Treaty of alliance with France--Policy of France--Incidents of the
Winter--Projected expedition against St. Johns--Lafayette appointed to
the command of the North--Failure of the enterprise for lack of
means--Disappointment and chagrin of Lafayette--Unpleasant indications
respecting the Western Indians--Indian council at Johnstown--Attended
by Lafayette--Its proceedings--And result--Reward offered for Major
Carleton--Letter of Lafayette--He retires from the Northern
Department--Return of the loyalists for their families--Unopposed--Their
aggressions--Prisoners carried into Canada--Their fate--Re-appearance
of Brant at Oghkwaga and Unadilla--Anecdote of Brant--Comparative
cruelty of the Tories and Indians--Murder of a family--Exposed situation
of the people--Captain McKean--Sends a challenge to Brant--Burning of
Springfield--First battle in Schoharie.
The opening of the year 1778 was marked by an event that diffused
universal joy among the people. It had been rightly judged by American
statesmen, that, smarting under the loss which France had experienced by
the war ending in 1763, of her broad North American possessions, the
government of that country would be nothing loath to aid in the infliction
of a like dismemberment of territory upon Great Britain. With a view,
therefore, of cultivating friendly relations with France, and deriving
assistance from her if possible, Commissioners had been despatched to the
Court of Versailles, in 1776, with the plan of a treaty of amity and
commerce to be submitted to that government. Still, more than a year had
elapsed, during which the Commissioners [FN-1] had been exerting
themselves to the utmost, to obtain a recognition of the Independence of
the United States without success. It was evident that France looked upon
the revolt of the American Colonies with secret satisfaction; but she had
been so much weakened by the former contest, that time was needed for
repose and recovery of her strength. Hence, from the arrival of the
Commissioners in the French capital, in December 1776, to the close of
1777, they had been living upon "hope deferred." It is true that the
Americans received great assistance from the French, in supplies of arms
and ammunition; and although not openly allowed, yet means were found by
the American privateers, secretly to dispose of their prizes in French
ports. Still, the government was lavish in its professions of friendship
for England, even though confidentially giving the Americans strong
assurances of sympathy and ultimate assistance. The untoward result of
Burgoyne's campaign, intelligence of which was received in Paris early in
December, was the opportune means of ending this vacillating policy on the
part of the Court of Versailles. The feelings of the French people toward
England could no longer be disguised; since the news occasioned as much
general joy as though the victory had been achieved by their own arms.
[FN-2] The consequence was, that, on the 6th of February, the French
government entered into treaties of amity, commerce, and alliance, with
the United States, on principles of the most perfect reciprocity and
equality. The French cabinet clearly foresaw that this measure would soon
produce a war between themselves and England, and acted in the expectation
of such a consequence. Indeed, M. Girard, one of the French Secretaries
of State, in his conferences with the American Commissioners, had the
frankness to avow that they were not acting wholly for the sake of the
United States, but because they thought the moment a favorable one for
humbling their haughty rival, by aiding in the dismemberment of her
empire. Hence the King had not only determined to acknowledge the
Independence of the United States, but to support it--without the
expectation of compensation. [FN-3]
* * * * *
[FN-1] The Commissioners were, Benjamin Franklin, Silas Deane, and Arthur
Lee. Mr. Jefferson had been originally designated as one of the
Commissioners; but, declining the appointment, Mr. Lee was selected in
his stead.
[FN-2] Letter of the Commissioners.
[FN-3] Marshall.
The news of the treaty with France was not received in the United States
until late in the Spring. [FN-1] Meantime other circumstances occurred
during the Winter, in the Northern part of New-York, deserving of note in
the present narrative. First among these, was the notable project of
General Gates for a second descent, in mid-winter, upon Canada. In
November following the defeat of Burgoyne, on the reorganization of the
Board of War, Gates, in the first flush of his popularity, was placed at
its head as president. He had not been long at Yorktown, [FN-2] where
Congress was then in session, before he conceived the project of directing
an irruption into Canada across the ice upon Lake Champlain, for the
purpose of destroying the stores and shipping of the enemy at St. Johns;
and, possibly, of striking a sudden blow upon Montreal. It was
subsequently but too well ascertained that the condition of the Northern
army, with which Gates certainly ought to have been acquainted, was by no
means such as to warrant the undertaking of any offensive enterprise.
Still the victorious commander of the North had the address to obtain a
vote of Congress directing the expedition, [FN-3] the conduct of which was
entrusted to the Marquis de Lafayette. This gallant young nobleman had
been burning with a desire to distinguish himself in a separate command,
and this project opened to him the prospect of realizing the object
dearest to his heart.
* * * * *
[FN-1] The event was commemorated in the American camp, on the 7th of
May, in a style corresponding with its importance--a general order for
the celebration having been issued by the Commander-in-chief. It began
as follows:--"It having pleased the Almighty Ruler of the Universe to
defend the cause of the United American States, and finally to raise us
up a powerful friend among the princes of the earth, to establish our
liberty and independency upon a lasting foundation; it becomes us to get
apart a day for gratefully acknowledging the divine goodness, and
celebrating the important event, which we owe to his divine
interposition." The pageant was strictly military, and is described by
the letters of that day as exceedingly brilliant. The joy manifested was
unfeigned and unspeakable. The Commander-in-chief dined in public with
all the officers of his army. "When his Excellency took his leave, there
was a universal clap, with loud huzzas, which continued until he had
proceeded a quarter of a mile, during which time there were a thousand
hats tossed in the air. His Excellency turned round with his retinue,
and huzzaed several times."--_Letter of an officer._
[FN-2] York, in Pennsylvania.
