Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1869-01-22

2. Ooi. Inc letter referred To SfGtes no such
Jdet.-but says, that ''the gentlemen from Con-
necticut' were 'Joined by Col Easton, Captain
Dickinson, and -Hr. Brosgn who. by the
way, was not Colonel, and had at this time no
military rank. Some time afterwards he was
appointed a major of militia and still later, CON-
mlssloned by Congress as Lientenant-C Colonel.
In May, l7Ij, he was practicing law at Pitts
f,ld
''When we left Hartford''-wrote Capt Elisha
Phelps, an officer in the expeditiou-''o orders
was TO repair TO the Grants Of .Ner Hampshire
and raise an army Of men-We went 10 Pitts
field, and Col Easton and Capt Douglass Joined
US with about so men, of which number Mr..
Brown counted one, though Capt Phelps forgot
to mention his name (Conn Hist Coli
l4,l75) Capt. Mott says; ''We arrived at
Col. Easton's, in Pittsfeld, where re fell in
company ruth John BrosvR, Esp" ami '',re
concluded 10 make kHOlCn our business 10 Col
EaStOn and said BrorR." Military men would
regard this as a very unceremonious way Of re-
porting to a superior officer
''Said Easton and Brown concluded to % trifh
u.s." adds Capt. Mott; and after the fort was
taken, Ethan All'n in his letter tothe Mis-achu-
sets Congress, specially commends the good SER
vice OF John Brown. Esq, Alto ney at Law,
who also an able counsellor, and WIS per-
soually in the attack
Mr. Dec, sta affirms that Browns recommen-
dation reached Hartford Through no less
person than Samuel Adams and be- finds IN.
difficulty in b.he,ing thar Samue Al ms, WIS
there, Aprl zlth.' LIT Us examine his yrl,G,
which he presents a follows:
John Adams who left Boston for New York
auf Philadelphia serer1l dqgs after Sainue
Adams and Hancock, WAS IL Hartfirt, April
Both. Ergo Samuel Adams mag have been
there on the 18th Noreo er, his bio raple
Mr.. els, "who hal all the -orr,.- pou. u.lencr 10
hi- ps-e-sion, distinctly tesffes h,r tnir rltri
was AT Ha tford, apr 9Th - VI .ryo,rr aga. .
the anonymous gentleman who's letter ON
Pittsheld, May 4th, has teen ''hsppiy pre-
served in Forces Archives, ''te-t ies independ-
emily on the same point" And here he rests
his case.
VIII it be believed that the witnesses whom
81 T. De Costa has introduced, - dist nctls les
tify ~ that his siafemsht is untrue, Mr.. Wells,
who had all the correspondeuce, declares
that sam. Adams and Hancock set ont from
Worcester on the trea'y ssreatb'' ami we're
AT Hartford hot on the regfg-ssresfi, but
Sc on the flreafy-GiVth, when they held a secret
meeting with Gov. Trumbul and the council.
etc. Life Of ;. Adams, H., 2o7-o.) And for
this last statement Mr. Wells cites no authority
than Bancroft's History. tyol. VII, p 33s.)
and that same anonymous letter from Pitsfsi9.
which Bancroft's only authority and Is
happily preserved - to be used again by Nr
De Costa
The story Of the d" secret meeting at which
the plan for the capture Of Ticondercga wss 4r-
ranged at Hartford e by the Governor and
council; Colonel Hancock and Mr.. Adams being
present, has other foundation rhafetsr,
than the Pittsfeld letter expressly states aud
Bancroft repeats and Mr. Wells echoes the
sJatement,-that this meeting WAS held and the
srlrr q RI.
the Treasury, on Saturday, April 39th,-ibs
day after Noah Phclps and Bernard Romans
had started on the CrpeiifiOa. nth the money ~
hciT pockets and after capt. Mott had engaged
To follow them Gf h. had not actually set ouD
with the Hartford volunteers, all IN pursuance
Of plan concerted by half q dozen private gen
temen on the t.reail-sereafi of -iprI
One more error corrected, and viii have done
with Mr. De Costa, proof, He refers 10 a let
ter addressed General Warren TO Alex McDou-ll
Of New ork, April Both saying that it had
been PrOp0sel to take TiconderOga, and he in
infer- that the proposition was maze by '' Colonel
John Brown, " q" the only person Of whom we
have any knowledge VIII mad urged this upon
Warren Not 50. The proposition came from
Beaefict -frHOif, whose letter 10 the illssaehu-
setts Committee, written At Cambridge. April
3nth, NAV be read in liner. -4rchires, series 4.
vol H., $50; together with the letter there
upon dispatched by that Committee to New
York.
