Court will allow out of the public treasurie the sum of five pounds for every man's scalp of the enemy killed in this Colony, to be paid to the person that doth that service, over and above his or their wages, and the plunder taken by them.""

The people of our day have little idea of the mode or the arduousness of the service of our forefathers in those early aboriginal wars. The savages had no rules of war-no recognized code of dealing death to their enemies, as modern nations have-no rule requiring them to proclaim war before making it. But they made secret and sudden irruptions upon peaceable communities, when all was apparently peaceful and harmonious, by deadly ambuscades, or by the midnight torch, in the deep snows of mid-winter, in these northern lands, where there were no roads and marching was impossible. Though they had few arts in their savage ignorance, they were yet provided with means of attack and annoyance, and at the same time with avenues of escape when overmatched, or overpowered, not open to the whites. The early white settlers had to learn these, and prepare themselves to meet them. With our present ideas of warfare, after our late great civil conflict, it would be difficult for us to conceive of a army on suow-shoes, whether it were large or small. If the early soldiers thus provided, kept step, their march must, indeed, have been majestic, and their line of battle impressive. But the line of battle was not much in vogue in those days, when it became necessary to fight an enemy that did not stand up in open field, but sought every shelter and protection, and where it was necessary for each man to select his particular tree, rock, or other protection, behind which to fight, and pick off his unwary foe. The inhabitants early learned to fight the Indians, and later, the French with them, after their own fashion. Accordingly, we find the following order passed at the October session of the General Court, 1704 :-"It is ordered and enacted by this Court; That every towne and plantation in this Colonie shall be provided with a number of snowshoes and Indian shoes, no less than one pair of snow-shoes with two pair of Indian shoes for every thousand pounds in the list of estate in such towne, which snow-shoes and Indian shoes shall be provided at or before the tenth day of December next, by the selectmen in every towne, at the charge of the Colonie, and shall be kept by them in good repair and fit for service when there may

1 Hoadley's Conn. Col. Records, 1 vol. 462.

be occasion to make use of them. And the selectmen of the several townes who shall neglect to provide such a number of snowshoes and Indian shoes, and to keep them in good repair as abovesaid, shall each of them pay a fine to the Colonie treasurie, the sume of ten shillings.'

In these early days of frequent alarm, the General Court found it necessary, in order to avoid the too frequent meeting of their whole body, to appoint a number out of it to meet as occasion might require, for instant action in cases of emergency, and their orders were as binding as though enacted by the full Court. In the early part of 1707, there was a special alarm sounded throughout New England, and the ever-vigilant officers of the frontier town of Woodbury, were quick to take action, for the protection of this most north-western town in the colony,

The record of the Council, held at Hartford, Feb. 6th 1706-7, runs thus:

"A letter from Deputy Governour Treat to the Governour's Council, and also a letter from Colonel Schuyler, signifying that he was informed that the French and enemy Indians were preparing to make a descent upon the frontier towns of New England; also a letter from Capt. John Minor and Mr. John Sherman, to the Deputy Governour, signifying their suspicion that the Pohtatuck and Owiantonuck Indians, were invited to joyn with the enemy; as also the examination of the Owiantonuck and Pohtatuck Indians, before his honour our Deputy Governour, and other gentlemen, with divers other writings relating to the matter, with the opinion of our Deputy Governour, what might be needful to be done to prevent the defection of those Indians, and to secure their fidelitie, and for the preservation of the small frontier towns.

Resolved by the Hon11 the Governour and Council, in order to prevent the defection of the Pohtatuck and Owiantonuck Indians to the common enemy and to secure their fidelitie, that order be sent to Capt. John Minor and Mr. John Sherman, of Woodbury, with all convenient speed to remove the said Indians down to Fairfield or Stratford, or both, as should be judged most convenient. But if, by reason of sickness prevailing among them, they cannot at present be removed, then to take two of their principal persons, and convey them to Fairfield, there to be kept safely as hostages, to secure the fidelity of those that remain at those inland places."

"Resolved, for the preservation of the frontier towns of Symsbury, Waterbury, Woodbury and Danbury, that order be sent to the inhabitants of those towns to provide with all possible speed a sufficient number of well fortified houses for the safetie of themselves and families in their respective towns. The houses for fortification to be appointed by the vote of the major part of the inhabitants of each respective town assembled, if they can agree; in case of their disagreement, to be appointed by the commission officers of the town."

