USA > Massachusetts > The history of Massachusetts, the commonwealth period. 1775-1820 v. III > Part 25
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1 Of these, 700 were to be raised in Suffolk, 500 in Essex, 800 in Mid- dlesex, 1200 in Hampshire, and 1200 in Worcester, MS. Letter of General Lincoln to General Washington, 70; Sparks's Washington, ix. 221; Mi- not's Hist. of the Insurrection, 93; Bradford, ii. 288; Marshall's Wash- ington, v. 121; Holland's Western Mass. i. 259.
2 MS. Letter of General Lincoln to General Washington, 70; Minot's Hist. of the Insurrection, 93-102; Bradford, ii. 287-290; Holland's Western Mass. i. 259. The instruc- tions to General Lincoln are given in his MS. Letter to Washington,. 71-73.
244
SITUATION OF SHEPARD.
CHAP. gents was at least eighteen hundred, and a considerable pro- VI. portion of them were " old continentals." 1
1787 Jan. 25.
The twenty-fifth of January, at four in the morning, was assigned for the attack ; and Shays wrote to Day requesting his assistance ; but, whether it was inconvenient for him to be present at that time, or whether he coveted personally the honor of Shepard's surrender, he was induced to delay the projected plan. The reply of Day was intercepted by Shep- ard ; and, acquainted with the movements of the " regula- tors," he prepared to receive them. Ignorant of the fate of his letter, Day sent an insolent message to Shepard, demand- ing that the troops in Springfield should lay down their arms, and return to their several homes upon parole. Shays, on his part, sent a " petition " to General Lincoln, averring his unwill- ingness to be accessory to the shedding of blood, and his desire for peace, and proposing indemnity for himself and his associates, and the release of the prisoners confined in Boston.2
The situation of Shepard was exceedingly critical. Not- withstanding his hypocritical professions of peace, Shays was advancing on the Boston road, and approached to within two hundred and fifty yards of the arsenal. Shepard had pre- viously despatched an order to General Brooks to march to Springfield with the Middlesex militia as speedily as possible ; and General Lincoln, aware of his need of assistance, pre- pared to march from Worcester to join him. Obliged, there- fore, for the time being, to depend upon his own resources, a message was sent to the insurgents by General Shepard, in- forming them that he was acting under the authority of the state and of the Congress, and that he was determined, at all hazard, to defend his post; but they were undeterred by this
1 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- ington, 74; Minot's Hist. of the In- surrection, 107, 108; Bradford, ii. 291-293; Holland's Western Mass. i. 261, 262.
2 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- ington, 74; Minot's Hist. of the In- surrection, 109; Bradford, ii. 291, 292; Holland's Western Mass. i. 262-264.
245
PURSUIT OF THE INSURGENTS.
announcement, and continued to advance. Further parley CHAP. was useless ; and orders were given to discharge two cannon VI. over their heads. This quickened their approach ; and they 1787. Jan. 25. pressed forward, with an unbroken front, to within fifty yards of his line. The artillery was then pointed at the centre of their column ; the order was given ; and, as the smoke rolled up, a pitiable scene of confusion was exhibited. The cry of " Murder " was heard from the rear of the mob; three, at least, lay dead on the ground, and a fourth, in his agony, was writhing in the snow. In vain did Shays attempt to rally them ; they retreated in disorder, and fled to Ludlow, ten miles distant.1
Day, in the mean time, more irritated than dismayed, re- mained in inglorious inactivity at West Springfield ; nor was the report of the cannon sufficient to arouse him. The army of Lincoln was a day's march distant, but was advancing rap- idly to the scene of strife. To avoid a collision with him, Shays, with his followers, withdrew to Chicopee, where Par- sons was posted, with the rebels from Berkshire ; but, while on his way, two hundred men deserted his ranks. The arrival of Lincoln was greeted with joy,2 and pursuit and aggression Jan. 27. were immediately counselled. Every thing favored the success of his plans, for the camp of the enemy was filled with confu- sion. Wearied, therefore, as were his soldiers, they were marched towards West Springfield, while the Hampshire troops, under General Shepard, were sent up the river to the rendezvous of Shays. The troops of General Lincoln crossed on the ice ; and, at the ferry, the guard, after a feeble resist- ance, hastily fled. The infantry, on reaching the shore, marched up " Shad Lane," while the cavalry, under Major Buffington,
1 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- ington, 74; Marshall's Washington, v. 122; Minot's Hist. of the Insur- rection, 111; Bradford, ii. 293, 294; Holland's Western Mass. i. 265.
