nance two or three times: When they passed over the bridge they fired one end thereof, to hinder our menfrom pursuing them; there were thought to be above five hundred; there were slain and mortally wounded seventeen or eighteen persons, besides others dangerously hurt. The loss sustained by the inhabitants amounted to above two thousand pounds. This mercy was observed in this sad providence, that never a garrison house was lost in this surprisal; nor any of the principal dwellings, so as the chiefest and best of their buildings escaped the fury of the enemy, who as they passed the bridge, left a writing behind them, expressing something to this purpose, that we had provoked them to wrath, and that they would fight with us these twenty years, (but they fell short of their expectation by nineteen) adding also, that they had nothing to lose, whereas we had houses, barns, and corn: These were some of the bold threats used by the barbarous crew, but their rage shall proceed no further than the counsel of God: hath determined.. The week before was heard a very hideous cry of a kennel of wolves round the town, which raised some of the inhabitants, and was looked upon by divers persons, as an ominous presaging of the following calamity. Another assault was feared, but as soon as the soldiers could be gathered together, they turned their backs, as if they never intended to visit them more : whither these Indians went when they left Medfield, is not certainly known; the soldiers in the town not hav ing opportunity to pursue them over the river, by rea son that the bridge was part of it burned: But it is most

probable that they took their way toward Plymouth, and continued about that side of the country for the future, waiting opportunities to do what mischief they could to the English in those parts; for within a month after the assault at Medfield, there were six hundred of them seen about Patuxet and Providence, where Capt. Pierce, with about fifty of his men were lost, though with no great advantage to the enemy, who at that time lost above double that number: Our worthy Captains in this and other exploits, being called to imitate Sampson, who was content to die with his enemies, that he might overthrow them thereby: It having so fallen out with many of our choice Commanders and soldiers at Deerfield, Narraganset, Patuxet, and likewise not long after at Sudbury.

The Governor and Council of Plymouth perceiving by the report of these outrages committted upon the towns in Massachusetts, that they were like to be visit ed this spring by their old neighbors, sent out Capt. Pierce, of Situate, about the latter end of March with about fifty English and twenty Christian Indians, about Cape Cod, who proved none of his worst soldiers, as the sequel of this his last expedition will declare.

Capt. Pierce, as is said before, being sent out to pursue the enemy, marched towards Patuxet, where he understood the Indians were many of them gathered together: He being a man of resolute courage, was wilKing to engage them, though upon never so great a disadvantage. Some say the Indians by counterfeiting, drilled him into a kind of ambush ; possibly more of them discovered themselves after he began to engage them than he was aware of; and being got over the river

pursuit of them, where he discovered so great a number of them, he drew down towards the side of the river, hoping the better by that means to prevent their surrounding him; but that proved his overthrow which he intended as his greatest advantage: For the Indians getting over the river so galled him from thence, that he was not able to defend himself; thus assaulted on all sides, and himself not being able to travel much on foot, was thereby hindered from retiring to any better place in time, so that he saw himself constrained to fight it out to the last, which he did with most undaunted courage; and, as is said, to the slaughter of an hundred and forty of his enemies, before himself and his company were cut off. It is said also, that being apprehensive of the danger he was in from the great numbers of the enemy, he sent a messenger timely enough to Providence, for relief, but as Solomon saith, a faithful messenger is as snow in harvest, another is as smoak to the eyes, and vine gar to the teeth (Whether through sloth or cowardice, is not material), this message was not delivered to them to whom it was immediately sent; by accident only some of Rehoboth understanding the danger, after the evening exercise it being on the Lord's day, March 27th, 1676) repaired to the place, but then it was too late to bring help, unless it were to be spectators of the dead carcasses of their friends, and to perform the last office of love to them

It is worth the noting, what faithfulness and courage some of the Christian Indians, with the said Captain Pierce, shewed in the fight. One of them, whose name was Amos, after the Captain was shot in his leg or thigh,

so as he was not able to stand any longer, would not leave him, but charging his gun several times, fired stoutly upon the enemy, 'till he saw that there was no possibility for him to do any further good to Capt. Pierce, nor yet to save himself, if he stayed any longer; therefore he used this policy, perceiving that the enemy had all blackened their faces, he also stooping down pulled out some blacking out of a pouch he carried with him, discolored his face therewith, and so making himself look as much like Hobamackco, as any of his enemies, he ran amongst them a little while, and was taken for one of them, as if he had been searching for the English, until he had an opportunity to escape away among the bushes; therein imitating the cuttle fish, which, when it is pursued, or in danger, casteth out of its body a thick humor, as black as ink, through which it passes away unseen by the pursuer.

It is reported of another of these Cape Indians, (friends to the English of Plymouth) that being pursued by one of the enemy, he betook himself to a great rock where he sheltered himself for a while; at last perceiv ing that his enemy lay ready with his gun on the other side to discharge upon him, as soon as he stirred away from the place where he stood: In the issue he thought of this politic stratagem to save himself, and destroy his enemy, (for as Solomon said of old, wisdom is better than weapons of war) he took a stick, and hung his hat upon it, and then by degrees gently lifted it up, till he thought it would be seen, and so become a fit mark for the other that watched to take aim at. The other tak

ing it to be his head, fired a gun and shot through the hat; which our christian Indian perceiving, boldly held up his head and discharged his own gun upon the real head, not the hat of his adversary, whereby he shot him dead upon the place, and so had liberty to march away with the spoils of his enemy.

The like subtle device was used by another of the Cape Indians at the said time, being one of them that went out with Capt. Pierce; for being in like manner pursued by one of Philip's Indians as the former was, he nimbly got behind the butt end of a tree newly turned up by the roots, which carried a considerable breadth of the surface of the earth along with it (as is very usual in those parts where the roots of the trees lie deep in the ground) which stood above the Indian's height, in form of a large shield, only it was somewhat too heavy to be easily removed; the enemy Indian lay with his gun ready to shoot him down upon his first deserting his station; but the subtle wit taught our christian Netop a better device, for boreing a little hole through this his broad shield, he discerned his enemy who could not easily discern him; a good musketeer need never desire a fairer mark to shoot at, whereupon discharging his gun, he shot him down. What can be more just than that he should be killed, who lay in wait to kill another man? neque enim lex justior alla est, quam necis artifices arse perire sua.

Instances of this nature shew the subtlety and dexterousness of these natives, if they were improved in feats of arms; and possibly if some of the English had not been too shy in making use of such of them as were