The Concord People aroused.

Assembling of the Militia. Concord taken Possession of by the Enemy. Colonel Barrett. ground, near the spot where the monument stands, and four others while escaping over the fences.'

As soon as the patriots dispersed, the detachment of regulars, joined by Colonel Smith and his party, pushed on toward Concord, six miles distant. Confident of success, the whole party were in high spirits. But Concord had been aroused, and a formidable body of militia had collected to receive the invaders. We have noticed that Revere and Dawes started from Lexington to alarm the country toward Concord. They met Dr. Samuel Prescott, and, while in conference with him, some British officers came upon them. Revere and Dawes were made prisoners, but Prescott escaped over a wall, and reached Concord about two in the morning. The bells were rung, and before daylight the people were under arms. When the guns at Lexington were heard in the morning, the Committee of Safety, and the principal citizens of Concord, had assembled, and arranged a plan of reception for the British troops. The military operations were under the able management of

Jamy Barrett

SIGNATURE OF COLONEL BARRETT.

Colonel James Barrett,' while the whole male population, and some women, aided in removing the stores to a place of safety in distant woods The militia of Lincoln and

other places hastened to join those of Concord, and the whole paraded on the Common. Guards were stationed at the North and South Bridges, and in the center of the town, all under the command of Captain Jonathan Farrar.

At about seven o'clock the British column was seen advancing on the Lexington Road. Some companies of militia that had marched down that road returned in haste and reported the number of the British as three times that of the Americans. These companies, with those in the town, fell back to an eminence some eighty rods from the center of the village, where they were joined by Colonel Barrett, and were formed into two battalions. They had hardly formed, before the glittering of the bayonets and flashing of the red uniforms of the British in the bright morning sun were seen, but a quarter of a mile distant, rapidly advancing. A short consultation was held. Some were for making a desperate stand upon the spot, while others proposed a present retreat, until re-enforced by the neighboring militia. The latter council prevailed, and the provincials retired to the high ground over the North Bridge, about a mile from the Common.

The British troops entered Concord in two divisions one by the main road, the other on the hill north of it. Colonel Smith and Major Pitcairn, who had immediate command of the grenadiers and light infantry, remained in the town, but detached six companies under Captain Parsons to secure the bridges, prevent the militia from crossing them, and to ferret out and destroy the secreted stores, information concerning which had been given by Captain Beeman of Petersham, and other Tories. Captain Lawrie, with three companies, was stationed on the North Bridge, while Parsons, with the other three companies, marched to destroy the stores at the residence of Colonel Barrett. Captain Pole, with a party, took post at the South Bridge, and destroyed what few stores were found in that vicinity; but so

1 The names of the slain are recorded on the monument erected to their memory on the green at Lexington. A picture of the monument and a copy of the inscription may be found on page 553. Captain Jonas Parker was among the slain. He had repeatedly said that he never would run from the British. He was wounded at the first fire, but, continuing to discharge his gun. without retreating, was killed by a bayonet.

2 Colonel Barrett had been a captain in the provincial army during the French and Indian war. He was with Shirley at Oswego, and afterward accompanied Abercrombie to Ticonderoga and Amherst to Crown Point. Becoming aged, he resigned his commission. When the Massachusetts militia were organized at the beginning of 1775, Captain Barrett was solicited to take command of a regiment, but declined on account of his age. "We don't want active service, we want your advice," said his earnest townsmen. Thus urged, and actuated by patriotic zeal, he took the command. Colonel Barrett died at about the close of the war. These facts I obtained from his grandson, Major Barrett, eighty-seven years old when I visited him in 1848.

Destruction of Property in Concord. Rapid Augmentation of the Militia. Preparations for Battle. March toward the Bridge.

and wells.