One regiment, and some horse,
were thrown into Shepard's camp on the night of the 26th. "MS. Letter of Lincoln to Washington, 75. General Lincoln himself arrived at noon on the 27th.
246
PURSUIT OF THE INSURGENTS.
CHAP. who was distinguished for his gallantry, went up the middle VI. of the river, to prevent the crossing of the force under Day.1 1787. The retreat of the latter speedily followed ; and so hastily did his troops flee, that bread and pork and beans were left baking in the ovens, and their path to Northampton was strewed with cast-off muskets and knapsacks.2
The flight of Day was a signal for his associates to shift for themselves ; and, alarmed for his own safety, Shays, whose courage had nearly deserted him, hastily marched through South Hadley to Amherst, supplying the hunger of his men Jan. 29. by plunder. Lincoln pursued him ; but, before his arrival, the discomfited leader pushed forward to Pelham, and shel- tered himself amidst its hills.3 The public, by these victories, were relieved of their fears ; domestic tranquillity was re- stored to the agitated inhabitants of Springfield ; and General Lincoln passed over to Hadley, to find a shelter for his wea- ried troops. The alarm of the same day called out the Brook- field volunteers, to the number of fifty, under Colonel Baldwin, and one hundred horse under Colonel Crafts ; and at Middle- field they succeeded in capturing the party which had occa- sioned the disturbance.4
The insurgents, though defeated, were posted in Pelham in considerable numbers, and had taken possession of two high hills, which were difficult of access from the depth of the snow. Further hostilities, therefore, seemed to be threatened ; and, to prevent these, if possible, General Lincoln addressed Jan. 30. a letter to Shays and his associates, counselling them to dis- band. The reply of Shays was in his customary vein ; and
1 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- ington, 75; Minot's Hist. of the In- surrection, 112, 113; Bradford, ii. 294, 295; Holland's Western Mass. i. 266.
Worcester Mag. No. 46, for Feb. 1787; Holland's Western Mass, i. 266.
3 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- ington, 76; Minot's Hist. of the In- surrection, 114, 116; Bradford, ii. 296; Holland's Western Mass. i. 266, 267.
4 Minot's Hist. of the Insurrection, 117, 118; Bradford, ii. 296; Hol- land's Western Mass. i. 267.
247
SESSION OF THE GENERAL COURT.
the assertion was repeated that, however unjustifiable their CHAP. measures might appear, their paths were marked with "a de- VI. gree of innocence," and that they were willing to lay down 1787. their arms " on the condition of a general pardon," and return to their homes. A " committee of reconciliation" was also appointed to wait upon the general, and, receive his answer ; Jan. 31. but their request was declared to be " totally inadmissible," as no powers had been delegated to him which would justify a delay of his operations.1 Communications from the towns were similarly treated ; and the malcontents, conscious of the weakness of their party, petitioned the legislature that hostili- ties might cease.2
The session of the General Court was to take place in January ; but it was the third of February before a quorum Feb. 3. appeared. The speech of the governor, which was full, con- tained a review of the proceedings of the insurgents, and insisted upon a vigorous suppression of the insurrection.3 Entire satisfaction with the conduct of the executive was expressed by both branches ; and, to signalize their readiness to sustain his authority, a declaration of rebellion was adopt- Feb. 4. ed, accompanied by a resolve approving the offer of clemency to the insurgents, and empowering the governor, in the name of the General Court, to promise a pardon, under such dis- qualifications as should afterwards be provided, to all privates and non-commissioned officers in arms against the common-
1 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- ington, 76-79, 83; Worcester Mag. No. 44, for Feb. 1787; Minot's Hist. of the Insurrection, 118-122 ; Brad- ford, ii. 298, 299 ; Holland's Western Mass. i. 268, 269. The letter to Shays was delivered by Gen. Put- nam, and two other officers, who were of the family of Lincoln.
2 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- ington, 81, 82 ; Marshall's Washing- ton, v. 123.
3 Worcester Mag. No. 44, for Feb.
1787 ; Minot's Hist. of the Insurrec- tion, 123; Bradford, ii. 299; Hol- land's Western Mass. i. 271. " The moment is important," wrote Wash- ington to Knox, Feb. 3, 1787, in Sparks's Washington, ix. 228. " If the government shrinks, or is unable to enforce its laws, fresh manœuvres will be displayed by the insurgents, anarchy and confusion must prevail, and every thing will be turned topsy- turvy in that state, where it is not probable the mischief will end."
248
PURSUIT OF SHAYS.
