due in part to the urging of Roger Williams, signing a neutrality treaty with the Massachusetts Bay Colony in October of 1675. Although not involved in the war, they had sheltered many of King Philip's men, women, and children, and several of their warriors had participated in Indian raiding parties. The colonists distrusted the Narragansetts and feared that the tribe would join King Philip's cause in the spring, which caused great concern due to the tribe's location. The militia burned several abandoned Narragansett villages as they marched around Narragansett Bay, as the tribe had retreated to a large fort in the center of the Great Swamp near Kingston, Rhode Island. On November 2, 1675, Josiah Winslow led a combined force of over 1,000 colonial militia, including about 150 Pequot and Mohegan Indians, against the Narragansetts living around Narragansett Bay. One colonist was accused of fighting on the Indian side of the battle. Joshua Tefft reportedly wounded Captain Nathaniel Seely of Connecticut (son of Captain Robert Seeley), who subsequently died. An Indian spy reported that Tefft "did them good service & killed & wounded 5 or 6 English in that fight & before they would trust him he had killed a miller an English man at Narragansett and brought his scalpe to them." Battle On December 15, 1675, after peace negotiations failed between Stonewall John and the militia, Narragansett warriors attacked the Jireh Bull Blockhouse and killed at least 15 people. 15-year-old James Eldred escaped from the blockhouse and was pursued a considerable distance; he survived having a tomahawk thrown at him at close range and a hand-to-hand encounter with a Narraganset warrior. This occurred along Indian Run Brook in Wakefield-Peacedale, Rhode Island. The Narragansetts saw swamps as ideal defensive locations in wartime, leading them to take up residence in the Great Swamp during the conflict. Four days later, the Great Swamp Battle took place on the bitterly cold and stormy day of December 19, 1675. The colonial militia from Plymouth Colony, Connecticut Colony, and Massachusetts Bay Colony were led to the main Narragansett settlement in South Kingstown, Rhode Island, by an Indian guide named Indian Peter. The low temperatures froze the natural moat that surrounded the Narragansett encampment, allowing the colonial troops to pass easily. The massive fort occupied about of land and was initially occupied by over a thousand people, but it was eventually overrun after a fierce fight.