Chapter XVIII: "When Yankees, skill'd in martial rule, (3)

"The apology made by Governor Tryon for this Indian effort was conveyed in the following sentence: 'The village was burned, to resent the fire of the rebels from their houses, and to mask our retreat.' This declaration unequivocally proves that the rebels were troublesome to their invaders, and at the same time is to be considered as the best apology which they are able to make. But it contains a palpable falsehood, intended to justify conduct which admits of no excuse, and rejects with disdain every attempt at palliation. Why did this body of men land at Fairfield at all? There were here no stores, no fortress, no enemy, except such as were to be found in every village throughout the United States. It was undoubtedly the original object of the expedition to set fire to this town, and the apology was created after the work was done. It was perfectly unnecessary to mask the retreat. The townsmen, and the little collection of farmers assembled to aid them, had no power to disturb it. No British officer, no British soldier would confess that, in these circumstances, he felt the least anxiety concerning any molestation from such opposers. The next morning the troops re-embarked, and, proceeding to Green's Farms, set fire to the church and consumed it, together with fifteen dwelling-houses, eleven barns, and several stores." *

The Hessians who accompanied Tryon were his incendiaries. To them he intrusted the wielding of the torch, and faithfully they obeyed their master.

When the people fled from the town, not expecting that their houses would be burned, they left most of their furniture behind. The distress was consequently great, for many lost every earthly possession.

Among the buildings saved was that

* Dwight's Travels in New England, in., 512. According to a document in the office of the Secretary of State of Connecticut, the number of buildings destroyed was ninety-seven dwellings, sixty-seven barns, forty-eight stores, two school-houses, one county-house, two meeting- houses, and one Episcopal Church.

* This building stood upon the eastern side of the Green, fronting the church. It was demolished three or four years ago, having stood more than a century and a half. The engraving is a copy, by permission of the author, from Barber's Historical Collections of Connecticut, page 353. Tryon lodged in the upper room on the right of the main building.

Treatment of Mrs. Buckley.--Interference of General Silliman.-- Humphreys's Elegy on the Burning of Fairfield

427of Mr. Buckley, pictured in the engraving. Tryon made it his head- quarters. The naval officer who had charge of the British ships, and piloted them to Fairfield, was Mrs. Buckley's brother, and he had requested Tryon to spare the house of his sister. Tryon acquiesced, and, feeling his indebtedness to her brother, the general informed Mrs. Buckley that if there was any other house she wished to save she should be gratified. After the enemy left, the enraged militia, under Captain Sturges, placed a field piece in front of the dwelling, and then sent Mrs Buckley word that she might have two hours to clear the house, and leave it, or they would blow her to atoms. She found means to communicate a notice of her situation to General Silliman, who was about two miles distant. He immediately went to the town, and found one hundred and fifty men at the cannon. By threats and persuasion he induced them to withdraw. The next day Colonel Benjamin Tallmadge, with his regiment, arrived from White Plains, and, encamping on the smoking ruins, made Tryon's quarters his own. *

The cruelties committed upon helpless women and children, and the wanton destruction of property, at Fairfield, were worthy only of savages, and made the name of Tryon a synonym for every thing infernal. The passions of the soldiery were excited by strong drink, and murder, pillage, and brutal violence to women were their employment throughout the night. Like similar outrages elsewhere, these awakened the strongest feelings of hatred and revenge against the common enemy, and the pen, the pulpit, and the forum sent forth their righteous denunciations. Colonel David Humphreys, the soldier-poet of the Revolution, visited the scene of destruction soon after the event, and wrote the following elegy while on the spot.

"Ye smoking ruins, marks of hostile ire,

Ye ashes warm, which drink the tears that flow,

Ye desolated plains, my voice inspire,

And give soft music to the song of woe.

How pleasant, Fairfield, on the enraptured sight

Rose thy tall spires and oped thy social halls!

How oft my bosom beat with pure delight

At yonder spot where stand thy darken'd walls!

But there the voice of mirth resounds no more.

A silent sadness through the streets prevails;

The distant main alone is heard to roar,

The hollow chimneys hum with sudden gales--

Save where scorch'd elms the untimely foliage shed,

Which, rustling, hovers round the faded green--

Save where, at twilight, mourners frequent tread,

Mid recent graves, o'er desolation's scene.

How changed the blissful prospect when compared,

These glooms funereal, with thy former bloom,

Thy hospitable rights when Tryon shared,

Long ere he seal'd thy melancholy doom.

