CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME OF THE SAGE ENDOWMENT FUND GIVEN IN 1891 BY HENRY WILLIAMS SAGE r DATE DUE r IHtii a^JvF ET 1 i ^ u 1 ' CAVLORD PRINTED tNU.S. A Cornelt University Library F 574D48 R82 + Landmarks of Wayne county and Detroit, b III 3 1924 028 870 760 olin Overs i Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://archive.org/details/cu31924028870760 ROBERT B. ROSS. LANDMARKS OF DETROIT A HISTORY OF THE CITY BY ROBERT B. ROSS AND ~ GEORGE B. CATLIN REVISED BY CLARENCE W. BURTON fUBLlSHED UNDER'THE AUSPICES OF THE EVENING NEWS ASSOCIATION DETROIT i8q8 I <.i Ul) T ^w.. s ^ther tribes, under the orders of the Marquis Denonville, governor- jeneral of New France. It reads in part as follows: "This seventh day of June, 1687, in the presence of Father Anjabram, M. de la Forest, M. de Lisle, our lieutenant, and M. Beauvais, of the Fort of St. Joseph at ;he strait between Lakes Huron and Erie, We Declare to all whom it may concern :hat we came to the margin of St. Deny's River [supposed to be identical with the River Rouge] situated three leagues from Lake Errier [Erie], on the strait between said akes Huron and Errier, to the south of said strait and lower down toward the en- trance to Lake Errier on the north. On behalf of the king and in his name to repeat ;he taking possession of the said posts which was done by M. de la Salle to facilitate :he journeys he made and had made by barge from Niagara to Michilimaquinac in ;he years [left vacant in MSS.], at which said stations we should have had a post set ip again, with the arms oi the king, in order to mark the said retaking possession, md directed several small dwellings to be built for the establishment of the French and savages, the Chaouannous [Shawnees] and Miamis, for a long time owners of the said lauds of the straits and of Lake Errier, from which they withdrew for some time for their greater convenience.'' This instrument indicates that the French based their claims upon the discovery of La Salle and upon the posts or camping grounds where his party encamped during the historic voyage of the Griffon. They took pains, to forestall any claims the British may have set up by later discovery, and also any claim the Iroquois, who were friendly to the British, might have set up on driving the Miamis and Shawnees from the trapping grounds along the Detroit River, which region the Iroquois claimed under the name of Teuscha Gronde. As soon as Fort St. Joseph was built at the foot of Lake Huron, the Iroquois, who had been urged on by the British, went to Fort Frontenac to protest, as they claimed the whole region. That protest was disre- garded, and the British set to work to prevent the French from gaining possession and from securing the highway to the fur country of the north. The Iroquois delegation went from Frontenac to Orange (Al- bany) and, as appears in the first chapter of this work, surrendered all their claims to the British. Governor Dongan, of New York, protested for the British against the French claim and took steps toward estab- lishing British posts in the territory. It proved to be a close race and 20 the French only won because they came in superior force. As Com- mandant Durantaye came down with his canoe fleet from Mackinaw, he came upon a party of English and Dutch traders from Orange or Alban)', under command of a Dutch captain named Roseboom, which had passed Fort St. Joseph unobserved by the garrison and had reached a point twenty miles above in Lake Huron. This party numbered but thirty men, and, as Durantaye had about one hundred and fifty French and Indians with him, he took them prisoners and they were unwilling witnesses of the act of claim by the French. When the formalities had been observed, the party which now numbered nearly three hundred, set out for Niagara. Half down Lake Erie they came upon a party of thirty under command of Major McGregor, who were on their way to Detroit River. There were sixteen Englishmen and thirteen Iroquois in the party, and they too were made prisoners and carried back to Niagara. Next year Fort St. Joseph, being badly situated, was aban- doned, and to prevent it from falling into the hands of the British, it was burned to the ground by Baron La Hontan while on his way to Mackinaw in 1689. Duluth's party, which took formal possession of the Detroit River, may not have known it, but there was a much earlier claim on file for the French in the archives at Quebec, set up by Fathers Dolher and Galinee, in 1669, eight years before, which has already been alluded to. CHAPTER IV. Cadillac the Founder of Detroit— A Clever Gascon Who Has Been Much Maligned He was a Privateer Preying upon the New England Coast— Then Commandant at Mackinaw— 1668-1701. A majority of historians say that Cadillac was born in the fertile and picturesque country bordering on the Garonne, at the village of Saint Nicholas-de-la-Grave, included in the modern department of Tarn-et- Garonne, on M^-rch 5, 1658. This statement is adopted by Silas Farmer in his history of Detroit and Michigan, and is apparently buttressed by records and parish registers. Margry, the eminent French archivist, who is an authority on French colonization in America, said he could 21 not ascertain the date of his death. C. M. Burton, of Detroit, caused the parish records of Saint Nicholas-de-la-Grave to be examined and found that there was born there on December 4, 1663, Antoine de la Laumet, son of Jean Laumet and Jeanne Pechequt, and does not be- lieve that Antoine de la Laumet and Antoine de la Motte are the same person. Cadillac's marriage record at Quebec, shows that his father was Jean de La Mothe, Seigneur de Cadillac, conseiller of the parlia- ment of Toulouse, and that his mother was Jeanne de Malefant. But the question is really of minor interest, as Cadillac's later history on all that is important is well known and belongs to the history of France and America. The founder of Detroit was descended from a family which had furnished many advocates, judges and army officers to the province and the nation, and his father, Jean, was an advocate at the court. Antoine probably received the name of La Mothe Cadillac from some estate of his parents, who were well endowed with this world's goods. This change of name, or rather adoption of another name, was quite common at the time. In like manner Marie Arouet received the name of Voltaire, and became one of the world's most famous men under that cognomen. In after life Cadillac wrote his name in several ways, but in this bad and misleading practice he simply imitated many others. It even exists to this day among many French Cana- dians. Cadillac received a fine education, and it is said that his father wished him to become a judge. But the routine life of a provincial magistrate did not present any attraction for the sprightly and am- bitious young man, and he soon afterward entered the French army, and was a lieutenant in the regiment of Dampierre- Lorraine, and a lieutenant in the regiment of Claurembault in 1677. He was a very good Latin scholar and a student of biblical history and theology; in after years when he encountered the Jesuits in America, he showed that he was an adept in polemics. A tradition, founded on an old French manuscript, is to the effect that he committed an offense common to hot youth, and that to avoid the consequences he came to America. Cadillac was a Gascon by birth and descent. The fact that his father was possessed of considerable estate in the province is evidence that they were not parvenues. The people of Gascony, like those of Brit- anny, possess marked characteristics which distinguish them from other Frenchmen. Gascons are not pure French. In the northern part of the Iberian Peninsula, which occupies both slopes of the Pyre- 22 nees, live the remains of a very ancient people who were called Vas- cones in ancient times. They were mountaineers, herdsmen and shepherds, and although they were assailed by Cathaginians, Romans, Saracens, Goths, French and Spaniards, they have preserved their race identity to the present day, together with the most remarkable lan- guage in Europe, and customs which differ from those of all neighbor- ing people. They are commonly known as Basques, but those who lived on the northern slope of the Pyrenees absorbed a portion of the great Gothic invasion, and the Vascones became known as Gascons within the border of France. They are to France what the Highland- ers are to Scotland — bold, impetuous and untamable by oppression, but good citizens and splendid soldiers when allowed their own ways. Their physical characteristics are a medium build, somewhat spare but extremely robust and possessed of great activity. They are the dark- est skinned people of France, and have large gray eyes and black hair. They have been, and still are, blustering fellows with the strutting ways of the game cock, and with the same appetite for battle. Gas- conade is a synonym for brag, bluff, or a blustering manner. They are extremely democratic in their ideas, and the few titled people among them obtained their honors for participating in the wars with the Moors. It is doubtful if a better exposition of the Gascon charac- ter could be written than Dumas's great character, D'Artagnan, in the "Three Musketeers," and one may picture the Sieur Cadillac as an- other D'Artagnan, somewhat subdued by education, years and associ- ation with court officials, but still retaining the physical and mental characteristics of his ancestors. It is regrettable that more authentic details of his early life have not yet been discovered, and that the only account of his youthful career that has been written, is so apparently untruthful as to excite anger and disgust in the mind of the student of history. The alleged biography is from the pen of Gayerre, the his- torian of Louisiana, of which Cadillac was governor for several years after he left Detroit. Gayerre for some cause seems to have imbibed a hatred of the founder of Detroit, and he maliciously, and in most cases falsely, abuses him from every standpoint. He ridicules his physical appearance, depreciates his mental makeup and denounces his political and personal career. "Cadillac's family," says Gayerre, "was ancient, but for several centuries it had, by some fatality or other, been rapidly sliding down from the elevated position it once occupied. When Cadillac was ushered 33 into life, the domains of his ancestors had for many past generations been reduced to a few acres of land. The small estate was dignified however with an old dilapidated edifice which bore the name of castle, although at a distance, to an unprejudiced eye, it presented some un- lucky resemblance to a barn ; a solitary tower as it were in a gown of moss and ivy raised its gray head to a height which might have been called respectable, and which appeared to offer special attraction to crows, swallows and bats. The young boys of the neighborhood called it Cadillac's rookery, and it was currently known under this ungenteel appellation. Cadillac had received a provincial and domestic education, and had up to his twenty fifth year moved in a very contracted sphere. Nay, it maj' be said that he almost lived in solitude, for he had lost both his parents when hardly eighteen summers had passed over his head, and he had since kept company with none but the old tutor to whom he was indebted for such classical attainments as he had acquired. His mind being as much curtailed in its proportions as his patrimonial acres, his intellectual vision could not extend very far, and if Cadillac was not literally a dunce, it was well known that Cadillac's wits would never run away with him. Whether it was owing to this accidental organization of his brain or not, certain it is that one thing afforded the most intense delight to Cadillac — it was that no blood so refined as his own ran in the veins of any other human being, and that his person was the very incarnation of ability. With such a conviction rooted in his heart, it is not astonishing that his tall, thin and emaciated body should have stiffened itself into the most accurate observation of the perpendicular. Indeed it was exceedingly pleasant and exhilarating to the lungs to see Cadillac on a Sunday morning strutting along in full dress, on his way to church, through the meager villageattached to his hereditary domain. His bow to the mayor and the curate was some- thing rare — an infinite burlesque of infinitive majesty, thawing into infinite affability. His ponderous wig, the curls of which spread like a peacock's tail, seemed to be alive with a conscious pride at the good luck it had of covering a head of so much importance to the human race. His eyes, in whose favor nature had been pleased to deviate from the oval to the round shape, were possessed with a stare of as- tonishment, as if they meant to convey the impression that the ■ spirit within was in a trance of stupefaction, at the astonishing fact that the being it animated did not produce a more startling effect upon the world. The physiognomy which I am endeavoring to depict was ren- 24 dered more remarkable by a stout, cocked- up, snub nose, which looked as if it had been hurried back in a fright from the tip to squat in rather too close proximity to the eyes, which, with its dilated nostrils, seemed always on the point of sneezing at something thrusting itself between the wind and its nobility. His lips wore a mocking smile, as if sneer- ing at the strange circumstance that a Cadillac should be reduced to be an obscure, pfenniless individual. But if Cadillac had his weak points, it must also be told that he was not without strong ones. Thus he had a great deal of energy, bordering, it is true, upon obstinacy; he was a rigidly moral and pious man, and he was too proud not to be valiant. " Gayerre goes on in the same vein to say that " Cadillac deemed it a paramount duty to himself and his Maker not to allow his race to be- come extinct, and' he went a courting among the gentility of the neigh- borhood, where he was universally voted a quiz. So he had to con- tent himself with a poor spinster who, like himself, was of unsullied descent and hereditary poverty. The lady was a distant relative to the duke of Lauzon, and she wrote him in behalf of her new husband. Lauzon showed the quaint letter to Louis XIV, who smiled at its con- tents and gave Cadillac a captaincy in an infantry regiment which had been ordered to Canada." It is quite evident that Gayerre drew this picture of the founder of Detroit from pure imagination. To give his description some coloring of truth, he has caricatuied the typical Gascon outrageously and has made a very poor attempt to follow Dumas, who introduces his Gascon hero, D'Artagnan, as a "Don Quixote of eighteen years," and subse- quently develops him into the flower of the army. Note the descrip- tion of D'Artagnan as he steps upon the first page of the novel. "A Don Quixote clothed in a woolen doublet, the blue color of which has faded to a nameless shade between the lees of wine and a heavenly azure. Face long and brown ; high cheek bones — a sign of austerity ; the maxillary muscles enormously developed — an infallible sign by which a Gascon may always be detected, even without his barret cap set off with a feather; the eye open and intelligent; the nose hooked, but finely chiseled — too big for a youth, too small for a man. Our young man had a steed, which was observed of all observers ; it was a Beam pony, twelve or fourteen years old, yellow in his hide, without a hair in his tail, but not without windgalls on his legs, which, through going with his head lower than his knees, rendered a martingale quite unnecessary ; he contrived nevertheless to perform his eight leagues a day." 26 This is but a fragment, but it is sufficient to show the source of Gayerre's inspiration. It is evident that this Frenchman, who under- took to describe Cadillac to the world, did not recognize the distinction between history and romance ; between fact and fiction. This picture of Cadillac and his antecedents, even at first blush, and without exam- ining authorities, would be seriously questioned by students of history, but when the record of history is consulted it can be shown to be un- warranted by facts or even probability. And yet there are those who think and say even at this late day, that Gayerre's work has "thrown a flood of light on the personality and character of Cadillac." In the first place, Cadillac did not marry any poor, well-born maiden in France; he was married to Marie Theresa Guyon, at Quebec, and this was his first and only wife. So that the fanciful story of his owing his advancement to his wife's powerful relatives in France is pure fiction. Had he been a bigamist, the Jesuits, who were his enemies and who had the ear of Louis XIV, through his confessor, Pere la Chaise, a member of their order, would undoubtedly have published it to the world As for the description of Cadillac's person by the same author, it may be said to be inspired by a literary prejudice which is really un- scrupulous in its malice. But any further discussion of Gayerre's de- piction of Cadillac is totally unnecessary, as that author in a letter to Silas Farmer, the author of the "History of Detroit and Michigan," practically acknowledged that his allusions to the founder of Detroit were imaginary, and that he knew nothing of his antecedents previous to his coming to Louisiana as its governor in 1713. Gayerre writes as follows: "I know nothing historical about his looks, but squibs and pasquinades floated down the stream of time about his oddities, through the channels of tradition. I somewhat fancifully sketched his per- sonal appearance so as to make it agree with his character as it pre- sented itself to me, historically and professionally. " Toward the close of the 17th century the explorations and coloniza- tion of France in America were subjects of intense interest among all classes in the mother country. They enlisted the attention of the mercantile classes, ever anxious to extend their trading interests- the young, who were fascinated by the romance of adventure in a distant clime; and the religious, to whom the aborigines seemed to afford a grand opportunity for conversion to Christianity. Young Cadillac was ambitious and romantic when he left old France and came to New France in 1683; he was then about twenty-three years of age. His 36 first movements in the new country are not known. Being a French officer, it would appear probable that he would seek service in one of the French commands at Quebec, or at some of its dependencies, but this he did not do. Perhaps he realized that the station and pay of a lieutenant in a wild and thinly settled colony promised neither glory or wealth. Whatever his reason, he turned his back on Quebec and went to Port Royal, on the east coast of Acadia (Nova Scotia), then a French colony, where he became a subordinate to Francois Guyon, a master mariner. Guyon was at that time engaged in the hazardous and often profitable business of privateering. Margry, the French archivist, calls him a ' ' corsair, " which is equivalent to the term pirate, but he was not a sea marauder who sailed under the black flag. France under Louis XIV was at war with Spain in 1683, and had invaded the Spanish Netherlands, but hostilities ended the next year by the treaty of Ratis- bon. But the reign of the Grand Monarch was one of almost incessant war, and in 1688 France was at war with Germany, Spain and England allied. The fighting lasted ten years and was ended by the treaty of Ryswyck in 1697. During these years there was a fine field of oper- ation for French privateers in America, and it may well be supposed that Guyon and Cadillac made good and profitable captures of English ships and Spanish galleons laden with the treasures of the new world. This part of Cadillac's life has not yet been investigated by historians, but there is scarcely any doubt that the records of the French ministry of marine of that day will yet afford ample information of their joint doings. This period was probably the turning point in Cadillac's life. The maritime excursions from Port Royal doubtless ranged along the entire Atlantic coast, and he, Cadillac, thereby acquired an accurate and extensive knowledge of the coasts of New England and Virginia, at that time studded with British colonies. During the constant wars between European nations at this period there was always more or less privateering, and the spoils were so tempting that the men who en- gaged in such enterprises were loath to give up their calling when peace was declared. When they could not secure letters of marque legalizing their system of robbery, they hoisted the black flag, like Captain Kidd, and committed horrible crimes against inoffensive per- sons for the purpose of making rich gains. Instead of taking a cap- tured vessel to a home or a neutral port, and selling it as a prize in conformity with the law of nations, these buccaneers took the most valuable portion of the cargo, usually limiting their seizure to specie, 27 ;o]d and silver bullion, jewels and rum, and then, to conceal their rime, murdered the passengers and crew and destroyed the captured essel. Guyon and Cadillac were apparently men of honor who would lot stoop to such crimes. It was during this period of his life that Cadillac paid a visit to Que- lec, where he got into trouble. In this visit he was probably bent on )leasure rather than business. It appears that Governor Denonville ummoned the officers at Quebec and a number of witnesses to a court nartial held in the house of the widow of Pierre Pellerin, in St. Pierre treet, Quebec, on the evening of May 4, 1686. Cadillac was then in Quebec on a visit and he was the culprit at this trial. The witnesses leposed that a number of them, soldiers of the fort, had been gathered it the wine shop of the widow St. Armand in lower town on the pre- dous evening. Lieutenant Jacques Charles Sabrevois, of Captain Des- luerac's company, was the leader of the party. M. de La Mothe (Cad- llac) entered the room alone, apparently in bad temper. , Sabrevois Lsked him if he would join him and some of the others and go to the ipper town, hut Cadillac scornfully declined and remarked if he was n the place of Captain Desquerac he would confine Sabrevois to the quarters. When Sabrevois asked why, Cadillac ironically said he would lot have such a gallant coxcomb strutting about at large among the adies, for he would consider him a dangerous rival. "Well you might," replied Sabrevois, "for if you had a mistress I ihould certainly be your rival." "That he would," said De la Parelle, one of the party, " and you vould never have the wit to discover it." " Wit, wit, what do you mean by such talk," asked Cadillac angrily; hen he turned to Sabrevois who was a great gallant among the ladies md much petted by the authorities, "Go, my little friend," said he, curling his lips in scorn, " although : am not supported by the Marquis as you are, I can give you a good :hrashing, which you appear to need." "What! a thrashing! and from you?" cried Sabrevois clapping his land to his sword hilt. Cadillac snatched hisbladehalf wayfrom the scabbard, an-d then mutual 'riends rushed between the two belligerents. Cadillac replaced his ;word because it was impossible to use it, but a candle was burning in I massive copper candlestick which stood on the table. He snatched •his candlestick and hurled it at Sabrevois's head, felling him to the 28 ..-^^^ floor. The room was left in darkness and Sabrevois cried out: "I'm killed! I'm a dead man." Sabrevois was not killed, however, although he carried the scar of a bad scalp wound to his grave. He lived to became a prominent resident of Detroit for many years. He was commandant at Detroit from 1714 to 1717; again from 1734 to 1738 and once more from 1746 to 1750, at which time h^ must have been above eighty years of age. Cadillac had been in his grave nearly twenty years at that time. Soon after this quarrel with Sabrevois, Cadillac fell in love. He had paid several visits to the home of his superior, Francois Guyon, at Beau- port, a settlement on the St. Lawrence, near Quebec. Here he first met Marie Therese, daughter of Denis Guyon, a brother of Francois, who had come there from Quebec on a visit to her uncle's family. The acquaintance ripened into' mutual love, and they were married at the house of the bride's father in Quebec, on June 35, 1687. He received a substantial dowry, as was the custom of the time, and the newly married couple went to Port Royal to settle down in life. He applied to Governor Denonville for a grant of land called Donaquec, in what is now the State of Maine. This land was on the coast and was six miles square, and he also asked for the. Island of Mt. Desert, lying in front of the tract. This was granted by Governor Denonville and Intendant Champigny in 1688, and was confirmed by Louis ^IV on May 24, 1689. Besides the grant of this domain, he was commissioned a magistrate, with rights of high, middle and low justice, which made him virtually the ruler in his district. It is evident that these favors were bestowed upon him for his skill and intrepidity as a mariner, and that he served what the French government considered the highest interests of that nation by crippling or destroying the merchant ships of the British in American waters. But France had need of Cadillac and he was not allowed to sink into semi-obscurity as a seigneur and rural potentate. Chevalier Louis Hector de Callieres, then commandant of Mount Royal (Montreal), went to Paris and in January, 1689, presented a plan for a joint land and naval expedition for the capture of New York. The plan was approved by Louis XIV, and two vessels, the L'Embuscade and LeFour- gon, were fitted out for the expedition and placed under the command of Rear Admiral Sieur de la Caffiniere. Frontenac,^who had been a second time appointed governor of New France, accompanied the ex- pedition. The expedition reached the mouth of the St. Lawrence, 29 where Frontenac shipped on another vessel for Quebec, where he was to gather a land force and march on New York. The two war vessels went on their way to the Bay of New York, then called the Bay of Menathe. Caffiniere captured seven English vessels on the way, but had to put in at Port Royal on account of contrary winds. Here he became impressed with the necessity of securing a pilot who knew the coast, and engaged Cadillac, but when they reached the Bay of New York there was no land force there to co-operate with the fleet. The season being late, he returned to France, taking Cadillac with him. CADILLAC AS A COURTIER. The young Gascon spent seven months at the Court of France, where he sedulously sought preferment, and lived as best he might, princi- pally by borrowing money. His manner, which was ingratiating and cordial, stood him in good stead and he soon impressed those in power with his knowledge and capacity. His opinions were sought by mili- tary and naval officers, and his future prospects seemed brighter than ever. While thus employed concocting measures for the capture of New York and Boston,, the British were busy at his home at Port Royal. On May 10, 1690, a fleet under Sir William Phips entered Port Royal and plundered the town, burned Cadillac's house and sev- eral other dwellings, and made his wife and family prisoners of war, but they were soon released. A few months afterward Sir William Phips with a fleet of thirty-four vessels, large and small, advanced to Beauport and, sending a flag of truce, demanded the surrender of Quebec. But Frontenac made a spirited defense and four days after- ward Phips's force retired, his land troops abandoning their cannon and ammunition. The Marquis de Denonville, who was governor of New France from 1685 to 1689, retained considerable interest in its affairs after he had re- signed his office. In 1690 he submitted to the government a plan for attack on the English settlements at New York, Boston and elsewhere. There were, he said, three persons in New France who were well acquainted with the New England coast, namely, M. Perrot, Sieur de Villebon, and La Mothe Cadillac. Meanwhile Cadillac had become ac- quainted with the colonial minister, Count Pontchartrain, who admired him for his ability and address, and when he left France for America, November, 1690, he bore with him the following letter of recommend- ation, signed by Pontchartrain : 30 " Sieur de Lamothe Cadillac, a gentleman of Acadia, having been ordered to em- bark for the service of the king, on the Embuscade, which vessel had brought him to France, his majesty being informed that during his absence his habitation was ruined, hopes that Frontenac, the new governor of Canada, will find it convenient to give him such employment as he may find proper for his services and that he will assist him if he can." Cadillac presented this letter to Governor Frontenac when he arrived in Quebec, and in obedience to the wishes of the king he was appointed lieutenant of the troop of the colony in place of Sieur de Longueil, made captain. Strictly speaking, the colonial troop were not soldiers but marines, as the French minister of marine had charge of all colonial affairs. In June, 1691, Cadillac again experienced a stroke of bad for- tune. His wife and children and remaining property shipped on board a barque at Port Royal (now named Annapolis Royal) for Quebec, but at the mouth of the St. Lawrence the boat was captured by an English privateer from Boston. It is not known whether his wife and family were taken to Boston, but if so they were not detained long. The parish records at Quebec show that Mme. Cadillac there gave birth to a son, Antoine, who was baptized April 36, 1692; this was the oldest son. A daughter named Magdaline was born to them before that time. In the same month Cadillac received a letter from Louis XIV, request- ing him to come to France and give information regarding the pro- posed attack on the English settlements. Again he left his family, and in Paris submitted an elaborate plan of operation, in which he dis- played his wonderful knowledge of the topography of the entire coast, its villages, populations, character of the inhabitants, fortifications, military strength and the soundings of bays and rivers. This report is still in the French archives, and its perusal, with other knowledge of the man, enabled Margry, the archivist, to say that "Cadillac had the best of instruction; he had ideas concerning politics, military affairs, colonization, the royal power and its relation with the church, the In- dians, etc., and these ideas he maintained with a certain braggadocia spirit. He went to the bottom of these questions and his letters, like his memoirs, were characteristic and sharp." James Rundot, the French intendant of New Frande, also says that "he had a winning manner." His interest at the court of France was materially strength- ened by his masterly report and to this was added the strong friendship of Count Pontchartrain. 31 CHAPTER V. Cadillac Foolishly Quarrels with the Jesuits and Lays the Foundation of all His Misfortunes — He Wanted to Sell Brandy to the Indians in Defiance of the Law — 1685-1700. Cadillac spent the winter of 1693 at Quebec in close communion with Governor Frontenac, as a member of his military household. The tedium of a cold winter was enlivened with accustomed Gallic gayety by parties, balls and private theatricals. Two plays, "Nicomede" and " Mithridate, " were presented by the officers, citizens and ladies who had dramatic tastes. In these plays the clerical characters were shown to be only human beings, and afflicted with propensities com- mon to the rest- of mankind. In plays of this pharacter Moliere, the great French dramatist, had incurred the hostility of the priesthood thirty years before. His "Tartuffe" had been presented at the Palais Royal with signal success, but its second representation had been for- bidden by the archbishop, who threatened excommunication to both the actors and the audience who attended it. The plays presented at Quebec were of a milder sort, but the Jesuits resented their produc- tion. Governor Frontenac, who was an enemy of the order, like De Soto and La Salle, took the other side and a bitter quarrel ensued be- tween the Church and State, in which the people ranged themselves on either side. It is needless to say that Cadillac was on the side of the governor. In 1694 he received the appointment of commandant at Michilli- mackinac (Mackinac). His shattered fortunes were greatly in need of such a position, but he was not elated thereby, as the climate in that region was severe and he shrewdly foresaw that his authority would be greatly curtailed by the influence of the Jesuits, who had founded the post and virtually ruled its affairs. This region was not unknown to the early French explorers; Father Allouez, who had come to Quebec with Champlain in 1615, had visited it in 1665, and had pushed west- ward past Mackinaw to Green Bay, in what is now the State of Wis- consin, where he taught the gospel to the Miamis, Mascoutins and 33 Kickapoos. Here, too, Father Marquette in 1668 had founded a mission where the St. Mary's River enters Lake Huron, and here he was buried under the earthen floor of the chapel at St. Ignace in 1675. Pour years later came to Mackinac the good ship Griffon, the first ves- sel on Lakes Erie and Huron, with Robert de La Salle and Henry Tonty on board. Cadillac accepted the position and commenced by borrow- ing 3,750 livres, or about $750 from Francis Hazeur, of Montreal, for the purpose of investing in furs. The document acknowledging this debt is now (1897) in the possession of Joseph Belanger, the French consul of Detroit. Gathering a number of emigrants at Quebec, he started for Michillimackinac, but the reports of the disadvantage of the place so wrought on them that a majority stopped at Montreal and would go no further, but he took the remainder and pushed on to his destination, where he succeeded the Sieur de Louvigny. In 1694, when Cadillac took charge, Michillimackinac had a fort garrisoned by some 200 French troops, and a white civil population of about two hundred, composed of traders, coureicrs de bois and artisans, v;ho occupied some sixty houses within the palisade. Around the fort were the villages of the Hurons, Ottawas and other tribes of the Al- gonquin confederacy, who were gathered there under the influence of the Jesuit missionaries. In summer the savages were mostly engaged in hunting, and in the winter made the neighborhood of the fort their home. In the latter season there were about six thousand Indians around this place. It was not long before there was trouble between the commandant and the priests. The Jesuits there had heard of the dramatic villification of the clergy at Quebec, and, it is said, incited some of the officers of the post against the commandant. But Cadillac quickly stopped the trouble by placing the officers under arrest. This was probably the beginning of the long contmued opposition of the Jesuits to Cadillac and his plans, an opposition which he encountered at nearly every step in his career, and which lasted until he left Amer- ica for old France. The post of Mackinac was a part of the French scheme for the establishment of armed forts along the lakes and rivers and down the Mississippi to its mouth, for the joint purpose of afford- ing protection to the fur trade of France and the friendly Indians, as against the rival interests of England and the warlike Iroquois. A commercial disadvantage, which was also recognized by the French, was that the English sold or rather bartered their goods for the furs of the Indians at much better bargains than were allowed by the French, 33 and were sedulous in impressing the fact on the Indians at Mackinac and elsewhere, by means of spies. Although the Hurons and Ottawas were as nations generally opposed to the Iroquois and the British, they were nevertheless keenly alive to their own interests, and a barrel of rum, a keg of powder or a package of blankets would make friends of ancient enemies. The same was true of the Iroquois and probably of all the aborigines of the period. The cunning British traders could thus prevail on a band of Hurons to take some Iroquois to the fort and to their homes, ostensibly as prisoners, but really as spies to give in- formation about the low-priced British goods. Cadillac with his native acumen soon became aware of this scheme and prepared to defeat it. One evening a Huron party brought in seven Iroquois, of whom one was a chief, as prisoners, but two of them were stabbed when they landed on the beach. The Hurons protected the others, but finally gave the Iroquois chief into the hands of the French, who thereupon sent an invitation to the Ottawas to drink the broth of an Iroquois. The victim was tied to a stake, tortured by burning his flesh with a red hot gun barrel, and afterward 'cut to pieces and eaten. At another time four Iroquois prisoners, taken in war by parties sent out by Cadillac, were burned, in order to renew and per- petuate the strife between the Algonquins and Hurons on the one side, and the Iroquois on the other. Cadillac at this time said, "If they bring any prisoners to me, I can assure you their fate will be no sweeter than that of the others." In 1696 Frontenac overran part of New York, ravaging the Engli.sh settlements and in battle so reduced the Iroquois strength that they lost 1,600 out of 2,800 warriors. This event and the treaty of Ryswick in 1697, whereby peace was made between France and the allied pow- ers, Germany, England, Spain and Holland, restored quiet for a time in the lake region. The greatest trouble between the Jesuit fathers and the command- ant was the liquor question. Competition with the British, who fur- nished rum and other goods in trade for peltries, made it absolutely necessary for the French to deal out ardent liquors also. To stop this branch of the traffic was simply to turn the trade into the hands of their rivals. The Jesuits were determined to stop the traffic and Cadillac was determined to continue it. The Jesuits spoke of the demoraliza- tion of the Indians and the loss of souls through the influence of strong drink, and Cadillac retorted by saying that the inclement winters at 34 the post and the absence of proper food at all seasons made it necessary that a small quantity of liquor should be taken by every one every day. " How will you be able," he wrote to the priest, " to endure the daily exposure of these neophytes, for whom you feel so much affection, to the excessive use of English rum and the imbibing of heresy ?" He also charged the Jesuits with trading in beaver skins and also issuing rum to the Indians, contrary to the king's order and their own duties,- which included poverty as well as chastity and obedience. The latter charges, however, were not true; it was afterward proved that it was the coureurs de bois or boatmen, hired by the Jesuits to carry their sup- plies in canoes, who were the transgressors ; and these boatmen carried goods and liquor surreptitiously on their own account without the knowl- edge and consent of their employers. The Jesuits had a powerful friend at the court of Louis XIV, in the person of P^re La Chaise, after whom the great Parisian cemetery is named, and who was the confes- sor of that monarch and a member of their order. In 1694 the king referred to the Council of the Sorbonne for decision the liquor question at Mackinac. The Sorbonne was the principal school of theology in the ancient University of Paris, and had great influence and power, and was appealed to in the disputes between the civil powers and the papacy, and in the great theological controversies and schisms that divided the church. The council decided that French brandy should not be shipped to Mackinac, and this, the first Michigan prohibitory law, was vigorously criticised by Cadillac, who saw that it was a fatal blow to the advancement of the post, as well as his own personal interests. "A drink of brandy," he wrote, "after a repast seems necessary to cook the bilious meats and the crudities which they leave on the stom- ach." He saw that unless he could exchange brandy for furs that the Indians would go to the 'English at Albany, and it was this that event- ually led him to resign. While he was commandant at Mackinac an incident occurred which, although not historically important, reveals some pecuHar features of the fur trading, and the regulations thereof by the French authorities, and also the high favor with which Governor - General Frontenac regarded Cadillac. The account of the affair was written by De Cham- pigny, the intendant, or second in command of the colony. De Cham- pigny was an active enemy of Cadillac, and the document was ad- dressed to Count Pontchartrain. In this, as in other official communi- cations, Champigny is extremely egotistic, incredibly verbose and 35 undisgnisedly malicious in his description of Cadillac's conduct and motives. No answer of Cadillac to this attack is extant, and De Champigny only credits him with a short and inadequate defense of a few lines. It appears that Mme. La Mothe remained with her children at Quebec while her husband was at Mackinac. Cadillac instructed her to send goods to Mackinac and^he came to Montreal in 1696, and there hired two voyageurs, named Moreau and Durand, to carry a boat load of merchandise to her husband. Their compensation was to be two hundred livres each, and permission to take goods to the value of one hundred livres each for their own profit. But Cadillac's wife, says Champigny, induced the two traders to fill two boats with goods, and on these they also loaded four or five hundred livres' worth of goods on their own account. The goods were on their way to Mackinac, but they were stopped near the mouth of the Ottawa River by Sieur de la Touche, the government commissary. He seized the extra boat, sold its contents by auction, and realized 675 livres, which was applied, as in like cases, to the hospital at Montreal. On the same boat were forty pots of brandy, but Moreau claimed that they were for the use of himself and Durand, and the liquor was allowed to go with the other goods. The boatmen claimed that three other boats evaded the vigi- lance of the commissary and went up for Cadillac to Mackinac. When Moreau and Durand arrived there they purchased goods to the value of seven thousand livres from Cadillac, and commenced to trade with the Indians. A month afterward Durand wounded a dog belonging to an Indian; he would not pay for the injury, and Cadillac confined him in a log jail. Durand was indignant and sent word that he would not pay for the goods. Moreau, his partner, would not pay it alone and was jailed. While they were prisoners Cadillac searched their store and took out the goods he had sold them; also those which belonged to them, and also all their other property, on the ground that they had brought more than the one hundred livres worth. Released a few days afterward, the two men borrowed money and returned to Mon- treal, and there waited for reparation. In September, 1797, Cadillac visited Montreal and the two traders then commenced an action against him. Their case was already in the hands of De Champigny, and Cadillac entered his defense, which, however, is very inadequately stated. The parties agreed to arbitrate their difference before two mer- chants of Quebec. New disputes arose and De Champigny was asked by Moreau for an inquiry into the value of the goods, which he referred 36 to Dupuy, the "local lieutenant of the provostship of Quebec." But Cadillac opposed the submitting of the value to an inquiry, because he suspected that it was for the purpose of valuing the goods he had taken at the same rate at which they had been disposed of to the Sioux Indians. "I was ordered to prevent trade with the Sioux by Count Frontenac," he said, "and such trade was illegal." Moreau retorted by saying that Cadillac himself had sent goods to the Sioux country. Dupuy was about making up his decision in favor of Moreau when he was summoned before Frontenac, who said in effect that he was about to contravene his authority by the dictation of Champigny, and sent him to prison, where he remained two days. The two arbitrators discreetly resigned from the case a few days afterward. Moreau then sent in another petition, which De Champigny sent to the Supreme Council, which was composed of the governor, intendant and bishop. But Cadillac followed with two other petitions, one that In tendant Champigny should not consider the matter, and the other that it should be referred to the provost at Quebec. Champigny here inter- polates that the provost of Quebec was the god-father of Cadillac's wife. It was then demanded that the case should be tried before the Supreme Council, whereupon Cadillac said he would appeal to the king Frontenac, however, came to the council, and objected to any course which would deprive Cadillac of his appeal to the king, and after more talk it was resolved to dismiss the whole case. De Champigny then announced that he would try the case again, but Frontenac said he had exceeded his authority. The intendant took up the case again and sentenced Cadillac to pay three sums aggregating 2,565 livres to Moreau, but next day Governor Frontenac annulled the decree and Cadillac, according to the sporting phrase, "won out." In connection with the above it may be stated that the French meas- ures of capacity in those times were as follows: Two chopines made one pint; one pint equaled one and two-thirds pints (English measure); two pints made one pot, or French quart ; thirty-two pots made one barrel. A roquille was a small measure corresponding to an English gill and was one- fourth of a chopine, or one-eighth of a pint. The money of the time was as follows: A sol or sou was about equal in value to a cent of United States currency ; the livre (afterward franc) contained twenty sols; a crown contained six livres; a pistole, which was a Spanish coin, was equivalent to about twenty livres, or about $4. 37 During' his residence at Mackinac, the English and Iroquois were continuously invading his territory, and Cadillac became convinced that France's interest, as well as his own, would be subserved by a fort and trading station, at a point where the French could better compete with the English and the Iroquois, and that the straits between Lake Erie and Huron was the proper place. After formulating his plans he re- quested Governor Frontenac to recall him, which request was granted. At Quebec a memorial was drawn up and sent to King Louis XIV, and it is said that Cadillac went there in person to urge its adoption. Mean- while his friend, Governor Frontenac, died on June 13, 1698, and De Callieres was appointed governor. On May 27, 1699, the king sent Cadillac's memorial to the new governor to report on the expediency of the plan. De Callieres answered that Cadillac's plan was not practi- cal ; that the re establishment and repairing of old forts then in exist- ence was much better; that the proposed fort was too near the forces of the Iroquois and the English in Northern New York ; therefore, that a settlement there might be short lived. But Cadillac argued in turn that a fort at Detroit wo^ld be far better than the one at Mackinac, for it would prevent the British and Iroquois from entering the region of the straits, which was the gateway of the upper country; and that the right way of surmounting opposition was to meet it boldly and not re- tire before it. The king and his ministers admired Cadillac's boldness and audacity, and he was given a commission to prepare for the ex- pedition, a grant of twenty-five square arpents or acres, for the site of the fort he might select, together with other privileges as a command- ant, and 15,000 livres for the construction of the fort. Cadillac returned to Quebec and at once began his preparations. There was good reason for haste ; the Iroquois had heard of the projected settlement and sent envoys to De Callieres to protest against what they considered an in- vasion of their rights and territory. A conference between the gov- ernor and the head men of the confederacy was held at Quebec, on May 5, 1701. Callieres's arguments were mainly that he did not intend by this expedition to deprive the Iroquois of their lands or other rights. "The English " he said, " are moving on de Troit or the straits, with the object of monopolizing the fur trade, and we must do something to prevent it." In reply to further discussion in which the chief claimed that the lands were the hunting ground of the Iroquois, he said, " It does not belong to the Iroquois; it belongs to my master, the great father in France. We intend to do with it as he pleases." Other re- 38 quests they made regarding trade were acceded to and the conference ended. De Callieres knew, however, that the Iroquois might possibly try to penetrate their plans and, after consultation, Cadillac was directed to take the Ottawa River route. This was chosen in preference to the route by the St. Lawrence and Lakes Ontario and Erie, by which La Salle reached the straits and the upper country, because the expedition might then be seen and attacked by the Iroquois. The progress of the expedition and the founding of Detroit have been related in the first chapter of this book. CHAPTER VI. Indians and Coureurs de Bois— Characteristics of the Indians and of the Half- Wild Voyageurs, Who Were the First Commercial Travelers in America— 1660-1760. The Indians were such an important factor in the great problem of European colonization, as well as in the early history of Detroit, that a brief r^sum6 of their history, attitude and characteristics is necessary to give a thorough understanding of the situation. In the northern part of this continent, principally in the region of the great chain of lakes and their tributary rivers, from the Atlantic to the extremity of Lake Michigan, the ted men generally belonged to three confederacies — the Algonquins, the Hiirons or Wyandots, and the Iroquois or Five Nations. The Algonquins were numerous and powerful, and their hunting grounds were mostly in Canada, from the mouth of the St. Lawrence and the shores of Lake Ontario to the Niagara River. They were tillers of the soil as well as hunters, and were the same kindred stock as the Hurons. The Algonquin confederacy included 104 distinct organized nations or tribes, and the seat of its power was on the south- eastern shore of Lake Superior. Its leading nations on the west were the Chippewas, Creeks, Ottawas, Potawatamies and Miamis; in the east the Abinakis, the Micmacs, the Mohegans and the New England and Virginia tribes ; and also several nations in the South. Some of the southern nations of the confederacy were ultimately wiped out or 39 subdued by the Iroquois, but those who had not been conquered were deadly enemies of the latter. The Hurons, who were also kinsmen of the Iroquois, inhabited the country bordering- on the Ottawa River, from the Algonquin frontier to the shores of Lake Huron. They were deadly foes of the Iroquois and were finally driven from their hunting grounds and destroyed as a con- federacy. The Hurons were so named by the French, because of the manner in which they wore their hair, which was rough and stood up like the bristles of the "hure" — wild boar. Cheveux releves — "with hair standing up " — was another name bestowed on them by Cham- plain. Among themselves, or with other Indians, the Hurons were styled Ouendato, anglicized into Wyandots. The Iroquois or Five Nations, the most numerous and warlike of the three, lived principally on the southern side of the St. Lawrence, in what is now the State of New York, north and west of the Kaalzbergs and south of the Adirondacks. Some of their villages were on the shores of Lake Champlain, but no accurate boundary line of their ter- ritory or that of the Algonquins or Hurons can be given, as they va- ried from time to time according to the fortunes of war. The Five Nations were the Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas and Sene- cas. In 1714 they were joined by the remnants of the Tuscaroras, and were afterward known as the Six Nations. At that time their total number was estimated at 11,650, including 3,150 warriors. Tradition says that the Iroquois were formed into a league by Hiawatha, the In- dian incarnation of wisdom, about the beginning of the fifteenth cent- ury. They were divided into about forty tribes, each ruled by a sachem. The latter had an equal voice in the councils of the confeder- acy, which were held at the capital of the Onondagas, a few miles south of what is now Syracuse, N. Y. The central authority was a president, and the women were allowed a voice in their legislative councils. Champlain, the governor of New France, found them at war with the Canada Indians, and other nations from Lake Huron to the Gulf of Mexico, in which they were generally successful. With the Algonquins and Hurons on his side, he fought them on Lake Cham- plain in 1609, and from that time the Iroquois generally fought the French and their Indian allies in Canada for about sixty years. The Iroquois had made several treaties with the English before that year, but the results were generally unsatisfactory. By the influence of Sir William Johnson, the English Indian commissioner, they fought against 40 GEN. RUSSELL A. ALGER. the French in 1755, four years before the power of the latter country was extinguished in the North and Northwest by the capture of Que- bec. In 1763 some of them joined their ancient Indian foes in Pon- tiac's conspiracy, and aided the great Ottawa in besieging the English post of Detroit. In the war of the Revolution all the Iroquois except the Oneidas and Tuscaroras embraced the side of the English, and led by Joseph Brant, the great Mohawk chief, they desolated the Mohawk, Cherry and Wyoming valleys in New York and Pennsylvania and mas- sacred the settlers. After the close of the war a majority of the Iro- quois removed to Canada, as they apprehended that the Americans would take vengeance upon them for aiding the English, but the Oneidas and Tuscaroras remained. Their descendants now number about 3,000, half of whom are in the State of New York, andjthe remainder in other States and Canada. All the Indians in North America had nearly the same characteristics ; they were proud, haughty and taciturn, despised volubility, and were sententious in conversation and debate, except in set rhetorical efforts, in which their best speakers often rose to poetic heights and displayed a wealth of imagination and great dignity and beauty of expression. They were sagacious in penetrating motives, persevering in all their undertakings, superstitious in the last degree, revengeful and cruel in war, stoical under pain and hardship and indolent except in war and the chase. A young Indian's future prospects depended upon his suc- cess in killing his personal enemies and the enemies of his tribe. He was not considered as having arrived at the condition of manhood until he had carved out a reputation for personal prowess with his tomahawk and scalping knife. The maidens would repel his advances if hehad taken no scalps. The wampum belt was invariably used by the Indians in their nego- tiations, either with their own race or with the white men. At first it consisted of shells of different kinds, piered with holes, and strung to- gether with thongs of deerskin. It consisted of several strings, each being called a fathom, and several fathoms made a belt. Later, a por- celain imitation of the shells was introduced, which served the same purpose. When one tribe sent a messenger to another tribe, a belt of wampum was always carried as an evidence of good faith as well as courtesy. When treaties were made, a belt was handed over as each article was agreed to, and this was considered as a solemn ratification. The belts were in such constant use that in New England they passed 41 as money, and a fathom varied in price from $1.25 to f3, according to the value of the shells. In dealing with the aborigines the traders frequently defrauded them, and it was in the very nature of the savages to settle the account at the first favorable opportunity. When Major Waldo, of Maine, who had sold goods to the Indians, fell into their power, they reminded him of his habit of thrusting one hand into the scales for a pound weight, and then proceeded to cut off his fingers. "Waldo," he was asked after the cruel act was done, " does your hand weigh a pound now?" Trad- ers were often the earliest victims of Indian wars, and some were killed in the lake country after Cadillac's arrival at Detroit. Women, except perhaps among the Iroquois, occupied a degraded state, being com- pelled to do the work of cultivating the Indian corn, boiling the maple sap, cooking, etc., and were, mere slaves to their lordly mates. For ages before the white man came to this continent the aborigines fought and slaughtered each other, and later, when the representatives of a European power came among them and sought to acquire land or advantages in trade, the obvious course for the white man to pursue was to espouse the quarrels of one Indian nation against another. In all wars between white principals, French and Spanish, French and English, or English and American, there was always an Indian con- tingent on each side. When the Spaniards discovered and slaughtered the French Huguenots in Florida, they each had Indian allies. The French governors of New France could gain the alliance of both the Hurons and Algonquins, because these confederacies were generally in peaceful relations with each other, but that precluded any friendship with the Iroquois, and so the French had to fight with the two former against their implacable foes on the south side of the St. Lawrence. For the same reasons the Iroquois generally espoused the cause of the English against the French. The red man, however, irrespective of kinship or confederacy, generally looked out for his own advantage ; he was crafty and discriminating, and seldom allowed sentiment to in- terfere with his interests. In this region it was always a three-sided game for gain, the French and English each trying to influence the aborigines by cajolery, threats and presents, in order to gain control of the fur trade, while the Indian coolly weighed the respective proposi- tions, accepted those deemed most desirable, and meanwhile en- deavored to hold the balance of power. No money passed in trade- it was all barter. The red man had his peltries gained by long and 42 fatiguing excursions in the forest, and the French and English had guns, powder, ball, scalping knives, axes, kettles, beads, blankets, pro- visions and rum or brandy, but in the exchange the Indian had always the worst of the trade. The aborigines joined either side and fought, scalped, tortured or burned white and red human beings of all ages and sexes, with perfect impartiality, if rewarded with sufficient supplies of these articles of merchandise. Wherever the fur trade extended in New France or New England, rum and brandy followed, and the strong drink ever brought misery and ruin to the aboriginal population. The labors of the Jesuits, or the Protestant divines that came later, could do no more than alleviate these evils. The terrible scourge of the small-pox, which broke out in the country northwest of Lake Superior in 1782, was scarcely more fatal to the natives, though more rapid and striking in its effects, than the power of ardent spirits. Furs were gleaned with an iron hand and rum was given out with an iron heart. Beavers were sought with a thirst of gain as great as that which carried Cortez to Mexico and Pizarro to Peru, and no mines of the precious metals which the world has ever produced were more pro- ductive of wealth than the fur yielding region of America. About 1701, however, the beaver lost its supremacy in the European markets for a time, but the demand for other choice furs continued unabated. Had the Indians on this contment made joint resistance to the white invader, it is very probable that European colonization would have been delayed for centuries, but the Indian intellect was too narrow and the Indian temperament too passionate. The red man could not submerge his hates and prejudices, and thereby rise to the grander heights of race association for a common cause. But two instances of Indian as- sociation as a race against the whites can be cited, and these were both failures. King Philip, son of Massassoit, who ruled in Massachusetts, Connecticut and adjoining colonies, formed a combination with the Nar- ragansetts in 1675 to drive out the English. The war raged for about two years and ended with the killing of Philip and the destruction of the allied tribes. The other was the well known conspiracy of Pontiac in 1763, which failed as much by the splendid resistance of the white man, as by the want of coherence among the savages. Cannibalism was sometime practiced by nearly all the Indians, as late as the eighteenth century, and there is a tradition of a case of man- eating in Detroit as late as 1763. But there is no record of human flesh being used by the aborigines as regular diet— it Was only the 43 bodies of enemies that were devoured. When Governor-General De- nonville vanquished the Seneca tribe of the Iroquois confederacy in 1687, he was horrified to see his Ottawa allies cut up and boil the bod- ies of twenty-five Senecas and eat them with relish. The case of man- eating in Detroit was vouched for by the late James W. Knaggs, who related it to the writer in this city in 1893, as follows: " Whitmore Knaggs, my father, was born in Detroit in 1763, the same year in which Pontiac tried to cany out his famous plan of driving the English out of Detroit and the other forts on the western frontier. July 31, 1763, a party of the Detroit garrison, under Captain Dalzell, made a sortie at Bloody Run, about two miles above the fort, and were defeated by Pontiac with great loss. After his triumph, Pontiac invited the leading French residents, including Peter Descompte Labadie, who was the father of my mother, to a grand feast in honor of the victory. There was plenty of fish, flesh and fowl, but no liquors. After the feast was over Pontiac said to Labadie, ' How did you like the meat ? ' 'It was very good young beef, was it not?' answerd my grandfather. ' Come here and I will show you what you have eaten,' said Pontiac. He opened a sack that was lying on the ground behind him and took out the bloody head of an English soldier, holding it up by the hair. ' There's the young beef,' he added with a grin. Labadie took one look, his stom- ach turned and he immediately ejected everything he had eaten. The dusky warriors jeered at him and said he was nothing but an old squaw. This story I often heard Grandfather Labadie tell to strangers and friends. He described the young beef as very tender and appe- tizing until Pontiac's revelation." The coureurs de bois, bushlopers or rangers of the woods, were also a notable factor in the scheme of European colonization. At first there was a great deal of private trading with the Indians. To check irreg- ularities the French governors granted licenses to private traders, for which a fine was paid; these traders at first were superannuated French army officers, who were given the privilege in return for past services. In 1688 the number was only twenty-five, but the permits to trade be- came negotiable paper and a great many social outcasts acquired them. Those who were not half-breeds were generally of French birth, but by living with the Indians had virtually become uncivilized. Some- times they were agents of the great companies who acted under grants from the French crown, but oftener they were their own masters. At first they were named as above: coureurs de bois, but afterward they 44 were called merchant voyagers and a few of them, notably Duluth, at- tained some prominence. The savages loved ardent spirits and when under its spell would be more liberal in trading, and so the stock of the coureurs de bois always included a liberal supply of that demoralizing drink. They transported it with other goods in canoes, through the lakes and rivers of the North and West, and over difficult portages, to their destination in the Indian country. When they reached their trading places they were a law unto themselves, and, far removed from ecclesiastical and judicial authority, they were legislators and judges in the wilderness. It is needless to say that their influence was altogether for evil. The better side of their character was their dexterity in hunting and trapping, their knowledge of the languages and customs of the Indian tribes, and their affability and gayety, which made them popular with the red men. These qual- ities rendered their services extremely valuable as agents of the French merchants. They were a hardy race, strong, muscular and well formed, and dead shots with the rifle. They were neither pagans nor Chris- tians, and knew enough of the Indian and French religions to be re- gardless of either. Their ordinary dress was a moleton or blanket coat, a red cap, a belt of cloth passed over the middle of their bodies and a loose shirt. Sometimes on their voyages through the lakes and rivers they wore a brown coat or cloak, with a cape that could be drawn over their heads like a hood. At other times they wore elkskin trou- sers, the seams of which were ornamented with fringes, a surtout of coarse blue cloth reaching to the calf of the leg, a worsted sash of scarlet fastened around the waist, in which was stuck a broad knife which was used to dissect the animals taken in hunting, and moccasins made of buckskin. It is doubtful if the small companies of explorers and traders who led the way into the American wilderness, among the bloodthirsty savages, would have had the courage or the ability to make the ven- ture had it not been for their reliance upon firearms. Although the savages were presently supplied with guns and ammunition by the traders, the greater part of their guns were very crude weapons, made especially for such patrons. White men were always the superior marksmen, but the accuracy and range of the old time musket was fearfully exaggerated in the romances of pioneer days. In the famous " Leatherstocking Tales " the shooting described by the imaginative Mr. Cooper is far beyond the fondest dreams of modern riflemen, who 45 are provided with weapons of fivefold range and threefold accuracy, to say nothing of the wonderful improvements in ammunition and in the sighting of guns. Military rifles now have a range of about 3,000 yards; they are bored and rifled with mathematical precision by costly machinery, and are fired instantaneously by percussion primers as soon as the hammer is released. In Cadilla;c's time the common arm was the smooth-bore musket or arquebus. The barrels were of plain iron and made very heavy as a precaution against bursting, and were very long, as it was believed that extreme length of barrel tended to greater accuracy and range. The powder was poor stuff compared with mod- ern powders, and the bullets were cast by hand in moulds. If there was considerable difference between the diameter of the bore and the diameter of the bullet, a fit was secured by using a patch of leather of the required thickness. Calibers were not rated by millimeters or hundredths of an inch, but by the number of balls required to weigh one pound. To operate one of the guns the hunter or soldier poured out a charge of powder from his powder horn into the palm of his hand, and emptied it into the muzzle of the gun. .Selecting a bullet from his pouch, he applied a greased patch of cloth or buckskin over the muzzle of the gun, and placing the bullet on top, drove it home with his long ramrod. At the breech a hollow plug was let into the barrel, and attached to this was a powder pan covered with a hinged plate of steel ; the hammer of the gun had jaws for holding a piece of flint. After the gun had been loaded the hunter poured a little pow- der into the priming pan, cocked his piece and took aim. At the descent of the hammer there would be a shower of sparks from the flint, a dazzling flash from the powder in the pan, and the gun would go off with a great racket. The range at which any degree of accuracy could be obtained was about two hundred yards; this was later in- creased to five hundred yards when the long Kentucky rifle came into general use. In these days of better weapons, a wise man would hesi- tate before he would risk his life in the wilderness with no better pro- tection than such guns as Cadillac's followers possessed. Yet the skill acquired by the early pioneers in the use of their arms was little short of marvelous. Such guns and an occasional rifle (for the rifle had not yet come into general use) were the offensive and defensive arms of the pioneers. They also provided his table with its supply of meat. When the savages attacked in such force that the home of the settler could no longer be defended by the small arms of the household, the 46 entire population of the settlement took refuge in the fort with its log stockade, its blockhouses and its projecting bastions armed with small cannon. Heavy artillery, whether loaded with three, four, or six pound shot, or with bolts and scrap iron, always commanded the respect of the savages. The thundering report was nearly as effective as the flying missiles in awing them. It will be seen that the evolution of artillery had not proceeded far, for the beginning of the firearms was a small cannon supported on a hand stafiE and exploded by applying a piece of burning tow or a match. Then came the matchlock, which on pulling the trigger applied a piece of burning wick to the powder at the vent. Following this came the Dutch invention called the wheel lock or fire lock, which ignited the powder by rotating a toothed wheel of steel against a piece of soft iron, and the next step was the flint lock, which held supremacy for gener- ations, and which was used exclusively at the battle of Waterloo in 1815. CHAPTER VII. What the Pioneers Found at Detroit— Events Contemporaneous with the Found- ing of the City— Description of the Fauna and Flora of the Region as Described in Ancient Reports— 1701-1703. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, while Detroit was being founded, a fever of speculation, adventure and war possessed Eastern Europe. Spain, after losing her great Armada, steadily declined in power. Under the Duke of Alva she had seized and drenched in blood the Netherlands, but most of the provinces had now thrown off her yoke and had established the Dutch Republic. The small portion of the Netherlands remaining to her was about to be lost in the war of the Spanish Succession. Charles II, the last of the Spanish Haps- burgs, had died childless, and to secure the support of France, Philip of Anjou, grandson of Louis XIV, had been called to the throne. Eng- land and 'the Netherlands opposed this union of interests, and Austria wanted another Hapsburg prince crowned in Spain. The three made war upon Spain in 1701, and this conflict, which was called the war of the Spanish Succession, lasted eight years, during which the Spanish 47 population was reduced from 9,000,000 to less than 6,000,000. Charles XII of Sweden had just humbled Denmark and had given the Russians under Peter the Great an inglorious defeat, although outnumbered five to one. He was advancing upon Poland and Saxony in 1701. Fred- eric, the Prussian elector, gave considerable money and loaned 10,000 troops to Austria to fight in the war with Spain, and his reward was the crown of Prussia, which was erected into a kingdom through the in- fluence of Austria and England. The Duke of Marlborough and Prince Eugene of Savoy were starting out on the series of splendid cam- paigns against Spain and France, in which they achieved immortal glory. Under such pressing demands for troops and money in Europe, the countries having colonies were compelled for the most part to let them shift for themselves. In 1701 William Kidd, the famous pirate chief, closed his career on the gallows in the city of London. He was a Scotch navigator who in his earlier days did splendid service for Great Britain, and the colony of New York had given him a present of j^^lSO in token of its appreci- ation. But love of adventure lured him to ruin, and from preying on Spanish commerce he soon developed into a scourge of the seas. New England witchcraft was beginning to die out ; after torturing fifty-five persons to make them confess that they were witches, and hanging twenty poor old women for having an alleged intimacy with Satan, the people of Salem, Mass., were just awakening from their trance of superstition. Such were the conditions in Europe and the new world, when Cadillac pitched his camp on the bank of Detroit River. The founding of the new settlement in the western wilderness re- quired all the more hardihood since it was evident that the govern- ment of France could give it but little aid. The officers who came with Captain Cadillac were Capt. Alphonse de Tonty, a younger brother of Henry de Tonty, the companion of La Salle, who was next in command; two lieutenants, Chacornacle and Dugue; a sergeant named Jacob I'Ommesprou de Mersac; and Antoine, eldest son and namesake of Cadillac, then nine years of age, who was appointed en- sign in 1707, when he was sixteen years of age. Jacob Mersac, like several of the other soldiers, received a grant of land near the fort which was afterward known as the Mersac farm, and tradition tells that in after years when engaged in plowing he always wore his sword by his side. Jean and Francois Fafard, were the Indian interpreters. Two priests, Nicholas Constantine del Halle, a Recollect of the Franciscan 48 order, and Francis Vaillant de Gueslis, a Jesuit, also came with the ex- pedition to afford the consolation of religion to the little colony, the former as chaplain and the latter as Indian missionary. Cadillac did not wish to have Jesuits around him, but the influence of the superior of the order at Quebec was too strong to be overcome. In a letter to De Callieres, written twelve days after his landing, he described the scenery and other advantages of the new settlement in a comprehen- sive and even poetic vein. "The Detroit," he says, "is only a canal or river of moderate breadth and twenty-five leagues in length, through which the sparkling and pellucid waters of Lakes Superior, Michigan and Huron (which are so many seas of sweet water), flow and glide away gently and with a moderate current into Lake Erie, in the Ontario or Frontenac, and go at last to mingle in the River St. Lawrence with those of the ocean. The banks are so many vast meadows where the freshness of those beautiful streams keeps the grass always green; these same meadows are fringed with long and broad avenues of fruit trees, which have never felt the careful hand of the watchful gardener; and the fruit trees, young and old, droop under the weight and multitude of their delicious burden, and bend their branches toward the fertile soil which has produced them. In this soil so fertile, the ambitious vine, which has not yet wept under the knife of the industrious vine-dresser, forms a thick roof with its broad leaves and its heavy clusters over the head of whatever it twines around, which it often stifles by embracing too closely. Under these vast avenues you may see assembling in hun- dreds the shy stag and the timid hind, with the bounding roebuck, which pick up largely the apples and plums with which the ground is paved. It is there that the careful turkey-hen calls back her numerous brood and leads them to gather the grapes; it is there that their big cocks come and fill their broad and gluttonous crops; the golden pheasant, the quail, the partridge, the woodcock, the teeming turtle- dove, swarm in the woods and cover the open country, which is inter- sected and broken by groves of full grown forest trees, which, form a charming prospect and in itself might sweeten the melancholy hours of solitude. There the hand of the pitiless mower has never shorn the juicy grass, on which bisons of enormous height and size fatten. The woods are of six kinds — walnut trees, white oak, red, bastard ash, ivy, whitewood trees and cotton trees, but these same trees are straight as arrows, without curves and almost without branches except near the 49 top, and of enormous size and height. It is from thence that the fear- less eagle looks steadily at the sun, seeing beneath him wherewith to satisfy his proudly- armed foot. The fish there are fed and laved in sparkling and pellucid waters, and are none the less delicious for the bountiful supply [of them]. There are such large numbers of swans that the rushes among which they are massed might be taken for lilies. The gabbling goose, the duck, the teal and the bustard, are so common here that, in order to satisfy you of it, I will only make use of the expression of one of the savages. Before I came here I asked one if there was much game here. He answered, 'There is so much that they only move aside [long enough] to allow the boat to pass.' In a word the climate is temperate, the air very pure. During -the day there is a gentle wind, and. at night the sky, which is always placid, diffuses cool and sweet influences which cause us to enjoy the be- nignity of tranquil sleep. If its position is pleasing it is no less im- portant, for it opens or closes the approach to the most distant tribes which surround these sweet water seas. It is only the opponents of the truth who are the enemies of this settlement, so essential to the in- crease of the glory of the king, to the spread of religion and to the de- struction of the throne of Baal. " In another letter dated September 35, 1702, he gives more informa- tion regarding this region, repeating to some extent what he said before in regard to the fruit bearing trees. "This river or strait of the seas is covered, both on the mainland and the islands, with large clusters of trees, surrounded by charming meadows. I have observed there are nearly twenty different kinds of plums ; there are three or four kinds of which are very good ; the others are very large and pleasant to look at, but they have rather tough skins and mealy flesh. The apples are of medium size ; too acid. There is also a number of cherry trees, but their fruit is not very good. In places there are mulberry trees, which bear big black berries ; the fruit is excellent and refreshing. There is also a very large quantity of hazel nuts and filberts ; there are six kinds of walnuts. The timber of these trees is good for furniture and gun- stocks. There are also stretches of chestnuts, chiefly towards Lake Erie. All the fruit trees in general are loaded with their fruit ; and there is reason to believe that if these trees were grafted, pruned and well cultivated, their fruit would be much better and might be made good fruit. There is one tree which is unknown to me, and to all who have seen it ; its leaves are a vivid green and remain so until the month 50 of January. It has been observed that it flowers in the spring and toward the end of November, the flowers are white; this tree is a big one. There is another tree which is well defended, the prickles of which are ong-half a foot long and pierce the wood like a nail. It bears a fruit like kidney beans; the leaf is like the capillary plant; neither animal or man could climb it. That would be good for making fences. Its grain is very hard ; when it has arrived at maturity the wood is very difficult to drive a nail in it [the thornapple]. There are also citron trees which are the same in form and color as the citron of Portugal, but they are sweeter and smaller [the paw paw]. There is a large number of them ; they are well preserved. The root of this tree is a very subtle and deadly poison and it is also a sovereign remedy against snake bites. It is only necessary to pound it and to apply it to the wound and you are instantly cured. There are but few snakes in Detroit; they are very common in the country of the Iroquois. I have seen an herb pointed out to me by the Iroquois which renders the venom of snakes innocuous ; perhaps it may have some other use. Fifteen leagues from Detroit, at the entrance to Lake Erie, inclining to the south southwest, are boundless prairies which stretch away for about one hundred leagues. It is there that these mighty oxen [buflfalos], which are covered with wool, find food in abundance. I sent this spring to the Chevalier de Callieres some hides and wool of these animals, and he sent both to the directors of the company of the colony to make trial of them, and it has been found that the discovery will prove a valuable one; that the hides may be very usefully employed and the wool used for stockings and cloth making. There is a number of stags and hinds ; they are seen in hundreds, with roebucks, black bears, otters and other smaller fur- bearing animals. The skins of these animals sell well. There are also a number of beavers on this mainland and in the neighborhood. Game is very common — wild turkey, swans, wild ducks, quails, woodcocks, pheasants and rabbits. There are so many turkeys that twenty or thirty could be killed at one shot every time they are met with. There are also partridges, hazel-hens and a stupendous numb'er of turtle-doves. As the place is well supplied with animals, the wolves, of which there are numbers, find abundant food, but it often costs them their skins, because they sell well also, and this aids in destroying them, because the savages hunt them. There are wood rats [opossums] which are as large as rabbits, most of them gray, but there are some seen which are as white as snow. The female has a pouch under her belly which opens 51 and shuts as she requires, so that sometimes when her little ones are playing, if the mother finds herself pressed, quickly shuts them up in her pouch and carries them all away with her at once and gains her re- treat. I have seen a number of different kinds of birds of rare beauty. Some have a plumage of a beautiful red fire color, the most vivid it were possible to see; they have a few shots of black in the tail and at the tips of their wings, but that is only noticed when they are flying. I have seen others all yellow, with tails bigger than their bodies, and they spread out their tails as peacocks do. I have seen others of a sky blue color, with red breasts; there are some curiously marked like great butterflies. I have observed that a pleasant warbling proceeds from all these birds, especially from the red ones with large beaks. There are many cranes, gray and white, and they stand higher than a man. The savages value these latter greatly on account of their plum- age, with which they adorn themselves. In the river of Detroit there are neither stones or rocks, but on Lake Huron there are fine quarries, and it is a country wooded like Canada, that is to say, with endless forests. Houses could be provided and buildings erected of bricks, for there is earth which is very suitable for this, and fortunately, only five leagues from the fort there is an island which is very large and is en- tirely composed of limestone [Stony Island]. We have fish in great abundance, and it could not be otherwise, for the river is inclosed and situated between the lake, or rather between as many seas. A thing which is most convenient for navigation is, that it does not wind at all; its two prevailing winds are the northeast and southwest. This coun- try is so temperate, so fertile and so beautiful, that it may justly be called the earthly paradise of North America, deserves all the care of the king to keep it up and to attract inhabitants t« it, so that a solid settlement may be formed there which shall not be liable to the usual vicissitudes of the other posts, in which only a mere garrison is placed." In regard to the buffalos which he calls oxen, he says that "he could not send any of them to France until barges could be built, as they were too large to' be transported in canoes." Cadillac named the inclosure Fort Pontchartrain, after his friend and patron, but the settlement itself was always named Detroit, or the Straits. A company of one hundred men directed by an energetic and capa- ble leader can accomplish wonders. Cadillac kept his men at work early and late, and by the first day of September the green knoll, which had 52 JAMES F. JOY. probably never felt the imprint of a white man's foot six weeks before, had been converted into a walled city of extremely rustic pattern, and shelter had been provided for the settlers and their stores. A walled city may seem an extravagant term unless comparison is made with the foundings of older cities. Tradition has it that Romulus, the founder of Rome, slew his twin brother, Remus, because the latter leaped the first wall of Rome and scoffed at its weak protection. When Caesar discovered Paris it was a city of some years standing, yet the walls inclosed but thirty-seven acres, and as late as the beginning of the thirteenth century its walls surrounded less than a square mile. The roots of the first settlement struck deep into the soil and although the last traces of the stockade have been missing for seventy years, the soil still reveals the story of the past each time it is disturbed for the erec- tion of great buildings. In the summer of 1894, 193 years after the founding of the city, excavations at the corner of Wayne and Larned streets turned up many relics. Fragments of old muskets, rusty sword and knife hilts, a mass of rotten high boots, such as were worn by the French soldiers of the seventeenth century, and a number of three and four pound cannon balls, were found on the spot, some of them ten feet or more beneath the surface. They indicate that the military stores must have been, housed in this part of the works, while the pow- der magazine is supposed to have been located in a pit near the corner of Griswold and Larned. Fort Pontchartrain had its northern barrier near the north side of Larned street reaching from Wayne to a point near Griswold street. It ran down quite close to the river bank, and one of the large fortified gates must have been near the crossing of Shelby and Woodbridge streets, the other being on the north side in the middle of the Larned street front. Settlers soon came and crowded the little cabins, until they could erect habitations of their own. Indians arrived in small bands, some of them being Iroquois, and erected their cabins of bark, back on the river bank, and following them came the French merchants and the coureurs de bois. Before the next summer, according to C. M. Burton, the little colony, situated beyond the verge of civilization, "had a population of 6,000 soiils, mostly Indians, and was the metropolis of America." No white w.oman came during the first year, but in the succeeding years wives and families from Quebec, Montreal and else- where, rejoined their husbands in Detroit. The buildings were log huts, generally one story in height with an attic in the roof. The lots 53 on which they stood were quite small, seldom exceeding 25 by 25 feet ; the shops and stores being a trifle larger, and all the space inside the palisades was probably covered by buildings. The soldiers were lodged inside the fort, and Cadillac, in order to foster industry, gave them the use of half arpent spaces outside the inclosure, for gardening purposes. These spaces fronted on the east side of what is now Ran- dolph street, between the river and Fort street east. The soldiers' houses were owned by the commandant, while the houses of the per- manent merchants, artisans and other citizens, were generally owned by themselves. No transfers of lands were given until 1704, and the occupants of real estate probably erected buildings under an agree- ment to have their titles confirmed in the future. When Madame Cadillac heard that the fort was ready to give her shelter, she resolved to leave Quebec and go to her husband, in spite of the difficulties and dangers which beset the way. It was a journey of one thousand miles. At Detroit she would be cut off from all society such as she enjoyed in Quebec. The latter station was con- sidered safe against any attempt the savages might make upon it, while the new outpost was not only beset with dangers, but also cut off from the rest of the world. Her friends tried to persuade her to remain in Quebec, but she was firm, and Madame Tonty, whose husband was also at Fort Pen tchar train, declared her intention to accompany her. Madame Cadillac answered her advisers saying: "A woman who loves her husband as she should, has no stronger attraction than his com- pany, wherever he may be; everything else should be indifferent to her." Cadillac has been censured for being often involved in troubles caused by his rashness and his prejudices, but whatever his faults he must have possessed noble traits of character to have inspired the strong devotion of such a woman. Madame Cadillac brought her son, James, aged seven years, leaving her two young daughters in the Ursuline Convent. The two brave women set out from Quebec on September 10, 1701, in birch bark canoes, with an escort of rude voyageurs, for a journey of several weeks through the wilderness. They were paddled up the St. Lawrence, tramping along with their escort at the several portages, and finally arriving at Frontenac, where they passed the winter. Here they found Father Valliant, who was able to tell the ladies more satisfactory information of their husbands. Early in the spring they proceeded along the northern shore of Lake Ontario. Another 54 long portage was passed between the mouth of the Niagara River and Lake Erie, and then the canoes were paddled along the shore to the mouth of Detroit River. At night the travelers slept in the forest with the canoes overturned above them for shelter against the rain, and they were constantly in danger of attack, because the fierce Iro- quois opposed the founding of Detroit as an encroachment upon their territory. The glad reception this party received at the fort can well be imagined. The cannon thundered out a welcome as the canoes rounded the bend in the river, and the advent of the two ladies caused a genuine sensation among the aborigines. "The Iroquois," Cadillac says, "kissed their hands and wept for joy, saying that French women had never before come willingly to their country." They were re- ceived at Detroit by all the Indians under arms with many discharges of musketry, the aborigines being then convinced that the French wished to make Detroit a post to live in and a flourishing settlement. Mesdames Cadillac and Tonty were the first white ladies in Detroit and their list of calling acquaintances must have been quite limited during the first year or two. Cadillac at once surveyed the lands, laying out lots and describing their borders in exact measurement. In some cases these grants be- came the sources of fortune to modern days, but in every grant Cadillac reserved to himself certain rights which curiously illustrate his attempt to establish a sort of feudal system. For instance, all the grain produced was to be ground at his mill and he exacted an annual tribute as grand seigneur. From the first, after the pressing needs of defense and shelter were accomplished, Cadillac directed his efforts to secure a permanent supply of food. The first wheat was planted on October 7, 1701, and was reaped in July, 1702, but the crop did not fulfill expectations. Another crop, sown in the spring of 1703, was al- most a failure, but in the summer of 1702 eight arpents, or French acres, were sown in wheat, and twelve in Indian corn, and these were good crops. The fifty soldiers also tilled their half-acre lots; the artisans and traders in the fort cultivated sizable fields outside, and the the Indians raised abundance of corn. Grape culture was also com- menced; the woods were full of wild game; and the river teemed with choice fish. By the end of 1702 the food supply was no longer a problem. All the industry was accomplished by manual labor, with the aid of spades and hoes, there being no horses or oxen in the set- tlement. Cadillac brought three horses and ten head of cattle to De- 55 troit in 1704; two of the horses died, but the survivor, named Colin, lived for many years. He must have been a strong heavy animal, as he was used for plowing and hauling loads, and was also rented to the settlers for these purposes. Other horses and different oxen came later. ' A part of Cadillac's projects, in connection with the plan of building up a colony, was to induce his soldiers to marry the Indian maidens and thus form a strong bond of kinship and mutual interest between the aborigines and the French. To this end and for the purpose of getting even with the Jesuits at Mackinac, he endeavored from the first to bring the Hurons from that place to Detroit. In conferring with Father Valliant on the subject he met a decided refusal to co- operate, as the priest would not look with favor on any scheme that would disrupt or injure the Jesuit mission at that place. As a result of this disagreement Father Valliant left Detroit about two months after his arrival and went to Fort Frontenac, which was on the present site of Kingston, Ontario. Father Superior Bouvard at Quebec, Father Etienne de Carheil at Mackinac, and all the other Jesuits also opposed Cadillac in this plan, and the project of founding a Jesuit mission at Detroit failed for a time. In 1728, however, after Cadillac had re- turned to France, the " Huron Mission of Detroit " was founded by the Jesuits, and it was located on the other side of the river at Sandwich, opposite Detroit. The principal thoroughfare of old Detroit was St. Anne street, which ran east and west and was about thirty feet wide. Its northern line was nearly on the northern side of Jefferson avenue, extending 'from Griswold street to a point about thirty feet west of Shelby street. Near its easterly end on the north side, was the church, a little west of where Ives & Son's bank is now situated, at the northwest corner of Jefferson avenue and Griswold street. South of St. Anne street was a parallel thoroughfare named St. Louis street, on which both the northerly and southerly tiers of lots were all on what is now Jefferson avenue. Another parallel street north of St. Anne, was named St. Joachim street, which lay between Jefferson avenue and the alley on the north. This street extended like the others from Griswold to Shelby streets ; these streets were about twenty feet wide. Two other streets ran north and south, and extended from St. Louis to St. Joachim street, across St. Anne street, and there was another short thoroughfare midway between the two, named Recontre street. Realizing these spaces and measurements 56 % M CD -In S^JKNTOtMC < □ m -I X o o 00 f- ur 1?' s'i5 5 L Jit %! REhcontrc ll§K 5' ». SS 13 ■J^ -To Jo. -a. 5 5" •* » IJ ft Si lis" 29 C I S5 8!!^ 5? It*- 8 (0 &!i t3« JJ S'' Francois h^- ss %% 88 1. »« OS ST. -3S- ^\ is,»« « and the contrast between them and the wide streets of modern Detroit, it might be thought that the land was extremely valuable, but the contrary was the fact. The inhabitants were huddled together for pro- tection within the small stockade, and when land was sold or rented the prices paid were principally for safety from the savages or the British, and also for the privilege of conducting trade or other voca- tions. The population of the first year, owing to causes hereinafter related, was not maintained and was not equaled until one hundred and fifty years later, but as more room was desirable, the inclosure was enlarged from time to time under French, British and American rule, until 1812, when it was surrendered by Hull. It then comprised all the space on the river front between Brush and Wayne streets and back to Larned street. From these eastern and western points the line of palisades inclined inward to the earthworks of the fort, the center of which was at the present intersection of Fort and Shelby streets, with angles reaching out half a square in four directions. In order to hamper the development of Detroit, the Jesuits of Mack- inaw, in 1701, planned the establishment of a post at Fort St. Joseph, on the St. Joseph River on Lake Michigan, where special inducements would be made to settlers and Indians for the purpose of drawing away those who had already settled at Detroit. Many had been persuaded by Cadillac to leave Mackinaw and come to his post. Tonty, who was associated with Cadillac and pretended to be his friend, united with Fathers Marmet and Davenant, of Mackinaw, for the promotion of this scheme. When it failed Tonty begged Cadillac's pardon and it was granted, but he was soon in another scheme which had for its purpose the removal of Cadillac and the substitution of himself as commandant. During this period, the first two years of the settlement, each party to the controversy made bitter accusations against the other. The Jes- uits said that they would display a more Christian spirit than the vengeful Cadillac, by laying all their resentment at the foot of the crucifix. Cadillac retorted sarcastically that the deposit was a mere convenience, as the vocation of the Jesuit priests called them con- stantly to the foot of the crucifix, and they could therefore take up their resentments again at any time. In one of his lengthy .attacks on the Jesuits, he says they "wished him to go down under the waters of vengeance and persecution, but as long as I have for my protection Justice and Merit, I shall float and swim over the waves like the nest 57 of the ingenious king- fisher. I shall try to conduct myself better and better, and to walk by the brightness and the light of these two illus- trious patronesses. Without them I should long ago have been unable to bear up against the torrent. It is true that sometimes raising my eyes to heaven, I cry in the weakness of my faith, ' Sancta Frontenac, ora pro me ' (Pray for me. Holy Frontenac)." In 1701 beaver skins had depreciated in price and were a drug in the market, and Intendant Champigny cautioned Cadillac to deal as little in that kind of fur as possible and to trade for other skins that would bring good prices. The skins of stags and hinds were then worth four- teen livres ; roebucks up to six livres ; bears up to ten livres ; others five livres and wildcats thirty -two sols or one livre and seven sols. CHAPTER VIII. Plots and Counterplots between Cadillac and His Enemies — The Merchants of Montreal Oppose the Development of Detroit for Fear of Its Future Rivalry — Detroit was a Great Beaver Region. Cadillac's report to Pontchartrain of the results of his first year's work was as follows : " All that I have the honor to state to you has been done in one year, without its having cost the king a sol, and without costing the company more than it ought, and in twelve months we have put ourselves in a position to do without provisibns from Canada forever, and all this undertaking was carried out with three months' provisions, which I took when I set out from Montreal, and which were consumed in the course of the journey. This proves whether Detroit is a desirable or unde- sirable country. Besides this nearly six thousand savages of dififerent tribes win- ' tered there, as every one knows. This is the paradise of North America." While Cadillac was busily engaged in furthering the interests of the colony, he received on July 19, 1702, a notification that the post had been ceded to the "Company of the Colony of Canada. " This was un- welcome and disagreeable news to a man whose fortunes had been shattered. by war, and who was then bending every energy to repair them by building up the new colony. In one of his letters, written subsequently, he stated that if he had known that the company was to have the trade of Detroit, he would not have undertaken its establish- 58 ment. He had doubtless supposed that the trade of the new settle- ment would go to him, just as the trade of the Illinois country had been granted to La Salle. The De Caens had also been given the monopoly of trade in New France when Frontenac was governor, and they were succeeded by the West Indian Company in 1664. Both lost money in these enterprises and their charters were revoked. In 1699 the principal citizens of Quebec, one of whom was Cadillac, sent a dep- utation to Versailles to solicit from Louis XIV the monoply of the beaver trade, and this company was granted that privilege after Cadil- lac founded Detroit. By the terms of the agreement the Company of the Colony was to have the exclusive control of the fur trade of Forts Pontchartrain and Frontenac, and were required to finish the forts and buildings belonging thereto, and keep them in good repair, and to sup- port the commandant and one other officer. The necessary garrison was to be maintained at the king's expense. This was the system on which French colonial enterprises were conducted at that time. Colo- nizing was always an expensive undertaking, and neither the gov- ernment of New France, with its sparse population, nor the mother country, impoverished by European wars, could afford to support such undertakings alone. The method used was simply to grant trade privileges to companies and provide that the latter should pay a con- siderable portion of the expenses. ■' Three days after receiving the notice Cadillac left Detroit on July 21, 1703, for Quebec, where he made arrangements with the company. A contract was drawn up by which the company agreed to pay him 2,000 livres ($400) and De Tonty 1,333 livres ($266) per year, and the neces- sary supplies for their families. He was pledged not to traffic with the savages and to prevent, as far as possible, all other traders, including the English, from trading at the post. He was also given charge of the books of the company and was treasurer of its surplus funds, and given power to prevent frauds by the employees. He undertook to carry out the purposes of his office, and this finally brought him into collision with the company. In consideration of the monopoly of the trade of the post of Detroit, the company bound itself to reimburse Cadillac for the expenses he incurred there, consisting not only of the goods which had been sent there for trading, but also of the provisions, stores and tools, boats bought for the journey, the construction of the fort, and the wages of those who were serving at that post, but on condition of his making a reduction of 15,000 livres, which his majesty had granted 69 for the construction of the fort. Also to provide food for the officers in command there, so that they might have their pay clear; to have the provisions and clothes of the soldiers conveyed there at fifteen per cent, profit, which otherwise would have cost as much again ; and also to distribute to poor families of rank the sum of 6,000 livres instead of the licensed traders. The company was also obliged by the orders of Governor de Callieres, and his intendant, De Beauharnois, to restrict their trade to the forts at Frontenac and Detroit, because the savages could easily come to these two places. "If it were permitted to this company to take goods to them [the savages] it would entirely ruin the trade of the settlers and the merchants of Montreal, who only get a bare subsistence on the little trade done there at present." In November, 1702, intrigues were already at work at the new set- tlement. The Hurons at Detroit, together with some Indians from the Sault, went to Orange (Albany) in response to an invitation from the English to come and trade with them, and then the chiefs at De- troit went to Tonty and said if they could not get goods cheaper at Detroit that their young men would go and trade with the English at Orange or at some meeting place. In communicating this unwelcome news to Pontchartrain, Governor de Callieres said that he greatly feared that these intrigues might have disastrous consequences to the colony. At the end of 1702 the Hurons had cleared up about two hundred acres of land, and their village and fort was on the west of Fort Pontchar- train. The Appenagos or Loups, generally called Wolves, had a vil- lage and fort on the east side of the French fort, the land, however, being granted by Cadillac with the condition that they would remove when requested, as he expected to use the space in the future as a common. He characterized them as peaceable and caressing, and that they even tried to learn the French language. About a mile and a half above the fort was a settlement and fort inhabited by four tribes of Ottawas, So that in 1702 within the space of one league there were four forts and four hundred men bearing arms, with their fam- ilies, beside the garrison. In the spring of 1703 a fire broke out in the fort which did consider- able damage. The mystery surrounding its origin led Cadillac to be- lieve that it was the work of the Jesuits, and he wrote the following account to Count Pontchartrain: "The fort was set on fire, the blaze having been started in a barn, which was flanked by two bastions and was full of corn and other crops. The flames by a 60 strong wind burned down the church, the house of the Recollet, that of de Tonty and mine, which cost me a loss of 400 pistoles [$800J, which I could have saved if I had been willing to let the company's warehouse burn and the king's ammuni- tion. I even had one hand burnt, and lost for the most part all my papers in the fire. We have never been able to ascertain who it was set fire to the barn, though we may be able to obtain something about it hereafter. All the tribes settled at Detroit assert that it was a strange savage who did the deed, or rather they say some Frenchman who has been paid for doing this wicked act. God only knows." In this conflagration the church records were destroyed; they were not very extensive to be sure, but they doubtless contained the record of the birth and death of one of Cadillac's children, as well as the birth and death of a child of Tonty. Years afterward a settler named Campau told Governor Vaudreuil that one of Tonty's factotums, a soldier named De Ville, had started the fire. C. M. Burton fixes the probable site of Cadillac's home on what is now the north side of Jefferson avenue, between Griswold and Shelby streets, about where the old Masonic hall is situated, on the ground now covered by the buildings Nos. 133, 135 and 187 Jefferson avenue. The resident Indians realized that Cadillac was a friend in need and helped stay the progress of the flames. After the fire was over they presented him with one hundred bushels of corn, and also furnished him with all the grain necessary for the support of the troops at the usual price. Still later in 1703 a party of fifteen Illinois braves appeared at the settlement with the object of destroying it. They were discovered be- fore they did any harm, and were at once captured and whipped at the post. Cadillac then sent four of them back to their tribe, and through them concluded a treaty of peace. An outbreak in which Cadillac ex- hibited diplomacy of a high order occurred shortly afterward. A band of Miamis from Auyatonan attacked the Detroit Indians and killed an Ottawa, two Hurons and a Potawatomie. This raised the resentment of the local Indians, and they immediately organized for the war path, but Cadillac realized that an Indian war would cripple or ruin the set- tlement, and he persuaded them to wait for a few days. He then went to the camp of the Miamis at Auyatonan, and told them that if they did not satisfy the friends of the murdered braves, that the French would deal with them severely. The latter sent several chiefs to Detroit and after a parley peace was declared for the time being. In the little settlement under French rule the street scenes were unique, showing a strange mingling of civilization and barbarism. 