Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1885-06-19
NO. %.


| The truth ia that Putnam was by no means
a great man II ever anybody was unfit to
be a major general, it was he. But he was a
thoroughly courageous man, and he had the
good luck to have his story told by Hum
phreys at time when the people Of this
country we're wild for heroes and stories OF
heroes. No story suffered in Humphreys's
hands the boys aad girls will guess who
live near Horse Neck, and who have seen the
terrible picture of Putnam's ride in Mr.. Loss
| ings book in which he bounds on horseback
down the hill there.
l. who tell you this story have gone into
the VOLTS Den, and needed no rope around
my waist to get out but whether ! should
have gone in we're a wolfs at the other end, ]
am not sure. More than this, when the wolf
was there it was winter and the rocks were
covered with ice and Exceedingly slippery"
IL 1 told the whole story as Col Humphreys
tells it, it would take up all this paper But
here is the critical passage:
Cautiously proceeding onward, he came to the as
cent which he slowly mounted ns hands and knees
until he discovered the garng eyeballs Of the wolf
who sitting at the extremity Of the Startled
at the sight Of hre, she guashed her teeth and gave
sullen growl As soon as he had made the necessary
discovery, he kicked the rope signal for pulling
him out. The people at the month Of the den, who
had listened with painful anxiety hearing the growl-
ing Of the wolf and supposng their friend TO lie in
the most imminent danger, drew him forth with such
ceery that his shirt was stripped over bis head and
bis skin severely acerated After be had adjusted his
clothes and loaded his gun with nine buckshot, hold
Ing the musket in one hand and torch in the other,
| he descended the second time. When be drew near
er than BEFORE the wolf, assuming still more fierce
aud terrible appearance, bowling, rolling her eyes,
swapping her teeth, and dropping her head between
| her legs, evidently in the attitude and the
point of springng at him. At the critical instant he
shock aud suhocated with the smoke he Immediately
found himself drawn out Of the cave but, having
reshed himself and permitted the smoke TO disspate
| he went down the third time. Once more be came
within sight Of the wolf who appearing very passive,
he applied the torch to her nose and perceving her
dead he took hold Of her ears and then kicking the
rope (sti tied round his legs) the people above with
no small e1ultation dragged them both out together
In 1855, when he was 81 years old, Putnam
took charge Of company of volunteers 10
the Connecticut contingent which Joined the
| English army against the French. II was in
the campaigns which followed that the adven-
tures took place in which he saved the maga-
zine of Fort Edward, in which he and Dur
kee we're so closely pursued and tumbled to-
gether into the same place Of refuge, and in
which he found II bullet. holes through his
blanket. Modern criticism has shown that
the blanket must have been folded when il
was struck but the TAFT children agreed that
one bullet which had force enough to cut
through an old fashioned homespun blanket
IA times was an uncomfortable neighbor.
The war in Canada ended, virtually, by the
fall OF Quebec, and in l7G1 Putnam was again
Connecticut contingent which Joined the
English force against Havana. The arrival
of the reinfOrcements from New England
saved the English expedition, and the capture
of Havana soon followed. Had it not been
returned to Spain by the treaty of the next
year, Cuba would probably now belong to the
United States or Great Britain.
Aud now he returned to his farmers life
for II years. He took part in the protests
against the use of stamped paper, which, in
fact, kept Connecticut free even from the
presence of a sheet of it. He went once to
Natchez, where land had been granted to the
survivors of the Havana expedition, and he
sent some laborers and tools there. Once
and again he was in Boston, and met there
Gage, Colonel Small and other officers with
whom be had served in the French war. He
also met Lord Percy. With these gentlemen
he had friendly converse on the threatening
state of affairs Being once, in particular,
asked, ''whether he did not seriously believe
that we'll appointed British army of 5000
veterans could march through the whole Amer
ican continent?" he replied, briskly, mo
doubt, if they behaved civilly and paid we'll
for everything they wanted but'-after a
moments pause added-'if they should at
tempt it in hostile manner (though the Am
erican men we're out of the question:, the
women, with their ladies' and broomstcks,
would knock them all on the head before they
got half. way through"
Meanwhile, at home the militia we're under
regular training for service, and such men as
he were of course chosen commanders The
news of Lexington found him ploughing, and
without changing his clothes he set out for
Boston. He was at once appointed a Major
General by his own colony. As such he prob
ably gave commands to the Connecticut regi-
ments at Bunker Hill-where he was present.
He was not the commander in chief for the
expedition was sent out by General Ward,
who had Massachusetts commission and had
directed Col. Prescott to fortfy the hill,
which he did. Putnam had meanwhile dis
tinguished himself in a skirmish, in which an
English vessel WAS burned at Hog Island, just
beyond what is now East Boston. The news
of this reached Philadelphia in time to quick
en- Congress in making him Major General
on the Continental establishment II Con-
gress we're to fight battles, it would not do to
have a general from Connecticut, who owed
no allegiance to general from Massachusetts,.
On the very day that Putnam was trying to
fortify Bunker Hill to cover the retreat of
Prescott and his men, who were CT Breeds
Hill, Congress made him Major General of
the United States 1t was in the same series
of appointments in which Washington was
named Commander-in-C Chief.
When the English left Boston, Putnam was
sent to New York and assisted in the effort to
defend that city. Jhst before the fatal battle
of Long Island he was appointed to the co m
mAnd there. The failure of the American
troops has been charged to his ncompetency,
but perhaps he had not fair time to make
proper arrangements to repel the attack. At
ter this he at one time held the command of
the posts above New York. 1t was when he
was in this command that he made the break
neck ride and that ha Wrcta tha nnfa with
''P S. P. NJ He is hanged" which so pleas
ed Mrs. TAFT for its brevity.
But in December, 1879, the fine old fellow
was struck with paralysis, which disabled
him, and he resigned his command in the
army. From that time till he died he lived
in Pomfret, telling his old stories and fight
ing his old battles.
The critics may make as much fun as they
choose about these stories, but they give us
by far the best picture we have of the details
of campaigning on the frontier in the "old
French War."-E. q. Hale in June Wide
Abdke.