That impious wretch with coward voice decreed

Defenseless domes and hallow'd fanes to dust;

Beheld, with sneering smile, the wounded bleed,

And spurr'd his bands to rapine, blood, and last.

Vain was the widow's, vain the orphan's cry,

To touch his feelings or to soothe his rage--

Vain the fair drop that roll'd from beauty's eye,

Vain the dumb grief of supplicating age.

Could Tryon hope to quench the patriot flame,

Or make his deeds survive in glory's page?

Could Britons seek of savages the same,

Or deem it conquest thus the war to wage?

* Mrs. Buckley was not a friend of the enemy. According to her testimony, under oath, she was badly treated by the soldiery, notwithstanding she had a protection from General Garth, the second in command. They plundered her house, stripped her buckles from her shoes, tore a ring from her finger, and fired the house five times before leaving it.--See Hinman's Historical Collections, p. 620.

Tryon's Retreat from Failfield.--Journey resumed.--Return to New Haven.- -Visit to West Bridge and other Localities.

428

Yes. Britons scorn the councils of the skies,

Extend wide havoc, spurn the insulted foes;

The insulted foes to ten-fold vengeance rise,

Resistance growing as the danger grows.

Red in their wounds, and pointing to the plain,

The visionary shapes before me stand;

The thunder bursts, the battle burns again,

And kindling fires encrimson all the strand.

Long, dusky wreaths of smoke, reluctant driven,

In black'ning volumes o'er the landscape bend:

Here the broad splendor blazes high to heaven,

There umber'd streams in purple pomp ascend.

In fiery eddies round the tott'ring walls,

Emitting sparks, the lighter fragments fly,

With frightful crash the burning mansion falls,

The works of years in glowing embers lie.

Tryon, behold thy sanguine flames aspire,

Clouds tinged with dies intolerably bright:

Behold, well pleased, the village wrapp'd in fire,

Let one wide ruin glut thy ravish'd sight!

Ere fades the grateful scene, indulge thine eyes,

See age and sickness tremulously slow

Creep from the flames. See babes in torture die,

And mothers swoon in agonies of woe.

Go, gaze enraptured with the mother's tear,

The infant's terror, and the captive's pain;

Where no hold bands can cheek thy cursed career,

Mix fire with blood on each unguarded plain!

These be thy triumphs, this thy boasted fame!

Daughters of mem'ry, raise the deathless song,

Repeat through endless years his hated name,

Embalm his crimes, and teach the world our wrong."

Large numbers of militia had collected in the neighborhood of Fairfield on the morning of the 9th, and at eight o'clock Tryon sounded a retreat to the shipping. His troops were galled very much by the militia, and it was noon before all were embarked. At three in the afternoon they weighed anchor and sailed over to Huntington, Long Island, whence they made a descent upon, and destroyed, Norwalk.

We will close the record and hasten from the mountain, for

"'Tis Sabbath morn, and lingering on the gale

The mellow'd peals of the sweet bells arise,

Floating where'er the restless wands prevail,

Laden with incense and with harmonies,"

and inviting me back to the city and the open sanctuary. I arrived in time for a luncheon breakfast, and to listen to an eloquent sermon in Trinity Church on the College Green, from a stripling deacon who had just taken orders. The afternoon was warm and lowery, the rain came pattering down in the evening, and the next morning a nor'easter was piping its melancholy notes among the stately elms of the city, * while the rain poured as if Aquarius had overturned his water-jar.

There was a lull in the storm about nine o'clock, and, accompanied by Mr. Barber, the artist-author, in a covered wagon, I visited some of the points of interest about the city. We first rode to the West Bridge on West River, near which the Americans made their first stand against General Garth, and in the midst of a heavy dash of rain made the sketch on page 423. Returning to the city, we visited the dwelling of Arnold, Neck Bridge, and the

Cemetery. In the latter, a large and beautiful "city of the dead," lie many illustrious remains, among which are those of Colonel David Humphreys, one of Washington's aids.

* The fine elms which shade the public square and vicinity were planted by the Rev. David Austin and Hon. James Hillhouse. They are the pride of New Haven, and have conferred upon it the title of The city of Elms.

The Cemetery.--Humphreys's Monument.--The Grave of Arnold's Wife.--Her Character.--Colonel Humphreys.

429They lie near the southwestern part of the Cemetery, and over them stands a fine monument consisting of a granite obelisk and pedestal, about twelve feet in height.

