The summer of 1777 threatened evil for the New England States. Burgoyne was invading our territory from the north, while Lord Howe was making unmistakable preparations to join him by way of the Hudson. At this time of peril, the General Assembly of New Hampshire appealed to John Stark to take command of the militia and check the triumphant progress of Burgoyne. His consent was hailed with joy; willing troops flocked to his standard; and his homely appeal on the 16th of August, 1777, “We must conquer to-day, boys, or Molly Stark’s a widow!” incited his men to such deeds of valor that the battle of Bennington resulted in the complete rout of the enemy and the capture of seven hundred prisoners, four pieces of brass cannon, and many hundred stands of arms, broadswords, drums, etc. This brilliant achievement forced Congress to acknowledge their former injustice and Stark’s true worth; on the 4th of October, 1777, he was reinstated in the regular army, with the rank of brigadier-general. He remained in active service until the close of the war, when he once more retired to his farm. Loved and revered by all who knew him, the veteran of two protracted wars, Stark lived to see that of 1812, though too old then to take the field in person. When the news reached him of the capitulation of General Hull, and the loss of the cannon which he had won at Bennington, the hero of many battles was fired with all his old enthusiasm and longed once more to lead our troops to victory. He lived to the age of ninety-four, dying at Manchester, New Hampshire, on the 8th of May, 1822. His grave on the banks of the Merrimac is marked by a granite shaft bearing the simple inscription: MAJOR-GENERAL STARK. JAMES WILKINSON. James Wilkinson, born near the village of Benedict on the Patuxent, Maryland, in 1757, began the study of medicine with an uncle, who, having been a surgeon under Wolfe, told his pupil many anecdotes of the war in Canada. The military bias of his mind was further strengthened by what he saw during his frequent visits to the barracks, while attending the medical school in Philadelphia. Although having returned home to practise his profession, upon hearing the news concerning the battle of Bunker Hill, he hastened to join the army under Washington at Cambridge. Here he made the acquaintance of Benedict Arnold and Aaron Burr, and being given a captain’s commission, joined the former’s expedition into Canada. In July, 1776, he was appointed major and attached to the staff of Gates, who sent him in December with despatches to the commander-in-chief; this gave him the opportunity of taking part in the battles of Trenton and Princeton.