The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1853-10-09

Hampden county, or what Is now % called.
was the scene OF some OF the most important
Of the events that marked the course Of
that episode in Massachusetts, history which Is
known the Shays Rebellion, 80 called because it
was unsuccessful-for the right was clearly on tho
side of the (socalled) insurgents. true account
Of that singular aisir-whch had not little 70 90
with the adoption Of the constitution OF the United
States-is veto be written Captain Shays, VINO Is
represented as o mere "loafer' and demagogue by
the barren class of writers OF wAat they call history
was in reality superior man. and had borne himself
well in the Revolutionary army The feeling OF dis
content was general throughout Massachusetts, Tor
some years after the conclusion OF the war, but
prevailed most extensively in the western part OF the
at Springfield was . prime object with tho "insur
gents" and the authorities were equally interested
In holding on to it. Il was garrisOned by about
], 100 men, under command Of General Shepard,
when it was assaled by q similar force, under Cap
tain Shays, January 25th, 1887 The assailants ex-
pected to be supported by baud Of their friends,
under command Of Luke Day; and perhs d it was
expected that Eli Parsons, who was in the vicinity,
at the head Of 400 OF the Discontinued Berkshire
men, would cooperate in the attack. But Captain
Shays received assistance and his men retreated
after being fired upon, leaving few Of their num-
Der on the ground. Their commander is represented
did not fail through any want Of skill or conduct his
part. There were among his men not few old con.
tinental soldiers, who had snuffed gnnp0wder, and
who had been all but frozen at Valley Forge, or
DrOnZcO Dy the ueTCe u6at5 OI MON 1Outu lucy
seem to have been cowed at Springfield; but the
rebel cause was far from being that desperate at
fair which it is commonly represented; and had any
OF its military movements been crowned wikh de-
csive success it quite likely that some chapters in
our history would have read rather differently from
what they now do Revolution, it has been finely
said, " is the word which read ON the front Of an
advancing foe-rebellion that which appears on the
compelled 70 fly history calls them rebels. The
State of Rhode Island appears to have strongly SYM
pathized with the Massachusetts, insurgents" The
more prominent of them having fed to the neigh
chusetts authorities to have them given up taken
care of, and in some instances with success. But
the authorities Of Rhode Island" says Minot, the
historian of the insure ction, was far from taking
steps to secure the fugitves from justice who pub
icly resorted there. When q motion was made
in their Assembly, upon the act Of Massa-
chusetts for appreh ending the principals Of the
rebellion being read, that q law should be
passed requesting the Governor to issue proclama-
ton fer applehendng them, II within that State, it
was lost by great majority; and one of the very re-
fugees was allowed seat within their chamber.
Fifty five years later there "insurrection in
Rhode Island; that affair, mean, in which Mr. Dorr
figured; and then the government Of Massachusetts,
showed itself ready 70 aid the government party in
the sister State much to the disgust Of the people,
however, who turned Governor Davis out Of Office
for the part he had taken against the suffrage men
of Rhode Island though he had been elected by fl
teen thousand majority but two years before. The
Rhode islanders were "twitted" with their conduct
in 1857, when they found themselves in difficulties
of not very dssimilar nature, though the causes
were not the same In the one case that they had
been in the other The Massachusetts, rebellion" was
the result of social evils like many of those which
occurred in Rome, and some of those which
have taken place Of late years in Europe while that
of Rhode Island purely political in its causes, its
incidents and its consequences believe it is not
generally known that the Massachusetts "iusur-
gents" sent deputation to the famous Ethan Allen,
requesting him to take the command of their forces
and that he gave a reply not calculated to increase
the distinguished consideration" in which they had
previously held him. Yet he was not the man to
have been INSCRIPTIONS, in contest between power
and the people, to cast about him for excuses for
siding with the holders Of authority in warfare be-
tween these two ancient fames--the only two par.
ties according to Sancho Panzas shrewd female re-
lative into which the world is divded-the house of
Have and the house Of Want
CHARLES LIE CHAUyE.