Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1891-08-14


true facts regarding it are but little under
stood. 1t is not generally realized that
New Hampshires part in Bennington was
fully equal to that of Vermont; nor that
Massachusetts, was there at least four hun
dred strong furnishing more than half of
the men who fought under Stark's person
al command in the desperate struggle at
the centre of the line.
On bluff overlooking the city of New
Haven stands monument dedicated to the
soldiers of four wars. On that face of the
monument inscribed to Revolutionary he
roes are these three names:
CONCORD.
BENNINGTON.
YORKTOWN.
Extreme, perhaps, in its conciseness, this
inscription evinces an unusual appreciation
of the historic importance of the three en-
ga gements named. Had Lexington been
united with Concord-for the two engage
ments were one running fght-and Ben
nington with Saratoga, this epitome of the
Revolution would have been complete.
Greasy says, "Nor can any event be said
to have exercised more important influence
on the future of mankind than the COM
plete defeat of Burgoyne's expedition in
It'll" This is not too strongly put; and
Bennington was the triumphant prelude
that made Saratoga possible. 1t came at
an hour when everything was dishearten-
ing for the American patriots. Their re-
sources were almost exhausted. They need
ed the assistance from some strong nation
which only striking success could secure
for them Driven from Long Island and
Manhattan, Washington waited watchful
on the heights of MorristOwn; but few
men could comprehend the Fabian pol
icy of such man. Now a tremendous
blow was to be driven home, at the very
heart of the colonies, by the best equipped
army that England had yet landed in Amer
lea.
In Virginia and New England were the
two burning centres of revolt Between
them the Tory element was strong, and the
slender connecting link of settlements
along the Hudson and Mohawk was pecul-
iarly susceptible to attack. Were that link
in the chain once broken, and England
once in command of the water highway
between Canada and New York, the NAL
contents of New England and the South
might snarl and growl on either side-the
monster of rebellion would be cut in two
and the troops of his majesty could pro-
a., l., 81,
leisure.
This reasoning was good. An apparent
ly faultless plan was evolved to achieve the
desired result. Sir Guy Carleton had OBJ
tanned command of Lake Champlain down
to Ticonderoga the previous autumn. The
plan of the British war Office was to send
one expedition under Burgoyne by the old
familiar water way from Canada; another,
by Lake Ontario, was to land at Oswego,
and push through the wilderness to the
Mohawk valley, rallying Indians and
Tories on the way; Sir William Howe
was to ascend the Hudson; and the three
expeditions would unite at Albany. a splen-
did army, with the rebels at their mercy.
The plan was comprehensive 1t must
have looked well on paper in the British
war office. But it took no account of the
trackless forests that would oppose Their
unaccustomed obstacles to the European
soldiery, and it vastly overestimated the
Tory strength that would be gathered in.
There were enough Tovies to make theil
patriotic neighbOrs much trouble at times,
but there were not enough to save Bur
goyne. Nor did the British war authori-
ties take into account, though Lexington
Concord, and Bunker Hill should have
taught them the lesson, the promptness
Obstinacy and courage with which the mer
of New England, somewhat slow to inau
gurate aggressive warfare, would rise anC
defend their own soil when menaced by an
invader.
Burgoyne assembled Lake Champain witt
a thoroughly equipped and disciplined army
of eight thousand men, half of them Brit.
ish regulars; three thousand of them Ger
man mercenaries the tried veterans OF
Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick, under
Major-General Riedesel, one of the mos
accomplished officers of that martial prince
and the remainder Canadians and Indians
of the latter about five hundred No Brit
ish commander had better general officer,
than Phillips Fraser and Riedesel The
knowledge of the approach of such an ex,
petition was sufficient to carry consterna
ton into the colonies, where discussion,
between Congress and the best generals in
the continental army were already making
wounds that would never heal When the
gallant Phillips scaled Mount Defiance and
forced St. Clair to eyacuate Ticonderoga
with his little army of 1.-TWO thousand half
armed men and boys" the consternotior
became a panic. st. Clair retreated into
Vermont hoty pursued by Fraser, but al
Hubbardton the American rear guard un
der Colonies Warner and Francis checked
the pursuit, and Fraser was only saved
from defeat by the timely arrival of Ried
esel. This affair occurred on the It'll OF
July, and after it the pursuit of St. Clail
was abandoned and Burgoyne pushed on t.
Skenesborough, now Whitehall
New Englanders felt an unjust and un
reasoning distrust of Schuyler, who wa.
slowly retreating before Burgoyne. They
saw that they were menaced and felt tina
the necessity was upon them for self-de
fence. Burgoyne's advance was slow be
cause of the distractions DIacad I'm hi