Upon two tablets of copper, inserted in the pedestal, is the following inscription, written by his friend, the author of M'Fingal: "David Humphreys, LL.D., Acad. Scient. Philad., Mass., at Connect., *

In the northeast section of the Cemetery is a dark stone, neatly carved with an ornamental border, sacred to the memory of Margaret, the first wife of Benedict Arnold, who died on the 19th of June, 1775, while her husband was upon Lake Champlain. Her maiden name was Mansfield, and by her Arnold had three sons. She was thirty-one years old when she died. She is represented as a woman of the most fervent piety, exalted patriotism, gentleness of manners, and sweetness of disposition. These qualities are powerful checks upon unruly passions, particularly when exerted in the intimate relation of husband and wife. Had she lived until the close of the Revolution, far different might have been the fate of her husband, for there is little doubt that his resentments against Congress and the managers of military affairs for two years previous to his treason were fostered

* Mr. Barber gives the following translation: "David Humphreys, doctor of laws, member of the Academy of Sciences of Philadelphia, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, of the Bath [Agricultural Society] and of the Royal Society of London. Fired with the love of country and of liberty, he consecrated his youth wholly to the service of the republic, which he defended by his arms, aided by his counsels, adorned by his learning, and preserved in harmony with foreign nations. In the field he was the companion and aid of the great Washington, a colonel in the army of his country, and commander of the veteran volunteers of Connecticut. He went embassador to the courts of Portugal and Spain, and, returning, enriched his native land with the true golden fleece.* He was a distinguished historian and poet; a model and a patron of science, and of the ornamental and useful arts. After a full discharge of every duty, and a life well spent, he died on the 21st day of February, 1818, aged sixty-five years." To complete the brief biography given in this inscription, I will add that Colonel Humphreys was born in Derby, Connecticut, in 1753, and graduated at Yale College in 1771. He soon afterward went to reside with Colonel Phillips, of Phillips's Manor, New York. He joined the Continental army, and in 1778 was one of General Putnam's aids, with the rank of maior. Washington appointed him his aid in 1780, and he remained in the military family of the chief until the close of the war. For his valor at Yorktown, Congress honored him with a sword. He accompanied Jefferson to Paris, as secretary of legation, in 1784. Kosciusko accompanied them. He was a member of the Legislature of Connecticut in 1786, and about that time lie, Barlow, and Hopkins wrote the Anarchiad. From 1788 until he was appointed minister to Portugal, in 1790, he resided with Washington at Mount Vernon. He was appointed minister plenipotentiary to Spain in 1794; married the daughter of a wealthy English gentleman at Lisbon in 1797; returned in 1801, and for ten years devoted his time to agriculture. In 1812 he took the command of the militia of Connecticut. His death was sudden, caused by an organic disease of the heart. His literary attainments were considerable. Besides several poems, he wrote some political pamphlets; and in 1788, while at Mount Vernon, completed a life of Putnam, a large portion of the material of which he received from the lips of the veteran.

* This is in allusion to the fact that Colonel Humphreys was the man who introduced merino sheep into the United Stales, he sent over from Spain a flock of one hundred in 1801.

Arnold's Disaffection.--Dr. Eneas Munson.--Death of Colonel Scammell.-- His Epitaph by Humphreys.

430by his intercourse with the Tory friends of his second wife, Margaret Shippen, of Philadelphia.

Indeed, the Loyalists claimed him for a friend as early as December, 1778. Charles Stewart, writing to Joseph Galloway, said, "General Arnold is in Philadelphia. It is said that he will be discharged, being thought a pert Tory. Certain it is that he associates mostly with these people."

On leaving the Cemetery, we called upon the venerable Eneas Munson, M.D., a vigorous relic of the Revolution. He lived until August, 1852, when more than eighty-nine years ol age. He was Dr. Thacher's assistant in the Continental army, and was present at the siege of Yorktown and the surrender of Cornwallis, in October, 1781. He was then a surgeon in Colonel Seammell's regiment, which, in that action, was attached to General Hamilton's brigade.

