not to be discovered until the moment they were ready to commence the attack. It was judged remarkable, that the vessels should come into the harbour at the very hour in which they were most needed. The life of captain Mason was very singularly preserved. As he entered a wigwam for fire to burn the fort, an Indian was drawing an arrow to the very head, and would have killed him instantly; but Davies, one of his sergeants, cut the bow string with his cutlass, and prevented the fatal shot.* Lieutenant Bull received an arrow into a hard piece of cheese, which he had in his clothes, and by it was saved harmless. Two soldiers, John Dyer and Thomas Stiles, both servants of one man, were shot in the knots of their neckcloths, and by them preserved from instant death.'t

The histories of our country are not wanting in specimens of Indian dexterity in war; but the reader will probably be amused with the following account of the stratagem, by which Uncas, the chief of the Moheagans, contrived to rout his enemies, the Narragansets:

'When they (the two armies) had advanced within fair bow shot of each other, Uncas had recourse to a stratagem, with which he had previously acquainted his warriors. He desired a parley, and both armies halted in the face of each other. Uncas gallantly advancing in the front of his men, addressed Miantonimoh to this effect. You have a number of stout men with you, and so have I with me. It is a great pity that such brave warriors should be killed in a private quarrel between us only. Come like a man, as you profess to be, and let us fight it out. If you kill me, my men shall be yours; but if I kill you, your men shall be mine.' Miantonimoh replied, My men came to fight, and they shall fight.' Uncas falling instantly upon the ground, his men discharged a shower of arrows upon the Narragansets; and, without a moment's interval, rushing upon them, in the most furious manner, with their hideous Indian yell, put them immediately to flight. The Moheagans pursued the enemy with the same fury and eagerness with which they commenced the action. The Narragansets were driven down rocks and precipices, and chased like a doe by the huntsman. Among others, Miantonimoh was exceedingly pressed. Some of Uncas's bravest men, who were most light of foot, coming up with him, twitched him back, impeding his flight, and passed him, that Uncas might take him. Uncas was a stout man, and rushing forward, like a lion greedy of his prey, seized him by his shoulder. He knew Uncas, and saw that he was now in the power of the man whom he had hated, and by all means attempted to destroy; but he sat down sullen and spake not a word. Uncas gave the Indian whoop and called up his men, who were behind, to his assistance. The victory was complete.'

In all the dealings of the colonists with other powers, such was their inflexibility, that they would not yield the most insignificant particular. Thus, when Stuyvesant, the Dutch governor, opened a treaty with them, in 1650, he very innocently dated his letter at New Netherlands.

'The commissioners, observing that his letter was dated at New-Netherlands, replied, that they would not treat, unless he would alter the name of the place where he wrote. He answered, that if they *Hubbard's Narrative. Mason's History.

would not date at Hartford, he would not at New-Netherlands, but at Connecticut. They consented that he should date at Connecticut, but claimed a right for themselves to date at Hartford. He gave up the right of dating at the Netherlands, and the treaty proceeded.'

In 1674, the duke of York appointed major Edmund Andros the governor of New York, and of all his possessions in America. Under these general words, the governor claimed Connecticut; and, on the 6th or 9th of July, 1675, he appeared before Saybrook to enforce his claim.

'Captain Bull and his officers, with the officers and gentlemen of the town, met the major, at his landing, and acquainted him that they had, at that instant, received instructions to tender him a treaty, and to refer the whole matter in controversy to commissioners, capable of determining it according to law and justice. The major rejected the proposal, and forthwith commanded, in his majesty's name, that the duke's patent, and the commission which he had received from his royal highness, should be read. Captain Bull commanded him, in his majesty's name, to forbear reading. When his clerk attempted to persist in reading, the captain repeated his command, with such energy of voice and manner, as convinced the major it was not safe to proceed. The captain then acquainted him that he had an address from the assembly to him, and read the protest. Governor Andros, pleased with his bold and soldier-like appearance, said, 'What is your name?' He replied, My name is Bull, Sir.' Bull!' said the governor, 'It is a pity that your horns are not tipt with silver.' Finding he could make no impression upon the officers or people, and that the legisluture of the colony were determined to defend themselves, in the possession of their chartered rights, he gave up the design of seizing the fort. He represented the protest as a slender affair, and an ill requital of his kindness. He said, however, he should do more. The militia of the town guarded him to his boat, and going on board he soon sailed for Long Island.'

