History of Clinton and Franklin Counties, New York : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 11

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) 1n; Lewis, J.W., & Co., Philadelphia
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & co.
Number of Pages: 922

USA > New York > Clinton County > History of Clinton and Franklin Counties, New York : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 11
USA > New York > Franklin County > History of Clinton and Franklin Counties, New York : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 11

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Benjamin Mott was a respectable farmer from Alburgh, Vt., where his family resided with him on his farm. Being

THE PATRIOT WAR.

over this side the lake on business the night the patriots took up their encampment on the line, and a warm sympa- thizer with their cause, he, with others, visited their camp, and as an attack was expected soon to be made, was per- suaded to remain and take charge of their field-piece. For this exhibition of patriotism Mott was confined in a gloomy dungeon at Montreal, and at last tried for treason and con- demned to death. He afterwards had his sentence com- muted to banishment for life to Van Diemen's Land, where, with others for the same offense, he was conveyed the fol- lowing year. After eight years of hard labor and intense suffering, he, with others, through the interference of our government, received his pardon and returned home to his farm in Alburgh, where he lived a respected citizen until his death, some few years ago.

Thus terminated the first attempt of the Canadian patriots to open up communication with the States. The remaining division of their force, left at Napierville, had no time to lose, as preparations were making in Montreal on a large scale to attack them with troops to be sent forward, commanded by Sir John Colburn, the hero of a hundred battles,-one of Wellington's Waterloo veterans.

On the following day, after the defcat of the first division, Napierville was considered unsafe quarters, and the last chance for success lay in making a second attempt to open up communication with the lines, or retreating into the States.

On the following day, the picket guards of the volun- teers reported the patriot forces in sight of Odletown, where they encamped during that night, while the Odle- town troops were garrisoned partly in the church. This being a stone building, its walls afforded protection, while the troops could load and fire from the windows. On the following Friday morning, after the battle of LaColle, the remaining patriot force, about fifteen hundred strong, were met by the British volunteers on the Odletown road, where they commenced a running fire, until they had retreated to the church, where a sharp fire was opened and kept up, both from the church and outside, with the small picce of artillery taken from the patriots the previous Wednesday, doing fatal execution where they were not protected by breastworks.

Two large barns, nearly opposite the church, afforded good breastworks, behind which the patriots could load and fire, and be shielded from the fire of the church. Seeing this protection against their fire, and the advantage those barns gave to the patriots, they were set on fire by the troops from the church, soon driving the patriot troops into the open field, when a destructive fire was opened upon them from the church and the field-piece in front of it, causing a panic among them and their leaders, none of whom had ever had a military training, and knew as little about conducting a retreat as they did of making an attack. Their leader, Robert Nelson, seeing no further hope of rallying his men, made a hasty retreat for the lines, not waiting to make a second attack. With Nelson and most of the leaders fled, a general panic followed, some retreat- ing in one direction and some in another. They were pur- sucd by the volunteers, now flushed with a second victory, and some sixty killed and many wounded, who were con- veyed by their companions to places of concealment.

Thus ended the second attack, and with it all further hopes of Canadian independence by the patriots.

While this march was being conducted to Canada line, Sir John Colburn, the military commander of the forces in Canada, was making preparation in Montreal to attack the patriot forces with a large force of well-disciplined troops, but, arriving at Odletown on the day following the battle, found no enemy to attack, but made a few prisoners on his return to Montreal, and burnt on his way the dwellings of many Canadian habitants known to be leaders in the re- bellion, inflicting a double punishment upon those known to have been the most active in getting up the rebellion. The road from Napierville to the St. Lawrence River, all along through every neighborhood, showed the ruins of dwellings burned by the order of the British commander, and that, too, at the setting in of winter, causing great distress to families left homeless. The torch has always been freely used by the British army in dealing with rebellions, and Sir John Colburn, a Waterloo veteran, knew well how to apply it.

With the failure of the second attempt for Canadian in- dependence, the leaders found quite enough to do to secure their own and the personal safety of their followers. Thus ended the Canadian rebellion.

Cruel and severe as were the consequences of this attempt at Canadian independence, its effect upon the British gov- ernment was most salutary, in leading them to inquire into many of the causes of complaint and providing a more liberal government ; and such has been the progress of these colonies since that time, that it is doubtful whether the gaining of Canadian independence could have secured the same prosperity, or as much civil and religious liberty. The home government learned from this attempt at estab- lishing Canadian independence and from the earlier lessons of our Revolution how futile would be the attempt to gov- ern with any but the most liberal laws, knowing a people living along side a government like ours, with their exten- sive business and social connection, would naturally imbibe our love of liberty, and demand of the home government laws that would encourage and protect industry and immi- gration.

