Milford chronicle., 1939-05-12
HISTORICAL SUSSEX

in complying with the demands OF
Sir John Beresford to Lewestown in
consideration of his superior force.
| must, therefore, consider your first
refusal to supply the squadron with
water. and the cattle that the neigh
bOrhOod affords, most cruel on your
part to the inhabitants. l grieve for
the distress that the women and
children are reduced to by your con-
duct, and earnestly desire that they
he removed"
Accordingly, Colonel Davis sent
the verbal message that Colonel
Davis is a gallant man and has al
! ready taken care of the ladies'" When
! this reply reached Captain Bryon he
commenced the attack.
/ The British feet consisted of four
( launches. two sloops. a mortar, a
pilot boat, the schooner Paz and the
Belvidere. The bOmbardment contin-
ued until 10 o'clock on the night OF
/ the 9Th. The enemy fired nearly eight
I hundred 80 and l8-pound shot into
the town, besides shells and Con-
greve rockets. The rockets passed
high over the houses; the bombs fell
short of their mark Balls from the
enemy's guns were dug from the
sand by small boys and returned to
the enemy from shore batteries. One
of the enemy's most dangerous gun
boats was soon disabled by a we'll
directed shot from a 32-pounder.
Martha Gum, daughter of Arm
well, hearing the guns lombard 20
miles away. paced the floor of her
home in Frankford. praying for the
safety of her father, and of her hus
band, John Gum.
On the afternoon of the 9TH, Brit
ish sailors attempted to land in a
number of small boats Militiamen
and volunteers, among whom were
Colonel Long and his company, re-
pulsed the sailors. The enemy re-
treated to their boats and on the Sth
withdrew to the capes.
A few days after the engagement
at Lewes wag humorously prepar-
ed a casualty list, the enumeration
consisting of "one chicken killed
and one pig wounded, leg broken"
Colonel Armwell Long lived with
his wife, Elizabeth Schofield, a di-
minutiye woman, on tract of land
called Forest Flower, granted to his
father, David Long, by Lord Balti-
more, in 1852. Colonel Long always
kept a jug of spirits in the front hall
of his home. Guests helped them
selves with a tin cup.
Records do not state that Arm
well Long was injured in the War
of 1912, but he was known to have
spent his days from shortly after the
war to death in a wheel chair, at
tended by a slave couple, Jake and
jimmy Colonel Long always had a
cane nearby and indoors usually sat
by the fireplace. The Colonel was a
man of temper and he occasionally
thrashed his servants with the cane
which he kept stuck in a knot hole
through the floor. The tale is told
that one of the servant couple was
called before the Colonel to account
for some wrong-doing. Anticipating
the inevitable outcome. the compan-
ion servant crawled under the house
and held the end of the cane until
the old mans wrath abated!
1t is said that at one time a per-
son could walk from Selbyville to
Frankford on Colonel Armwell
Longs property.
In consideration of $1.00 he deed
ed to in-laws and outlaws various
tracts of land in Dagsboro and Bal
timore Hundreds, then Worcester
County, Maryland. including That
cher's Landing. vast river-front hold
ings, beach property around Cotton
Patch Hills, even land in Pilot Town
at Lewes.
Colonel Armwell Long died in
1894.
Today the D. A. r. Chapter in
Sussex county bears the name OF
Colonel Armwell Long. The chapter
was organized March Is, 1884 with
.welve members, Mrs. Norman Gum
as Regent. Now the Colonel Arm
we'll Long Chapter has 21 members,
aspiring to best D. A. r. traditions.