The Coolidge examiner., 1935-07-26

. OF he ~ OmAN, olRi
the army through an exchange OF prisoners and
became colonel OF the Eleventh virginia regiment
tlater designated as the SEVENTH composed OF
remnants Of the company he had led north from
Frederick az the opening OF the war and other
sharpshooters recruited for the regiment
In June. 1I17. Washington. convinced that the
sharpshoounG ability of these fronuersmen from
Pennsylvania. Maryland and virginia might prove
decisive factor IN the war n concentrated in
one unit and led by the right officers. decided
20 organize such a corps As a result the Corps
oi Rlnemen" the Corps OF Rangers" (Wash-
ingion used both names In referring 10 I'D came
into existence IL was also known "Morgnns
RInemen' and "Morgan's Parttzan Corps" be-
cause its colonel was Daniel Morgan. Richard
Butler Of the Ninth Pennsylvania was made lieu.
,enant-colonel and Capt Joseph Morris OF New
Jersey became major.
The captains. according TO wIlklnson's Mem
oIrs. were samuel j. Cabell. Thomas Posey. Ga.
briel Long OF Maryland to,her authorities list
him as yirglnlan). Van Swearingen OF the
Eighth Pennsylvania. James Parr Of the First
Pennsylvania. Hawkins Boone Of the Twelfth
Pennsylvania. Matthew Henderson Of the Ninth
Pennsylvania and a Captain Knox whose for.
mer afillation IL unknown The corps consisted
OF approximately 600 men, transferred from the
line. of this number PennsylTanlans supplied
1913 officers and men. Virginia. l63 and Mary
land. 6.
The rinemen soon justified washlngton's faith
In their ability and they behaved 80 gallantly
as 10 win special mention from His Exceency
In n letter TO congress Ia It he spoke Of their
conduct and bravery where they constantly sd.
vanced upon an enemy far superior In numbers
and well secured behind redoubts-
When the threat OF Burgoyne's invasion loomed
on the northern horizon. the eommanderln-chlef
decided that General Gates needed these rangers
more than be did. In letter 10 Gov. George
Clinton OF New York be said Il am forwarding
as fast as possible 10 join the Northern Army.
Col. Morgan's Corps Of Rihemen. amounting TO
nve hundred. These all chosen men selected
from the army at large. well acquainted with
the use OF rifles. and with that mode Of fghting
which is necessary 20 make them a good counter
poise 10 the Indians. and they have distinguished
themselves on a variety OF occasions since the
formation OF the corps. In skirmIshes with the
enemy"
Morgan and his men were destined TO distin.
guish themselves even more In the Saratoga cam
paign They were invaluable both In the desultory
sniplng attacks on Burgoynes camp and Ia
pitched battle. Under the leadership OF the dash.
Ing Benedict Arnold they won laurels the
bloody field OF Freemans Farm and added TO
them at the decisive Battle Of Saltwater. al.
though Gates basely deprived both Morgan and
Arnold Of the credit that was justly theirs. In
fact. II was al saltwater that one OF the rife
men fred another "sho, heard round the world
For when a ball from the rifle OF Timothy Mur-
ply. the Pennsylvania. struck down Gen. Simon
Fraser. Burgoyne's ablest subordinate. he sealed
the doom OF luckless Gentleman Johnny'sr
army and made Saratoga the turning point Of
the Revolution"
Early In 1T1S Morgan, whose health had been
broken by the hardshIps he had undergone. re-
turned TO his home In Virginia 10 recuperate.
Thereupon Major Posey successor 10 Major
Morris who had been killed in an engagement
during the winter OF 1777 became commander.
But the "Old WAGNER was back In the field in
time TO lead his rifemen 10 further honors at the
Battle OF Monmouth. Soon afterwards he gave
up the command again The corps was broken
up and various companies assigned to different
regiments
The disbandment of Morgan's Rife Corps
prevented the establishment OF what might have
been a splendid tradition in the history of Amer
lean arms. A recent historian has pointed out
that some 80 years before congress authorized
the raising of ten companies of border rihemen,
George ii had looked TO the highland border Of
north Britain for regiment to have the virtues
peculiar 10 the frontier and ten companies were
raised from the Highanders whose duty had
been to watch upon the braes' This regiment
became the Black Watch. famous today. The
famous American rifle corps would have had its
identity preserved in the American army IL a
similar useful traditionalism had prevailed in TIE
United States. 1t has not and there are no MOI
gan's Rifles"
II is true that there are no "Morgan's Rifles"
IN American army today Rrft tho olorv of
that name is imperishably preserved in the rec
ord of their achievements on the battlefelds of
Saratoga and Monmouth and along the trail
which Sullivan, the Town Destroyer" blaze6
through the gloomy forests of the Iroquois coun-
try from Tioga TO Genesee Castle. And so long
as the story Of the struggle for American lib
erty is repeated, so long will The Rifemen of
the Revolution" be a shining name in the annals
OF orr nation.
Western Newspaper Union.