61 Along the banks of the river could be seen the Indian birch bark canoes turned bottom up and sheltering the red man and his children, now on a trading visit. Beside the canoes were often tents or tepees made of the same material, to afford additional shelter. On the nar- row streets were the French soldiers of the garrison, clad in gay blue uniforms with white facings and three-cornered chapeaux ; the Recollect fathers, clad in black cassocks, with the crucifix hanging from the waist; the coureiir de bois, with his blue blanket coat and red cape; the stolid Indian awaiting the disposal of his peltries, which he had brought from his hunting grounds hundreds of miles away; the sober merchant of sober garb and gait, as he passed on his way to the beach where the peltries lay; and the gay young women, wives and daugh- ters of the merchants and army officers, who were the aristocracy of the post, radiant in silks and satins of fashions which were in vogue in Paris two years before, and had been imported to Quebec the previous year. La Hontan, a French officer who was commandant of a fort on Lake Ontario during the seventeenth century, gives an interesting account of the way the Indians traded with the French while the latter were rulers of the Northwest. His "Journal" was first published in 1703, and there were several editions in later years. "When the Indians accumulated a sufficient supply of peltries, they loaded them in bark canoes and set forth for the market. Arrived at their destination they encamped some four or five hundred yards from the town, unloaded their canoes and camped beside them. Next day they generally waited on the commandant or highest person in authority, and had an audience in a public place. The French ruler would sit in a chair and the Indians on the ground with pipes in their mouths. Presently one of the orators would stand up and make a speech, saying that his party had come to renew their friendship with the French ; that they wished to promote the interests of the latter; that they knew their goods were valuable, and that the French goods given in exchange were not so costly or de- sirable ; that they wanted to exchange their furs for powder and ball and guns and blankets and other articles. With the arms and ammu- nition they proposed to hunt great quantities of beavers, or to fight the Iroquois, if the latter disturbed the French settlement. Then they gave a belt of wampum, which was several strings of shells or an im- itation of the same in crockery, to the person in authority, together with some skins, and claimed his protection in case any of their goods 62 were stolen, or for any abuse that might be committed upon them in the place. The ruler would answer in a very civil speech, in which he assured them of his protection and made some presents in return. Then the conference was over and the savages returned to their temporary camp. Next morning, with their slaves, if they had any, they would carry the skins to the stores of the merchants, and bargain with them for clothes, blankets, axes, powder, ball, etc. The inhabitants (except in the early days of New France when the big companies had a monop- oly of the trade) were permitted to traffic with the Indians and exchange goods with them, but spirituous liquors were barred, as the Indians when drunk were liable to quarrel, rob and kill. After the trading was finished the savages retired to their villages." "The whole of New France was a vast ranging ground for the Indian tribes, who roamed over it in all the listless indolence of their savage independence ; for the Jesuit missionaries, garbed in black cassocks, who strove to gain the influence of the red men for both the church and the French gov- ernment ; for a theater of important military operations ; and for a grand mart where the valuable furs of the region were collected for shipment to France, under a commercial system originally projected by Cardinal Richelieu. " DETROIT THE HOME OF THE BEAVER. According to that shrewd observer and able writer, the late Bela Hubbard, that timid animal, the beaver, led to the colonization of Can- ada and the Northwest. In honor of the animal's memory, the arms of Canada bear its image, and the early arms of Quebec and Montreal did it like honor. Bryant's history says: " The beaver was a better friend to the early colonists of Massachusetts than the cod, although the cod- fish still hangs in the State House in Boston as the emblem of com- mercial prosperity, while the beaver lingers only in tradition, where the remains of an embankment across some secluded meadow marks the site of an ancient beaver dam. " In Hubbard's " Memorials of Half a Century," the writer says: "The region between Lake Erie and the Saginaw valley was one of the great beaver trapping grounds. The Huron, the Chippewa, the Ottawa and even the fierce Iroquois from beyond Lake Ontario, by turns sought this region in large numbers from the earliest historic times. It is a region peculiarly adapted to the wants of the beaver. To a great extent level, it is intersected by small water courses which have but a moderate flow. At the head waters and small inlets of these streams, the beaver established his colonies ; here he dammed the stream, setting back the 63 water over the flat lands, and creating ponds which were his habitation. Not one or two, but a series of such dams were constructed along each stream so that very ex- tensive surfaces became covered with the flood. The trees were killed and the land was converted into a chain of ponds and marshes. In time — by nature's recuperative process — the annual growth and decay of aquatic plants — these filled up with muck or peat, with occasional deposits of bog lime, and the ponds and swales became dry again. Illustrations of this beaver-made country are numerous in our immediate vicinity. In a semi-circle of twelve miles about Detroit, having the river as a base and embracing about 100,000 acres, fully one-fifth part consists of rharshy tracts and prairies which had their origin in the work of the beaver. A little further west nearly one whole township of Wayne county is of this character." ' One reason why the Iroquois opposed the settlement at Detroit was be- cause the French were encroaching upon their beaver-trapping grounds, and this encroachment was put in its worst possible light by the Brit- ish traders who plotted to keep the French out. France received from Canada between the years 1675-85, 895,581 pounds of beaver skins, averaging 89,588 pounds a year, and this rich trade excited the envy of the British trader. A good skin weighed about one pound, and under the name of a castor became the unit of value. It was so named because castor Canadensis is the zoological term for the North Ameri- can or Canadian beaver. A good beaver skin or castor, was worth about a dollar, and all other fur skins were related to it in value. The old Hudson Bay company issued a money counter called a castor in the form of a piece of wood, appropriately stamped or carved, and would pay the Indians for their beaver or other furs with them, and the sav- ages could buy what they wished in the company's storehouse with this wooden money. A castor, or its equivalent, was thus often exchanged for a good hunting knife in the early days, and a greater quantity would be given for a cheap gun and ammunition. It would seem at first glance that the white man had all the best of it, which is true from the financial standpoint, but while the traders were piling up fortunes from the sale of furs, the Indians were engaged in self-preservation. The Iroquois of the East were being supplied with weapons by the British, and it was absolutely necessary that the Algonquin and other northern Indians should secure the same kind of arms, and throw away their bows and arrows. Their necessities were exactly the same as those of the United States government to-day. An iron clad battleship is a piece of mechanism which costs $3,500,000, and the chances are that it will never be used, but in order to preserve peace and the national honor the money must be spent simply because other nations are arm- 64 CHARLES DUCHARME. ing themselves in the same fashion. In 1765 under English rule beaver skins brought two shillings and sixpence a pound; otter skins were six shillings each, and martens one shilling and sixpence. Ten beaver skins were given in exchange for a stroud blanket, eight for a white blanket, two for a pound of powder, one for a pound of shot, one for a knife, twenty for a gun, two for an axe of one pound weight. On rare occasions a little Quebec currency was seen at Detroit and the other western posts, but money, did not come into use until the New York currency was brought into the West. The French settlers were ever anxious to make Detroit an important trading post and to secure the good will of the natives, but the minds of the savages were made suspicious by the scheming traders, who whispered in their ears: " Beware of these men who come among you to build forts; they will tell you that they are your brothers who come to trade and make you happy; they are deceiving you; they build forts because they intend to make war upon you ; they place cannon so they can kill you when they wish to do so. They will trade with you if you will let them, but their guns and their knives and blankets are not good, and they will cheat you in trading; they want not your furs, but your country, and they will drive you away as you drive the fat buffalo in the fall. We trade with you fairly and we build no forts against you." After two years of negotiating a band of Hurons arrived in Detroit from Mackinac, and Cadillac could not conceal his exultation. " Thirty Hurons of Michillimackinos arrived here on the 38th of June, 1703 ; there remained only about twenty-five at Michillimackinos. Father Carheil, who is missionary there, remains always firm. I hope this fall to pluck the last feather out of his wing and I am persuaded that this obstinate old priest will die in his parish without a- single parish- ioner to bury him." It was a pathetic picture which is thus suggested by the worldly and masterful commandant. The old priest, true to his obligations to God and morality, remaining steadfast while his flock were deserting him to obtain brandy and become wicked and demoralized at the new fort. And yet the Indian trade, which was the sole basis of the trade of the European colonies and was necessary to their existence, followed wherever strong drink could be obtained. It was either French brandy or English rum, there was no alternative, and between them the aborigines were ground as between the upper and nether millstone to 65 fragments. In 1703 the Sauteurs and Mississaguez came to Detroit, and incorporating with each other, by the advice of Cadillac, formed another village near the fort on the river; also several households and families of the Miamis and some Nepissirineeris, the former incorpo- rating themselves with the Hurons and the latter with the Appenagos or Loups (Wolves). Also, as before mentioned, thirty Hurons left the Mackinac mission and settled at Detroit. In the same year the Otta- was and Kislcakowas also promised to come from Mackinac. In one of his letters about the opposition of the Jesuits, dated Fort Pontchar- train, August 31, 1703, Cadillac says : "Can it be believed that I should have been willing without powerful reasons to thwart any Jesuits or that I should have taken it into my head to attack that formidable so- ciety? I have not lived so long without knowing full well how danger- ous it is to cross their path. . . I am doing my utmost to make them my friends, truly wishing to be theirs, but* if I dare say so, all impiety apart, it would be better to sin against God than against them, for on the one hand pardon is received for it ; while on the other, even a pretended offense is never forgiven in this world, and never perhaps in the other, if their influence were as great as it is in this country." The Company of the Colony proved to be a rapacious corporation. They commenced by cutting down by one-half the prices paid in goods to the Indians for their peltries, and treated the aborigines badly in other respects. Cadillac wrote in the latter part of 1702 to Pontchar- train that the company was disgusted with the colony, as they were losing trade and money, and said if its rights and privileges were turned over to him that he would make Detroit flourish. The com- pany had told him that they had lost 12,297 livres 17 sols, but that it had really made 20,000 livres profit. In criticising the methods of the company he showed that their goods brought 200 per cent, profit. Of the powder in stock at a certain date — 3,015 pounds costing 21 sols per pound — each pound was exchanged for the skin of a beaver, roebuck, otter, stag or bear; one and a half pounds of lead, costing six sols per pound, was exchanged for a beaver skin ; tobacco, costing 37 sols per pound, was exchanged at the rate of three-quarters of a pound for a beaver skin. It was then shown that the profit on powder was 200 per cent. ; on lead 700 per cent. ; and on tobacco 300 to 700 per cent. About this time (1703) Cadillac was much disquieted by the desertions of his soldiers. After two years only twenty-five remained of the orig- inal force of fifty, and these were afterward reduced still more in num- ber. In his report to Pontchartrain he represented that some of the deserters wished to come back, giving as their reasons for leaving that Governor Callieres had promised that their term of enlistment was for three years; that they were overwhelmed with work, and saw all the profits go to a company that treated them badly ; also that they had been promised lands and had not received them. The settlers were generally healthy, but sometimes the dreaded small pox made its appearance. In 1703 it came to Mackinaw and car- ried off a great many of the aborigines. Its ravages filled the Indians with terror, and Cadillac with characteristic shrewdness turned their panic to good account. " You die of small-pox because you remain at Mackinaw instead of coming to Detroit," he said to some Chippewas from the north. " If you persist in remaining there against my wishes I will send something more deadly than small -pox among you." In 1732 and in the winter of 1733-34: there were also numerous cases of small-pox in Detroit, and many were fatal. CHAPTER IX. Cadillac Quells a Conspiracy — Agents of the Company of the Colony Detected in Stealing — Their Friends Support Them — Cadillac Summoned to Montreal for Trial. In 1703 Cadillac discovered that the company's agents and Tonty, his second in command, were guilty of gross mismanagement and rob- bery. The Company of the Colony was managed by a board of direc- tors, who appointed a number of their relatives to lucrative clerkships. Director Lot biniere appointed Arnaud, his wife's son in- law, and Mon- seignot, a brother-in-law of Arnaud ; other clerks were Chateleraut, De Meute, Nolan and Desnoyer, who were relatives of other-directors. It is evident that Cadillac was desirous of getting back the control of the trade of the settlement and he naturally watched the affairs of the com- pany, both as a matter of duty and for future advantage. He found that Arnaud and Nolan were charging exorbitant prices for powder, ball and tobacco; had screwed down the price of peltries very low, and that Tonty was in league with them. Cadillac denounced the robbers both to the company and to Governor Vaudreuil, and among his 67 specific allegations were that they had nineteen packages of furs con- cealed in a hut in the Huron village and 118 other packages hidden in the company's warehouse, which had not been accounted for, and which were valued at 14,000 crowns, or about $15,400. When Vau- dreuil received the communication he consulted with Lotbiniere, who was his uncle, and also with Intendent Beauharnois. Lotbiniere wrote a letter to Cadillac asking him to hush the matter up, and promising to arrange the matter amicably without scandal, but Cadillac would not be silenced, and finally an investigating committee was sent to De- troit. It consisted of Vencelot, a relative of a director; Lovigny, a brother-in-law of Nolan; and Chateleraut, a relative of Lovigny — all friends of the accused. Of course such a commission could only bring in a report favorable to the accused and against Cadillac, but it did not stop at that. The report charged that the commandant and a clerk named Radisson had been guilty of selling the company's prop- erty in trade for furs on their own account; that the commandant had used violence toward Chief Clerk Desnoyer by locking him up for three hours, and that he had incited the Indians to demand the dismissal of Desnoyer and to object to the removal of furs from the fort until the warehouse was filled with goods, and until all the residents had a right to trade with them. Cadillac was then summoned by Vaudreuil to come to Quebec, and left for that place on September 39, 1704. On the same day Lieuten- ant Bourgmont left Quebec for Detroit to take his place. No sooner was Cadillac gone than the thrifty Tonty sold nearly all the powder and ball to the Indians, and thus left the fort in great danger. When Cadillac arrived in Quebec he was arrested on the instance of Lot- biniere, and remained in durance for two days, when he was released, presumably on bail. The trial took place in the Chatfeau St. Louis, before the intendant, ten months afterward, in June, 1705. Cadillac's defense was irresistible, and he was triumphantly acquitted, but his defense was not invulnerable. He claimed that the directors were per- fectly satisfied with him until the close of 1703 ; but Count Pontchar- train, writing under date of July 14, 1704, says that he received at the same time with Cadillac's letter of August 30, 1703, a series of com- plaints from the directors of the company; and again, answering the charges of inducing the Indians to demand the dismissal of Desnoyer, Cadillac says: "It is an absurd subterfuge to say that the savages de- manded the dismissal so soon [three days] after the arrival of Desnoyer." 68 Yet in' the same letter he says that Desnoyer, having arrived on the fifth, on the eighth the savages demanded his removal, presenting a belt. His trouble with Desnoyer is thus explained by himself. A soldier of the garrison, who had deserted, was killed by an Onondaga Indian while on his way through the wilderness to Fort Frontenac. The friendly Indians, to the number of about one hundred, organized to avenge the soldier's death, and asked Cadillac that seven or eight Frenchmen might be allowed to go with them. He acceded to their request and ordered Tonty to command eight good men of the em- ployees of the company, and to have provisions and ammunition served to them. Desnoyer, the head clerk, said that this could not be done without his permission, maintaining that Cadillac had no power to de- tach the company's employees on the king's service. Tonty, who thought that Cadillac's term of office would be short and that he would succeed him, said that he did not believe that he (Cadillac) had the power to order such matters. This naturally enraged Cadillac, and he had Desnoyer put in prison— the sergeant's quarters — for three hours. All this time Cadillac was corresponding with his friend. Count Pont- chartrain ; his letters had two main strains ; one was bitter denunciation of his enemies ; and the other was laudation of himself, together with application for a marquisate and for supreme control of the trade of Detroit and Mackinac. When he was acquitted at Quebec by Beauharnois he haughtily re- fused to accept the verdict, claiming that the intendant had no juris- diction over the case In a letter from Pontchartrain to Cadillac, dated at Paris, September, 1705, he was directed to remain at Quebec until further orders. During the time Tonty was commandant at Detroit, in 1704, the Ottawa chiefs were persuaded to come to Albany, where the British gave them brandy and many presents, at the same time assuring them that the French were established at Detroit for the pur- pose of cheating them out of all their possessions. The chiefs returned and told their people, who believed the story. An attempt was made to fire the fort, but the vigilance of the French defeated it. Later a war party made a successful raid in the territory of the Iroquois and returned with a number of prisoners; their success made them bold and they assumed a hostile attitude in front of the fort. To keep them from becoming dangerous Tonty sent Sieur de Vincennes, his lieuten- ant, against them with a company of soldiers, and rescued the prison- ers, after which they drove the Ottawas to a respectful distance. 69 Although Cadillac recommended the marriage of French soldiers to Indian maidens, and was hopeful of good consequences to result there- from, the soldiers themselves did not see fit to contract such matri- monial alliances. The only case on record of a marriage of this sort was that of Peter Roy. Father Denissen, commenting on the above, says: " These vigorous pioneers did not shape their love affairs on the utilitarian plan. The young men grow lonesome in the wilderness and .their thoughts would wander back to the girls they left behind them. Permission was readily granted to any one who wanted to return to Lower Canada to secure a bride. According as these treasures were imported to Detroit, the place grew more civilized and the inhabitants felt more at home and contented. The French of Detroit never inter- married with the Indians to any extent; there have been a few excep- tional cases, but such marriages were rare, and because so rare, they were all the more noticed. No bride suits the French heart as well as the frank, modest, polite, charming French maiden, who has the de- sirable faculty to grace her home as a queen and bring happiness to her surroundings." This statement of Father Denissen, who is perhaps the most accom- plished genealogist of the day, is all the more valuable, as one or more prominent writers have asserted that several leading Detroiters and their families were descended from French soldiers and their In- dian wives. After Cadillac was arrested he prepared himself for the trial with all the resources at his command, one of which was the writing of an im- aginary conversation between himself and Count Pontchartrain, the French colonial minister, in which the points of the controversy be- tween himself and the company, or at least as many as served his pur- pose, were brought forward, and in which, of course, he cleared him- self triumphantly. These documents, among other papers of Cadillac, were preserved, and a large collection of them was made by General Cass, while United States minister to France. In after years Mrs. E. M. Sheldon embodied these papers in "The Early History of Michi- gan," which was published in 1856, and this work and episode for many yeats was quoted as authority by writers of Michigan, including such an able and discriminating writer as Judge J. V! Campbell. In her work Mrs. Sheldon assumes that Count Pontchartrain had come to Quebec and there held the conversations with Cadillac at the Chateau of St. Louis in that city. It was only in 1890 that this curious mistake 70 was discovered by R. R. Elliott, of Detroit, when he submitted his manuscript on the Catholic history of Detroit to the late Dr. Gilmary Shea, the historian. Shea answered that Pontchartrain was never in America, and that Cadillac's papers should always be corroborated with contemporary documents before being accepted. The matter was also referred to the late Pierre Margry, the French archivist and his- torian, who agreed with Dr. Shea. Margry said that such conversa- tions were not uncommon in literature. ' ' Fontenelle published dia- logues of the dead," he said. " Cadillac imagined a dialogue of people very much alive, but living far away from each other. It was original in management and piquant." In one of his answers to one of those imaginary questions Cadillac says: " I confess that the offers of the British traders at Orange are a great attraction to the Indians, but experience shows us that the sav- ages who are round about Quebec, Three Rivers and Montreal, know perfectly well that their furs sell better witli the English, and that they give them goods cheaper, yet they do all their trade with us. Several reasons engage them to this : The first is that each savage, taking one with another, kills only fifty or sixty beavers a year, and as he is near the Frenchman he borrows from him, and is obliged to pay in propor- tion on his return from hunting. Out of the little which remains to him he is compelled to make some purchase for his family, and he finds himself unable to go to the English because his remaining furs are not worth the trouble of the longer journey. A second reason is that they receive many flattering attentions from the Fiench, who make them eat and drink with them, and in fact they contrive matters so well that they never let their furs escape. The desire to go to the English al- ways exists in them, but they are skillfully reduced so that they are unable to put it into execution. It is for this reason, if Detroit is not settled, you will see, my Lord, all the savages of that district go to the English, or invite them to come and settle among them." Question — Have you not also some other reason? [for recommending a settlement at Detroit]. Answer — Excuse me, it cannot be disputed that our savages used to carry on their hunting only to the north of Lake St. Clair; but through this post they now carry it on as far as 300 leagues south of Lake Erie, inclining toward the sea. These furs which used to form part of the English trade are now carried into the colony by the savages. Question — What skins are obtained in those places? 71 Answer— The skins of deer, roe, elk, roebuck, black bears, bisons, wolves, wildcats, otters, beaver and other small skins. [In 1701 the reports show that beaver skins were not much used, and they had little commercial value. — Ed.] These skins are now in request. Skins of the deer and roe bring sixteen livres each; those of the elk up to twenty livres ; black bears ten, roebuck five livres, and other skins in proportion. Question— Can not some means be found of employing the savages in hunting for them instead of the beaver, which has lost its reputation as merchandise and is burdensome to France because there is no de. mand for it? Answer — It will be easy to so employ the savages provided they are supplied with goods to the value of the skins. This will be an in- fallible way to create a demand for beaver in the kingdoms, since in- stead of 130,000, which are received every year at the office in Quebec, only about 70,000' will be received each year. I am not speaking of the beaver of the Bay of Canada. Question — Apparently Father Valliant contributed greatly by his ex- hortations to advancing the work at Detroit. Answer — He exerted himself for this so well that, if the soldiers and Canadians had believed him, they would have set out after two days to return to Montreal on the promise that this father made them, that he would get their wages paid to them by the intendant for the whole year, although they had been employed but six weeks. In another of these imaginary conversations he discusses the Company of the Colony as follows : Question [by Count Pontchartrain] — I could not dispense with grant- ing the trade of Detroit to the Company of the Colony, which promised me to do everything in its power to make the settlement a success. Answer — If you had known its power you would have hoped for nothing from it ; it is the most beggarly and chimerical company that ever existed. I had as lief see Harlequin emperor of the moon. It was this company that entirely upset my scheme by consistently op- posing your intentions in an underhand manner, the whole being cun- ningly managed by the Jesuits of that country. In one instance Cadillac himself confesses the nature of these imaginary conversations — a fact which has been generally overlooked. He makes complaint that his letters have been opened, and then puts these words in the mouth of Count Pontchartrain : 73 Question — What is this you tell me? Is it really true that there was any one audacious enough to open the letters you addressed to me? Do they not know it is a sacred matter, and that such curiosity is a crime and an atrocious insult to a minister of state, and that no one is per- mitted to open the letters which a commanding officer writes to me? Answer — This is quite certain, and no one ought to be ignorant of it ; but it is absolutely beyond doubt that my letters have been opened and that copies of them have been made. In do not even know whether the originals have been sent to you, and it is really the purport of my let- ters and of this little catechism which has stirred up against me all the difficulties which I now have on my hands, from which I hope you- will have the goodness to release me by punishing the hatred or rather the fury of those who are plotting my ruin — founded upon this, that I have maintained with so much vigor the preserving of Fort Pontchartrain, the success of which they have been unable to interrupt. His allusion to "this little catechism" can hardly be mistaken, for it is nothing less than a confession that it "is a conversation of the writer's fancy. The catechism, which is an entirety, is divided into three parts, and the scenes are laid at intervals of a year or more apart. No one carefully reading the whole matter would be led to suppose that this conversation actually took place. In explanation of the charges upon which he was tried in Quebec, in 1705, Cadillac produces an elab- orate conversation, of which the following questions and answers are a part: Question — Give me an exact account and tell me without disguising anything, whether you are guilty of all you are accused of, and as to the complaints which the directors of the company have made against you, and whether it is true that you have transacted trade and been guilty of malversations at Detroit. If you are innocent justify your- self and prove your integrity and your innocence, and be assured that when once I know it you shall have ray pretection. Answer — It is only the force of the truth which I maintain, which gives me the strength to appear before you with so much persever- ance and firmness. This, then, is the origin of my dispute. I con- victed M. de Tonty and two clerks of the company of having traded at Detroit, although they were bound by a valid contract not to do so. Question — Has this trading been proved? Answer — It is indisputable, they have been caught in the act without the possibility of gainsaying it. 73 10 Question — No doubt you seized the skins which these clerks wished to smuggle? Answer — That was so done, but what seems to me to be the most hein- ous offense is that the skins are taken from the company's own ware- house, or at least it appears that they came from merchandise belong- ing to the company which they have sold to the savages converting the payment [in peltryj to their own use. Question — Did you question these clerks, and did they agree that these nineteen packages belonged to them, and were the proceeds of their trading? Answer — That is so; they did not deny the fact, and both signed their deposition and their own condemnation. Question — Is that all you seized? Answer — There also are four other packages of beaver or other skins which I seized even in the warehouse of the company, marked with the name of Arnaud. Question — How did you discover the theft of these four packages? Answer — This was discovered through two beaver skins marked with the mark of the company's warehouse, and with the number 229, which served as a wrapper for forty roebuck skins. The two beaver skins were not yet spoilt, though they had been thrown into a cellar full of water under an empty house. This made me conclude that the warehouse had been plundered. I paid it a visit and that was the cause of my finding these four packages which Arnaud had concealed there. Question — Are you not aware that these clerks have been guilty of great malversations, though, however, those are quite enough to hang them ? Answer — Pardon me, I know they have smuggled or stolen about 118 packages, worth, according to my reckoning, 1,400 crowns. It is true that I am suffering unheard of persecution for having done my duty. If you do not have compassion on me I do not see how to extri- cate myself from it. Question — What are you accused of? Who are those that complain? Answer — I have done no wrong in this matter ; it is the directors who make complaint against me ; it is their clerks who are my accusers. Question — Did they accuse you before you denounced them to the governor? Answer— Not at all ; it was ten months after I had forwarded the dep- ositions signed by themselves. This is their first accusation, that I 74 compelled them to sell goods to the Indians at a low price and at a loss; that it was an act of violence. The late Governor M. de Callieres gave orders that goods were to be sold to the savages of Fort Frontenac at twenty five per cent., and to those of Detroit at fifty per cent, profit. The sole means of retaining them in our interest was to give them goods at a reasonable price. In a letter from M. de Vaudreuil of April 14, 1704, he writes me in these terms: "Although I tell you, Monsieur, to allow M. Desnoyer to carry out the orders which he has from the board of directors, it is supposing always that the interests of the king's service are not concerned. I tell you also that in some cases it will not be amiss to trade on the old tariff. Try, how- ever, to be careful of the company's interests." You should, indeed, rather blame the governor and intendant for permitting the directors to cavil at me, when I had forgotten their orders and acted in the in- terest of the company in such a difficult juncture, for the English had sent a necklace to Fort Pontchartrain and a list of prices of their goods, which they promised to sell two-thirds cheaper than the company. Question — Let us pass now to other matters, and tell me whether they complain of violence on your part. Answer — Yes, they impute to me as a capital offense having used abusive language to their clerks, under the pretext, they say, that they did not pay me the respect which I claimed to be due to me. The third count of their complaint is that when they sent Desnoyer to replace the principal clerk, Arnaud, they say, that on his arrival I de- tained him more than two hours in my room under the pretense of reading and inveighing against the letters that had been written to me, in order that Radisson, another clerk, might have time to remove cer- tain papers which he and I wished to conceal ; and this is given as the reason why the board of directors have not been able to obtain the in- formation they need to convict me. Desnoyer brought me many let- ters, and I invited him to take breakfast in my house while I read them, which he did. It occupied half an hour, after which I dismissed this new clerk to go and carry out .his orders. I cautioned him to do his work with as little commotion as possible, as the Indians were not accustomed to see seals put on chests, cupboards or cash boxes, nor on the doors of the warehouse, which things are contrary to the freedom which is very precious to the tribes. Question — It is not true then that Radisson removed any papers? Answer — I had no knowledge of it. Radisson says it is a falsehood and a fabrication of Desnoyer. 75 Question — What gave rise to the charge that you had influenced the Indians to oppose the removal of furs until the stock of merchandise had been brought to the warehouse? Answer — It is because Desnoyer, and the other clerks who came with him, maliciously gave out that they came for the purpose of sending down the skins only, and that they would not bring them goods for exchange ; in order to compel them to abandon the post, no doubt ac- cording to private instructions they had. This is what offended the Indians. The first time I imprisoned Desnoyer he was confined in the sergeant's room for three hours, because he opposed my orders when I would have sent some of the company's employees to assist in punish- ing some Indians who had murdered a soldier. I imprisoned him again when I found that, contrary to the regulations of the post, he had loaded a boat with furs, manned it with eight men, and was set- ting out for Montreal without having given notice. Count Pontchartrain, when he received the proceedings of the trial, read between the lines of the complaints and the evidence submitted, and plainly saw that it was a conspiracy to cast down his protege. He practically took the case out of Governor Vaudreuil's hands and or- dered that the defendant be exonerated. He wrote the governor that he entirely approved of Cadillac's course at Detroit, and that he upheld him in maintaining the supremacy of his majesty's interests over and above the interests of the Company of the Colony. Governor Vaudreuil was reprimanded for being a party to the conspiracy, which had evidently been fomented against Cadillac, and was told that a repetition of such conduct would cause his dismissal from office. Intendant Beauharnois was also warned that intrigues detrimental to the interests of the colonies would not be tolerated. Cadillac was ordered reinstated at Detroit in full control, both civil and military. The Company of the Colony was deprived of its legislative and administrative functions, and the trading privileges of the post were vested in Cadillac according to the original understanding. The commandant was thus completely vindicated and restored to full power. 76 JAMES V. CAMPBELL. CHAPTER X. Father Del Halle, the First Pastor of St. Anne's Church, Murdered by the In- dians — Cadillac is Sent from Montreal to Punish the Murderer — His Enemies Seek to Compromise Him with the Indians and with his Superiors — 1706-1708. As before stated, Cadillac left the post under the care of Captain Tonty, but Lieut. Louis Bourgmont was sent from Quebec to act as commandant shortly afterward, arriving in Detroit on January 39, 1705. The reason for this does not appear. Bourgmont was a big, blustering fellow of great strength and violent temper. He had the effrontery to bring his mistress, a notorious woman known as La Chenette, to Detroit, and the pair created no little scandal at the post. Friendly Indians were allowed many liberties about the post after they had deposited their arms with the guards at the gate, and they never tired of peering into the houses to admire the finery of the white man's home. One June day a young Ottawa named Tichinet was peering about Bourgmont's house, when the commandant's dog bit him in the leg. He gave the brute a lusty kick which sent it howling to its mas- ter. Bourgmont rushed out of the house and fell upon the Indian in a fury of passion. The Ottawa was left senseless on the ground, and he soon died of his injuries. This naturally made a stir in the Ottawa village, for Bourgmont's brutal ways had already given offense. He had shown special favors to the Miamis, and as a party of these peo- ple were on their way to the fort, the Ottawas attacked them and killed five. As they pursued the survivors to the gate of the fort, Bourgmont ordered his soldiers to fire upon them, and several fell. As they passed the garden of Father Del Halle, which was just east of the fort, about where Woodward and Jefferson avenues now intersect, they saw the priest attending to his flowers. Several young braves, hot headed and bloodthirsty, rushed in, seized him, and he was stabbed three times. They resolved to take him to their village, but a chief met them on the way and ordered them to release their captive, who had always been friendly to the Indians, and had shown them much kindness. Father Del Halle, weak from the loss of blood, staggered slowly toward the 77 fort. As he arrived at the gate a big Ottawa chief named Le Pesant, who was waiting under cover for a shot at one of the soldiers, sent a bullet through the priest, and several other shots stretched him dead at the gate of the fort. A soldier named La Riviere, who had been work- ing outside the post, was killed later in the day. Firing continued from five o'clock in the evening until midnight and for forty days after, and then the Ottawas retired to Mackinac. Father Nicholas Constantine Del Halle was the first priest of St. Anne's. He accompanied Cadillac and his party and was present at the founding of Fort Pontchartrain. Father Francois Valliant, a Jesuit who had also accompanied the party of the founding had gone to Fort Frontenac, and this left the Franciscan friar Del Halle as chaplain of the post and pastor of St. Anne's. The first record of the church was written by Father Del Halle January 27, 1704, but there may have been other records which were destroyed when the church was burned in 1703. The priest was killed on June 6, 1706, and was interred in the post cemetery, which was situated a short distance north of the gar- den where he was seized. It was quite natural that this affair should create great excitement both among the whites and among the Indians. Justice demanded the punishment of the murderer, and to avoid retri- bution a number of the Ottawas, including Le Pesant, returned to Mackinaw. The Miamis looked to the soldiers to avenge them for the killing of their people, and the Ottawas were angry with the whites for firing upon them. Reports of the trouble came to Quebec and Gover- nor Vaudreuil ordered the Ottawas to send a delegation to him, with the person of Le Pesant, the slayer of the priest, in custody. Twelve chiefs headed by Jean Le Blanc, whose tribal name was Ontonagon, arrived before the governor June 16, 1707, and Vaudreuil demanded the head of Le Pesant, dtherwise known as the Great Bear, on account of his huge bulk and surly disposition. " Le Pesant is a chief of great influence among our people," answered Le Blanc, who was the sole spokesman. " He is seventy years of age and has been a great war- rior, as he is now mighty in council. He has many descendants among many tribes. Like the great oak his roots and branches extend every- where, and if we give him up, his death would cause a general war. Here are two Pawnee slaves we have brought in place of the good gray robe, whose life we cannot restore. " Vaudreuil insisted that the gift of the two slaves could not atone for the death of a holy man of the church, and insisted that Le Pesant be brought to justice, 78 "My father demands justice for th6 death of the gray robe, but his justice would cost dear," answered Le Blanc. " If Le Pesant is given up, the Ottawas, Potawatomies, Chippewas and several other tribes will war against the Miamis and the Frenchmen. Many scalps would be taken and the wigwams would be filled with mourning. I am a chief as well as Le Pesant, and I am not afraid to die. If my father must slay, that his wrath may be appeased, here is my tomahawk. It is better that my wigwams should be desolate than that many of my people should be destroyed in war. Strike! my father, and let my life atone for that of the priest. " Vaudreuil was nonplused at this turn of affairs, so he told the chiefs to depart for Detroit by way of Lake Erie, and there make such atone- ment as Cadillac would demand. Cadillac had been instructed by let- ter that the murderer must be brought to justice, and Vaudreuil was probably glad to get rid of the responsibility of so grave a complication, as if trouble followed it would recoil upon the head of the commandant whom he hated. Meanwhile Cadillac had returned to Detroit and assumed the reins of power. He had heard of the tragedy on the way, two days after he left Montreal. He brought with him several artisans and farmers who settled at the post. On his return the Company of the Colony sold out its interest at the post to him, and then renewed its activity toward making Mackinaw the favored post of the French. Unharmed and undismayed by all the shafts of hate, envy and malice that had been leveled against him, Caidllac grew livelier and stronger after every at- tack, and his vivacity and combativeness seemed inexhaustible. He was a peculiar man and his character is hard to describe, his virtues and faults revealing themselves at every step in his career. He had the physical and moral courage of a great leader; he was too proud to be dishonest, although he was intensely self-seeking; and he was far- seeing and perspicacious in colonization matters beyond any of his con- temporaries in New France, but his mentality was more active than profound, and his convictions were changeable. Ever bubbling over with ideas, like champagne in a full goblet, he had plans for a copper mine on Lake Huron ; for silk culture among the mulberry trees near Lake Erie; for grants of land to his soldiers and himself; to be en- nobled as a marquis and be the chief ruler of the Northwest; for a uniformed Indian militia; for a seminary to teach the French language to the savages around the post ; and for marrying the Indian maidens 79 to his soldiers. The last named plan was, however, a failure. Con- cerning the Indian character he had committed himself as follows: "The savage himself asks why they do not leave him his beggary, his liberty and his idleness ; he was born in it and he wished to die in it. It is a life to which he has been accustomed since Adam. Do they wish to build palaces and ornament them with beautiful furniture? He would not exchange his wigwam and the mat on which he camps like a monkey, for the Louvre. An attempt to overthrow the present state of affairs in this country would only result in the ruin of commerce and the destruction of the colony." But in 1703, in the environment of Detroit, flushed with well earned success as a colonizer and in more intimate relations with the Indians than ever before, he enthusiastically exclaims: "It seems that God had raised me as another Moses to go and deliver this people from captivity, or rather as Caleb, to bring them back to the land of their fathers. . . Meanwhile Montreal [the Jesuits] plays the part of Pharoah ; he cannot see this emigration without trembling." In his copious letters to Count Pontchartrain, his information on the condition of the colony was always interlarded with denunciation of his enemies. A conspiracy to ruin him was ever in progress among the company while it was in existence, its officials, the Jesuits, the coureurs de bois and his own subordinate ofKcers. There was a good deal of truth in these statements, of course, but he was too aggressive and too bitter in his sarcasms, and much given to egotistic boasting, and these qualities were not calculated to gain many friends for their possessor. At one time it was proposed, probably by Cadillac himself, that the settlement should be removed to Grosse Isle, below Detroit, which fronts on the water on each side for a distance of eight miles, but Cadillac saw that it would be inconvenient for its inhabitants to bring food, firewood and all necessary supplies from the mainland. For this reason, and not because Grosse Isle was too small for the future growth of his capital, he rejected the proposition to go there. Although Cadillac purchased the goods of the company left at the post, he did not succeed to all their privileges, which included the sole right to trade and was very profitable. Close limits were placed on Cadillac's trading privileges so that his profits would be quite moderate. One of his most valuable perquisites was that he might have three hundred pounds of freight brought in each canoe arriving at the settle- ment, free of charge. 80 Shortly before Cadillac's return Lieutenant Bourgmont, whose brutal conduct led to such grave troubles, left the post, accompanied by La Chenette, and later correspondence says that they built a wigwam in the wilderness and lived together as savages during the rest of their days. This was not an uncommon circumstance for Frenchmen with vagrant tastes, who had settled in New France, but it was very infre- quent with white women who had once known civilized ways. Cadillac's most difficult duty was to restore peace and order among the turbulent Indians in his midst and within his jurisdiction. When he received the letter from Vaudreuil ordering justice done in regard to the murdered priest, but not specifying the manner in which it should be accomplished, he recognized the hand of his enemy. He was an abler man than Vaudreuil, and he must have smiled and simply said that he would surmount the difficulty without compromising him- self with either the Indians or the government. So he commenced by calling a council with the twelve Ottawa chiefs, and telling them that he had no discretion in the matter; that Governor Vaudreuil had com- manded that Le Pesant's head must atone for the murder of the priest and that of the soldier La Riviere. They must go to Mackinaw, he said, take Le Pesant into custody at all hazards, and bring him to to Detroit. At the same time he informed the Indians secretly, through an agent, that Le Pesant would come to no harm, but he must make a show of obedience and trust his life in the hands of the Detroit commandant. While this information was secretly given he also ad- vised Meyaville, Sakima and Kataoulibois, three chiefs of other tribes, to kill Le Pesant if he refused to come. Le Pesant was made to understand the case and he came to Detroit by canoe, in charge of the three chiefs already named, and' accompanied by ten relatives to see that no, harm came to him on the journey. Le Pesant was delivered up and locked in a warehouse over night to be arraigned next morning. Cadillac saw that his execution would be followed by serious consequences, and is charged with conniving at his escape. At any rate Le Pesant, who was Very fat and over seventy years, waddled out of his prison and scrambled over the palisades about four o'clock next morning, and none of the soldiers saw his escape. Immediately the Miamis were furious at the commandant, and to appease them the chiefs were ordered to return Le Pesant. They com- plied and Le Pesant was given up. In a letter of complaint from Gov- ernor Vaudreuil to Count Pontchartrain, the delivery is described. 81 11 Ontanagon stepped forward with his hand on the shoulder of the murderer, saying : ' ' Here is Le Pesant, who came into our camp. You have the power to put him to death. He is your slave. You can make him eat under your table like the dog that picks up the bones." Cadillac regarded the prisoner sternly and thus addressed him : " There you are, Le Pesant, before your father and your master. Is this that great chief that was so well related and so highly esteemed? Was it you that ate white bread every day at my table and drank of my brandy and my wine? It was you that had an incurable disease of which I had you cured by my physicians. Was it not you that I helped in your need and took care of your family? And because of all these benefits you have killed my people! You, who hide yourself and droop your eyes, was it not you who went every day to the gray robe, who used to caress you, and made you eat with him and taught you? Yet it was you who killed him. There are reproaches, Pesant, which slay you. There is no longer life in your heart ; your eyes are half dead ; you close them; they dare not look at the sun. Go, my slave." Le Pesant had been overcome with terror, but the last sentence gave him courage. The other Indians, many of whom were from Mackinaw, were pleased at the way affairs were going, and Cadillac was resolved to win them to Detroit. One of the Ottawa chiefs addressed him, saying : "Our father is kind to his children who have angered him. We want to come back to his protection. Give us back our fields which we have deserted and we will come to live in peace. The corn at Mack- inaw grows but a finger long, while here it is a cubit long. M. de St. Pierre told us we should be slaves if we came to Detroit. He took us apart to tell us. That made us think he was a liar. He wanted us to go to Quebec and ask Onontio [Governor Vaudreuil] to make him com- mandant at Mackinaw. The black robes [the Jesuits] dissuade us from coming to Detroit." Cadillac arose and presented a beautiful belt of wampum, saying: "Your submission has gained my heart. Your obedience has made the axe fall from my hand. It has saved your lives and the lives of your families. And you, Le Pesant, why have you fled from me in fear? You deserve to die, but I give you your life, because of your submission and obedience. You are as one dead, because you have been given up to justice, but I stay my hand and let you go to your family." 82 This took place on September 24, 1707. There was great rejoicing among the Ottawas, who immediately settled upon the lands they had deserted in Detroit when they fled to Mackinaw after the trouble in June of the previous year. Le Pesant was one of the settlers, and as he had been the leader of the party which killed the five Miamis, his presence was hateful to the friends of the dead. The Miamis were not to be appeased by Cadillac's blandishments and presents, but waited for revenge. Four weeks later an army of Iroquois came back from a war with the Tetes Plattes (Flathead) Indians of the far west, and one band of twenty four braves stopped at Detroit. They were entertained by the Miamis, and the two tribes plotted for the destruction of the fort and the murder of Cadillac. They waited for the rest of the Iroquois to arrive from the west, and while they were waiting the plot was re- vealed. When the garrison was put on its guard the attempt was abandoned, but the Miamis killed three Frenchmen who were at some distance from the fort and destroyed several cattle. Cadillac demand- ed the surrender of the murderers and payment for the cattle. Fifteen bundles of furs were given in compensation for the loss of the cattle, but the surrender of the murderers was deferred for twenty days. They were not surrendered on time, and the commandant started on an expedition against the Miami fort, near the site of Toledo. His expedition is treated very scornfully in one of Governor Vaudreiiil's letters of complaint to Count Pontchartrain. He says: "Had M. de la Mothe been less obstinate and had he obeyed my instructions, all this trouble would have been averted. He assumes the airs of a gov- ernor and gives himself equal authority with me when he is dealing with the savages. ' I and Onontio will protect you,' he tells them. He led his troops against the Miamis after he had given them unneces- sary irritation, thinking no doubt they would not be found at their fort. He found sixty of them in a fort, which was a mere square of logs without flanking bastions, and when his men opened fire M. de la Mothe concealed himself behind a tree at least eighteen feet in circum- ference and stirred not from that post.. He ought to have carried the place at the sword's point. The fort finally surrendered and the Mi- amis gave three hostages to pledge the surrender of the murderers. They gave M. de la Mothe furs worth 1,000 crowns for the cattle they had killed, and he has kept them for himself. Affairs are going badly at Detroit owing to the selfish management of M. de la Mothe. His 83 hostility to the Jesuit fathers is most unseemly, as he constantly mis- represents them and places them in a bad light before the Indians and the French, and what can they accomplish for religion in such a case ? Father Davenau, who has been with the Indians for nineteen years, and knows how to control them, he ordered away from his post among the Miamis, and replaced the Jesuit with a Recollect father who does not understand Indians." It is plain to see that Governor Vaudreuil was a supporter of the Jes- uits and the traders, and consequently the enemy of Cadillac. His censure of Cadillac for taking refuge behind a tree was decidedly far fetched, because that was the custom in Indian fighting, and those who fought them in the open invariably paid dearly for their temerity. His keeping of the furs for the destruction of cattle he had brought from Montreal was but natural. The cattle had been purchased with his money, and his ownership is acknowledged in other correspondence. There is no question that Cadillac did the Jesuits all the harm he could, and willfully misrepresented them because they opposed his plans of settlement. The original cause of his enmity is not known, but it was probably something more than their opposing interests, as before related, or his attachment to the order of the Franciscans. In this connection it may be well to understand why there was hos- tility between the Jesuits and the Franciscans. The latter order was divided into many sects. The original members of the order of St. Francis de Assisi took the vows of chastity and poverty, and their rules were so rigorous that they were modified in some localities in order to attract members to the order. The Recollects were adherents of the more rigorous discipline, and lived in France, England and Holland. The Franciscans of Spain and Italy did not put away all comforts. They were the first order of priesthood to arrive in America, as several ac- companied Columbus on his first voyage, and they soon had missions planted in the West Indies and South America. One of them, Mark of Nice, crossed Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and traveled along the coast of California to the Golden Gate more than sixty years before Champlain founded Quebec, and it was he who gave the name of his patron saint, St. Francisco, to the metropolis of the Pacific slope. The Franciscans had possession of all the south, or the Spanish colonies. When Champlain returned to Quebec in 1614, after a visit to France, he brought four Recollects, who were the first priests in Canada. In 1621 Duke Ventador sent three Jesuits and two lay brothers to Tadou- 84 sac near Quebec. This was the first entrance of the Jesuits into Can- ada, but they became active explorers of the West and claimed the territory of New France as their exclusive field. This the Recollects would not concede, and hence the hostility. CHAPTER XL Early Official Reports on Detroit — Cadillac's Enemies Plot to Have the Post Abandoned— They Willfully Misrepresent Affairs to the Government— 1701-1710. Cadillac was masterful and combative, but sometimes he could bend before the storm, and the triumph of the Jesuits at Mackinac in restrict- ing the sale of liquor at that place taught him a lesson. Aigremont's report after visiting Detroit in 1703, says that "he [Cadillac] compels each one, French or Indian, to go to the public storehouse for brandy where they can buy only one-twenty-fourth of a quart at a time. [This was at the rate of twenty-five livres per quart, so that one eighth of a pint or two ounces cost about fifteen cents per drink.] The savages cannot become intoxicated on this quantity, but as they have to await their turns, some are obliged to return home without their beverage, and seem ready to kill themselves in their dis- appointment. " Their sad bereavement seemed to touch the heart of the inspector, but it was more hatred of Cadillac than pity for the dis- appointed Indians that dictated his report. A picture of the Detroit settlement is occasionally presented in the annual reports of the governor and intendant to Count Pontchartrain, but these reports usually contain more or less matter detrimental to Cadillac, and are colored so as to discourage a continuation of the post. Their chief interest is to show how persistent and united was the effort to ruin Cadillac and abandon Detroit to the Indians. One of these offi- cial reports was dated April 11, 1707, soon after Cadillac resumed con- trol of the post. It bears the signature of Riverin, and its contents are of such a nature that it could not have passed the eye of Vaudreuil and the other officials at Quebec. It speaks of M. de la Forest as second in command to Cadillac, but says that the former is growing old and breaking down. La Forest, it says, ' ' has been thirty-two years in the 85 wilderness, and was with La Salle and the elder Tonty on their early explorations. The census at Detroit shows 270 whites, many pigs and considerable poultry; sheep are about to be introduced. Detroit has opened i:p trade with the Mississippi valley and Frenchmen go to and fro bringing back piastres for their goods [indicating that they are sell- ing supplies to the Spaniards]. Sieur de Tonty is at Frontenac. Sieur Jonquaire, Indian agent, is among the Sonnontouans [Senecas], and the younger Reynard is agent at Mackinaw. All these agents are stated to be a great hindrance at Detroit. They are taking the cream of the public and private trade under false pretenses. To prevent settlers from going to Detroit, these agents say that the post will soon be abandoned. The best way to undeceive the people would be to raise the post to a permanent governorship, but still without any pay." On November 14, 1708, Procureur-General de la Touche, Governor Vaudreuil and Intendant Randot made a combined report which may be briefly summarized as follows: Beaver skins were low and goods to be given in exchange were very dear. At Orange, subsequently Albany, New York, the English were paying far better prices for furs and giving goods much cheaper in trade. Commerce in the French colonies was paralyzed by the conditions. The English were giving better bargains and plenty of brandy, and Indians, even from Lake Superior, were resorting to Orange. French traders had given com- mercial paper for goods and much of it had become worthless. Mr. Aubert was about the only trader whose bills of exchange were redeem- able, and plenty of wild cat money was in circulation. In order to avoid an open rupture with the Indians, permission had to be granted for them to go to Orange. Permission was asked to renew the bills of M. Champigny, as the originals were worn out with handling. The officials agreed not to issue beyond the funds of the king's money on hand, and advised an issue of bills of thirty two livres. They would in no way pledge his majesty, but would secure payment from a fund in the hands of the treasurer-general of the navy. Cadillac's re- port that there were 130 houses at Detroit was denounced as a lie; there were but sixty-three houses, and instead of 1,200 Indian huts there were but 150. There were only sixty-three whites in the settle- ment, of whom twenty-nine were married soldiers who could not be claimed as residents, because they were there on compulsion and could not get away. The other residents of Detroit were voyageurs of the Company of the Colony whose true homes were in Montreal, and 86 who only got to Detroit for a short season each year. Cadillac has 157 arpents of land for himself and the rest of the settlers have but forty- six. Cadillac's account of the live stock is also denounced as a lie. According to the report, there are but three cows, six bulls, a calf and one horse. The commandant sells milk at twenty sols the pot (about two quarts), and more cows would lower the price. He lets his horse at ten livres a day, and would not have another horse for fear of lowering his revenue. The officials are surprised to learn that Cadillac wants a jurisdiction of high, low and middle justice set up at Detroit, as the post is declining and he is not sure of twenty settlers. Then the report branches off to relate about a foray of French and Indians up Lake Champlain to an English settlement called Heureil, which place was burned with its fort and one hundred English killed. In this ex- pedition the French came upon a party of sixty English while on their return to Montreal, and the latter were destroyed. The French lost five whites and three Indians killed and eighteen wounded. Again the re- port, which is of interminable length, returns to the subject of Detroit. Officers at Detroit have sent out favorable reports in the past, but now they have changed their minds ; they are in desperate straits to live. Sieur de la Forest cannot live there on his pay. When the Company of the Colony had the post it used to provide food for the junior officers, and it gave Sieur de Tonty 1,300 livres a year. Since M. de La Mothe has the rights of the company, he should be compelled to do likewise ; he should be compelled at least to share his profits with Tonty. In spite of the opposition of Vaudreuil, D'Aigremont and others, to the post at Detroit, Cadillac had at least one strong friend at court be- sides the Count Pontchartrain. In the archives of France is found a recommendation from M. Daureuil, procureur-general of the king, to the superior council at Quebec, written April 15, 1707. This recom- mendation is addressed to Count Pontchartrain and the substance of it is as follows: That all boats sent from the lower stations up to Mack- inaw, even those of the Jesuit fathers, be obliged to go by the lakes and past Detroit, where they shall be inspected, and shall show passports with a list of their cargoes. These passages are to be recorded by the commandant at Detroit, and reports shall be made by him to the crown. Prohibited goods, such as brandy, going up, or fresh beaver skins going down, during the five years which will be required to com- plete the trading contract with Sieur Aubert & Co. , and any others that the court may authorize, are to be seized, confiscated for the bene- 87 fit of the church at Detroit, and a fine of five hundred livres assessed against the offenders. Parties sending boats to Macliinaw to trade with the Ottawas or other tribes of the great river (the Mississippi) without authority, shall be punished by a fine of 1,500 livres for each offense; the money to go to the hospitals at Quebec, Three Rivers and Montreal. This inspection is recommended because, since the Jesuit fathers have -been deprived of royal favor, they have either contributed to or consented to illegal loading of canoes to the injury of the king and his colonies. Sieur d'Aigremont's second report of his findings at Detroit on No- vember 14, 1708, was colored to give the post at Detroit the worst pos- sible reputation with the government, and the commandant was given a worse character than the post. In brief, the report stated that Cad- illac was intensely hated by every person about the post, both Indian and white, with the exception of three or four Frenchmen, who acted as his confederates in schemes for personal gain. He was charged with all manner of extortions practiced against the settlers and with dis- honesty. Blacksmith Parent, according to report, was compelled to pay a license fee of six hundred livres for the privilege of plying his trade. In addition to this he was compelled to donate two barrels of beer to the commandant, and to shoe the commandant's horse free of charge. According to the report there was but a handful of whites in the settlement at this time and they tilled but forty- six arpents of land, so there could be but little demand for blacksmithing, as there was but one horse to shoe in the settlement, and about the only tools in use were a few hoes and mattocks. Parent evidently had some connection with the brewery of the post, or he would not have been required to furnish the commandant's table with beer. He was subsequently per- secuted by Tonty because he was faithful to Cadillac. Armorer Pinet according to D'Aigremont, was obliged to pay three hundred livres a year for his license, and in addition he was required to repair, free of charge, twelve guns each month for the post. D'Aigremont estimates these services worth ten livres per gun, or 1,440 livres a year, making his total license fee 1,740 livres The fort, he said, was a miserable affair ; several times during his stay he had narrowly escaped serious injury from the falling of the rotten palisades, which were hardly able to stand alone, and serious breaches existed where large sections of them had crumbled away. The soil about Detroit, D'Aigremont said, was nothing but barren sand along the river front, and farther back the 88 ZACHARIAH CHANDLER. country was nothing but a succession of morasses. The settlers by great diligence were able to raise a little wheat during favorable sea- sons ; also some Indian corn ; but the soil would soon be exhausted. Numberless millions of starlings came in from the swamps to the grain fields, and it was only by the utmost diligence that the settlers could keep them away. Locusts and caterpillars usually destroyed the crops before they could come to maturity, and it would be cruel of the gov- ernment to keep settlers in such a place. The only products of the place worth consideration were the beaver skins, and they were so in- ferior to the skins of the north as to be almost worthless. The post ought, however, to be a source of much peltry, but the small shipments from Detroit led D'Aigremont to believe that Cadillac was trading secretly with the English. A more prejudiced report could hardly have been concocted and there was just enough truth in each item of complaint to give the re- port plausibility. Not a single product of Detroit was spared. D'Aigre- mont reported that there were plenty of grapes, apples and plums at the post, but that they tasted detestably. He tasted some cider made there, and it was as bitter as gall. The fruits named must have been wild scuppernong grapes, wild crab apples and wild plums. The report closes with a laudation of Mackinaw, which he says lacked all the dis- advantages found at Detroit. It was healthful, had a productive soil, and its geographical position made it the most important post in the West. Great profit was sure to follow an encouragement of this post, but if Detroit was kept up much longer the expense would ruin Canada. In 1708 there were cultivated 350 acres, of which Cadillac had 157 acres, and the French settlers forty-six acres; . sixty-three of the dwellers in the fort owned their lots, and twenty-nine owned farms outside of the inclosure. 89 12 CHAPTER XII. First Families of Detroit — The First Directory and Ta^ List as Compiled by C. M. Burton — Inventory of the Property Owned by Cadillac — 1701-1710. EARLIEST DIRECTORY. C. M. Burton, in speaking of the first two houses erected in Detroit, says that the modern idea of a log house consisting of horizontal tim- ber, mortised at the ends, was totally unknown to the early settlers. "I think that their houses, even those of the better classes, consisted of stakes driven into or buried in the ground as closely as possible, with the interstices filled with mortar or mud. These upright pickets were cut off even at the top and a pitch-roof of split rails put on. Saw- ing lumber by hand was too difficult a job for much lumber of that kind to be used, and that kind was for interior work, doors, shutters, etc. Glass was very expensive, and there are no records of any glass windows, except that in the church there was a window with a shutter and sash panes between of twenty squares each. " The squares may re- fer to the small diamonds of glass which were common in church win- dows until even a few years ago. The following is a description of Cadillac's buildings in Detroit, which was drawn up after he left Detroit in 1711, to become the gov- ernor of Louisiana ; it is somewhat abbreviated from the original : 1 — A warehouse 37 1 by 22 feet and eight feet high, boarded with thick planks of oak, with shutters and doors and a staircase, a press for pressing furs, a counter and three shelves for books. 2 — A house of stakes in earth, 33 J by 19 feet and eight feet high, with doors and shutters. 3^A small cellar adjoining said house, boarded below with split stakes, also a porch and door. 4— A house 18 by 12^ feet and eight feet high, with a cabinet, a postern outside and a cellar. 5 — A cattle shed 16 by 12, of stakes in earth. 6 — A barn 50 by 27 feet and eleven feet high, surrounded by stakes in earth joined together. 90 7— A house 33 by 21 feet and nine feet high, surrounded by stakes in earth. 8 — A dove cote raised on four wooden posts, six feet high and ten feet square. 9 — An ice house, fifteen feet square and six feet above the ground and fifteen feet below the ground with split beams. 10 — The church, 35 by 24g feet and ten feet high with oak joists on a good ridge, and below of beams with square joints, with doors, win- dows and shutters, and sash frames between of twenty squares each, also a heavy bell. In these structures, except the cattle shed, barn, one house, the dove cote and ice house, mention is made that the doors " closed with a key," which was perhaps a necessary precaution. New France, like the mother country, in those days was under feudal tenure. It was ruled over by a committee of three appointed by the king and known as the sovereign council, consisting of the governor- general, the bishop and the intendant. The lands nominally belonged to the king and were held by seigneurs who paid rent in military ser- vice. The authority of the seigneurs in their respective domains was like that of a noble in France. He could try any offender for any crime short of treason and murder. Every tenant owed him military service, and each one had his grain ground at the seigneur's mill. If a seigneur sold any portion of his grant he had to pay the crown one- fifth of the purchase money. If a tenant sold his land or lease the seigneur was paid one-twelfth of the consideration. The law required these landholders to divide their property equally among their chil- dren, and as a consequence came the long, ribbon farms on the St. Lawrence, the Detroit, the St. Ann and other rivers where French rule was established, each owner having a water front, for water was the principal, and sometimes the only, means of communication and transportation. The houses were generally on the bank, ,with the roadway on the edge of the water. The houses were sometimes so close that an alarm or important news could be conveyed by each habitan calling to his neighbor, and would thus be conveyed to the re- motest house in a short time. Taxation commenced with the founding of Detroit, and, of course, continues to the present day. Cadillac conveyed all the land, whether in village lots or farms, and the metes and bounds of these parcels can now be traced as if made to-day. The farmer cultivated his 91 ground in the daj'time, and at night retired to his home in the fort; and where he had to pay rent for the two places, he was charged less in proportion than the village dweller. Lots within the fort were granted to settlers at an annual rental of two sols, or cents, per foot front, and when sold or exchanged, an alienation fine of one-twelfth was imposed. Lands outside this fort were let at the rate of one sol quit rent and forty sols rent for each arpent of frontage. One- quarter of a bushel of wheat was also paid for each arpent, and, as the usual grant was of four arpents frontage, the annual dues amounted to eight livres and four sols and a bushel of wheat a year. Alienation fines were charged in all manner of exchanges, even when the lands were inherited. The following is a list of the original colonists of Detroit who paid yearly taxes for rent from 1707 to 1710, payable in March; and also taxes, reduced to United States currency, for other rights, generally for practicing their vocations as trader, carpenter, blacksmith, armorer, farmer, shoemaker, etc. In addition each and every one paid ten livres, or $2, for the latter privileges. They also paid sums for rent according to the location and desirability of the lot. All these sums were payable in furs or in such coined money as might have been cur- rent, and ranged in amount from twenty cents to $2.40 in United States money: 1 Pierre Chesne _ $0,60 2 Andre Chouet, dit Cameraud __ 60 3 Pierre Taveran, dit la Grandeur ..._ __ 38 4 Joseph Despre __ .40 5 Solomon Joseph Du Vestin 40 6 Pierre Leger, dit Parisian _ 40 7 Bonaventure Compien, dit L'Esperance 24 8 Jacob De Marsac, dit Des Rocher 62 9 M. D'Argenteuil ^ 50 10 Jean Richard .40 11 Jean Labatier, dit Champaign _ 40 12 Etienne Bouton 60 18 Pierre Hemard_ _ _ _50 14 Antoine Dupuis, dit Beauregard __ .60 15 Jacques Langlois 1.30 16 Guillaume Boult, dit Deliard _ .50 17 Michel Masse __ 1.68 18 Michel Campo _ 106 19 Louis Normand _ .50 20 Francois Tesse __ 40 92 21 Pierre Chantelon _ __ 56 33 Francois Bienvenue, dit De Lisle .60 23 Pierre Esteve ._ 50 34 Blaise Siirgere _ ___ 60 35 Pierre Porrier _ _. .50 36 Antoine Ferron ' ___ 40 37 Pierre Tocet _ _ 50 38 Francois Fafard, dit De Lorme' 90 29 Michel Disier .50 30 Jacob De Marsac. _ 40 31 A man named Rancontre _ 50 32 A man named Des Lauriers. :. _ 50 33 A man namedXaintonge... _ _._ .50 34 Jacques Du Moulin _ _ 60 35 Guillaume Aquet, dit Laporte 50 36 Louis Gustineau _ _ .50 37 Joseph Parent ._ _ \ .60 38 Martin Sirier _ 60 39 Quilenchive .50 40 M. Derance._ _ _ .30 41 Du Figuer _ _ _ .54 43 La Montague, dit Pierre Mouet... 90 43 Pierre Mallet _ _ 1.60 44 Antoine Dufresne 1.00 45 Jean Baptiste Chornic _ 33 46 Jean Casse, dit St. Aubin .50 47 Paul Langlois __ __ _ .50 48 Jerome Marliard. __ ._ _-_ .40 49 Andre Bombardier _. .!. 50 50 Pierre Duroy - -60 51 Pierre Roy _ __ .78 53 Francois Marque 36 53 Antoine Magnant _ 1.00 54 Francois Bonne..- 1.00 55 Touissaint Dardennes .30 56 Pierre Bassinet .,.^.. .20 57 Francois Brunet 40 58 Antoine Beauregard 3.40 59 Marie Le Page 73 60 Jacques Campo 40 61 Jean Serond 50 63 Pierre Robert , 1.30 63 Larramee - - 50 64 Rene Le Moine .40 65 Jacques Le Moine : 40 66 Paul Guillet ■ 1.20 67 Joseph Rivard .80 93 68 Antoine Tufife, dit Du Fresne -• -40 5 40.63 68 tenants at|2eacli._ _ 136.00 Total 1176.63 Money, of course, in those days, had three times the purchasing power of the present time, but, all things considered, the tax roll of Detroit in the first decade of the eighteenth century could not have been called high or extortionate. The settlers also took all their grain to the commandant's mill, and paid a toll of one-eighth of the grain, and baked in the public ovens, of which Cadillac had the profits. By the order of the governor- general he was directed to charge only one-fourteenth for grinding grain, but he disregarded the mandate, and did not give any reason for his dis- obedience. His income, therefore, was about 500 crowns, or $550 per year. Each settler, including Cadillac himself, had to pay taxes for the maintenance of the church and its priest. The church and all the vest- ments and paraphernalia belonged to Cadillac. Even the traders who only visited Detroit, and did not reside here, had to pay small sums for the benefit of the church. On June 7, 1710, Cadillac, who had formerly borne the expense of maintaining a priest, called the residents of De- troit together and submitted plans for maintaining the church and priest by public dues. The priest was to be paid five hundred livres annually, of which the commandant was to paj' two hundred livres, while the in- habitants were to supply him with food. Each resident, in addition, was to pay for the support of the church a tithe consisting of one-tenth of his annual income. Of Cadillac's profits as a fur dealer, only an estimate can be made, which is partially founded on his own statements in 1703 as to the prof- its of the Company of the Colony in Detroit. These, he said, amounted to 20,000 livres, or $4,000. He acted as notary, and received as his fee one- twelfth of the consideration of every piece of real estate sold. Up to 1709 the government defrayed the expense of the garrison, but in that year he was told that he would have to pay his soldiers himself. It was only for a year, however, and he was relieved in 1710, and ap- pointed governor of Louisiana. It is fair to presume that he cleared between $3,000 and $5,000 a year, and if he had kept the money rea- lized he would have been in a good financial standing. But he rein- 94 vested nearly all his money in buildings, mills, public ovens, a vessel of ten tons, etc., and when he left Detroit he could not obtain any compensation for them. In 1896 C. M. Burton, of Detroit, gave a list of the adult white res- idents of Detroit from 1701 to 1710, compiled from old notarial and official records, a work involving immense expense and an enormous amount of labor. It was printed as a brochure entitled " Detroit under Cadillac," and with other new information, formed a valuable addition to the history of the city. It is herewith given entire: Abatis, Jean (or Labbatu ; see Labatier). Aguenet (or Aguet), called Laporte, Guillaume. (Possibly the name should be Haguenet.) Arnauld, Bertrand, merchant, came to Detroit July 18, 1703. Badeillac, Louis, called Laplante, made an agreement to come to Detroit May 29, 1701, the first convoy. Bannois, Jeanne. She was the first wife of Guillaume Bouche, and died in 1703. The name is given by Tanguay as Beauvais. Bariteau, Julien, called La Marche, came May 30, 1705. Baron, Denys, voyageur, came June 31, 1706. Barthe, Jean (called Belleville), soldier, came October 10, 1706. Barthe (called Belleville), Marie Charlotte, daughter of Jean Barthe, above. Born October 37, 1709. Bassinet, Joseph, Sieur Tourblanche, came April 2, 1707. Bassinet, Pierre, brother of above, came same date. Baudreau, Gabriel. Gabriel Baudreau and his wife, Catherine Fortier, were voy- ageurs passing through Detroit on their way to Mobile, November 24, 1708. Baudreau, Marie Louise, daughter of Gabriel Baudreau, baptized November 24, 1708. Baugret, Francois, called Dufort, came September 10, 1710. Beauchamp, Jacques, came as a bargeman. May 30, 1705. Beauchamp, Pierre, brother of above, came same time. Beaugis (or Baugis), Michael, voyageur. Beauregard, see Dupuis. Belille (or Belisle), Henry, first surgeon of the fort. Besnard, Rene, came June 31, 1706. Soldier of Carignan regiment. Bienvenue, Alexis, son of Francois, below. He married Josette Bouron, January 17, 1740. Bienvenue, called Delisle, Francois, came August 3, 1707. His first wife was Genevieve Laferiere, and his second wife was Marianne Lemoine. He was buried September 39, 1751, aged eighty-eight years. The transformation of French names is well illustrated by this person. His descendants are nearly universally known here by the name of Delisle or De Lisle, and the surname of two centuries ago is not uncommonly used to day as a Christian name, and we frequently find Bienvenue (or Welcome), Delisles in our real estate records. 95 Bienvenue, Joseph, son of Francois Bienvenue, above. Baptized March 5, 1704, and buried December 3, 1711. ' Bienvenue, Marie, daughter of Francois Bienvenue, above. Baptized December 8, 1705. She married Jacques Roussel, April 7, 1725. She is named Marianne in the marriage record. Bienvenue, Marie Joseph, daughter of Francois Bienvenue, born August 35, 1709. Bienvenue, Rafael. Buried April 24, 1706, aged two years. Unless this is the same person as Joseph Bienvenue, above, it is scarcely possible that Rafael was a son of Francois Bienvenue. This is the first recorded death in Detroit, though there is other evidence that a child of Alphonse de Tonty died before the first church was burned, in 1703, and that Madam Bouche died in 1703. Bizaillon (or Bisaillon), Michel, son of Benoit Bisaillon and of Louise Blaye, of Clairmont, in Auvergne. He married Marguerite Fafard (dit De Lorme), June 30, 1710. Bluteau, Agathe (in some places this name is spelled Bulteau), wife of Francois Judith Contant, dit Rancontre. Bollard, Jeanne, wife of Pierre Leger, dit Parisien. Bombardier (called la Bonibarde), Andre, a soldier and farmer. Bombardier (called la Bombarde), Bernard Phillipe, son of Andre Bombardier, above, born October 12, 1709. Bombardier, Jean, son of Andre Bombardier, above, born July 18, 1707. Bone, Marie Anne. The name probably should be spelled Beaune. She was the widow of Francois Lorry and daughter of Jean Bone and Mary Magdelaine Bouri- gier. She married Martin Cirier June 12, 1710. She came to Detroit April 18, 1707, under an agreement to serve Cadillac for three years at eighty livres per year. Bonne, Francois. Bonnet, Guillaume (surnamed Deliard), armorer. A native of the parish of Charles- burg, near Quebec. He died January 13, 1709. Bosne, Francois. Came April 13, 1709. Bosseron, Francois. (Tanguay spells the name Beauceron.) Farmer. He was the husband of Marie Le Page (which name see). Botquin, Pierre (called St. Andre). A soldier, came October 19, 1706. An inven- tory of goods that he carried to Detroit in 1710 mcludes 50 pounds of powder at 40 sols per pound, 100 pounds of bullets at 10 sols per pound, and 32 pots (of two quarts each) of brandy at 45 sols per pot. Boucher, Guillaume. His first wife was named Jeanne Beauvais, and after her death, in 1703, he married Angelique Tholme, widow of Pierre Robert, August 16, 1716. Boucher, Pierre, Esquire, sieur de Boucherville. Bourdon, Pierre, voyageur, came June 15, 1706. Married, in 1711, Marie Anne Gouyon. Bougery, Denis, came as bargeman. May 80, 1705. Bougery, Jean Louis. Brother of Denis, came September 14, 1710. Bourg, Jean (called Lapierre). Voyageur, came June 15, 1706. Bourgoin (called St. Paul), Didier. Soldier of Montigny. He signs Bourguin. Boutron (called Major), Estienne. Farmer. The name Estienne shows one of the common transformations of the French words. This is now commonly written 96 Etienne (Stephen), and the second letter s has been dropped, as it has in Destroit, Chesne, despot, and many other words. Boutron (called Major), Marguerite. Daughter of Etienne Boutron, above, born September 15, 1709. Boutron (called Major) Marie Angelique, daughter of Etienne Boutron, baptized July 5, 1707. Boyer, Zacharie. Voyageur, came May 30, 1708. Boyer, Jean. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Brabant, Michel. Voyageur, came August 2, 1707. Breunel, Anne (probably intended for Anne Bruneau, which see). Wife of Louis Normand. Brisset, Bernard. Came May 18, 1708. Bruneau, Anne. Wife of Louis Normand, dit Labrierre. Brunet, Francois, dit Bourbonnais. Came May 80, 1705. Buet, Rene. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Butard, , wife of . She died December 10, 1734, aged thirty to thirty- two years. Cabazier, Charles. Voyageur, came June 13, 1707. Cadieu, Pierre. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Cadillac. See De La Mothe. Caillomeau, Louis. Came September 6, 1710. This name probably should be Galannaux. Camerand. See Chouet. Campau, Jacques (the name is also spelled Campo, Campos, Campeau and Campot). Blacksmith, came September 3, 1708. His wife was Cecile Catin. He was buried May 14, 1751, aged seventy-eight years. Campau, Jean. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Campau, Jeanne. Daughter of Michel Campau. • Campau, Louis, son of Jacques Campau. He married Marie Louise Robert, wid- ow of Francois Pelletier, and daughter of Pierre Robert and Angelique Tholme, January 7, 1734. Campau, Marguerite, daughter of Michel Campau, baptized March 2, 1708. Campau, Marie Angelique. Daughter of Jacques Campau, born December 6, 1708. Campau, Michel. Farmer, came August 3, 1707. His wife was Jeanne Masse. He died before 1740. Campau, Paul Alexander. Son of Michel Campau, born September 14, 1709. He married Charlotte Sioneau, daughter of Mathurin Sioneau and Marie Charlotte Du- beau, February 15, 1740. Cardinal, Jacques. Voyageur, came October 13, 1707. Died May 17, 1734, aged eighty-four years. Cardinal, Jacques. Son of the preceding, came October 13, 1707. His wife was Jeanne Dugue, and third son Pierre, was baptized August 30, 1739. They already had a daughter Jeanne, who acted as god-mother to the infant Pierre. Jeanne mar- ried Laurent Parent. Cardinal, Marie. Wife of Jacques Hubert, dit la Croix, with her husband and one child, she set out from Montreal for Detroit, May 33, 1709. Cardinal Pierre. Came September 6, 1708. 97 13 Caron, Vital. Came April 3, 1707. Carriere, Antoine (he signs the church record Hantoine Carrier, in 1710). His parents, Andre Carriere and Cecile Jannot, lived on St. Paul street, Montreal. He first came to Detroit, April 11, 1707, as a voyageur. Casse (called St. Aubin), Jean. This is a good illustration of the change of French names. The family name of Casse has been so completely lost through years of use of the nickname, that this man's descendants are universally known as St. Aubin, and there are many of them in Detroit to-day. I have grouped them all under this name. Jean Casse's wife was Marie Louise Gautier. He died February 27, 1759, aged more than one hundred years. Casse (called St. Aubin), Jean Baptiste. Died of small-pox February 35, 1733, aged twenty-seven or twenty-eight years. A great many people died in the winter of 1733-34, of small-pox. Jean Baptiste St. Aubin married Magdeleine Pruneau, daugh- ter of Jean Pruneau and Suzanne Bellanger, of Quebec, July 31, 1731. Casse (called St. Aubin), Jacques, son of Jean Casse and Marie Louise Gautier. He married Catherine Vien, daughter of Ignace Vien and Angelique Du Sable, De- cember 27, 1745. Casse (called St. Aubin), Marie Anne, daughter of Jean (or Jean Baptiste) Casse and Marie Louise Gautier. Born October 5, 1710. She married Charles Chauvin (blacksmith), October 27, 1726. There was another daughter, Agathe Cass, who married Nicholas Campau, dit Niagara. Casse (called St. Aubin), Pierre, son of Jean Casse. Baptized May 2, 1709. Catin, Cecile, wife of Jacques Campau. She died before 1732. Her daughter, Marianne Campau, married Joseph Bondy, July 28, 1732, and her son, Claude, mar- ried Catherine Casse (dit St. Aubin), daughter of Jean Casse, January 32, 1742. Catinet, Joseph, of Pointe aux Trembles, near Montreal, was in Detroit July 26, 1707. Chabot, Joseph. Channet (called Camirand), Andre, sergeant of the troops in this country. His wife was Anne Pastorel. Channet (called Camirand), Andre, son of above. Born May 13, 1708. Channet (called Camirand), Pierre, son of Andre, senior. Born about April, 1710. Chanteloup, Pierre, farmer. Acted as godfather to Jean Bombardier, July 18, 1707. His .wife came to Detroit April 11, 1707. Charbonneau, Joseph. Came April 25, 1707. Charbonneau, Michel. Came April 17, 1707. Brother of above. Charnic. See du Chamic. Charlet, Francois. His wife was Marthe Forstier. Charlet, Pierre, son of above. Born May 3, 1709. Charon, Charles. Charpentier, Jean. Came April 2, 1707. Chauvillon, Charlotte, wife of Jean Barthe, dit Belleville. • Chauvin, Gilles, voyageur. Came June 7, 1706. He and Louis Normand were in partnership. Chauvin, Jean Baptiste, voyageur. Came June 14, 1706. Chauvin, Louis, voyageur. Came June 14, 1706. Brother of above. Cheauonvouzon, Louis Antoine, surnamed Quarante Sols, chief of the Huron na- 98 tion. He was a very prominent and influential Indian and frequent reference is made to him, both by Cadillac and by the Jesuit fathers at Mackinac. He was bap- tized April 27, 1707, having as a godfather Cadillac himself. He died the same day, aged forty-eight years. Chesne, Charles, son of Pierre Chesne and Lotiise Batty. He married Catherine Sauvage, daughter of Jacques Sauvage and Marie Catherine Rieul, January 18, 1722. Chesne, Francois, voyageur. Came September 25, 1707. Chesne, Marie, daughter of Pierre Chesne and Jeanne Bailli. She married (first) Jacques Montboef, dit Godfroy, and after his death she married Jacques Boutin, September 16, 1733. There is a record that Marie Chesne died February 13, 1738. From Marie Chesne have descended all the Godfreys of French extraction in and about Detroit. Chesne, Pierre. Came June 13, 1707. His wife was Jeanne Bailli, she died in 1710, she is sometimes referred to as Louise Batty. The name has been slightly changed in spelling, though not in sound, by his descendants. He was the Detroit ancestor of the present Chene family. Chesne, Pierre. Son of above Pierre Chesne. He had two wives ; first on May 25, 1728, he married Marie Magdelene Roy, a daughter of Pierre Roy; this marriage took place at Fort St. Phillipe, village of the Miamis. She died of small-pox Oeto- 20, 1732, and in 1736 he married his second wife, Louise Barrels, daughter of Fran- cois Lothenane, dit Barrois, and Marianne Sauvage. Pierre Chesne was an inter- preter and sometimes called La Butte. He was born about 1697. Chevalier, Jean. Came May 30, 1705. There is a record that Angelique Chevalier, daughter of the late Jean Baptiste Chevalier and the late Francoise Alavoine of this parish married Antoine Nicolas Lauzon, February 27, 1769. Chevalier, Michel. Came October 10, 1710. Chevalier, Paul. Came July 12, 1702. His wife was Agathe Campau. They lived on St. Paul street, Montreal. Paul, Jean and Robert were brothers. Chevalier, Pierre. Chevalier, Robert. Came June 15, 1706. Ohornic, Jean Baptiste. Chouet (called Camerand) Andre. Chouet, Louis, called Lagiroflee. Soldier in company of Cabana, captain. Hp was a son of Jean Chouet and Marie Magdeleine Magdile. Before setting out for Detroit, May 25, 1701, he gave his property, in event of his death, to Mary Magde- leine Delisle. Cirier, Martin. Son of Nicolas Cirier and Catherine Prevoost of the parish of St. Denis d'Argenteuil of Paris. He was a soldier of the company of de la Champagne and married Ann Bone, June 12, 1710. I find the name spelled Sirier sometimes, but Martin could write and he spelled it Cirier. Clairambaut, Francois, esquire, sieur D'Aigremont. Commissary of the marine in Canada, sub-delegate of the Intendant and deputy appointed to visit the most ad- vanced posts. He visited Detroit, Fort Pontchartrain, July 29, 1708. Cobtron, see Marsac. Colin, Michel, called Laliberte. Came in 1706. Collet, Pierre, voyageur. Came June 15, 1706. 99 Compein (called L'Esperance) Bonaventure. Soldier and farmer. His wife was Catherine Laplante. Compein (called L'Esperance), Marie Catherine, daughter of Bonaventure, above. She was baptized November 14, 1707. Compien (called L'Esperance) Pierre. Son of Bonaventure, above. Was born January 13, 1710. Comic, Pierre. Gorton, Pierre, called St. Jean. Came May 30, 1705, as bargeman. Cosset, Francois. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Couk, Marguerite, wife of Francois Masse. Marguerite Couque is referred to as the wife of the late Jean Fafare, and Marguerite Kouque, as the wife of sieur Masse. These may be the same party. Coup, Isabelle. Came to Detroit as early as April 37, 1704. Coutant (called Rancontre) Francois Judile, a soldier. His wife was Marie Agathe Bluteau, above. Coutant, Jean. A soldier of the company of Lorimier. He was buried September 17, 1733, aged sixty-five years. Coutant (called Rancontre) Louis. Son of Francois, above, baptized February 13, 1708. Couturier, Joseph, voyageur. Came September 6, 1710. Cusson, Ange. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Cusson, Charles, voyageur. Came April 30, 1709. Cusson, Jean Baptiste. Came April 11, 1707. Cusson, Joseph. Came October 7, 1706. Cusson, Nicolas, voyageur. Came October 7, 1706. Dandonneau, Marie Francoise, wife of the second marriage of Henry Belisle, sur- geon. Died May 8, 1711, aged about fifty years. Dardennes, Toussainte. Came May 18, 1707. D'Argenteuil (probably Pierre), gardener. David, Therese. Wife of Jacob de Marsac de Cobtron, dit Desrochers. She was buried September 34, 1737, aged sixty-six years. Daze, Charles. Came July 16, 1703. De Broyeux, Francois. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. De Couague, Charles, jr. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. De Gaigne, Jacques, jr., eighteen years old. Agreed to work for Jerome Merilat, dit Sansquartier, for two years. De La Forest, Francois, captain of the troops of the marine in this country. Like many other French words the letter s is frequently dropped in writing this name, so that we find it De La Foret. De La March, Dominique. Recollect priest, lecturer in theology, pastor of Ste. Anne's. De La Marque, Marianne. Wife of Alphonse de Tonty. She was the widow of Jean Baptiste Nolan, and had a daughter, Louise Suzanne Nolan, who married Charles Francois de Mezieres, esquire, sieur de Leperueinche, December 17, 1735. De La Mothe Cadillac, Antoine. The founder of Detroit. He was born in 1661, the son of Jean de La Mothe and Jeanne de Malenfant. Married Marie Therese Guyon, daughter of Denis Guyon at Quebec, June 37, 1687. 100 ^jy De La Mothe Cadillac, Antoine. Ensign in the troops, son of Cadillac. De La Mothe Cadillac, Antoine (or Jean Antoine), son of Cadillac. Buried in the church, April 9, 1709, aged two years, two and a half months. I think this is the same as Jean Antoine, who was baptized January 19, 1707. De La Mothe Cadillac, Francois. Son of Cadillac. Born March 29, 1709. De La Mothe Cadillac, Jacques. Son of Cadillac. Cadet in the troops of the de- tachment of marines. De La Mothe Cadillac, Mane Agatha. Daughter of Cadillac. Born December 28, 1707. De La Mothe Cadillac, Rene Louis. Son of Cadillac. Born March 17, 1710. De Launay, Joseph. Came September 27, 1710. De I'Halle, Constantin, Recollect priest, killed June 6, 1706. His body was ex- humed, transported and reburied within the church of Ste. Anne. De Liard, see Bouet. De Lisle, see Bienvenue. De Lorme, see Fafard. Delpeche, Francois. Came May 17, 1710. Demers, Maximilian. Came May 30, 1705. Deniau Cherubin. Recollect priest, pastor of Ste. Anne's. Deniau, Rene. Died July, 1730, aged eighty years. De Paris, Denis. Depre (or Despre), Joseph. De Ranee, see Le Gautier. Derruon, Pierre, esquire, sieur de Budemond. Dervisseau, Julien. Lieutenant in the troops. Desautels, Gilbert, dit Lapointe. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Des Jardins, Suzanne. Wife of Pierre La Fleur. Desloriers, Jean Baptiste. Jean Baptisle du Fournel, dit Desloriers, aged fifty years, was buried October 81, 1781. Desmoulins, Charlotte, dit Philis, daughter of Jacques Desmoulins and Charlotte Sanarias, was born November 23, 1709, and died January 8, 1710. Desmoulins, Jacques, dit Philis. His wife was Charlotte Sanarias. Desmoulins, Jacques. Son of the above Jacques Desmoulins ; was baptized March 30, 1708, and died April 14, 1738. Desmoulins, Marie. Wife of Blaise Sontieureuse. Desnoyers, Joseph. Married Magdeleine Robert, daughter of Pierre Robert and Angelique Tholme. Desrocher, or Derocher, see Marsac. Desrosiers, Jean Morean. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Desrosiers, Joseph, called Dutremble. Came September 37, 1710. Devinon, Pierre, esquire, sieur de Budemond. Lieutenant in the troops. Dizier, Michel, called Sans Quartier. Farmer. Dounay, Anthoine. Came in the summer of 1704. Dubor, Dominique. Came as voyageur, June 12, 1706. Du Chornic, Louis. Ducharme, Joseph. Came September 10, 1710. Ducharme, Louis. Voyageur, brother of Joseph. Came May 33, 1709. 101 Duclos, Jacques. A soldier. Dumouchel, Francoise. Daughter of Bernard Dumouchel, dit Laroche. On the 6th day of July, 1703, she agreed to go to Detroit to serve M. and Madam de la Mothe (Cadillac), for two years at 180 livres per year. Dumouchel, Paul. Came May 15, 1708. Duffant, Marie Renie. Du Figuier, (see Fournier). Dufresne, Antoine. Dufresne, Marie Magdelaine. Wife of Pierre Mallet. Dumay, Jacques. Jacques Pierre Danau, esquire, sieur de Muy, Chevalier of the Royal and Military order of St. Louis, died May 20, 1758. Dumay, Marguerite. Wife of Andre Bombardier. Dumouche, Francoise. Dupuis, Antoine (called Beauregard). Farmer. His wife was Marie Anne Marandeau. Dupuis, Antoine. Son of above, was born June 21, 1707. Dupuis, Joseph. Son of of Antoine, sr., above, was born January 31, 1709. Dupuis, Marie Anne. Daughter of Antoine above, was born March 13, 1710. Duroy, Pierre, dit Deslauriers. Soldier in the company of De La Mothe Cadillac. He came April 11, 1707. He is also mentioned as a soldier in the company of Dul- hud (Duluth). Du Vestin, Salomon Joseph. Durand (or Durant) Jean. Farmer. Dussault, Marie. Wife of Jacques Langlois. Du Sault, Marie, fille mineure. The parents' names are not given. Dutan, Jacques. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Dutremble, Jean Baptiste. Came in 1706. Dutremble, Joseph. Came September 28, 1706. Du Vant, called La Franchise, Pierre. Soldier de la Compagnie de la Corne. Esteve, Pierre. Called La Jeunesse. Farmer, see Stebre. Estienne, Estienne. Brother of Dominique Estienne. Came April 26, 1707. Estienne, Jacques. Came April 18, 1707, with a canoe load of merchandise for Sieur de Bourmont, ensign in the troops. Faf ard, Charles, dit Delorme. He came April 25, 1707. His father was Francois Fa- fard, dit Delorme. The descendants from this pioneer are universally called Delorme. Fafard, Etienne, dit Delorme. Son of Francois Fafard, born September 24, 1708. Fafard, Francois, dit Delorme. Farmer and interpreter for the king. He died January 28, 1734, aged about eighty years. His first wife was Magdeleine Mar- guerite Jobin and his second wife was Barbe Loisel. Fafard, Joseph. Son of Francois, above. He was born September 24, 1708. He and Etienne were twins. Fafard, Magdeleine. Daughter of Francois Fafard, above. She married Prudent Robert, January 7, 1711. Fafard, Marie Joseph, dit Delorme, daughter of Francois, above, married Pierre Auclair, of Charlesburg. Fafard, Marie Marguerite, daughter of Francois, above. Married Michel Bissilon June 80, 1710. 