRENDER. 209 to the American camp. Burgoyne was delayed after his vic tories by the bridges having been destroyed, and the roads obstructed. The tide began to turn, and in several skir mishes the advantage was with the Araericans. A battle was fought on the 19th of September, in which the Ameri cans sadly crippled the British force. On the 7tli of October Burgoyne again advanced, aud, after a hard fight, was driven back in disorder to his camp. The following day he retreated towards Saratoga ; and on the 17th of October his army of more than flve thou sand men laid down their arms, and were sent as prisoners of war to Boston. Among other Connecticut offi cers who acted a worthy part in this raeraorable campaign, was Captain Moses Seymour of Litchfield, who commanded a company of cavalry. During the night that followed the last battle between Gage and Burgoyne, Captain Seymour watched with a British officer who had been severely wounded, and carried from the field. As he entered the room, the officer eagerly inquired of him as to the fate of the day. When told that the British had been defeated, he remarked, "Then, the contest is no longer doubt ful : America will be independent." The prophecy of the dying soldier was to become the truth of history. When the BATTLE-FIELDS OF THE REVOLUTION. 210 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1777. tidings of the burrender of Burgoyne reached England, many of her leading statesmen lost hope of saving the colo nies ; and this great victory hastened the alliance by which France gave her aid to America. ^ While the army was at New York, experiments, under the eye of Put nam, were made with an inventiou of David Bushnell, a native of Westbrook, that failed to accomplish what was desired, only by a combination of un fortunate circumstances. Mr. Bushnell, while a student at Yale, in 1771, sug gested the idea of attacking a vessel underneath the water, and constructed a submarine boat capable of this service. "It was a boat," says Colonel Henry L. Abbott of the United-States Army, " so constructed as to be capable of be ing propelled at any depth below the surface of the water, and of being ele vated or depressed at pleasure; to this was attached a magazine of powder, designed to be secured by a screw to the bottom of a ship; when the magazine should be disengaged from the boat, cer tain machinery was to be set in motion, which would cause it to explode at any desired time. Fulton simply iraproved upon and developed Bushnell's offensive machines, but he originated the method of operation now known as defensive torpedo warfare; and Samuel Colt, by introducing electricity as the agent for igniting the charges, rendered it possible to perfect both classes of torpedoes. To these three men we owe -more than to any others the inauguration of this new and important mode of maritime war fare, which, by strengthening the hands of the weak, has done, and is doing, much to justify the sentiment inscribed by Fulton upon the titlepage of his first treatise upon torpedo warfare : * The Liberty of the Seas will be the Hap l>inesa of the Earth.' " Bushnell called his torpedo-boat " The American Tur tle." Iu December, 1777, he set afloat, in the Delaware River, sorae torpedoes in kegs, that demolished one British ves sel. The fright they caused is celebrated in Hopkinson's poera, "Tbe Battle of the Kegs." 2 Captain Hale was twenty-one years of age at the tirae of his death, Sept. 22, 1776. The tradition that Hale was dis covered in the British camp, and betrayed by a Tory relative, is not accepted by Stuart, Lossing, and others, who have made special investigations as to the truth of the story. Rev. Edward E. Hale, D.D., a kinsman of Captain Hale, believes the tradition to be false. 1777.J THE WAR IN CONNECTICUT. 211 CHAPTER XXXIV. 1777. BURNING OF DANBURY. HAVING followed the fortunes of the American army during a part of the year 1777, let us now recall the stoiy of less important events, but of great local interest in the history of Connecticut. Lord Howe, before leaving New York, determined to de stroy a quantity of military stores that he had been informed were deposited at Danbury. For this purpose a detached corps of eighteen hundred men, aud a small nuinber of dra goons, were put in command of Governor Tryon, who had been appointed a major-general of provincials. The vessels in which they embarked from New York cast anchor in Saugatuck Harbor late in the afternoon of the 25th of April. Under the guidance of two Tories they started for Danbury. They marched about eight miles that night, and encamped in the limits of the present township of Weston. On the following morning they resumed their march, meet ing with no opposition until they began the ascent of Hoyt's Hill, near the village of Bethel. At this point a solitary horseman appeared at the top of the hill, and looking back, as if an army were close at hand, he rose in his stirrups, and, waving his sword, exclaimed in a voice of thunder, " Halt the whole universe! 'break off h'y kingdoms!'" General Tryon commanded his meu to halt, and sent out two detachments 212 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l777. on the right and left to reconnoitre, and at the same time got two of his field-pieces in position. The scouts soon re turned with the report that the only person in sight was the horseman whose shout had disturbed them, and who was now making good his escape. The troops reached Danbury in the afternoon. Soon after entering the village, four young men in the house of Major Starr were rash enough to fire upon the English infantry, who at once pursued aud shot tliein. The bodies were thrown into the house, which was immediately set on fire. The work of pillage and destruction now commenced in earnest, and large quantities of public stores were removed to the street and burned. The soldiers drank so freely of liquor which they found in one of the buildings, that many of thera were in a condition of beastly intoxication. Tbe next morning was the sabbath, but Tryon gave orders to continue the work of firing the dwellings and business places of all persons except those who were known to be loyal to the king. The Congregational church, the largest and most expensive building iu the place, was burned to the ground, with a large portion of the homes and stores of the village. The houses that escaped the torch of the British soldiers were marked with a white cross, to signify that those who owned them were Tory sympathizers. Having finished the work of destruction that left innocent women and children without food or shelter, the enemy hur ried from the town. By this time the militia of the neigh boring towns were gathering, with the venerable General Wooster as their leader. Arnold and Sullivan, with four hundred men, had come from the Hudson by a rapid march. Although Tryon returned by another route, he found himself confronted by the Connecticut troops at Ridgefleld. With a little company of two hundred men, Wooster hung on the rear of the British. While cheering his men by word and action, he fell at their head mortally wounded. At a point 1777.] THE FIGHT AT RIDGEFIELD. 