USA > Rhode Island > Providence County > Providence > State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations at the end of the century : a history, Volume 1 > Part 60
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In May, 1709, upon the demand of Her Majesty, Queen Anne, an expedition was organized for the invasion of Canada; a war tax of one thousand dollars was ordered to be levied; and two sloops, tlie Diamond and the Endeavor, taken up for the purpose, together with some transports, to carry the troops to Boston. Capt. Edward Thurston was chosen commissary, and was, furthermore, charged with the duty of providing naval stores, arms, ammunition, etc., for the expedition. Two hundred effective men were equipped and drilled for the service in little more than a month; and, under command of Col. William Wanton, sailed for Nantasket, the rendezvous of the fleet, on the 19th of June, and arrived three days later. They were destined to remain there five months, in the pay of the Colony, owing to the non-arrival of the British fleet which was to co-operate with them. After waiting several months for the fleet Colonel Vetch, the queen's messenger, requested the colonial government to meet Colonel Nichol-
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son, the commander of the expedition, and himself "at the most com- modious centrical place of all the said Governments, which", he says, "I humbly conceive to be about New London". Soon afterward he appointed Newport as the place of meeting, which took place about the 12th of October, whence it was adjourned to Rehoboth, as being more convenient. The meeting was over before the 19th, as Governor Saltonstall returned to New Haven on that day from the convention. With the same object in view a special session of the General Assembly of Rhode Island took place in September, at which a committee of ten was appointed to aid the governor. In the following month news arrived from England of the defeat of the allies of Spain and the consequent withdrawal of the fleet destined for Canada. An address to the queen was adopted, urging anew the reduction of Canada. This policy was brought before the Assembly in October and determined upon. At the same time an act was passed for disbanding the troops and withdrawing the transports which had been sent five months before to Nantasket, as before stated. The new act of the Assembly provided for raising one hundred and forty effective men for an ex- pedition against Port Royal in Nova Scotia; and another was passed for issuing £5,000 in Bills of Credit for defraying the expenses to be incurred. Similar proceedings were taken by other eolonies. The Couneil of War now called upon Rhode Island to furnish two hundred men for the proposed expedition to Port Royal. While the Assembly elaimed that this number was greater than the due proportion, the two hundred men were ordered to be raised and Lieut .- Col. John Cranston was chosen for their eommand. When all provisions for the expedition had been made the Assembly voted an Address to the queen relative to excessive quota of men furnished by this Colony. ' The fleet for the expedition consisted of twelve ships of war and twenty-four transports, and sailed from Nantasket September 18, 1710. Three of these vessels were in the pay of Rhode Island and the others in that of Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire. Of troops there were five regiments, all commanded by General Nicholson. They arrived at Port Royal in six days. Then began the memorable siege of more than a week, ending with triumph for the colonial arms. One Connectieut transport ran aground at the mouth of the river and her erew of twenty-six men were lost. On the 2d of October a summons was sent to the fort to surrender and the terms of capitulation were soon settled and articles signed. The English lost only fourteen or fifteen men, besides those drowned. The name of Port Royal was then changed to Annapolis Royal, Colonel Veteh was left in charge of the fort, and the fleet and army returned to Boston, where they received a joyful ovation. The whole of New England shared in the jubilant feeling and the Rhode Island Assembly voted a gratuity to Major George Lee, who brought the news of the event. It would appear
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from the Rhode Island records that one of the Colony's sloops was lost, and an appropriation of £1,000 was made for it; but Hutchinson mentions only the loss of the Connecticut vessel.
