Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application File S. 18335, Elijah Burton, Conn. Continental Vt.
Page 1

(3 - 1776)
SERVICE
Conn.
Continental
Vt.
CONTENTS
Burton, Elijah
NUMBER
S. 18335
Carded
Page 2

No 18494
Vermont
Elijah Burton
of Benning. Co. in the State of Vermont
who was a Private in the company commanded
by Captain Barrows of the Regt commanded
by Col. Warner in the Con’l Troops
for 2 years Vt. & Continental

Inscribed on the Roll of Vermont
at the rate of 80 Dollars - Cents per annum,
to commence on the 4th day of March, 1831.

Certificate of Pension issued the 6 day of Sept.
1833 and sent to S. Swift
Manchester Vt

Arrears to the 4th of Sept. 1833  200.00
Semi-anl. allowance ending March 1834 40.00
$240.00 [total]

Revolutionary Claim,
Act June 7, 1832.

Recorded by D. Brown Clerk,
Book E. Vol. 3 Page 5[3]
Page 3

State of Vermont
County of Bennington ss: On this [blank] day of November in the year 1832
 personally appeared in open Court, before the Hon. the Probate Court for the 
Probate District of Manchester in the County of Bennington & State of
Vermont, now sitting, Elijah Burton, a resident of Manchester in
said County of Bennington, aged seventy two years, who being duly sworn
according to law, doth on his oath make the following declaration in 
order to obtain the benefit of the Act of Congress, passed June 7, 1832.
That he was born at Stratford in the County of Fairfield in the
State of Connecticut on the 22 day of February AD. 1760. & when young
he removed with his parents from thence to the Town of New Milford
in the County of Litchfield, in said State of Connecticut, where he
lived until some time in the spring or fore part of the summer of
the year 1771. when he removed to the said Town of Manchester, 
where he has ever since resided.  That he knows of no other Record
of his age except the Record kept in the family.
That he entered the service of the United States under the
 following named Officers, & served as herein stated:
That on or about the latter part of July 1777 as he now believes,
he enlisted at said Manchester, & took the place of & as a Substitute
for his father Josiah Burton, then of said Manchester, but since
 deceased, who was sick & unable to serve, & who had previously
 sometime in or about the month of May of the same year 1777, as he
now believes, but the precise time he is not now able to state, inlisted
 at said Manchester or Whitehall for the Term of three years, into the
 company commanded by Capt Burrows, & in the Regiment of Rangers
commanded by Col. Seth Warner, on the Continental establishment ┃
as he understood, & in the line of the State of [blank] . That he thinks
that Saml Safford was the Lt. Col & [blank] Hopkins the Maj’r of said
Regiment - that soon after his said enlistment, he was taken sick
with the Measles, & by reason thereof prevented from marching
with said Regiment to Bennington, being engaged in the Bennington
 Battle so called, - but soon after, & on or about the 20th day of August
 of the same year 1777, he again joined said Regiment at said
 Manchester, & marched with them from thence through Arlington in said
State of Vermont & Cambridge in the State of New York to Saratoga in
said State, where they made a stand for a short time, thence marched to ┃
Fort Miller & Fort Edward for the purpose of getting into the rear of Gen’l
Burgoyne & his army. thence back to said Saratoga, where they were 
present & assisted in the capture of Genl Burgoyne & his army, & in the
various encounters, engagements & skirmishes which led to that. Went
particularly in what are commonly [called] the Friday & Saturday Battles
Page 4

