The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1876-04-20
ADVENTURE OF A SPY.

| For some months preceding the men,
| orabIe destruction of Cherry Valley the
| people of that region were all in con-
| stant state of excitement and alarm-so
much so, indeed, that they carried their
| arms with them wherever they went
some stood sentries while others worked
in the fields and at night the most of
them slept from home, conceaGng them
selves and their valuable things among
the rocks of the woods, in caves, and
even in the branches of the trees. AT
that period there was a large class of
thieving, plundering, numbering villains
scattered throughout nearly every sec
ton of the country, who called them
selves Tories, and pretended great zeal
for the British cause, while in fact they
cared for nothing but the qualification of
| their own hellish passions and desires.
| When too weak Or cowardly to carry out
some vile scheme of destruction and
plunder alone, these miscreants often
united themselves with marauding par
| ties of British or Indians, frequently
dressed and painted themselves like saw
| ages, sometimes acted as guides to lead
| the enemy to the doors of those they
hypocritically called their friends, and al
ways reveled in the wild scenes OF rapine
| and murder that followed. In the vicin-
ity of Cherry Valley these Tories were
/ - T. 41n
more moderate ones concealed their SEN
| timents to carry out some purpose of
their own, the Wings or Patriots had
| the double fear of enemies without and
traitors within, and knew not whom to
| trust or when to consider themselves
| safe.
It was while affairs were in this
| dubious and doubtful state, with ru-
| mors of British Indians and Tories gath
ering there preparatory to general pill
| lage of the whole region and massacre OF
| ed Silas Dean, set off alone, well armed
| and disguised, to rove through the sur
rounding country, and gather what in
| telligence he could of the movements,
numbers and designs of the enemy, in
order to give his friends due warning
thereof. Dean was naturally OF light
complexion, with very light hair and a
smooth, almost beardless, face; and in
| order not to be recognized by any Of
the Tories, with some of whom he hop
ed to get on familiar terms, he cropped
his hair, stained his skin, and put on
black wig and false whiskers of the same
color, which he procured from neigh
Dor who had in his younger days been
strolling actor, and by means of which
he became so completely disguised that
his best friend might not have known
him.
For the first week of his adventure as
scout and spy young Dean met with
nothing very remarkable. He Travelled
to the southwark, and roamed hither and
thither over large portion of the coun-
try. picking up all the intelligence he
could, and listening to and weighing
every rumor, generally sleeping under
the roof of some well known Tory, to
whom he represented himself as a secret
agent of the British. cent out to discover
who were the true friends Of the Grown,
and ascertain the best manner, time
and place for making sudden and des-
tructive attack upon the rebels. By this
perilous proceeding, in which discovery
would haye been equivalent to loss Of
life, young Dean, who gave his name as
Barton, met with the best of treatment
at the hands of his enemies, who were
very anxious to do honor to one whose
report might be of great value to them
at some future time, and learned many
important things that he could not have
found out in any other way. Among
the last was the startling fact that con-
siderable body of Indians, from Niagara,
was about to rendezvous at or near the
mouth of the Unadilla river, and, assist
ed by their Tory friends, throw up a
fortifcation, and make it 9 grand deposi-
tory for the provisions, plunder, sc.lps
and prisoners which they expected to
collect on their marauding expeditions
into the surrounding country. while par
ticularly would their efforts be directed
to the sudden and e1tirs destruction of
Cherry Valley.
With this news, young Dean set out
for home. He had now about fifty miles
to go to reach Cherry Valley, and he
took an entirely new route back, so as to
pass the house OF man named Watrous
whom he had often heard the Tories
speak of as a person very active in for
warding the wicked schemes already
mentioned. He wanted to see and talk
with Watrcus, not only that he might
know something positive of the man and
be able to recognize him ever after, but
also in hope that he might gather some
thing new concerning the diabolical plot.
Yet. as Watrous' house was sort of
| headquarters of the Tory and Indian
leaders, he must incur great personal
risk in entering it when visitors were
there, and, therefore, decided to ap-
| proach it about nightfall. carefully re-
| connoiter the premises, and be governed
| by circumstances.
1t was quite dark when our young
hero reached the dwelling OF Watrous-
which stood in lonely part of the coun-
try, surrounded by heavy woods, with
the exception of a few acres OF cleared
land in the immediate vicinity and
| having satisfied himself that only the