Back to Herkimer/Montgomery Counties Military PageA CHANCE TO ENLIST - The next morning a recruiting officer, a Sergeant, named Hilliard, who had removed from Johnstown to Canada, and who knew some of the prisoners, visited the ship to beat up for recruits. The prisoners were all on deck, and, agreeable to his instructions, he waited upon Mr. Shew to make known the nature of his errand. As the young captives gathered round the old gentleman, he said to them, "Here is a recruiting officer come to enlist you into the British service! My lads, if any of you want to sell your country for a green coat with red facings, and a cap with a lock of red horse-hair hanging down one side of it, you now have a good chance!" The reader is aware that the force of an argument depends much on the time and manner of its utterance. That the one of Mr. Shew had its desired weight, may be inferred from the fact that after numerous luring inducements and golden promises of reward in his Majesty's service, Sergeant Hilliard gathered up his papers and left the ship, without having added a single recruit. Thus much for the principles of the back woods men of western New York in the hour that tried men's souls.
When the Maria was moored under the Heights of Abraham, the British in the fortifications would play "Yankee-Doodle" to irritate the prisoners. Many of them who were in good spirits, however, would throw up their hats, hurrah for the cause of liberty, begin a jig on the ship's deck and shout to the enemy to play away and they would dance for them. Early in September the Maria was ready to sail for England, via New York, where she was to land her prisoners, some 60 in all. Of the number were Lieut. Col. Frederick Bellinger, and Major John Frey, officers who were made prisoners at Oriskany the summer before. When the ship was about to sail, those officers were told that they could remain at Quebec or go to New York. Major Frey said he would rather remain on the vessel with his countrymen and share their chance to get home, and Col. Bellinger expressed the same views, and they remained on board. After a pleasant sail down the St. Lawrence and into the gulf, the vessel was brought to Newfoundland, to inquire if any Yankees had been there lately; an inquiry known, there, to apply to privateers. They were informed that some had left that port only the day before.
Soon after leaving the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the Maria fell in with a privateer, which immediately gave chase. The pursuit lasted for two days, and the British vessel escaped by being a better sailor than her antagonist; but she was driven directly out of her course; and after a sail of several weeks, being part of the time nearer Europe than America, and not daring to run down to New York, she returned to Halifax, there landed her captives and sailed directly from thence to England. The trip to sea was a novelty in the life of the Johnstown settlers, the most of whom were very sea-sick for several days; often lining the ship's side and casting up their dinners without the aid of stomach-pumps. Capt. Max was a gentlemen, and treated the prisoners while on his vessel, as though he was born with a soul, a contingency that does not always happen in the birth of naval commanders.
Nearly 1,300 captives were then assembled at Halifax, and two ships were fitted out to take them to Boston to be exchanged. Several prisoners had effected their escape from Halifax, by having good knives; and when the Johnstown prisoners were confined there, their knives were taken from all of them except the elder Shew. They had to cook their own meat in a large kettle set in an arch, and often were allowed but a scanty supply of fuel to do it with. Not infrequently the grease was skimmed off to increase the flame, and at times an old garment was tucked under the kettle. If the meat was not half cooked, as was frequently the case, it had to be eaten in its raw state, with the peas of beans soaked with it--the meat having to be pulled apart with the fingers. Jacob Shew chanced to find a piece of an iron hoop, and with an immense rubbing upon a stone, he made it supply the needs of a knife to the mess which included him. An old tar who had managed to retain his knife, exposed it to a sentinel from motives of mischief, who demanded its surrender to him. The prisoner refused to part with it, and the soldier was taking measures to get it by force, when the old salt, knife in hand, fell back among the prisoners, and the sentinel not daring to leave his post, bit his lip in anger to see his authority set at defiance.
