USA > Connecticut > New London County > Norwich > History of Norwich, Connecticut: from its possession by the Indians, to the year 1866 > Part 39
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HISTORY OF NORWICH.
to get a sight of these interesting foreigners, with whom they conversed in very good English, and exhorted to live free, or die for Liberty.
It is well known that during the Revolutionary war attempts were made to regulate the prices of articles by publie statutes, in order to reduce the quantity of the circulating medium. In Connecticut, prices were fixed by the civil authorities of each town, in all cases not determined by acts of Assembly.
April 7, 1777. Voted, strictly to adhere to the law of the State regulating the prices of the necessaries of life ; and we do resolve with cheerfulness to exert our best endeav- ours within our sphere, to support the honor of that good and salutary law.
Dec. 29. Voted, that the town consider the articles of confederation and perpetna? union proposed by the Continental Congress wise and salutary.
1778. Abstract of instructions to the representatives of the town :
1. To use their influence to have taxes more equitable.
2. To have bills of credit called in.
3. Forfeited estates confiscated.
4. The yeas and nays on all important questions published.
5. Profane swearing punished by disability to sustain offices.
Oct. 1. Voted, to present a memorial to the General Assembly, praying for a just and equitable system of taxation and representation.
Extract from the memorial :
" The Poll tax your memorialists consider at the present day, an insupportable bur- den on the poor, while a great part of the growing estate of the rich is by law exempt from taxation. The present mode of representation is also objected to by your memo- rialists. They believe all who pay taxes and are of sober life and conversation, ought to have a voice in all public communities, where their monies and properties are dis- posed of for public uses."
It is not surprising that the subject of taxation should be one of exciting interest in a community who were annually paying 6d., 9d. and 12d. on the pound for the use of the army. At one time in Connecticut, when the currency was at par, a rate of even 14d. was necessary to meet the exi- gencies of the treasury.
The town afterwards presented another petition to the Assembly, the substance of which was, that every kind of property, and that only, should be the object of taxation. This general principle, they say, is in their view the only equitable one. Committees were sent to several neighbor- ing towns, to get their minds on the subject, and they at length resolved to publish, at the expense of the town, the prevalent views of the citizens on taxation, in the form of a letter to the freemen of the State, a copy of it to be sent to every town. In this letter the deficiencies of the existing system were ably pointed out.
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HISTORY OF NORWICH.
" By the present system, six of the poorest swine a year old are rated equal to £100 in cash at interest, and 30 such swine equal to a house of £1000. The meanest horse, even 30 years old, is on a par with the best in his prime. An acre of the best land is rated no higher than the poorest that is arable in the State.
" Industry, which ought to be encouraged, is doubly taxed and that in a very capri- cious and vague manner."
The objections against the poll-tax were these :
"That it is a personal tax, and ought to be paid in personal service, that is, in de- fending the community ; that it is a double tax, the poor man paying for his poll, which is the substitute for his labor, and for the avails of his labor also; that it is im- politie, as tending to prevent early marriages, which promote industry, frugality, and every social virtue."
The committee upon this memorial were some of the choice spirits of Norwich,-Benjamin Huntington, Dr. Theophilus Rogers, Dr. Elisha Tracy, Aaron Cleveland, Jonathan Huntington, and Nathaniel Niles. The document has strong points, but it is not known from which of the members it emanated.
Again, three years later, (1781,) the town made another effort to obtain their favorite measures,-the abrogation of the poll-tax, and the extension of the right of suffrage. The instructions given to the representatives embraced the following measures :
That polls be struck out of the tax list, or rated low.
That all who pay taxes be allowed to vote, if of good moral character.
That debates in the House be open.
That absentees be fined.
That a regular constitution be formed.
In October, 1780, a convention was held at Hartford to consider what measures should be taken in regard to trade and currency. The delegates from Norwich were Daniel Rodman and Solomon Safford; the committee to draft their instructions, Elisha Lathrop, Christopher Leflingwell, and Aaron Cleveland. They were directed to urge the loaning of money to Congress to defray the public expenses and prevent the necessity of a further emission of paper money.
In town meeting, June 24, 1780,-
" Voted, that a committee of fifty able, judicious men be appointed to engage fifty able-bodied, effective men, required of this town to fill up our complement of the Con- tinental Army for three years, or during the war ; each member of the committee to procure one soldier, and pay him twenty silver dollars bounty, over and above the bounty given by the state, and pay him the same annually, as long as he continues in the service; also 40s. per month in silver money, or Indian corn at 3s. per bushel, fresh pork at 3d. per pound, and wheat at 6s. per bushel."
