s account of this
reconnoissance by saying: "We employed ourselves while we dared stay in
setting fire to the houses and barns in the village, with which were
consumed large quantities of wheat, and other grain; we also killed
about fifty cattle and then retired, leaving the whole village in
flames."

There often appears a ludicrous kind of honesty in the simple narratives
of this journal. He occasionally seized certain stores of the enemy
which a Ranger could destroy only with regret. He naively remarks, in
narrating the capture in June, of this same year, of two lighters upon
Lake Champlain, manned by twelve men, four of whom they killed: "We sunk
and destroyed their vessels and cargoes, which consisted chiefly of
wheat and flour, wine, and brandy; some few casks of the latter we
carefully concealed."

His commands on such occasions varied greatly in numbers, according to
the exigency of the service, all the way from a squad of ten men to two
whole companies; and the excursions just mentioned afford fair specimens
of the work done by the Rangers under Rogers this year.

Rogers possessed a ready wit and an attractive bonhomie, which made him
agreeable to his men, notwithstanding the necessary severity of his
discipline. A story has come down to us which well illustrates this
trait in his character. Two British Regulars, it seems, a good deal
muddled, one night, by liberal potations, became greatly concerned lest
their beloved country should suffer dishonor in consequence of inability
to discharge its national debt, and their loyal forebodings had, at
length, become painful. The good-natured Captain, encountering them in
their distress, at once relieved them by the remark: "I appreciate the
gravity of your trouble, my dear fellows. It is, indeed, a serious one.
But, happily, I can remove it. I will, myself, discharge at once
one-half the debt, and a friend of mine will shortly pay the other
half." From this incident is said to have arisen the expression, at one
time common, "We pay our debts as Rogers did that of the English
nation."

But Captain Rogers had qualities of a higher order, which commended him
to his superiors. His capacity as a Ranger Commander had attracted the
notice of the officers on duty at Lake George. The importance of this
branch of the service had also become apparent, and we shall not be
surprised to learn that, in March, 1756, he was summoned to Boston by
Major General Shirley and commission