COLONEL BARRETT'S HOUSE.1

diligently had the people worked in concealing the stores that the object of the expedition was almost frustrated. The British broke open about sixty barrels of flour in the center of the town, but nearly half of that was subsequently saved. They knocked off the trunnions of three iron twenty-four pound cannons, burned sixteen new carriage wheels, and a few barrels of wooden trenchers and spoons, cut down the liberty-pole and set the court-house on fire. The flames were extinguished by a Mrs. Moulton, before much damage was done. About five hundred pounds of balls were thrown into the mill-pond

While the British were thus engaged, the number of the militia was rapidly increasing by accessions of minute men from Carlisle, Chelmsford, Weston, Littleton, and Acton neighboring towns, and before ten o'clock the force amounted to nearly four hundred men Joseph Hosmer, acting as adjutant, formed them into proper line as fast as they arrived on the field, westerly of the house since owned by Joseph Buttrick. Most of the operations of the British, within the town, could be seen from this point, and when the fires in the center of the village were lighted the people were greatly excited. Many of the prominent citizens, and the Committee of Safety, were with the militia, and, after a brief consultation, and a stirring appeal from the brave Hosmer, it was resolved to dislodge the enemy at the North Bridge. "I haven't a man that's afraid to go," said the intrepid Captain Isaac Davis; and, wheeling into marching order, they were joined by other companies, and push ed forward toward the bridge, under the command of Major John Buttrick, of Concord.

This sketch is from the road leading to the village of Concord by the way of the North Bridge. The house was erected about eighty years ago, by Colonel Barrett, and is now owned by his kinsman, Prescott Barrett.

* This view, looking southeast, is from the road leading to the village by the way of the North Bridge.

The Scalping Story explained.

The Acton company, under Davis, was in front, followed by those of Captains Brown, Miles, and Nathan Barrett, and by others whose commanders' names are not recorded, in all nearly three hundred effective men. They marched in double file, with trailed arms. The British guard were on the west side of the river, but, on seeing the Americans approaching, they crossed over, and commenced taking up the planks of the bridge. Major Buttrick called to them to desist, and urged his men forward to arrest the destruction of the bridge. The enemy formed for action, and when the Americans were within a few rods of the river, they were fired upon by some of the regulars. The first shots were ineffectual, but others that followed were fatal. One of the Acton company was wounded,' and Captain Isaac Davis and Abner Hosmer, of the same company, were killed. Fire, fellow-soldiers! for God's sake, fire!" shouted Buttrick, on seeing his companions fall, and immediately a full volley was given by the provincials. Three of the British were killed, and several wounded and made prisoners. Some other shots were fired, but in a few minutes Lawrie ordered a retreat, and the provincials took possession of the bridge. Two of the British soldiers killed were left on the ground, and were buried by the provincials. Their graves are a few feet from the monument. Another, who was not yet dead, was dispatched by a blow from a hatchet in the hands of a young provincial who had more zeal than humanity. circumstance gave rise to the horrible story sent abroad by the British and Tories, that the militia "killed and scalped the prisoners that fell into their hands."

This

Colonel Smith, in the village, on hearing the firing at the bridge, sent a re-enforcement. These met the retreating detachment of Lawrie, but, observing the increasing force of the militia, wheeled, and joined in the retreat. In the mean time, the party under Captain Parsons returned from Colonel Barrett's, and were allowed by the provincials to cross the river at the North Bridge, where the skirmish had just occurred, unmolested. It may be asked why the militia did not cut them off, which they might easily have done. It must be remembered that war had not been declared, and that the people had been enjoined to make Great Britain the aggressor, they acting only on the defensive. The militia at Concord had not yet heard of the deaths at Lexington; their volley that had just slain three of the king's troops was fired purely in self-defense, and they hesi

PLAN OF THE MOVEMENTS AT CONCORD.2

to the residence of Mr. Prescott Barrett. The point from which the sketch was made is upon an elevation a little north of that where the militia assembled under Colonel Barrett. The stream of water is the Concord, or Sudbury River. The site of the North Bridge is at the monument seen in the center of the picture. The monument stands upon the spot where the British were stationed, and in the plain, directly across the river from the monument, is the place where Davis and Hosmer, of the American militia, were killed. The house, the roof and gable of which are seen in the distance, just on the left of the largest tree, was the residence of the Reverend Dr. Ripley (afterward a chaplain in the army) at the time of the skirmish. It is upon the road leading to Concord village, which lies nearly half a mile beyond.

1 He was a fifer, named Blanchard. One of the Concord minute men, named Brown, was also slightly wounded. The ball that wounded them passed under the arm of Colonel Robinson, who, by request, accompanied Major Buttrick.