213 farther on, in the village street, Arnold threw up a barricade, and bravely held his position until it was turned. His horse was shot under hira, and a soldier advanced upon him with fixed bayonet ; but he quickly extricated himself, aud, drawing his pistol, shot his assailant, while he escaped unhurt. That night the British lay on their arms about a mile south of the village. At daybreak on Monday they hurried towards the Sound, and only escaped another encounter witli the Connec tieut men by fording the Saugatuck River, and running to a high hill a half-mile away from where their vessels lay, off Norwalk. Congress voted money to build a monument to Wooster; and, at the request of Washington, Arnold was made a major-general, and also given "a horse caparisoned as a token of their approbation of his gallant conduct." It was not until the British troops were embarked, and sail ing towards New York, that they felt safe from the attacks of the Connecticut militiamen. In a short time these pa triots retaliated in another way. Learning through General Parsons that a large quantity of military stores had been gathered at Sag Harbor for the use of the British army. Return Meigs of Guilford determined to destroy them. He secured a few whale-boats, and sailed from Sachem's Head on the •23d of May with one hundred and seventy men. About midnight they reached a point on the Long-Island shore some four miles from Sag Harbor. Just as they were pre pared to seize the guard who were in charge of the military store, the alarm was given, and a schooner that was near at hand opened a brisk fire. Colonel Meigs at once began an attack, in which most of the guard were taken prisoners. He destroj-ed ten loaded transports, and burned one vessel of six or eight guns, besides destroying a large amount of hay, grain, and merchandise. At two in the afternoon, twenty-four hours from the tirae they started, they reached Guilford with ninety prisoners, and without the loss of a single man. Au elegant sword was given to Meigs by Con- 214 HISTORY OE CONNECTICUT. [l777. gress in recognition of his bold and successful raid ; and Washington promoted Sergeant Ginnings for special merit ih the part he acted in this expedition. The Continental army in 1777 was divided into three de partments. The first division, consisting of the troops south of the Hudson, was under Washington ; General Schuyler commanded the northern department ; while the third, under General Putnam, was stationed in the Highlands of the Hud son. When tidings came of the taking of Ticonderoga by Burgoyne, Washington ordered two Massachusetts brigades in the Highlands to join the forces of General Schuyler ; and after Lord Howe sailed frora New York, he ordered one of the Connecticut brigades, aud one from Rhode Island, to come to Pennsylvania. This left Putnam with a single Connecticut brigade and a New- York regiment. Having established his headquarters at PeekskiU, he did all that he could to protect life and property" from the barbarous raids of the British soldiers, who still remained in New York. Governor Tryon was very anxious to take Putnam as a captive, and was lavish in his promises pf reward to any one who would accomplish this purpose. In spite of Putnam's vigilance, a Tory officer by the uame of Palmer found his way into the American camp, but was detected, tried, and condemned as a spy. Tryon used every effort to save the life of the prisoner. In a letter to Putnam he threatened direst vengeance in case of any harm befalling one of the king's commissioned officers. The reply of the American general was characteristic, and read as follows : — "Sir, — Nathan Palmer,_a lieutenant in your king's service, was taken In my camp as a spy. He was tried as a spy, lie was condemned as a spy, and you may rest assured, sir, lie shall be hanged as a spy. 1 have the lionor to bo, etc., ISRAEL PUTNAM. His Excellency, Ooveekor Trton. P.S. — Afternoon. lie is hanged." 1777.] FORT MONTGOMERY SURRENDERED. 215 The arrival of fresh troops at New York from England made Putnam feel uneasy. With a single brigade in the field, and only a regiment at Fort Montgomery, he could do but little if the British forces were to march against hiin. He wrote to Washington, but he could do nothing more than authorize him to call out the militia. On the 5th of October, Sir Henry Clinton, with three thousand men, sailed up the Hudson, and moved towards Fort Montgomery. The courier who was sent from the fort to Putnam, with a letter asking for re-enforcements, proved to be a Tory renegade, and did not deliver it. Climbing the mountains in the rear of the fort, the British troops made a vigorous assault. Putnam by this time was aware of the situation, but the brave men whom he sent from his camp could do nothing in the face of so large an armj-. At evening the fort was surrendered, after most of the garrison had contrived to escape. Before the close of the year, Putnam, under the directions of Washington, selected a site for a new fort. The place chosen was West Point ; and during the month of January the flrst Connecticut brigade, in command of General Par sons, threw up the flrst embankment of the fortifications, of what was afterwards called the ." American Gibraltar." The army at Valley Forge passed a winter of great suffer ing ; but the tidings of the alliance with France came just before the opening of spring, and revived the hope and courage of Washington and his soldiers. The British evacuated Philadelphia on the 18th of June, and, having crossed the Delaware, marched in the direction of New York. Washington at once started in pursuit, and overtook them at Monmouth Court-House. The battle fought at this place opened favorably for the Americans, but General Lee's disobedience of orders threw the troops into confusion. Washington, after a stormy scene with the recreant officer, stopped the retreat, and repulsed the British ; but the victory was not decisive. The French fleet had arrived off Sandy 216 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l778. Hook ; but Admiral D'Estaing, believing that there was not sufficient water to admit his entrance to the harbor of New York, sailed for Newport. This place was held by a British force of six thousand men, under General Pigot. General Sullivan was directed to co-operate with the French fleet, and a call was made upon Connecticut for militia to aid in this enterprise. On the 10th of August, the American army, ten thousand strong, landed on the north side of the island. By an unfortunate misunderstanding, Sullivan advanced sooner than the French admiral expected ; and in the interval of delay, Lord Howe, with the English fleet, appeared off the harbor. D'Estaing attempted to draw the British into battle ; but they avoided him, and a storm scattered both fleets. When the French ships returned, their admiral decided to sail for Boston for repairs. Sullivan was