History of Northampton, Massachusetts, from its settlement in 1654;

384 HISTORY OF NORTHAMPTON. [1776.
huts, and made beds of cedar bark. A breastwork was bi^ilt near the
water, and mounted with cannon. Rattlesnakes were plenty, and
owing to the scarcity of other food, many were killed and eaten. They
remained in camp at Mt. Independence till November, and Capt. Joseph
Lyman arrived at Ticonderoga, while they were there. Richard Clark,
one of the deserters, came back here, and soon after died. Salmon
Morton and Moses Allis of Hatfield, active and vigorous young men,
also died here of small pox. So many were sick at oae time, that only
three or four men were returned fit for duty.
•'In November the company crossed the lake to Ticonderoga, and
went up Lake George to Fort Edward, and kept on to Albany. Many
fell oiTt by the way from weariness and sickness. Moses Clark of
Sunderland, returned to Northampton, sick, where he died soon after.
At Albany the soldiers went on board sloops, were landed at King's
Ferry, and marched to Morristown. Not more than one half the original
company answered the roll call at that place. At Morristown they
went into camp, where they remained till their term of enlistment
expired. Then Chaplain Smith gathered the men in the Morristown
meeting house, and urged them to remain fifteen days longer. Cook
and several others agreed to stay. They went first to Springfield, N.
J., and after Gen. How passed to New York, pushed on to Elizabeth
town. Here they came upon a sloop with seventy Highlanders and two
women, left stranded by the ebbing tide, and they captured the entire
party. In coming up with the prisoners, they found that a company
of "Waldeckers had been taken. The Highlanders heard the firing,
expected to be rescued, and were much chagrined when they learned
the truth, while the women scolded because they had been captured by
rebels. Cook reached home about the last of January, and found the
seventy Highlanders in the Northampton jail, where his father was
jailer." '
An Incident. WliGH the soMiers Were retreating from
Canada, and were crossing the boundary
line, as they supposed, while on the lake, some of them
swung their hats and shouted. Mr. Spring, the chaplain,
rebuked them, and told them there was more cause for
mourning than rejoicing. "We are retreating before the
enemy," said he, " and our liberties are in danger." ^
1 The following anecdote is related concerning one of these prisoners. His name
was Ferguson, and as they were on parole, all were allowed the liberty of the town.
He was at William Clark's at work. At family prayers, Clark prayed that " our enemies
might be sent back whence they came, abashed and ashamed." This so provoked
the Scotchman that he then and there knocked Clark down, and was put in
jail. Elihu Wright, for some reason had a quarrel with this man, and shot a musket
ball at him through the grate in his room at the jail, but did not hit him. Wright
soon after enlisted, and so escaped puuLshment.—Judd MSS.
2 For list of soldiers engaged in this expedition, see Appendix.
I