CHAPTER XII
THE FIGHT AT FORT ANNE, AND THE ESCAPE OF AMOS
When night came on, we retreated with the wounded we had saved. The nextmorning the whole army reembarked and rowed up Lake George to the ruinsof Fort William Henry and landed. This time we were not admiring thebeauty of the scene. We were filled with sorrow and dismay at thefailure of the expedition and our terrible disaster. We lost nearly twothousand men. The French lost only about three hundred.
The whole army, regulars and provincials, were indignant with ourcowardly and incompetent general, Abercrombie, or Mrs. Nabby Crombie, asthe soldiers nicknamed him. We knew that the battle had been badlyconducted. We wished to have the cannon brought to the front to batterdown the breastworks, and were willing and eager to fight again. ButAbercrombie began to entrench, and sent most of his artillery to Albany,lest it should fall into the hands of the enemy.
[Sidenote: THE RANGERS SENT AGAINST THE ENEMY]
The Rangers heard little of this grumbling and dissatisfaction; for assoon as we returned from Ticonderoga we were sent out scouting near thesouth end of Lake Champlain, and very nearly fell into the hands of alarge force of French and Indians. Fortunately we saw them in time toescape.
A few days later, a wagon-train was attacked and one hundred andseventy-six men were killed, of whom sixteen were Rangers. The news ofthis disaster came in the night, and at two in the morning Rogersstarted out with a large party of regulars, provincials, and Rangers tohead off the enemy. We rowed down Lake George at the top of our speed,and then marched over the mountain to the narrow waters of LakeChamplain. But though we made all possible haste, so did the enemy, andwe missed them by a couple of hours.
We rested for a time; for we were much exhausted by our efforts, andwere about to march back, when a messenger arrived, who gave us ordersto go to Fort Anne at Wood Creek, and cut off a party of French andIndians who were near Fort Edward.
We had about five hundred men, eighty of whom were Rangers. The rest wasmade up of some of Gage's light infantry and Connecticut troops, underMajor Israel Putnam.
On the 7th of August we reached the spot where old Fort Anne had stood,and camped there.
The forest for a mile around the old fort had been cut down and burnedyears before. But the fort had rotted away, and the clearings had becomeovergrown with bushes, with here and there an open space.
Early the next morning we began our march. Putnam and his men were infront, the light infantry in the centre, and the Rangers in the rear.
Rogers had been shooting at a mark that morning with Lieutenant Irwin ofthe regulars. The enemy had overheard the firing and ambuscaded us.
Putnam was leading his men. As he left the clearing, and entered theforest, the yelling and firing began. Several Indians rushed at him. Hisgun missed fire, and he with three or four men was captured by theIndians.
[Sidenote: BEN WRESTLES WITH AN INDIAN]
The redskins forced the Connecticut men back, the light infantry heldtheir ground, and we of the Rangers struggled through the bushes as bestwe could, to get to the front.
Every one fought for himself. I had fired my gun just as I reached anopen space, and seeing a number of men on the other side, I started torun across to them.
Of course I should have reloaded before I attempted this; but one doesnot always do the right thing, especially in a hot fight. I had gone buta short distance when an Indian fired at me from the bushes, and thenran at me with a tomahawk.
I turned, parried the blow with my gun, and the tomahawk was struck fromhis hand.
We grappled each other. He was a fine, large man, decked out withfeathers and warpaint, and was the strongest and most active man I evergot hold of. He seemed to be made of steel springs. As I struggled withhim, I couldn't help thinking, "What a splendid wrestler you would makeif you only knew the tricks!" I gave him Jonas Parker's best throw, andwe came down together, and I on top.
The fall knocked the wind out of him and partly stunned him. I got holdof my hatchet and brained him. I had not noticed or thought of anythingbut him. But now I heard a crack! crack! zip! zip!
As I started to run I felt a pain in my left arm, and also in my leftleg. But I got off to our men among the bushes, and they bound my armup, and put a bandage round my leg.
I saw an Indian leap in among the regulars, and kill two men with hishatchet. Then he jumped on a log and taunted our men. A soldier struckat him with his gun and made him bleed. The Indian was returning theblow with his tomahawk, when Rogers shot him.
I was still able to load and shoot. We fought some two hours before theygave way. At last they broke up into little parties and ran off. Weremained and buried our dead.
[Sidenote: BEN WOUNDED]
We lost about fifty men. The French and Indians left over one hundreddead on the field; and their loss was much heavier, for they carried offmost of their dead.
My wounds now made me so lame and stiff that I could not walk, and wascarried on a litter of branches.
