USA > Massachusetts > Berkshire County > History of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of its prominent men, Volume I pt 1 > Part 20
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As the soldiers in the field, so were the committees at home. although more inclined to command than obey. Many of them, of narrow expe. rience in affairs, and wanting that liberality toward opponents which con- tact with the great world brings, could not explain the perhaps over gen- erous sentiments of Schuyler, and patriots like him, toward some of those whom they themselves classed indiscriminately as the enemies of Ameri- can liberty, except on the theory of his sympathy with their toryism.
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Between Schuyler and these committees conflict was inevitable. When the news of the sad aspect of affairs in Canada was followed by that of the miserable termination of an enterprise on which they had built sach high hopes the Berkshire committees, and with them the great mass of the people, were driven wild with grief and indignation, and they held Schuyler responsible for it all. notwithstanding he was personally in the field but a very brief time at the opening of the first campaign. They made no allowance for the difficulty he found in obtaining men and mu- nitions of war, and waited for no explanations. They were under a er ziness like that which the alleged meal-house plot brought upon the Prot estants of England in the time of Charles IL., and their methods of pins cedure were very similar, save that they resulted in no blood
Credence was given to the basest informers and to hearsay testimony three times removed. Out of the evidence thus elicited some of the more violent of the committee men, who favored whatever augmented the pop- ular hatred of moderate whigs and tories. formed the outlines of a hellish plot of whose reality they succeeded in convincing themselves and the majority of the people of the community. The parties to this diabolical plot they imagined to be General Schuyler and his friends, the British government and the tories. It was alleged sometimes that all but two members of the New York Provincial Congress were privy to it. The gist of this plan was that Schuyler's New York forces, or as many of them as would not excite suspicion, were to be stationed in the forts along the Hudson River and the lakes from New York city to Canada, and that on an appointed day they were simultaneously to raise the British flag and permit the king's troops and ships to pass up the river, cutting off con- munication between the northern and southern colonies. So earnest was the faith of the people of Berkshire in this fiction that its whole length was patrolled, day and night, and preparations were made to kindle bea con fires in case of alarm -- but for what reasonable purpose one cannot imagine at this day. An officer in charge of money to pay Massachusetts troops on the Hudson was stopped by the patrol at Great Barrington. and he judged it best to return to Westfield rather than attempt to pro- ceed, as he would not have been permitted to do in the excited state of the people, which he describes with much force.
Letters were sent to Washington, some charging Schuyler with downright treason, others leaving a doubt between treachery and incom- petence. Matthew Aldgate, chairman of the king's district committee. wrote " discovering to the commander in chief a glimmering of such a hellish plot as has seldom appeared in the world since the fall of Adam by the grand deceiver and supplanter of truth." All these communes tions alike were handed over by Washington to Schuyler, with the warmest expressions of continued confidence in his ability as well as life integrity. The New York Congress, to whom Captain Douglas, of Han cock, was sent to personally prefer charges against the commander of the department, treated them as scornfully as Washington did, and when
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Schuyler demanded a court of inquiry, refused it as altogether ummer sary.
Such in brief was the famous affair of Schuyler and the Berkshire committees. The conduct of almost all the courmitt. men. lathe ground as there was for it, was doubtless inspired by a sincere and jealous for for their country, however unwisely it was manifested ; but in the mint, of the more calm and conservative class of their fellow patriot this. together with the more justifiable refusal to permit the kolding of the courts until a constitution was adopted, created a prejudio seuinst. Berkshire which continued far into the nineteenth century. It probably also had a very prejudicial effect upon the issue of the confronts of Colonels Brown and Easton, whose story we are about to continue
Soon after the death of General Montgomery. John Brown, claiming the rank of colonel which had been given him by that commander, was refused it by Arnold. On demanding the reason, he first learned that he and Colonel Easton were charged by their arch enemy with certain mili. tary crimes, the chief of which was plundering the baggage of British officers taken at Sorel. Conscious of entire innocence both immediately demanded a court martial. Arnold refused to order it, but said that the commander in chief of the expedition, then at Montreal, would doubt- less gratify them with a trial. Brown asked permission fre seul an off- cer to Montreal to make the demand. to which Arnold assented, but delayed the messenger until he could anticipate him by a letter. which afterward fell into Brown's hands, and which urged General Wooster to deny the request : and that commander was weak enough to put off this demand for a simple act of justice by a promise to attend to it when he reached Quebec, which he did on the first of April. Then, to Brown's renewed petition strongly urging immediate action on the ground of the uncertain future of war, he answered only with neglect
When General Thomas took command on the first of May he really consented to order the court of inquiry ; but his sad death by small pox on the 2d of June defeated this, like many other good results which had been hoped for from his command.
