they gave a shout, and then fired, and so continued firing and shouting until daylight the next morning.

About noon they called to us and said, "Good morning," and desired a cessation of arms for two hours that they might come to a parley; which was granted. The General did not come himself but sent two Indians, who came within about eight rods of the fort and struck down their flag, and desired that I would send out two men to them, which I did, and the Indians made the following proposal: viz. that in case we would sell them provisions, they would leave and not fight any more, and desired my answer; which was that selling them provisions for money was contrary to the laws of nations, but if they would send in a captive for every five bushels of corn, I would supply them. Upon the Indians returning the General this answer, four or five guns were fired against the fort, and they withdrew, as we supposed, for we heard no more of them.

In all this time we had scarce opportunity to eat or sleep. The cessation of arms gave us no matter of rest, for we suspected they did it to obtain an advantage against us. I believe men were never known to hold out with better resolution, for they did not seem to sit or lie still one moment. There were about thirty men in the fort, and although we had some thousands of guns fired at us, there were but two men slightly wounded: viz.-John Brown and Joseph Ely.

By the above account you may form some idea of the distressed circumstances we were under, to have such an army of starved creatures around us, whose necessity obliged them to be the more earnest. They seemed every minute as if they were going to swallow us up; using all the threatening language they could invent, and shouting and firing as if the heavens and the earth were coming together.

But notwithstanding all this our courage held out to the last. We were informed by the French that came into the fort, that our captives (which they say are about 300 in number) were removed from Quebec to Montreal by reason of sickness which is in Quebec; and that they were well and in good health, except three, who were left sick, and that about three captives had died who were said to be Dutchmen. They also informed us that John Norton had liberty to preach to the captives.

The news of this checkmate of the enemy on the frontier was dispatched to Boston, and was received with liveliest satisfaction. The importance of the victory was recognized by Governor Shirley, in distinguished commendation of the conduct of Captain Stevens. Commodore Sir Charles Knowles, who was in naval command at Boston, showed his appreciation by the gift of an elegant sword, the compliment being later responded to, when, in 1753 the settlement became a town, by placing in the forefront of the appellation the first name of the donor. It must be added that the town was long specifically designated as "Charlestown Number Four," which descriptive title has not gone entirely out of use.

One other episode in the life of the fort remains to be told. Seventeen years had passed since hostilities were ended, by the triumphant

conquest secured by Wolfe on the plains of Abraham, September 13, 1759. At the close of this period of innocuous desuetude the fort, and the town as well, became the scene of active preparation for a brief but brilliant campaign under the command of one of the soldierly men to whom, as to Washington, the French War had been a school preparatory to the War of the Revolution.

Stark had been colonel of a regiment at Bunker Hill, and with Washington at Princeton and Trenton. But the time was at hand for his masterpiece of warfare. In July, 1777, he was in retirement from the army, resenting a slight which had been passed upon him by the Continental Congress. But when summons with a commission came to him from the military government of his own state, to meet the enemy which was nearing its frontiers, it found him cheerfully obedient.

Charlestown, which had been made by the state a depository of military stores, was the appointed place of rendezvous. The first paragraph of a letter to the committee of safety, dated Charlestown Number Four, July 30, 1777,-seventeen days before Benningtonreveals the military promptness of the commander, as well as the difficulties under which he labored:

I received yours of the 22d inst., with the enclosed informing me of the situation of the enemy; and of our Frontiers; but previous to your letter, I had received an Express from Col. Warner, informing me of their situation, and I forwarded 250 men to their relief on the 28th. I sent another detachment off this day, and as fast as they come in will send them. I expect to march myself to-morrow or next day; we are detained a good deal by want of Bullet molds, as there is but one pair in town, and the few Balls you sent goes but little way in supplying the whole.

Except in the matter of balls, a good outfit for New Hampshire's contingent of soldiers for Bennington would seem to have been furnished at Charlestown. Beside ammunition and equipments from the quartermaster's department, there was great activity in the commissariat. A very long epic, which is in print, bristling with names and details, says:

And Col. Hunt seemed everywhere,
To see that all were fed;
And every girl made cartridges
Who was not making bread.

Indeed, it may not be presumptuous to name as among the possibilities, that if it had not been for the generous send-off from the old fort the victory at Bennington might not have been achieved.

