USA > Vermont > History of eastern Vermont, from its earliest settlement to the close of the eighteeth century with a biographical chapter and appendixes > Part 53
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524
HISTORY OF EASTERN VERMONT.
[1784.
fore the Senate; testified under oath to the maltreatment he had received on account of his allegiance to New York; and produced a number of papers and depositions "relative to the disorders and violences committed on the well-affected citizens of the state, residing in the north-eastern parts thereof, by per- sons under the authority of the usurped government commonly called Vermont." The information and papers were immedi- ately communicated to the Assembly, and were by them con- sidered on the 7th. By a concurrent resolution of the two Houses, the whole subject was referred to a joint committee composed of Messrs. Ford, Lamb, Nicholson, Coe, and Lott from the Assembly, and Messrs. Duane, Paine, and Floyd from the Senate. On the 13th Mr. Ford, as chairman of the joint committee, rendered his report to the Assembly. In it he adverted briefly to the principal events connected with the con- troversy, which had occurred since the time when Governor Benning Wentworth made grants "in express violation of a solemn agreement with the former government of this state, that all grants should be suspended until the final decision of the Crown." Turning, then, to the consideration of the present condition of affairs he observed :-
"It appears to the committee, that the people who style themselves Vermonters, to prevent all opposition to their project of independence, have actually raised troops and levied war against those of their neighbors within the said district, who yield allegiance to the state of New York; that hostilities have actually been commenced ; that many of the subjects of this state have been imprisoned, loaded with irons, and punished as traitors with the utmost severity ; and that others have been driven from their habitations, and have had their property confiscated, for no other reason than their attachment to this state.
" That the papers which were submitted to the committee
Bixby, one of the justices of the peace for Cumberland county by the appoint- ment of New York. At the same time he exhibited a complaint and a deposition descriptive of his own suffering's and condition. While awaiting the result of the deliberations of the Legislature, he " not only expended the little money" he had received from his friends who had sent him on this mission, but was obliged to pawn his clothes in order to procure food and lodgings. In this situation he memorialized the Assembly, begging them to provide him with means sufficient to pay his expenses and " enable him to leave the city with decency and credit." His petition was read on the 17th of February, and referred to Messrs. Adgate, Malcom, and Youngs. It is probable that his sufferings were relieved. Journal Ass. N. Y., 7th session, p. 40.
525
REPORT FROM THE JOINT COMMITTEE.
1784.]
contain sufficient proof of these facts, and an earnest appli- cation from the last mentioned inhabitants to this state, for protection.
"That, upon the whole, it is the opinion of the committee, that the most decided measures ought to be pursued, without loss of time, as well for the protection of our said suffering citi- zens, as for the peace and tranquillity of the said district.
"That therefore Congress ought to be earnestly pressed to determine the controversy aforesaid ; and that, to remove all uneasiness about the right of soil, the concessions respecting the said district ought to be so far enlarged, as to confirm to the said claimants, the lands which they hold within the lines of the towns settled by them, although they may be compre- hended within the bounds of patents of prior date, under the seal of New York. That this concession should be fully gua- ranteed to the said claimants by the United States in Congress assembled; and that it is the opinion of the committee, that a bill should be ordered to be brought in, for carrying the measures aforesaid into effect."
The House agreed with the committee in their report, and the same committee were appointed to bring in a bill "for carrying into effect the measures " they themselves had recom- mended. On the 27th, instructions to the New York delegates in Congress suggested by the report of the committee, and additional to those which had been introduced on the 2d, were presented to the Senate and adopted. On the same day both sets of instructions were sent to the Assembly, and were con- curred in by them on the 2d of March .*
While the Legislature of New York were deliberating, resolving, instructing, and the inhabitants of the southern part of Windham county were engaged in attacking, re- pelling, and defending, the General Assembly of Vermont convened at Bennington on the 19th of February and continued in session until the 9th of March following. The present condition of affairs in the southern part of the state ; the means by which obedience to constituted authority could be enforced ; questions of policy ; and the consideration of the petitions of Yorkers who had become obnoxious to punishment, were topics which occupied the time and shared the delibera- tions of the representatives of the people on this occasion. From
* Journal Senate, N. Y., 7th session, pp. 16, 17, 20, 21, 42, 43, 44. Journal Assembly, N. Y., 7th session, pp. 30, 36, 37, 59, 60, 61.
