File:A Walloon family in America; Lockwood de Forest and his forbears 1500-1848 (1914) (14579724127).jpg

Identifier: walloonfamilyina01defo (find matches)
Title: A Walloon family in America; Lockwood de Forest and his forbears 1500-1848
Year: 1914 (1910s)
Authors: De Forest, Emily Johnston, 1851-1942 De Forest, Jesse, ca. 1575-1624
Subjects: De Forest family De Forest, Lockwood, 1775-1848 Walloons -- New York (State) Guyana -- Description and travel
Publisher: Boston, New York, Houghton Mifflin company
Contributing Library: Brown University Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Brown University

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Text Appearing Before Image:
Nehemiah de Forest
————————
New Stratford

to avoid a still steeper climb ; but they finally en-
tered New Stratford from the north, and there,
across the Green, stood Nehemiah's inn waiting to
receive as many as could be crowded under its hos-
pitable roof.
We may be sure that every man, woman, and
child was watching for the arrival of the soldiers,
and when they emerged on the Green, was thrilled
by the sight they presented. The hussars wore such
brilliant uniforms — green and scarlet, it is said —
and such impressive military caps, "Shakos" they
were called, really wonderful, with standing cock-
ades of black horsehair and hanging bands of gold
galloon! Then there were clanking sabres! What
a contrast to the appearance of the Connecticut
militia, who often had no uniforms whatever or,
at best, only a cocked hat !
The French officers were made comfortable in
the inn, where De Lauzun must have been surprised
as well as pleased to find a landlord of French de-
scent to greet him, one who had, as was said of Ne-
hemiah, "a natural ease and gentility of address and
politeness of manner — matters which all French-
men if not all Americans regard." The soldiers en-
camped on a meadow a little to the southeast of
the village green. There was not fodder enough in
the place to feed all the horses and the "five-cattle
teams" that had dragged the heavy supply wagons
over the terrible corduroy roads — eight hundred

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Text Appearing After Image:

FRENCH HUSSAR, 1772

The Innkeeper
———————
and ten such wagons, we are told, most of them

New Stratford

drawn by two yoke of oxen and a horse. Everyone
wished to help all he could, and so a meadow near-by
was hastily mowed by moonlight to supply the de-
ficiency.
That evening there was great merriment in New
Stratford, for a dance on the Green was organized.
De Lauzun's military band furnished the music —
and such music ! In these bands there were usually
"a flute, six clarinets, three bassoons, two horns,
one trumpet and one serpent besides a number of
side-drums." As the Continentals had only fifes
and drums, no wonder that the music of the hussars
caused great excitement wherever they went.
Rochambeau himself wrote about it as follows:
"Ce qui vous étonnera, c'est de retrouver toujours
la gaîté française dans ces marches pénibles. Les
Américains, que la curiosité amené par milliers
dans nos camps, y sont reçus avec alegresse ; on fait
jouer pour eux nos instruments militaires qu'ils
aiment avec passion! Alors, Officiers, Soldats,
Américains, Américaines, tous se mêlent et dansent
ensemble; c'est la fête de l'égalité."

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