The success of the Port Royal expedition greatly stimulated the military spirit which had ever prevailed in New England, and par- ticularly in Rhode Island. Moreover, the leaders of that expedition were encouraged by its success to renewed attempts against Canada. General Nicholson, who had returned to England, lost no time in bringing to the notice of the ministry his plans for another campaign for the purpose of completely reducing Canada, which met with favor, and he returned at once to New England to announce the intentions of the home government. A convention of governors was called and assembled at New London to formulate plans for the campaign ; before their labor was completed the British fleet of fifteen ships of war and forty transports, under Sir Hovenden Walker, arrived at Boston. Great was the joy manifested throughout New England. The several legislatures were called together and prompt and energetic measures were determined on. The Rhode Island General Assembly voted an address to Queen Anne rendering to her majesty "the most hearty thanks for her indulgent care and thoughtfulness of us, in these Her Majesty's Plantations", in the endeavor "to oppress our enemies in these parts". Thanks were also voted to General Nicholson for his zeal in the cause. At the same time it was ordered that one hundred and seventy-nine men be raised for the proposed expedition, and that Major James Brown and George Goulding, with the commissary- general, be a committee to buy a vessel for the Colony's service in the expedition, together with supplies for the same. To provide for the expenses to be incurred, £1,000 were voted and an additional £6,000 were to be issued in Bills of Credit, a portion of which was for the same service.
With remarkable promptitude the northern Colonies responded to the call for men and provisions, in which Rhode Island did her part ; but a new difficulty now arose, through the low credit of England, which prevented the negotiation of bills of exchange to provide for the expenses of the invasion. In the emergency Massachusetts came nobly forward, as she has ever done on similar occasions, and issued Bills of Credit which were given to merchants who furnished pro- visions and other necessaries to the fleet. After a month's delay the fleet sailed from Boston under Admiral Walker with a force of five veteran regiments of Marlborough's army, and two colonial regiments, in all about 7,000 men, under Brigadier-General Hill. New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut furnished fifteen hundred men for the expedition, who assembled at Albany, for operations against Montreal to be made simultaneously with the attack on Quebec. About eight hundred warriors of the Five Nations of Indians also joined the forces,
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all of which was put under command of General Nicholson. The fleet entered the St. Lawrence in safety and there waited six days for the arrival of the transports. But before proceeding farther a violent storm eame on in which eight of the transports were wrecked and nearly 1,000 men lost. Great blame was attached to Admiral Walker for this delay, as he could easily have reached Quebec before the storm came on. This disaster broke up the expedition, and the admiral sent home the colonial transports and sailed for England with his flect. General Nicholson heard of the disaster before he reached Lake Cham- plain and at once returned with his army.
The Colonies, ineluding Rhode Island, severally adopted addresses to the queen setting forth the exertions they had made in the cause against her enemies, the French, and urged another expedition against Canada; but the peaee which soon after followed, by which Acadia (now Nova Scotia ), New Foundland and the region around Hudson's Bay was eeded to Great Britain, rendered it unnecessary.
In 1718 an act was passed for the encouragement of seamen, by which the enemy's vessels and other property appertaining thereto, taken by vessels legally commissioned by the governor, should belong to the eaptors, excepting eertain dues to his majesty. The following year a letter was written from Newport by Caleb Heathcote, governor of the Colony of New York, to the Board of Trade, making a complaint against Rhode Island, among other things for making laws which operated against the king's officers, who, by hindering the colonists "from a full freedom of legal trade, are accounted enemies to the growth and prosperity of their little Commonwealth". And, " 'tis very wonderful to me", continues the writer, "who am thoroughly acquainted with the temper of the people, that none of his Majesty's offieers of the Customs have been mobbed and torn in pieces by the rabble, and of which some of them have very narrowly escaped; an instanee whereof happened in this town, to the present Collector, who having made seizure of several hogsheads of claret, illegally imported, and notwithstanding he had the Governor's warrant and the High Sheriff, besides his own offieers, to assist, and took the claret in the day time, yet the town's people had insolence to rise upon them, and insult both them and the civil officers; and having, by violenee, after a riotous and tumultuous manner, reseued and possessed themselves of the scizure, set the hogsheads ahead and stove them open, and with pails drank out and carried away most of the wine, and then threw the remainder into the streets.
"No sooner was the tumult over, than John Wanton", continues Mr. Heathcote, "who uses the sea, and is Master of a Sloop, a Magis- trate of the people's choice (as may be reasonably supposed), for keeping up the rage and humor of the mob", issued his warrant for arresting Mr. Kay, the collector, under pretense of his taking greater
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fees than the law allowed. In bringing the matter before the governor, Kay was discharged; nevertheless, Wanton caused him to be arrested again, refused to admit him to bail, and hurried him to prison amid a crowd of spectators.