"Resolved, that the inhabitants of Woodbury, Waterbury and Danbury, do every of them maintain a good scout out every day from their respective towns, of two faithful and trusty men, to observe the motions of the enemy. The scouts in Woodbury and Waterbury to be appointed and directed by the commission officers in each town. The scouts in Symsbury to be appointed and directed by the major of the countie. The charges of the several scouts to be borne by the countrie, as by law provided." 1

Till the peace of 1713, our fathers in the frontier towns were kept in a state of continual worry from fear of attack and ambuscade on the part of the foreign Indians, and their allies, the French, who had early imbibed all the evil and irresponsible modes of warfare and revenge, for which the Indians have been criticised by all historians. There was a constant hurrying forth of the grand scout" and the town scout, watching, fighting and fortifying. Orders were continually proclaimed by the General Court and by the Council. In Oct., 1707, Woodbury was granted seven pounds, to be paid out of the country rate, in consideration of their charge of fortifying." In Oct. 1708, the Deputy Governor was ordered to "cause to be erected such and so many garrisons at Woodbury, Danbury and Oweantinuck (New Milford) and support them with men and provisions, as he shall judge necessary, at the Colony's charge. Provided there shall not be any other than two garrisons at Woodbury, and one at Danbury, erected at the Colony's charge." At the same session it was enacted "that there should be allowed and paid out of the pub. lic treasury of this Colony, the sum of fifty pounds, in pay for the bringing up and maintaining of Dogs in the Northern frontier towns in this Colony, to hunt after the Indian enemy. So great was the fear that weapons would get into the hands of hostile

Indians, that it was ordered that no person whatsoever, upon any pretence whatsoever, should "furnish, lend or sell to any of our friend Indians, any gun, for any time, longer or shorter." In May, 1709, an expedition against the French and Indians, for the reduction of Montreal and Quebec, was organized by New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut. The latter colony furnished 350 men, and of this number, Woodbury sent its quota of nine, the quota of Hartford, in the same expedition, being but twenty-two. So that this frontier town, besides attending to its Own watching and warding," sent nearly one half as many men as the pioneer town and capital of the colony. This fact shows the importance of our town to the colony, even at that early day. Two of this quota of Woodbury, viz:-Sergeant Thomas Skeel and John J. Johnson, died a few days after their return home, of disease contracted by exposure in the camp.

Long before these several enactments, requiring the erection of fortifications in the frontier towns, our fathers had proceeded to the erection of defensive structures, called pallasaded houses Indeed, they were coeval with the first settlement of the town. Houses were pallasaded by digging a ditch around them, and placing logs, sharpened at the top, perpendicularly in the ditch, and firmly securing them there. The logs were from twelve to fifteen feet in height, and, with a strong, well-fastened gate, furnished a very good protection against a sudden attack of the Indians, with such weapons as they had, previous to obtaining the arms used by the white men. The location of these fortified houses has been well preserved. Capt. John Minor's house, being the first one completed, and built of logs, was located six or eight rods south of the late Erastus Minor's residence, on a little knoll. The well used by him was discovered at this place in the spring of 1869, its walls being still in pretty good preservation, though it had been covered over and its exact location unknown, for more than one hundred years. By the tradition handed down in the family, the pallasades about this house were fifteen feet in height above the surface of the ground after being set in place. The fortified house of Isaac Judson was located in Judson Lane, on the opposite side of the highway from Nathan Warner's residence. Another pallasaded house stood on the site now occupied by the dwelling house of Horace Hurd, in West Side. A later fortified house, occupied by one of the Bronsons, in Transylvania, is still in existence. It had a look-out, for the purpose of obser

vation, on its top, by the chimney. The old Stoddard Parsonage House, built in 1700, now occupied by George W. DeWolf, and still in a good state of preservation, was the most thoroughly fortified house in the plantation. One of the bounds in a deed of land next north of this, dated March 31, 1702, was laid within a foot of "y pallasadoes in Mr. Stoddard's fence."

When, in 1707, the order came to fortify the town, the people, with great alacrity, set about the work of preparing the defences. They repaired the fortified houses of Capt. John Minor and Isaac Judson, the one at Horace Hurd's, and the Bronson house, in Transylvania. They also strengthened the defences of the parsonage. So great was the promptitude and zeal displayed by the town, that the General Court made them a liberal compensation, as we have seen, as a due acknowledgment of their services for the common defence. It will be seen by one of the preceding votes, that the colonial authorities, the next year, furnished, or paid for a small standing garrison, in addition to the alternate watch furnished by the inhabitants. It was in this year (1708) that a body of Indians appeared in West Side, and drove the people, by their sudden and formidable appearance, into the fortified houses. What was their intention in coming is not known, as they made no demonstration beyond showing themselves. If the design of their demonstration had been a hostile one, no doubt the watchfulness of the little garrison and of the people, together with the strength of their fortifications, showed them it was better for them to desist and depart, which they accordingly did. It was during the continuance of these hostilities that Parson Stoddard is related to have killed two Indians in the bushes by Cranberry Pond, near his house, as detailed on page 79. During the war with the Maine Indians, in 1723 and 1724, the inhabitants were obliged to keep garrisons for protection against such attacks, several of which occurred. Our limits had by this time extended, and one of these garrisons was located on the Shepaug river, where six men were stationed. In Oct., 1726, the General Court resolved to station five men under Lieut. Ebenezer Warner, for "the defence of the village of Shepaug."

It will have been seen, by the acts and orders quoted, that the military officer; of the town were of great importance and authority. Their powers, subject only to the letter of their instructions, were autocratic. Not only was the safety of the town, but, in some sense, the welfare of the colony, was entrusted to their cour