Colonel Brown then appealed for justice to the department com mander ; but Schuyler, on the ardent advice of Arnold, and bitterly prejudiced against every Berkshire man, " dermed it inexpedient to call a conrt."
July came, and the term for which Colonel Brown's mon had roin listed having expired. he, with Colonel Easton, repaired to Philadelphia and in a firm but respectful petition demanded justice Congress on the 30th resolved that the request for a court of inquiry was personable, and desired General Schuyler to order it as soon as possible.
On the first of August. Congress, upon the recommendation of the Board of War, to which it had referred the matter, determined That John Brown should be allowed the tank and pay of a liegtagent enfont from the 20th of the previous November, and that James Easton was en-
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titled to the rank of colonel from the first day of July. 175, and the pay of colonel from that day until he should be discharged, which ought to be as soon as a court of ingning should report in his favor, of a court martial should determine upon his conduct and its sentence be carried in to execution. - there being no vacancy to which he could be applied; but, should he be honorably acquitted. his past services would recul mend him to the confidence of Congress for future employment.
In the previous February Col. Easton had applied to Washington to be reappointed to a regiment in the Northern argy, gul. in necessarily referring him to Congress. Washington wrote: " The services you have done your country in the last campaign, mentioned in The Jetfer to yine from the late gallant Gen. Montgomery, merit the arkutestedgment of the public."
He made a claim for payment of services in the surprise of Ticon deroga. but while Congress paid a strong tribute of praise for his services in that expedition and afterward, it was obliged to refer the settlement of his accounts to the committee of Albany: in the meanwhile, was he was in want of money." advancing him 9200. In regard to his application for a court of inquiry Congress instructed its commissioners in Canada to make inquiry into his conduct there and report the result, in order that justice might be done him. But a new difficulty beset him. By the in stigation of Arnold and some of his old tory enemies he was thrown into prison for a debt of " fifteen hundred pounds York currency." He ap plied to Congress, stating the facts and the necessity of his proceeding to Canada to settle his accounts, and was by its order " enfranchised" The evacuation of Canada soon followed, and he appears to have abandoned all further attempts to obtain justice, at least as against Anold. Her. tired from the service, save when volunteering in the militia service. which he did as often as he had opportunity. From a very prosperofis man his public services had reduced him to comparative poverty
Colonel Brown was more persistent. Arming himself with the votes of Congress ordering the court of inquiry and confirming his rank as lieutenant colonel, and being assigned to Colonel Elmore's Connectiont regiment, he returned to the army and forwarded his papers to General Gates, who had supplanted Schuyler in the command of the northern department, asking him to comply with the request for a court martial which was practically an order. But Arnold, having acquired even greater infinence over the new and far less manly commander than he had with Schuyler, was able to ward off the investigation which he with good reason, dreaded; and Gates, with the impudent assurance of his friend, referred the whole matter to the Board of War
Hopeless of obtaining a vindication of his character by a court of in quiry into his own conduct Colonel Brown adopted a new line of pro- cedure, and preferred to General Gates thirteen very serions eler .. . iner peaching Arnold as an officer and a gentlegum, Upon there. ho de manded that he should be arrested and tried by court martial. He also
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transmitted the charges to Congress ; but such was the reputation which Arnold's dash and gallantry, shrewdly turned to account by his meanly intriguing spirit, had won for him that nothing came of either present ment. Congress allowed its admiration for one bold and active officer to lead it into gross injustice toward another who had displayed still greater bravery and more valuable enterprise ; for, while Brown had accomplished the great results which we have recorded, all Arnold's daring and activ- ity had as yet been productive of nothing but trouble and vexation, as- cessive loss of life, disaster. and defeat.
