USA > Vermont > Addison County > Salisbury > History of Salisbury, Vermont > Part 16
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the yard. Turning my light in the direction of the noise, supposing it was made by the horse, I moved that way, expecting to take her by the foretop, and did not discover my mistake and the danger I was in, until within the distance of a single leap of a full- grown panther. I suddenly stopped, and we stood looking at each other as if neither knew what to do; his head being turned to the left in looking at me, his body extended obliquely to my right, which gave me a good view of his entire length and side. His body was long, and seemed to be of the greatest muscular make; his head was small in proportion to the size of his body, and was shaped much like that of a cat; his hair was brown, and of that lively character which indicates health and vigor; and his eyes exceedingly bold and fierce.
I observed that his attention was chiefly directed to the light in my hand, which led me to believe that it was a better protection than any fire-arms could have been. Although he had stood perfectly still for a half of a minute or more, I had not yet determined what to do, but was soon urged to a decision by the restlessness of one of his hind feet, which seemed to be an indication that if I remained in the position I then occupied much longer, he would make me his prey, and, believing discretion to be. the better part of valor, I raised the light to my breast to give him a 25*
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more distinct view, and slowly retreated backward into the barn five or six rods distant. After remain- ing in the barn a few minutes, I ventured out and found the panther gone. Undoubtedly the clear light of my lantern had a charming effect upon him, and thus was the means of saving my life.
The wild animals that gave the settlers so much trouble by their nightly depredations, retired for the most part, to the mountains and hills at quite an early period, though bears have occasionally been found on the plains near the base of the mountains even within the past few years, and wolves made their pre- datory excursions among the flocks of the farmers near the mountains as late as 1832.
It was the custom among the people when they went upon the mountains and hills, or any great dis- tance from home, to take with them a gun and a dog (and most every family had one or more), to make game of any wild animal they might chance to meet.
One day in the year 1800, Amos Goodrich and Eleazer Sage concluded to make a short excursion to the mountains, to enjoy whatever of sport or incident might be thrown in their way. Amos took his little dog Trip with him, while Eleazer carried the gun. When about half way up the slope of the mountain, Trip started a bear, and although he was a very small dog, he had no little confidence in his own abilities,
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and gave chase for the bear, which he soon overtook and bravely seized by the gambrel joint. Although small and light, he was so active that he greatly an- noyed and impeded the progress of the bear, and finally rendered himself so ugly an incumbrance that Bruin turned about and gave one heavy blow, which if [it had hit its intended object, would have knocked him far down the mountain ; but Trip, with unerring instinct, dodged the blow, and as soon as the bear started on again, resumed his original hold. Still pursued and vexed, Bruin sought to rid himself of his unpleasant annoyer by climbing a tree, but Trip, no- ticing the change of course, and like his master, being always ready, suddenly changed his hold from the gambril joint to the fleshy part of the leg, into which he firmly imbedded his little teeth ; and as the bear slowly moved himself up (he went up about fifteen feet), Trip went up too, pulling and twitching with all of his might in an opposite direction. In the meantime, Amos having some solicitude for his little dog, and being anxious himself to engage in the sport, hastened on as fast as possible, and arrived at the foot of the tree just in time to catch his dog, which had fallen in letting go to take a new hold.
The bear, still more uneasy on account of Amos' presence, began a slow retrograde movement down the tree. Now Eleazer was some distance in the
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rear, and Amos commenced shouting to him to come on quickly with the gun, which was loaded with powder and ball; but the bear quickened his move- ment in advance of Eleazer's arrival, and when with- in six or eight feet of the ground, dropped down at the foot of the tree.
Amos being a man of great physical strength, es- pecially in his hands and arms, and being well ac- quainted with the manner of battle with bears, had determined before the bear reached the ground, to make an attack in person, and at least hold the ani- mal until Eleazer should come up with the gun ; so the instant the bear dropped to the ground, Amos caught him by the neck, while Trip, with character- istic dexterity and energy, resumed his favorite hold behind. This double attack greatly enraged the bear, and he opened his huge jaws, as if to bite off those lusty arms which held him so closely ; but Amos well understanding his part in the battle, thrust his hand into the animal's mouth and firmly grasped the roots of his tongue. At this time Eleazer had approached to within a little distance from the scene of conflict, but dared not come any nearer.
