The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1849-09-29

checked. Once more the fatal rife utter
ed its death song. and the alarmed steed
fled riderless on its way.
"Burn the tree down." exclaimed one
of the men. "Fire can be communicated
to the trunk easily"
"Will you undertake the Decd" inquir.
ed the commander, with sneer.
81 will, )" replied the man. "Tear some
wadding from your coats, & give it to me-"
They complied with his request, and
delivered to him with alacrity what they
procured from their well-padded garments.
He now became the lion of the field, as the
riheman had been. Every eye centered
on the private as he made up loose par
eel of infammabe stuff A pile of the
driest branches thereabouts was next OBJ
tanned and broken into respectable brush
faggots. The private then fired the wad-
ding with the lock of his musket and lit.
tie powder, and famed it into blaze
With the lighted mass in one hand, and
the bundle of brush in the other he started
manfully for the tree-the platoon follow
ed him few PAGES, almost imperceptibly
narrowing the distance between themsel.
yes and the rifeman. The private reach
ed the root of the tree, and with eager haste
threw down his faggots and fired them.
As he was rising from his STOPPING pos
ture, the occupant of the branches made
himself for the first time visible. With his
feet firmly clenched among the boughs,
he allowed his body as quick as thought,
to depend over, and taking aim with his
weapon, pulled the trigger. The daring
private sprung up and fell over upon his
back, while his feet scattered the mess
he had intended would have made the tree
the Americans funeral pile.
"Brother, my oath is fulfilled! have ap-
peased the angry demon that called for
response ofyour slaughter. Now, then,"
continued the rifieman, who was no other,
as the reader may have anticipated, than
Charles Piggott;-"now, then, take good
aim and bring me down. am out of am
muntion. have killed as many of you as |
had determined to, and have no further
cause for remaining here Fire!-and if
more than one shot in proportion to five
hit me, you are better handlers of fire. arms
than | think you are. . ----7-----'-'
The soldiers were evidently won to fa-
vor him by his intrepidity. He was entire
ly divested of clothing, except short pair
of yellow breeches. His feet begrimmed
with powder, dust and perspiraton. As
he looked down upon the men from the
tree, (the descendant and near relative
who gives us these facts, says he was,
even in this miserable plight, command
ing and notwithstanding picture
| There was some hesitation in the platoon
where Piggott commanded to bring him
down, and the men looked to their officer
as if for further instructions. The officer
was unused to the melting mood" nor
could he have succombed to any feeling
of compassion consistently with his duty
or his aspirations as true Englishman.
The memory of his brethren was to be
welded to some retributive act worthy of
their bloody destines, and he gave the sig
nal for the last effect in the scene of Pig
gotts enactment. They fired as he shout
ed-"I die satisfied Brother, | meet
you without shame!" and he pitched over,
swayed in the branches moment, and
then dropped heavily a senseless clod up
on the ground.
The word was soon given that the in
visible foe, whom they had all feared, was
punished, and ere that eventful and Ito
Washington) disastrous battle was con-
cluded, no one who wore red coat or
| fingered his majesty's pay, wasted a Sec
fhatr 10 ri
When the wounded were picked up and
the dead buried-a duty performed by the
inhabitants and the English--Piggott's bo-
dy was found where it had fallen. A hole,
called by courtesy grave, was scooped
out for its reception at the foot of the oak
The riAe-the unerring, vengeful rifle
was so firmly clenched in the left hand
that it could not be removed, but was bu-
ried with him. Thus the thoughtless,
unintentional prediction to the old Albion
islander, Locksley, that Charley would die
with his rifle in his hand, was too truly
and literally accomplished.
Not many years ago 1--WE have not an
exact date, an old tree in the vicinity we
have mentioned was uprooted in heavy
| gale, ana along with It's massive roots,
which were wrenched with great force
from the ground, came the dark, discolor-
ed, mouldy semblance of a mans skele-
ton. Upon looking around the mould the
curious found the remnants of a long rifle.
, The old inhabitants, who had heard the
sad story of the unerring markham, at
once concluded that they had found Pig
gott's skeleton, and the prostrated oak was
the one from the top of which he had so
bravely thinned the ranks of freedoms
opponents. There is no death so glorious
as that honorably met on the battle-ground
of liberty, and no character SO noble as
that of the active, practical patriot.
There are still rifles like Piggott's in the
United States; but far distant be the day
whereon they shall be called to do execu-
ton among men whose consanguinity is
too plain to warrant US in estimating them
i : L - g. u