Those who have carefully watched the progress made by the Dominion of Canada, especially the upper province, since 1844 and 1845, can see that it has been nearly as great as the average growth of our country. At one time there were in the Legislature of the lower province about thirteen to one of the liberal party ; but when the leaders of that party supposed it strong enough to declare itself independent of the crown, they found quite a different state of public opinion among the masses (especially in the lower province, where the Catholic clergy gave it no sup- port), and that fighting for Canadian liberty was quite dif- ferent from agitating for the same.

Great Britain, with the home Parliament, after seeing so firm a stand taken by hier Canadian subjects in favor of the crown, and their willingness to respond to their call to put down rebellion, was willing to respond to their prayer for a redress of those grievances over which they have complained.

The benefit of good and liberal laws was made apparent in the growing intelligence of the masses in many parts of

HISTORY OF CLINTON AND FRANKLIN COUNTIES, NEW YORK.

the upper and lower provinces, especially in the upper, in the dissemination of knowledge, the vast amount expended for internal improvements in the Grand Trunk Railroad and her canals ; and had the French Canadians evinced the same desire for advancement that the English-speaking population did, they to-day would be far more intelligent and prosperous. Until they cease to cling with such te- nacity to the traditions of their ancestors they will make but slow progress. In many parts to-day there is but little visible difference among the agricultural population from their Norman ancestry of more than two hundred years ago.

Among the events which threatened scriously to disturb our relations with Great Britain some time after the rebel- lion, was the arrest, on this side of the line, of one Alex- ander McLeod, a British subject and resident of the Niagara District, Upper Canada, who came on this side the lincs and boasted of his participation in the capture of the steamer " Caroline," and that he killed the American who fell in that conflict. The British government demanded his return, claiming that the act was one of war, sanctioned by the usage of nations, and that they, and not McLeod, were responsible for this act. But the authorities of this State regarded it as an act of murder, and McLeod was put on his trial for the same.

This trial caused great excitement each side the line, all parties believing that the execution of McLeod would most assuredly bring on a war between the two nations. But the trial brought out the fact that this McLeod was nothing more than a great braggadocia and coward, never having been near the burning of the " Caroline," nor participated in the killing of any one on board of it.

The rebellion being fairly subdued, and the last vestige of disloyalty to the crown silenced, there no longer remained any necessity to punish those who had participated in it, and so liberal had the home government become towards those who had taken up arms against it, that when, a few years after the rebellion, the Lower Canada Parliament, in session at Montreal, passed an act partly indemnifying for losses those who had engaged in the rebellion, the loyal inhabitants of that city rose en masse, drove out the Gov- ernor and members of the House, mobbing the carriage and premises of the Governor, burned the house occupied as a parliament house, and threatening another rebellion should Parliament attempt to enforce this act.

CHAPTER XI.

WOLF-HUNTING IN CLINTON AND FRANKLIN COUNTIES-THE FRAUDS OF 1821 AND 1822.

FIFTY years ago a number of persons residing in Mooers and Chateaugay formed a plan to defraud those towns of large sums of money by fraudulent wolf-bounty certificates. The amount of the certificates granted in 1821 and 1822, exceeded forty thousand dollars. If the certificates were honestly and legally issued, at least five hundred full-grown wolves had been killed in Franklin County during the two years, and two hundred and seventy-five in Clinton County,

and yet the actual number killed in both counties was probably less than one hundred.

According to the report of the wolf-hunters, the country around Long Pond, Lilly Pond, and Round Pond, at the head-waters of the north branch of the Saranac, was filled with wolves, which were caught there in great numbers. Two of these hunters represented that they had trapped nine in one bed. Mr. Abner M. Sherman swore that, in- duced by the reports of the profits attending the hunting business, he commenced trapping for wolves about these ponds in July, 1821, and followed the business faithfully until September. That in his trips he visited as many as thirty of the hunters' traps, and that he never found a wolf in those traps or in his own, nor did he ever discover a live or dead wolf, or anything which he believed to be the remains of a wolf.