During the siege Colonel Scammell was shot by a Hessian cav officer, while reconnoitering a small redoubt on a point of land which had been alternately in possession of the Americans and British. It was just at twilight, and, while making careful observations, two Hessian horsemen came suddenly upon him, and presented their pistols. Perceiving that there was no chance for escape, he surrendered, saying, "Gentlemen, I am your prisoner." Either because they did not understand his words, or actuated by that want of humanity which generally characterized those mercernaries, one of them fired, and wounded the colonel mortally. He was carried to Williamsburg, and Dr. Munson was the first surgeon in attendance upon him. He died there on the 6th of October. Colonel Humphreys (to whose regiment Dr. Munson was attached after the death of Scammell) wrote the following poetic epitaph for the tomb of his friend. I do not know whether the lines were ever inscribed upon marble, or recorded by the pen of history by Dr. Munson, and I give them as a memorial of a brave and accomplished officer of the Revolution.

* This portrait is from a Daguerreotype kindly lent me by Dr. Munson, with permission to copy it

Nathan Beers.--Yale College.--Its political Character in the Revolution.--A Tory Student

431

"What though no friend could ward thine early fall,

Nor guardian angels turn the treacherous ball;

Bless'd shade, be soothed! Thy virtues all are known--

Thy fame shall last beyond this mouldering stone,

Which conquering armies, from their toils return,

Read to thy glory while thy fate they mourn."

A drawing of the place where Scammell was killed, and a biographical sketch of that officer, are given in the notice of my visit to Yorktown. Dr. Munson died in October, 1852.

A few doors from Dr. Munson, in the same street, lived the almost centenarian, Nathan Beers, who was paymaster in Scammell's regiment at Yorktown. He was ninety-six years old, and completely demented; second childhood, with all its trials for the subject and his friends, was his lot; yet did I look with reverence upon that thin visage and "lack- luster eye." where once were indices of a noble mind within. A truer patriot never drew blade for his country, and, above all, he was "an honest man, the noblest work of God. For years he struggled with the misfortunes of life, and became involved in debt. At length Congress made a decision in his favor respecting a claim for a pension as paymaster in the Continental army, and arrearages amounting to some thousands of dollars were awarded him. There was enough to give him a competence in his old age, but even this reward for public services he handed over to his creditors. He has since gone to receive the final recompense of the patriot and Christian. He died on the 10th. of February, 1849, aged almost 98.

After a short visit to the Trumbull Gallery of Paintings and the Library of Yale College, * I returned to my lodgings, and at four o'clock in the afternoon departed in the cars for Hartford.

* Yale College, aside from its intrinsic worth as a seminary of learning, is remarkable for the great number of the leading men of the Revolution who were educated within its walls. That warm and consistent patriot, President Daggett, gave a political tone to the establishment favorable to the republican cause, and it was regarded as the nursery of Whig principles during the Revolution. When New Haven was invaded by Tryon, Yale College was marked for special vengeance, but, as we have seen, the invaders retreated hastily without burning the town. There were very few among the students, during our war for independence, who were imbued with Tory principles, and they were generally, if known, rather harshly dealt with.

* One instance may suffice to show the spirit of the times. In June, 1775, a student named Abiather Camp was reported unfriendly to Congress. A committee of investigation was appointed, who wrote a very polite note to the young gentleman, setting forth the charges made against him, and demanding an explicit denial, if the report was untrue. The young scape- grace returned the following answer:

"New Haven, June 13,1775.

"To the Honorable and Respectable Gentlemen of the Committee now residing in Yale College: "May it please your honors, ham--ham--ham.

"Finis cumsistula, popularum gig--

A man without a head has no need of a wig.

"Abiather Camp."

* The insulted committee resolved to advertise Camp as an enemy to his country, and to treat him with all possible scorn and neglect. Such advertisement was posted upon the hall door. He braved public opinion until October, when he recanted, and publicly asked pardon for his offenses.

* Yale College was founded by ten principal ministers in the colony, who met for the purpose, at New Haven, in 1700. Each brought a number of books at their next meeting in 1701, and, presenting them to the society, said, "I give these books for the founding of a college in the colony." A proposition to found a college had been named fifty years before. The first commencement was held at Saybrook, in 1702. In 1717 the first college building was erected in New Haven. It was seventy feet long and twenty-two wide. From time to time several liberal endowments have been made to the institution, the earliest and most munificent of which was from Elihu Yale, in whose honor the college was named. Among its distinguished benefactors were Sir Isaac Newton, Dean Berkley, Bishop Burnet, Halley, Edwards, &c. The present imposing pile was commenced in 1750. Additions have been made at different times, and it now consists of four spacious edifices, each four stories high, one hundred and four by forty feet on the ground; a chapel, lyceum, atheneum, chemical laboratory, dining-hall, and a dwelling-house for the president.

New England and its Associations.--Arrival at Hartford.--Continuation of the Storm.

432