Nothing was now Jeft to Brown but to appeal to the people. This he did in a handbill dated at Pittsfield. April 12th, 1777, reciting the for. going facts and closing with the following paragraph :
"I appeal to every person of common understanding, whether in a military chiar - acter or not, that if Gen. Arnold did not know himself guilty of the charges laid against him, he would not have endeavored to bring himself to trial, to clear up his character, which, if he had been able to do so, he certainly might have called his im peachers to account for false and malicious charges and put the saddle upon the other horse; but, very far from this, he has used every possible art to avoid a trial, as if his character was not worth a sixpence."
In the winter of 1777 occurred an incident which is thus related in Colonel Stone's " Life of Brant : "
"During the winter of 1776-7, while many of the officers were quartered at Albany, Arnold was at the head of a mess of sixteen or eighteen, among whom was Col. Morgan Lewis. Col. Brown having weak eyes and being obliged to live more abstemiously occupied quarters affording more retirement .. Cool Brown published a handbill attacking Arnold with great severity, rehearsing the suspicious circumstances that had occurred at Sorel [ Arnold's suspected plan of sell- ing the flotilla to the enemy] upbraiding him for sacking the city of Montreal while he was in the occupancy of that place. The handbill concluded with these remark. able words: 'Money is this man's God, and to get enough of it he would sacrifice bis country.' "
Such a publication could not but produce a great sensation among the officers. It was received at Arnold's quarters while the mess were it dinner. Arnold, of course, was greatly excited, and applied a number of epithets, coarse and harsh, to Col. Brown, pronouncing him a sceundre!, and declaring that he would kick him whenever or wherever he should meet him. One of the officers present remarked that Col. Brown was his friend, and that, as the remarks just applied to him had been publiots made, he presumed there could be no objection to his repeating them to that officer. Arnold replied. "Certainly not." he should feel himself obliged to any officer who would inform Col. Brown of what he had said. The officer replied that he should do so before he slept. Under these cir cumstances no time was lost in making the communication to Col, Brown. Col. Lewis himself called upon Brown in the course of the evening, and the matter was the principal topic of conversation.
The colonel was a mild and amiable man, and he mode no remark of particular harshness or bitterness in respect to Arnold; but, toward the
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close of the interview he observed, " Well, Lewis, I wish you would invite me to dine at your mess to-morrow."
". With all my heart.' was the reply. . Will you come ?'
" Brown said he would as they parted.
" The next day, near the time of serving dinner, Col. Brown arrived, and was ushered in.
"The table was spread in a long room at one end of which the door opened directly opposite the fireplace at the other. Arnold was standing at the moment with his back to the file. so that, as Brown opened the door, they at once encountered each other face to face. It was a moment of breathless interest as to the result. Brown walked calmly in. passed around the table with a deliberate step, and advancing close to Arnold, looked directly in his eye. After the pause of a moment he observed, ' I understand, sir, that you have said you would kick me. I now pre. sent myself to give you an opportunity to put your threat in exeentiem."
" Another brief pause ensued. Arnold opened not his lips. Brown then said, .Sir, you are a dirty scoundrel.' Arnold was still silent as the Sphinx ; whereupon Brown turned upon his heel with dignity, apolo gised to the gentlemen present for his intrusion, and left the room.
" This was certainly an extraordinary scene ; and more extraordinary still is the fact that the particulars have never in any way been made public. Arnold certainly did not lack personal bravery ; and the un- broken silence preserved by him on this occasion can only be accounted for on the supposition that he feared to provoke inquiry upon the subject. while at the same time he could throw himself upon his well attested courage, and his superior rank as not stooping to a controversy with a subordinate officer. But still it must be regarded as one of the most to markable personal interviews to be found among the memorabilia of military men."