Piratical vessels had lately made their appearance again on the coast; indeed, they had not ceascd with the termination of the late war, but continued their depredations along the whole American coast and in the West Indies. On the 8th of May, 1723, two of these vessels, the Ranger and the Fortune, which had committed several piracies and were well known, captured the ship Amsterdam Merchant, John Welland, master. The next day they plundered her of money and stores, after which they cut off the captain's head and sunk the vessel. A month later they took a Virginia sloop, and after rifling her of her valuables, let her go. On the following day this vessel fell in with His Britannic Majesty's ship, the Greyhound, commanded by Captain Solgard, of twenty guns, to whom they related the particulars of their capture and release. Learning that the pirates had sailed northward in the direction of Block Island, the Greyhound made sail in pursuit and fortunately came up with them three days later, near the east end of Long Island. The pirates took the Greyhound for a merchant vessel and gave chase, engaging her in battle. The contest was warm for an hour, when the pirates discovered that they had mistaken their antagonist and were getting the worst of the battle, and they made an attempt to escape. The wind being light, Captain Solgard got out his boats and followed in pursuit. A second engagement took place, during which the Greyhound got between the pirates and after a while succeeded in disabling one of them, when they called for quarter. The other vessel escaped. The captured vessel and her crew of thirty-six men were taken to Newport. Such a capture created a sensation in the Colony, which suffered much from the depredations of pirates during many years, and the General Assembly ordered a military force to guard the prison where the pirates were confined. In July an Ad- miralty Court, of which William Dummer, lieutenant-governor of Massachusetts, was president, sat in Newport to try the prisoners. The other members of the court were Richard Ward, register; Jahleel Brenton, jr., provost marshal; Governor Cranston, the collector of Rhode Island, four members of the Massachusetts Council, and some others. The trial occupied two days and resulted in the conviction of twenty-six of the pirates, who were sentenced to be hanged. The execution took place on Gravelly Point, also called Bull's Point, "within the flux and reflux of the sea", opposite the town of Newport, on the 19th of July, 1723. The bodies were buried on Goat Island. Only one of these men was a native of Rhode Island, all the others being foreigners and chiefly Englishmen.1
'The proceedings of the trial was published in Boston in a pamphlet. It was
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In the month of October, 1758, four other pirates were tried, condemned and executed at Newport.
The war between Great Britain and Spain awakened anew the desire of King George's subjeets to "annoy His Majesty's enemies", as there was a fair prospect of remunerating themselves for sueh ser- viee by the eapture of valuable prizes. In 1739 the Rhode Island General Assembly authorized the governor to grant privateers' eom- missions against Spain, "as he shall think needful and necessary, pur- suant to His Majesty's warrant". Furthermore, this body also passed a vote to lend to Godfrey Malbone, John Brown, and George Wanton "so many of the Colony's small arms, pistols, eutlasses and great shot, as they have oeeasion for, for fitting out their private men of war, upon their giving sufficient security to the General Treasurer to return as many and as good as they shall receive, and paying the necessary charges arising thereon, in one month's time". Steps were taken, soon after, to place the Colony on a war footing, by passing an aet "to make necessary preparations for the defence of the Government". Fort George, at Newport, was put in repair; ten additional eannon were mounted; a large quantity of ammunition was placed there; and a company of soldiers, under Col. John Cranston, enlisted for its defenee. Another detachment was enlisted for six months and sent to Block Island, where six great guns were mounted for its defenee. Capt. Edward Sands and Nathaniel Littlefield were charged with the duties at the island. Wateh houses were built on Brenton's Point, Seahuest Point, Jamestown, Point Judith, and Watch Hill. Such were the safeguards provided on land. To protect the Colony by water, a war sloop was ordered to be built, "in the best shape".