While detained at Halifax, Putman, Salisbury and the elder Morris were taken sick and died. The rest of the Johnstown prisoners who had been on board the ship Maria, were landed in Boston, where young Morris also died. Reese left Boston, but as he never reached home, his friends supposed he died on the way. The three Shews, father, Stephen, and Jacob, left Boston together, the latter with the small-pox just developing. Dr. Farrell, of Rhode Island, and Moses Hicks, of Virginia, fellow prisoners, journeyed with the Shews from Boston to Roxbury. As the three latter sat down much fatigued by the wayside in Massachusetts, opposite a nice house, to rest their wearied limbs, some 15 or 18 miles from the city, a little black girl was sent out to inquire if they were deserters. "If you are deserters," said she "master said you should come in, but if you are not, he does not wish to see you." Such was the comfort meted by wealthy Tories, to men suffering in the cause of freedom.
On arriving in the town of Sudbury, nearly 20 miles from Boston, Jacob Shew gave out, sat down by the way-side, and told his friends he could go no farther. After seeing him well cared for, they journeyed on, found friends on the route who supplied their necessities, and arrived in Johnstown on January 1, 1779. Jacob fortunately fell into Samaritan hands, was cured of his loathsome disease, and reached Johnstown on the 17 of March following his capture, it being "St. Patrick's day in the morning."
HOW SHEW AND SCOTT MADE THEIR ESCAPE - I have observed that several of the Johnstown prisoners were retained among the Indians. John Shew and Joseph Scott, known by their captors to be good hunters, the former being a celebrated marksman, were taken some distance north of the St. Lawrence, where they were retained not far apart. They were allowed to hunt for their new masters to supply them with food, and several times met in their excursions. At one of those accidental meetings the two friends agreed to take French leave of the forest and return home. Securing what food and ammunition they could, they met by concert and set their faces toward Johnstown, distant several hundred miles. On arriving at the St. Lawrence, they luckily found a tree canoe on shore, in which they crossed the river. Fearing they might be on an island, they concealed the canoe in the bushes, but they were soon undeceived and resumed their march. They had secured hooks and fish-lines, and with those and their fire arms they, for several days, were well fed.
While journeying along the western shore of Lake Champlain, they became straitened for food, and seeing a British vessel not far from the shore, they resolved to obtain a supply from her. Making a signal, a boat was sent for them and they were soon on ship-board. They stated that they were Tories (it is a wonder the lie did not choke them), going to see their suffering families in a frontier settlement, and there chanced to be no one on board who knew them, they were believed, obtained a good supply of food, were again set on shore, and meeting with no hindrance, they arrived in a few days at Saratoga, where they were arrested as British spies.
Gen. Schuyler, who was then in command there, was informed in the evening that two spies had been taken. "Bring them in tomorrow morning for examination," said the General.
In the campaign of 1777, John Shew had become acquainted with General Schuyler, and when himself and his comrade were taken into his presence in the morning, the latter instantly recognized his Johnstown friend.
"What, John, are you here as a spy?" said he in a friendly manner, advancing and offering his hand.
"They say so," said John, exchanging the proffered salutation.
"But where do you come from?" inquired the general, who had no doubt about his patriotism.
"I suppose you knew," said the wearied soldier, "that I was some weeks ago made a prisoner, with my friends and neighbors, and taken to Canada." At his request, Shew related the manner of his own and his friends' capture and conveyance to Canada; how, on their arrival, they were separated; how he and Scott had escaped from their captors; and how, when in want of food they had obtained it of their foes, etc., etc., all of which deeply interested the General; and learning that they desired to go directly to their friends, he supplied their immediate wants and gave them a parting blessing. They arrived in Johnstown some five or six weeks after their capture.
Many thanks for another great contribution from Stephan G. Dennie, a direct descendant of Godfrey Shew through his son Jacob Shew. Stephan, whose ancestry includes notable families such as the Wemples, Veeders, Mabies, Putmans and Van Ness's, would like to hear from others researching these surnames at early dates in the Mohawk Valley and Tryon County area.