124 



£l)c .farmer's Jflontljli) i%itor. 



the next number of the paper, sparing to tis the 

 health ami the time, say more of that part of our 

 State lying in the mountains down south of the 

 upper Coos. 



New Hampshire and the Revolution. 



How much credit is due to the early patriotism 

 of the Granite Slate in keeping up to the motion 

 the ball of the Revolution after the gallant battle 

 whose most destructive fire at Bunker's heights 

 laid low the greater part of the British myrmi- 

 dons who there bit the dust in the second hard- 

 fought trial to drive freemen from their purpose, 

 and before the Declaration of Independence 

 (more than a full year after this event was con- 

 summated by the names of its immortal signers) 

 we had not realized until we find in the Docu- 

 mentary History, recently published, the united 

 testimony of the illustrious generals Washington, 

 Greene and Sullivan in the isolated letters all 

 tending to the proof of this point. The indomi- 

 table spirit, enterprise and courage of this peo- 

 ple, all the time the British forces lay in Boston, 

 as they did in projecting and carrying out the 

 expedition to Bennington afterwards in 1777, 

 were the pivot on which more than once the 

 whole success of the American contest for Inde- 

 pendence turned. Proud may the descendants 

 be of the New Hampshire men of the revolu- 

 tion, scarcely one of whom now survives living 

 to recount their noble deeds. We commend our 

 readers to a perusal of the following letters: 



Gen. Greene to Gov. Wood of Rhode Island, dated 

 Prospect Hill, December 10, 1775. 

 In my last I mentioned that the troops en- 

 listed very slowly in general: I was in hopes 

 then that ours (Rhode Island) would not have 

 deserted the cause of the country ; but they 

 seem to he so sick of this way of life, and so 

 homesick, that I fear the greater part and the 

 best of the troops from our colony will go home. 

 Five thousand of the militia, three from this pro- 

 vince (Massachusetts) and two from Hampshire 

 are called on to take their place. There is a 

 great defection among their (the Connecticut) 

 troops, but from the spirit and resolution of the 

 people of the Province, I make no doubt they 

 will furnish their proportion, without delay. 

 JVew Hampshire behaves nobly ; their troops engage 

 che.erfuth). The regiment raised in the colony of 

 Rhode island has hurt our recruiting amazingly : 

 they are. fond of serving in the army at home, and 

 each feels a desire to protect his own family. * 

 » * * 1 fear the colony of Rhode Island is 

 upon the decline. * * * * I sent home 

 some recruiting officers, but they got scarcely a 

 man, and report that there arc none to he had 

 there. No public spirit prevails: I wish you and 

 your colleague were at home a lew days to spirit 

 up the people. Newport, I believe, from the 

 liest intelligence 1 can get, is determined to observe 

 a strict neutrality this winter, and in the spring 

 join the strongest party. I feel for the honor of 

 the Colony, which I think in a fair way, from the 

 conduct of the people at home and the troops 

 abroad, to receive a wound. It mortifies me to 

 death that our colony and troops should be a 

 whit behind the neighboring governments in 

 private virtue or public spirit. * * * I have 

 been strengthening this Hill, in order that if the 

 soldiery should not engage as cheerfully as we 

 expected, I might be able to defend it with a less 

 number. 



Gen. Washington to Gen. Sullivan, dated Cam- 

 bridge, Dec. 8, 1775. 

 The intention of yesterday's order respecting 

 the review of the Connecticut troops, is only io 

 nffurd a good opportunity of making n choice of 

 such officer and arms as shall be found tit for the 

 use of the new army. I am not without my 

 fears, that if they are apprised of ihe intention, 

 some of the best arms will be secreted. For 

 this reason I desire you will say nothing of the 

 matter till the regiment (in your brigade) is pa- 



raded, and then in company of the field officers 

 of it, make choice of all the arms that are good, 

 taking the names of the proprietors of them, 

 that they may he lodged, valued and paid for, 

 agreeably to the order of the 23d ult. 



Gen. Sullivan to JVew Hampshire Committee of 

 Safety, dated Winter Hill, December, 8, 1775. 

 Much respected Gentlemen : Your favor, 

 signed by Col. Whipple, is now before me. But 

 previous to the receipt thereof, common fame, 

 with his usual readiness, had proclaimed your 

 vigorous exertions, and the noble spirit of your 

 people. General Washington, and all the other 

 officers, are extremely pleased, and bestow the highest 

 encomiums on you and your troops, freely acknow- 

 ledging that JVew Hampshire forces, for bravery 

 and resolution, far surpass the other Colonies ; and 

 that no Province discovers so much zeal in the 

 common cause. 



Gen. Sullivan to the New Hampshire Committee of 

 Safely, dated Winter Hill, December 2, 1775. 

 Gentlemen : I take this opportunity to inform 

 you, that the Connecticut forces not only deter- 

 mine to quit our lines at the end of the term, 

 but, to their eternal infamy, endeavored to leave 

 us yesterday, which was five days before their 

 time expired. We can therefore have no hope 

 of their tarrying after the 6th. Half of Gen. 

 Putnam's regiment is now under guard. The peo- 

 ple who have escaped from Boston inform us 

 that the enemy are fully acquainted with our sit- 

 uation, and will probably take advantage of it. 

 For heaven's sake despatch your forces as soon 

 as possible. 



Gf ii. Sullivan to the JVew Hampshire Committee of 

 Safety, dated Winter Hill, JYovember 29, 1775. 