Colonel Benjamin Fletcher was made governor of New York, in 1692; and had been invested with the power of taking under his control the whole militia of Connecticut. The command was conferred on the assembly by charter; and they would not give it up. Colonel Fletcher went to Hartford; and thought he might enforce his power, if on the spot.

The trainbands of Hartford assembled, and, as the tradition is, while captain Wadsworth, the senior officer, was walking in front of the companies, and exercising the soldiers, colonel Fletcher ordered his commission and instructions to be read. Captain Wadsworth instantly commanded, Beat the drums;' and there was such a roaring of them that nothing else could be heard. Colonel Fletcher commanded silence. But no sooner had Bayward made an attempt to read again, than Wadsworth commands, Drum, drum, I say.' The drummers understood their business, and instantly beat up with all the art and life of which they were masters. Silence, silence,' says the colonel. No sooner was there a pause, than Wadsworth speaks with great earnestness, 'Drum, drum, I say;' and turning to his excellency, said, If I am interrupted again I will make the sun shine through you in a moment.'

་

* Captain Bull's letter to the assembly.

He spoke with such energy in his voice and meaning in his countenance, that no further attempts were made to read or enlist men. Such numbers of people collected together, and their spirits appeared so high, that the governor and his suit judged it expedient, soon to leave the town and return to New-York.'

Among the numerous sects, which disquieted the people of Connecticut, there was one called the Rogerenes; whose principle of association seems to have been that of disturbing the meetings of all other sects. Their name was derived from one John Rogers; the second martyr of that name.

'It was his manner to rush into the assembly on the Lord's day, in the time of God's worship, in a very boisterous way, and to charge the minister with lies and false doctrine; and to scream, shout, stamp, &c. by which he offered insufferable molestations to the worship and people of God. And this was his manner in the court also, when he pleased, or had a mind to make himself sport, and he would laugh at it when he had done until his sides shook.

'I saw him once brought to court for such a disturbance, committed on the sabbath. He had contrived the matter so as to be just without the door when he was called to answer; upon which he rushed into court with a prodigious noise; his features and gestures expressed more fury than I ever saw in a distracted person of any sort, and I soberly think, that if a legion of devils had pushed him in headlong, his entrance had not been more horrid and ghastly, nor have seemed more preternatural.

When he came to the bar, he demanded of the court what their business was with him? The indictment was ordered to be read. To this he pleaded not guilty, after a new mode; for as the clerk read, sometimes at the end of a sentence, and sometimes at the beginning, he would cry out, That's a cursed lie; and anon, That's a devilish lie; till at length a number of his followers, of both sexes, tuned their pipes, and screamed, roared, shouted and stamped, to that degree of noise, that it was impossible to hear the clerk read.'

The following tale will give the reader an idea of the adventures, which occasionally happened to the early settlers.

In 1723, two Indians surprised and captivated one Jacob Griswold, as he was labouring in his field; bound him, and carried him into the wilderness about twenty miles. They then stopped and made a fire, and fastening him down, one of them laid himself down to rest, and the other watched him. Griswold, unnoticed by his keeper, disengaged himself from all the cords which had bound him, except the one which bound his elbows. When the Indian appeared to be awake, and to have his eye upon him, he lay as still as possible, but when he drowsed and had not his eye upon him, he employed all his art and vigor to set himself at liberty. At length he disengaged himself from the cord which fastened his arms, and perceiving that the Indians were asleep, he sprang, caught both their guns, and leaped into the woods. Their powder horns were hung upon their guns, so that he brought off both their arms and ammunition. He secreted himself by a rock until the morning appeared, and then steered for Litchfield, guided by a brook which he imagined would lead him to the town. The Indians pursued him; but when they approached him, he would lay down one gun and

present the other, and they would draw back and hide themselves, and he made his escape to the town. A guard of thirty men was immediately dispatched to Litchfield, to keep garrison there. No further mischief was done in the town that year. But the next year, at the commencement of the summer, the Indians killed one Harris, as he was labouring in his field.'

East-Haddan was called by the Indians, Mochimoodus, the Place of Noises. Seldom a year passes without bringing us intelligence of slight earthquakes in New-England. The following extract of a letter to the author from a gentleman in Boston, may give us a key to the circumstance.

