92 T. C. ELLIOTT
1731, in a pioneer cabin in northeastern Massachusetts, of sturdy and honest parentage, one of a numerous family which soon after removed to the Colony of New Hampshire; and near to where the capital city of Concord now stands the Rogers' homestead was literally hewn out of the forest. Twenty and more years of frontier experience in the region which was then a borderland between the French settlements to the north and the English settlements to the south developed for him a magnificent physique, courage absolutely without fear, and an almost superhuman knowledge of Indian customs and wood-craft, but at the same time, unfortunately, an illicit trade carried on in this borderland, by others and perhaps to some extent by him, seems to have aroused and educated some of the less noble instincts of his mind. He thus very naturally became an astute Indian fighter and the organizer and leader of the famous "Roger's Rangers" of the seven years French and Indian War in North America, during which his bravery in battle, his energy and endurance in the field and his skill in Indian warfare excited the wonder and admiration of his men and fellow officers and gained him a national reputation. Then followed thirty years of more or less continuous debauch- ery of both mind and body, when his audacity in dealings with superior officers and in seeking personal preferment and gain was astounding, and his duplicity, marital infidelity, and dis- loyalty to relatives, friends and country were disgusting. Dur- ing the War of the Revolution he first espoused the cause of the Colonies but was suspected of being a spy and escaped from confinement in Philadelphia about the time of the Dec- laration of Independence. Later he fell under suspicion while recruiting officer for the British in Canada and fled to Eng- land. The last fifteen years of his life were spent in obscurity and low living on an officer's half pay in London, where he died in May, 1795, and the place of his burial is today un- known. This brief summary is sufficient for the present purpose. 3
3 This estimate is based largely upon the research of Allan Kevins, editor of the Caxton Club Edition of Rogers' book entitled "Ponteach; Or The Savages of America."