that he then sustained an injury in one of his eyes, which proved to be
permanent-- After which, they marched to Albany, where they were stationed
according to his best recollection, about two or three months. -Thereto
said Bennington in Vermont, where they were stationed through the
remainder of the winter & following season, until as he believes, sometime
 in the forepart of June 1778, when they marched from that place; but
that he was left behind as a guard for David Redding, who was thereon
[fined] there, on a charge of certain treasonable practices, & who was at length
sentenced to be hung. & on the morning of the day of his execution, which
he thinks, must have been towards the latter part of the said month of June,
1778 A.D., he followed his said Regiment through a part of the State of New York
to Fort Edward in said State, where they were stationed & continued throughout
 that season. From thence they marched to Fort George on Lake George, where
& in the vicinity they remained & were stationed principally until the expiration
 of his said term of enlistment. & that afterwards, as he now believes, he
 remained & continued to serve in said Regiment until some time in the fall
of the year 1780. & until a short time [illegible insert] to an engagement which the said Regiment
had with the enemy, in which they were defeated, & that portion of them which were
then embodied & on the ground, were principally either killed or taken prisoners
& said Regiment broken up, which took place, as he has been informed & has reason
to believe, on or about the 15th day of October 1780. After which, the said Regiment as he
understands & believes, was never reorganized at the north, but that several of the men
who survived, & had enlisted during the war, afterwards joined the army
at the south- a short time previous to which event, he had obtained a furlough
for 15 days to go home & was absent from said Regiment on said furlough, at the
time of said engagement- & not long afterwards, he saw the Col. Warner, who at
his request, gave him a written discharge from his said enlistment & service, which
by some casualty he has since lost, or has been in some way destroyed. & he is
confident that he served in said Regiment in the whole under said enlistment more than
two years. That during said time, & whilst stationed at Fort Edward as af’d he
was engaged in several skirmishes with the Indians - that immediately after his
return home as af’d he volunteered at said Manchester, & was enrolled as a minute
man in the Vermont Militia, to be called out at any time upon short notice,
as exigences might require, & was actually called out & did serve upon various
 expeditions under Capt Thomas Barney, Capt Sunderland, & Capt George
Sexton for the most of the time, during the remaining part or period of the Revolutionary
 War.  In which time he was stationed three months according to his
present recollection at the Fort in Castleton in Vermont, then commanded by
Col. or Genl Ethan Allen.  Three or four months he spent in an expedition to watch
the movements of the British naval forces on Lake Champlain, on the borders of
said Lake, as far north as Crown Point, & still farther down said Lake.  That in the
year 1781 or 1782, & which he does not now particularly remember but thinks
it must have been in the latter year, he turned out as a volunteer at said Manchester
 for six months to go to Pittsford, & guard the Fort there - where he served during
the whole of said Term, & thinks that Maj, Gideon Ormsby then commanded there.
& during which time also, he was called out upon various other expeditions, &
performed various other services, which he is not able now particularly to enumerate
 or recollect, except that he believes that he was stationed at one other
time at said Castleton and he further states that previous to his said enlistment
in July 1777. & agreeably to his present recollection belief in the fall of the year 1778
Page 5

