History of Northampton, Massachusetts, from its settlement in 1654;

252 HISTORY OF NORTHAMPTON. [1675.
pected the manoeuver, or had received intelligence of it,
and when the two divisions met at the fort, near day-break,
they found nothing but the body of an aged sachem, who,
refusing to go with his comrades, had been killed by them.
After sending back a portion of the Northampton soldiers
to guard the town, the commanders pushed forward with
about one hundred men, "at a great pace after them."^
Capts. Lothrop and Beers, proposing as Mr. Stoddard
states, " to parley with the Indians," apparently disregarded
the most ordinary military precautions, and were intent
only upon coming within speaking distance. Their men
had orders "not to make any shot upon them first." ^
The Indians, less pacifically inclined, following the tactics
employed at Quabaug, hid in ambush, and the first intima-
tion of their presence, was the discharge of about forty
guns upon their unsuspecting pursuers. Five soldiers were
killed by the fire of the Indians, and three others died s^^b-
sequently of their wounds. "One man was shot in the
back by our own men. " The English charged upon the Indians
in the swamp, and then fought them in their own
way from behind trees. For three hours the fight continued,
when the Indians fled, leaving behind them "much of
their luggage." The place where this action occurred is
said to have been at "Wequamps on the Pocumtuck
path.
" 3
The Loss on both Nine persous were killed in this first en-
^i'^*^^- counter with the Indians in the Connecticut
Valley. Only one of the slain was from
Northampton, Samuel Mason, only son of Thomas Mason.
The others were Azariah Dickinson, son of Nathaniel Dickinson
of Hadley ; Richard Fellows of Hatfield, son of Rich-
John
ard Fellows, deceased ; James Levens of Roxbury ;
Plumer of Newberry ; Mark Pitman of Marblehead ; Jo-
seph Person of Lynn; Matthew Scales of Rowley; and
William Cluflf of Charlestown. John Parke of Water-
1 Rev. Solomon Stoddard's Letter, Mather's History.
3 Rev. Mr. Stoddard's Letter to the Connecticut Council.
3 Sheldon's History of Deerfleld, p. 91. Judd's History of Hadley, p. 144, states
that "the place is now unknown." Hubbard says it was "about ten miles above
Hatfield at a place called Sugar Loaf Hill." And according to Rev. Mr. Russell of
Hadley, " at a swamp beyond Hatfield."