USA > Connecticut > The history of Connecticut, from the first settlement of the colony to the adoption of the present constitution, vol. II > Part 17
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191
PUTNAM PREVAILS.
[1775.]
with the soundest practical sense, and the keenest fore- thought, replied, " We will risk only two thousand men ; we will go on with these and defend ourselves as long as possi- ble ; and if driven to retreat, we are more active than the enemy, and every stone-wall shall be lined with their dead. At the worst," he continued, while his soul spoke in his fiery eyes, "at the worst, suppose us surrounded, and no retreat, we will set our country an example of which it shall not be ashamed, and teach mercenaries what men can do, determined to live or die free " !*
This unexpected burst of patriotic fervor, coming from the lips of a man of three score, brought Warren to his feet. With a flushed cheek and excited air, he walked the room for a few moments, and then paused, leaned upon his chair, and looking the old hero thoughtfully in the face, with those deep, full eyes, that ladies thought so handsome, expressive at once of doubt and fond admiration of one whose spirit could out-dare all others, exclaimed, in the language of Agrippa to Paul, " Almost thou persuadest me, General Putnam ; but I must still think the project rash. If you execute it, how- ever, you will not be surprised to find me by your side." As the reader is already aware, Putnam's sensibilities were quick and overflowing as a child's. "I hope not," replied he, with affectionate earnestness. "I hope not. You are young, and your country has much to hope from you in the council and in the field. Let us who are old, and can be spared, begin the fray. There will be time enough for you hereafter. It will not be soon over."Į
It need hardly be said that the counsels of General Putnam finally prevailed. The Committee of Safety and the Council of War were both overwhelmed by the genius and will, rather than by the reasoning of this irresistible man.
Having thus finally carried his point, General Putnam addressed himself to the faithful execution of his daring scheme. Still further to familiarize his men with the sight of the enemy, and with the sound of their cannon, and to
* Swett, 15. + Gordon. # Swett, 15.
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HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT.
awaken a spirit of emulation among both officers and soldiers, Putnam, about the 10th of June, marched all the troops from Cambridge to Charlestown, in the face of the British batteries and ships of war. About the same time, he reconnoitered the country in the neighborhood of Charles- town, with other officers, to select a place suited for an intrenchment and redoubt. Long before this time, in the month of May, General Ward had sent out Colonel Gridley, Colonel Henshaw, and another gentleman, to examine and select a place for a redoubt. Their report had been, first, in favor of Prospect Hill, next to that Bunker Hill, and lastly Breed's Hill.
All those hills, together with Charlestown, now sacred to the memory of the dead, and immortal with the story of those martyrs to freedom, helped to make up the surface of a beautiful peninsula formed by the Mystic river on the north, and the river Charles on the south, that flow around its base and mingle their waters on the east. This little strip of land diversified with clustering hills and sloping fields, is eleven hundred yards in width from north to south, and is one mile and forty-three rods long from east to west. At its western extremity, the two rivers gracefully incline toward each other, and form a neck that is only one hund- red and thirty yards wide. This tongue of land ter- minating in a hill or bluff, about one hundred and ten feet high, and known as Bunker Hill, was very steep on its southern and eastern slopes, and commanded both rivers, and the whole surrounding country .* South-easterly from this eminence, and nearer to Boston and to the place where the British ships were riding at anchor, stretched a long, arm-like strip of land sixty-two feet high at its summit, with an abrupt eastern slope, but declining gently toward the west. It bore the name of Breed's Hill. Its south side was very steep, and there at its foot nestled the populous and thriving village of Charlestown. The north side of this hill was also quite precipitate, and at the bottom on that
* Frothingham's Siege of Boston, p. 119.
193
THE INTRENCHING PARTY.
[1775.]
side, there was a small slough, several rods wide, that was impassable. Bounding this slough on the north, was a narrow tongue of upland, twenty feet above Mystic river, and forming the southern bank of that river. East of this tongue and north-east of Breed's Hill, stands Morton's Hill, thirty-five feet in height. Still farther east, and jutting out into the water, is Morton's Point. Leading from Cam- bridge, the head-quarters of the American army, a slender road ran from the neck over the southern declivity of Bunker Hill, and passing entirely round Breed's Hill, touch- ed nearly at its summit on the south. *
It was now the 16th of June, a sultry day, that sent its fierce heat upon the heads of the soldiers who occu- pied the American camp. During the day, orders were given to Colonel William Prescott and the acting officer in command of Colonel Frye's regiment, to be ready for marching, with all their men who were fit for service, and to provide a single day's provisions. This order was also issued for one hundred and twenty men of General Put- nam's regiment, and Captain Gridley's company of artillery, with two field pieces.