In May, 1777. Arnold forwarded to Congress a copy of Brown's Pitts field appeal, which, together with his charges against Arnold, were 10- ferred to the Board of War. The Board took an extraordinary and shameful course. Without eiting Brown to appear, but on the contrary keeping him in ignorance that the matter was pending, they convicted him of unjustly aspersing the character of Arnold, whom they acquitted upon his own unquestioned statement and that of a witness who could know nothing personally about it. Colonel Brown know nothingof these proceedings until the following November: but he had resigned his coupe mission in the Continental army on the 220 of the previous February. being determined that no power on earth should force him to serve with an officer who was impeached of treason and everything else unless he was brought to justice. He now forwarded to Congress a spiritel remon . strance, in which he pointedly and forcibly exposed the absurdity and illegality of their conduct in the case, and the gross injustice which has! been perpetrated against himself. The high continental authorities who with blind obstinacy trusted Arnold until his great treason was discoy-
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ered by no vigilance of theirs, had thus ample warning of what they might expect of him. if they would but have conformed to the most ordinary principles of justice and military law.
Having now freed himself from a service in which its most corrupt. treacherous, and dangerous officer wielded so potent and mysterious an influence. Colonel Brown returned to Pittsfield, was chosen colonel of the Northern Berkshire regiment, and in that capacity rendered memorable service to his country. Three years after he left the Confinesdel service he lay slain upon the battlefield where he fell, fighting for the country which had treated him with such cruel injustice. Benedict And. scorned and loathed of all men, a hated fugitive in the army of the enemy, was leading troops who blushed to follow him to make useless havoc in his native State. Not even the Honoralde the Board of War of the great officers who had trusted and protected him could longer deny what they had refused to believe.
CHAPTER IN.
BERKSHIRE IN THE REVOLUTION Continue de
The Declaration of Independence and committee rule .- Handling the tories,-Borduice in the Burgoyne invasion. - The battle and massacre of Stone Arabia
T HE question of renouncing allegiance to the king of Great Britain and declaring the colonies independent states having come to beopenly agitated everywhere all the Berkshire towns, in which any record of action on the measure is preserved, early, emphatically, and boldly pro nounced in favor of it, and there is no reason to doubt that all the others did the same.
On the 25th of March, more than three months before the Declamation was formally determined upon, and more than two months before the significant resolution of Congress " that the exercise of every kind of authority under the king ought to be suppressed." Pittsfield, with some of that Berkshire nonchalance which Schuyler so much deprecated in her soldiers, quietly " voted that the field officers proeve ! to regulate to North District or regiment with the erasure of George's name " Having thus signified that they were quite done with ". His Gracious Majesty King George III.," and regarded him much as their puritan ancestors did " the man Charles," the people of the town went on to supr time " hogs should not run at large," and to transaet the other business of the town as though they had done nothing extraordinary. By this tinte they had become so used to the commission of what their loyalist neigh bors called high treason, that it did not disturb them at all, Ton months later, in giving instructions to Valentine Rathbun, its represents tive in the General Court, Pittsfield said : " You shall, on no pretende whatever, favor a union with Great Britain, as to in any sense bodothing dependent upon her hereafter, and we instruct you to use sollr intlugor with the Honorable House to notify the Honorable the Continental Congress that the whole province is waiting for the important projoant which they in their great wisdom shall appoint for the Dechataring of Independence and a free republic." There is a thing money and ma sumption of authority in both this instruction and the previous von.
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which indicate that they were drawn up by Rev. Thomas Allen, the radi. cal leader of the county. Valentine Rathbun, the Baptist older, still more vehement, if possible, than Mr. Allen, needed no prompting, but only aid given by the instruction of the meeting to do precisely what he would have done without it.
