University of Virginia Library

LETTER XXXIX.

My good old Sir. — The prisoners are out and no
blood spilt yet. I had prepared to give the British a
most terrible battle, if they hadn't let 'em out. I guess
I should made 'em think old Bonapart had got back
among 'em again, for a keener set of fellows than my
company is made up of never shouldered a musket or
trod shoe-leather. I was pesky sorry they let 'em out
quite so soon, for I really longed to have a brush with

'em; and how they come to let 'em go I dont know,
unless it was because they heard I was coming. And I
expect that was the case, for the prisoners told me the
British Minister at Washington, sent on some kind of
word to governor Campbell, and I suppose he told him
how I had got a commission, and was coming down
upon New Brunswick like a harrycane.

If I could only got down there a little sooner and fit
sich a great battle as you did at New Orleans, my
fortune would have been made for this world. I should
have stood a good chance then to be President of the
United States, one of these days. And that's as high as
ever I should want to get. I got home to Downingville
in little more than a week after I left you at Washington,
for having a pretty good pocket full of money,
and knowing that my business was very important I
rid in the stage most all the way. I spose I needn't
stop to tell you how tickled all my folks were to see me.
I did'nt know for awhile but they'd eat me up. But I
spose that's neither here nor there in making military
reports, so I'll go on. I found no difficulty in getting
volunteers. I believe I could have got nearly half the
State of Maine to march if I had wanted 'em. But as
I only had orders to list one good stout company, I took
'em all in Downingville, for I rather trust myself with
one hundred genuine Downingville boys, than five hundred
of your common run. I took one supernumerary
however, when I got to Bangor. The editor of the
Bangor Republican was so zealous to go, and said he'd
fight so to the last drop of his blood, that I could'nt
help taking him, so I appointed him supernumerary
corporal. Poor fellow, he was so disappointed when he
found the prisoners were out that he fairly cried for
vexation. He's for having me go right on now and give
all New Brunswick a real thrashing.

But I know what belongs to gineralship better than
that; I haven't had my orders yet. Well, after we

left Bangor we had a dreadful rough and tumble sort of
a journey, over rocks and mountains and rivers and
swamps and bogs and meadows, and through long pieces
of woods that I did n't know as we should find the way
out. But we got through at last, and arrived here at
Madawaska day before yesterday. I thought I better
come this way and make a little stop at Madawaska to
see if the prisoners' wives and little ones were in want
of any thing and then go down to Fredericton and blow
the British ski high.

When our company first came out in sight in Madawaska,
they thought it was the British coming to catch
some more of 'em; and such a scattering and scampering
I guess you never see. The men flew into the
woods like a flock of sheep with forty dogs after 'em,
and the women catched their babies up in their arms
and run from one house to another screeching and
screaming enough to make the woods ring again. But
when they found out we were United States troops come
to help 'em, you never see any body so glad. They all
cried for joy then. The women run into the woods and
called for their husbands to come back again, for there
was nobody there that would hurt them, and back they
came and treated us with the best they had in their
houses. And while we sot chatting, before the women
hardly got their tears wiped up, one of 'em looked up
towards the woods and screamed out there comes the prisoners.
Some turned pale a little, thinking it might be
their ghosts, but in a minute in they come, as good flesh
and blood as any of us, and then the women had another
good crying spell.

I asked one of the prisoners how they got away, for
I thought you would want to know all about it; and
says he we come away on our legs. Did you break out
of jail, said I? I guess there was no need of that, said
he, for we want locked in half the time. Did you knock
down the guard, said I, and fight your way out?

Humph! said he, I guess we might have hunted one
while before we could find a guard to knock down.
Nobody seemed to take any care of us, if we wanted a
drop of grog we had to go out and buy it ourselves.
Well but, said I, if you were left in such a loose state as
that, why did you not run away before? Tut, said he,
shrugging up his shoulders, I guess we knew what we
were about; the longer we staid there the more land
the state of Maine would give us to pay us for being
put in jail, but when they turned us out of jail, and
would'nt keep us any longer, we thought we might as
well come home.

And now, my good old sir, since matters are as they
are, I shall take up my head quarters here at Madawaska
for the present, and wait for further orders. I shall
take good care of the people here, and keep every thing
in good order, and not allow a single New Brunswicker
to come any where within gun-shot. As for that Leftenant
Governor, Mr Archibald Campbell, he better keep
himself scarce; if he shows his head here again, I shall
jest put him into a meal bag and send him to Washington.
I shall expect to hear from you soon, and as I
shall have to be here sometime, I dont know but you had
better send me on a little more money. My uniform got
rather shattered coming through the woods, and it will
cost me something to get it fixt up again.