determined to fight, and advanced on the 29th of August against the enemy. His troops fought well, but after a sharp contest were driven back. The retreat to the main land was safely effected ; but the Americans felt, that if the French had co-operated with them, as promised, they could easily have driven the British from the island. The year was one of care and anxiety throughout Connecti cut. The Legislature was almost constantly in session ; and besides the troops that were raised to recruit the general army, a large number of men were sent to defend the towns along the coast. Every thing in the power of the State was done to meet the expenses of the war, and do justice to her soldiers ; but the depreciation of the Continental currency was already the cause of great suffering and loss. A Rev olutionary soldier, Elisha Mason, who died at Litchfield in 1858, in the one-hundredth year of his age, often related the story of his experience after having been paid off in Conti nental currency. After his discharge he started homeward from the Hudson. Having spent the night at Danbury, he attempted to settle his bill with the money he had just re- 1778-79. THE ENCAMPMENT AT REDDING. 217 ceived for his army services. This was refused, although he offered bills to the amount of forty dollars for his food and lodgings. As his wages were but eight dollars a month, he thus proposed to give the amount he had received for flve months for his keeping for a single night. Mr. Mason was finallj' compelled to pawn his rifle to satisfy the demands of the landlord. This incident of personal experience illus trates a -form of loss and suffering that put the patriotism of the people to the severest test. Late in the autumn of 1778, General Putnam removed his army from White Plains and PeekskiU, to Redding. While here, the soldiers suffered so much from the want of proper food and clothing, that some of the more restive spirits persuaded the Connecticut brigades to plan a inarch to Hart ford, and demand redress of the Legislature. They were actually under arms for this purpose when Putnam galloped up to the camp. His earnest words soon brought them to their senses ; and when he gave orders for them to shoulder arms, and march to their regimental quarters, they obeyed promptly, and with good humor. In February, Governor Tryon, at the head of a strong detachment of British soldiers, left his quarters at Kings- bridge, and marched for Horse Neck, intending to destroy the Salt Works in that neighborhood. Horse Neck was au outpost of Putnam's forces ; and the day Governor Tryon started on his raid, the Connecticut general chanced to be there. A scouting-party, sent out by Putnam, came in sight of the enemy at New Rochelle : they retired to Rye Neck, and here they were seen in the early morning, and attacked CONTIMENTAL MONEY. 218 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l779. by the British. Captain Watson, with his little band of thirty men, defended himself as best he could while retreating to Horse Neck. Putnam had here gathered what forces he could muster, and planted a cannon on the brow of the hill near the meeting-house. He held the enemy in check for some time with his solitary fleld-piece ; but finding that he was far outnumbered, he gave orders for his men to retire through a swamp, and forra on a hill some distance away. Lingering until the enemy were close at hand, and fluding himself alraost surrounded, he gave spurs to his horse, and plunged at full gallop down a precipitous hill in front of him. This declivity was so steep that it was furnished with more than a hundred stone steps to accommodate those who climbed it. The British dragoons did not dare to follow. One of the shots that was fired at him, passed through his hat ; out he escaped safely, and soon rallied a body of militia, and returned to Horse Neck. Finding that the enemy were on the way back to New York, he started in pursuit, and succeeded in taking about flfty prisoners, besides an ammu nition wagon, and a baggage wagon filled with plunder, which Putnam was able to restore to the rightful owners. 1778.] WYOMING. 219 CHAPTER XXXV. 1778-1779. THE SETTLEMENT OF WYOMING. IN the charter given by Charles II., the bounds of Con necticut included all of the territory from Narragansett Bay to the Pacific. As the Dutch had before this taken possession of the territory of New York, Connecticut did not seek to establish any right to that country, but claimed the lands lying west of it. A beautiful valley on the upper waters of the Susquehanna had attracted the admiration of adventurous explorers ; and a company was formed to pur chase and settle this spot, where Nature had been so lavish in her charms. A band of men from Connecticut visited the Wyoming Vallej' in 1762. They returned home, and the following spring brought their families with them. They were rejoicing in the fruits of an abundant harvest, when, on the 15th of October, they were startled by an Indian war-whoop. In the attack that followed, twenty men were killed and scalped. The rest of the settlers fled to the mountains, and after many hardships found their way back to Connecticut. In 1769 a much larger company started for Wyoming, having received special encouragement from the colonial authorities. By this time three oflBcers with several men had taken possession of the valley, under a lease from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, by which they agreed to establish an Indian trading-house, and defend the country from foreign intruders. This was the beginning of a conflict 220 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [1778. of rights, which was not settled until 1786, when the dis puted territory was given to Pennsylvania, and Connecticut received a valuable tract of land in Ohio that was afterwards known as the Connecticut Reserve. There were frequent encounters between the Pennsylvania authorities and the Connecticut settlers up to the time of the Revolution. When the war broke out, many of them enlisted in the ranks of the Continental army. This left the settle ments in a more defenceless condition ; but abundant harvests were gathered, and in the spring of 1778 a large amount of grain was furnished for the army. About this time it was rumored that the British and Indians were preparing to in vade the valley. The news was confirmed in several ways, and the frightened settlers sent word to their friends in the army to return home at once. All but two of the commis sioned officers from Wyoming resigned, and hastened home ward to protect their families. Congress delayed to send help flntil it was too late. While the enemy were concen trating their forces, the women and children fled from their homes to the rude forts that had been biiilt at several points. The work of death soon commenced. A number of settlers in the upper part of the valley were murdered while laboring iu their fields, and two of the forts in that neigh borhood were given up. The brave sons and daughters of Connecticut refused to surrender at the bidding of the British commander, and they determined to attack the enemy. On the 3d of July their little army, under Colonel Zebulon Butler, consisting of hardly more than three hundred per sons, began their march up the river. The British rangers and their Indian allies at first pretended to retreat ; but as the villagers of Wyoming advanced, and opened fire, they were suddenly attacked by a party of savages in their rear, who sprang from their ambush, and threw them into con fusion. A horrible massacre followed, and only about sixty of the brave band of Connecticut men escaped de.ath. More 1778.] MASSACRE AT WYOMING. 