cruel than their savage allies. * * * * * Those capable of bearing arms were immediately embodied under the command of Col. Zebulon Butler, cousin to the commander of the savages. The enemy approached, and pretending they were desirous of a parley, proposed that Col. Zebulon Butler should meet them at some distance from the fort for that purpose. He complied, but for safety took with him 400 armed men. This proved to be a fatal stratagem; he soon found himself surrounded and attacked on every side. He and his little party defended themselves with great firmness and bravery, and the commander, with about twenty of his men, finally made his escape. The enemy now rushed on and invested the fort, which they cannonaded most of the day; and horrid to relate, when they sent in a demand for the surrender, it was accompanied by 196 bloody scalps taken from those who had just been slain. "Colonel Denison, on whom the command of the fort had devolved, defended himself till most of his men had fallen by his side, when he went out with a flag to inquire what terms would be granted him on surrendering the garrison. He received from the ferocious Butler a reply in two words-'The hatchet!' Colonel Denison was finally obliged to surrender at discretion, still retaining the hope of mercy. But he was wofully mistaken; the threat of Butler was rigorously executed. After selecting a few prisoners, the remainder of the people, including women and children, were enclosed in houses and barracks, which were immediately set on fire, and the whole consumed together. On "Another fort was near at hand, in which were seventy Continental soldiers. surrendering without conditions, these were, to a man, butchered in a barbarous manner; when the remainder of the men, women and children were shut up in the houses, and the demons of hell glutted their vengeance in beholding their destruction in one general conflagration! This tragical scene being finished, the merciless authors of it spread fire and sword throughout the settlement, sparing, however, the houses and farms of the Tories. They extended their cruel hands to the cattle in the fields, shooting some and cutting out the tongues of others, leaving them alive. The additional particulars, from their unparalleled enormity, would not be recited here, were it not that they have been already promulgated from authentic sources." [Then follows a description of the tortures inflicted upon Captains Bidlack, Durkee and Ransom, and an account of the alleged threats and doings of Thomas Terry and Parshall Terry, Jr.] Undoubtedly Dr. Thacher gained his information concerning the battle of Wyoming and the after-events from the New York Journal and from flying rumors. In May, 1827, there was published in The Independent Republican, a Pennsylvania newspaper, an account of the battle and massacre of Wyoming, evidently drawn from Thacher's "Journal." In answer to this newspaper article Col. John Franklin wrote to the editor of the Republican as follows: "Mr. CATLIN:-In your paper of the third instant I find a statement of the battle of Wyoming, which took place on the 3d of July, 1778, and on examination I find the account greatly exaggerated. Though it is true in part, yet there is a large part that is not true. It is stated that the enemy that entered Wyoming on the first of July were supposed to be about sixteen hundred strong. It was not so; their number did not exceed seven hundred. That out of four hundred that marched out to the battle with Col. Butler, it is stated that not more than twenty escaped. This is not true; though it is true that more than one half fell a sacrifice to savage barbarity. It is also stated that the great body of the people that were in the fort of Kingston were shut up in their houses and burnt up, and that [Maj. John] Butler, with his forces, crossed to Wilkesbarre fort, and, hacking to pieces about seventy Continental soldiers, the remaining men with the women and children shared the fate of their brethren in Kingston; that they perished in the flames. This is not true. "I was an eye-witness to the transactions of that time. I cannot at present recollect of any man now living, except myself, that was in the fort at Kingston when it was given up, who knew the transactions. There were numbers of women, young people and children that were in the fort at the time, and I expect numbers are yet living that can bear witness to many things that took place at that time. Colonel Hollenback was in the battle, and made his escape by swimming the river, and got into Wilkesbarre fort, and did not return back to Kingston. "The fort in Kingston was surrendered to the enemy on Saturday, July the 4th, in pursuance of articles of capitulation previously agreed upon between Col. John Butler, in behalf of his Britannic Majesty, and Col. Nathan Denison, in behalf the inhabitants of Wyoming. I saw the articles written and executed by the parties, and have the original now in keeping. The