Colonel Prescott was ordered to advance with this detach- ment to Charlestown in the evening, take possession of Bunker Hill, and fortify it. He was commanded not to dis- close the object of his errand to any one, and was assured that supplies should be sent him the next morning, with such reinforcements as he should need, to enable him to defend the place. As three of Colonel Bridge's companies failed to join the party, it only amounted to about one thousand men.t At an early hour in the evening, the detachment assembled for prayer upon Cambridge common, where the Rev. Mr. Langdon, President of Harvard College, in words
* Swett, Frothingham, and other local authorities.
+ This is the number given by Col. Prescott, and in Swett's History. Major Brooks, Frothingham, and others, say "fourteen hundred." The two hundred Connecticut troops constituted a "fatigue party," and were placed under the command of the brave Thomas Knowlton, then a captain in Putnam's regiment.
45
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HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT.
and with a spirit that were worthy of the crisis, commended them to the God of battles .*
The choice of Colonel Prescott for this delicate mission has been justly commended. He was a gentleman of high character, an experienced officer, and from his generosity and old-fashioned hospitality, had acquired an influence over his neighbors, whom he commanded, that insured their fidelity under the most trying circumstances. His personal appearance, too, was eminently fitted to inspire confidence. His tall figure, his bold, fine countenance, and his manly bearing, could not be concealed, even by the plain calico frock that he wore as he marched from the common, and led the way, about six paces in front of his troops, Two sergeants, with dark lanterns, open only to the rear, threw a faint gleam upon the narrow road, and showed the men which way to advance. As Putnam had conceived this dar- ing enterprise, so was the execution of it intrusted to his hands, as best suited to bring it to a safe issue. Attended by Colonel Gridley, the chief engineer, he accompanied the party and directed its movements.
Putnam had brought from home two of his sons, the eldest, Israel Putnam, Jr., who served as a captain under him, and the youngest, named Daniel, a youth only sixteen years old, who had entered the army as a volunteer. This young man, who was an especial favorite with his father, and the child of his old age, lodged at the house of a lady in Cambridge. At about sunset, Putnam said to Daniel, with an air of great unconcern, " You will go to Mrs. Inman's to-night, as usual ;
* Frothingham, 122. The patriotism of the clergy of the revolutionary era I have before had occasion to notice. The pastors of the "established churches," throughout New England, and indeed in all parts of our country, were, almost without an exception, Whigs ; and they had a wonderful influence in rousing the people to resistance. The chaplains were not only praying men, but, when occa- sion called for their services, they could prove themselves fighting men, also. The chaplains of the four Connecticut regiments which were sent to Boston and vicinity, and all of whom, it is presumed, were present at the Battle of Bunker Hill, were Rev. Messrs. Benjamin Boardman, Abiel Leonard, Cotton Mather Smith, and Stephen Johnson. Two other chaplains, appointed at the same time, were, Benjamin Trumbull and Samuel Wood.
195
THEY REACH THE NECK.
[1775.]
stay there to-morrow, and if they find it necessary to leave town, you must go with them." The young man saw from his father's manner, and from the preparations that were going forward, that some military demonstration was about to be made, in which he was to be an actor. Alarmed at this mysterious separation, that might perhaps prove a final one, Daniel said earnestly, " You, dear father, may need my assistance much more than Mrs. Inman ; pray let me go where you are going."
" No, no, Daniel, do as I bid you," said the general with an ill-dissembled sternness. His voice faltered, and his eyes filled and ran over with drops of parental sympathy, as he continued in a softened tone, " You can do little, my son, where I am going, and there will be enough to take care of me." The refusal was peremptory, and the son, who had courage to do everything but disobey, yielded without utter- ing another word .*
Following the glimmer of the dark lanterns, the party now moved forward in the profoundest silence. Not one of them, save the officers, who had been made acquainted with the secret, had the slightest intimation as to the nature of the business that they had been deputed to perform. Like a company of ghosts they passed along until the murmurs of the Charles and the Mystic on either hand, stole audibly through the hushed night air, and informed them that they were approaching the neck of the peninsula. When they had crossed the neck, they found wagons loaded with empty hogsheads, fascines, gabions, and intrenching tools. A glance at these familiar objects explained everything. A question of very serious debate now began to be agitated among the officers. Which hill should they fortify ? Bunker Hill was the one explicitly named in the order, and no other hill upon the whole peninsula was at that time known by any name. Putnam, Prescott, and Gridley, must have all been familiar with the ground, as they had, only a few days before, criti- cally explored it for the very purpose of choosing a point for
* Swett's History, 19, 20.