It would be interesting to know the manner of the taking off of the battered and time-worn structure, after its days of usefulness were past. It was not by fire, surely, as such an event would be handed down from vivid memory. It is only certain that not a vestige remains. The exact location of the fort will never be known. Approximate information, however, has been furnished. At one of the annual meetings of the local historical society, Abram Hull, an aged man, told us that, when a boy, he was with his father, who was engaged in gathering apples in the orchard of Dr. Taylor, and that the aged owner came to the place and said, “Where these trees stand was the old fort." Dr. Taylor, it must be explained, was, when a very young man,-nineteen years of age according to the record,— surgeon of the garrison, and subsequently settled in Charlestown. His orchard was located as due west from the stone blacksmithshop, a widely-known landmark.

This tradition, received at such close range, accords with the prevailing local opinion. The information it conveys will be inscribed on the marker, for which preparations are being made, to stand by the driveway in Charlestown street. The name of Phineas Stevens may well have place thereon. It will, surely, ever be recalled in connection with the sturdy defense of the northern frontier of the valley of the Connecticut.

QUARTERLY MEETING

MARCH 15, 1904

JAMES H. OSGOOD of Chicago read a paper on "Old Howard Street," and in addition gave several anecdotes of his father, Rev. Dr. Samuel Osgood.

Old Howard Street

This is the first time in my life that I ever attempted to speak before an audience, and I might say,

You'd scarce expect one of my age
To speak in public on the stage

I may have occasion to use a term which might be called slang, but I want you to understand that it is not original with me, and I will tell you where it came from. I got it out of a paper. There were two young ladies who were discussing their lovers and Maud says to Blanche, "You had a call from Mr.—yesterday?" "Yes." "Was it a pleasant call?" "Yes." She was not very responsive, so her friend suspected that all was not right, so she said, "He made a proposition to you, didn't he—he made a proposal?" "Yes." "And you refused him?" "Yes." "Well, that's where you dropped your watermelon!" I may have occasion to use that phrase, and I want you to know where it came from. After I consented to speak here I thought perhaps that might be where I dropped my watermelon.

When Mr. Adams asked me to address you, I felt a good deal as the school girl did who was asked to make a rhyme several verses of poetry-in order to avoid being whipped. She had given. to her for a subject the turnip, and she thought it was a pretty small subject to make a rhyme upon. However, she succeeded so well that she was not whipped. She went on something like this:

Mr. Finney had a turnip and it grew behind the barn;
It grew and grew, but it didn't do no harm.

It grew and it grew till it couldn't grow no taller;
Mr. Finney pulled it up and put it in the cellar.

It lay and it lay till it began to rot;
His daughter Susie washed it up and put it in the pot.

It boiled and it boiled all that it was able;

His daughter Mary took it up and put it on the table.

Mr. Finney and his wife then sat down to sup,

And they ate and they ate till they ate the turnip up.

I shall be satisfied if I succeed as well as the girl did.

Old Howard street, I thought when I was asked about it, was opened in the '30's, but on going to the records I find it was opened in 1829 by Colonel Solomon Warriner, Mr. John Howard and Mr. Charles Howard. They were the heirs to the Josiah Dwight estate and it was opened on this land, principally, but it seems that Colonel Warriner had the disposal of the lots. It was accepted by the town in 1829. The first lot was sold to Mr. Franklin Taylor and he built a brick house upon it which, in 1836, he sold to the Hon. John Mills. I believe the next lot was bought by Mr. Simon Smith and he built a brick house upon that which he afterward sold to Mr. Daniel Lombard. There was another house built there by Mr. Gideon Gardner who was a carpenter by trade, but he built a brick house there which he sold to Mr. Charles Merriam some time in the '30's I guess, probably '36.

Now as I remember Howard street more especially, it was after '39. I went away from Springfield to New York in '36, but I was back and forth until I returned in '39. I remember most of the people that were in Howard street at that time and lived there for years until '55-when I left again, and then there was a period when I knew very little about the transactions and special changes here.

In 1839 the old Josiah Dwight house stood facing Main street on the north corner of Howard. In 1840 or '42 it was turned around and moved in the place where it now stands. It is plain enough to me that it is the old Josiah Dwight house. The house that Colonel Warriner occupied, and Deacon Bontecou, is the Pitt Bliss house. Colonel Warriner is in some way connected with that family and he lived there until he moved down to the corner of Water street in the late 40's, when he died there.

In 1839 or '40 Mr. Shurtleff came here from Vermont. He built the house which is now standing on Howard street next to Uncle Daniel Lombard-he was always spoken of as Uncle Daniel until he left.

Take the north side: The Josiah Dwight house formerly stood on Main street and in the early 40's it was turned around to where it now stands back of the brick block. Next came the house built by James W. Hale, which was afterwards sold to Colonel Thompson. Next was the James Brewer house, built by Franklin Taylor, now standing. Then Henry Brewer built a house next his brother,