he turned out as a volunteer at said Manchester, to go on an expedition under Col
Arnold to Kenebeck in the the Province of Maine & from thence to Canada. That
he marched from said Manchester to Charleston or No 4. as then called in the State of
New Hampshire, where being informed that his further services were not required,
 he returned home from thence, having been absent upon said excursions, according
 to his present recollection & belief 3 or 4 weeks or more but his memory fails
to state particulars with accuracy & certainty.  He also turned out on several other
short expeditions previous to July 1777, but the length & particulars of which, from
lapse of time & decay of memory he is not able to state fully & explicitly-- but
 recollects that once in particular, he turned out at said Manchester & marched to 
Skenesborough now Whitehall, when he was stationed at a Picquet Fort at 
that place, but how long he cannot say, & was regularly discharged & returned
home & that in fact, from the beginning to the end of the revolutionary war, he
was almost constantly in service or on duty in some way- that he has no
 documentary evidence to support his said statements & that he does not know of
any living witnesses to prove his said services, except a small portion thereof &
except that within a few months past, he was informed that one Prince Soper, who 
served with him during the whole time in which he belonged to the said Col.
 Warner’s Regiment as above stated, was still alive at Brandon in the County of
Rutland in s’d State of Vermont - in consequence of which information he deferred
his application that he might be enabled to provide the Affidavit of said Soper,
& accordingly as soon as he could do it with convenience, he went & has obtained
his affidavit to that effect, which he herewith presents he has also understood that
within a year as two past that one Dan’l Champion, who served with him also in the
 s’d Col. Warner’s Regiment, during the said term of six months at said 
Pittsford, was living at Addison in the County of Addison in said State, but he has not
 been able, without great inconvenience, to
go & ascertain the fact, & he does not know whether he be now living or not-- that
as to the general understanding & belief of his said services amongst his neighbors,
he can with confidence appeal to any of them who deserves & have credit & believes
that he shall be able to procure & produce the testimony of the Rev’d James Anderson
of the Congregational Church & Society in the said Town of Manchester, & he is
the nearest Clergyman to him, & also of the Hon John S Pettibone another respectable
neighbour & resident of said Manchester to the same effect. He hereby
 relinquishes every claim whatever to a pension or annuity except the present and
declares that his name is not on the Pension Roll of the agency.
Elijah Burton
Sworn to & subscribed the day & year aforesaid
 in Open Court - Henry Robinson Register -
We James Anderson a Clergyman residing in the Town of Manchester
 in the County of Bennington & State of Vermont & John S. Pettibone residing
in the same place, hereby certify, that we are well acquainted with
Elijah Burton, who has subscribed & sworn to the above Declaration.
That we believe him to be seventy two years of age, that he is respected & 
believed in the neighbourhood where he resides, to have been a
Soldier of the Revolution, & that we concur in that opinion.
James Anderson
John S. Pettibone

Sworn & subscribed the day aforesaid
in open Court Henry Robinson Register
Page 6

And the said Court do hereby declare their opinion after the investigation
of the matter, & after putting the interrogatories prescribed by the War
 Department that the above named Applicant was a Revolutionary Soldier, and
served as he states - And the Court further certifies, that it appears to them
that the Revd James Anderson who has signed the preceding Certificate
is a Clergyman resident in the said Town of Manchester in the County
of Bennington & State of Vermont, & that John S. Pettibone who has also
signed the same is a resident in the same Manchester, & is a credible
Person, that their statement is entitled to credit. Certified by me
Myron Clark Judge of the Probate Court

I Henry Robinson Register of the Court of Probate
do hereby certify that the foregoing contains there
original proceedings of the said Court in the
matter of the application of Elijah Burton for a
Pension-
In testimony whereof I have
hereunto set my hand & seal of said
Court this 5th day of November AD.
1832- & of the Independence of the
United States the Fifty Seventh-
Henry Robinson Register

State of Vermont Bennington County 
Manchester June 21, 1833. Personally appeared before me, the
 undersigned a Justice of the peace in & for the County of Bennington
& State of Vermont, the above named Elijah Burton of Manchester in said County,
who being duly sworn, deposeth & saith, that by reason of old age & the consequent loss of
memory he cannot swear positively as to the precise length of his service but according to the best of his recollection he served not less than the periods mentioned
below & in the following grade. to wit:  For four years I served as a Private, & for such
service I claim a pension
Elijah Burton
Sworn & subscribed the day & year last aforesaid before me
Leonard Sargent Justice of the peace

State of Vermont
To all to whom these presents shall come - Greeting:
I Henry Robinson Clerk of the County Court within &
for the County of Bennington, do hereby certify that
Leonard Sargent Esqr whose signature appears to the
foregoing was at the date thereof & still is a
Justice of the peace for County, duly qualified
by Law to act as such & that his signature I believe
to be genuine.
In testimony whereof I hereunto set my name & affixed the seal of our
said County Court at Manchester this 21st day of June A.D. 1833
Henry Robinson
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Elijah Burton
Bennington
Co
Verm't
23.804
C. L.