[FN-3] Journals of Congress, vol. iv. p. 48.
But, neither in the inception nor in the maturing of the enterprise, had
the Commander-in-chief been consulted; and the first knowledge he
possessed of the project was derived from a letter from General Gates,
inclosing another to the Marquis, informing him of his appointment to
the command. [FN] The disrespect to the Commander-in-chief, to whom the
youthful soldier was bound by the strongest ties of friendship and
respect, was so manifest, that the Marquis at first hesitated in
accepting the command. Nor was his reluctance lessened by the suspicious
circumstance that General Conway, the base instrument of the Gates
faction in the conspiracy against Washington, had been assigned as his
second in command. Soaring above all selfish considerations, however,
Washington advised the Marquis to accept the trust confided to him by
Congress. Lafayette, therefore, repaired from the camp at Valley Forge to
York town, to be more particularly advised as to the object and the
details of the enterprise. The plan of organizing a light but efficient
force, to make a sudden dash upon St. Johns, and destroy the flotilla
which gave the enemy the command of Lake Champlain, and to inflict such
farther injury as might be effected in a rapid campaign, was fully
unfolded to him. Ample supplies of men and means were promised by Gates;
and, after securing the services of the Baron de Kalb to the
expedition--an officer older in rank than Conway, who would necessarily
be his second in command--the Marquis accepted the appointment.
* * * * *
[FN] "I am much obliged by your polite request of my opinion and advice
on the expedition to Canada and other occasions. In the present instance,
as I neither know the extent of the objects in view, nor the means to be
employed to effect them, it is not in my power to pass any judgment upon
the subject. I can only sincerely wish that success may attend it both
as it may advance the public good, and on account of the personal honor
of the Marquis de Lafayette, for whom I have a very particular esteem
and regard."--[_Letter of Washington to Gates, Jan._ 27, 1778.] "I shall
say no more of the Canada expedition, than that it is at an end. I never
was made acquainted with a single circumstance relating to it."--_Letter
of Washington to General Armstrong, of Pennsylvania._
Full of high hopes, a brilliant enterprise before him, and panting for an
opportunity to signalize himself in a separate command, the Marquis
pushed forward to Albany, amid all the rigors of winter, to enter at once
upon the service, and apparently with as much confidence as though he had
achieved the exploit. Sad, however, was his disappointment at the posture
of affairs on his arrival at Albany. Conway, who had arrived there three
days before him, at once assured him that the expedition was quite
impossible. Such, likewise, was the opinion of Generals Schuyler, Lincoln,
and Arnold, the latter two of whom were detained at Albany by the
unhealed wounds received upon the fields of Saratoga. Indeed, he was not
long in ascertaining, from the quarter-master, commissary, and
clothier-generals, that there was a lamentable deficiency of almost every
necessary of which he had been led to expect an abundant supply. The
number of troops was altogether inadequate. Three thousand effective men
were believed to be the smallest force that would suffice, and that number
was promised. But scarcely twelve hundred could be mustered fit for duty,
and the greater part of these were too naked even for a Summer
campaign. [FN-1] Their pay was greatly in arrear; and officers and men were
alike indisposed to the service. [FN-2] Originally it had been intended to
confide the proposed expedition to General Stark, whose prowess at the
battle of Bennington had rendered him exceedingly popular with the
people; and it was supposed that he could at once bring into the field a
sufficient number of his mountaineers to strike the blow with
success. [FN-3] Stark was invited to Albany, and James Duane was sent
thither from Congress to confer with him upon the subject. But the
inducement offered by Congress being in the form of a bounty, contingent
only upon success, was thought not sufficient; and when a representation
of the circumstances was made by Mr. Duane to that body, the scheme was
changed and enlarged, at the suggestion of General Gates, according to
the plan which the Marquis was to execute.
* * * * *
[FN-1] Letter of Lafayette to General Washington, dated Albany, Feb.
13, 1778.
[FN-2] On the 19th of February James Duane wrote to Governor Clinton
respecting the impracticability of the enterprise, since the Marquis
could find neither the troops nor the preparations. In the course of his
letter, Mr. Duane said of the Marquis:--"His zeal for this country, of
which he has given marks even to enthusiasm, and his ardent desire of
glory, lead him to wish the expedition practicable; but he is too
considerate to pursue it rashly, or without probable grounds of a
successful issue. I must mention to your Excellency a circumstance which
shows the liberality of his disposition. He determined, on his entering
into Canada, to supply his army through his own private bills on France
to the amount of five or six thousand guineas, and to present that sum
to Congress as a proof of his love to America and the rights of human
nature."
