THE GREEN MOUNTAIN BOYS. CHAPTER I. "They come, impatient for the fight, - It seems to be universally conceded that the first settlers of Vermont were men of an iron mould, and of an indomitable spirit. And it is no less true, we apprehend, that with corporeal frames, unusually large and muscular, and constitutions peculiarly robust and enduring, they possessed, also, intelligence and mental energies, which, considering what might naturally be expected of men of their condition in life, and in their situation in a wilderness affording none of the ordinary means of intellectual culture, were equally remarkable. The proof of these assertions is to be abundantly found, we think, in the unequalled stand taken by them for their rights, in their memorable controversy with New York, and in the multiplied documents that grew out of it, in the shape of resolves and decrees of conventions, addresses to the people, memorials and remonstrances to the governor of that province, and to the British throne itself, all drawn up with great clearness and cogency of reasoning, and evincing a knowledge of natural and constitutional rights in a people, among whom law as a profession was then entirely unknown, which are generally to be found only in the courts and councils of old and highly civilized countries. And even were these testimonials to their character wholly wanting, ample evidence, that they were a generation of no ordinary men, may still be seen in the scattered remnant of this noble band of heroes yet lingering among us, like the few and aged pines on their evergreen mountains, and, though now bowed down by the weight of nearly a century of years, exhibiting frames, which would almost seem to indicate them as men belonging to another race, and which are still animated by the light of wisdom and intelligence, and warmed by the unconquerable spirit of freedom yet burning unwasted within them. Those who have treated on this subject, when alluding to the facts we have stated, have generally coupled them with observations upon the invigorating effects of mountain air, &c. leaving us to infer that these peculiarities of the early settlers were attributable only to such causes. It is, indeed, doubtless the case, that the wild scenery, and the pure elastic air of mountainous countries, are the most favorable, under the same degree of culture, to the formation of the highest grade of physical, as well as moral and intellectual character-imparting, in the one instance, that health and peculiar vigor which brings the human system to all the perfection that it is capable of attaining, and, in the other, engendering, with firmness of nerves, and firmness of purpose, the usual attendants of great bodily powers, a healthy and high-toned imagination, and those lofty aspirations that exalt the character, and prompt to great and noble actions. But whatever influence the peculiar climate and scenery of this Switzerland of America, as Vermont may, perhaps, be appropriately termed, may have had, in this respect, on the descendants of these hardy settlers, little of this influence, probably, would have been perceptible on the settlers themselves: they, it must be recollected, were not natives of these mountains, but recent emigrants from other New England colonies. And whatever peculiarities they possessed must mainly have originated in other causes from the very nature of the enterprise, probably, which brought them together, that of settling a wild and rough frontier country, known to be attended by a thousand difficulties and hardships, and beset by a thousand dangers, in which men of ordinary stamina would never think of engaging. They, indeed, may be looked upon in the light of picked men, or more properly, perhaps, in that of volunteers, stepping boldly and confidently forth for some extraordinary enterprise, of which the hazard and difficulty are so great, that nothing but an uncommon union of courage and strength can accomplish it, and of which the success, or even the attempt, it may be, furnishes the best evidence of these qualities in those who voluntarily enlist in the undertaking. And as regards the intelligence and mental character of these settlers, their educations were generally equal to those usually received among the better classes of the old settlements where they were obtained, and superior, probably, to what the same men were able to furnish to their immediate descendants. And this fact, together with the emergencies, which not only called all the energies of their minds into action, but constantly improved them, and enlarged their information by the investigations they were induced to make for the successful prosecution of their cause in the New York controversy, will sufficiently account for their intellectual superiority over the ordinary settlers of other new countries. With these observations, here thrown in by way of showing our warrant for many of the descriptions of character which we have introduced, and which, we thought it not impossible, might otherwise subject us to the charge of indulging in improbabilities, we will now proceed with the incidents of our story. The morning of the ninth of May broke brightly upon the encampment of our troops at Castleton, disclosing to the view, now for the first time, an organized band of about three hundred as brave and hardy men as ever assembled for deeds of daring and danger. Of this number more than three-fourths were Green Mountain Boys. The remainder were men collected from the nearest parts of Massachusetts and Connecticut, and led on by several enterprising militia officers of these colonies, who had actively co-operated in getting up the expedition. A council had been held the night previous, for the purpose of organizing these united