Part 9 (1/2)
the 19. I went upon fatigue the morning began with fireing from the wicked enemy at our guard but did no hurt in the afternoon they rifle men fired at the enemy and they enemy at them and they wounded one of the rifle men in the foot Slitely but what Damage we did them is uncertain let this Suffice for a short acount of the tranactions of the 19 day.
the 20. I went upon the main guard at night our boats went up with in gun Shot of the comon[147] and alarmed them by fireing Several guns and then returned without any Loss on our side.
[Footnote 147: The large park, known as Boston Common, extended down to the water's edge, before the flats were filled in.]
the 21. Nothing remarkable hapened this day at night one of the enemy deserted and came to us.
the 22. We paraded nothing remarkable I went down to the piquet.
the 23, 24. Nothing remarkable.
the 25. A flag of truce came out of town but for what I dont know.
the 26. This morning their was a man ran away from the floating battery.
the 27. Being Sunday but they make such a fireing over at Bunkers hill that it seems to be more Like the Kings birth day than Sunday but what Sucksess they have had we are not able to determine but we heard that they killed too men and wounded 3 or 4 four more[148]
[Footnote 148: About nine o'clock on Sunday morning, the 27th, the British opened a heavy cannonade from Bunker's hill (where they had built a strong redoubt), and from a s.h.i.+p and floating battery in Mystic river. The firing was directed upon the American works on Winter, Prospect, and Ploughed hills. They continued to bombard these works daily until the 10th of September.]
the 28. But they still hold up their firing at Bunkers hill nothing more remarkable this day.
the 29. I went upon the piquet down to the george tavern and the enemy fired several small arms at us but did us no Damage.
the 30. Very rainy nothing extraordinary this day.
the 31. Nothing extraordinary this day only it was rainy at night Lieutenant Foster and four men went down to the piquet.[149]
[Footnote 149: There was a famous tree in Boston, under which the patriots had often held meetings since the time of the stamp-act excitement. On that account it was called ”Liberty-Tree.” It was a n.o.ble elm, and stood at the corner of the present Was.h.i.+ngton and Ess.e.x streets. On the 31st of August, 1775, the British cut it down, with no apparent motive but the indulgence of petty spite.
An eye-witness of the event says: ”After a long spell of laughing and grinning, sweating, swearing, and foaming, with malice diabolical, they cut down a tree, because it bore the name of liberty.” A tory soldier was killed by its fall. A poet of the day wrote:--
”A tory soldier, on its topmost limb-- The Genius of the Shade looked stern at him, And marked him out that same hour to dine Where unsnuffed lamps burn low at Pluto's shrine.
Then tripped his feet from off their cautious stand: Pale turned the wretch--he spread each helpless hand, But spread in vain--with headlong force he fell, Nor stopped descending till he stopped in h.e.l.l!”]
SEPTEM.
the 1. This morning very early just past one o clock the enemy began to fire from their Brest Work and their floating batery which ocationed an alarm their fireing Semed to be at our main guard and piquet they fired a number of guns and threw several bombs and they were permitted to kill too men the one belongd to Col Huntingtons[150]
Regement and the other belonged to col Davidsons Regement and one of the riflemen was slitely wounded but see the Providence of G.o.d in it when 6 or 7 hundred men were before the mouths of their canon there was but too men killed We should not have thought it strange if they had killed 20 considering the Situation that they were in too of the regulars centrys deserted about a hour before the firing began this was the smartest fireing that ever has been this campaign in the afternoon they fired upon our fatigue party but did no Damage also about Sunset there was several guns fired on board the s.h.i.+ps there was several s.h.i.+ps came in to the harbour thus far the proceding of the 1 day.
[Footnote 150: Colonel Jedediah Huntington, of Norwich, Connecticut. The British now seemed determined to make a general a.s.sault upon the besiegers, and a heavy cannonade was opened simultaneously upon the Americans at Roxbury and in the vicinity of Cambridge.]
the 2. I went down to the right hand of the burying place and we had not been their Long before we were ordered of and the canon began to play upon the enemy from Roxbury fort on the hill and the field peices from the brest work in the thicket the ocation of our mens fireing upon them was this they had advanced about 30 or 40 rods this side their other brest work on the neck and were intrenching their[151]
they fired several guns at us but did us no Damage in the afternoon we went down to our work again expecting every moment when they would fire at us but they never fired one gun in the afternoon at night thir was a platform caried down to the thicket in order to mount a canon their Nothing more remarkable to day.
[Footnote 151: They threw up a slight breastwork a little in advance of their lines on the neck, and not far from the George tavern.]
the 3. Being Sunday we turned out about day and went to our alarm post and it rained and we cam home and John coleman drinkt 3 pints cyder at one draught nothing more remarkable this day.