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

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barely escaped back to their garrison. Lieut. Plaisted at once despatched
a messenger with the following letter to Major Walderne,
which Mr. Hubbard, believing it to have been " the last Time that
ever that good and useful Man set Pen to Paper," inserted in his
history, and probably obtained the letter for that purpose from Major
Walderne.
Salmon Falls October 16, 1675.
Mr Richard Waldern and Lieut. Coffin, These are to inform you, that
just now the Indians are engaging us with at least one hundred Men, and
have slain four of our men already, Richard Tozer, James Barney, Isaack
Bottes, and Tozer's son and burnt Benoni Hodsden's House ; Sir, if ever
you have any love for us, and the Country, now shew yourself with Men to
help us, or else we are all in great Danger to be slain, unless our God
wonderfully appear for our Deliverance. They that cannot fight, let them
pray ;
Nought else, but I rest,
Yours to serve you
Signed by Roger Plaisted,
George Broughton.
Major Walderne was in no condition now to weaken his own garri-
sons, and had not the valor of Lieut. Plaisted outrun his discretion,
his garrison as well as himself and family would have been safe in
their defence ; but venturing out with an ox-team guarded by twenty
men, to bring in their dead for burial, they fell into an ambush after
they had recovered the body of Tozer, and had returned to the
swamp near the garrison where the others lay dead. It was the old
story, a total surprise, a brave but vain defence, a sullen retreat,
and Lieut. Plaisted with his sons, bravely covering the retreat, was
surrounded and overwhelmed, but with proud defiance choosing
death rather than capture, was at last overpowered by numbers and
slain. His eldest son was also killed in this retreat, and another
younger son wounded so that he died within a few weeks. The
desperate fighting of the Plaisteds probably cost the Indians quite
dearly, as they did not appear the next day when Capt. Charles
Frost came up from his garrison at Sturgeon Creek (now Eliot,
Me.) and buried the dead. Within a few weeks, however, they
returned and began depredations in the same places, and ventured
as far as Sturgeon Creek, where Capt. Frost had relaxed his vigi-
lance and was working on his farm near his house, in which it ig
probable his boys were set to watch. The Indians crept up and
fired a volley at him before he was aware of their presence ; but he
escaped unharmed to his own house, where he began to issue orders
in a loud voice as though he had a large company of soldiers, which
so frightened the Indians that they passed on and left him unmo-
lested, though his entire force was but three boys, possibly his sons.
The Indians then passed down on the Kittery side of the river,
killed one man and burnt his house, "just over against Portsmouth ;"
but when a small cannon was fired thence and the shot fell not far