posed his forces to guard the towns. On March 14th an attack was made upon Northhampton, but was repulsed with severe loss to the enemy. On the 24th they appeared at Hatfield, but finding it well garrisoned made no attack, though driving off some horses and cattle. The Indians began to prepare for planting fields along the river; and Canonchet with a body of his men went back to their country to bring up seed-corn, of which large quantities were there stored. It is probable that a large company went towards Plymouth colony, a small party of whom destroyed the house and family of Mr. Clarke at Plymouth village. March 17th they burned Warwick. Plymouth Colony sent out a company of fifty under Capt. Michael Peirse of Marshfield, to protect its frontiers. A party of twenty friendly Indians under "Capt. Amos" was joined with Capt. Peirse. This company marched to Seekonk and there had a sharp skirmish with the Indians on the evening of March 25th. Next day, supposing they had beaten the Indians, they pursued them and were drawn into an ambush and surrounded near Patuxit River with great numbers so that they were obliged to fight to the death. The whole company including the officers were killed, together with eight out of the twenty Indians. The enemy too lost very heavily. March 28th and 29th the Indians burned seventy houses and thirty barns at Providence.
In the meantime in Massachusetts the enemy were not idle. Lurking parties hovered about Groton plundering the vacated houses and driving away any stray cattle within safe reach. On March 13th they fell upon the town in force. The people were gathered in five garrison houses. One of the garrison houses was captured but the people mostly escaped to another. The other garrison houses were stoutly defended. The Indians burned the unfortified houses and withdrew. On March 26th the fatal day of Capt. Peirse's destruction, they burned sixteen houses and thirteen barns at Marlborough. Capt. Brocklebank then in command at Marlborough, sent out a party in pursuit who overtook and surprised the enemy at night, sleeping about their fires, fired into their midst and put them to flight. On the same day at Longmeadow a party going to Springfield to church was ambushed by a small company of Indians and several were captured and killed.
Finding the campaign to have failed in its main object, the Council ordered Major Savage to withdraw his troops leaving Capt William Turner with a hundred and fifty men to garrison the towns. April 7th the army marched homeward.
But not the Connecticut authorities, fearing a return of the Narragansets to their vicinity, in numbers such as overwhelmed Capt. Peirse, mustered a mixed company of English and Indians and sent them into the Narraganset country under command of Captains Dennison and Avery. These, guided by a captive whom they had taken, surprised and captured Canonchet not far from the Patuxit River,