221 than one-half of all the able-bodied men in the valley had been killed. When the tidings of the terrible defeat reached their famihes, near at hand, many of the helpless women and children fled to the forests, and others sought refuge in Fort Wyoming. Pen cannot picture the suflferings and sorrows of the heart-broken band of widowed mothers and their fatherless children, who found their way back to Con necticut through the wilderness. In a single company, there were about a hundred women and children, with only one man to guide or aid them. Those who fled to the forts, after their surrender, were in many cases murdered with fiend ish cruelties. Among the saddest incidents of these terrible days was the unnatural hate that made the Tory sympathizers, among the settlers, guilty of the most inhuman actions to wards their neighbors and nearest relatives. It was not long before a fort was again built in the valley, and a few Connecticut families returned to their old homes. Again and again the Indian war-whoop startled them, as some fatal shot sped on its way. As the days weut on, and life and property became more secure, the nunibei' of settlers increased. After the Revolution, the old controversjr between Connecticut and Pennsylvania broke out anew, and continued until the final decision that made the beautiful valley of Wyoming a part of the latter Common wealth. The song and story that recall the tragedies of its early settlement will always associate its hills and vales with the history of Connecticut. Towards the close of 1778 the most active movements of the war were taking place in the South. Colonel Campbell, in command of two thousand British troops, landed in Geor gia, and captured Savannah. The colony again came under English rule ; but her borders were the scene of terrible civil strifes between the strong Tory class, aud the brave patriots whose hearts and lives were consecrated to the cause of freedom. With the exception of New York, there was no 222 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l779. section where the Tory party was as powerful as in the South. They were to be found everywhere ; and some of the most bitter and violent lived within the bounds of Con necticut, but the vigilant watch that was kept over them gave them little opportunity for mischief. The Connecticut Tories had a hard time in many ways, and the general feel ing of the people against them was such that their lives and property were not always safe. In the South their number was so great that they often came into open conflict with their patriot neighbors. While the centre of the war had shifted a long way from New England, Connecticut was not left in peace. The raid which Governor Tryon made in the latter part of February, 1779, as far as Horse Neck, was followed during the sum mer by frequent incursions along the shores of the Sound. On the 5th of July the British fleet from New York cast anchor off West Haven, having on board some three thou sand troops, in command of Tryon. About fifteen hundred of the force landed at sunrise, and marched towards New Haven. A little company of militia and citizens rallied, and stationed several field-pieces at the bridge leading to West Haven. They held their position with such determination that the British general decided to make a long circuit of several miles, and enter the town by the Derby road. They did not accomplish this without being harassed by a con tinual fire from the militia. Meanwhile the other division of the British troops, cora manded by Governor Tryon, had landed on the east side of New-Haven Harbor. The fort at Black Rock was soon taken, but the little garrison of nineteen men made good their retreat. After the enemy entered the town, the soldiers robbed the inhabitants of every thing they could lay their hands upon. Some families lost nearly all their houses contained, and suffered for the want of food and clothing. Early on the following morning the enemy unexpectedly and 1779.] tryon's raid. 223 quietly withdrew to their boats, taking with thera a number of citizens as prisoners. Twenty-seven Americans had been killed, and nineteen wounded. Among the citizens who joined the militia in their attempt to defend the town was the venerable Dr. Daggett, ex-President of Yale College. He was captured near Milford Hill, and treated in a most das tardly manner. Having beaten and robbed him, he was driven at the point of the bayonets of insulting soldiers for several miles, until his strength was exhausted. Frora New Haven the British fleet sailed for Fairfield. They landed on the morning of the 8th of July, and, after plundering the village, kindled a conflagration before sun down, that did not cease until most of the dwellings, churches, and other buildings, were burned to the ground. The crackling of the flames, mingled with the " cries of dis tressed women and helpless children," made the night terri ble. From Fairfield the British marched to Green's Farms, and destroyed a large amount of property. Crossing the Sound, the enemy remained in Huntington Bay until the llth of July. They then sailed for Norwalk, and destroyed the entire village, with the exception of a few houses belong ing to Tories. Before this time Washington had learned of the raid along the defenceless coast of Connecticut ; and he directed General Parsons, then in command at the High lands of the Hudson, to hasten thither. In command of a small body of Continental troops, and a considerable force of Connecticut militia, he reached Norwalk a few hours after the British had landed there. He was unable to prevent the destruction of the town, but harassed the enemy in many ways, who soon after returned to Huntington Bay, and from there returned to New York. On the 15th of July, General Anthony Wayne made a brilliant assault upon Stony Point, on the Hudson, and cap tured the fort with five hundred men, besides cannon and supplies. The British had erected a fort at Lloyd's Neck, 224 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l779. on Long Island, and garrisoned it with about flve hundred soldiers. Again and again companies from this fort had crossed over to the Connecticut shore, and plundered de fenceless homes. Major Tallmadge, honored with the special confldence of Washington, determined to destroy this stronghold of the enemy. On the night of the Sth of September he embarked near Stamford