Now, Amos, from his boyhood, had a curious man- ner of speaking ; with no particular impediment in his speech, yet often, and especially when excited, he could not give utterance to the words he wished,
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without using some preliminary and unmeaning ex- pression. This was the case in his present embarras- sing position, when, excited at his companion's fears, he cried out, " Now you see, Eleazer, shoot him." But Eleazer fearing he might hit his friend instead of the bear, did not shoot, which greatly aggravated Amos, who again cried out, with great spirit and vehemence, " Now you see, d- it, Eleazer, shoot the bear." But Eleazer still refused to shoot, and begged Amos to let the bear go.
Not many steps distant, Amos discovered a stone upon the surface of the ground, with which, if it could be obtained, he thought he could kill the bear alone. This stone he importuned Eleazer to bring to him, but Eleazer, out of personal considerations, refused, and still begged him to let the bear go. Finally he undertook to move the animal in the direction of the stone, and after much labor, he pulling at one end and Trip at the other, succeeded in reaching it; but here a great difficulty presented itself in the want of a third hand to manage the stone, for it required the strength of both arms to hold the animal, and already the muscles of one hand and arm were much weaken- ed by long exertion ; but as there was but one way of securing the prize and saving his own life, Amos de- termined to make one vigorous and final effort, when, loosening one hand, he instantly grasped the stone,
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while, with Trip's help, he held his victim with the other, and with such a force as his arm alone could give, brought down upon the head of the bear, a blow that produced immediate death.
The following sketch, in substance, is furnished by Mr. Whitfield Walker, of .Whiting, Vt., and tells something of the character of Col. Thomas Sawyer, as a military man, and illustrates Vermont life in 1778 :
Soon after Col. Thomas Sawyer moved to Claren- don, he was elected captain of what was called " minute men," and in 1778, the frontier inhabitants being threatened with danger from Canada, he left his family and hastened to the post of danger. Lieut. Barnum, Corporal Williams, and fourteen soldiers, accompanied him, and their place of destination was Shelburn, Vt. They were all on foot except Mr. Sawyer, who rode a very fine stallion which he brought with him from Massachusetts. It was in the. month of January, and the weather was very cold ; the snow was deep, and the distance they had to travel was about seventy miles, in the wilderness all the way, seldom traversed except by wild beasts and Indians.
When within about ten miles of their destination, the men were exhausted with fatigue and want of food, and by their drowsiness and desire to stop and rest, plainly indicated that they were about to resign
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themselves to certain death by freezing. Mr. Sawyer remonstrated and told them that if they would go on to a certain point, he would ride on before them and prepare food for them. In the course of a few miles, he reached a shanty in which shingles had been sawed, and waited for his men, who, when they arri- ved and found that they had been deceived, and that no food was in readiness for them, were so much ex- asperated, that it gave them new warmth and energy, which enabled them to reach the place of their desti- nation in safety. At Shelburn, resided a man named Parsons, from New Jersey, whose hospitality they shared, and under whose roof they found shelter. The few families of the neighborhood were anxiously waiting for their arrival, for they had seen indica- tions of danger, which they felt unable to meet single handed. Here Col. Sawyer and his command re- mained seven or eight weeks, watching the enemy and putting the settlement in a better state of de- fence. Indeed they had fears of the presence of an enemy among themselves in the persons of tories, who always were more to be feared than the open enemy.
The suspected foe was closely watched for many weeks, until some time in the early part of March, when it was discovered that they had suddenly left. Mr. Sawyer was not slow in accounting for this ab-
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sence, and surmised that one Philo, a reputed tory, who had gone to Canada on skates, was about to head an expedition against this place. Accordingly all were immediately set at work barricading their house, and when night came on, had made all parts secure, with the exception of one window. The at- tack was made that night, and through that window two men who had stopped and put up for the night, sharing the homely hospitality of the place, were killed at the first fire of the enemy. One of these men was named Woodward, the other Daniels, the father of Dan Daniels of Leicester.