To obtain the bounty, the law required " that the person killing the wolf or whelp shall take the head thercof, the skin and ears entire thereon, to some justice of the peace of such county, and make oath of the time and place when and where such wolf or whelp was taken and killed, and shall also submit himself to such further examination upon oath as the said justice may require, and said justice shall thereupon cut off and burn the ears of said wolf or whelp, and shall give the person so complying a certificate thereof, setting forth the substance of such oath and examination." It thus became necessary, in order to carry out the plans of the confederate hunters, or " wolf ring," as they would now be called, to find a dishonest applicant to swear to the killing, and an equally dishonest magistrate to grant the requisite certificate. Both were found within the ring.

The result was that the county expenses of Franklin County increased from $1720.51 in 1820 to $12,038.49 in 1821, and to $9130.02 in 1822, while the expenses of Chateaugay which, prior to that time, had been less than $1000 per year, were $9350.89 in 1821, and $3687.98 in 1822.

In Clinton County in 1821, bounties were paid on one hundred and twenty-five wolves, amounting to $3290, and . on one hundred and forty-nine wolves in 1822.

Various devices were adopted by the wolf ring to secure the certificates. Emissaries were sent into Vermont and Canada to purchase the heads of wolves killed there. Wolves were caught in Canada, brought across the boun- dary line, and put in the traps of the hunters. Dogs were bought from the Indians at Caughnawaga and Vermont in large numbers, and certificates granted upon the production of their heads to the certifying magistrate. The skins of the heads of wolves killed several years before were drawn over the skulls of other animals, and stitched with thread.

Certificates were frequently granted to one person for ten, thirteen, and sometimes fifteen wolves, and a dozen or more certificates would be granted for the same head. In the latter cases the magistrate would examine the head, and finding " its skin and ears entire thereon," would throw it behind him, and become deeply engaged in writing an affi- davit " of the time and place when and where the wolf was taken and killed," intending, unquestionably, after having prepared the papers, " to cut off and burn the ears," as required by law.

THE DISTRICT OF CHAMPLAIN.

While thus engaged in writing, another person would slyly throw the head out of the window, where another would piek it up and bring it into the room, ready to be presented and sworn to as soon as the first papers were eom- pleted. Thus the same head, with " skin and ears entire," would pass in at the door and out at the window, until the magistrate had a dozen heads, in fancy, piled up behind him, waiting for their ears to be eut off. We ean eoneeive the astonishment of this officer when he found but one sol- itary head lying upon the floor, and but one pair of ears to be cropped.

The hunters frequently paid as high as twenty dollars for a wolf's head, as they could afford to do so, as the State, county, and town bounties combined amounted to fifty dollars in Clinton, and to sixty dollars in Franklin County.

When the tax-payers of Chateaugay ascertained that nearly twelve thousand dollars had been assessed upon the town to pay the town and county bounty, they concluded it was better to let the wolves run among their floek, and therefore petitioned the Legislature to repeal or modify the bounty law. To pacify their townsmen, the "ring" placed one thousand dollars in the hands of the supervisor toward paying the resident taxes. The result of the application to the Legislature was the passage of a law limiting the aggregate amount of State and county bounty in Franklin County in any one year to one thousand dollars, which was not to be paid until the Board of Supervisors had examined and passed upon the regularity and fairness of the certifi- cates issued by the justices. Commissioners were also ap- pointed by the Governor to examine and determine as to the legality and fairness of all certificates issued sinee the annual meeting of the Board of Supervisors in the year 1820, and none were to be paid except such as the com- missioners should determine to be " legal and fair." This disposed effectually of the wolf ring in that county.

When the Board of Supervisors of Clinton County met at their meeting in 1821, claims were presented to the amount of twelve hundred and fifty dollars for the county bounty on wolves, and for two thousand and forty dollars against Mooers for the town bounty of twenty dollars voted to be paid by the town. Mr. Jabez Fitch, Jr., then supervisor of Mooers, strenuously opposed the allowance of the claims against his town, insisting that the vote of the annual town- meeting granted the bounty to residents only of the town, that the vote had been revoked at a special town-meeting, held on the 28th of June following; that a large number of the certificates were given to non-residents of the town, and for wolves killed after the 28th of June, and upon two instances for whelps, while the vote of the town was limited to full grown wolves. His efforts were unavailing. The sum of two thousand and forty dollars was added to the tax list of the town of Mooers, and, with its other town expenses and county charges, raised the taxes of that town to eighteen mills on the dollar of valuation.