[FN-3] "I was to find General Stark with a large body, and indeed
General Gates told me '_General Stark will have burned the fleet before
your arrival._' Well, the first letter I receive in Albany is from
General Stark, who wishes to know 'what number of men, from where, for
what time, and for what rendezvous, I desire him to raise.'"--_Letter
from Lafayette to Washington._
Having attentively examined the situation of affairs, and the means
within his control, and consulted with the several able captains at
Albany, the young soldier saw with inexpressible chagrin that the
obstacles were insuperable. In the language of another, amounting to a
bitter satire, whether thus intended or not--"the Generals only were got
in readiness;" [FN-1] and the gallant Marquis was compelled to relinquish
the enterprise, without even the poor privilege of making an attempt. He
certainly had great reason, not only for vexation, but disgust--advised,
as he had been, to announce to his court the degree of confidence reposed
in him by Congress, in thus confiding to him a separate command of such
importance--not, of course, suspecting, for a moment, that General Gates
could have been so ignorant of the actual situation of the department
from which he had been so recently transferred. [FN-2]
* * * * *
[FN-1] Marshall.
[FN-2] The history of this abortive project has been drawn chiefly from
a long MS. letter from James Duane to Governor Clinton, in the author's
possession. On his way to Albany, the Marquis visited Mr. Duane, and was
accompanied by him thither.
The Marquis wrote to his greatest and best friend, the Commander-in-chief,
upon the subject of what he called his "distressing and ridiculous
situation," in the bitterness of his spirit. "I am sent," said he, "with
a great noise, at the head of an army, to do great things. The whole
continent, France, and, what is the worst, the British army, will be in
expectation. How far they will be deceived, how far we shall be ridiculed,
you may judge by the candid account you have got of the state of our
affairs." It is quite evident, from the tenor of the letter we are
quoting, that the Marquis suspected that he had been purposely detached
from the company of Washington with some sinister design:--"There are
things, I dare say, in which I am deceived. A certain Colonel is not here
for nothing." . . . "I am sure a cloud is drawn before my eyes. However,
there are points I cannot be deceived in." . . . "They have sent me more
than twenty French officers. I do not know what to do with them. I am at
a loss to know how to act, and indeed I do not know for what I am here
myself." And again, toward the close of the letter, he says:--"I fancy the
actual scheme is, to have me out of this part of the continent, and
General Conway as chief under the immediate direction of General Gates.
How they will bring it about I do not know, but be certain something of
that kind will appear. You are nearer than myself, and every honest man
in Congress is your friend; therefore you may foresee and prevent the
evil a hundred times better than I can." [FN]
* * * * *
[FN] Letter from Lafayette to Washington, dated Albany, Feb. 23,
1778.--Vide Sparks, Cor. of Washington, vol. v, Appendix.
The true position of affairs at Albany having been made known to Congress,
it was resolved to instruct the Marquis to suspend the expedition, and at
the same time to assure him "that Congress entertained a high sense of
his prudence, activity, and zeal; and that they were fully persuaded
nothing would have been wanting on his own part, or on the part of the
officers who accompanied him, to give the expedition the utmost possible
effect." [FN]
* * * * *
[FN] Secret Journal, March 2d, cited by Sparks.
But, to return to the Indian affairs of the Mohawk Valley. Early in the
year, various unpleasant symptoms were perceptible, indicating the design
of a renewed and more extensive Indian war than had been anticipated at
any previous moment. Information was received from the remote West, of a
general disposition among the nations in the region of the great lakes,
and the upper Mississippi, to join the Mohawks, Cayugas, Onondagas, and
Senecas, against the United States. The master-spirit of those threatened
movements was Joseph Brant, whose winter-quarters were at the central and
convenient point of Niagara. Nor were Sir John Johnson and his associates,
Claus and Butler, inactive; while the British commander at Detroit,
Colonel Hamilton, was at the same time exercising a powerful influence
over the surrounding nations of the forest. On the opening of the year,
therefore, great fears were entertained for the security of the frontiers
from the Mohawk to the Ohio. Still, with the Six Nations, Congress
resolved to make yet another effort of conciliation--to secure their
neutrality, if nothing farther. Accordingly, on the 2d of February,
resolutions were passed, directing a council to be held with these
nations at Johnstown, in the County of Tryon. General Schuyler and
Volkert P. Douw were appointed commissioners for that purpose, and
Governor Clinton was requested to designate a special commissioner to be
present on the occasion. In pursuance of this solicitation, James Duane
was appointed for that duty. The resolutions of Congress instructed the
commissioners "to speak to the Indians in language becoming the
representatives of free, sovereign, and independent States, and in such
a tone as would convince them that they felt themselves to be so." [FN]
It was left to the discretion of the commissioners to determine whether
it would be prudent to insist upon their taking up arms in behalf of the
States, or whether to content themselves with efforts to secure their
neutrality.
* * * * *
[FN] Journals of Cong. vol. iv. page 63.
The directions were, that the council should be holden between the 15th
and 20th of February; but so slow or reluctant were the Indians in
assembling, that the proceedings were not commenced until the 9th of
March. Whether General Schuyler attended, is not known. The Marquis de
Lafayette, who was then temporarily in command of the Northern Department,
accompanied Mr. Duane to Johnstown, and was present at the council. More
than seven hundred Indians were collected at the treaty, consisting of
Oneidas, Tuscaroras, Onondagas, a few Mohawks, and three or four Cayugas;
but not a single Seneca, which was by far the most powerful nation. On
the contrary, they had the boldness to send a message, affecting great
surprise, "that while our tomahawks were sticking in their heads, their
wounds bleeding, and their eyes streaming with tears for the loss of
their friends at German Flats, [FN] the commissioners should think of
inviting them to a treaty!"
