USA > Connecticut > Hartford County > Granby > A history of the copper mines and Newgate Prison, at Granby, Conn. Also, of the captivity of Daniel Hayes, of Granby, by the Indians, in 1707 > Part 3
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
On the evening before his capture, there was a corn husk- ing party at the house of Mr. Hayes. when, in the course of conversation, he remarked that carly in the ensuing morn- ing, he should endeavor to find his horse, which was feed- ing in the forests, and, as supposed, westerly of the settle- ment. This conversation, as appears from the sequel, was overheard by Indians, who were, at that time, Jurking about the house, and who, it is supposed, from the information thins obtained, devised their plans of operation for the next morning,
After the family had retired and were asleep, they were awakened by the barking of their dog, which manifested so much uneasiness as to induce Mr. Hayes to leave his bed, and, with his dog, to seek for the cause. Supposing the disturbance to have proceeded from the incursion of cattle into the corn-field contiguous to his house, (an ordinary occurrence in those days,) and finding it unmolested, he again songht repose in sleep. But the dog continued rest- ive, and plainly made known, by his condnet, that there was something wrong in the neighborhood of the house.
The next morning, at an early hour, Mr. Hayes, taking with him a bridle, proceeded into the forests to find his horse. His ronte led him to pass Stoney Hill, a ridge of land stretching north and south about eighty rods westerly of Salmon brook street. Upon turning round the south point
* Thus goes the story. But the author must be allowed to say, for him- self, that he very much doubts whether this affair had anything to do with the capture of Hayes, which took place some years afterwards. The Indians, it is well known, were invited to such deeds by the French in Canada, to whom they carried their captives, and by whom, as is supposed, they were rewarded for the service. The more correct supposition probably is, that the captors came into this weak settlement, to sieze and carry off'any person who might be thrown in their way, and that they would have taken as readily any other person as Hayes, if an opportunity, equally as favorable, had occurred.
29
CAPTIVITY OF DANIEL HAYES.
of this hill, he was seized by three Indians, who sprang upon him from an ambush where they had secreted themselves from view. So suddenly and unexpectedly came this attack upon Hayes, that he was deprived of all power to make resistance, or even any attempt to escape. One Indian seized him by the throat-another, enjoined silence by putting a hand over his mouth-whilst the other, with a tomahawk raised over his head, enforced obedience and submission. They immediately bound his hands at his back, with the throat-latch of the bridle, and, with their cap- tive, hastily left the place, taking their course in a northern direction.
Another account states that Hayes was accompanied by a Mr. Lamson, who, being an agile and athletic man, ontran the Indians and effected his escape-that the number of Indians, belonging to the party, amounted to five or more; and that the transaction was witnessed by a Mrs. Holcomb, wife of Mr. Nathaniel Holcomb, who was in the fields that morning milking, but who, from considerations relating to her own safety, was deterred from returning home, or giving an alarm, until the Indians with their captive bad left the place.
Very soon, however, the usual alarm was spread, and a force was raised sufficient to make pursuit. Iannediate effort was made to relieve the captive, and punish the aggressors. And notice of the calamity having been sent to Windsor, a larger force came from that town to the rescue. The route taken by the Indians was found and traced, and, at times, the marks of their tracks appeared so fresh, that strong hopes were entertained of overtaking them. But, their superior cunning in such exploits, with their fleetness in passing through the wilderness, enabled them to avoid their pursuers, and escape with their prisoner.
In the mean time Hayes, knowing that any symptoms of lagging on his part would probably cost him his life, and supposing, moreover, that in no event would his captors, if closely pursued, suffer him to live, exerted himself to keep up with them. And he soon found he could do this without
3+
30
CAPTIVITY OF DANIEL HAYES.
much fatigue, for he was robust, and accustomed to such traveling. On one occasion, during this journey, when his companions wished to test his fleetness, he ontstripped them so far that they were on the point of shooting him to stop his progress. He might then have escaped, as he after- wards said, "if he had had his thoughts about him."