S. Swift
Manchester, 
Vermonth
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WAR DEPARTMENT,
Pension Office,
12 June 1833

Sir:
The evidence in support of your claim, under the act of June 7, 1832, has
been examined, and the papers are herewith returned. The following is a statement of
your case in a tabular form. On comparing these papers with the following rules, and
the subjoined notes, you will readily perceive that objections exist, which must be removed,
before a pension can be allowed. The notes and the regulations will shew what is
necessary to be done. Those points to which your attention is more particularly directed,
you will find marked in the margin with a brace, (thus: }). You will, when
you return your papers to this Department, send this printed letter with them; and
you will, by complying with this request, greatly facilitate the investigation of your
claim.

A Statement, shewing  the service of Elijah Burton

Period when the service was received | Duration of the claimant's service. | Rank of
Claimant. | Names and Rank of the Company officers under whom he served. | | Names and Rank of the General and Field officer | Battles in which the applicant was engaged| | Country through which he marched | Place of abode when he entered the service, and Age at the present period. | Evidence by which the declaration  is supported

July 1777 |  Enlisted for 3 years | Private  Capt Barrows | Col Warner | Saratoga & other skirmishes | March’d from Manchester to Saratoga & thence to Fort Miller & Fort Edward, back to Saratoga | 72 years, Manchester County | Traditionary, a clergyman & living witness 

Time of service under the opposite names officers not definitively stated - nor the other times of service | Capt. Barney, Capt. Sunderland & Capt. Sexton

The deponent “is confident that he served in said Regiment in the whole of
 said enlistment more than two years.”


I am respectfully,
Your obedient servant,
J. L. EDWARDS.
Commissioner of Pensions.
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REGULATIONS UNDER THE ACT OF JUNE 7, 1832.
The following regulations have been adopted:
This law has been construed to extend, as well to the line, as to every branch of the Staff of the Army,
and to include under the terms "Continental Line," "State troops," "militia," and "volunteers, all
persons enlisted, drafted, or who volunteered and who were bound to military service, but not those who
were occasionally employed with the army upon civil contracts, such as Clerks to Commissaries and to
Store Keepers, &c. Teamsters, Boatmen, &c. Persons who served on board of Private Armed Vessels are
also excluded from the benefits of the law, as well as persons who turned out as patrols, or were engaged
in guarding particular places at night, and were not recognized as being in actual military service.
Four general classes of cases are embraced in this law:
1. The Regular Troops.
2. The State Troops, Militia, and Volunteers.
3. Persons employed in the Naval service.
4. Indian Spies.
As rolls of the regular troops in the Revolutionary War exist in this Department, all persons, claiming
the benefit of this law as officers, non-commissioned officers, musicians or privates, will in the first instance
, make application by transmitting the following declaration, which will be made before a Court of
Record of the County where such applicant resides. And every Court having by law a seal and Clerk is
considered a Court of Record.
of
On this
DECLARATION.
In order to obtain the benefit of the Act of Congress of the 7th of June, 1832.
Certify
County of
day of
A.B. a resident (b) of
personally appeared (a) before
in the county of
and State, Territory or District
years, who being first duly sworn, according to law, doth on his oath make the
following declaration, in order to obtain the benefit of the provision made by the act of Congress, passed
June 7th, 1832. That he enlisted in the Army of the United States in the year (d)
served in the
(e) regiment of the
and
Here set forth the names and rank of the Field and Company Officers; the time he left the service; (and if he served
under more than one term of enlistment, he must specify the particular period, and rank and names of his officers;) the
town or county and State in which he resided when he entered the service; the battles, if any, in which he was engaged,
and the country through which he marched. This form is to be varied so as to apply to the cases of officers and persons
who belonged to the militia, volunteers, navy, &c.
He hereby relinquishes every claim (f) whatever to a pension or an annuity, except the present, and he
declares that his name is not on the Pension Roll of any Agency in any State, or (if any) only on that of
the Agency in the State of
Sworn to and subscribed the day and year aforesaid.
A. B.
And then will follow the certificate of the Court.
And the said Court do hereby declare their opinion (g) that the above named applicant was a revolutionary
soldier, and served as he states.
of the Court of
do hereby certify (h) that the foregoing contains the original proceedings of the said Court in the matter of
the application of
In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal of office (i) this
day of
& c.
If, on examination of the proper record the names of applicants, making such declaration, cannot be
found, they will produce such proof as the rule given in note (j) points out.
Every applicant who claims a pension by virtue of service in the State Troops, Volunteers or Militia,
except those who belonged to the New Hampshire Militia and State Troops of Virginia, will make and
subscribe a declaration similar to the foregoing, with the following additions, viz:
(k) We, A. B., a Clergyman, residing in the
hereby certify, that we are well acquainted with
and C. D. residing in (the same)
subscribed and sworn to the above declaration; that we believe him to be
who has
years of age; that he is reputed and believed, in the neighborhood where he resides, to have been a soldier
of the Revolution, and that we concur in that opinion.
Sworn and subscribed the day and year aforesaid.
And then will follow the certificate of the Court.
And the said Court do hereby declare their opinion, after the investigation of the matter, and after
putting the interrogatories prescribed by the War Department, that the above named applicant was a Revolutionary
Soldier, and served as he states. And the Court further certifies, that it appears to them that A. B.
who has signed the preceding certificate, is a clergyman, resident in the
and that C.D., who has also signed the same is a resident in the
and is a credible person, and that their statement is entitled to credit.
I
Clerk of the Court of
do hereby certify that the foregoing
contains the original proceedings of the said Court, in the matter of the application of
for a pension.
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal
of office, this
& c.
Every applicant will produce the best proof in his power. This is the original discharge or commission
; but if neither of these can be obtained, the party will so state under oath, and will then procure, if
possible, the testimony of at least one credible witness, stating in detail his personal knowledge of the services
of the applicant, and such circumstances connected therewith, as may have a tendency to throw light
upon the transaction.
If such surviving witness cannot be found, the applicant will so state in his declaration (l) and he will
also, whether he produce such evidence or not, proceed to relate all the material facts, which can be useful
in the investigation of his claim, and in the comparison of his narrative with the events of the period of his
alleged service, as they are known at the Department. A very full account of the services of each person
Page 10