526
HISTORY OF EASTERN VERMONT.
[1784.
his cell in "Bennington jail," where he had been confined during the two months preceding, William Shattuck on the 24th of February, supplicated the Assembly for pardon. His request was referred to a joint committee, but their report was laid on the table on the 26th, "for further consideration," and was allowed to remain there during the rest of the session .* A petition from Charles Phelps, imprisoned in the same place, praying to be released from confinement, was, on the 26th, referred to a joint committee, who recommended in their report of the 27th, "that the said Charles Phelps be immediately dis- charged from his imprisonment ; and, that no part of the estate of said Phelps, which has been seized and confiscated by order of the Supreme court, be sold or disposed of until further orders from the Assembly." The report was accepted, and a bill was introduced, entitled, " An act to discharge Charles Phelps from imprisonment." Having been read and accepted in the Assem- bly, it was sent to the Council and received their concurrence. On the same day Phelps was permitted to appear before the Council, and in their presence voluntarily took "the oath of allegiance and fidelity to the state of Vermont." Though, by this act, he obtained his liberty, his property, which had been taken from him, was not restored, nor was that which remained allowed to rest unmolested. Debts due the government of Ver- mont from insolvent or absconding Yorkers, were satisfied from his estate. His books were borrowed by Vermont lawyers to be
* On a subsequent occasion Shattuck petitioned the Council for his release, acquiescing in the justice of the sentence of banishment which had been passed upon him by the Superior court in September, 1782, and praying for pardon. His prayer was granted on the 12th of April, 1784, and a resolution was passed, restoring him to partial citizenship, and declaring his estate free from the ban of confiscation. The conditions on which these favors were bestowed, were that he should pay to the sheriff of Bennington county £25 lawful money, to meet the costs of prosecution; satisfy the "just demands " of Nathan Fay, the jail keeper, for board ; and give to the treasurer of the state bonds in £100, lawful money, with sufficient sureties, that he would not " enter or presume to go into the county of Windham, without liberty therefor first had and obtained " from the Council. With these terms he complied, and thus obtained his discharge. A few weeks later he notified to Governor Chittenden the " distressed circumstances " of his family, and his inability to relieve them, except in person, A passport, signed by the Governor and Councillors, was accordingly granted to him on the 8th of June, 1784, by which permission was given him to visit his family unmolested. On the 14th of October, 1785, he prayed the General Assembly to release him from the payment of the £25 bond. The application was dismissed without an answer. Journals Gen. Ass. Vt., and Vt. Council Records, 1784. Papers relating to Vt. Controversy, in office Sec. State N. Y., p. 53.
527
REMISSION OF FINES.
1784.]
used and kept. His cattle were divided among the neighboring families. Much of his household furniture served to enrich the best rooms of his sturdy opponents. A full pardon granted to him by the General Assembly at their session in October following, alone saved him from beggary and ruin.
During the meeting of the Council, a memorial was presented by Cyril Carpenter, who at the last session of the Superior court had been sentenced to pay a fine for being "concerned in a dangerous riot." In it he stated that he had since taken the oath of allegiance; that he intended to " consider himself " in the future as a good and peaceable subject; that he was a poor man, entirely unable, at present, to satisfy the judgment of the court ; and that he desired a remission of the fine, or a suspension of collection until he should be able to pay. Similar statements were made by others similarly situated, and the whole subject was temporarily settled by the passage of a resolution on the 28th, directing the state's attorney for Windham county to suspend the collection of fines against Cyril Carpenter, Edward Carpenter, Asaph Carpenter, Amos Yaw Jr., Shubael Bullock, Elijah Curtis, Joseph Chamberlain, and David Thur- ber, until further orders .*
In the General Assembly, pursuant to a motion offered by Colonel Bradley, the Westminster delegate, a committee, ap- pointed on the 1st of March, were authorized to ascertain the amount of the expenses attending the illness of Sergt. Silvanus Fisk, occasioned by the injuries he had received from the Yorkers while supporting the authority of the state. Though the report of the committee was rejected, yet a resolution was adopted on the 2d, directing the payment of £35 on his behalf, and the issuing of orders upon the " hard money tax " for the purpose of meeting any charges which might remain unsettled.t The expediency of continuing a body of troops at Guilford was considered at the same session. The opinion of the gentlemen who were selected to report upon this point was favorable to a reduction
* October 26th, 1784. The Council, in session at Rutland, resolved, " that the fine of Edward Carpenter, Asaph Carpenter, and Cyril Carpenter, imposed on them by the Supreme court of this state, be, and is hereby remitted." Extract from Council Minutes.