The committee were not able to carry this vote into effect : the term of enlistment was too long ; nor were the men raised until by a subsequent
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vote the term of service was restricted to six months. In July of the same year, upon a requisition of the Governor, twenty-seven more men were enlisted for six months, to whom the same bounty and pay were given.
The General Assembly had passed an act to arrange all the inhabitants of the State into classes, each class to raise so many recruits and furnish such and such clothing and other supplies. Norwich at first refused to enter upon this system, and remonstrated. With great reluctance, the measure was at last adopted by the inhabitants, and being found to accom- plish the end, was continued through the war, though it was never popular with them.
After recovering from the first stunning blow of the Revolution, the inhabitants of Norwich were not only alert in turning their attention to various industrial pursuits, but engaged also in the brilliant chance game of privateering. The war, therefore, while it exhausted the strength and resources of neighboring towns that lay exposed upon the sea-coast, acted like a spur to the enterprise of Norwich. New London at the mouth of the river was depressed in all her interests, kept in continual alarm, and finally, by the blazing torch of the enemy, almost swept from the face of the earth ; but Norwich, securely seated at the head of the river, defended by her hills and nourished by her valleys, planting and reaping without fear of invasion or loss, not only built new shops and dwelling-houses, and engaged with spirit and success in a variety of new manufactures, but entered into ship-building, and boldly sent out her vessels to bring in spoils from the ocean.
In 1781 and 1782, the town was overflowing with merchandise, both tropical and European .* New mercantile firms were established: Daniel Rodman, Samuel Woodbridge, Lynde McCurdy, and others,-and lavish varieties of fancy texture, as well as the substantial products of almost every climate, were offered for sale. The shelves and counters of the fashionable class of shops displayed such articles as superfine broadcloths, men's silk hose, India silks, Damascus silks, taffetas, satins, Persians, and velvets, blonde lace, gauzes, and chintzes. These goods were mostly ob- tained by successful privateering.
Another class of merchandise, generally of a cheaper kind, and not dealt in by honorable traders, but covertly offered for sale in various places, or distributed by peddlers, was obtained by secret and unlawful intercourse with the enemy.
The coast of Connecticut being entirely girdled by Long Island and New York, and the British and tories having these wholly under their
* In May, 1782, a very large stock and great variety of European goods, imported in the brigantine Firebrand from Amsterdam, was sold by auction at the store of Messrs. Zabdiel Rogers & Co., Bean Hill.
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control, it was very difficult to prevent the secret intercourse and traffic of the two parties through the Sound. In the later years of the war espe- cially, a corrupt, underhand, smuggling trade prevailed to a great extent, which was emboldened by the indifference or connivance of the local authorities, and stimulated by the readiness of people to purchase cheap goods without asking from whence they came. Remittances for these goods must be made in coin, therefore they were sold only for cash, which, finding its way back to the enemy's lines, impoverished the country. Thus the traffic operated against agriculture and manufactures, against honest labor and lawful trade. Moreover, it nullified the laws and brought them into contempt.
Against this illicit traffic a strong association was formed at Norwich in July, 1782. The company bound themselves by solemn pledges of life, fortune, and honor, to support the civil authority, to hold no intercourse, social or mercantile, with persons detected in evading the laws ; to furnish men and boats for keeping watch in suspected places, and to search out and break up all deposits of smuggled goods,-such goods to be seized, sold, and the avails devoted to charitable purposes.
The vigorous manner in which this company began to carry out their principles caused great commotion in the ranks of the guilty parties. Suspected persons suddenly disappeared ; sales were postponed ; goods which before had been openly exposed, withdrew into cellars and meal- chests, or were concealed in barns under the hay, and in hollow trees, thickets, and ravines.
Several seizures were made during the season, but the treaty of peace soon put an end to this clandestine traffic, and the association had but a brief existence.
Its object, however, was creditable to the patriotism and efficiency of the inhabitants, and a list of the signers gives us the names of sixty-eight prominent men who were on the stage of life at the close of the war, and all within the bounds of the present town.
MEMBERS OF THE ASSOCIATION AGAINST ILLICIT TRADE,* ALPHABETICALLY
ARRANGED.
