St. Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (St. Charles City [Charles City], Iowa) 1857-1861, 1858-02-04
Yistorital sksttb.
THE
AMERICAN REVOLUTION.
THRILLING INCIDENTS.

war, few persons realize the individual
sufIcrings and fearful peril to which
thousands of lives are exposed; history
only treats of the great events in
which the prominent actors of the
time were engaged, while the fireside
and domestic tragedies which were
far more deeply and intensely dra-
matte are left uurccorlcd, and only
live as traditions in the minds Of Il
few descendants Of the performers.
Among the various spots abOunding'
with stories of terrible interest, none
have witnessed scenes more frightful
than the valley Of the Mohawk during.
the revolutionary war; and it is one
Of the most extraordinary and excl
ting of these Incidents that we pro-
pose to relate. {.
1t was in the year lTS0, that an old
farmer named Summons lived in the
meighborhood of the village of Johns
town, and near the old johnson estate
which had been sequestcred in consc
qucncc OF the former owner, Sir JOIN
Johnson, becoming a commander in the
British forces. Mr.. Sammons was of
German extraction, and a native of
Marblctown, Ulster county, whence he
had immigratcd to his present abode.
This family Of three sons and one
daughter, all were sturdy, fear
less, independent and staunch Wings,
like their father, who was member
of the Committee of Safety, and held
a lieutcnant'S commission III the Amer
lean army. The whole family were
we'll known to Sir john. who had sev-
eral times experienced protection from
them in times of imminent danger
but this did not prevent Il most dast-
ardly and iicndish attack upon their
home and persons during one of his
marauding excursions to the vicinity
of his former residence. He was al,
ways accompanied by band of lndi,
ans, who, like pack of wild beasts,
sprang upon and tore to pieces what.
ever he marked as his prey. On this
occasion, however, with a remnant OF
humanity, he detached them in vari-
ous directions, and proceeded stealth
lily to surround the house with his own
immediate troops, desiring to capture
the family alive and carry them off as
prisoners.
1t was very early in the morning,
and the first grey dawn had hardly
begun to streak the horizon, when the
farmers youngest son, Thomas, very
handsome young man, about nineteen,
opened the back door of the farm
house and commenced taking an OBJ
servation. He was only partially
dressed, and was ruminating on the
chances OF safety in vcnturing out be-
fore daylight, as he desired, on urgent
business for in those times stray
Indians were always prowling about,
and the wife and family could never
count on the safe return of the beloved
ones, even though they went abroad
but short distance and in broad day
light. Concluding it would be safer
to wait until the sun rose, he was
about retreating, when hand was
placed on his shoulder, and the words
Il arrest you in the Kings name," in
formed him that he was a prisoner.
The whole family were asleep up
stairs, or in the act Of rising, and the
man and his two eldest sons were soon
secured {; the females, consisting of
the wife of the eldest son Jacob, and
a young girl, the only daughter OF the
old man, were left unmolcsted by the
order of Sir John.
Thomas begged for anopportunity of
getting his clothes, or at least his shoes
and stockings, which was brutally re-
fused him, accompanied 10y the thrust
Of bayonet, which would have killed
him had not his fair young sister
thrown herself between and wardcd off
the blow. Her complaint brought a
reprimand to the soldier, and pcrmis.
sion to finish dressing, while the fierce
troops ransacked and plundered the
house and ont buildings of everything
they contained which could be carried
with them, including seven horses be-
longing to Mr.. Sammons. The whole
party were then marched off, the
father and sons closely pinioned and
placed between files of soldiers, their
course being directed towards the
river. Here they were joined by the
Indians, and travelled several miles of
the Mohawk Valley, suffering the
keenest torture from the sight of the
desolation and misery around them.
Wherever there was building, it was
burnt and sacked; sheep and cattle