3
will be indispensable to a favorable action upon his case. The facts stated will afford one of the principal
means of corroborating the declaration of the applicant, if true, or of detecting the imposition, if one be attempted
; and unless, therefore, these are amply and clearly set forth, no favorable decision can be expected.
All applicants will appear before some Court of Record in the County, in which they reside, and there
subscribe and be sworn to, one of the declarations above provided, according to the nature of his case.
The Court will propound the following (m) interrogatories to all applicants for a pension, on account
of service in the Militia, State troops, or Volunteers, except the Militia of New Hampshire and the State
troops of Virginia.
1. Where and in what year were you born?
2. Have you any record of your age, and if so, where is it?
3. Where were you living when called into service; where have you lived since the Revolutionary war
, and where do you now live?
4. How were you called into service; were you drafted, did you volunteer, or were you a substitute?
And if a substitute, for whom?
5. State the names of some of the Regular Officers, who were with the troops, where you served; such
Continental and Militia Regiments as you can recollect, and the general circumstances of your services.
6. To a Soldier - Did you ever receive a discharge from the service, and if so, by whom was it given and what has become of it?
To an Officer - Did you ever receive a commission, and if so, by whom was it signed, and what
has become of it?
7. State the names of persons to whom you are known in your present neighborhood, and who can testify
as to your character for veracity, and their belief of your services as a soldier of the Revolution.
The Court will see that he answers to these questions are embodied in the declaration, and they are
requested to annex their opinions of the truth of the statement of the applicant.
The applicant will further produce in Court, if the same can be done, in the opinion of the Court,
without too much expense and inconvenience to him, two respectable persons -one of whom should be
the nearest clergyman, if one lives in the immediate vicinity of such applicant, who can testify, from
their acquaintance with him, that they believe he is of the age he represents, and that he is reputed
and believed in the neighborhood to have been a Revolutionary soldier, and that they concur in that opinion.
If one of these persons is a Clergyman, the Court will so certify, and they will also certify, to the character
and standing of other persons, giving such certificates.
The traditionary evidence of service is deemed very important, in the absence of any direct
proof, except the declaration of the party. And the Courts are requested to be very particular in the
enquiry whether the belief is general, and whether any doubts have ever existed upon the subject.
Applicants unable to appear in Court by reason of bodily infirmity, may make the declaration before
required, and submit to the examination, before a Judge or Justice of a Court of Record of the
proper county, and the Judge or Justice will execute the duties, which the Court is herein requested to
perform, and will also certify that the applicant cannot, from bodily infirmity, attend the Court.
Whenever any official act is required to be done by a Judge or Justice of a Court of Record,
or by a Justice of the peace, the certificate of the Secretary of State or Territory, or of the proper
Clerk of the Court or County, under his seal of office, will be annexed, stating that such person is a
Judge or Justice of a Court of Record, or a Justice of the Peace, and that the signature annexed is
his genuine signature.
No payments can be made on account of the services of any person, who may have died before
the taking effect of the act of June 7, 1832; and in case of death subsequent thereto, and before the
declaration herein required is made, the parties interested will transmit such evidence as they can procure
, taken and authenticated before a Court of Record, showing the services of the deceased, the period
of his death, the opinion of the neighborhood respecting such services, the title of the claimant, and the
opinion of the Court upon the whole matter.
The declarant must appear in open Court, unless prevented from doing so by reason of bodily infirmity; in which case the declarant will follow