 Dear Sirs: General Washington has sent to 

 New Hampshire for thirty-one companies to lake 

 possession of and defend our lines, in room of 

 the Connecticut forces, who most scandalously 

 refuse to tarry till the 1st of January. 1 must 

 therefore entreat your utmost exertions to for- 

 ward the raising of these companies, lest the 

 enemy should take advantage of their absence, 

 and force our lines. As the Connecticut forces 

 will, at all events, leave us on or before ilie 10th 

 of next month, pray call upon every true friend 

 of his country to assist with heart and hand in 

 raising and sending forward those companies as 

 soon as possible. 



From the same to the same, dated Winter Hill, No- 

 vember 30, 1775. 

 Gentlemen : I have, by command of his Ex- 

 cellency General Washington, to inform you that 

 the Connecticut forces (deaf io ihe enirealies of 

 [heir own as well as all other officers, and re- 

 gardless of the contempt with which their own 

 government threatens to treat them upon their 

 return) have absolutely refused to tarry till ihe 

 fn«t day of January, but will quit the lines on 

 llie 6th day of December. They have deceived 

 us and llieir officers by pretending there would 

 he no difficulty with them, till they have got so 

 near the close of their term, and now, to their 

 eternal infamy, demand a bounty to induce lliem 

 to tarry only the three weeks. This is such an 

 insult 10 every American, that we are determined 

 to release them, at the expiration of their term 

 at all hazards, and find ourselves obliged imme- 

 diately lo supply with troops from New Damp- 

 shire and Massachusetts Bay. The number re- 

 quired from yon is thirty-one companies of sixty- 

 four men in a company. * * The whole 

 number, officers and men, amounts to one thou- 

 sand nine hundred and eighty-four. * * * * 

 I earnestly entreat you, for the honor of New 

 Hampshire, to show to the world your attach- 

 ment for the nohle cause. Let the worthless 

 sons of Connecticut know that the other colo- 

 nies will not suffer our lines to he given up, 

 or our country destroyed, nor the sons of New 

 Hampshire (like those parsimonious wretches) 

 want to he bribed into the preservation of their 

 liberties. I hope, the eager speed with which the 

 New Hampshire forces will inarch to take pos- 

 session of and defend our lines will evince to 

 the world their love of liberty and regard to 

 their country. 



John Langdon the tallest New Hampshire 

 Patriot in civil life. 



Of the noble spirits of New Hampshire whose 

 industry never tired and whose means never 

 failed that gave impulse to the revolution, the 

 great and good John Langdon perhaps towered 

 a head and shoulders above all others who were 

 not merely military men. His great private gen- 

 erosity in furnishing the money and means which 

 the public coffers could not then supply for the 

 Bennington expedition in 1777, will be remem- 

 bered as the effort reaching practically a little 

 ►beyond all those who as yet had pledged lo the 

 cause their " lives, their fortunes and their sacred 

 honors." The following, from the Documentary 

 History, will shew the great man in a new atti- 

 tude to many of our own citizens as claiming 

 our grateful acknowledgments for the services 

 he has rendered to the country and to posterity : 



John Langdon io the JVew Hampshire Committee of 

 Safety. 

 Portsmouth, February 22, 1776. 

 Gentlemen : I have just enrolled nearly one 

 hundred men in the ship-yard, and have ordered 

 every man to attend the muster at an appointed 

 time, wilh a good fire-arm, powder and ball, 

 some of which are already completely equipped ; 

 but, as there is no powder to be had, only what 

 is in the public stores, 1 would submit it to the 

 consideration of the honorable Committee, whe- 

 ther it would not be best, to order that those 

 men who are not supplied already, be supplied 

 by the public when occasion requires, or, if it is 

 best, for each to appear with one half pound of 

 powder in his horn, for which a receipt to be 

 taken, and if it is not returned, or made use of 

 against the enemy, to pay double the value at 

 this time, which I will stop out of their wages ; 

 which I think will effectually prevent waste, ar/.d 

 put those who have no powder upon the same 

 footing with those who have bought their own 

 ammunition. I think I may with safety serve 

 the colony in this matter, and not in the least in- 

 terfere with the Continental business. I should 

 he glad to have some answer from the honorable 

 Committee relative to this matter, as I have or- 

 dered every man to be ready for mustering by 

 such a day, and should be glad to have every 

 man furnished. 



Proceedings of the Committee of Safety. 



Friday, Feb. 23, 1776. 

 Received a letter from Captain John Langdon, 

 requesting some powder for his carpenters. In 

 answer to which ws advised him that ihe Quar- 

 ter Master should he ordered to deliver them 

 half a pound weight each out of the public 

 stock, at the time of danger, to be by them ac- 

 counted for. 



An Unpensioned Revolutionary Veteran. 



We had hardly expected at this late period to ! 

 meet the man in New Hampshire now alive 

 whose recollection should extend back as a par- 

 ticipator iu the events which occurred on Bun- 

 ker Hill on the 17th June 1775: seventy-lhree 

 years, more than the common age of man, have 

 transpired since that event. 



In the time of a very pleasant and agreeable 

 visit to our friends of the First Family of Sha- 

 kers at Canterbury, commencing our last tour in 

 New Hampshire, we took some pains to obtain 

 an interview with the now oldest man of that 

 community: John VVadleigh, aged 92, born in 

 Ilawke, now Danville, N. II., was then nineteen 

 years of age, and fought side by side in that bat-' 

 tie with an elder brother, the lale Thomas VVad- 

 leigh, Esq. of Sutton : he was then of Col. James 

 Read's regiment who went upon the field with 

 Stark, and his company officers were Hezekinh 

 Hutching, captain — Amos Emerson, lieutenant, 

 and John March, ensign. The venerable gentle- 

 man tarried from his work in the field to give us 