+ At the next session of the Assembly, the treasurer was directed by a resolution, passed October 18th, 1784, " to issue an order in favor of Silvanus Fisk, late deceased, who was wounded in the service of this state, for the balance due for his last sickness, by the committee of pay-table, upon either of the collectors of the two-penny tax within this state." Journals, etc.
528
HISTORY OF EASTERN VERMONT.
[1784.
of the force there stationed. Brig .- Gen. Samuel Fletcher was there- fore empowered to proceed to Guilford, and discharge from ser- vice the state troops raised for the assistance of the sheriff of Wind- ham county, with the exception of one lieutenant, one ensign, two sergeants, two corporals, and twenty-one rank and file. In fulfilment of this commission, Fletcher dismissed the militia on the 1st of March, retaining only Lieut. Elijah Knight, and a company of men under his command of the number and character requisite to meet the Assembly's resolution .*
Following this reduction, the Yorkers, who had fled across the southern line of the state, emboldened by the belief that they would not be resisted as vigorously as they had been during the preceding three months, began to contemplate a return. Not unfrequently, under cover of the night, they would visit the house of some friendly Vermonter, and engage for an hour in conversation respecting the course which the victors intended to pursue towards the vanquished in the future. Unwilling to be regarded as recreant to his duty, Lieutenant Knight redoubled his vigilance, and the opposition were, in consequence, more closely watched than ever before.
Among the citizens of Guilford who most strictly adhered to the jurisdiction of New York, David Goodenough was pre-eminent. He had accepted of a lieutenancy from that state ; had been imprisoned for this act; had been released under large bonds; and finally, having been ordered out of town, had left his family and taken up his residence tem- porarily in Massachusetts. Desirous of visiting his wife and children, whom he had not seen for some time, and finding it necessary to go by night, as his life had been threatened, he invited Daniel Spicer of Bernardston, "a young man of good repute," to accompany him. Spicer accepted the invitation, having, however, previously informed Goodenough that he was neutral on the subject of the existing controversy, and could enter into no quarrel " with the Statesmen," as the Vermonters were then styled.
Leaving Goodenough's quarters at nine o'clock on the evening of the 5th of March, the two men set out for Guilford. After proceeding for some distance on the main road, leading north, they strapped on their snow-shoes, that they might be ready to pursue their journey in the woods, should it become
* Journals Gen. Ass. Vt., Feb., 1784.
529
DEATH OF DANIEL SPICER.
1784.]
necessary, and had advanced about half a mile within the limits of the town of Guilford, when they were hailed by a " Who comes there ?" from a man " under arms," who was stationed at the side of the road. Before time for a reply had been given, Lieutenant Knight appeared with a force of twenty or more men, and following the scout who had discovered the two tra- vellers, endeavored to shoot them down. Aided by the fog which partially concealed the light of a full moon, and which, in a narrow road skirted by a thick forest, destroyed the effect of the reflection from the snow, Goodenough and Spicer endea- vored to make good their escape. Having leaped the fence that bordered the road, they started for the woods. Knight and his party followed with threatening and defiant shouts, and having approached within four rods of Spicer, discharged their pieces at him. One bullet took effect in his hip, and another passed " directly through the trunk of his body," causing a fatal wound. Pausing in their pursuit, the Vermonters gathered about the disabled man, but, as if destitute of the common instincts of humanity, instead of endeavoring to relieve his sufferings, they taunted him upon his miserable condition, and "ordered him to take his own knife and cut off his snow- shoes," which they claimed as their lawful booty. They then robbed him of his arms, wallet, and money, and having dragged him through the snow, a distance of sixty rods, to a house, left him on the floor weltering in blood, and departed uttering angry oaths at the escape of the Guilford lieutenant, and expressing impious regrets that he was not then in the situation of the dying Spicer.