with a picked body of one hundred and thirty men. He reached Lloyd's Neck near midnight, and, quietly landing his men, made an attack upon the fort, that took the garrison completely by surprise. They at once surrendered, and before morning were landed in Connecticut as prisoners of war. Washington planned an attack on New York, and called for twelve thousand militia from Connecticut. When this project was finally given up, the militia were disbanded, and the army, under the commander-in-chief, went into winter quarters at Morristown, N.J. During a brief interval of quiet, in the autumn. General Putnam visited his home at Pomfret. In December he started to join the army. He was overtaken by illness, and compelled to stop when he reached Hartford. The disability proved permanent ; and from this time until his death, on the 19th of May, 1790, he was compelled to retire from active service. The personality of few men has fllled as prominent a place in the history of Counecticut as that of Israel Putnam. Honest, brave, and generous in spirit, he was the embodi ment of energy, and possessed a presence of mind fertile in expedients, that made him a grand leader in hazardous enterprises. His brilliant military services during the French wars prepared him to act the part he did in the battle of Bunker Hill. The exhausting labors of that day, no doubt, hastened disabilities, incident to advancing years, that raade him less efficient in further active service. Honored and be loved, the closing years of his life were spent in the quiet of his home, where he was often visited by old comrades in arms. 1780.] WASHINGTON AT HARTFORD. 226 CHAPTER XXXVI. 1780-1781. WASHINGTON AT HARTFORD AND WETHERSFIELD. THE year 1780 was one of great depression and anxiety to those who were at the head of American affairs. Sir Henry Clinton, with an army of eight thousand men, sailed from New York, and after a stormy passage reached Georgia in the latter part of January. Sending to New York for additional troops, he advanced towards Charleston, where Lin coln was in command of the Continental army. The British fleet passed Fort Moultrie in safety, while Clinton attacked the city from the laud side. On the 12th of May, Lincoln surrendered, and the town fell into the hands of the eneray. Clinton soon returned to New York, leaving the British army in command of Lord Cornwallis. At the North, there had been great suffering in the Araerican camp during the winter, and the general outlook was dark and discouraging. The action of France brought new hope.^ Early in July, Ad miral de Ternay, with a squadron of ten ships-of-war, con voying a detachment of about six thousand men in command of Rochambeau, arrived in the harbor of Newport. On the 18th of September, Washington left his headquarters at Tappan on the Hudson for Hartford, attended by Lafayette and Hamilton. Here, in the presence of Governor Trum bull and other officers, he held his first interview with the French general. The meeting was one of mutual satisfac tion and pleasure. The progress of Washington through 226 HISTORY O-F COKHBCTICUX. [l781. the towns of Connecticut called out throngs of people who expressed their regard iu every possible way. The chU dren even pressed about him, and called him their father. Turnino- to the French aid who had accompanied him a day's journey on his return, he said, " We may be beaten by the English in the field ; it is the lot of arms : but see there the a.rniy which they will never overcome." On reaching the Hudson, Washington repaired to West Point, and there learned of the treachery of Benedict Ar nold. The story of the treason of this wretched raan, and the capture aud hanging of Andr6 as a spy, is one of the most familiar and tragic of Revolutionary times. Physi cally courageous, and intellectually gifted, Arnold was un principled, and cowardly at heart. The honorable service rendered in behalf of his country in the early part of the war, is lost in the dark record of shame and blood that has made his name a synonyme for all that is base and contempt ible in huraan conduct. The capture of Charleston, the treason of Arnold, and a condition of affairs in the Araerican camp that required all of the wisdom and skill of Washington to keep the troops from breaking into open revolt, proved to be the darkness brood ing over the horizon just before the morning of victory and deliverance. On the 21st of May Washington again came to Connecticut, and met Rochambeau at Wethersfield, where they arranged the details of the campaign that ended in the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown. Before that victory was won, Connecticut suffered in a most distressing manner at the hands of the miserable traitor who had been born upon her soil. Arnold had been sent by Sir Henry Clinton to Virginia with a small body of British soldiers. Among other das tardly acts, he burned the city of Richmond. Washington had arranged a plan by which he Iioped to capture the inso lent traitor. The advance of Coi'nwallis broke up this de- 1781.] ARNOLD ATTACKS NEW LONDON. 227 sign, as the English general sent Arnold back to New York. Clinton ordered him to make an attack on New London. There is reason to believe that the work was undertaken at the suggestion of Arnold. His boyhood had been spent in the neighborhood, and he knew that the place was compara tively defenceless. It was his purpose to enter the harbor in the night, and destroy the stores, merchandise, and ship ping gathered there, before the militia could have time to rally. Owing to contrary winds, the British fleet did not reach the mouth of the Thames as soon as they expected ; and it was ten o'clock on the morning of the 6th of Septem ber, before Arnold was able to land his troops. They were sent ashore in two divisions. Eight hundred were landed on the Groton side of the river, under command of Lieutenant- Colonel Eyre ; and nine hundred, led by Arnold, landed on the western, or New London, side. By this time the alarm had been given, and every possible preparation made to defend the town. While panic-stricken families were seeking shelter in the woods near at hand, an effort was raade to save the shipping by cutting the vessels loose, and sending them up the river. For a time the wind and tide were ad verse, but later in the day some of the most valuable ships were saved. Colonel Ledyard, in command of the forts, having done all in his power to call out the militia, and give the neighboring towns warning of the situation, decided to repair to Fort Griswold, and there make as strong a stand as he could against the enemy. As he started to cross the ferry at New London, he remarked to the friends who had gathered to wish him success, " If I 'must lose to-day honor or life, you, who know me, can tell which it will be." Arnold, after landing his troops near the lighthouse, marched at once in the direction of Fort Trumbull. This fortification was then but a rude and imperfect breastwork mounted with a few cannon. Following the orders of 228 