Samuel Abbot,
Simeon Carew,
Joseph Howland,
Elijah Backns,
Thomas Coit,
Andrew Huntington,
Ephraim Bill,
William Coit,
Eliphalet Huntington,
Jonathan Boardman,
John Crary, Jonathan Huntington,
John M. Breed,
Jacob De Witt,
Joshua Huntington,
Shubael Breed,
Michael Dumont,
Levi Huntington,
Samuel Capron,
Thomas Fanning,
Simeon Huntington,
Eliphalet Carew,
Jabez Fitch,
William Hubbard,
Joseph Carew,
Joseph Gale,
Russell Hubbard & Son,
* Conn. Gazette, Vol. 19.
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HISTORY OF NORWICH.
Ebenezer Jones,
Asa Peabody,
Ransford Rose,
Joshua Lathrop,
Nathaniel P. Peabody,
Andrew Tracy, Jr.
Rufus Lathrop,
Joseph Peck,
Mundator Tracy,
Christopher Leffingwell,
Andrew Perkins,
Samuel Tracy,
Benajah Leffingwell,
Jabez Perkins,
Asa Waterman, Jr.
Jonathan Lester,
Jabez Perkins, Jr.
Samuel Wheat,
Elihu Marvin,
Joseph Perkins,
Joseph Whitmarsh,
John McCall,
Joseph Perkins, Jr.
Benajah Williams,
Lynde McCurdy,
Erastus Perkins,
Joseph Williams,
Seth Miner,
Hezekiah Perkins,
Jacob Witter,
Thomas Mumford,
Levi Perkins,
Dudley Woodbridge,
Nathaniel Niles,
Daniel Rodman,
Samuel Woodbridge,
Robert Niles,
Theophilus Rogers,
Alexander Youngs.
Timothy Parker,
Zabdiel Rogers,
In January, 1781, the inhabitants were divided into forty classes, to raise forty soldiers, which was their quota for the Continental army ; and again, into twenty classes for a State quota to serve at Horseneck and elsewhere. A list of persons in each class was made out, and each taxed in due proportion for the pay and fitting out of one recruit, whom they were to procure; two shirts, two pairs of woollen stockings, shoes and mittens were requisite for every soldier ; arms and uniforms were fur- nished by the state or country.
Each soldier's family was in the charge of a committee to see that they were supplied with the necessaries of life, for which the soldier's wages to a certain amount were pledged. The whole number of classes this year to procure clothing was 66.
In 1782, only 33 classes were required.
1783. Instructions were given to the representatives to use their influ- ence with the Assembly to obtain a remonstrance against the five years' pay granted by Congress to the officers of the Continental army. The manifesto of the town on this subject was fiery, dictatorial, and extrava- gant. A few paragraphs will show in strong relief the characteristics of the people,-jealous of their rights, quick to take alarm, and sensitively watchful over their cherished liberties.
" Where is the free son of America that ever had it in idea when adopting the arti- cles of confederation to have pensions bestowed on those characters (if any such there be) whose virtue could not hold them in service without such rewards over and above the contract which first engaged them."
" For a free people, just rising out of a threatening slavery, into free shining pros- pects of a most glorious peace and independence, now to be taxed without their consent to support and maintain a large number of gentlemen as pensioners, in a time of univer- sal peace, is, in our view, unconstitutional and directly in opposition to the sentiment of the states at large, and was one great spoke in the wheel which moved at first our late struggle with our imperious and tyrannical foes."
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HISTORY OF NORWICH.
Further instructions were given at the same time to the representatives to urge upon the Assembly the necessity of keeping a watchful eye upon the proceedings of Congress, to see that they did not exceed the powers vested in them, and to appoint a committee at every session to take into consideration the journals of Congress, and approve or disapprove, ap- plaud or censure the conduct of the delegates.
At no period during the war were the people of Norwich alarmed with the fear of a direct invasion of the enemy, except at the time of the attack on New London, Sept. 6, 1781. It was then rumored that Arnold, in- flamed with hatred against the country he had betrayed, and cherishing a vengeful spirit towards his native town, had determined at all hazards to march thither and spread desolation through the homes of his ancient friends and neighbors. Preparations were therefore made to receive him; goods were packed, and women and children made ready for flight. The fiery patriots of Norwich wished for nothing more than that he should attempt to march thither, as it would give them a long coveted opportunity of wreaking their vengeance on the traitor. But the undertaking was too hazardous ; Arnold, if he had the will, was too prudent to attempt any thing but a sudden and transient attempt upon the sea-board.
