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The regiments were formed in the following manner in 1776. The military companies in the towns of Hartford, (that part on the west side of Connecticut river,) Windsor, Suffield, and that portion of Farmington, lying in the parish of Wintonbury, constituted the 1st regiment; those in the towns of New Haven, Milford, Branford, and Derby, the 2d regiment; those in New London and Lyme, the 3d regiment; those in Fairfield, Stratford, and Reading, the 4th regiment; those in Windham, Mansfield, Coventry, and Ashford, the 5th regiment; those in Wethersfield and Glastenbury, the 6th regiment; those in Saybrook, Guilford, Killingworth, and Haddam, the 7th regiment; those in Stonington, Preston, and Groton, the 8th regiment; those in Norwalk, Stamford, and Greenwich, the 9th regiment; those in Wallingford, Waterbury, Cheshire, and Durham, the 10th regiment; those in Pomfret, Killingly, and Woodstock, except the south company in Killingly, the 11th regiment; those in Lebanon, Hebron, and the company in the society of Marlborough, in Colchester, formed the 12th regiment; those in Woodbury, New Milford, and Kent, the 13th regiment; those in Cornwall, Sharon, Salisbury, Canaan, and Norfolk, the 14th regiment; those in Farmington, exclusive of the parishes of Wintonbury and Southington, formed the 15th regiment; those in Danbury, Ridgefield, Newtown, and New Fairfield, the 16th regiment; those in Litchfield, Goshen, Torrington, Harwinton, and Winchester, formed the 17th regiment; those in the towns of Simsbury, New Hartford, Hartland, Barkhamsted, and Colebrook, the 18th regiment; those in East Windsor, Enfield, Bolton, and that part of Hartford, on the east side of Connecticut river, the 19th regiment; those in Norwich, the 20th regiment; those in Plainfield, Canterbury, Voluntown, and the south company in Killingly, the 21st regiment; those in Tolland, Somers, Stafford, Willington, and Union, the 22d regiment; those in Middletown and Chatham, the 23d regiment; those in Westmoreland, the 24th regiment; those in East Haddam and Colchester, except the company in Marlborough, in Colchester, formed the 25th regiment.

In the autumn of 1776, another organization of the militia took place. All the regiments in the State were formed into six brigades. It was enacted that there should be appointed by the General Assembly, from time to time, two major generals to command as first and second over the whole militia of the State,

who were commissioned to said office by the Governor, and had at all times power to call forth the militia, or any part of them, as should from time to time be ordered by the Assembly or Governor, for the immediate defence of this State, or the United States. It was further enacted, that there should be appointed by said Assembly, from time to time, one brigadier general to the command of each of the brigades aforesaid, who should be commissioned by the Governor, and have the same command over the respective brigades, as the major general had over the whole militia, and should be subject to the command of his superior officer in calling forth or marching the militia for defence; and every brigadier should review each regiment of his brigade once in a year, and oftener, if the Assembly ordered. It was also enacted that the colonel, or chief officer of every regiment, should nominate and appoint a suitable person, to serve as an assistant in their respective regiments, and commission them accordingly.

The male population of the colony, in 1775, from sixteen to fifty years of age, were subject to military duty, and may be esti mated, from a careful examination of the census of 1774, to amount to about twenty-six thousand persons. Of these there were nearly one thousand beyond the Delaware, and near two thousand disaffected persons, so that the whole military force in the compact settled part of the colony, that could be relied on for its defence, did not much exceed twenty-three thousand men.

THE GOVERNMENT, AND MUNICIPAL INSTITUTIONS OF THE COLONY, AT THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE.

THE Government of Connecticut, founded on the Charter of Charles II. contained in its structure some of the most liberal provisions that ever received the sanction of royal authority. The administrators of government, chosen by the governed, had possessed for a long period of time the unbounded confidence of their constituents. The Governor, and both branches of the legislature, having derived their authority from the same source,

exercised their functions in the utmost harmony, and were content to co-operate together for the public welfare. This was not the case in most of the other colonies, where the governors received their appointments from royal authority, and were often engaged in violent contests with the legislatures, whereby the influence of both governors and legislatures for usefulness, was much lessened.

Nearly all the constituted authorities of the colony were carried along with the people in the popular movement in 1775, so that the measures of the colony were more effective than those of any other, (except, perhaps, Rhode Island,) at this period, which of course added much to the strength of the first movement in commencing the great struggle.

The municipal institutions of Connecticut, at this time, ('75) were in many respects superior to those of any other colony, and highly favorable to the cause of liberty. The town meetings were schools where the people were instructed in the art of selfgovernment. Here they learned to resist oppression, and cooperate mutually for their own defence. The town system of government, with the annual election of selectmen to manage the town affairs; the cheap and convenient method of recording deeds in the town clerks' offices; the district probate court system, were, most of them, organizations peculiar to this colony, and added much to the comfort and convenience of the people.

TAXATION, VALUATION of property, COMMERCE, AGRICULTURE, AND MANUFACTURES OF THE COLONY.

Ir was enacted that all rates and taxes that were granted by the general court, should be made in proportion to the general, list of polls and rateable estate. It was subsequently enacted that the several towns in the colony should be chargeable and responsible for the full amount of the colony rates or taxes that were at any time granted by the general court, in proportion to the sum total of the respective lists of said towns. The subjects

of taxation were-all male persons in the several towns in the colony, from 16 years old to 70, except those exempted by law; also, lands, dwelling houses, ships, ware houses, mills, shops, and work houses, cattle, horses and swine. There were occasionally other subjects of taxation. The grand list was made from the returns of the several towns to the general court, in October, annually. In 1775, the returns were the following:

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The commerce of the colony was very extensive and valuable at this time. The colony afforded continual supplies of cattle, sheep, hogs, wheat, rye, and indian corn, besides salt provisions, which it furnished to its neighbors on every side; New York and Albany, westwardly; the northern settlements, with Newport and Boston, east.

In addition to her extensive trade with the neighboring colonies, Connecticut had nearly two hundred sail of vessels, engaged in the West India trade, whose cargoes, more or less, consisted of provisions, with horses and cattle on deck. The West India trade had greatly enriched many of the inhabitants of the colony. There are said to have been three individuals at that time in Hartford, each of whose estates was estimated at 16,000 pounds sterling. Connecticut was at this time as celebrated for its sea captains as Nantucket is now. The agriculture of the colony was in excellent condition; it was called the "provision colony." Its manufactures were chiefly of the domestic or household kind, and were very productive, furnishing a large supply of woollen and linen clothing for the use of the inhabitants.

THE EXTENT, COMPARITIVE INFLUENCE OF THE COLONY IN 1774 AND 1775, AND ITS FINAL DISMEMBERMENT.

CONNECTICUT was one of the most important of the American colonies at the commencement of the revolutionary war. The territorial claim beyond the Delaware had been of long standing. For more than twenty years the people and government of Connecticut had been engaged in investigating and establishing a title to the extensive region that lay between the Delaware and the Mississippi, in the same parallels of latitude as the old settled part of the colony. This region comprised an extent of territory of more than 700 miles in length from east to west, with a breadth from north to south, of about 70 miles, embracing an area of more than 50,000 square miles. This extensive region possessed a salubrious climate, and a soil equal to any part of North Amer

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