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l781. Colonel Ledyard, the little garrison of twenty-three men, in command of Captain Shapley, did not attempt to defend the place agaiust the detachment of soldiers that Arnold -sent to dislodge them. Having fired a single volley, they spiked the guns ; and withdrawing in good order, they embarked in whale-boats, crossing the river so near the British ships that seven of their number were wounded by musket-shots from their decks. Arnold's progress was contested at two or three points by some skirmishing parties, but they could do but little ; and the traitor soon found himself in the streets of the beautiful and prosperous seaport village with which he had long been familiar. Almost in sight of his birthplace, and amid the scenes of boyhood memories, he gave orders to kindle a confiagration that soon reduced to ashes the most valuable part of the town. Before this he had received information that led him to suppose that Fort Griswold could be easily taken ; and he had sent a messenger to Colonel Eyre, order ing him to march forward, and begin an attack. After en tering New London, Arnold found that the fort held so strong a position that he sent another officer to countermand his first order. The officer arrived a few minutes too late. For the second time Colonel Eyre had sent a fiag and a summons for the surrender of the fort, with the added threat, that, if it became necessary to storra the works, " martial law should be put in force." " We shall not surrender, let the consequences be what they may," was the answer of Colonel Ledyard. The enemy having formed in solid columns, under cover of the hills that protected them from the guns of the fort, raoved forward with a quick step. A small party of the garrison from the outside fired a single round at the approaching columns, and then retired within the fort. Colonel Ledyard gave orders that not a gun should be fired until the eneray were at close range. The first shot did such execution, followed, as it was, by 1781.] PORT GRISWOLD. 229 volley after volley, that the British oflflcers, with great dif ficulty, were able to rally their men. Colonel Eyre was seriously wounded, and carried from the field. Major Mont gomery, at the head of his detachment, gained the redoubt on the east side of the fort, and, having taken possession of the ditch, attempted to ascend the rampart. This was quite high, and strongly guarded by projecting pickets. The only way the soldiers could get up, was by climbing upon each other's shoulders, and then wrench away the pickets, or GROTON MONUMENT. struggle np between them. No sooner was a head thrust above the rampart, than it became a target for some musket within the fort. In spite of the deadly fire, the enemy finally succeeded in gaining the rampart, and silencing the gun that swept its heights. Thej' now sought to enter the fort with fixed bayonets, but were met by the main body of the garri son, some of whom were armed with long, sharp spears, with which they fought desperately. Unaccustomed to this sort of weapon, the British soldiers hesitated to advance, until Major Montgoraery threw himself at the front, and urged them 230 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l781. on. At this moment he was mortally wounded by a spear- thrust ; and his enraged men, with hoarse cries of vengeance, rushed forward. The little band of patriots were unable to resist their overpowering numbers. They swept every thing before them, and, quickly forcing the gate, crowded within the fort, uttering yells of exultation. As soon as the enemy had broken down the gate. Colonel Ledyard saw that further resistance was useless, and ordered his men to throw down their arms. They obeyed ; but the British still continued to fire upon them from the ramparts, while others were stabbed with bayonets. Captain Shapley and his little corapany, ignorant of the surrender, still held the south-west bastion. The British now turned the cannon of the north bastion upon them. Few escaped the murder ous fire. The south gate was now open ; and, as the other division of the British force marched in, they fired by pla toons upon the unresisting garrison. ••' Who commands this fort? " called out the British oflScer now in command. " I did, sir; but you do now," said the gallant Ledyard, as he advanced, and presented his sword. The brutal officer no sooner received it, than he plunged it into his breast. Colo nel Ledyard fell on his face, and instantly expired. Those of the garrison who witnessed this horrible murder saw that they need not look for quarter. Rallying about the body of their dead commander, they fought until one of the British oflScers, sickened by the terrible carnage, cried out, " Stop! stop ! my soul cannot bear such destruction." Eighty-five men lay dead In the fort ; and of the sixty wounded, only a few survived. Having hastily buried their dead, and reraoved their wounded to a place of safety, the British prepared to blow up the fort. Before firing the train, they carried some of the most severely wounded araong the Araericans upon boards, and placed thera in an ammuni tion wagon, and ordered a corapany of twenty men lo draw them down to the shore. The hill was so steep that the 1781.] FORT GRISWOLD. 231 loaded wagon soon gained a momentura beyond the control of the soldiers. Dashing down with increasing speed among the rocks and other obstructions, it finally struck the trunk of an apple-tree near the river's edge. Some of the wounded raen were instantly killed by the shock, and all were more or less injured. The village of Groton was set on fire before the eneray embarked at sunset, but they waited in vain for the explo sion that was to demolish the fort. They had laid the train carefully ; but it was extinguished by Major Peters, who rushed into the fort as soon as the British left. ^ Silas Deane, a native of Conuecti- other parties with whora he was unfor- cut and a graduate of Yale College, was tunately connected, be was recalled from associated with Benjamin Franlilin on Europe, aud held responsible for their the committee which negotiated the acts. After a vain attempt to recover Treaty of Peace with France. lie was a his position, and embittered at the wrongs man of brilliant qualities of mind, and he felt he had suffered, he returned to did a service for his country in bringing Europe, where he died in poverty. In to a conclusion difUcult negotiations that the light of history, the name of Silas for various reasons met with scant rec- Deane is revealed as that of a gifted ognition. Through the misconduct of statesman, but unfortunate man. 232 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [1781-83. CHAPTER XXXVII. 