102 Fafard, Marguerite, daughter of Jean Fafard and Marguerite Couclc. Married Jean Baptiste Turpin, May 5, 1710. Fanereau, Charles, voyageur. Lived in Detroit October 6, 1708. Farland, Jean. Faverau, Pierre. Called Le Grandeur. Fayolet, Pierre, called St. Pierre. A soldier of the company of St. Ours. He was in Detroit May 2, 1709, and acted as godfather to Pierre Casse. Ferron, Antoine, farmer. Filiatreau, Jacques, voyageur. Came May 30, 1705. He lived at Lachine and never resided at Detroit, though be came here several times. Filie, Michel, esquire, sieur de Therigo, sergeant of troops. Commissioned to bear letters from France to Cadillac. He came October 16, 1706. Fortier, Catherine, wife of Gabriel Baudreau. They were married at Montreal, August 15, 1701. Fortier, Marthe (or Marie Marthe), wife of Francois Chalut, dit Chanteloup. They were married in Montreal June 10, 1706. She was a sister of Catherine, above. Fournier, Louis Rene, sieur du Figuier, ensign in the troops of this country, per forming the functions of major of the troops in Fort Pontchartrain. He was born at Montreal May 14, 1673. His mother's name was Helene Du Figuier. Frapier, Marie Magdeleine, wife of Pierre Stebre, dit la Jeunesse. They were married at Quebec April 13, 1706, and she died at Detroit, December 22, 1759, aged eighty years. Frigon, Francois. He was born in Normandy and came to Detroit May 30, 1705. Frotant, Angelique. Probably Proteau, which see. Gagnier, Jacques. Came May 17, 1710. Galarneau, Louise, wife of Francois Marquet. She was born February 2, 1690, and married April 36, 1706. Gallien, Marie Anne. Her first husband was Jerome (Hieronymus) Marillac, dit Sansquartier, and her second husband was Bernard Phillipe. Gareau (or Garro or Garraud), Dominique. Came October 3, 1708. He was born at Boucherville, January 13, 1684. Gareau, Jean, came September 35, 1707. He was born at Boucherville, November 3, 1679. Gareau, Pierre. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. He was born at Boucherville May 1, 1673. He lived in St. Paul street, Montreal. He was sometimes called St. Onge, Saintonge, or Xaintonge. The three Gareaus were brothers. Dominique and Jean never resided in Detroit, but came here together in 1708 and at various other times. Pierre owned a house and lot in the village, conveyed to him by the n^me of Xaintonge. i Gatineau, Louis, sieur Duplessis, came to Detroit June 31, 1706. He was married January 23, 1710, to Jeanne Lemoyne, at Batiscan. He is described as a merchant of Quebec. Gaultier, Marie Louise, wife of Jean Casse, called St. Aubin. Gaultier (or Gautier), Pierre, dit Saguinoira. Came May 33, 1709. He was born March 35, 1669, and died July 35, 1754. Gazaille, Jean, dit St. Germain. Came September 10, 1710. Germain, Alexis, son of Robert Germain, a native of the parish of Pomte aux 103 Trembles, near Quebec, and came to Detroit May 19, 1708. He was killed May 19, 1712, by a gunshot given by the Ytaganish Indians, with whom he was fighting at Detroit. Germain, Robert. Came May 18, 1708. He was a brother of Alexis. Born at Quebec, September 8, 1680. Gervais, Etienne de Bourguion. July 10, 1703, he agreed to go to Detroit as a hunter. Giard, Anthoine. Came May 30, 1705. He was born at Montreal August 31, 1661. Giard, Gabriel. He was born at Montreal April 15, 1675, and came to Detroit as a bargeman May 30, 1705. He was married three times. Giguiere, Jean Baptiste, being about to set out for Detroit June 28, 1701, he made a present of his property in event of his death to Louise Maignan. He returned to Montreal and married this lady January 22, 1704. He died April 18, 1750. Giguiere, Robert, brother of Jean Baptiste. He was born January 28, 1663, and died at Montreal December 10, 1711. Giradin, Joseph. Came August 26, 1708. Gode (or Gaude), Jacques. Came as voyageur November 6, 1707. He was mar- ried August 15, 1743, to Marie Louise St. Martin, of Detroit. Godefroy (or Godfrey), Jacques, dit Mauboeuf. Paul Chevalier and Jacques Gode- froy, dit Mauboeuf, voyageurs, and Joseph Senecal, toolmaker and voyageur, formed a partnership September 10, 1710, to carry on the business of trading at Detroit. To this business Chevalier contributed 255 livres, Senecal 165 livres and Godefroy 43 livres and two guns. The partnership was to continue for two years, and if any of the partners died in that time another man would be taken in to fill the place. Gains and losses to be shared equally. Godfroy married Marie Anne Chesne at Detroit, November 20, 1730. Gognet, Francois, called Sansoucy, a soldier. Gouin, Joseph, came May 19, 1708, bringihg to Dufiguier, major of Fort Pontchar- train, two barrels of brandy (eau de vie), one barrel of salt, two barrels of powder, a small parcel of goods and two bags of bullets, in all, 400 pounds. Gouin, Louis. Came May 18, 1708. Gourion (or Gorion), Antoine, son of Jean Baptiste Gourion. Born April 26, 1708. Gourion, Jean Baptiste, sergeant in the troops at Detroit (1708), and farmer. His wife was Louise Chaudillon, though it is given as Louise Rhodillon in Ste. Anne's church. Gros, Jean Baptiste. Born at Montreal December 22, 1673. Guillemot, Marie Chretienne. Came to Detroit in the employ of Cadillac August 30, 1710. She was a daughter of Jacques Francois Guillemot and Madeleine Dupont. Was born at Montreal September 29, 1695. Returned there and married Jean Jac- quiers, November 24, 1715, and died November 23, 1734. Guillet, Paul, merchant. Born 1690, Died in Montreal June 7, 1753. His full name seems to have been Paul Alexander Guillet. He acted as godfather to Paul Alexander Campau September 14, 1709, and the infant appears to have been named after him. He came to Detroit May 19, 1708. Gustineau, Louis. Guyon, Jean, dit Lachapelle. Came September 6, 1710. 104 Guyon, Marie Therese, wife of Antoine de La Mothe Cadillac. Born at Quebec April 9, 1671. Married June 35, 1687. (The first white woman in Detroit). Hamelin, Rene, voyageur. Came May 18, 1710. Hemart (or Haimart), Marie Louise. Born December 1, 1709. Daughter of Pierre Haimart. Hemart (or Haimart), Pierre, farmer and soldier in the company of M. Lorimier. Married Marie Laland June 13, 1706. The records of Ste. Anne contain a certificate of baptism, October 30, 1707, of Fran- cois Delainart, son of Pierre Delainart and Marie Filiastreau. Father Tanguay concludes that Hemart and Delainart are the same. Henaux, Pierre, sr. , came to Detroit September 37, 1708. Perhaps the name should be Hunalt. Henaux, Pierre, jr. Came September 37, 1708. Hubert, Ignace, called Lacroix. Came April 20, 1709. He was a son of Ignace Hubert, of Boucherville. Hubert, Jacques, dit Lacroix, sr. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Hubert, Jacques, dit Lacroix. Came in 1706. He was born May 12, 1684, and married September 5, 1705, to Marie Cardinal. He was a son of Jacques Hubert, of Montreal. Hubert, Louis, voyageur, came November 6, 1707. He was abrother of Ignace, above. Hubert, Pierre, son of Jacques Hubert, dit la Croix, and Marie Cardinal. Was born at Detroit December 11, 1709, and died October 11, 1724. The family is gen- erally known by the name of Lacroix. Hubert, Pierre, voyageur. Came August 11, 1710. He was a brother of Jacques Hubert, above, and married Francoise Cardinal. Huet, Pierre, called Duluth, came April 2, 1707. He was a son of Joseph Huet, bom November 13, 1683. Janot, Pierre. Came May 33, 1709, nephew of Robert Janot. Janot, Robert (called La Chapelle). Came April 3, 1707. He was uncle to Joseph Bazinet, dit Tourblanche. Jardis, Francois, called Rencontre. Farmer and lot owner in the village. Jean, Raymond, dit Godon. Contracted October 13, 1703, to go to Detroit as a farmer. Jobin, Marie Magdelene, wife of Francois Fafard.dit Delorme, interpreter. She died at Detroit, January 39, 1711, aged about forty years. Joly, Jean, surnamed Jolycoeur, sergeant in the troops. He was a native of the parish of Bury, diocese Xaintes, Died at Detroit, Mich., March 30, 1707, and buried in the cemetery at Fort Pontchartrain. Juillet, Jean, called Laplante. Came to Detroit as a bargeman May 30, 1705. Labatier (or Abatis), Jean. Owned a lot in the village. Jean Labattu, Cochant, dit Champagne, a soldier. Died in Detroit, February 15, 1712. I think this is the same person. Laberge, Guillaume, entered into an agreement October 12, 1703, to come to De- troit as a farmer. Labrierre, see Normand. La Ferriere, Genevieve, wife of Francois Bienvenue, dit Delisle. Born December 8, 1679. She died before 1709. Her family name was Charon. 105 U Lafleur, see Poirier. Laferte, see Levoir. La Forest, Marguerite, wife of Antoine Levroir. She was born in 1689 and mar- ried Antoine Terou Laferte (Levroir) June 10, 1706. La Grandeur, see Faverau. La Jeunesse, see Stebre. La Jeunesse, Etienne, came in 1706. Lalande, Marie, wife of Pierre Hemart. Laloire, , farmer. There is nothing from which the first name can be de- termined. Tanguay gives the name Allaire as the same surname as this. Lamareux, Francois, sieur de St. Germain. Came April 2, 1707. Francois La- moureux, dit Germain, a merchant, was born 1675 and died December 30, 1740. La Marque, Pierre, called Sans Soucy. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. He lived at Laprairie, and his wife was Magdeleine Delisle. La Montague, called Pierre Mouet. La Mothe, Magdalaine, Cadillac's daughter. La Mothe, Marie Therese, daughter of Cadillac, baptized February 3, 1704. Lamy, Joseph. Set out from Montreal September 6, 1708, to conduct Madame Ranez to Detroit. Lamy drifted farther west to Kaskaskia, where he became one of the trustees of the church in 1717, and was killed by the Indians in 1735. Lanarias, Charlotte, probably Sanarias, which see. Langlois, Antoine, son of Jacques Langlois. Born November 13, 1709, buried July 26, 1710, at Detroit, aged about eight and a half months. Langlois, Jacques, farmer and blacksmith. Born in 1676; he married Marie Dus- sault. He resided for a. time in Detroit, but returned to Montreal, and died there January 30, 1783. Langlois, Paul, farmer. Came April 11, 1707. Laplante, Catherine. Wife of Bonaventure Compien, dit L'Esperance. Her name, according to the record of baptisms in Sorel, where she was born, was Marie Catherine Badaillac, dit Laplante, and she was married at Montreal June 10, 1716. Laporte, see Aguenet. Laprairie, Julien. Came August 19, 1710. Larivee, Jean. Came May 19, 1708. He was born August 12, 1667, and died Sep- tember 9, 1739. L'Arramee — Tanguay mentions a man by this name, his first name being un- known, who died in Montreal September 33, 1736. La Salle, Jean. A soldier of the company of Duluth, native of Peyrourade in Beam, died January 24, 1707. His body was buried in the church of the Fort Pont- chartrain du Detroit. Laude, Joseph, dit Mata. Agreed to go to Detroit as farmer, October 12, 1703. La Vallee, Jean Baptiste. Soldier of the company of the Cassagne, native of Quintin, bishopric of St. Brieux, in Brittany. Died November 19, 1711, aged about thirty years. Lavois, Jacques, dit St. Amour. Came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. He was a soldier of the company of La Corne, and married Marie Barbe Cerar, at Montreal November 38, 1711. Leboeuf, Pierre. Came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. His wife was Marie Fran- 106 coise Auzon. He never came here to reside permanently, but some of" his children did. Le Coutant, dit Rencontre, Magdelaine, daughter of Francois Judit Le Coutaut, dit Rencontre, born February 5, 1710. L'Ecuyer, Pierre. Leduc, Jean Baptiste, son of Jean I^educ, of Montreal. Came October 11, 1710. He was born in 1684, and married Marie Catherine Descary. Lefebvre, Louis. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. His father was Jean Bap- tist Lefebvre, of Montreal. Lefebvre, Nicholas. Came May 33, 1709, voyageur. (His father, Jean Baptiste Lefebvre, lived on St. Peter's River.) Legautier, Francois, sieur de la Vallee Ranee (see Deranee). Lieutenant in the detachment of marines in Canada. Came October 3, 1709 ; died November 13, 1710. Leger, Bourgery. Came April 3, 1707. Leger, called Parisien, Marie Jeanne, daughter of Pierre Leger, baptized Decem- ber 15, 1707. Leger (dit Parisien), Marie Jeanne, daughter of Pierre Leger, dit Parisien. Born August 9, 1709. These two children of the same parents bear the same name. There is no record of the death of either. Leger (called Parisien), Pierre, farmer. His wife was Jeanne Bollard, to whom he was married at Quebec, May 15, 1706. Legros, Jean, called Laviolette, born December 33, 1673. He married Marie Buet, November 34, 1700. He came to Detroit September 6, 1708. Legros, Nicolas. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. He was an elder brother of Jean Legros, and married Marie Charlotte Turpin. Le Maire, Charles, dit St. Germain, voyageur. Came October 17, 1707, with a canoe of merchandise for the Recollect fathers. He was a captain of militia in La- chine. Born 1676, died 1751. Le May, Michel. Agreed, April 35, 1704, to come to Detroit as a, brigadier (fore- man of a boat's crew). Le Mire, Tean, de Marsolet. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. His mother'sname was Louise Marsolet. Le Moyne, Alexis, sieur de Moniere. Came before October 3, 1709. Le Moine, Jacques, merchant. Came June 31, 1706. Le Moine, Rene, merchant. Le Moyne, Marie, wife of Francois Bienvenue, dit Delisle, married in 1708. He had another (first) wife, Genevieve Laferiere. Marie Le Moyne, aged about seventy years, was buried September 6, 1764. Le Moyne, Rene (or Rene Alexander). Came October 13, 1706. Born in 1668, he married Marie Renee Le Boulanger, February 3, 1713. Le Page, Marie. Born in Montreal, 1684, she married June 13, 1706, at Montreal, Francois Beauceron. The date of his death is not given, but it was before 1709, for she is mentioned at that time as a widow. She is the only woman to whom any land was conveyed by Cadillac, within the palisades. Her husband was living at this time (1707), but she was probably separated from him, as he is not mentioned. She must have subsequently married Joseph Vaudry, for they are called legal husband and wife in 1730, and had a child, Mary Magdeleine. It is with the name of Marie 107 Lepage that the first great social scandal of Detroit is connected. The pages of Ste. Anne's record with glaring plainness the false step of this unfortunate woman. It is now impossible to tell, the penance that she performed in atonement for her wrong- doing. The church record, possibly, operated to deter others from following in her path. Whether the man lost prestige or not is unknown, but we do know that he left Detroit about the time this affair became public, and returned to Montreal, where he was appointed the trusted agent and attorney for Cadillac, and retained that position as long as Cadillac remained at Detroit. Le Page, Marie Therese, daughter of Marie Le Page, widow of the late Bausseron and of sieur Grandmenil, commis du Magazin. Born July 24, 1709. This is the first record of an illegitimate child. It is not profitable to trace the descent of this un- fortunate. Lescuyer, Anthoine, came May 28, 1708. He was born in Montreal May 28, 1688. Lescuyer, Jean and Paul, brothers. Came May 29, 1706. They, with Jacques Minuille, brought ten cattle and three horses from Fort Frontenac to Detroit, for Cadillac. They were sons of Pierre Lescuyer, born in Montreal June 16, 1681, and February 15, 1676, respectively. Lescuyer, Pierre. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. He was a brother of the three preceding persons. Born in Montreal February 9, 1674. Lesieur, Jean Baptiste, dit Callot. Came as bargeman May 30, 170.5. L'Esperance, see Compien. L'Espine, Marie Magdelaine, wife of Joseph Parent. She was the daughter of Jacques Marette, dit L'Espine. L'Esquier, Pierre, voyageur. Le Tendre, Adele Genevieve, probably came to Detroit with Mme. La Mothe, Cadillac's wife, as she was god-mother to his daughter, Marie Therese, in 1704. Leveille, Laurent, came June 15, 1706. He was a Pani Indian. Levroir, called Leferte, Antoine. The name should be Antoine Theroux. He was born in 1677 and died February 33, 1759. Levroir, Pierre, son of Antoine Levroir, above, baptized February 23, 1707. He married Rose Poitevin in 1733. L'Isle, see Bienvenue. Livernois, Francis. Francois Benoit, dit Livernois, came to Detroit April 3, 1707. He married Angelique Chagnon in 1710. The name Livernois is quite common in Detroit now. Loisel, Barbe, wife of Francois Legautier, Esq., sieur de Lavallee Ranee, lieuten- ant. Set out to go to her husband at Detroit, September 6, 1708. She was married three times. First to Pierre Roussel, then to Legautier, and, in 1713, to Francois Fafard, dit De Lorme. Loranger, Joseph, dit Rivard, dit La Jauge, see Rivard. Loranger, Nicholas, dit Rivard, voyageur, see Rivard. Lubert Jacques. Magdeleyne, Jean Baptiste, dit Ladouceur, came in 1706. He was born in Mont- real in 1681 and married Elizabeth Millet. Magnant, Antoine, dit L'Esperance. He lived within the palisades and owned a lot there, but he is described in Ste. Anne's records as a citizen of Montreal (1708), a voyageur at present at Fort Pontchartrain. He was born September 34, 1682, at La- prairie. 108 Magnan. Gaspard, dit Champagne, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. He mar- ried Magdeleine Marsille, February 9, 1699. Maionee, Marguerite. Maisme, Marie. Major, see Boutran. Malet, Antoine, son of Pierre Malet. Baptized August 16, 1706. He married Therese Mailhot, August 11, 1730. Mallet, Francois, son of Pierre Mallet, born July 38, 1708. Mallet, Pierre, farmer, voyageur, citizen of Detroit. His wife was Magdeleine Dufresne, widow of Francois Pelletier. Mallet, Rene, voyageur, came November 6, 1707. Apparently he was the father of Pierre Mallet, and died at Montreal, October 24, 1716. Marces, Francois, a soldier. Marcil, Andre, came May 17, 1710. _Maretideau, Marianne (or Maranda) wife of Antoine Dupuis, dit Beauregard. They were married at Montreal, June 9, 1706, and she returned and died there Janu- ary 8, 1730. Marquet, Francois. His wife was Louise Galerneau, and they were married April 26, 1706, at Quebec. They left Detroit some time before Cadillac did, and their third child, Pierre, was born in Montreal in 1710. Marquet, Joseph, son of Francois Marquet, born May 22, 1707. Marquet, Marguerite, daughter of Francois Marquet, born March 20, 1709. De Marsac de Cobtron, Francois, son of Jacob de Marsac. Baptized October 23, 1706. He married Therese Cecile Campau in 1734, and one of their daughters, Marie Louise, became the wife of Robert Navarre in 1763. De Marsac de Cobtron, Jacques, son of Jacob de Marsac. Born November 7, 1707; died December 34, 1745, aged about forty years. The priest guessed at his age, but the record shows that he was thirty eight years of age. De Marsac de Cobtron, Jacob, sieur Desrochers, sergeant in a company in the de- tachment of marines. His wife was Therese David. He was buried Apnl 27, 1747, aged eighty years. Their son Jacques married Marie Anne Chapoton, daughter of Jean Chapoton, surgeon, January 35, 1745. Marsac, Jerome. Marsille, Andre. Martiac, Jerome, dit Sansquartier (or Sanscartier), son of Maurice Martiac and Jeanne Damiot, of the parish of Cha,ubouline, bishopric of Brines in Limozin. Died June 10, 1709. He was a soldier of Detroit. His wife was Marie Anne Gallien. His name is sometimes spelled Marillac. Martiac, Magdeleine, daughter of Hierosmes Martiac (called Sansquartier). Bap- tized January 33, 1707. Martiac (called Sans Quartier). Pierre Jerome, son of Jerome Martiac, dit Sans Quartier. Baptized March 38, 1709. Martin, Claude, came June 15, 1706. Masse, Francois, farmer. His wife was Marguerite Couk, called Lafleur. They were married in 1703. She had been the widow of Jean Fafard. Masse, Jeanne, became the wife of Michel Campau in 1696. She had a daughter Marie Anne Campau, who became the wife of Pierre Belleperche. 109 Masse, Michel. He lived in Montreal, but visited Detroit. Maurisseau, Jacques, voyageur. Came June 15, 1706. Maurivan, Jacques, came 1706. Maurivan, Louis, came 1706. Melain, Marie, wife of Blaise Fondurose, a soldier. She was born in 1689, mar- ried June 9, 1706, lived in Detroit several years, but returned to Montreal and died there April 36, 1713. Merssan, Jean, dit Lapierre. Came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. He is men- tioned as a marguillier, or church trustee, probably of Quebec, by Tanguay. He was born in 1685 and died April 16, 1718. Michel, Jean, agreed to go to Detroit as farmer, October 13, 1703. He probably lived at St. Francois du Lac. Mikitchia, Joseph. Slave belonging to Michel Bezaillin ; Tete Platte (flat head). Baptized March 10, 1710, sixteen years old. Milhet (or Millet), Nicolas, came March 3, 1709. January 4, 1712, he married Louise Cardinal. Minville (or Miville), Jacques. Came May 39, 1706. He, with Paul and Jean Lescuyer, brought ten cattle and three horses from Fort Frontenac^to Detroit, for Cadillac. His wife was Catherine Lescuyer, of Montreal. Moitie, Marie, wife of Pierre Chesne, according to Tanguay, married, October 9, 1700, at Montreal. She was the widow of Jean Magnan, and died December 31, 1727. Monet, Pierre, see La Montague. Monjeau, Gabriel, voyageur. Came April 33, 1710. He was born in 1690 and died April 37, 1718. He did not stop long in Detroit. Monteil, Rene, dit Sansremission. Came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. He did not remain long in Detroit. He died at St. Ours, March 4, 1724. Montfort, , soldier of the company of Desgly; found dead in the woods at the foot of a tree, buried December 31, 1709. I cannot find the first name of this soldier. Morand Pierre. Came as a bargeman. May 30, 1705. He died at Batiscan, June 11, 1729. Moreau, Joseph. Came as a bargeman, May 30, 1705. His home was at Batiscan. Morin, Moise, dit Chesnevert. Came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. He was a ser- geant in the company of Beaucour. Born in Poitiers, Poitou. He married Mag- deleine Monin, November 26, 1707, and made his home at Quebec. Morisseau Louis, came June 15, 1706. Morisseau, Pierre, came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. Normand, Angelique, daughter of Louis Normand, dit Labriere. Born June 20, 1707. She was married three times ; to Jean De Launay, to Jacques Beda, and to Jacques Hermier. Normand, Louis, dit Labriere, tool maker. Came June 7, 1706, to work at his trade. He was born at Quebec, October 13, 1680. Married Anne Bruneau May 29 1701. and died July 15, 1729. Normand (called La Bnere), Marie Therese, daughter of Louis Normand, dit La Briere, born at Detroit, September 1, 1705. Ouabankikow, Marguerite, an Indian of the Miami tribe, the wife of Pierre Roy. 110 There is no record of her marriage, though the priest called her a legal wife. She died of small-pox October 31, 1733. She had six children, baptized in the church at Detroit. Pachot, Jean Marie Daniel. He was born July 30, 1694, and was the son of Fran- cois Vienay Pachot and Charlotte Francoise Juchereau. After his father's death, his mother married Francois de la Forest, a lieutenant under Cadillac, and after- wards commandant at Detroit. Paquet, Jean. He was born in 1683, and February 30, 1708, married Marie Char- land. Parent, Joseph, farmer, master toolmaker and brewer. His wife was Magdeleine Marette, whom he married at Beauport, January 31, 1690. On the 9th of March, 1706, he agreed with Cadillac to go to Detroit to work at his trade for three years. Parent, Marie, daughter of Joseph Parent and Magdeleine Marette, dit Lespine, baptized January 31, 1709. Parent, Marie Madelaine, daughter of Joseph, above, born at Beauport, December 15, 1693, and came with her parents to Detroit between the years 1706 and 1709. Parent, Marguerite, daughter of Joseph, above, born at Montreal, July 7, 1698. Parisien (see Leger). Pastorelle, Anne, wife of Andre Channet, dit Camirand.. He was her second husband. Her first husband was Jean Moriceau. Patenostre, Jean, of St. Lambert, came September 6, 1710. Pepin, Jean, came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Perrin, Mathieu, dit Garaho (or Garaut), came October 2, 1709. He was taken prisoner by the Iroquois while taking goods to Fort Frontenac in 1688. The next year Jeanne Pilet was also taken prisoner by the Iroquois. They met as prisoners, and forming an attachment for each other, were married by Fr. Miller, Jesuit, who was also a captive of the Iroquois at that time. Petit, Marie, wife of Pierre Poirier, dit Lafleur. Tanguay gives the name as Marie Clemence Maupetit. Philippes, dit Belhumeur, Bernard, sergeant in the troops of the department of marines. He married Anne Gallien, widow of Jerome Marillac. They had both lived in Detroit, but were married in Montreal, March 18, 1718. Picard, Alexis, came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. Brother of Francois, mentioned below. He was born in 1681, and died at Montreal, April 33, 1745. Picard, Francois, came as voyageur. May 30, 1705. His wife was Anne Farreau. He died at Detroit, October 7, 1728. Pichet, Pierre. He was born in 1674, married Marie Ann Sylvester at Pointe aux Trembles in 1697 and died August 13, 1712, at Cape Sante. Pineau, Thomas, dit Bundemour, sergeant in troops of the marine. He was sta- tioned in Detroit in 1709. Pinet, Yves, gunsmith, came to Detroit, March 9, 1706, to work at his trade for three years. Plante, Zacharie. Poirier (called La Fleur), Angelique, daughter of Pierre Poirier, dit Lafleur, born March 10, 1709. Poirier, Pierre Rene, dit Lafleur, farmer and soldier. He married Marie Clemence Maupetit, June 13, 1707. Her name is given in Ste. Anne's records as Marie Petit. Ill Pothier, Toussaint, dit La Verdure, voyageur, came September 33, 1707. He lived in Montreal, was born in 1675 and married Marguerite Thunay. Primo, Jean, dit La . came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. The record from which this name is taken has been partly destroyed by time and a portion of the name obliterated. Proteau, Angelique, wife of Etienne Boutron, dit Major. After the death of Bou- tron she married Pierre Germain and died in 1754. Quarante, Sols, or Quarant Sous, see Cheanouvouzon. Quesnel, Jacques and Jean, brothers, voyageurs, came May 18, 1710. They were sons of Oliver Quesnel. Jean was born at Montreal and Jacques at Lachine. They lived at Lachine, Quilenchive. I cannot make out this name. I think it to be an Indian name though I may be as sadly mistaken as I was with the name of Xaintonge. Rabillard, Nicolas, came September 27, 1706. Reaume, Charles, voyageur, came September 38, 1710. The only person I can find bearing this name was a son of Rene Reaume, born April 17, 1688, at Charles- bourg. Renaud, Charles, esquire, sieur Dubuisson, lieutenant of a company and command- ant at Fort Pontchartrain at Detroit, in the absence of M. de Laforest. When Cad- illac left Detroit, Laforest agreed to take his place here at once, but was taken sick and Dubuisson was sent here temporarily to hold it until Laforest's recovery. Renaud, Louis, dit Duval, came June 16, 1706. Antoine Renaud married Francoise Duval. The records do not contain the name of Louis as one of their children, but because he was called Duval, I conclude he was a child of this marriage. Rencontre, or Rancontre, see Jardis. Reneau, Larent, voyageur, came May 23, 1710. He married Anne Guyon at St. Augustin in 1695, and after 1698 he lived at Montreal. Rhodillon, Louise, wife of Jean Baptiste Gouriou. This name should be Chau- dillon. She was born January 11, 1682, at Sorel, and married Gouriou June 33, 1701. Richard, Claude, came April 2, 1707. The only Claude Richard I find was a son of Guillaume Richard, born January 30, 1684. I find no record of his marriage or death Richard, Jean, farmer and interpreter for the king. His wife was Marie Anne Ladecouverte (or Yon). Being dangerously wounded July 7, 1708, he states that he left with his sister, Mme. Duplessis, 720 livres, for which he holds her note, now in the hands of his cousin, Jacques Langlois, and he wishes the sum paid to Pierre Roy. He did not die, however, until several years later. Rivard, Claude, sieur de Lorange. Agreed with the Company of the Colony of Canada, represented by Francois Dumontier, of Montreal, and Etienne Volland de Radisson, of Detroit, to go to Detroit, July 10, 1703, as an interpreter. Rivard, Francois, dit Montendre, came May 19, 1708. Rivard, Robert, came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Rivard, Joseph, dit Montendre, came May 18, 1708. Rivard, Mathurin, came May 18. 1708. Rivard, Nicolas, born in 1686. He married Marie Joseph Raux in 1724, and died in 1739, Rivard, Pierre, dit Lanouette, voyageur, came September 6, 1710. He was born in 1686 and married Marie Anne Caillia, June 9, 1721. 112 MERRILL L MILLS. Rivard, Robert, came May 18, 1708. Robert, Joseph, Mathurin, Claude and Francois were sons of Robert Rivard, of Batiscan. Robert, Francois, came in 1706. He was born in 1678, married Marie Lanctot in 1712 and died in 1756. Robert, Joseph, born in 1674, married in 1701, and died in 1748. He and Francois and Pierre were brothers. He came to Detroit May 12, 1707. Robert, Pierre, dit Lafontaine. He moved to Detroit May 19, 1708, with his wife and children. He had been there before, haying come June 15, 1706, in charge of a canoe of merchandise. His wife was Angelique Ptolomee (or Tholme). After he died his widow married Guillaume Bouche, August 16, 1716. At the marriage of his son Antoine in 1743, this Pierre Robert is referred to as "the late Antoine Robert." The son married Marie Louise Becmond. Robert, Prudent, came August 12, 1710. He was another brother of Pierre Rob- ert, all being sons of Louis Robert. His wife, whom he married at Detroit, January 7, 1711, was Magdeleine Fafard, dit Delorme. Rose, Nicolas, soldier. He was born in 1674 and died in 1746. His wife was Marie Anne Prudhomme. Roy, Edmond, dit Chatellereau. Agreed to come to Detroit July 28, 1704, as brigadier (foreman of a boat's crew). He was to receive 300 livres for the trip. While he never resided in Detroit, his son Joseph did, and was married here in 1736 to Magdeleine Perthuis. Roy, Louis, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. He was born in 1659 and died be- fore 1713. Roy, Marguerite, daughter of Pierre Roy. Baptized April 27, 1704. Roy, Marie Louise, daughter of Pierre Roy. She was baptized May 19, 1708, mar- ried Alexis de Ruisseau, and died in childbirth, December 3, 1735, aged about thirty-one years. Roy, Marie Magdeleine, daughter of Pierre Roy, born May 25, 1710. She married Pierre Chesne, dit La Butte, and died October 20, 1732, aged twenty-two years. Roy, Pierre. It has been stated that this was the first man at Detroit and that he lived with the Indians in this neighborhood before Cadillac came. His wife was Marguerite Ouabankikoue, a Miami Indian. Roy, Pierre, son of Pierre Roy. Baptized April 21, 1706. Roze, Francois and Nicholas, brothers. Came April 13, 1709. They were sons of Noel Roze and born at Quebec. The name should be Rose. Ruiet, Jean, came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. Ruiet, Rene, came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. St. Aubin, Jean, corporal in the garrison. Came to Detroit with Pierre Duroy, April 11, 1707. See Casse. St. Marie, Francois Marie, came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. St. Yves, Joseph, came August 11, 1710 (engage). He was born in 1692 and conse- quently only eighteen years of age. The family name was St. Ange, dit Hogue St. Yves, Pierre, voyageur. Came April 18, 1710. Elder brother of the preceding. He was born in 1683. Solomon. I think this name is a mistake, though it occurs in one of Cadillac's conveyances. I think he intended Salomon Joseph Du Vestin. 113 15 Sanaria, Charlotte, wife of Jacques Desmoulins, dit Philis. She was born in 1679 and died May 5, 1744, at Detroit. Sansquartier, see Martiac. Sarrazin, Joseph, came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Son of Nicholas Sarrazin, born February 34, 1681. Sarrazin, Nicholas, brother of above, born January 12, 1686. Sarrazin, Pierre, came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. Another brother of above, born February 26, 1684. Senecal, Adrien, came as bargeman, May 30, 1705. Senecal, Joseph, came September 10, 1710. He was born in 1674 and died Febru- ary 28, 1736. His wife was Louise Bareau, or Barros. Serond (called L'Eveille), Jean. Simon, Gilbert, or Simon Sanspeur, dit Gilbert, sergeant in the troops. His wife was Marguerite Le Page. She died July 30, 1730, at Detroit. Simon (probably Pierre), came May 18, 1708. The first name of this party has been destroyed in the'notarial record, but his residence is given as Pointeaux Trem- bles, and the only Simon living at that place at this time was Pierre. Sirier, Martin, see Cirier. Slave (Panis), Jacques. A little slave of Pierre Roy, aged seven or eight years. Slave The first mention of negroes is two of Louis Campau's in 1736. Slave (Panisse), Marie Jeanne, belonging to Jean Richard, voyageur, aged about fifteen years. Slave (Panis, Indian), belonging to M. Moynier, aged twelve to fourteen years, died November 16, 1710. Slave (Panis, Indian), Joseph, called Escabia. Belonging to Joseph Parent, aged twenty-one or twenty-two years. He died January 31, 1710. Sontieureuse, Blaise ; lately employed as a soldier in the company of De la Mothe (1707). Tanguay says his name should have been Fondurose. Sontieureuse, Marie, daughter of Blaise Sontieureuse. Born May 14, 1707. Stebre, dit La Jeunesse, Agathe, daughter of Pierre Stebre, dit La Jeunesse Born February 14, 1710, died February 21, 1710. Stebre, dit La Jeunesse, , daughter of Joseph Nicolas Stebre. Born Janu- ary 13, 1711. The priest has omitted to give the first name of the infant. On Janu- ary 19, 1733, they buried Angelique Esteve, wife of Pierre Belleperche, aged about twenty-one j'ears. She died of small-pox. This may be the one born January 12, 1711. Stebre, called La Jeunesse, Pierre, late a soldier. Died July 16, 1736. His wife was Marie Magdeleine Frappier. She died December 33, 1759, aged eighty years. He was at Montreal August 27, 1767. He had a daughter Marguerite, who married Jean Chapoton, surgeon of the fort, July 16, 1720. She died July 7, 1753, aged forty- five years. The name is sometimes given us as Esteve, and Steve, but the descend- ants are now usually called La Jeunesse. Stebre, dit La Jeunesse, Pierre, son of Pierre Stebre. Born May 1, 1708. Married (as Steve) Marie Desforges, widow of Francois Picard, October 24, 1729 Died March 24, 1731. Surgere, Blaise, farmer. I find frequent mention of this name, but cannot identify its possessor, unless it is the same as Sontieureuse, above. 114 Susart, called Delorme, Francois (probably an error on the part of the priest in writing the name of Fafard), dit Delorme. Tabaux, Jacques. Came as bargeman, May 30, 1705, Tabaux, Jean, jr. Came May 15, 1708. He married Angelique Brunet in 1710 and died at Montreal in 1728. Tacet, Pierre. Tesee, Francois. Tessier, Paul. He was a resident of Montreal. Came to Detroit in 1708, and was here again in 1710, when he witnessed the marriaige of Martin Cirier and Marie Anne Bone. Tessier, Antoine, farmer. Tetreau, Jean Baptiste, Joseph, and Laurent, brothers. Came April 21, 1707. Tholme, Angelique, wife of Pierre Robert. This name is given as Angelique Da- lonne, and in some places as Ptolme, by Tanguay. She was buried in 1744, aged about sixty-five years. She married Guillaume Bouche, after the death of Robert. Tichenet, Pierre. Tonty, Alphonse, captain of a company, aged sixty-eight years. Buried Novem- ber 10, 1737. His first wife was Anne Picote. She and Cadillac's wife were the first women in Detroit. She died in 1714, and in 1717 he married Marianne Dela- marque, a widow of Jean Baptiste Nolan. Tonty was an Italian, and frequent references are made to the Italian schemer. Tousignan, Michel, dit Le Pointe. Came September 6, 1710. He was the son of Pierre Tousignan, and married Marie Catherine Lemay. Trottier, Alexis. Came May 18, 1708. Son of Antoine Trottier and brother of Paul, below. He married Marie Louise Roy at Detroit, January 6, 1785, and after her death, married Catherine Godfrey. Trottier, Gabriel, dit St. Jean. Came as bargeman. May 30, 1705. Trottier, Joseph, dit Desruisseaux. Came on October 17, 1708. He was a brother of Michel, and born in 1668. His wife was Francoise Cuillerier. Trottier, Michel, sieur de Beaubien. Came May 18, 1708. He was born in 1675 and married Agnes Godfrey in 1700. Trottier, Paul (brother of Joseph). Ceme October 17, 1708. Truteau, Jean Baptiste, married Magdeleine Parant September 1, 1715, and died in 1754. Truteau, Joseph, carpenter, brother of Jean Baptiste. They came together April 3, 1707. Joseph died at Montreal in 1745. Tuffe, called du Fresne, Antoine. The only person I can find bearing this name was born in Montreal August 21, 1677. Tune, Magdeleine, wife of Pierre Malet. This name should be Du Fresne. She was born in 1669 and married Francois Pelletier. After his death she married Pierre Malet, or Maillet. Turpin, Jean Baptiste, son of Alexander Turpin and Charlotte Beauvais, of Mon- treal. Married Marguerite Fafard, daughter of the late Jean Fafard and Margue- rite Conique, of this parish and new colony, May 5, 1710. Turpin, Jean Baptiste, voyageur. Came October 3, 1709. Turpin, Jean Baptiste, son of Jean Baptiste Turpin. Born December 14, 1710. Vaudry, Etienne, voyageur. Came August 3, 1707. Born at Three Rivers, Oc- tober 37, 1685. 115 Vaudry, Jacques. Came as bargeman May 30, 1705. Born in 1670, and died in 1743. Vaudry, Joseph. Came August 19, 1710. He was born in 1687, and married Mar- guerite Lepage, widow of Simon Gilbert. Etienne, Jacques, and Joseph were broth- ers and sons of Jacques Vaudry and Jeanne Renault. Veron, Etienne, de Grandmenil, appointed attorney in fact for Cadillac, July 26, 1709. His name has been mentioned above. He was born in 1649, married Marie Moral, dit Monteudre, and died at Three Rivers May 18, 1721. He lived several years at Detroit, and was a man of considerable importance, having charge of the public storehouse and acting as amanuensis for Cadillac. Vien, Ignace, Came as voyageur, June 13, 1706. Died 1751, aged eighty years. Villain, Pierre, soldier in company of De La Mothe. Volant, Jean Francois, sieur de Fosseneuve. Agreed to go to Detroit to serve as a hunter, July 10, 1703. He was born in 1670, and married Marguerite Godfroy June 6, 1701. Xaintonge, . When I first encountered this name it stood alone without any connecting names. I concluded it was an Indian name and so stated. Further investigation has led me to conclude that I was greatly mistaken, and that the in- dividual was named Pierre Gareau, dit St. Onge, and that the name St. Onge has been gradually changed to Saintonge and from that to Xaintonge. Zerbain, Pierre, dit St. Pierre, a soldier. CHAPTER XIII How the Confusion Arose Among the Names of the Pioneers — Father Christian Denissen's Discoveries Regarding the Changing of Family Names. ' In compiling these records Mr. Byrton was somewhat embarrassed by the confusion which existed among the early names, and said: " I confess that I do not understand how the old French names were made up. It seems that each member of a family . . . took to himself such a name as he saw fit — possibly taking the name of some tract of land — some seigniory that he possessed and named. Thus we have, in many instances, a family of brothers each bearing a different name. The use of the given name was little known. Even as late as 1700 the use of the surname was not fully understood, and it is no unfrequent circumstance to find the name of a descendant entirely unlike that of his ancestor." The same difficulty has been experienced by all students of French colonial history and genealogy, and Mr. Burton's frank statement for- tunately elicited the following explanation from Rev. Christian Denis- sen, Pastor of St. Charles's church, Detroit: 116 "The early colonists of Lower Canada obtained from the French government grants of extensive tracts of land. These grants were executed in the medieval phraseqlogy used under the feudal system of holding real estate. The settlers, assuming a resemblance between their holdings and the domains of the French barons and ' seigneurs,' called their large, wild farms by certain titles, and affixed the same to their own family names, in imitation of the European nobility. In some cases these titles were confirmed by the government. The owners of these estates considered themselves seigneurs of this new country, and were proud of the affixes to their names. In business transactions these additions to their signatures were used with all their flourishes. At baptisms the titles had to be entered in the parish registers; at marriages the affix to the old family name sounded high, both for bride and groom, in the verbose marriage contract; respectability was in- creased by the presence of many witnesses with titled names. " In this manner the owners of large estates in Lower Canada, at a certain period of the seventeenth century, looked upon themselves and upon each other as a. quasi- nobility. Their children naturally assumed these titles, and often thought more of the affixes than of their own family names. Feudalism was about dead, and fast dying in Europe in those days, and therefore could not gain foothold in America. In the eighteenth century we do not find new titles originating ; still the old ones re- mained. The grandchildren and great-grandchildren of these pioneers often dis- carded the old family names, and were known only by the new title. Hence the new names the genealogists has to contend with. "As an illustration, take the Trotier family. The Trotiers of America all de- scended from Julius Trotier, born in 1590, in the parish of St. Martin, in the town of Ige, in the province of Perch, France. He, seemingly a common citizen, came with the family to Canada about the year 1645. His children married in Canada, and, in the course of time, had large families. They obtained extensive estates, and were very lavish in originating titles for the same. In a few years we find Trotier Sieur des Ruisseaux, Trotier Seigneur de I'lsle Perrot, Trotier Sieur de Beaubien, Tro- tier Seigneur de la Riviere du Loup, Trotier Seigneur de I'lsle aux Herons, Trotier Sieur des Aulniers, Trotier de la Bissoniere, Trotier dit Desrivieres, Trotier de Bellecour, Trotier de Valcour, etc. Many of these Trotiers gradually dropped the family name and signed only the assumed name. Hence we have the families of Beaubien, Desruisseaux, Bellecour, Labissonniere, Desrivieres, Devalcour, etc. All these trace to a common ancestor, Julius Trotier. "Another cause of the change of French names was the custom, so prevalent in former times, of nicknaming themselves and others. This was done sometimes to discern one family from another of the same name ; as one of the Baron families was nicknamed Lupien— Baron dit Lupien— to distinguish it from other Baron families, Lupien being the christian name of the ancestor of that family in this country. At other occasions the nickname originated through family pride. When a member of a family became distinguished, that branch of a family would annex the christian name of the hero, or, if a woman, the family name of the revered heroine. In this manner some Cuilleriers lost their own name throtigh the marriage of John Cuillerier with Mary Catherine Trotier de Beaubien. This lady was distinguished through her family title of Beaubien, and after John Cuillerier's death, by becoming the wife of Francis Picote de Belestre, the last French commandant of Fort Pontchartrain. ' 117 On this account her children from the first marriage signed themselves Cuillerier dit Beaubien, and in later generations Cuillerier was dropped and nothing left but Beaubien. These are the Beaubiens of our vicinity. "Another instance of the same kind we find in the family of Leonard. Leonard Simon, born at Montreal, September 3, 1656, was considered by his descendants to have been a great man, consequently the family name became became Simon dit Leonard ; in time the old name, Simon, was dropped and Leonard became the fam- ily name. These Leonards we find in Monroe and vicinity in great abundance. "Again, families glorifying the section of country their forefathers came from, added to their names the province, city or town of their ancestor. In this manner the Sedilot family, who came from the city of Montreuil, in Picardy, France, became Sedilot dit Montreuil. So it was with Casse, who emigrated from the town of St. Aubin; they became Casse dit St. Aubin, and now are only St. Aubin. The same we find in Bourgeat, who came from the province of Provence; they adopted Bour- geat dit Provencal, and now are Provencal. We meet with the same case in the family of Lootman, who are of Holland origin, and moved from the Netherlands to the province of Berry, France ; they became in Canada Lootman dit Barrios ; later on in Detroit we find t,hem as Barrois. The same is true of Toulouse, Champagne, Gascon, Langoumois, and many others. There were nicknames that originated from the birthplace, like Nicolas Campau dit Niagara, who was born at the portage of Niagara, when his parents were traveling from Detroit to Montreal. It happened also that nicknames were given by Indians, as Labadie dit Badichon, Peltier dit Antaya. Nicknames have also been given frivolously, and would stick in future generations, as in the family of Poissant, sounding like Poisson (fish) ; by adding Lasaline (salt), Poissant dit Lasaline (salt fish). Another way of nicknaming was by adopting a peculiar christian name by which a certain person was known in the community. So we find in the family of Le Tourneux a Jean Baptiste Tourneux, who settled in Sandwich, opposite the present Michigan Central depot of Detroit, about 1786 He was known by every one as Jeannette, the diminutive of Jean; by incorrect spelling he became Janet and Janette, hence Le Tourneux dit Janette. His numerous descendants are called Janette. From him we have Janette street in Windsor, Ont., and farther west, Janette's Creek and Janette railroad station. "The most curious way of changing names we find in the family of Ellair or Elaire. The common ancestor is Hilaire Sureau, who came from France and mar- ried at Quebec, June 18, 1691. His son's name was Peter Sureau dit Blondin, who married at Montreal in 1723; and his children signed themselves Blondin dit Hilaire. Their descendants were named Hilaire, and in Detroit the name has been corrupted into Ellair. " Other modes might be mentioned. It is singular that scarcely a name has been adopted from the trade, occupation or profession that a person followed. These nicknames are attached to the names by the word ' dit,' which might be rendered in our language by 'called,' 'named,' 'namely,' 'to wit,' 'known as;' but 'dit' is so idiomatically French that it can hardly be translated into English. The suppression of ' s ' in some names, as from Chesne to Chene, Estienne to Etienne is accounted for by the evolution of the French language from the old form to the modern way of spelling." 118 During the fifty-nine years of French rule in Detroit the CotiUnne de Paris, or custom of Paris, was the law of the land. At first the local customs of France were in many cases peculiar to each province of that country, but after the lapse of time they were gradually assimi- lated and were embodied in the general law. The Coutume de Paris was the common law of New France and of all the French colonists in America. It was continued in Louisiana, and in the States formed out of it, after the purchase from the French by the United States, unless expressly abrogated by State or United States statutes. The coutume was a printed book and contained the legal forms for conveying real estate or personal property by deed or will, for mar- .riage and other contracts, and for other instruments, and these were drawn up by notaries, who were appointed by the governor-general. In each of the settlements of New France there was a Notaire-Royal, who drew up all legal papers, and was a_ person of legal and social con- sequence. CHAPTER XIV. Cadillac is Made Governor of Louisiana — His Apparent Promotion is a Scheme of His Enemies— They Confiscate His Property and He Returns to France Ruined and Heartbroken— 1710-1720. In 1710 the king appointed Cadillac governor of Louisiana, which at that time comprised all the territory in the present States of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and parts of Illi- nois, Kentucky, Tennessee and Iowa. He was directed not to go to Quebec, but to proceed to Mobile overland. La Forest, who had been with La Salle, and later one of Cadillac's subordinates, was appointed his successor, but as he was old and in feeble health, he could not come for a time. Lieut. Joseph Guyon Dubuisson was dispatched to Detroit, bearing Cadillac's commission as governor of Louisiana, and armed with authority which made him temporary commandant until La For- est was able to come. Cadillac remained in Detroit for nearly a year afterward, during which time he attempted to secure a settlement to compensate him for his investment. He had an estate at Detroit which he valued at 135,000 Hvres, and which he was anxious to realize 119 upon, so that the proceeds might be applied in advancing his new inter- ests in Louisiana; but there was no one in the settlement able to buy, and M. de La Forest had neither money or credit, he said. There was an area of 400 arpents of cleared land, several houses which the com- mandant had built to rent, a brewery, a grist mill, a warehouse, an ice house, and all the rents and seignorial dues appertaining to his office. He had invested nearly all his capital and could find no purchaser. He appealed to the the government to take the material off his hands, but in vain. He was forbidden to sell the cattle he had brought from Montreal, together with the increase. Even his horse Colin could not be sold. The regulations prevented him from disposing of a large store of ammunition and arms which he had purchased. It was kept in the name of the king on the pretext that the succeeding command- ant could not buy them, and yet the post could not be maintained without the use and benefit of .Cadillac's private property. The matter was finally settled by a written agreement in which La Forest was to allow Cadillac two officers to have charge of his property until some ships arrived from France at Quebec, next year, at which time he promised to make a purchase of the property. In the mean time Cad- illac was to enjoy the revenue of the post as in the past, and was to allow La Forest two hundred crowns a year. While he remained in Detroit he collected rents for his buildings, and also the revenue from the flouring mill. In the spring of 1711 he quarreled with Dubuisson over the question of authority, and they both appealed to Vaudreuil with the result that three commissioners, Pierre Roy, Pierre Chesne and Father Constantine de Niau, were appointed to take an inventory of Cadillac's property. They made an inventory, and Cadillac left Pierre Roy in charge. Cadillac's tenants were ordered to pay their rents thereafter to Dubuisson. As soon as Cadillac departed in 1711, Dubuisson compelled Pierre Roy to surrender all of Cadillac's property, which was done. A large quantity of powder, ball and arms, which had been purchased by Cadillac and stored in the arsenal, was thus seized by Dubuisson in the name of the king, and he sent a bill there- for to Intendant Begon and received payment, which showed that he was nothing but a thief. Father De Niau wrote Cadillac about the seizure ; Cadillac appealed to Count Pontchartrain ; and in revenge for Cadillac's complaint Du- buisson had the western half of the stockade torn down. The material was used to strengthen the eastern half, and a new row of palisades 120 was erected so as to inclose but one-half of the buildings. The house in which Madame Cadillac and her children still lived, the houses of Roy, Parent, De Lorme, Canipau, Mallette and Robert, all settlers who had been Cadillac's adherents, the house of the priest, the church and the home of Dr. Jaubblivois, surgeon of the post, were left outside ex- posed to the tender mercies of the Indians. Soon afterward La Forest applied for all the perquisites of the post in a letter to Governor Vaudreuil. Cadillac protested, but La Forest said that his own presence was necessary at Detroit because the Indians were killing each other and everything was in an uproar. In the end, the retiring commandant got nothing for his investments. Cadillac left Detroit for France and stayed there for a time, but probably proceeded to Acadia before going to Louisiana, as the vessel that brought him to his new charge contained a consignment of twenty-five young women from Cape Breton in Acadia. He arrived at Dauphine (formerly called Massacre) Island in Louisiana, on May 13, 1713, in a French frigate. Bienville, who had been governor, was relegated to second place, and was much disquieted thereby and showed his jealousy plainly. Cadillac soon found enemies; they sprung" up at every turn and nearly all the French officials conspired against him. As the De Caens, the Company of the Colony, Aubert, and other traders of the North, were granted special privileges by the crown, so Antoine Crozat was granted all the profits of commerce in Louisiana for a period of fifteen years. The country was remote from the fur trade, and the adventurers who sought fortunes in the new world were too impatient to wait for the development of agricul- ture. Crozat expected to find mines which would enrich him with gold or silver. His grant was issued in 1712, just a year after Cadillac be- came governor,' and he urged the new chief of the colony to search diligently for precious metals, promising him a share of the profits. He also ordered Cadillac to establish trading posts on the Wabash and Illinois Rivers. Cadillac felt that he was being treated as an agent of Crozat rather than as the governor of a great area of territory; that as he was on the ground, and with a general knowledge of the country, he should be left to formulate plans for the development of the coun- try, instead of being ordered about by a man who knew nothing about its natural resources. He wrote to the ministry to express his views : " I have seen Crozat's instructions to his agents. I thought they were issued from a lunatic asylum and there appeared to me to be no more sense in them than in the 1-Zl 16 Apocalypse. What ! is it to be expected that, for any commercial or profitable pur- pose, boats will ever be able to run up the Mississippi into the Wabash, the Missouri or the Red Rivers? One might as well try to bite a slice off the moon. Not only are those rivers as rapid as the Rhine, but in their crooked course they emulate to perfection a snake's undulations. Hence, for instance, on every turn of the Missis- sippi it would be necessary to wait for a change of wind, if wind could be had, be- cause this river is lined up with thick woods so that very little wind passes along its bed." Cadillac, however, obeyed Crozat's orders in regard to prospecting for metal ; and sent out a number of exploring parties, composed most- ly of Canadians. No gold or silver was discovered but lead mines were found near what is now Dubuque. Gayerre, in continuation of his il- logical and absurd deprecation of Cadillac, says that his daughter fell in love with Bienville, who, however, did not seem conscious of his good fortune and kept himself wrapped in respectful blindness. Cadillac did not think Bienville was a fit mate for his child, but realizing the in- evitable, invited his subordinate to an interview and gave him a knowl- edge of the situation. Bienville, however, declared he would never marry and the interview ended. ,The French historian says that Cad- illac was transported with rage, and to get even sent Bienville on an expedition against the Natchez Indians, who had murdered four Cana- dians in Illinois. The force allowed him was thirty- four all told, and he had to face 800 warriors. Bienville remonstrated, but Cadillac insisted, and the former departed. His mission, however, was successful; he forced the Natchez to deliver the heads of the three murderers and re- turned home in triumph. About this time Cadillac went to France, probably to consult the government in reference to the affairs in the colony, which were in an unsatisfactory condition. In his letters he spoke of " subaltern officers who are swayed entirely by their own in- terests and care little for the prosperity of the colony. . . There are as many governors here as there are officers. . . What can I do with a force of forty soldiers . . badly fed, badly paid, badly clothed and without discipline?" It was a repetition of his experiences at De- troit. He returned to Louisiana, but in a short time came to an open rup- ture with Crozat, the great French merchant, who told him bluntly that all the evils he complained of originated from his own bad admin- istration. Then came a letter of dismissal. At the foot of the letter the new minister of marine had written these words: "The Governor La Mothe Cadillac, and the commissary Duclos, whose disposition and 122 humor are incompatible ; and whose intellects are not equal to the func- tions with "which his majesty has entrusted them, are dismissed from office." Cadillac was succeeded by D'Epinay, who came to Louisiana in March, 1717, with three French frigates, and Cadillac went back to France in one of them, and left the new world behind him forever. Crozat did not prosper under the new regime and threw up his monop- oly later in the same year. But little is known of Cadillac's life after he returned to France, but it would appear that his enemies were not content to let him alone. A year afterward he spent the winter of 1718 in theBastile; the cause of his imprisonment is not known. After being released from the Bastile he spent much time in efforts to recover the value of his Detroit prop- erty. He wrote the following letter in 1733 or 1733, to " His most serene highness, the Count of Toulouse, admiral of France:" "La Mothe Cadillac has the honor to represent to His Most Serene Highness, that the answer of MM. de Vaudreuil and Begon is founded only on the reporfthat M. de Tonty made to them ; consequently it deserves no attention. The petitioner has the honor to ask His Serene Highness for a formal grant of all Detroit as a Seigniory [carrying with it], higher, middle and lower jurisdiction, with rights of hunting, fishing and trading, and on the terms and conditions laid down in the contracts he has already granted, with the right of patronage of the churches of said seigniory. M. de La Mothe very humbly begs his majesty to attach to said seigniory the title of marquis or count. The petitioner's warehouses have been pulled down, and also the timber of the church and other houses with which the fort has been repaired and re- doubts built; his cattle have been killed and eaten; the rents and proceeds of his lands and his mill have also been taken. His majesty should accord a favor to the petitioner by granting him a pension of a thousand livres from the funds of the order of St. Louis, and a pension of like amount to his family on the navy or elsewhere by pref- erment, or in default of the two, an abbey or a. benefice for M. Joseph La Mothe, son of petitioner, who was born at Detroit, aged twenty-one years, and an ecclesias- tic. The petitioner asks this as a recompense for his losses and for forty years' ser- vice he has given the king." At this time Cadillac was negotiating with the government for his appointment to the governorship of Castel-Sarrasin, if it had not al- ready been bestowed upon him. His appointment came in December, 1723, and cost him 16,500 livres. He was authorized to collect rents and fees of the inhabitants, and of this amount he was to pay 300 livres annually to the royal treasurer. In 1731 the king, in order to reward certain of his subjects, deprived certain cities of the right to elect their municipal executives, and made the offices appointive by the crown. Three years later the rights were restored to the people, and 133 it is possible that Cadillac was deposed when the election took place. He died on October 15, 1730, and his remains were interred in the old Carmelite church of Castel-Sarassin. His wife died in 1746. They had thirteen children, of whom Magdalene was born at Port Royal or Mt. Desert, and another daughter whose name is not known. Those born at Quebec were Antoine, who came to Detroit with his father; James who came to Detroit with his mother; Peter, Dennis and Mary Ann, who died young. Those born in Detroit were a child whose bap- tismal record was probably destroyed by the fire of 1703; Mary Theresa, who afterward married De Gregoire in France; John Anthony, died young ; Mary Agatha, Francis, Louis, Joseph and another daugh- ter. His children tried to get possession of his Detroit property, but their efforts were fruitless. In after years his granddaughter, wife of Bartholomey De Gregoire, petitioned the State of Massachusetts for the lands of two townships of extent, on the coast, with the islands in front, granted to Cadillac by the French crown. Their petition was successful, and in 1787 they became the owners of the lands, which comprised 184,273 acres. The Gregoires lived on the island of Mt. Desert for several years, but sold the property in 1792; they died on that island and were buried there. The lands are now in the State of Maine, which was admitted to the Union in 1820. CHAPTER XV. Pierre Francois de Charlevoix Visits Detroit in 1731— Detroit is Declared a Most Desirable and Important Post— Founding of the Huron Mission at Sandwich in 1738. The first distinguished visitor of the new colony of Detroit was Pierre Francois de Charlevoix, a Jesuit, and a learned man, who came from France to Quebec in 1705, and for four years was a teacher in the col- lege of the order at that place. He then returned to France, but came to Canada again in 1720 to write a history of that province. He made a tour of the lake country and arrived at Detroit in 1721. At Detroit he wrote letters, one of which recommended that the infant colony should be strengthened by emigrants from Montreal. He attended a council of the principal nations who had then villages near Detroit, 124 JAMES MCMILLAN. where the liquor question and the practice of selling French brandy to the Indians was discussed. In alluding to Detroit he wrote: "It is pretended that this is the finest part of all Canada, and really if we can judge by appearances, nature seems to have denied it nothing which can contribute to make a country delightful ; hills, meadows, fields, lofty forests, rivulets, fountains, rivers, and all of them so excellent of their kind and so happily blended as to equal the most romantic wishes. The lands, however, are not equally proper for every kind of grain, but most are of a wonderful fertility, and I have known some to pro- duce good wheat for eighteen years running without any manure, and besides all of them are proper for some particular use. The Islands seem placed on purpose for the pleasure of the prospect, the river and lake abound in fish, the air is pure and the climate temperate and extremely wholesome'" The following is his description of the council of the chiefs of the three Indian villages near Detroit: " On the 7th of June, which was the day of my arrival at the fort [Detroit], Mons. de Tonty, who commands here, assembled the chiefs of the three villages I have just mentioned, in order to communicate to them the orders he had received from the Marquis Vaudreuil (the governor-general). They heard him calmly and without interruption. When he had done speaking the orator of the Hurons told him in a few words that they were going to consult about what he had proposed to them, and would give their answer in a short time. It is the custom of the Indians not to give an immediate answer on an affair of any importance. Two days afterward they assembled at the commandant's, who was desirous I should be present at the council, together with the ofiioers of the garrison. Sasteratsi, whom the French call king of the Hurons, and who is in fact hereditary chief of the Tinnontatez, who are the true Hurons, was also present on this occasion, but as he is still a minor, he came only for form's sake; his uncle, who governs in his name, and who is called regent, spoke in quality of orator of the nation. Now, the honor of speaking in the name of the whole is generally given to some Huron, when any of them happen to be of the council. Imagine to yourself, Madame, half a score of savages, almost stark naked, with their hair disposed in as many different manners as there are per- sons in the assembly, and all of them equally ridiculous; some with laced hats, all with pipes in their mouths, and with the most unthinking faces. It is besides a rare thing to hear one utter as much as a single word in a quarter of an hour, or to hear any answer made even in monosyllable ; not the least mark of distinction, nor any respect paid to any person whatsoever. We should, however, be apt to change our opinions of them on hearing the result of their deliberations." The above gives a fair picture of an Indian council under French rule in those parts. The aborigines, being the original owners of the lands and the source of all the trade, were necessarily consulted on every measure affecting the polity of the settlement, so that they could co- operate with the French in carrying it into effect. 125 THE HURON MISSION OF DETROIT. Father Charlevoix was naturally solicitous for the interests of his or- der, as well as deeply interested in the spiritual welfare of the Huron Indians, and accordingly wrote to Quebec soliciting the father superior to send a missionary to the Hurons at this point. The Hurons were the first Indian nation that were converted to Christianity. After a series of bloody wars with the Iroquois they had been practically wiped out as a confederacy in 1649. Some of the tribes were forced to join the nations of the Iroquois and the rest were scattered. Those who settled in Detroit prospered under French rule, and a report made to the French government in 1718, showed that their fort and village was near Fort Pontchartrain ; it was situated about the mouth of the Savoyard River, which flowed into the Detroit, at the foot of Fourth street, where the Michigan Central depot grounds are now situated. The report stated that they were very industrious and raised a large amount of corn, peas, beans and wheat. "Their fields are free from weeds and their bark cabins are strong and comfortable, divided into rooms and very clean. Their fort is strongly inclosed with pickets and redoubled bastions and strong gates. The magazine in their fort contains at all times a large supply of grain ; their tribal organization is similar to that of the Iroquois; they are expert hunters and steadfast friends of the French. They are talented and most industrious of all the Indian na- tions in this vicinity ; they were well clad and some wore overcoats in winter. The men hunt summer and winter and the women are always at work." The same report describes the Ottawas on the opposite side of the strait, their fortification being in the limits of the present town of Walker- ville, Ont. , opposite the eastern part of Detroit. ' ' Their fort is a strong one; their cabins similar to those of the Hurons; their people indus- trious and well clad, and the finest formed and most athletic appearing of the Indians in the vicinity. " In 1728, seven years after Father Charlevoix's recommendation, the father superior of the Jesuits at Quebec sent Father Armand de la Richardie to Detroit. Since the founding of the settlement, the Recol- lects, of the Franciscan order, had the spiritual care of the garrison and the colonists on both sides of the Detroit River, and to avoid a conflict of jurisdiction. Father Richardie obtained authority to found a mission on the opposite side of the stream, just above the present town of 126 Sandwich, Ont. The shores on both sides of the river at that time were generally bordered by bluffs from fifteen to twenty feet in height, but at this point they formed a beautiful semi-circular bay, and sloped down to the water's edge. The mission was dedicated to the Assump- tion and the present Church and College of the Assumption stand on a part of the extensive grounds. The mission house, used at first as the priest's residence and presbytery*, was built of hewn or sawed pine timber, 30 by 45 feet, and two stories and a half in height, with dormer windows in the attic. The largest portion of this structure is still standing and is the oldest building in these parts. The church, built in the same manner, was 45 by 90 feet. Besides the church and priest's residence, there was also a large storehouse for furs, an- other for goods and provisions, and a forge or blacksmith shop, with suitable outbuildings. This religious and mercantile establishment was erected primarily and directly for the use of the Hui'ons living in De- troit, and they could there barter their furs without fear of being cheated, and it was also a place where the trade in French brandy or eau de vie could be controlled and its evils lessened. But other Indians could also trade there, and so also could, and did, many of the citizens and soldiers of Detroit. In 1738, however, the Hurons became em- broiled with the Ottawas, and afterward removed to Sandusky, and about 1742 again removed to Bois Blanc Island at the mouth of the river, eighteen miles below Detroit. Here Father Richardie sent Father Peter Potier to be their spiritual guide, and the land was culti- vated. In 1747, as will be related further on, the Hurons, invited by the Iroquois, engaged in a conspiracy against the French in the fort, but the plot was discovered and no blood was spilled. The sub-mission at Bois Blanc Island was broken up and Father Potier returned to Sand- wich, and the Hurons followed him and settled around the mission house. Father Potier was born in France in 1709, entered the Society of Jesus and was ordained to the priesthood in 1742. In 1743 he came to Quebec and was soon after sent to Detroit to assist father Richardie, who placed him in charge of the farm and mission at Bois Blanc Island. Here, in addition to his pastoral duties, he commenced to study the Huron language and was the author of three grammars of that tongue before he died. The Huron language is similar to that of the Mohawks, both being of Iroquois stock. In 1755 Father Richardie 127 gave up the charge of the mission and went to Quebec and was succeeded by Father Potier. The latter continued the good work of converting the Indians and ministering to their physical and spiritual needs until 1781. He became very feeble, being over seventy two years of age. On July 16, of that year, while in his study he was at- tacked by vertigo, and falling backward, his head struck one of the andirons of the hearth, causing a fracture of the skull which proved fatal. His obsequies were performed two days afterward by Vicar- General Hubert of St. Anne's, Detroit, and his body was buried beneath the altar of the old church. When the present Church of the Assumption was dedicated in 1851, the remains were reinterred beneath the altar of that church. There were two other priests who were also disinterred and reburied at the same time, but Father Potier's remains were easily identified by his tall stature and the hole in his skull. THE OLD JESUIT REGIME. During the long spiritual rule of the Jesuits in America, their cour- age and zeal in the interest of religion and morality excited numerous and bitter enmities. In the old world the same qualities and conduct led them to attack profligacy in high places, and for this and other causes they were successively expelled from almost every country in Europe. In 1773, thirteen years after New France had become a British colony. Pope Clement XIV, at the dictation of three leading European nations, issued a papal edict, suppressing the Society of Jesus throughout the world. Sir Guy Carleton, governor of Canada, heard of the order, and in 1774, when it came to Bishop Brand at Quebec, he forbade the latter to promulgate it. Carleton, afterward Lord Dorchester, was a Protestant, and as such had no sympathy with the order, but he was a statesman. He knew that the Jesuits were the only persons in Canada who could control the Indians and that Great Britain would sustain great losses if the order were disintegrated. Thus commanded. Bishop Brand obeyed, and thereby braved the ter- rible penalty of excommunication. He explained his course to Rome, but before action was taken Pope Clement died in 1774, and was suc- ceeded by Pius VI, who was a friend of the Jesuits. The edict was obeyed in all parts of the world except Canada and White Russia, and the missions and other establishments in these countries were held intact by the order. But Sir Jeffrey Amherst, who had been appoint- 128 ed governor general of the British possessions in America in 1760, and was governor of Virginia in 1763, coveted the rich lands of the Jesuits in Canada, and petitioned parliament for them as a recompense for his services. The question was referred to the judiciary of the House of Lords, who were quite willing to accommodate a distinguished soldier, but the fact that the lands had been granted to the Jesuits for ' educational purposes, forbade them to make a report favoring Gen- eral Amherst's interests. They did report, in effect, that any lands granted to the Jesuits, and not used for educational purposes, might be escheated to the crown. Amherst paid the expenses of two com- .mittees of investigation, and after his death, in 1797, the matter was pressed by his son, but their efforts were fruitless. Finally it was ordered that the Jesuits in Canada should not increase their num- ber, and that after the death of all the existing members of the order the property should revert to the crown. Ap the time there were thir- teen Jesuits in the whole of Canada, whose names, locations and ages were as follows : Augustine de Glapion, superior, Quebec, fifty-five years. Peter Du Jaunay, chaplain of the Ursuline Convent, Quebec, seventy years. John Joseph Casot, Quebec, forty-six years. Alexis Morquette, Quebec, sixty-four years. Peter Rene Floquet, Montreal, fifty-eight years. Bernard Wall, Montreal, fifty years. Stephen Girault de Villeneuve, with the Hurons at Loretto, near Quebec, fifty years. Peter Potier, Huron mission of Detroit, sixty-six years. Antoine Gordan, Iroquois mission at St. Regis, forty-nine years. Jean Baptiste de la Prosse, missionary with Abinaquis at Tadousac, at the mouth of the St. Lawrence, fifty years. Joseph Huguet, missionary with the Iroquois at Laprairie, forty-nine years. Louis M. La Franc, missionary with the Ottawas, fifty-eight years. Sebastian L. Meaurin, Kaskaskia, 111., sixty-seven years. The commandants of the various places in which the Jesuits were stationed were specially instructed in regard to filing reports of the dates of their deaths, and Col. Arent Schuyler De Peyster, command- ant of Detroit from 1779 to 1784, was notified to seize Father Potier's papers immediately after his demise and forward them to the governor- 129 17 general. De Peystef did so, but the old priest had removed them, and the notes in his diary for 1761-63 were gone. The reason for the latter will be related further on in the chapter which treats of Gladwin's de- fense of Detroit against Pontiac. Father Potier had also taken good care that the British should not profit at the expense of the order. He had sold all the lands belonging to the Jesuit mission at Sandwich and- Detroit, the deeds having been signed by the superior of the order at Quebec, and when he died there remained only the church, the priest's residence and the graveyard, neither of which could be confiscated. The other lands of the order in Canada, however, were all seized and the revenues applied to educational purposes, a majority of which were non-Catholic. About ten years ago, a movement asking for a restora- tion of these lands to the order was commenced, and after several years discussion in parliament it was decided that $400,000 should be con- sidered as an equivalent of the $4-, 000, 000 worth of property taken from the Jesuits. It was left to the Pope and his counselors to determine how it should be bestowed, and they decided that the Catholic arch- bishop of the Province of Quebec should have the largest half, and the Jesuit order of that province the smallest half. For legal reasons some $63,000 were also given for educational purposes to the Protestant de- nomination in Lower Canada. When all this was done, the matter was disposed of for all time. CHAPTER XVI. Detroit is Besieged by the Sacs and Foxes, Indians from Green Bay — The Church of St. Anne's Burned— Hard Fought Battle at Windmill Point in Which the Hostile Indians are Defeated — 1712. Even with Cadillac out of the way there was still a demand for an able commandant at Detroit. Dubuisson found himself confronted with an Indian war in 1712, soon after Cadillac had gone to France to prepare for his new office. On the peninsula which incloses Green Bay, and in the adjoining territory, dwelt a tribe of Indians known as the Foxes; they were Ishmaelites among the western tribes and had a sort of alliance with the Iroquois of the east. An army of this tribe came down to erase Detroit from the map in the spring of 1712. Dubuisson, 130 who had a singular gift for romancing, describes them as an innumer- able throng who came with streaming banners and accompanied by many allies, each bearing the ensign of the tribe. This was an unusual practice and was probably a fanciful description. At the time of their arrival the friendly Hurons and Ottawas were on a hunting trip, but runners were sent out to notify them, and they returned and rallied to the defense of the. post and were admitted through the gates of the fort. The Foxes were associated with the Outagamies and Mascoutins when they commenced the siege. The church of St. Anne was close to the stockade, and for fear that it might be set on fire by the blazing arrows and endanger the other buildings, the rattled commandant pro tern. burned it himself. The hostiles built a long breastwork within two hundred feet of the fort, and fired hundreds of blazing arrows of pitch pine into the roofs bf the buildings, many of which were thatched with grass, and the place was in danger of destruction. But the peltries in the warehouse were brought out, and the roofs were covered with wetted skins so that the danger from fire was greatly reduced. After making an unsuccessful attempt to capture the fort, and failing also to fire it, the hostiles withdrew to the banks of Lake St. Clair, and the commandant forthwith dispatched M. de Vincennes with a company of Frenchmen and an army of Indians to drive them away. The attack- ing party found the enemy entrenched behind fallen trees near the present Windmill Point. Instead of charging this breastwork and sac- rificing many lives in the assault, the French and their allies erected high stagings along the front of the works, and taking positions on these, they compelled the Foxes to keep under cover. The latter were not permitted to resort to the lake shore for water and were finally com- pelled by the torments of thirst to break cover and fly. Dubuisson in his official report said that 1,000 of the invaders were killed, while his loss was trivial, but his figures should be taken with due allowance for an imaginative temperament. It is certain that the survivors of this foray were a formidable body. They returned to Green Bay, where they erected a large stockade on a commanding site at " Buttes des Morts" (" Hills of the Dead ") and they caused that region to be avoid- ed for years after by the traders of the fur companies. This trouble compelled the aged De la Forest to come and take charge of the post in person in 1712, and the friendly Indians who had been so loyal were rewarded with many presents. One of La Forest's first acts was to rebuild the church of St. Anne. The first had been 131 destroyed in the mysterious fire of 1703; the second in 1712, to prevent the attacking forces from using it as a shelter; and that erected by De la Forest was the third. Detroit was but a feeble military station at this time. Of the fifty soldiers who had come with Cadillac, all but twenty had deserted. Settlers had not increased because of the discouragements which had been thrown in their way by the enemies of the post. M. de la Forest saw the natural advantages of Detroit, and at first urged its develop- ment into an important settlement, but soon yielded to the subtle influ- ence of the Mackinaw traders and priests, and did not attempt to attract settlers. He was old in years and his vital energies were about spent. Before two years had passed he was relieved by the appoint- ment of that once gay lieutenant, Charles Jacques Sabrevois, with whom Cadillac had a serious quarrel in Quebec twenty-nine years be- fore. Sabrevois was no longer a frivolous lady-killer, but a man of conservative ideas and he and Cadillac were on friendly terms when the latter left the colony. He remained in command from 1714 until 1717, when Henry Tonty, brother of Captain Alphonse and son of Bras de Fer (Hand of Iron), the old companion of La Salle, was made com- mandant, although the Sieur de Louvigny was acting commandant until he arrived. In 1717 the Foxes had become such a detriment to travel in the northwest that M. Louvigny was sent to Green Bay with an expedition of French and Indians. For five years^the Foxes had so commanded the territory of Wisconsin that no traders could cross from Green Bay to the Mississippi, without paying them tribute, and Louvigny laid siege to their fort with the determination of driving them out. Just as he was about to order a general assault upon their works the Foxes surrendered, and after that time the tribe became amalgamated with the Sac tribe. In 1718 Commandant Henry Tonty received orders to rebuild the fort, and the work was done so thoroughly that Fort Pont- chartrain was the best wooden fortification on the continent. He was relieved of the command in 1730. It was customary to relieve com- mandants at least once in three years by sending orders by one of the officers stationed at Quebec, and the official messenger took charge until the succeeding commandant arrived. The messenger and tem- porary commandant in this case was Lieut. Joseph Noyelle. Alphonse Tonty, the new commandant, who was a brother of Henry, soon arrived from Fort Frontenac, and he remained in command at 132 Detroit for seven years, although his management was characterized by crooked dealings with the Indians and with his government. He was consistently dishonest and treacherous to friend and foe during his term of office. He petitioned for discretionary powers in dispens- ing brandy to the Indians, and when it was refused he dealt it out sur- reptitiously. He installed four unscrupulous intimates at the post to conduct the trading, and abolished the free trading of the settlers. One of the four was Nolan, who had been in the conspiracy with Ar- naud, Desnoyer and the other clerks of the Company of the Colony. The other three were named Chiery, La Marque and Gatineau. The new traders plied the Indians with liquor, cheated them in trade, and made the most of their opportunities. Under such conditions the In- dians began to grow unfriendly, and the older chiefs wanted to go to Albany to trade, but brandy served as a magnet to hold them to De- troit, while the commandant and his confederates feathered their nests. The residents at the post protested against the abuses in a petition to the governor, but Tonty managed to hold his position for a time. Other commandants who had succeeded Cadillac had held the property of the first commandant in the name of the king, and transferred it in turn to their successors, but Tonty seized everything he could find, claiming it as his personal property. The grains and garden seeds introduced by Cadillac had led the settlers and Indians to practice agriculture, and at the close of several productive seasons considerable quantities of wheat were shipped out of Detroit to supply the other posts. Much of this grain was produced by the Indians, who made great progress, while the whites appeared to be at a standstill. Meanwhile the complaints against Commandant Alphonse Tonty were being investigated, and the evidence showed that he was dis- honest. He was relieved of his command on October 35, 1727, ahd he died at Detroit in the following November. Governor Beauharnois sent M. C. Le Pernouche to Detroit to succeed Tonty; and in the following year Jean Baptiste Deschallions de St. Ours, an able soldier, was installed as commandant. At this time, through Alphonse Tonty's greed and rapacity, the post was in a bad con- dition. The settlers had been reduced to twenty-eight or thirty and wheat was twenty-two livres per minot. Agriculture had been dis- couraged and the settlers did not care to cultivate the land, preferring to go into trade with its greater profits. St. Ours was followed in a few months by Charles Joseph de Noyelle, 133 who, in the fall of l^SS, was succeeded by De Boishebert, who was commandant at Detroit from 1728 until the summer of 1734 — a period six years. In 1730 the affairs of the settlement had become burdensome to the commandant and it became necessary to have a civil officer who would collect the crown dues and attend to the legal duties of the post. Robert Navarre, a native of Villeroy, Britanny, came out from France that year and was made intendant of Detroit. He was a young man who had just attained his majority, and was one of the very few sprigs of nobility who settled in the West. Most of those who assumed noble titles could not claim a noble, lineage, but Robert Navarre was only re- moved by eight generations from the throne of France. His royal an- cestor was Henry of Navarre, afterward Henry IV of France, who had a natural son known as Jean Navarre. The latter was an older half- brother of Louis XIII, who succeeded to the throne. Robert Navarre left a record in Detroit which was worthy of his ancestry. Remarried Mary Lootman dit Barrois, in 1734, and reared a large family. He re- mained in his position of trust during the thirty years of French rule which followed, and when the English took possession, M. Navarre was retained in the capacity of justice, magistrate and notary for some time. In the official reports of the English commandants he is praised as being a most honorable and capable man, worthy of the highest confi- dence. The Navarres became numerous in the course of time, and when the war of 1812 came, it is a matter of record that thirty-six Navarres served with Winchester under command of Col. Francois Navarre. Their descendants in Detroit and Michigan are still numerous. Some are to be found in the most aristocratic circles and others among the lowly. Sieur de Boishebert was an active official. He was sent by Governor de Callieres to Mackinac to confer with the savages. In 1705 he helped to capture, off Boston, three British ships laden with powder. From 1707 to 1710 he was detached as commissary at Acadia, and was after- ward assistant engineer on the fortification of Quebec. In 1713 he offi- cially explored the coast of Labrador, and was eighteen years adjutant at Quebec. He was quite popular while commandant of Detroit, and after his death in 1736 his widow petitioned for a pension to support her three daughters and one son. But she did not get it. The thrifty authorities in France found that she had a fair income from an es- tate in that country, which had been inherited by her children, and so she had to do without a pension. 134 Governor Beauharnois, who ruled New France from 1736 to 1757, tried to have two vessels placed on Lake Erie in order to establish a better communication between the French posts on the lakes, but he was un- successful. At his suggestion, maps of the lake system were forwarded to Count Maurepas, then minister of marine in France, but the funds of the empire were not bestowed and the vessels were not built. Beau- harnois also advised the encouragement of settlers at Detroit. It would seem that the public mill which was installed by Cadillac must have gone wrong, for under Boishebert a grant was issued to Charles Cam- pau, permitting him to erect a water mill on a stream which flowed into the Detroit River from the west along the little ravine now occu- pied by the Michigan Central depot tracks about Tenth street, and which was called Cabacier's Creek in later years. This mill was au- thorized about the year 1734. Judging from the records it would appear that the commandants were soon deprived of the revenue which Cadillac and some of his successors derived from ground rents and trading licenses, and the proceeds were turned over to the crown. Possibly the grasping methods of Alphonse Tonty caused the change. When Count Maurepas became minister of marine, he endeavored with the co operation of Beauharnois, and his successors. La Jonquiere and De la Gallissoniere, to build up the French settlements and encourage farming. Then the greatest rascal of the French regime was appointed com- mandant on June 10, 1734. Hughes Pean de Livandiere was a bold but clumsy rogue. He acted in conjunction with Intendant Begon, who was his friend, and this connection no doubt made him reckless. In the archives of France is a report of a trial in which Pean and Begon were defendants; they were charged with malfeasance in office, and Pean was fined 120,000 livres. The actions of Pean during the five months of his term must have been extremely flagrant and rapacious to cause the infliction of such heavy punishment. When Pean had been ejected from office in November, 1734, Sabrevois was sent back to De- troit and this time he remained in command four years. In 1735, while Sabrevois was serving his second term, the Fox In- dians, who had united with the Sakis or Sacs, as they were called by the English, began to make trouble again. They had retired from Wisconsin and established their villages on the west bank of the Mis- sissippi, in the region now known as the State of Iowa. Their pres- ence made it dangerous for the French traders who did business in the 135 Illinois country, and they frequently fell upon parties of Indians from Detroit as they were going to make war upon the Flatheads. Lieu- tenants de Noyelle and St. Ours, both ex-commandants, organized an ex- pedition against these tribes, and they set out in March, 1735, with a company of twenty Frenchmen and several hundred Ottawas and Hurons. Ice was running in the Mississippi and the party had much difficulty in crossing. They found that the enemy had taken a strong position on the further bank of a swift tributary stream. The Ottawas were eager to plunge into the river and swim it in spite of the cold, but De Noyelle and St. Ours saw that such a course would be fatal, as their arms and ammunition would become wet and useless and they would then be at the mercy of the Foxes. The Indians derisively said that the Frenchmen were no better than squaws, because of their hesitation, and to satisfy the savages an attack was made by a party which was sent farther up the stream. This party did not succeed in surprising the enemy, and came near being exterminated as soon as they had crossed, as a superior force attacked them and drove them to the bank of the stream. The French came to their assistance, and after two days of hard fighting the Foxes retired and sent a messenger to ask for peace. A treaty was finally accomplished with mutual satis- faction and the expedition returned to Detroit after suffering many hardships. In 1735 the demand for beav«r furs had revived to such magnitude that 178,000 pounds of them had been received at Quebec for shipment to France. Just what caused the lack of demand in 1701 is not known, but it was probably some change in the fashion of head wear in France at that time that dispensed with beaver as the leading material. In 1735 Governor Beauharnois and Intendant Hocquart were most emphatic in asking Count Maurepas, who had succeeded Pontchartrain as minister of marine, that a considerable force of troops be sent to Detroit. They declared that the system of requiring the commandant to keep up the post at his own expense, and reimbursing him by allow- ing him a monopoly of the trading licenses, to be a sorry failure. Commandants were anxious to make all possible profit out of the office, and, as every soldier was a drain upon their pocketbooks, they kept the number down to an inadequate force. They showed that it was the soldiers who came to Detroit with Cadillac that had insured the first success of the post as a permanent settlement, and insisted that Detroit was a station which should be strongly defended. They urged 136 ALEXANDER LEWIS. that it be made a central station, from which troops could be sup- plied to the other posts of the West whenever it should become neces- sary. Again in 1737 they pleaded for the strengthening of Detroit. They argued that the farming out of the revenues of the post tended to make the commandant extortionate and that this discouraged the set- tlers. Sieur de Noyelle, the commandant at that writing, maintained but seventeen soldiers at Detroit. In place of the established system, Beauharnois and the intendant advised that the ofp.ce of commandant be made permanent, and recommended that instead of allowing that officer the control of the trading, that he be placed on a salary. The expense to the king was estimated at $1,200. The proceeds of the trading permits averged |1,33G a year, which included $100 paid by the two armorers and $30 paid by private persons living within the in- closure of the fort. CHAPTER XVII. A Feud Commenced Between the Huron and Ottawa Tribes — The Hurons Compelled to Flee to Sandusky — They Return to Settle at Bois Blanc Island and Later at Sandwich— 1735-1746. A quarrel between the Hurons and the Ottawas took place at Detroit in the spring of 1738, which gave the commandant and the governor much trouble for five years thereafter. A council was being held in the house of Commandant de Noyelle. The Hurons and Ottawas were present, as were also the Potawatomies and the Sauteurs, the lat- ter being a tribe from the Au Sable River, north of Saginaw Bay. During this council the head chief of the Hurons arose and presented a belt to the head chief of the Ottawas, thus acknowledging his seniority. "The Hurons have made peace with the Flatheads of the west," said he. ' ' We are now brothers, and we invite you to regard them in the same way. We would be glad to have peace in the land. How- ever, if you continue to send war parties against the Flatheads, some of our young men may go to warn them of their danger." The chief of the Ottawas replied in dudgeon : "Who art thou, Huron, to lay down the law to me ? What is thy design? I think thou de- 137 18 sirest to do evil and then to take refuge with the Flatheads. It was in thy power to make peace with them, but as for me, I do not accept thy belt; I hand it over to our father who represents the person of Onontio here. If Onontio tells us that it is his will, then we shall hearken to his word. Thou shouldst know that when peace was made that our father gave this tribe to all the others to devour. Our blood has been shed along their path ; our bones are in their huts, and our scalps hang above them. The frames on which they burned us and the stakes still stand. If the Flatheads desired peace, they should have spoken to us about it." The Potawatomies and the Sauteurs sided with the Ottawas. The latter made up a party of seventeen young warriors and sent them on a foray against the Flatheads. The Ottawas met two parties of Hurons while on the way. The Ottawas crept up unobserved upon a Flathead village and killed and scalped a woman. As they were drawing nearer with intent to surprise the camp the cry of a raven was heard and in- stantly the Flatheads were on the alert. The raven cry had two mean- ings among the Hurons. It meant: "We are hungry for meat," and it also served as a warning against impending danger. It was not used by the Flatheads, although they appeared to understand it in this case. A moment later the attacking Ottawas found themselves between the Flatheads on one side and the Hurons on the other, and both were firing upon them. Nine of the Ottawas were shot and scalped, and five more were taken prisoners The remaining three broke through the line of the Hurons and killed one of the party, whom they recognized. When the three survivors came within hail of their village at Detroit they gave the cry of mourning instead of the scalp yell which would have announced a victory. They came into the village to tell how the Hurons had treacherously betrayed them, and the whole tribe was in a furious rage against the Hurons. The Hurons then at Detroit denied that any of their warriors had betrayed the Ottawas or had killed any of them in the fight. " We do not shed the blood of our brothers " they said. "You are dogs," shouted the infuriated Ottawas, "You are capable of shedding the blood of your father as well as your brothers." "We have been to war with the Flatheads many a time but we never heard the raven cry before," said one of the survivors, "I killed one of your men, Orontega. When your warriors come home we shall see if he is missing. Then you will see that I am speaking the truth." 138 This show of hostility alarmed the Hurons, who retired to their fort, and their women and children dared not go out to cultivate their crop of corn. The Ottawas taunted them with being cowards, and told them they need not be afraid, as the Ottawas did not kill their friends by stealth, and would not harm them until notice had been given of a war. The French commandant, De Noyelle, who had been recalled in the fall of 1738, sent a herald through the settlement, who beat a pan and warned all inhabitants not to sell powder and ball to the Indians while they were in their present excitement. It was a very awkward compli- cation, as the Hurons were allied to but five tribes in Canada and Ohio, while the Ottawas were related to all the Indians in the upper country. The Ottawas asked the Potawatomies and Sauteurs to take up the hatchet with them against the Hurons. De Noyelle attempted to ap- pease them. The Hurons asked Governor Beauharnois to make a new ■ home for them at Montreal, or in some other place where they would be safe from attacks by the Ottawas and their allies. That winter the Hurons dared not winter in their village at Detroit, but took to the woods at some place in the interior of the State, leaving part of their corn crop unharvested. The English and the Iroquois invited them to come to New York and receive their protection, and Beauharnois, the French governor, sent his nephew. Chevalier Beauharnois, to invite them to Montreal. A secret influence, however, was at work which defeated both prop- ositions. Father Richardie, Jesuit missionary to the Hurons at Sand- wich, across the river from Detroit, wrote to the governor in January, 1739, that the Hurons were not reassured, and never would feel safe again while they were in proximity to the Ottawas. He feared that at the first alarm they would either fly to a refuge among the Sonontouans (Senecas), or to the valley of the Ohio in Kentucky. It was impossible for the Hurons to live in constant terror of their enemies, as their women could not plant corn and do their usual work in the fields about Detroit. A majority of the Detroit tribe then went to Sandusky, in the territory of the Wyandottes, who were their kindred. While there Governor Beauharnois offered them an asylum at Montreal, promising them a grant of land either at Lorette, the Falls of Montmorency, both near Quebec, or at the Lake of Two Mountains, near and north of Montreal; but the Hurons did not go, because Father Richardie want- ed to keep them with him. The latter wrote several times that the In- dians did not want to go to Lower Canada, but would prefer to remain 139 in some place of security near the Detroit mission. He advised that they be placed on Grosse lie. This Beauharnois said would never do, as their isolation from the whites would make them too independent, and they would be subject to attacks from their enemies just as if they remained at Detroit. The preservation of peace, he said, demanded that they be sent to Montreal, for so long as there was insecurity for them at Detroit, there was danger of their going to the Flatheads. Beauharnois sent his nephew to Detroit as a special envoy to the Hurons in June, 1741, with the following address: "Listen to the words of Onontio, Hurons. They are borne to you by one of my blood to show how much I have your welfare at heart. You say you will always live in fear at Detroit. Sastaratsy, your king, sent word to his brother at Lorette, the falls, and at the Lake of Two Mountains, that you would be forced to come to them in the autumn. He said you would always be accused of taking part in every attack of the Flatheads upon the tribes at the post, and that you wished to come to Montreal. He sent word through M. Noyelle asking for a grant of lands, and for an escort to conduct you safely. I immediately sent you a message to take you away from your fire, and to build another for you in this place, where you will be safe. Come ; I stretch out my arms to you to place you under my wing. I send a delegation of your brothers from the falls of St. Louis and the Lake of Two Moun- tains to escort you in safety." Young Beauharnois was instructed to be patient, and if the Hurons hesitated to leave their harvest, he was to winter with them, and Agent Du Buroy would persuade the Iroquois not to leave them unpro- tected. As soon as Beauharnois arrived at Detroit every Huron who had remained in the vicinity disappeared. Beauharnois, when the Hurons would not come to him, went to the Hurons at Sandusky, but the best he could do after a long labor with the tribe was to induce three old men to accompany him back to Montreal, ostensibly for the purpose of arranging with the governor for the transfer, although ar- rangements were already made, and a new mission house and huts were being built for their accommodation at Lorette. The reluctance of the Hurons to accompany him was better understood when a let- ter from Father Richardie to Father Jaunay, who was at a mission on the Owashtanong or Grand River, was intercepted by Beauharnois. The letter was written in December, 1741, and the following is an extract : " Chevalier Beauharnois, after a stay of one month at Detroit, decided to go to Sandusky, as he had not been able to get the Hurons to come here to listeh to him or to the message from his uncle. I could not omit making the journey with him, 140 although I had reason to be sure that I was not pleasing him in doing so. The suc- cess of his mission will be limited to three old men, who were persuaded with great difficulty to accompany him, and who will not say one word. It is easy to see that the Chevalier wanted to take their mission away from us that it might fall to his friend, M. Piquet, who has already begun to have clearings made and huts built at the Lake of Two Mountains to receive them. But happen what may, the Hurons would never have any missionaries but us. The reverened father superior has sent me word, acting in connection with the general, to settle them at the great island [Grosse He] where they could have been better off than anywhere. I do not know from what this change arises. I shall patiently await the word he may send me on this matter." Judging from the correspondence that passed between Father Rich- ardie and St. P^, the father superior, the order preferred to keep the Hurons at Detroit or in that immediate vicinity, and used all means to prevent their transfer to a new pastor in the person of Father Piquet at Quebec. It is probable that the latter was a Recollect priest, and this would account for their opposition. Beauharnois decided, so long as he could not persuade the Hurons to come to Montreal, that the next best thing to do would be to send them to make war against the Flat- heads, in the hope of winning again the friendship of their near neigh- bors, the Ottawas. With this purpose in view a party of forty warriors was made up, but just as they were about to set out to the Mississippi valley Father Richardie sent them a belt secretly and told them to re- rhain at peace with the Flatheads, upon which the party scattered. In 1741, while the trouble was yet unsettled. Commandant Noyelle was succeeded by Pierre Poyan de Noyan, and one of the first acts of the latter was to take formal possession of Grosse He in the name of the French. Governor Beauharnois would not permit the Hurons to be settled on Grosse He, so Bois Blanc Island, at the mouth of the river was proposed, but the governor insisted that they be kept on the mainland. Father Richardie wrote coinciding with his views when they were peremptorily expressed. He said : " I have secured consent of my people, the Hurons, to settle on the mainland, and it is not advisable that they should settle on the Great Island, which would be a place of refuge where they would have been able to lay down the law." Young Beauharnois sent his uncle some of the priest's letters which he had intercepted, and spoke very bitterly of the duplicity which had defeated his purpose in coming to Detroit. " The Hurons " said he, "wanted to settle on Bois Blanc Island, failing to get Grosse He. Father Richardie makes them play all these tricks: you can divine the reason." 