Rogers came alongside, and said: "That was a mighty pretty wrestle,Comee. Big stakes up too; glad you won. But I believe if that Indian hadbeen taught the tricks like a Christian, you would have met your match."
"That's just what I was thinking myself, major, all the time I waswrestling with him. It's an awful pity to have to kill a man like that."
"Oh, pshaw, nothing but a cussed redskin. That makes one less of thevermin. All of us on both sides round that clearing watched you and him,and did not pay much attention to each other till it was over. When youkilled him, and got up, they fired at you, and we began to fire at themagain. But for a short time all of us watched you. He must have been abig Injun among them."
"Major, where is Amos Locke?"
"I don't know. I don't think he was among the killed or wounded; and ifhe isn't with our party here, he's probably a prisoner, perhaps roastedand scalped by this time."
Edmund came up later. "I'm afraid, Ben, we shan't see Amos again. He andI were together for a while. But in running through the bushes we gotseparated, and I can't find him among our men. If he were with ourparty, he would have come to us by this time."
"Poor fellow! I can't bear to think of him in the woods, dead; or worsestill, being tortured by the Indians. He may turn up again, after all."
When we arrived at camp at Lake George, we found that it had beenstrongly intrenched.
The camp was dirty and filthy, particularly the portion occupied by theprovincials, for our officers were ignorant in such matters.
On the way to and from Ticonderoga the men had drunk a good deal of lakewater, and this with the grief over our defeat and the filthy state ofour camp had caused much sickness.
[Sidenote: PROVINCIALS BEAT REGULARS SHOOTING]
Having been out in the woods on scouts, I was in good condition, and mywounds began to heal quickly. Edmund took me over to see the man we hadrescued at Ticonderoga. We found him doing well, cursing the French, andaching to get at them again. We looked up our kinsmen Hector and Donaldand struck up a great friendship with the men of the Black Watch. Hectorand Donald were both God-fearing men, and went with us several times tohear Parson Cleveland of Bagley's regiment preach. He gave us sermonsfull of meat, and we enjoyed them.
The regulars and provincials did not get on well together. TheEnglishmen looked down on the provincial officers and men, and thiscaused much hard feeling. One day in August, the regulars andprovincials practised firing with great guns at a target in the lake,and our men beat the regulars thoroughly. That pleased us and made theold country men feel pretty glum. Although the regulars scorned theprovincials, yet they held the Rangers in high esteem.
"Why is it, Donald," I asked, "that the regulars think so well of us,and laugh at the rest of the provincials?"
"Well, man, one reason is, because you're no province soldiers at all,being in the direct pay and service of the King, like ourselves. Andthen you're a braw set of men, and ken this fighting in the woods a dealbetter than we do, and
we know it. But the provincials are gawks fromcountry towns, without discipline, and with no more knowledge of thewoods than we have."
"But Edmund and I are from a town like them."
"You've keppit gude company, since you've been with the Rangers, andhave been long enough with them to look and act like the rest of them.One would take you for hunters and woodsmen."
"But the provincials were the last to leave the field at Ticonderoga."
"I'm no denying it. They fought well."
"And for country greenhorns, they did pretty well with the cannon theother day."
"Aye, man, I'm no saying they didn't. I'm a truthful man, and I maun sayI was sair disappointed when they beat us shooting." And he changed thesubject.
[Sidenote: LAKE GEORGE]
Though our camp was foul, yet the lake was the fairest spot I have everseen--dotted with islands and hemmed in by mountains. Even Hector andDonald said it was "a bonny place, just for all the world like oldScotland."
We used to row on the lake, among the pretty islands, or lie in the boatand gaze at the mountains and the clouds floating over them. It seemedabsurd that two great bodies of men should come to such a serene,peaceful place, and occupy their time killing each other.
About two weeks after the Fort Anne fight, Edmund and I had a chance toget away from camp for several hours, and started off with 'BijahThompson of Woburn, whom we found in Colonel Nichols's regiment.
We pulled out on the lake, went in swimming, and then rowed slowly alongwith our fish-lines trailing behind. But the fish didn't bite. We cutacross the upper part of the lake, and as we approached the furtherside, Edmund said: "What's that over on the shore, Ben? There's someone there who seems to be making motions to us."
We rowed in that direction, and saw a man waving his arms, and heard a"hello!"
"That's no Frenchman. That's one of our men who has got lost in thewoods, or who has escaped from the French."
As we came nearer, we saw that he was almost naked. We pulled toward theshore, and beheld a pitiful, haggard fellow, with nothing on him but apair of ragged breeches and a tattered shirt. We were about to ask himsome questions, when he exclaimed:--
"B-B-Ben and Edmund, and 'B-Bijah Thompson too, by gum! An-An-And ain'tI glad to see you?"
