MAJOR BIGELOW A PRISONER.
We left Major Bigelow a prisoner of war. Whether he was confined in Canada, transported to Halifax, or placed aboard an English prison ship, does not appear on the record. But tradition has it, that he went aboard one of those tory vessels, so noted in the history of George the Third. The severe treatment and cruelty he received here, did not cool his ardor. His motto was, "I have not begun to fight yet." An exchange having been effected in the summer of 1776, after an imprisonment of seven months, he returned and was immediately called into the service with the rank of lieutenant colonel; and the next February, he was appointed colonel of the fifteenth regiment of the Massachusetts line in the continental army. His regiment was composed principally of men from Worcester, though there were some from Leicester, Auburn, Paxton and Holden, and a braver band never took the field, or mustered for battle. High character for courage and discipline, early acquired, was maintained unsullied to the close of their service. His troops being drilled, Col. Bigelow marched to join the northern army, under the command of Gen. Gates, and arrived in season to join the main army at Saratoga, and to assist in the capture of Gen. Burgoyne.
At this scene of blood and carnage, Col. Bigelow, with his regiment from Worcester, behaved with uncommon gallantry. It was said by our informant, who was on the spot at the time, that the 15th regiment, under the command of Col. Bigelow, was the most efficient of any on the ground.
Col. Bigelow was of fine personal appearance; his figure was tall and commanding; his bearing was erect and martial, and his step was said to have been one of the most graceful in the army. With taste for military life, he was deeply skilled in the science of war, and the troops under his command and instruction exhibited the highest degree of discipline. Col. Bigelow possessed a vigorous intellect, an ardent temperament, and a warm and generous heart.