The States and Union. [volume] (Ashland, Ohio) 1868-1872, 1870-06-29
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NO Isl.

three vessels he commander of the
party was Captain John Mason; a
trained and accomplished soldier, who
had fought. for the Protestant cause in
Holland, and superintended the forti-
fication of Bostons harbor Removing
to Connecticut with the first settlers,
he5was elected tolead the forces of the
COLONY. against the ,Pequots.
g. After sailing down the Connecticut
to the Sound, the little fleet directed
its course eastward, and landed the
men upon the shore of iiNarragansett
Bay a few miles above Point Judith,
so well known TO ,seasick, travellers in.
th ese modern times. Joined. by four
Or five hundred Indian allies, Captain
Mason and and his troops redtieed
now to seventy-seven, marched toward
the river Thames, near the banks of
which the great band of Pequots were
gathered in stockades. 1t was only a
march of forty miles; but there Were
streams Ito cross, 4swamps to skirt,
dense forests to, penetrate. ;, and, the
men had no food except. what they.
could carry upon their persons.
May 26, at one in the morning, the
little army; tired and hungry halted
two miles from the Pequot3 fort, be !
tween two large rocks. now called
Porter's Rocks, which remain Just as
they were on that memorable night.
From this sheltered nook Capthin
Mason and his men. could hear the
yells Of savage exultation of the Pes
.quots in their fort; for they had seen
the three vessels pass by their codst,
and, concluded that the white men had
.abaRdoned their enterprise through
fear 1t was a guse of, the ,sl2ilful com
mander. He knew that every head
land ON the Sound had Pequot look
out upon it, and he had deliberately
sailed past, and gone up Narragansett
Bay, and left his vessels, for the sole
purpose of taking the enemy by sur
prise. - IL
2 The site of the Indian fort is we'll
known. and is often visited. 1t was
a hill notvery high, but commanded
an extensive view, rising from the.
river Mystic, in v hat is now the town
of Groton, Connecticut The fort was
merely an acre or two iuclosed by
palisades, four or five inches apart,
and bound together at the top by
withes. Inside the palisades, there
were seventy wigwams, made of light
pole frames, covered with thick, dry.
mating. r " thin the iiIclosure seven
hundred Pequots, the flower of the
tribe, were posted.
Captain Mason after giving his men
one hours rest, called them to arms at
three O'clock in the morning. Under
the bright moonlight they stood ready
to begin the maIcli while the chaplain
in the midst of them uttered a prayer
for the success of the enterprise. The
colonists, tired and hungry as they
were, now forgot their fatigue, and
showed all that alacrity for. the en-
counter which brave men exhibit at the.
decisive moment. The Indian allies,
on the contrary. accustomed from of
old to tremble at the name of Pequot,
could scarcely command their terrors,
and rendered little help until the
crisis was passed. A silent march of
two miles brought them to the bottom
of the hill. upon the summit of which
the Pequots We're soundly sleeping al
ter the late revels of the night. One
company of the English under Captain
Uunderhill, and another under Cap
tain Mason, broke simultaneously
through the bushes which blocked up
the two entrances to the palisade. A
dog barked. Instantly an Indian voice
was heard crying: p .,...;.
"Owanux Owanux !'-English-
men Englishmeni
The Indians rushed from their wig
vans, and ran yelling up and down
the two streets of the palisades, pursu-
ed and fired upon by the troops. Very
soon they fled to their iwigwams again,
and crouched, terror-stricken, under
their mats. '9i .it" '4
1--WE must burn them !" cried Cap
tain Mason. i1aif ~ ~
Seizing a frebrand, he applied
it to one of the light and fragile hahi-
tations, on the -windward side land his
example being followed, the whole in
terror of. the palisade became. almost
instantaneously, one mass OF roaring
flame. The troops and friendly In
dians, posted close outside, shot down.
those.Who attempted to fly. Without
dwelling Oh the horrors Of the scene,
which every reader can imagine, |
will merely state that; SO . far as was
ever known, only seven hostile Indians
escaped; for the Indian allies, coward
ly- as they were before the action, were
Just the men, of all others in the world.
to stand around this blazing palisade
and guard with deadly vigilance
against the escape of its writhing in
mates Before the sun rose that
morning, the fort and its warriors
were smouldering ashes. Two of the
eolonists had fallen, and twenty were
wounded. 5al
Litters were hastily made, and the
little army marched toward the mouth
of the Thames, where their vessels
had been ordered to meet them. Be
fore they had gone far. they were at
tackled, faint as they were with fatigue
and hunger, by band of three hun
dred Pequots. They faced the enemy
boldly, and kept them at bay until, to
their inexpressible relief, the three
vessels hove in sight, which put new
heart into the English, and caused the
Pequots to abandon the struggle. j
The Pequots were not yet'destroy-
ed. After resting at home for two
weeks, Captain Mason led another
band to the last retreat of Sassacus,
the great chief. of the tribe, not !
far from where the city of New Haven
now stands, Again the Pequots had
penned themselves up for massacre,
and again Captain Mason surrounded