The capture of prisoners during a patrol was an important method of gathering information and intelligence.
Although the fate of those taken prisoner on both sides was often fatal. Prisoners taken by Rangers could suffer immediate execution if the Rangers found themselves ambushed . When a hidden enemy party opened fire on Rogers' column on 21st July 1757, the wounded private Thomas Brown,"retir'd into the rear, to the prisoner I had taken on the lake, knock'd him on the head and killed him, lest he should escape and give information to the enemy."
By 1760 Rogers had also employed the "Stockbridge Indians" as trusted scouts. These Indians came from the area around Stockbridge, Massachusetts. "To aid the identification of non-hostile Indians, friendly Indians were to tie a red garter or cloth around the end of their musket barrels"
