The company being composed of young men, and I
being about the right age, had of course to be one of them.

Early in the Summer of 1813, the British fleet run two of our ships of
war up the Thames River, near New London. Their ships being so large
could not enter, but lay at its mouth. Their presence so near greatly
alarmed the citizens of that city, and in fact, all of the people in the
eastern part of the State. Our regiment was ordered to be ready to start
for New London by the first of August. The Plymouth company was called
together on Sunday, which was the first of August, and exercised on the
Green in front of the church, in the fore part of the day. This unusual
occurrence of a military display on the Sabbath greatly alarmed the good
people of the congregation, but it really was a case of necessity, we
were preparing to defend our homes from a foreign foe.

In the afternoon we attended church in a body, wearing our uniforms, to
the wonder and astonishment of boys, but terrible to the old people. On
Monday morning we started on a march to Hartford, sleeping that night in
a barn, in the eastern part of Farmington, and reaching Hartford the
next day, where we joined the other companies, and all started for New
London. The first night we slept in a barn in East Hartford, and the
second one in an old church in Marlboro. I remember lying on the seat of
a pew, with my knapsack under my head. We arrived at New London on
Saturday, marching the whole distance in the first week in August, and a
hotter time I have never experienced since. We were dressed in heavy
woolen clothes, carrying heavy guns and knapsacks, and wearing large
leather caps. It was indeed a tedious job. We were whole days traveling
what can now be done in less than as many hours, and were completely
used up when we arrived there, which would not appear strange. We were
immediately stationed on the high ground, back from the river, about
half way between the city and the light-house, in plain view of the
enemy's ships. They would frequently, when there was a favorable wind,
hoist their sails and beat about in the harbor, making a splendid
appearance, and practising a good deal with their heavy guns on a small
American sloop, which they had taken and anchored a long distance off.
The bounding of the cannon balls on the water was an interesting sight
to me. The first night after our arrival, I was put on guard near the
Light-house, and in plain sight of the