The last time that the militia were called out during the war, was in September, 1782. A detail of the circumstances will serve as a specimen of the harrassing alarms which had previously often occurred.
Benajalı Leffingwell was then lieutenant-colonel of the twentieth regi- ment, and at seven o'clock in the morning an express reached him with the following order :
To Major Leffingwell : I have certain intelligence that there is a large fleet in the Sound, designed for some part of the Main-wonld hereby request you without loss of time, to notify the regiment under your command to be ready to march at the short- est notice-also send expresses to New London immediately for further news, and con- tinue expresses as occasion may be. Your humble servant in the greatest haste,
SAMUEL M'CLELLAND, Colonel.
Wednesday morning, six o'clock.
I have much more to say if I had time. I am on the road to New London from Windham, where express came to me in the night.
Before nine o'clock the whole regiment had been summoned to turn out with one or two days' provisions, and be ready to march on hearing the alarm guns.
The regiment upon the ground that day, as the returns of the orderly- book show, consisted of one field officer, thirty-five commissioned officers, and 758 men, in eleven companies, under the following captains :
Joseph Carew, Samuel Wheat, Isaac Johnson,
Moses Stephens, Jonathan Waterman, William Pride, Samuel Lovett, Jacob De Witt.
Jabez Deming,
Nathan Waterman,
Abner Ladd,
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HISTORY OF NORWICH.
Orders at last came for them to march ; they were just ready. to start. when the order was countermanded ; again an express arrived, saying that the fleet appeared to be bound in, and orders were issued to stand ready : one hour they heard that the enemy was making preparations for a descent ; the next, that the fleet was moving up the Sound. Finally, the hostile ships having explored Gardiner's Bay, flitted out of the Sound, and the militia, after two days of harrassing suspense, were dismissed to their homes.
Concerning the manner in which the inhabitants testified their joy at the grand results of the seven years of war,-independence achieved, and the restoration of peace,-no published accounts have been found. Ac- cording to current reminiscences, the public rejoicings were boisterous and extravagant. The throng of people assembled on the Green was beyond all precedent, and great excesses were committed in the way of rioting and drinking.
But these were the revelries of an excited multitude. The demonstra- tions of other classes were of a deeper, nobler character. An intelligent lady still living (1865) remembers the celebration as the great event of her childhood. She describes the crowd upon the Green; their joyous greetings and congratulations ; the shaking of hands, waving of flags, firing, drumming, shouting, and the large bonfires at night.
The following Sabbath the church was filled with a dense crowd, all in their best array, smiling and happy. The choir of singers appeared with brilliant decorations, and sung an ode adapted to the occasion, in the tune of Worcester, of which the following was the opening stanza :
Behold a radiant light ! And by divine command, Fair Peace, the child of Heaven, descends To this afflicted land.
26
CHAPTER XXXII.
MARINE AFFAIRS. 1776-1783.
IN 1776, Connecticut ordered four row-galleys to be built. Three only were completed : the Shark, built at Norwich by Capt. Jonathan Lester ; the Crane, at East Haddam ; and the Whiting, at New Haven.
Capt. Lester went to Philadelphia for the plan of the Shark. Her dimensions were, "sixty feet keel, eighteen feet beam, five feet hold, and four inches dead rising."* These galleys carried two pieces of ordnance, six or nine pounders, and fifty men (including officers), and were furnished with lances, poles, and hatchets.
They were all sent to New York soon after they were rigged and manned, at the request of General Washington, to be used on the Hud- son river. The Shark was at first commanded by Theophilus Stanton, but while in service at New York, by Capt. Roger Fanning.
Capt. Lester had but just completed the Shark, when he received (July 2d) an order from Gov. Trumbull to hasten immediately with twenty-five carpenters to Crown Point, to build batteaux for the Lake, upon a requi- sition of Gen. Schuyler.
Capt. Robert Niles of Norwich was a ship-master of experience in the merchant service before the war, and one of the earliest band of Revolu- tionary cruisers. In July, 1775, Benjamin Huntington of Norwich and . John Deshon of New London were appointed agents of the colony to charter a fast-sailing vessel to go from place to place, carry intelligence, convey stores, and watch the enemy. They purchased the schooner Brit- annia at Stonington for £200, and brought her into the Thames, where she was fitted and furnished with a crew ; her name changed to the Spy, and Capt. Niles appointed her commander. His commission from Gov. Trumbull was dated Aug. 7, 1775. The Spy was about 50 tons burden, carried six 4-pounders, and usually about twenty men, but sometimes thirty.f
But though small in size, the Spy was invaluable in the amount of service she performed. She conveyed intelligence, and transported stores
* As master-builder, his pay was one Spanish dollar per day.
t The pay of a seaman was from 40s. to 48s. per month.