On the first night after his capture, the party encamped at the foot of Sodom mountain. He was secured during the night, by being placed upon his back, with.each arm and ancle strongly fastened to a sapling, and with sticks so cross- ing his body as to be lain upon by an Indian on each side. Hle passed most of the nights, bound in this manner, during his long march to Canada. On the second day, the party crossed Connectient river, by fording and swimming, and spent the ensuing night at the base of Mount Holyoke.
In this manner, they proceeded from day to day, up the valley of Connecticut river and through the wilderness, on their route to Canada. Many incidents occurred, which Hayes used to relate. One evening, the little savages. belonging to a village where the party had stopped, annoyed him by tickling his feet as he lay before a fire with his arms pinioned as usual. Bearing this annoyance as long as his patience would allow, he attempted to get rid of his tormentors by using his feet in self-defense-during which process, some of them were kicked into the fire. He expected nothing short of death for this aggression, but was agreeably surprised when the fathers of the Inant children, instead of offering violence, patted him on his shoulders and exclaimed " boon ! " *
They were nearly thirty days on this journey, during all which time the sufferings of poor Hayes were excessive, and almost without intermission. Subjected to hard toil through each day, with no sustenance save what the forests and rivers furnished, and deprived at night of rest, by the man-
' If' this word is correctly handed down, it was intended probably, for the French word bon, and used on this occasion to express approbation. The northern Indians, at this time, were in the habit of using a few words derived from the French.
31
CAPTIVITY OF DANIEL HAYES.
ner of binding his limbs, he had that to sustain which, in most cases, would have brought the sufferer to the grave. But Hayes, if he must be a victim, determined that he at least would not voluntarily contribute to hasten the sacrifice. He possessed that happy faculty of making, at all times, the best of his condition. His cheerfuluess, though assumed- his ability to endure fatigue and hardships-and hisapparent stoical indifference to his fate, secured the good opinion of his contrades, and tended to lighten his burdens, and, possi- bly, to prolong his life. Indulgence in despondency conld bring no relief, and would, as he well knew, but render more bitter the cup of his afflictions. He very wisely there- fore made up his mind " to make a virtue of necessity," by submitting with the best possible grace to that fate which he too well knew awaited him.
The Indians told him, on the journey, of their lying about his house on the night before he was taken, and of their overhearing the conversation relating to his intention to proceed, on the next morning, into the wilderness to find his horse ; which information, thus obtained, induced them to lie in wait at Stoney hill in order to capture him.
When they arrived at the great Indian encampment on the borders of Canada, the prisoner was delivered over to the council of the nation, to be disposed of as they should adjudge. By their decision, he was doomed to undergo the painful ordeal of "running the gauntlet." Being stripped to his skin, and annointed according to custom, he com- menced the course; and after many flagellations and hard knocks received, when approaching near the end of the line, being exhausted and faint, he bolted from the course to avoid a blow from an upraised war club, and sought safety by fleeing into a wigwam, at the door of which sat a super- annnated and infirm squaw. He was pursued, but the squaw proclaimed the house sacred, and its inmates pro- tected from injury. By her intercession, and especially by the deference paid to a place thus sanctified according to the rites of Indian superstition, "the appetite of the savage for blood was stayed."
32
CAPTIVITY OF DANIEL HAYES.
The squaw, whose husband and only son had fallen in war, claimed the captive, and adopted him as her son. She was destitute, and so infirm as to be unable to walk. Hayes, in addition to minor duties, was compelled to provide for her sustenance and fuel. He administered to her wants, and devoted to her the kindest attentions,-and she, in return, evinced her gratitude, by calling him her son ! He lived in this family about five years; and although, during this time, he fared better, perhaps, than most Indian cap- tives, yet existence, in his then condition, had for him but few charms, and the future unveiled to his view no cheering prospect. He was in bondage, compelled to adopt the customs and modes of life of savages, and was deprived of almost every comfort deemed necessary by civilized people. Besides, he could entertain no reasonable hope of being restored to his home and kindred-and more than all, his life was at the mercy, whim, or caprice, of savage masters.
