History of the War with Indian Savages, Article 21
ARTICLE. XXI. More Engliſh Blood, Swallowed, but Revenged.
REader, We muſt after This, ever Now and Then, Expect, the happening of ſome unhappy Accident. The Blood-thirſty Salvages, not content with quaffing the Blood of Two or Three perſons, found at work, in a Field at Spruce creek, on Aug. 20. & of another perſon at York, the ſame Day, (Captivating alſo a Lad, which they found with him;) They did on Aug. 24. Kill & Take, Eight perſons at Kittery. Here, a little Girl, about Seven years old, the Daughter of one Mr. Downing, fell into their Barbarous Hands; They knock'd her o' th' Head, and barbarouſly Scalped her, leaving her on the Cold Ground, (and it was then very Cold, beyond what uſe to be,) where ſhe lay all the Night Enſuing: Yet ſhe was found Alive the Next Morning, and Recovering, ſhe is to this Day Alive, and well: only the place broke in her skull, will not endure to be cloſed up. He had another Daughter, which at the ſame Time, almoſt miraculouſly Eſcaped their Hands. But ſo could not at another Time, Joſeph Pike, of Newbury, the Deputy Sheriff of Eſſex, who, on Sept. 4. Travelling between Amesbury and Haverhil, in the Execution of his Office, with one Long, they both had an Arreſt of Death Served upon them, from an Indian Ambaſcado. Bommaſeen, a Commander of prime Quality among the Indians, who had ſet his Hand unto the late Articles of Submiſſion, came Nov. 19. with Two other Indians, to Pemmaquid, as Loving as Bears, and as Harmleſs as Tygres, pretending to be juſt Arrived from Canada, and much Afflicted for the late miſchiefs, (whereof there was witneſs, that he was a principal Actor,) but Captain March, with a Sufficient Activity Siezed them; as Robin Doney, another famous Villain among them, with Three more, had been Siez'd at Saco Fort, a little before. Bommaſeen, was Convey'd unto Boſton, that he might in a cloſe Impriſonment there, have Time to conſider of his Treacheries, and his Cruelties, for which, the Juſtice of Heaven, had thus Delivered him up. When he was going to Pemmaquid, he left his Company, with a Strange Reluctancy and Formality, as if he had preſaged the Event; and when at Pemmaquid, he found the Event of his coming, he diſcovered a more than ordinary Diſturbance of mind: his Paſſions foam'd and boyl'd, like the very Waters at the Fall of Niagara.
But being thus fallen upon the mention of that Vengeance, wherewith Heaven purſued the chief of the Salvage Murderers, it may give ſome Diverſion unto the Reader, in the midſt of a long and a ſad Story, to inſert a Relation of an Accident that fell out a little after this Time.
The Indians, (as the Captives inform us) being hungry and hardly beſtead, paſſed through deſerted Caſco; where they ſpied ſeveral Horſes in Captain Brackets Orchard. Their famiſhed Squa's beg'd them to Shoot the Horſes, that they might be revived with a little Roast meat; but the young men, were for having a little Sport before their Supper. Driving the Horſes into a Pound, they took one of them, and furniſhed him with an Halter, ſuddenly made of the Main and the Tail of the Animal, which they cut off. A Son of the famous Hegon, was ambitious to mount this Pegaſaean Steed; but being a pittiful Horſeman, he ordered them, for fear of his Falling, to Ty his Legs faſt under the Horſes Belly. No ſooner was this Beggar Set on Horſe back, and the Spark in his own opinion throughly Equipt, but the Mettleſome Horſe furiouſly and preſently ran with him out of Sight. Neither Horſe nor Man, were ever ſeen any more; the aſtoniſh'd Tawnies howl'd after one of their Nobility, diſappearing by ſuch an unexpected Accident. A few Dayes after they found one of his Legs, (and that was All,) which they buried in Captain Brackets Cellar, with abundance of Lamentation.