Spicer lingered through the night in great agony and died on the following morning. During his last hours he, with diffi- culty, related to William White and James Davidson, of Guil- ford, the circumstances of the transaction. The facts which he stated with his dying breath were subsequently reduced to writing by them, and sworn to before Judge Richard Morris of New York. A narrative of the event was also prepared by four of the New York refugees, who had removed to Bernard- ston, and was by them sent to Governor Clinton. At the close of the latter production, the honest sympathies of the narrators. found expression in these words :-
" Thus fell the innocent.
"Our young men fall by the sword, and no one layeth it to heart.
" Traveller, can you refrain from shedding a tear ?.
34
530
HISTORY OF EASTERN VERMONT.
[1784.
" We must fall victims to the most savage, barbarous, and murderous usage, unless God, in his all-wise providence, is pleased to incline our fellow-countrymen to give us assistance in this dark and dismal hour."
Spicer had served as a sergeant in the militia of Massachu- setts during the revolutionary war, and had obtained his dis- charge in the month of June previous to his death. As has been already observed, he was an inhabitant of a town in that state ; was kindly disposed towards both the Yorkers and Ver- monters ; and had never been concerned in the disputes relative to the jurisdiction of the New Hampshire Grants. Such being the facts, the conclusions appended to a distorted account of the affair, written by a citizen of Vermont, which appeared at the time in Thomas's Massachusetts Spy, cannot but be re- garded as illiberal and unjust. "Unhappily for the unfortu- nate man," observed the newspaper chronicler, referring to Spicer, " he was a subject of the state of Massachusetts, but being out of the line of his duty, by interfering in a contention which this state pretends to hold only with that of New York, though we lament. the death of a fellow-creature, yet we consi- der him as having received that reward which is justly due to every one who espouses a cause on the principles of prejudice and partiality."*
Fearing that the people in the northern towns of Massachu- setts would be instigated both by the wishes of the Yorkers residing among them, and by a determination to avenge the
* MS. Affidavits, dated March 29th, 1784. MS. Letter from Timothy Church, William White, Nathaniel Carpenter, Samuel Bixby, to Governor Clinton, dated Bernardston, March 10th, 1784. Thomas's Mass. Spy, No. 676, April 8, 1784.
The statement of the transaction which appeared in the Spy, and which is . referred to in the text, was false in every particular, that alone excepted which announced that Spicer was " mortally wounded" and that he expired. It was prepared at Windsor, Vermont, and was in these words :- " We hear a party of the Yorkers, consisting of about fifty, made a reconnoitering excursion a few weeks since in the night season ; but meeting with our people (who hailed them several times and received no answer), were fired upon, by which one man was mortally wounded, who expired soon afterwards. By him, they learn that several had balls fired through their hats, but none received any flesh wound."
Jabez Spicer of Leyden, Massachusetts, a brother of Daniel Spicer, served dur- ing a part of the years 1786 and 1787 in the well-known "Shay's Rebellion," and was killed on the 25th of January, in the latter year, while engaged with others in an attempt to take the arsenal at Springfield. It is said that he wore on this occasion the same coat in which his brother was clad when wounded by the Ver- monters, and that the fatal ball passed through the same hole which had been made by their bullet. Vt. Gazetteer, p. 143. Holland's Hist. West. Mass., i. 265.
531
ACTION OF THE VERMONT LEGISLATURE.
1784.]
death of Spicer, to attack the state troops, Lieutenant Knight increased his force by levies from Dummerston and the neigh- boring towns. At the same time, he strengthened his outposts, that he might have timely warning of any hostile incursion. From the statement of charges, presented to the treasurer of the state of Vermont, on account of services performed in this emergency, which statement is still preserved, it appears that a certain "Dan Bill," and other friendly Guilfordites, rendered valuable aid as scouts and expresses ; that John Noyce was several times employed "in watching ye motions of ye in- surgents ;" and that pilots were engaged, both by day and by night, in guiding the troops along the drifted roads to those localities which seemed most to require protection.
