himself, sent the other with Lake,* who was acquainted with the ground, on the other side. Two Indians were soon discovered coming out of the peas field towards them, when Mr. Church and those that were with him, concealed themselves from them by falling flat on the ground, but the other division, not using the same caution, was seen by the enemy, which occasioned them to run, which, when Mr. Church perceived, he showed himself to them, and called; telling them he desired but to speak with them, and would not hurt them. But they ran and Church pursued. The Indians climbed over a fence, and one of them facing about, discharged his piece, but without effect, on the English. One of the English soldiers ran up to the fence and fired upon him that had discharged his piece, and they concluded by the yelling they heard, that the Indian was wounded. But the Indians soon got into the thickets, whence they saw them no more for the present.

Mr. Church then marching over a plane piece of ground where the woods were very thick on one side, ordered his little company to march at a double distance to make as big a show, (if they should be discovered,) as might be. But before they saw any body they were saluted with a volley of fifty or sixty guns. Some bullets came very surprisingly near Mr. Church, who starting, looked behind him to see what was become of his men, expecting to have seen half of them dead; but seeing them all upon their legs, and briskly firing at the smokes of the enemies' guns; (for that was all that was then to be seen.)† He blessed God, and called to his men

* As the name of Lake is not mentioned any where else in this history, I cannot determine who this was.

This was indeed very remarkable, as it appears tnat nothing prevented the Indians from taking deliberate aim. The truth of the text must not be doubted, but certainly Jove never worked a greater miracle in favour of the Trojans at the siege of Troy, than Hesper now did for our heroes.

not to discharge all their guns at once, lest the ene my should take the advantage of such an opportunity to run upon them with their hatchets.

Their next motion was immediately into the peas field.* When they came to the fence, Mr. Church bid as many as had not discharged their guns to clap under the fence and lie close, while the others, at some distance in the field, stood to charge; hoping, that if the enemy should creep to the fence, (to gain a shot at those that were charging their guns,) they might be surprised by those that lie under the fence. But casting his eyes to the side of the hill above them, the hill seemed to move, being covered over with Indians, with their bright guns glittering in the sun, and running in a circumference with a design to surround them.

Seeing such multitudes surrounding him and his ittle company, it put him upon thinking what was become of the boats that were ordered to attend him, and looking up, he spied them ashore at Sandypoint,† on the island side of the river,‡ with a number of horse and foot by them, and wondered what should be the occasion; until he was afterwards informed that the boats had been over that morning from the island, and had landed a party of men at Fogland, that were designed in Punkatees neck to fetch off some cattle and horses, but were am

*

(Tiverton shore about half a mile above Fogland ferry.) The situation of Punkatees is given in a preceding note. It contains nearly two square miles, and it is sufficient to know that it contained the ground on which this battle was fought.

There are two Sandy points on the Rhodeisland shore, one above and the other below Fogland ferry; this was that above. Fogland ferry connects the island with Punkatees and is near the middle of it.

The bay is meant.

It being narrow, or from three fourths to a mile wide, is sometimes called a river, and in the ald charters, Narraganset river. See Douglass, I, 398,

buscaded, and many of them wounded by the enemy.*

Now our gentleman's courage and conduct were both put to the test. He encouraged his men, and orders some to run and take a wall for shelter before the enemy gained it. It was time for them now to think of escaping if they knew which way. Mr. Church orders his men to strip to their white shirts, that the islanders might discover them to be Englishmen, and then orders three guns to be fired distinctly, hoping [that] it might be observed by their friends on the opposite shore. The men that were ordered to take the wall being very hungry, stopped a while among the peas to gather a few, being about four rods from the wall. The enemy from behind, hailed them with a shower of bullets. soon all but one came tumbling over an old hedge down the bank, where Mr. Church and the rest were, and told him, that his brother, B. Southworth,† who was the man that was missing, was killed; that they saw him fall. And so they did indeed see him fall, but it was without a shot, and lay no longer than till he had an opportunity to clap a bullet into one of the enemies' foreheads, and then came running to his company.

