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their escape into the woods. It was imagined by the English, that not more than fifty of the whole village made their escape.

Having put the enemy to flight, the English returned to the village, where they found the jesuit Raile, firing on a number of our men, who had not been in pursuit of the enemy. He had in the wigwam an English boy, about fourteen years of age, who had been taken about six months before. This boy he had shot through the thigh, and afterwards stabbed in the body; but by the care of surgeons, he recovered.1 Moulton had given orders not to kill the jesuit, but as by his firing from the wigwam, one of the English had been wounded, one lieutenant Jaques broke open the door and shot him through the head. Jaques excused himself to his commanding officer, alleging that Ralle was loading his gun when he entered the wigwam, and declared that he would neither give nor take quarter. Moulton allowed that some answer was given which provoked Jaques, but he doubted whether it was the same which was reported. He ever expressed his disapprobation of the action. Mog, a famous Indian chief and warrior, was found shut up in another wigwam, from which he fired and killed one of the three Mohawks. This so enraged his brother, that he broke down the door and shot him dead. The English in their rage, followed and killed his wife and two helpless children. It is painful to relate the inhumanity of war, and the unnecessary shedding of blood which is the mere fruit of revenge, or at least of a great want of benevolent feeling.

Having cleared the village of the enemy, the troops fell to plundering and destroying the wigwams. The plunder of an Indian village afforded no considerable booty. As it was near harvest, there was but little corn; a few blankets, kettles and guns, with about three barrels of powder, was all they could find to bring off, except the plate of the church, which they judged to be no sacrilege to bring away. They expressed some zeal against idolatry in breaking the crucifixes and other imagery which they found.

Harman and his party, who went to the corn fields, did not come up till nearly night, when the action was over. The whole army lodged in the wigwams that night, under a guard of forty men. The next morning they counted twenty seven dead bodies, and they had one woman and three children prisoners. Among the dead were Bomazeen, Mog, Job, Carabeset, Wissememet, and Bomazeen's son in law, all noted warriors. As the troops were anxious for their men and whale boats, they marched early for Taconick. Christian, one of the Mohawks, was sent back, or went of his own accord, after they had begun their march, and set fire to the wigwams and to the church, and then rejoined the company. On the 27th, they returned to the fort at Richmond.

1 Governor Hutchinson says, "I find this act of cruelty in the account given by Harman upon oath." Hist. vol. II. p. 312.

This was a heavy blow to the enemy: more than one half of their fighting men were killed or wounded, and most of their principal warriors. Charlevoix says, "Although more than two thousand shot had been fired upon them, yet there were no more than thirty killed and fourteen wounded." He paints the cruelty and profaneness of the English in very strong colours; especially in killing and mangling father Ralle, the jesuit, and in breaking the images, the latter of which he terms profaning the adorable body of Jesus Christ.

The English, encouraged by their success at Norridgewock, engaged in several other enterprizes. Colonel Westbrook marched with three hundred men across the country from Kennebeck to Penobscot, with a view to surprize the enemy in that quarter. But the only advantage of the expedition was the exploration of the condition of that part of the country, which before was but little known.

Other parties were ordered up Amaseconti, and Amarescoggin, and a second attempt was made on Norridgewock, but no Indians were to be found in those places. The old men, women and children had been removed, and the warriors were lurking in secret places, and watching every opportunity to alarm and harass the frontiers.

In September, a party of English, consisting of fourteen men, went out from Dunstable in search of two men who were missing. About thirty Indians lay in wait for them, and shot down six and took three prisoners. A second went out and lost two of their number. The western frontier was better guarded. Though often alarmed, little damage was done. At the eastward much loss had been sustained both in men and in vessels. No advantages had been derived by the war. The people of Massachusetts found it a much more serious business than their house of representatives, or they themselves, had imagined.

At the session in October, colonel Stoddard was sent to Connecticut, earnestly soliciting, that the General Assembly would unite with Massachusetts in offensive operations against the enemy. The legislature however could not be persuaded to do any thing more than they had done. They agreed that they would defend their own frontiers, and those of the county of Hampshire.

They observed, that they were not satisfied with respect to the justice of the war: that though governor Saltonstall had been to Boston, and at the desire, and upon a resolution of the assembly, had taken much pains to inform himself of the grounds of it, they had not been satisfied; nor had they now obtained satisfaction from the representations of colonel Stoddard. They further observed, That the government of Massachusetts had not consulted them, but proclaimed and began the war without their consent, or even given them notice. They wished the government of Massa

chusetts would coolly and seriously consider the grounds of the war, lest much innocent blood should be shed. At the same time they professed their esteem and friendship for their brethren of Massachusetts, and that if they had full satisfaction relative to the reasons of the war, they should be ready to engage in it with greater alacrity and spirit. What effect this answer of the assembly had on the general court and people of Massachusetts is not known; but it is probable that it was very considerable, as they soon after gave intimations of their willingness to be at peace with the Indians.