* * * * *
[FN] Oriskany, meaning. The quotation is from a manuscript letter of
James Duane.
The proceedings were opened by an address from Congress, framed in
accordance with the spirit of the resolutions already cited, asserting
the power of the United States, and their magnanimous conduct toward the
Six Nations--and charging them distinctly with the ingratitude, cruelty,
and treachery, with which their pacific advances had been requited, and
for which reparation was demanded. From this charge of treachery, the
Oneidas and Tuscaroras were not only honorably excepted, but, on the
contrary, were applauded for their firmness and integrity, and assured of
friendship and protection.
An Onondaga chief spoke in behalf of the guilty tribes. He exculpated
himself and his brother sachems, casting the blame on the young and
head-strong warriors, who, he said, would not listen to prudent
councils--illustrating their own internal difficulties by those
occasionally existing among the people of the States, which it was at
times found impossible to repress. He also spoke of the difficulty they
were obliged to encounter, in withstanding the influence of Butler and
others in the service of the Crown, acquired by bribery and other kindred
artifices.
An Oneida chief answered for his own nation and the Tuscaroras, with a
spirit and dignity which would not have disgraced a Roman senator. He
pathetically lamented the degeneracy of the unfriendly tribes; predicted
their final destruction; and declared the fixed and unalterable resolution
of the tribes which he represented, at every hazard, to hold fast the
covenant chain with the United States, and be buried with them in the
same grave, or with them to enjoy the fruits of victory and peace. He
fully evinced the sincerity of these professions, by desiring that the
United States would erect a fortress in their country, and station a small
garrison within it for their defence. A promise to this effect having been
given, the Oneida concluded with a solemn assurance, that the two nations
for whom he spoke would at all times be ready to cooperate with the United
States against all their enemies.
In a private interview afterward, the Oneidas warned the Commissioners
against trusting to the Onondagas, whom they considered as enemies to the
United States, notwithstanding their seeming contrition for the past. The
Oneidas declared that they had not the least doubt that the Onondagas,
Cayugas, and Senecas would renew their hostilities early in the Spring;
that Colonel Butler would again be in possession of Oswego, which he would
more strongly fortify; and for these events they entreated the
Commissioners to be prepared.
In their reply to the Indians, the Commissioners again applauded the
Oneidas and Tuscaroras for their fidelity and courage. The other nations,
they said, were not sufficiently represented to warrant the holding of a
treaty with them. But they, nevertheless, directed that another council
for those tribes should be held in Onondaga, at some subsequent day, at
which the demand of the United States of satisfaction for past wrongs
should be publicly made, and an explicit answer exacted. They were
admonished that the cause of the United States was just; that the hand of
the United States could reach the remotest corner of the country of the
Senecas; and that they trusted that the Good Spirit whom they served,
would enable them to punish all their enemies, and put it out of their
power to do them farther injury. [FN]
* * * * *
[FN] Unpublished letter of James Duane to Governor Clinton, giving a
report of his mission, in the author's possession.
The inhabitants of Tryon County, many of whom were spectators at the
council, were highly gratified with the proceedings; and it was supposed
that the moral effect would be good, not only in regard to the Oneidas,
but also upon the Onondagas--those tribes being closely connected by
intermarriages; but the Commissioners left the council under the full
persuasion that from the Senecas, Cayugas, and the greater part of the
Mohawks, nothing but revenge for their lost friends and tarnished glory
at Oriskany and Fort Schuyler was to be anticipated; more especially since
the enemy was so plentifully supplied with the means of corruption, while
it was not in the power of the United States so much as to furnish their
best friends with the necessaries of life, even in the course of
trade. [FN-1] Still, in order, as far as possible, to regain some of their
lost ascendancy over the Indians, by means of traffic, the Commissioners
of that department were shortly afterward authorized by Congress to open
a trading establishment at Fort Schuyler. But the inadequacy of the
provision must be evident from the fact, that the slender exchequer of
the government allowed an appropriation of no greater sum for that
important object, than ten thousand dollars. [FN-2]
* * * * *
[FN-1] Unpublished letter of James Duane to Governor Clinton, heretofore
cited.
[FN-2] Journals of Congress, vol. iv. p. 256.
While at Johnstown during this visit, the Marquis de Lafayette was waited
upon by Colonel Campbell and others, for the purpose of calling his
attention to the exposed situation of Cherry Valley. The consequence was
an order for the erection of a fort at that place. An engineer was
detailed upon that duty, and detachments of troops ordered both to that
place and Schoharie. Three slight fortifications had been built in the
valley of the Schoharie-kill during the preceding year, called the Upper,
Middle, and Lower Forts. These works were merely circumvallations of earth
and wood, thrown up around some strong dwelling-houses constructed of
stone, within which the women and children were placed in moments of
peculiar danger. The church was the citadel of the Lower Fort, and all
were manned by small companies of soldiers, having each a single brass
field-piece. The Marquis likewise directed the erection of a fort in the
Oneida country, pursuant to the request of the Indians of that nation.