articles of capitulation were as favourable as we could expect, considering the circumstances at that time. I was present when Butler with his Indians and Tories marched into the fort. I walked out with Colonel Denison, and met them and led them in and delivered up the fort with the few arms that were within it. "The articles agreed on and executed in writing, although favourable for the inhabitants, were violated by the enemy in every part, except that of massacreing the people. There was no personal injury done to any one in the fort; but plunder, and firing the dwellings of the inhabitants, laying the whole of the settlements in ruins, without reserve, immediately followed. An old man of the name of Hickman, and his wife, living near Capouse, were murdered, and a man by the name of St. John, when going out towards the great swamp, was shot by the Indians. The woman with her child was suffered to go unhurt. "On the day of the battle by far the greater part that lost their lives had surrendered on the promise of protection, but were afterwards massacred—many being tortured in the most cruel manner that savages could invent. Only one prisoner was saved alive, whose name was Samuel Cary, who is (or was not long since) living at Lackawanna. Col. Zebulon Butler, and the few Continental soldiers that escaped the slaughter on the day of the battle, left Wyoming before Kingston fort was surrendered, as it was proposed that they should be held as prisoners of war. "I am not able at present to give you but a short account of the transactions-only some of the outlines. As soon as my health will permit, I will furnish you with the history* of the events that took place in those days of tribulation and distress at Wyoming. "Athens, May 14th, 1827. [Signed] "JOHN FRANKLIN.” In 1840 Col. W. L. Stone's "Poetry and History of Wyoming" was published, and five years later Charles Miner's "History of Wyoming was given to the public. In each of these books some of the many fabulous tales, which for years had been accepted as authentic Wyoming history, were effectually demolished. But still the earlier-printed accounts of Gordon, Botta and Thacher continued to be read and accepted, and when, in 1857, Dr. J. A. Spencer published his "History of the United States" he incorporated in it an account of the battle of Wyoming based on the disproved narratives of Gordon, Thacher, et al. The Rev. George Peck, D. D., wrote to the editor of The New York Times in January, 1858 (only a few months prior to the publication of the former's "Wyoming"), in part as follows relative to Dr. Spencer's account of the battle of Wyoming. "The grave errors of historians, in relation to the early history of this famous locality, seem to be imperishable. They have been corrected and refuted, over and over, and yet they continue to be propagated and palmed upon the public. My principal object in this communication is to draw attention to a few of these errors, found in Dr. J. A. Spencer's History of the United States.' In Book III, Chapter V, pages 23-25, the author draws upon Thacher's Military Journal' for what he seems to suppose to be an authentic account of the Wyoming massacre. * * "The points I dispute are: (1) That Col. Zebulon Butler, who commanded the patriots, and Col. John Butler, who commanded the royal forces, were cousins, whereas they were not related to each other by any natural ties of consanguinity. (2) That Col. Zebulon Butler was drawn out by the Tory leader, upon a pretense that they were desirous of a parley when the patriot band went out to fight and to do nothing else. *** (7) That the story of Parshall and Thomas Terry is pure fiction. It is said one murdered his father, mother, brothers and sisters; while the other, with his own hands, butchered his mother, his father-in-law, his sisters and their infant children, and exterminated the whole family. Parshall Terry was in John Butler's army, and he had a brother on our side. An eye-witness relates the fact that young [Parshall] Terry came into the fort, after the battle, disguised, to bid his friends farewell. There were real Tory outrages enough committed, without making up fictitious ones. One Tory [Pencel] shot his brother in cold blood, and another [Windecker] tomahawked his friend." The most remarkable and absurd of all the fabulous accounts of the battle and massacre of Wyoming which the present writer has read, was originally printed in a German publication. In 1850 it was translated from the German into English, and was published in the Pittsburg Post. The story was entitled "The German Thermopylae. A Sketch of the American Revolution."