THE KING'S RANGERS

by John Brick ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 4, 1953

In The Raid (Farrar, Straus-1951) John Brick told the Rebel's side of the story of Butler's Rangers and their unenvious role in frontier warfare during the Revolution. Now- with access to papers found in Canada- he has chosen to identify himself so convincingly with the Loyalist side that one feels anxious too that the name of Butler be cleared. The tale has as hero one Dan Millard, who served with young Butler, was captured with him and imprisoned in a foul prison, eventually escaped and served again. The infamous Wyoming Massacre- and later the Cherry Valley Massacre -- shocked Dan and Walter Butler as profoundly as they have shocked historians since, but the fault lay with the Indian troops, angered by rebel reprisals, going back too readily to their ingrained savagery. There seems more of historical minutiae here than creative story telling, but read as such it seems good history and rounds out a story of which only one side is commonly told. Dan's romance with the part-Indian girl and his marriage and settling on the Canadian side of Niagara is but thinly integrated to the better handled recounting of the adventures and misadventures of Butler's Rangers. Good supplementary reading- which might well be linked with The Raid.

Pub Date: Feb. 4, 1953

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Doubleday

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1953

Categories: FICTION