Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1882-02-14
DEATH OF A YANKEE GIRL WHO
BEAT OFF A BRITISH FRIGATE
WITH A FIFE.

A heroine of the war Of 1912 passed
away at Scituate, Massachusetts,, re-
Gently at the ripe age of eighty Eight
Miss Rebecca Bates, who with her sister
Abigail, beat off British frigate. Her
father, Capt. Simeon Bates. was light
keeper at Scituats, where he had lit the
lamp of the new light house for the first
time in April, 1881. In the spring Of
the following year English cruisers were
frequently seen off the harbor and on
one occasion frigate sent in her launch
es to destroy by fire some vessels at the
wharves and cut out two Others, threat
ening to burn the town if any resistance
were offered. After this event home
guard was formed, attachments Of which
were stationed on Cedar and Crow points
and in front Of the place, with brass
piece, the members being allowed to re-
turn to their farms when no vessel was
in sight. Nothing to alarm occurred
again until the following September.
when Rebecca, then a girl Of eighteen,
and her sister four years her junior, were
sitting one afternoon with their mother,
sewing, the captain and all the men-folk
Of the village being absent at their farms.
Mrs. Bates told her daughter TO put the
kettle on for tea, and as the girl went
into the kitchen, she for the first time
perceived an English man-of-war close
at hand and about to lower her boats.
81 knew the ship at aglance," said
the bright and genial old lady Of eighty
four, when telling her story some four
years ago; lit was the La Hogue. "Oh
Lord, said | to my sister the old La
Hogue is off here again! VIVA, shall
we do: here are their barges coming
again and they'll burn up our vessels
just as they did afore.' You see, there
were two vessels at the wharf loaded
with -four, and we couldn't afford to lose
that in those times, when the embargo
made it so hard to live we had to bile
pumpkins all day TO get sweetening for
sugar. There were the muskets Of the
guards. was good mind to take those
out beyond the lighthouse and fire them
at the barges; nigh, have killed one or
two, but that would have done no good,
for they would have turned round and
fred the village. "rll tell you what
we'll do" said to my sister: look
here says | you take the drum, I'll
take the fife | was fond Of military
music and could play four tunes on the
fife. Yankee Doodle was my master
piece. learned on the fife which the
soldiers had at the lighthouse. They
had drum there, too; so ! said to her
You take the drum and I'll take the
fife VIVA. good'll that do" says she
in amazement. Scare EN-, says |.
All you have got to do is to beat the
roll. III scream the fife, and we must
keep out Of sight; if they see us they'll
laugh us to scoru. showed her how TO
handle the sticks. and we ran down be-
hind the cedar wood. So We put in, as
the boys say, pretty soon looked, and !
could see the men in the barges resting
On their oars and listening. When !
looked again saw flag flying from the
masthead of the ship. | began to make
a speech, and | said: Don't make a
noise you make me laugh, and l can't
pucker my mouth When | looked
again saw that they had seen the flag,
and they turned about so quick a man
fell overheard, and they picked him up
By the back of his neck and hauled him
in. When they went off | played
Yankee Doodle Miss Rebecca Bates
sister, the other heroine of the day. sur
wives her. as do four other brothers and
sisters, whose ages range from seventy
i've to eigh,y-nine.