+ This history was subsequently given in the series of articles referred to on page 994, ante. "There are, we presume, but a few of our readers who have not heard of the beautiful Wyoming Valley, that rich and fertile tract of land situated in the State of Pennsylvania, and which has often been celebrated by poets and writers. This valley was first and chiefly settled by Germans. It con tains rich farms, fields and meadows, together with valuable timber, and was visited with fire and For a considerable number of years following the sanguinary conflict which took place on Abraham's Plains on July 3, 1778, the event was referred to, first, as "the battle," and then, as "the Indian battle," by the people of Wyoming-who, of all persons, were the best informed as to the particulars and characteristics of that conflict. Thus we find in military orders issued by Lieut. Col. Zebulon Butler at Wilkes-Barré in October, 1778 (see the ensuing chapter), the expressions, "the late battle at this place," "the late battle at Westmoreland," and "the late battle at and near the place called Wintermute's Fort "—all referring to the battle of the previous 3d of July. In the testimony given before the Confirming Commissioners* at Wilkes-Barré in 1787, and in the voluminous evidence-both oral and documentary-produced before the commissioners under the Compromise Law,† at Wilkes-Barré in 1801 and 1802, the expression "Indian battle" was frequently used by contemporaries of the event-the reference being, in each instance, to the battle of July 3, 1778. This conflict was denominated a battle notwithstanding the fact that numerous exaggerated accounts of it had been disseminated throughout the civilized world, whereby the event had been represented solely and entirely as a murderous rout and massacre. The people of Westmoreland of that period knew very well that a massacre of their fellow sword by a party of American Tories, British and Indians in the year 1778, at a time when the male population of the settlement (which number amounted to about 350 souls) had joined the army of the great and immortal Washington, at a distance of several days' journey, where they expected to encounter the main army of the enemy. "The Colonel of the Wyoming Germans was Hollenback, a Justice of the Peace. He was an intimate friend of Washington, who knew how to appreciate his distinguished qualities, as well as his rare intelligence; although as regarding religion, their views and opinions differed greatly from each other, as it is well known that Washington was a strict believer in the Bible, whereas Hollenback did adhere to the doctrines of Thomas Paine, who was a philosopher and freethinker. men. "The heart-rending call in distress, of their parents, wives and children, whom they had left at home, soon reached the ears of the Wyoming Volunteers, and in an instant Hollenback found himself surrounded by his men, who urged him to meet the enemy, whose force consisted of more than 2,000 In vain were the representations of Washington, who, being aware of the superior numerical strength of these barbarous and plundering hordes, had prognosticated to all a sure death. Terror and agony moved the heart of every one at the thought of the dear ones whom they had left behind, unprotected, and they clenched their fists in eagerness for combat and vengeance at the gloomy prospects of their ruined happiness; and it was now no longer possible for them to remain with the army. "At the sound of the trumpet, and headed by their Colonel, they began to return homeward in great haste, marching day and night until they arrived at their settlement, where, instead of meeting again their peaceable abodes, they beheld the smoking ruins of destroyed dwellings, near to which the enemies had comfortably erected their tents-their morning fires blazing triumphantly in the air, intermingled with their huzzas. They soon recognized the red hordes of Brandt, the notorious spoilers of the German Flats, who had joined the rapacious and blood-thirsty Tories and British, who, but a short time ago in Cherry Valley, had given such terrible proofs of their cruelty. "With doleful looks Hollenback regarded his little gallant band, who, gnashing their teeth for rage and vengeance, stood near the place of destruction, and the looks of his men announced to him the inmost thoughts of their hearts. There was none who would have trembled at an assault on these hordes of murderers. 'Brothers,' exclaimed Hollenback, 'against such cowards, who watch for our absence, and who now rejoice in victory over women and children only, every one of us can stand the ground against eight of them. Let us send these brutes to hell in such a manner that even the Devil himself must have respect for the Germans of Wyoming Valley!' And, raising himself from his saddle, he waved his sword in the air, and spurred his horse onward. Thundering hurrahs followed his words, and his men rushed forward, eager for the ensuing combat. "At the first volley more than 100 of these red-skins (who formed the advance guard of the enemy) were weltering in their blood. The enemy were quietly reposing in their camp, but in an instant the whole army of the enemy was apprised of the assault, and from all sides they rushed upon the gallant little corps. The sun