Ceredo advance. [volume] (Ceredo, W. Va.) 1885-1939, 1897-10-06
THE END
LONE HORN CANNON"
A short Story OF the Revolutionary war
In New jersey.

A short Story OF the Revolutionary war
In New Jersey.
Time, which has woven "A mantle of
forgetfulness about so many relies of
the American revolution, hiding the as
GOcis tious that give to tattered flags
and rusty gun barrels a value hey oId
price. has dealt kindly with the old cas-
non IL own as One Horn" This wcap-
on stands on an eminence in Fairview
cemetery at Westfield, y. j. Beside il
is the soldiers monument, and above,
OF a lofty fag-pole, perches an Ameri-
can eagle, symbolical of the liberty the
cannon was so active in achieving.
Compared with the ponderous artl-
lery of our time, "One Horn" cannon is
but plaything. 1t is less than four
feet in length, and weighs with its
carriage barely $50 pounds. But in its
day the gun was regarded as formidn-
BILE weapon; and its capture by the
Americans from the British in 1850 &C
caSioned great rejoicing in the patriots
camp.
Prior TO June % of that year the can
non was used by Gen. knyphausen i'm a
campaign intended to destroy the pa
triots and the cause for which they
were struggling. On that eventful
morning. the British commander Gi-
vided his force of 5000 men into two
columns, and advanced westward from
Elizabethtown. One division marched
TO Springfield, and the other took the
road through what is now Crawford to
Westfield.
The citizens Of Westfield awaited
with intense anxiety the arrival Of the
enemy. Their forebodings were not
quoted by the news from Springfield
that the village had been pillaged and
burned by the invading soldiers. One
detachment OF artillerymen visited the
old Baker homestead on the outskirts OF
Nestiield and promised To protect the
family from harm, provided prov isions
were set before them. Mrs. Baker ac-
ceptcd the terms joyfully, and prepared
for the unwelcomc guests generous
meal, which included a key OF very
hard cider. One of the soldiers drank
so freely that he forgot his manners.
and began amusing himself by chasing
the farmers family about the room at
But minute man named Capt. Little.
who had been Watching the proceedings
from behind a bush, interfered at this
point by sending a weIl-aimed bullet
through the brutc's thigh. The reDort
OF Little's gun brought other minute
men to the scene, and skirmish en-
sued. The British were compelled to
beat hasty retreat. leaving their gun
behind, in the possession of the Amer
leans. During the encounter the can
non had been upset, and one of the horns
or arms which held it fast to its car
riage struck stone and broke it Off.
This accident suggested the name zone
Horn" and so it has been known ever
since.
During the same hour the division of
the army that bad marched for West
field reached the town. The first thing
done was the removal and confiscation
of the Presbyterian church bell. This
bell in addition to it's Office Of summon
ing the people to devotional services,
was used as a fire alarm and TO give
warning of danger from the hostile In
dams who infested the surrounding
country. The soldiers, after helping
themselves to the citizens goods and
taking prisoners a few of the rebels,
marched away. The bell they sent to
New York. To supply its place. zone
Horn cannon was brought into the
town. Whenever danger threatened it's
voice Numbered out n warming 20 the
people, and many times bands 81 Brit
ish msraudcrs were driven away by It's
use.
The cannon has figured prominently
in many occasions subsequent 20 the
war for independence. IL has been fired
in scores Of patriotic celebrations and
the descendants Of revolutionary patri-
OTIS have priled IL so highly that many
rival claims TO its ownership have been
made. Within a few years Westfeld
has succeeded in proving its title. and
the gun has been stationed in Fairyiew
cemetery. where IT, teaches an impress
sivc object lesson in patriotism.-N.
Post.