141 Pierre de Celeron de Blainville succeeded Noyan, and retired in 1743, having failed to effect a settlement of the Indian troubles. He was followed by Joseph Lemoyne de Longueuil. The Ottawa-Huron trouble was finally ended by the removal of the Hurons, or the largest part of them, to Bois Blanc Island, and they re- mained there until 1747. After the troubles of that year, as related elsewhere, they came to Sandwich and lived around the mission house, opposite their old fort across the river. At this time there was still a small village of Hurons near what is now Trenton, and another small village at Sandusky. During the war between France and England the Hurons fought on the side of the French. When the war was decided by the final capit- ulation of Montreal, they ceased hostilities pending the treaty of peace in 1763. Although Sir William Johnson was well received by the Hurons at Sandwich, when he visited Detroit in 1761, he did not secure their adhesion. It was only after the Anglo French treaty of 1763 that they concluded a peace with the English at Niagara, on July 18, 1764. After the death of Father Potier at the Jesuit mission at Sandwich, in 1781, the Hurons still lived around the mission. In 1791 they ceded all their lands in Western Canada to the British government, with the exception of two reservations, one being immediately west of and ad- joining the Huron mission church line, of about one hundred acres; and the other being what is now the whole township of Anderdon, on the Detroit River, just above Amherstburg, fronting seven miles on the river and running back the same distance. The Hurons served on the British side in the war of 1812, and in 1819 consisted of about ninety persons, old and young. In this year the principal property owners of Amherstburg, including Richard Pol- lard, Sheriff William Hands, Matthew Elliott, J. B. Baby, John Gentle, George Benson Hall, F. Baby, Angus Mcintosh, John B. Askin, and others, petitioned Sir Peregrine Maitland, lieutenant - governor of Upper Canada, that the Hurons be removed, on the ground that their occupation was inimical to the improvement of the town and the safety of His Majesty's fort (Maiden). The petitioners, however, desired that the Hurons be liberally dealt with in land and annuities. The petition was not granted. In 1836 the Hurons on the Canada side of the Detroit River were all living on their reservation at Anderdon, and in that year they surrendered 143 two-thirds of the land to the British government, to be sold for their benefit. They retained the central third, lying on the Detroit River, which they reserved for their own use. In 1876 they apportioned the land among themselves, giving to each male one hundred acres and to each female fifty acres, and sold the residue. This apportionment ended their tribal relation with the government, and they ceased to be Indians in a legal sense. In Anderdgn at the time of the disbandment there was but one king or head chief, whose Indian name was Mondoron, and whose English name was Joseph White. He stayed in Anderdon and lived on his lands, and died in Windsor in 1886. He left six children — four sons and two daughters — who are all living. His sons are Solomon White, ex-M. P. P. for Essex county; Thomas B. White, merchant, Anderdon ; Alex. White and Joseph White, capitalists, Windsor. The daughters are Mrs. Christine Raymon and Mrs. Eva M. Scully, of Windsor. These children inherited his patrimonial acres and money. Up to 1843 the few Hurons who had lived near Trenton, in Wayne county, on the American side of the Detroit River, and those near San- dusky, O., still kept up their tribal relations. In that j^ear both bands agreed to terminate their tribal relations, and they sold their reserva- tions and went to Wyandotte, Kansas, where they bought a large tract of land. Here, however, they found it necessary to resume the tribal ties and customs, but in 1866 they sold the lands, divided the money, and ceased to be classed as Indians. CHAPTER XVIII. Recreations and Occupations of the Early Settlers — Races between the Fleet French Ponies on the Ice — Attempt to Extend the French Domain in Ohio and Pennsylvania— 1750-1760. "The recreations of the French colonists," says Lanman, " consisted in attending the rude chapels on the borders of the wilderness, and in adorning their altars with wild flowers; in dancing to the sound of the violin at each other's houses, in hunting the deer and other game through the Oakland openings and in paddling their light canoes across the clear and silent streams." To this list might be added horse racing, after the speedy and hardy French pony was introduced into the settlement 143 about 1740. In winter the equine contests were continued on the ice, and in Detroit the race course for this diversion for the past 150 years was that part of the Rouge River between the river road and the Detroit River, some three miles from the present city hall The Indians were expert players at foot ball and lacrosse, and in many of these games the whites participated. Both under French and English rule, many citizens indulged in bowling with cannon balls in the narrow streets within the stockade, but this amusement ceased with the great fire of 1805. The women, outside of ordinary domestic avocations, occupied them- selves in making coarse cotton cloths for the Indian trade, and in later years in braiding straw for male and female headwear. Their com- fortable log houses, covered with clapboards, fronted on the roadway that ran close to the banks of the Detroit and St. Clair Rivers, and were generally one and a half stories in height, the upper story being chiefly within the roof. Dormer windows on the front and sides gave light and air to this story. As a rule the house was whitewashed or colored white, and the front door was painted green and divided horizontally in the center; the upper part was kept open in fair weather, and the lower part closed to keep the children from straying out on the road and prevent vagrant animals from entering the house. Inside, the puncheon floors were uncarpeted, but kept very clean, and the walls were hung with rude pictures of the saints, the Madonna and her child, and the crucifix of lead. In front of the house, across the roadway, was a tiny wharf, consist- ing of one or more planks supported by sticks driven into the river bed, and on this the inmates walked out to fill their pails with water. Tied to the wharf was the canoe, which was almost the only method of communication through the western wilds during the French regime, and was indispensable in fishing and trapping. The farms were long and narrow, and stretched back into the forest two and three miles, but were rarely cultivated for more than half a mile. The farm houses being all located on the banks of the stream, on a common roadway, the settlers were not at all isolated from each other, and intelligence of interesting or important events could be communi- cated for a distance of many miles, by calling aloud from house to house, each recipient of the news repeating it to his neighbor. Food was easily acquired, and abundance of game strayed in the woods and sometimes into the very backyards, and the waters were alive with fish. 144: EDWIN F. CONELY. Agriculture was never skillfully conducted by the Freijch settlers or their Indian neighbors, and their implements were rude and cumbrous. The plow was of wood, except the iron share, and with its long beam and handles, was ten or twelve feet long. The mouldboard was also of wood. In front were two wooden wheels of different sizes, the smaller one to run on the unplowed side and the larger one in the fur- row. The simple harness was of ropes or withes of twisted rawhide. When oxen were used, the ropes were passed around the oxen's horns and they pulled with their heads, and the plow followed and broke the ground. This description of the homes and agricultural operations is taken mostly from Bela Hubbard's "Memorials of Half a Century," published in 1888, which is a valuable contribution to the history of Detroit and Michigan. In this work an error occurs relative to the dis- position of manure by the old French settlers. Hubbard says: "The fields were never manured, and the farmers, when their manure heaps had accumulated to an inconvenient degree about their barns, adopted the most ready means of relief by carting the incumbrance . on to the ice in winter. The offensive material was thus washed away without further trouble when the ice broke up in the spring." This statement was first made by Lewis Cass, who may have repeat- ed the statement of some writer, or may have inferred that the manure was thus sought to be gotten rid of by seeing quantities of it on the ice in front of the farm houses. But it is impossible to believe that French farmers, whether born in old France or in the American col- onies, should be so grossly ignorant of the virtue and benefits of ma- nure. The true reason was because the horses, cattle, etc., were watered in the winter through holes in the ice, and the manure was spread on the ice, from the shore to the hole, to keep them from slip- ping and falling down. In 1746 Mackinac (Turtle), a powerful Chippewa chief, aided by sev- eral northern tribes, including the Ottawas of that region, made a de- scent on Detroit. The French showed a firm front and were aided by Pontiac, then a young chief of the Detroit Ottawas, who thus fought against his own nation and kindred. The Turtle and his forces were driven away. In 1747 a formidable conspiracy was formed by the Indians at De- troit against the French. The Iroquois sent belts to the tribes here, and a plot was made to murder the garrison. It is said that the at- tack was really incited by the English, which was probably true, as 145 19 many other schemes of a like purpose were directly traceable to them. The massacre was to take place on the night of a church holiday, when the Indians would have admittance to the fort, and as many as possible were to sleep inside the palisades. Rising at a certain time in the night, each savage was expected to kill everybody in the house where he was staying. In this plot the Hurons were to be the chief actors. A day or two before the time of action an Indian woman had occasion to go to an upper floor in one of the buildings, and hearing voices below, stopped and listened. She heard the whole plan ar- ranged, and, as soon as she could leave safely, went to the house of Father Richardie, where she informed a lay brother of the plot. The news soon reached De Longueuil, the commandant, who immediately called the Huron and other chiefs together, upbraided them bitterly for their intended treachery, denounced them as ingrates, and threat- ened punishment. As the commandant could withhold their winter supplies, the chiefs expressed great contrition and abandoned the plot. While the conspiracy was maturing little or no attention was paid to agriculture, and, when it was exposed, the provisions of the past year were about exhausted. Almost a famine ensued in 1747, and Com- mandant Longueuil sent to Montreal for supplies. A convoy of boats laden with provisions was sent to Detroit, and 150 persons, soldiers, merchants and servants, accompanied the expedition. The Hurons abandoned Bois Blanc Island and removed to Sandwich, and built them bark cabins in close proximity to the old mission house. From an old report, without signature or date, but which was evidently made several years before 1747, the numbers of the Indian tribes lo- cated at or near Detroit, and connected with the French government of Canada, are given as follows ; " There were no tribes settled on the coast of Lake Erie. At Detroit (the Straits), between Lakes Erie and Huron, the Pottawatomies have a village with 180 warriors. The Hurons are stated to be reduced to one village near the fort of Detroit, with the exception of the village at Quebec, and have 180 warriors. The Ottawa village on the south side of the straits, contains 200 warriors. The Mississaquas, with 60 warriors, occupied a small village at the entrance of Lake Huron [just above the present site of Port Huron, Mich. J. At the end of Lake Huron, at the village of Saguinan, near Mackinac, was another village of Ottawas with 80 warriors. " Under the rule of De Longueuil the importance of the outlying posts 146 was recognized more and more by the French government, and Gover- nor Beauharnois was authorized to be more liberal in strengthening them. In 1748 the fort at Detroit was enlarged and improved, as were the other posts in the North, Northwest and South. Between 1748 and 1760, when the French gave way to the British, Fort Pontchartrain was enlarged and strengthened five times. This was owing partly to the increase of population, and partly to additions of military force, but mainly to the well-founded belief that Detroit was the most important strategic position in the West, and should be held at all hazards. De Longueuil gave satisfaction as commandant at Detroit during the governorship of Beauharnois. When the latter was superseded by the Marquis de Gallissoniere, Longueuil was retained for two years after- ward. In 1749 the aged Sabrevois was sent to Detroit for a third term. During this period the French and English were bent on acquiring all territory in North America within their reach, and the whole time was spent in land grabs of greater or less magnitude. Both coveted the fertile lands of Ohio and Pennsylvania, and each made efforts to secure them. The French started a small settlement at French Creek, south of Lake Erie. The British offset this by an organization called the Ohio Company, which was granted 500,000 acres of the disputed territory. The conditions of the grant were that the company should build a fort and settle one hundred families on the tract. This was in 1748. At this time everything tended to show that the French power in America was declining, but the Marquis de Gallissoniere would not acknowledge it, even to himself, although he was a man of ability. In 1749 he organized in Detroit and Montreal an expedition to renew the claims of France to a large portion of Pennsylvania and Ohio, and placed in charge of it Celeron de Bienville, a chevalier of the order of St. Louis. The detachment consisted of eight subaltern officers, six cadets, an armorer, twenty soldiers, 180 Canadians, twenty Abinakis, and thirty Iroquois. A priest, named Father Bonnecamp, who was a scientist, mathematician and map-maker, accompanied the expedition. The party left Montreal in bateaux and traineaux and passed through Lake Ontario; thence across Lake Erie. By another portage they reached Chautauqua Lake and thence by Conewango Creek, they reached the Alleghany River and proceeded to the headwaters of the Ohio. About a dozen lead plates were buried and affixed to trees at 147 different points, each bearing an inscription showing that the lands were owned by the king of France, by virtue of arms and treaties. But the whole expedition was a characteristic piece of Gallic vain- glory. Not a foot of the land was either guarded or defended, and it all fell into the hands of the British in good time. In after years some of the plates were found and hung up in farm houses as monu- ments of French folly. One was melted and cast into bullets by a party of boys. After the plates were buried the members of the ex- pedition returned to Detroit and Montreal. CHAPTER XIX. Feeble Attempts to Strengthen the French Outposts — The Determination of Great Britain to Seize the French Strongholds Becomes Apparent — 1755-1760. In 1749 several hundred immigrants were sent to Detroit by the French government. They were mostly composed of farmers and were provided with the necessary supplies of pioneers in an interior settlement. These included canvass for tents, hoes, axes, sickels, guns, powder, and meat, with stipulations that these supplies should be paid for when a certain area of land had been cleared. Sabrevois was too old and feeeble to be effective as commandant, and in 1751 Pierre de Celeron was given another term, lasting until the summer of 1754. These years had been troubled by almost constant war between the French and the British along the eastern border, but Detroit had not been threatened with any serious invasion. During the term of Jacques d'Anon, Sieur de Muy, which began in 1754 and closed in 1758, Detroit was greatly strengthened as a military post and supplies of provisions, arms and ammunition were laid in. Detroit was the emporium for supplying the posts of Presque Isle, Niagara, Le Boeuf, Venango and Du Quesne, which were on a line from the foot of Lake Erie to the headwaters of the Ohio, and when any of these posts were threatened with an attack, Detroit sent soldiers and Indians to reinforce them with all possible speed. In 1768 Francis Marie Picot^ de Bellestre, the last commandant of the French regime, came to Detroit, and upon 148 him was cast the unpleasant task of surrendering- the last important French post to the victorious English. The entire aggregation of gov- ernors from first to last, was made up of a class of men who were more anxious for their personal advancement than for the development of the country or the upbuilditig of a French empire in the new world. Cadillac was perhaps the most promising man of the lot, for with all his faults he had an unbounded energy which would have built up a city about his fort in spite of the opposition of his enemies, had he not been removed by a disastrous promotion. During the seven years' strife between England and France for the possession of the northern part of the country, the settlers were ground as between two millstones. In the Massachusetts colony and in New York the troubles were termed the French and Indian wars, be- cause the Algonquin tribes and the New England tribes were instigat- ed to attack the English colonists, and were supplied with arms and ammunition by the French. In Michigan the French settlers were the sufferers, as the British authorities furnished the Iroquois nation with arms and ammunition, and offered them inducements to attack the French. The first of these savage wars occurred in 1689 and was known as "King William's" war, because it occurred under the reign of William and Mary. The second occurred in 1702, and was known as "Queen Anne's" war. The third, in 1744, was named "King George's " war, and the last and worst was the "Old French and In- dian" war, which lasted from 1755 to 1763. In the intervals between these open wars there was always more or less trouble, each party making bloody forays when the mood took them. The bulk of the fighting took place east of Lake Erie, but the influence of these hos- tilities reached as far westward as the white man had i penetrated. During these dreadful years the settler carried his musket wherever he went, and was in constant expectation of an attack. Fields could not be cultivated except in close proximity to the blockhouses, as the farmers were in danger of being shot down and scalped. On Sunday when the congregation gathered for worship, the men sat at the en- trance to the church aisles with loaded muskets quite as convenient to their hands as bibles or prayer books, and they ready to rush out and battle for their lives at any moment. Hertel de Rouville of Montreal descended upon Deerfield, Mass., in February, 1704, killed part of the settlers in a night attack and marched one hundred prisoners away toward Canada. It was bitter weather, and when captives succumbed 149 to the cold they were killed and scalped. The remnant were sold as slaves to the French farmers in Canada. Matters grew worse instead of better, and it became necessary for the nations to engage more seriously and fight it out to a finish. The Massachusetts colonists planned to capture the French strong- holds on the Atlantic coast and cut off their communication with France. On the Island of Cape Breton, just north of Nova Scotia, was a fortress of great strength, commanding the entrance to the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It was called Louisburg, in honor of the king, and was the Gibraltar of the new world. An expedition of four hundred fishermen and farmers was made up in New England, leaving the women to plant and harvest the crops. Setting out from Marblehead, Mass., in the spring of 1745, under command of Gen. William Pepper- ell, they laid siege to Louisburg. By the treaty of Utrecht, made in 1713, Nova Scotia had been ceded to the British, and Cape Breton was the nearest French possession. To give an idea of the fortress it may be said that the town, two and one half miles in circumference, was surrounded by a wall thirty to thirty- six feet high and by a deep moat eighty feet wide. It lay at the back of a landlocked bay and was de- fended by sixty-five siege guns and sixteen mortars. The harbor en- trance was but half a mile wide and this was defended by a battery of thirty canuon on each side. The attacking party was made up of farmers and fishermen, who had embarked in one hundred small smacks, and were supported by a squadron of British ships under Com- modore Warren in order to prevent their wholesale capture by some French warship. These undisciplined farmers charged the harbor batteries and captured them, and in fifty-five days compelled the sur- render of the place. The attempt of the French to relieve the be- leaguered city failed, and a ship load of food and munitions of war was captured by the British squadron. Duchambon, the French com- mandant, then struck his flag. After this brilliant achievement the fort was restored to France three years later by the treaty of Aix la Chapelle. In 1757 it was again captured by General Amherst and General Wolfe, when the place was utterly destroyed and the in- habitants were transported to France in British ships. In the hope of securing some abatement of the French claims to ter- ritory in the west, the governor of New York and the governor of Vir- ginia counseled together and finally selected a young surveyor to present a remonstrance to the French commandant at Fort Du Quesne 150 (Pittsburg-). This was a rude settlement at the junction of the Alle- ghany and Monongahela Rivers, forming the headwaters of the Ohio. Virginia settlers had obtained some land patents extending into the valley of the Ohio, but the French and Indians refused to allow them even a survey. The young surveyor who went to lay the case before Commandant Legardeur de St. Pierre de Repentigny was George Wash- ington. He found Repentigny at Fort Le Boeuf farther up the Alle- • ghany River, and was courteously treated, but was not allowed to sur- vey. An attempt to erect a stockade on the Monongahela was made by the British in February, 1754, six months after Washington's visit, but Captain Contrecoeur attacked them with a superior force and drove them out of the region. Fort Du Quesne was then made a place of considerable strength, and when it was finished the French had sixty strongholds, mostly blockhouses, between Quebec and the Gulf of Mexico. The next step in the wars was the forcible removal by the English of the Acadians who had settled in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick in 1754. Those who refused to swear allegiance to the English crown, 7,000 in number, were scattered all over the country, and their farms were laid waste. This event gave the foundation for Longfellow's poem, Evangeline. In the following year General Braddock set out from Virginia with the greatest army of British troops which ever crossed the AUeghanies, to capture Fort Du Quesne. The story of his disastrous defeat on July 9, 1755, and the rescue of the remnant of his force by Washington, who was then but twenty- three years of age, is familiar to all the world. Three years later Washington accompanied an expedition under General Forbes, to Fort Du Quesne and compelled the French to abandon it. At this period, 1756, a new commander appeared at Montreal who was so active and successful that he threatened to drive the British out of New York. Louis Joseph de St. Verain Montcalm, then forty-four years old, had won the rank of colonel in the battle of Piacenza, in the war for the Austrian succession. He was regarded as an able com- mander, so able that his government expected him to win with undis- ciplined Canadian farmers, aided by the Indians. He arrived at Quebec in May, 1756, and captured Fort Ontario at Oswego, August 14. Next year he captured Fort William Henry at the head of Lake George, which was held by a garrison of 3,500 men and defended by forty-two cannon. The half-famished Frenchmen and Indians, who had lived by 151 the chase during the siege, were very glad to get the provisions in the stores. Montcalm then fortified Fort Carillon, or Ticonderoga, in the passage between Lake Champlain and Lake George. Next year Gen- eral Abercrombie marched against him with an army of 15,000 men, and tried to take the fort by assault. Montcalm had but 3,600 men, but after four hours of fierce fighting, the British fled in disorder. In- stead of supplying this brilliant commander with a reasonable force of men, and enabling him to go on with his campaign, the French gov- ernment treated him with neglect. But a handful of men could be left to defend the forts already taken, while Montcalm retired to make ready at Quebec for a siege- which was preparing against it. Then the kaleidoscope of national politics took another turn which completely altered the conditions between France and England. France was hampered in her colonial advancement by Nicholas Fouquet, her minister of finance. Instead of employing the national funds where they were imperatively demanded, he applied them to the furtherance of his own schemes, in the mean time spending 18,000,000 livres on his private residence. CHAPTER XX. Rise of William Pitt in England — His Aggressive Territorial Policy Culminates in a Border War — The French are Beaten at Every Point — Quebec, Montreal, De- troit and Du Quesne Surrendered to the British — 1755-1760. In England one of the greatest and most brilliant statesmen of her history was waiting for recognition. William Pitt had successfully op- posed the policy of Walpole, and gained so much popularity with the people that George II hated him beyond endurance, and in order to get him out of parliament made him joint vice-treasurer for Ireland and paymaster in the army. Lord Pelham, the prime minister, wanted him for secretary of state, but the king would not allow it. Subsequently the cabinet appointed him to that office, but the king dismissed him. Affairs in America and other quarters were going to the dogs and the people compelled the king to accept Pitt as secretary of state in 1 767. In a short time his talents made him virtually prime minister. From that moment the fortunes of England changed. Pitt outlined a vigor- 162 HENRY CLAY HODGES. ous policy for the prosecution of the war in America, resolving to save the colonies at all hazards' and to drive the French out of the North. He planned to send General Amherst to the capture of Ticonderoga and Crown Point, and then Amherst was to proceed down Lake Cham- plain to join General Wolfe at Quebec and lay siege to that stronghold. General Prideaux was sent against the fort at Niagara, and after cap- turing it he too was to join the Quebec expedition. Pitt knew that the French garrisons were weak in numbers and poorly provisioned, but he did not appreciate the difficulties involved.in long marches through the wilderness. In July, 1759, General Prideaux arrived at Niagara, where he found that the French garrison was about to be reinforced from the fort at Presque Isle, now Erie; from 'Fort Venango, on Oil Creek, Pa., and from Detroit. At the first attempt against the fort General Prideaux was instantly killed by the bursting of a gun. Sir Willianj Johnson, who was to be a figure of some importance in the history of Detroit in after years, succeeded to the command. The reinforcements were routed before they could join the garrison, and Fort Niagara surren- dered with six hundred men, the prisoners being sent to New York. Sir William remained at the fort and did not attempt to join Wolfe. General Amherst captured the two forts on Lake Champlain and then went into winter quarters at Crown Point. Gen. James Wolfe was a young man of thirty-two years, son of Colonel Wolfe, who had fought under Marlborough. He had seen service at Dettingen, Fontenoy and La Feldt, and his soldierly gifts won Pitt's favor. Though inexperienced as a commander, he was selected to head an expedition of 8,000 trained regulars, which sailed from England February 17, 1759, and Generals Monckton, Townshend and Murray were his brigade commanders. He arrived before Quebec June 26, 1759, and while waiting for Amherst and Prideaux to join him, made a careful reconnoissance of the citadel. He found it a place of considerable strength, built at the extremity of a tongue of high land which formed one bank of the river. The fort was a promontory, rising 335 feet above the river. Its cannon commanded the lowlands forming the natural approach, and the only apparent approach for attack on the level was from far up the river. On the opposite shore of the stream is a commanding position called Point Levis, and there Wolfe planted batteries to cover assaults on the height. The space ad- joining the fort was a plain of about fifty acres called the Heights of 153 20 Abraham. Monckton was placed in charge o£ the batteries at Point Levis and a bombardment was begun, but the limited range and small calibre of his cannon made the attempt useless. Discouraged with waiting for reinforcements, Wolfe ordered an assault up the slope from Lower Town by his grenadiers, but they were repulsed with consider- able loss, and an attack from the lower level was found to be imprac- ticable with the force at his command. Wolfe was a nervous man, of delicate constitution, and the failure threw him into a fever, but he would not abandon his duty. Counsel- ing with his generals, he resolved to try a night attack by sending his best regiment, Eraser's Highlanders, to scale the precipice of more than three hundred feet in order to secure a footing on the level with the French. Several bateaux loaded with men were sent up the river, and Montcalm, suspecting the design of his enemy, sent Colonel de Bougainville with 1,500 men to Point Rouge, nine miles up the river, to repel an attack at what was supposed to be the nearest vulnerable point. On the night of September 12 boats from the British fleet brought a force of men under the precipice. " Qui vive? " cried a sentinel from the heights above. "France," answered a Scottish officer who could speak French. " Quel regiment? " " De la Reine," replied the officer. The sentinel was satisfied and did not ask for the countersign, as a French convoy of provisions was expected from above. In a few min- utes the boats landed, and Wolfe and Eraser's Highlanders climbed up the dark heights, clinging to the bushes and to crevices in the rocks. The greatest precautions were observed to avoid giving an alarm, and the guns and accoutrements were hauled up by cords after a number of men had gained the summit. At daybreak the sentinels of the citadel were astonished to find a strong force of British soldiers on the plateau ready for battle. They were dirty and ragged from their long scram- ble up the sides of the cliff, but they were grim and determined. All was confusion in a moment. Fearing an immediate attack, and sus- pecting that the whole British army was upon him, Montcalm hurried out a skirmishing party to hold the enemy in check until his main body could form for a charge. The skirmish line straggled toward the line of Highlanders and began a scattered firing, which produced little ef- fect. Then Montcalm mustered his scanty and ill-fed force for an as- sault to repel the invaders. Where was de Bougainville now? The 154 clever fighter with his 1,500 musketeers would be worth an empire. A dust cloud five miles away showed where they were hurriedly tramping back to the citadel, having found that the movement of the British up the river had been but a ruse. The column of French soldiers filed out of the citadel and formed in line of battle, then marched toward the line of red coats. In front on horseback came the bronzed figure, Montcalm, the hero of many fights. He was taken at a disadvantage, but his eagle eye sparkled with the light of battle, and his fierce mous- tache bristled with impetuous rage. Opposed to him was a thin, red line of men whose valor was unquestioned. They must hold their ground or die in the attempt. Pale, slender and beardless stood the gallant Wolfe, the ghastly pallor of his face relieved by the flush of the fever which still racked his bones. He knew that he had been selected for this important task by Pitt against the advice of other statesmen ; and he was there to defend the honor of England and the judgment of his friend and patron. " Hold your fire, my boys, until I give the word. Don't waste a single shot. Stand firm for Old England and the victory is ours." The voice of the young commander went down the line, and at his inspiring words every man nerved himself for the death struggle. Montcalm realized that the first onset would decide the fortune of the day, and his men were also directed to hold their fire. On came the French at a jog trot, while the Highlanders stood silent and grim. There was a nervous fingering of firelocks as the French came within one hundred yards, and every eye was on the young general, eager for the word. On came the French without faltering, and all the time the muskets of the skirmishers were popping. A few of the red coats went down and others stood in line with widening blotches of blood staining their uniforms. Fifty yards separated the two lines and a few more strides would bring them into collision. The sword of Wolfe was raised high above his head as the word " Ready " came like a. trumpet note from his lips. Down flashed the gleaming sword ; the command "Fire" rang out; a double roll of musketry with its flashes of fire and singing of bullets ran along both lines. The commands had been obeyed by both bodies of troops and both were swept by deadly volleys at the same instant. Wolfe received three musket balls in his body, and sank with a mor- tal wound that threw his weight upon the nearest Highlander's shoul- der. 155 " Hold me up," he whispered, "don't let my brave boys see me fall Forward! charge them, boys." " They run! See how they run," cried a voice. "Who run?" asked Wolfe. " The enemy, sir, give way everywhere " "Go one of you to Colonel Burton," directed the dying man; "tell him to march Webb's regiment down to Charles River to cut off their retreat by the bridge.'' Then turning on his side he murmured: "Now God be praised, I will die in peace;" and in a few minutes he drew his last breath. Montcalm on horseback was driven by the rush of fugitives into the town. As he approached the walls he was shot through the body. When he was told that he would die he said: " So much the better; I shall not live to see the surrender of Quebec." The great stronghold of the St. Lawrence had fallen and thus Can- ada and the Northwest virtually passed into the hands of the British on September 13, 1759, although the capitulation of Montreal and the formal surrender of all Canada did not take place until the following year, when Montreal surrendered September 8, 1760. This blow must have paralyzed the remnant of the French govern- ment, for information was not forwarded to Detroit. Commandant Bellestre was holding himself in readiness to obey commands or to repel invaders when Major Robert Rogers appeared at the mouth of Detroit River with a portion of the Royal American Regiment, made up of British colonists and a portion of the Eightieth Regiment. Bellestre was an able commander, and in consequence of the activity of the British, who were pressing the French posts in the east, had succeeded in massing a strong force at Fort Pontchartrain, and had accumulated a quantity of military stores to be available for strengthening the sta- tions farther east whenever they were menaced. The fall of Louis- burg, Fort Frontenac, Niagara, Du Quesne and Quebec must have been the occasion of much discussion at Detroit in those last days, but still the commandant appeared to think his government was secure. Major Rogers came from Niagara, part of his force coming in bateaux, which also carried supplies for the fort, while the remainder marched along the south shore of Lake Erie, driving a small herd of cattle with them. They camped one night near the Cuyahoga River, when a number of Indian chiefs entered their camp. The leader of the dele- gation was Pontiac, the head of the Ottawa tribe. He was stern and bold in demeanor. 156 "How is it you have come into my territory without invitation- or permission? Is your business peace or war?" he asked. "I have come in the name of the great king of England to take possession of Detroit," replied Rogers. "This is my country; it does not belong to the great king; my peo- ple control all the country of the lakes," replied Pontiac. "We do not want your lands or your hunting grounds," said Rogers, "We want to trade with you as we trade with the Iroquois in the East. We give better trade for furs than the French. We have conquered the French and I have the submission of their governor at Quebec. When we have taken possession at Detroit, you will be glad and all your people will come to trade with the English, who do not cheat them as the French have done." Pontiac stood eyeing the major keenly for a time. Then he said: " I will stand in your path until morning and will protect you from harm; at daylight you maj^ proceed safely on your way." The proud savage gathered his blanket about his shoulders and stalked into the gloom of the November night. He made no servile surrender, but had placed the invading force under his protection, as if he had been commander of a superior army. When the British soldiers were approaching Detroit, the Indian run- ners brought in word that the French were to be turned away. Bel- lestre drew a rude picture of a crow eating from the top of a man's head, hung it at the gate of the fort, and told the Indians that he was the crow and that he would presently pick out the brains of the Eng- lish soldiers. The Indians doubted it and waited. Rogers sent to the French commandant a report of the surrender, and made a formal demand for the possession of the fort. At first Bellestre thought a trick was being attempted, and he asked time to consider. It was o-ranted and indubitable evidence was furnished in the correspondence that followed to show that French rule was at an end in the North, and so the truth came at last to Picote de Bellestre, a brave soldier of ex- cellent family, who had been made a knight of St. Louis for military prowess. He called his garrison to an assembly and gave public notice that New France had been turned over to the British crown. With rolling drum and proper military salute, the standard of France was hauled down from the staff where it had waved for fifty-nine years, and the garrison marched out the gates of the fort. The British marched in with flying colors and beating drums, and the royal 157 standard of Great Britain was flung- to the breeze with rousing cheers. The placard was thrown down and the Indians transferred their alle- giance from the vanquished to the victors, and greeted the .discomfited commandant with yells of derision. A new regime was installed which was believed to be perpetual, but thirty-six years later the British were destined to march out as the French had done, leaving all the country south and west of the great lakes to the possession of a nation which was to rise from the soil of the new world. The French waited until the war of the Revolution for their revenge. At the time of the surrender of Detroit Count de Vergennes made a prophecy which commanded little attention at the time. ' ' This triumph will be fatal to England " said he; " the colonies are now able to pro- tect themselves without aid from the home government ; their ability to take care of themselves will make them headstrong; they will pres- ently refuse to contribute toward the expenses of the home government, and v/hen England attempts to coerce them they will surely strike for their independence. " Sixteen years later his prophecy came to pass, and when the war was wavering in the balance, and the case of the col- onists appeared hopeless, France sent La Fayette, De Grasse and other leaders, with ships and troops to help the colonists win their indepen- dence. By these brilliant and substantial victories over the French Great Britain won the whole of Canada and the Northwest and the cession was formally made by the treaty of Paris in 1763. Commenting on this momentous event John Fiske says: " It may be said of the treaty of Paris that no other treaty ever transferred such an immense portion of the earth's surface from one nation to another. But such a statement, after all, gives no adequate idea of the enormous results which the genesisof English liberty had for ages been preparing, and which had now found definite expression in the policy of the English prime minister, William Pitt. The 10th of February, 1763, might not unfitly be celebrated as the proudest day in the history of England ; for on that day it was made clear — had any one eyes to discern the future and read between the lines of this portentous treaty — that she was destined to become the revered mother of many free and enlightened nations, all speaking the matchless language which the English Bible has forever consecrated, and earnest in carrying out the sacred ideas for which Latimer suffered and Hampden fought. It was proclaimed on that day that the institutions of the Roman empire, however useful in 158 their time, were at last outgrown and superseded, and that the guidance of the world was henceforth to be, not in the hands of imperial bureaus or papal conclaves, but in the hands of honest labor and the preachers of righteousness, unhampered by ritual or dogma. The independence of the United States was the first great lesson which was drawn from this solemn proclamation. Our own history to-day is the first extended commentary which is gradually unfolding to men's minds the latest significance of the compact by which the vanquished old regime of France renounced its pretensions to guide the world." But Detroit and Michigan had to pass through many trials and bloody experiences before she reached the goal of human freedom. An isolated trading post on the borders of civilization, her importance was either forgotten or ignored amid the pressing concerns of other and more important centers of civilization, and it was not until thirteen years after the Revolution had been fought and won that she was allowed to become an integral portion of the great American republic. THE FRENCH COMMANDANTS. During the fifty-nine years of the French regime in Detroit the post at Fort Pontchartrain was presided over by eighteen different com- mandants and the rule was divided into twenty-four terms. Cadillac expected to be the permanent commandant when the post was estab- lished, and he hoped to enjoy all the benefits of trading, rents and seig- norial dues while he built up a populous colony about him. His hopes were dashed, and then the office of commandant became a rotating po- litical preferment with which the governors general could reward their friends and favorites. From 1701 to 1704 Antoine de La Mothe Cadillac ruled. While he was absent and on trial for alleged malfeasance in office, his companion and second in command, Alphonse de Tonty, was in charge from Sep- tember until February, while Lieut. August de Bourgmont was making his way from Montreal. Bourgmont remained until Cadillac was sent back to settle the In- dian trouble in 1706, and from that time the original commandant re- mained at the post until 1711, although he was relieved of command in the fall of 1710 by Joseph Guyon Dubuisson, who brought his appoint- ment as governor of Louisiana. Dubuisson remained in charge from the fall of 1710 until the fall of 1713 when the regularly appointed successor of Cadillac, Francis 159 Dauphine de la Forest had recovered from an illness and was able to take command in person. Two years later La Forest was deposed, because of his infirmities, and in 1714, Jacques Charles Sabrevois came to act as commandant. At this time it was decided that the term of a commandant should be three years or during good behavior. Sabrevois's term appears to have been uneventful and he was relieved in 1717 by Henry Tonty, son of old "Bras de Fer " (Iron Hand). Tonty, it would appear, was but a commandant pro tern, until the appointee, Sieur Francois de Louvigny, should arrive two months later. Louvigny remained for three years and in 1720 was relieved by the appointment of Charles Joseph de Noyelle. Noyelle's term was limited to a few months and then the audacious and unscrupulous trickster, Alphonse de Tonty, whose fingers had long been itching for a chance at the revenues of the post, was appointed commandant. So well did Tonty pull his political wires that in spite of flagrant abuses against the government and in spite of the protests of the residents at the post, he remained in power for seven years through his influence with Governors Vaudreuil, Longueuil and de Beauharnois successively. He died at Detroit in 1727. M. Joseph Le Pernouche was made temporary commandant and served nearly a year. In 1728 Jean Baptiste Deschaillions de St. Ours, a captain in the French army at Quebec, was sent to Detroit. St. Ours was probably better fitted for the duties of a soldier than for those of a civil ruler, for he was relieved after eight months by M. de Boishebert. Boishebert was a very able man and remained in oiiice for two full terms. Hughes Jacques Pean de Livandiere came next in 1734, but he inaugurated a policy of plunder and was soon deposed. Lieutenant Sabrevois had been promoted to a captaincy, and he came again in 1734 and served nearly four years. Chailes Joseph de Noyelle was given a second term in 1738. Pierre Poyen de Noyan followed in 1741, and was relieved in 1742 by Pierre de Celeron de Bienville. Celeron retired in 1743, and Joseph Le Moyne, Sieur de Longueuil, came for two successive terms which terminated in 1749. The now aged Charles Jacques Sabrevois relieved Longueuil of his command in 1749, but he retired in 1751, when Pierre de Celeron was sent again to the post. 160 JOHN T. RICH. Celeron remained a full term and was relieved by the appointment of Jacques d'Anon, Sieur de Muy. This commandant remained until 1758 and saw the closing in of the great struggle which deprived the French of Canada and the Northwest. . Francois Marie Picot^ de Bellestre, a man of unusual military ability and great energy, was the last commandant of the French at Detroit. He came in 1758 and directed the provisioning and reinforcing of the posts south of Lake Erie during the war with the British, but he was compelled to surrender Detroit to the British in 1760. In the foregoing relation of the French efforts to extend the sov- ereignty of that country in America, it will be seen that they were not good colonizers, and in this respect were very much inferior to their British rivals. The French sought to perpetuate in the western wilds the same feudal systems that obtained in Normandy and Languedoc, the vital defect of which was that tracts of land and trade monopolies were bestowed upon the few, thus compelling the many to labor and pay tribute, and remain is hopeless semi servitude. The vast domain of New France, which might have blossomed as a rose under liberal disposition of the lands to farmers and settlers, practically remained a wilderness at the expiration of 148 years of French rule. As late as 1734 the entire population of New France was only 34,51&. In 1760, when it passed into the hands of the British, it was probably not more than 40,000. Between the years 1612 and 1760 twenty five French governors ruled over New France from Quebec. They were : 1612-1635 — Samuel de Champlain. 1635-1636 — Marc Antoine de Chateaufort. 1636-1648 — Charles Huoult de Montmagny. 1648-1651 — Louis d'Aillebout de Coulonges. 1651-1656 — Jean de Lauson. 1656 — Charles de Lauson-Charnay. 1657 — Louis d'Aillebout de Coulonges (second term). 1658-1661 — Pierre de Voyer, Viscount d'Argenson. 1661-1663 — Pierre du Bois, Baron d'Avangour. 1663 — Chevalier Augustin de Saffrey-Mesy. 1663-1665 — Alexandre de Prouville, Marquis de Tracey. 1665-1672 — -Chevalier Daniel Remey de Courcelles. 1672-1682 — Louis de Buade, Count de Pelluanet de Frontenac. 1682-1685 — Antoine Joseph le Febre de la Barre. 161 21 1685-1689 — Jacques Rene de Brissy, Marquis Denonville. 1689-1699 — ^Count Frontenac (second term). 1699-1703 — Chevalier Louis Hector de Callieres. 1703-1725— Philip Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil. 1725-1736 — Charles de le Moyne, Baron de Longueuil. 1726-1747 — Charles, Marquis de Beauharnois. 1747-1749 — Roland Michel Barriu, Count de Gallissoniere. 1749-1752— Jacques Pierre de Tafifauel, Marquis de la Jonquiere. 1752 — Charles de le Moyne, Baron de Longueuil (second term). 1752-1755 — Marquis Duquesne de Menneville. 1755-1760 — Pierre Francois, Marquis de Vaudreuil-Casagnal. CHAPTER XXI. The British Take Possession of Detroit — Pontiac Demands Recognition of Them — The Indians Prefer Frenchmen Who Treat Them as Equals — They Show an In- clination to Attack the Newcomers — 1760. There was naturally great rejoicing among the New York and New England settlers over the great triumph of the British, for the trouble with the French was at an end and it was believed that the Indian wars would also cease. The war with the French was at an end on the continent, although it continued until 1763 on the sea, and the settlers were still in the midst of perils at the hands of the Indians. As has been shown in the foregoing pages, the American Indians had been generally divided into two opposing factions, one fighting the battles of the French, the other the battles of the British. Now that strife was apparently at an end. The French no longer fought their conquerors, but they were smarting under defeat, and in revenge they worked upon the prejudices of the savages. The British were not as congenial with the Indians as the French had been, because they treated them as in- feriors, and it soon became apparant that the contest between two na- tions for territory had given place to a contest between the British and the Indians. This tended to unite the heretofore unreconcilable Iro- quois and Algonquins against what was now their common enemy By the terms of settlement those of the French colonists who chose could remain in the colony and retain most of their former rights- 162 those who chose to leave could do so by disposing of their property under the approval of the British commandant. Several who had aided the Indians in the siege of Detroit were severely punished, but most of those who had been in open hostility escaped to St. Louis, on Peoria Lake, in what is now Illinois, then part of Louisiana. Ten years be- fore the surrender the Chevalier Repentigny had obtained a grant of seigniory over lands near Sault Ste. Marie, and had erected a fort and several houses iilside his stockade, but upon the surrender he aban- doned his land and returned to France. Lieutenant Jamette was sent to take possession of Sault Ste. Marie, but for some time after the Brit- ish had become masters of the country the island of Mackinac was abandoned to the Chippewas, who had a village there. When Com- mandant Bellestre had been escorted by British soldiers away toward the sea, there remained of the settlement at Detroit about 300 dwell- ings and perhaps 2,000 inhabitants. This was the estimate of Major Rogers, who received the surrender, and it is probably very nearly cor- rect. The French had fallen into the customs of the Indians, and many families held as slaves Indian captives, whom they had purchased from victorious warriors. These and a few Africans were recognized as property by the British, and the owners retained possession. These Indian slaves were captives who had been brought from the South and Southwest by victorious war parties, and so many of them were Paw- nees that the name Pawnee or Pani was applied to all. They were later given their freedom, but some lived about the settlement to the day of their deaths, and Judge Burnett, in his " Notes on the Northwest States," says that the last of the lot was in the employ of Judge Woodbridge. The French settlers at Detroit were well treated and professed to be grateful for the change. They had endured great privations during the preceding seven years, as all the government appropriations had gone to strengthen the two cities on the St. Lawrence, and even those had been but meagerly maintained. In a letter written November 2, 1760, by Captain Donald Campbell, the first British commandant, to his superior. Colonel Boquet, who was stationed at Presque Isle (Erie), he says: "We experienced some bad weather on the lake during our voyage to this place and lost one man overboard. Our ammunition was considerably damaged, so that we are in immediate need of more. Mr. Navarre, the civil officer of the post, will continue in his old capacity until he can teach his successor the duties of his ofifice. We find the fort badly ofiE for all supplies and 163 the inhabitants in sore distress. The stockade is one of the best I have ever seen; but we must have food and ammunition, and I fear it will be a hard matter to bring them by water at this time of the year." In another letter written December 11, 1760, he says: "I am greatly obliged for the flour you sent. It was twenty three days on the way and somewhat damaged. The ammunition came safely. Captain Waite brought with him thirty-three barrels of pork (all Major Walters could spare him) and it will be a great relief. We have also eleven bullocks. M. Navarre, a most excellent man, has undertaken to furnish us with 20,000 pounds of flour, 100 bushels of peas and 100 bushels of corn We pay the same rate as the French king allowed for flour, fifty shillings per hundred weight. Indians are furnishing venison at a moderate price. Major Rogers has about stripped us in supplying the adjoining posts [at Maumee and Sandusky], Owing to the scarcity of food the commander at Mackinaw has been obliged to take his men to winter among the Indians. Lieutenant Butler and his rangers are living among the Ottawas at the Miami [Maumee] post. At the point where he is stationed he is but nine miles from the Wabash River. I hope you will encourage trade with Pittsburg, for I cannot persuade the men to go there with their horses; they are so accustomed to canoes." A new era seemed about to dawn. The British, who have always been the most successful colonists, resolved to explore the interior of the country and open up the lands for settlement. Their predecessors had looked for nothing but furs and gold mines, without stopping to consider that the agricultural products of the soil are always more val- uable than all other, taking everything in the aggregate. During the three years in which the treaty of peace was pending, little was done. The old regulations governing the settlements of New France continued in operation, but the land-lookers were abroad searching out the rich prairie lands, the oak openings and the timbered areas. This territory was under the control of Sir William Johnson and Gen. Thomas Gage, who were lieutenants of Sir Jeffrey Amherst, gov- ernor-general of the British colony. Although Maj.or Rogers and Colonel Croghan, who led the British troops to Detroit, were his superior officers, Capt. Donald Campbell, of the Royal American Regiment, was made commandant pending the settlement of peace. The reason for this choice does not appear. Croghan and Rogers un- dertook to reconcile the Indians to the change of government. Un- scrupulous British traders flocked into the region from which they had 164 so long been barred, and their methods were such as to rouse the latent hostility of the Indians, and drew upon them the condemnation of those settlers who loved law and order. If the British ever had an opportunity for winning the favor of the Indians, these cheating, law- less fellows would have made it impossible. Sir William Johnson, in his reports made years after, admitted that the savages had been driven to hostility. It needed but one man of will and intellect, who enjoyed the con- fidence of the Indians, to unite all the savages of the country in a com- mon cause against the white invaders. That man was at hand, and, although an untutored savage, he was still a genius For many years the Ottawas had made what is now Walkerville, Ont., their Detroit headquarters. Their head chief was Pontiac, whose reputation as a warrior was known to all the Indians far and near. The British did not suspect that they were opposed by a very Cambyses in military daring, a man whose personal influence could unite all his fellows into a harmonious body, in spite of their ancient feuds, and plan a series of swift campaigns which wei^e calculated to drive the invaders from every frontier fort. Other Indian chiefs had led bands of several allied tribes on campaigns, but they were always inspired by a single purpose, and when that failed or was accomplished the Indians scattered in the forest and presently sued for peace. Pontiac planned to exterminate the British at Mackinac, at Detroit, at the outposts near Toledo and Sandusky, and all along the frontier, and he sought to execute his purpose by a series of masterly stratagems, which nothing but for- tuitous discovery prevented from being successful. It is common practice for writers of romance to make their Indian heroes a com- pound of Hercules and Apollo; but Pontiac, instead of being gigantic and beautiful, was a man of medium size, with a thick Roman nose, broad and high cheek bones and a heavy jaw. His eyes were large and bold, and his mental and physical activity were somewhat dis- guised by the stoical temperament of his race. His favorite summer residence was on Peche Island, about three miles from the Ottawa , fort at Walkerville. Within a short time after the British had taken possession General Gage learned that Pontiac was very active among the Indians of the North, and also that he was in constant communica- tion with some French people who had not accepted the, issue of war with good grace. Alexander Henry, a trader from the east, was at first refused a permit to travel to Mackinac for fear of trouble, but he U5 finally went, leaving Detroit disguised as a coureur de bois. Henry knew that he was taking his life in his hands, but traders of that day were so accustomed to peril that it was only the most imminent dan- gers that kept them in the settlements. Captain Campbell was a pleasure loving man of unsuspicious temperament. The fact that the British had conquered both the French and their Indian allies caused him to hold the Indians alone in contempt. During their residence at Detroit the various French commandants had enlarged and strengthened the fort, and it now inclosed a space 372 feet north and south by 600 feet east and west. At each corner on the river front strong bastions commanded the approach to the central gate, and the north gate was similarly protected. A bastion also pro- jected from the east side of the fort, but the battery of the place was a weak affair made up of five small guns, three mortars and two three- pounders. The narrow streets which Cadillac had laid out were still there and were extended outside the stockade. The greater part of the houses were outside the inclosure. Soon after the surrender the seat of government for the newly acquired territory was removed from Que- bec to New York, and Gen. Jeffrey Amherst, who had been so active in the late war, was placed in general control. Presently disquieting rumors began to reach his ears. The French and Indians were reported to be working together with suspicious intimacy, while each showed a lack of cordiality toward the British, and it was believed that a con- spiracy was on foot to drive the British away from Detroit and re- es.tablish either the French or Indian domination. General Amherst sent Sir William Johnson, the ablest Indian commissioner the English possessed in the colonies, to Detroit to investigate the truth of the ru- mors, and ascertain the real status of affairs. Sir William arrived at his destination September 3, 1761, having coasted in bateaux along the north shore of Lake Erie, and he brought Capt. Henry Gladwin and a detachment of 300 troops, with stores, ammunition, etc., for the post. Sir William remained at the post fifteen days, holding councils with the Indians in the daytime and devoting his evenings to social pleasures with the citizens. He made treaties with the Ottawas, Potawatomies , and Miamis, who resided in the vicinity of the fort, and also with the Chippewas of the North and the Delawares, Shawnees and Senecas of the Ohio region. These nations had been invited to meet him in coun- cil and the commissioner was liberal in bestowing presents. He also sent troops and supplies to the lake posts above and below, and form- 166 ulated new trade regulations. Sir William was an Irishman of cordial and winning disposition and an official of large experience and great capacity. Among the French gentlemen he met at Detroit were Col- onel Du Quesne and Major La Mothe, two officers who had surrendered their swords to him at Niagara. There was a round of festivities, Sir William entertaining his guests in the quarters of M. Bellestre, the last French commandant, and he made many visits to the homes of the leading citizens, including a visit to the Huron mission across the river, where he was entertained by Father Potier, the missionary priest. During his visit, Major Henry Gladwin, the new commandant, was confined to his bed by an attack of fever and ague, and Captain Donald Campbell had charge of the post. In Sir William's diary occurs the following passages : "September 6, — a very fine morning. This evening I am to dine witli Captain Campbell, who is also to give the ladies a ball that I may meet them. They assem- bled at 8 p. M. to the number of twenty. I opened the ball with Mademoiselle Cuil- lerief, a fine girl; we danced till five o'clock in the morning. "Monday, September 14, — I had for dinner this evening the French gentlemen of Detroit ; also the vicar-general Bocquet of the French church, and the Jesuit Father Potier of the Huron Mission, on the opposite side of the river. There was plenty of good wine and my guests got very merry. I invited them all to a ball that I am to give to-morrow night. The entry for September 15, says that the ball lasted the whole night until seven o'clock in the morning. "I promised to write Mile. Cuillerier as soon as possible, my senti- ments," Sir William concludes. On the 17th Sir William crossed the river and visited the Huron vil- lage, where the warriors were drawn up in line; they presented arms and fired a salute. He addressed their council, and afterward took supper with Father Potier. Next day he embarked for his return homeward. The beauty and attractions of Mile. Cuillerier made a great impression upon the gallant Irish superintendent of Indian affairs, and he corresponded with her for several years, and even after her marriage to James Sterling, a Scotch merchant and British official at Detroit. Sir William Johnson was a man of varied talents and a figure of much importance in the early English colonies. He was born in Ire- land in 1715. His uncle. Sir Peter Warren, married Miss Delancy, a New York heiress, who had large estates, and William Johnson came over in 1738 to take the management of them. He settled at Warrens- 167 burg, near Schenectady, where the Mohawks made him one of their sachems. Governor Clinton made him colonel of the Iroquois in 1744. In 1746 he was Indian commissioner of the colony, and two years later he was given command of the New York colonial troops which repelled an attack from the French and Indians of the north. In 1750 the king made him a member of the governor's council. He settled a serious difference between the settlers of the Mohawk valley and the Indians in 1753, and General Braddock made him superintendent of the Iroquois and their allies. As commander-in-chief of the Crown Point expe- dition, he defeated Baron Dieskiau, and for this was given $35,000 and made a baronet. He succeeded General Prideaux at the siege of Niag- ara, when the latter was killed by the explosion of a gun, and captured the fort. He was also present at the capture of Montreal. After his return from Detroit, in 1761, he was given as a reward 100,000 acres of land north of the Mohawk River, for preventing all the Iroquois, except the Senecas, from joining in Pontiac's conspiracy. In 1764 he built a home at Johnstown. In 1736 he married Catherine Wisenburg, who died leaving a son and two daughters. Thereafter he had many mis- tresses, both white and Indian. His favorite was Molly Brant, a sister of Joseph Brant, the Mohawk chief, whom he educated, and eight chil- dren resulted from this alliance. He provided for them in his will. When he died in 1774, it was said that he left one hundred children, but three of whom were legitimate. Meanwhile Spain had been playing an important but secondary role in North America. Her wars with other European powers were gen- erally followed by losses or acquisitions of territory on this continent. Louisiana was settled by the French in 1699, two years before the founding of Detroit, and Iberville founded the first colony at Biloxi, which is now in the State of Mississippi. The French remained in possession of Louisiana until 1762, when they ceded it to Spain, being glad to avoid a possible contest with England for it. Spain found the holding of this vast territory too onerous and it was retroceded to France in 1800. Napoleon saw that it could not be held as against Great Britain, so in 1803 he shrewdly sold it to the United States, the only power that had successfully resisted British domination on the continent. The price paid was $15,000,000. Louisiana at that time included all the country west of the Mississippi not occupied by Spain, extending as far north as the British territory and comprising the whole or part of the present States of Arkansas, Kansas, Indian Ter- 168 DON M. DICKINSON. ritory, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, the Dakotas, Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Oregon and Wash- ington. In 1763 there was trouble between England and Spain, and Pontiac was made to believe that Spain would help the French to recover New France. CHAPTER XXII. Pontiac, the Napoleon of the Western Indians — He Conspires with the Chiefs of Sixty Tribes to Drive the British Out of the Country — His Plans are Betrayed to Commandant Gladwin— 1761-1763. When Gladwin assumed command he made Captain Campbell his deputy. Campbell had made himself very popular with the old resi- dents of Detroit, and the Indians regarded him with more favor than was usually bestowed by them upon an Englishman. His influence tended to keep the savages in good humor at Detroit, even while trouble was brewing. Gladwin was a brusque and business-like com- mandant, with a manner in striking contrast to that of Captain Camp- bell, and the Indians did not like him. Some of the French who were in suspicious intimacy with the savages also disliked the new commandant, but Gladwin scarcely gave the threatening troubles a serious thought, although strict regulations were observed in furnish- ing the savages with rum and gunpowder. While he was resting in fancied security at the fort, Peche Island, the summer home of Pontiac on Lake St. Clair, about a mile east of the present eastern limits of Detroit, was a center of great activity. Indian runners came and went, some in canoes and others on foot. They carried the war belts and the plans and instructions of the great Ottawa chieftain to distant tribes, and brought reports of the defenses and garrisons at each frontier fort, so that the chief would know when and in what manner to strike his intended blow. Between the fort and Pontiac's head- quarters stood Belle Isle, then known as He au Cochon (Hog Island), and its dense growth of forest shut off the view of Pontiac's headquar- ters from the fort. Early in April Pontiac called a grand council of nations at the River aux Ecorces, which empties into the Detroit River a few miles below 169 22 Detroit, and there the Ottawas held conference with the Chippewas, Potawatomies, Miamis, Shawnees, Ottagamies, Winnebagoes, Massasa- gas and several other tribes, including the Senecas of the Iroquois confederacy. He submitted his scheme for a simultaneous attack upon Forts Pitt, Venango, Presque Isle, Le Boeuf, Sandusky, Detroit, St. Joseph, Mackinac and Green Bay. This included all the posts from Pittsburg to the north, and these controlled the headwaters of the Ohio, the south shore of Lake Erie, the Detroit River, the Straits of Mackinac and Lake Michigan. The attacks were to be made so that each post would be too busy in its own defense to render assistance to any other, and, as far as possible, the attacks were to be made while the defenders were thrown off their guard by their apparent security. After submitting his plan Pontiac delivered an impassioned speech which roused the fighting blood of the assembled chiefs to fever heat. In the speech he alluded to the fact that in 1746 he had aided the French in defending Detroit against Turtle, chief of the Chippewas, and also at Fort Du Quesne (Pittsburg) in 1755 against the British under Braddock, and was successful in both cases. About the first of May the various tribes engaged in the plan com- menced gathering about the various forts which were marked for de- struction during that month. The Ottawas, who were the leaders in this war, were the most civilized of all the Michigan tribes, and their wars and forays were far less atrocious than those of the treacherous Chippewas, who reveled in indiscriminate slaughter. More than once in the history of the colony did the Ottawas save white men from death and torture at the hands of other tribes, and this gave them the repu- tation of being friendly. Bands of Ottawas, Chippewas and Potawato- mies were dispatched to Mackinac and St. Joseph, the latter at the mouth of the St. Joseph River, on Lake Michigan, to capture these forts, while Pontiac took personal charge of the operations against the more formidable fort of Detroit. Other bands were sent against the other forts named. Pontiac's warriors began to congregate about the fort of Detroit on May 1, 1763, and in order to allay suspicion and at the same time examine the surroundings, a band of forty braves danced the calumet dance before the commandant's house. At this time Major Gladwin had no suspicion of an immediate sttack. The main body of Pontiac's tribe was then encamped on the Michigan shore, a little more than a mile east of the fort, on the farther side of Parent's Creek, which was later known as Bloody Run. The French residents, as usual, went 170 back and forth between the settlement and the camp to trade. Most of them were anxious to see the territory restored to France, which was perfectly natural. The better class of them, however, were not willing to have it done at the expense of a general massacre, although the British in former years had done little to merit consideration. Three days later Madame Guoin, wife of a settler, visited the Ottawa camp, and on returning told her husband that the Ottawas were up t,o some mischief, as she had seen a number of them filing off their gun barrels to half length- with a show of secrec)'. Guoin informed some of the soldiers at the fort, and two days later, on the evening of May 7, the plan of Pontiac to capture the fort was revealed to Major Gladwin. This information was given under the seal of secrecy, because the in- former would have met death at the hands of the Indians had his or her name been discovered, and, as will presently appear, there may have been other powerful reasons for keeping the secret for all time to come. Gladwin was a man of honor and so scrupulously did he keep his word that no mention is made of the informant in all his papers, which have been carefully examined and collated by Charles Moore, and which were recently published in the records of the Michigan Histor- ical Society. Mr. Moore has spent much time and research on the sub- ject of Michigan's early history, and some of the details of this account of the Pontiac conspiracy were obtained from his published brochure entitled, " The Gladwin Papers." One of the theories of the revela- tion to Gladwin is based upon an ancient French manuscript which was found tucked away amid the rafters of an old Canadian homestead as it was being demolished to make room for a more modern structure. It is not signed, but the author is supposed to have been a priest of old St. Anne's. Translations of it appear in at least four of the histories of Michigan. This manuscript is authority for the statement that Mo- hiacan, an Ottawa warrior, who was opposed to Pontiac's scheme, re. vealed the conspiracy. He is said to have come to the gate of the fort late Friday evening, and told Captain Campbell that on the next day Pontiac with sixty of his picked warriors would enter the fort to talk about a treaty, and at a given signal they would draw their concealed weapons, kill the English officers and give the residents over to slaugh- ter. He was so afraid of betrayal that he would not trust his revela- tion to the French interpreter. La Butte, but gave it as best he could in broken English. Another tradition has it that a daughter of La Butte told Gladwin of the conspiracy, and still another has it that a 171 Pawnee slave saved the British. The most popular theory is that of Parkman. It was about an Indian girl of the Ojibway or Chippewa tribe, named Catherine, who had frequented the fort, and become enamored of the commandant. She had done various tasks in his employ in the making of articles, which he had sent as presents to his friends in Eng- land. On the evening of May 7 she came to the commandant's quar- ters with a pair of elkskin moccasins, which she had embroidered with stained porcupine quills. With the moccasins she returned the re- mainder of the skin which he had given her, and which had not been used. Gladwin had intended the slippers for a friend, but they pleased him so much that he told the young woman to take back the rest of the skin and make another pair of moccasins for his personal use. The girl refused to take the skin and stood apart looking out of the window, apparently undergoing some sort of a struggle with herself. When pressed as to her reason for not taking the task she replied that if she made the moccasins she would not be able to deliver them to him in the spirit land. Her strange words led to further inquiry and on being pressed with questions she revealed, under promise of strict secrecy, the details of Pontiac's diabolical scheme. A writer remarks: "If this were all that is told of her she ought to be enshrined in history with Nancy Ward, the prophetess of the Cherokees. But tradition has added that after the siege she took to strong drink, and while in a maudlin condition she fell into a vat of boiling maple syrup and so perished ingloriously. Alas! that so much fidelity, human compas- sion and loveliness should come to an end in a kettle of boiling mo- lasses." When Parkman wrote the "Conspiracy of Pontiac" his informants in regard to the betrayal of Pontiac's plans were a few old men who were children when the drama was enacted, and whose stories were simply a repetition of tales t61d them while they were very young, and \yhose memories were naturally unreliable. Mr. Parkman also care- fully searched the archives in the British Museum which related to De- troit, but could find no corroborative documents in support of the romantic episode he relates in his famous work. Another theory respecting the person who gave the timely informa- tion to Major Gladwin has been broached by Richard R. Elliott, of this city, whose knowledge of the early history of Detroit is extensive and profound, and to whom the compilers of this work are indebted for the interesting sketch of the Huron mission of Detroit. There is probably 172 no positive or direct proof existing of the identity of Gladwin's inform- ant, but Mr. Elliott's theory is more circumstantial than any that has yet appeared. It may be premised that Fathers Richardie and Potier, of the Huron mission, were on terms of intimacy with the old French families on both sides of the river, and notable with Pierre Meloche, a prominent habitan, whose workshop was on the south side of the river, just east of the Ottawa fort. Meloche's home was on the north side of the Detroit River, just opposite his workshop, and his near neighbor was Charles Parent. Both of these men were great friends of Pontiac, as were most of the French families in the region. Pontiac also did a good deal of business with the Huron mission storehouse, which was on the river, about three miles below the Ottawa fort, as he naturally preferred to deal with the French rather than the English. One of the details of Pontiac's plan was the cutting off of a portion of the rifle barrels of his chiefs in order to conceal them from the eyes of the gar- rison. These must have been cut off by means of fine-tempered steel files. Where were these files obtained? They were not kept in stocl^ by the French, English or Scotch traders in Detroit, but they could be procured at the Huron mission, which had a forge where arms and agri- cultural implements could be repaired or remodeled. One of the en- tries in the account book of the mission during the French regime, dated February 20, 1751, is as follows: "Jean Bart, armorer of Fort Pontchartrain, 15 pounds steel springs; 18 pounds steel bars; 28 steel files." Exclusive purchases of files were previously entered. It is more than probable that these files were procured at the mission, for they could not have been purchased elsewhere in this region. Such an un- usual transaction coming to the notice of Father Potier doubtless led him to investigate its cause, and that Gladwin was warned by him is more than probable. Of course Father Potier would effect his object in such a manner as not to compromise his friends, and also to make it impossible for Pontiac^to ascertain who was the informant, whose days would be numbered if his identity were discovered. After Father Poller's death in 17.81 the following papers were found among his effects: The Huron Grammar; a diary of events which occurred at the mission ; an account book in which the prices of mer- chandise and the names of customers are set forth; a r^sum6 of the important events that happened in the old world ; a directory of resi- dent Frenchmen on both sides of the straits and their status at the post of Detroit and vicinity; a census of the Huron Indians at San- 173 dusky, Bois Blanc and Detroit; a census of the Ottawas whose canton- ment was on the present site of Walkerville, Ont. ; and his private correspondence, which consisted of copies of letters written by himself and the originals of letters received But his diary did not contain anything relating to events transpiring in 1761-63, during which the conspiracy of Pontiac and the siege of Detroit took place. The leaves containing these records had been removed by him, a fact which strengthened the belief that he informed Gladwin of the murderous object. Summing it all up, Mr. Elliott's theory is that Father Potier warned the commandant through Mile. Cuillerier, the sparkling and attractive daughter of Antoine Cuillerier, the French trader. Mr. Elliott adds that, if the Canadian records were carefully searched, it is probable that some document may be found that will throw alight upon these services and thus prove or disprove his theory. Whoever informed Gladwin did so under the seal of secrecy, and this was honorably observed by the commandant. None of his papers throw any light on the subject, and he evidently wished it to be kept secret for all time. Gladwin, although but twenty three years of age, was no novice in Indian warfare. He had accompanied the disastrous Braddock expe- dition against Fort Du Quesne, and was aware that Pontiac had been one of the leaders in the fight at Little Meadows eight years before. So it may be imagined that he lost no time in planning to meet the treachery of Pontiac with a show of force that would check the con- spiracy at the very outset. He had no idea that the Indians would muster in sufficient force to attempt the capture of Detroit by siege. The night of May 7, 1763, was a busy one inside the palisades; sen- tinets patrolled the inner wall of the fort, casting anxious glances out into the darkness where the gleam of distant camp fires showed through the forest. Canoes crossed and recrossed the river, bringing more warriors from the Canadian shore and landing them a short distance below Belle Isle. Captain Campbell and the officers of the fort walked the narrow streets, giving warning to the inhabitants that they must keep inside the fortifications on the following day, as the Indians were known to be in a dangerous mood. Arms were carefully loaded and put in order for immediate use; ammunition was dealt out, every man saw that the flint of his gun was in condition for immediate use, and all possible precautions were taken to defeat the project of the enemy. All night the stars shone upon a scene of woodland beauty ; on the 174 river gently rippling past the fort, and on the Indian camp where the warriors were dreaming of the scene of massacre and the scalp harvest which they expected on the morrow. Sixty chiefs were to enter the assembly hall in the fort, each man clad in his blanket and gripping through its folds a shortened musket with its death- dealing load, Pontiac was to address the commandant as if preparing for a treaty of peace and every warrior was to be on the alert. If the occasion proved favorable for an onslaught, Pontiac was to present Major Gladwin with a belt of wampum held in reversed position; if unfavorable he was to present it in the usual fashion. In the mean time the other warriors were to collect close to the gate, and if the signal for the massacre was given, they would be admitted immediately and would participate in the slaughter. At ten o'clock next morning Pontiac led his sixty warriors to the gate and they were admitted within the stockade. He saw that the sentinels at the gate were armed with sword, pistol and musket, and that the narrow streets were filled with soldiers, every one of whom was fully armed. It may be imagined that the chief and his warriors exchanged meaning glances at this display of force, but they had gone too far to recede. They entered the assembly hall and met Major Glad- win surrounded with a goodly company of men all fully armed. The Indian chief sat on the floor as usual. "Why does my English brother keep his young men armed and on parade as if for battle?" inquired Pontiac coldly. " Does my brother expect the soldiers of the French?" "I keep my soldiers armed that they may be perfect in their ex- ercise of arms, so that they may be ready to fight well if a war should come," replied Gladwin pointedly. During this trying moment the sixty chiefs sat grim and silent, their dark eyes turning from Pontiac to Gladwin and casting furtive glances at the soldiers in the room who appeared to be peculiarly alert. Their stoical training, which enabled them to undergo torture without com- plaint, stood them in good stead, for not an eye quailed, and not a tremor of a muscle betrayed the deadly purpose on which they were bent. They were ready to slay or be slain, and the manner in which their chief presented the wampum belt would decide a matter of life or death for perhaps six hundred souls, Pontiac arose at one end of the row and began an address to Gladwin, assuring him of his regard for the Englishmen. They had driven the French warriors from Detroit, he said, because they were mighty men in battle, and the Ottawas and 175 all other tribes of the region desired to express their good will and eternal friendship for the white chief. In token of that friendship he had brought a belt of wampum which he would give in honor of the occasion. They would light the calumet in token of peace which should be observed between them. As Pontiac began unfastening the wampum belt from his girdle the British soldiers in the council hall at a signal from Gladwin half drew their swords from their scabbards; the sentinel who stood in the open door signaled to a long row of soldiers ranged in front of the entrance; the drums rolled the assem- bly and the soldiers outside made a noisy clatter of arms. Death hovered in the air about that assembly, and Pontiac felt its presence. His hand did not tremble; the belt was calmly unfastened and after an instant of hesitation he handed it over to Gladwin in the usual fashion — and death passed them by. It was Gladwin's turn to reply. He took the belt and turned upon Pontiac and his followers with bitter words of reproach. He taunted them with being traitors who had planned to butcher the men and women for whom they had professed friendship but a moment before. "Look! false chief, you have thought to deceive me with lies and to slay me by treachery, but I know the treachery and hate that your lying tongue would hide. You are armed, every man of you with a shortened gun like this chief by my side." He stepped to the nearest Indian and pulling aside the folds of his blanket revealed the shortened musket. "My brother does me wrong; he does not believe? Then we will go," replied Pontiac. His dark eyes sparkled with baffled rage, but with perfect dignity he rose, gathered the folds of his blanket about his broad shoulders and walked with measured tread down the hall and out between the double file of armed soldiers. He might have been passing in review, but for the look of scorn and hate which distorted his countenance. His picked warriors followed sullenly and silently, and they passed through the gate into the village beyond. Less fortunate were the other posts in Michigan. At the moulh of the St. Joseph River, where Father Allouez had founded a mission among the Miamis and La Salle had built a rude fort, was a garrison of fourteen men under command of Ensign Schlosser. They had no warning of the great conspiracy, and on the morning of May 25, 1763, a band of Potawatomies suddenly attacked the fort. Eleven of the 176 soldiers were killed and scalped before they could attempt defense. Ensign Schlosser and three others were taken to Detroit and ran- somed. At Fort Sandusky, on May 17, Ensign Paully was called upon by a party of Indians who had been perfectly friendly up to that moment. He admitted seven of them and gave them tobacco. At a signal from the chief of the party he was seized and bound and carried out of the fort. He passed his sentry lying dead across the entry. His twenty- seven soldiers were all dead and lying scalpless in the yard, the mer- chants of the post had been killed in their places of business and their stores were being plundered. Paully was carried to Detroit, where he was given as a husband to an unattractive old squaw, from whom he made his escape to the fort June 14. Ensign Holmes, in charge of the fort on the Miami of the Lakes, or Maumee River, was preparing for defense against a possible attack when he was called out to bleed a sick Indian in a wigwam near the fort. ■ He was shot down while on his way, and the garrison surren- dered to a party of Frenchmen who were on their way to St. Louis (Peoria), Illinois, to secure a French commandant for Detroit. At Mackinac, on June 3, the slaughter was far worse, as the place was defended by a garrison of thirty six men under Captain Ethering- ton. The commandant was a man of easy disposition who held the savages in contempt and disregarded warnings to prepare for treachery. The Indians were numerous about the fort every day, but so long as they were not allowed to enter while bearing arms they were con- sidered harmless. On the morning of June 2 an unusual number collected to witness a game of lacrosse, into which the two sides entered with -great zeal, and the ball was flung wildly about. The squaws stood near the entrance to the fort looking on and presently a wild throw, apparently by accident, sent the ball over the palisades. In great excitement the Indians rushed through the gate apparently in quest of the ball, but each man as he ran was handed weapons by the squaws, who had concealed them in their garments. The character of the scene changed in an instant. Captain Etherington and his soldiers had been looking on with interest and several bets had been made on the result of the game, when suddenly they were surrounded by a hundred yelling savages who attacked the defenseless garrison with tomahawk and scalping knife. The captain, Lieutenant Leslie and fourteen privates were all the soldiers that were spared. Alexander 177 23 Henry, the trader, was sought for, but a Pawnee slave woman hid him away in the garret of Mr. Langlade, a French resident, where he was subsequently discovered. But Wawatam, an Indian whom he had befriended, interceded for him and the trader's life was spared. While Henry was hidden in the Langlade garret he could hear the blows of the tomahawks, and amid the frenzied yells of the Indians he could distinguish the moans of the dying. When the awful orgie of blood was ended the bodies of Lieutenant Jomet, twenty soldiers, and a trader named Tracy, were cut up and boiled in huge kettles for a general feast. The Indians in this massacre were mostly Chippewas. Henry was concealed for a few days on Mackinac Island in Scull Cave, and when the excitement had died out he made his way to Detroit. Cap- tain Etherington and his few surviving captives were taken to the mission at L'Arbe Croche, on the northern shore of the lower penin- sula, and were well treated until they were exchanged. It is said that they owed their lives to the intercession of the few Ottawas who were present at the massacre. In all these massacres the French were not molested. CHAPTER XXIII. Detroit is Besieged by 3,000 Indians — Murder of Captain Donald Campbell and a Number of Settlers — Massacres at Mackinaw, St. Joseph, Miami, Sandusky and Other Posts— 1763. Major Gladwin no doubt believed that the crisis was over, for the idea of a well organized siege of the fort probably did not occur to him. He had but 123 soldiers and eight officers, together with about fifty fur traders who were stopping in the fort, and his artillery was limited to two six-pounders and five smaller guns. The garrison, however, was well protected within its strong log walls, and outside the barrier was a glacis protected by three rows of sharp pickets. There was no lack of water, for the savages could not turn aside the river which flowed close to the south gate ; and two small vessels, the sloop Beaver and the schooner Gladwin, were available for bringing supplies to the garrison and the besieged settlers. No doubt Gladwin underestimated the force which was opposed to him. It was characteristic of Indian warfare 178 that the greater part of the fighting men kept out of sight as much as possible, so that it would be impossible to determine their ntimbers, but the array which Pontiac gathered at Detroit was between 1,500 and 2,000 warriors. There were no immediate signs of hostility after the bafQed chiefs had left the fort. The afternoon passed quietly, but at sundown six warriors appeared before the gate leading an old squaw, whose appetite for liquor often led her into indiscretions. They were admitted and Gladwin was asked if she was the informant who had told lies about the Indians. Gladwin assured them that she was not the person, and when they demanded the name of the informer, he replied that it was one of themselves, and that he had sworn never to reveal the name. They dragged their captive back to the camp, and Pontiac vented his spite upon her by beating her over the head with a stick until she fell half stunned to the ground. His followers clamored for her life, but he waived them back because it was possible that she was innocent. , Nearly twenty hours passed before the Indians appeared again about the fort. Sunday morning was quietly spent, but late in the afternoon several canoes paddled down from the Indian camp and landed at the fort. Pontiac was the leader of the party. He sent word to Gladwin, asking him to come out on the common, as he wanted to smoke the pipe of peace. The young commandant saw in this another treacherous ruse to get possession of his person, and he refused to have anything to do with the chief. Captain Campbell had never considered the Indians seriously, but believed with kind treatment and a little finesse they could be perfectly controlled. No doubt he was sorhewhat conceited because of the gen- eral good will which he enjoyed above the rest of the garrison, for both the French and the Indians were very friendly toward him. He ob- tained permission to go out and smoke the pipe of peace with the del- egation of chiefs, thinking that a little courtesy would pacify them. He brought back information that next day Pontiac would call a grand council of all the tribes, and that he would them disperse them in peace. Next morning canoes were seen massing below Belle Isle, and soon after a fleet of fifty-six came down the stream to land about 500 In- dians at the fort. The gates were closed and an interpreter was sent out to parley with Pontiac. He asked admission for all his followers for the purpose of holding a grand council, but was informed that he and sixty of his followers would be admitted and no more. The answer made Pontiac furious. 