had greater abjects in view. The peace of Ryswick, in 1698, however, ensued, when Count de Frontenac giving the savages to understand, that war with the English must cease, since peace was established between the nations, a short respite was given to New-England.

CHAPTER VIII.

Queen Anne's war. New depredations. Indian war in small parties. Governor Dudley refuses a treaty. Colonists raise an army in vain. Savages encouraged. The distress of the frontiers. The French join the Indians. Expedition against Quebec fails. Treaty of peace at Utretcht, 1713. Massacre at Roanoke. Death of Capt. Church.

A new war, usually styled Queen Anne's, commenced in May, 1702, between France and England. Its effects, as usual extended to the colonies in America. The whole weight of this war fell upon New England. On account of its geographical situation, New-York was an important place to be secured; as on one side it was open to the attacks of fleets from the ocean, so on the other it was exposed to the irruptions of the enemy from the French colonies. To › prevent the loss of New-York which would have separated the Eastern from the Southern colonies, an army of 1358 men were ordered, but were never raised.

In the mean time, the French in Canada found means to engage the friendship of the Iroquois, or 5 nations, which saved New-York from Indian ravages, the French still fearing the influence, which that state maintained over their minds. The consequence was, that New Hampshire and Massachusetts had to contend with the whole French force and their Indian allies. The minds of the belligerents had long been embittered towards each other by prejudices, by the remembrance of former occurrences, and by late disputes concerning extent of territory.

On the 10th of August, 1703, a party of 500 French and Indians, attacking all the towns from Casco to Wells, killed and took 130 persons, and destroyed all before them. Terror spread through the whole country. The English troops pursued them in vain; as they were swift in flight as they were furious in assault. The approach of winter usually relieved the frontiers from murder and spoilations.

F

In 1705, the English attempted an expedition against the Indians with 270 men on snow shoes. Finding no enemy they burned the deserted wigwams and a French chapel. The governor of Canada now invited the Indians on the borders of New England to remove into Canada, where they were incorporated with the tribe of St. Frances, by which removal they were placed nearer the seat of influence, and might with greater facility be sent out suddenly on the work of slaughter.

They next made their appearance in April, 1706, on Oister River, where they killed 8 persons and wounded two. A garrison was near by, but not a man in it. The women, aware of the consequences of being taken, fired an aların gun put on hats, loosened their hair appearing like men, and fired so briskly that the savages, alarmed for their own safety, fled without burning or plundering the houses, but wreaked their vengeance on those whom they met.

It was the policy of the Indians to go into small parties. By these means, very few of them were killed, while they could keep the whole country in confusion. It was estimated that every savage killed in these excursions must have cost the English colonies more than three thousand dollars.

When the famous Major Church went into Nova Scotia, he asked permission to reduce Port Royal, but was refused by gov. Dudley, who was accused of carrying on a clandestine trade there, much to his own advantage, which was sufficient to damp his military ardor. A future attempt failed. The governor had also refused to form a treaty engaging the neutrality of the provinces; no doubt he was looking forward to the time, when not only Nova Scotia, but Canada also might be subjected to the British empire.

This refusal renewed the spoilations by the Indians. The Fastern provinces, except Connecticut who refused to lend her aid, early in the spring of 1707, raised an army of 1000 men, intending to reduce Port Royal. After a few successful engagements with the enemy, and burning some houses in the vicinity of the fort, a disagreement among the officers and misapprehensions of the actual state of things arising, the enterprise was abandoned in the most shameful manner.

These repeated failures served greatly to encourage the savages, In the succeeding year, a very formidable armament was destined by Vaudrieuil, governor of Canada, against

the settlements of New-England. But so many of the savages disappointed him in the promises of aid they had made him, that the plan could not be executed.

The Indians, in the mean time, in their small parties, abated nothing in their zeal for massacre, which had continued already 5 years without intermission, and without any prospect of immediate termination. A great number of the best men were abroad, and those at home were in peril and distress. Trade had well nigh ceased, while their expenses and their dangers only had increased. Their families were crowded into garrisoned houses; nor could they go out to cultivate their fields beyond call from the garrison, nor step out of their houses without arms in their hands. Driven to the defence of their frontier settlements, they were in deaths oft. Or if they refused, they were fined; and often neglect suffered a severer penalty. Still they persevered with herosism; and not a garrison was cut off in New-Hampshire, during this long and distressing war.

A party of French, painted red like the dreaded Mohawks, now attacked Oister River settlement. Seven were killed at the first shot and others wounded. In 1708, a large army from Canada assaulted Haverhill: but their forces, diminished by various accidents, proceeded no further, and the English were prepared to give them a very warm reception. During several succeeding years, the depredation and the massacres continued. The English were able to kill enough of the enemy to keep up their spirits, while the numbers of savages were diminishing as well by famine and disease as by war.

A new attempt was made for taking Canada, the fruitful source of massacres and of mischiefs. The English government in Britain seemed to engage in the enterprise with ardor; and sent over 7 regiments of the veteran troops, who had seen service under the conduct of the Duke of Marlborough. To these forces New-England joined her quota, making in all an army of 6500 men. Port Royal had already been taken, and its name changed to that of Anapolis, in honor of Queen Anne. The troops, proceeding by water, had entered 30 miles up the river St. Lawrence, where 8 transports were wrecked on Egg-Island, one thousand men perished, when the remainder returned, on the 23d of August, 1711, in despair. They were 8 days in beating down the river against an easterly wind, which in two days would have

carried them to Quebec with a force too equal to that which afterwards, under gen. Wolfe, reduced that city, when in a much better state of defence.

The Indians, encouraged by all these failures of the English, were more active and bold than ever in extending spoilation and havoc. New sufferings seemed to hang over the frontier settlements, already greatly enfeebled by former losses, when the treaty of Utretcht arrived, 11th April, 1713. which once more established peace between the English and the French nations. By this treaty, all Nova Scotia was ce ded to the British. The Indians, no longer encouraged by the French, sued for peace, a blessing not less welcome to the new settlers.

Some of the most brave and powerful tribes of Indians resided in the Eastern colonies, who continually harassed' the white people, of New-England. At the same time, the southern colonies were not reposing upon beds of roses and myrtle. The red people with a jealous eye saw the encroachments of the white. In North Carolina they had formed a plan in 1712 to exterminate by assassination in one night all their formidable neighbors. The first intimation of any such design was its faithful execution. At Roanoke 137 persons were murdered in one night. The escape of a few spread the alarm. Assistance from South Carolina was alone able to set mounds to the overwhelming flood of destruction. These troops, consisting of nearly 1000 men, with great celerity, passed the wilderness, and carried unexpected slaughter among the savages; 300 of whom fell, besides those who were captivated. The rest, fleeing to their fortified town of Tuscarora, sued for peace. Having lost about 1000 men, they soon after abandoned their country, and united themselves with the Iroquois nations.

The war with the eastern Indians is memorable also as being the last, in which the celebrated Col. Church was engaged. In this, he acted with his usual energy and success. At Penobscot he either killed or captivated every Indian and Frenchman whom he met. He forced them from their old haunts at Passamaquoddy. On his return, finding that most of the Indians had deserted the country, he was informed that the French priests had advised them to remove to Mississippi, where they would likewise go, live and die with them. Having predicted his own death, Colonel Church, aged 78 years, was killed, on his return from visiting a dying sister, by a fall from his horse and by bursting a vein.