Soldiers in King Philip's war. Containing lists of the soldiers of ...

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of the various garrisons, together with Dea. Peter Tilton, of Hadley,
and Serg. Isaac Graves, of Hatfield, and Capt. Poole was
made president. These arrangements seem to have been made in
anticipation of the order of withdrawal of the army, which was au-
thorized by the Council on November 16th.—Mass. Archives, vol.
68, p. 58. Their letter had not reached him on November 19th.
This letter gives a long account of the operations of Capts. Henchman
and Syll now in the Nipmuck country. Then " touching the
disposal of the Army," the direction is left at his discretion, and as
to the wounded men, those fit for garrison duty are to be left as a
part of the garrison soldiery and the rest to be comfortably provided
for. The special instructions seem to have been in accordance with
the Major's own suggestions in his last letter to the Council. On
the march home it is suggested that he come by way of " Wabquisit "
(now in Woodstock, Conn.), and if convenient, to form a junction
with Henchman and Syll and "distress the enemy" gathered near
there. This little plan, so easy to conceive in the Council Chamber,
for excellent reasons was never realized. Capt. Appleton, with
his forces, marched homeward probably about November 24th.
Very little is known of the march homeward. This campaign cost
the colony very dearly in men and means, but had saved from
destruction five of the seven western towns.
Upon the organization of the army for the expedition against the
Narraganset Fort, Major Appleton was appointed to the command
of the Massachusetts forces. A partial account of that expedition and
its result has been given in a previous chapter relating to Capt. Mose-
ly. On December 9th the Massachusetts forces, consisting of six
companies of foot under Capts. Mosely, Gardiner, Davenport, Oliver
and Johnson, and a troop of horse under Capt. Prentice, mustered
on Dedham Plain under command of Major Appleton, who
himself led the first company. They were joined by the Plymouth
forces, two companies under Major William Bradford and Capt.
John Gorham. The quota of Plymouth Colony was one hundred
and fifty-eight men. That of Massachusetts five hundred and twen-
ty-seven .
In the Mass. Archives, vol. 68, p. 91, I find this fragment rela-
tive to Major Appleton's division.
"The full complement of the Massachusets is 527, 13 under the impressed
men, so that if there should want 13 troopers and be but 62 troopers
besides their officers there would be but 465 f'oote & if less than 62 troopers
they must be suplyed with so many foote soldjers." ,0°
100 These seem to be fragments of memoranda, the latter list being on the back of the
paper. This refers to the number in the six companies, and gives an excess of 99 over the
estimated quota of 465 foot. I doubt that this excess includes Capt. Prentice's troopers as
might at first appear, his company not being set down ; but his lists and credits published,
ante, pp. 39-41, give few if any of the names included in Appleton's, Mosely's or
Johnson's lists, which were taken at Dedham, December 9th, and contain exactly the
numbers above. It is probable that the excess consisted of volunteers, the regular quoti
being impressed men. In this expedition Capt. Mosely took Capt. Hubbard's place and
his company was not made up wholly of volunteers.
10