1781-1799. CONNECTICUT AT THE CLOSE OF THE REVOLUTION. SCARCELY a month had passed, after the burning of New London, and the massacre of the brave defenders of Fort Griswold, when events occurred that brought the war to a close, and secured the independence of the United States. The successes of Lord Cornwallis in the South were checked by the raoveraents of the American army, under command of General Greene. Compelled to fall back on Virginia, Cornwallis intrenched his forces at Yorktown. Washington saw his opportunity, and hastened to strike the decisive blow. The French fleet appeared at the mouth of the Chesa peake Bay at the same time Washington, by rapid marches, arrived in front of Yorktown. Cornwallis found himself hemmed in on every side. Escape was impossible ; and, on the 18th of September, seven thousand British soldiers laid down their arms. This victory virtually ended the war. For a year or more, there was some fighting in the South ; and the cities Of New York, Charleston, and Savannah remained iu the hands of the enemy. On the 3d of September, 1783, a treaty was made at Paris, between the English and Amer ican commissioners, by which the independence of the col onies was acknowledged, and the United States of America became a nation, ' Early in November the Revolutionary army was disbanded. In proportion to her population, Connecticut had furnished 1783.] JONATHAN TRUMBULL. 233 more men in the great struggle for independence than any other colony. Massachusetts alone sent a larger number into the field. Among the noble raen who stood at the head of military and civil affairs in Connecticut during the Revo lution, the name of Jonathan Trumbull will always be fore most. The intimate friend of Washington, he proved TRUMBULL HOUSE AND OLD WAK-OFFICE, LEBANON. eminently worthy of the honor that was placed upon him, as the governor of the State for a period of thirteen years. At the close of the war, he asked to be relieved of the burden and care of official duties, and retired to his ancestral home in Lebanon, where he died, August 17, 1785. The character of Governor Trumbull was of the noblest type. Profoundly religious in sentiment and feeling, his moral convictions were strong and clear. Under the enlight- 234 HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT. [l783. enment of Divine truth, he sought to have a conscience void of offence towards God and man. He cherished the prin ciples of civil and religious liberty received frora his fathers, and upheld them with unfaltering loyalty and courage. His vision was clear aud far-reaching, and at the sarae time calm and steadfast. The words and opinions he expressed, before the breaking out of the war of the Revolution, proved pro phetic; and in the darkest hour of the struggle for freedom, he was undismayed and hopeful. Grave in manner, but gentle and courteous in all the relations of life, he won the love of his fellow-men, and held their respect and confidence by his moral courage and discriminating judgment. Blest with a vigorous constitution, he toiled unceasingly. There was no sacrifice too great for him to make in behalf of the cause of freedom. Every other purpose and ambition was subservient to the spirit of patriotism, that burned with a pure and holy flame in his bosom. The relations of Governor Trumbull and Washington were those of close and intimate friendship. Washington leaned upon him as his right arm. " Let us consult Brother Jona than," he would say, when any diflflcult matter was under consideration. The remark became so common, that, in a spirit of pleasant appreciation of the Connecticut governor, he would playfully say, when referring any matter to Con gress, "Let us consult Brother Jonathan;" and it was in this way the nation itself, in familiar phrase, was named " Brother Jonathan." In the darkest period of the Revolution, Trumbull never lost hope for a moment. He believed that it was the will of God that the colonies should gain their independence ; and in that faith, he found strength in every hour of adversity. At a time when the war was drawing to a close, he writes, " In a series of marvellous occurrences during the present war, he must be blind who doth not see the divine ordering thereof." 1784.] JONATHAN TRUMBULL. 235 In the autumn of 1784 the venerable governor of Counec ticut, rejoicing in the victory that had given peace and liberty to a new nation, asked the people to release him from further service. For raore than flfty years he had been in public life. In a touching farewell address to the Legislature, he said, " Conteraplating with pleasing wonder and s.atisf action , at the close of an arduous contest, the noble and enlarged scenes which now present theraselves to my country's view. TRUMBULL TOMB, LEBANON. and reflecting at the same tirae on ray advanced stage of life, — a life worn out, almost, in the constant cares of ofllice, — I think it my duty to retire from the busy concern of public affairs, tliat, at the evening of my days, I may sweeten their decline, by devoting myself with less avocation, and more attention to the duties of religion, the service of my God, and ^oreparation for a future and happier state of exist ence ; in which pleasing employment I shall not cease to remember my country, and to raake it my ardent prayer that 236 HISTORY OP CONNECTICUT. [l787. Heaven will uot fail to bless her with its choicest favors." In this farewell address, he urged upon the people the neces sity of granting to the National Government clearly deflned powers, sufficient for all the purposes of that union that could alone assure their strength and happiness. The few months of life that still remained to this beloved and honored servant of the people were spent in congenial employments at his home in Lebanon. His death was universally la mented ; and Washington, in a letter to his sou,^ said, "A long and well-speut life in the service of his country places Governor Trumbull among the flrst of patriots. ' ' At the close of the Revolution, it was soon evident that a stronger govern ment was necessary than the league formed by the colonies in 1777, and under which they had acted during the war.^ A convention was called, to meet in the State House at Phila delphia, in May, 1787. The delegates appointed from Con necticut were William S. Johnson,' Oliver Ellsworth,* and Roger Sherman. The convention was presided over by Gen eral Washington ; and among the gifted men who took active part in the important deliberations, few exerted a greater in fluence by their counsel than the representatives from Con necticut. They were the earnest advocates of a feder.al, as opposed to a more concentrated and ceutral, form of govern ment. After long, and often exciting, debates, the present Constitution was adopted on Sept. 17, 1787. Although it " has proved, in its working, a masterpiece of political wis dom," it met with much opposition before it was accepted by all of the States. Connecticut was among the flrst to ratify the Constitution. At a convention which met in Hartford, Jan. 3, 1788, Oliver Ellsworth opened the debate with an address of great ability- ; and on the 9tli of January the Constitution was accepted by an overwhelming majority.^ Before the close of the year 1788, thirteen of the States had agreed to it, and it went into effect. George Washington was chosen the flrst 1789-95.] THE WESTERN RESERVE. 