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

514 HISTORY OF NORTHAMPTON. [1787.
Skirmishes with the
Re'jeis.
Geii. Shepherd with his regiment of Hampshire
militia was posted at Northfield. On
the 6^'' of February, he dispatched Capt.
Samuel Bufhngton into Vermont for the purpose of arresting
rebels who had taken refuge there. But the people
were so much in sympathy with the refugees that nothingcould
be accomplished, though the party held warrants
from a Vermont magistrate. The same day a small party
was ordered to Bernardston for the purpose of arresting
Capt. Jason Parmenter, a notorious rebel. The pursuers
came suddenly upon the rebel party, when the latter, receiving
no answer to their hail, were ordered to fire, but
their muskets were unserviceable. Then Jacob Walker,
a horseman of the government party, and Parmenter fired
simultaneously at each other, and the former was mortally
wounded. Parmenter and his men immediately fled, but
as the snow was three feet deep, no pursuit was made. The
next day they were captured and lodged in jail at Northampton.
Mr. Walker was buried with military honors at
Hatfield, where the funeral services were held. Rev. Mr.
Wells of Whately preached the sermon. Rev. Mr. Williams
of this town made the opening prayer, and music suitable
to the occasion was sung.
Rebels tried for Trea- A sessiou of the Supreme Judicial Court
son and seutenced ^^g ]ield at the mceting-house in this
town, continuing from the 9*'' to the 21'*^
of April, at which Jason Parmenter of Bernardston, Daniel
Luddington of Southampton, Alpheus Colton of Longmeadow,
James White of Colrain, John Wheeler of Hardwick,
and Henry McCullock of Pelham, were convicted of
high treason, and sentenced to death. Seven others were
convicted at the same session, of "exciting and stirring up
sedition and insurrection in this commonwealth." They
were sentenced in accordance with the degrees of their
guilt. One was to sit on the gallows with a rope about his
neck, others were to stand in the pillory one hour and to
be whipj)ed on the naked back twenty stripes. Nearly all
of them were fined, some £100, some £50, and put under
bonds to keep the peace for twelve months. Early in May
death-warrants were issued in the case of Parmenter and