CHAP. wealth, unless excepted by the general officer commanding the VI. troops, upon condition of surrendering their arms and taking 1787. Feb. 8. the oath of allegiance within a fixed time.1 A bill was also passed appropriating the sum of forty thousand pounds of the impost and excise duties for reimbursing the moneys borrowed for suppressing the rebellion, and a resolve approving the spirited conduct of General Shepard.2
Pending these movements on the part of the General Court, and in the face of the petition forwarded to that body ac- knowledging their error and promising to disband,3 Shays, as if determined to place his men beyond the temptation to desert, withdrew his forces from Pelham to Petersham, a num- ber of the towns in that vicinity having engaged to support him. A pursuit was commenced by Lincoln at eight in the evening ; and, though the weather was exceedingly cold, and the path before him was "bleak and drear," and a violent snow storm overtook him on his route, he pushed on without halting, to the infinite surprise of the discomfited rebels, whom he found reposing in fancied security. Hardly had they time to snatch up their arms, when the whole army under General Feb. 4. Lincoln - cavalry, artillery, infantry, and all - came pouring into the town. The frightened rebels precipitately fled, throng- ing the back road leading to Athol, and scarcely discharging a gun in their retreat. Lincoln might have slain many, had such been his policy ; but he contented himself with routing them, and taking one hundred and fifty prisoners, whom he dismissed to their homes, after administering to them the oath of allegiance. Shays, however, effected his escape, and was next heard of at Winchester, New Hampshire, with three
1 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- ington, 97, 101; Minot's Hist. of the ington, 87-95 ; Worcester Mag. Nos. Insurrection, 126. 45 and 46, for Feb. 1787 ; Minot's Hist. of the Insurrection, 124; Brad- ford, ii. 371-373 ; Holland's Western Mass. i. 271.
MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash-
3 For this petition, see Worcester Mag. No. 47, for Feb. 1787 ; Minot's Hist. of the Insurrection, 127, 128; Bradford, ii. 300.
249
VIGILANCE OF THE GOVERNMENT.
hundred of his men, while the rest had fled to Vermont and CHAP. New York.1 VI.
The tidings of this defeat reached Boston on the sixth ; and 1787. Feb. 6. the friends of the government were encouraged to hope that the rebellion was at an end. The order for raising twenty-six hundred men, which had just been passed, was accordingly so far countermanded as to provide for raising fifteen hundred Feb. 8. for four months, unless sooner discharged ; the petition of the insurgents was rejected ; the conduct of Lincoln was approved ; a proclamation was issued offering a reward of one hundred and fifty pounds for the apprehension of the leaders of the rebellion ; and the governor was empowered to write to the neighboring states, where the fugitives were secreted, request- ing their concurrence in measures for their capture.2
Compelled to change their mode of warfare, the remaining insurgents determined to harass the inhabitants in small par- ties, and to accomplish by these means what they had other- wise failed to effect. But the vigilance of the government was fully aroused, and in all their incursions they were suc- cessfully repulsed. Patriots rallied for the defence of the constitution ; and in Worcester, in Hampshire, and in Berk-' shire, the rebellion was checked, and the insurgents were routed. Parties of volunteers offered their services, and men of the first rank were filled with enthusiasm. Driven to des- peration, Parsons and his allies breathed rash vows of "re- Feb. 15. lentless bloodshed," resolved to " Burgoyne Lincoln and his army," and declared their determination to carry their point, if " fire, blood, and carnage" would effect it.3
1 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- 46, for Feb. 1787; Minot's Hist. ington, 84-86; Minot's Hist. of the Insurrection, 131-135 ; Bradford, ii. 301; Holland's Western Mass. i. 270, 271; Lincoln's Worcester ; Ward's Shrewsbury, 113.
2 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- ington, 96-98; Worcester Mag. No.
of the Insurrection, 129-131, 135; Bradford, ii. 303, 305; Holland's Western Mass. i. 3 Minot's Hist. of the Insurrection, 136-148 ; Bradford, ii. 303-305; Holland's Western Mass. i. 272-275.
250
DISQUALIFYING RESOLVES.