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HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT.
an intrenchment. But it was now urged that this hill, though much the highest of all the eminences, was quite too remote from the British batteries and ships to do them as much harm as would be desirable, and that the hill next in height ought to be selected. In reply to this, the superior eleva- tion of Bunker Hill, rendering it more difficult of access, and the order of Major-General Ward and the Committee of Safety, were claimed to be decisive in favor of the original design. So much time was consumed in this debate, that Colonel Gridley, who was anxious to enter upon the dis- charge of his duties as engineer, began at last to be impa- tient, and warned them that they had not a moment to lose. They finally decided upon fortifying Breed's Hill .*
Colonel Gridley now laid out the ground for the works upon the very summit with masterly skill and dispatch. The redoubt was about eight rods square. Its strongest side or point, was the one toward Charlestown, and was built in the front of a redan.t The eastern side swept a wide field and commanded a portion of the harbor. A breastwork ran in a line with it northerly, for some distance, but terminated about seven rods southerly of the slough before described. Between the breastwork and the redoubt was a narrow sally-port, guarded in front by a blind. There was also a passage-way without a blind in the north wall of
* Siege of Boston, 123, 124. Some historians have had the hardihood to deny that Putnam was present, either at Breed's Hill or at Bunker Hill, during this memorable night. The evidence on this point, however, is too clear and positive to admit of a doubt. Even Mr. Frothingham, who appears to have been particu- larly ambitious to rob Connecticut of all participation in the battle of Bunker Hill, is constrained to admit Putnam's presence, while he argues that Colonel Prescott, (Putnam's inferior in rank,) had the chief command. Indeed, it would seem that it was through Putnam's " importunity," if not by his order, that the detach- ment proceeded to fortify Breed's Hill, instead of Bunker Hill, in the face of General Ward's direction. The Committee of Safety intimate that this was done, through " some mistake " ; but Colonel Swett remarks that there was no mistake about it-and that the committee only " meant to say delicately that the order to fortify Bunker Hill was not complied with." See Gordon i. 351 ; Swett.
+" A kind of rampart in the form of an inverted V., having its angle toward the enemy." Webster.
197
[1775.] PUTNAM SUPERINTENDS THE WORKS.
the redoubt, whence the party might escape, should they find themselves too hotly beset.
As a place of ultimate retreat, should their necessities compel them to it, it was thought advisable to mark out a work upon Bunker Hill. Meanwhile, Captain Maxwell with his company, together with some Connecticut and other troops, were sent down to the shore at Charlestown, to keep a close watch of the movements of the enemy. So much time had been spent in deliberating in regard to the place that would be most desirable for their purpose, and so long did it take to mark out the lines of the fortifications, that it was past midnight when the first spade-full of earth was thrown up .* But Putnam had a way of getting more hard service out of a company of men, and could remove more cubic feet of stones and earth in a given number of hours, than any other officer who participated in the exciting scenes of the Ameri- can revolution. The reader will bear in mind the fact that he was occupied in a similar business when he first received tidings of the battle of Lexington. On this occasion, so much did he feel the weight of responsibility pressing upon him, as the chief adviser in the step that had been taken against the calm judgment of men in whose wisdom he had great confidence, that he exerted himself to the utmost stretch of his capacity. Stimulated by his presence, the hardy men who had just entered upon the duties of a sol- dier's life, labored with unremitting exertions, and with a success that astonished the officers. While Putnam remain- ed at the redoubt to superintend the works, Colonel Prescott and the gallant Major Brooks, stole quietly down to the shore, to reconnoitre the enemy who were in the ships, and learn if they were aware of the movements of the American detachment .; The night was clear, and the stars let fall their purest beams upon the glancing waves and the glim- mering shrouds of the British ships. They lingered until they heard the voice of the deluded sentry shouting in the
* Bancroft, Graham, Frothingham, &c. + Swett's History.