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HISTORY OF NORWICH.
along the coast. She was sent to Maryland for flour, and to the West Indies with hoops and staves to barter for island produce. She also took several rich prizes, among which was the Dolphin, a larger vessel than herself and more heavily armed, being of 80 tons burden, and to this Capt. Niles was for a short time transferred. In June, 1778, he was employed by the Government to carry to France an official copy of the ratified treaty with that kingdom, to perform which duty he again took command of the Spy. He arrived at Brest in twenty-one days, having passed undetected through a considerable British fleet that was cruising off the coast of France, in avoiding which he displayed the dexterity and vigilance of a thorough seaman. Six copies of the treaty were dispatched by different vessels, but this is supposed to have been the only one that reached its destination. Its arrival hastened the departure of recruits and stores that were preparing in France for the aid of the American cause.
The lieutenant of the Spy was Zebediah Smith, and the last survivor, of her crew was Capt. Benjamin Coit, who died at Norwich in 1841, aged eighty-three. He had enlisted in the naval service at the age of eighteen.
Capt. Niles was a native of Groton; born in the year 1734, and died; at Norwich in 1818 .* %
Lieut. Smith was lost at sea in December, 1791.
In the early part of the war, two other Norwich captains, Seth Hard -- ing and Timothy Parker, by their seamanship and success reflected honor upon the Connecticut marine. Capt. Harding was successively in com- mand of the brig Defence, 14 guns, the Oliver Cromwell, 18, and the Confederacy, 32, all owned by the State.
The Defence was built in 1776, at Hayden's ship-yard on the Connecti- cut river, under the superintendence of Capt. Harding and Benjamin Huntington. Capt. Ephraim Bill directed her rigging, and Elijah Backus forged her anchors. In her first trip out, 18th or 19th of June, 1776, she captured near the opening of Boston Bay, two British transports, a ship and a brig, the former with 210 soldiers, and the latter 112, belonging to . Frazer's Highland regiment. Col. Campbell was also among the prison- ers. In a subsequent cruise the same year, Capt. Harding took a mer- chant vessel, called the John, of 200 tons burden, with a valuable cargo of West India produce, and also a Guinea ship.
The Defence was afterward altered into a ship, and seems never again to have been very fortunate. Capt. Harding was transferred to the Oliver Cromwell, and in June, 1777, captured the brig Medway, with stores; in July, the brigantine Honor, valued at £10,692; and in September, the
* In 1856, Congress granted a pension to Miss Hannah Niles, the only surviving child of Capt. Robert Niles.
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packet ship Weymouth, carrying 15 guns and a crew of 50 men. Capt. Parker, who had been Harding's first lieutenant, succeeded him in the command of the Cromwell, and April 13, 1778, after a smart action, took the Admiral Keppel, an English letter-of-marque, mounting 18 sixes. Several of Capt. Parker's men were wounded; Capt. James Day, of the marines, mortally. The prize was sent into Boston, and sold at auction on the 8th of July for £22,320.
In May, 1779, the Oliver Cromwell sailed from New London, and though absent only twelve days, took four prizes and brought in sixty prisoners. But running out again, June 1st, shie encountered, June 5th, off Sandy Hook, the British frigate Daphne, and after a sharp engage- ment of two hours, Capt. Parker seeing another vessel coming to the aid of the enemy, surrendered. He was soon exchanged, and reached home early in Angust, with forty-six of his men.
The Governor Trumbull, a privateer carrying 18 or 20 guns, was built at Willett's ship-yard in 1777, for Howland & Coit. She was considered almost a model ship. Her first commander, Capt. Henry Billings, had been tested both for gallantry and skillful seamanship, as lieutenant of the armed brig Defence, and a career of brilliant success was anticipated for her. She sailed on her first cruise in November, 1778, and made several small captures, but early the next year went out under the command of Capt. Dudley Saltonstall, and meeting with the British frigate Venus, a vessel of greater size and efficiency, was obliged to surrender. Her cap- tors took her to the West Indies, where she recruited and was sent forth under a changed name and flag to prey upon her former friends.
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