This plan I have copied from Frothingham's interesting work, History of the Siege of Boston,

P. 70.

EXPLANATION OF THE PLAN.-1. Lexington Road; 2. Hills and high land where the liberty pole stood; 3. Center of the town, and main body of the British; 4. Road to the South Bridge; 5, 5, 5. Road to the North Bridge and to Colonel Barnett's, two miles from the center of the town; 6. High ground a mile north of the meeting-house, where the militia assembled; 7. Road along which they marched to dislodge the British at North Bridge; 8. Spot where Davis and Hosmer fell; 9. Reverend Mr. Emerson's house; 10. Bridges and roads made in 1793, when the old roads with dotted lines were discontinued; 11. The monument. The arrows show the return of Captain Parsons, after the firing at the North Bridge; 12 is the place where re-enforcements met him.

Retreat of the Enemy from Concord.

Their Annoyance on the Road by the Militia.

Re-enforcement from Boston

tated, for the moment, to act on the offensive by renewing the combat. This is the explanation given by their cotemporaries.

Observing the rapid augmentation of the militia, Colonel Smith thought it prudent to return with his troops to Boston as speedily as possible. A little after twelve o'clock they commenced their retreat toward Lexington, the main column covered by strong flanking guards. They soon perceived that the whole region was in arms, and minute men were collecting from all points. The cautious counsels at Concord, not to attack the enemy without further provocation, were disregarded, and at Merriam's Corner, a company of provincials under Captain Brooks (afterward the distinguished colonel at Saratoga, and Governor of Massachusetts), secreted behind barns and fences, made a destructive assault upon the retreating enemy. A volley was fired in return, but not a militia-man was injured. This example was followed along the whole line of march to Lexington, and the British were terribly galled all the way. From every house, barn, and stone wall guns were fired with sure aim, and many of the regulars were slain. At Hardy's Hill there was a severe skirmish, and at almost every wooded defile numbers of the enemy were picked off by the concealed marksmen. All military order among the provincials was at an end. and each fought according to the dictates of his own judgment. Some of them were killed by the flankers, who came suddenly upon them behind the walls; but the number of the militia slain was comparatively small. Colonel Smith was severely wounded in the leg at Fiske's Hill, near Lexington; and near the battle ground of the morning, at Lexington meetinghouse, several of the British soldiers were shot. Greatly fatigued by the night's march and the day's adventures, and worried on every side by the militia, that seemed, to use the expression of one of their officers, "to drop from the clouds," the whole body of eight hundred men, the flower of the British army at Boston, must have surrendered to the provincials in an hour had not relief arrived.

An express was sent from Lexington to General Gage, early in the morning, acquainting him with the rising of the militia, and praying for a strong re-enforcement. At nine o'clock three regiments of infantry, and two divisions of marines, amounting to about nine hundred men, with two field-pieces, under Lord Percy, left Boston and marched toward Lexington. They passed through Roxbury, the bands playing Yankee Doodle in derision, it being employed as a sort of "Rogue's March" when offending soldiers were drummed out.' Vague

1 Gordon relates that a shrewd boy in Roxbury made himself extremely merry when he heard the tune of Yankee Doodle, and by his antics attracted the attention of Lord Percy. He asked the boy why he was so merry. "To think," said the lad, "how you will dance by-and-by to Chevy Chase." Percy was often much influenced by presentiments, and the remarks of the boy worried him all day. It may be asked why was Earl Percy troubled, and what connection had the name of Chevy Chase with him. The answer is in the fact that Percy was a son of the Duke of Northumberland, a lineal descendant of Earl Percy, one of the heroes of the battle of Chevy Chase, and who was there slain. There was great rivalry between the houses of Percy and Douglas, the former an English borderer and the latter a Scotch borderer. Percy was determined to have a field fight with his rival, and so vowed publicly that he would "take pleasure in the border woods three days, and slay the Douglas's deer." Earl Douglas heard the vaunt. "Tell him," he said, "he will find one day more than enough." Percy's aim was the armed encounter thus promised. He appeared at Chevy Chase with his greyhounds and fifteen hundred chosen archers. After taking his sport at the Douglas's expense, gazing on a hundred dead fallow deer and harts, tasting wine and venison cooked under the greenwood tree, and saying the Douglas would not keep his word, when

Soon after this,

"Lo! yonder doth Earl Douglas come,

His men in armor bright;

Full twenty hundred Scottish spears

All marching in our sight.

