The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1877-08-17


serpent In twain and separately crush its
New England head and its southern body.
The scheme was a good one. 1t might
have adjourned our liberties for fifty years.
Who marred the plot2 In England King
George and Lord George German; in
America Sir John Bnrgoyne and Charles
Lee. The dull king had way of meddl-
ing in detail with all the business of his
great empire. In the British museum you
can read in his own handwriting his COM
ments on the plan of Burgoyne, restricting
his forces, Withholding all discretionary
power, and requiring him simply to join
Howe at Albany. But that equally posi-
tive orders were not issued to Lord Howe
we may thank Lord George German. The
minister called at his office. The dispatch,
all written, was not "fair-copied." So
German hurried off heedlessly to the
country. The unsigned dispatch was
pigeon-holed and was found again-after
the surrender at Saratoga.
There have been worse commanders and
not many more polished gentlemen of his
style than Sir John Burgoyne, "a man of
wit, fashion and honor" says Macaulsy.
He eloped with Lord Derby's daughter and
was forgiven by the family. He wrote
elaborate letters, genteel comedies and
flaming proclamations. "The charm of
his Manner" 1t was said, "neither man nor
woman could easily resist" That was left
for the Green Mountain boys. He wore
on bis finger diamond ring given him by
the King of Portugal for his gallant dash
at Valencia d'Alcantara, and Burgoyne's
| Light Horse was the favored regiment that
George the Third loved often to review.
He was brave officer, good colonel and
moderate general. 1t is useless to extol
frNN AN1a
| three things that are not done by great
commanders. He needlessly moderated
his enemy, he lost his best opportunity,
| and IN the last resort he declined the re-
| sponsbllity which would have given up an
| expedition and saved an army. Give him
credit for good plan. Another man
should have executed the plsns That man
was Sir Guy Carleton, his last years COM
msnder and governor of Canada. He knew
the country, understood the people and
| controlled the preparations. Cautious as
well as forceful, he was all the more formi-
| dable because he was wise, concilatory
| and humane.
But in the high counsels of heaven and
the small arithmetic of King George it was
ordered otherwise. Burgoyne was follow
ed by the sanguine hopes of the British
| nation. Lord North locked for the
speedy quelling of the rebellion" Trad
| ing Manchester had subscribed for two
regiments to conquer a market, country
| gents were loudly loyal, the opposition in
the commons was we'll nigh silenced, the
bishops and the clergy breathed out war,
the staid pulplts of the establishment rung
with exhortations to "smite the rebels"
| and even the heart of the humane king be-
came oss'fied, till he could say, every
means OF distressing America must meet
with my concurrence"
Burgonye was in Montreal full a month
before he applied for means of transport,
and the inadequacy of his supply at last
was the Chief cause Of his disaster. His
body OF troops, though smaller than be
asked, was splendid army corps. Dur
goyne had asked for 5000 regular troops,
exclusive of artillery, 1000 Canadians to
act as an escort and working parties, and
lOO0 Indians, besides a large number of
provlncials for transport duties. He re-
ports his actual force at 1851 regulars, AL
Canadian militia, and SOB Indians. This
was exclusive of oil artillerymen, and an
accession of tories from the states, but he
was obliged to leave 200 men to garrison
Saratoga, greatly to his regret. He thought
Carleton should have furnished the garrl-
son, and then complained that sit drained
the lie blood Of his force) The German
| soldiers had learned war when Frederick
was at his best and the British were the
veteran troops of England. A magnificent
PARK OF artillery, and body of picked can
noniers, accompanied the march. The
Officers, Phillips and Riedesel, Frazer and
hamilton, Kingston, Bslcannas and Ack-
land, were men of Brilliant and various
distinction. For an army of its size, no
inner body could have been set down on
this continent.
The General knew, for ought to have
know, his foe. He was in Boston when
the British army was, as he expressed it,
"unrecoVered from the CONSERVATION at
Lexington" He had directed the firing of
ihe batteries against Bunker Hill, and
handsomely commended the obstinate de-
1ense and orderly retreat. He therefore
only imposed on himself when no pro-
Claimed to his army that the enemy were
INFINITELY inferior to the kings troops in
open chase and hardy combat" The event
made 1t even ludicrous in him to announce
IL. They replied: "Only in lntrenchments
and rifle pieces, and it will be our glory
ana preservation to storm them" And it
was still graver folly to threaten that enemy
win devastation, famine and every con-
commitant horror" for he only exasperat-
ca when he sought to terrify. Had he had
the thousands" of Indians of whom he
poasted, to do this work, instead of his pal
Try ooO, he spoke to men who had heard
louder war-whoop than his They turned
Ais flaming proclamation into doggerel
rhyme and called HIM "Chrononhoton-
thologos."
Yet there were anxious hearts as he
moved toward Lake Champlain. Men
| called Ticonderoga the key of North
America. Schuyler had written to New
Hampshire that "the loss of it would be
dreadful, If not altogether fatal to the liber-
ties of the country" Washington said the
consequences would be ''lrreparable."
Meanwhile the public mind was feverish
with excitement and the air thick with
alarms. The enemy had landed at New
port and headed for Providence; they had
landed at Fairfield, had destroyed Danbury
and were expected at Rye. Eighteen
| ships were seen above Peeksville. Garlic
tons ships were said to be at Split Rock,
40 miles from Ticonderoga. The cry is
raised in New Hampshire and Connecticut
of "a diabolical attempt by the enemy to
spread counterfeit money" IntTenching
| tools are found under barn in Hollis, and
firearms at Groton. Half the men of
| STAFFORD joined the regulars. "The tories"
wrote Sullivan, "are everywhere lifting
their heads, secret combinations are discov-
cred In Hillsboro, in western Massachusetts,
and northern New Hampshire. The New
Hampshire committee Of safety recommend
to all persons capable of bearing arms, to
constantly carry them 'to public worship
and all places where business leads them,
for we know not the day nor the hour of
an attack on the borders, and we must stop
those internal traitors among ourselves"
But how to get armsf The same commit