the rule laid down for his guidance.
The declarant must make his declaration in the county where he resides. If he should fail to do so, he must assign a sufficient reason for not conforming to the rule.
 The age of the claimant must invariably be mentioned.
 The declarant must mention the period or periods of the war when he served.
Every continental officer or soldier must give the name of the Colonel under whom he served; otherwise a satisfactory examination of the
claim cannot be had. Every claimant must state, with precision, the length of his service, and the different grades in which he served, in language so
definite as to enable the Department to determine to what amount of pension he is entitled. In a case where the applicant cannot, by reason of the
loss of memory, state precisely how long he served, he should amend his declaration by making an affidavit in the following words:
Personally appeared before me, the undersigned, a Justice of the Peace, &c. A. B. who, being duly sworn, deposeth and saith, that, by reason of old age, and the consequent loss of memory, he cannot swear positively as to the precise length of his service; but, according to the best of his
recollection, he served not less than the periods mentioned below, and in the following grades:--For – years
-- months, and days
, I served as a . For months and - days, I served as a ; and for such service I claim a pension."
It is important, in all cases, to determine with precision the period for which each applicant served, and the particular rank he held, as the law directs the pension to be paid
 according to the grade of the pensioner and the length of his service. The use of the phrase about three or four months,
is too indefinite, and all such qualifying expressions are objectionable. Some persons who apply for pensions merely state that they served two yours
in the militia, &c. without specifying the tours, the names of the officers, and other particulars respecting their service. This form of a declaration is
highly objectionable. It must, in every case, be clearly shown under what tiers the applicant served; the duration of each term of engagement;
the particular place or places where the service was performed; that the applicant served with an embodied corps called into service by competent authority
; that he was either in the field or in garrison; and for the time during which the service was performed, he was not employed in any civil
pursuit.
The law makes the relinquishment indispensable.
The opinion of the Court is always required.
The Clerk must give his certificate in every case.
The Clerk must affix his seal, and if it has no device or inscription by which it can be distinguished from any other seal, or if he has no public
seal of office, the certificate of a Member of Congress, proving the official character and signature of the certifying officer, should accompany the
papers.
Mode of authenticating papers.
In every instance where the certificate of the certifying officer who authenticates the papers is not written on the same sheet of paper which contains
the affidavit, or other papers authenticated, the certificate must be attached thereto by a piece of tape or narrow ribbon, the ends of which must
pass under the seal of office of the certifying officer, so as to prevent any paper from being improperly attached to the certificate.
Proof of Service.
In a case where the name of the applicant is not found on the records of the Department, he must prove his service by two credible witnesses who are required to set forth in their affidavits the time of the claimants entering the service, and the time and manner of his leaving the same, as well as the regiment, company and line to which he belonged.  The magistrate who may administer the oaths must certify to the credibility of the witnesses, and the official character and signature of the magistrate must be certified by the proper officer, under his seal of office.
The notes from a to i are equally applicable to the cases of Militia Men, Volunteers and State Troops. The proof required by rule in note j applies to continental troops only. 
This traditionary evidence is indispensable in militia cases.
If a witness cannot be found, the declarant must state the fact.
The answers to the interrogatories must all be written, and sent to the War Department, with the declaration.
Page 11