All men of pleasant Tiviot-dale,

Fast by the River Tweed.

'O cease your sport!' Earl Percy said,
'And take your bows with speed.'

"The battle closed on every side,
No slackness there was found;
And many a gallant gentleman
Lay gasping on the ground."

Junction of the Troops of Percy and Smith.

Their harassed Retreat to Charlestown.

Skirmish at West Cambridge.

rumors of the skirmish at Lexington had reached the people there, and this movement confirmed their worst fears. No sooner had the British troops passed by, than the minute men assembled, and, along the whole march, vigilant corps of militia were gathering, and hovered around the little army of Percy, ready to strike a blow whenever it might be effectual.

Percy's brigade met the wearied troops between two and three o'clock, about half a mile from the Lexington meeting-house. He formed a hollow square, planted his cannon for its defense on the high ground near Munroe's Tavern, and received within it the worn-out companies of Colonel Smith. Many of the soldiers fell upon the ground, completely overcome. They were so much exhausted with fatigue that they were obliged to lie down for rest on the ground, their tongues hanging out of their mouths, like those of dogs after a chase."1 Percy dared not halt long, for the woods were swarming with minute men. After partaking of a little refreshment and brief rest, the united forces resumed their march toward Boston, marking their retreat by acts of vengeance, aside from the more dignified use of ball and bayonet. Three houses, two shops, and a barn, were laid in ashes in Lexington, and many buildings were destroyed or defaced, and helpless persons abused on the route. But prompt and terrible retribution instantly followed. As soon as Percy renewed the retreat, the provincials again attacked his forces from concealed points, until they arrived at West Cambridge, where a hot skirmish ensued. General Heath and Dr. Warren were active in the field, and in this foray Warren barely escaped with his life, a musket ball having knocked a pin out of an ear-curl of his hair. The British kept the militia at bay, and committed many atrocious acts. Percy tried to restrain his soldiers, but in vain. Houses were plundered, property destroyed, and several innocent persons were murdered. This conduct greatly inflamed the militia, and

"Again the conflict glows with rage severe,

And fearless ranks in combat mix'd appear."

"Indignation and outraged humanity struggled on the one hand, veteran discipline and des peration on the other." The contest was brief, and the enemy, with their wounded, press ed on toward Boston. The Cambridge bridge had been taken up, and they were obliged to go by the way of Charlestown. They took the road that winds around Prospect Hill, while the main body of the provincials, unawed by the field-pieces, hung close upon their rear.

The situation of the British regulars was now critical, for their ammunition was almost exhausted, and a strong force was marching upon them from Roxbury, Dorchester, and Milton. Colonel Pickering, in the mean time, with seven hundred of the Essex militia. threatened to cut off their retreat to Charlestown. Another short but warm engagement occurred at the base of Prospect Hill, but the regulars reached Charlestown in safety. By command of General Heath the pursuit was now suspended.

Throughout the day Charlestown had been in the greatest excitement. Dr. Warren rode through in the morning, proclaiming the bloodshed at Lexington. Many of the people had seized their muskets, and hastened to the country to join their brethren. The schools were

The mail-clad leaders combated hand to hand, until the blood dropped from them like rain. "Yield thee, Percy," cried Douglas, "I shall freely pay thy ransom, and thy advancement shall be high with our Scottish king."

"No, Douglas,' quoth Earl Percy, then,

Thy proffer I do scorn;

I would not yield to any Scot
That ever yet was born.'"

Douglas almost immediately dropped, struck to the heart with an arrow. "Fight on, my merry men," he cried with his dying breath. Percy took his hand, and said, "Earl Douglas, I would give all my lands to save thee." At that moment an arrow pierced Percy's heart, and both leaders expired together.-Sec Knight's Old England, Scott's Castle Dangerous, and the ballad of Chevy Chase.

Stedman's History of the American War, i., 118.

Stedman was a British officer, and accompanied Earl Percy in this expedition. He highly praises Percy, but says that Colonel Smith's conduct was much censured.