179 "Tell the chief of the Red Coats that my warriors are all equal, said he; "unless every man of them is admitted not one will enter. Tell the white chief that he may stay in his fort if he will, but I will keep the country. " He leaped into his canoe and was paddled swiftly toward the Ottawa village up the river. There was no occasion for dissimulation now, and the Indians looked about for victims. The French settlers were on friendly terms with the Indians and showed no alarm, and the few British settlers outside of the fort believed they would be secure. The widow Armstrong and her two sons lived but a short distance from the fort. They were attacked by the Indians and butchered within sight of the fort. On He au Cochon (Belle Isle) lived an English settler named James Fisher, who had been a sergeant in the army. He had a wife and four children and he employed a man servant. Three sol- diers from the fort were stopping at his house at the time. A band of Indians landed on the island and butchered all the adults. The four little children (children of Fisher) were either drowned in the river or carried away into captivity. The Indians also killed twenty- four head of cattle on the island. Unfortunately a boating expedition was absent from the fort, employed in searching out the most available passage for large boats from Lake St. Clair into the St. Clair Riven With this party was Sir Robert Davers, who had spent the winter at the fort and was a boon companion with Captain Campbell. Sir Robert was accom^ panied by Captain Robertson and a crew of six men. The Indians met them and the entire party were murdered on their way back to the fort. The Indians then sent word to the fort by a Frenchman that all the English people outside the fort had been killed, and that those inside would meet the same fate unless they took to the two vessels and left the fort with all its supplies' to the Indians. Pontiac's mission to the Ottawa village was to order all supplies carried to the new camp ground east of the ravine of Parent's Creek, now known as Bloody Run, and the squaws were to come over from the village, which was located on the site of Walkerville, to prepare food for the fighting men. Return- ing to the camp Pontiac put on the war paint of his tribe, after which he danced the grand war dance; chanted about the prowess of his war- riors, and recounted the wrongs they had to revenge upon the English. His example was imitated by the others; the circle of the dance widened and the chanting was interrupted by wild yells as the Indians worked themselves into a frenzy of passion. In a short time the whole camp 180 was inflamed with a thirst for blood, and the echoing yells were wafted down to the fort, giving notice that a war had begun. When morning broke upon the settlement the sentinels discovered that the Indians had moved up close to the fort where they could find shelter from the soldiers' muskets behind the outer row of houses. War was declared, but strat- egy was not at an end. A party of Wyandottes stopped at the fort on their way to join Pontiac, and after being cheered with rum they went away promising to do what they could to secure peace. A delegation of chiefs from each tribe in the camp soon appeared before the fort, accompanied by Frenchmen in order to assure the garrison that they were on a peaceful mission. They were admitted to the commandant and they told him that all the chiefs were assembled at the house of trader Cuillerier, father of the black eyed belle of the settlement, and that they desired to hold council with a delegation from the fort. They asked that Captain Campbell and another officer be allowed to come to the council, and assured Gladwin that a peace could probably be ar- ranged. By this time the commandant had lost all faith in Indian in- tegrity and he refused, but Campbell pleaded for the opportunity and asked that Lieutenant McDougall might be his companion. Gladwin gave reluctant permission. Night was falling as the party left the fort. As they were passing through the village they saw M. Guoin, who had reported the shorten- ing of the gun barrels, which was the first intimation of trouble. He begged the two officers to go back and abandon their hazardous un- dertaking, and told them that even if the chiefs were acting in good faith it would be doubtful if they could control the frenzy of their fol- lowers. Campbell laughed at his fears and passed on toward the house of Cuillerier. A hundred yards further on the peril of the situation dawned upon them, for a number of warriors landed from their canoes and ran upon them. The warning shouts of Pontiac and his swift rush to their rescue, saved them from destruction. Arriving at the house they found M. Cuillerier seated upon a table in the middle of the largest room. Antoine Cuillerier had some peculiar traits of character; he was noted as a vain, conceited man who believed that his mental and physical gifts were of the finest quality. He habitually wore loud and showy clothes and a profusion of trinkets and gold lace; his moc- casins being of fantastic pattern and his sash elaborately decorated with beads. He had a restless ambition to be considered a leader in the affairs of the community, and posed as the friend of the Indian and a 181 hater of the English. The latter trait, however, was not publicly dis- plaj'ed for very good reasons. It is believed that he was but little more than a tool of Pontiac in the machinations of that wily warrior. His house was on the bank of Parent's Creek. After Campbell and McDougall arrived, Pontiac announced that he recognized Cuillerier as the father of the settlement, in place of M. Bel- lestre, until the latter should return. The Indians, he said, would not tolerate the presence of the British in that territory, and the only way in which to secure peace was for the garrison to agree to abandon the fort, and without arms or baggage leave the country under escort. This announcement appeared to please Cuillerier, who thereupon shook hands with the British officers, saying: "This is my work; I have made the best terms I could for you; I thought that Pontiac would not be so easy." The good faith of the French trader in this matter will naturally be questioned. It is known that he had been a prominent man in the French settlement and that he naturally longed for a return of the French to power at Detroit. Ordinary patriotism would inspire such sentiments. On the other hand he had been on excellent terms with the British, and the theory set forth in the Elliott manuscript indicates that his daughter was probably the person who revealed the conspiracy to Gladwin. He must have known that the Indians were on the war path, at which time honor and integrity are laid aside by them and pledges of safe conduct to surrendered prisoners are not regarded. To accept the terms offered to the garrison, and for the latter to leave De- troit unarmed, would have invited a wholesale massacre. Captain Campbell addressed the council, recalling the good will which he had always shown toward the Indians. He counseled peace and friendly relations as conducing to trade and the mutual benefit of the Indians and the British. But he told them he was not the chief and therefore Major Gladwin must answer. He would bear the message of Pontiac to the fort and bring back the answer. No sign of approval followed his remarks and Captain Campbell- and his companion arose to return to the fort. Pontiac stopped them with the remark: "My father will sleep to-night in the lodges of his red children." The two British officers then realized that they were prisoners. They were conducted to the house of M. Meloche, another French settler, and placed under guard. It is suggested that Gladwin at this time was holding several Potawatomies in custody, and the 183 Indians spared the lives of the two envoys because they feared retalia- tion at the fort. Pontiac's dictum was conveyed to Gladwin next day by a delegation of Frenchmen, who urged him to accept, but the young commandant was not to be intimidated, and he told the envoys that he would hold the fort at all hazards. He wrote a message to General Amherst, in- forming him of the situation and asking that the necessary supplies be forwarded in order that the siege might be sustained. This was borne down the river by the schooner Gladwin. Five canoes filled with armed Indian's put off to board the schooner, and Captain Campbell was placed in the bow of the foremost canoe to screen the savages, but he bravely shouted to those on board: "Pay no attention to me; do your duty." A shot from one of the crew killed a Potawatomie in the foremost canoe and they then turned back. When they reached the shore Cuillerier, it is said, jeerpd at them for their faint-hearted re- treat. From that time the fort was fully besieged. Reports of the capture of the forts at Sandusky and St. Joseph and at the Miami settlement on the Maumee River came to Detroit and nat- urally tended to dishearten the garrison. On the morning of May 29 ten bateaux were seen coming up the river, and the soldiers rejoiced at the arrival of supplies and reinforcements. When the boats came nearer the fort, however, the besieged British saw that their hopes were vain, for the bateaux were in the hands of the Indians. Lieutenant Cuyler, who had set out from Niagara in charge of the relief expedi- tion, had been surprised by a night attack as they were encamped near Pelee Island in Lake Erie. They had landed on the previous night about ten o'clock, the men having been kept at the paddles until long after dark in order that the Indians might not discover their landing place for the night. Two of the men began to collect dead limbs for a fire, while the others prepared a place for hanging their camp kettle. The men in the woods roused a party of Indians, who were following the canoe expedition on shore, and one of the foragers was killed and scalped. The other ran into camp and in the midst of the confusion that followed several were shot down. Lieutenant Cuyler rallied thirty men about him and held the savages off ; some of the others ran to the bateaux, but there were but two or three men to a boat, and they were captured before they could get into deep water. Cuyler and his fol- lowers escaped in the darkness, but the men who fled to the boats were forced to assist in paddling them to Detroit. As the bateaux arrived 183 just below the fort two soldiers, who were rowing the foremost boat, resolved to make their escape or die in the attempt. They made a movement as if to change places in the boat, and each seized his Indian guard. One of them threw his man into the river; the other rolled in- to the water in a death grapple with the Indian. The boats were close to the shore and in shoal water. As the soldier and the Indian strug- gled to their feet the more active Indian drove his tomahawk into his adversary's brain, but the other soldier brought down his paddle with all his might upon the surviving Indian's head, fracturing his skull, and although he was able to stagger to the shore, he died half an hour later. The two soldiers in the second boat attacked their guards with their paddles and drove them into the river. The three desperate men landed the two boats under the fire of more than sixty Indians, and thus saved several barrels of pork and other provisions for the hungry gar- rison. The other eight bateaux were landed at the Indian camp above, and the captors all got drunk on the rum they found in the stores. They killed and scalped the soldiers who had not escaped, and sent their dead bodies, tied to logs, floating past the fort to intimidate the garrison. Ten days later came Father La Jaunay from Mackinac Isl- and to tell of the slaughter of that garrison. Six weeks rolled by and the provisions of the savages were about ex- hausted, so Pontiac set about obtaining a new supply. The contents of eight bateaux, and twenty-four cattle killed on He au Cochon, indicated great consuming powers on the part of the Indians. The French residents across the river from the fort had fertile farms and a few cattle, so Pontiac attended mass on the morning of June 36, in the French chapel of the Huron mission. There were no carriages in the settlement, but some of the wealthy farmers had rigged easy chairs with side bars, and seated in these were carried to church in state on the shoulders of their Pawnee slaves. Pontiac and two of his asso- ciate chiefs seized three of these rude sedan chairs, which were stand- ing at the church door, and they were carried about the settlement to purchase cattle and corn. In imitation of the commandants at the fort, he gave his note to signify his indebtedness. These promissory notes were pieces of bi ch bark on which was cut or scratched the outHne of a coon, the chosen totem of Pontiac representing his signa- ture. He afterward redeemed these pledges in honorable fashion. With fresh provisions his warriors were encouraged to continue the siege, and hoping to hasten the capitulation of the fort, Pontiac sent 184 Vfy,i„-n P„l,h,lwa, «l E^Mr„i»r word to Gladwin that a force of nine hundred warriors was on its way from Mackinac. When they arrived, he said, he feared he would no longer be able to control his forces, and he would not be answerable for the consequences. In the mean time the houses and barns nearest to the fort had been fired by red hot shot, and by sallying- parties sent out for the purpose, so that the Indians no longer had shelter for a near approach. The success of the campaign depended on supplies being delivered to the garrison. Gladwin answered that he could make no terms with Pontiac until Captain Campbell and Lieutenant McDougall had been returned in safety, according to his pledge. Incensed at the determined atti- tude of the commandant, Pontiac replied that the kettles were heating to boil the inmates of the fort, and if the two hostages were returned they would only share the fate reserved for the others. Four days later, when the hope of the British had almost departed, the schooner Gladwin sailed up the river with a load of provisions and a force of fifty soldiers to protect her. The ammunition, which had been almost exhausted in keeping the savages at a respectful distance, and which alone prevented the latter from firing, the buildings within the fort, was now replenished. As the Indians returned victorious from the other captured forts Pontiac was deeply mortified to find that he, the leader of the great campaign, was the only one who had failed to ac- complish his purpose. He had one more plan in his busy brain, and that was to force the neutral French to take up arms and unite with the savages. He argued that the war was for the purpose of re- storing the French to power, and in the expectation of success a secret messenger had been dispatched to the Mississippi valley to bring on a French commandant named Neyons, from St. Louis, Illinois, to take charge of the fort at Detroit after it should be taken. The pressure was strong on the French at Detroit and they knew not which way to turn, when a copy of the definitive treaty between France and England arrived at the settlement. This announced that the French king had abandoned the settlements in the North, and that he acknowledged the sovereignty of the British crown over the territory. When Gladwin assembled the French on July 4, 1763, and read the treaty, James Stir- ling, who afterward married the pretty daughter of Cuillerier, took service under the eommandant, and forty others (mostly French) fol- lowed his example. Once more the spirits of the garrison arose and a bold sortie was made to the house of M. Baby, where a quantity of am- 185 24 munition had been concealed to keep it out o£ the hands of the Indians. It was a bold dash, but it was rendered less heroic by an act of barbar- ism. As the soldiers charged for the house a number of Indians fired upon them without effect, but in the return volley a young Chippewa warrior, son of a chief, was killed. Lieutenant Hays then scalped him at the door of the house, and shook the gory trophy toward the Indian camp. That barbarous act cost the life of Captain Campbell, who might otherwise have survived the siege. Lieutenant McDougall and a trader from Albany named Van Epps, who had been captured on the river, made their e,scape, and got safely into the fort. Captain Camp- bell refused to accompany them, because he was an elderly man and not fleet of foot, and in waiting for him the other two might sacrifice their lives. When the Chippewa chief heard of the scalping of his son he was crazed with passion, and rushing into the lodge where Captain Campbell was kept, he dragged him out, struck him down with his tomahawk, and scalped him. Then he cut his heart out and ate it and afterward cut off his head. The body was finally cut in small pieces and was boiled and eaten like those of the first victims of the siege. This is the report commonly accepted by historians, but according to the reports submitted by Gladwin to Sir Jeffrey Amherst the captain was killed under different circumstances, as follows : The Indians had erected a rude breastwork of small logs near the fort on the night of July 3, from which they could harass the sentries and the British sharp- shooters. Soon after it was discovered a sortie was made from the fort by a company of soldiers and the breastwork was destroyed. A party of twenty Indians attempted to defend the work, one of whom was shot dead and two were wounded, " which our people scalped and cut to pieces," Major Gladwin states in his report. Half an hour afterward the dead were brought into the house where Captain Camp- bell was confined. Then the savages stripped the captain and killed him with shocking barbarity. The Gladwin and the sloop Beaver were lying in front of the fort on the night of July 10, threatening with their cannon any war party which might attempt to reach the fort. To get rid of them the In- dians, under Pontiac's direction, made huge rafts of logs and piled upon them masses of bark and brush saturated with pitch. When these had been lighted they were floated down to the two boats and threatened their destruction. But the fire rafts were met by boats and 186 pushed to one side, and a shifting of cables allowed" the vessels to sheer out of harm's way. It would seem that all the warnings of the past would have led the soldiery to continue their policy of waiting until the Indians would become discouraged and abandon the siege. So long as the garrison could be provisioned and supplied with ammunition it was evident that the fort was safe. But the desire to make a record for heroism often leads to sacrifice of life, and the siege of Pontiac was not to pass without its slaughter. Captain Dalzell arrived from Niagara with a force of 260 men, on July 29, and General Amherst had given him orders to put an end to the siege. The boats of the flotilla made a fine show on the river as they came on that sunny morning with their regularly dipping oars, and those who were not rowing awoke the echoes with volleys of musketry. Dalzell was anxious to go out and give the Indians battle, but Gladwin advised him to give up that idea, as the Indians were very numerous, and the chances were that an attacking party would be flanked and ambushed with disastrous re- sults. Dalzell, however, was hot headed and impatient, and said that if he was not allowed to go out and acconiplish something, after bring- ing his regiment two hundred miles, he might as well return at once. Gladwin gave reluctant consent, but warned Dalzell to proceed with great caution, and have his skirmish line well advanced to discover any attempt at an ambush. It is supposed that some of the French warned Pontiac of the intended sortie, for that able warrior prepared to destroy the attacking party. Just before daybreak on July 31, Dalzell marched quietly out of the fort at the head of 250 men; they took their way along the ridge about on a line with Jefferson avenue. The morning birds were beginning their songs as they came to the small ravine of Parent's Creek, about a mile and a half east of the fort. This sti-eam, which had its source three miles to the northward, had in the lapse of ages furrowed out a little gorge, the last remnant of which is still preserved within the limits of Elmwood Cemetery. All the rest has been, filled up and obliterated by the march of public improvements. A rude bridge crossed the creek near where the Michigan Stove Works now stands on Jefferson avenue. Day had not yet broken when the skirmishers, numbering twenty-five men, walked across the bridge. Not a soimd broke the silence of the forest except the measured tread of the soldiers and the clank of their accoutrements. Suddenly the side of the ravine was a blaze, of fire and 187 a storm of bullets swept the bridge. Half the skirmishers fell where they stood, and most of the others were wounded. Dalzell was brave and he charged across the bridge with the main body of his men in close order, offering a fine target for his unseen foes. The bridge was left covered with dead bodies. Wherever he saw flashes of fire and heard the sound of musketry Dalzell charged with the idea of driving out the Indians and cutting them down, but he never came to close quarters, and presently as day broke, he found himself surrounded by a multitude of savages. His only hope of escape was to cut his way back to the bridge and this he did, his soldiers falling all around him. He retreated toward the fort, but every woodpile, farmhouse and out- building was an ambush. As they ran past an excavation for a cellar it belched fire, and a number of men fell to be butchered and scalped by the pursuing host. When the soldiers grew panic stricken Dalzell brought them to their senses by beating them with the flat of his sword. Major Rogers, who had received the surrender of Detroit, saw a house on the way to the fort belching fire and showering bullets from every window. At the head of his bold rangers he burst the doors and the Indians leaped out of the windows taking to the trees aud continuing their fire. Captain Gray fell riddled with bullets. Dalzell, fatally wounded, tried to help a wounded sergeant toward the fort, but both went down under the ceaseless fire. A painted savage ran up to the bleeding body of Captain Gray and cut his heart out. But for the cool- ness of Major Rogers, who succeeded to the comniand, not a man would have lived to reach the fort. When escape was cut off he took refuge with the remnant of his followers in the Jacques Campau house, which was of unusual strength, and managed to keep the enemy at a distance until word could be sent to the fort. The boats, armed with swivel guns, put off from the fort, and under protection of their fire, Rogers made his way back with ninety men. This was all that was left of the 250 who went out under Dalzell. It is said that less than a score of Indians were killed during the fight. The river and ravine were then christened Bloody Run, and until the summer of 1893 a scarred and bullet pierced tree was preserved on the ground by an iron railing, the last silent witness of the slaughter. That summer it was cut down, and now no living thing remains which existed at the time of that battle. Pontiac was quick to see that his only hope of subduing the fort was to cut off communication with the outside world, and this he deter- 188 mined to accomplish. The schooner Gladwin was becalmed off Fighting Island on the evening of September 4, as she was on her way up the river. She was compelled to anchor, and the crew of twelve men had to risk their lives in an exposed position where the savages might attack in force under cover of darkness. In the dead of the night a fleet of canoes was discovered almost upon the vessel, and there was but time for one exchange of shots before a large force of savages boarded the vessel. Commander Horst had fallen at the first fire. Nothing but death by torture confronted the seven survivors, and this they immediately realized. " Fire the magazine ! " shouted Mate Ja- cobs. His order was understood by the Indians, and they precipitated themselves into the river. The rest of the night was passed without molestation, and the Gladwin made her way to the fort next morning. This failure dampened the ardor of the Indians, but the last act which would bring about peace was about to take place. General Amherst was of the opinion that the French had a sinister influence upon the Indians, and that they were at the bottom of the Pontiac trouble. He wrote a vigoroiis letter to M. Neyons, commandant of the French in the Illinois region, and to prevent serious complications with the Eng- lish government, Neyons wrote to Detroit warning the settlers and In- dians that peace had been declared between the English and the French, and that the two kings desired no further warfare. The shedding of blood and all evil counsels must stop, he said, because under the peace regulations the Indians could not attack one nationality without ofi^end- ing the other. This was read to the French citizens of Detroit, who promptly acknowledged the right of the English to possession. Pontiac abandoned hope October 12, and sued for peace, but Major Gladwin merely agreed to a truce until orders could be received from General Amherst. There was no profit to be gained by the British in prosecuting the war. The Indians were hard to strike owing to their superior knowledge of the country, and their destruction would ruin the peltry trade and stop the consumption of large quantities of goods that were sold to the outposts. Gladwin was bitter against the French, who in his judgment were far from blameless. In regard to the In dians he wrote his superior: "They have lost between eighty and ninety of their warriors, but if your excellency still intends to punish them for their barbarities it may be easier done, without any expense to the crown, by permitting a free sale of rum, which will destroy more effectually than fire and sword. But, on the contrary, if you intend to 189 accommodate matters in the spring, which I hope you will for the above reasons, it may be necessary to send up Sir William Johnson." The letter is a tribute to the wisdom of Sir William as being the man best adapted for handling the Indians. After more than five months of confinement and constant danger, after weeks of short rations, with starvation apparently near at hand, the beleaguered garrison marched out upon the green sward of the outer village with glad hearts. The siege had lasted 153 days. CHAPTER XXIV. Detroit was Saved by Pretty Angelique Cuillerier Beaubien — The Belle of the French Settlement Learns of Pontiac's Treachery— She Tells Her Lover, James Sterling, and Sterling Informs Gladwin — 1763. Historians who have written the story of Pontiac's conspiracy have accepted as a plausible theory a time-honored tradition which has no foundation in fact. The Ojibway maiden Catherine is unquestionably a myth. Recent discoveries show beyond doubt that the information came from Angelique Cuillerier, and that her lover, James Sterling, who later became her husband, was the actual informant. In the Canadian archives, Series B, Vol. 70, page 214, is a letter from Major Henry Bassett, British commandant at Detroit in 1773, to Sir Frederick Haldimand, governor-general of Canada. After report- ing to his chief various matters concerning the several tribes of Indians who lived about Detroit, Major Bassett says: " I have received an account from the Wabash Indians, that near the Ohio some Indians fell in with four English traders who had fifteen horses loaded with goods, and that they have scalped the traders and taken the horses and goods. This is not confirmed, although the Hurons have mentioned it to me, and they are seldom out. I don't think the Indians are 'at present much to be trusted. They seem very rest- less, as you will perceive by the inclosed report, which I received from the Indians in council ready wrote in French, and translated by Mr. James Sterling for me. I believe some French traders amongst them help to stir them up. " For want of a civil ofiicer here the commanding officer is very much employed with the disputes which must naturally happen between the inhabitants. I am so uncomfortable as not to speak French, or understand it sufficiently without an inter- preter. Hitherto I have been under obligations to Mr. Sterling, merchant, who has been ready on all occasions to attend, and has wrote and answered all my French 190 letters without any gratuity. A French interpreter where the inhabitants amount to near 1,300 souls, I should conceive, with submission to your excellency, government would not object to ; more particularly as I am informed one is paid at the Illinois settlements. Should your excellency allow me one here, I beg leave to recommend Mr. James Sterling, who is the first merchant at this place, and a gentleman of good character during the late Indian war. Through a lady whom he then courted, from whom he had the best information, he was in part a means to gave this gar- rison. This gentleman is now married to that lady and is connected with the best part of this settlement ; has more to say with them than any one else here: The In- dians can't well begin hostilities without his having information of their designs. If your excellency disproves of adding third interpreter, mine for the Hurons is a drunken, idle fellow scarcely worth the keeping except out of charity. If your ex- cellency will appoint Mr. Sterling both French and Huron interpreter, he'll oblige himself to find a proper person for that nation. " Mr. Sterling tells me he has the honor to be known to your excellency as com- missary of provisions in the year 1759 at Oswego, and at Fort Augustus in 1760. At his earnest request I have taken the liberty to inclose to your excellency a memorial from him. I have the honor to be with very great respect, "Your Excellency's very obedient and humble servant, "H. Bassett, Major of the 10th Reg't.'' In this and foregoing correspondence is a picture of a very zealous, and also a very nervous officer. He is in command of a limited force of men in a region which is several hundred miles from military sup ■ port: The nearest relief, in case of an unexpected attack, is Niagara, two hundred miles away, where there is but a mere handful of soldiers. About him are several tribes of Indians, who can muster 1,500 war- riors, and they are constantly reminding him that they prefer the French to the English rule. They come to Detroit and hold excited councils with the French, at which the British are denounced as in- truders and interlopers. The only means of keeping in touch with them and watching their movements is by the courtesy of the versatile Scotch merchant, James Sterling, who takes notes of their utterances and those of the French traders, and translates them to the command- dant in the privacy of his quarters. Sterling saved the garrison by re- vealing Pontiac's plot in May, 1763, and he got his information through Mile. Cuillerier, his sweetheart. The missing link in the chain of evi- dence is the manner in which Mile. Angelique Cuillerier obtained the information. In the foregoing pages it has been shown that Antoine Cuillerier, her father, was in more than suspicious intimacy with Pon- tiac. At the conference in the Cuillerier cabin old Antoine was the central figure. Seated in a chair which had been placed on the family table, and wearing a tall hat rigged out fantastically in gold braid and 191 gay ribbons, he was recognized by Pontiac as the head of the white colony. When Pontiac told the English officers that all the English must depart from Detroit, Cuillerier urged the acceptance of Pontiac's pledge of safe conduct, saying it was' the best terms he had been able to obtain for the British. The inference is that Cuillerier had previ- ously been plotting with the Indians for the removal of the British, peaceably if possible, but to get rid of them and restore French rule in Detroit at any cost. It is easily possible that the fair daughter, Ange- lique, would be prompted by a woman's curiosity during these secret meetings, and, while Pontiac and her father were plotting in the great living room down stairs, she was .probably listening with attentive ear at the opening in the loft, where the younger members of the house- hold usually slept. The plots were of such a nature that she would naturally be touched with a woman's tender sympathy for the doomed. Further than this. Sterling, her lover, was a Briton born. His sym- pathies would naturally be with his countrymen rather than with the French and Indians, a condition which would undoubtedly influence his sweetheart. Nine years after Pontiac's failure, Jacques Campau, whose house gave shelter to the soldiers retreating from Bloody Run, sent a memo- rial to the king of England asking for a grant of land of twelve arpents frontage on the river, nearly opposite the foot of Belle Isle. He stated that 250 soldiers had found refuge in his house during the day of Dal- zell's disastrous battle, but instead of being grateful for the shelter af- forded them for several hours, and refreshments given by the owner, they robbed his house of $300 worth of its furnishings. For this they had been court martialed by Gladwin, but the loser was not reimbursed. Campau accepted a captain's commission under Gladwin and went to Mackinaw with 120 men. He succeeded in pacifying two tribes of hostile Indians, and spent ten weeks there cutting wood and preparing the post for the winter, but he never received a cent of pay and all his appeals to the commandant were unsuccessful. Pontiac abandoned all hope of driving the British out of the West, but he was regarded as a dangerous character by the settlers in case of trouble between England and France. In such a case he no doubt would have renewed hostilities in behalf of the French. So distasteful was the presence of the English to him that he first retired to the Mau- mee valley, and later made his way west to the French settlements of the Mississippi valley. He did not die in battle as his martial spirit 192 WILLIAM H. TEFFT. would have chosen. He went to visit a French friend at St. Louis; Mo., then in the possession of the French, where he adopted the dress of a French military officer. One day an English trader named Wilkinson-, who had a grudge against the chief, offered an Illinois Indian a barrel of rum if he would waylay and kill Pontiac. The mercenary followed his victim into the woods and shot him dead, and thus earned his re- ward, but the vengeance of Pontiac's followers afterward resulted in the destruction of the tribe of the Illinois. Pontiac was buried some- where within the present limits of St. Louis with military honors, but no stone marks, the spot and it will probably never be discovered. Not a man in the garrison at Detroit cared to remain longer amid the scenes of their past sufferings, and the report that Major Wilkins was on his way from Niagara with a flotilla of canoes, containing a large force of men, was received with joy. They did not arrive as expected, and fears were entertained for their safety. These fears were confirmed about November 12, when two friendly Indians arrived, bearing a dis- patch from Major Wilkins, stating that his fleet had met disaster in a sudden storm on Lake Erie and that seventy of his men had been lost. Their storey and ammunition had been sacrificed to keep the boats afloat, and the party had been compelled to put back to Niagara. It was not until August, 1764, that Colonel Bradstreet came from the east with a body of soldiers, and relieved Gladwin of the post which he had grown to dislike. Major Gladwin, although not lacking in bravery, wanted no more of life in the wilderness. He went to England, after resigning his commission, and spent the rest of his days with his wife and children. 193 25 CHAPTER XXV. The British Home GovernYnent Neglects the Colonies and Detroit Languishes as Settlement— The Selfish Policy of the British Tradesmen Was the Cause of Most of the Colonial Troubles— 1763-1773. Detroit, notwithstanding the restriction on trade, grew rapidly in population and prosperity during the ten years that succeeded the Pon- tiac war. Under British rule it became an emporium of a vast trade in furs, and the wealth that gave leisure for cultivation soon brought its best society to a condition of refinement which rivaled that of the seaboard cities. The rough Indian trader was there, scarcely more re- fined than the untutored savage, but mingling with him was the cul- tured British officer and the aristocratic French resident, who had be- come rich by trade and the growth in value of his landed possessions. The extent of the trade in furs, considering that the peltries were car- ried over the lakes eastward altogether in birch bark canoes, was a thing that strikes with astonishment. When the English took posses- sion in 1760, they found in storage furs to the value of half a million dollars. Soon the trade increased so that as many as two hundred thousand beaver skins were shipped in a single year. Crowds of In- dians in their brightly painted bark canoes were constantly coming and going upon the river, bringing the peltries of the deer, the otter and the beaver, and carrying away the numerous articles of civilized pro- duction which they received in exchange, for most of the Indian trade was still barter. Often these gaudy crafts completely lined the river bank, and the vicinity of the fort became the mart of a thriving com- merce. The canoes were both shop and dwelling house for the abo- rigines. In them, turned bottom up, and slightly canted to one side to allow of an easy entrance, whole families lived by day and lodged by night. These consisted of the copper-colored brave and his dusky mate, with the small papoose strapped to a board at her back, and an indefinite number of " little Injun " boys and girls, rolling on the sand, with only a raiment of bear's grease to protect them from the swarm of insects that infested the quarters. Here the head of the house dis- 194 played his wares — peltries, baskets, brooms, mococks of sugar and moccasins — and exhibited a keenness in bargaining fully equal to that of his more civilized white brother. Lovers of the picturesque no doubt enjoyed the traffic, if not over fastidious in the matter of dirt. John Bradstreet, the new commandant, was a man of little principle, and he made a practice of beguiling the Indians into treaties which they did not well understand, and into giving grants of land which were fraudulently obtained. These were the cause of much trouble in later years. As soon as the treaty of Paris was ratified, steps were taken to estab- lish some form of local government in the territory acquired by the treaty. This was done at the urgent appeal of the settlers, who were tired of military rule. A portion of the country, later known as Lower Canada, was placed under the jurisdiction of a governor and council, to whom was delegated power to establish courts in conformity with the the English law, and appeals were to be made to the privy council. Western Canada, including the present province of Ontario, had not been ceded by the Indians, and purchases of land from the Indians were forbidden except b}' treaty through the government. Detroit was therefore left without courts of law, and for twelve years after the date of the treaty it was like the French regime, and had no system of gov- ernment other than the military rule of the commandant and his appointees. Detroit was annexed to the province of Quebec in April, 1775. One of the first acts under the administration of Bradstreet was a deal with the Indians by which they ceded to the white settlers a strip of land beginning a short distance west of the fort and continuing along the river as far as Lake St. Clair. Then followed a long conflict of schemes for private interest which retarded the growth of the colony. Commandants, officers and traders seem to have been ruled by mercenary motives, and the merchants and manufacturers in England were as selfish as, the others. Fur traders bitterly opposed the settling of the country, because the establishing of farmers throughout the territory would lead to an extermination of the fur- bearing animals, and their very profitable calling would be affected. Their opposition was backed by the tradesmen of England, who argued that the development of the country would eventually lead to local manufactures and their market would thus be in danger of destruction. All the arguments of the more intelligent leaders could not convince the tradesmen that the development of the western world would en- 195 large instead of restrict their, trade. This war of selfish interests con- tinued all over the British colonies until the American Revolution broke out, and was, in fact, the great cause of precipitating it. The tradesmen appeared to control, for the power to grant lands for farm- ing purposes was taken away from the local commandant and vested in the governor at Montreal, and private purchases from Indians were made illegal. The most the commandant could do was to recommend certain grants. In 1765, soon after the British were well established at Detroit, the the first money began to circulate, and it was known as New York cur- rency. With the advent of money, the payment of taxes in peltries and other local produce was gradually discontinued. For two years after the treaty had been completed the British practically abandoned Mackinaw, and the place was occupied by a village of Chippewas. Major Robert Rogers was sent to the command of Mackinac in 1765, and he immediately began to scheme for his own advancement. He was soon detected in dealing with the Indians for private grants of lands, by making lavish presents and promising many things which he did not perform. The true purport of his scheme was never fully as- cettained. He may have learned that there were rich deposits of cop- per in the region of the upper peninsula, and have planned to secure a title to them in defiance of the crown. He was suspected of acting as an agent of either the French or the Spanish government, for the pur- pose of obtaining possession of the Northwest, but the latter sus- picion does not appear to be well founded. Both these governments must have known that such a scheme would stir the British to war against them, and each had been exhausted with wars in Europe. The most probable case is that Rogers was planning to establish himself as a feudal lord among the Indians of the North. He was arrested and taken to Montreal, where he was tried by cour-t-martial on a charge of treason, but the charge could not be sustained and Rogers was dis- charged. The chief evidence against him was an intercepted letter written by Colonel Hopkins, a British officer, who had taken service with the French, which urged Rogers to get the good-will of the In- dians, and to use his influence toward securing the independence of the colonies. Hopkins was in the French service because of real or fancied wrongs he had sustained at the hands of his own g'overnment and this early propagator of revolution was no doubt seeking a per- sonal revenge against the government under which he had been born. 196 France had ceded her possessions on the upper Mississippi and all of Louisiana to Spain, and it was merely surmised that Rogers might be acting for one of these powers. As the commandants at Detroit had many duties and responsibilities, and as there was much litigation in petty civil cases among the settlers, it became necessary to deputize some person with authority to hear and adjust such cases. Capt. George TurnbuU, commandant, in 1767, is- sued a warrant to a merchant named Philip Dejean, who had been a bankrupt in Montreal, authorizing him to take evidence under oath and to hold tribunals of arbitration for the settlement of disputes. Dejean was also authorized to draw all legal instruments and to conduct pub- lic sales. The office combined the duties of a justice of the peace, no- tary and sheriff, and Dejean was known as the chief justice of Detroit. This authority was issued April 24, 1767, and it was renewed by Major Robert Bayard when he succeeded to the command on July 28, of the same year. Persons locked up for either debt or misdemeanor were required to pay one dollar on being liberated. A tariff regulation was instituted about the same time. Non-residents who brought boatloads of merchandise to Detroit were assessed an entrance fee of two dollars for each boat. The mild rule of the French regime had given way to a system of petty despotism, and this continued until the banner of England was replaced at Detroit by the stars and stripes The governor- general of Canada was supposed to be in control, but most of the au- thority was deputized to the resident commandants, and the rule of the latter was almost absolute. In the summer of 1771 Michael Due, a resident of Detroit, murdered a voyageur named Tobias Isenhart, pre- sumably for his money. Due was examined before Justice Dejean, sent to Quebec for trial, and was subseqently hanged at Montreal. The presence of copper in northern Michigan and in the islands of Lake Superior was known to the French at a very early day, but sev- eral circumstances caused these mineral deposits to be neglected. The Jesuit fathers were more interested in saving souls than in making fortunes for adventurers, and the fur traders could carry on their busi- ness with a small capital and make rich profits, while a heavy in- vestment of capital was needed to develop a mine and erect the neces- sary smelting works. There was one trader, however,- df a different opinion, the same Alexander Henry who so narrowly escaped destruc- tion at the time of the massacre at Mackinaw. He made an extended exploration along the eastern shore of Lake Superior in 1770; even 197 putting off from the main land to Michipicoten and the more remote Caribou Island. Private Norburg of the Royal American Regiment, and several other adventurous spirits accompanied him, and Norburg made the first discovery of silver ore. While on this trip he picked up a small boulder, rich in silver, weighing about eight pounds, which was sent to England for assay. On his return Henry told of a mass, of rock copper which he had discovered on the surface of the earth and from which he had chopped a mass weighing about' one hundred pounds. In 1773 he induced Sir William Johnson, the Indian agent, to unite with him for the development of a mine near Ontonagon River, but from the difficulty of raising the ore without expensive machinery, and the lack of a smelting plant, the enterprise was soon abandoned. The duke of Gloucester, Sir Samuel Tutchet, and several other capitalists were interested, but after experiments they found that profits could not be realized. At this time, 1770, the Hudson Bay Company, which had received its charter from Charles II in 1669, after conducting a profitable and almost exclusive fur trade for more than a century, found a rival in the field known as the Northwest Company. Individual traders also engaged in the fur trade, and for a long time there was much lawlessness among the coureurs of the rival companies. These coureurs stopped at no device to induce the Indian to trade with their respective employers, or to injure that of their competitors. Serious troubles were threatened, but they were averted by Lord Sel- kirk, who, by a clever bit of financiering, united the interests of the two companies, and thereafter the consolidated Hudson Bay Company, being in complete control, managed to keep settlers out of the fur country for many years. In the winter of 1773 a trader named McDowell, from Pittsburg, who was stopping in a house near the fort, refused to sell rum to an Indian. The Indian went outside of the house, and, poking his gun through the window, shot McDowell dead as he sat before the fire. This caused Major Bassett to write to Governor William Tryon, pro- testing against the introduction of rum from Albany and Canada. ' ' Trading will never be safe while it continues, " said he ; " the leading chiefs complain that the English are killing all their young men with spirits. They purchase poison instead of blankets and the necessaries of life. They say they lose more young men by rum than they lose by war. It is not in the power of the commandant at this post to prevent, for the traders land it down the river, and have a thousand tricks to 198 deceive the commandant and cheat the poor savages. The traders are generally the outcasts of all nations and the refuse of mankind. The commandant at Detroit has no power to punish them, but they should be made subject to him while at this post. They trade on the river bank, within three miles of the post, and cheat the Indians outrageous- ly. They lodge in French houses while so doing, and conceal their peltry there until they can slip it into the fort unobserved. This prac- tice cannot be prevented until the commandant has authority to lock these fellows up and send them back to New York or to Canada. " Even Major Bassett had his enemies among the settlers. In 1773 a strip of land, known as the King's Domain, covered twelve acres in front of the fort and thirty acres back. The king's garden was located in this tract on the east side of the fort. Major Bassett built a fence around a small piece of ground back of the king's garden, making a pasture for his horse, and the residents immediately made loud com- plaints that he was taking a part of the common. He wrote to Quebec for authority to inclose all of the king's domain of forty-two acres, which was then used as a cow and sheep pasture by the residents, say- ing that it would be valuable ground in a few years ; but the residents immediately trumped up charges that he was trying to secure the land for his private use. It would seem that there was a lack of skilled arti- sans even at this period, for the letter states that there are but three " joyners " among the soldiers, and "they are the worst the commandant ever saw; a carpenter cannot be had for a dollar a day and his keep." In 1774 John Logan, the celebrated Cayuga chief, came to Detroit. Early in that year several members of his family had been killed by traders at his home on the Muskingum, in the southeast portion of Ohio. He had previously been friendly to the settlers, but after this terrible bereavement he took the warpath and killed many of the whites. This gave rise to what is known as Lord Dunmore's war, which began and terminated in 1774. At the decisive battle of Point Pleasant the In- dians were defeated and they all sued for peace except Logan, who came to Detroit. He was requested to come to Chillicothe, where a treaty was to be made, but he refused, and then, it is said, delivered the speech which ever school boy knows. To drown his trouble he took to drink and in a short time became a drunkard. One day, in 1780, while drunk, he felled his wife, and, supposing he had killed her, fled from Detroit and was making his way to Sandusky, when he was overtaken near the shore of Lake Erie by a party of friendly Indians. 199 Supposing that they were avengers, on his trail he shot at them, and was killed by his relative, Tod-hah-dohs, in self defense. In 1774 a law known as the Quebec act was passed by the English parliament for the government of all the British colonies west of New York, north of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi. It was an act which established a regime something between a feudal system and a despotism. It was evidently the intention to deprive the settlers of the benefits of the English law, so that life in the West would be dis- tasteful to colonists and prevent them from filling up the country. In substance, the act placed the settlers under the old French law of the province, so far as civil matters were concerned, and under the Eng- lish law in criminal cases. No man in parliament nor in the colonies knew what the French colonial law had been, because no special code had ever been enacted for the colonies; and the commandants and gov- ernors had been the law and the supreme court. This law was one of the British offenses against the American colonists which led to the Revolution. Allusion is made to it in the Declaration of Independ- ence, which declares that the crown had abolished "the free system of English laws in a neighboring province, establishing therein an arbi- trary government so as to render it an example and a fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these- colonies. " In spite of the efforts of Chatham and Camden, who were ever the friends of liberty and justice, the English parliament passed this obnoxious act. Some of the leaders admitted its true purpose, holding that the colonists had few rights which the government was bound to respect, and that the French settlers had none. All of the oppression of the crown did not suffice to keep settlers out of the West, and three j-ears after the Pontiac war there was a string of settlers' cabins, nearly all French, extending for twenty miles along Detroit River and Lake St. Clair, and the sites of these early settlements may be located at the present day by the groups of ancient French pear trees which are to be found at various points between Grosse Isle and Mt. Clemens. The log cabins have disappeared, but some of the pear trees which once grew about their doors still bear fruit for the benefit of the present generation. 200 EDWIN S. BARBOUR. CHAPTER XXVI. Obstructive Legislation and Excessive Taxation Breed Discontent — New Eng- land Settlers Rise in Rebellion — Detroit Under Lieut. -Gov. Henry Hamilton Be- comes a Fire in the Rear — The "Great Hairbuyer" and His Corrupt Rule — 1773- 1775. In anticipation of trouble with the colonists of the East, the fort at Detroit was strengthened in 1775 and afterward kept in good repair. Even before the war of the Revolution the borders of Ohio and Pennsylvania were filled with an admixture of adventurous pioneers and bold desperadoes. The former attempted to found settlements and till the soil; the latter preyed upon the Indians, hunting them like wild beasts and robbing their villages. They were as cruel as the sav- ages and usually scalped their victims. Then the Indians would re- taliate by murdering the settlers and the latter were in constant peril. It frequently became necessary for the settlers to organize small war parties, sally forth and drive the Indians back in order to secure peace while they planted and harvested their crops. Forays were constantly made across the Ohio River into Kentucky, where the Virginians were extending their settlements, while the Pennsylvanians extended their colonies westward from Fort Pitt or Pittsburg. Matters became so bad that Lord Dunmore, governor of Virginia, raised a small army and placed it in charge of General Lewis at Fort Pitt, from which point he made campaigns against the Indians of the Ohio valley. As soon as the Revolution was on in the East, the British began to stir up the In- dians against the American settlers on the border. They told the sav- ages that the Americans were lawless marauders who delighted in murder, and who were plotting against the life of their father, the great king. If they were permitted to invade the West they would seize Detroit and the Ohio country, and murder all the residents. At first the French were prejudiced as well as the Indians. It required but a little rum and a few presents to instigate the Indians to massacre the American settlers wherever they were to be found on the border. No sooner had it become evident that the American colonists intended 26 to make a stand for their rights than Great Britain b6gan to prepare for the collision. At the very outset the British planned to strengthen their hold in the West, so that they would be able to attack the colonists from their western frontier as well as from the seaboard. Three lieutenant-gov- ernors were appointed in pursuance of this scheme. Capt. Henry Hamilton was appointed to the office at Detroit, Capt. Patrick Sinclair to Mackinaw, and Capt. Edward Abbott to Fort Sackville at Vincennes. Earl Dartmouth, the colonial secretary, made these appointments, but he did not clearly define the functions of the lieutenant-governors and the commandants at the posts, so that a series of quarrels occurred at each place over questions of authority. Each of the appointees had more liking for the perquisites and salary of the respective posts than for the duties, and each laid claim to the revenues dating from May 1, 1775, although they did not go to their commands until six months later. Hamilton, in fact, took all the revenues of the post and inaugu- rated a system of plunder with the notorious "Chief Justice" Philip Dejean as his accomplice. As local magistrate the lieutenant-governor had jurisdiction over petty civil cases only. All criminal cases were under jurisdiction of the court at Quebec. Hamilton, through his ally Dejean, abused his authority, oppressed the debtors, foreclosed mort- gages in summary fashion and bled the people to the limit by means of fines. Jonas Schindler, a traveling jeweler from Montreal, was charged with selling alloyed silver for pure metal, but a jury acquitted him. In spite of this acquittal Hamilton ordered Schindler to be dressed in fantastic fashion and drummed out of town, and he was marched through all the public streets, preceded by a drum corps. Captain Lord, the commandant, was indignant at this breach of justice When the drum corps and the abused Schindler came to the gate of the inner fort. Lord barred the way and said that he was in command of the fort and would permit no such outrage to be perpetrated on ground where he held command. A man named Joseph Hecker mur- dered Moran, his brother-in-law, and according to law he should have been examined and then sent to Quebec for trial, but Dejean, with Hamilton's sanction, tried and convicted the culprit and hanged him at Detroit. Jean Constanciau, a French resident, and a negress named Ann Wiley, were convicted of robbing a store of furs and other goods. Dejean tried them and sentenced them to be hanged, but not a man in Detroit could be found to execute the sentence. In this emergency 303 Hamilton offered the negress her freedom and full pardon if she would hang the Frenchman, and she consented. The job was done in bung- ling fashion and the unfortunate thief was slowly strangled. The records of these proceedings were suppressed by Dejean, and it was four years later when the reports of their doings came to the governor- general at Quebec Dejean appears to have been a man without scruples. Through some mysterious influence which has never been understood he appeared to enjoy the protection of the commandants, who made him the legal factotum of the post, with supreme power in civil cases. The colonists were bitterly opposed to him,- and they drew up a long petition asking for his removal on the ground that he was ex- tortionate in his charges for legal services, merciless in his fines, and dishonest generally, showing favors to his friends and visiting his judicial wrath upon his opponents. The petition, which was forward- ed to the governor-general, was signed by nearly every white resident at Detroit. But Dejean was not removed and he remained in power eleven years. It is probable that his remarkable influence was due to a tacit partnership with each succeeding commandant, and that he divided with them the spoils of his office. Among the Canadian archives pertaining to Detroit is a record of a grand jury investigation held in the Court of King's Bench at Montreal, September 7, 1778. The investigation resulted in an indictment against Philip Dejean, who at various times during the years 1775 and 1776 was charged with com- mitting "divers unjust and illegal tyrannical and felonious acts con- trary to good government." Lieutenant-Governor Henry Hamilton, having knowledge of these transactions at the time, was also indicted. When the officers came to Detroit to arrest them both men were at Vincennes, and when they returned to British soil in 1780, after their captivity, the case was not pressed. 203 CHAPTER XXVII. Hamilton Arms the Indians and Sets Them oti the Ohio Settlers — Human Scalps Bring £1 Each in the Detroit Commandant's OfHce — Philip Dejean, Hamilton's Unscrupulous "Chief Justice"— 1776-1777. When the Revolution had begun in earnest Detroit became a center of activity, and although the rough edges of battle never reached the settlement, the post played a most important part in the war on the borders. Hamilton wanted to employ the Indians as a fire-in-the-rear with which to gall the colonists of the East, but Sir Guy Carleton, governor-general, opposed the proposition, because he knew that the savages could not be controlled, and that they would inflict awful bar barities upon the helpless and inoffensive as well as upon prisoners of war. He was over-ruled by Lord George Germain, who wrote to him saying that "Divine Providence had placed the Indians in the hands of Great Britain as fitting instruments for punishing the rebels." Nothing could be done with the Indians without rum, presents and feasting, so rum came into Detroit in great quantities for free distri- bution among the savages. Barbecues were held at which their glut- tonous appetites were sated, and rifles, scalping knives with crimson handles, powder, ball and hatchets were distributed with e. lavish hand. Public mass meetings were held, at which the Indians were told that the Americans were a dangerous and wicked people, who conspired against their great father the king, and who would drive the Indians out of the country and seize all their lands, unless the Indians would aid the British in exterminating those along the border. Weapons were presented with a show of formality, which helped to captivate the Indians. Hamilton would clasp hands with a savage chief and. grasp- ing the scalping knife or hatchet, would say: " We are friends in peace and in war ; ybur enemies are our enemies, and we will work together for their destruction. The great Manitou will aid you when you go forth with your father's weapons." At a barbecue when several hun- dred Indians would be seated in a great circle about a roasted ox, the head of the ox would be set on a pole and a hatchet would be driven 204 into the skull. Then bearers would march around the circle with this trophy representing the head of an American, and Hamilton would fol- low it chanting a war song in Indian fashion. Captain Lord, the com- mandant, was constantly quarreling with Hamilton over the propriety of such proceedings, and he was finally sent away to Niagara. Capt. Richard Beranger Lei-noult was transferred from Niagara to Detroit, and was made a major in the summer of 1779. Indians would gather at Detroit by the thou.sand, but it was impossible to get them to make raids against the American settlers unless they were accompanied by British leaders. They preferred to idle about the post, drinking rum and eating roast ox, rather than undergo the privations of campaign- ing. They were soon consuming forty barrels of rum a month at De- troit, and the quantity was later increased to sixty barrels. Prisoners were troublesome, as they involved much expense for their keeping, as they had to be sent to Montreal or Quebec for confinement. Hamilton instructed the Indians that scalps would be less troublesome than pris- oners, and they were quick to take the hint. From the beginning of the war Detroit was a great rendezvous, and the formal councils of the tribes with the military authorities were of almost daily occurrence. Then would follow the distribution of presents consisting of guns, powder, lead, provisions, cloth for the squaws and children, and rum. When a large body of savages had been worked up to a fighting frenz)', they would set out for the Ohio, Pennsylvania or Virginia wilderness, led either by the three Girty brothers, Simon, James and George, Capt. Henry Bird, John Butler, and William Caldwell, of the regulars, or Captains Alexander McKee, Mathew Elliott, Chene, Dequindre, or La Motte, of the Indian and French militia. Arrived at the American settlements, these bands always indulged in a general massacre. Then they would return to Detroit, the braves carrying long poles on which gory scalps were strung. Their appearance was greeted with cheers and they were received as conquering heroes. After receiving liberal rewards for their scalps, and rum enough for a wild debauch, fresh supplies of ammunition would be dealt out and they would go out for another raid. As Detroit was the key to the West, great caution was observed in keeping it well prepared for attack, and at times the military force numbered five hundred men. Cordial relations never existed between the majority of the French and the British, and many of the former sympathized with the Americans and hoped for their success; still 305 there were a few who fought as officers and common soldiers in the British war. Some were indiscreet enough to air their American lean- ings, and several were imprisoned for so doing. Others were dismissed from the settlement and went away to the Illinois country, while a few were sent away as prisoners to Niagara and Montreal. When the British and their Indian allies were preparing for a raid upon some American settlement, the French sometimes succeeded in warning the Americans of their intentions and thus prevented a surprise. Orders were re- ceived from Quebec to treat such persons as spies and hang them. James Sterling, the merchant who married Mile. Cuillerier, was pro- scribed for his known sympathies with the rebels and had to leave the settlement. Sometimes the Indians would come back with prisoners and proceed to torture them, and frightful barbarities were performed within sight of the fort, and with the knowledge of the lieutenant- governor. One day a prisoner had been terribly beaten with clubs in running the gauntlet, and had suffered numerous wounds, when the savages tied him to a stake and began to burn him alive. A humane citizen rushed in and cut his bonds in spite of the threats of the sav- ages. He supported the unhappy wretch to his own home and after- ward concealed him from the Indians in a vacant building. The savages made a great outcry against this interference with their time- honored customs, and complained to Hamilton and Dejean. Next morning Dejean arrested the rescuer, and searched out the victim who had been doomed to the torture in order to deliver him over to the In- dians, but the poor fellow died of his injuries before the torture could be resumed. Hamilton called the humane citizen before him and threatened him with imprisonment if he ever dared to interfere with the practices of the savages again. In the year 1777 steps were taken toward the establishment of a navy on Lakes Erie, Huron and Michigan, and Governor-General Guy Carleton issued an order, dated at Quebec, October 30, providing that the navy should be officered. The pay of the commander-in-chief was fixed at fifteen shillings a day ; masters, ten shillings ; lieutenants of various grades, six shillings, four shillings and six pence, and three shillings and six pence. In 1777, a commission was issued to Normand McLeod, creating him "town major," by authority of Henry Hamilton, lieutenant-governor and superintendent of Detroit and dependencies. The commission bore the signatures of Henry Hamilton and Philip Dejean. 206 Hamilton's chief instruments of destruction against the Americans were Alexander McKee, Matthew Elliott and Simon Girty, three men who deserted from the American garrison of General Lewis at Fort Pitt. McKee was the leader in this desertion. He was an Indian agent in the pay of the British government, and it was learned that he was holding out various inducements to persuade the American soldiers to desert. He was arrested and placed on parole, but on the night of March 28, 1778, McKee, Elliott and Girty, accompanied by a man named Higgins, and two negroes, escaped into the wilderness and made their way to Detroit. In Detroit plans were laid for organizing the Indians of the territory now covered by Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Michigan into a confederacy for a war against the American settlers. Girty had been brought up among the Seneca or Mingo Indians, in the Hocking Valley, and was accustomed to barbarous surroundings. He spoke several Indian dialects and was very influential with the savages. He made his home among the Wyandottes at Upper Sandusky, near the present site of Fremont, Ohio, and acted under immediate direction of McKee and Elliott. Girty had two brothers, James and George, who were also made Indian agents. Tradition has it that Girty, who was always a tory a heart, had been rebuked at Fort Pitt by General Lewis, who called him a traitor, and that Girty retorted that if any one was a traitor it was General Lewis. The general, who was a passionate man, struck Girty over the head with his cane, drawing a stream of blood. Girty rushed to the door of the general's quarters and turning said : " Your quarters shall yet swim in blood for this." An instant later he had plunged into the forest. Historians in speaking of Girty have usually called him a renegade, but he called himself a tory. It is certain that he was a scourge to the Ohio and Pennsylvania settlers for years after, and he organized and led some of the bloodiest Indian raids in the history of the country. In the fall of 1778 Simon Kenton, a pioneer of great renown, had set out from the Kentucky shore with a few daring hunters to attack the Indians on the north side of the Ohio ; he was captured and condemned to death at the stake. Girty and he had been boys together and three times within a few days did Girty save him from death by torture. He was finally brought to Detroit, but escaped and went back to his home where he had been, given up as dead. That same summer Daniel Boone, the great Kentucky pioneer, was captured while in company with several other settlers who were boiling salt at Blue Lick Springs. 207 He was brought to Detroit with the Indians when they returned north- ward with their customary spoils. Captain Lernoult, the commandant, offered to buy him from his captors, but the Indians refused to give up so noted a captive and took Boone back to Chillicothe, whence he made his escape to Kentucky. In 1778 John Butler, a tory who had formerly lived in Wyoming valley, Pa., went from Detroit, accompanied by Captain Bird and a company of rangers, to make an attack upon his old neighbors. Most of the able bodied men in the valley were away in the American army, but the residents fled to the fort. When Butler appeared with a horde of yelling savages at his heels they feared to surrender. Only a part of the attacking force showed itself and it soon retired to entice the of- fenders outside. A party of two hundred men set out in pursuit, and suddenly found themselves surrounded by Indians. In a short time the Indians returned to the fort with 196 scalps, and again demanded a surrender. The fort was set on fire, and some of the inmates perished in the flames rather than risk a death by torture. Another raid was made into the adjoining Cherry Valley and more scalps were taken. For this and other services Butler was given the rank of a colonel, an annual pension of $2,500 and a tract of 5,000 acres of land. Captain Bird, who took part in this and many other bloody raids against the American settlers, is described as a man of repulsive appearance, with a very red face, prominent teeth and a hair lip. He was unfortunate in love, and his fellow officers twitted him with it, and this it is said led him to ask and obtain command of military sevices that would di- vert his mind from his disappointments. An attack upon Detroit was planned at Fort Pitt in 1778. In the same year Generals Gibson and Mcintosh, under directions irom Gen. George Washington, erected a fort at Beaver Creek and another on the Tuscarawas River,, both in southern Ohio. The first was named Fort Mcintosh and the latter Fort Laurens. General Gibson remained through the winter at Fort Laurens. He intended to set out for Detroit in the spring, but by spies or treason, his intentions became known to the British, and Simon Girty with a force of 800 Indians started from Detroit with the intention of capturing Fort Laurens. He and Gibson hated each other cordially, and each longed for the scalp of the other. Meanwhile intelligence of Girty's approach had come to David Zeisberger, the Moravian missionary at Gnadenhutten, which was situated not far from the fort. His informant was a Delaware 308 FREDERICK C. STOEPEL. Indian. Zeisberger, who sympathized with the Americans, wrote a letter to Gibson cautioning him to keep close to the fort, as he would soon be attacked. The warning, however, was disregarded, and Gib- son sent a detachment to Fort Mcintosh for provisions. They were attacked on their return when within sight of the fort, the supplies captured and two were killed, four wounded, and one taken prisoner. Letters to General Gibson were also captured which gave full details of the projected attack on Detroit. Girty's Indians besieged the fort, but in a few days went away. Meanwhile Captain Bird and 120 sav- ages arrived on February 32, and lay in ambush near the fort. A wagoner and eighteen men, who had been sent out to get wood, were attacked and all killed and scalped, except two. Bird conducted the siege for four weeks, but was unsuccessful. Had he persevered a few days more he would have captured the fort, as the garrison was nearly starved when he left. In the summer of 1779 the garrison of Detroit was reinforced by 200 troops from Niagara. In time Girty advanced toward Fort Pitt, but Heckewelder, the Moravian missionary at Salem, warned General Brodhead, the American commandant. This was discovered by Girty and he ordered a young brave to kill Heckewelder, but Captain Pipe, a Delaware chief, told the brave to let the missionary alone and the latter was saved. In April, 1779, Girty and Bird made another raid from Detroit on Fort Henry (Wheeling, W. Va. ), but they failed and raised the siege. At that time there was an emigration of settlers from Pennsylvania and Virginia to " Kentuck, " as Kentucky was then called, and 300 canoe loads of emigrants and their effects landed at Louisville during that year. Girty's men would lie concealed on the banks of the river, and as the boats were passing they would cry out for help. Three boats containing twenty-four people were thus lured by the cries to the shore, when they were set upon and most of the party slaughtered. Peter Malott escaped b)' swimming to the other shore, but his wife, his daughter Catherine and two small children, were taken prisoners. The two small children were killed, but Mrs. Malott and Catherine were captives in the Wyandotte village at Upper Sandusky for some time. Subsequently Catherine became Mrs. Simon Girty, and the marriage took place at Detroit. The British forts or outposts, from which expeditions were sent against the rebel colonists in the Ohio valley and Kentucky, were Kas- kaskia, 111., Vincennes, Ind., and Detroit. Kaskaskia was founded by 209 27 La Salle in 1683 and consisted o£ a log fort and the houses of a few traders and farmers. The first French residents there became assimi- lated with the Indian tribes, but the later British settlers had withstood the influence of barbarism. Vincennes was the seat of a French Jesuit mission as early as 1702, and it had become a post of some importance. As soon as the British colonies demonstrated their strength, a tacit agreement came into existence between England and Spain that the colonists must not extend their borders beyond the Alleghany Moun- tains, and the British undertook the task of keeping them back. Ex- peditions were fitted out at Detroit, Vincennes and Kaskaskia to drive them out of the Ohio Valley. A hundred or more British soldiers would set out for the valley, gathering Indians as they went, and each expe- dition was a campaign of blood and murder, with all the atrocities of savage warfare. Quite a number of vessels plied the lakes in the early years of the English rule. During the Pontiac war the schooner Gladwin and the sloops Beaver and Bear, helped to keep communication between De- troit and Niagara. In 1777 a small fleet could assemble at Detroit in support of the fort, including His Majesty's ship Gage, armed with six- teen carriage guns, six swivels and forty-eight men; H. M. S. Dun- more, twelve guns, four swivels and thirty-six men ; the schooner Ottawa, twelve guns, and six swivel blunderbusses and thirty-six men ; the schooner Wyandotte, four guns, six swivels and fourteen men ; the schooner Hope, six guns and eighteen men ; and the sloops Angelica, Faith, Welcome, Adventure, Archangel and Galley. In the spring of 1780 the Wyandotte went ashore on the east side of Lake Huron, but the Welcome went to her assistance and she was hauled off safely with her cargo. The Angelica got aground at the mouth of the river and she had to be lightered by bateaux. The Dunmore, Wyandotte, Gage, Felicity and the Ottawa, made trips between Detroit and Mackinaw, but most of the other crafts were too small to be trusted in such stormy waters. They coasted along Lake Erie carrying goods and military supplies between Detroit, the Miami fort on the Maumee, Sandusky, Erie and Niagara. Late in the fall of 1778 General Brodhead, of the Continental army, advanced into Ohio with a large force of men, estimated at between 3,000 and 3,000. It was feared that he was on his way to attack Detroit and there was considerable consternation among the British. Captain Lernoult, who had been promoted to major, when he arrived at Detroit, 310 realized that Fort Detroit, while a fairly safe refuge from hostile Indians, could not be held against an enemy supplied with artillery, as the hill on the north side of the Savoyard Creek was somewhat higher than the fort. He saw that an enemy could throw up earthworks there afid mount a battery, which would soon make kindling wood of the older fortification. After consulting with his officers Major Lernoult decided that no time must be lost, although Lieut. Henry Du Vernet, the only competent engineer of the post, was absent at Vincennes. In his ab- sence Capt. Henry Bird went that evening to the hill and traced a square outline on the ground for a new fort, where the new government build- ing now stands. Later he added four half bastions, so as to afford flanking protection against attacks on the gates. This redoubt was built with clay walls ten feet thick, and the clay was bound by layers of brush and cedar posts every three feet and the earth was well rammed. The glacis was beset with sharpened stakes, and the foot of it was pro- tected by abatis of felled trees with the limbs trimmed and sharpened. To prevent the slopes from being washed away by the rains, they were sodded, but during that winter and during all the following spring the embankments washed and slid into ■ the ditch in exasperating fashion. When Lieutenant Dii Vernet returned the new fort was too far ad- vanced to be altered, although it was faulty in many respects. On the south side of the fort a subterranean magazine of stone vvas built ; it lay at the foot of the glacis and a short distance from it ^o that in case of an explosion those in the fort would not suffer. It was arched with stone over the top and an underground passage led from the fort to its interior. The magazine was situated not far from the south side of Fort street, and at a point perhaps 150 feet west of Shelby street. In consequence of the slope of the ground at the time when the fort was built the top of the magazine was below the ground level of the inter- ior of the fort. The work on the fort was constant from the middle of November until February, but the alarm proved to be groundless, as Brodhead did not come nearer Detroit than ninety miles down the Maumee Valley. When George Rogers Clark heard that Fort Lernoult had been added to the other fortifications at Detroit, he sent a letter by a prisoner whom he had taken in southern Ohio, thanking Lernoult for the new work. He said that the new fort would save the Americans the trouble of building much needed improvements at Detroit when it would presently come into their hands. The British expedition which left Detroit in 1778-79, and ravaged 311 the entire Ohio valley, is familiar history, and the bloody tragedies at Boonesboro and Harrodsburg, Ky., are among the most horrible events of the period. It was this series of raids which instigated Clark, then a colonel and afterward a general, in the Continental army, to under- take the capture of the seat of trouble in the North. He was opposed by the border settlers because they thought that he would only bring more troubles upon them, and he had a host of personal enemies who interfered with his plans, but he organized a company of 500 rangers and struck out into the wilderness. His first campaign was on the northern Ohio shore, where he laid waste several Indian villages in the Muskingum valley. Those Indians were quiet for a long time after. Next he invaded the Miami and Scioto valleys, with 1,000 mounted riflemen, and destroyed several Indian towns, striking terror into the heart of the savage. CHAPTER XXVIII. Gen. George Rogers Clark Captures Vincennes and Other British Posts — Hamilton Goes to Recover Them and is Captured — He Narrowly Escapes Hanging at the Hands of the Colonists— 1778-1779. In the fall of 1778 Gen. George Rogers Clark set out with about 500 men to make a secret raid into the Illinois country, for the purpose of capturing Kaskaskia, Kahokia, and Vincennes before they could be re- inforced from Detroit. He expected that his success would give him a prestige with Congress that would result in a more pretentious expe- dition against Detroit, the center of disturbance. He believed that that stronghold, if in the hands of the Americans, would prevent the British from stirring up the Indians against the settlers. The perilous nature of Clark's project was well understood by his men, who were mere rangers and woodsmen without much military training, and they de- serted in large numbers. Col. Archibald Lochry, who attempted to follow him in canoes with a force of 100 volunteers "from Westmore- land, Pa., was attacked on the Ohio River by an army of Miamis and Shawnees, which had been sent out from Detroit under Joseph Brant and George Girty. The American party was utterly destroyed, none of the troops returning to tell the tale. 2ia It would require a vast amount of research to make an exact enumer- ation of all the raids sent out from Detroit, and the counter raids or- ganized in Pittsburg, Louisville and Virginia against Detroit during the Revolutionary war. None of the latter were formidable until attempts were made by Harmar, St. Clair and Wayne, but Gen. George Rogers Clark was for more than five years a cause of great anxietj' to Hamilton and De Peyster. British spies brought the information that the capture of Detroit was the pet scheme of this dashing commander, who never had a disciplined body of men, but was apparently invinci- ble when he set out for a raid. The French residents of Detroit, who sympathized with the American cause, would taunt the British soldiers and Indian agents when they came back from their raids with the bloody trophies of war, saying: "Wait until old Clark brings his rangers to Detroit and you will see some scalping of another sort. Clark will one day nail all your scalps against the wall of the fort. " There was good reason for the hesitation of the Americans in attack- ing Detroit, for such an enterprise meant a march through a wilderness of 300 or 400 miles, through which there were no roads available for wagon trains or for the hauling of artillery. This was the least of the difficulties. This region was occupied by perhaps 3,000 hostile Indians. Most of them were pledged to the British cause; and those who were not would resent an invasion of Americans. The long march, thus promised to be a series of ambuscades to the invading force. The British, on the other hand, could proceed through the country of their allies secure from attack, and their forces, instead of being constantly lessened by fighting, would be constantly augmented by additions of Indian warriors. This in part explains why Detroit was so long un- disturbed by an invasion from the south and east. The British had absolute control of the lakes so that an expedition by water was out of the question. With a constantly diminishing force of men Clark marched through the wilderness of Illinois, coming upon Kaskaskia, in Illinois, with a complete surprise. The settlers and soldiers in the Illinois set- tlements were terror stricken in consequence of the tales of ferocity they had heard regarding the "Long Knives," as the Kentuckians were called. Most of them hid in their cellars, and a delegation of Frenchmen came to Clark offering themselves as slaves if the " Long Knives " would spare their lives and those of their families. They . were told that they should come to no harm if they submitted peace- ably. General "Clark compelled them to keep within doors until the . 313 fort and all the arms of the place were turned over to his troops. Then he sent word to the settlers that they might go about their regular business in perfect security. The announcement was received with cheers of delight. The French denounced the English as liars and swore allegiance to the Americans. When they learned that Kahokia, further up the Kaskaskia River, and Vincennes were also to be taken, they wanted to send messengers who would inform the people at those posts of the true character of the "Long Knives." But Clark was still suspicious and he kept the French in his rear until he had sur- prised Kahokia. This capture was as easy as that of Kaskaskia. Clark then allowed a delegation of French to go to Vincennes to notify the people of his approach and of his good-will toward them. Vincennes surrendered without striking a blow, and so loyal did the French appear that Fort Sackville, as the fortification was called, was left in charge of Captain Leonard Helm and a private named Moses Henry, in the belief that the French would help defend it in case the English should attack and attempt a recapture. But the French preferred to remain neutral for a time while England fought it out with her colonies. Some refugees from Vincennes arrived at Detroit and Lieutenant- Governor Hamilton organized an expedition to recapture the posts. Clark and his men h^d returned to Kaskaskia to await reinforcements which never came, and they were royally entertained there by the French settlers. Hamilton set out with thirty regulars of the Eighth Regiment, eighty-eight French volunteers and 150 Indians, under command of Guillaume La.Mothe and Lieut. Jehu Hay. The route was by the river and lake to the mouth of the Maumee, thence to the Miami fort, and from there by portage to the Wabash. When he arrived before Vin- cennes in January, 1779, he found the gate of the fort wide open but a loaded cannon pointed outward from the opening. Beside it stood Captain Helm holding a blazing match of tarred rope in his hand, while private Henry trained the gun on the approaching enemy. "Halt!" shouted the dauntless Helm as the British soldiers ap- proached within a hundred yards. Commandant Hamilton sent Lieut. Jehu Hay forward with a demand for a surrender of the fort. "Tell Hamilton that I know his ways," replied Helm; "no man shall enter here until I know the terms of surrender. " The message came back that the garrison would be allowed to march out with the honors of war and be fully protected. 214 "Your terms are accepted," answered Helm, dashing his match to the ground. "Attention company! Shoulder arms! March!" Hamilton, who had supposed that a considerable force of men, at least half of Clark's army, were concealed within the stockade, was amazed to see the hardy Kentuckian march out in great dignity, sword in hand, followed by a single private with shouldered musket. But the honors of war were observed. This is one account of the capture which has come down as a tra- dition, and it has been accepted as history by Bryant, but Hamilton left another record. According to his report, he sent Hay forward with a company of men to notify the residents of Vincennes that the British lieutenant-governor from Detroit was approaching with a large body of troops. The people of Vincennes were warned to lay down their arms and to abandon the cause of the rebels, or they would be killed without mercy. Hamilton's barbarous methods had made his name a terror, although he was a coward at heart, and the French laid down their arms. Hay took possession of the arms, and Captain Helm's force, which consisted of seventy men, abandoned him. There was no one left to defend the post, and Helm delivered it over to Hamilton upon his arrival. One report appears as improbable as the other, but it is certain that the fort was surrendered to Hamilton without striking a blow. As may be seen, the situation of Clark and his men was indeed desperate, being in the enemy's country hundreds of miles from reinforcements and supplies. The French were friendly and would help them to food, but they would not help them fight their common enemy the British. Hamilton was known to be a man of barbarous methods who would be likely to accept a surrender and then turn the savages loose upon dis- armed prisoners. To retreat was practically impossible, for the enemy was well supplied with boats for pursuit, and marching was almost im- possible, because a snow fall of great depth had melted so suddenly that most of the country was under water. Clark resolved to strike boldly at his enemy and take him by surprise, regardless of the fact that he was outnumbered by the British and that they were protected by a fort. The few canoes which were available were manned by forty-six men and loaded with supplies for a long journey. The time was at hand for the desperate effort. Owing to the bad weather Hamilton had neglected to attack the two forts at Kaskaskia and Kahokia still held by Clark, thinking that there 215 would be plenty of time after the high water had subsided. He had dispatched a force of thirty men to waylay Clark if possible and cap- ture him, realizing that his followers would scatter immediately if the master spirit was not at hand to inspire them. -The kidnaping party returned unsuccessful. Clark led his little army of 130 men by a circuitous route toward Vihcennes, evading any outposts 'which might have been stationed to watch the trail. For four days they marched amid the greatest hard- ships. They were seldom on dry land, the water on the bottom lands of the Wabash valley averaging between three and four feet deep, and it was icy cold. Guns were held high and knapsacks were carried on the heads of the soldiers. Some were drowned in deep holes while cross- ing branches, but at last the Kentuckians came out on dry ground near Vincennes. Some of the residents of the locality were captured, and to prevent the British from learning how small the attacking force really was, Clark prevented these men from going about in his camp, while he gave them the idea that he had a force of more than a thousand riflemen. When he arrived before Vincennes, after sixteen days' march, he sent word to the residents that those who chose to fight for their oppressors should go into the fort, and tlaose who would fight for political freedom would be welcomed in his ranks. The neutrals were warned to betake themselves to places of safety. Many of the residents went into the fort, where they merely helped to exhaust the provisions. Hamilton had much the superior force, but he could make no estimate of Clark's army, and being a cowardly as well as a cruel man, he kept to the fort. His enemy fought in backwoods fashion, just as the In- dians had compelled the early pioneers to fight, and every man was armed with the long Kentucky rifle, which was much superior in range and accuracy to the muskets of the soldiers. They took possession of every sheltered position about the town and every time an inmate of the fort showed his head it would be the target for the deadly rifles. A ruse of the commander was most successful in intimidating Hamilton. On the last day of the siege two log cannons were made and painted black, and when ostentatiously placed in front of the fort, they were mistaken for genuine artillery. As the defenders of the fort were now out of provisions, Hamilton sent out for terms of surrender. Clark sent word that the surrender must be unconditional, and that the Brit- ish must evacuate the territory, leaving all their supplies. Hamilton refused to accept and the siege went on. Later Hamilton secured a 216 COL. THORNTON F. BRODHEAD, personal interview with Clark, who took care to make a great show of strength, and was firm in his demands. Justice Dejean had been sent back to Detroit for reinforcements and supplies, and an expedition led by Dejean was on its way to relieve the fort in canoes and bateaux, carrying !|50,000 worth of supplies. Clark learned of this, and with- out showing any weakness in front of the fort, sent half his men to in- tercept the flotilla of canoes as they were coming down the Wabash. The attack was successful, and the soldiers and their supplies were cap- tured by the Kentuckians. Some of the Indians who had participated in the massacre of Col. Archibald Lochry and his 100 volunteers from Westmoreland, Pa., were captured near the fort, and by Clark's orders they were tomahawked and scalped in, front of the gate. He allowed several white prisoners to escape and make their way into the fort that Hamilton might learn that the relieving expedition had been captured. Hamilton lost heart and surrendered the fort the next day. On March 5, 1779, Hamilton, Dejean, Capt. Guillaume La Mothe, Lieut. Jehu Hay, Lieutenant Scheiffelin, and twenty others were sent as prisoners of war to Fort Pitt, and later to Williamsburg, Va. Clark in his official report alluded to Hamilton as the "great hair- buyer," referring to his practice of paying bounties for scalps. Charges of barbarism were preferred against the prisoners, the recital of which made the Americans furious with rage. They were tried, and Hamil- ton was sentenced to be hanged, but Washington and Thomas Jeffer- son, then governor of Virginia, interceded for their lives. They were paroled in October, 1780, and exchanged during the following year — all except Lieutenant Scheiffelin, who ran away to Detroit at the first opportunity. The peril which hung over these prisoners is shown in a letter written by an American soldier, John Dodge, who had been captured during the colonists' attack on Quebec in 1775. Under date of July 13, 1779, he wrote from Pittsburg to Philip Boyle, merchant at St. Duski (Sandusky), as follows: "It is with pleasure that I inform you that I have escaped from Quebec. I have now the honor of wearing a captain's uniform and commission and am managing Indian affairs here. There has been a battle in Carolina and the English were de- feated. I am going to Williamsburg, Va. , in a few days to prosecute Hamilton, that rascal Dejean, Lamotte, likewise Haminey and Hay. They will all be hanged without redemption and the Lord have mercy on their souls.'' 217 28 - In addition to his barbarism Henry Hamilton had other aults. Not only did he usurp the supreme- authority of the law and enforce the extreme penalties, but he was dishonest. During his term of service at Detroit he pocketed all the crown revenues and made no returns. In spite of his faults his government rewarded him for his zeal in perse- cuting American settlers. Not only were his past sins forgiven, but he was made lieutenant-governor of Canada, and the city of Hamilton, in the Bermuda Islands, was named in his honor. He was afterward made governor of the Bahama Islands. He died in 1796. Thomas Williams whose son, John R. Williams, was the first Amer- ican mayor elected by the people of Detroit, under the charter of 1824, was afterward appointed a justice by Major Lernoult to succeed Dejean. When Hamilton and his crew had been taken to Virginia as prisoners of war, Governor-General Sir Frederick Hal dim and ordered Col. Arent Schuyler De Peyster to leave his command at Mackinaw and proceed to Detroit. De Peyster had long been complaining because Hamilton, a mere captain, had been given the most important post on the frontier, while he had been thrust away as commandant of an insignificant post, where there was no chance to achieve either wealth or glory. De Peys- ter was not appointed lieutenant-governor, but was made commandant in place of Major Lernoult, who was presently transferred to Niagara. De Peyster was a more humane man than Hamilton, but he soon de- generated into a human butcher. At first he instructed the Indians to take prisoners rather than scalps and to abstain from torturing their captives, but the Indians would not harass the Americans unless they could also kill and torture them, and De Peyster finally consented to, and upheld, their barbarities. George Rogers Clark was tendered a resolution of thanks by the Legislature of Virginia, and was made a general as a reward for his heroic accomplishments. He had undertaken the capture of the British posts on his own authority, and had not even informed Washington of his purpose. He sent to Virginia for reinforcements, saying that the one fort which now menaced the settlers of the west was at Detroit (he spelled it Detroyet), and he could not feel satisfied until he had taken that British stronghold. His request was ignored, and Clark, who was a man of boundless energy, courage and ambition, was compelled to desert the scenes of his brilliant victories, and lead his sadly weakened army back to Kentucky. Clark corresponded with Washington and 218 with the Virginia authorities, begging for a company of men and suffi- cient supplies to make an attack upon Detroit, so as to stop the Ipdian depredations. All his ambition was centered in this one accomplish- ment, but Washington, while recognizing his courage and ability, was aware of his defects — for Clark was a man of violent temper and of intem • perate habits. Gen. Daniel Brodhead was given the mission for which Clark had pleaded, but he appears to have been unsuccessful, for while the British were repeatedly alarmed by rumors of his approach witji an army of several thousand men, he never came nearer than a point about twenty miles south of the present site of Toledo. Clark led several successful raids into Ohio in 1780 and 1782, destroying the Shawnee villages along the Scioto River and the Miami villages around the present site of Piqua. He was appointed Indian commissioner, and the savages had great respect for this fearless fighter. His disap- pointment grew upon him as he saw Detroit, the key of the west, re- main in the hands of the British, and he retired to his log cabin at the falls of the Ohio. Like that flower of Spanish chivalry, Bernado del Carpio — " His heart was broke; his later days Untold in martial strain, His banner led the spears no more Amid the hills of Spain.'' Clark sank into a profound melancholy, became more intemperate than ever, and died in poverty and neglect in Louisville, Ky. 219 CHAPTER XXIX. How the Fort and Settlement Looked During the Revolutionary War — Character of the Houses — Costumes o£ the Various People — Drunken Indians and Returning Raiders with Reeking Scalps and Live Prisoners to Torture on the Common. Detroit was a bustling center of activity in the year 1780. The new fort, on the rising ground, had been much enlarged and strengthened, and the stockade now enclosed several acres. Many houses were located outside the fortifications, but these were almost forts in them- selves, with their strong log walls and their palisades of stout pickets inclosing the grounds. North of the fort, reaching to a marshy tract of land where Grand Circus Park is now located, stretched the commons, where the cattle, ponies and pigs of the settlers roamed for pasturage. The houses for the most part lay along the river, and each night the boys of the settlement could be seen driving the cattle homeward by winding paths. Beyond the common stretched an interminable wil- derness, from which the whoo-whoo of the owls and the weird howl of the wolf could be heard after nightfall. The houses of the wealthier settlers were quite pretentious in their dimensions. They were all built of logs, and the huge beams which supported the upper floors were hung with seed corn, dried pumpkin, hanks of yarn, smoked hams, jerked venison, and the vegetable seeds saved during the pre- vious season. The decorations were almost exclusively of Indian manufacture. Great elk skins, tanned a pale buff color and decorated with dyed porcupine quills, served as curtains and window shades. Huge grass mats, plaited by the hands of the busy squaws, covered the floors; and the spinning wheel, the flax wheel and the old fashioned hand loom were among the ornaments of the living rooms. Indian pipes, richly decorated moccasins and other bric-a-brac were to be found everywhere. On the antlers of giant elk, nailed to the walls, hung the long, flintlock rifles, pqwder horns which had once been the defense of huge buffalo, and bullet pouches of squirrel skin. Nearly every wealthy settler had one or more slaves, who were either Pawnee Indians or Africans, and who attended to the duties of the household 230 and tilled the gardens. Each house had a cellar with its store of vege- tables and salt meat, a barrel of cider, some jugs and bottles of wine made from the scuppernong grape, which was a luxuriant vine in the local forest, or perhaps a cask of ale or strong beer from the local brewery, which was first installed by Cadillac and his brewer, Joseph Parent. On the narrow streets the young ladies wore short skirts of gay colors, with neatly fitting bodices, and white kerchiefs about their necks and shoulders. Their bonnets were usually homemade, but much beautified by the art of the seamstress. The family table never lacked for meat, for the woods abounded in wild turkeys, deer, elk and pheasants. The river was alive with wild geese, ducks, brant and wild swans. Whitefish were to be had for the casting of a net, and there was a great variety of other fish. Though a far inland town, Detroit had even then the manners of the seaboard, and its fashions were those of the London and Paris of the period — somewhat later, however, owing to the ninety days' sail from Europe and a two months' paddle up the Hudson, Mohawk and Oswego Rivers and then throughout Lakes Erie and Ontario. Matrons wore dresses with long skirts and short waists and very short sleeves, and quite often-veiled their faces; while the gentlemen went in shovel hats and powdered perukes, with silk hose and knee breeches with silver buck- les. On festive occasions, which were numerous even during the Revolutionary war, there was no end to the display of silk and satin gowns, and gold bespangled shoes, and costly jewels glittered as the slow and stately figures of the minuet moved through the richly fur- nished drawing rooms with the solemn precision of a funeral. This was of course among the upper classes. Less pretentious but equally picturesque was the dress of the settlers of small means and the fur traders and their agents. Their coats were usually made of heavy blanket cloth, black or blue in color, belted at the waist and with a ca- pote or hood for covering the head in severe weather. Many of them had a sort of barbaric taste for gay colors, and these would wear even scarlet, red or crimson coats, while the cufifs, pocket flaps and collars were bound with fur according to the taste or extravagance of the wearer. Their trousers were of the knickerbocker pattern, usually of coarse and heavy cloth and often of elk skin. Their legs were en- cased in thick leggins, green being a favorite color, and moccasins of elk skin, ornamented by the hands of some industrious squaw, took the place of the silver buckled shoes affected by the rich. Their hands 331 were protected by very heavy mittens, and their heads by fur caps made of the skins of small animals, beautifully dressed. It was com- mon practice to make the cap of the skin of the muskrat, woodchuck, fox or marten, with the head at the front, in place of a visor, and the tail hanging down over the shoulders, the sport of every passing breeze. Out in the streets of old Detroit a visitor from the heart of civiliza- tion could witness a panorama of never ending interest. Voyageurs, boatmen and fur traders strolled about in fantastic dress, their faces bronzed by exposure until they rivaled the hue of the Indians. Each one bore with him the peculiar scent of peltries, combining the odors of the bedver and muskrat and the odor of the smoke of the camp fires, about which they usually slept, on their journeys through the wilder- ness. Those half wild men joked with the shy Indian girls and looked with undisguised admiration at the pretty French girls who walked and danced with the grace of Diana, but who could make the best of the men bend their strong backs in a race on the river in birch bark canoes. These daughters of the wilderness were fair and exceedingly vivacious. They lacked the adornments to be found in the great cities of Europe, but they made themselves attractive with the natural art that appears to be born in the French woman. Indians were to be found everywhere. They were picturesque when sober, but repulsive in appearance when drunk, and the average sav- age of that time, two hours after arriving in the town, was in one of the many stages of intoxication and not at all pleasant to meet. As they were away much of the time on marauds against the American settlers, their squaws hung about the settlement making baskets, birch boxes, maple syrup, bead work, moccasins and tanning hides, working indus- triously, while their brown-skinned little ones tumbled about on the river bank or swam in the clear waters with as much ease as the frogs. Their papooses, bound to boards, were hung on the low boughs, where the breeze^ could rock them. The male Indian despised work and made his wife a slave. When he came to Detroit to trade, if his march was overland, he tramped along with head erect, his dress orna- mented with a profusion of trinkets and feathers, and narrow strips of the scalps he had taken made a fringe for his deerskin breeches. His gun, scalping knife, hatchet, powder horn and bullet pouch, were all the burdens he essayed to carry. Behind came his squaw, prematurely aged by hard work, loaded to a bending posture with a pack of peltries and camp utensils. The children followed in single file, the boys being 233 armed with bows and arrows and the girls carrying burdens suspended upon their backs by a band across their foreheads. In Detroit the In- dian husband and father disposed of his wares and-his wife sold hers, both trading for goods at the stores. The Indian's first purchase was rum, and then he bought powder and ball ; but the wife bought cloth and other necessities for her little ones, occasionally indulging in a cheap ornament for her own person. Sometimes gray-coated mission- aries, Moravians from the Clinton River, came to the king's common and preached to the Indians ; but they could make but little headway against the influence of free rum and the inducements to barbarity offered by the government officials at the post. The fort loomed up a formidable looking work for that time. Its strong bastions, armed with six-pound cannon, frowned on each cor- ner. Massive blockhouses with overhanging second stories flanked every gate ; ahd on the ramparts the scarlet coated soldiers strode to and fro, keeping watch over the settlement in the name of the king. Soldiers off duty flirted with the French maidens and strutted about the narrow streets fully conscious of their own importance. In front of the fort along the river bank were the first rude wharves of Detroit. One near the upper end of the stockade reached out into the river more than 150 feet, and at the lower end of the fort was a shorter wharf. Between the two was the harbor pool or anchorage for ships, and usually two or three schooners, sloops or brigs lay in this anchorage, swaying at their anchors with the strong current. Midway between the two wharves and close to the water was a large and very massive blockhouse, armed with two swivel guns to protect the landing of friendly troops in case of war. The experience of the Pontiac war had taught the British how necessary it was to have certain acCess to the river at all times. Just east of the long or upper wharf was one of the Detroit ship yards, where there was constant activity during the Revo- lutionary war, for it was a standing order that Great Britain must maintain control of the great lakes and that no other power should be permitted to launch a craft in their waters. More than twenty vessels were laimched from the yard on the Rouge River near the present Woodmere Cemetery during the last ten years of British possession — 1770 to 1780 — and there was always one or more on the stocks. Over- head, on the tall flagstaff of the fort, floated the banner of Great Britain, emblem of the most powerful government of the time. Notices of public events were usually given out from Ste. Anne's church each 223 Sunday morning, but notices were frequently published by the town crier, who went through each street beating a drum and calling out the advertisement he had been given to publish. From the forest paths leading southward, parties of Indians were constantly arriving. They bore scalps of murdered settlers, and drove before them half starved captives, torn by briars and bleeding from the stripes and stabs which had been inflicted upon them when their sore and swollen feet faltered on the way. Girty, the malignant renegade, sometimes swag- gered about the streets boasting of his deeds of blood, or wild with rum, filled the air with imprecations against the Americans who had sworn vengeance against him. Captains McKee and Elliott, James Girty and George Girty, and Dequindre, Chesne and Beaubien and other French residents who had taken service under the British, were also familiar figures and always in close association with the Indian allies whom they controlled. The cost of the peculiar warfare which was waged from Detroit was greater than the British govern- ment had anticipated, and there was much complaint against the ex- pense, but the Indians would do nothing without rum and presents, and their demands became every day more exorbitant. In 1781 the cost of keeping them in arms against the Americans was over ;^124,000, or $320,000, according to the drafts drawn by De Peyster, and much more was sent to them from Montreal. Inside the fort was the store- house of supplies for the Indians. In an adjoining -apartment was the dreadful charnel house of the post. Hanging from the beams and upon the walls of this large room were painted poles strung with human scalps. Bales of scalps were piled in the corners of the room, each being the ghastly relic of a wholesale murder. There, hanging side by side, were the silver locks of the grandsire, who had been murdered at his fireside, the scalp of the farmer and soldier, the long braided locks of the matron, the flowing tresses of the girl in her 'teens and the flaxen haired scalp of the tender babe. Each was carefully stretched into a flat disk by drying on a hoop, and the flesh side was painted a bright red. On the red ground were the private marks of the slayer in blue and black, showing the manner in which the victims had been killed. Conreurs de bois no longer carried their stock in trade from the in- terior upon their backs. Each of these commercial travelers of the wilderness had now one or more ponies, rough coated, broad backed and very hardy. They traveled with a pacing or ambling gait, and 324 Wc3^'m i'lxblishir.^ bf:r..3r,iifln.,Co * V when the lakes and streams were frozen over in winter they could pull rough sledges at surprising speed. Winter races between these val- uable beasts of burden formed one of the pleasures of the settlement, and the whole populace turned out to cheer the rival racers. The de- scendants of these ponies are common in Canada and about Detroit, and pony races are still a winter recreation on the frozen bosom of the River Rouge, between Fort Street and the mouth of the Detroit River. After General Clark had captured the Illinois posts, the French set- tlers at Kahokia and Kaskaskia, Ohio, which were then in Spanish ter- ritory, picked up courage and did some fighting on their own account against the British. In 1780 Lieutenant Scheiffelin, who had been taken prisoner and sent to Williamsburg in company with Hamilton and Dejean, made his escape. He said that the prisoners were treated brutally and compelled to work like menials about the jail. Hamilton was in great need of money while in prison and drew upon Governor Haldimand for _;£700. Strenuous efforts were made to secure'his ex- change, but up to that date they had failed. The protests of the American Congress, the stories of wholesale massacres and the great number of scalps of settlers brought to Detroit, excited the sympathy of Lord Shelburne, the British colonial secretary, and he wrote to Gov- ernor Haldimand ordering him to call off the savages. Haldimand wrote to De Peyster conveying the order, but the latter replied that the Indians were so enraged that it was impossible to restrain or to call them away from the frontier. In the fall of 1780 Col. Augustin Mottin de la Balme left Kahokia and made a first movement toward the Ohio River. This was to disguise his purpose. He had planned to make a sudden descent upon Detroit after he had united with the French at Vin- cennes. He waited twelve days at Miami town, on the Maumee River, for the arrival of the Vincennes men, and then partially destroyed the village during the absence of the warriors, who were fighting the settlers on the border. As he was on his way toward Vincennes a party of Miamis surprised him and killed the commander and forty of his men, and the remainder retreated. He had a force of about 130 men. Colonel De la Balme cuts little figure in the published histories, but he was a brave man who did much for the American colonies. He was a friend of Count D'Estaihg, who commanded the French allies in the Revolu- tion, and upon his arrival in the United States with letters from Dr. Franklin, he was made inspector-general of the Continental cavalry. 