CHAP. VI. The question, what disqualifications should constitute the conditions of indemnity to the rebels, was debated by the 1787. General Court for several days. A subject so new was at- tended with a great many difficulties and perplexities. It involved the character of the insurgents and their cause ; and, as the effect of their punishment would depend on the convic- tion of the public of its justice, and on the exactest proportion between the penalty and the crime, it was easy to foresee that, if the penalty exceeded the most moderate limits, numbers, instead of being deterred by their fate, would excuse their crimes, and become their advocates as the victims of power. Feb. 16. The decision of the Houses was as mild as could have been expected ; and the instituted conditions were, "that the offenders, having laid down their arms, and taken the oath of allegiance to the commonwealth, should keep the peace for
three years, and, during that term, should not serve as jurors, be eligible to any town office or any other office under the government, should not hold or exercise the employment of schoolmasters, innkeepers, or retailers of spirituous liquors, or give their votes for the same term of time for any officer, civil or military, within the commonwealth, unless they should, after the first day of May, 1788, exhibit plenary evidence of their having returned to their allegiance and kept the peace, and of their possessing such an unequivocal attachment to the government as should appear to the General Court a sufficient ground to discharge them from all or any of these disqualifi- cations." To such of the privates among the rebels as had taken up arms on the side of the government before the first of February current, the governor was empowered to extend the release of all or any of these conditions, as also to certain others designated. And those absolutely excepted from the indemnity were "such as were not citizens of the state, such as had been members of any General Court in the state, or had been employed in any commissioned'office, civil or mili- tary ; such as, after delivering up their arms, and taking the
251 -
VIEWS OF GENERAL LINCOLN.
oath of allegiance during the rebellion, had again taken and CHAP. borne arms against the government; such as had acted as VI. committees, counsellors, or advisers to the rebels ; and such 1787. as, in former years, had been in arms against the government, in the capacity of commissioned officers, and were afterwards pardoned, and had been concerned in the rebellion." 1
Judicious, however, as these measures appeared in the eyes of many, there were not wanting others who "could not but suppose that, if the number of the disfranchised had been less, the public peace would have been equally safe, and the gen- eral happiness promoted." Among these was General Lincoln, who was thoroughly acquainted with all the circumstances of the rebellion, and whose statesmanlike views, which do equal honor to his head and his heart, were freely expressed in a communication to a "private friend in Boston," and in a voluminous epistle to General Washington.
" The act," he observes, "includes so great a description of persons, that, in its operation, many towns will be disfran- chised. This will injure the whole ; for multiplied disorders must be experienced under such circumstances. The people who have been in arms against the government, and their abettors, have complained, and do now complain, that griev- ances exist, and that they ought to have redress. We have invariably said to them, 'You are wrong in flying to arms ; you should seek redress in a constitutional way, and wait the decision of the legislature.' These observations were un- doubtedly just ; but will they not now complain, and say that ve have cut them off from all hope of redress from that quar- er ? for we have denied them a representation in that legisla- ive body by whose laws they must be governed. While they tre in this situation, they never will be reconciled to govern- nent, nor will they submit to the terms of it from any other
1 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- of the Insurrection, 138; Holland's ngton, 104-112; Worcester Mag. Western Mass. i. 275, 276. No. 47, for Feb. 1787 ; Minot's Hist.
252
VIEWS OF GENERAL LINCOLN.
CHAP. motive than fear, excited by a constant military, armed force VI. extended over them.
1787. " While these distinctions are made, the subjects of them will remain invidious, and there will be no affection existing among the inhabitants of the same neighborhood, or families, where they have thought and acted differently. Those who have been opposers of government will view with a jealous eye those who have been supporters of it, and consider them as the cause which produced the disqualifying act, and who are now keeping it alive. Many never will submit to it. They will rather leave the state than do it. And if we could reconcile ourselves to this loss, and on its account make no objection, yet these people will leave behind them near and dear connections, who will feel themselves wounded through their friends.
" The influence of these people is so fully checked, that we; have nothing to apprehend from them now but their individ- ual votes. When this is the case, to express fears from that quarter is impolitic. Admit that some of these very people should obtain a seat in the Assembly the next year, we have nothing to fear from the measure; so far from that, I think it would produce the most salutary effects. For my own part, I wish that those in general who should receive a pardon were at liberty to exercise all the rights of good citizens ; for I believe it to be the only way which can be adopted to make them good members of society, and to reconcile them to that government under which we wish them to live. If we are afraid of their weight, and they are for a given time deprived of certain privileges, they will come forth hereafter with redoubled vigor. I think we have much more to fear from a certain supineness which has seized on a great proportion of our citizens, who have been totally inattentive to the exercise of those rights conveyed to them by the constitution of this commonwealth. If the good people of the states will not exert themselves in the appointment of proper characters for
253
VIEWS OF GENERAL LINCOLN.
the executive and legislative branches of government, no dis- CHAP. franchising acts will ever make us a happy and well-governed VI. 1787. people.
