70 



CIVIL HISTORY OF VERMONT. 



Part II. 



PURSUIT OF TlIK INDIANS. 



INTERESTING INCIDENTS. 



inarcli with this undisciplined but brave 

 corps, in pursuit of tJie savages, who were 

 at this time encamped seven or eight 

 miles ahead. The night was dark and he 

 was guided amidst the logs, rocks and 

 hills v/itli which the wilderness abounded 

 only by a few marked trees. When they 

 supposed themselves near the^ Indians, 

 they proceeded with caution, but as they 

 • were passing over a stream which was 

 crossed upon a large log they were fired 

 upon by tiie enemy's rear guard, which 

 had been posted behind some trees near 

 the place, and one man w'as wounded. 

 House's party returned the fire, killed 

 one Indian and wounded two others. TJic 

 guard then retreated to the Indian camp, 

 and House advanced within about 3U0 

 yards of the same, where he waited till 

 day light without commencing an attack. 



Fatigued by the business of the prece- 

 ding day, and now suddenly awakened 

 from profound sleep, the savages were at 

 first filled with consternation and thrown 

 into the utmost disorder. Tiiey, however, 

 soon recovered from their fright, and were 

 not long in concerting measures for their 

 own safety. They sent out an aged pris- 

 oner to inform the Americans tliat, if they 

 proceeded to make an attack, they sliould 

 immediately put all the prisoners to death. 

 The proceedings thus far had caused two 

 to bo put to death; one to retaliate the 

 death of the Indian, who had been slain, 

 and the other for refusing to march, in 

 the expectation tiiat the Americans would 

 relieve them. These were tomahawked 

 as they lay bound upon the grounil. 

 Having placed their warriors in tiie rear 

 to cover their retreat, they silontlj*' left 

 their encampment, proceeded to Ran- 

 dolph, where they took one prisoner, 

 passed through the west part of Brook- 

 field, and, b}' the way of Winooski river 

 and lake Champlain, to Montreal. 



House and his men were waiting for 

 the dawn of day and deliberating upon 

 the message brought them by the prison- 

 er, till the Indiiins had departed and were 

 far beyond their reach. They, however, 

 followed upon their trail as far as Brook- 

 field and then returned, having lost the 

 opportunity of attacking the enemy by 

 their caution and delay. On their way to 

 Canada, the prisoners were well treated, 

 and with respect to provisions fared as 

 well as their masters. Of the twenty-six 

 who were carried away, one died in cap- 

 tivity, and tiic rest were lilierated the next 

 summer and returned to their friends. 



During tiie attack upon Royal ton, there 

 were several occurrences which are wor- 

 thy of notice. In one of the houses first 

 attacked, two women, being suddenly 



awakened by the rushing in of the sav- 

 ages, were so much frightened that they 

 lost the use of their reason, went out of 

 their doors naked, and stood motionless 

 till the Indians brought them their clothes. 

 This act of kindness restored their senses ; 

 they put on their clothes, collected the 

 children and fled to the woods, while the 

 savages were engagedtin plundering the 

 house. At another place one of the wo- 

 men had the boldness to reproach the In- 

 dians for distressing helpless women and 

 children, telling them that if they had 

 the spirit and souls of warriors, they 

 would cross the river and go and fight the 

 men at the fort. The Indians bore her 

 remarks patiently, and only replied, squaio 

 sliouhhit say too much. At anotlier place 

 a woman having her gown carried out of 

 the house with other plunder, resolved to 

 recover it. Seeing it in a heap of pillage 

 which the savages were dividing among 

 themselves at the door, she seized it ; 

 upon which one of the Indians clubbed 

 his gun and knocked her down. Not dis- 

 couraged, she patiently awaited an oppor- 

 tunity M'hen the savages were collecting 

 more plunder, seized and brought off her 

 gown, having at the same time one 

 child in her arms and leading another 

 by the hand. Another woman having her 

 young son taken away with other little 

 lioys, followed the Indians with her other 

 children, and entreated tliem to give him 

 up, which they di,d. Encouraged by this 

 success, she then interceded for others, 

 and finally prevailed upon them to give 

 up 12 or 15 of her neighbor's children. 

 One of the Indians then in a fit of good 

 humor offered to carry her over the river 

 upon his back. She accepted his propo- 

 sal, and her savage gallant carried her 

 safely over, though the water was up to 

 his middle, and she soon returned with 

 her little band of boys, to the no small 

 surprise and joy of their parents. 



A few days after the burning of Royal- 

 ton there was one of the most extensive 

 alarms in the county of Windham, expe- 

 rienced in Vermont during the war ; but 

 it proved to be wholly groundless. It 

 happened, that as several men were sur- 

 veying lands in Brookline, some of them 

 undertook to imitate the Indian war- 

 whoop, hi this they succeeded to admi- 

 ration, and were heard by the inhabitants 

 of Athens, who, supposing them to be real 

 Indians, took fright, fled, and rapidly 

 spread the alarm through the neighboring 

 towns. Immediately all was terror and 

 confusion. To their bewildered imagina^ 

 tions every noise became the yell of the 

 savage, and every rock and every tree of 

 the forest a lurking place for the cruel 



