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CORPORAL 'LIGE'S RECRUIT
BY JAMES OTIS
YOUNG PATRIOT SERIES
CORPORAL 'LIGE'S RECRUIT.
A Story of Crown Point and Ticonderoga.
By JAMES OTIS.
With Six Page Illustrations by J. Watson Davis.
NEW YORK:A. L. BURT, PUBLISHER.
Copyright, 1898, by A. L. Burt.
CORPORAL 'LIGE'S RECRUIT.
By James Otis.
CONTENTS.
PAGE
CHAPTER I. Recruiting 1
CHAPTER II. A Secluded Camp 29
CHAPTER III. An Unpleasant Surprise 45
CHAPTER IV. The Letter 64
CHAPTER V. Nathan Beman 88
CHAPTER VI. A Squad of Four 112
CHAPTER VII. Ticonderoga 141
CHAPTER VIII. An Interruption 169
CHAPTER IX. A Bold Stroke 204
CHAPTER X. Crown Point 229
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE
The old man marched down the street with such a swagger as he evidently believed befitting a soldier. 27
"Is it all right, Corporal?" Isaac asked timidly. 57
"Silence in the ranks!" the Colonel said sternly. 104
"But the Corporal wouldn't lie," Isaac said solemnly. 114
Before he could speak, Colonel Allen cried: "I order you instantly to surrender, in the name of the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress." 168
"So the Fort has been taken by our People," Captain Baker cried, clasping the messenger by the hand. 232
CORPORAL 'LIGE'S RECRUIT.
CHAPTER I.
RECRUITING.
There was great excitement among the citizens of the town of Pittsfieldin the province of Massachusetts on the first day of May in the year1775.
Master Edward Mott and Noah Phelps, forming a committee appointed by theProvincial Assembly of Connecticut, had arrived on the previous eveningcharged with an important commission, the making known of which had soaroused the inhabitants of the peaceful settlement that it was as if thereports of the muskets fired at Lexington and Concord were actuallyringing in their ears.
These two gentlemen had with them a following of sixteen men, equippedas if for battle, and the arrival of so large an armed body had arousedthe curiosity of the good people until all were painfully eager to learnthe reason for what seemed little less than an invasion.
When it was whispered around that Master Mott and Phelps had,immediately upon their arrival, inquired for Colonel James Easton andMaster John Brown, and were even then closeted with those citizens, themore knowing ones predicted that this coming had much to do with thewarlike preparations that were making in Boston and New York, designedto put a check upon the unlawful doings of his majesty the king.
When morning came, that is to say, on this first day of May, it wasgenerally understood throughout the settlement that the ProvincialAssembly of Connecticut had agreed upon a plan to seize the munitions ofwar at Ticonderoga for the use of that body of men known as the Americanarmy, then gathered at Cambridge and Roxbury in the province ofMassachusetts.
The gossips of Pittsfield stated that one thousand dollars had beenadvanced from the Provincial Treasury of Connecticut to pay the expensesof the expedition; that the sixteen men making up the following of thecommittee were recruits who had pledged themselves to capture thisimportant fortress which formed the key of communication between NewYork and the Canadas, and that they proposed to march through thecountry to Shoreham, opposite Ticonderoga, recruiting as they went, withthe belief that on arriving there their force would be sufficientlylarge to capture the fort.
The boys as well as the men were highly excited, as was but natural, bysuch rumors, and a certain Isaac Rice, who prided himself upon beingfourteen years old, instead of gathering with his companions, listeningeagerly to every word which dropped from the lips of the older membersof the community, conceived the idea of applying to what he believed tobe the fountain-head of all information regarding military matters.
This supposedly wise man was none other than Corporal Elijah Watkins,generally known as "Corporal 'Lige," sometimes spoken of as "MasterWatkins;" but always to Isaac Rice, "the corporal."
He was looked upon as an old man when he served under Abercrombie atTiconderoga in '58, and believed of a surety he was as well informed inmilitary affairs as Isaac Rice, his ardent disciple, fancied him to be.