And now let me very briefly indicate. IN order
Of time. the facts connected with the origin Of
this enterprise, 10 which (ts Gov. Hall has re-
marked) belongs the honor Of compelling the
first surrender Of the British flag to the coming
republic. "
Colonel Samuel II. Parsons, Of Niiidletown,
returning from Massachusetts, 70 Hartford, April
10Th, l71j, met Benedict Arnold, then captain
Of a company Of volunteers, on his march 10 the
camp at Cambridge II tbs iRferrieir the sur
prise Of Ticonderoga irqs srgyssfeG Whether
the suggestion first came from Arnold or from
Parsons i not certain.
Parsons arrived at Hartford, THURSDAY fore
noon, April 9th. The same day he. with Col.
Samuel Wyllys OF Hartford, and S.las Deane OF
Wethersfei, a delegate to the Congress At
Philadelphia first undertook and projected
taking that fort, ETC.. and -iti the assistance u
three other persons, procured money, men, etc -
See his letter 20 jos Trumble, before cited
April 18th, Friday, these SIX gentlemen bor-
r0Ted from the culouy treasury, on their own
prOmissory receipts. $500 These receipts
(printei in Conn Hist Collections, l, ls4. .1S5,)
are signed by Parsons, WHY'S, Desne. Christie
pher Lefhngweli cf Norwich, Thomas Mumford
of New London, and Adam Babcock of New
Ia en-. The money was delivered 70 Noah
izei to draw for more if neeiful,-and VINO star
ted Immediately Tor Salisbury Later IN the day
Capt Edward Mott arrived Hartford, was ia
formed Of the expe iit0n, and engaged 70 Join IT,
April - Capt. Mott, with fve men, left Hart
ford in the afternoon, for Salisbury, which place
he reacfed on Sunday. the 31th The same ia,.
the two Aianses with John Hancock. arriv-l
at Hartford
April 30. Benedict Arnold proposed the cap
ture Of Tconieroet 10 the Massachusetts, Com
mittee At Cambridge
May !. With a few volunteers from salisbury,
Canaan, and elsewhere, Capt Mott and his par
ty went from Salisbury 90 Pittsied where they
&c fell in company with John Brown, ESQ, ," ani
whence ''fsy Immediately dispatched an eryrsss
lHeman Alenl 10 tie intrepid COL Ethan II
len, fesiriHg hin, 10 BE- really to JON them with
party of his valiant Green Mountain Boys
This last fact We learn from the Hartford
CoHraHf Of May 22d.)
May > John Adams had been Informed o. the
departure Of the expedition. and wrote TO JOS
Palmer at Cambridge % Certain military move
ments Of great importance and with the utmost
secrecy. hare been SET on FOOT IN this Colony
Of Connecticut, which dare not explain, etc.
The subsequent history Of the enterprise |
leave to the Investigation Of those who have a
more direct interest in prosecuting it. Whether
Ethan Allen was finally caught mapping
Mr.. De Costa aiirms,-an had to BE- drum
med up" to his work, is no business Of mine
| hope that the author Of the early History Of
Vermont viii find time to say a word about
that matter and am confident that. with him,
even that ''old manuscript recently brought 10
public light from the archives Of ConnecticDt,'
VIII not pass as ''HH4gestioaed proof Of Aliens
delinquency
p S-Ihe December number Of The Gailry
lid not fall in my way before Friday last; and IL
was not till this morning, since the foregoing
ticle was witten, that | learned that's reply 10
Mr.. DeCost4's article had been published by
&c. W. b, - in the Burlington Free Pres Of
December 9TH | mention this reply. in this
place, only TO account for my omission 70 refer
to it in the foregoing paper.-as ! should have
done had it met my notice earlier.