THE BATTLE OF LEXINGTON

A Contemporary Account.

SIX days after the first armed clash of the Revolutionary War occurred at Lexington, Mass., April 19, 1775, the accompanying report appeared in the Salem Gazette. This engagement, together with the contemporaneous one at Concord, was the turning-point between the period of protest and that of resistance in the colonies.

The objective of the British troops was the destruction of military stores at Concord, and also the seizure of John Hancock and Samuel Adams, residing at Lexington. Shortly after sunrise on the day of the battle, and after Paul Revere had spread the alarm, "The regulars are coming," Adams observed prophetically to Hancock, "What a glorious day!'

LAST Wednesday the 19th of April, the troops of His Britannic Majesty commenced hostilities upon the people of this province, attended with circumstances of cruelty, not less brutal than what our venerable ancestors received from the vilest savages of the wilderness. The particulars relative to this interesting event, by which we are involved in all the horrors of a civil war, we have endeavored to collect as well as the present confused state of affairs will admit.

On Tuesday evening a detachment from the army, consisting, it is said, of eight or nine hundred men, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Smith, embarked at the bottom of the Common in Boston, on board a number of boats, and landed at Phipps's farm, a little way up Charles River, from whence they proceeded with silence and expedition on their way to Concord, about eighteen miles from Boston. The people were soon alarmed, and began to assemble in several towns, before daylight, in order to watch the motion of the troops. At Lexington, six miles below Concord, a company of militia, of about one hundred men, mustered near the Meeting House; the troops came in sight of them just before sunrise; and running within a few rods of them, the commanding officer accosted the militia in words to this effect: "Disperse, you rebels damn you, throw down your arms and disperse"; upon which the troops huzzaed, and immediately one or two officers discharged their pistols, which were instantaneously followed by the firing of four or five of the soldiers, and then there seemed to be a general discharge from the whole body : eight of our men were killed, and nine wounded. In a few minutes after this action the enemy renewed their march for Concord.

THE BATTLE OF CONCORD

By the Reverend William Emerson.

AN interesting feature of this account of the Lexington-Concord battle is that it was written by the grandfather of Ralph Waldo Emerson, who wrote the famous hymn sung at the completion of the Concord monument and referring to the "embattl'd farmers" who "fired the shot heard round the world."

At the time of the historic engagement, the Reverend William Emerson had a pastorate at Concord, Massachusetts, which is a short distance from Lexington and some eighteen miles from Boston. He became a chaplain in the Continental Army, and lost his life in the Ethan Allen expedition against Ticonderoga.

This article is printed in Whitney's "Literature of the Nineteenth of April," consisting of contemporaneous accounts of the initial battles of the Revolutionary War.

THIS morning between one and two o'clock we were alarmed by the ringing of the bell and upon examination found that the troops, to the number of 800, had stolen their march from Boston in boats and barges from the bottom of the Common over to a point in Cambridge near to Inman's farm, and were at Lexington Meeting House, half an hour before sunrise, where they had fired upon a body of our men, and (as we afterward heard ) had killed several. This intelligence was brought us at first by Doctor Samuel Prescott, who narrowly escaped the guard that was sent before on horses, purposely to prevent all posts and messengers from giving us timely information. He, by the help of a very fleet horse, crossing several walls and fences, arrived at Concord at the time above mentioned.

When several posts were immediately dispatched, that returning confirmed the account of the Regulars' arrival at Lexington, and that they were on their way to Concord. Upon this a number of our Minute Men belonging to this town and Acton and Lincoln, with several others that were in readiness, marched out to meet them. While the alarm company were preparing to receive them in the town, Captain Minot, who commanded them, thought it proper to take possession of the hill above the Meeting House as the most advantageous situation.

No sooner had we gained it than we were met by the companies that were sent out to meet the troops, who informed us that they were just upon us, and that we must retreat, as their number was more than treble ours. We then retreated from the hill near the Liberty Pole and took a new post back of the town, upon a rising eminence, where we formed into two battalions, and awaited the arrival of the enemy.

Scarcely had we formed, before we saw the British troops, at the distance of a quarter of a mile, glittering in arms, advancing towards us with the greatest celerity. Some were for making a stand, notwithstanding the superiority of their number, but others more prudent thought best to retreat till our strength should be equal to the enemy's by recruits from neighboring towns that were continually coming to our assistance. Accordingly we retreated over the bridge when the troops came into the town, set fire to several carriages for the artillery, destroyed 60 barrels of flour, rifled several houses, took possession of the Town House, destroyed 500 pounds of balls, set a guard of 100 men at the North Bridge and sent up a party to the house of Colonel Barrett, where they were in expectation of finding a quantity of warlike stores; but these were happily secured just before their arrival, by transportation into the woods and other by-places.

In the meantime, the guard set by the enemy to secure the pass at the North Bridge, were alarmed by the approach of our people, who had retreated as mentioned before, and were now advancing, with special orders not to fire upon the troops, unless fired upon. These orders were so punctually observed that we received the fire of the enemy in three several and separate discharges of their pieces, before it was returned by our commanding officer; the firing then soon became general for several minutes, in which skirmish two were killed on each side, and several of the enemy wounded. It may be observed by the way that we were the more cautious to prevent beginning a rupture with the King's troops, as we were then uncertain what had happened at Lexington, and knew [not] that they had begun the quarrel there by first firing upon our people and killing 8 men upon the spot.

The three companies of troops soon quitted their post at the bridge, and retreated in greatest discord and confusion to the main body, who were soon upon the march to meet them. For half an hour the enemy by their marches and counter-marches discovered great fickleness and inconstancy of mind, sometimes advancing, sometimes returning to their former posts, till at length they quitted the town, and retreated by the way they came. In the meantime a party of our men ( 150) took the back way through the great fields into the east quarter and had placed themselves to advantage, laying in ambush, behind walls, fences and buildings, ready to fire upon the enemy on their retreat.