Ever ready to give advice on important matters; not backward aboutcriticising the alleged mistakes of his superiors, and holding himselfas with the idea that during the late troubles with the French he hadlearned all the art of warfare; but yet with such possibly disagreeablequalities, Corporal 'Lige had shown himself to be a brave soldier,willing at any time to do more even than was his duty.
The old man was sitting outside the door of a tiny log building which hecalled home, smoking peacefully, much as he might have done had thecommittee from Connecticut never passed that way, and this apparentindifference surprised the boy.
"Why, corporal, don't you know what's going on in the town? Haven't youheard that they are talking of taking the fort at Ticonderoga, andrunning the king out of the country?"
"First and foremost, Isaac lad, are you so ignorant as to think the kingis here in this 'ere province to be run out? An' then agin, can't yourealize that talkin's one thing an' doin's another?"
"Yes; but, corporal, haven't you heard the news?"
"If you mean so far as concerns the committee from Connecticut, Isaac, Ihave heard it, and what's more, Master Noah Phelps talked with me beforeever he went to see Colonel Easton. He knew where he could getinformation about Ticonderoga, for bless your soul, lad, wasn't I therein '58? An' would you find a stick or stone around the place that Ican't call to mind?"
"Did Master Phelps come to see you first?"
"Well, yes, lad, it 'mounted to much the same thing. I was down the roadwhen he come into town, an' seein' me he acted like as if a great loadhad been lifted off his shoulders, 'cause he knowed I could tell him athing or two if I was minded. 'Good-evenin' to you, Corporal 'Lige,' hesaid sweet as honey in the honeycomb, and I passed the time of day withhim, kind of suspicionin' something of this same business was goin' on.'Want to take a little trip up through the country?' he askedfriendly-like, and do you know, lad, the whole plan come to me in aminute, an'
I says to him, says I, 'Master Phelps, you can count me in,if it so be yo're goin' toward the lakes.' 'That's where we're boundfor, Corporal 'Lige,' says he, 'and I'll put your name down.' I said,says I, 'It's rations, an' somethin' in the way of pay, I reckon?' an'he allowed as that part of it would be all fixed, especially with me,'cause you see, lad, it wouldn't be much good for these people whatnever knew anything 'bout war, to start out leavin' me behind. Why,bless your heart, I allow that's why they come through Pittsfield, jestfor the purpose of seein' Corporal 'Lige."
The old man ceased speaking to puff dense volumes of smoke from hispipe, and Isaac Rice gazed at him in wonder and amaze.
That the committee from Connecticut had visited the town for the soleand only reason of inducing the corporal to join the force, there was noquestion in his mind, and now, more implicitly than ever before, did hebelieve that throughout all the provinces there could be found no ablersoldier than Corporal 'Lige.
"Yes, lad, I'm goin' with the committee, more to tell 'em what theyought to do, as you might say, than to serve as a private soldier, foryou see I know Ticonderoga root and branch. I could tell you the wholestory from the meanin' of the name down to who is in command of it thisvery minute, if there was time."
"But there is, corporal. The committee are talkin' to Colonel Easton andMaster Brown now, and don't count on leaving here before to-morrow."
"What do they want of the colonel?"
"I don't know; but they are stopping at his house."
"I ain't sayin' but that the colonel is as good a soldier as you'll findaround here; but bless your soul, lad, though it ain't for me to say it,he could learn considerable from Corporal 'Lige if he was to spend a fewhours every now and then listenin'."
"But tell me all you can about Ticonderoga, corporal."