225 29 When D'Estaing, in the fall of 1778, issued a proclamation to the French people of the Northwest, calling upon them in the king's name to take up arms in behalf of the Americans and assist them in winning their independence, De la Balme was the bearer of the message to the French of Illinois. His military training showed him that he could strike a telling blow by capturing Detroit, and but for the failure of his compatriots to join him at the expected time he might have accom- plished this valuable service. An expedition set out from Detroit in 1780 under Lieutenant-Gov- ernor Patrick Sinclair, of Mackinac, with the intention of capturing the Spanish settlements of Pen Coeur and Kahokia in the Illinois country, the latter being one of the places captured in 1778 by General Clark of Virginia. Pen Coeur (Hanging Heart) was captured and sixty- eight of the garrison was killed. This was probably a wholesale slaughter, for it is doubtful if the population exceeded that number. The report of Commandant De Peyster mentions no prisoners taken at this place. At Kahokia some traders had warned the settlement of the approach of the British. De Peyster reported twenty- three prisoners taken and 50,000 tons of lead ore was " stopped." The winter of 1780 was the most severe ever experienced at Detroit up to that time. It was not until May 16, 1781, that the ice was suffi- ciently cleared from the river to permit the first vessel to depart for Erie. A census of Detroit taken in 1780 reads as follows: Heads of families, 394; married and young women, 374; married and young men, 333 ; men absent in Indian territory, 100 ; boys ten to fifteen years of age, 455; girls, 385; male slaves, 79; female slaves, 96; horses, 773; oxen, 474; cows, 793; steers, 361; sheep, 279; hogs, 1,016; bushels of wheat, 13,316; corn, 5,380; peas, 488; oats, 6,253; flour, 358,000 pounds; bushels of wheat sown, 2,028; potatoes, 2,885; bar- rels of cider, 828; acres under cultivation, 12,083. The males in the above list probably include soldiers, and the total population was 2,205. 226 CHAPTER XXX. Shocking Butchery of Ohio Settlers by the British Indians — A Bill of Lading for a Shipment of 954 Human Scalps, Which tell a Gruesome Story — Reprisals by the Set- tlers — Shameless Butchery of the Moravian Indians. Perhaps the best idea of the attitude of the British at Detroit, during the years of the Revolution, may be gained from papers submitted in evidence by Dr. Benjamin Franklin, when he went to France to appeal for assistance against British barbarities toward non-combatants. One of these papers was a letter from a British officer, which was in- tercepted on its way to Lieutenant-Governor Hamilton at Detroit: " May it please your excellency: At the request of a Seneca chief I hereby send to your Excellency under care of James Hoyd, eight packages of scalps, cured, dried, hooped and painted with all the triumphal marks, and of which consignment this is an invoice and explanation. Package number 1, forty three scalps of Congress sol- diers, inside painted red with a small black dot to show they were killed by bullets ; those painted brown and marked with a hoe denote that the soldiers were killed while at their farms; those marked with a black ring denote that the persons were surprised by night; those marked with a black hatchet denote that the persons were killed with the tommahawk. Package number 2, ninety eight farmers' scalps; a white circle denotes that they were surprised in the daytime ; those with a red foot denote that the men stood their ground and fought in the defense of their wives and families. Number 3, ninety-seven farmers' scalps; the green hoops denote that they were killed in the fields. Number 4, 103 farmers' scalps ; eighteen are marked with a yellow flame to show that they died by torture ; the one with a black band attached belonged to a clergyman. Number 5, eighty- eight scalps of women; those with the braided hair were mothers. Number 6, 193 boys' scalps. Number 7, 211 girls' scalps. Number 8, 123 scalps of all sorts; among them are twenty-nine infant scalps, and those marked with small white hoops denote that the child was unborn at the time the mother was killed. The chief of theSenecas sends this message: ' Father, we send you here these many scalps that you may see that we are not idle friends. We wish you to send these scalps to the Great King that he may regard them and be refreshed: and that he may see our faithfulness in destroying his ene- mies and be convinced that his presents are appreciated.' " A fine present, this set of trophies, evidence of 954 murders which spared neither age nor infirmity, man, woman or child or even babe 227 unborn — to forward to a monarch by the grace of God and defender of the faith ! Settlers continued to be murdered right and left by prowling bands of Indians, and many of them after being captured were submitted to the most horrible tortures. The first torture would be to run the gauntlet between double files of savages, armed with any weapon they chose to use. Those condemned to death were stripped naked and painted black. Sometimes their flesh would be filled with large pine splinters and these would be set on fire. Some would be impaled on red hot irons, or pinned fast to the ground and roasted under a fire of brush. Others would be fired at with blank charges of powder at such close range that the burning powder would penetrate far' into their flesh. The most common method was to tie prisoners to a stake and build a wall of fire about them at a distance of about twenty feet so that they would linger for hours in dreadful torture. Girty was frequently pres- ent at such scenes and often scoffed at the victims; but it is also known that he rescued many from such a death. In March, 1780, Simon Girty was at Detroit to conduct Captain Bird to an attack upon Louisville, where the Virginians had a fort of some strength under command of Gen. George Rogers Clark. They started with a considerable force of Canadians, most of them mounted, and carried two light pieces of cannon. On the route Girty called out the Indians at ^different villages in the Miami valley, until the force amounted to 600 men. They could not reach Louisville during the high water of the freshet season, so they attacked two small settle- ments — Ruddle's Station, known as Fort Liberty, and Martin's Station, both on the Licking River, immediately south of where Cincinnati now stands. It was impossible for the settlers to make resistance against such a force, so they surrendered upon promise of protection. Captain Bird was unable to control the savages, however, and a num- ber of settlers were slaughtered and scalped. Girty succeeded in pre- venting a general massacre. The settlers who survived, numbering about 400, were loaded with their own household goods and hurried to Detroit on foot as prisoners of war. A number escaped, but 350 of the settlers arrived at Detroit on August 4, 1780. The horrors of such a march, where the men, women and children were loaded with burdens, needs no description. In the summer of 1780 Joseph Brant, chief of the Mohawk nation, with a force of warriors, marched from Detroit to Niagara and from 238 there to Oswego. He went to punish the Oneidas, who had refused to join with the British, and sympathized with the Americans. March- ing inland he attacked and burned several villages of the Oneida nation, and the latter took refuge in the forts at ^tanwix and Schen- ectady, in New York. This is the only noticeable case where two nations of the Iroquois confederacy took different sides during the Revolution. Moravian missionaries had several times warned the American com- mandants at Fort Pitt (Pittsburg) and other frontier posts of the ap- proach of Girty and his Indians, and of Col. John Butler and his rangers, who always aimed to surprise the Americans. In the fall of 1780 a grand council of the Iroquois was called by Alexander McKee, the British Indian agent, and was held at Detroit. At the council he asked the Six Nations to break up the Moravian settlements atGnadenhutten, Salem and Schoenbrun, all three in southern Ohio. It was a class of dirty work which the Iroquois did not care to undertake, so they sent word to the Chippewas, accompanied by a wampum belt, that they might "make soup," if they wished, of the Christian Indians who were being taught by the Moravian missionaries. But even these fierce northern savages did not care to kill their own race without cause. The ■ Moravians were a peculiar religious sect who termed themselves ' ' United Brethren in Christ." They developed from the missions which carried Christianity into Bohemia in the ninth century, and began to assume their present form as a religious society in the fourteenth century. They came to America in 1735 to evangelize the Indians, first settling in Georgia, but afterward removing to Pennsylvania where they founded the towns of Bethlehem, Nazareth and Lititz. From there they sent missionaries over into Ohio and also into Michigan. Gnadenhutten, on the Tuscarawas River, was their chief settlement in Ohio, the name signifying " tents of grace." The Moravian church was a sort of re- ligious communism. It held all real estate as church property and would not sell to persons outside the society. Personal property be- longed to the individual, but the church exercised a temporal as well spiritual authority over its adherents until 1844. The Moravians were lovers of peace, and would not offer resistance to their oppressors. They taught their followers humility and industry; when one died in the faith it was a matter of rejoicing rather than mourning, and their funeral processions were accompanied with the blowing of trumpets and trombones. Each member was pledged to do what he could toward 239 evangelizing the Indians, and their communities were the abodes of peace and general happiness except when invaded by their oppressors. In the spring of 1781 Col. Matthew Elliott, who had deserted the American army with Girty, went to the Moravian villages, resolved to get rid of the non-combatants at any cost. They made no resistance and were placed in charge of a Frenchman named Le Villiers, who took them, several hundred in number, to Detroit. Girty hated the Moravian missionaries, and tried to get the young Miamis to murder them, but the Delawares would not permit it. He ordered Le Villiers to rush them to Detroit under the lash, allowing the women no time to rest or to prepare food, but Le Villiers was a humane man and showed them as much kindness as he could, and shielded them when he could from the brutality of the savages. David Zeisberger, over sixty years of age, John Heckewelder, Gottlieb Senseman, John Jacob Schemick, John Bull and William Edwards, were the missionaries in this party. Their villages were depopulated and the corn crop was left unharvested in the fields. The prisoners were ill clad, many being barefoot, and they were torn with briars and almost perishing from hunger and fatigue when they arrived at their destination. As they came near Detroit the squaws and young Indians set upon them and beat them cruelly. James May, of Detroit, went out to witness their arrival, when two girls, thirteen and fourteen years of age respectively, broke away from their tormentors and fled to him for protection. The Indians pursued, and, as the girls were clinging to May, that citizen, who was a very large man, weighing about 300 pounds, defended them with his fists and knocked two of the Indians down. He then took the girls to the council house for shelter. The Indians complained to Cap- tain McKee, and the latter went to De Peyster in a passion, saying that his Indians must be allowed to do as they pleased with their vic- tims, or they would desert the British cause. De Peyster summoned May before him and said that he would send him to a dungeon at Montreal if he ever dared to interfere between the Indians and their captives again. When the Moravian missionaries had been brought before Commandant De Peyster and the council house was filled with Indian chiefs, who had been called to consider the missionary matter, Girty told the assemblage that the Moravians were friends of the Revo- lutionists, and had given valuable information to the American com- manders by apprising them of the movements of the British scalping parties. Captain Pipe, the Delaware chief, a magnificent savage, arose 230 and addressed De Peyster, saying: "You Englishmen may fight the Americans, your brothers, if you choose ; the quarrel is yours, not ours. The Indians have no pause or reason for taking sides and shedding their blood in this war, but you have set them upon the Americans as the hunter sets his dog upon the game." At this moment he took from an Indian at his side a pole strung with white settlers' scalps. "Look, father! here is what has been done with the hatchet you gave me. I have made use of it as you ordered me to do, and I found it sharp." Like most of the Delawares he had no particular grudge against the Americans, but instead, of remaining on their own lands in southern New York, where their neutrality would be in doubt, most of the tribe came to Ohio to assure the Senecas that they were to be trusted. The British had hired some of them to take part in some raids, but Captain Pipe was disgusted with the style of warfare. He was averse to war- ring upon the settlers and bitterly opposed to attacking the unoffending Moravians. The Moravians were kept at Detroit for several weeks, during which the commandant and the Indian agents tried to induce them to take up the cause of the British, but they refused to fight on either side. In order to get rid of the expense of keeping them they were acquitted in November and sent to Upper Sandusky, there to be kept under guard by Half-King, head chief of the Wyandottes. Provisions soon ran low at Sandusky and something had to be done, so a party of ninety-six Moravian Indians, mostly Delawares, was allowed to go back to their villages to gather the unharvested corn. They were accompanied by a delegation of Wyandottes, ostensibly to insure their return to the Half King's village, but perhaps for a more sinister purpose. Under the lead of the Wyandottes they divided into small parties and went by different routes. One party, led by Wyandottes, surprised Mrs. Robert Wallace in her cabin during the absence of her husband, and, with awful barbarity, killed her and three of her children. The bodies of the dead were stripped and the bloody clothing was carried to the Mo- ravian village of Gnadenhutten, and there left in the cabins. Another party murdered John Fink, an American settler, and carried his bloody clothing to the village. A third party carried John Carpenter of Buf- falo Creek into captivity. The Wyandottes then went away, leaving the Moravians unguarded. News of these raids caused James Marshel to order out the militia of Washington county. Pa. , of which he had command, and Col. David Williamson, at the head of this body of men, 231 went across the border to punish the marauders. They arrived at the Moravian villages and took the Indians into custody to march them away to Fort Pitt, but after they had shut their captives in two of the houses, a party of the white men found the bloody clothing of the mur- dered settlers hidden about the houses. They concluded that the Mo- ravians were dangerous hypocrites, who had been responsible for many of the murders. Wild with passion they rushed to where the unarmed Indians were awaiting transportation to Fort Pitt. Entering the houses, they said to the Indians, "You are murderers and you must die. " The Indians sank to their knees and began to pray, when one of the rangers seized a mallet and struck several of them dead. Handing the mallet to another the slaughter was resumed, guilty and innocent falling alike, until ninety-four of the ninety six Indians lay dead. Two Indian boys alone escaped to tell the dreadful story. This murderous act aroused every Indian in the country, and those who had entered into the marauds of the British in a half hearted way before, were now fired with vengeance. Their wrath was visited principally upon the settlers, but before many months they had their revenge upon the soldiers as well. In the summer of 1781 the Spanish commandant at St. Louis, on the Mississippi, organized a raid against the British post at St. Joseph on Lake Michigan. With about 300 men he marched 600 miles across Illinois, and when he arrived before the log fort at the mouth of the St. Joseph River, the small British garrison took to the Woods and ran away to Detroit. The report of this attack created some alarm at Detroit, but the Spaniards contented themselves with destroying the fort and burning the palisades and the houses. The invaders took all the stores of provisions and then marched back to St. Louis. It was the last attempt made by the Spaniards against the British. 232 ELISHA TAYLOR. CHAPTER XXXI. Martyrdom of Colonel Crawford — He is Burned at the Stake by the Indians — Simon Girty, the Renegade, Scoffs at His Agonies — Dr. Knight's Story of the Tortures. In the spring of 1783 Col William Crawford, an American officer of Westmoreland, Pa., started from Pittsburg with 480 mounted volun- teers to make a raid against the Indians of the Upper Sandusky vil- lages. General Irvine, commandant at Fort Pitt, supplied him with ammunition and sent Dr. John Knight and John Rose, one of his aides, to accompany the expedition. The soldiers met a large party of Indians and British near Upper Sandusky on June 5 and had an en- gagement at a place known as Battle Island, situated in what is now Crane township, Wyandot county. Captain Elliott and Lieutenant Clinch, of the British force, conducted themselves with great gallantry, as did John Rose and John Gunsalus of the Americans. Simon Girty was also very active in the fight. Darkness parted the contestants, and both sides slept on their arms, each building large fires and then retiring some distance to avoid a surprise. Instead of resuming the fight at daybreak Colonel Crawford made a fatal mistake by waiting for his men to recuperate. A reinforcement of Shawnees arrived at the British camp during the day. The Americans learned of it, and at a council of war it was decided to retire at night and make the best pos- sible retreat from the dangerous position. During the march through the forest that night. Colonel Crawford, Major McClelland, Captain Briggs, Dr. Knight, John Slover and about twenty others, who were riding in the rear, became separated from the command, which was led by Colonel Williamson and John Rose. The main army crossed the Ohio on June 13, losing but three killed and eight wounded while en route. Colonel Crawford and his men strayed eastward and they were captured at noon on June 7, at a place which is now the site of Leesville, Crawford county, Ohio. A party of Delawares and Shaw- nees took them toward Sandusky, but the prisoners were confident that Girty and the British officers would procure their exchange. 233 30 Captain Pipe, the Delaware chief, told them they would come to no harm. But he painted black the faces of Crawford and ten other pris- oners, which was equivalent to a death warrant among the savages. Colonel Crawford and Dr. Knight were marched in the rear and were guarded by Captain Pipe and Wingemund, another Delaware chief, while the other prisoners went on ahead. Soon after setting out Crawford and Knight came upon the bodies of four of the other prison- ers lying mutilated beside the road. Crawford asked Captain Pipe about the fate of his son William, and his son-in-law, William Harrison, who had been captured during the battle, and was told that they had been sent to Detroit They had, however, been burnt at the stake during the previous night. At Tymoochtee Creek a party of squaws and boys attacked the helpless prisoners who were just ahead of Craw- ford and Knight, and butchered them. Then they slapped the faces of the colonel and the surgeon with the bloody scalps. That night Colonel Crawford was stripped naked, beaten with switches, and tied to a post about fifteen feet high with enough rope to enable him to walk several times about the post. Dr. Knight was tied at a short dis- tance away where he could see the torturing of his commander. " Do they intend to burn me, Girty," asked the Colonel. " Yes, you are a doomed man," replied Girty, Crawford offered $1,000 in money for his release and, it is said, offered to give valuable information, but the Indians were determined to avenge the murder of the Moravians upon him and Dr. Knight. He had known Girty nearly all his life, and when it became apparent that he must endure the torture he composed himself like a brave man and said to the renegade: "I shall try to bear it patiently." Captain Pipe arose and delivered an impassioned address to the warriors, re- citing the story of the Moravian massacre. At the conclusion of his speech a large fire of hickory poles was built at a distance of twenty feet from the post where Crawford was tied, and the savages with yells of frenzy began 'their awful work. They loaded their guns with pow- der only, and fired seventy charges into the naked flesh of their victim at such close range that the burning powder was driven through Colonel Crawford's skin. Then they cut off his ears, and the young boys took the burning poles from the fire and jabbed them into his fiesh. The squaws scooped up the coals with pieces of bark and threw them upon him as he ran about the post to escape his tormentors. Soon the ground was a mass of burning coals beneath his feet. 234 "Girty! Girty! " called the colonel in tones of agony, "shoot me to thp heart and end this torture." Girty laughed in a heartless manner and said: " How would I shoot you ? Don't you see I have no gun ? " Then he turned to joke with an Indian who stood beside him, ridi- culing the sorry figure the colonel was making. Crawford walked about the stake for a long time, praying for death. The odor of his burning flesh filled the air, and his feet were broiling upon the; coals, but he showed no signs of weakness. A young Indian rushed in, knoQked him down and kneeling on his prostrate body tore his scalp off. The tortured man lay as if dead on the ground. A squaw ran up and threw a quantity of hot coals upon his bared skull and he arose and shook them off, and then resumed his agonizing march about the stake. His scalp was slapped against Dr. Knight's face, and the doc- tor was told that he would be treated in the same fashion at the Shaw- nee town next evening. For three hours Colonel Crawford walked in his fiery trial and then he fell. No further tortures could bring him to his feet, so the coals of the great fire were heaped above his body and it was totally consumed. Dr. Knight escaped that evening and brought the story to Pittsburg. In the spring of 1782 Col. William Caldwell, of Detroit, established his headquarters among the Miamis and Delawares where Piqua, Ohio, now stands. His lieutenants were McKee, Elliot, and Simon Girty. They had a force of 1,100 Indians at hand, and 300 more within a day's march. Captain Joseph Brant, of Detroit, was also with this army. In July they made a raid into Kentucky and attacked Bryan's Station, but could not capture it. Col. John Todd, a Kentuckian, started, with 150 Kentuckians, to relieve the garrison, but the siege had already been raised. Todd and his men came upon the enemy at Blue Lick Springs on August 19, and fell into an ambush. Seventy men were killed on the spot and seven were taken prisoners, while the British and Indians lost but eleven men. That fall General Clark made a raid into the Shawnee towns and destroyed the villages at Piqua and Lori- mer's trading post at the mouth of the Miami. His 150 rangers lost but one man killed, and they killed ten Indians and took seven prison- ers. For some time thereafter the Indians could not be induced to attack American settlers. Girty 's suspicions of the Moravians were not allayed; he had a horror of capture by the Americans, knowing that he would be exe- 235 cnted as a traitor. In March, 1783, he led another company to the Moravian settlements and hurried the missionaries to the mouth of the Sandusky River and from there they were taken to Detroit in ships. This time they were treated kindly, but De Peyster said they must not remain longer in their settlements on the Ohio border; that they could either settle in the Michigan region north of Detroit, or they coujd go back to their towns in Central Pennsylvania. Their Indian followers, by direction of the Indian agents, had been scattered as much as possible, but a few came to Detroit to join the missionaries. The latter were David Zeisberger, Jacob Jungman, Gottlieb Senseman, John Heckewelder, John Bull, William Edwards, Michael Jung and others. They discussed the proposition made by De Peyster, and de- cided to settle in and about Detroit. As the Moravian Indians pre- ferred to remain in Detroit, Heckewelder and Senseman remained with them at first, while the others went up to Lake St. Clair and made a new settlement on the south side of the Clinton River near the present site of Mt. Clemens. They named the settlement New Gnaden- hutten, in memory of their abandoned settlement in the Ohio valley. Here the^ remained until 1786, preaching the gospel to both whites and Indians. Meanwhile the Chippewa Indians resented their settling on these lands, which they claimed to belong to that tribe. The Chip- pewas were willing that the Moravians should settle there during the war, but now that peace was restored they must depart. Major Ancram, the British commandant at Detroit from 1784 to 1786, sus- tained the claim of the Chippewas and told the missionaries not to clear any more land. When they were leaving, Heckewelder asked several leading Detroiters, among whom was John Askin, to intercede with Major Ancram to have their property protected, as their settle- ment of nearly sixty families, exclusive of the missionaries, owned twenty-four log houses, and a number of persons were waiting there intending to occupy them after their departure. The missionary asked for compensation for the houses and other improvements. Major Ancram and John Askin; in a joint letter, said they would advance ^200 on the prospective sale of the houses, and' that persons would be detached to take charge of the property until it was sold. They were also guarantied protection and safe conduct to their destination when they left the settlement. The Moravians left New Gnadenhutten in twenty-two canoes on April 30, 1786, and came to Detroit; they left Detroit on April 38, on the sloops Beaver and Mackinaw, and after four 236 weeks' tossing about in Lake Erie storms, reached the mouth of Cuya- hoga River, at the present site of the city of Cleveland. Here they built several bark canoes, and traversing the Cuyahoga and Tuscara- was Rivers, they finally reached old Gnadenhutten, in what is now Tuscarawas county, near New Philadelphia, Ohio. Congress bestowed upon them three tracts of 4,000 acres and at that place. They lived there until about 1807 when the influx of white settlers and traders, and their whisky, demoralized their Indian converts. The settlement was then removed to River Raisin, in Ohio. Its after history may be learned in works devoted to the subject. At the present day the de- nomination has over 100,000 communicants and its theological head- quarter^ are at Bethlehem, Pa., and at Salem, N. C. Father Potier, the Jesuit in charge of the Huron mission of Detroit at Sandwich, was very feeble in the spring of 1781. On July 16, while in his study, he was attacked by vertigo and fell down. His head struck an andiron in the fireplace, his skull was fractured and he died without regaining consciousness. Commandant De Peyster, following his instructions in regard to the Jesuit property, immediately seized everything at the mission, including the priest's papers, hoping to acquire valuable information in. regard to the French element and their relations with the Indians, but he was unsuccessful. It was found that Father Potier, anticipating such action, had sold all the lands of the mission, which had been granted by the Indians, including the church, mission house and burying ground, to Francois Pratt, one of his parish- ioners, taking a mortgage running to the Company of Jesus. This mortgage in the course of time was paid to Francis Xavier Hubert, vicar-general of Detroit, and afterward bishop of Quebec. The church and cemetery were both deeded to the church several years afterward. The papers seized did not contain the information sought by the British commandant. It was found that Father Potier had removed the leaves of his private diary, which referred to events in 1761-63, and thus the curiosity of the commandant was balked. The death of the pious and able priest ended the Huron mission of Detroit. The later history of the Hurons has been already related in this book. When peace was declared in 1783, Girty was ordered to call all the chiefs of eleven Indian nations to Detroit. De Peyster told them that the war was over and that they should now bury the hatchet. Presents were sent to all the tribes, and while McKee and Elliott became Indian agents, Girty became an interpreter at the post of Detroit. In 1784 237 he married Catherine Malott, whose parents and brother and sister, as before related, had been butchered on the Ohio during the wars. They settled upon a piece of land about a mile and a half below Fort Maiden (Amherstburg), near the mouth of the Detroit River. It is a characteristic of the British that they never yield territorial possessions with good grace. The terms of the treaty of Versailles sur- rendered Detroit and Michigan to the Americans, and it gave to the Americans the sole privilege of purchasing lands from the western Indians within certain limits. When the British had reviewed the treaty they considered that they had surrendered too much. The vast extent of the western territory was not realized by the commissioners who signed the treaty, but was better known in this country. Although, no protest against the terms of the treaty already signed could be made by the British with any show of propriety, there were pretexts at hand which gave them an excuse for holding fast to Detroit, Mackinaw, Niagara, Oswego and Fort Miami on the Maumee, while they endeav- ored to push their claims for other territory which they had already surrendered. CHAPTER XXXII. Great Britain's Motives for Ignoring the Treaty of Peace— Determined to Hold the Border Posts from Which to Renew the War on the Colonists — Why They Held Detroit Unjustly for Thirteen Years. The generally accepted theory among American authorities is that the excuses made by the British for not carrying out their treaty agree- ments were merely pretexts to cover their determined purpose to re- tain possession of Detroit and the Northwest. The reasons were apparent. By holding this territory they controlled the lucrative fur trade, which was a virtual monopoly in the hands of the Hudson Bay Company and the merchants of Montreal. The representatives of their interests in London were in close touch with the British govern- ment, which is always solicitous for the advancement of trade a na- tion's chief strength. The retention of the Northwest would also give a vantage ground from which to renew the war against the colonies. The English never give up a project until after they are defeated, and 238 sometimes not then, and there was a strong sentiment at home that this territory should be reclaimed by the mother country. Above all things it would enable the British to retain the support of the Indians, who could be depen-ded on to fight England's battles in the event of war. That this object was not only entertained, but that it succeeded, is evi- denced by the fact that the Indians of the West, within the American territory, were the allies of the British in the war of 1813. In this struggle England's savage contingent committed some of the most devilish atrocities in the annals of so-called civilized Warfare. There is also damning evidence that the English incited the Indians against the American white settlers, and were responsible for the most horrible crimes against men, women and children. It is shown by official records that as far back as 1778 the redskins were being urged to vio- lence by the infamous Simon Girty and other agents, and that under Girty's orders they assisted in bringing guns to Detroit for the pur- pose of strengthening the British position. In 1793, prompted by the same power behind the throne, the general council of Indians declared that they would not believe that the United States intended to do them justice unless it was agreed that Ohio should be the boundary line between them and the Indian territory of the Northwest. This was in accordance with the British policy of having a " buffer state " next to their own dominions in America, which could be controlled in the British interests. The American government would not acquiesce in this proposition to alienate the Northwest, because it knew that it was inspired by Great Britain. . Why this section was not evacuated by the British in compliance with the treaty of 1783, has ever since been a subject of controversy and has not yet been determined. It was among the stipulations of that treaty that Great Britain should be allowed a reasonable time within which to withdraw her forces from this country, but even the most radical de- fenders of the British policy do not attempt to claim that her action was justified under this provision. It took eight years to drive British soldiers from the United States, and that Great Britain should take thirteen years to completely withdraw from the victorious country, seemed to be an arrogant breach of faith. The contention made by the British and their defenders ever since has been that the United States had failed to comply with the requirements of the treaty. A special count in this charge was that British merchants were creditors of merchants in this country ; that the new government had agreed in 239 the treaty to guarantee the payment o£ these debts ; that several States had refused to comply with this agreement because they had no con- stitutional right to do so ; and because of all this the British government rightly refused to surrender the sovereignty of the northwest territory until the British merchants were paid or secured. The excuse of the American merchants and others for not paying their British debts was that slaves which had been taken from some of the settlers by the Brit- ish, were to be restored, but the return had not been made. Baron Stfeuben, who was a close friend of Washington, was dispatched on diplomatic service to Quebec, to secure an adjustment of the existing disputes. Baron Steuben asked for the fulfillment of the treaty by the surrendering of the forts in the lake country, Detroit, Niagara and Oswego, but he was coolly informed that Great Britain had concluded to hold them because when the treaty was signed the commission- ers had not understood that so much valuable territory was being sur • rendered. Steuben had intended to proceed up the lakes and take formal possession, but Sir Frederick Haldimand, governor at Quebec, refused to grant him passports. The purpose of the British was then unmasked, and the old practices were resorted to of setting the Indians upon the American settlers. This engendered a bitterness which not only led to a sharp diplomatic correspondence, but in 1794 made a second war imminent. In 1783, when the fortune of war had turned in favor of the Ameri- can cause, the Iroquois, who had fought for the British, were greatly disheartened. Their employers had promised to drive the Americans away from the Indian territory they had seized, and to place the orig- inal owners again in possession. When the inability of the British to do this became apparent the Indians reproached Governor Haldimand and his agents, saying that the Americans were about to win their in- dependence and become rulers of the country. In that case the Iroquois would forever lose their lands and the Americans would cer- tainly wreak vengeance upon them for the part they had taken. The Oneidas, on the other hand, they said, had done no fighting, but they had been given a safe refuge at Fort Stanwix and Schenectady, when they were attacked by Joseph Brant and the rest of the Indians of the Six Nations in 1780. Brant had destroyed their villages, but they would be restored to their lands and could soon rebuild, while the other five nations would be outcasts. In 1783, when the American set- tlers had begun to flock into the Ohio valley, the Indians were in- 240 THOMAS BERRY. formed at a council, by the British agents, that the Americans were preparing .to invade their country to kill off the game and to drive the aborigines, who were rightful owners, out of their possessions. The agents said the Americans were plotting to deprive the Indians of the protection of their great father, the king of England. The character given the "Yankees" by the British agents was far from flattering, and when the council broke up its members went home to inflame the prejudice and hatred of their people. The British agents promised them arms and ammunition, to be delivered at Detroit, and rewards were to be paid for the scalps of American settlers who were found north of the Ohio or west of New York. Spain was brought into the quarrel as a sort of ally to Great Britain. The Americans were for- bidden the right to navigate the Mississippi River, and when the right was insisted upon, Spanish agents were sent into the Indian country to aid in perfecting an Indian confederacy, which, it was believed, would prevent all attempts to extend the colonies westward. Alex- ander McKee, the British Indian agent, was entrusted with the task of uniting the northern tribes in a confederacy. He painted himself like an Indian and donned the Indian garb to impress upon the Indians that he was their friend and brother. Each tribe he visited was in- formed that all the other tribes were in arms ready for a descent upon the settlements of Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky. All the horrors of Revolutionary days were to be repeated and the savage dogs of war were to be set upon the settlers once more. Again Detroit became the emporium for hatchets and guns, powder and ball, red-handled scalping knives and rum, and these were dealt out to the Indians with a lavish hand. Hunters were sent out against the noblest of game and were promised rewards for human scalps. During the days of the Revolution there was a secret understanding between the various commandants at Detroit and the merchant-justice, Dejean, and in consequence there was no report of the revenues of the post. In 1784 Henry Hamilton, the ex-commandant, was ordered to prepare a statement of all the revenues of that period, and his report to Governor General Haldimand says: " I have the honor to enclose to your excellency the best statement I have been able to procure of the territorial and casual revenues collected at Detroit between April, 1775, and April, 1783, amounting to ^^2,739 2s. 6d., New York currency, oi _;;^1,535 2s. 8d. sterling; as required in the words of Major Matthews's letter of October, 1783." 341 31 De Peyster was very well satisfied with his command at Detroit, where he also succeeded in holding all the revenues, and he wanted to remain permanently at the post. But Lieutenant Jehu Hay, who was stationed at Niagara, had family influence, which, in 1783, had secured his appointment as lieutenant-governor of Detroit, making him the superior of De Peyster. The latter was a man of considerable ability and far above Hay in rank. The contemplated change provided that De Peyster Was to be continued in the position of commandant, but he rallied his friends to his support and they remonstrated with Governor Haldimand, saying that it would be ridiculous to put a half-pay lieu- tenant and a man of no apparent ability in authority over a colonel of the British army, who had done long service for the king. De Peyster by various machinations managed to hold to his position for more than a year after his successor was appointed. In the fall of 1783 he was transferred to Niagara and Hay was ordered to Detroit, as it was evi- dent that the two officers never could be at peace. Hay started for Detroit, but was taken sick with malarial fever and went to Montreal instead, where he remained until the following summer. He came to his command in 1784 and proceeded to file charges against his prede- cessor. Commandant De Peyster was charged with official neglect of duty, incompetence and crookedness. The charges stated that De Peys- ter had permitted certain residents to inclose lands adjoining their prop- erty upon payment of a fee ; that he had neglected the fortifications so that the whole river front of the palisades had fallen outward and floated off down the river, compelling the erection of a new front to the fort at considerable expense. He was also charged with permitting large quan ■ titles of wood to be piled close to the walls of the fort, thereby endanger- ing its security. De Peyster, in a letter written to Governor Haldimand from Niagara, on October 37, 1784, replied in detail. The lands inclosed were fenced by his order, he said. They were situated on a hill near the fort, immediately back of a row of houses, and had long been a dumping ground for rubbish and a resort for drunken Indians. He had ordered them inclosed to get rid of a nuisance and had received no fee from adjoining property owners. This he asserted " on the honor of a gentleman." High water in the river he said had washed away the palisades before the damage of the freshet could be prevented, and he had allowed settlers to pile their wood on the high ground about the fort in order to prevent it from being washed away in the flood. But it is a notable fact that Detroit River is not subject to floods, and 343 either the season alluded to was an unusual one, or De Peyster's verac- ity may Justly be questioned. Hay did not succeed in ruining De Pey- ster, but the crown demanded and reserved the revenues of the post so that his office was less profitable than he had anticipated. His disap- pointment so preyed upon him that in the fall of 1785 he had another attack of malarial fever and died just thirteen months after his arrival. Col. Arent Schuyler De Peyster was a great-grandson of Johannes De Peyster, a Huguenot refugee who settled on Manhattan Island un- der Dutch rule in a very early day and died there in 1685. Colonel De Peyster was born in New York in 1736. Although of French an- cestry and American birth, he was always attached to the British cause. He was a soldier in the British army during the last days of the seven yeax's war, which resulted in the downfall of the French. His siding with the British against the people of his own blood was probably due in part to the religious feeling, for the descendants of the Huguenots seldom forgot the persecutions of their ancestors at the hands of the Catholic French, and they no doubt found the society of the Protestant English more congenial. His American birth and French ancestry in part explain why De Peyster was not made lieutenant-governor at De- troit, and why the office was given to Jehu Hay, an inferior soldier of British connections. De Peyster was a man of education and consider- able refinement; he had a taste for literature and his accomplished lady was the social leader in Detroit during the years of their residence at this place. Soon after the close of the war of the Reyolution he left Niagara and went to Dumfries, Scotland. At the close of the French Revolution, which was followed by the rise of Napoleon, the British people were constantly expecting a French invasion and every town had its body of militia. De Peyster became an officer and a drill mas- ter of the Dumfries soldiers in 1796, when he made the acquaintance of a tall, swarthy, black-eyed recruit named Robert Burns. The poet and the soldier became fast friends in spite of their difference in social rank. When Burns was stricken with his last illness and was confined to his bed De Peyster sent daily to inquire after his welfare, and this atten- tion pleased the poet so much he wrote his last verses; "A Poem on Life," directed to his commander. The first stanza reads: ' ■ My honored Colonel, deep 1 feel Your interest in the poet's weal. Ah ! stna' heart ha'e I now to speel US The steep Parnassus Surrounded thus by bolus, pill And potion glasses." Ue Peyster was himself a poet of some pretensions, having- published a small volume of verses. He also conducted a political controversy with Burns in the Dumfries Journal. De Peyster died at Dumfries in 1833. In the year 1784 a Mr. Brass came from the east and erected a saw mill and grist mill at Detroit. The expense was borne by govern- ment and Governor Haldimand paid ;^485 New York currency, or about $1,300, for the two jobs. CHAPTER XXXin. Indian Wars Following the Revolution— British Influence Causes Constant Vio- lations of Treaties— Disastrous Campaigns of Gen. Josiah Harmar and Gen. Arthur St. Clair— Mad Anthony Wayne Wins a Signal Victory— 1784-1793. In 1784 murders were common in all the region about Pittsburg, and Indian raids from Detroit were frequent. Col. Josiah Harmar, of the Continental army, was ordered to mass a strong force of Pennsyl- vania rangers at Fort Pitt in 1784, and to call a council with the Indians of the West for the purpose of restoring peace on the border. The troops were to serve as a guard for Arthur Lee, Richard Butler and George Rogers Clark, the treaty commissioners appointed by Congress. Messages were sent to all the tribes asking their chiefs to come to the council, but McKee and Elliott warned the British at Detroit that peace would be followed by an encroachment of American settlers, and these agents were sent in company with Simon Girty to dissuade the Indians from making a treaty. A treaty was finally made with the Wyan- dottes, Delawares, Chippewas and Ottawas, and signed at Fort Mcin- tosh on the Ohio, in January, 1785. The British agents kept the Shawnees, Cherokees, Senecas or Mingoes, and the Miamis from join- ing, and stirred them up to renew hostilities against the Americans. The Cherokees made a raid down the Scioto, Hocking, Muskingum and Tuscarawas valleys in September, 1785. In November another coun- 244 cil was called by Congress at the mouth of the Miami River, but Simon Girty and Colonel Caldwell, of Detroit, worked against it among the Indians. The Americans built a fort called Fort Finney at the mouth of the Miami River, and on February 1 another treaty was signed. By the terms of this treaty the Shawnees were allotted all the territory lying between the Miami and the Wabash Rivers and south of the ter- ritory of the Miamis and Wyandottes. It was agreed that no settlers were to encroach in this region. No sooner had the treaty been signed than McKee, Elliott and Girty went into the Wabash valley to persuade the Indians that they had been robbed by the terms of the treaty, and in the spring of 1786, two months after the signing of the treaty, the Shawnees were on the war path in pursuit of settlers in the Scioto and Hocking valleys. This kind of see-sawing made too much work for the British Indian agents. They saw that the Indians were inclined to make peace with the settlers, so in June they gathered forty chiefs of the various nations and went with them to Niagara to confer with Sir John Johnson, son of the late Sir William. Sir John told the Indians if they continued living independently and making war as in- dependent tribes, they would soon be exterminated. Their only hope for preservation against the encroachments of the Americans was to organize as one nation. In that case, he said, they would be great in peace or war. His language was vague and diplomatic, but the In- dians understood it as advising them to make a general war upon the American settlers in order to preserve themselves from destruction. Then Joseph Brant, the great Mohawk chief, also known as Thayan- danega, made a tour of Canada and gathered up another lot of chiefs at Niagara to listen to Sir John Johnson's words of wisdorri. Brant was a well educated Indian, having received his schooling at the ex- pense of Sir William Johnson, at Willoughby, Conn. He held a com- mission as captain in the British army and was a man of ability. At the conclusion of this conference the forty chiefs were loaded with presents and supplied liberally with rum, while Girty, Elliott, McKee and Colonel Caldwell were granted tracts of land at the mouth of the Detroit River near the present site of Amherstburg. A third council was afterward held in the British interest, at the Huron village on De- troit River (Sandwich). Representatives of the Iroquoi§ or Six Na- tions, and the Wyandottes, Ottawas, Miamis, Shawnees, Cherokees, Chippewas, Potawatomies and Wabashes were present at this assembly, which took place December 18, 1786. There a memorial was pre- 245 pared by the British representatives to be presented to the American Congress. It pledged the several tribes to peace forever, providing there should be no further influx of settlers into the western territory. Even the chiefs had some misgivings as to the good faith of this docu- ,ment, so each man signed the totem of his tribe instead of signing his individual mark. The memorial came to naught, as its purpose was plainly apparent. During the summer of 1786 Benjamin Logan, a Kentucky pioneer, led a raid through the villages of the Shawnees, who had so soon broken their treaty, and captured eighty prisoners besides killing twenty of their warriors. In 1787 the American government held out various inducements to soldiers of the late war if they would settle in the Ohio valley and the tributary country, which was at that time ceded to the government by Virginia and Connecticut. There was no cessation of murder or mas- sacre, however. Between the years 1783 and 1790 over 1,500 men, women and children were slaughtered by savages and their scalps were brought to Detroit. Congress saw that a heavy blow must be struck at the allied Indians and British, or the war of extermination would go on indefinitely. It became necessary for the settlers and the British to come together once more in a death grapple in order to secure peace. Gen. Josiah Harmar, a distinguished Pennsylvania ofHcer, was authorized to collect an army and make a raid against the hostiles in 1789. He was better adapted for civilized warfare than Indian fight- ing, but when he had mustered a motley crew of 1,400 men he thought he was marching to a certain victory. General Knox, secretary of war, foolishly sent word to the British at Detroit that a war was to be waged against Indians only; the British immediately notified the Indians and equipped them for the conflict. Harmar's force was badly clothed, ill fed and poorly armed, and there was little discipline among his troops. When the Indians retired beyond the Wabash, Harmar began to fear they would not make a stand against him. He finally encountered the Indians in large numbers where the city of Fort Wayne, Ind., now stands. They surprised his camp, routed the undisciplined soldiers, and many were left dead on the field. Harmar retired in disgrace to Fort Washington — the present site of Cincinnati. Success made the In- dians all the fiercer and the settlers of the West were panic stricken at their plight. 246 General St. Clair was called to Washington's home and the president gave him careful advice in regard to fighting Indians. He furnished him with a force of 2,300 regulars, who had fought in the Revolution, and told him to fortify himself in every possible way against disaster by building a line of forts across the west side of the Ohio territory, extending from the mouth of the Big Miami to the mouth of the Miami of the Lakes, or the Maumee. Above all things he was instructed to keep his pickets well extended, so as to guard against surprise. St. Clair was a victim of the gout and was hardly fit for the trust. On Novem- ber 3, 1791, he arrived at the junction of the St. Joseph and St. Mary's Rivers in Indiana, near the Ohio border. Next day his army was beset on every side with Indians led by Little' Turtle, chief of the Miamis, and a force of British from Detroit. The American oiHcers formed their men in line of battle at close range in the open field, and they were mowed down rapidly by their foes, who were concealed in high grass and behind fallen trees. The American officers were picked off first and the soldiers were soon left without commanders. A great panic ensued. The militia, which had been in the rear acting as a re- serve, were flanked and driven in upon the front. Many soldiers threw away their guns and fled, only to be shot down and scalped. Out of a force of 1,400 men, 593 were killed or missing, and 38 officers and 242 privates were wounded. Nothing but the bravery of Colonels Butler and Darke and Major Clark saved the entire army from extermina- tion. Each of these officers plunged into the- thick of the fight and rallied the scattering soldiers. Butler was shot through the arm and leg, but fought until another bullet pierced his abdomen when he fell mortally wounded. Simon Girty and the Indians came upon him as he lay in agony on the field, and he begged Girty to kill him and put him out of his misery. Girty called a sayage to his side, who readily drove his tomahawk into the dying man's brain. The Indians gathered about the corpse of the brave man Butler, who had won their admiration by his conduct in that awful hour, and they divided his heart into pieces, giving one piece to each tribe present. Not a horse was left alive and the artillery was abandoned. A poet soldier who accom- panied the expedition wrote an epic on the subject of this battle, of which one verse is enough : " ' Twas November the Fourth in the year 1791 We had a sore engagement near to Fort JefiEerson ; St. Clair was our commander, which may remembered be, For there we left 900 men in the western territory." 247 Washington was much incensed when he heard of the carelessness which had caused such an appalling disaster. Next year Gen. An- thony Wayne, commander-in-chief of the American army, was sent against the Indians. The best officers of the army had been killed in the two previous engagements, and the volunteers regarded another war as inviting certain disaster. While General Wayne was at Pitts- burg enlisting men and drilling them for the contest, Secretary of War Knox suggested that he invite the Indians to a treaty council. He did so, but the Indians were flushed with victory and would not listen. Secretary Knox became panic stricken, and fearing that Wayne would also be defeated, begged of him not to invite a conflict. In May, 1793, General Wayne led his half drilled soldiers to Fort Washington (Cin- cinnati), where he enlisted some Kentucky rangers. Peace negotia- tions having failed, he advanced his army to Fort Jefferson, seventy miles up the Miami, October 6, .and a week later he was established at Greenville, six miles further on. There he passed the winter amid great hardships, as his provision trains were sometimes captured by the Indians and the escorts slaughtered. In order to educate his men to the serious business at hand and train them in Indian warfare. Gen- eral Wayne sent out a party to bury the dead who fell on St. Clair's battlefield. Then he built a fort on the site and called it Fort Re- covery. Every moment his men were on the alert against a surprise, and the Indians began to fear the new commander, whom they called "The Blacksnake," because of his swiftness and cunning. They talked of peace to the British, but the latter scoffed them out of the notion, and braced up their courage with rum and tales of their former prowess. Wayne was now near the Miami fort, which was held by a British garrison. Washington authorized him, if it should become necessary, to attack the fort and dislodge the garrison, although the two nations were ostensibly at peace. On June 30 a small body of Indians, led by British soldiers disguised as Indians, attacked a party of dragoons or^mounted riflemen. They were repulsed and next day a messenger came to General Wayne and said the Indians would like to make peace. Wayne demanded a surrender of all their prisoners as an evidence of good faith, and the negotiations ceased. On July 10 General Scott arrived with more Kentucky rangers, and Wayne ad- vanced close to Fort Miami, the British post, where he built a work and named it Fort Defiance. It was situated at a point where the Mau- mee receives the waters of the Au Glaize River. 248 f: ■:'''.■' I i;;'::; 1 ^ i- 1 II 1 ! li^^: 1 IIP ■nml^H ■ i '"^'1 I^Biif'''.; ■■'■■■'SIS? B "^ p::; ::•:;■:::; ::::';|;:: 1 1 'v^ jP%,^ •:'••••:•:: -^ 1 l~ '■''''■'?■; MERRILL B. MILLS. August 20, 1792, found everything in readiness for a decisive battle. The enemy were believed to be entrenched in strong force not far away, and at eight o'clock that morning General Price's corps formed a skirmish line, and deploying in front of the army, advanced down the west bank of the Maumee River. For five miles they picked their way with care amid a perfect silence. Suddenly- puffs of smoke came from the tall grass along the enemy's front and several of the skir- mishers fell. The enemy were drawn out in battle array three lines deep. Their left rested on the river bank and their right stretched away for a distance of two miles into the forest. Some time before, a tornado had swept over the forest and the trees had been thrown down in great confusion, forming the best possible covert for Indian war- fare. It was impossible to send the mounted men against thern in this position, but General Wayne mapped out his plan of battle while the skirmishers were falling back to the support of the main body. The Indians tried to turn his left flank but were balked. General Scott was sent around to the enemy's right with his mounted rangers, mak- ing a long detour to get clear of the fallen timber and intending to fall upon the Indian flank or rear. Capt. Robert Campbell was sent along the river bank to turn the enemy's left. As soon as these were dis- patched Wayne ordered his men in front to advance at double quick with trailed arms and to drive the enemy from the grass and trees with the bayonet. When they were dislodged the soldiers were to fire at close range. So well and so swiftly was the last order executed that the Indians were flying in a panic before the flanking parties were pre- pared to strike. The British and Canadians were driven out of their concealment and joined in the flight. A force of 2,000 were flying from an attacking party of only 900. Then General Scott came upon the retreat, and his rangers made havoc with sword and bayonet. Wayne advanced to within pistol shot of Fort Miami, while the enemy was scattering panic stricken in all directions. In his report of the fight the commander makes honorable mention of Col. John Francis Hamtramck, who took command of Campbell's division when the latter was shot down, General Wilkinson, Captains De Butts and Lewis, Lieutenant Harrison and Adjutant Mills. The woods for a distance of more than a mile were filled with the dead Indians and Canadians. British guns and bayonets were scattered along the line of flight. General Wayne stayed three days on the field and destroyed the houses and crops about the British post. Among the property destroyed was 249 32 the house and stores of Captain McKee, the British Indian agent. It was reported that reinforcements for the Indians were expected from Niagara, and Wayne waited, hoping the enemy would make another stand and give him another battle. During the fight General Wayne was suffering from a severe attack of gout and his swollen legs were swathed in flannels as they lifted him to his saddle. He soon forgot his pain and was dashing about everywhere, stirring the soldiers on the pursuit. Several days afterward Capt. Joseph Brant tried to re- inforce the British Indians and lead them into another battle, but they had a surfeit of fighting. Mad Anthony Wayne had inspired them with terror, and they willingly signed a treaty at Greenville in 1795, making very humble submission to the American government. The blow h^d been struck which settled the fate of Detroit, as the British could no longer urge the Indians against the Americans. In the fol- lowing winter John Jay, minister to Great Britain, secured from the British government an agreement by which the disputed forts, Detroit, Niagara, Mackinaw, Oswego, and Fort Miami on the Maumee, were to be surrendered to the Americans and all claims upon the territory were to be given up. Although the British government had refused to carry out the terms of the treaty, which surrendered the right of purchase and settlement in the region west of Pennsylvania and north of the Ohio, the Ameri- can Congress went ahead with legislation, assuming that this territory must eventually be surrendered. Previous to 1780 Virginia, Connecti- cut, New York and Massachusetts had each laid claim to the disputed lands ; but each of these States being unable to take possession through their own powers, ceded their claims to the Federal government before 1787. As soon as this was done Congress began to prepare for posses- sion, and in 1787 a code of special laws was passed to govern the vast region, which was called the Northwest Territory. These laws were prepared by Nathan Dane, an eminent legal authority of Massachusetts and founder of the Dane Law School at Harvard, and Rev. Manasseh Cutler. Dr. Cutler was negotiating at that time for the purchase of a tract of 1,500,000 acres of land in the Ohio region, and he was anxious that law and order should be enforced, and that slavery should be ex- cluded from the western country. On October 16, 1787, as soon as legis- lation was provided for the Northwest Territory, President Washington appointed Gen. Arthur St. Clair as governor, Winthrop Sargent as secretary, and Samuel Holden Parsons, James Mitchell Varnum, and 350 John Armstrong as judges. Armstrong resigned February 19, 1788, and the vacancy was filled by John C. Symmes. The governor and judges were authorized to prepare such laws as became necessary for the government of the Northwest Territory, but in strict conformity with the National Constitution. At first the new territory comprised the present States of Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and part of Minnesota. CHAPTER XXXIV. The British Evacuate Detroit, July 11, 1796— The Victory of General Wayne is Followed by the Jay Treaty — Death of General Wayne — The Northwest Territory Created before Possession was Secured by the Americans — Winthrop Sargent Gives the Name of Wayne County to a Great Territory. It was Monday, July 11, 1796, and the scene was the British military post of Detroit. The sun rose brightly over the little town. Fort Ler- noult, and the broad expanse of the beautiful river. At the first notes of the bugle that sounded forth the reveille the banner of St. George — the meteor flag of England — was given to the breeze, the main gate or entrance to the fort was opened, and red-coated sentinels were seen on guard. The few privates left in the fort fell into ranks and answered to their names, and then dispersed to get their breakfasts and help pack up. There was to be no guard-mounting that day. All around could' be seen wagons loaded with household goods and military supplies, for the "flitting" had commenced several days before, and the work of building Fort Maiden, at Amherstburg, had been going on for several weeks. On the ramparts several officers conversed in groups, apparently on a subject of engrossing interest, and the massive form of Col. Rich- ard England appeared on the scene. Telescopes were brought out and the river below was scanned with interest. Everybody in Detroit knew that, by the terms of the Jay treaty, the fort and its dependencies were surrendered by England to the United States, and that possession was to be given on July 1. But from several causes the United States troops had not come to claim their own. In the intervening days some evil- disposed soldiers or others had destroyed several of the windmills that lay on the river bank, and did some other mischievous acts, but these 251 were not probably sanctioned by the commandant, who was a gentle- man and an old and experienced soldier. It was about ten o'clock when the telescope discovered two vessels coming around the bend of the river below the town. The flags were not at first distinguishable, but in a short time they became plainer to the lookers and the word went round: " The Yankees are coming ! " Nearer and nearer came the two vessels, which were small schooners, each flying the Stars and Stripes. At this time a number of officers and men went down to the king's wharf, which then projected about 150 feet into the river at the foot of Shelby street. At the wharf were several loaded vessels, all ready to clear. The American vessels tacked in and were fastened to the wharf, around which were gathered a motley group of Indians, soldiers and white settlers. There is no record of how the small American advance force was received It was strictly on a peace footing, for it numbered only sixty-five men. The two vessels also contained several cannon, ammunition and provisions, the whole being under the command of Capt. Moses Porter. Being officers and gentlemen, it is more than probable that Colonel England and his subordinates received them at the wharf with courtesy and good feeling. That the latter feeling predominated is certainly true, for the records show that the British commissary at Chatham loaned fifty pounds of pork to the United States commissary for the use of the troops. Meanwhile the only one to show emotion was the renegade, Simon Girty, the miscreant who had laughed when Crawford, the American officer, was being burned at the stake by the Indians near Sandusky. He seemed anxious to leave what was now American territory, and too impatient to wait for the ferry boat, he spurred his horse into the river and swam it over to Canada. On the bank on the opposite side he stopped and furiously cursed the American government and its soldiers. Like Marmion, when he had got outside of the Douglas castle, "His shout of loud defiance pours, And shook his gauntlet at the towers." Then came the ceremony of taking possession. The sixty-five United States troops formed and marched up the hill to the fort. They were probably received by the few British troops that were left, with military honors. The British flag came down at noon, and then the starry banner of the free was hoisted and Detroit and the North- west became United States territory. A letter written by Colonel 253 England a few Says later, on Bois Blanc Island, at the mouth of the Detroit River, shows that he was in Detroit at the time of the evacua- tion. There was certainly no reason why he should not be present at that time. The two nations were at peace and the evacuation was the result of an amicable treaty, and it would have been boorish and dis- courteous for him to be absent. On the 13th came Col. John Francis Hamtramck, who was in command of this post until the arrival of his superior officer, "Mad Anthony" Wayne, who came in September. It was fitting that General Wayne should be authorized to make official visits to all the posts, and after he had received the thanks of Congress he began his tour in the month of June, 1796, in the capacity of civil commissioner as well as commander-in-chief. The Indians loved a brave man and they received him at Detroit with great enthusiasm when he arrived in September. The brave warrior's work was done. He remained at Detroit two months and then set sail for Erie, Novem- ber 17, but while on the way was attacked by the gout again. He was carried ashore and died at Erie, December 15, 1796. At his request he was buried at the foot of the flagstaff on the parade ground. Years afterwards his remains were removed to St. David's church, in Radnor, Pa. , and when the parade ground was graded at Erie about forty years ago, the last trace of his burial place was destroyed. General Wayne was born in 1745 and was but forty-six years old at the time of his death, but he had seen almost twenty years of fighting. Little Turtle, who was in command of the Miamis in the battles against Harmar, St. Clair, and Wayne, and was here at the time of the evacuation, must have been a picturesque savage as well as a inilitary genius. His name was given not on account of his stature, for he was said to be upward of six feet in height and powerfully built. He wore a kilt or short skirt of bright blue flannel reaching nearly to the knee and a coat and vest of European pattern. His Indian cap was a baggy sort of turban which hung far down his back, and it was ornamented with two hundred brooches of silver. He wore two rings in each ear and from them depended strings of coins and medals twelve inches in length, one string hanging in front of each shoulder and the others behind. He also wore a nose jewel of large proportions. After the battle with Wayne he became an enthusiastic admirer of his conqueror. He died at Fort Wayne in 1812, aged sixty-five years. In 1782 a number of British sympathizers residing in the revolted colonies removed to Canada, the emigrants forseeing that the war was 253 going against their country, and that the late region would probably be the ground of a dispute, at the end of the Revolution. These emi- grants, as a class, were of superior birth, means and education, and they settled along the Canadian banks of the Thames, Detroit, St. Clair and St. Lawrence Rivers, where they were styled United Empire Loyalists. This movement, however, was not general in Detroit, for many continued to believe that Great Britain would hold fast to the northern territory. But this illusion was dispelled when Col. Ham- tramck took possession of Detroit, in the name of the United States, in 1796. The population of Detroit numbered 2,190 in 1783, which in- cluded 178 slaves, but it soon fell off to about 500. This was afterward increased by the arrival of some French immigrants, but immigration from New York and New England did not begin until 1805, when the population reached 2,300. In 1792 Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe of Upper Canada organized all the present State of Michigan and a strip of land running north as far as Hudson Bay into the county of Kent. In August, 1796, less than a month after the surrender of Detroit to the Americans, Secretary Win- throp Sargent, who accompanied Gen. Anthony Wayne on his trip to Detroit, after consulting with several prominent residents, made a public proclamation organizing the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan, and a strip of Wisconsin and Illinois, completely inclosing Lake Michigan, into the county of Wayne. General Wayne was very grateful for this compliment and he expressed his best wishes for the future of the new county. General St. Clair, governor of the North- west Territory, was absent at Pittsburg when the proclamation was made, but when he heard of it he was very much provoked at his sec- retary for his presumption. The people of Detroit supported Sargent, however, and the name stood. The British governors who ruled over Canada and Detroit between 1760 and 1796 were eleven in number: Sir Jeffrey Amherst ruled from, 1760 to 1765 as commander-in-chief. Sir James Murray from 1765 to 1766. Paulus Emilius Irving in 1766. Brigadier- General Guy Carleton from 1766 to 1770. Hector, Theophilus Cramahe, 1770 to 1774. Sir Guy Carleton (second term), 1774 to 1778. Sir Frederick Haldimand, 1778 to 1784. Henry Hamilton, lieutenant-governor in 1784. 354 Henry Hope, lieutenant governor in 1785. Lord Dorchester, formerly Sir Guy Carleton (third term), 1786. John Graves Simcoe, lieutenant-governor, 1793-96. CHAPTER XXXV. Isaac Weld's Description of Detroit in 1796 — Two thirds of the Residents are French — Twelve Trading Vessels Carry its Commerce — Jacob Burnett, Solomon Sibley and other Notables Arrive. Isaac Weld made a tour of the States and Canada in 1795-96 and in 1799 published a book. He visited Detroit in October, 1796, three months after the evacuation of the town by the British, and his descrip- tion is very interesting: " Detroit contains about 300 houses," he wrote, "and is the largest town in the western country. It stands contiguous to the river, on the top of the banks, which are here about twenty feet high. At the bottom of them there are very extensive wharfs for the accommodation of the shipping, built of wood, similar to those in the Atlantic seaports. The town consists of several streets that run parallel to the river, which are intersected by others at right angles. They are all very narrow, and not being paved, dirty in the extreme whenever it happens to rain ; for the accommoda- tion pf passengers, however, there are footways in most of them, formed of square logs, laid transversely close to each other. The town is surrounded by a strong stock- ade, through which there are four gates, two of them open to the wharfs, and the two others to the north and south side of the town respectively. The gates are de- fended by strong block -houses, and on the west side of the town is a small fort in the form of a square, with bastions at the angles. At each of the corners of this fort is planted a small field piece, and these constitute the whole of the ordnance at present in the place. The British kept a considerable train of artillery here, but the place was never capable of holding out for any length of time against a regular force ; the fortifications, indeed, were constructed chiefly as a defense against the Indians. " Detroit is at present the headquarters of the western army of the States; the garrison consists of 300 men, who are quartered in barracks. Very little attention is paid by the officers to the minutiae of discipline, so that however well the men may have acquitted themselves in the field, they make but a poor appearance on parade. The belles of the town are quite au desespoir at the late departure of the British troops, though the American officers tell them they have no reason to be so, as they will find them much more sensible and agreeable men than the British officers when they know them, a style of conversation, which strange as it may. appear to us, is yet not at all uncommon amongst them. Three months, however, have not altered the first opinion of the ladies. I cannot better give you an idea of the unpolished, coarse, 255 discordant manners of the generality of the officers of the western army of the States than by telling you that they cannot agree siifficiently amongst themselves to form a regimental mess. Repeated attempts have been made since their arrival at Detroit to establish one, but their frequent quarrels would never suflEer it to remain perma- nent. A duelist and an officer of the western army were nearly synonymous terms at one time, in the United States, owing to the very great number of duels that took place amongst them when cantoned at Greenville. " About two-thirds of the inhabitants of Detroit are of French extraction, and the greater part of the inhabitants of the settlements on the river, both above and be- low the town, are of the same description. The former are mostly engaged in trade and they all appear to be much on an equality. Detroit is a place of very consider- able trade ; there are no less than twelve trading vessels, belonging to it, brigs, sloops and schooners, of from fifty to one hundred tons burden each. The inland navigation in this quarter is indeed very extensive. Lake Erie, three hundred miles in length, being open to vessels belonging to the port, on the one side, and Lakes Michigan and Huron, the first upwards of two hundred miles in length and fifty in breadth, and the second no less than one thousand miles in circumference on the opposite side ; not to speak of Lake St. Clair and Detroit River, which connect these former lakes together, or of the many large rivers which fall into them. The stores and shops of the town are well furnished and you may buy fine cloth, linen, etc., and every article of wearing apparel, as good in their kind, and nearly on as reasonable terms, as you can purchase them at New York or Philadelphia. "The inhabitants are well supplied with provisions of every description ; the fish in particular, caught in the river and neighboring lakes, are of a very superior quality. The fish held in most estimation is a sort of large trout, called the Michilimackinac whitefish, from its being caught mostly m the straits of that name. The inhabitants of Detroit and the neighboring country, however, though they have provisions in plenty, are frequently much distressed for one very necessary concomitant, namely, salt. Until within a short time past they had no salt but what was brought from Europe, but salt spings have been discovered in various parts of the country, from which they are now beginning to manufacture that article for themselves. The best and most profitable springs are retained in the hands of the government, and the profits arising from the sale of the salt are to be paid into the treasury of the prov- ince. Throughout the western country they procure their salt from springs, some of which throw up sufficient water to yield several hundred bushels in the course of one week. "There is a large Roman Catholic church in the town of Detroit, and another on the opposite side called the Huron church, from its having been devoted to the use of the Huron Indians. The streets of Detroit are generally crowded with Indians of one tribe or another, and amongst them you see numberless old squaws leading about the daughters, ever ready to dispose of them, pro tempore, to the highest bid- der. At night all the Indians, except such as get admittance into private houses, and remain there quietly, are turned out of town, and the gates shut upon them. The American officers here have endeavored to their utmost to impress upon the minds of the Indians an idea of their own superiority over the British ; but as they are very tardy in giving these people any presents, they do not pay much attention to their words. General Wayne, from continually promising them presents, but at 256 JEREMIAH DWYER. the same time always postponing tlie delivery when they come to ask for them, has significantly been nicknamed by them General Wabang— that is, General To-morrow. The country round Detroit is uncommonly flat, and in none of the rivers is there a fall sufficient to turn even a grist mill. The current of the Detroit River itself is stronger than that of any of them, and a floating mill was once invented by a Frenchman, which was chained in the middle of the river, where it was thought the stream would be sufficiently swift to turn the waterwheel. The building of it was attended by considerable expense to the inhabitants, but after it was finished it by no means answered their expectations. They grind their corn at present by wind- mills, which I do not remember to have seen in any other part of North America.'' Jacob Burnett, a lawyer and pioneer of Cincinnati, who was for some time a partner of Solomon Sibley in that city, also came here in 1796 in company with Arthur St. Clair, the first and only governor of the Northwest Territory. He witnessed the taking possession of the posts, Detroit, Mackinac and Fort Miami, and in his "Notes on the North- western Territory," published in 1847, gave a graphic description of the physical and social features of the region. Concerning Detroit he said "that it had been for many years the principal depot of the fur trade of the Northwest, and the residence of a large number of English and Scotch merchants, who were engaged in it ; and it was of course a place of great business. The greater part of the merchants engaged in the fur trade, both Scotch and English, had their domiciles in De- troit, and the nature of the trade was such as to require large amounts of capital to be profitable; because of the great distance and the im- mense amount of country over which their furs and peltry were col- lected, rendered it impossible to turn the capital employed more than once a year and sometimes once in two years. The business was ex- tremely laborious and precarious. In some seasons their profits were enormously large; in others they were small, and occasionally they were subjected to heavy losses. During a large portion of the year they had to endure the fatigue and privation of the wilderness, and as often as they returned from those laborious excursions to their families and comfortable homes, they indulged most freely in the delicacies and luxuries of high living. Scarcely a day passed without a dinner given by some of them, at which the best of wine and other liquors, and the richest viands furnished by the country and by commerce, were served up in great profusion and in fine taste. Genteel strangers who visited the place were generally invited to their houses and their sumptuous tables; and although at this day, such would be considered a breach of moral duty, as well as of good. breeding, they competed with each other 257 for the honor of drinking the most, as well as the best wine, without being intoxicated themselves, and of having at their parties the greatest number of intoxicated guests. This revel was kept up in a greater or less degree during the season they remained at home, as an offset to to the privations and sufferings of their excursions into the wilderness. At one of these sumptuous dinners given by Angus Mcintosh, the bot- tom of every wine glass on the table had been broken off to prevent what were called heel-taps; and during the evening many toasts were given, which the company were required to drink in bumpers. The writer of this narrative was one of the guests on that occasion, but, being in very delicate and precarious health, was not required to com- ply with the rules prescribed for others. " On the third Monday of December, 1798, Solomon Sibley, Jacobus Visgerand Silas Wish well, a " Yankee lawyer," were elected at Detroit as delegates from Wayne county to the first session of the General As- sembly of the Northwest Territory, which was held in Cincinnati on February 4, 1799. When the result was declared Visger said that if Wishwell was to be a delegate he (Visger) would refuse to serve. Vis- ger must have been quite influential among the French electors, for another election was held at which Chabert de Joncaire was elected in place of Wishwell. The courts of the Northwest Territory were held in Cincinnati in March, at Marietta in October, and at Detroit by spe- cial appointment whenever circumstances required. Solomon Sibley, Jacob Burnett and the other attorneys of those early days, had a wide, if not a large and profitable, practice. They went from one jurisdiction to another on horseback, carrying their legal papers and firearms. There were few bridges and few bridlepaths in the wilderness, but they struck out boldly with a pocket compass for a guide ; crossed vast swamps, swam their horses across the rivers, and when they were unable to find a lone settler's cabin at nightfall, they made a bed of hemlock boughs beneath the protecting arms of some grand old forest tree. The howl of the wolf, the scream of the wildcat and panther, the weird call of the whip poor will, and the hooting of the great horned owls were their lullaby. A fire of dead wood cooked the traveler's supper, which con- sisted of a broiled partridge or some other small game, and this, with some home cakes which had been stored away in the saddlebags at the last stopping place, gave him excellent cheer. The horse, which in that day lived in close companionship with his master, was tethered close at hand where the grass was abundant. When the great fire had 258 sunk to a heap of glowing embers, master and steed slept peacefully under the light of the stars, but with ears quickened by necessity, and each would bound to his feet at the approach of danger. In 1800 the General Court of the territories was in session at Detroit on June 4, which was the birthday of King George III. The officers of the garrison, the bench and bar, and many of the principal citizens of Detroit, went to Amherstburg by invitation, and partook of the fes- tivities of the occasion. Many of the officers of the two regiments at Detroit accepted the invitation, but Colonel Strong, who was in com- mand, did not attend. The judges, lawyers and principal citizens, about one hundred in all, attended and had a good time. The enter- tainment was splendid, the tables being richly and abundantly supplied with the best The judges and lawyers present were invited to come again, and when the court was over they went down to Amherstburg again on the John Adams, a United States brig- of -war, and had a fine supper, good wine and general jollity, and stayed there over night. Next day they proceeded on the brig to Maumee Bay, and were landed at the foot of the rapids, thereby avoiding the misery of traveling through the muddy bridle paths of the Black Swamp, between Detroit and Toledo, which was not made passable until the '30's. In 1800 the Northwest Territory was divided. Most of the present State of Ohio and the eastern half of the lower peninsula of Michigan were set off and given the name of Ohio. This necessitated a change in the boundaries of Wayne county, for it could not be extended over two territories, so the eastern portion of the lower peninsula, which had been set off as a part of the Territory of Ohio, was added to nearly one-quarter of the State of Ohio, the eastern limit being the Cuyahoga River, and the southern boundary being placed about one hundred miles south of Lake Erie. While this suited the people of Detroit and Wayne county, it did not please the people of Ohio, so in the fall of 1800 a section of the lower strip was chopped off from Wayne coUnty and added to Ohio proper, so that the eastern boundary was near San- dusky. Next year nearly all the territory which is now included in the State of Ohio was cut off from Wayne county, and only a narrow strip, including the present site of Toledo, was left. The residents of the Ohio region organized a general assembly and began to move for a constitutional convention, for the purpose of organizing their section into a State and leaving Wayne county out. The Wayne county people and some of the others objected. In the fall of 1803 a conven- 259 tion was held at Chillicothe by the people of Ohio, and a constitution was adopted. In order to make up the requisite number of residents for statehood, the people of Wayne county were counted in, and in March, 1803, the State of Ohio was admitted to the Union. Wayne county was then cut off from Ohio and attached to the pres- ent boundaries of Indiana, and the two were organized into the Terri- tory of Indiana. Gen. William Henry Harrison was appointed gover- nor and Col. John Gibson secretary, and Vincennes was made the capital of the new territojy. CHAPTER XXXVI. Early Ordinances of the New American Town — First Charter Issued in 1803— Ex- traordinary Precautions against Fire — The First Fire Department and its Divisions of Work — A Public Market Established on the River Front — A One Man Police Force. In 1800 Detroit was a town of about 300 houses. The entire own was inclosed in a low stockade, which had two gates opening upon the river front and one at the east and one at the west ends. A blockhouse defended each gate and the fort on the hill, north of the stockade, was defended by four six pound cannon mounted in the corner bastions. One of the striking features of the landscape was the number of wind- mills with their lazily revolving sails. These were all much alike in appearance. The foundation was pyramida and built of stone, while the upper part was a wooden tower with a conical roof. They were of small capacity, and so a number of them were scattered along the water front on both sides of the river, from Windmill Point on Lake St. Clair to a point near Twenty-fourth street. The houses of the town were solid structures of squared logs ; the better class being a story and a half in height. The gables were high, and dormer win- dows projecting from the room lighted the upper stories. The doors were made in upper and lower halves, after the fashion of colonial days, so that the upper portion might be opened for air and light, while the lower half prevente 1 the children from wandering out in the mud and also prevented wandering pigs from entering unbidden. A huge chim- ney stood in the center of every house, with flues opening to the kitchen and also to the living rooms, where broad fireplaces gave out their 260 ruddy glow in the cold months of the year. Even in so small a town there were plenty of idlers, and bowling was a popular amusement in the narrow streets. For lack of lighter balls the bowlers used six and twelve-pound cannon balls, and pedestrians had to look lively when they came to intersections of the streets to save their limbs from breaks and bruises. An ordinance finally put a stop to the practice. French pacing ponies were still the only horses in the settlement and they were driven singly to rather primitive carts. Whenever two drivers of these animals came together on the streets there was a race to decide which had the better pony, and when two such rigs driven by greatly excited Frenchmen came tearing down the streets side by side, pedes- trians had to fly to the doorways and cross streets for. their lives. This did not disturb the drivers, who were completely absorbed in their con- tests, and filled the air with loud shouts of encouragement to their struggling beasts. Tradition says that the French Canadian ponies had their origin from the war steed of General Braddock, a beautiful, thoroughbred, snow white mare, which was brought to Detroit after her owner had been killed in 1755 in his unsuccessful attempt against the French in western Pennsylvania. The male progenitor of this hardy equine race is said to have been an Indian pony, which descended from the horses brought into Mexico by Cortez. Wells were few and far between and the water was not as good as that of the river, so most of the people carried their water from the river, two buckets at a time, suspended from a yoke across the shoulders. The river and lake front was occupied by French farm houses for a distance of nearly twenty miles in each direction. These houses stood a little back from the river road, and were surrounded by pickets and shaded by large pear trees. In front of each a tiny wharf projected into the river from which they dipped their water, and moored to the wharf was the canoe be- longing to the house. A majority of the French residents sympathized with the American cause, but some leading men adhered to the British. The latter were mostly engaged in the fur trade and general business, which they continued after the evacuation. They were generally men of standing and influence, and took a more r less active part in the affairs of the town where thei interests were located. During the four years that elapsed before 1800, there grew up a feeling of political aversion against this element, and this finally culminated n a popular demand that they should take the oath of allegiance to the United States or leave the country. A number of them did take the oath, but others did 361 not. Some thirty French residents signed a paper declaring themselves as British subjects and stating that they intended to leave the country. In January, 1803, on petition of 'the inhabitants of Detroit, Solo mon Sibley introduced a bill for the incorporation of the town of Detroit at the session of the Assembly of the Northwest Territory held at Chillicothe in that month. The bill was passed on Jan- uary 18, and this, the first charter of Detroit, was signed by Ed ward Tiffin, speaker of the House of Representatives of the ter- ritory, and Robert Oliver, president of the territorial court, and approved by Governor St. Clair February 18, 1802. In this act the following five trustees were appointed: John Askin, John Dode- mead, James Henry, Charles Francis Girardin and Joseph Cam- pau, who were to hold office until their successors were chosen at elections to be held on the first Monday of May following. The act defined the boundaries of the town as follows: The river front on the south; the east line was the line between the property of John Askin (the Brush farm) and the farm of Antoine Beaubien ; the west line was the line between the William Macomb (Cass) farm and that of Pierre Chesne (the Jones). This rectangle extended back from the river a distance of two miles. Freeholders and householders paying $40 a year rent, and others having the freedom of the town, were entitled to vote at the annual election or town meeting to be held on the first Monday in May. The trustees were authorized to formulate such or- dinances as seemed advisable, but an ordinance could be repealed by a majority of the voters. John Askin and the other trustees, except Gir- ardin, took the oath of office and were seated on February 9, 1802, thus anticipating the governor's signature of the act by nine days. They appointed the following officers: Secretary, Peter Audrain; assessor, Robert Abbott; collector, Jacob Clemens; marshal, Elias Wallen ; messenger, Louis Pelletier. Girardin qualified as trustee at the next meeting. The first official session was held at the house of Trus- tee James Henry, where an ordinance for better fire protection was passed. By its terms all defective chimneys were ordered repaired at once, and were required to be swept once in two weeks, between the months of October and May, and once a month during the summer sea- son. Each householder was obliged to keep a barrel filled with water in some convenient place about his premises ; the barrel was to be pro- vided with ears or hooks so that two men would be able to carry it sus- pended on poles. Each householder was compelled to have a short 262 ladder to reach the roof, and another for reaching the top of the chim- ney. Shopkeepers were compelled to keep in readiness a large bag holding at least three bushels, and every person was to keep at least two buckets each of three gallons capacity, in readiness. At the first signal of fire every able bodied man was under obligation to turn out with buckets, and the shopkeepers to bring both their buckets for water and their bags, to be used for wetting and covering the roofs of buildings which were in danger of ignition. Neglect of any of these duties subjected the delinquent to a fine of five dollars, and when a citi- zen's chimney burned out he was assessed ten dollars for endangering the property of his neighbors. Detroit's first fire department was in- stituted February 23, 1802. Jacques Girardin and Augustin La Foy were the chiefs in command of the engine, an old fashioned brake pump purchased by the British several years before the surrender, and they were associated with twelve soldiers who were appointed by Col. J. F. Hamtramck as a fire brigade. In addition to these a corps of axemen was appointed, consisting of Francois Frero, Presque Cote, Sieur Theophile Mette, Baptiste Pelletier, Charles Poupard dit la Fleur and Presque Cot^, jr. Householders were limited to the amount of gun- powder they might keep on their premises, but the allowance was most liberal, the legal quantity being one keg or half a barrel, sufficient to scatter any house all over the corporation. In the earliest times fires were extinguished by the bucket brigade, who passed water, hand to hand, from the river to the fire, and the water was dashed against the burning buildings. When the roofs caught fire they were extinguished by means of swabs or bundles of rags secured to the end of long poles. These were dipped into buckets of water and applied to the burning patches in the roofs with good effect. When the fire became serious, additional protection was secured by covering the roofs with the skins of fur bearing animals. At the beginning of the nineteenth century furs had become too valuable to be thus exposed to damage, so the large bags were provided, and the bagmen spread them where the danger was most imminent, and kept them saturated with water. When the building became a mass of roaring flames in spite of the efforts of the engine men and the bucket passers, the battering squad took a hand at the fire. Taking up a green log as heavy as they could carry, they charged at the burning building at a brisk trot and dashing it against the wall with all their might sent the burning timbers down into the interior. Following along each wall and repeating the heavy 263 blows, they could soon reduce an ordinary building to the height of a bonfire, although their work would send the sparks in a shower which made the bagmen hustle on the adjoining roofs. The fire department grew with the town, and the citizens were allot- ted to various duties according to their talents. There was a crew of axe and ladder men, twelve in number, and Benjamin Woodworth was their captain. Fourteen men of long limbs and broad backs manned the hand fire engine under the direction of David C. McKinstry. The bagftien were selected from the professional class, because their mus- cles w^ere not trained to heavy work. Among the fourteen men of this department were Henry J. Hunt, captain; Conrad Ten Eyck, Solomon Sibley, James Abbott, Abraham Wendell, Peter J. Desnoyers, Philip L'Ecuyer, Antoine Dequindre; each of these men left his mark upon the community. A hook and ladder and battering ram company of twenty-one men, under management of Robert Irwin, completed the roster of the Detroit Fire Company in 1815. Robert Gouise and Charles Curry were appointed house-to house in- spectors in 1802 to enforce the fire ordinance, and their first report of delinquents contained the name of nearly every village official. At every council meeting during several succeeding years there were more or less complaints, and the town officials were as often subject to fines as the other citizens. Those who were able paid the full amount and those who were poor paid commutation fines, according to their means. On March 30, 1803, the trustees provided for the establishment of a public market. The site was " on the river front between the old bake house and the east line of pickets. " Tuesdays and Fridays were set apart as market days, and the hours were from daylight until noon. Fines were imposed for offering meats or produce for sale at any other place about the town, and also for offering unwholesome meats. James May, a very prominent citizen, was found guilty of offering diseased beef for sale, and after five witnesses had testified against him he was fined $15. On the same day his colored boy was caught throwing rub- bish on the public common, contrary to the ordinance, and the master had to pay an additional fine of twenty-five cents. On March 34, 1803, seventeen delinquents were fined for violations of the fire ordinance. Among them were four trustees, John Askin, James Henry, Robert Abbott and John Dodemead; Wayne county was also fined, the law having been violated at the jail. Dr. Herman Eberts, who was high sheriff of Wayne county under American rule, 364 AARON A. PARKER. and had been since 1796, was another of the delinquents. He was an Austrian count and a surgeon by profession and came to America dur- ing the Revolution with a Hessian regiment. He resigned shortly after arriving and settled in Quebec, but afterward came to Detroit, where he engaged in mercantile business and also practiced his profession. At the first election on May 3, 1803, John Askin was dropped, and George Meldrum was elected in his place on the board of trustees. The officers elected were Charles F. Girardin, James Henry, John Dodemead, George Meldrum and Joseph Campau. Peter Audrain con- tinued as secretary, Robert Abbott as assessor, William Smith was made collector and Elias Wallen, marshal. Smith soon resigned and Conrad Seek was appointed collector in his place. At this meeting the polls were open from 11 : 30 to 1 : 30, and after canvassing the vote the retiring board voted the freedom of the town to Solomon Sibley, who came to Detroit in 1797, in acknowledgment of his services in framing the act of incorporation and other services at the Legislature of Chilli- cothe in the interest of Detroit. An ordinance to prevent racing and fast driving on the streets was passed April 1, 1802. The treasurer of the town had for his compensa- tion three per cent, of the moneys turned over to him, and the collector had the same proportion of his collections. 'The secretary was allowed one dollar per meeting, and one cent for each dozen words of translation when he had to prepare public notices in both French and English. These notices were posted in a public place in the daytime and taken n at night. The marshal and the official messenger were allowed one dollar per day during the time they were engaged. On April 17 a tax levy of $150 was assessed upon the town for public improvements. A poll tax of twenty-five cents was assessed against every male twenty- one years of age or over, and the balance was assessed against the owners of property. The price of bread and the size of loaves were also regulated by the trustees. Loaves were first established at three pounds weight and at sixpence a loaf, but changes in the price of flour caused the scale to be raised to eight cents in July. Bread had to be baked in large ovens, so that no baking was done by the ordinary householders and the pub- lic bake houses were much patronized. Later the price rose until a loaf of bread cost twelve and a half cents, and when this became too close a margin for the baker the weight of the loaves was reduced. At the election of May, 1803, James May became chairman of the 265 34 town board of trustees. His associates were Robert Abbott, Charles Curry, Dr. William Scott and Elijah Brush. The freedom of the cor- poration was extended to Jonathan Scheififelin, a member of the Ter- ritorial Legislature. Detroit was a turbulent town in those days. Taverns were numerous and most of them were low groggeries. Some licenses were revoked because the proprietors kept disorderly houses, and an ordinance was passed forbidding the sale of strong drink on the Sabbath, except to travelers ; also forbidding the sale to minors, servants, or to colored slaves, unless with the consent of par- ents or masters. The records of the board are loaded with complaints against persons for "riotous and disorderly conduct" while drunk, and the culprits were of all colors and both sexes. Liquor cases and fire ordinance violations were about the only misdemeanors mentioned. Solomoij Sibley was elected chairman of the board of trustees in 1804. His associates were James Abbott, Henry Berthelet, Joseph Wilkinson and Frederick Bates. Peter Audrain was secretary, John Watson assessor, Peter Desnoyers collector, and Thomas McCrae mes- senger. McCrae was appointed the first member of the Detroit police force and also clerk of the market. It was his duty to examine all yards and alleys and public streets every two weeks and report their condition. He was the first house-to-house sanitary inspector, health oiBcer and fire warden; and although his functions were important, his pay was fixed at only seventy- five cents a day. The services he then rendered now cost Detroit over $600,000 a year. Solomon Sibley, who was an able attorney, was one of the first Ameri- can settlers to arrive at Detroit for permanent residence. He was born in New England and came west with a colony which settled at Mari- etta, the first capital of the Ohio territory. Impressed with the im- portance of Detroit's geographical location, he came to Detroit and settled there early in 1797. He soon became prominent in the affairs of the town and each year saw a wider recognition of his ability, hon- esty and his sagacity in public affairs, as before mentioned. He be- came a trustee of Detroit and was chosen chairman of the board, and was a representative at the Territorial Council and at the General Assembly at Chillicothe. In 1802 he went to Marietta, where he mar- ried the daughter of Col. Ebenezer Sproat. The happy pair in return- ing stopped at the house of Major Jonathan Cass, at Zanesville. When their horses had been sent to shelter for the night, Mr. Sibley noticed a square built young man of twenty years of age, of grave 366 countenance and dignified manners, engaged in pounding Indian corn into "samp," as the coarsely broken grain was called by the Indians. A large oak stump which stood beside the house had been hollowed out by the woodman's axe and a small fire of charcoal, until it would hold perhaps half a bushel of corn. Over the stump projected the limb of another tree to which a heavy wooden pestle, perhaps six feet long, had been secured by a strong withe. The young man, with the assistance of the limb of the tree, was swinging* the heavy pestle rapidly up and down, and at every descent the corn was shattered, the coarser and heavier portions seeking the bottom of the hollow, while the light hulls gathered at the top to be blown away by the industrious workman. This young man, who certainly " knew enough to pound samp," was Lewis Cass, who had just returned home from his law studies at Marietta. The future governor of Michigan, secretary of war and minister to France, stood face to face with the future repre- sentative and future judge of the Supreme Court. In July, 1804, the first dock ordinance was prepared by Solomon Sibley and Frederick Bates. The merchants' wharf was falling into ruin, and in order to provide for its future maintenance a fee of $1.50 was charged every vessel of ten tons or more mooring to it. Bateaux were charged twenty-five cents, and pirogues and canoes twelve and a half cents. The wharf was free on market days to those who brought prodtice to the town. Many of the citizens dipped their water used for domestic purposes from this wharf, and a change of one dollar a year was assessed for this privilege, but there was an outcry against it and that portion of the ordinance was repealed. By August 3, 1804, the Indians had become so hostile under British influence at Maiden, that a night patrol was established in Detroit. It was maintained by voluntary service for the protection of the town against fire and massacre. Curfew regulations were established, and persons who were found abroad after eleven o'clock had to give a good account of themselves or go to the watch house. Lights were ordered out at eleven o'clock, unless sickness compelled them to be kept burning. On Monday, October 1, the first memorial to Congress was prepared asking for. better military protection. An ordinance pro- hibiting bowling with cannon balls in the streets was passed March 15, 1805. Col. John Francis Hamtramck became commandant of Detroit for the second time in 1803, succeeding Col. Thomas Hunt. His first 367 service was the temporary command from the time of the British sur- render, July 11, 1796, until the arrival of General Wayne, commander- in-chief, two months later. When he came to the command the second time his busy life was drawing to its close, although he was still a com- paratively young man, and he died within a year. Colonel Ham- tramck was a Revolutionary soldier of fame, the first American com- mandant of Detroit and its dependencies, and a volunteer alien defender of our "liberty and independence, who is entitled to rank with Kosciusko, La Fayette, Pulaski, De Kalb and Steuben, for Hamtrarack was one of the Canadian refugees who espoused the cause of the feeble colonists in 1776 He was born in Quebec on August 16, 1756, and his father was Charles David Hamtramck dit L'Allemand, a barber, and a son of David Hamtramck and Adele Garnik of Luxem- bourg, diocese of Treves, Germany. Charles David Hamtramck mar ried Marie Ann Bertin at Quebec in November, 1753, and three years afterward their illustrious son was born. John Francis Hamtramck was in New York when he joined the army, a boy of less than twenty years. He fought gallantly until the close of the Revolution and was afterward under St. Clair and Wayne in the Indian wars. He was made major in 1789; lieutenant-colonel in 1793; commanded the left wing of "Mad" Anthony's army at the battle of Maumee in 1794; subsequently promoted colonel of the First Regiment of the United States Infantry; and entered Detroit the next day after the British evacuation on July 11, 1796. He purchased a farm from Jacques Campau, fronting on the river, and next east of the Cook farm, and in 1803 built a hewn log house, which is still standing, but in a ruinous condition. It is on the river bank in rear of the Hagar brothers' resi- dence on Jefferson avenue. But the hardships of war had undermined his constitution and he died on April 11, 1803, aged forty-five years seven months and twenty-eight days. His estate, which went to his widow, Rebecca Hamtramck, footed up only $2,138.47. The house- hold effects were stored in the citadel and were consumed in the great fire of 1805. His two daughters subsequently inherited and sold the farm. His remains, which were first interred in the burial ground of St. Anne's church on Larned street, were subsequently removed to Mt. Elliott cemetery and reinterred in the Elliott lot, where they now rest under the massive stone erected by his fellow officers at the time of his death. 