It was but too evident, from the reports borne upon every western breeze,
that all these measures of precaution in that direction were necessary.
To the Johnsons and their adherents the recovery of the Valley of the
Mohawk was an object of the first importance; and they watched every
opportunity of moving in that quarter, which promised even a possible
chance of success. Even while the Marquis was present with the Indian
Commissioners at Johnstown, no less a personage than a British Colonel,
a nephew of Sir Guy Carleton, and bearing the same honorable name, was
well understood to be lurking in that vicinity as a spy. Every effort was
made for his arrest; and, as an inducement to the militia and Indians to
be on the alert, the Marquis offered a reward of fifty guineas from his
own purse, as will appear by the annexed letter to Col. Gansevoort:--
"The Marquis de Lafayette to Col. Gansevoort.
_Johnstown, the_ 9_th March,_ 1778.
"Sir,
"As the taking of Colonel Carleton is of the greatest importance, I wish
you would use every exertion in your power to have him apprehended. I
have desired Colonel Livingston, who knows him, to let you have any
intelligence he can give, and join to them those I have got by one other
spy, about the dress and figure of Carleton. You may send as many parties
as you please, and every where you'll think proper, and do every
convenient thing for discovering him. I dare say he knows we are after
him, and has nothing in view but to escape, which I beg you to prevent by
all means. You may promise, in my name, _fifty guineas hard money,_
besides every money they can find about Carleton, to any party of soldiers
or Indians who will bring him alive. As every one knows now what we send
for, there is no inconvenience to scatter in the country which reward is
promised, in order to stimulate the Indians.
"I have the honor to be. Sir,
Your most obedient servant,
The Mqs. de Lafayette.
"_Col. Gansevoort, Com't. Fort Schuyler._" [FN]
* * * * *
[FN] This letter has been copied from the original, among the Gansevoort
papers.
The condition contained in this letter, that, to entitle the captor to the
promised reward, Carleton must be brought in alive, comports with the
well-known humanity, through life, of the illustrious friend of human
liberty who wrote it. But the search was fruitless, Carleton was an active
and efficient partisan officer, and was never taken. The Marquis retained
the command at the North only until the middle of April, when he was
ordered to head-quarters, and Gates again assumed the command of the
department.
In the month of June, the loyalists who had fled to Canada with Sir John
Johnson, to the number of one hundred and upward, performed an exploit
equally bold and remarkable, which naturally suggests the inquiry, where
were the Whigs of Tryon County at that time; and in what were they
engaged? The incident to which reference is had, was the return of those
selfsame loyalists for their families, whom they were permitted to collect
together, and with whom they were suffered to depart into the country,
and the active service of the enemy. Nor was this all. Not only was no
opposition made to their proceedings, but on their way they actually
committed acts of flagrant hostility, destroyed property, and took several
prisoners. Having completed their arrangements, they moved northward from
Fort Hunter, through Fonda's Bush--making four prisoners on their way
thither, [FN-1] and at Fonda's Bush five others. [FN-2] From this place
they proceeded across the great marsh to Sir William Johnson's fish-house,
on the Sacondaga, capturing a man named Martin, and another named Harris,
on the way, and at the fish-house taking a brave fellow named Solomon
Woodworth and four others. [FN-3] They burnt the house and outbuildings of
Godfrey Shew at this place, and departed with their prisoners, leaving
the women and children houseless. Embarking on the Sacondaga in light
canoes, previously moored at that place for the purpose, they descended
twenty-five miles to the Hudson, and thence, by the way of Lakes George
and Champlain, proceeded to St. Johns in safety. The day after his
capture, Woodworth succeeded in making his escape. At St. Johns, John
Shew and four others were given up to the Indians, by whom they were taken
to their village in Canada. They were neither considered nor treated
exactly as prisoners of war; and Shew, with three of his companions, soon
afterward escaped and returned home. [FN-4] From St. Johns, the loyal
party proceeded down the St. Lawrence to Quebec, where the residue of the
prisoners were kept in close confinement about four months. Some of the
number died, and the remainder were sent to Halifax, and thence exchanged
by the way of Boston. This movement of the Tories back in a body to their
deserted homes, and its success, form one of the most extraordinary
incidents, though in itself comparatively unimportant, which transpired
during the wars of the Mohawk country. [FN-5]
* * * * *
[FN-1] Mr. Cough and his son, and Mr. Marinas and his son.
[FN-2] John Putnam, Jr., Mr. Salisbury, Mr. Rice, Mr. Joseph Scott, and
Mr. Bowman.
[FN-3] Godfrey Shew, and his three sons, John, Stephen, and Jacob.
[FN-4] In the Autumn of 1780 young Shew was again captured by a scouting
party of Indians and Tories, in the woods in the neighborhood of
Ballston, and at the instigation of one of the latter, named John Parker,
was immediately murdered. Parker was himself soon afterward taken as a
spy by Captain Bernett of the militia--carried to Albany, tried,
convicted, and executed.
[FN-5] The facts respecting this expedition have been collected and
furnished to the author by John J. Shew, of Northampton, N. Y.