The old man looked around furtively as if half-expecting the committeefrom Connecticut, or Colonel Easton, might be coming to ask his adviceon some disputed point, and then, shaking his forefinger now and againat the lad much as though to prevent contradiction, he began:
"In the first place the folks 'round here call it 'Ticonderoga' when itain't anything of the kind. The real name is 'Cheonderoga,' which isIroquois lingo for 'Sounding Water,' being called so, I allow, becausethe falls at Lake George make a deal of noise. The French builtbreastworks there in '55, which they christened Fort Carillon. Now yousee it's a mighty strong place owin' to the situation, and its bein'located on a point which, so I've heard said, rises more'n a hundredfeet above the level of the water. The solid part of it--that is to say,the land--is only about five hundred acres. Three sides are surroundedby water, an' in the rear is a swamp. That much for the advantages ofthe spot, so to speak. Now I was there in July of '58 when Montcalm heldthe fort with four thousand men. Lord Howe was second in command ofGeneral Abercrombie's forces, and Major Putnam, down here, was with thecrowd. That's when the major wouldn't let his lordship go into thebattle first; but banged right along ahead until we come to the firstbreastworks, finding it so strong that the troops were marched back tothe landin' place and went into bivouac for the night. It was the sixthday of July; on the eighth we tried it again; but the fort couldn't becarried, an' the blood that was shed there, lad, all under the Britishflag, would come pretty nigh drownin' every man, woman an' child in this'ere settlement. On the twenty-sixth of July in the year 1759, GeneralAmherst with eleven thousand men scared the French out; they didn't firea gun, but abandoned the fortification and fled to Crown Point. Sincethat time the king's forces have held it."
"How many are there now?" Isaac asked, not so much for the purpose ofgaining information as to tempt the old man to continue his story.
"I can't rightly say, lad, though it's somewhere in the neighborhood offifty. The commandant is, or was when I last heard, one CaptainDelaplace, and it is said that he's a thorough soldier, though I'mallowin' he hasn't got any too much of a force with him."
"Do you think the Connecticut gentlemen can raise men enough betweenhere and there to take a fort which resisted General Abercrombie'sentire army?"
"That remains to be seen, lad. If they are willin' to act on such adviceas can be got from some people hereabouts, I allow there's a good chancefor it, more especially if the Green Mountain boys take a hand in thematter, as Master Phelps thinks probable. In that case Colonel EthanAllen would most likely be in command."
"And you are really going, corporal?" asked Isaac.
"Yes, lad, it don't seem as though I ought to hang back back when I'mneeded. If all we hear from the other provinces is true, you'll be oldenough to take a hand in the scrimmage before the fightin's over, sohere's a chance to serve an apprenticeship. If it so be you're of themind I'll take you under my wing, an' by the time we get back you'llhave a pretty decently good idea of a soldier's trade."
"Do you really mean it, corporal?" and Isaac sprang to his feet inexcitement. "Do you really mean that I may go with you just as if I wasof age to carry a gun?"
"Ay, lad, if it so be your mother an' father are willin', an' I can'tsee why they shouldn't agree, seein's how they know the company you'llbe in. It would seem different if you talked of goin' with the generalrun of recruits, who are green hands at this kind of work."
"But will the committee allow a lad of my age to go as a soldier?"
"Isaac, my boy, when Corporal 'Lige says to Master Phelps, says he,'This 'ere lad is goin' under my wing, so to speak,' why bless yourheart, that's the end of the whole business. They've got to have me, an'won't stand out about your joinin' when it's known my heart is set onit."
"Will you come now while I ask my mother?"
"Well, lad, I ain't prepared to say as how I will; but this much I'mpromisin': Go to her an' find out how she's feelin' about the matter. Ifthere's any waverin' in her mind I'll step in--you see I'll be thereserves in this case--an' when I charge she's bound to surrender. Butif it so happens that she's dead set against it at the start, why, youhad best not vex her by tryin' to push the matter."
Having perfect faith in the corporal's wisdom Isaac was thoroughlysatisfied with this decision, and after the old man had promised toawait his return at that point, the lad set out for home at full speed.
Perhaps if Isaac had been the only son of his mother he would have foundit difficult to gain her permission for such an adventure as Corporal'Lige had proposed.
There were five other boys in the family, and Isaac was neither theoldest nor the youngest.
The fact that Mrs. Rice had so many did not cause her to be unmindful ofany, but less timorous perhaps, about parting with one.
However it may be, the lad gained the desired permission providing hisfather would assent, and this last was little more than a formality.
