River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1878-05-30
ASuryIying Heroine of 1912.


Theirs is an interesting story connected
with C..dar Point, Scituate Harbor, Mass.
The heroine is Miss Rebecca Bates, now
brigkt, genial old lady of eighty four,
whose memory continues remarkably
clear. The story, taken from her own
lips, c&n be depended upon as thorough
Simeon Bates he was light-keeper at
the TING, and was the first who lit the
light, IN April 1911. In the spring of
the following year English cruisers were
numerous in Massachusetts Bay, and on
one occasion the Launches of an English
frigate were sent; in to Scituate Harbor.
They set fire to vessels at the wharves
and towed out two, at the same time
threatening to destroy the town If any
resistance was offered. After this event ,
home guard was formed, and detach-
ments ssere stationed on Cedar and Crow
points, and in trent of the village, with
brass piece. When there was no sail
In sight, the guards were allowed to 90
off to tt,cir farms
Nothing to occasion alarm occurred
again until the. following September.
Rebecca, at that time eighteen years of
age, and her sister Abigail, fourteen
years Old, and still living, were sitting
toward evening sewing with their moth
er. Captain Bates and the rest of his
large family and the guards were all
away. Mrs. Bates told Rebecca it was
time tss put on the kettle. As Rebecca
went into the kitchen she for the first
time perceived an English ship OF war :
close at hand and lowering her boats. II
knew tie ship at a glance" she said. at
was the La Hogue. 20, Lord 2 says / TO
my sister, the old La Hogue is off here
again! What shall we dof here are their
barges coming again, and they'll burn
up our vessels just as they did afore.'
wharf, loaded with -four, and we
couldn's afford 70 lose that in those tunes,
when tie embargo made it so hard to
live we had to bile pumpkins all day to
get sweetening for sugar. There were
the mus kets OF the guards. / was good
mind to take those out beyond the light
house and FIRE them at the barges; /
might have KILLED one or two. but it
would have dorie no good, for they would
have turned round and fired the village.
Ill tel1 you what we'll do said to my
SISTER; look here says /, you take the
drum. Ill take the ffe.' was fond of
military music, and could play four =
tunes on the fife. Yankee Doodle was
my master piece. | learned on the fife
which IL e soldiers had at the lighthouse,
They had drum there, too; SO | said to
her, You take the drum, and I'll take
the fifes9 What good will that dol says
she Scare thern,' says /. 'All you've
got TO do is to call the roll, I'll scream
the fife, and we must keep out of sight
if they see us, they'll laugh us to scorn.'
showed her hc@ to handle the sticks,
and we ran down behind the cedar wood.
So We pat in, as she boys say, and pretty
soon looked, aud | could see the men
IN the Earges resting ON their oars and
listening. When looked again | saw
lag flying from the masthead of the
hip. Ny sister began to make q speech,
md 4 said, don't make a noise; you
make NE laugh, d can't pucker my
MOUTH When / looked again / saw
hey had seen the flag, and they turned
bout SO quick man fell over board,
md they picked him up by the back Of
lis neck and hauled him in. When they
vent Of | played Yankee Doodle.i"
S not isis heroine, who saved two ships
aden with flour. and perhaps other valu-
.bles, from destruction, entitled to
She hos Eve brothers and sis
ers stiU livings the eldest eighty five,
nd tbs youngest seyenty-one. Her
was enc hundred years and
me rnossflt old al the time of his death.
IS. g. R. BeEjGmtn, IN Herpers Nag
zine fos, June.