Vermont daily transcript. [volume] (St. Albans, Vt.) 1868-1870, 1868-09-10
NO. 1913.
From tho Free Press.
In UnpuJijshed autograph Of
IiHun .1lfcn.

The special meeting of the Vermont
Historical Society, recently held at Rut-
land, was one of the most successful ses-
sions it has ever had ; as respects the
quality of the audience. the number and
variety of the papers presented, the adj
ditions to the mem bersnips, and the
general impetus given to the movements
of the Society. 1t was decidedly the
most successful as respects the acquisi-
ton of valuable historical documents.
Among the most important of these may
be mentioned the original Journal of
the First Council of Censors (Which met
in 1855, a manuscript of twenty fools
cap pages, in the clear, bold autograph
of Micah rownshend, Secretary ; the
Journal of the Second Council, which
met in 1872, in the hand writing of Ros-
well Hopkins and numerous official
papers connected with the New York
and New Hampshire controversies.
Perhaps no one of the papers is of
greater general interest than the original
complaint of Ethan Allen to the Court
of Contiscation, charging his brother
Levi with treachery to the State of Yer
mont, and praying that measures might
be taken to punish him. SHADES State
papers profess to give this document,
but it is with omissions and alterations,
which, though they improve the gram
mar, and possibly the rhetoric of the pa
per, rob it of not a little of the "old
Ethan" For example, instead of the
brief and expressive word hurting"
we have in Slade the circumlocation,
'endeavoring to lessen the credit Of"
Allen also had notions of his own in re-
gard to spelling, the use of capitals, and
the non-uSe of punctuation points but
these do not appear i'll the document as
published. The following is an extract
transcript of the original paper, uerb0f-
i'm, Hterdiina, ct punctudtim:
Bennington County IS Airing
ton 9th of Jany 1879.
fiscation comes Col Ethan Allen in the
Name of the freemen of this State and
Complaint makes that Levi Allen late
of Salisbury in Connecticut is of Torey
principles and holds in fee sundry tracts
and parcels of Land in this State the
said Levi has been detected in Endeav
oring to supply the enemy on Long Is
land, and in attempting to Circulate
Counterfeit Continental Currency, and
is Guilty of holding REASONABLE Cores
pondence with the enemy under cover
of doing favOrs to me when a Prison err
New York and Long Island and in talk
lilS iluNt uSllIS Iuuuclcc III OT vi lIle
Enemy, Associating with Inimical per-
sons to this County, and with then Mo-
nopolizing the Necessaries of life burt
ing the Continental Currency ana in
Particular hath eXerted himself in the
Most FalaciOus manner to in ure the
Property and Character of some of the
most Jealous friends to the Indepen-
dency of the United States and of this
state Likewise all which inimical Con-
duct is against the peace and Dignity of
the frcemen of this State, and therefore
pray the Honorable Court to take the
matter under their Serious Considera-
ton and Make Contiscation of the Es-
tate of said Levi before mentioned ac-
cording to the Laws and Customs of this
State in such Case made and provided.
ETHAN ALLEN.
In consequence of this complaint, Le-
vi Aliens Lands We're seized, and adj
vertised for sale, and he was arrested
A and confined to Jail more than six
/ months. After his release, he sent his
a brv Their Ethan formal challenge tc
fight a duel with pistols, but it was
not accepted. Levi was the most eccen-
| trio of the Allen brothers, and memoir
of him would be more entertaining than
an average romance. u. III. w.
g Coventry, 81 Aug. 1868.