P
18335
INVALID.
OWN

File No. 18335
Elijah Burton
Pri Rev War
---
Act: June 7' 32
Index: - Vol. 1 , Page 54
(Arrangement of 1870.}

Dec. 6 - 1900
Mr. S. B. Shepardson
Manchester Vt
Page 12

Vt.
June 27th
[Adm'd]

2 years 
$80

Manchester Co.
Vt. June 23

free


The Hon.James L. Edwards, Com'r pensions
Washington
D. Columbia
Page 13

Manchester June 21, 1833.
To the Hon. James L. Edwards Com’r &c.
Hon’d Sir:  Enclosed I return the
Papers of Elijah Benton for a Pension, with an amendatory Declaration
 in the form prescribed & furnished. Mr Burton might probably have with safety
stated a still longer period of services, as it is known & gen’ly understood
that he served this the greater part of the revolutionary war in various
ways & various corps, but the time stated is more than sufficient to entitle
him to a full pension. I find also an objection marked against his testimony,
 as to the certificate of the Magistrate, of the credibility of the witness,
but I find that fact is certified, & conclude that it was so marked by
an inadvertence. The reason why Mr B. in his former Declaration
limited his period of service to two years in Warner’s Regiment,
& afterwards so indefinitely stated his other services, was, that
that period being suff’t [sufficient] to give him a full pension he conceived it
unnecessary to be further particular-- it is probable that he was
mistaken as to the Term of service for which his father engaged, as
it appears by the testimony of Soper & his own recollections, that he
served for a long period, & in which I think they could not be
mistaken. I am Hon’d most respectfully
Yours &c
S. Swift
Page 14

I Prince Soper of Brandon in the County of Rutland & State of Vermont
aged seventy three years, do testify & say that I was well knowing
that Elijah Burton who then lived & still lives in the Town of Manchester
 in the County of Bennington in said State, in or about the month
of August A.D. 1777, according to my best recollection, enlisted into the
Company commanded by Capt Banows to which I then belonged,
in the Regiment of Rangers commanded by Col. Seth Warner on the
U.S. Continental establishment, & that he served in said Company &
Regiment until some time on or about the 15th day of October A.D.1780, 
when the said Regiment in an engagement with the enemy near
Lake George in the State of N. York, was captured or destroyed & broken up.
Prince Soper

State of Vermont Rutland County ss  Brandon Octr 4th AD. 1832. Then personally
 appeared before me Chester Winslow one of the Justices of the peace within of
 said County of Rutland, the above named
Prince Soper, who subscribed the foregoing Affidavit, a person to me
well known as a credible witness, & made solemn oath that the
facts by him therein above stated are true according to his best knowledge
 & belief.  Attest   Chester Winslow Justice of the peace

State of Vermont
Rutland County
I Robert Pierpoint Clerk of the County
Court for the County of Rutland
do certify that Chester Winslow
is a Justice of the peace for said
County duly commissioned and that the
above I believe to be his signature
In testimony whereof I have hereto set my hand and
affixed the seal of said Court at Rutland this 8th day
of October AD 1832
R. Pierpoint