As was suspected, Philo had been to Montreal and returned with about forty Indians, who, after the first attack, in which the two men were killed, were met by an incessant fire from the inmates of the house for three-fourths of an hour, through port-holes made for that purpose. During that time the Indians twice fired the house, and Colonel Sawyer offered his watch as a reward to any one who would extinguish the flames. There was no water in the house, but Mrs. Parsons had been brewing beer that day, and Joseph Williams entering the chamber and breaking a hole through the roof, successfully extinguished the flames with the contents of the beer barrel, under a deadly fire from the savages without. Colonel Sawyer faith- fully kept his word and gave Williams his watch. The
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enemy were finally repulsed and closely pursued, and two prisoners taken; the enemy also lost one officer and one Indian chief, who were found dead in the field, besides several who were thrown into the lake through a hole cut in the ice. This battle occurred on the 12th of March, 1778, and of those comprising this little band not a man was lost.
On the following day Colonel Sawyer buried the bodies of Woodward and Daniels, also of the two men picked up on the field, having first cut from the nose of the Indian chief his jewels, and secured his powder horn and bullet-pouch, as trophies of his victory.
As long as he lived he celebrated that anniversary with military demonstrations.
The object of his mission being completed, Col. Sawyer and his men returned to their families, after an absence of nine weeks.
Of military affairs more immediately our own, un- fortunately no records can be found ; even the mili- tia rolls have been mislaid or lost. But it is a mat- ter of certainty, that the military spirit was of a high and genuine character, at an early day, and that the organizations of military companies were among the first institutions of the country. To have a well-dis- ciplined and effective militia in the state, was deemed of the highest importance; and as soon as a suffi-
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cient number of able-bodied men could be collected together in a new town, they were organized into a military company ; hence there was no need of any very stringent laws to compel attention to these matters.
The law allowed any town that enrolled and or- ganized a company of at least twenty men, to have two commissioned officers, a captain and lieutenant, and companies consisting of thirty men or more, to have three commissioned officers, a captain, lieuten- ant and ensign, all of which officers were commis- sioned by the governor. To make up the desired number, two adjoining towns were allowed to unite and form one company ; and it is said that Salisbury and Leicester, taking advantage of this privilege, trained in one company for several years. It is not known exactly how long they continued together, nor is it certain at what time the company was formed- though it is supposed to have been in 1788.
The company was organized by the appointment of William Pratt captain, Abe Waterous lieutenant, and Joel Newton ensign.
At the resignation of captain Pratt, which was probably at the time the company divided, each town taking its own men, Joel Newton was chosen to fill his place, while Samuel Pierce, who was afterward promoted to the office of lieutenant, was appointed ensign.
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A few individuals here have attained some local distinction in the discharge of the duties of their mil- itary office, and have accepted advanced offices in the field, with honor both to themselves and to the com- panies to which they belonged. George Griswold was one of the most popular and efficient officers in the brigade to which his battallion was attached ; and after having done good service, resigned his com- mission when a major. James L. Morton, after hav- ing faithfully served in most of the subordinate offi- ces, was promoted to that of brigadier general, in which he served several years, and finally resigned.
Various companies have been formed from time to time, which have had their regular days of public training and review, but all appear to have gone out of existence. The military spirit in Salisbury has very much declined, of late, and a military demonstration is now rarely seen within her borders.
To show the military enthusiasm which pervaded the town under the influence of major Griswold, it might be added, that the boys between the ages of sixteen and eighteen years, numbering forty-four in all, formed a military company, and organized in due form by the appointment of a captain, lieutenant and ensign. This juvenile company did regular military service on every training day, for several years, and was looked upon as well disciplined in the military
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movements. By express invitation from the regular company, they formed on the left in the battallion, where they displayed columns and performed the va- rious field evolutions with the utmost good order and promptness. Their only uniform was a badge upon their hats, while their arms were wooden guns. They were highly complimented for their good behavior and ready action, and were finally dismissed, in 1805.