With the opening of the season for active operations--though he was
himself never inactive--Thayendanegea had again returned to his former
haunts on the Susquehanna--Oghkwaga and Unadilla. He soon proved himself
an active and dreaded partisan. No matter for the difficulties or the
distance, wherever a blow could be struck to any advantage, Joseph Brant
was sure to be there. Frequent, moreover, were the instances in which
individuals, and even whole families in the outskirts of the settlements,
disappeared, without any knowledge on the part of those who were left,
that an enemy had been near them. "The smoking ruins of their dwellings,
the charred bones of the dead, and the slaughtered carcasses of the
domestic animals, were the only testimonials of the cause of the
catastrophe, until the return of a captive, or the disclosures of some
prisoner taken from the foe, furnished more definite information." [FN]
But there is no good evidence that Brant was himself a participator in
secret murders, or attacks upon isolated individuals or families; and
there is much reason to believe that the bad feelings of many of the
loyalists induced them to perpetrate greater enormities themselves, and
prompt the parties of Indians whom they often led, to commit greater
barbarities than the savages would have done had they been left to
themselves.
* * * * *
[FN] Campbell's Annals.
In support of the foregoing opinion of Captain Brant, the following
incident, occurring in the Summer of the present year, may be adduced.
A lad in Schoharie County, named William McKown, while engaged in raking
hay alone in a meadow, happening to turn round, perceived an Indian very
near him. Startled at his perilous situation, he raised his rake for
defence, but his fears were instantly dissipated by the savage, who
said--"Do not be afraid, young man; I shall not hurt you." He then
inquired of the youth for the residence of a loyalist named Foster. The
lad gave him the proper direction, and inquired of the Indian whether he
knew Mr. Foster? "I am partially acquainted with him," was the reply,
"having once seen him at the Half-way Creek." [FN-1] The Indian then
inquired the lad's name, and having been informed, he added--"You are a
son of Captain McKown who lives in the north-east part of the town, I
suppose; I know your father very well; he lives neighbor to Captain
McKean; I know McKean very well, and a very fine fellow he is, too."
Emboldened by the familiar discourse of the Indian, the lad ventured to
ask his name in turn. Hesitating for a moment, his rather unwelcome
visitor replied:--"My name is Brant!" "What! Captain Brant?" eagerly
demanded the youth. "No; I am a cousin of his," was the rejoinder; but
accompanied by a smile and a look that plainly disclosed the transparent
deception. It was none other than the terrible Thayendanegea
himself. [FN-2]
* * * * *
[FN-1] Bowman's Creek, halfway between Cherry Valley and the Mohawk
River.
[FN-2] Annals of Tryon County.
On the other hand, the following tragic circumstance, given on the same
indisputable authority, sustains the assertion that the Tories were
oftentimes more cruel than their savage associates. While a party of
hostiles were prowling about the borders of Schoharie, the Indians killed
and scalped a mother, and a large family of children. "They had just
completed the work of death, when some loyalists of the party came up,
and discovered an infant breathing sweetly in its cradle. An Indian
warrior, noted for his barbarity, approached the cradle with his uplifted
hatchet. The babe looked up in his face, and smiled; the feelings of
nature triumphed over the ferocity of the savage; the hatchet fell with
his arm, and he was about stooping down to take the innocent in his arms,
when one of the loyalists, cursing him for his humanity, thrust it through
with his bayonet, and, thus transfixed, held it up struggling in the
agonies of death, as he exclaimed--'_this, too, is a rebel!_'"
To guard against these painful transactions, nothing short of the most
exemplary watchfulness would suffice. Not only their habitations, but
those who labored in the fields, were guarded, being themselves armed at
their ploughs, like the laborers of the prophet in rebuilding the walls
of Jerusalem. Nor was this vigilance confined to any particular location.
The inhabitants around the whole border, from Saratoga, north of
Johnstown, and west to the German Flats, thence south stretching down to
Unadilla, and thence eastwardly crossing the Susquehanna, along the
Charlotte river to Harpersfield, and thence back to Albany--were
necessarily an armed yeomanry, watching for themselves, and standing
sentinels for each other in turn; harassed daily by conflicting rumors;
now admonished of the approach of the foe in the night by the glaring
flames of a neighbor's house; or compelled suddenly to escape from his
approach, at a time and in a direction the least expected. Such was the
tenure of human existence around the confines of this whole district of
country, from the Spring of 1777 to the end of the contest in 1782.
The first movement of Brant himself, this season, (1778,) was upon the
settlement of Springfield, a small town at the head of Otsego Lake, lying
directly west of Cherry Valley, about ten miles. Those of the men who did
not fly, were taken prisoners. The chieftain then burnt the entire
settlement, with the exception of a single house, into which he collected
all the women and children, and left them uninjured.
