Mineral Point tribune. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1854-1858, 1858-06-08
Attempt to Poison Washington.

gave an interesting account of Washing
tons Life Guard" Among the details
IS tie narrative of conspiracy 10 take
the life of Washington by poison. This
was in the summer of 1916, when Wash
ine;on had his headquarters in New
York city.
About that time the British were ex-
pecting powerful naval reinforcements
under Lord Howe. In June, rumors got
into circulation of a tory conspiracy
They were to rise, and Joining the British
force, to destroy the kings bridge at the
upper end Of Manhattan Island, so as TO
| cut off communication with the main shore,
TO fire the patriot magazines, and setting
on Washington aud his staff, capture and
if necessary put them TO death. Such was
the nature of the rumors, that an inquiry
was ordered by the New York provincial
Congress, and committee Of investiga-
ton appointed, consisting Of Philip Liv-
ingston, John jay and Governor Morris.
The committee found that Governor Tv-
ron, who was then on board a British YES
sci, was implicated as the author. He, II
was said, was acting through agents on
shore. among whom David Mathews,
then Mayor of the city, was pointed out
as one, who had paid out money, enlisted
men, procured arms, and made efforts to
corrupt Washlngtcn's men. Gov. 1yron
offered five guineas bounty: 200 acres of
/ land for a man, 100 for his wife. and 30
! for each child.
In consequence of the discoveries made,
/ Mathews was arrested, with many other
suspected persons. to the great alarm of
! the tories, many of whom took to flight.
Among the arrests was that Of young
man named Forbes, gunsmith, who had
shop on Broadway, near the Bowling
/ Green. Forbes made disclosures, as the
result of which between twenty and thirty
arrests were made. Among these were
Thomas Hickey, member of the Life
Guard, and johnson and Green, the one
/ a drummer and the other fifer in the
same corps. Forbes confessed that May
/ or Mathews had paid him f40 sterling
and Mathews admitted 1t, saying that he
/ paid it reluctantly by order of Gov. TyTon.
I Hickey and his accomplices were arrested
. on the Odd of June, and the next day the
woman who kept the house which Wash
/ ington occupied was taken into custody
4 Her name was Fraunces, a daughter of
/ Samuel Fraunces, a noted Inn-keeper,
whose house is yet standing, at the corner
of Broad and Pearl streets, and is the
same at which Washington, IN 1888, took
/ his final leave, under such impressive CIR
/ cumstances, of the associates of his tolls.
dangers and glory. Miss Fraunces, was
taken up on suspicion of completely IN the
guilt, but in fact was rot only entirely in
/ nocent of it but proved to have been the
willing instrument of convicting the gull
/ ty. The facts about the poisoning were
4 these:
Hickey, an emigrant from Ireland, de-
serted from the British army, and settled
/ in Connecticut, where be lived some time
very creditably. Having enrolled IN the
/ Life Guard, he became personally known
to Washington, and acquired his esteem.
But bis fidelity was corrupted. He en-
gagged in conspiracy TO murder Wash
/ ington, and drew into 1t the drummer and
ffer mentioned above. Having resolved
to execute his purpose by means of poison,
he approached Fraunces, the se-keep-
er, making her a confident, and soliciting
her aid. She professed a Ceslre to favor
his purpose. Gen. Washington was fond
/ of green peas, and, they being then III
season, had them frequently on his table.
/ Hickey and the housc-keeper, that the
poison should be served up in the peas
In pursuance of this arrangement, dish
/ of peas was poisoned by Hickey, aid then
/ by the house-keeper placed on the Gen
erals table. But before he ate of them,
! she took the Gener-l aside, and, warning
him that the peas we're poisoned, disclosed
the whole plot against his life. What
/ followed may be easily presumed.
/ Hickey was arrested, as we have SAID,
/ and Immediately tried by a court-martial.
/ The charges were - muliny and sedluon,
and of holding treacherous correspOn-
dence with the enemies OF the colonies"
These charges were proved, and Hickey
+ was convicted and sentenced 10 death
/ This sentence was executed on the 2Sth
/ of June. by the Provost Marshal, "at
/ eleven o'clock Of the forenoon, upon the
grounds between the encampments of the
/ brigades of Brig. Gen. Spencer and Lord
! Stirling" In a letter of July lst, 1875,
/ an eyewitness writes: Z" Last Friday, In
/ the forenoon. was executed IN a field be-
tween the Colonels McDougafl and Hunt
/ ingtons camp, near the Bowery Lane, (in
/ the presence of 10000 spectators, a SOL
der belonging TO his Excellency, Gen.
+ WashingtofI's Guard, for mutiny and con-
spiracv. being one Of those who framed
and was soon TO have put in exc cution
that horrid plot of .assassinaung the staff
officers, blowing up the magazines, and
securing the passes Of the town on the.
arrival of the hungry ministerial myrmi-
dons." The place of execution was near
where now Grand and Christie streets IN
/ tersect each other.
Thus by the fidelity Of a woman was
/ the life of Washington saved at a most
/ critical moment. Had she been as cor
rupt as those who attempted to bribe her,
what might not have been the eonse-
quences2 Perhaps the death of Wash
ington, dis .er to the revolutionary arms,