History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts - citizen hylbom blog

" Disperse, ye rebels ; lay down your arms and dis-
perse 1" The Americans stood firm; when he
repeated his exclamation with an oatli, rushed for-
ward, discharged his pistol, and commanded his
men to fire. A few guns were discharged, but as
no execution was done, the Americans supposing
that blank cartridges only were fired, remained
unmoved, but did not return the fire. The command
was repeated by Pitcairn, and a general dis-
charge from the front rank followed, decimating the
American line. The Americans, seeing that some
of their number were killed and others wounded,
hesitated no longer as to their right to resist, and
several of them immediately returned the fire of the
British. Jonas Parker, John Munroe, Ebenezer
Munroe, Jr., and some others returned the fire be-
fore leaving the line. Captain Parker, seeing sev-
eral of his men fall, and tiie British rushing upon
the little band from both sides of the meeting-house,
as if to surround them, ordered his men to disperse.
They did so ; but as the British continued firing,
several of the Americans returned the fire when
leaving and after leaving the field. The firing on
the part of the Americans, and also on the part
of the British, after the first two rounds, was scat-
tering and irregular. As Major Pitcairn led the
van, the responsibility of the first attack rests
solely upon him. From the best information that
can be obtained, it is not probable tiiat Colonel
Smitli was upon the ground until after or about the
moment of the fatal volley. Most of the accounts,
and especially those of the British, which are the
best authority on the question as to who was then
in command, ascribe it to Pitcairn, who, I believe,
^ never attempted to shun the responsibility.^
The depositions taken in 1775, a few days after
the events transpired, and subsequently, have pre-
served many interesting facts, relative to the firm-
ness and gallantry of individuals on that occasion.
1 The following extract from Lieuteaant-Coloael Smith's re-
port to General Gage conclusively shows that Smith was not with
the troops who began the firing,
Boston, April 22, 1775.
" I think it proper to obseiTe, that when I had got some miles
on the mai-ch from Boston, I detached six light infantry companies
to march with all expedition to seize the two bridges on
LEXINGTOX. 21
Jedediah Munroe was wounded in the morning;
but nothing daunted by the danger he had encoun-
tered and the wound he had received, instead of
quitting the field, when his wound was dressed, he
mounted his horse, and rode to a neighboring town
giving the alarm, and rallying the citizens; and
when Parker's company went forward to meet the
British returnmg from Concord, Munroe joined the
company and was killed in the afternoon. On the
first fire of the British in the morning, John Mun-
roe, seeing no one fall, said coolly to his namesake,
Ebenezer Munroe, Jr., that they had fired nothing
but powder. On the second discharge Ebenezer
replied, "They have fired something besides powder
this time; for I am wounded in tiie arm." He
then discharged his gun at the British, receiving two
balls in return, one of which grazed his cheek,
the other passed between his arm and his body,
leaving its mark in his garment. John Munroe,
after firing in the line, loaded liis gun with two
balls, and on leaving the Common discharged it at
his pursuers ; the strength of the charge carrying
away eight or ten inches of the muzzle of his gun
the gun has been preserved, and may be seen with
the relics in our Library Hall. William Tidd, Cap-
tain Parker's lieutenant, when retreating from the
Common, was pursued by an officer on horseback,
supposed to be Pitcairn, up tiie Bedford road, with
"
repeated cries : " Stop, or you are a dead man !
Tidd turned from the road into the lot, where he
made a stand, and discharged his gun at his pursuer,
who in turn sought safety in flight. John
Tidd remained upon the field so long tliat, as he
was leaving the Common, a British officer on horse-
back rushed upon him, and struck him down with
his cutlass ; and wliile he remained insensible from
the effect of the blow upon the head, they despoiled
him of his arms, taking away his gun, cartridgebox
and powder-horn.
of their being thus assembled, and, if not satisfactory, to have
secured their arms- but they in confusion went off, principally
to the left, only one of them fired before he went off, and three
or four more jumped over a wall and fired from behind it among
the soldiers ; on which the troops returned it and killed several
of them. They likewise fired on the soldiers from the meeting
and dwelling house. We had one man wounded and Major Pit-
different roads beyond Concord. On these companies' arrival at
Lexington, 1 understand from the report of iSIajor Pitcairn, who
cairn's horse shot in two places."
Upon this report, and the statement of Major Pitcairn, who
was with them, and from many officers, that they found on a always asserted that the .4]nericans fired first, the letter of
green close to the road a body of the country people drawn up in General Gage to Governor Trumbull, in which is an account
mditary order, with arms and accoutrements, and, as appeared of the action of the 19th of April, is based. Stedman re-
after, loaded; and that they had posted some men in a dwelling peats, with considerable detail, this distinct charge, in which
and meeting house. Our troops advanced towards them, without
any intention of injuring them, further than to inquire the reason
he has been followed by a long line of successors.
p, 120. — Ed.
See Vol. I,
;