While the several companies in the city and country were forming and learning their exercise, the governor prevail'd with me to take charge of our North-western frontier, which was infested by the enemy, and provide for the defense of the inhabitants by raising troops and building a line of forts.I undertook this military business, tho' I did not conceive myself well qualified for it.He gave me a commission with full powers, and a parcel of blank commissions for officers, to be given to whom I thought fit.I had but little difficulty in raising men, having soon five hundred and sixty under my command.My son, who had in the preceding war been an officer in the army rais'd against Canada, was my aid-de-camp, and of great use to me.The Indians had burned Gnadenhut, a village settled by the Moravians, and massacred the inhabitants; but the place was thought a good situation for one of the forts.
In order to march thither, I assembled the companies at Bethlehem, the chief establishment of those people.I was surprised to find it in so good aposture of defense; the destruction of Gnadenhut had made them apprehend danger.The principal buildings were defended by a stockade; they had purchased a quantity of arms and ammunition from New York, and had even plac'd quantities of small paving stones between the windows of their high stone houses, for their women to throw down upon the heads of any Indians that should attempt to force into them.The armed brethren, too, kept watch, and reliev'd as methodically as in any garrison town.In conversation with the bishop, Spangenberg, I mention'd this my surprise; for, knowing they had obtained an act of Parliament exempting them from military duties in the colonies, I had suppos'd they were conscientiously scrupulous of bearing arms.He answer'd me that it was not one of their established principles, but that, at the time of their obtaining that act, it was thought to be a principle with many of their people.On this occasion, however, they, to their surprise, found it adopted by but a few.It seems they were either deceiv'd in themselves, or deceiv'd the Parliament; but common sense, aided by present danger, will sometimes be too strong for whimsical opinions.
It was the beginning of January when we set out upon this business of building forts.I sent one detachment toward the Minisink, with instructions to erect one for the security of that upper part of the country, and another to the lower part, with similar instructions; and I concluded to go myself with the rest of my force to Gnadenhut, where a fort was tho't more immediately necessary.The Moravians procur'd me five waggons for our tools, stores, baggage, etc.
Just before we left Bethlehem, eleven farmers, who had been driven from their plantations by the Indians, came to me requesting a supply of firearms, that they might go back and fetch off their cattle.I gave them each a gun with suitable ammunition.We had not march'd many miles before it began to rain, and it continued raining all day; there were no habitations on the road to shelter us, till we arriv'd near night at the house of a German, where, and in his barn, we were all huddled together, as wet as water could make us.It was well we were not attack'd in our march, for our arms were of the most ordinary sort, and our men could not keep their gun locks dry.The Indians are dextrous in contrivances for that purpose,which we had not.They met that day the eleven poor farmers above mentioned, and killed ten of them.The one who escap'd inform'd that his and his companions' guns would not go off, the priming being wet with the rain.
The next day being fair, we continu'd our march, and arriv'd at the desolated Gnadenhut.There was a saw-mill near, round which were left several piles of boards, with which we soon hutted ourselves; an operation the more necessary at that inclement season, as we had no tents.Our first work was to bury more effectually the dead we found there, who had been half interr'd by the country people.
The next morning our fort was plann'd and mark'd out, the circumference measuring four hundred and fifty-five feet, which would require as many palisades to be made of trees, one with another, of a foot diameter each.Our axes, of which we had seventy, were immediately set to work to cut down trees, and, our men being dextrous in the use of them, great despatch was made.Seeing the trees fall so fast, I had the curiosity to look at my watch when two men began to cut at a pine; in six minutes they had it upon the ground, and I found it of fourteen inches diameter.Each pine made three palisades of eighteen feet long, pointed at one end.While these were preparing, our other men dug a trench all round, of three feet deep, in which the palisades were to be planted; and, our waggons, the bodys being taken off, and the fore and hind wheels separated by taking out the pin which united the two parts of the perch, we had ten carriages, with two horses each, to bring the palisades from the woods to the spot.When they were set up, our carpenters built a stage of boards all round within, about six feet high, for the men to stand on when to fire thro' the loopholes.We had one swivel gun, which we mounted on one of the angles, and fir'd it as soon as fix'd, to let the Indians know, if any were within hearing, that we had such pieces; and thus our fort, if such a magnificent name may be given to so miserable a stockade, was finish'd in a week, though it rain'd so hard every other day that the men could not work.