"Amos Locke! And we're glad to see you, too. Where have you been?"
"B-Been? I've been in h-hell. Say, have you got anything to eat? I'mstarved."
We had a lot of rye and Injun bread, cheese, and boiled beef with us. Webrought it out, and Amos gulped away at it like a hungry dog. We alsohad a wooden bottle into which we had poured our rations of rum, andthen filled it up with water. We passed it to Amos, and he took a longswig at it. As he took it away from his mouth, a happy grin came overhis face.
[Sidenote: AMOS COMES BACK]
"B-Boys, that goes to the spot. I'm not a rum-drinker, but when afellow's been frozen, and starved, and water-logged, he does sort ofhanker after something that has a t-tang to it."
He put down the bottle, and went to work at the food again. In a shorttime our dinner had disappeared--and we had put up what we consideredwas an ample supply for three hearty men.
I picked up my jacket and handed it to him to put on; for though it wasa warm day, he looked cold and peaked. His feet were badly cut, and weredone up in bandages of cloth. Then I filled my pipe, and taking out myflint and steel, lit it and gave it to him.
"This isn't b-bad. Now row to the place where the victuals are."
Edmund and 'Bijah rowed, while I questioned Amos.
"Well, I was running through the b-bushes, just a little behind you,Edmund, when my foot caught in a root or vine, and over I wentker-flummux. My gun flew out of my hands, and as I was g-getting up, twoFrenchmen grabbed me and p-pulled me off through the woods. When theyhad gone quite a distance, they t-tied me to a tree, and went back tofight. I heard the firing and tried to get loose, but couldn't.
"A young Injun came along and had some f-fun throwing his tomahawk atthe tree, just over my head, seeing how near he could come to it withouthitting me.
"After he had done this half a dozen times, he stood in front of me, andsaid, 'Ugh! Me big Injun.' I said, 'Yes, you big Injun. Big Injun bettergo fight.' He went away, and in about an hour my two Frenchmen camerunning back with more men. They untied me, and fastening a line aroundmy neck, one led and the other drove me, hitting me with his loaded gun,punching the muzzle into my b-back. When they got to the place wherethey had left their packs, they p-pulled off my jacket and waistcoat,t-tied a heavy pack on my back, and drove me along again.
[Sidenote: ISRAEL PUTNAM HAS A WARM TIME]
"Every now and then I sank down, and thought I c-couldn't go anyfurther; but the man behind put his gun to my head, r-r-ripped out a lotof oaths at me, and told me he would blow my head off if I didn't get upand hustle.
"Oh, no, I don't know their lingo; but I could understand just what hesaid, and what's m-more, I know he m-meant it. I didn't want to be ac-cold corpse out there in the woods, so I got up and struggled onagain.
"At last they camped for the night. They laid me on my back and t-tiedmy hands and feet to stakes d-driven into the ground.
"I saw Major P-Putnam, who had been captured by some Injuns. They tookhis pack off, and he looked as if he would drop. They r-rushed at him,stripped him, t-tied him to a tree, piled dry branches and brush abouthim, and set them on fire. Then they formed a ring around him, andtaunted and insulted him. A shower came up and put the fire out. Theyg-got more branches and lighted the fire again. The fire was burningwell, and P-Putnam was squirming away from the heat, when a Frenchofficer ran up, k-kicked the branches aside, cut the cords, told theInjuns to stand back, and led P-Putnam away. I heard afterward that thisman's name was Morin, and that he was the leader of the expedition.
"The next morning at daybreak we got into the b-batteaux and canoes, androwed down Wood Creek. I was in a b-batteau. They gave me an oar, andmade me work for all I was worth. If I let up for a minute, they hit meand threatened to k-kill me. That ugly fellow who swore at me the daybefore was in the boat, and I c-could understand him. He made thingsvery clear, as he jabbed the m-muzzle of his gun into my ribs, andh-held his finger on the trigger.
"They were in a hurry to get out of the way of any f-force of our menthat might be sent to cut them off. We reached T-Ticonderoga that night.They turned us prisoners out into a pasture with some scrubby trees init, and p-put a guard around us. And there they k-kept us, giving ushardly anything to eat, t-till at last we grew so hungry that wep-pulled the bark off the b-black birches, and ate it to stay ourstomachs. I thought considerable of home while I was b-browsing round inthat p-pasture, and of what I used to do. Not so m-much ofpigeon-shooting and fox-hunting as of things I disliked, p-ploughing inthe spring, hilling corn till my back ached, cutting logs into lengthsfor firewood till my arms were t-tired out and my hands b-blistered.