One of the tasks imposed upon him, in the winter season was to draw upon a sled his Indian mother to such places as she wished to visit, and especially to the feasts and coun- cil assemblages of her tribe. Upon occasion of a " dog feast," which, by the usagesof her people, all were expected to attend, he proceeded with her, in this manner, until, ascending a hill which wassteep and slippery, he found his strength, when put to its utmost power, barely adequate to make any headway. By perseverance and exertion how- ever, he was enabled to reach nearly the summit of the hill, when he slipped and fell ; and either by design, or inability to hold on, left the sled, with its mortal load, to find the bottom of the declivity withont a pilot-secretly wishing, no doubt, that her appetite for riding would be cured by this trip. In this perilons adventure, the sled struck a stump Bear the foot of the hill, which capsized the squaw, who was severely injured by the fall. Whether an accident or not, Hayes professed much sorrow for the disaster, and managed the affair so adroitly, that he escaped every impu- tation of blame, and continued to retain the confidence and good opinion of the Indians.
33
CAPTIVITY OF DANIEL HAYES.
Shortly after this event, he was sold to a Frenchman in Montreal, through the agency, it is said, of a Papist priest. His new master was kind, and allowed him many of the necessaries, with some of the Inxuries, of life, of which he had been so long deprived. Learning that Hayes was by trade a weaver, he started him in this business, and by allowing him a share of the profits, Hayes was enabled, in the course of about two years, to earn money enough to purchase his freedom. The good Frenchman not only emancipated him, but supplied him with clothes, provisions, and a half breed guide to conduct him safely through the warring tribes on his journey homeward. The guide pro- ceeding with him as far as Mount Holyoke, pointed out to him the smokes of his friends, " the pale faces," wished him a happy return to his family, and departed, in another direc- tion, to wend his way back to Canada. In about twenty-five days after leaving Montreal, Hayes had the happiness to reach his home, and to exchange hearty greetings and con- gratulations with his friends, to whom he appeared almost " as one raised from the dead."
Thus, after an absence of about seven years, the captive was restored to freedom, a home and a happy circle of rela- tives and friends. He had heard nothing from his family since his capture, nor had they received any tidings of him, though they either knew, or had good reason to suppose, that he had been taken and carried off by the Indians. His friends had flattered themselves, for a long while, that he would be spared to return to them, but his long absence had extinguished every vestige of hope, and he had for some time been given up as lost.
With buoyant spirits, renovated courage and nnshaken resolution, he set himself to the task of making up for the lost time he had spent with the Indians. His constitution, naturally robust, had suffered nothing by his long captivity, and his ambition had lost none of its fire. He married, settled down upon a farm, and within a short time, became a thriving agriculturist. In 1720, he built a house which 'is now standing, and is the oldest building in town. It is
34
CAPTIVITY OF DANIEL HAYES.
situated on the east side of Salmon brook street, in the lower or southern part of the street, and is at present owned by Mr. Henry Gillett. In this house religious meetings were held during some four or five years before the erection of the first meeting-house in that society, in 1743.
Mr. Hayes became a prominent citizen, was often em- ployed in civil affairs, and during many years, was a pillar in the church at Salmon brook, of which he was a member at its organization. He lived to see the infant settlement, so long exposed to Indian barbarities, a populous village, with no crafty enemy to disturb its repose, and strong enough, had danger existed, to protect its inhabitants from plunder or capture. But, long before his death, all Indian difficul- ties had ceased.
He died in 1756, at the age of seventy-one, and was buried in the cemetery at the north end of the village. A red free- stone monument marks the spot of his last resting-place, on which is inscribed the following epitaph :
HERE LIES, YE BODY OF MR. DANIEL HAYES,
Who served his Generation in steady course of Probity and Piety, and was a lover of Peace, and God's Public Worship ; And being satisfied with Long life, left this world with a Comfortable Hope of life Eternal,
Sept. 3d, 1756, in ye 71 year of his Age.
HOPPE
F846226 702
5990H
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.