Ben Comee

Ben Comee
A Tale of Rogers's Rangers, 1758-59

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Ben Comee by Michael Joseph Canavan

Published:

1899

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Ben Comee
A Tale of Rogers's Rangers, 1758-59

By

0
(0 Reviews)
A description of a boy's life in Lexington in the middle of the 18th century, the coming on of the Old French War, and how Ben and two companions enlisted in the winter of 1758-9 in Rogers' Rangers. In the course of the story we meet with Lord Howe, John Stark and Israel Putnam, and the adventures end with Rogers' great expedition into the heart of Canada to punish the St. Francis Indians. This part of the tale is particularly vivid and intense. The story is told in a simple homespun style and abounds in local color. The adventures really happened, thus giving the story the added value of historical truth.

Book Excerpt

hunting wild turkeys too. There were a number of them over at Mt. Gilboa and Turkey Hill. They're pretty much all gone now. We had lots of fun with these traps, and I hope you boys will."

There were fourteen traps. We greased them up and put them in good condition. And one Saturday early in the fall we got Davy to go with us to the great meadows and look the ground over. Davy said, "We must find their paths." When we found one, we looked for the best place to set a trap. "Now, see here. Here's a place where they come out of the water; and they climb up on that old root. Take the axe, Ben, and cut a notch in it a little under the water; and I'll smear the notch with mud so that the rat won't notice it."

[Sidenote: TRAPPING MUSKRATS]

We opened the trap, and set it in the notch; and then fastened the chain, which was attached to the trap, to a stick; and drove the stick into the bank a little way up the stream. "Let's put the next trap in the path. Drive the stick into the ground, so that th