The town of Mooers applied to the Legislature for relief at the next session, when an act was passed directing the Board of Supervisors to refund the two thousand and forty dollars less the amount of the town bounty for full-grown wolves killed by residents of the town prior to the 28th day of June.

The aets granting relief from the frauds of the wolf ring contained a " whereas" setting forth the reasons for the law, and since then that word has been a dread to many of the inhabitants in the northern part of the county. It was only a few years ago that a paper was served upon an illit- erate Mooerstonian, which he requested a person who hap- pened to call at his house to read to him. The person took the paper, opened it, hastily threw it on the floor, and turning to the other, cried out, " Don't touch that paper, it's one of those confounded whereases. I wouldn't read it for one hundred dollars." The next day another person, who had heard the story, called at the house, and seeing the paper lying on the floor, asked why it was left there, when he received the reply, " Me no touch him. P ----- say he one confounded whereas." "Pooh !" says the other ; " take it up." "Not much," was the reply. "P- say he no touch him for one hundred dollar." For aught the writer knows the paper remains there to this day, an evi- denee of the force and effect of a " whereas."

If the reader wishes additional information in regard to wolf-hunting and the fraudulent wolf-bounties of 1820-22, he is referred to the affidavits on file in the comptroller's office at Albany, and to the proceedings of the Board of Supervisors of Clinton and Franklin Counties.

CHAPTER XII.

THE DISTRICT OF CHAMPLAIN-SMUGGLING ON THE FRONTIER.

THE district of Champlain was established by act of Con- gress approved March 1, 1799, which is as follows :

" The District of Champlain shall include all such shores and waters of Lake Champlain, and the rivers connected therewith, as lie within the said State of New York ; and the said district shall extend west- wardly along the northern boundary line of the said State unto the place where said line is bounded by the river St. Lawrence; and the President of the United States is hereby authorized to appoint such place within the said district to be a port of entry and delivery as he shall judgo expedient ; and a collector shall be appointed to reside at the port of entry which may be established within the said district ; and the President is also authorized, if he shall judge proper, to ap- point not exceeding two surveyors to reside at such places as he may judge expedient to constitute ports of delivery only."

It appears that under the above act the President desig- nated Plattsburgh * (Cumberland Head) as the port of entry for the district of Champlain.

By section 3, act approved Mareh 3, 1863, Plattsburgh was discontinued as a port of entry, and Rouse's Point was established as the port of entry for the distriet. This law, however, was repealed about a year afterwards by aet of June 3, 1864, by which Plattsburgh was re-established as the port of entry for the district.

# " On the 8th of September, 1815, Mr. Sailly, who was collector at that timo, issued the following notice : 'Tho collector of customs for tho district of Champlain having been informed that it is generally believed that the village and port of Plattsburgh is the port of entry of said district, takes this method of notifying tho public that the port of entry is Cumberland Head, and that tho office of custom is kopt by John Nichols, innkcepor, at the houso formerly occupied by Mr. Ransom south of General Wolsey's.'"

HISTORY OF CLINTON AND FRANKLIN COUNTIES, NEW YORK.

By act of July 13, 1866, Whitehall was regularly estab- lished as a port of delivery within the district of Cham- plain.

The law under which the district of Champlain exists at present is the following paragraph of Sec. 2535, Revised Statutes :

"Third. The district of Champlain ; to comprise all the waters and shores of Lake Champlain and the rivers connected therewith within the State of New York, and to extend westwardly along the northern boundary line of the State to the river Saint Lawrence; in which Plattsburgh shall be the port of entry, and Whitehall and Fort Cov- ington ports of delivery."

The whole amount of duties received from entries in the district of Champlain from January 1 to Dec. 31, 1816, was four thousand one hundred and twenty-six dollars and fifty-eight cents. The permanent inspectors at that time were as follows : James B. Spencer, at French Mills ; Gil- bert Reynolds, at Chateaugay ; Samuel Hicks, at Champlain ; Ezra Thurber, with two assistants, at Rouse's Point ; James L. Woolsey, at Cumberland Head; Charles F. Durand, at Plattsburgh ; and Gidcon Taft, at Whitehall.

The following is a list of the collectors from the estab- lishment of the district to the present time :

Gen. Melancthon L. Woolsey, first collector.

Peter Sailly, appointed Feb. 8, 1809.

F. L. C. Sailly, appointed March, 1826.

David B. McNiel, appointed March, 1829.

Wm. F. Haile, appointed March 4, 1837.

Ezra Smith, appointed April, 1850.

