USA > Massachusetts > Historical collections, being a general collection of interesting facts, traditions, biographical sketches, anecdotes, &c., relating to the history and antiquities of every town in Massachusetts, with geographical descriptions > Part 4
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of the law were essentially of the same spirit and practice of the respectable and worthy society of Friends or Quakers of the pre- sent day. This is a mistake; many who went by this name at that period may be considered as fanatics, and proper subjects of a madhouse. The following instances of their conduct may be considered as a species of madness. "Some at Salem, Hampton, Newbury, and other places, coming into the congregations and calling to the minister in time of public worship, declaring their preaching, &c., to be an abomination to the Lord. Thomas New- house went into the meeting-house at Boston, with a couple of glass bottles, and broke them before the congregation, and threat- ened, ' Thus will the Lord break you in pieces.' Another time, M. Brewster came in with her face smeared and black as a coal. Deborah Wilson went through the streets of Salem as naked as she came into the world."* "That some provision was necessary against these people so far as they were disturbers of civil peace and order, every one will allow ; but such sanguinary laws against particular doctrines or tenets in religion are not to be defended."
The year 1675 is memorable for a war with the Indians, called King Philip's War, which was the most general and destructive ever sustained by the infant colonies. Philip resided at Mount Hope, in Rhode Island, and was the grandson and successor of Massasoit, with whom the Plymouth colonists had made a treaty fifty years before. For a long time previous to the war, he was jealous of the whites. His object appears to have been, to unite all the Indian tribes to make a combined effort to exterminate the colonists, and thus preserve their hunting grounds and indepen- dence. The immediate cause of the war was the execution of three Indians by the English, whom Philip had excited to murder Sausaman, a Christian Indian, who had informed the whites of the plot Philip was forming against them. Philip, to avenge their deaths, commenced hostilities, and by his influence drew into the war most of the tribes in New England. The Indians, at this period, had acquired the use of fire-arms, and the war soon became general. Their first attack was made June 24th, upon the people of Swanzey, as they were returning from public wor- ship; eight or nine persons were killed. Brookfield, in Worcester county, was next attacked, and every house burnt but one. During the month of September, Hadley, Deerfield, and Northi- field, on Connecticut river, were attacked; many persons were killed, and many buildings consumed.
In the winter was the celebrated expedition against the Narragansetts, who had given indications of their favorable disposition to Philip. The active co-operation of that powerful tribe, notwithstanding their treaty in July and subsequent pacific assur- ances, was seriously apprehended. A thousand men were raised by order of the commissioners of the United Colonies for this important service. Six companies from Massachusetts, with a troop of horse, were under the command of Major Appleton. Five companies from Connecticut were led by Major Treat. The two companies from Plymouth were under Major Bradford. Governor Winslow was commander-in-
* Hutchinson, vol. i., p. 203 and 204.
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chief, by appointment from the commissioners. The preparation and the march of this army, the most considerable that New England had then seen, were most prompt and persevering. In the depth of a severe winter, they advanced to the attack of a formidable foe, posted in a strong position in his wilderness retreat. The attack on the enemy's fort, December 19th, (O. S.,) was completely successful. It was a coun- terpart to the memorable exploit against the Pequots, forty years before, by the men of Connecticut. A day of horrible conflagration and slaughter inflicted a blow, from which the Narragansett nation never recovered. Seven hundred of their fighting men fell in the action, and it was computed that, at least, three hundred more died of their wounds and from the hardships which ensued. Such are the numbers given by Hubbard, in his Narrative, derived from the confession of Potock, one of the Indian chiefs, afterwards taken at Rhode Island, and put to death in Boston. It was a dear- bought victory to the assailants. Five brave captains were slain in the action : Da- venport of Boston, son of Captain Richard Davenport, distinguished in the Pequot war, Johnson of Roxbury, Gardner of Salem, Gallop of New London, and Marshall of Windsor. Captain Sieley* of Stratford was mortally wounded, and lived but a few days after the fight. The whole loss sustained by the assailants was eighty-five killed, and about one hundred and fifty wounded. Among the wounded were Major Bradford and Captain Church, of Plymouth Colony, and Lieut. Upham of Massachu- setts. The latter died of his wound some months afterward. J. Gorham of Barnsta- ble, captain of one of Plymouth Colony companies, was seized with a fever, and died on the expedition. Church was a volunteer, and, as he informs us in his narrative, rode in the general's guard. He pointedly condemns the burning the wigwams in the fort, which would have afforded a comfortable shelter to the troops. For want of such accommodation, they were compelled, immediately after the action, to perform a severe march of sixteen or eighteen miles, in a cold and stormy night, to Wickford. This march was peculiarly distressing to the wounded men. Many of them died on the way, or soon afterward. None of them could have their wounds dressed until they arrived at head-quarters .- Davis' Edition of New England Memorial, 432 p.