forces, which had been dropping in irregularly through the day and a greater part of the night, and also for making all other necessary arrangements to march for their destination on the following morning. At this council Ethan Allen had been unanimously appointed the commander-in-chief of the expedition. Colonel Easton, one of the Massachusetts officers, was placed second in command. And the third grade was assigned to Warrington; while Selden, in making the subordinate appointments, was raised to the post of captain to supply the place left vacant by the promotion of his superior. Even our friend, Pete Jones, though now absent, was not forgotten in the distribution of honors, but named to take charge of the scouts, provided he joined the expedition. All these arrangements having been made the night before, as just stated, the troops by sunrise had breakfasted, and were now under arms, and undergoing a review preparatory to marching. All were in high spirits, and animated at the thought of being immediately led to the important object of their enterprise. Their gallant leader, now dressed and equipped in a manner appropriate to his rank, and mounted on his own noble charger, was riding proudly along their imposing front-now pausing to give some directions to an officer, now to inspect the equipments of a company, and now backing his curvetting steed to take a view of the whole; while his towering form seemed to dilate, and rise still higher to the view, his bosom heave with pride, and his eyes glisten with delight, as they ran along the lines of his stout and broad-chested Green Mountain Boys, and read in their hardy features, lit up with enthusiasm, and eagerness for action in a cause which every man had made his own, the same high resolves, the same burning desires to signalize themselves that animated his own bosom. At this moment a stranger, who, with a single attendant in the capacity of a servant, had but a short time before arrived, came on to the ground, and took a conspicuous stand in front of the troops. He was of about the middle age, stout, well-made, and handsomely featured, while a Roman nose, a thin, curling lip, and a black flashing eye, with the peculiarly contemptuous, and even sinister expression, and reckless air, which they combined to give his countenance, denoted no ordinary degree of selfesteem, and a fiery and impetuous disposition. He was richly and fashionably dressed, and wore a sword, epaulet, and other insignia usually worn by field officers of the times. 66 66 Captain Blagden," said Selden, turning to a Connecticut. officer near him, and pointing to the stranger just described, can you inform me who that proud and scornful looking fellow yonder may be? He belongs not to us of the Green Mountains; nor does he appear to have any connection with the troops from Massachusetts, or with those from your own colony; and yet his demeanor, and showy military appendages, would lead one to suppose that he came here to take command of the whole of us." "I have been looking at the man myself," replied the person addressed, "and, though not quite certain, yet I believe I know him. I think he must be one whom I well knew when we were boys, and of whose singular career I have since been often informed. And, if my conjectures are right, his name is Arnold, Benedict Arnold, of New Haven.” "But what do you imagine has brought him here, with these apparent assumptions ?" “Well, now I bethink me, sir, I remember, that the day I left home, a townsman of mine, who had just returned from New Haven, reported that, when the news of the battle of Lexington arrived at that place, Captain Arnold, who is the commander of an independent company there, started, with several other military men, post haste for the scene of action. And as he is said to be a good officer, having been a soldier in the army (into which he run away and enlisted in his youth), I should not be surprised to learn he had received a commission from the Massachusetts Committee of Safety. And further, as he was stationed, while a boy-soldier, at Ticonderoga, and knows, doubtless, considerable of its situation, I will hazard a bottle with you, Captain Selden, that he has craved, and obtained, permission of that Committee, to take charge of the troops which they probably heard were collecting for this expedition." "Aha? Colonel Allen, I imagine, will have a word to say to that bargain. It would fairly break his heart to be deprived of the chance of receiving the first charge of grape or canister that shall salute us from the wide-mouthed war-dogs of Old Ti. And if your surmises are correct, a collision, I fear, is unavoidable, unless Mr. Arnold should, as I think he certainly ought, waive his pretensions to the command.” "A collision it will be then: for Arnold, it is said, was never yet known to yield to any thing, when his purposes were fixed. A more reckless dare-devil, I suppose, never trod the footstool. Why, sir, when we were but boys, I have known him spring upon a large water-wheel in full motion, grasp one of its arms, with his head towards the circumference, and there remain till he had been dashed through the back-water beneath, during forty revolutions! I have known him, single handed, seize and overcome a mad ox, which had broke away from, and nearly killed a dozen men. One or more duels he has fought abroad; while scores of bullies have been cudgelled and conquered by him about home. Indeed, if one half that is told of him is true, the wild bulls of Bashan had not a spirit more untamable, nor scarcely more bodily strength to back it.” "All that may be, sir, but those who know Ethan Allen will laugh at the very idea of there being found a man in New England who can outdo him in feats of either strength or courage. |