St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1877-07-27


and parched farmers speedily became
so demOralized that the troops of Col.
Breyman, over 600 with two heavy
cannon, sent by Burgoyne to reinforce
Baum, would have turned the Ameri-
can victory into defeat but for the Op-
perfume arrival of $50 of Col. Seth War
ner's men from Manchester, who sue
ceeded in rallying the tired and boozy
veterans of the previous fight. Stark
had proposed, even ordered, retreat,
but Col. Warmers urgency prevailed to
save the day until the coming of his
fresh men. Fighting till sunset, the
Americans won their second victory,
and only night-fall prevented the cap
ture of Breyman's entire force. The
keenestan anxiety had possessed the friends
of the local soldiery the while. The
council of safety continued in solemn
session at CatamOunt tavern, and at
6 O'Clock bulletin was sent abroad
announcing that ''the enemy were driv-
en-, but, being reinforced, made sec
ond stand, and still continue the con-
tiict. But we have taken their cannon,
and prisoners, said to number four or
five hundred, are now arriving" The
real facts were that the British had lost
1000 men, while of the Americans less
than 80 were killed and wounded. Stark
thus gives the details:
"We killed upward of 200 of the enc
my on the field of battle. 1 have l
lieutenant-cOlOnel (since dead, 1 major,
captains, IA lieutenants, ensigns, 2
cOrnets, l judge-advocate, | baron, 2
Canadian officers, 6 sergeants, l aide
de-camp, and 700 prisoners" He adds,
with arithmetical precision, 81 almost
forgot Hessian chaplain" "Gentle-
men," he concludes, addressing his su-
periOrs in New Hampshire, II think we
have returned the enemy proper COM
pliment in the above action for the
Hubbart-tOwn engagement"
The prisoners were filed into Ben
nington, and the wounded of both sides
tenderly cared for. The dead enemies
were buried with no ceremony, one
enterprising granger hitching his horse
by rope around the necks of the bodies
and dragging them to a great hole
Col. Baum had been taken with Col
Pfster, a noted tory who owned a mag,
nificent house in Hoosac, to a house
about a mile away, and both died with
in "a hours. Baum by his self-sacri-
ficing bravery inspired cordial liking
among the Americans, and was devOt
edly ministered to in his death. The
$50 tory prisoners were much more
roughly treated than the Hessians
They were marched into the village
two by two, the women taking dow
their bedsteads to get ropes to string
them on, and the council of safety fount
them long a burden. They were made
to tread down the roads in winter owe
! to Wilmington, were kept guarded a
tie meeting house, put upon the limit
of their own farms, or banished unde
penalty of death, from the town, ant
some were even sent down to the Sims
bury mines. The Hessian dead ar
buried in the village cemetery. Anon:
the trophies of the days victory wer
four brass field-pieces- of whicl
are in the state house at Montpelier
10 brass drums, ammunition wagons
several hundred stand of arms and
host of personal relics which will turl
up during celebration week. Of tn
American dead, Bennington mOurne'
four of her most respected citizens
John Fay, Henry Walbridge, Davi'
Warner and Nathan Clark.
Local sentiment does not Overesti
,, mate the Importance of this Bennington
victory. Bancroft calls it zone of tn
most brilliant and eventful of the war,
four days after it Burgoyne declared
impossible for England to subdue tin
colonies, and nine weeks later he sur
rendered at Saratoga. Because of
Congress, which had censured Stark TO
, refusing to obey Schuyler, passed
resolution of thanks to his command
and wound up by making him briga
dier in the army of the United States
An intelligent, impartial and compre
hensive opinion is recorded in the jour
" nal of Baroness Riedesel, whose husban
= was one of Burgoyne's most trustee
German officers, that the battle c
Z Bennington "paralyzed at once th
. operations of the British army"