Col. Oliver D. Peabody, appointed March 27, 1851.

Judge Henry B. Smith, appointed July, 1853.

George W. Goff, appointed June 7, 1861.

Hiram Dunn, appointed Sept. 20, 1864.

Maj. Jacob Parmerter, appointed Aug. 10, 1866. Gen. Stephen Moffitt, appointed May 11, 1876.

The following are the names of some of the special deputy collectors who were long identified with the custom service at Plattsburgh :

Thomas Crook, under D. B. McNiel.

John I. Haile, under Wm. F. Haile.

James B. Dickinson, under Ezra Smith.

Charles H. McNiel, under Henry B. Smith, from Jan- uary, 1854, to April, 1861, and under George W. Goff, from April, 1861, to April, 1864.

Lewis W. Pierce, under Oliver D. Peabody, 1851 to 1853; under G. W. Goff, April, 1864, to September, 1864 ; under H. Dunn, September, 1864, to Aug. 10, 1866 ; under Jacob Parmerter, Aug. 11, 1866, to May 10, 1876.

The Custom House building at Plattsburgh is situated on the corner of Margaret and Brinkerhoff Streets. It is a brick structure, forty-five by sixty-six feet and forty-eight feet in height, and was erected in 1857-58, at an expense (including lot of over one-half acre, which cost five thou- sand dollars) of fifty-five thousand dollars. The building has accommodations for a post-office on first floor, custom- house on second floor, and United States Court rooms on third floor. No term of court, however, has yet been held in the building.

The following is a list of the officers employed in the district on the 31st day of August, 1879 :

1. Stepheu Moffitt, Collector, Plattsburgh.

2. John Martin, Deputy Collector and Special Deputy, Plattsburgh.

3. Willard A. Fuller, Deputy Collector and Clerk, Plattsburgh.

4. Almon L. Parmerter, Deputy Collector, Plattsburgh.

5. Henry Orvis, Deputy Collector and Clerk, at Rouse's Point.

6. Lyman E. Bowron, Deputy Collector and Clerk, at Rouse's. Point.

7. Russell Moore, Deputy Collector and Inspector, at Rouse's Point. S. Reuben Barton, Deputy Collector and Inspector, at Rouse's Point.

9. Philip W. Signor, Deputy Collector and Inspector, at Rouse's Point.

10. Elisha A. Adams, Deputy Collector and Inspector, at Rouse's Point.

11. Mason A. Nichols," Deputy Collector and Inspector, at Rouse's Point.

12. Edwin B. Low,# Deputy Collector and Inspector, at Rouse's Point.

13. Jonathan W. Haynes,# Deputy Collector and Inspector, at Rouse's Point.

14. Alonzo W. Morgan," Deputy Collector and Inspector, at Rouse's Point.

15. William H. Tefft, Deputy Collector, at Whitehall.

16. Henry C. Jillson,# Deputy Collector and Inspector, at White- hall.

17. Albert M. Hoit," Deputy Collector and Inspector, at Whitehall.

18. P. H. Shields, Deputy Collector and Inspector, at Malone.

19. Charles Deal, Deputy Collector, at Champlain.

20. Cornelius Bosworth, Deputy Collector, at Mooers Junction.

21. D. W. Shurtliff, Deputy Collector, at Mooers Forks.

22. S. D. Mix, Deputy Collector, at Ellenburgh Depot.

23. James Mitchell, Deputy Collector, at Chateaugay.

24. H. E. Warren, Deputy Collector, at Trout River.

25. S. E. Blood, Deputy Collector, at Fort Covington.

26. George W. Davis, Deputy Collector, Hoganshurgh.

27. William T. Howell, Special Inspector, Plattsburgh.

28. James A. Dodge, Special Inspector, Montreal.

29. William V. Alexander, Special Inspector, New York.

The following is a statement of the business of the dis- trict for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1879 :

COLLECTIONS.

Duties on imports. $171,802.52

Tonnage dues 8,116.62

Fines, penalties, and forfeitures. 2,198.71

Fees

6,363.10

Marine hospital tax 220.87

Miscellaneous 9.92

$188,711.74

VALUES OF IMPORTS, ETC.

Value of dutiahle goods imported for con-

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History of Clinton and Franklin Counties, New York : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 11

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) 1n; Lewis, J.W., & Co., Philadelphia Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & co. Number of Pages: 922

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) 1n; Lewis, J.W., & Co., Philadelphia
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & co.
Number of Pages: 922