The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-03-15


 by the great majority of the people. But the Episcopal clergymen were con 'scious of strong support in England, and While this did not amount to much here, it was thought to keep the church in existence, and it was feared that if the revolutionists prevailed there would not be Church of England parish left
 in all New England. This feeling made the Episcopal churchmen very bitter, and the clergymen of the church were very active in their support of the mother country. Nineteen days after independence was declared the clergy met to decide what they should do in re- gard to the prayers for the rulers of the country. The Rev. John Viets, of New town and Bedding, said that he should preach and pray for the king, even though the rebels cut out his tongue, but he lived until 17S2. Once shot was fired into his church and the bullet pierced the sounding board above his head.
 | Moses Dunbar was a new convert to the Church of England, and he was a fearless supporter of the king. His ad- herence to the Episcopal church had
 
 | his father and himself, His first wife dying in 1776 he soon afterwards mar | red Esther Adams. In his new wife's family some of the sons were for the coonists and some were for the king. So thoroughly imbued was he with the justice of the kings cause that in the latter part of the year 1776 he went to Long Island and became a captain in Colonel Earnings regiment, regiment made up of tories. Returning to Con- necticut he was arrested on the charge of high treason was adjudged guilty and was sentenced to be hanged. The trial began on Thursday, January 23, |l777, and sentence was pronounced on the Saturday following. He was &C., cused specifically of enlisting men for His Majesty's service, and with having a commission as captain in that service. His commission and orders were found in his pocket. It was alleged that his acts of treason were committed on No- vember 10th, 1776, and January 1st, 1777, and it was shown that he had persuaded John Adams of Pennington to enlist in the English army. It was ordered that the sentence of the court should be car ried into effect on March 18th, 1777. While confined in the Hartford jail awaiting execution Dunbar secured a knife, cut his bonds, knocked down a guard and escaped. He was soon cap- tured, however, and was hanged on the day appointed on the hill where Trinity college now stands, in the presence of a great concourse of people. It is said that when the drop fell white deer ran out of the woods near by.
 While Dunbar lay in jail the excite ment and anxiety among the royalists in the state was very great. Four ex- presses were sent to General Howe in New York asking for his assistancA to save Dunbars life, but without avail.
 Mrs. Dunbar rode to the gallows in carriage with her husband, and after the execution she went to Middletown and was assisted by the royalists there. She afterwards married Chauncey Jones. brother of Dunbar's first wife, and went with him to Nova Scotia. Af- ter a time they returned to Connecticut and passed the rest of their days here Tn conclusion Judge Peck read two pa pers written by Dunbar on the day be- ! fore he was executed They were found 1 in an old house in Harwinton hundred l years after his death One was letter to his children and was full of good ad- | vice for their spiritual and temporal | welfare. The other was sketch of his | own life. In the latter there was no re- traction or palliation for his conduct | Tn it there was no boasting or self | but a conscientious statement | of his position.
 The members of the society passed ls paper.