But

The meanness of the English powder was now their greatest misfortune. When they were immediately upon this beset with multitudes of Indians, who possessed themselves of every rock, stump, tree or fence, that was in sight, firing upon them without

It is mentioned in a later part of this history, that Mr. Church's servant was wounded at Pocasset, while there after cattle. This is the time alluded to. Hubbard, 86, says that "five men coming from Rhodeisland, to look up their cattle upon Pocasset neck, were assaulted by the same Indians; one of the five was Captain Church's servant, who had his leg broken in the skirmish, the rest hardly escaping with their lives ;" and, that "this was the first time that ever any mischief was done by the Indians upon Pocasset neck." This was on the same day of the battle of Punkatees.

وو.

† Brother in law to Mr. Church.

ceasing; while they had no other shelter but a small bank, and bit of a water fence.* And yet, to add to the disadvantage of this little handful of distressed men, the Indians also possessed themselves of the ruins of a stone house, that overlooked them. So that, now, they had no way to prevent lying quite open to some or other of the enemy, but to heap up stones before them, as they did; and still bravely and wonderfully defended themselves against all the numbers of the enemy.

At length came over one of the boats from the island shore, but the enemy plied their shot so warmly to her, as made her keep at soine distance. Mr. Church desired them to send their canoe ashore, to fetch them on board; but no persuasions nor arguments could prevail with them to bring their canoe to shore; which some of Mr. Church's men perceiving, began to cry out, for God's sake to take them off, for their ammunition was spent! &c. Mr. Church being sensible of the danger of the enemy's hearing their complaints, and being made acquainted with the weakness and scantiness of their ammunition, fiercely called to the boat's master, and bid him either send his canoe ashore, or else be gone presently, or he would fire upon him..

Up

Away goes the boat, and leaves them still to shift for themselves. But then another difficulty arose; the enemy, seeing the boat leave them, were reanimated, and fired thicker and faster than ever. on which, some of the men, that were lightest of foot, began to talk of attempting an escape by flight, until Mr. Church solidly convinced them of the impracticableness of it, and encouraged them yet. [He] told them, that he had observed so much of the remarkable, and wonderful providence of God, [in]

* This ir.deed will compare with Lovewell's Fight. That lero, to prevent being quite encompassed, retreated to the shore of a pond The particulars of which will be found in the continuation of this history. See Appendix, XI.

hitherto preserving them, that it encouraged him to believe, with much confidence, that God would yet preserve them; that not a hair of their heads should fall to the ground; bid them be patient, courageous, and prudently sparing of their ammunition, and he made no doubt but they should come well off yet, &c. [Thus] until his little army again resolved, one and all, to stay with, and stick by him. One of them, by Mr. Church's order, was pitching a flat stone up on end before him in the sand, when a bullet from the enemy with a full force, struck the stone while he was pitching it on end, which put the poor fellow to a miserable start, till Mr. Church called upon him to observe how God directed the bullets, that the enemy could not hit him when in the same place, [and] yet could hit the stone as it was erected.

While they were thus making the best defence they could against their numerous enemies, that made the woods ring with their constant yelling and shouting. And night coming on, somebody told Mr. Church, [that] they spied a sloop up the river as far as Goldisland,* that seemed to be coming down towards them. He looked up and told them, that, succour was now coming, for he believed it was Captain Golding,† whom he knew to be a man for business, and would certainly fetch them off if he came. The wind being fair, the vessel was soon with them, and Captain Golding it was. Mr. Church (as soon as they came to speak with one another) desired him to come to anchor at such a distance from the shore, that he might veer out his cable, and ride afloat; and let slip his canoc, that it might

A very small ledgy island a little to the south of the stone bridge, near the middle of the stream, and about 4 or 5 miles from where they were.

I find nothing relating to this gentleman excepting what is found in this history. We may infer that he was a man of worth and confidence, by Mr. Church's entrusting him with an important post at the fight when Philip was killed.