237 OI.[\EU ELLSWOKTU. New towns were President of tbe Republic, and John Adams as Vice-Presi dent. The conduct of public affairs vyas attended with many diflticulties. The debts incurred during the war pressed heavily upon the people, and it was some time before the relations of the Govern ment with the leading nations of Europe were satisfactorily adjusted. The In dians were still troublesome upon the frontier, and American ships suffered from the attacks of pirates from the coast of North Africa. Gradually affairs changed for the bet ter, and Connecticut rejoiced with her sister States in the dawn of days of re newed prosperity and peaceful industrj'." organized, laws passed for the encouragement of manufac tures, and arrangements m.ade for the sale of the Western lands that had been reserved by the State in their cession to the United States. These lands wore situated in the northern part of the present State of Ohio, aud contained about three and a half raillions of acres. In 1792 the Legislature granted five hundred thou sand .icres of the western part of this tract to citizens of Danbury, Fairfleld, Norwalk, New London, and Groton, to inderanify them for the loss of property caused by the burning of ¦ the towns at the hands of the British during the Revolution. The rest of this tract was sold in 1795, for twelve hundred thousand dollars ; and the Legislature directed that it should be held as a permanent fund, the interest of which should be annually distributed among the several school- societies of the State, according to the list of voters and REV. SAMUEL SEABURY, D.D. 238 HISTOKY OF CJONKECTIOTTT. [1797. the taxable property in eachJ Under careful management, this fund has increased until it is now more than two millions of dollars. The people of Connecticut were ardent admirers of Washington, and in sympathy with the principles and policy which he represented. Party spirit ran high throughout the States ; and upon the retirement of Washington, at the close of his second term, John Adams was elected President, by a small majority, over Thomas Jefferson, the leader of the party that then had but a small following .in Connecticut. After Adams had been President but a short time, France refused to receive the ambassadors sent by the United States. The war-cloud passed, and a treaty was made with Napoleon Bonaparte in 1800, The death of Washington (Dec. 14, 1799) caused a feeling of universal sorrow, and commem orative services were held in every part of Connecticut. ' Jonathan Trumbull (son of the governor) was born in Lebanon, March 26, 1740, and graduated at Harvard Col lege ip 1759. During the Revolution, until 1778, he Was a paymaster in the army, and was then appointed secretary and first aid to Washington, in whose family be remained till the close of the war. lie was chosen a member of Con gress in 1789, aud elected Speaker of that body in 1791. He represented the State ID the Senate for one year, and from 1798 until his death (Aug. 7, 1809) was , governor of the State. 2 CoNGHESs requested the eight Slates north of Maryland to convene at New Haven in January, 1778. Their deliberations only showed how difficult were the questions to be solved. At the instance of Massachusetts, a convention was held in Hartford in 1780, which ad vised a convention of all of the States at Philadelphia, and also suggested an impost as a source of revenue. In the letter written by Governor Trumbull at the close of his official service (1784), he called earnest attention to the views expressed by Washington in hia Fare well Address, and urged " that the grant to the Federal Constitution of powers clearly defined, ascertained, and" under stood, and sufficient for all the great purposes of union, could alone lead from the danger of anarchy to national hap piness and glory." The Legislature, in 1784, favored the impost on commerce; and Noah Webster, then living at Hart ford, wrote au article, in which he said that provincial attachments should be made subordinate *' to the general inter est of the continent : as a citizen of the American empire, every individual has a national interest far superior to all others." " The wide-spread movements of 1786 for the issue of paper raoney," says Bancroft, " never prevailed in Con necticut. The people, as they were frugal, industrious, and honest, dwelt together in peace, while other States were rent by faction.'* 3 William "Samuel Johnson was born at Stratford, Oct. 7, 1727, and gradu- BISHOP SEABCTEY. 289 ated at Yale College in 1744. He was frequently elected representative to the General Asserably, and was a member of the Stamp-Act Congress in 1765. He was in England iu 1766 as the agent of the colony, and remained there until 1771. After his return he was chosen one of the judges of the superior court. During tho war he held a conservative position. In 1787 he was elected a United-States senator, and the same year was chosen president of Columbia Col lege. He held this position until 1800, when he retired to Strafford, where he died, Nov. 14, 1819. * Oliver Ellsworth was born in Windsor, April 29, 1745. Graduating at Princeton College in 1766, he began the practice of law at Hartford. Rapidly gaining distiuguished eminence in his chosen pi-ofession, he was elected a dele gate to Congress in 1777, and in 1784 was appointed a judge of the Superior Court of Connecticut. He took a prom inent part iu the convention that framed the Constitution of the United States, and, on the organization of the Govern ment, was elected a member of the Sen ate. In 1796 Washington nominated him to be Chief Justice of the Suprerae Court of the United States. Having discharged the duties of this high oilice for five years, with great ability, he ac cepted the appointmeut of Minister to France. The decline of his health com pelled him to return home, but he was again honored with a seat in the councils of his native State. He was appointed Chief Justice of the Superior Court, but declined the office, and soon after died, Nov. 26, 1807. Judge Ellsworth was a man of rare accomplishments and emi nent legal ability, and his life and char- , acter that of an exemplary Christian. '> "Connecticut was the first of the New-England States that ratified the new Constitution. Two of its delegates to the National Convention (Roger Sher man and Oliver Ellsworth) sent Sept. 25, 1787, a. copy of the Constitution to Samuel Huntington, then governor of the State, who was its zealous friend. At the middle of October the Legisla- lature called a State Convention, to which were elected jnen of the highest standing in the Commonwealth, — legis lators, judges, clergymen, etc. The Convention asserabled in the State House at Hartford, and iramediately adjourned to the North Meeting-house, where the Constitution was read in the presence of a multitude of people, and debated, sec tion by section, with open doors. No vote was taken until the whole had been thus read and debated. When, on the9th of January, 1788, a vote