The soldiers of Berkshire were soon called upon to make good what had been ordained by Congress in accordance with the wishes of its pro ple. During the military operations in Westchester county, New York. after the retreat of Washington's army from Long Island, early in Sep tember, 1770, Colonel Simonds, of Williamstown, led a detachment of levies from the Berkshire regiments to reinforce it. And according to some fragments of a diary of Rev. Thomas Allen, who was its chadain. it saw some pretty sharp skirmishing, and was deeply engaged in the battle of White Plains. Concerning this battle Mr. Allen writes : " Our men fought with great bravery. They generally, one with another, shot seven cartridges before they were ordered to retreat. They were sore galled by the enemy's field pieces." Colonel Fellows, of the 8th rogi. ment, had at this time been promoted brigadier general, and served with great credit in that rank in this battle. His brigade major, Col Mark Hopkins, of Great Barrington, died of disease two days before : a severe loss to the country, and especially to Berkshire patriots ..
About the time that Colonel Simond's detachment returned home Washington earnestly asked 4,000 men from Massachusetts for the amis which he was attempting to reorganize. But at the same time grave ap- prehensions arose that the invasion from Canada under Burgoyne, which actually occurred the next summer, would be made sooner. All agreed that a vigorous defense of Ticonderoga was of the utmost importance Congress ordered heavy ordnance to be sent to the fort. Its defen ... were strengthened. Schuyler pointed out clearly what was indispensably necessary. He was in great alarm, but believed that he could prevent the passage of the enemy, "unless they made themselves masters of Mount Independence, which would be impossible if he could procute men, cannon, and ammunition." He thought he ought to have at least 2,500 effective men at that important place lest the enemy should make an attempt upon it during the winter. One fourth part of the militin of Berkshire, and one eighth of the Hampshire troops were therefore or- dered to report to General Schuyler at Albany, instead of to Washington. as was the original design.
Colonel Simonds, with the Berkshire detachment (part of a regimenty reached Ticonderoga about the 30th of December, and Schuyler was im patient to have the Hampshire men there also.
In anticipation of this call, and evidently sharing General Schuylee's anxiety, the General Court, as early as the 24th of October, believing that some of the militia in the western part of the State were not amply supplied with arms to meet it, directed the commojissty general to send into the county of Berkshire . 200 firearms. 1,000 weight of gun-
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powder, and 1,000 weight of leaden balls, to be placed in charge of Tim- othy Edwards, Jerathmiel Woodbridge, and Sammel Brown, Esquires, of 'Stockbridge. or either of them." The commissioners were instructed to dispose of these articles to militia non destitute of them at the following rates : the firearms at such price as they should deem them worth, the powder at five shillings a pound, and the bullets at fifty shillings per hundred weight.
In November Colonel Patterson's regiment, which. in the continental army, was numbered the fifteenth, left its fatal encampment at Mont Independence and rejoined Washington at Newtown, Porn,, in simeon to take part in the battles of Trenton and Princeton. But such had been the sufferings of this gallant corps that, leaving Washington at New York, on the 21st of April. a well appointed regiment, 600 strong, it re turned to him in November with barely 220 men, many of them greatly enfeebled. Of the heroic soldiers who were missed from their maks a portion were invalided at home : but nearly as many, victims of disease. battle, and the tomahawk of the lurking savage, wore in their graves : it graves were accorded them. The regiment was mustered out of service on the last day of the year 1776, its term of service having expired.
We have noticed the threats of the loyalists and the fears of the patriots regarding an invasion from Canada, by British troops and Indian savages, which should extend to the devastation of Berkshire. The fers at least had continued, and the danger also, although it was postplotted by the inroad into Canada. Immediately upon the failure of this onfog- prise the danger again became imminent, to the great alarm, as we hos .. seen, of the military anthorities ; and in the early spring of 175 it was evident that the crisis, upon which hung not only the safety of Berkshire and the adjoining regions in the east and west but also the liberties of the nation, was close at hand, while the preparation to meet it not withstanding the earnest appeals of Schuyler, were in the most fun erfeet state.
On the 20th of April John Adams wrote from Philadelphia, evidlordy relying upon Schuyler's report. - ". Every man in the Massachusetts giroja ought to have been ready last December ATT and not one man has your arrived in the field, and not 300 at Saratoga. I have been abomindidy deceived about the troops. If Ticonderoga is not lost it will be Because it is not attacked. And if it should be New England will bear all the shame and all the blame for it."
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