It was reported in the month of June, that Brant, whose forces were
increasing at Unadilla, was fortifying that post; and Captain McKean was
despatched with a small patrol in that direction, by the people of Cherry
Valley, to make observations. Arriving at a house about twenty-five miles
from that place, McKean was informed that Brant had been there with fifty
men, that day, and would probably return in the evening. McKean was at
first disposed to take possession of the house, and attempt its
defence--his force consisting of but five men, exclusive of himself. But,
ultimately forming a more prudent resolution, he withdrew "his forces"
before nightfall, and returned home without having reconnoitered the
chieftain's position at Unadilla. In the course of his journey, he wrote
a letter to Brant, upbraiding him for the predatory system of warfare in
which he was engaged, and challenging him either to single combat, or to
meet him with an equal number of men and have a pitched battle--"adding,
that if he would come to Cherry Valley, they would change him from a
_Brant_ to a _goose._" This chivalrous missive was fastened to a stick,
and placed in an Indian path. No modern post-office could have transmitted
the letter with greater speed or safety. The "contents" were "noted" by
Brant in a letter addressed to Mr. Parcifer Carr, a loyalist living some
fifteen or twenty miles north, upon the Unadilla settlement, to whom the
chief wrote for provisions. He also solicited Mr. Carr to allow two or
three of his men to join him, and likewise to send him a few guns, with
some ammunition--adding, "I mean now to fight the cruel rebels as well as
I can." In a postscript, he intimated that the people of Cherry Valley,
though very bold in words, would find themselves mistaken in calling him
a "goose." Whether the challenge of Captain McKean, and the pun upon the
chieftain's name, had any influence upon his subsequent conduct in that
section of the country, is not known.
On the 2d of July a smart engagement took place, on the upper branch of
the Cobleskill, between a party of regular troops and Schoharie militia
under Captain Christian Brown, and a large body of Indians. There were
twenty-two militiamen and thirty regulars, the latter under charge of a
lieutenant whose name has not been preserved. The Indians, by their own
account, were four hundred and fifty strong. They were victorious--the
Americans retreating with a loss of fourteen killed, eight wounded, and
two missing. The Indians burnt several houses, killed and destroyed all
the horses and cattle which they could not drive away, and took
considerable plunder besides. They remained in the woods adjoining the
battleground one day and two nights, dressing the wounded, and packing up
their booty, with which they retired unmolested. [FN]
* * * * *
[FN] The only account of this battle which the author has been able to
discover, is contained in John M. Brown's pamphlet history of Schoharie.
He states it to have taken place on the day preceding the massacre of
Wyoming, but dates it in 1776, instead of 1778, which was doubtless the
true date.
Thenceforward, until the close of the war, the settlements of Schoharie
were perpetually harassed by the strolling bands of the enemy, until at
length they were entirely laid waste by a formidable invasion. The
principal of these settlements was the vale of the Schoharie-kill--doubly
inviting from the beauty of its scenery and the fertility of its
soil--which was even then thickly inhabited. But, although frequently
doomed to suffer from the savage tomahawk, justice nevertheless demands
the admission, that the first blood was drawn in that valley, and the
first act of barbarity committed, by the white man, upon the body of an
Indian sachem.
The circumstances leading to the outrage were these: At an early stage of
the contest, the officers of the Crown made a very strenuous effort to
control the popular feeling, and preserve the loyalty of the people of
Schoharie. For this purpose, not only the regular militia of the
settlements, but all the male population capable of bearing arms, were
required to meet the King's Commissioners at the house of Captain George
Mann, a loyalist of great wealth and influence, to take the oath of
allegiance. They assembled in arms, and were kept on parade, day after
day, as they slowly gathered at the place of rendezvous in obedience to
the requisition. Those who were loyalists at heart readily took the oath;
but great reluctance was manifested on the part of those whose
predilections ran with the Whigs. These, however, were threatened with the
pains and penalties of arrest, confiscation, and death, in case of
refusal; so that for the most part they complied with the demand of the
Commissioners, and took the oath of fidelity to the Crown. Immediately on
taking the oath, the hat of the subject was decorated with a piece of
scarlet cloth; while some of those most strongly desirous of manifesting
their loyalty, wore scarlet caps. Prominent among the latter class, were
Ludwig Snyder, of the Duanesburg settlement, [FN] and a Mohawk sachem named
Peter Nickus, who gave offence to the Whigs by brandishing his tomahawk
and occasionally sounding the war-whoop.
* * * * *
[FN] Snyder afterward abjured the Loyal cause, and discharged his duty
faithfully as a Whig.
But there were a few bold spirits upon whom, neither the threats of his
Majesty's officers, nor the menaces of the Indians in their company, had
any effect. They refused peremptorily to take the oath. Chief among these
were Nicholas Sternberg and William Deitz, who left the parade on the
evening of the first or second day, and returned to their homes--bitterly
denounced as rebels and traitors by the Royalists, and threatened with a
visit of Tories and Indians during the night. To avoid an arrest,
Sternberg took to the woods at evening, leaving his family in great
anxiety, although the slaves, of whom he possessed a large number,
volunteered to defend their mistress and the children. But there was no
pursuit, and the recusants both returned to the parade on the following
day--determined, of course, to render all proper obedience to the laws yet
in force, but equally determined not to take the oath of allegiance;
although Mrs. Sternberg besought her husband, with tears, not to jeopard
his own safety, and the lives of his family, by longer refusal. Nay, she
went farther; and appealing to the Bible, the good woman showed him the
passage in which all men are enjoined "to fear God and honor the King."