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CHAPTER XXIV.
BIOGRAPHICAL AND GENEALOGICAL.
THE following biographical and genealogical sketches are necessarily very meagre, but the collection of even what is here presented has been attended with a great deal of labor. And the author must plead his own want of time and other inability, in excuse for the im- perfection of the following notices, many of which are of men whose character and works are worthy of a more extended account.
Of professional men not already noticed, among the first in town was HENRY S. WATERHOUSE, M. D., an adopted son of Eleazer Claghorn, and by him was educated. He studied medicine with Dr. John Hor- ton, of this town, and settled in Malone, New York, in 1808. He became quite an eminent surgeon, and was called to the professorship of surgery in the Uni- versity at Burlington, Vermont, in 1825.
On account of failing health, in 1827, he resigned his chair in the university, and, in company with his son, went to Florida, where, soon after their arrival, ,26*
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both were drowned when on a sailing excursion in the sea, off Key West.
HORATIO WATEROUS, EsQ., another adopted son of Eleazer Claghorn, was educated for the profession of the law, and commenced practice in 1802. In 1808, he moved to the western part of New York, where he died six or seven years afterward.
But DARIUS MATTHEWS, M. D., was the first settled physician in Salisbury. He was from Cheshire, Con- necticut, and settled here in 1788 or 1789. He was a successful practitioner in his profession, and performed other valuable services for the town, among which was the survey of highways. He remained in town but a year or two, when he moved to Middlebury, where he continued the practice of medicine many years. He was appointed clerk of the Supreme Court in 1798, and was called to the office of Judge of Probate in 1801, in which he continued until his death in 1819. He was one of the first members of the corporation of Middlebury College, and was an efficient and useful citizen in Middlebury. In 1809, he moved from Middlebury to Cornwall, which latter town he represented in the state legislature several years.
RUFUS NEWTON, M. D., son of Captain Joel New- ton, turned his attention to the study of medicine, and commenced practice here in 1805. Subsequently
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he moved to St. Lawrence county, New York, where he remained several years, but preferring his native town, returned to Salisbury and connected the pur- suit of the farmer with that of his profession. Finally when quite advanced in life, he moved to Rock Island, Illinois, where several of his children had previously gone, in which place he died in February, 1857.
E. N. BRIGGS, EsQ., son of Levi Briggs, came into this town with his father in 1819. He studied law, and commenced the practice of his profession here, in 1826, in which he continued with good success for many years. Finally he was induced to move to Brandon, where he still resides, in a successful prac- tice. He represented Salisbury in the General Assem- bly of the state, four years in succession, and was speaker of the house of representatives a number of years. He was also elected a member of the state senate, while a citizen of Addison county, and since his removal to Brandon, has represented that town in the General Assembly and served as senator from Rutland county. He has held many important offices, not only in public but in private corporations ; has been a successful man, both in his profession and in politics, and occupies a high and influential position in the community.
MOSES H. RANNEY, M. D., was born, August 16th, 1814, in Stockbridge, Vt. His early life was passed
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entirely at school, until the age of fifteen years, when he commenced the study of medicine, with Dr. Dan- iel Huntington, of Rochester, Vt. Having comple- ted the usual term of study, and attended four courses of medical lectures, he graduated at the age of nineteen, at the Berkshire Medical College, in Mas- sachusetts. He remained in his native town one year, and then commenced the practice of his profes- sion in Salisbury, where he resided eleven years. In 1837, he was married to the daughter of Aaron Bur- rows, Esq., one of our oldest and most respectable cit- izens. During his residence here, he was favored with an extensive and lucrative practice for a coun- try practitioner, and was fast arriving at eminence, both in the skill and learning of his profession. But wishing to perfect his knowledge by a personal ob- servation of the nature and treatment of a greater va" riety of diseases than was here brought to his notice, he went to New York and commenced a course of critical observations in the hospitals of that city, which resulted, in a short time, in his appointment to the office of assistant physician in Bellevue Hos- pital. He had been in this office but a short time, when he was made physician in chief of the New York City Lunatic Asylum, which position he still holds. Dr. Ranney has taken a high rank in his profession, and has received many honors, both of a
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scientific and literary character. He is a member of the Pathological Society, and a Fellow of the Aca- demy of Medicine. His present important and hon- orable position, and the influence he exerts among others of the same vocation, are sufficient evidences of his professional merit.