rose, spreading its animating beams upon the exhausted Germans, who made arrangements to take their stand behind a row of ruins, and to wait for the approach of their enemies. The first assault of the enemy was repulsed, and many kissed the earth in death, caused by the dense drift of bullets sent forth from behind the entrenchments. * * The enemy soon engaged its whole army in a furious combat, but they were not able to stand their ground against the discharges of the pieces of the little band, which, rattling, cleared their ranks. Repulsed repeatedly, and again hurrying into the fight, the enemy could not gain a foot of ground, although their guns began to clear the ranks of their powerful antagonists. "During twelve long hours these German Spartans manfully resisted the superior force of the enemy. Finally, and with the last glowing of the setting sun, the fate of the day was decided; 300 Germans had fallen in defense of their adopted country, and fifty more lay badly wounded, who would not seek for quarter, and still strove to make a last effort against the enemy-who seeing their determination, had almost been driven to madness on account of their bravery." "What a noble military achievement! What persevering heroism! Had these men been Americans, they would, up to this day, have been remembered by the nation as "The Immortal Wyoming Boys.' But they were only Germans, and their memory-which is as worthy of immortality as that of the Hellenes of Thermopylae-remains silently recorded in the book of history of two Pennsylvania Counties!" * See paragraph "(4)," page 29, Vol. I. † See page 25, Vol. I. townsmen and defenders had been perpetrated on Abraham's Plains by their malevolent enemies-a cold-blooded, savage and brutal slaughter of fleeing foes, and a wicked and unlawful murder of prisoners secured by capture or surrender; but they were aware, also, that these horrors had been preceded by a battle-between their townsmen and a force superior in numbers and arms-which had been carefully planned and deliberately, bravely and vigorously fought by each of the forces engaged. They knew, too (for many of the Westmorelanders who participated in the engagement had been, as we have herein noted, soldiers in more than one campaign of the French and Indian War), that the tactics and methods pursued by the savages on Abraham's Plains on that bloody 3d day of July were absolutely in accordance with Indian warfare as it had been carried on from the earliest historic times. * During the French and Indian War the chief British officers, beginning with Braddock, were slow in obtaining a knowledge of the character of the Indians in times of hostilities, when they were governed by impulse and by hopes of plunder-the desire to obtain scalps and booty being the great (if not the only) motive which ever induced them to accompany either the French or the English on a military campaign. Then, again, many of those same officers undervalued the Indian system of warfare-placing little faith in the efficiency of guerilla tactics. And yet a review of our Indian history, from Braddock's day down almost to the present era, proves that a small Indian force in ambuscade was an equivalent for, or would overmatch, five times its number of disciplined troops. For the latter, fighting according to the white man's methods, would either be thrown into confusion or become panic-stricken by the peculiar tactics of the savages, and then would be slaughtered in large numbers or totally defeated. To a considerable extent the officers and soldiers of the American army in the Revolutionary War, well informed as they were either through personal experience or the teachings of history-in respect to the Indians' methods of warfare, fought their battles with the savages in much the same way that they or their ancestors had fought them twenty years earlier; and so the Americans often met with defeat and slaughter-which, in a measure, was what they half expected, for they knew that their foes were blood-thirsty and unrelenting, as well as cautious, wary and vigilant. Sherman Some years ago a famous General of the United States Army, who had fought through the Civil War, declared, "War is hell!" Yes, and it was "hell" in the days of Braddock, of Wolfe, of Amherst, and of Washington, as well as in the time of Sherman. It inflamed the passions, jaundiced the vision and darkened the heart then just as now. It is true that in these days of singular doctrines and strange "isms" there are some men and women who prate about "humane" war. Their ideas were well hit off, during the United States-Philippine troubles in 1902, by a genial and popular poet, in the following lines: “What we want is a perfectly humane war, To put all those natives in first-class shape, "Our soldiers must use only olive-branch loads As to Indian warfare, see pages 145 and 146, Vol. I. War against or by the Indians in this country during the Colonial and Revolutionary periods was