" I cannot, therefore, on the whole, but think that, if the opposers to government in general had been disqualified, on a pardon, from serving as jurors on the trial of those who had been in sentiment with them, we should have been perfectly safe. For, as I observed, these people have now no influence as a body, and their individual votes are not to be dreaded ; for we certainly shall not admit that the majority is with them in their political sentiments. If they are, how, upon republi- can principles, can we justly exclude them from the right of governing." 1
The opinions thus expressed were cherished by others, and the friends to lenient measures " began again to advance their sentiments." Already had petitions appeared from more than twenty towns to request the liberation of the state prisoners, and, in some instances, the recall of the state's army, under- the humane idea of preventing the shedding of blood ; and attempts were made to mitigate a punishment which the perse- verance of the rebels had rendered it difficult to delay or, avoid ; but the advocates for the insurgents had so often pledged themselves for their reformation on condition of their pardon, and these pledges had so often failed or been violated, that little inclination was felt to continue a forbearance which had proved ineffectual, and which had tended rather to em- bolden than to reconcile those towards whom it had hitherto been extended.2
to
1 MS. Letter of General Lincoln General Washington, dated at Pittsfield, February 22, 1787, in a MS. volume in the possession of his grand- son, Benjamin Lincoln, Esq., of Bos- ton .. Comp. Sparks's Washington, ix. 240. "I am extremely happy," says Washington to Lincoln, March 13, 1787, "to find that your senti- ments upon the disfranchising act are
such as they are. Upon my first seeing it, I formed an opinion per- fectly coincident with yours, viz., that measures more generally lenient might have produced equally as good an effect, without entirely alienating the affections of the people from the government." Comp. also ibid. 249. 2 Minot's Hist. of the Insurrection. " I hope," wrote Rufus King to El-
254
SUBSIDENCE OF THE DISTURBANCES.
CHAP. VI. The governors of Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York, and Pennsylvania cheerfully offered to assist the 1787. executive of Massachusetts in suppressing the rebellion ; and the General Assemblies concurred in these offers. The course of Rhode Island was less decided ; and a motion for a procla- mation for the apprehension of the insurgents was rejected by a large majority, and " one of the very refugees was allowed a seat in their chamber." 1
As disturbances had now in a great measure subsided, the legislature turned its attention to the trial of those who had Feb. 26. been seized and imprisoned. For this purpose, the Supreme Judicial Courts were directed by law to hold a special session in the disaffected counties of Berkshire, Hampshire, and Mid- dlesex ; and, in order that the trials might be impartially conducted, instructions were sent to the towns for revising the jury boxes ; and three commissioners - the Hons. Benjamin Lincoln, Samuel Phillips, Jun., and Samuel A. Otis - were appointed, with authority to promise indemnity to those who returned to their allegiance, and to make remission of the conditions of the disqualifying act wherever, in their judg- ment, the parties were entitled to the same. From the pro- tection of this commission, however, the four rebel leaders - Shays, Wheeler, Parsons, and Day - were excluded, together with all persons who had fired upon or killed any of the citi- zens in the peace of the commonwealth, and the commander of the party to which such persons belonged, the members of the rebel council of war, and all persons against whom the Governor and Council had issued a warrant, unless liberated on bail.2
bridge Gerry, February 11, 1787, in tensive. A few, and those of the Austin's Life of Gerry, ii. 7, "the most consequence, should be the vic- tims of law." most extensive and minute attention will now be paid to the eradicating 1 Minot's Hist. of the Insurrection, 152-160; Bradford, ii. 305. of every seed of insurgency. Re- member, however, that punishment, to be efficacious, should not be ex-
2 MS. Letter of Lincoln to Wash- ington, 102-104 ; Minot's Hist. of the
255
REFORMATORY MEASURES ADOPTED.
Agreeably to the system which had been begun at the last CHAP. session, several reformatory measures were adopted, at this
VI. time, by the General Court; and a bill was passed for 1787. reducing the number of terms of the Courts of Common Pleas and General Sessions of the Peace, a new fee bill was enacted, and a committee was appointed to inquire "whether there were any real public grievances under which the people of the commonwealth labored." The report of this committee, which consisted of three articles,1 gave rise to debate ; and on one of the articles, relative to a reduction of the governor's sal- ary, a bill was passed, which his excellency returned with his objections ; and, as it failed to receive the vote required by the constitution, it was dropped, and the legislature was pro- Mar.10. rogued to the next annual election.
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