The Bennington daily banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1877-1877, 1877-08-16
THURSDAY,
SOME REFLECTIONS on THE BATTLE
OF, BENNINGTON.

The story OF the famous niue OaVIle
of Bennington, fought one hundred
years ago to-day, is graphically told in
all its detailsin another column by our
Distinguished fellow citizen, Elk, Gov.
Inland Hall, and to his elaborate mar
rative we refer our readers for an accu-
rate description of the field and the
of the fight, Stated with sold
simplicity, the first battle of Benning
ton was the destruction by LOU
farmers of a foraging party OF some
800 British troops. Hessians, Tories,
Canadians and Indians, entrenched up
ON hill that overlooks the Walloom-
sac, near the crossing of the Cambridge
road, while the second fight of the day
was the severe repulse Of the supports
of Col. Baume, numbering 800 men UNI
der Col. Breyman, who arrived just
too late to save Baume, and yet early
enough to at one time seriously threat
en- the victors of the first fight with
defeat. The Importance of this victory
was out of all proportion to the num-
bers engaged; it was paralytic shock
to Burgoyne,. for it revealed to his
officers and men the startling fact that
the sinews of war, food and transporta-
ton, would have to be.wrested FROM a
country, whose sturdy yeomanry fear
lessly charged regular troops entreneh-
ed, opposing the brown fire-locks OF the
settler, to cannon,i imusketry and
bayonets, and coming as it did, on the
heels of St. Leger's lfailure.st capture
Fl Stanwix and deserned the Mohawk
to Albany, no wonderl Burgoyne, : who
was soldier of talent, and a. keen OBJ
server of human nature, at once de-
cided that it was impossible for Eng
land to conquer America. Burgoyne's
English officers. triedstoSs. explain isaway
Bennington by sneering at the heavy
armed Hessians, and their 'ponderous
hats and weighty broad-swords, as
assuring failure in advance through
their unaptness for the work OF light
troops, but this excuse will not stand
examination. Of Baume's whole de-
tachment but two hundred and fifty
were Hessians, and they were the same
soldiers, who under Riedsell had, by
good marching and stout fighting,
made victory certain for General Fra
ger and his light troops, when Col.
Seth Warner and his Green Mountain
Boys, were making it hot for the Eng
lishmen; thee Hessians fought with
confessed courage, their commander,
Col Baume, seems to have been as
skillful and prudent as he was gal
liant soldier; he was aided effectually
in his knowledge of the country by the
Tory recruits that had joined him, and
the position be selected was admirably
chosen and desperately defended, and
there seoms no reason to believe that
the result of the battle would have
been otherwise, had the gallant and
enterprising Frazer with his English
men been given Baume's work to do,
for Frazer and his men Jared no better
when opposed to yeoman-
ry similarly armed and led at Saratoga.
Indeed the campaign of Burgoyne,
more than any other during the Rev
struggle, was marked byl
desperate valor on the part of the
who charged up to the
mouth of cannon with uneXampled
fury and success, and to this desperate
mood ofopposition may be ascribed the
failure of the best planned and the most
IDLY conducted campaign on the part
IF the British during the war. Gen,
Burgoyne lacked neither excellent
ability, energy, prudence or valor, and
yet he was overwhelmed by disaster.
The cause of this burning hate for
he enemy, which converted the peace
i'll farmer into so bitter and formida-
Die fighter, was owing in great meas
ure to the employment of Indians by
Burgoyne and St, Leger. The murder
If Miss McCrea is justly estimated by
irving, who says, 1t was not shed in
ain; armies sprang up from it; it was
rallying word among the Green
Mountains of Vermont, and brought
lown all this hardy yeomanry." The
ettlers knew by tradition if not by
ctual experience the horrors of Indian
ialfspe, and the menace of these hos
ilities to their children and wives,
reduced that feeling of terrible exas-
Grafton which made such an astound- !
lg feat of arms as Bennington, posi- =
le to crowd of cornstalk militia. q
he glory of the day has clustered f
round the name of Gen. John Stark,
ut although he was n true patriot and a
sinewy soldier, Injured to peril in the s.
Id French war, and at Bunker Hill, il
renton and Princeton, nevertheless, =
it'll such soldiery as he led, facing l,
D army guided and composed to a il
rye extent of his old Tory neighbors, e
nd the recent Hessian slayers of the Il
ms of Vermont at Hubbardton, the e
suit ofthe battle could hardly have o.
cen different. There was need of "
tile or no strategy, the purpose was OF
surround ON all sides an enemy, t.
anding stiffiy at bay and destroy them. ~
a