268 CHAPTER XXXVII. Rule of the Governor and Judges — Schemes of the Rapacious Land-Grabbers — John Askin a,nd Others Attempt to Get Possession of 20,000,000 Acres by Bribing Congressmen — Their Schemes Exposed— Governor Hull and Judge Woodward. A local assembly was called in Detroit in December, 1804, at which James May and Robert Abbott prepared two petitions to Congress, ask- ing that the territory lying north of an east and west line, running east from the head of Lake Michigan, which had been designated as Wayne county since 1796, be organized into a separate territory to be known as Michigan. The vast territory obtained under the Louisiana purchase was placed under the jurisdiction of the Indiana territory in 1804. When Congress convened in 1805 the prayer of the Detroit and Wayne county residents was heard, and an act was passed granting their re- quest. Amid all this juggling of boundaries and other changes the land- grabbers were not idle. Previous to 1796, while territories, states and nations were laying claim to territory in the West, private individuals undertook to advance their fortunes by various land-grabbing schemes. When it became evident that the United States would ultimately win the cause for which they were struggling, several British subjects under- took to get hold of vast areas by securing private grants from the Indians. The most notable attempt of this kind was in 1795, when John Askin enlisted his friends and relatives in a scheme which was to give them a principality of 20,000,000 acres, lying between Lakes Erie and Michigan in the richest section of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana. Askin was associated with John Askin, jr., his son; Richard Pattinson, his son-in-law; Robert Innes, William Robertson and Jonathan Scheif- felin. Their scheme consisted in forming a stock company and issuing forty-one equal and undivided shares of stock. Five of these shares were to be bestowed upon certain Detroiters who were in terms of in- timacy with the Indians, for which they were to use their influence in inducing the Indians to sign the deed. Other attempts of private in- dividuals to secure private grants from the Indians had failed, because Congress had refused to recognize or confirm such grants. To sur- 369 mount this obstacle, twenty-four shares of the stock were set aside to be used in purchasing the votes of enough members of Congress in order to insure a confirmation of the Indian deed. It was expected that many votes would be secured upon the mere representation that the company intended to develop the resources of the acquired terri- tory, and make it a public as well as a private benefit. The promoters were to be satisfied with twelve shares, each share representing about 50,000 acres of land. Their scheme made a promising beginning, as the Indians were cajoled into signing their totems to the grant asked for, and it remained for the promoters to secure a confirmation of the deed. Two of the ablest lobbyists in the country were employed to work the scheme through Congress, and they were prepared to bribe the members who could not be won by persuasion. The lobbyists. Dr. Robert Randall of Philadelphia, and Charles Whitney of Vermont, began their labors in the legislative hall at Philadelphia on December 16, 1795. Lobbying had not yet arisen to its present standard among the fine arts, or the congressmen of that session were more honest than those of the Credit-Mobilier days, for on December 28, 1795, Congress- man William Smith, of South Carolina, arose before the House and ex- posed the whole scheme. Randall and Whitney were brought before the bar of the House for examination. Dr. Randall was discharged for lack of evidence, but his colleague, who had probably worked with less finesse, was reprimanded by the speaker and was fined the amount of the costs. Askin's purpose was defeated, but he was not yet discouraged. Next year he went to work to obtain an individual grant. Since it was evi- dent that he could not get a deed of absolute title through Congress, he tried his luck at obtaining a lease for 999 years. After visiting the councils of twenty-nine chiefs who claimed titles on the lands south of Lake Erie, he obtained a lease of a tract of land extending from the mouth of the Cuyahoga River westward as far as Sandusky Bay, a dis- tance of fifty-nine miles, extending southward an equal distance, mak- ing a total of 2,227,840 acres. The deed or lease was executed by the Indians on January 18, 1796, and the consideration named was a gra- tuity of five shillings a year to each of the grantors and other considera- tions, probably the furnishing of arms, blankets, ammunition, scalping knives, etc. To strengthen his claim the younger Askin moved to the mouth of the Cuyahoga River in 1797, expecting to secure the rights of a squatter in addition to the lease, but Congress refused to confirm it. 270 In commenting on the first described "frustrated land-grab," Judge Campbell, in his "Political History of Michigan," says: "Was this really an attempt of the British government to retain ownership of Michigan lands, knowing that it could not retain sovereignty? " The Territory of Michigan, which was carved out of Indiana Terri- tory, came into being by act of Congress on June 30, 1805, and five officers were commissioned to rule it,- as follows : Governor, William Hull; secretary, Stanley Gris wold ; treasurer, Frederick Bates ; justices of Supreme Court, A. B Woodward, Frederick Bates and John Griffin. Detroit was made the seat of government, and the ordinances of 1787 and 1789 were made the fundamental law of the ne^w Territory. Michi- gan Territory in 1805 comprised the territory represented by the pres- ent lower peninsula, a narrow strip across Indiana and Ohio which lay north of the line drawn due east from the southern extremity of Lake Michig'an, and the eastern half of the upper peninsula. The western border was on a line drawn through the center of Lake Michigan, and the east line, according to the Jay treaty, was in the center of the main channel of navigation in the Detroit and St. Clair Rivers and Lake St. St. Clair, and through the center of Lake Huron to Sault Ste. Marie. The three judges necessarily formed the highest judiciary, but they had other important powers. With the governor they formed the legis- lature, so that the judicial, legislative and executive powers in the new Territory were all centered in four persons. In this first step of Michi- gan toward distinct political entity the personality and character of her first rulers will be found of interest. William Hull was a native of Derby, Conn., and was born on June 24, 1753, of English ancestry. His father was a member of the Con- necticut Legislature for many years. Young Hull worked on a farm and attended school, entered Yale College and graduated after a four years' course, when he was nineteen. He taught school and afterward studied law at Litchfield, and was admitted to the bar in 1775. Re- turning home amid the excitement of the war then declared against Great Britain, he was elected captain of a Derby company, and while making preparations to go to the front his father died. He delayed not, however, but marched with his company and joined a regiment which proceeded to Cambridge, then Washington's headquarters. Here an incident occurred which showed his predilection for etiquette and display, which was more fully developed at Detroit in his efforts to force expensive uniforms on the poverty-stricken militia of the Territory. 371 There was little regard for military style in the camp, and when his regiment turned out to meet an expected attack, he was the only officer in uniform. The other officers said he was making himself too conspic- uous; that he would draw the enemy's fire. So he went to his tent, took off the uniform and donned a dress like the other officers — a. frock coat and handkerchief tied around his head. He was placed in charge of a redoubt, and when Washington was inspecting the 'regiment he asked the name of the officer commanding the company. " With feel- ings of inexpressible mortification," says Hull, " I came forward in my savage costume and reported that Captain Hull had the honor of com- manding the redoubt." Washington passed on and the mortified young officer forthwith sent for his uniform and donned it once more. In 1777 he was made major of the Eighth Massachusetts Regiment, and in 1779 he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel. It is said that he was a brave soldier, but the only separate command with which he was in- trusted was a force of 400 men in an expedition against Morrisania, on the East River, near Hell Gate, New York. But in this affair he did not distinguish himself. In 1784 he was sent by the government to Quebec in order to ascertain from Governor Haldimand why Detroit, Niagara and Mackinac had not been surrendered by the British, in ac- cordance with the treaty of Ghent of the previous year. He obtained no satisfaction, as Great Britain was not yet willing to release her hold on this region of the Northwest. At the conclusion of the war of the Revolution he settled at Newton, Mass., and practiced law. In 1786 occurred the so-called Shay's rebellion. The treaty with Great Britain had giiarantied that citizens of the United States who were indebted to British merchants before the war, should pay their just debts. This made great trouble, as the country was almost bankrupt and everybody was poor. The courts were about to issue attachments and executions, and the rebellion consisted in bodies of citizens forcibly preventing the judges from holding court. Hull aided in the suppressing of this in- surrection, in which several' persons were killed and wounded and over a hundred taken prisoners. In 1793 he was appointed a commissioner to make arrangements with the British government for a treaty with the western Indians, then at war with the United States, but nothing came of it. In the same year he was appointed judge of the Court of Common Pleas, and was also elected senator in the Massachusetts Leg- islature. He was a popular man and was re-elected senator every year until he was appointed governor of Michigan Territory by President 272 CHARLES BUNCHER. Jefferson on March 33, 1805. In the latter position he was appointed for three years and was reappointed for two successive terms. When he arrived in Detroit on July 1, 1805, he was a little over fifty two years of age. Augustus B. Woodward, the chief justice or presiding judge, by vir- tue of his commission being the earliest, was a native of Alexandria, Va. He held the position from 1805, when the Territory was created, until 1833, when he was virtually legislated out of office, a period of eighteen years. He came of an old Virginia family whose holdings were near Alexandria, and he was doubtless educated in Virginia or Maryland. Little of his early life or family is known. He commenced to practice law in Washington about 1795, after he had attained legal manhood. The capital was then a mere expanse of forest and swamp, with a scattered group of houses and a small population, and its site and its isolation from the busy cities of commerce gave rise to much ridicule on both sides of the Atlantic. He was present, in 1793, at the ceremony of laying the corner stone of the District of Columbia at Jones Point, near Alexandria, and his card as an attorney at law ap- peared in the National Intelligencer of Washington in 1803. At that time one wing of the present Capitol had been built and this, with the White House, were then the only large buildings in that city. Wash- ington was laid out by a French engineer named L'Enfant, who fol- lowed the plan of Versailles, which was that of the spider web, with its diagonal main avenues and concentric streets converging at the pal- ace of Louis XIV. Woodward was an intimate friend of the French engineer, who, like himself, was educated and eccentric, and he took great interest in the plans of the future great capital. He was also a friend of his fellow Virginian, President Thomas Jefferson, who ad- mired tiis literary and legal ability, and the latter commissioned him as presiding judge of the Territory of Michigan early in 1805. When he came here shortly after the great fire on July 11, 1805, he saw the pos- sibilities of improvement, and when he returned to Washington in August, procured a copy of the plans of that city from L'Enfant. He either assumed or was given the principal direction of the plans for laying out the new town, and the result is the present plan of Detroit which is named the Governor and Judges' plan. His plan was partly superseded by the plan of Abijah Hull, a surveyor and relative of the governor, but the distinctive spider web idea was retained and 'carried into effect. Personally and judicially the judge was a unique and in- 373 35 teresting character, and his name and fame are indissolubly connected with the history of the city. In Farmer's History of Detroit his per- sonal appearance is described as follows: "The judge was very tall, with a sallow complexion, and usually appeared in court with a long, loose overcoat, or a swallow-tailed coat with brass buttons, a red cravat, and a buff vest, which was always open and from which pro- truded an immense mass of ruffles. These last, together with the broad ruffles at his wrists, were invariably soiled. His pantaloons hung in folds to his feet, meeting a pair of boots which were always well greased. His hair received his special attention and on court days gave evidence of the best efforts of the one tonsorial artist of the town. He was never known to be fully under the influence of liquor, but always kept a glass of brandy on the bench before him. In the even- ing he would go to Mack & Conant's store (which was on the north side of Jefferson avenue, between Woodward avenue and Griswold street) and sit and talk and smoke his pipe and sip half a pint of whisky until it was all gone." Mack & Conant's partnership extended from 1817 to 1820 and during this time their clerk and bookkeeper was the late David Cooper, father of Rev. David M. Cooper. David was a careful and conscientious clerk and kept note of everything affecting his employers' interest. In due time he submitted a bill for the liquor. The judge protested, saying that it was ridiculous to charge for a little whisky. " But it is not a little," said Cooper, "it is a good deal; I kept count and I find you have drank three gallons and a half." Woodward paid the bill, but with a bad grace. Perhaps the best thing that Woodward did for De- troit was his work in having the city laid out with broad avenues, on the plan above described. The angles caused by this plan entailed small triangular parks at the intersections and these he suggested should be planted with trees. There is no doubt that his influence and work in this respect has made modern Detroit one of the most beauti- ful cities in the world. Woodward had a legal mind of no common order, great literary ability and fine executive and administrative pow- ers, but his merits as a jurist and legislator were obscured by his colossal vanity. He was an able and learned man, but was afflicted with a pedantry which was often absurd and ridiculous ; and his arrogance, which was ever usurping the rights or privileges of the people. No ruler of Detroit was ever so detested by the more intelligent citizens, but he nevertheless had many friends. He was brainy and masterful 374 and bristled with ideas on every subject, and his initiative in law, poli- tics and municipal affairs was generally adopted. Complaint after complaint with reference to his official conduct went to Congress, signed by the most influential citizens, but his influence in Washington was strong enough to enable him to maintain his position until 1833, when an act was passed in Congress providing that the people of the Territory should elect their own legislature in 1824 and thereafter. His experience in trying to be elected delegate to Congress, in which he was defeated twice, showed him that his career in Michigan was over. He resigned shortly after the act was passed, went to Washington, where he was appointed judge of the Territory pf Florida, and died at Tallahassee on July 12, 1827. He was never married. Woodward owned, laid out and named Ypsilanti. Frederick Bates was born at Belmont, Goochland county, Ohio, on June 23, 1777, of Quaker parents. He received a good education but did not attend a college, and in early life was employed in the office of the clerk of a Circuit Court in his native State. In 1797 he came to De- troit when he was twenty years of age and engaged in mercantile busi- ness, improving his mind during leisure hours by studying law and history. He was postmaster of Detroit from 1803 to 1806. Official honors then came thick upon him. In 1804 he was appointed receiver of the Detroit land office; trustee in 1804-05; United States territorial judge in 1805-06; and territorial treasurer during the same year. In 1806 he removed to the Territory of Missouri, where he held several exalted offices and in 1821 was elected governor of that State. He died on August 4, 1825, on his farm at Bonhomme, Mo. , on the bank of the Missouri River. John Griffin, who was territorial judge from 1805 to 1823, was ex- actly cotemporarary with Woodward in that office and resigned at the same time. He was a native of Virginia, born about 1799, and proba- bly studied law in that State. He made the great tour in Europe and when he returned landed at Philadelphia, and was appointed by Jeffer- son as above. Judge B. F. Witherell alludes to Griffin as a man who "was constitutionally inert, wanted firmness and decision of character, and disliked responsibility, but was considered an upright judge and honest man." It was probably Judge Witherell's kindly disposition that dictated the last paragraph, as it is diff.cult to understand honesty and uprightness when coupled with the other characteristics. He was subservient to Woodward and invariably voted with him on the bench. 275 Every week after the Gazette was started, in 1817, it contained one or mo e squibs and editorials directed against Woodward and Griffin, many of them written nearly as well as the Junius letters. One of these articles was as follows: " A singular question has arisen under the law of this Territory exempting property taken on execution. This law exempts the tools necessary for the trade or profession of the party. Suppose now an execution was issued against the goods and chattels of his honor. Judge Woodward, would or would not, his other honor. Judge Griffin, be exempt from execution ? " The Gazette added that a "learned counselor had given it as his professional opinion that Judge Griffin must be taken, because the law will not exempt tools used for the purpose of fraud." In 1823, when Judge Woodward re- signed. Griffin followed his example and it is said went to Philadelphia and died there between 1843 and 1845. Judge Witherell said that when he died he was the next in descent to a Scottish peerage. CHAPTER XXXVIII. Great Fire of 1805— The Entire Town Destroyed on June 11— Three Hundred Families Left Homeless — Relief Measures and Grant of the 10,000 Acres — Judge Woodward Lays out a New City on the Scale of Paris — The Territorial Militia. A great disaster befell the city on June 11, 1805. Detroit was a crowded collection of wooden buildings built in narrow streets. Many of the buildings had thatched roofs, and the aged timbers in many of them were as dry as tinder after the seasoning of more than a century. The people had been fully alive to their danger from fire; had pur- chased a hand fire engine during the last days of the British regime, and had enacted stringent fire regulations, but the old town was doomed. On the morning of June 11, John Harvey, a baker, was in his barn hitching up a pony when he carelessly knocked out the ashes from his pipe. The embers set some hay on fire, and before Harvey could realize the situation the whole interior was in flames. He shouted an alarm, and the whole population soon came scurrying to the scene, attracted by the outcry and the rolling volumes of smoke. The old fire engine was put in service, but it soon became disabled through failure 276 of the valves, and the people formed a line to the river and passed buckets as of old. Owing to the close proximity of the buildings and the narrow streets the fire could not be controlled. All the population worked hard saving what they could of the household goods, and the contents of the doomed houses were scattered along the river bank and cast about in the adjoining common. All the others were mere heaps of glowing embers and the stone chimneys stood above the ruins like monuments to a lost civilization. In the back of an old account book which belonged to George Meldrum, a trader who lived in Detroit at the time of the fire, it is recorded that the fire began at 8:30 in the morning and that it lasted about four hours. At 12:30 all the build- ings except one house had been completely consumed. The stockade and houses had disappeared and were now blackened ruins, from which came here and there slender columns of smoke. The narrow streets, the old quaint houses of logs with their steep roofs which contained the second story; the foot- wide timber walks; the rude furniture with its wealth of home associations, had all perished in those few hours; while on the river bank were tents and hastily erected shelters of bark or poles in which the grief-stricken residents took refuge. Around them were the scanty remnants of their household effects which had been snatched from the flames. Suffering was everywhere. The farm houses along the river were crowded with destitute people, to whom the kindly hospitality of the French owners was a godsend. Those who could not find shelter camped on the common under tents and ex- temporized cabins. The more wealthy sufferers moved across the river to Sandwich and Amherstberg, while some returned to the homes of their ancestors in Lower Canada or to the English settlements in New York. In the course of time contributions from outside came to the sufferers, mostly from Montreal and Mackinac, the total amount being about $3,000. The loss exceeded $200,000. Within the narrow limits of the stockade for 104 years people bad been born, had married and had died. Thousands had died untimely deaths by war, rnurder or massacre; fortunes had been lost and won; the lilies of France, the cross of St. George, and the stars and stripes had waved over its fortresses; but now all was gone and "like the baseless fabric of a vision, left not a wreck behind." It was a holocaust of vanished memories. Detroit seemed an extinct city, which lived only in the history of the past; never again to be the home of a busy population or a mart of trade. 277 There was great distress in Detroit after the great fire and those who could not get away endured considerable hardships; but the summer weather greatly mitigated the trouble of the inhabitants. The money received from Montreal, Mackinac and other places for the use of the sufferers was not all spent for the purposes for which it was sent, and there was great dissatisfaction. Twelve years afterward Solomon Sibley turned over $635 of it to the university fund. The population, which had been greatly reduced in 1796 by the exodus of several hun- dred to Amherstburg and other places across the river, was not more than 600 at the time of the fire. Perhaps one-third of these left the city and sought shelter elsewhere. Some of those remaining started to build new log houses, but they were restrained by Governor Hull and the judges apd other officers, who told them that a new plan of the city would be prepared, in which the old lot lines, both inside and 'out- side of the stockade, would not be regarded. These orders were obeyed and there were no permanent houses built during the remainder of the year. The lands which had been within the enclosure and also a con siderable part of the common were surveyed and laid into city lots and outlots. Every person who owned a lot before the fire was allowed to have one free lot. An auction was held to ascertain values, and the average price realized from the sale of fourteen lots was made a basis in selling other lots. This was from $250 to $300, according to loca- tion. The opportunity for a big land deal was extremely favorable at this time and persons able to carry it out were not wanting. Late in 1805 Governor Hull and Judge Woodward went to Washington, and by liberal expenditures for wine and other refreshments, carried through a bill authorizing the rulers of the Territory to lay out in lots the new- town and 10,000 acres of land on the north. Also, to give a lot con- taining not less than 5,000 square feet to every inhabitant over seven- teen years of age. The land remaining was to be sold, and the money used for building a court house and jail. This bill was passed on April 31, 1806. There was a good deal of red tape connected with the par- celing out of the lots, and the delay caused great vexation. The in- habitants who remained were actually obliged to live the whole of 1806 in bark shanties, tents, or other shelter, and next year there were only nineteen deeds issued and less than half as many houses built. In the fall of 1806 the land board, consisting of the governor and judges, decided that three classes of persons were entitled to lots, namely, those who lived in Detroit prior to the fire and who owned 278 neither houses or land; those who owned lots at the time; and those who owned or occupied houses. If the new lots were larger than those formerly owned the person was required to pay two or three cents per square foot for the overplus. The question was raised as to whether persons who had come to Detroit under American rule, and had not taken the oath of allegiance, should receive lots. The governor and judges sitting as a land board decided that such persons had no rights. This class comprised a large majority of the inhabitants, and the decis- ion raised popular excitement to white heat, but the board bent before the storm and rescinded their decision. Finally everybody got a lot, and then ensued a great deal of trading so that very few ever kept the original parcel given them. In July, 1805, Governor Hull divided the territory into districts and designated justices of the peace therefor as follows: Mackinac — Samuel Abbott, David Duncan, Josiah Dunham, Francois Le Baron, H. Erie, John Anderson, Francois Navarre, Isaac Ruland, Francois Lasselle, Herbert La Croix and Jean Baptiste Beau- grand. Detroit — Robert Abbott, James Abbott, James Henry, Elisha Avery, James May, William McDowell Scott, Matthew Ernest, John Dodemead, Stanley Griswold and Antoine Dequindre. Huron — Jean Marie Beaubien, George Cotterell, Christian Clemens, Louis Campeau. In September, 1805, frovernor Hull, as commander-in chief, directed that two regiments of infantry and a legionary corps be organized, the latter body comprising all sums of the service, and appointed the following officers: Aides de-camp — Francois Chabert de Joncaire, George McDougall, Solomon Sibley. Quartermaster- general and colo- nel — Matthew Ernest. Adjutant general and colonel — James May. First Regiment — Colonel, Augustus B. Woodward; lieutenant- colonel, Antoine Beaubien; major, Gabriel Godfroy; adjutant, Chris- topher Tuttle; quartermaster, Charles Stewart; captains, Jacob Vis- ger, David Duncan, George Cotterell, Louis Campeau, James Henry, Louis St. Bernard, Joseph Cerre dit St. Jean, Joseph Campeau, Jean Cisne; lieutenants, Samuel Abbott, John Meldrum, Whitmore Knaggs, Jean Marie Beaubien, Christian Clemens, James Campeau, Thomas Tremble, Francois Chovin, Joseph Wilkinson; ensigns, Allen C. Wilmot, George Cotterell, jr., Jean Baptiste Cicott, James Con- nor, John Dix, Francois Rivard, Francois Tremble, John Ruland, John Burnett; chaplain. Rev. Gabriel Richard; surgeon, William Mc- Croskey. Second Regiment — Colonel, John Anderson; lieutenant colonel, Fran- 279 cois Navarre; major, Lewis Bond; adjutant, Giles Barnes; quarter- master, Alex. Ewings; surgeon, Ethan Baldwin; surgeon's mate, Bernard Parker; captains, Joseph Jobin, Jean Baptiste Beaugrand, Francois Lasselle, Hubert La Croix, Jean Baptiste Jeraume, Joseph Menard, William Griffith, Prosper Thebeau; lieutenants, Hyacinth La Joy, Francois De Forgue, Jean Baptiste La Salle, Jacques Martin, Jean Baptiste Couteur, Jacques W. Navarre, Thomas Knaggs, Andrew Jourdon. Cornet of cavalry, Samuel Moore; ensigns, Joseph Cavalier, James Knaggs, Alexis Loranger, Joseph Bourdeaux, Isidore Navarre, Joseph Huntingdon, Dominique Drouillard. Legionary Corps — Lieutenant-colonel, Elijah Brush; major, James Abbott; adjutant, Abraham Fuller Hull; quartermaster, Charles Curry; surgeon, John Brown. Captain of cavalry, James Lasalle; captain of artillery, John Williams; captain of light infantry, George Hoffman; captain of riflemen, William McDowell Scott; lieutenant of cavalry, Richard Smythe; first lieutenant of artillery, James Dodemead; second lieutenant of artillery, Henry J. Hunt; lieutenant of light infantry, Benjamin Crittenden; lieutenant of riflemen, Barnabas Campeau; cor- net of cavalry, Gabriel Godefroy or Godfroy, jr. ; ensign of light in- fantry, George Meldrum; ensign of riflemen, Pierre Navarre. Governor Hull prescribed most elaborate uniforms for his territorial troops. According to his orders the privates were ordered to clothe themselves in long coats of dark blue cloth, the skirts reaching, to the knee and they were to be ornamented with large white buttons. Their pantaloons were to be of the same material for winter wear and of white duck for summer. The vests were to be of white cloth all the year. Half boots, or high gaiters were to be their foot gear, and round black hats, ornamented with a black feather, tipped with red were required for head covering. Officers of the First Regiment were to wear similar clothing, to which was added a red cape for the coat silver straps and epaulettes to designate their rank, and a cocked hat with a white plume. The coats were to be faced with buff. Artillery- men were, to have coats turned up with red and a red cord running down the leg of their trousers, and red plumes. Riflemen were to have green uniforms with short coats, and the plumes on their hats were to be green. Taken altogether the uniforms required were better adapted for the clothing of a royal body guard than for the dressing of a backwoods militia corps. They were entirely beyond the means of the men who were ordered to purchase them. The order was issued in 280 ELLIOTT G. STEVENSON. the fall of 1805, and the men were directed to appear on duty in full uniform after June 1, 1806. There was method in the governor's mad- ness. Before issuing the order Governor Hull had taken the precaution to stock his store with cassimeres, ducks, hats, plumes, silver braid, but- tons and epaulettes, and his uniforms were planned so as to create a sale for this stock and give him a big profit. The officers, puffed up with personal vanity, and for the purpose of setting an example to their men, procured their uniforms in spite of the hardship it imposed upon them, but the privates rebelled and said they would not be forced into patronage of the governor's store. They realized that they were but a small body of country militia, and said that all this starch, lace and buckram which the martinet of a governor sought to impose upon them was ridiculous, considering their scanty means. When June 1 passed and the privates still remained ununiformed, their colonels sought to enforce the order by placing some of the leaders in the opposition un- der arrest. The soldiers cheerfully submitted and the officers asked their governor for advice. Governor Hull told them to be patient but firm, and the men would comply in due time. Complaints were so emphatic that the grand jury protested against the enforcement of the order and the soldiers refused to appear for drill. A corporal's guard had to be sent around to drag them to duty, and some of them were punished with lashes. They had one strong sympathizer in Stanley Griswold, secretary of the territory, and Governor Hull ordered his arrest on the charge of counseling the militia to disobey. He was tried before Justices James May, George McDougall and Richard Smythe. The two former were both officers of the militia and they held Griswold to his personal recognizance in the sum of $1,000, while Justice Smythe dissented. The strained relations between governor and militia had dragged along for two years, then Griswold's term expired April 1, 1808, and he left the town. Reuben Attwater, who had an extraor- dinary respect for the governor, was appointed to succeed him. The time was fast approaching when proficiency in arms would become of more importance to the militia than their appearance on dress parade. The Indians were' menacing Detroit and all of the white settlements in Michigan, and British outrages on land and sea were leading the Amer- icans on to a declaration of war. In October, 1805, the militia of the River Sinclair (St. Clair) were detached from the First Regiment and formed a battalion of four companies. Captain George Cotterell was 281 3G made lieutenant-colonel and Captain Louis Campeau, major of this battalion. A humorous sketch of a drill of a company of Michigan militia, com- posed of French habitans, appears in Mrs. Hamlin's "Legends of De- troit." The commander, Captain Jean Cecire, who was very conceited and pretentious, forms his company in line, orders his sergeant to call the roll, with the following results : Sergeant — "Attention, Companie Francais Canadians! Answer your name when I call it, if you please. Tock, Tock, Livernois? " No ans- wer: at last a voice says : "Not here, gone catch his lambreuer [fast pacer] in the bush." Captain — "Sergeant, put peen hole in dat man. Go 'head." Sergeant — " Laurant Bondy? " "Here, sah." "Claude Campau?" "Here, monsieur." "Antoine Salliotte?" Some one answers^" Little baby came last night at his house ; must stay at home. " Captain — " Sergeant, put one preek on dat man's name." Sergeant— " L'Enfant Riopelle?" " Here, sah." Sergeant — " Piton Laforest?" "Here, sah." Sergeant — "Simon Meloche?" "Not here, gone to spear muskrat for argent blanc [silver money]." Captain — "Sergeant, take your peen and scratch dat man." After the roll was called and the absentees pricked, the captain pro- ceeded to drill his company. Captain — " March ee, mes camarades, deux par deux [two and two] like oxen, and when you come to dat stump, stop. " They all made for the place and got there in a heap, looking, with their colored dresses, like a rainbow on a spree. Disgusted at their awkwardness the captain gave them a few minutes' relaxation. Instead of resting " au militaire," they rushed off, one to smoke his beloved pipe, another to polish his carbine, whilst others amused themselves sitting on the grass telling about the races. The captain called them to try again. This time he said : "Marchee as far as dat Soulier de boeuf [old shoe] in de road, den turn! right, gauche, left about! Shoulder mus-keete! Avance done back. Drfel feneesh! ' 282 Governor Hull and Judge Woodward did not scruple to usurp all the powers of the people. They passed an act in 1806, wKch annulled the act of 1802, incorporating Detroit under the law of the Northwest Ter- ritory. They gave themselves the sole authority to lay out streets, survey lots and to dispose of the town lands by sale. This made them autocrats of the town, as well as legislature and supreme court of the Territory. The people did not realize the full purport of the act of 1806 at first. Governor Hull appointed Solomon Sibley mayor of the town, and Mr. Sibley called a mass meeting for the election of a first and second council, each to consist of three members. At the mass meet- ing the people elected Stanley Griswold, John Harvey, the baker who had caused the fire of the previous year, and Peter Destioyers, for the first council or town senate; and Isaac Jones, John Gentle and James Dodemead as the second council or coordinate body. The city gov- ernment being entirely under the control of the governor and judges, proved to be a mere farce, and Sibley resigned. Elijah Brush was then appointed mayor, but he also resigned shortly afterward. Judge Woodward began laying out the town according to his mag- nificent ideas, as if another Paris was to spring up suddenly in the wilderness of Michigan. Governor Hull built a pretentious brick res- idence, fifty feet square, on what is now Jefferson avenue, but it looked down a narrow and rather unattractive street. Judge Woodward rem- edied this effect by ordering the front of the lots vacated and the houses moved back, to widen the street. One street he closed at one end, and another street, upon which a number of houses faced, he cut up into lots, leaving the unfortunate householder without a frontage on any thoroughfare. Of course there was a big row over this class of proceedings, but when the two councils convened and held a noisy in- dignation meeting, they found that they were powerless! The law framed by Woodward and Hull had been issued with authority, and it gave the framers supreme power over the people of Detroit. If the councils passed any kind of an ordinance it was subject to the approval of the mayor, who was the appointee of the governor, and there was no way of passing over his vote. The people were so disgusted with this usurpation of their rights, and the knowledge that they were powerless to remove the will of their rulers, that they refused to vote for councilmen after the first election in 1806. A great source of dissatisfaction was the taking of the commons from the people. From Cadillac's time it had always been used as public 283 property and a pasture ground. But the governor and judges saw that in the plan for the new city the adjacent land was indispensable and that the commons must come under the contemplated improvement. The same indignation was exhibited against laying out the ten-thou- sand acre tract on both sides of Woodward avenue, and also the park lots on either side of that thoroughfare. A good deal of this opposition was characterized by ignorance and prejudice, but in all matters of this kind, whether right or wrong, the royal four turned a deaf ear to all remonstrances and worked their own sweet will without regard to pop- ular disfavor. The authority of the governor and judges, except during the war of 1813, was absolute, and it was not until 1815 that a measure of local government was adopted under the governorship of Lewis Cass. CHAPTER XXXIX. The Bank of Detroit — A Well-Planned Swindle which Gave the Promoters Riches and the People of Michigan a Bad Reputation — A Large Amount of Worthless Bills Circulated but Never Redeemed — Early Grand Juries — 1806-1808. In 1806 much of the fur business transacted at Detroit was carried on by Boston capitalists, and the scarcity of actual money and the en- tire absence of banking facilities at the Detroit end of the business, caused no end of inconvenience. In the spring of 1806 Russel Sturges, a wealthy fur dealer, and several other Boston capitalists, sent a petition to Governor Hull asking the governor and judges to charter a bank, which the proponents promised the capitalize to the amount of $400,000. Without waiting for a charter the banking firm sent on Parker and Broadstreet, their agents, who prepared to erect a bank building. They also elected officers before the authority was granted. The char- ter was issued to the Bank of Detroit in September, 1806. Judge Woodward was already president and William Flanagan, of Boston, cashier. The bank building, which was erected that fall at the north- west corner of Jefferson avenue and Randolph street, was a small structure of one story, but was strong and massive. The charter lim- ited the capital of the bank to $1,000,000 and its term was to be 101 years. This was most liberal, as the actual investment did not exceed 284 $20,000. Governor Hull was authorized to subscribe for the stock without limitation, and took ten shares in the name of the Territory of Michigan. This was probably for the purpose of impressing upon the minds of the public that the institution had the backing of the Terri- tory of Michigan. Shares were offered at $35 in the open subscrip- tion, but when a sufficient quantity had been subscribed to please the promoters, the balance of 10,000 shares were taken privately by the Boston parties at $3 a share. Leaving Judge Woodward and Cashier Flanagan in charge, the Boston representatives, Parker and Broad- street, went east, carrying with them Detroit Bank bills to the amount of $100,000 to $150,000. Congress disapproved of the act of the Mich- igan governor and judges in granting this charter, and the bank was compelled to discontinue business next year for lack of authority. In reviewing the circumstances connected with the founding of this, the first monetary institution of Detroit, it is impossible to resist the conclusion that both President Woodward and Governor Hull were not men of integrity. Both were active promoters of the fraudulent con- cern. The latter confessed in an official letter to President Madison, in 1807, that $80,000 to $100,000 of the bank's bills were sent to agents at Boston. There they went into circulation, scattering all over New England, but they were never redeemed at Detroit with the exception of $500, which were redeemed under threat of publicity. Who re- ceived the value of these bills? Hull and Woodward denied receiving any part of the proceeds, but it is contrary to probability that they told the truth. It is not at all likely that a private bank would go to the expense and trouble of issuing $100,000 worth of paper currency, the •president and cashier affixing their signatures to every bill, for the pur- pose of sending them for free distribution in a distant mart of trade. When Woodward came to Detroit he was a poor man, and although he maintained a bachelor's household and entertained a little, his small sal- ary of $1,200 per annum would not account for his subsequent wealth. He certainly acquired money while in Detroit and became a very ex- tensive land owner. He was a rich man when he left the city, yet he never engaged in trade nor in any visible business save the purchase and sale of land, and his sales did not aggregate a tithe of his wealth. If there was any money or property acquired in exchange for the bills issued by the Bank of Detroit, which is the most probable conclusion. Woodward and Hull must have received a large share of it. In 1825 Judge Woodward, after he had resigned his position as judge, or rather, 285 after he had been legislated out of office, and just before he left for Washington to obtain a new appointment as federal judge in Florida, offered all his property in Michigan Territory for sale. It consisted of 220 feet on Jefferson avenue, with a storehouse of sixteen rooms; about 750 acres, comprising the site of Ypsilanti and its mill privilege ; 320 acres on Woodward avenue, about six miles north of Detroit, on which he had projected a village to be called Woodwardville; and eighteen farms of fifty-three and a third acres each, adjacent to the out lots of the city of Detroit; these are all now within the city limits. For this property, divided and valued in detail, he set an aggregate price of about $100,000. Of course they were purchased for a much smaller sum, but the wonder arises how he could have paid the money for even |35,000 worth of land. The conduct of the governor and judges, both as jurists and legislators, was so wanton in its disregard for justice, that the people were in a con- tinual state of exasperation. In some cases the judges seemed inclined to make a bid for popularity in their decisions, but occasionally over- shot the mark and retraced their steps. One instance occurred in 1806, when the court fined some of the officers of the garrison for surrender- ing some deserters from Fort Maiden to British officers. It appeared that British officers at Fort Maiden and the American officers at De- troit, being on good terms, had agreed to surrender to each other any deserter who might come in their lines. A British soldier deserted from Fort Maiden and came to Detroit. Two British officers followed, and at night with the aid of three American officers, arrested the de- serter, but the populace learned of it and the deserter was set at liberty. The three American officers were tried by the judges, found guilty and fined, and also sentenced to imprisonment. This was punishment with a vengeance, and the inhabitants were shocked and indignant at the severity of the sentences. But jn a day or two, when the judges real- ized the popular feeling, the fines were reduced to a few cents in each case and the imprisonments canceled. In 1806 a code of laws was prepared by the two judges. It was known as the Woodward code, and subsequently proved to be a very faulty compilation. The territory was divided into three districts, the Erie, the Huron and the Mackinaw, and courts were provided for each, at which one of the supreme justices was to sit. The court had exclusive jurisdiction in criminal cases and also in civil cases involving more than |20. Minor cases were tried by justices of the peace. Records of the 286 old court proceedings show that they were often irregular and that the laws were ludicrously crude. Although the inhabitants were dissatis- fied with the rule of governor and judges, it is not probable that they would have preferred the old way, by which the military commandant was the sole arbiter of justice in the colony. Nevertheless they found abundant cause for grumbling in the new order of things, and their complaints were vented as effectively as possible by the action of grand juries. The address of the grand jury to the judges in 1807 criticised the manner in which the public moneys were expended and asked that a list be made of citizens in all parts of the Territory who were eligible to be drawn for jury duty. James Witherell, who succeeded Frederick Bates, took his seat with Governer Hull and his fellow judges, Woodward and Griffin, on April 3, 1808. He was born in Mansfield, Mass., on June 16, 1759, was a Revolutionary soldier at seventeen, and was present at the battles of White Plains, Long Island, Stillwater, Bemis Heights, Monmouth and at the surrender of Burgoyne. He wqs also with Washington at Valley Forge, and saw the execution of Major Andr6 at Tappan. When the war was over he went to Connecticut, where he studied medicine and became a physician. In Rutland county he was elected chief justice of the County Court and was congressman in 1807. While a member of the House Jefferson appointed him to be one of the judges in Michi- gan Territory. When he came to Detroit he was forty-nine years of age and was about six feet in height, with a stalwart, upright frame, blue eyes, brown hair, ruddy complexion, large nose and resolute mouth. He was a public spirited citizen, an honest man and good jurist, with a firm, decided mind. He was not a profound lawyer, but he had clear common sense and an inflexible will. On the bench he nearly always opposed Woodward in his vagaries and perversity of law and justice. In the records of the Territorial Legislature and Land Board from 1807 to 1815, in which latter year Cass became governor, the vote was nearly always Witherell and Hull against Woodward and Griffin. But Witherell was a stronger man than Hull, and it was gen- erally his purposes, rather than those of the governor, which were the rule of action. Upon the bench Witherell was in the minority, for Woodward and Griffin always voted together, but his stern outspoken protest: " I do not see the force of that decision; there appears to be no sense in it," was frequently heard on the bench. When Hull sur- rendered Detroit he broke his sword, and refused to surrender his corps, '^87 and they went to their homes. He was sent with his son and son-in- law to Kingston, Upper Canada, where they were paroled. He went • back to Vermont but returned when the British surrendered Detroit in 1813. Resuming the duties of his office, he served as judge until 1828, when he resigned and was appointed secretary of the Territory, and after acted as governor during Cass's frequent absences. He died at his home on the site of the present Detroit opera house, on January 9, 1838, aged seventy-nine years. He was the maternal grandfather of ex-Senator Thomas W. Palmer. The United States grand jury presentment in 1809, of which George Hoffman was foreman, was thoroughly characteristic of jurors' action at that period. Hoffman was a prominent citizen; was first register of the United States Land Office in 1804-05, and postmaster in 1806. In this presentment Governor Hull was indicted for an alleged abuse of executive clemency in the case of John Whipple. The latter was a former captain in the United States army and was a friend of Hull, who had appointed him Indian. interpreter. Whipple had been inter- ested in a case in the Supreme Court which was decided contrary to his interests, and he took the first opportunity to charge Judge Woodward with favoritism and denounced him to his face as a d — d rascal. Whipple was arrested, and at first Woodward proposed to try him before himself and the other supreme judges, but was persuaded to have two justices of the peace, one of whom was Robert Abbott, to sit with him on the case. Whipple was tried, convicted and fined $50 Governor Hull promptly remitted the fine. The relations of the governor and Wood- ward had been strained for some time, but this almost severed them in a personal sense. Everybody, including the grand jurors, believed that the fine was remitted by the governor for the purpose of spiting the judge, and their indignation at the latter was expressed in the presentment as follows: " History, the record of facts, shows that under every form of gov- ernment, man, when invested with authority, from the weakness and imbecility of his nature, has a strong propensity to assume powers with which he is not legally clothed. Fully persuaded of this truth from reflection and observation, we, the grand jury for the body of the Terri- tory of Michigan, after having heard witnesses and a free and dispas- sionate discussion and consideration of their testimony, on our oath present, that William Hull, governor of this territory, did on the 37th day of February, 1809, illegally and without any color of authority, 288 GEORGE H. BARBOUR. sign an instrument in writing as said governor of the Territory, remitting the fine of $50 imposed on Whipple by the Supreme Court, . . . and we the said grand jurors have a confident hope that the Supreme Court will carry into effect their own judgment." It was at this period, and probably the result of the quarrels between the governor and the judges, that the first attempt was made to obtain for Michigan the second form of government, wherein the legislative department was severed from the judiciary and became elective. In 1809 the first printing press was brought to the Territory, as will be detailed hereafter, and almost the first use to which it was devoted was printing the proceedings of the grand jury in their presentment of Governor Hull in remitting Whipple's fine. This presentment is dated September 26, 1809. A meeting of citizens was at once called to con- sider the matter of a change in the form of government, and, after forming themselves into a permanent organization, they appointed a committee, consisting of Augustus B. Woodward, George Hoffman, James Henry, Solomon Sibley and James May, to inquire into the dif- ferent forms of territorial government of the United States, and then adjourned till the 16th of October to meet at the house of Richard Smythe. At this adjourned meeting Augustus B. Woodward presided and George Hoffman acted as secretary. The proceedings were printed in French and English and posted up in conspicuous places in the vil- lage, and copies were sent to the more prominent citizens in other settlements of the Territory. The resolutions adopted took the follow- ing form: " That it is expedient to alter the present form of government of this Territory, and to adopt a form of government by which two bodies, elected annually by the people, should make the laws, instead of the executive and the three judicial magis- trates, appointed by the general government, adopting them ; the first to consist of five representatives, and the second of three councilors, the executive to have a qualified -veto, under such modifications as Congress in their wisdom may think proper to provide. " That the Congress of the United States be respectfully solicited to appropriate the sum of six hundred dollars annually towards defraying the expenses of the ter- ritorial legislature, constituted on the foregoing principles. " That it is expedient that the people of this Territory should be represented in the Congress of the United States by a delegate to be elected by the peoplje." These resolutions, which were submitted to Congress, anticipated by some years the actual change of government that the citizens then de- sired, for the first delegate was sent to Congress in 1819, and the first elective legislative body was chosen in 1834. 289 37 The meetings that had been called, and the discussions that had at- tended them, had partly persuaded the people that the laws which had been adopted, conformable to the ordinance of 1787, were illegal and not properly applicable to our Territory. It was partly for the purpose of remedying this evil that the change in government was sought to be obtained. Governor Hull was so greatly excited by the popular clamor that, three days later (October 19, 1809), he issued a proclamation, under the territorial seal, calling upon all good citizens to enforce the laws as they found them, and advising them that Congress alone had the power to declare them null and void. Peter B. Porter presented the petition of the citizens in Congress on the 21st day of February, 1810. More important matters occupied the attention of Congress at this time, for it was then discussing the ques- tions that resulted in the war of 1813, and in the excitement the Mich- igan petition was lost sight of, and nothing further was done in the direction of self-government for the Territory until long after the war was closed. The grand jurors of those days, like death, loved a shining mark, and like the Irishman at Donnybrook fair, hit any head that showed itself. After upholding the judiciary against the executive, the same grand jury turned around and denounced the same man in their legis- lative capacity. The legislature, namely, the governor and judges, had passed an act laying out and opening a road from the foot of the rapids of the Miami River to Detroit, and in the early part of 1809 had passed an appropriation act which provided for the payment of James With- erell, one of the judges, William McD. Scott and John Whipple, as commissioners, for seventeen days' service at $4 per day, for exploring and surveying the road. For this Judge Wither ell was censured by the jury "for conduct unbecoming the character of a faithful and impartial judge, for introducing and voting in a legislative assembly for the above appropriation, especially when he knew the expense was to be defrayed by the proceeds of a lottery authorized by the terms of the act." The four rulers were again presented in 1810 for alleged illegal and arbitrary actions, the foreman, George McDougall, voicing their senti- ments in the following prelude: " It is peculiarly painful and unpleas- ant to be under the necessity of presenting any of the members of the local government, especially those who are placed in the highest seats of justice." George McDougall was a lawyer, a bon vivant, and a very 390 irascible man. He was born in Detroit under British rule, and was the son of Colonel George McDougall, who was the first owner of Belle Isle. Young George was sherifif of the county in 1800, chief justice of the Territorial District Court in 1807, and probate judge in 1809-18. In the war of 1812 he was adjutant-general of the Territory, and was a brave and active soldier. He became poor in old age, was a lighthouse keeper at Fort Gratiot and died in St. Clair about 1840, in extreme poverty. The proceedings of the grand jury of 1 811 were the most unique and interesting of any in the annals of that body. First came the address of Judge Woodward, in which he made some general observations on the important duties before them, and eulogized the " sacred principles of liberty and the absolute sovereignty of law in the preservation of order." His concluding remarks were as follows: " Permit me, gentlemen, before closing my remarks, to be the medium of acquainting you that the governor and judges of this Territory have unanimously recommended to all public officers to be clothed in Amer- ican manufactures when engaged in the exercise of their official func- tions, after the 4th day of July, 1813. In obedience to, or rather in anticipation of, their recommendation, I have the honor to appear now before you clothed completely in the manufacture of our country, trusting that even an humble example may not be without some weight or utility. Perhaps among the many splendid plans which intelligent and patriotic characters may have contemplated for the encouragement of domestic manufacture, none may prove more efficacious than the simple rule of every citizen in his own person, restricting his consump- tion to them." After alluding in a hopeful vein to the proposed system of canals projected in New York, he closed by making the following prophecy, already abundantly realized : " The face of this fine region of our continent will soon be fairly ex- panded by the rays of American enterprise, and the day is not distant when we shall behold the energy of its operation. Perhaps our own era may witness the extension of our settlements to the Pacific, and the standard of our republic reflected from the shores of another ocean. " If Woodward supposed that he would gain ground with the jurors by disquisitions on the encouragement of home industry, or by proph- ecies of material progress, he was woefully mistaken. The present- ment made a few days later was a scorcher, and showed that the jurors were thoroughly independent men, and no respecters of persons. It 291 started off by denouncing the authorities, the governor and judges, for their delay in building a jail, and called attention to the act of Con- gress directing its erection and providing for its cost by the sale of ten thousand acres of land. Another count was a virtual indictment of Judge Woodward. It recited that he had refused to sit on the trial of a person accused of the murder of an Indian, under the plea that he was not possessed of a freehold estate of 500 acres, as required by the territorial ordinance, and that he had previously sat on the trial of an Indian for a similar offense. The jury characterized this inconsistent action as "either an unwarrantable assumption of power, or an egre- gious dereliction of duty." Another count hauled him over the coals for having Whitmore Knaggs — scout, interpreter and spy, under Gen- erals St. Clair and Wayne, and Indian interpreter under Hull — arrest- ed and brought before him on a charge of assault and battery on himself, when there were two other judges of the Supreme Court who might have been called to try the case; also that he had called up the case in court without giving notice to Knaggs, and adjudged that he should give $1, 500 bonds to keep the peace. For these and other reasons the jury conceived that the conduct of Judge Woodward was " unprec- edented, unwarrantable, arbitrary and tyrannical, and tending to pros- trate the sacred barriers which the wisdom of our laws have erected against encroachment on the liberties of the citizen." Copies of the presentment were ordered sent to Judge Woodward and the other Supreme Court judges, the president of the United States, president of the Senate and speaker of the House of Representatives. Judge Woodward's reply to this attack was respectful and quite in- genious. He commenced by stating that "the laws of a free country, gentlemen, touch the motives of mankind with a gentle hand, and cautious ought those to be to whom it is entrusted, that neither public passions or private malignity interpose or influence." He admitted that the statement of his action in the case of Whitmore Knaggs, an appointee of the governor, was correct, and added with sarcasm, that in a previous case, " where another of the particular friends of the governor [meaning John Whipple] made an assault on one of the judges [himself] for matters connected with his public functions, an adjudication of the Supreme Court was rendered [he might have added that the dictum of the court was negatived by the governor's action, but every juror knew what he meant]." In that case the court enter- tained a full conviction that it had the power, and that it was his duty 292 to himself to institute proceedings against the oiiPender. A judge, he argued, is a conservator of the pubhc peace, and is always in the ex- ecution of his . office, and the law arms him with power for the pro- tection of others and also himself. Even words of threatening and abuse toward him in relation to his public duties are regarded in a similar light. He contended that the subsequent proceedings were public, but that the parties did not wish to be present, and it was not deemed proper to coerce them. "An act of benevolence," he added, " is not to be converted into an act of oppression." The judge concluded by saying that he would transmit the present- ment with other documents to the speaker of the House of Represent- atives, " but it would not be considered respectful or proper to trouble the other public functionaries with the subject." The names of the jurors who returned the above presentment were James Henry, fore- man, George Cottava, James Connor, George McDougall, J. Farwell, Jacob Visger, John Anderson, J. B. Beaugrand, David Beard, T. East- man, Henry Berthelet, Chabert de Joncaire, John Dodemead, Samuel T. Dyson, M. Leinger and Josiah Brady. CHAPTER XL. Tecumseh and the Prophet Plan to Drive the Americans out of the West — They Rouse the Indians to Hostility, Intending to Unite with the British — General Har- rison Defeats Them at the Battle of Tippecanoe, November 7, 1811. When Hull was made governor of the Territory he was also made In- dian agent, an office which was then connected with that of the execu- tive. The last named office was very important, as there were then only 4,860 white persons in the Territory, of whom about four-fifths were French, and the remainder Americans, with a few British. The Indian settlements comprised those of the Potawatomies, Miamis, Wyandottes, Chippewas, Winnebagoes, Ottawas and others. These were the tribes which afterward united with Tecumseh and the Prophet, and were allies of England against the United States in the war of 1812, as they had formerly been united under Pontiac against the English as allies of France. The Indians felt that the people of the United States were their natural enemies, because they 293 were perpetually being encroached upon by them. In 1806, in an official communication to Secretary of War Dearborn, Hull stated that his main objects were to extinguish gradually the Indian title, and to instruct the red men in agriculture and the mechanic arts. In 1806 the Indians became restless under the teachings of Tecum- seh, chief of the Shawnees, and his brother, the Prophet. The tide of American immigration was beginning to flow westward, and the In- dians resented the settling of the white men on what they considered their hunting grounds. The Americans were farmers and proposed to permanently occupy the land, but the British who came west were either traders or hunters like themselves. These causes had already begun to produce the Indian confederation of which Tecumseh and his brother were the principal heads. The two went everywhere and held innumerable councils, and belts of wampum rapidly circulated between all the tribes. In this movement the hand of Great Britain was some- times discernible. At this time the Indian title had only been extin- guished in Michigan at the post of Detroit and the district adjacent, bounded north by Lake St. Clair and south by the River Raisin ; also at Mackinac Island, at the adjacent island of Bois Blanc and six miles of the adjacent mainland. Except these small strips of land, all of Michigan was, legally, still in the possession of the Indians. In pur- suance with this plan, Hull executed treaties at Detroit in 1807 with the Ottawa, Potawatomie and Wyandotte tribes, by which they ceded to the United States the territory in southeast Michigan bounded south by the river and bay of Miami ; west by a line running north and south through the middle of the territory as far north as Saginaw Bay, and north by a line running from this point to White Rock on Lake Huron. In recompense for this land annuities were paid. Much confusion arose in regard to land titles, owing to the numerous grants made by the Indians during the French and English regimes, and to the con- flicting terms of the treaties of Fort Mcintosh, Fort Harmar and Greenville. The Indians were cajoled by the British officials and Indian agents at Maiden (Amherstburg) into the belief that they had been frightened into signing a disastrous treaty while they were in a panic resulting from a defeat. They were persuaded that they should resist the encroachments of settlers and keep the Americans out of the West. This caused the Indians to complain to Governor Hull. They had cause for complaint, as the greedy settlers seized upon lands right and left, regardless of the claims of the Indians, desecrating the 294 graves of their dead, and, in more than one instance, ordering the original owners to vacate. After the evacuation of Detroit in 1796 the British had attempted to fortify Bois Blanc Island, which commands the navigable mouth of the river, but upon the vehement protests of the Americans they abandoned the island for a time. They, however, built Fort Maiden, on the mainland, which was their right according to the Jay treaty. The Indians then began coming to Fort Maiden, as they had come to De- troit during the dark days of the past. They were supplied with pres- ents, rum, guns and ammunition, and urged to protect themselves against the settlers by force of arms. If they did not do so they were told that they would all soon be driven west of the Mississippi. This was perfectly true, as the settlers would eventually drive them back ; but stirring them up to resistance could only hasten the day of their removal. Tecumseh and the Prophet lived on Mad River, not far from the present site of Springfield, Ohio. Tecumseh was a brave warrior and a man of uncommon intelligence and ability. There are various traditions in regard to his birth, one being that he was a son of Gov- ernor Bienville of Louisiana and a Cherokee squaw, another that he, the Prophet, and Kamshaka, another brother, were triplets, sons of a Creek squaw named Methoataske. Tecumseh saw that the whites had no regard for the claims of the Indians, but he did not realize the odds of superior intelligence and numbers which were against his people. His plan was similar in all respects to that which Pontiac had formu- lated half a century before. He planned to attack Detroit ; Fort Dear- born (Chicago), which had been established by an expedition from Detroit in 1804 ; Fort Wayne, which General Wayne had built on the field of General St. Clair's defeat in 1794, and which he first named Fort Recovery; Vincennes and St. Louis, Mo., the latter having become an American post by the Louisiana purchase. In order to accomplish this undertaking he schemed to unite all the Indians east of the Mis- sissippi against the Americans, and no doubt he expected some help from the British. His influence was not so potent as that of Pontiac, for the Indians were now much demoralized by rum and by the crush- ing defeat administered by Wayne, just as they had thought themselves invincible. Tecumseh's name among his tribe was Tecumtha, which in the Shawnese tongue signifies, "springing panther." He was a well built man, about five feet ten inches in height, with a face indica- tive of courage, dignity and energy. Elkswatawa (the loud voice), 395 the Prophet, was an ill-favored man, who had. lost his right eye, and was therefore somewhat handicapped for the chase and for war, but he was as cunning as a fox, although much addicted to drunkenness. One day, after a long debauch, he fell in a fit and was supposed to be dead, but just as he was to be prepared for the grave he awoke from his cataleptic state and told his tribesmen that he had been in the Land of the Blessed, and had come back at the command of the Great Spirit to warn his people against drunkenness, stealing, lying and witchcraft. He went about preaching in his stentorian voice against these vices, and also against association with the white settlers, until he had a large following. In 1806 Tecumseh's Indian runners were traversing the country With wampum belts, calling in the chiefs of distant tribes for a grand council. When a number of them had gathered at Mad River or at Maiden, the Prophet would address them, saying that the Great Spirit had appointed him his agent on earth to save the Indians from destruction at the hands of the Americans. He claimed to have a message from the first man created, who had spoken to him in a vision as follows: "I am the father of the English, the Indians, and the French, and the Spanish, but the Americans are not my people; they are the children of the evil one. They grew from the scum of the great waters. You must crush and destroy them, for they are not my kin or your kin. All the Indians of the north, south and east must unite against them. The villages which do not listen to my voice will be cut off; they will perish from the earth." Thus he would proceed in a long harangue, artfully appealing to the prejudice and superstition of the savages, and the chiefs would go back to their respective villages to talk the matter over with their warriors. Residents of Detroit be- gan to feel unealsy, for they knew that the Indians were hatching some sort of conspiracy, and that they were being incited thereto by the British. In addition to the greed for territorial possessions there was a com- mercial interest which made the British hostile to the Americans. John Jacob Astor, a Dutch merchant of New York, had built up a vast fur trade, which at the beginning of the century had become a formidable rival of the Hudson Bay and Northwest Companies. Astor had a line of ships on the sea, which carried furs to all parts of the world, and brought back the produce of foreign countries. In 1808 he had vessels on the Pacific coast, and two years later he founded the city of Astoria, at the mouth of the Columbia River. His agents and partners gath- 296 WILLIAM C. MCMILLAN. ered the furs from the headwaters of the Missouri and Mississippi and from the region of the Great Lakes, and he established trading posts at Mackinaw Island and other places through the Northwest. In 1808 he-obtained a charter from Congress for the establishment of the Ameri- can Fur Company, with a capital of $1,000,000, and with the privilege of increasing it to double that amount. He bought out the Mackinaw Company of Canada, and merged it into another concern known as the Southwest Fur Company. Astor then tried to effect a combination with the Hudson Bay or Northwest Company, for the purpose of es- tablishing a line of communication and transportation from the At- lantic to the Pacific, a scheme which was urged by Sir Alexander Mc- Kenzie, who made a journey across the continent in 1792-93. The British company, already very jealous of the success of Astor, declined to associate with him for any purpose whatever, and so the establish- ing of transcontinental posts was deferred for several years. In 1810, when it became evident that Astor was capable of establishing such an enterprise alone, some members of the Hudson Bay Company joined in partnership with- him at Astoria, on the Columbia, and formed the Pacific Fur Company. Each year expeditions were sent from New York to Astoria, by way of Cape Horn, and a land expedition was sent across the continent, taking in Montreal, Mackinaw and St. Louis on the way. Astor bore most of the expense, and Ramsay Crooks, a young Scotchman, who afterward became Astor's partner, usually conducted the land expeditions. The Canadian partners at Astoria behaved treacherously, and were doubtless connected with the Hudson Bay Company for the purpose of ruining Astor's growing business on the Pacific and the Northwest. They were apparently waiting for- an op- portunity, for when the war of 1812 began between the United States and Great Britain, the principal Canadian partner sold out the entire business at Astoria for a mere trifle to the British Company of the Northwest. His pretext was that he was compelled to sell it to prevent a seizure by the British cruisers. On October 16, 1813, Astoria was put under the British flag. This rivalry of the American Fur Com- pany was one of the causes which caused the British at Maiden to set the Indians against the Americans, while other causes along the border and particularly on the seaboard were slowly working to bring on a war. Residents of Detroit appealed again to Congress for better mil- itary protection, and they built a stockade about the new town. A grand council of the Hurons and Wyandottes was held at Brownstown, 297 38 near the mouth of Detroit River, in September, 1809, at which they decided to protest against the encroachments of American settlers. Their head chief, Walk-in-the-Water, went to General Hull and asked him to compel the settlers to vacate certain lands upon which they had squatted and to compel them to keep out of the Indian country. Among other tracts claimed by the Hurons and Wyandottes was the territory at the mouth of Detroit River on the American side. This was claimed by the United States rmder the cession of the treaty of Greenville, and a string of villages had sprung into existence along the river. Within the limits of Michigan in 1809 were nine settle- ments. There was a settlement near the mouth of the Maumee River, another on the Raisin River and still another on the Huron River which emptied into Lake Erie. North of these were the settlements at Ecorces, the Rouge River, on the Huron or Clinton River of Lake St. Clair, and on the St. Clair River; also Detroit and Mackinaw. The Lake Erie settlements mentioned had a combined population of 1,300 people; Detroit, Rouge River, Ecorces, the Huron and St. Clair settlements numbered 2,200 and Mackinaw had about 1,000. Detroit had a gar- rison of ninety-four soldiers and there were seventy-nine at Mackinaw. Of the 4,800 people living in Michigan at the time four-fifths were French Canadians and the remainder were American, English and Scotch settlers. Every month the Indians became bolder as their confederation be- came more powerful. They began to force their way into the houses of the Indiana and Ohio settlers and helped themselves to whatever took their fancy, and several settlers who offered resistance were killed. A petition was sent from Detroit, December 27, 1811, showing how imminent was the danger of an Indian war in the new territory and asking Congress for help, but political rivalries occupied so much atten- tion at Washington that the needs of the frontier were ignored. That spring a delegation of 800 warriors came down from the Lake Superior region to hold a council at Tecumseh's town. The Ottawas, Chippe- was, Mississauguas, Potawatomies, Winnebagoes, Wyandottes and Shawneeswere all in the alliance now, and the braves began going about in war paint as if the war had already begun. Governor Harrison of Indiana, had done what he could to stave off the impending conflict between the settlers and the Indians by securing clear titles to various disputed tracts. As early as 1805 he had thus extinguished the Indian titles to 46,000 acres of land, and later he acquired much larger tracts 298 but the settlers were foolishly aggressive and invited a war. They considered that the Indians, being a migratory people, had no more right of possession than the buffaloes and other beasts that roamed the wilds, and the land speculators were quite regardless of the storm they were raising. An aged chief spoke scornfully to Governor Harrison when the latter complained of the attitude of the Indians. " You call us your children," said he, "but why do you not make us happy as our fathers the French did? They never took away our lands; the land was common between us. They planted corn and cut wood where they pleased and so did we. But now if a poor Indian attempts to take a little bark from a tree to cover him from rain, some white man threatens to shoot him, claiming the tree as his own." General Harrison promised to do all in his power to repress the land- grabbers. He scoffed at the superstitious fears of the Indians and de- nounced the Prophet as an imposter. " This excitement must stop," said he. " I will not permit it in my territory. You have called men from all parts of the country to listen to the mouthings of a drunken fool. He tells you he is directed by the Great Spirit, but I tell you he is directed by the Evil Spirit and by the British agents at Maiden. The white settlers are much disturbed by your actions, and they desire that you send these gathering tribes away from here. If they wish to have the imposter, let them take him away. Let him go to the lakes where he can hear the British more distinctly. ' This made the leaders of the conspiracy fearful of the American mili- tia, and Tecumseh removed from western Ohio to the banks of the Wabash at the mouth of the Tippecanoe River. The Prophet admitted to Harrison that he had been urged by the British agents to stir up the Indians to war, but claimed that he had refused. In September, 1809, Governor Harrison made a treaty with the Miamis, Delawares, Kicka poos and Potaw atomies, and obtained about 3,000,000 acres more of Indian land for the white settlers, paying in cash and in annuities. Tecumseh's people, the Shawnees, had no claim to the lands in this purchase, but they declared the treaty void and threatened to kill every chief who signed it. "American dogs " was the name Tecumseh and the Prophet applied to the settlers and their officials. Tecumseh was summoned to Vincennes for a council with Governor Harrison August 12, 1810, but instead of bringing thirty warriors as instructed, he brought 400 fully armed, and the residents were greatly alarmed. When Governor Harrison asked Tecumseh to " take a seat beside his 222 father," the chief drew himself proudly up, saying: " The sun is my father; the earth is my mother; on her bosom will I repose; " and he sat down on the ground. He demanded that the government should surrender all the lands in the West which the United States had ac- quired by treaty or by purchase, and when he was told that it would not be done, his attitude made it appear that war was inevitable. Governor Harrison began to gather militia and to drill them in prepa- ration for an Indian war. He sent word to Tecumseh that Indian dep- redations must stop at once, or he should attack the Shawnees and their allies. The Fourth Regiment of regular infantry was sent from Pitts- burg to Vincennes, and a number of Kentucky riflemen came to have a hand in the prospective fight. September 36, 1811, General Harrison marched up the Wabash River with 900 men and built a fort on a bluff where Terre Haute now stands. It was called Fort Harrison. That month there was to be an eclipse of the sun, which was much talked about among the whites. The Prophet got hold of the news and told his followers the day and hour when the Great Spirit would show his displeasure at the Americans by darkening the sun. His reputation as a seer was established when the eclipse took place on time. From Fort Harrison the army of Indians proceeded up the valley until it came within a mile of the Prophet's town, on the banks of the Tippecanoe. Tecumseh was absent in the South trying to get the Cherokees and Creeks to join his federation, and the Prophet sent messengers asking the whites to camp for the night and observe a truce until morning when they would be ready to hold a council. Just before daylight the Indians crept up to attack the camp, expecting to surprise the soldiers, but they found them very wide awake. The soldiers held their ground until daylight, when they charged and soon had the Indians flying in all directions. The Prophet's town was burned and the Indians took to the marshes to avoid pursuit. The Prophet was denounced by his own people as an imposter, because he had told them that the bullets of the white men could not harm them. This conflict is known in his tory as the battle of Tippecanoe, and was fought November 7, 1811. 300 CHAPTER XLI. Causes Leading Up to the War of 1813 — Great Britain Persists in Impressing American Sailors — Attempts to Cripple the American Navy — Every Nation Against the United States — Affair of the Chesapeake and the Leopard — The Embargo Act. While the United States and Great Britain were ostensibly at peace there was little friendship between the two nations. Congress began to build a navy and this act was offensive to Great Britain. In 1797 three frigates were launched, the United States, the Constitution and the Constellation, and they were put in commission. The first two carried forty-four guns each and the latter thirty-eight guns. At the close of 1798 the new nation had a navy of twenty-three vessels, with an aggregate of 446 guns. A scheme was formed across the ocean to cripple the American navy, and the first intimation of it came to the United States on November 16, when Captain Phillips, of the Ameri- can cruiser Baltimore, sailed out of Havana to escort a number of merchant vessels to Charleston and protect them from French priva- teers. Just outside the harbor he met a British squadron and bore up to the Carnatick, the flagship of the squadron, to speak with the com- mander as an act of courtesy. Without warning the British war vessels bore down upon the merchant vessels and seized three of them. Phillips went on board the Carnatick to protest, when he was informed that every man on the Baltimore, who could not prove that he was American born, would be transferred to the British ships. Phillips said that he would prefer to make a formal surrender, but this was refused and on going back to his own vessel he found a British officer mustering his men. Fifty-five of the picked men were transferred to the Carnatick, but later, when Phillips struck his flag, all but five of them were returned. Five men and three merchant vessels with val- uable cargoes were taken away. As Great Britain was mistress of the seas at that time, there was nothing to do but to protest against this outrage, but the protest received no attention, and the British navy continued to prey upon American shipping, impressing the best of the men during the next fourteen years. Great Britain claimed the right 301 to search the vessels of any neutral nation for British subjects, in order to recruit her navy for the war with France, and thousands of Ameri- cans were impressed into the service upon that pretext. All overtures and offers of the United States for securing a better understanding were curtly rejected. It was excused on the ground that a Briton could not expatriate himself. A born Briton was held to be liable for service for the king at any time, and if a sailor spoke the language it was generally construed as sufficient proof of his nationality. Napo- leon, who sought to force the United States to become his ally against Great Britain, issued a decree from Milan, December 17, 1807, which declared all vessels which submitted to the right of search and im- pressment by Great Britain, to be denationalized and forfeit, if cap- tured in going to or coming from a British port, or on the high seas. Holland and Spain issued similar decrees, because they were anxious to please JSTapoleon. It can be seen that the commerce of the United States was in desperate straits, and to make matters worse the British maintained a naval force along the coast of the United States to prey upon all shipping. This country had a merchant tonnage of 1,300,000 tons afloat on the seas, but with utterly inadequate protection, and consequently American ships were an easy prey for any European power. Early in 1807 the United States frigate Chesapeake, while preparing for her first cruise, shipped three men who had deserted the British ship Leopard of fifty guns. At '6 o'clock in the afternoon the Leopard hailed the Chesapeake, informing Commodore Barron that she had a dispatch for him. The Chesapeake hove to and so did the Leopard, but the latter had her ports triced up as if prepared for battle. A boat was sent to the Chesapeake, and a British lieutenant was cordially re- ceived by Commodore Barron, but the latter stated that he was looking for deserters and demanded the surrender of any who might be found on board. His demand was accompanied by a note from Captain Humphrey of the Leopard. Barron was naturally irritated by the de- ception and the general lack of courtesy, and he replied that he had instructed his recruiting officers to hire no British deserters and that he knew of none on board. In accordance -with the instructions of his government he refused to allow a foreign officer to muster his men. The Chesapeake had left port without preparation for war, but while the lieutenant was waiting for his answer the officers did what they could in a quiet way to clear for action. After the lieutenant had left 302 the work went on more vigorously, but as the frigate was not prepared for service, it was impossible to make ready with a new crew and a newly equipped vessel in so short a time. A hail from the Leopard that the men must be given up and then a shot whistled across the bow of the Chesapeake. Another shot was sent over her and then a whole broadside of twenty-five cannon was poured into the helpless frigate. The Americans finally got one broadside loaded, and then could find no priming powder, matches or locks, so that the guns could not be fired in return. While the search for fighting material was going on in the Chesapeake, the Leopard poured in several broadsides, killing and wounding twenty men. Commodore Barron, although un- able to fight the Leopard, wanted to fire one gun before the Chesa- peake struck her flag to avoid complete destruction. Lieutenant Allen finally fired it by securing a live coal from the galley, and applying it to the vent of one of the guns. As soon as the colors were hauled down the Chesapeake was boarded by officers from the Leopard, and Com- modore Barron tendered his vessel as a prize, but Captain Humphrey refused to accept her, knowing that such an action would give the Americans a valid claim against his government. The crew was then mustered. Three Americans who had once been impressed in the British service were put in irons, and John Wilson, a British seaman, who had deserted, was taken with them on board the Leopard. At Halifax the four were sentenced to be hung, but the three Americans were reprieved on condition that they would re-enter the British service. Wilson was executed. Commodore Barron was found guilty of neglect of duty and was suspended from service for five years. This outrage naturally aroused the Americans to great indignation and ex- citement against England. Canning, British minister of foreign affairs, disclaimed the act on the part of the government, and recalled Hum- phrey from service at sea. Two of the American sailors taken from the Chesapeake were held in slavery on British ships for five years, but the other died in the service. The bitter feeling against England united the two great political parties of the United States by arousing their patriotism. So fierce had been the strife between the Federalists and the Democrats that the nation at times appeared to be on the verge of civil war. While the internal strife was at its hottest Great Britain attempted to fan the fires of discontent by establishing a prop- aganda of anti-democracy. An Irishman named John Henry, who was a naturalized citizen of the United States, lived in Vermont in the 303 early part of the century. He wrote some clever letters for the press, denouncing the government officials for their incompetency and declar- ing that the country was incapable of self-government. His articles attracted the attention of Sir James Craig, governor of Canada, who in 1806 invited Henry to coine to Montreal. There an arrangement was entered into by which Henry was to give his whole time to the prop- agation of popular discontent, and if he succeeded in raising a civil war in the United States, he was to receive _;^30,000. He was au- thorized to offer the Federalists the support of British influence if such a promise was needed to give them courage. Henry failed to accomplish his purpose after five years of steady work, and when he was refused compensation for his effort he turned against his employ- ers and revealed the plot to President Madison. The British ministers denied all knowledge of the plot, but when it was proposed to submit all the correspondence in Henry's possession to a court of inquiry, the House of Lords voted the proposition down by seventy-three to twenty-seven ballots. All these stirring events occurred far from Detroit, but they were the most notable of many abuses which pre- cipitated the war of 1813-15, in which Detroit had a very prominent part, and which caused this region to fall again under British rule for over a year. Had the United States desired a pretext for war it had been afforded a hundred times since the treaty of 1783, but war was to be avoided at any cost except the loss of national honor. The country was bankrupt financially, and struggling to recover from the drain of the Revolution. Its government and its finances were in very crude shape, and its pub- lic works were almost entirely wanting. The Americans had been in almost constant war, first with the Indians, then with the French and Indians on behalf of the British, and then against the British and the Indians. Able bodied men had been kept in the wars, and so the country was but little improved. England was the most powerful nation on the sea and the United States had hardly made a start toward building a navy. In 1807 the Senate of the United States, after con- sidering the situation, passed an embargo bill, which prohibited all ships then in United States ports from sailing for any foreign port. Foreign vessels were permitted to leave with ballast, but they could not take away cargoes. Coasting vessels were compelled to give heavy bonds to insure that they would deliver their cargoes at the port in- dicated. It was a declaration to the world that the United States would 304 HENRY T. THURBER. voluntarily sever all connection with the outside world until the ob- noxious practices of England, France, Spain and Holland should be stopped, and until American ships could sail the seas unmolested, as the vessels of a neutral power were entitled to do. This act completely crushed the rapidly waning commerce of this country, and the business men of the Atlantic ports were very bitter against it, charging President Jefferson with being in league with Bonaparte for the purpose of forc- ing the country into a European war as an ally of France. England passed an act permitting American vessels to carry cargoes to foreign countries if they would first land at a British port, pay port dues, and take out a trading license, but this was of course rejected with the scorn which it deserved. Then the British ministry issued orders to all naval commanders to encourage violations of the embargo, and to assist vessels to run the blockade from American ports to the West Indies. In March, 1809, the embargo act was repealed under pressure from the commercial men of the country, and a non intercourse act was passed, which merely forbade trade with Great Britain and France. This was as obnoxious as the embargo, and it, too. was repealed four- teen months later. Outrage and insult had passed the limit of endur- ance. American patriots saw that they must resist the arrogant claims of Great Britain or acknowledge to the world that they were mere vas- sals of the greater power without the courage or manhood to maintain their honor. James Madison succeeded Thomas Jefferson as president, and in April, 1812, he recommended another embargo for sixty days. This was understood as preparatory for a declaration of war. The embargo was a damage of more than $6,000 a month to American commerce, but it was passed to keep as many of the merchant vessels as possible in port, save them from capture by British privateers and have them available in case of war. 305 39 CHAPTER XLII. War Declared July 19, 1813— Condition of the Northern Border— The British Enhst the Indians— Michigan Militia Called Out— Detroit Volunteers Invade Can- ada to Capture Maiden, but are Recalled by General Hull— Detroit Surrendered with a Superior Force of Men and a Large Quantity of Stores. War was declared June 19, 1812. At that time the British had 254 ships of the line each carrying 74 guns or more ; 347 frigates and 506 smaller war vessels. On Lake Ontario they had the Royal George, 22 guns; Earl of Moira, 16 guns; Prince Regent, 14, and the Duke of Gloucester, 8 guns ; their fleet on the upper lakes was almost as formid- able. In Upper Canada they had a regular force of 1,500 men and 6,000 in the St. Lawrence valley. There was a British population of 400,000 in Canada and a militia of 40,000 to draw from. Opposed to Fort Holmes at Mackinaw they had a small fort and garrison on the island of St. Joseph, at the mouth of the St. Mary's River. They had a fort and garrison at Maiden near the mouth of the Detroit River; Fort Erie opposite Buffalo; Fort Chippewa near the falls of Niagara; and Fort George at the mouth of the Niagara River. There were also forts at Kingston and York (Toronto) harbors. These were the British fortifications along the inland frontier, while at sea the British were in overwhelming strength. The Americans had only the forts at Detroit, Mackinaw, Fort Niagara and Oswego on the lakes to defend a border of 1,700 miles. As soon as decisive action was taken by Congress, France revoked the hostile decrees against American ships, but the Americans were still handicapped at every point. Three thousand five hundred American sailors were at that time in a condition of slavery on board British war ships, where they must fight against their own country. Gov. William Hull, of the Territory of Michigan, went to Washington to urge the establishment of a navy on Lake Erie, saying that the gov- ernment that controlled Lake Erie would control all the West. He showed how the Indians were being united to the British cause to the imminent danger of Detroit and the other frontier towns, and as a re- 306 suit he was commissioned brigadier- general to command in the West, and Commander Stewart was authorized to build several small vessels on Lake Erie. A requisition for 1,200 troops was made upon Gov. Return J. Meigs of Ohio. These troops rendezvoused on the Miami River, two miles above where Dayton now stands, and General Hull took command May 25, 1812. Lewis Cass, of Marietta, was made colo- nel of the Third Regiment, with Robert Morrison and J. R. Munson as majors; Duncan McArthur was made colonel of the First Regiment; James Findlay was colonel of the Second Regiment, and James Miller was the colonel in command of the Fourth Regiment of United States troops, then stationed at Vincennes. Gen. Elijah Wadsworth, of Ohio, raised three more companies of men, and the volunteers joined the above force on the march. In order to fully understand the military operations about Detroit in 1812 and 1813 it may be well to survey the ground, locating the places of long ago by their relative location or vicinity to the places of to-day. Detroit River is about twenty-three miles in length from its upper ex- tremity at Windmill Point to its junction with Lake Erie below Am- herstburg. Its course is a long curve from the east to the south. On the Canada side, beginning at Lake Erie, the British post of Maiden was opposite Bois Blanc Island. The fort was built there for the purpose of commanding the ship channel of the river. A mile east of the town a marshy creek ran parallel with the river, which reached from the swamp of the River Canards, four miles north of the fort, to Lake Erie. Much of the land below Maiden was marshy, so that it afforded some protection against an attacking party by makirig it diffi- cult to transport artillery. The River Canards is a deep but sluggish stream, having its origin in a cranberry swamp, and empties into De- troit River opposite the middle of Grosse He. Seven miles above the Canards was Turkey Creek or Ruisseau aux Dindes, which derived a portion of its waters from the same swamp. It flowed into Detroit River near the head of Fighting Island, which was called Turkey Island in those days. Between the Canards and Turkey Creek was a rise of ground called Petit Cote. Three miles still farther north was a small inlet from the river called the River Ajarvais, and a little farther up was the village of Sandwich. This was a cluster of houses strung along the rivei front on each side of the old Huron Mission and As- sumption church, and the settlement continued to a point opposite De- troit, or as far as the ferry landing at Windsor. North and east of this 307 point were French and British farms, extending along Lake St. Clair, the Thames and other tributaries. Lord Selkirk had a large estate called Beldoon on the Canadian coast east of Walpole Island. On the American side the French farms reached from Lake Huron to Detroit, fronting on the lakes and rivers which were the main highways of travel and commerce. Half a mile below Belle Isle, or Hog Island, as it was called in those days, the creek called Bloody Run emptied into the river. The lands in the rear of the town of Detroit were swampy and much of it was heavily timbered, although a stretch of prairie opened toward the northwest. Near the site of the present Fort Wayne, about three miles from Fort Detroit, stood three small sandhills and a cluster of Indian tumuli, where several deep springs of excellent water existed. This place was called Springwells. The River Rouge, with its marshy mouth, emptied into the river a short distance below, and a small ship yard had been set up on its banks. Near the site of the present village of Trenton was the Indian village of Monguagon, named in honor of a famous Wyandotte chief of ante- Revolutionary days. Four miles further south is the mouth of the Dfetroit River, and a little further down the Huron River pours its waters into Lake Erie. A short distance from the mouth of the Huron stood a small settlement known as Brownstown, named in honor of an English trader who had established a post there nearly half a century before the war of 1812. This was nearly opposite Bois Blanc Island and Fort Maiden. Fifteen miles below the Huron was the River Raisin, at the mouth of which was Frenchtown (now Monroe), where Gabriel Godfroy and Jean Baptiste Jerome and other French traders maintained a post. A few miles below the Raisin the Great Black Swamp began, which extended far into the interior of Ohio and was almost impassable in the rainy season. Fort Detroit was the sole de- fensive work on the Detroit River. Fort Nonsense was a military earthwork, situated near what is now the intersection of Park and DufSeld streets. It was a circular fort, seventy-five feet in diameter. The parapet was seven or eight feet in height, and the ditch or dry moat around it was about six feet deep and some ten feet in width. It was a great resort of the boys of the town in summer time, who would sometimes divide into two parties, one defending and the other attacking the fort. The authorities differ as to the time of construction. Robert E. Roberts, in his " Sketches of Detroit," says that it was hastijy thrown up in 1796 by Captain 308 Moses Porter's detachment, on the night before the day that the British evacuated Detroit. Captain Porter's