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HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT.
ears of the dreaming crew, " All's well !" and as the hollow echo repeated the words upon the shore, they returned to the redoubt.
When General Putnam saw that the men were well and systematically at work, and that everything was going for- ward as he desired, he hastened back to the camp to bring on the reinforcements that had been promised, and to procure a fresh horse, for few military leaders have ever needed so many horses in a single campaign as did Putnam.
While he was absent, Colonel Prescott, who had charge of the redoubt as the next in command, and who could hardly persuade himself that the enemy had failed to be alarmed by the noise that was necessarily made in throwing up the works, again sought the shore. Everything was quiet. The enemy were as ignorant of his approach as they were regardless of the sound of the waves that broke at his feet. He now ordered the guard that had been posted at Charles- town, to return to Breed's Hill .*
At last the dawn began to streak the east, and then flecks of rosy light playing upon the waters of the bay, quenching the gray mist and restoring the familiar features of hill and town and curved beach. When at last the Brit- ish officers looked toward Breed's Hill and saw the sharp outlines of the newly broken sod standing out in well defined walls against the sky, they could hardly believe that it was not an illusory dream, that would vanish with the coming of the open sunshine. But they soon found that the forms before them, clad in such rude attire, were brawny- armed, sun-burned men, and that the redoubt and the breast-
* Frothingham, p. 124, 125. Martin says, "about a thousand were at work ; the men dug in the trenches an hour, and then mounted guard and were reliev- ed." Colonel Prescott remarks-" Never were men in a worse condition for ac- tion-exhausted by watching, fatigue and hunger-and never did old soldiers behave better." Prescott was fearful that the enemy would commence the attack before the works were in a condition to protect his men ; but the cry, "All's well," heard at intervals, drowsily repeated by the sentinels, gave assur- ance to the patriots that their labors were undiscovered and unsuspected on board the ships.
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199
CHAPLAIN MARTIN'S FUNERAL SERVICE.
[1775.]
work were anything but the " baseless fabric of a vision." Though they had sprung up in a night they did not vanish with approach of morning.
The cannon of the Lively, the nearest of the enemy's ships, now opened upon them a stern morning salute, that startled the inhabitants of the country for miles around .*
General Gage, awakened from his secure slumbers at Bos- ton, whence for some days he had been meditating a remov- al into the country, bewildered at what he saw and heard, instantly summoned a council of war at the old state house.
Some other frigates and floating batteries, the Somerset line-of-battle ship, together with the battery from Copp's Hill, soon opened a terrific fire upon the American lines.t But though their shot tore up the ground in ridges, yet the works were so nearly completed as to afford a safe protec- tion. At length some of the men having ventured in front of the works, one of them was killed by a cannon shot.į A subaltern hastened to inform Colonel Prescott of what had happened, and asked him what should be done.
"Bury him," was the laconic reply. " What, without prayers ?" asked the astonished informant. There was a chaplain present, the Rev. John Martin, who insisted upon performing a funeral ceremonial over this first sacrifice. He gathered a crowd around him and began the service. Colo- nel Prescott ordered them to disperse. They did so, but soon the ill-suppressed religious sentiment swelling beyond the barriers of military authority, the chaplain again collect- ed the mourners and resumed the rite. Prescott now order- ed the dead body to be taken out of their custody and buried in the ditch. Angry and grieved at this interference, a num- ber of the soldiers left the works and never returned. This death, happening as it did and made thus conspicuous, inspir- ed much terror in the minds of the soldiers who had never
* Swett. + Gordon, i. 351.