certainly not carried on along any such lines as those indicated by these verses. No, war was cruel then and is cruel now," and neither the poet's harp nor the painter's brush nor the orator's lip can make it other than the horrid thing it is. And the War of the Revolution was distinguished by the extreme barbarity of the British," declares Professor Enoch Perrine of Bucknell University, and then asserts further*: "Men saw this fact while the war was in progress; for when it was almost over, in the year 1780, John Jay, writing for aid to the Spanish people, declared that 'the barbarous and very inhuman manner in which the war has been conducted by the enemy has so alienated the affections of the people from the King and Government of Great Britain and filled their hearts with such deep-rooted and just resentments as render cordial reconciliation, much less dependence on them, utterly impossible.' This alienation is seen in the fact that, as the war went on, many of the Tories here became very lukewarm, and Goldwin Smith, the English publicist, says that their number was reduced and their zeal cooled by the arbitrary violence of the King's officers and the excesses of his hireling troops. This admitted barbarity cannot be defended upon the ground that fire must be fought with fire. As early as the year 1775 Congress said to the Six Nationst: 'This is a family quarrel between us and Old England. You Indians are not concerned in it.' * Three years afterwards, when it was thought best to employ some Indians, General Schuyler wrote to James Duane: Divesting them of the savage customs exercised in their wars against each other, I think they may be made of excellent use as scouts and light troops." * * * * * * * * "Who, then, were responsible for the extreme cruelty that marked the operations of the English forces? There were, first of all, the savages-spectacular in their warpaint and feathers, like panthers in their sudden, secret and deadly clutch, loud and fierce in their attack. Associated with them in our minds is the pioneer, dead by the side of his plow, his cabin aflame, his children brained and scalped, his wife mayhap fleeing for life across the swamps and through the forests. But the savages were the least culpable." Undeveloped-they were the children only of the woods, an easy prey for plausible villainy; violent-their life of the chase, and their bitter exterminating wars with each other, were to their natures like winds upon the prairies. In the second and higher degree of culpability are the Tories. Intelligent, devoted to the King and the Established Church, possessed frequently of much property, it was their affair if they chose to disregard the signs of the times and to close their eyes to the rising sun of Liberty. Conservative by nature and aristocratic in conduct, they found a plenty of arguments why they should remain loyal to the Crown. * * * * * * "But for some strange reason the Tory, when opportunity offered, was worse in his cruelty than the red-men themselves. Fiske employs no mere rhetoric when he says that 'the Tories took less pains than Brant to prevent useless slaughter, and some of the atrocities permitted by Walter Butler have never been outdone in the history of savage warfare.' * * They [the Tories] tried to create this impression of themselves-that they were worse even than the redskins; and, while many were yet living, Fenimore Cooper pilloried them in his novels with the sanction of their contemporaries. Against them, too, the vengeance of the gods was at work. They incensed their friends, neighbors, relativespaying the price which those pay who set at naught the ties of blood; their property was confiscated, and their estates formed no mean part of Colonial wealth; they lost whatever position they held in either Church or State; they fled to Canada and Nova Scotia, and to this day their descendants apologize and hang the head. * "In the third and highest degree of culpability, raised to a bad eminence, is the British Government, without whose positive sanction and active aid these cruelties would have ceased in their inception. At the head stands George, the King. * Soon he began to press for the employment of Indians against the revolted Colonies. At his instigation it was Suffolk who in the House of Lords interrupted the dying Chatham by defending the King's proposition to use the Indians as a means that God and Nature put into our hands.' All knew what the savages would do in battle, for they had been tried in the French and Indian War, the memory of which was still fresh. So fearful had the work of the Indians been that the Great Commoner,‡ who died two months before the crowning crime at Wyoming, cried out with expiring breath against the abomi In a scholarly address-"The Nemesis of Wyoming"-delivered before the Wyoming Commemorative Association, July 3, 1905. Published by the Association in 1906. † See page 925, ante. The Earl of Chatham. See page 608, Vol. I. |