In the olden time previous to the war of the Revolution, the main road from Boston to New York through Connecticut came through Stratford in Fairfield County about a mile from the Sound. West of Stratford about a mile, there is a considerable hill, and the road was then and is now called the Old Mill Road. On the eastern slope of this hill and about two miles from the town lived a farmer, named Joseph Lewis, who was known as a sturdy Whig. Soon after the commencement of the war, his family consisted of two sons and four daughters.

In the town of Stratford there were quite a number of Tories. There was built the first Episcopal Church in Connecticut, and the members of it were very generally Tories. It is related that the Rector, after the conflict had begun, continued the services and was in the habit of praying for his most gracious majesty the king. He was remonstrated with about it, but continued to use the prayer. It caused much excitement in the town until one day when the services had come to the prayer for the king, a young man, Aaron Benjamin, rose and in a loud and commanding voice, said that prayer could not be any longer used in that church. The Rector concluded to stop and dismissed the congregation. Some of the Tories had gone over and joined the British troops on Long Island. In one of the harbors there was a British frigate - the Tories in connection with the crew of this frigate got up a marauding party, and crossing the Sound, and sailing up through one of the inlets, they landed and made their way towards the farm of Joseph Lewis for the purpose of plundering it of whatever they thought would be useful to them. It so happened that

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at this time several of the young men of Stratford had gone out to
Mr. Lewis' place, visiting his daughters, and as they were leaving
to return home, they discovered the party of sailors and Tories.
They hastened to the town and a company was soon started to intercept
the marauders, but they were too late and the party escaped.

With these young men was Jabez H. Tomlinson of Stratford, at
this time a student in Yale College, about eighteen years of age, who
was courting the eldest daughter of Mr. Lewis. He, having tarried a
few moments after his companions left, was captured by the marauders
and carried over to Long Island.

On the return of his boats the commander of the frigate required
them to report to him, and learning they had brought off a prisoner,
directed he should be sent to him. Young Tomlinson was at this time
only a large boy, tall, good looking and very intelligent. The
commander of the frigate enquired particularly of the boat's trip and
how he became a captive. On learning of the looting of the farmer's
house he was furiously angry and swore terribly. He sent for the
officer in command of the party and said "the expedition was a disgrace
to the service" and insisted they should return young Tomlinson. There
was a heated discussion. The officer said the young man was a person
of consequence and they wanted to use him in exchange for a civilian
whom the Americans had taken prisoner and who was in New London, Conn.
The commander was finally persuaded to send the young man to New York.
This he did, giving him a letter stating the circumstances of his capture
with a request that he might be exchanged for the prisoner at New London.

Tomlinson was then sent on to New York, and for a while lived
with the British officers in the lower part of Broadway. He had some

money when he was taken and he wrote to his guardian at Stratford who
contrived some way of sending him a small amount. When this was ex-
hausted he left his quarters in Broadway and went or was sent to the
sugar house which was used as a prison for the captured Americans.
He did not, however, secure his exchange and finally wrote a complaint
to General Clinton, the English commander. He sent for Tomlinson, and
after a while it was proposed to allow him to return to Connecticut and
negotiate an exchange with the civilian prisoner at New London, and if
not successful he was pledged to return to New York. They wanted him
to go up on the west side of the North River some distance, then to
cross and find his way to Stratford. This he told them was a long
journey so he was allowed to go up through Westchester County. He
was accompanied by a guard until he reached the farthest outpost of the
English Army, and from there he found his way to the outpost of the
American troops and on to his home in Stratford. He arrived there late
in the day, but his guardian, Mr. Wetmore, started the same evening for
New London to make the exchange, but he was too late as the exchange of
the civilian had been effected. Tomlinson, however, through the influence
of his friends was exchanged for some other party and thus escaped the
necessity of returning to New York. He was still quite young, about
twenty, but he enlisted in the army in a company raised in Stratford by
Gen. Walker and was appointed a Lieutenant.

He was with the army at the time of Benedict Arnold's traitorship
and the capture of Major Andre and on the night previous to his execution
(of the latter) was one of the guard over him.

Major Andre excited the strong sympathy of the American officers
and their regrets that the necessary interests of the service required

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his execution. During the night Major Andre took a pen and made a drawing of himself and gave it to Lieutenant Tomlinson. This drawing which was very neatly finished, was greatly prized by Mr. Tomlinson. Many years after, he had a visit from a New Haven friend, to whom he showed it, who asked that he might take it to New Haven to show to some of his friends. Mr. Tomlinson consented, but instead of returning it to Mr. Tomlinson, the friend presented it to Yale College, where it still remains. It was sent to Stratford at the 250th anniversary of the town by President Dwight and was then photographed by F. C. Beach, Esq. and from that photograph is now repeated in this article. It is very remarkable that a young man, on the eve of his execution for an ignominious offence against the articles of war could have produced such a likeness of himself.

Mr. Tomlinson after a time married Rebecca Lewis and settled down on a farm which he had inherited in Oronoque, an out village of Stratford on the west side of the Housatonic River, a few miles from the old town. He died in 1849, aged eighty-nine years.

His oldest son Gideon was educated at Yale College, was elected a member of both houses of the National Legislatures at Washington, and subsequently Governor of Connecticut.

One cannot but be struck by the events referred to in this article. At the time of the Revolutionary War the population of the United States was about 3,000,000 scattered along the shores of the Atlantic. At this writing it is about 7,400,000 extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans, and from Behring Sea to Key West in Florida and comprises the most intelligent vigorous and prosperous people in the world.

The events in Mr. Tomlinson's life as related were given
to the writer in a conversation when he was about eighty years old, that
is, in 1840. Joseph Lewis, as has been stated, had four daughters -
the youngest, Mary Ann married William Booth of Stratford, from whom the
writer of this article is descended being born in Stratford in September 1803.

Charles H. Booth.