The daily intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Territory [i.e. Wash.]) 1876-1881, 1881-07-28
THE zOUAvks OF THE REVOLT.
TION.

1t may be interesting to know that
there were Zouaves in the Wsr of In
dependence. The extract of 9 letter.
written By yonog soldier 10 the Con-
necticut army 10 his psrents. which
follows. states the fact:
DEAR PARESTs-Our company ar
rived here last night very late. hungry
aod tired. Training 10 g good deal
harder than old Squire Fell tells Of.
II bed marched fourtees miles dsy
and carried his prog. besides fathers
old French fusee. calculate he'd not
DO 90 encouraging 10 us boys. don't
find fault. mind; / ooly wish to let you
ku jw that We are not on Q May party.
AT Wilford tavern we were joined
by two companies of soldiers from
New Haven, and . company Of queer
fsllows. Jack calls them, from ths
Southern Colonies. They are all rife
men and are commanded BY Colonel
Cressp. They don't use any beds - We
do, but sleep on the groand. all In
row. like Indians do. But their antics
IN military exercises are of the curious
est kind. They load and fire with
their rifles lying on their bellies. After
that they tangie themselves ell up ia
knot. sud look just like Q porcurine
with their guns sticking out sll over
them. But the wondermost part of
their actions 10 their hitting Q mark.
Any. one OF them can hit small potato
ct forty rods distance. You never saw
anything like it. When we get TO camp
l will write more about these rifiemen.
who would amuse the girls if they
could see them cut their antics"
The company described in this letter
is alluded to in Moore's diary of the
Revolution, - follows:
august z. 1775.-On Friday evening
last arrived st Lsncssfer, Pennsyl-
vanis. on their way 10 the American
camp. Captain Crssap's Company of
Riismen, consisting Of one hundred
aud thirty active. brave young fellows.
many Of whom have bsen in the late
expedition under Lord Dunmore
against the Indians. They bear. in
their bodies. visible ma rs OF their
prowess, sad show scars a.,d wosnds
which would do honor to Homer's Had.
They show you. to use the poets words.
Where the gos'd battle baed at every vsinl'
''One Of the wsrriors. in particular.
shows the cicatrices of four bullet holes
through his body. These men have
been bred iu the woods to hardships
aud dangers from their Infancy. They
appesr a. IL they were entirely unac-
qusinted with and had never felt the
passion Of fear With their rifles in
their hand they assume kind Of ON
impotence over their enemies. One
cannot much wonder at this, when we
mention O fact which can bel fully at.
tested by several Of the reputable per
sons who were eye witnesses of it.
Two brothers in the company took Q
piece of board five inches broad and
seven long. with bit of white paper
about the size Of dollar nailed In the
center, and while one of them support.
ed the board perpendicularly between
his knees. the other, at q distance Of
upwards Of sixty yards. and without
any kind of rest. shot eight bullets
through il successively. and sparsi u
brothers thigh.
"Anotber Of the company held .
barrel stAve perpendicularly in his
hands with one edge close to his side.
while one of his comrades, at the same
distance, and in the manner before
mentioned. shot several bullets through
II. without any apprehension Of danger
on either side. The spectators appear.
ing 70 be amazed at these feats were
told that there we're upwards OF fifty
persons In the same company who
could do this thing; that there WAS not
one who could not plug nineteen bul.
lets out :.of twenty. - they termed it,
within an inch OF the head Of ten
psuny nail. In short, TO evisce the
confidence they possessed in their dex-
terity with these kind OF arms. some Of
them proposed 10 stand with apples on
their heads. while Others. ct the same
distanos, undertook 70 shoot them off;
! but the people Who saw the other ex-
pertinent declined % bs Witnesses Of
this. .At night great lire was kiodled
around . pole piab'ei in the court
house square, where the company with
the Captain at head. eli nsked 10 the
waist, and painted like sassges. except
the Captain, who was in en- Indian
shirt. indulged q vast concourse oi
people with perfect exhibition OF .
war dance. and ell the manOuvers Of
Indians. holding council. going TO wsr.
eircumvsnting their enemies By defiles.
ambascades. astacking. sosipina and 90
forth. IL 10 said by those who are
judgss that no representation could
possibly ccme nearer the original.
The Captains expsrtness and agility. in
particular. In thess experiments. a.
tonished every beholder. This morn
ing they will Get out on their march to
Cambridge"