The government of Massachusetts, to promote enterprize and encourage volunteers, raised the premium for Indian scalps and prisoners to an hundred pounds for each. This induced one John Lovell, to raise a company of volunteers on purpose to hunt the Indians, and bring in their scalps. On his first scout he got one scalp and one prisoner, which he brought into Boston on the 5th of January, 1725. He took them more than forty miles above the lake of Winnepesiaukee. On a second enterprize, he discovered ten Indians round a fire, all asleep. He ordered part of his company to fire on them as they lay, and the other part to fire on them as they rose. Three were killed by the first fire, and the other seven as they rose. On the 3d of March the ten scalps were brought to Boston. Animated by these repeated successes, he made a third attempt with a company of thirty three men. On the 8th of May, they discovered an Indian on a point of land which joined to a great pond or lake. They were suspicious that he was set there to draw them into a snare, and that there might be many Indians at no great distance. They therefore laid down their packs, that they might be prepared for action. They then marched nearly two miles round the pond, to kill or take the Indian whom they had discovered. At length, when the English came within gun shot, he fired and wounded Lovell and one of his men with large shot. He was immediately shot and scalped. In the mean time, a party of about eighty Indians seized the packs of the English, and, at a place convenient for their purpose, waited for their return. When they returned, the enemy rose with the Indian yell, fired and ran upon them with their hatchets, in great fury. Lovell, to secure his rear, retreated to the pond, and the English, though their number was so unequal, continued the action five or six hours, until night. Captain Lovell, his lieutenant, Farwell, and ensign Robbins, were mortally wounded early in the action, and five more were afterwards killed. Sixteen escaped unhurt, and returned, but they were obliged to leave eight of their wounded companions in the woods, without provisions and without a surgeon. One of them was Mr. Fry, their chaplain, of Andover, who had behaved with great bravery, had killed and scalped one Indian in the heat of the action, but finally perished for want of relief. Two of

the eight afterwards got into the English settlements. Fifteen in the whole were lost, and eighteen saved. This unfortunate affair discouraged all scalping parties for the future.

From this time the war languished, and nothing material was transacted. The English and Indians were both weary of it, and wished for peace. After the death of Ralle, the Indians were at liberty to follow their own inclinations. The Penobscots began war with the greatest reluctance, and were now considered as most inclined to peace. To discover their feelings, an Indian hostage was suffered to go home near the close of the winter of 1724, with a captive, on their parole. They came back to the fort at St. Georges on the 6th of February, accompanied with two others of the tribe. They related, that at a meeting of the Penobscots, it was agreed to make proposals of peace. One of the Indians, who was a sachem, was sent back with the other Indian, to bring a deputation of several other chiefs, for the purpose of concluding a peace. In consequence of these measures, some time in June, preliminaries of peace were settled, and a cessation of arms was agreed upon. Soon after, four delegates came to Boston and signed a treaty of peace.

The next year, this peace was more publicly ratified at Falmouth, in Casco bay. Lieutenant governor Dummer, of Massachusetts, with several gentlemen of the council, John Wentworth, Esq. lieutenant governor of New-Hampshire, and Paul Mascerene, Esq. one of the council, and a commissioner of the government of Nova-Scotia, were parties in this treaty.

Thus, after much loss of blood and treasure, both to the English and the Indians, and without the least advantage to either, ended this unhappy war. The province of Massachusetts had their frontiers ravaged for a great extent, lost between one and two hundred brave men, and had many wounded and taken prisoners, with eleven vessels, besides all the trouble and expense which they had incurred.

It was some thousands of pounds damage to Connecticut. Besides maintaining soldiers at their own out posts, about fifty or sixty were sent every year, during the war, into the county of Hampshire, to cover and defend that part of the country.1 These were paid by Connecticut. The whole colony was put into a state of warlike defence, but suffered no loss of lives.

The treaty which was made with the Indians at Falmouth, has been greatly applauded as the best treaty ever made with the Indians in that part of the country. From that time, there was a long and profound peace with them. But this cannot be attributed at

1 Governor Hutchinson observes, "Justice should be done to the government of Connecticut; they generally, at the request of Massachusetts, sent forces every year during the summer, in this and former wars, and paid their wages, the provisions being furnished by this government." Vol. II. p. 304. Connecticut gave the men three pounds per month.

all to any peculiar excellence in the treaty, but entirely to other circumstances. The treaty was nothing different in any thing important from former treaties. They had felt the ruinous consequences of war; the Indians were left more to their own inclinations, and were less under jesuitical and French influence. The province of Massachusetts treated them with more policy and friendship. The Indians had long been desirous of trading houses, to supply them with necessaries, and take off their furs and skins. Governor Shute promised them that this should be done for them, but, as has been observed, the general court would make no provision for it, at that time. But now provision was made, and trading houses were erected at St. George's, Kennebeck and Saco rivers. The Indians soon found that they could purchase goods on better terms at these houses, than they could of the French, or even of the private English traders among them. This broke up their trade with the French and with the private traders, by whom they were imposed upon, defrauded and provoked. Had these measures been adopted before, as governor Shute had proposed, it would doubtless have prevented the war.

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CHAPTER VI.

THE township of Lebanon originally consisted of a number of parcels of land, purchased by different persons, and at different times, but finally united by particular agreements in one town. There were four proprieties, as they were called. That which has been called the first, was a purchase of five miles in length and three in width, extending from Windham line on the north-east part, south-westerly to the bounds of Hebron and Colchester. This purchase was made of Owanecho, sachem of the Mohegans. This grant bears date in 1698, and is called the five mile purchase. The second propriety, as it has been called, was a tract of five miles in length and one in width, lying south of the five mile purchase and adjoining to it. This is called the Fitch and Mason, or mile purchase. It was a grant made by the aforesaid Owanecho to the Rev. Mr. Fitch and the famous Major John Mason. This grant was made in 1695, and the tract originally belonged to the town of Norwich.

The third propriety was termed the Clark and Dewy purchase, from the names of the first owners and settlers. This tract was obtained in the year 1706. This adjoined the five mile purchase on the northerly side, extending from the Windham bounds on the easterly part, to Hebron on the westerly; and from the said five

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