As to the earthquakes, I have something considerable and awful to tell you. Earthquakes have been here, (and no where but in this precinct, as can be discerned; that is, they seem to have their centre, rise and origin among us,) as has been observed for more than thirty years. I have been informed, that in this place, before the English settlements, there were great numbers of Indian inhabitants, and that it was a place of extraordinary Indian Pawaws, or, in short, that it was a place where the Indians drove a prodigious trade at worshipping the devil. Also I was informed, that, many years past, an old Indian was asked, What was the reason of the noises in this place? To which he replied, that the Indian's God was very angry because Englishmen's God was come here.

'Now whether there be any thing diabolical in these things, I know not; but this I know, that God ALMIGHTY is to be seen and trembled at, in what has been often heard among us. Whether it be fire or air distressed in the subterraneous caverns of the earth, cannot be known; for there is no eruption, no explosion perceptible, but by sounds and tremors, which sometimes are very fearful and dreadful. I have myself heard eight or ten sounds successively, and imitating small arms, in five minutes. I have, I suppose, heard several hundreds of them within twenty years; some more, some less terrible. Sometimes we have heard them almost every day, and great numbers of them in the space of a year. Often times I have observed them to be coming down from the north, imitating slow thunder, until the sound came near or right under, and then there seemed to be a breaking like the noise of a cannon shot, or severe thunder, which shakes the houses, and all that is in them. They have in a manner ceased, since the great earthquake. As I remember, there have been but two heard since that time, and those but moderate.'

From what has been said above, we hope it will not be understood, that we set too light a value upon excellence of style in historical composition. We have already seen, that Mr. Trumbull disdains all pretensions to elegance or harmony of language; and, if it be not enough to have observed generally, that we consider him rather as a collector of facts than a writer of history, we will now say more plainly, that we can by no means recommend his work as a model of good writing. The necessity of producing two sermons a week, are not fitted to give a man the best habits of composition; and, when we add to our author's other necessities that of being compelled to reduce his materials to paper, in

such brief intervals as he could snatch from his chosen and beloved occupations,' we could only expect to find his book, what it really is, diffuse in its narrative, loose in its texture, and disproportioned in its parts.

ART. IV.-Notice of the operations undertaken to determine the Figure of the Earth, by M. Biot, of the Academy of Sciences. Paris, 1818.-Translated from the French.

WHEN on one of the towers of Florence, Galileo, two centuries ago, explained to a very few persons, in conferences almost mysterious, his new discoveries with regard to the laws of gravity, the motion of the earth, and the figure of the planets,-could he ever have foreseen that these truths, then rejected and persecuted, should, after so short an interval of time, come to be considered as matters of so great importance, and contemplated with so general an admiration, that the governments of Europe should cause extensive operations, and distant journies to be undertaken for the sole purpose of extending them, and of ascertaining all their particulars? and that in consequence of an unhoped for propagation of all manner of knowledge,-the results of their labours should be offered to the public interest in numerous assemblies composed of the most brilliant classes of society? Such, notwithstanding, is the immense change which has taken place in the fate of the sciences since that epoch! When Galileo and Bacon appeared, after the many sublime spirits which antiquity had produced, they found the career of the sciences still untrodden,--for the name of science could not be given to the useless heap of hypothetical speculations, in which, before their day, natural philosophy consisted. Till then, men seem to have been more inclined to conjecture than to study nature; the art of interrogating her, and of making her reveal her mysteries, was unknown; they discovered it. They showed that the human mind is too feeble and unsteady to advance alone into this labyrinth of truths; that it requires to pause at phenomena which are connected with each other, as the infant leans upon the supports which it meets with when it first tries to walk; and that in the numerous circumstances, in which nature seems to allow it to embrace too great intervals, it is necessary that, by experiments artfully conceived, new phenomena should be made to spring up in the path, to ensure its footing, and to prevent it from wandering. Such has been the fruitfulness of this method, that in less than two centuries, discoveries without number, discoveries certain and lasting, have burst forth in all the departments of the sciences, have communicated themselves with rapidity to the arts and to industry, which they have enriched with wonderful applications, and have increased the sum of human knowledge a thousand times beyond what had been done by all antiquity. But thus extended, the sciences exceed the powers of any individual. Their prodigious circle cannot be embraced but by a great literary body, which unites in its collective capacity, as in a vast sensorium,