Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1877-03-30

ana roll around them DeIore Uney came 10
the reliet of DR.. Alien"
The following is copied from the CONT
mental Journal and Weekly Advertiser,
printed at Boston, May, s, 1777:
HEADQUARTERS, MoRRIsTowN,
April 10th, 1777,
Sir:-His Excellency, General Washing
ton, desires that the following gentlemen
may be informed through your paper. that
they are exchanged, and are at liberty to
enter the service again. lam, etc.,
G. JOHNSTON, A. D. c.
Among the gentlemen mentioned was
''Ensign John Kinsman, who was pris
oner in the hands of the British, taken at
the battle of Long Island, and kept in one
of their prison-ships. He came to Ohio in
1893, and was justice of the peace under
the territorial government, and an assOoi-
ate judge of Trumbull county.
The year 1912 was noted for its stirring
events in preparing for the war with CT.
Britain, and the store and house Of Mr..
Kinsman were main mastering points; the
regiment under Colonel Hayes was COM
manded to muster at Kinsman's store, and
here active operations began. The whole
West was thrown into great excitement on
receiving news of the surrender of Gen.
Hull at Detroit. Hayes regiment WAS com
posed of eight companies, from the follow
ing towns, Hubbard, Vernon, Brookfeld,
Vienna, Kinsman, Williamsfeld, Gusta-
Jus, Wayne, johnson and Fowler. Some
of the men were armed with common ri
fes, others with old arms of former wars,
and some only had pixies and stout hay
forks. The regiment met at Kinsman Au-
gust oath, 1912, and marched to Williams
field the first day and slept on the ground
around their camp-fres. The second night
was spent in Jefferson, in the same manner,
and at Austinburg the next day the regi-
ment found trains with public supplies for
their use. At Harpersfeld, on the third
day, Gen. Perkins received orders to send
back half of the volunteers on account Of
the general destitution and defensless con-
dition of the settlements left behind. The
drafted men were generally held and
thrown together into the Gustavus and
Wayne companies, commanded by Capt.
Joshua Fobes. After the reorganization
of the regiment at Harpersfeld, in moved
west on the ridge road to Cleveland, and
from thence to the town of Avery. The
log cabins along the route were abandoned
in great haste, as it was expected that the
Indians would be upon the settlers. The
mails failing between Fort Stephenson and
Fort Meigs, Col. Stephenson, then in com
mand, called for volunteers to carry the
mail through the Black Swamp to Fort
Meigs. Titus Hayes, of Wayne, brother
of Col. Hayes, DR.. Coleman, of Ashtabua
and Capt. Burnham, offered their services.
Horses were provided with the necessary
equipments, and they started with the
mail, ON their perilous expedition. The
first night they encamped on the bank Of
the Portage River. They were aroused
early in the morning by the distant firing
of guns, and, as they thought an Indian
whoop. As they drew near the fort, they
heard the booming cannon, and now and
then the whoop of the savages. The firing
of the guns, and the yells of the Indians
were anything but pleasant. They re-
manned all night at the foot of birch tree,
and in the morning made arrangements
for a reconnaissance. They were getting |
near the fort, and it was evident that some
thing unusual was going on. Hayes was
sent forward, to return in an hour. The
hour had nearly expired, when the silence
near them was broken by the crack Of a
rife, and Coleman's hat shot from his head,
An Indian had been following them, whom
Coleman sam dodge behind tree; he drew
up his gun to fire, but the Indian was out
Of sight. In his haste, he dropped his gan
to the ground, where the water was so
deep as to wet his priming, and Burnham
having only pistol, it was thought best to
retreat. Capt. Burnham cut open the mail
bag and took out the report of their condi-
ton at Fort Stephenson-whieh was re-
garded as in danger-and started for Fort
Meigs. They soon came upon a smoking
Indian campfire, and changed their course,
and getting into mud and water, Coleman
,ook off his boots and threw them away.
DR.. Coleman became exhausted, tainted
and fell by the way; after resting, they
again started. The crack of rifle and
bullet showed that they were
near the enemy, and they again changed
heir course. After enduring great hard
ships and danger, they found their way in
o Fort Stephenson, having been four days
without anything to eat. Hayes had en-
the Indians, but avoided them,
md shifted his course for Fort Stephenson
-deeming it hopeless to find Capt. Burn
lam and DIR. Coleman. He reached the
ort in two days.
The British General Proctor had com
nenced bombarding Fort Meigs, which
TODD on the east side of the Maumee Riv-
II, where the town of Perrysburg now
tands, and the Indians had been let loose
lpon the country to aid in subduing the
ort The British failed to capture Fort
deigs, and abandoned the seige when they
leard of our victories in other places.
The volume contains an interesting
ketch Of some forty pages of Simon Fobes,
gho was lieutenant in the army Of the
evolution. He was in the battle of Bum
Ter Hill, and was with Benedict Allen in
he attack on Quebec, where he was taken
prisoner. He escaped from the British, re-
nlisted in the service, and was stationed
t points Of great historic interest upon
he Hudson River, and had he not preti-
usly resigned, he would probably have
een in the massacre at Fort Griswold, in
Connecticut He was married in 1880
yhen it took forty dollars in Continental 7