From this blow, called the Swamp Fight, the Indians never recovered. They were not yet, however, effectually subdued. During the winter, the savages continued murdering and burn- ing. The towns of Lancaster, Medfield, Weymouth, Groton, Springfield, Northampton, Sudbury, and Marlborough, in Massa- chusetts, and of Warwick and Providence, in Rhode Island, were assaulted, and some of them partly, and others wholly, destroyed. On the 12th of August, 1676, the finishing blow was given to the Indian power, by the death of king Philip, who was killed by a friendly Indian, in the vicinity of Mount Hope. In this distress- ing war, the English lost six hundred men, the flower of their strength; twelve or thirteen towns were destroyed, and six hun- dred dwelling-houses consumed."
In the height of the distress of Philip's war, and while the colony was contending with the natives for the possession of the soil, com- plaints were renewed in England, which struck at the powers of government. An inquiry was set on foot, and followed from time to time, until 1684, when judgment was given against the charter. In 1686, in May, a commissioner arrived, appointing a president and divers gentlemen of the council, to take upon them the admi- nistration of government. This administration was short, and productive of no grievances. In December, of the same year, Sir Edmund Andross arrived with a commission from king James, for the government of the New England colonies, with the exception of Connecticut. His kind professions for a while encouraged the
* Seeley of New Haven.
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hopes of the people; he, however, soon threw off the mask, and did many arbitrary acts, whereby the people were oppressed, and himself and his followers were enriched. The press was restrained ; public thanksgiving, without an order from the crown, was prohibited ; fees of all officers were increased; and the people were compelled to petition for new patents for their lands, for which they were obliged to pay exorbitant prices. The colony was greatly disquieted by these and other tyrannical proceedings, and the hatred of the people was excited in proportion to their sufferings.
In the beginning of 1689, a rumor reached Boston, that William, prince of Orange, had invaded England, with the intention of dethroning the king. Animated with the hope of deliverance, the people rushed to arms, took possession of the fort, seized Andross, Randolph, the licenser of the press, and other obnoxious charac- ters, and placed them in confinement. A council of safety, con- sisting of their former magistrates, was then organized to admi- nister the government till authentic intelligence should be received from England. In a few weeks tidings arrived that William and Mary were firmly seated on the throne: they were immediately proclaimed with great rejoicings. The people of Massachusetts applied for the restoration of their old or the grant of a new char- ter. A definite answer was deferred, but the council was author- ized to administer the government according to the old charter till further directions were given. Andross and his associates were ordered home for trial. A new charter was received in 1692 by Massachusetts, which added to her territory Plymouth, Maine, and Nova Scotia. By this charter, the appointment of the gover- nor was in the crown, and every freeholder of forty shillings ster- ling a year, and every inhabitant of forty pounds sterling personal estate, was allowed to vote for representatives.
At this period, the French in Canada and Nova Scotia insti- gated the northern and eastern Indians to commence hostilities against the English settlements. Dover and Salmon Falls, in New Hampshire, Casco, in Maine, and Schenectady, in New York, were attacked by different parties of French and Indians, and shocking barbarities committed. Regarding Canada as the princi- pal source of their troubles, New England and New York formed the bold project of reducing it by force of arms. For this pur- pose, they raised an army, under General Winthrop, which was sent against Montreal, and equipped a fleet, which, commanded by Sir William Phipps, was destined to attack Quebec. The sea- son was so far advanced when the fleet arrived at Quebec, Octo- ber 5th, 1690, the French so superior in number, the weather so tempestuous, and the sickness so great among the soldiers, that the expedition was abandoned. Success had been so confidently expected, that no adequate provision was made for the pay- ment of the troops. There was danger of a mutiny. In this. extremity, the government of Massachusetts issued bills of credit, as a substitute for money ; and these were the first ever issued in the American colonies.