MARTIN G. EVERTS, EsQ., son of Gilbert Everts, received his classical education at Middlebury Col- lege, and studied law with Hon. Solomon Foot, of Rutland, Vermont, with whom he afterward went into a successful practice.
He has represented the town of Rutland several years in the state legislature, and has been elected senator from the county in which he lives, one or two years. When a member of the legislature he has taken a prominent part in the discussion of important questions, and done a good service in both houses. He is a good lawyer, and is now in a successful prac- tice in Rutland.
JOHN PROUT, EsQ., commenced the labors of his profession in Salisbury, in 1838, where he continued, with an increasing business, until August, 1854, when he moved to Rutland, where he now resides. He re- presented the town several years in the legislature, and rendered it many valuable services during his residence here, by his prudent and careful counsel. Mr. Prout was always a close and accurate student,
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which, united with his natural talents, have given him a position as a lawyer, much above mediocrity.
OLIN G. DYER, M. D., son of Gideon Dyer, com- menced the practice of medicine here, in 1846, but found a more favorable opening in Brandon, to which place he finally moved. He still resides in Brandon, and is favored with a wide and generous patronage.
REV. SAMUEL CHENEY was graduated at Middle- bury College, in 1840, and studied theology at Prince- ton, N. J. Preferring a southern field for his labor, he was settled as pastor, over a presbyterian church, in Springfield, Ky.
BUSHROD HOWARD, EsQ., son of Ellery Howard, studied law, and moved to the west. During the last war, he accepted a commission in the army, and went to Mexico, where he is said to have performed all the duties pertaining to his office, with ability and credit. He afterward located in the practice of his profession in Galena, Ill., where he now resides.
COLUMBUS SMITH, EsQ., son of Joseph Smith, was graduated at Middlebury College, in 1842, and was admitted to the bar of Addison county, about the year 1845, since which time he has been employed in examining and prosecuting for individuals in this country, claims in England and other European countries. Mr. Smith has successfully managed some
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of these claims to the great pecuniary advantage both of himself and his patrons.
REV. ALBERT S. GRAVES, son of Augustus Graves, was graduated at Wesleyan University, in 1846. He studied theology with Rev. Stephen Olin, D. D., and joined the Oneida conference of the M. E. church, at Binghampton, N. Y., in 1847. He has since been settled over churches in Groton, Moravia, Ithaca, Ox- ford, Utica, Cortland, and Auburn, all of the State of New York. He is now preaching in Auburn, N. Y.
O. R. GRAVES, brother of the preceding, was graduated at Middlebury College, in 1855. Since he left college, he has been engaged in teaching.
JOHN E. WEEKS. M. D., son of John M. Weeks, was graduated at Middlebury College, in 1853, and studied medicine at the University at Albany, N. Y., and at the Medical college, in Castleton, Vt., at which latter institution, he received the degree of Doctor of Medicine, in 1855. He is now engaged in the prac- tice of his profession in Brandon.
GEORGE A. WEEKS, brother and classmate of the preceding, after his graduation at college, studied law and commenced practice at Milwaukee, Wis., but subsequently left the profession, and is now in New York.
In returning to those men who did not lead what is called a professional life, but who perhaps have
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performed a no less honorable and important part in the history of our town, it should be further added that, of the sons of Joshua Graves, at least three, Jesse, Simeon, and Chauncey, and probably others, were soldiers in the American service during the Revolu- tionary war, and received pensions in their old age. Joshua, the father, was exempted from duty on ac- count of his deafness. He, together with his son Jesse, built the first framed barn in Salisbury in 1783, which stands a little to the east of the late Joseph Smith's dwelling-house.
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