# The person killed was Asa Pollard, of Billerica, of Stickney's company, Bridge's regiment. Frothingham, 126.
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HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT.
before seen a battle. The valiant Martin was not one of the deserters. Finding that his services would be more acceptable at that critical time in a less spiritual sense than he had at first supposed, he seized a musket, and falling into the ranks as a private soldier, fought with desperation .*
Colonel Prescott, in order to quiet the fears of the raw troops, now mounted the works and stood exposed to the enemy's shot while he issued his orders. While he stood in full view of the enemy, his bald head entirely unprotected from the sun and his sword waving in the air, General Gage scanned him minutely with his telescope, and then handing it to Willard, a mandamus counselor who stood near him, inquired who he was. Willard replied " that it was his brother-in-law, Colonel Prescott." "Will he fight ?" asked the General. " Yes, sir, depend upon it, to the last drop of his blood," said Willard, "but I cannot answer for his men." +
The sun had now risen so high and shone with such scorching heat, that the Americans at the redoubt whose heads were not protected from it, and who had worked the whole night without so much as a draught of cold water to slake their thirst, began to beg for something to drink and that they might also be relieved by fresh forces. Some of the officers, whose sympathies were excited in behalf of their men, were free to make this proposal to Prescott. He called a council of war at once. He was well aware of the evil consequences that would follow should he allow any antici- pations to be awakened in their minds that might fail to be realized. He therefore spoke in scornful terms of the neces- sity of having recruits or relief. "The enemy," he said, " would not dare to attack them, and if they did, would be defeated. The men who had raised the works were the best
* Soon after the battle, Mr. Martin preached a discourse from this text, (Neh. iv. 14,) " And I said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, BE YE NOT AFRAID OF THEM ; remember the Lord which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your houses." He was subsequently chaplain of a Rhode Island regiment. t Swett, p. 22, 23; Frothingham 126.
201
GAGE CALLS A COUNCIL.
[1775.]
qualified to defend them. They had already learned to des- pise the fire of the enemy. They had the merit of the labor and should enjoy the honor of the victory." Thus doubtless with many an anxious glance toward the Cambridge road, did the old warrior inspire his men with new confidence. The task that General Putnam had taken upon himself to perform was the most difficult of all. The American camp at Cambridge was without any fixed locality. Some of the troops were lodged at the colleges, others in the church, and others still in public and private houses. The officers were distributed wherever they could be best accommoda- ted. It was a work requiring much time to get the rein- forcements for which he had repaired to Cambridge. At break of day he ordered Lieutenant Clark to send to Gene- ral Ward for a fresh horse. Clark hastened himself to do the errand. On his return he found the old hero already mounted and just starting off for Breed's Hill .* The guns of the Lively were echoing over sea and land, and without waiting for those reinforcements that ought to have been drawn up in order ready to march as soon as he arrived in Cambridge, he paused only to remind General Ward that the fortune of the day would depend upon the immediate fulfill- ment of the pledge that had been so solemnly given on the preceding evening, of sending new troops, refreshments, and a larger stock of ammunition, and then rode as if for life, toward the peninsula, where his panting soldiers looked in vain for food. t
It is not to be supposed that General Gage spent the morning in idleness. It has been stated that he held a coun- cil of war at a very early hour at the state house. All the
* Humphreys, p. 217.
+ Such was the delay in the arrival of reinforcements and provisions, that many of the soldiers began to suspect treachery on the part of certain officers. Thus, Peter Brown, a private, under date of June 25, 1775, in a letter to his mother, wrote-" I must and will venture to say, that there was treachery, oversight or presumption, in the conduct of our officers."
Gordon says, (i. 351,) " By some unaccountable error, the detachment which had been working for hours, was neither relieved nor supplied with refreshments, but was left to engage under these disadvantages."
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HISTORY OF CONNECTICUT.
officers agreed that the Americans ought to be driven from the redoubt, but they could not hit upon any plan of attack that met the approval of all. General Clinton and General Grant thought it would be best to embark at the foot of the common in boats, land at Charlestown neck under a heavy fire from the ships and floating batteries, and attack the American detachment in the rear. This advice proved to be very popular with some of the officers, who saw in it the promise of exciting adventures that accorded well with the impetuosity of Percy and Pigot. But General Gage strenuously opposed the proposition. He said it would be placing themselves between two armies, the one their superior in position, and the other in numbers ; thus they might be met at the same time in front and rear and com- pletely surrounded, so as to be cut off at once from all hope of retreat. He advised to land and attack the Americans in front, so that the way would be open for them to retire to their boats if necessary. The other members of the council fell in with these views, and they were adopted .* British troops soon appeared marching through the streets of Bos- ton. The parade ground was in full view of the American redoubt, and a corps of British dragoons who had been maneuvering there, were suddenly seen to gallop away, while the rattling of artillery carriages, and the rumbling of wagons were heard distinctly in the still morning air. The meaning of this unusual stir could not be misinterpreted.
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