The independent-reporter., 1910-04-21

Il Ultimate the possibility of there be-
I'm, other settlers in the party. Jo-
xevh Weston had no brother here.
Was l. his son or his brother -in-law
Heywoo>' who accompanied him7
am inclined to think the latter for
legend sayA Heywood's son-in-law
accompanied the party as far as
skowhe gan fallk. Weston at any rate
went to Norrfdg. wook falls and the
Journey cost him Ills life
From the time the soldiers reached
the bend in the river where the triple
whirlpool of the great eddy guarded
the gorge down which thnndered the
might of untamed waters, TO point
above Norridgewock falls. Arnold
himself says the river was full of
falls and quick water Over Nor
| ridgewock falls this river of ours
leaps and foams and flashes on into
the narrowing gap between approach
ing Lodges, where the water pOurs
through. making Bombazee rips
Thence by series of small falls and
stretches of rapid water-where now
/ the quiet waters flow-it FASTENED on
until divided by the rocky islet We
! know SO we'll. On either side thai
day were plunging falls and rapids
and beyond, the river roared through
the gorge to the eddy where the
boats waited They seem to have
been towed up with much difficulty to
the foot of the island, and dragged
up to the clearing where a camp was
made. 1t is to be presumed that this
camp was not broken up until the last
detachment had passed. At any rate
here a flag staff was raised and the
! G,at H1e n
not, of course. Old Glory but
perhaps the flag that waved over
Bunker Hill A flag called by some
traditions the flag of Bunker Hill was
blue with a red cross on a white field
in the place of the stars on the pres
ent flag. Above the left arm of the
cross was a tree presumably a pine
tree. 1t seems very doubtful if this
were really raised on that day. Not
long after ~the battle Prescott dis
played a banner with the Massachu
setts motto, AN Appeal to Heaven
on one side, and the Connecticut
watchword, "Qui transtulit. sustinet"
on the other. This or some one of the
colonial devices might have been un-
furled at Bunker Hill or on Skowhe-
gan island 1t really does not mat
up in this spot that October day We
can imagine the autumn haze and the
autumn tints, the struggle, the BIZ
vouac, the floating banner and the
singing river away back at the be-
ginnings of things. Surely Skowhe-
gan should have a town Flagstaff here
where on occasion the stars and
stripes should rise at sunrise and so
dnWn q cnnGat In nf
Arnolds failure, but of the brave en-
deavor of brave men and of the pa
triot's flag, the forerunner of our
grand old Glory.
From this place to Norridgewock
falls the weary adyenturers marched
again by the North bank With the
expedition was one man who later
made Canaan his dwelling place.
George Pooler.
When the sound of the marching
army, the splash of paddle and pole
and the shout and laughter of the
men died away and after Joseph Wes
ton returned to his home having seen
the companies safely on their march
into the utter wilderness beyond the
falls now harnessed to turn The
wheels of Madison mills-the planta-
ton was left to it's own devices and
to the solving of it's own problems. It
was destined however to see more
yet of the ill-fated soldiers. A part
of Col Enos division dismayed oy
the hardshps of the march, confront
ed by the prospect of starvation and
almost trackless solitudes turned
back and passed through Canaan
again on their march back from
glory. Col. Enos was court martialed
at Cambridge but under the eXtenu-
ating circumstances acquitted One
| fancies them returning step by step
bitterly regretting all the fruitless
journey. In charge of this detected
division were many of the sick and
the weak whom it had been Arnold's
purpose to send back under escort not
however expecting the whole division
to retreat. Some of these stragglefs
may have fallen out of line here and
there to find homes for themselves
as many of their comrades had be
fore dropped out to find graves in
the wilderness.
This same year. Isaac Smith. 10
seph Weston, Eli Weston, MOrdeeai
Moore and several others volunteered
to enter the Revolutionary army but
only Joseph Weston went-says Han
son with no further explanation. But
we know that constabulary OF
scouting force was enlisted in Nor
ridgewock and tradition says there
were enlisted scouts in Canaan
among whom we're some of the above
named volunteers. 1t would seem
that the fear of an Indian incurson
might have caused these men to be
kept at home.
On one occasion a scouting party
Of three men was seflt to look after
some remote settlers from whom no
tldings had come for many days. Al
a certain point two were left to
guard the canoe while one went on
No one was to fire unless In.
dians were seen. The scout in ad
vance saw or thought he saw a bear
and fired. The two sure he was at
tackled, fed to the settlements and
troops were actually summoned from
Pownalboro before the truth was
known. The Nimrod Of the party new
er liked to hear the story told.
l., e., 11k,ao 80 DotoN H.,