1763, Oct.] THE MORAVIAN CONVERTS. 131 



surprised and killed, some peaceful settlers of the 

 neighborhood sharing their fate. This act was at 

 once ascribed, justly or unjustly, to the vengeance 

 of the converted Indians, relatives of the murdered ; 

 and the frontier people, who, like the Paxton 

 men, were chiefly Scotch and Irish Presbyterians, 

 resolved that the objects of their suspicion should 

 live no longer. At this time, the Moravian con- 

 verts consisted of two communities, those of Nain 

 and Wecquetank, near the Lehigh ; and to these 

 may be added a third, at Wyalusing, near Wyo- 

 ming. The latter, from its distant situation, was, 

 for the present, safe ; but the two former were in 

 imminent peril, and the inhabitants, in mortal ter- 

 ror for their lives, stood day and night on the 

 watch. 



At length, about the tenth of October, a gang 

 of armed men approached Wecquetank, and en- 

 camped in the woods, at no great distance. They 

 intended to make their attack under favor of the 

 darkness ; but before evening a storm, which to 

 the missionaries seemed providential, descended 

 with such violence, that the iires of the hostile 

 camp were extinguished in a moment, the ammuni- 

 tion of the men wet, and the plan defeated. V 



After so narrow an escape, it was apparent that 

 flight was the only resource. The terrified congre- 

 gation of Wecquetank broke up on the following 

 day ; and, under the charge of their missionary, 

 Bernard Grube, removed to the Moravian town of 



1 Loskiel, Hist. Moravian Missions, Part II. 211. 