But the active and restless spirit of Rhode Island was not satisfied with proteeting themselves against the enemy and aeting merely on the defensive. They determined, next, to aet on the offensive; and, in an aet passed by the General Assembly, they expressed their desire "to distress and annoy the Spaniards in the most effeetual manner". For this purpose it was determined to make an attempt upon "some of the most considerable of the Spanish settlements in the West Indies". Troops were next ordered to be raised and every indueement offered to such as would enlist. A bounty of £3 was to be given to each able-bodied man who enlisted, and exemption from all military serviee for three years after his return, except in eases of the greatest extremity. Transports were further to be provided, and the governor was authorized to issue his proclamation forthwith. The committee to provide vessels and provisions for the expedition were George Gould- ing, Peter Bours and Joseph Whipple.
also reprinted in Bull's Memoirs of Rhode Island, which appeared in the Rhode Island Republican in 1832 to 1836; and again in the Newport Mercury for July, August and September, 1858.
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Col. John Cranston was appointed captain of the Colony's sloop, called the Tartar, for her first cruise. His instructions were to "detect any illegal traders and take any of the King of Spain's subjects or interest". He appears to have been ready for sea in the summer of the year 1740. It seems that more men had been enlisted than were required for the expedition against the Spaniards, of whom two hundred only were retained. The two captains commissioned for the expedition were Capt. Joseph Sheffield, and Capt. William Hopkins. Three colonels were ordered commissioned, but their names do not appear. As a compliment to the commissioned officers of the expedi- tion, they were invited to dine with the Court. In order that all who were connected with the expedition might be properly entertained, this body directed, in accordance with the custom of the time, "that the other officers and soldiers be treated by the Sheriff with liquors, to the value of fifteen pounds, at the charge of the Colony". The Tartar war sloop was not destined to remain long inactive. Information being brought to Newport that there was a French vessel on the coast engaged in illicit trade, the Tartar was ordered out in search of her. Captain Cranston was successful in his cruise; he captured the schooner, brought her into port, and she was condemned and the pro- ceeds of her sale distributed among her captors.
An application upon the Colony for aid to the king now came from another quarter, although she had already been making prepara- tions for such a contingency. The British had, in the year 1741, made an attack upon Carthagena, where they were repulsed, in addition to which they met with great loss of men by yellow fever. With a view to recover their fortunes, another attempt was determined on by General Wentworth, commander of the land forces. On the 12th of August, 1741, Wentworth addressed a letter from his camp, on the island of Cuba, to Governor Ward of Rhode Island, which he sent by Capt. William Hopkins, requesting the Colony to raise troops for his aid, "either to fill the vacancies in the old corps and in the Marines, or to form another Battalion". But General Wentworth was not to be satisfied with having further levies of troops; he was out of money, had no way of supplying his recruiting officers with means, and re- quested Governor Ward to draw upon the paymaster-general in Eng- land for expenses incurred. He also desired Governor Ward to "take proper measures for transporting troops to Cuba", to support which charge he flattered himself "the respective Provinces will make a provision". This was, indeed, a modest demand; nevertheless, Gov- ernor Ward, by order of the General Assembly, issued his proclama- tion offering a bounty of £5 of the Old Tenor and a watch-coat to every enlisting soldier, in addition to the royal bounty of £2.
Peter Bours, George Goulding, John Cranston, and Joseph Whipple were the committee to procure men to man the Colony's sloop
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and provisions for the voyage. The sloop was ordered to make a voyage of three months after she had landed the transports; but this order was subsequently countermanded.
The expedition organized by General Wentworth was intended to operate against Santiago, but it seems that after a reconnoissance had been made of the works the plan was abandoned, to the disgrace of the British commanders. Rhode Island, for the aid she furnished for this expedition, subjected herself to an expense of £5,868, 5s. and 8d., which sum was reported by the committee to which the accounts of the expedition were exhibited.
It would appear that the Colony had privateers out at this time, although no mention of them is made in the records beyond the au- thority given the governor to commission them. In one instanee the Assembly voted to pay the eost of the board of Francis Lorenzo, eap- tain of a Spanish privateer, "whieli had been brought in by Captain Norton in his privateer sloop, the Revenge". At another time the passage home of Spanish offieers who had been brought into the Colony were ordered to be paid; and again we find, in 1744, the number of Spanish prisoners brought in by our privateers were so numerous that an aet was passed to regulate their maintenance, allowing each one fifteen shillings each week, and making provision for their return.