But it was with Sternberg as with the Puritans, He believed that
"opposition to tyrants was obedience to God," as implicitly as did the
regicides who engraved that immortal sentiment upon the New Haven rock;
and he was inflexible in his purpose.
Fortunately, however, in the course of the day affairs took quite a
different turn. It was at about the middle of the afternoon that Captain
Mann mustered those who had taken the oath and received the red badge.
They numbered one hundred and upward, and were paraded before the
Captain's own house to perform their martial exercise, when their
attention was arrested by the sound of steeds trampling in the distance.
A moment longer, and a cloud of horsemen came galloping along the highway
from the direction of Albany, with drawn swords flashing brightly in the
sun. These unexpected visitors proved to be Captain Woodbake, and two
hundred cavalry, the object of whose approach was to disperse the Royal
gathering and proclaim the government of the republic. Their arrival was
exceedingly inopportune for Captain Mann, who was cut short in the midst
of a loyal oration, in which he was commending his citizen-soldiers for
their loyalty, and threatening those who refused the badge of their
sovereign, with vengeance, swift and inevitable. As the cavalry
approached, Captain Mann took to his heels and fled; while his loyal
followers, many of whom had assumed the before-mentioned insignia, and
signed the royal muster-roll on compulsion, either followed his example
or threw away their red caps, and tore off the scarlet patches from their
hats, with the utmost possible expedition. Orders were immediately issued
by Captain Woodbake that Mann should be taken and brought to him--alive,
if possible, but if not--not. Numbers started in pursuit, while those who
remained upon the ground were collected into line, and a proclamation was
read to them by Captain Woodbake, declaring the Royal authority at an
end--pronouncing the acts of the King's Commissioners null and void--and
absolving the people from the oath of allegiance just taken, upon the
ground that, by the laws neither of God nor man, are oaths binding which
have been taken upon compulsion. Commending those who had refused to take
the oath for their patriotism, he informed them that a Committee of Safety
must be appointed, who would temporarily be invested with the civil and
military authority of the district, and until, by elections and otherwise,
the government could be organized in a more regular manner. Nicholas
Sternberg and William Deitz were thereupon nominated by Woodbake to serve
as said Committee, and invested orally with all necessary power for the
government of the district; and the people were enjoined to obedience.
The affairs of the government having thus been settled, all hands were
ordered in pursuit of Captain Mann, and sentinels were posted at different
points of observation. Among these was Mr. Sternberg's eldest son Lambert,
who was stationed by the side of a wheat-stack, sheltered by a roof of
thatch upon four posts. [FN] The orders were strict, that if Mann would not
surrender, he must be shot. Toward evening, on the approach of a
thunder-gust, young Sternberg, who was a lad of only sixteen years,
climbed to the top of the wheat-stack for shelter, where, to his great
surprise, he stumbled upon the loyal captain. The youth informed him at
once that he must surrender or be shot. The Captain implored for
mercy--declaring that he dared not to surrender himself to Woodbake,
because his life would be taken. The youth repeated that his orders were
explicit, and he must surrender or be shot. But Mann had lived a neighbor
to his father--had ever been kind to him--and his heart failed at the
thought of taking his life. He then proposed to the Captain to fire his
musket by way of alarm, that others might come and take him. But this was
objected to by Mann with equal earnestness. It now thundered and lightened
fearfully, while the rain descended in torrents. Watching his opportunity,
therefore, and availing himself of the conflict of the elements, and that,
also, which was working in the bosom of his young neighbor so suddenly
placed in hostile array against him, Mann contrived to spring from his
hiding-place, and by sliding down upon one of the barrack-posts, effected
his escape into a corn-field and thence into the woods. The stripling
soldier fired, as in duty bound, but doubtless rejoiced that the shot was
without effect.
* * * * *
[FN] These structures in new countries, where barns are not large enough
to shelter the produce, are called barracks.
On the next day, information having been received that a body of Indians
were lurking in the neighborhood of Middleburg, a few miles farther up
the valley, Captain Woodbake proceeded thither with his squadron of horse.
The only Indian seen was the before-mentioned sachem, Peter Nickus, who
was discovered in a thicket of hazel bushes, and immediately brought to
the ground by a shot that broke his thigh. Several pistols were
simultaneously snapped at him, but without effect; the troops then
dismounted, and running upon the wounded Indian, inhumanly hacked him to
pieces with their swords. Peter Nickus was therefore the first victim of
the Revolution in the Valley of the Schoharie-kill, nor does it appear
that he had himself been guilty of any act of positive hostility.
All search for Captain Mann was for the time fruitless. He succeeded in
escaping to the mountains, where he remained fifteen days; but at length
was induced to surrender through the intervention of friends, on condition
that he should receive no personal injury. He was thereupon taken to
Albany, and kept in confinement to the end of the war. [FN]
* * * * *
[FN] The property of Captain Mann was not confiscated, and he was
suffered to return and repossess himself of his estate, where he lived
and died a faithful citizen of the republic. All the families named in
this narrative were of great respectability, and their descendants are
still in that section of country. The author has derived the facts of
the four last preceding pages from a written narrative by the son of
Nicholas Sternberg. It was thrown out of its proper chronological order,
because not received until after this chapter was in the hands of the
printer.