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In 1692, a great excitement was again revived in New England on account of the supposed prevalence of witchcraft. It com- menced at this time in Danvers, then a part of Salem. Near the close of February, several children in this place began to act in a peculiar and unaccountable manner. Their strange conduct con- tinuing for several days, their friends betook themselves to fasting and prayer. During religious exercises, the children were gene- rally decent and still; but after service was ended, they renewed their former unaccountable conduct. This was deemed sufficient evidence that they were laboring under the "influence of an evil hand, or witchcraft."' After a few days, these children began to accuse several persons in the vicinity of bewitching them. Unfor- tunately, they were credited, and these suspected persons were seized and imprisoned. From this time, this contagion spread rapidly over the neighboring country, and soon appeared in various parts of Essex, Middlesex, and Suffolk. Persons at Andover, Ipswich, Gloucester, Boston, and other places, were accused by their neighbors, and others. For a time, those who were accused were persons of the lower classes. But at length some of the first people in rank and character were accused of the crime of witchcraft. The evil had now become awfully alarming. Before the close of September, nineteen persons were executed ; and one, (Giles Corey,) was pressed to death for refusing to put himself on a trial by jury ; all these persons died professing their innocence of the crime laid to their charge. At length the magistrates became convinced that their proceedings had been rash and indefensible. A special court was held on the subject, and fifty who were brought to trial were acquitted, excepting three, who were reprieved by the governor. These events were followed by a general release of all who were imprisoned. At this period the belief of the actual existence of witchcraft, prevailed in the most enlightened parts of Europe. The, learned Baxter pro- nounced the disbeliever in witchcraft "an obdurate Sadducee," and Sir Matthew Hale, one of the greatest of English judges, repeatedly tried and condemned persons accused of this crime. It ought also to be mentioned, that, if we are to credit the testi- mony of many respectable witnesses, many things took place at that time, which, even in this age, cannot be satisfactorily ex- plained.
The war with the French and Indians, which began in 1690, was not yet terminated. For seven years the frontier settlements were harassed by the savages, till peace took place between France and England. But in a few years war again broke out in Europe, which was the signal for hostilities in America. In February, 1704, Deerfield, on Connecticut river, was surprised in the night, about forty persons killed, and more than one hundred made prisoners, among whom were Mr. Williams, the minister, and his family. In 1707, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island, despatched an armament against Port Royal, in Nova Scotia ; but the expedition was unsuccessful. In 1710, New
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England, assisted by the mother country, with a fleet, succeeded in reducing the place; and its name, in honor of queen Anne, was changed to Annapolis. This success encouraged the com- mander, General Nicholson, to visit England and propose an expe- dition against Canada. His proposition was adopted, and in June, 1711, Admiral Walker, with a fleet of fifteen ships of war, and forty transports, with an army of veteran troops, arrived at Boston, from whence he sailed for Quebec about the last of July. At the same time, General Nicholson repaired to Albany, to take the command of the forces that were to proceed by land. . When the fleet had advanced ten leagues up the St. Lawrence, the wea- ther became tempestuous and foggy. Nine of the transports were dashed in pieces on the rocks, and upwards of a thousand men perished. Weakened by this disaster, the admiral returned to England, and the New England troops returned to their homes. Nicholson, having learned the fate of the fleet, returned with his troops to Albany. In 1713, peace was made between France and Great Britain at Utrecht.
In 1716, Samuel Shute, a colonel in the army of the celebrated Duke of Marlborough, was appointed governor of Massachusetts. For a long period afterwards, many controversies and difficulties took place between the royal governors sent from England and the representatives of the people, who were jealous of their rights as British subjects. These disturbances continued, with some intervals, till the period of the American Revolution.