The attention of the Colony was now turned in another direction for the purpose of operating against the French possessions at the north, as will appear from the following letter from Governor Shirley, of Massachusetts :
"BOSTON, Jan 29, 1744-45.
"SIR :- Though I doubt not that the interest of the common eause of New England will sufficiently animate your Government to exert themselves vigorously in the intended expedition against Louisburg, yet I beg leave to add that the exposed situation of your Colony, by sea, and the resentment of the enemy against it, on account of the activity of your Privateers, make it probable that you may have a sud- den visit from the French, this summer, if Cape Breton is not redueed.
"The gentlemen who will deliver you this, will apprise your Honor how essential it is, towards our proceeding in this important affair, that we should have a naval foree before Louisburg, by the middle of March, at the farthest, to cut off the enemy's provision- vessels, and intereept Mr. Davison, who is expected with recruits for that garrison; which latter event must be so killing a blow to the people of the town and garrison, that it would not fail of being de- cisive; and they will also let you know what this Government has donc, and what applications I have made towards providing such a naval foree. I hope, therefore, you will not fail to exert yourself in this respect. They will further inform you how necessary it is that we should have a proper train of artillery, which should be from pieecs of eighteen pound shot, to twenty-four pound, of which sort we have
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not sufficient in our castle; and I therefore hope you will contribute your quota in this respect.
"I doubt not an united force, vigorously exerted on this occasion, in conjunction with His Majesty's other neighboring Colonies, will meet with success, which I hope will be the event of this expedition, and am, Sir,
"Your Honor's most obedient servant, W. SHIRLEY. "To the Hon. Governor GREENE."
The General Assembly of Rhode Island promptly complied with the call from Governor Shirley by passing an act, at their June ses- sion, for raising seamen and marines to serve on board the ship Vigilant, which "Peter Warren, Esq., Commodore of His Majesty's fleet at Cape Breton, had taken from the French". Two hundred able-bodied seamen were ordered to be enlisted, to whom a bounty of £17 Old Tenor was to be paid by the Colony. For the more effectual securing of these men it was ordered that no ferryman, boatman, or other person should transport any seaman from off Rhode Island or Conanicut during a certain period, under a penalty of £20, unless it was to land the latter at Newport. The soldiers stationed at Fort George were directed to stop all sloops, boats, and canoes from going out of the harbor of Newport without a special license from the Gen- eral Assembly. Not content with these efforts to secure men, the governor issued his warrant to impress forty seamen at once. One- half the men required were obtained within six days and sent to Boston to embark for Cape Breton.
The prompt measures of Governor Wanton gave great satisfac- tion, and Governor Shirley issued a proclamation placing these levies on the same footing with other seamen in the fleet.
A brigantine called the Success, belonging to Ellery and Tilling- hast, was chartered to transport the three companies of soldiers which had been ordered to be raised. The required seamen were undoubt- edly raised, as provision was made for paying bounties to them. Massachusetts raised four hundred and Connecticut two hundred men for the Cape Breton force.
At this time there seem to have been many French and Spanish war prisoners in Newport and Providence, as commissioners of each place were appointed and provisions made for their keeping. In what way these men were taken does not appear, but doubtless by the privateers from those towns. The expenses incurred by the Colony, with copies of all the acts, votes, and proceedings, relative to the Cape Breton expedition, were ordered to be made and sent to the agent of the Colony in London.
On the 16th of June, after a siege of forty-nine days, the fortress of Louisburg capitulated. At this time eleven ships of war had
36-1
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assembled and arrangements were in progress for storming the work. The besiegers had suffered so much from colds and dysentery that at one time 1,500 men were unfit for duty. The news of the fall of Louis- burg reached Boston on the 3d of July and caused great rejoicing, for the whole of the land forces were from New England Colonies and consisted of undisciplined mechanics, farmers, and fishermen.
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