[Sidenote: FOND RECOLLECTIONS]
"These were all unpleasant, but I remembered the comfortable home andthe supper that came after the work, and how I used to eat my fill insafety. And here I was, likely to be scalped or burned to death, and myinnards just a griping and a yearning for a b-bit of solid food.
"There were some four thousand Frenchmen in the fort, Canadians,Indians, and the regulars in their white coats.
"I was bound to get away if I could, and watched for a chance. We werenot f-far from the breastwork.
"Sentinels walked up and down on the inner side, and I knew that I couldnot c-crawl over it, without being seen. They did not pay so muchattention to the swampy ground at either end. I made up my mind to g-getto the low land, and pass by the end of the breastwork.
"After we had been there six days, a storm began in the afternoon. Therain came down in torrents, and the wind b-blew hard.
"We were out in the wet, soaking. When the French had gone to sleep, Iwalked to the f-fence which was round our pasture, and waited for thesentinel to pass. Then I crept under the fence, and
crawled along till Igot to the swamp, and went into the edge of it and walked toward the endof the breastwork. The f-fall of rain had made the swamp worse thanusual.
"As I walked along in the mire, I felt that I was sinking, and caughthold of a t-tree and pulled myself out, but left my shoes behind. Then Ikept close to the edge of the swamp, and went along carefully, t-till Igot near the breastwork.
[Sidenote: A STROLL THROUGH THE WOODS]
"I heard the sentinel c-coming my way, and lay down till he t-turned andwalked away from me.
"I passed by the end of the breastwork, and kept along the edge of theforest, t-till I felt there was an opening, which I knew must be thepath we travelled over on our way from Lake George. It was blind going,p-pitch dark. Every now and then I found myself wandering from the path,b-but luckily the passage of our large army had t-trodden it down into aroad, so that I k-kept my way, though it was with great d-difficulty.
"As it began to grow light, I reached a point where a ledge came down tothe road; and I thought this would be a good place to leave the path,because if the Indians searched for me, they would lose my trail on ther-rocks.
"I walked on the rocks for over an hour, t-till the sun rose, and therain ceased. I came across a blueberry patch, and ate my fill. It wasgood to be free and to have something to eat.
"I found a hollow where I would not be seen, and where the sun wouldshine on me, and I lay down and slept. When I w-woke up, and wasthinking what to do, a rabbit came hopping along, feeding. I kept quietuntil he had passed me, and rose up and c-cried out, Hooh! He sat up onhis hind legs, pricked up his ears, and I knocked him over with a stoneand ate him. Then I came to the brook where we had our f-first fight,but it was so full from the rain that I had to wait a day before I couldcross it. It ran like a m-mill-race. My feet were all cut up, and I toreoff the arms of my shirt and bound the cloth round my feet. I didn'td-dare to follow the paths, but kept through the woods t-till I struckthe lake. I only travelled in the morning and afternoon, for when thesun was overhead I c-couldn't tell where I was going; so I ate berriesand slept at midday. I reached the lake above the Narrows and went backto the path. I didn't care m-much if I were caught or not. I don't wantto eat another b-berry in my life. Several times I saw boats on the lakeand tried to get their attention, but c-couldn't. D-Didn't I feel happywhen I saw you coming toward me! And when I knew who it was, I felt asif I were at home again m-milking the cows or up on old B-Bull Meadowshooting fifty-two pigeons at a clip. Have you heard anything from DavyFiske?"
[Sidenote: NEWS FROM WEAVER DAVID]
"Well, yes; 'Bijah here came out late, and he says Davy has been tellinghim some story about killing a bear in Grimes's cornfield up on theBillerica road."
"That must have b-been before we left and we didn't hear anything aboutit. How was it, 'Bijah?"
"I met Davy early this spring over in the woods by Listening Hill, andhe told me about hunting a bear in Bill Grimes's young corn, which wasabout three feet high. He and Bill chased the bear; the bear ran off,climbed over a stone wall, and got stuck in a snowdrift, and they cameup and killed him."
"That's D-Davy all over. He's m-mighty careless about those huntingyarns of his. Pretty soon the bears will be wearing rackets in thesummer to k-keep out of his way. And now, boys, if you don't mind, I'llstretch out in the bottom of the boat and get a little nap. I haven'thad a good sleep I don't know when, and the f-food and the warm sun makeme terrible sleepy."
Amos lay down, and we rowed till we reached the shore.