Historic Events of Colonial Days

by Rupert Sargent Holland

Peter had a coil of rope ready. Now he cut two lengths of this, tossed one over to Jack, who still kept his knee on the chest of his man, and used the other to tie the arms of his own prisoner. Then he helped the Yorker to his feet. Meantime Jack had followed his example with the other, and shortly both prisoners were standing before the hearth while their captors searched their pockets for firearms and knives.

"I must allow," said one of the Yorkers, "you two were mighty sharp! We figured that when you people here heard we were acting under sheriff's orders you'd do as you were told."

"We don't pay no more attention hereabouts to what a Yorker sheriff says than if he was a catamount,—no, not so much as that!" returned Peter. "What do you men mean by marching into a peaceful village an' trying to turn people out o' their lawful homes?"

"Well, the village certainly looked peaceful enough," said the Yorker, "but I don't see as how we've turned many folks out o' their homes yet."

"And I don't think you will!" Peter assured him. "Jack, take a look outside and see what's happened."

Jack went out, and going from house to house, found that wherever the Yorkers had demanded admittance the Green Mountain Boys had worked their trick beautifully. In two or three houses it had taken some time to make the enemy prisoners, but in each case the elements of surprise and determination had won the day. The Yorkers had expected to meet frightened villagers; instead they had found themselves confronting well-prepared Green Mountain Boys.

Under direction of "Big Bill" Dutton the prisoners, all with their arms securely tied behind them, were marched out into the road. "You say you came to Beaver Falls to carry out the law," said Dutton to the Yorkers; "well, to-morrow we'll march you all down to Bennington, and see what the law has to say about this business." Then he sent Sam to the sawmill with word to Snyder to have the women and children return to their own houses. When the sawmill was empty the Green Mountain Boys marched their prisoners into it, and loosened their bonds so that they could be fairly comfortable.

In spite of the high feeling between the two parties, there was practically no bad blood, for no one had been wounded in the contest, and the Yorkers could appreciate the clever way in which their opponents had turned the tables on them. In most respects the men were much alike; men of the New York Grants and the New Hampshire Grants had both gone into the wilderness and met the same problems there. Men from both provinces had fought against the French and Indians, and this little fight as to which province owned the land of the Green Mountains was in a way a family affair. So prisoners and captors swapped yarns, told hunting stories, and exchanged the news of their own neighborhoods. Jack and Sam and the boy from Dutton's sat in a corner of the mill and listened to the men. Dawn began to break in the east. Some women brought hot coffee and ham and bacon from the houses, and the men, both captors and captives, ate and drank, and then some of them stretched out on the floor and took short naps.

Day had come when one of the Green Mountain Boys, who had been stationed as sentry on the road across the river, dashed into the mill with a new alarm. He had seen some men, perhaps a dozen of them, coming down the road toward the Falls. They might be friends or they might be enemies. The men of the Falls must not be taken by surprise.

"Big Bill" quickly gave his orders. Three men, armed with muskets, were left in charge of the prisoners in the sawmill, and the rest, their guns ready for instant use if need be, marched out into the clearing between the mill and the bridge, ready to defend Beaver Falls from the newcomers in case they should be Yorkers.