Master Rice was found among the throng of citizens in front of the innwhere recruiting was going on briskly.
The opportunity served to give the good man a certain semblance ofpatriotism when he showed himself willing that one of his sons should gofor a soldier, and he would have had the boy sign the rolls then andthere, but that Isaac demurred.
It was not in his mind to enlist save in the company and after beingagain assured of the corporal's protection, therefore he insisted onpresenting himself as the old man's recruit rather than his father'soffering.
Corporal 'Lige was well pleased when Isaac returned with a detailedaccount of all that had taken place, and said approvingly:
"You have shown yourself to be a lad of rare discretion, Isaac Rice, andI will take it upon myself to see that such forethought brings duereward. Suppose you had signed the rolls at the inn? What would you bethen? Nothin' more than a private."
"But that is all I shall be when I sign them with you, corporal."
"It may appear that way, I'm free to admit lad; but still you will be adeal higher than any non-commissioned officer, because you'll be undermy wing, and when we have taken Ticonderoga, though I ain't admittingthat's the proper name of the fort--when we've taken that, I say, you'llbe fit for any kind of a commission that
you're qualified to hold."
"Yes," Isaac replied doubtfully, and then he fell to speculating as towhether even though Corporal 'Lige did not "take him under his wing," hemight not be fit to fill any position for which "he was qualified."
While he was thus musing a messenger came from Master Phelps saying therecruiting was coming to an end in this town, and the party would setout that same afternoon on their way to Bennington, expecting to enlistvolunteers from Colonel Easton's regiment of militia as they passedthrough the country.
"Never you fear but that I'll be right at my post of duty when thecommand is given to form ranks," Corporal 'Lige said to the messenger,and after the latter had departed he added as he turned to the boy,"Now, Isaac, lad, you can see what they think of Corporal 'Lige. ColonelEaston and Master Brown are hangin' 'round the inn instead of waitin'for the committee to visit them. An' what do I do? Why, I stay quietlyhere, knowin' they can't well get along without me, an' instead ofcoolin' my heels among a lot of raw recruits, I'm sent for when the timeis come, as if I was a staff officer. That's one thing you want to bearin mind. If you don't count yourself of any importance, other people aremighty apt to pass you by as a ne'er-do-well."
"But I haven't enlisted yet, corporal."
"Of course you have. When you said to me 'I'm ready to go as yourapprentice in this 'ere business,' it was jest the same as if you'dsigned the rolls. I'll arrange all that matter with Master Phelps, mylad. Now do you hasten home; get what you can pick up in the way of anoutfit; borrow your father's gun, and kind of mention the fact to yourmother that the more she gives in the way of provisions the betteryou'll be fed, for you an' me are likely to mess together."
"How much are you going to take, corporal?"
"That will depend a good deal on what kind of a supply your motherfurnishes. I'm willin' to admit she's nigh on to as good a cook as canbe found in Pittsfield, an' will take my chances on what she puts up foryou, providin' there's enough of it."
"Of course you are to take your musket?"
"I should be a pretty poor kind of a soldier if I didn't, lad--the sameone I used under Abercrombie," and he pointed with his thumb toward theinterior of the dwelling where, as Isaac knew, a well-worn weapon hungon hooks just over the fireplace. "It's one of the king's arms, an' Ireckon will do as good service against him as it did for him, which issaying considerable, lad, as Major Putnam can vouch for. Now set aboutmaking ready, for we two above all others must not be behind-hand whenthe column moves."
A fine thing it was to be a soldier, so Isaac thought as he wentleisurely from Corporal 'Lige's log hut to his home; he was forced topass through the entire length of the village, stopping here and thereto acquaint a friend with what he believed to be a most important fact.
Among all the lads in Pittsfield of about his own age he was the onlyone who proposed to enlist, and from all he heard and saw there could beno question but that he was envied by his companions.
From the youngest boy to the oldest man, the citizens were in such aferment of excitement as gave recruits the idea that to enlist wassimply providing amusement for themselves during a certain number ofdays, and, with the exception of those experienced in such matters, noperson believed for a moment that the brave ones who were rallying attheir country's call would suffer hardships or privations.