In 1744, war again broke out between England and France, and the colonies were again involved in its calamities. Their commerce and fisheries suffered great injury from privateers fitted out at Louisburg, a strong fortress on the island of Cape Breton. This place was considered one of the strongest in America; the fortifications had been twenty-five years in building, and had cost the French five and a half millions of dollars. The legislature of Massachusetts, convinced of the importance of reducing this place, planned a daring, but successful enterprise for its reduction. Accordingly, about four thousand men, from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Connecticut, under the command of Gen. Pep- perell, sailed from Boston for the conquest of this place. Having the assistance of four ships of war, under Commodore Warren, from the West Indies, the troops arrived at Louisburg, about the 1st of May, 1745, and commenced the siege. For fourteen nights successively, the New England troops, sinking to their knees in mud, drew their cannons and mortars through a swamp two miles in length. By this means, the siege was pushed with so much vigor, that, on the 16th of June, the garrison surrendered. France, fired with resentment against the colonies, the next sum- mer sent a powerful fleet to ravage the coast of New England and recover Louisburg. The news of their approach spread terror throughout New England. But an uncommon succession of dis- asters, which the pious at that time ascribed to the special inter- position of Providence, blasted the hopes of the enemy. The
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French fleet was delayed and damaged by storms : some of the ships were lost, and a pestilential fever prevailed among the troops, and the two admirals killed themselves through chagrin on the failure of the expedition. The war at this period was ended by the peace of Aix la Chapelle, in 1748, by which all pri- soners on each side were to be restored without ransom, and all conquests made during the war were to be mutually restored.
Scarcely had the colonies begun to reap the benefits of peace, before they were again thrown into anxiety and distress by ano- ther war against France. The war actually commenced in 1754, though not formally declared till May, 1756. Early in the spring of 1755, preparations were made by the colonies for vigorous exer- tions against the enemy. Four expeditions were planned :- one against the French in Nova Scotia; a second against the French on the Ohio; a third against Crown Point; and a fourth against Niagara. The expedition against Nova Scotia, consisting of three thousand men, chiefly from Massachusetts, was led by Gen. Monckton and Gen. Winslow. With these troops, they sailed from Boston on the 1st of June, arrived at Chignecto, in the bay of Fundy. After being joined by three hundred regular British troops, they proceeded against fort Beau Sejour, which surren- dered, after a siege of four days. Other forts were taken, and Nova Scotia was entirely subdued. In order that the French in Canada should derive no assistance from this territory, the country was laid waste, and the inhabitants were taken from the country, and dispersed among the English colonies. One thousand of these proscribed Acadians were transported to Massachusetts, where many of them embarked for France. The expedition against Niagara was committed to Governor Shirley, of Massa- chusetts, whose force amounted to two thousand five hundred men. The season, however, was too far advanced before he had completed his preparations, to effect any thing of importance, and the expedition was abandoned.
The war continued, with varied success, till the conquest of Quebec by the army under Gen. Wolfe, in September, 1759, and the final reduction of Canada in 1760. This event caused great and universal joy in the colonies, and public thanksgivings were generally appointed. A definitive treaty, the preliminaries of which, had been settled the year before, was signed at Paris in 1763, by which all Nova Scotia, Canada, the isle of Cape Breton, and all other islands in the gulf and river St. Lawrence, were ceded to the British crown.
After the peace of 1763, the British parliament formed a plan for raising a revenue by taxing the colonies. For this purpose, an act was passed for laying a duty on all paper, vellum, or parchment, used in America, and declaring all writings on unstamped materials to be null and void. This act, called the Stamp Act, received the royal assent March 22d, 1765. When the news of this act reached the colonies, the people everywhere manifested alarm and a determination to resist its execution. The
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assembly of Virginia first declared its opposition to the act by a number of spirited resolves; but Massachusetts took the lead in this important crisis, and maintained it in every stage of the sub- sequent revolution. In Boston, the populace, in some instances, demolished the houses of the friends of the British measures, and in various ways manifested the public indignation. To render the opposition complete, the merchants associated, and agreed to a resolution not to import any more goods from Great Britain until the stamp law. should be repealed. To give efficacy to the oppo- sition to this act, Massachusetts proposed a meeting of deputies from the several colonies, to be held at New York in October, 1765. Deputies from nine of the colonies met, agreed on a decla- ration of rights and grievances, sent a petition to the king, and a memorial to both houses of parliament. This spirited opposi- tion, seconded by the eloquence of Mr. Pitt and other friends of America, produced a repeal of the stamp act on the 18th of March, 1766.