Having rendered his position as secure as circumstances would permit, Knight, on the 7th of March, despatched a messenger to the Legislature, who were still in session at Ben- nington, with information of the events which had occurred. Immediate action was taken upon the subject, as presented by the messenger and by the letter which he bore, and a series of resolutions were passed, appropriate to the exigencies of the occasion. On the 9th, Governor Chittenden was desired to write to the Governor of the commonwealth of Massachusetts, " on the subject of the tumults in Windham county, requesting him to grant warrants for apprehending such inimical persons " as had fled or might flee from justice into that state from Ver- mont. General Fletcher was requested " to repair to the county of Windham, and on examining into the circumstances of the disorders there, was empowered to call into service the militia of his own brigade, and of the other brigades in the state, should he deem such measures necessary, and to dismiss them when he should judge best. The commissary general was authorized to collect and receive the provisions due on a pro- vision tax which had been levied during the years 1780 and 1781, in Windham county. The wages of the troops, who might be called into service, were fixed at the same rates at which the troops had been paid who had served at Guilford during the preceding winter .*
Before the return of the messenger from Bennington, a report had been industriously circulated that an army was coming from Massachusetts to avenge the death of Spicer, and reinstate the Yorkers in their possessions. Terrified at this announce-
* Journals Gen. Ass. Vt., Feb. and March, 1784.
532
HISTORY OF EASTERN VERMONT.
[1784.
ment, and aware of his inability to cope with any considerable force, Knight retreated in great haste to Brattleborough, and summoned the militia to his aid. Here he subsequently met Fletcher, who assured him that no danger was to be appre- hended from the quarter whence danger had been expected, and that the Yorkers were not only unprepared, but unable to make any hostile demonstration. At the same time, Fletcher dismissed the militia whom Knight had called out, and thus succeeded in quieting the apprehensions of the people. Before the end of the month of March, the company of state troops, which had been located in the southern part of the county, was dismissed from ser- vice, and society was relieved from the terrors of law almost martial.
At a town meeting, held in Guilford, a short time after these events, the Yorkers assembled in full numbers and chose Hugh Stowell, one of their own party, moderator. Though in the majority, they were constrained, through fear, to adjourn until the 8th of June following, without transacting any business. Of the meeting held on this occasion, no account remains, nor are any records to be found of the proceedings of the town for the next seven years. It is traditional that both parties held public and private meetings during that period, producing thus a state of anarchy by no means advantageous to the advance- ment of the town, or the welfare of its citizens. "The Yorkers, although they had the town books, dared not enter their pro- ceedings in them, and both sides kept secret their own records. During this confusion and jealousy, one party stole the records of the other and buried them, together with their own, many deeds, and a number of proprietors' papers, in the earth within the town pound." There they remained until the exact locality of their concealment was well-nigh forgotten. When, after the lapse of several years, they were discovered and brought to light, they were so much mutilated, as to be entirely illegible .*
Soon after the death of Spicer, Governor Chittenden com- municated the intelligence of the circumstance to Governor John Hancock of Massachusetts. The relatives of the deceased memorialized the General Court of that commonwealth on the same subject. In consequence of these and other represen- tations, and in order to prevent the recurrence of a similar event in connection with any other citizen of Massachusetts,
* Vt. Gazetteer, pp. 143, 144.
533
1784.] PROCLAMATION OF THE GOVERNOR OF MASSACHUSETTS.
Governor Hancock published the following proclamation on the 26th of March :
" Whereas an unhappy dispute has subsisted between some of the citizens of the state of New York and the people inhabit- ing the territory called the New Hampshire Grants, or state of Vermont ; and it being probable, from the present disposition of the parties, that the same controversy may be recommenced, to the great distress and calamity of all concerned therein ; and there being great reason to fear that some of the citizens of this commonwealth, who live on the borders of the said state of Vermont, may, by incautiously intermeddling with the conten- tion, involve themselves and families in that distress which is at all times the consequence of civil dissensions, unless care is taken to prevent it :
"I have, therefore, at the request of the General Court, thought fit to issue this proclamation, commanding and enjoin- ing it upon all the citizens of this commonwealth, that in all and every controversy now existing, or that may hereafter exist between the citizens of New York and the people inhabit- ing the said state, or between any of them, in whatever form or manner the same may exist, they, the citizens of this common- wealth, conduct themselves according to the strictest rules of neutrality ; and that they give no aid or assistance to either party ; but that those who live on the borders of the said state, and within this commonwealth, sell to each party indifferently, such things as they have to sell, without giving preference to either; that they send no provisions, arms, ammunition, or necessaries to a fortress or garrison, besieged by either party. And all the citizens and inhabitants of this commonwealth are absolutely and most solemnly forbidden to take arms in support of, or engaging in the service, or contributing to the conquest, success, or defence of either of the said parties, as they will answer it at their peril."
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