In fact, this going forth to capture the fort at Ticonderoga was to be apleasure excursion rather than anything else, and Isaac Rice believed hewas the most fortunate lad in the province of Massachusetts.
His outfit did not require that his mother should spend very much timeupon it.
The clothes he wore comprised the only suit he owned, and when twoshirts and three pairs of stockings had been made into a parcel of thesmallest possible size, and he had borrowed his father's gun, powderhorn and shot pouch, the equipment was complete.
Then came the most important of the preparations, to Isaac's mind, forhe knew the corporal would criticize it closely--the store ofprovisions.
Had he been allowed his own bent the remainder of the Rice family mighthave been put on short allowance, for, with a view to pleasing thecorporal, he urged that this article of food, and then that, should beput into the bag which served him as a haversack, until the larder musthave been completely emptied but for his mother's emphatic refusal tofollow such suggestions.
If Mrs. Rice did not shed bitter tears over Isaac when he left her tojoin the recruits, it was because she shared the opinion of many othersin Pittsfield, and felt positive the lad would soon return, none theworse for his short time of soldiering.
It was but natural she should take a most affectionate farewell of him,however, even though believing he would be in no especial danger, and aglimpse of the tears which his mother could not restrain caused anuncomfortable swelling in the would-be soldier's throat.
This leaving home, even to march away by the side of Corporal 'Lige, wasnot as pleasant as he had supposed, and for the moment he ceased to somuch as think of the provision-bag.
"Now, see here, mother," he said, with a brave attempt at indifference."I'm not counting on doing anything more than help take the fort, andsince the corporal is to be with us, that can't be a long task."
"You will ever be a good boy, Isaac?"
"Of course, mother."
"And you will write me a letter, if it so be you find the opportunity?"
This was not a pleasing prospect to the boy, for he had never found itan easy task to make a fair copy of the single line set down at the topof his writing-book; but his heart was sore for the moment, and he wouldhave promised even more in order to check his mother's tears.
Therefore it was he agreed to make her acquainted with all hismovements, so far as should be possible, and, that done, it seemed as ifthe sting was taken in a great measure from the parting.
Feeling more like a man than ever before in his life, Isaac set forthfrom his home with a heavy musket over his shoulder, and the bag ofprovisions hanging at his back, glancing neither to the right nor to theleft until he arrived at the corporal's dwelling.
An exclamation of surprise and delight burst from his lips when he sawthe old man, armed and equipped as he had been in '58, wearing theuniform of a British soldier, even though by thus setting out he wasproving his disloyalty to the king.
"Well you do look fine, corporal. I dare wager there are none who willset forth from this town as much a soldier as you!"
"I reckon Colonel Easton will come out great with his militia uniform;but what does it amount to except for the value of the gold lace that'son it? All I'm wearin' has seen service, an' though it ain't for me tosay it, I shouldn't be surprised if him as is inside this 'ere red coatcould tell the militia colonel much regarding his duty."
"Of course you can, corporal, every one knows that, an' I'm expecting tosee you put next in command to Colonel Allen, if it so be he goes."
"Not quite that, lad, not quite that, for there's jealousy in the ranksthe same as outside of them, though I warrant many of 'em will be gladto ask Corporal 'Lige's advice before this 'ere business is over. Nowlet's have a look to your stores, and we'll be off."
The examination of the impromptu haversack appeared to be satisfactoryto the old man, and without doing more in the way of securing hisdwelling from intruders than shutting the outer door, he marched downthe street with such a swagger as he evidently believed befitting asoldier.
Isaac followed meekly at his heels, troubling his head not one whitbecause he lacked a uniform, but believing he shared to a certain degreein Corporal 'Lige's gorgeousness and martial bearing.
The two came to a halt outside the inn, standing stiffly at "attention,"and there they remained until Master Phelps was forced to go out and bidthe old man enter, that the formality of signing the rolls might be gonethrough with, after which Isaac Rice was duly entitled to call himself amilitiaman.