The British ministry, notwithstanding the fate of the stamp act, still persisted in their design of raising a revenue from America ; and, in 1767, an act was passed for laying duties on glass, paint- ers' colors, paper, and tea imported into the colonies. These duties were small, but the colonists objected to the principle, rather than to the amount of the tax, and remonstrated against the act. A second association was formed for suspending the importation on all goods on which duties were charged. These measures of Mas- sachusetts were adopted by the other colonies, and a circular letter from Boston had its influence in giving concert and consistency to the opinions and proceedings of the colonial assemblies. This op- position, supported by petitions and remonstrances, procured the abolition of all the duties, except of three pence on every pound of tea. The British ministry, finding mild efforts to be unavailing in establishing their authority in regard to raising a revenue, sent four regiments to be stationed in Boston, to overawe the inhabitants and enforce the obnoxious orders of parliament.
In pursuance of the ministerial plan of reducing Massachusetts to obedience, an act of parliament was passed for the regulation of its government, by which the powers of the people were abridg- ed, and the officers of government were made dependent on the crown for their appointment and salaries. By another act, persons indicted for murder or other capital offences might, if the governor should think an impartial trial could not be had in the colony, be sent to Great Britain to be tried. In 1774, the parliament, in order to punish the refractory province of Massachusetts, and especially the inhabitants of Boston, passed an act to shut the port of Boston and restrain all intercourse with the town by water. The government and public offices were removed to Salem. But this miserable proceeding had no effect but to irritate the feelings of all concerned. In May, 1774, Gen. Gage arrived in Boston, with the commission of governor of Massachusetts and commander-in-chief of the British forces. He summoned the assembly to convene at
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Salem; but, on further reflection, countermanded the summons. The counter order, however, was deemed illegal, and the members convened. The governor not meeting them, they organized them- selves into a provincial congress, which formed a plan of defence, appointed general officers, and took measures to collect supplies and military stores at Concord and Worcester.
The assembly of Massachusetts, after a short adjournment, again met, and determined to raise twelve thousand men, sent agents to the neighboring colonies, and requested their co-operation. The New England colonies accordingly sent on their committees, who met and agreed on a plan of operations. At the same time meas- ures were taken to effect a union of all the colonies, and for this purpose it was agreed that delegates from the several colonies should meet in a general congress. This body met on the 5th of September, 1774, and approved of the opposition made by Massa- chusetts to the exercise of the arbitrary power of the British min- istry, and stated their resolution to support her in her opposition. They published a declaration of the rights of the colonies, one of which was an exemption from taxes imposed upon them by a legislature in which they were not represented. When the pro- ceedings of the Americans were laid before parliament, that body , declared that rebellion actually existed in the province of Massa- chusetts, and they accordingly besought his majesty to take the most effectual measures to enforce due obedience to the laws of the supreme legislature. From this time an appeal to arms seemed unavoidable, and both parties prepared for the conflict.
The great drama of the Revolution opened in Massachusetts, at Lexington, Concord, and Bunker's Hill, and for about a year she sustained the first shock of the struggle. On July 2d, 1775, Gen. Washington arrived at Cambridge, and took the command of the American army encamped at that place. He introduced military order, and, with about 20,000 men, besieged the town of Boston. Batteries were erected on Dorchester heights, which greatly annoyed the shipping in the harbor, and preparations were made for a general assault. On the 17th of May, 1776, the British troops evacuated Boston, and, embarking on board of their vessels, sailed for New York. After this time, the soil of Massachusetts, except- ing some islands, remained free from actual invasion.
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