troops were the advance guard of Colonel Hamtramck's coiTimand, and arrived one day before. Rob- erts also says that when the Indians became troublesome in the war of 1812, by driving away cattle from the settlement, the citizens placed a cannon and squad of soldiers in it. Farmer's " History of Detroit," a, much better authority, says it was erected in 1807 to prevent hostile raids of cattle-stealing Indians. Rev. George Duffield, who came to Detroit in 1838, and was pastor of the First Presbyterian church until his death in 1858, purchased from Solomon Sibley a ten-acre lot, com- prising all of the old fort. When Park and Duffield streets were opened through the property in the '50's, the old fort disappeared. It was called Fort Nonsense because it was useless and afforded no protection to the inhabitants. All the American troops were eager to attack the Indians who had long harassed them. General Hull and his associates, with their four regiments, started the little army toward Detroit on June 1, 1812, plung- ing into an unbroken wilderness of more than 200 miles. They flounder- ed through the Black Swamp and suffered great hardships on the way. On the 19th they were met by Gen. Robert Lucas and William Penny, who had been sent ahead to Detroit with dispatches to Secretary Att- water, who was acting governor. They reported that while many of the Indians were disposed to keep the peace, Walk in the-Water, the head of the Wyandotte tribe, was decidedly hostile, and was taking all the Wyandottes to the British garrison at Maiden. Tecumseh was also marshaling the Indians against the Americans, and the outlook was very serious. News of the declaration of war reached Detroit inci- dentally. The forwarned commandant at Maiden, Colonel St. George, began active preparation for service on the border, and several Detroit and Frenchtown settlers who had crossed the river were arrested, and informed that they were prisoners of war. Citizens of Detroit went to Secretary Reuben Attwater, who was acting governor in the absence of General Hull, and asked him to call out all the Michigan militia, put every available man under arms, and to prepare the fort for active service. Attwater, a timid man, was afraid to usurp the authority, and the fort might easily have been surprised had the British realized its condition. If Attwater was timid there were others who were not. A committee of the solid citizens of the town went to the officers of the Michigan Legion, a body of the territorial militia, and told them to 309 call all their men to arms at Detroit. Among these citizens were Solo- mon Sibley, George McDougall, John R. Williams and Elijah Brush. This call gathered about 600 fighting men and their officers at Detroit. Judge Witherell, who was the only Revolutionary officer in the territory, was placed in command and he commenced to drill them. Sen- tinels were posted along the river bank for several miles, with orders that if any of them should discover the enemy approaching to give the customary alarm signal by firing his gun three times in quick succes- sion. In like manner the militia of the town and the residents were to be warned by cannon shots from the fort. On June 24 dispatches arrived from Washington, telling General Hull to hurry to Detroit with all possible speed, as the situation there demanded his immediate presence. At that time war was already declared, but General Hull received no notification, while the British at Maiden were aware of the situation, having learned it from the fur traders. In ignorance of this fact, General Hull dispatched the schooner Cuyahoga from the Rapids of the Maumee with much of the baggage of the army, the hospital stores, tools and his private chest containing his commission, the mus- ter rolls of the army, and his instructions from the War Department. Lieutenants Dent and Goodwin, the wives of three officers, and thirty soldiers went with the schooner as a guard. A smaller schooner was sent on with the sick and disabled. As the army arrived at Frenchtown (now Monroe, Mich.), a message arrived from the thoughtful postmaster at Cleveland. It warned Gen- eral Hull that war had been declared, and that he must take unusual precautions in approaching Detroit. General Hull hurried an officer and a company of men to the mouth of the River Raisin, to stop the schooner Cuyahoga and her consort, to prevent their capture by the British, but they arrived too late. The Cuyahoga had already been stopped at Maiden by a gun from the fort, and the British brig Hunter had taken all the passengers and crew ashore as prisoners of war. The little craft containing the invalids was of lighter draft, and had escaped by passing up the west channel of the river at some distance from Maiden. Hull stopped at Frenchtown, while Colonel Cass went to Maiden with a flag of truce to demand a return of the prisoners and baggage taken from the Cuyahoga. The demand was refused. Hull's army spent July 4, 1813, in building a bridge across the Huron River at Brownstown about a mile and a half from Lake Erie. They passed a large village of Wyandottes, who were under command of Chiefs 310 Walk-in-the-Water, Lame Hand and Splitlog', but were not attacked. From the shore of the lake below Grosse He, they could see a large body of troops in motion around Fort Maiden, who appeared to be em- barking on the brig Hunter, which was moored at the wharf. Expect- ing the British to descend upon them at any time, they passed an uneasy night. General Hull prevented an attack from the British by resorting to a ruse. He sent a spy, who, professedly in the British in- terest, informed Colonel St. George that Hull was expecting reinforce, ments from Detroit, who would bring down some cannon from the fort, and as soon as they arrived he proposed to attack Fort Maiden. This message caused the British commander to concentrate and hold his troops in readiness for an attack, but early next morning Hull was hurrying on to Detroit. His troops crossed the Rivers aux Ecorces and Rouge, where they were met by the Michigan militia under Col. Elijah Brush. They camped that night at Springwells, in the shelter of three small sand hills, which were Indian tumuli, immediately oppo- site Point Royal, which juts out from Sandwich into the river. A com- pany of the enemy was encamped at Sandwich. They fired a few shots from their small field pieces at Hull's encampment, but these merely frightened some of the residents of Detroit, who had come down to meet the army. The American volunteers rested from their hard march and washed their clothing, which had been plastered with the mud of the swamp. Next day they encamped at Detroit immediately north of the fort. The Ohio men were eager for the fray and wanted to cross the river and give the enemy battle. Hull discouraged their zeal, but called a council of war, to which he stated that he had no authority for invading Canada. "But the enemy is throwing up fortifications at Sandwich and op- posite Detroit," the Ohio officers expostulated. "Are we going to remain idle in plain sight of them and with a superior force, while they prepare to bombard Detroit? " " While I have command I shall obey the orders of my government," said Hull angrily. " I shall not cross the river until I have authority from Washington." This filled the officers and men with indignation, but they did not care to create a mutiny, and the army waited while the British threw up earthworks on the high banks opposite Detroit and prepared to place their cannon for attack. A letter finally arrived from the sec- retary of war directing Hull to commence operations at once, and if the 311 relative strength of the two armies would warrant it, he was directed to proceed to the capture of Fort Maiden and extend his conquests as circumstances might justify. The volunteers were elated at the news. They were confident that they could capture Maiden and then sweep- across Ontario carrying everything before them, They had been com- pelled to witness the progress of the enemy's works without opposition, although they had a force of 3,200 men and 43 cannon, most of which were 24rpounders. With that force they could have driven the British away from the river front, and prevented them from constructing earthworks within the range of their smaller field pieces. Detroit at that time contained 160 houses, all new since 1805, and about 800 people. The stockade extended from the high bank of the river on the west line of the Brush farm to Congress street, and thence westward to the line of the Cass farm, thence to the river front and eastward to the line of Randolph street. The stockade was fourteen feet high and was pierced with loopholes for the use of small arms. Fort Detroit (formerly Fort Lernoult) was a strong fortification when General Hull took command The embankments and bastions stretched out about 400 feet on a side, quadrangular in form, with projections at the cor- ners to afford a flanking fire against assailants who would attempt to scale its outer slope. The embankments were about twenty feet thick and were surrounded by a dry ditch eight feet deep and of like breadth. In the middle of the- ditch was a strong stockade of pickets, which had to be scaled by assailants, and on the inner slope was another row of sharp stakes projecting outward at an angle of forty-five degrees, mak- ing a series of very troublesome obstacles. While an enemy would be breaking through these, the batteries in. the bastions loaded with grape shot could mow them down like grass. In addition to the force brought from Ohio, Generail Hull had the Detroit garrison of ninety-four men, and the Michigan militia under Col. Elijah Brush, which met him at the River Ecorces as he approached. This made about 2,200 men for the defense of Detroit. General Hull could no longer delay attacking the enemy and he prepared to cross the river. In the afternoon of July 11 he collected all the boats he could gather along the shore and sent them down to Springwells. He ordered Colo- nel McArthur to march his regiment by land to the same point, as if he intended crossing the river there. Under cover of darkness the boats were brought back and Hull assembled his men on the river bank, at the mouth of Bloody Run, and they were taken across the 312 stream, four hundred at a time. The Americans crossed in all sorts of craft, numbering about fifty boats. Most of them were canoes and pirogues, but there were several bateaux and a small schooner of about ten tons, which was loaded with troops and cannon and towed across by men in skiffs and canoes. Four trips were made before all were landed in Canada. As the first boat touched the shore just above the site of Walkerville, the men scrambled ashore and formed for defense on the highest part of the bank. As they did so they, saw two horse- men standing on the river bank, a short distance below them, who turned and rode away at a swift gallop. They were Colonel St. George, the gray-haired commandant of Fort Maiden, and one of his captains, who, seeing that the Americans were' not crossing from Springwells, suspected another ruse was being worked upon him like that at Browns- town. The ruse was discovered too late to prevent its success. Gen- eral Hull and his army camped on the farm of Francois Baby, in what is now Windsor, on Sunday morning, July 13, 1812. The American flag was hoisted amid rousing cheers, which were answered by the watching crowd across the river. They were welcomed by the French Canadians, who had usually been sympathizers with the American cause. Col. Lewis Cass then issued a proclamation to the residents, telling them the causes which had led to the declaration of war. He stated that the Americans had invaded the country, not to make war upon the peaceable residents, but to free them from tyranny and assure their personal liberty. All were requested to remain peaceably at their homes, as the American force was sufHcient for any contingency and it was but the vanguard of a much greater army. "You are not to en- gage as allies of the merciless Indians on any account," said Colonel Cass; "the first stroke of the tomahawk, the first attempt with the scalping knife, will be the signal for an indiscriminate scene of desola- tion. No white man found fighting beside an Indian will be taken prisoner; instant destruction will be his lot." Once more the soldiers begged for permission to march against Mai- den. "Let us go to that nest of vultures and carrion crows where Girty, McKee, Elliott and the other Indian leaders are, and clean it out completely," they pleaded. Hull, whose bump of caution must have been abnormally developed, hesitated and then sent a reconnoitering party down the river by land. They returned toward night, saying that they had found a large band of Indians, perhaps 200 in number, on Turkey Creek, opposite Fighting Island. Tecumseh was there 313 40 with about 200 warriors, and the woods beyond appeared to be full of Indians. General Hull immediately threw up earthworks, as he feared a general attack would soon be made upon him, and that a fleet of war vessels would co-operate with the land forces. Another band of skirmishers was sent out to discover what the Indians were doing, and found that they had gone around Sandwich and were making good time up the shore of Lake St. Clair. Colonel McArthur was sent in pursuit of them with 100 men. The Indians scattered into the woods as he came upon their rear, and he followed in pursuit to the banks of the Thames, where some small Moravian villages were located at that time. Some British soldiers were captured in the house of Isaac Hull, a nephew of the general, who lived at the mouth of the Thames, and these were disarmed and paroled. Boats were seized and loaded with what provender the Americans could find, and the expedition returned with 300 barrels of flour, 400 blankets and a quantity of military stores. At Beldoon, on the Canadian shore, opposite Walpole Island, which was a Highland Scotch settlement founded by the Earl of Selkirk, some 800 sheep were taken and also brought to Detroit. The flour, blankets and military stores were British government property, but Hull gave receipts for these as well as everything else that was taken. General Hull's conduct in this campaign is inexplicable. He must have known that he was possessed of a force superior to that of the enemy. A commander like George Rogers Clark would have de- scended upon Maiden like a thunderbolt before the enemy could pre- pare for the shock of battle, but Hull dared not leave the neighbor- hood of the fort at Detroit. He adopted the best possible tactics for giving the enemy confidence by sending out small detachments toward the British fort without any definite purpose. He sent Colonel Cass and Lieutenant-Colonel Miller down the east shore of the river with 380 men, and they proceeded as far as the Tarontee or Duck River (River aux Canards), which empties into the Detroit River about four miles above the present town of Amherstburg. A British picket was found there, just above the bridge; it consisting of a part of the 41st Canadian Regiment, and Tecumseh and his Indians. Leaving a part of his men in concealment before the enemy's position, Colonel Cass made a long detour with the remainder of his men, waded the Canards and another deep inlet several miles above and came down with a rush upon the British and their allies. The impetuosity of the attack sent them flyitig in disorder and the Americans pursued them 314 for half a mile. It was useless to attack Fort Maiden with so small a force, so Cass and Miller went back to the bridge of the Canards and sent for reinforcements, holding the bridge in the mean time. Hull refused reinforcements, and ordered the protectors of the bridge to fall back. He said he could not attack Maiden until he had obtained his heavy cannon from Detroit. Cass took two prisoners. Some desert- ers joined his force, bringing the information that several of the enemy- were badly wounded, two of them mortally. The Americans did not lose a man. It needed but a successful dash to take all the fighting out of the In- dians, and without their support the garrison at Maiden was then puny in strength compared with Hull's command. There were there only 200 men of the 41st Canadian Regiment, about 120 of the Royal Fencibles of Newfoundland, and an independent artillery company. On July 17, 1812, another small detachment under Colonel McArthur was sent down the shore to the River Canards. They found that the bridge had been torn up, and the planks used to form a breastwork on the farther side of the stream. The brig Queen Charlotte, armed with eighteen cannon, and a small gunboat lay at the mouth of the inlet to support the defenders. The River Canards' mouth was defended by a battery supported by 250 British and about fifty Indians. After two hot skir- mishes with some Indians who had crossed the river, ammunition began to run low, and a messenger was dispatched to Sandwich for more, while the Americans took a position at Petit Cote. Colonel Cass then came to the rescue with 150 men and a six-pound cannon, joining McArthur's force at Turkey Creek. They returned to Petit Cote, but it was useless to attempt hostilities against such overwhelming odds. The opportunity for- a decisive action had been lost through General Hulls reluctance to support Cass and Miller. The bridge was now held by the enemy's troops and two armed vessels, so it was no longer available, and it was now impossible to carry artillery beyond the Ca- nards because the country for several miles above the bridge was a swamp of black mud. This being the case. General Hull abandoned his command July 21 and crossed over to Detroit, leaving the troops in the hands of Colonel McArthur. Indians began to menace the American front, and Major Denny was sent out on the 24th to drive them back across the Canards River, but after several skirmishes his flank was turned and he was compelled to retreat with a loss of six men killed and two wounded. By this time the soldiers suspected that Gen- 315 eral Hull was a traitor who was deliberately playing into the hands of the enemy, and the army was on the verge of mutiny. While these events were transpiring at Detroit the fortune of war had gone against the Americans at Mackinaw. Fort Holmes, as it was called, was defended by Lieutenant Porter Hancks and fifty seven men. The armament consisted of two long nine pounders, two howitzers and a brass three pounder. The Indians on the island had been acting suspiciously, and they all left suddenly without giving any reason for their departure. Lieutenant Hancks feared they were on some hostile mission, and in total ignorance that war had been declared, sent Cap- tain Daurman, of the militia, to the new British fort on St. Joseph Isl- and, at the mouth of St. Marys River, to ask the commandant why the Indians had migrated. Daurman met an expedition, consisting of British troops and Indians, on their way to attack Fort Mackinac, and was made a prisoner of war. Lieutenant Hancks was surprised, and his force being inadequate, he was obliged to surrender. The fort and its stores, and 700 packages of valuable furs, fell into the hands of the enemy through the neglect of the War Department to notify the out- posts that war had been declared. Major-General Brock, who commanded the troops in Canada, was in every way the opposite of Hull. His action was swift; his energy tire- less. He raised a large force of volunteers in a few days and had them ready for service, while Joseph Brant, the educated Mohawk chief, rounded up the Canadian Indians. Brock was preparing to attack Fort Niagara, on the American side, when he heard that Canada had been invaded from Detroit and that Fort Maiden was in peril. He promptly dispatched Col. Henry Proctor, of the 41st Militia, with all the men he could spare, to reinforce Maiden. In spite of Hull's inaction the Canadians near the Detroit River flocked to the American standard until he had 500 militia added to his force. While the British reinforcements were on their way west, Capt. Henry Brush, of Chillicothe, Ohio, arrived at the banks of the River Raisin with 230 more volunteers for the defense of Detroit, together with 100 head of fat cattle and other provisions. There he found his progress barred by Tecumseh and a band of Indians and British, who were encamped at Brownstown. Brush sent to General Hull for rein- forcements. Hull at first refused to send an escort for the volunteers and supplies, regardless of the urging of the Ohio soldiery, but he was finally bluffed into compliance. Maj. Thomas B. Van Home, of Colo- 316 nel Findlay's regiment, was then dispatched to the scene of trouble with 200 men. The escort crossed the Detroit River on August 4, and camped that night at Ecorces. Capt. William McCullough was sent ahead of the company with four scouts to beat the bush for the enemy. When near Monguagon, not far from the site of the village of Trenton, they were ambushed in a cornfield. McCullough was shot and scalped before assistance could arrive. A Frenchman, at whose house the Americans stopped for water, told them that a large party of British and Indians were lying in wait for them near Brownstown, but the men were so disgusted with the timid policy of Hull that they paid little heed to the warning. They were ambushed in the brush at the out- skirts of Brownstown, and a deadly fire was poured into their ranks, throwing the troops' into confusion. They were compelled to fall back as far as Ecorces, with a loss of seventeen killed and several wounded ; some of the latter became prisoners and were probably scalped. Dis- patches which were carried for transmission to Washington, and letters to friends of the soldiers in Ohio, were captured by the enemy, reveal- ing the disaffection in the army. These letters showed up the charac- ter of Hull, and if the British needed more encouragement than had already been given, it was thus afforded. Major Van Home sent to Detroit for 500 men to assist them in bringing Brush and his men to the fort. General Hull said he could only spare 100, but such a force would have been worse than useless and Van Home returned. In order to quell the rising mutiny in his ranks General Hull, on August 7, promised to advance against Maiden immediately with all his forces. All soldiers were instructed to join their commands, prepared for active service, at once, and the men were once more filled with enthusiasm. That night, instead of advancing toward Maiden, Hull ordered the army to return across the river to Detroit, thus abandoning the rein- forcements from the Canadian militia to the tender mercy of the British and Indians. In answer to vehement protests against complete evacuation General Hull modified the order so that Major Denny was left on Canadian soil with 150 invalids and convalescents, and a small corps of artillerists, who were all practically without support. They took up their quarters in the Gowris homestead at Sandwich. News of .Proctor's approach had reached Detroit. General Hall sent Lieut. Dixon Stansbury and Ensign Robert McCabe with a force of Ohio volunteers; Capt. Antoine Dequindre with sixty Frenchmen of his command; Lieut. John L. 317 Eastman with a six-pound cannon and a gun crew ; Lieut. James Daliba with a howitzer and crew; and detachments of Smith's and Sloan's cavalry to escort Captain Brush to Detroit. Lieutenant Colonel Miller was given command of this company of 600 men, and Captains Brevoort and Abram F. Hull, son of the general, were his aides. The men were eager to wipe out the disgrace of Van Home's defeat. Maj. Thompson Maxwell went ahead with the scouts, while Capt. Josiah Snelling, of the regular army, followed with a support of forty men. Behind came the troops in three columns, the cavalry occupying the center, while the horses dragged the cannon over the marshy ground. They saw the first Indians near Monguagon. At this place a farmer, who had joined the expedition on horseback, strayed too far away from the main body, and was shot and scalped by some savages who were hidden near Walk-in the-Water's house. A few minutes later an ambush of 100 British regulars, 100 Canadian militia and about 300 Indians, under Major Muir, opened fire upon the Americans. The vanguard under Captain Snelling sustained this fire and answered it pluckily while the main body hurried up. Miller ordered a charge ; and a volley of grape shot was turned against the enemy as soon as the cannon could be trained upon the hiding places. Captain Dequindre charged along the river bank, where part of the savages were posted, and drove them back. The British, thinking the Indians to be allies of the Americans, poured a volley into the demoralized savages and completed their rout. The savages, in a panic, fought friend and foe alike until they had broken away from the front. The resulting confusion scared the Brit- ish and Canadians, who were expecting a flank attack, and they fled after the savages. Tecumseh and his lieutenants. Lame Hand and Splitlog, were left to bear the brunt of the shock. They held their warriors in line and fought with splendid valor, while the British, in spite of the efforts of Major Muir and the other officers to rally them, broke for their boats and rowed away toward Maiden. The Indians finally broke cover and were pursued by Snelling and the cavalry for two miles into the oak forest. The Americans lost eighteen men killed and fifty-seven wounded, the worst damage having been inflicted by the first volley. The British had twenty-four regulars wounded and one killed, but the Indians and Canadian militia lost over sixty killed, and many were wounded. In this skirmish both Major Muir and Tecumseh were slightly wounded. Miller sent a messenger to Detroit to tell of his victory and ask for 318 supplies. Colonel McArthur was dispatched down the river with IQO men and 600 rations, which they carried in small boats. In the dark- ness they escaped detection by the Queen Charlotte and the Hunter, which were guarding the river, and delivered their rations to Miller opposite Grosse He. Then the wounded were carried to the boats to be taken back to Detroit, but it was impossible to make the journey by daylight, on account of the two armed brigs which were waiting at the bend of the river about four miles above. An attempt to slip through failed, and the boats were pulled to the shore, where the wounded were landed and taken to Detroit in wagons. The British sailors seized the empty boats before Colonel Cass could come to the rescue. Lieutenant-Colonel Miller had been thrown from his horse and severely hurt during the battle, so he was unable to proceed to the River Raisin. Colonel Cass arrived at Monguagon and sent a dispatch to Detroit, which said: "Miller is sick; may I relieve him?" No answer came from Hull and Cass started back to get permission to continue the march, when a messenger met him with order to bring the entire expedition back to Detroit. All this time Capt. Henry Brush was left at the Raisin, exposed to attack from overwhelming numbers. The soldiers of the Detroit force said they would make Miller commander, but he refused to coun- tenance a mutiny. Cass wrote to Gov. Return J. Meigs, of Ohio, ask- ing him to come to the relief of Detroit. Cass, Findlay, Elijah Brush, McArthur and Taylor signed the letter, and every officer at Detroit would also have signed it'had he been asked. Hull was half the time shut up in his private room, holding converse with no one except his dissipated son, Capt. Abram F. Hull. His men could not decide whether he had become an imbecile or a traitor. General Brock raised money by contributions and soldiers by enlist- ment, and arrived at Maiden to join Proctor August 13, bringing a boat expedition of thirty regulars and 300 militia from Long Point on Lake Erie. A force of Mohawk warriors made the journey by land. When he arrived at Maiden the news was carried quickly to the Indian camp on Bois Blanc Island, and the savages fired a noisy feu de joie in his honor. " What troops are those? " asked Brock. " Those are Tecumseh's warriors," he was informed. "Ah! I must see Tecumseh very soon." Colonel Elliott put off in a boat and brought the great chief over to the mainland, where he was 319 introduced to the new commander. Next morning Brock and Tecum- seh held a "big talk" in the presence of about 1,000 Indians. The general announced his intention of moving immediately upon Detroit, and prophesied its speedy capture. Tecumseh was fired with enthu- siasm and made a speech which set his warriors in a frenzy. Then he talked with General Brock aside. When the meeting was over Brock said to those about him: " A more sagacious or a more gallant warrior does not, I believe, exist." General Brock proceeded immediately to Sandwich, which had been abandoned by Major Denny and his invalids three days before. A battery was erected opposite Detroit. The Americans begged for the privilege of firing upon the enemy, but Hull would not permit it, and so the works which might have been prevented with comparative ease, went on to completion. Hull sent another ex- pedition of 350 men to escort Captain Brush up the river, but when the men were half way on their journey they were called back to Detroit. When the British batteries had been planted and a row of eighteen pounders was trained upon the American fort. General Brock sent Lieutenant-Colonel McDonnell and Major Glegg from the Canadian side of the river, with a written demand for the surrender of Detroit. Brock added a covert threat to the demand, saying: "You must be aware, sir, of the number of Indians who have attached themselves to my command, and knowing their characteristics in warfare you must appreciate how impossible it will be to control their passions should they once become seriously engaged." After two hours consultation with the messengers Hull replied: "I am compelled to inform you that I am ready to meet any force which may be at your disposal, and any consequences which may result from its execution in any way you may think proper to use it." He added some apologies for the depredations of the American troops on Canadian soil. Major Jesup asked Hull for a small battery to take down to Spring- wells to drive the Queen Charlotte away, but was refused. He then offered to take 100 men and steal across to the poorly manned British batteries opposite Detroit and spike their guns, but Hull would not listen to the proposition. The commander shut himself in his room to avoid the importunities of his officers. In the afternoon of the same day the British battery opened on the fort, and the Ohio troops who had been encamped a short distance north on the common, were ordered inside. Then the Indians swarmed over the river from Canada, landing below Springwells, and came up toward Detroit. The fort answered 320 'y^ J Jh:. .^ the fire from across the river with spirit, and disabled two . of the enemy's gixns. Next morning, August 16, the British crossed the river and landed at Springwells. Hull refused to allow a battery to be sent to oppose the landing. Tecumseh, with Colonels Elliott and McKee, had already crossed with 600 Indians. After eating their breakfast leisurely the British marched toward Detroit, but with no cannon. Brock rode about 300 yards ahead of his troops, as if he were on his way to dress parade. Two twenty-four-pounders had been placed in the fort where they could easily sweep away the approaching column. Beside them stood 400 rounds of shot, shell and grape, while 100,000 rounds of other ammunition were ready for the defense. The guns had been loaded with grape .shot, and Lieutenant Anderson had been placed in charge of the battery with orders from Hull to hold his fire until ordered to open on the enemy. An impetuous soldier who saw an opportunity for enfilading the enemy, sprang forward with a match to fire a cannon, but Anderson rushed at him with drawn sword and threatened to cut him down if he dared to fire a gun without orders. This was about 10 o'clock a. m., two hours before the surrender. Shots from the battery over the river began tearing through the wooden palings of the fort; one ball killed Lieutenant Hancks, late of Mackinaw, Lieutenant Sibley and Dr. Reynolds. Dr. Blood was dangerously wounded. Blood spattered all around and the frightened women, who had been huddled into a bomb proof, shrieked with terror. Another shot tore through the south gate, killing two soldiers. An officer of the Michigan militia rushed into General Hull's quarters, and asked if the enemy was to be allowed to take possession without an attempt at defense. Hull made no reply, but continued penning a note which he delivered to his .son, Capt. Abram Hull. He told Cap- tain Hull to display a white fiag from the southern ramparts of the fort where it might be seen by Captain Dixon, who commanded the battery across the river. Captain Hull went out of the fort bearing a flag of truce and a letter of capitulation to General Brock, before his intention was suspected by the other officers and soldiers. Without an attempt at defense, without consultation with his subordinates. Gen- eral Hull surrendered Detroit to an inferior force. The soldiers broke into loud curses against their commander, calling him a traitor and a coward. Some of them broke their guns and dashed them to the ground in impotent rage. At that time the soldiers believed that General 331 41 Hull had secretly made complete arrangements with Colonel McDon- nell, the British officer who demanded the surrender of the fort, to turn the place with all its stores over to the enemy, and that the sub- sequent cannonade was merely a ruse to cover the perfidy of their com- mander. In no other way could they reconcile the undisturbed approach of the enemy and the perfect confidence of their commander in exposing himself and his column of infantry to destruction. An- other suspicious circumstance was that Colonels Cass and McArthur were surrendered while they were absent down the river, and also Captain Brush and all his supplies at the River Raisin. When a mes- senger from General Hull informed Colonels Cass and McArthur that they and their troops were prisoners of war, they flew into a passion of rage. They sent word to Brush notifying him of the surrender. Cap- tain Elliott, son of the British Indian agent, went to the Raisin with a squad of men, presented a copy of the capitulation, and demanded the surrender of Brush's men and supplies. With Brush was a company of Ohio volunteers from New Lisbon, O. , under Capt. Thomas Row- land, also on their way to Detroit. When the latter was informed of the situation he shouted "Treason! " and forthwith made Elliott a pris- oner. The whole party started back to Ohio carrying Elliott along, but the latter was released the next day. He rode rapidly back to 'De- troit, and with a party of Indians tried to overtake the retreating vol- unteers, but the latter reached their homes in safety. Rowland was afterward present at the battle of the Thames and after the war was a resident of Detroit until he died. Detroit was formally delivered over to the British commander at noon, August 16, 1812, with its stores and arms, which were much needed by the enemy at the time. Gen. Sir Isaac Brock and his staff appeared in full uniform on the esplanade when the American flag was hauled down, and the blood red banner of Great Britain was raised above Detroit for the second time. A salute was fired from a brass cannon in the fort which bore the following inscription: "Taken at Saratoga on the 17th of October, 1777." The victorious British soldiers were overjoyed at the recovery of this interesting relic thirty-five years after they had lost it in fair field. They declared that it should be further inscribed: "Retaken at Detroit, August 16, 1812," but they were des- tined to lose it again. There was a thundering of cannon far greater and louder than that which had preceded the surrender, for the bat- tery across the river replied to the guns of the fort, and the brig Queen 322 Charlotte sailed up the river discharging- her guns as fast as her crew could load and fire. In the presence of all the assemblage General Brock took off his crimson sash of silk and threw it about Tecumseh, to signify his acknowledgment of the warrior's services. Tecumseh received it with becoming dignity, but did not wear it afterward, as he was too modest to delight in vain show. CHAPTER XLIII. Settlers and Garrison of Fort Dearborn (Chicago) Massacred by Indians — General Harrison Rescues the Garrison of Fort Wayne — General Hull Convicted of Cowardice and Incompetence and Sentenced to be Shot — Sentence Suspended. General Hull and his regulars were held as prisoners of war and taken to Montreal, where they were afterward exchanged. The Ohio volun- teers were taken to the mouth of the Cuyahoga River and released to go to their homes, while the local militia were permitted to disperse and resume their civil occupations. A brig called the Adams had been launched and was nearly rigged for service in the Detroit ship yard. This was taken by the British, renamed the Detroit, and taken to Fort Erie, on the Niagara River, a few weeks later. A company of Amer- icans crossed from Buffalo to Fort Erie on the Niagara, and cut the ship's moorings, with the intent to tow her across the river. They were attacked, however, and their attempt was frustrated. The brig was then set on fire, and, running aground, became a total loss. As soon as Detroit had fallen into the hands of the British, Simon Girty, who still hated the Americans with all the virulence of his nature, came once more to the fort to boast of his deeds in the past and to taunt the captives with their defeat. "You Yankees are a miserable lot," said Girty. " It only takes a good handful of British regulars to whip you ; you've gone the length of your tether now and Great Britain is going to get the whole country back again." " Say, Girty," retorted a Michigan volunteer, " you seemed to be in a hurry when you went away from Detroit last time. Did you begin to feel your hair loosening when you jumped your black mare off the high bank and made her swim the river with you? " 333 "Guess you'd a jumped if you'd seen old Wayne and his devilish cut-throats coming after you, and no other way of getting out of their reach." "What ever became of the black mare that saved your neck? " "Oh Lord, she died years ago; good mare that. I didn't let the crows pick her bones, but buried her with military honors. " Simon Girty was born in 1741. His father, who bore the same name, was a dissipated Irishman who settled in an early day on the banks of the Susquehanna River, where he reared a family of four sons. Dur- ing one of his numerous debauches he was killed by an Indian named "The Fish." John Turner, a neighbor of the Girtys, avenged his death by killing " The Fish " and then he took compensation by marry- ing the widow. During the Indian troubles of 1756 in Pennsylvania, one year after Braddock's defeat. Turner and his family were captured by some French Indians who took him with his wife, his little son and and the four Girty boys, his stepsons, to Kittanning, Pa. There they stripped Turner, tied him to the stake, and tortured him to death by thrusting red hot gun barrels through his body. Mrs. Turner and her boys were compelled to sit close by and witness the awful proceedings. The mother and the boys were then divided among the Indian tribes, Simon going to the Senecas, with whom he lived for several years. James was brought up by the Shawnees, and George by the Delawares. After making his escape from the Indians Simon became a soldier at Fort Pitt, and served as an Indian agent for the Americans. His de- sertion, and his services rendered the British afterward, have already been related. This is why he was called the renegade, and not because he associated with the Indians. When the war of 1812 broke out he was a white haired old man, broken down by intemperance ; he was also crippled by rheumatism and almost blind. His home was on a farm near Amherstburg, given by the British government. Owing to his intemperance and his dangerous temper when drunk, his wife was compelled to leave him and he went east for three years, making his home among the Mohawks at Burlington Heights, Canada, near Lake Ontario. He returned to Maiden or Amherstburg in 1816, blind and almost helpless, making his home at the hotel of his son-in-law, Peter Govereau. Whenever he could obtain liquor he still drank, but he was no longer dangerous, and his wife came back to comfort his last days. On February 15, 1818, he was attacked with a severe illness and he died three days later, aged seventy-seven years. He was buried on his 324 own land on what is now known as the Mickle farm, two miles below Amherstburg, on the bank of Lake Erie, and a squad of British soldiers fired a salute over his grave. In his prime he was of stout build, five feet nine inches in height and of very swarthy complexion. He had piercing black eyes set quite close together, and his face was disfigured by a long scar across the forehead, which it was said was the result of the assault made upon him by George Lewis. Through the incompetence of General Hull the Americans suffered more than the loss of Detroit. Fort Dearborn had been erected on the Chicago River, and it was garrisoned by Capt. Nathan Heald, Lieut. L. T. Helm, Ensign George Ronan and a garrison of fifty-four men. Several families of settlers lived within a mile of the fort, most of them being gathered closely about it. Tecumseh's confederacy had drawn in the Potawatomies and Winnebagoes, the neighboring tribes of Indians, and early in the summer of 1813 they began to act in a sus- picious manner. As the fort was provisioned for a siege of six months and had plenty of powder and ammunition, the garrison paid little at- tention to the hostility, and merely kept close watch to guard against the admission of Indians to the fort. In April a family, named Lee, was massacred not far from the fort by the Indians, and this made the soldiers and settlers more wary. Winnemeg (the Catfish), a friendly Potawatomie chief, brought a message from General Hull on the even- ing of August 7, which advised Captain Heald to abandon the fort if it was possible and get away, and to take refuge at Fort Wayne, in Indi- ana. The soldiers and settlers counseled against it, as they were sure to be attacked by the Indians at the first opportunity. They had also received a number of warnings from friendly chiefs. Heald, however, was a slave to duty, and he resolved to obey at any cost. He held a council with the Indians and told them of his intention. To insure their friendship he promised to turn over all the stores of the fort to them. That night he emptied all the powder into the river and turned all the liquors in the fort into a well. The Indians learned of this and were furious. A band of 500 Potawatomies offered to act as escort, and just as they were about to start, Captain Wells, who had been brought up among the Miamis as the adopted son of Little Turtle, ap- peared with a small band of Miamis. He came to assist the garrison in defending itself against the hostile tribes, but when he learned that the ammunition had been destroyed, and the other stores given to the Indians, he declared: "We are all as good as murdered. Not a man 325 of us will escape alive, for the Potawatomies have planned to destroy every white person in the region." He resigned himself to his fate, blackening his face with wet gunpowder in the Indian fashion, in order to show that he was doomed. The garrison started out, but before they had gone two miles the Potawatomies turned upon them and be- gan killing them right and left. A young brave jumped into a wagon containing two women and twelve children, and tomahawked every one of them. The soldiers made the best defense they could, and the women fought with swords and muskets as well as the men. Twenty- six soldiers. Captain Wells, Surgeon Van Voorhis and Ensign Ronan were massacred. Kenzie, a Detroit trader, was the only male settler who was spared. Th6 fort was burned and Chicago was left desolate for four years. Fort Wayne and Fort Harrison, both in Indiana, were afterward besieged, and nothing but the timely approach of General Harrison saved them from destruction. Colonel Proctor, at Maiden, offered a reward for every American scalp the Indians would bring him, and the eagerness of the savages for rum made them diligent mur- derers. William Hull's name has gone down in history with disgrace and dis- honor. Col. Lewis Cass went to Washington during the winter of 1812, and laid charges against him before the War Department, alleg- ing incompetence, cowardice and treason. Hull, who had returned to his farm after being released at Montreal, appeared for trial in 1813, ' but President Madison for some unknown reason dismissed the court. Another court martial was held at the beginning of 1814, which lasted eighty days. The charge of treason was beyond the jurisdiction of the court and it could not be sustained by the evidence, but Hull was found guilty of cowardice and incompetence, and was sentenced to be shot. His name was struck from the roll of the army. President Madison pardoned him and he retired to his farm to spend the rest of his days in obscurity. He protested to the last that he had done nothing at Detroit which was not fully warranted by the circumstances, and said that he preferred to be considered a coward and a traitor rather than subject his soldiers and the families of the Detroit settlers to an Indian massacre. Hull was probably cautious to the verge of cowardice, a characteristic which made him overestimate the perils in his pathway. The least that can be said of him is that he was utterly unfit for a military command, however effective he may have been under authority. He died at Newton, Mass., in November, 1825, aged seventy-three years. 326 Congress began to prepare for the recovery of Detroit. Governor Harrison, of Indiana, was authorized to raise volunteers in Kentucky for the Army of the Northwest, and he was assisted in the duty by Richard M. JohnsoQj who, in company with John Logan and William S. Hunter, were appointed aides to the general. They called for 500 mounted men from Kentucky, while Gen. Robert Crooks asked for 2,000 from Pennsylvania, and Gen. Joel Leftwich undertook to muster 1,500 from Western Virginia. A portion of these forces joined near Dayton, Ohio, and a messenger arrived bearing Governor Harrison's commission as brigadier-general. He was ordered to take command of all the forces in the territories of Indiana and Illinois, and to co- operate with Governor Howard of Missouri. This order was confusing, for Gen. James Winchester had already been appointed to the position of commander-in-chief of the Army of the Northwest. It was not a time for delay, however, and Harrison pushed forward with all possible speed to rescue the beleagured garrison at Fort Wayne. He arrived there September 12, but the Indians had been aware of his approach and fled toward Detroit. Then he resolved to strike a telling blow at the Indians, and his troops were sent from village to village of the Potawatomies to burn their winter homes and to destroy their crops, so that they would be reduced to starvation during the coming winter. On September 18, 1812, General Winchester arrived at Fort Defiance, Ohio, to take general command. He was a veteran of the Revolution, and had been living on a large estate in Tennessee for nearly thirty years It was a long time since he had had experience in military affairs, and the soldiers distrusted him as much as they trusted "Old Tippecanoe" (Harrison), who had led them to victory. Winchester was a man of wealth, and his pompous bearing irritated the raw volun- teers gathered from the farms and settlements of the frontier. General Harrison, who was at Fort Defiance, addressed the soldiers and told them to do their duty no matter who commanded. He went back into Ohio to recruit more men and to meet Richard M. Johnson, who was coming up with more mounted Kentuckians. General Winchester set out down the Maumee River on September 19. Two days later orders came to General Harrison, granting him chief command, with full dis- cretion as to his movements against the enemy. Winchester was wait- ing at Fort Defiance on the Maumee for Harrison to join him, when, on September 27, he found a force of 200 British regulars under Major Muir, and a band of 1,000 Indians under Colonel Elliott, in front of his 327 position. The enemy had four pieces of artillery, and were working their way up the Maumee to capture Fort Wayne. Muir captured an American sergeant named McCoy, who gave him an exaggerated account of the American force, and told him that a still larger force was approaching. Muir resolved to give battle before reinforcements arrived and arranged his boats for escape in case of a defeat. To his intense disgust, his Indian allies, after hearing McCoy's big stories, scampered for the woods, and the expedition was compelled to retreat down the river and return to Maiden. General Winchester remained at Fort Defiance with the advance guard of the army, while General Harrison was busy recruiting more men from Ohio and the surrounding territories. That fall an army of 3,000 men, enough to recapture De- troit, was ready for the field, but the campaign was deferred because the troops lacked supplies and munitions of war for maintaining the post through the winter. Should they capture Detroit and then be compelled to abandon it, the peaceful residents would be massacred by the Indians. The fall expeditions were limited to destroying Indian villages, and throwing the Indian allies upon the British garrison for support. In the mean time the settlers along the Detroit River and all about Detroit were plundered by the savages, and many of them were driven from their homes in spite of the promise of protection given by General Brock, who had returned to Niagara. Colonel Elliott had established his headquarters at Frenchtown, with 400 Indians, under Chiefs Walkin-the Water and Roundhead, and 200 Canadian militia under Major Reynolds. They also had a howitzer, and were protected by a stockade. Thirty families of settlers who lived at Frenchtown, on the Raisin, had been plundered of nearly all they had, and the Indians began to threaten their lives. The Indians who had been driven out of ' the Indiana region began to gather there, to take vengeance upon the settlers in retaliation for the depredations of the soldiers. Frightened messengers came to General Winchester at Fort Defiance asking for protection. It was a perilous undertaking, because every advance down the Maumee had been opposed by Indians, but Colonel Lewis was dispatched with 550 men, and Colonel Allen with 110, to attempt the protection of the settlers. The troops made the journey in January, crossing the Maumee and several wide morasses on the ice. They found the enemy on the alert, drawn up behind their pickets on the north bank of the Raisin, but they charged across on the ice regardless of the booming howitzer, scaled the pickets and drove 328 GEORGE WILLIAM MOORE. the Canadians and Indians to the woods. The Americans lost twelve killed and fifty-five wounded. The enemy left fifteen dead on the open field, but their wounded were helped into the woods. General Winchester then came on to Frenchtown, with 300 men and Col. Sam- uel Wells. No more could be spared from the Maumee. CHAPTER XLIV. Massacre of Winchester's Troops at the River Raisin — Victims of an Incompetent Commander and a Treacherous Enemy — Humane Residents of Maiden Ransom Prisoners from the Indians. General Winchester established his headquarters at the house of Col. Francis Navarre, which was over a mile away from the town and on the opposite side of the river. Peter Navarre and his four brothers were sent to reconnoiter at the mouth of Detroit River, where they learned, on January 31, that a large force was coming from Maiden to recapture Frenchtown, and was expected to cross on the ice that night. The pompous old general laughed scornfully at the intelligence and took no precautions, thinking his way was now clear to Detroit. Jacques Lasalle, a French resident, whose daughter by an Indian squaw had married an English officer named Colwell, and who sympa- thized with the British, "insisted that it could not be true. Winchester believed him. General Lewis heard next day that the enemy had crossed the Detroit River, and arrived at Stony Creek, with several pieces of artillery. He doubled his pickets, while Colonel Wells hur- ried back to the Maumee for reinforcements. Owing to the severity of the weather no outposts were maintained on the roads and the camp passed the night in fancied security. At 5 o'clock next morning the British and Indians under Colonel Proctor, who had unperceived planted batteries within 300 yards of the American troops, opened fire upon the camp, discharging shells and grape shot. When the sleepy soldiers were hurrying about in the wildest confusion, a body of British regulars charged among them, and the Indians and Canadian militia attacked on both flanks. General Winchester came up and tried to re- store order, but the soldiers scattered across the Raisin and the fleet- 329 42 footed Indians cut them down as they fled, tearing the scalps from their heads for the promised ransom. The British numbered 500, and had four pieces of artillery, and there were 600 Indians. General Winchester and Colonel Lewis were captured and stripped of their coats and vests. Majors Graves and Madison, who were stationed on the left wing, had been fortunate in holding their men steady, and they had repelled every assault against them from behind a picketed garden. Their riflemen picked off^ the British artilleymen so fast that they were compelled to retire beyond range. A flag of truce came forward in charge of Major Overton, an American soldier of Winchester's staff. The two unbeaten majors were informed that they must lay down their arms, as General Winchester had surrendered the whole command. Proctor had forced General Winchester to issue this order to the brave men who had held the left wing, telling him that unless it was done the whole force would be given over to massacre by the Indians. The old general, sickened by the butchery of the wounded he had been compelled to witness, issued the order. "It is customary for the Indians to massacre all prisoners taken in your wars " said Major Madison. " I prefer to sell my life as dearly as possible, and shall refuse to surrender unless the protection of all the prisoners shall be stipulated. " Colonel Proctor flew into a passion. "Sir! do you pretend to dic- tate to me ? " said he. " I mean to dictate for myself," said Madison. " Rather than sub- mit to a massacre in cold blood I prefer to fight to the last. " Proctor then promised that the prisoners should be fully protected, and Madison and Graves surrendered. It was promised that sleds should be brought from Maiden next day to remove the wounded. Captain Hart, a brother-in-law of Henry Clay, was among the captive Kentuckians, and asked permission to accompany the troops when they left for Maiden, but Colonel Elliott told him to stay at Frenchtown where he would be perfectly safe. He was murdered next day. The villagers opened their houses to the wounded, but the sufferings of the American volunteers were not ended. Arrived at Stony Creek on his way back to Maiden, Proctor, according to promise, rewarded the Indians with all the rum they wanted, and they then returned to Frenchtown for a carnival of slaughter. Two hundred savages, crazed with rum and painted like demons, came whooping into the village next morning, January 33, and began to slaughter the wounded. The 330 trading houses of Jean B. Jerome and Gabriel Godfroy were filled with wounded volunteers. The savages closed the doors of the two build- ings and set both on fire. As the flames crackled and enveloped the buildings they danced with glee. Some of the wounded crawled out through the flames, only to be scalped and thrown back, and some who were sheltered in other houses were brought out, scalped alive, and then thrown into the burning buildings More than sixty wounded prisoners were roasted to death in the burning houses, and the village street was strewn with mangled bodies. A defense, or rather an ex- cuse, for this terrible massacre, is sometimes told by the Caldwells of Amherstburg. William Caldwell, the progenitor of the family in that town, has already been alluded to. He was a brave soldier in the Revolutionary war in the South, and shortly after the war ended came to Amherstburg. His four sons, William, Thomas, Francis and Billy, were all British officers in the war of 1813. Billy was his natural son by an Indian woman, but was reared and educated with his other sons. Billy, however, joined his mother's people, and was made chief of the Potawatomies, and by the family influence he and his warriors joined the British army. It is asserted that Billy unintentionally caused the massacre of the Raisin. When the Kentucky soldiers were sur- rounded. Captain Billy sprang forward and advised them to surrender. Unfortunately in his excitement he spoke in the Potawatomie tongue, and his mptive being misinterpreted, a Kentucky soldier drove his hunt- ing knife through his neck. In revenge the Indians slaughtered over one hundred Kentuckians. But this account, even if a fact, does not palliate the barbarity and murder. The massacre did not take place during the fight, but the next day, when the Kentucky soldiers were wounded prisoners and unarmed. In the engagement at Frenchtown, 397 Americans lost their lives, the number killed in battle and those subsequently massacred in cold blood, being nearly equal. During the fight the marksmanship of the Kentuckians told against the enemy, as 183 of the whites were either killed or wounded. On the dreary march to Maiden the prisoners suf- fered severely. They were surrounded by yelling Indians who offered them every possible indignity, and when one of the captives became too weak to keep in line with the others a tomahawk crashed into his brain and his scalp was torn off as a trophy. Other mutilations too shocking to mention were inflicted, and the bodies were left along the road to be eaten by the hogs of the settlers. Captains Hart, Mc- 331 Cracken and Woolfolk and Ensign Wells were thus butchered on the road, and some French residents who discovered the bodies, gave them decent burial, regardless of the orders of the Indians to leave them to rot above ground. ' A number of prisoners who escaped from the hands of the Indians owed their lives to Cols. Francis Baby and Elliott, Captains Aikens, Curtish and Barrow; Rev. Richard Pollard, the Episcopal clergyman of Maiden, and Major Muir, who was a brave man and a true soldier. Judge Augustus B. Woodward, Col. Elijah Brush, Henry J. Hunt, Richard Jones, James May, Maj. Stephen Mack, Col. Gabriel Godfroy, Robert Smart, Dr. William Brown, Oliver W. Miller, Antoine Dequin- dre, Peter J. Desnoyers, John McDonnell, Peter Audrain, Duncan Reid, Alexander Macomb, and a number of ladies, all of Detroit, were active in ransoming prisoners. In order to stimulate the bidding of those who were ransoming prisoners, the Indians wantonly slaugh- tered four prisoners in the presence of the spectators immediately after bringing a band of thirty into. Maiden. Major Graves, one of the men who made the heroic stand beside Madison, and who had sur- rendered under promise of protection, was butchered while running the gauntlet in the Indian camp. For such feats of arms Colonel Proctor was made a brigadier-general, but his name will be forever infamous. A thaw followed, and owing to the terrible condition of the roads between Fort Defiance and the River Raisin, it was impossible for General Harrison to come to the rescue. Of course, had General Win- chester been vigilant he would not have been surprised. He might have made a successful stand in spite of the advantage of artillery pos- sessed by the enemy, for the main body of nearly 1,000 men might have accomplished as much as the heroic left wing under Madison and Graves. As in the case of Generals Harmar, St. Clair and Hull, his official neglect of duty and incompetence caused a heavy loss to the na- tion. General Harrison started to go to the rescue of Winchester as soon as he learned he was in danger of attack, but before he was well on his way the news came that the whole force had been destroyed. Very few of the younger generation of Michigan realize how much their ancestors owe to the gallant sons qf Kentucky. These men were the best riflemen and the ablest scouts in the country, and they were among the best pioneer soldiers. Never a call on Kentucky for de- fenders of the country that the response did not exceed the demand. The Kentuckians followed George Rogers Clark into the Illinois country 332 and captured it. They crossed the Ohio many times to rescue Ihe bor- der settlers from Indian and British raiders. They left their bones on the soil of Ohio and Indiana when Generals Harmar and St. Clair led them to defeat, and they were valiant fighters under General Wayne when he won Detroit and the West. General Harrison had their ser- vices at Tippecanoe and at the River Raisin, but next year they rallied 3,5.00 strong to win the battle of the Thames. The bones of the Kentuckians who were slaughtered at the Raisin lay in the soil where they fell for six years. In 1818 Governor Cass had the remains brought to Detroit, where they were buried with mili- tary honors. It was an easy matter to identify them, for each one had the tell-tale cleft of the Indian tomahawk in the skull. The remains of these brave men reposed in two Detroit cemeteries until 1849, when, by the instrumentality of Edward Brooks, a prominent Detroiter and collector of customs from 1841 to 1845, they were removed to the soil from whence they sprang. Peace to their asheS; immortality to their fame! CHAPTER XLV. The Campaign in Northern Ohio — Gallant Defenses Made by Gen. William H. Harrison and Maj. George Croghan^Oliver Hazard Perry Plans to Control Lake Erie — Builds a Fleet of Ships at Erie. Harrison prepared to pass the winter at Fort Meigs, which had been constructed at the Rapids of the Maumee, and Proctor at Maiden was preparing to make a descent upon that place as soon as the ice in the river would permit. A small expedition was sent uut from Fort Meigs, with the intention of crossing to Maiden on the ice, to burn the British brigs and gunboats which were frozen up at the mouth of the Detroit River, but the weather became mild and the ice broke up in the lake, making it impossible. Proctor promised Tecumseh and the Prophet another brilliant vic- tory and all the spoils of Fort Meigs, as soon as spring would open the way for an attack, and the chiefs collected more than 2,000 warriors at Maiden in readiness. The British forces were collected early in April, 1813, and embarking in brigs and gunboats, sailed up Maumee Bay, 333 landing near old Fort Miami. They were provided with artillery and a force much superior to Harrison's, so the latter sent Peter Navarre to Gen. Green Clay, at Fort Defiance, for reinforcements. The British attacked Fort Meigs on May 1. Harrison protected his men by strong embankments inside the stockade, and having very little ammunition, returned but few shots in answer to the continuous cannonade from the batteries of the enemy across the river. After a terrible suspense, during four days of incessant cannonade, the messenger returned with the news that the reinforcements were approaching and would probably arrrive on the fpllowing morning. Proctor grew discouraged and was ready to abandon the siege, when Tecumseh offered a suggestion : "My white brother, I think it can be easily done ; let me take my young men and cross below the fort, and then go around in the rear of the Ameri- cans where we will make a great sham fight." " What would that accomplish?" asked Proctor. "Why," answered Tecumseh, "the Americans would think that the Long Knives, who are expected to re- inforce them, were being attacked, and they would run out of the fort to help them. We would get in between them and the fort and cut off their retreat to shelter. " Proctor was pleased with the plan and the Indians made their long detour to get in the rear of Fort Meigs. Leav- ing a part of their force concealed in a ravine ready to cut off the Americans if the latter left the fort, another party went farther away and began a tremendous uproar, shooting as rapidly as they could load and fire, and yelling like fiends. The soldiers in the fort wanted to go out to the rescue of their supposed comrades, and would have fallen easily into the trap, but the wary Harrison realized that it was impossi- ble for the reinforcements to have arrived so early and he forbade the sortie. A few rounds of solid shot were fired into the woods and the Indians stopped the sham battle. Tecumseh and Proctor were greatly chagrined at the failure of the plan. The Kentuckians arrived, and with the troops in the garrison made some fierce sorties. In one of these which was headed by Colonel Dudley, they met with disaster. Dudley made a brilliant flank attack on a British battery, spiked the guns and pursued the supporting troops. But he was reckless and went too far, and was surrounded by the Indians under Tecumseh. Dudley was killed and scalped and out of his 800 men only 170 returned to Fort Meigs. But Harrison made other sorties and his defense became so formidable that the Indians became disheartened and a number of them deserted. The siege was raised and Proctor retreated with his prisoners in great 334 haste, for he had learned of the American successes of Commodore Chauncey, who had captured Fort George at the mouth of the Niagara River on Lake Ontario, and which had caused the British to abandon Fort Erie opposite Buffalo. The prisoners taken in the American sortie were driven toward , Fort Maiden, but many were murdered and scalped on the route. When the remainder arrived at Fort Maiden they were turned over by Proctor to the savages, but after twenty-four had been killed, Tecumseh stopped the butchery. The prisoners were confined in a stockade and the noble chief, pipe-tomahawk in hand, walked around the inclosure all night to prevent his bloodthirsty warriors from climbing over and butchering the unfortunates. Drake, in his life of Tecumseh, describes the scene when the prison- ers had been landed and stripped of most their clothing. The Indians formed a double rank and made the prisoners run the gauntlet, while they lunged at them with scalping knives and cut them down with tomahawks. Tecumseh saw from a distance what was going on and rushed forward with a shout and stopped the savage sport. "Where is Proctor? " he roared in a passion. Proctor stepped forward. "Why don't you stop this butchery? " he demanded. " Your warriors cannot be controlled," replied Proctor. " Bah! " shouted Tecumseh, "you're not fit to command men; go and put on petticoats." Proctor was denounced for this cruelty by Gen. Sir George Prevost and by all fair-minded and humane communities. The British govern- ment, however, rewarded success without inquiring too particularly as to methods, and Proctor was honored with promotion. No greater con- trast could be drawn than that between Proctor and Gen. Sir Isaac Brock. The latter, after fighting with the courage of a lion at Queens- ton Heights, where, rallying his panic stricken regiments to turn from their flight and win a victory, he fell mortally wounded on October 13, 1812, but a few weeks after he left Detroit. When his remains were borne to the grave the American army across the river, harboring no personal resentment against the conqueror of Detroit and the victor at Queenston, fired minute guns from their batteries along the Niagara shore to do him honor. In the spring of 1813 Proctor and his agents raised a troop of 5,000 men| composed of 3,500 Indians, 400 regulars and the remainder Cana- dian militia. They crossed to the mouth of the Maumee to attack Fort Meigs again, but turned aside to reduce Fort Stevenson on the San- 335 dusky River. Maj. George Croghan was in command of 160 men at the fort. He was cut off from retreat and refused to risk his men to an Indian massacre by surrendering. So well did he defend the place against fearful odds, that the British were compelled to retreat, leaving 120 men dead on the field. The Indians would not fight in the open, so the British regulars were compelled to make the assaults unaided, and they were the ones who suffered. At last the tide of war began to turn in the West as the'Americans gathered strength and experience. An heroic figure was looming up in the East whose gallantry was destined to shed eternal lustre upon the arms of his nation. Oliver Hazard Perry was then a } Dung naval officer, and was stationed at Newport, R. I. The American navy on the ocean was scanty in ships, but there was an abundance of able com- manders. Perry saw that there was little chance for a twenty-seven- years old captain to win distinction on the sea, so he applied for a' command on the great lakes, where the Americans were ju?t obtaining a footing. Lake Ontario had fallen into the hands of the Americans through the efforts of Commodore Chauncey. It was this distinguished officer who appointed Perry to the command of Lake Erie. With 150 picked men ffom Newport, Perry went to Presqu' He, ths, present site of Erie, Pa. The French name of the place is significant, meaning " almost an island." A low peninsula of land juts out into the lake a distance of five miles at this point. Between this peninsula and the mainland is the harbor, the entrance to which at that time was very narrow and tortuous, offering unusual advantages for defense. Perry arrived there March 27, 1813, and found the shore of the harbor strewn with felled trees and hewn timbers, which a company of ship carpen- ters were fashioning into rude vessels. Two twenty-gun brigs, a clip- per schooner, and three small gunboats were in process of construc- tion. While a sharp lookout was kept for British cruisers, the work went on as fast as axe and chisel could fashion the tinfibers. This fleet was intended to accomplish the control of the upper lakes, to recover Detroit and protect the Ohio region from British invasions. Perry went to the mouth of the Niagara in the latter part of May and assisted Commodore Chauncey in the capture of Fort George. Fort Erie was then abandoned and burned, and the British retired from the Niagara district. Perry returned from this expedition with five small vessels which had been tied up in Niagara River, behind Grand Island, to pre- vent their falling into the hands of the enemy. It took the united 336 JOHN T. SHAW. labor of his crews and of 300 soldiers to warp the vessels up to the lake against the strong current of Niagara. His fleet was ready for action July 11, but it was yet to be manned. The 300 soldiers had been ordered back, leaving only the 150 sailors and Capt. Henry B. Brevoort, who was well acquainted with the navigation of the lake. Perry was taken ill with bilious fever and the outlook became desper- ate, for several British vessels were cruising about, waiting for a chance to destroy his vessels. His government little realized the importance of securing control of the lake, and the secretary of war was calling on him to go and co-operate with General Harrison in the Ohio country. Harrison, too, sent word that Perry could not hope for success in a naval battle on Lake Erie, as the overpowering force of the enemy already on the lake was about to be increased by the addition of the Detroit, a ship of much greater strength than any heretofore launched. The British squadron was in command of Capt. Robert H. Barclay, a one-armed Scotch hero who had fought with Nelson at Trafalgar, and was a man of superior skill and unquestioned bravery. Perry wrote to Commodore Chauncey : " Give me men, sir, and I will acquire for you and myself honor and glory on this lake or perish in the at- tempt." One hundred and fifty men were sent, but they were an in- ferior lot and were described by Perry as "a motley lot of blacks, soldiers and boys. " Commodore Chauncey was incensed at this com- plaint, and Harrison and the secretary of war ordered Perry to lead a land expedition toward the Cuyahoga River to unite with Harrison. Commodore Barclay established a strong force at Long Point, Canada, opposite Erie, and the little American fleet was in danger of capture before it could leave the harbor. As there was no promise of improve- ment, Perry resolved to risk all in an attempt to vindicate his purpose. He lightered his ships over the bar and sailed from port in the Lawrence, his flag ship, a brig of twenty guns, on August 1. The Niagara, of twenty guns, was put in charge of Capt. Jesse D. Elliott, who had just arrived with 100 good men to reinforce the 300 sailors and nondescripts. In addition to the two brigs already named, Perry had seven small gun- boats carrying from one to three guns each. As the British fleet had retired to Maiden to await the completion of the Detroit, Perry resolved to attack them in their stronghold, but a return of fever compelled him to retire to Put-in Bay, where he kept up communication with General Harrison, who had moved up to Sandusky. 337 43 CHAPTER XLVI. The Battle of Lake Erie— Fortune Favored the Heaviest Artillery— The Surrender of the British Fleet Leaves the Lakes in Possession of the Americans— Harrison Prepares to invade Canada. On the morning of September 10, 1813, Commodore Barclay sailed down from Maiden to Put-in Bay with six vessels, with an armament of sixty three carriage guns, a pivot bow-chaser, two swivels and four howitzers. Perry's nine vessels carried fifty four carriage guns and two swivels. Barclay had about 500 men, including 150 seamen of the royal navy, 80 Canadian sailors, 240 soldiers and a few Indians. Perry had 116 sick men on board his fleet. These had been working for weeks in the Presqu' He ship yard, where an epidemic of malarial fever had disabled them. Dr. Parsons, the chief surgeon, the chaplain and the commodore's brother, a lad but thirteen years old, were among the sick. For several days the fleet lay at Put-in Bay because the com- mander did not feel able to fight. At 10 o'clock on the morning of September 10, when the six British appeared in the northwest, bearing down toward the islands. Perry ordered all hands to make sail. '' Run to leeward of the islands," said he to Taylor, his sailing master. "But you will have to engage the enemy to leeward," remonstrated Taylor. " I don't care; we are going to fight it out to-day and settle the control of this lake before sundown," answered Perry. He saw that in the variable wind that was blowing he would lose valuable time if he maneuvered to get the weather gage of his opponents, and he resolved to close as quickly as possible and have it out with them. The wind, which came in catspaws, suddenly shifted from the west to the south- west. Com. Robert Heriot Barclay was watching the American fleet, and seeing that he would not have to go and bait his enemy, he hove to off West Sister Island and waited for Perry's approach. Nearest to the island he placed the little sloop Chippewa which was armed with a long 18-pounder and two small swivels. Next to the right was his flagship, the Detroit, of nineteen guns. The third was the Hunter, a brig of 10 guns, while the Queen Charlotte of 17 guns, the Lady Pre- 338 vost of 13 guns, and the schooner Little Belt of 3 guns, made up his line of battle. Commodore Perry drew up his fleet as the wild goose marshals his flock for long flights. He led the van with his flagship, the Lawrence, armed with twenty 12-pounders. On his left was the gunboat Scorpion, carrying a long 33 and a long 13, and the schooner Ariel carrying four short 13-pounders. On his right came the brig Caledonia with three long 34's, the Niagara under Captain Elliott with 20 guns, the Somers with two long 32's, the Porcupine with one long 32, the Tigress with one long 24, and the Trippe with a long 32. Under such conditions it is easy to estimate the relative strength of the two fleets. Perry had 490 men aboard, but 116 of them were sick and not fit for duty. Barclay had about 500 men, some of them incom- petent. Perry had two strongly armed vessels, overmatching anything in the enemy's fleet, although their guns were somewhat inferior in range, and seven small boats carrying one, two and three guns each. In number of men the forces were about equal. Perry had an advan- tage in the number of vessels; Barclay had an advantage in the number of guns ; but the advantage clearly lay with Perry because he had the greater number of heavy guns. Commodore Perry ran his battle flag up to the main peak. It was a square field of blue bearing in white letters the dying words of Captain Lawrence, after whom he had named his flagship: " Don't give up the ship." The stars and stripes were hoisted on the mizzen. As his men were wetting down the docks, sprinkling them with sand to give them a sure footing in the coming fight, and getting the guns ready for action, they could hear the bugle call from the Detroit two miles away. Then they heard the stirring music of fife and drum playing " Rule Britannia; Britannia rules the Wave." They were about to engage an enemy which had the name of being invincible on the sea. The Law- rence was a better sailor in the light winds than the rest of the squadron, and she was some distance ahead of the others at noon. The Detroit fired her long pivot gun, and the shot skipped over the water toward the Lawrence, but fell short. A few minutes later she fired again. A twenty-four pound shot crashed through the bulwarks of the Law- rence throwing the splinters in all directions and passed humming away to plunge into the lake. The greater part of the men were unused to sea fighting and some of them began to look nervous. "Steady, boys; steady!" called Perry, " we're too far away to waste a shot yet. We'll 339 answer them smartly very soon." Lieutenant Champlain was eager to bring the Scorpion ahead of the Lawrence so as to get an opening for his long thirty-two, but while he was doing so two more shots struck the Lawrence. Champlain, who was but twenty-four years of age at the time of the battle, opened the ball for the Americans, hulling the Detroit with a lucky shot. As the Queen Charlotte and Lady Prevost as well as the Detroit, had begun to play upon the Lawrence, Perry gave his gunners the word. They sent a broadside at the enemy, but the shots all fell short and the Lawrence continued to bear down so as to get within range. The Niagara and the five other boats appeared to hesitate about closing in, although Perry signaled them to hurry up. Captain Elliott continued to hold the Niagara at a distance, where only her bow gun was effective. In a few minutes the terrific cannonade of thirty -five guns trained upon the Lawrence, and the twenty-six of Perry's flagship and her little consorts, made such a dense cloud of smoke that it almost hid the two fleets from sight. For two hours the fighting went on until the Lawrence floated a shattered wreck, distant not more than a musket shot from her enemy. Every broadside tore her timbers into huge splinters and her decks were running blood. Out of 103 able men who had gone into action under her flag, 22 lay dead on her deck and 61 were below disabled by wounds. Her spars were all shot away except the stump of her mizzen mast, her decks were covered with tangled rigging, and most of her guns were disabled. Commodore Perry signaled again for the Niagara to come up. Placing the Lawrence in command of Lieut. John J. Yarnall, he took his battle flag in hand and descended into a yawl to be rowed away to the Niagara. The guns of the enemy were turned upon the little boat, while the commodore stood erect in the stern, holding aloft his battle flag to signify that he was still fighting. Shots fell all around them but did no harm except to carry away one oar. As Perry stepped aboard the Niagara all begrimed with powder smoke he shouted to Captain Elliott; " Why are those gunboats so far away?" "I'll go and bring them myself," answered Elliott. "Do so," said Perry who was a man of few words. Just then the Lawrence struck her flag to avoid useless carnage, and the British crews cheered lustily, but the battle was not finished. The Niagara was as yet com- paratively unharmed, and when Perry saw that the Detroit and Lady Prevost had drifted a little apart, leaving an opening for attack, he bore down upon the gap. A strong puff of wind filled his sails at the oppor- 340 tune moment. Passing- between them his crew poured a broadside into each. Champlain followed through the gap with the Scorpion. In maneuvering so- as to avoid becoming raked the Detroit and the Queen Charlotte became fouled, and before they could extricate them- selves Perry sent two raking broadsides into them tearing up their decks, dismounting several guns and killing and wounding many of the crew. The Scorpion raked them again, and the rest of the Ameri- can vessels were preparing to rake when both the entangled vessels struck their flags. A few quick exchanges followed with the other vessels, and then the remainder of the British fleet surrendered. All was still in a moment. The thundering of caunon, which had lasted from noon until 3: 15, was hushed; the thick cloud of sulphurous smoke drifted slowly away to leeward, and as the sun broke through it a thrilling scene was disclosed. The decks of the Lawrence, the Niag- ara, the Scorpion and the Ariel, on the American side, were red with blood, and from the scuppers of the Detroit, the Lady Prevost and the Queen Charlotte, thin red streams ran into the lake. The rigging of the fleet was torn and disordered, and the Lawrence was a mere hulk. From each of the British vessels boats put off bearing the several com- manders, or their representatives, and they were received on board the Niagara. The officers tendered their swords, but Perry with true chivalry waved them back. "No, gentlemen," said he, "put up your swords. You have fought like brave men and it would ill become me to add humiliation to the defeat which Providence has enabled me to give the enemies of my country. How is Commodore Barclay and his men? Our poor fellows are terribly cut up as you may see." Thus it is when heroes meet. The surrender having been made, Perry wrote the historic dispatch on an old letter wrapper, and it was sent to General Harrison at Sandusky: "We have met the enemy, and they are ours; two ships, two brigs, one schooner and one sloop. Yours with great respect and esteem, O. H. Perry." His message to the sec- retary of war was almost as laconic. He merely prefaced his announce- ment by saying: " Sir, it has pleased the Almighty to give to the arms of the United States a signal victory over their enemies on this lake." In the three hours of carnage sixty-eight lives were lost, and 190 were wounded, some of them mortally. In the beginning of the fight the Americans lost the service of 123 men, 27 of whom were killed, but that last bold dash and the tearing broadsides which raked the decks 341 of the enemy had laid low 135 men, forty-one of whom were killed. In this contest the enemy were not at a great advantage as many Americans suppose. While Commodore Barclay had more guns and a few of longer range than Perry's, the latter had nine vessels to Barclay's six. Barclay had perhaps the larger crew, but most of his guns were light. Theodore Roosevelt, in his work, "The Naval War of 1813," shows that Perry could throw 936 pounds of shot at a broad- side, while Barclay could reply with 459 pounds, and with this potent advantage the Americans must either win or be disgraced. Proctor and Tecumseh were waiting at Maiden for the report of the fight. If the victory was theirs they intended to devastate the Ohio settlements. A force of 2,000 Indians was ready for the work. On the Ohio shore, from the Cuyahoga River to the Maumee, the settlers- were awaiting in dreadful suspense the news of the battle. If Perry had lost they must flee for their lives. As soon as the British and Indians, who were waiting on the shore below Maiden, had divined, by some mysterious intuition, that Perry had won the battle on the lake, Tecumseh rallied his men and declared that the Americans should never land on Canadian soil. When he conferred with Proctor he found that worthy in what the British call a " blue funk." "We must retreat at once," said Proctor; "We have no alternative; the enemy is about to attack us. They have a force three times greater than ours and it is impossible to stay and defend this place." Tecumseh was disgusted, but he pleaded with him to remain and at least make a stand against the threatened invasion. A council of war was held, at which Proctor showed irrefragible reasons why Maiden should be evacuated. Tecumseh arose and addressed the council in his broken English, but his words were full of biting sarcasm. "We In- dians have fought your battles in the West for more than twenty years," said he. "We have poured out our blood like water and have not complained. You," said he, pointing scornfully at Proctor, "have seldom bared your breast to the flying bullets. It suits you better to set the scalp-hunters upon helpless prisoners. You have got the guns and the powder and the ball that our father sent for his red children. If you want to go away, give them to us. You may go and welcome. Our lives are in the hand of the Great Spirit. We are determined to defend our lands, and if it is his will we will leave our bones upon them." The late Jean Baptiste Bertrand, who was born at Petit Cote, just 342 above Maiden, in 1802, and who lived to the age of ninety-three years, was a small boy at the time of Perry's victory. General Proctor and his staff and Tecumseh rode on horseback to the lake shore to hear what they could of the battle, and a large number of people followed, Bertrand among the others. " As I remember," related Mr. Bertrand a short time before his death, " Proctor was a very stout built man, so stout that he did not like horseback riding and went in a wagon when he could. He had a full face, very red in color, and wore a big brown beard. He did not have a soldierly appearance like some of the other officers, but was more like a big butcher. During the cannonade the people looked out on the lake with spy-glasses, but could see nothing but a cloud of smoke. When they decided that the British had lost, Tecumseh and Proctor rode back to Maiden, quarreling all the way. As we came to the town a crowd of frightened citizens came down the road to ask how the battle had gone. Tecumseh got off his horse and beckoning to me, for I had often earned two bits by holding his horse, said: 'Come here little boy, and hold my horse.' I took the bridle rein and Tecumseh mounted a big boulder beside the road, which lies there yet. He- held his tomahawk-pipe in his right hand, and his left hand rested upon the stock of his pistol. Pointing to Proctor with a look of scorn on his face he began : ' You cow ! [he meant to say cow- ard] you say you 'fraid they come and kill your sodgers. It not your sodgers you 'fraid of; it yourself.' He evidently meant to insult Proc- tor before all the town. Proctor turned redder than usual and rode away without a word." Mr. Bertrand says that Tecumseh was a slight built man about five feet eight inches tall, and very light colored for an Indian. He did not appear to be a full blooded savage. He sometimes said he had been born in Florida and that his father was a French general. He was a great favorite wherever he went, and talked pleasantly with the people of Maiden on the streets. His general air was that of a morose or sorrowful man, but on speaking his face grew animated, his brilliant eyes sparkled, and his manner was both gracious and polite. He always carried a tomahawk pipe, which he smoked a great deal. 343 CHAPTER XLVII. Proctor Runs Away from Maiden — Tecumseh Taunts Him with Cowardice — The British Evacuate Detroit, Carrying Away the Cannon and Military Stores — Battle of the Thames — Death of Tecumseh — Flight of Proctor. Proctor, who was a coward at heart, set fire to Maiden and its military and naval stores which could not be removed, and fled northward toward the River Thames. Opposite Detroit Proctor halted long enough to bring over the British garrison and the lighter pieces of cannon, with as much of the other military stores as could be conveniently carried. This second evacuation was conducted more hurriedly than the first, and the British did not destroy property as they did in 1796. While they were moving out they kept watch down the river fearing the arrival of Governor Shelby's and Johnson's blue-shirted rangers, known to the Indians as the "Long Knives," but when the Kentuckians reached Sandwich the British were far up the east shore of Lake St. Clair. Immediately after the victory General Harrison prepared to invade Canada. Governor Shelby of Kentucky sent 3,500 men and marched them to the shore of Lake Erie, Col. Richard M. Johnson accompany- ing him. The army rendezvoused at Put in Bay and mustered nearly 5,000 men. The general order issued just before embarking for the invasion contained these words: "Kentuckians! remember the River Raisin ! but remember it only while the victory is suspended. The re- venge of a soldier cannot be gratified upon a fallen foe." The Ameri- can army landed on Hartley's Point, a few miles below Amherstburg, on the afternoon of September 27. The Americans were accompanied by a few friendly Indians of the Wyandotte, Shawnee and Seneca tribes, who saw that the British were beaten. The invaders were met by the women of the settlement, who asked their protection and were sent back to their homes with the assurance that they would not be molested. Col. Richard M. Johnson was sent up the river with 3,500 men to Sand- wich, where he was joined by Harrison. From there the army marched toward Chatham, where Proctor was supposed to be encamped. At the same time six vessels of Perry's fleet sailed up the Detroit 344 ALBERT M. HENRY. River. A number of British Indians were watching its progress from in front of the house of Pierre Descompte Labadie, at what is now the foot of Twenty- fourth street, in this city-. Noticing something on board one of the vessels, Labadie called out to his family to go behind the house, and lie down on their stomachs. They had barely done so, when a cannon was discharged and several grape shot were buried in the timbers of the house. The Indians scattered, but rejoined the enemy on the other side, and were with Tecumseh at the battle of the Thames. The six vessels sailed up the Detroit River and crossed Lake St. Clair in pursuit of the small vessels which had left Maiden. The Brit- ish boats, however, had already landed their stores and escaped up the Thames. McArthur's brigade was left to hold possession of Detroit, which had been evacuated by the British garrison. Colonels Cass and Ball were left to hold possession of Sandwich. Leaving his vessels in charge of a guard, Commodore Perry went ashore and joined Harrison's forces in pursuit of Proctor, who had encamped at Dolsen's farm, fifteen miles from the mouth of the Thames. Tecumseh tried to persuade his superior to risk a battle there, but Proctor retreated to Chatham, where McGregor's Creek offered additional defense to his troop. At Chatham the American army overtook Proctor. Here Tecumseh labored with Proctor to make a stand. The latter made a show of courage and said to his Indian ally: " Here we will defeat Harrison or lay our bones." But again his courage failed him and he retreated in such haste that he left his luggage to be captured by the Americans. Tecumseh and his warriors held the position under a heavy cannonade until a bridge was built and then suddenly retreated. When Tecumseh overtook Proctor he again bitterly reproached him with cowardice. Proctor answered haughtily and the Shawnee became almost insanely enraged. In a burst of passion he leveled his rifle and would have killed him, but for the interference of Colonel Caldwell, who struck up the muzzle of the gun. Military discipline would have dictated the summary execution of Tecumseh, but such an act would have precipitated a re- volt of the Indian allies, and between their vengeance and the onslaught of the approaching army, the entire British command might have been exterminated. At Moraviantown Proctor finally made his stand, but on the way there old Walk-in the-Water, chief of the Wyandottes, who lived at Monguagon, below Detroit, withdrew his warriors and offered his services to Harrison. The offer was declined and the tribe returned 345 44 to Sandwich to await the issue of the coming battle. The ground chosen by Proctor was a place where the Thames lay on his left ; a swamp two miles broad guarded his right ; while his front was protected to some extent by a small strip of swamp running parallel with the river. On the night of October 4, 1813, both sides were in camp within a short distance of each other, and Tecumseh was sitting before a fire with Capt. William Caldwell and Ensign Francis Caldwell, his son, and Captain McKee, of Sandwich. Suddenly the chief gave a smothered exclamation, and placing his hand to his breast, called out in a strange voice, "I'm shot!" "No, no, impossible!" said Colonel Caldwell, "nobody has fired about here." Tecumseh seemed to be gasping for berath, but soon was able to say: " Well, I'm going to be shot." Next day he fell, fighting like a true son of the forest. Next morning Harrison formed his men and sent forty friendly In- dians to fire on Proctor's rear, in order to make him believe that Walk- in-the-Water had turned against him. Col. R. M. Johnson and his brother James led the charge of the Kentucky mounted men toward the left, but turning suddenly dashed down on the British regulars on the right. The latter broke and ran. Then the horsemen wheeled and fired on the flanks of Proctor's two lines, which had been confused by the flight of the regulars. This movement was so unexpected and so effectual that the regulars threw down their arms in a panic, and sur- rendered before the main body of Harrison's men could engage in the contest. Proctor scampered from the field, jumped into a wagon and fled as fast as the horses could carry him. Tecumseh kept his head in this moment of panic, and as another de- tachment of Johnson's corps charged down the neck of hard ground his warriors held their fire until the Americans were almost upon them. Then a volley set the horses plunging wildly and several riders fell from their saddles mortally wounded. Colonel Johnson was wounded in the thigh and in the hip, but he still held command, and, when the brush became too thick for the horses to penetrate, he ordered his men to dis- mount. There was a furious hand to hand struggle for several min- utes, the war cry of the Indians and the slogan of the Kentuckians, " Remember the River Raisin! " mingled in wild uproar, while both sides fought like demons. Governor Shelby ordered forward the re- serves, and they went into the fray with a loud hurrah. The Indians recoiled, scattered and fled, but kept up a straggling fire as they dis- 346 appeared in the heart of the swamp. The brass cannon with the his- toric inscription, which had been taken at Detroit, was recovered, with five other brass pieces. Colonel Payne and his rangers pursued Proc- tor so closely that he abandoned his carriage and took to the woods on foot. Tecumseh, the brave warrior, was killed. Tradition says that he had shot Col. Richard M. Johnson through the hand and arm, and was springing forward to dispatch him, when Johnson drew his horse pistol from the holster and shot the great chief dead. This, however, was denied. The British loss was eighteen killed, twenty-six wounded and 600 taken prisoners. Thirty-three Indians lay dead on the ground about Tecumseh, but many of the wounded escaped and afterward died. Proctor received the condemnation of his superiors in the army and of his king. He was also publicly reprimanded for cowardice and incom- petence and suspended from rank and pay for six months. Too late his government discovered that it had honored a man who was lacking in ordinary courage and military skill, and whose only talents were in the art of massacre and savage warfare against inferior forces. The battle of the Thames, fought October 5, 1813, settled forever all British claims upon Detroit and the western territory. During the British occupation of Detroit it became necessary that some form of jurisprudence should be established and maintained. The three judges. Woodward, Griffin and Witherell, remained after the surrender, but Witherell incurred Proctor's displeasure for criticising his actions and was sent out of town. Prominent citizens who remained urged that Woodward be kept in his position, and to this request Proc- tor consented and appointed him. The manner in which the prisoners of war were treated by the Indians and under Proctor's sanction was so barbarous that the best citizens of Detroit did not attempt to repress their indignation. A troop of half drunken Indians would come to the city, driving before them a dozen poor wretches, barefoot, half naked and nearly starved. They would beat them with switches and prod them with knives to increase their sufferings, in the hope that the humane Americans and French and British non-combatants would bid high for their ransom. The Abbotts, Thomas Palmer, Friend Palmer, James May, Dr. William M. Scott, Elijah Brush, Conrad Ten Eyck, Peter Desnoyers, Henry J. Brevoort, James Chittenden, David Hender- son, Shubael Conant, William Macomb, James Burnet, Conrad Seek — in fact all the men of influence in the town, denounced Proctor's con- 347 duct and some of them upbraided him to his face. Proctor then re- solved to make an example of these bold spirits and stifle criticism. He issued individual notices to about thirty of the leading citizens, ordering them to leave Detroit within twenty-four hours. They dared not disobey for fear of their lives, and scattered wherever they could find temporary homes until the war was over. H.J. Brevoort, although he had been released on parole, joined Commodore Perry at Presqu' He, and took part in the battle of Lake Erie. He told Perry that a man would fight all the better for having a halter about his neck. Woodward did very well in his new role as a British subject. Proctor wished to keep the leading citizens in subjection as rebels, but Wood- ward, who opposed every proposition that did not emanate from him- self, interposed legal technical obstacles in such a manner as to defeat the malice and spleen of the British commander. The Indians com- mitted many outrages on the inhabitants and plundered stores and dwellings at their own sweet will. Proctor had issued orders that private property should be respected, but he seldom or never punished the depredators. Capt. Antoine Dequindre, who had distinguished himself at Mon- guagon, resumed the management of his store after the surrender, and although he was a target of savage resentment, no overt act was com- mitted against him until one day two Indians entered the store. They demanded whisky, which he refused to give them. They then asked for some articles of merchandise. He said they could have it if they paid the price. One of them seized a bolt of cloth and held it in his hand and neither left the store. Dequindre's Gallic ire rose to boiling point. He jumped over the counter, wrested the cloth away from the Indian, and then kicked them both out of his store. On the street they raised the warwhoop and the neighborhood soon became alive with Indians. Dequindre realized his danger, ran up stairs, and jumped out of a back window. He ran to the fort, where he made complaint to Proctor. The latter sent a message to Col. Alexander McKee, agent of the Indian department, and Dequindre proceeded to his headquarters in the brick house on Jefferson avenue that Hull had built in 1807 for his residence, whef-e the Biddle House now stands. McKee, who was an old friend of Dequindre, immediately proceeded to the store, which was then being plundered. "Listen!" shouted McKee in the Indian tongue. "Every brave Indian come out here, and you cowards stay where you are." No Indian wants to be classed as a coward, so the 348 whole crowd came out in the street. After a brief parley he marched them up Woodward avenue to a small mound where the Russell House now stands, and sent for a keg of whisky. When it arrived it was stood on end, the head pounded in and the contents dealt out. The supply was supplemented by two more kegs, and the Indians soon became so deeply intoxicated as to be harmless. Antoine Dequindre was subsequently tendered a commission as major in the regular army. This he declined, but was subsequently called "major" until he died. In the list of countersigns of the United States army will be found in its place, to be used in its turn, the name, "Major Antoine Dequindre." A few days after the battle of the Thames word came to Detroit that the British had evacuated Mackinaw, and an expedition then being organized to capture that post was abandoned. Gen. Lewis Cass was placed in command at Detroit as military and civil governor on October 29, 1813, and he was furnished a force of 1,000 men to keep what the army of the pioneers had won until the boundaries could be settled by treaty. Information came to Detroit a little later that the British still held Mackinaw, and that they were building two vessels on Georgian Bay, with which to make further contest for the upper lakes. CHAPTER XLVIII. Detroit Occupied by the American Army — Tliey Build a Cantonment of Log Huts West of Fort Lernoult — Indians Murder Several Residents— ^General Cass Drives the Indians Away from Detroit. In June, 1814, an expedition set out from Detroit in charge of Com- modore Sinclair and Lieutenant- Colonel Croghan, to destroy the vessels in Georgian Bay, and to capture Mackinaw. The fleet consisted of the Niagara, Lawrence, Detroit, Scorpion, Tigress and Caledonia, and these vessels carried a force of 750 men. They dared not penetrate Georgian Bay, because the navigation was known to be hazardous, and they had no pilot acquainted with those waters. They proceeded toward Mackinaw, and while on the way a council of war was held to decide whether Mackinaw should first be attacked, or St. Joseph Island. Sinclair in- 349 sisted that the latter place should be attacked first, and thus made a fatal error of judgment. St. Joseph Island was found to be deserted, but while the fleet was reconnoitering there and while an expedition was sent on above the Sault Ste. Marie to capture the schooner Perse- verance, belonging to the Northwest Fur Company, Colonel McDougall prepared Mackinaw for defense, and made the place fairly impregnable against so small an attacking force. After cruising about several days, trying in vain to effect a landing on the island, the fleet withdrew for a time. Colonel McDougall, the British commandant, was a thorough soldier, and made the most of his scant opportunities and the bad judgment of his adversary. On August 4 the fleet made a sudden descent upon the island, and a body of men was sent ashore in small boats at a point some distance from the fort, while the fleet covered their landing with a brisk cannonade. The soldiers charged the enemy's breast works and compelled the British to fall back, but the thick woods gave cover to the Indians, and the Americans could find no available spot for temporary fortification. Major Holmes exposed himself, and five balls passed through his body before he fell. His death, and that of Captain Van Horn and Lieutenant Jackson, left the men on the right without a leader, and they fell into disastrous confusion. Colonel Croghan led them back to the fleet, leaving fifteen dead in the woods and two prisoners, besides twenty-five badly wounded survivors. The fleet retired, leaving the Tigress and the Scorpion to maintain a block- ade and starve the British out. These vessels captured the British brig Nancy with six months' provisions on board, and the boat was destroyed. Colonel McDougall then organized a night attack, and surrounding the Tigress with hundreds of Indian canoes under cover of darkness, com- pelled her surrender. The Scorpion afterward fell into his hands through the use of the signal code found on the Tigress. Thus ended a most disastrous expedition. Mackinaw did not pass into the hands of the Americans until peace was declared in the spring of 1815. Looking back upon the war of 1813 the most superficial observer can appreciate that it was in no particular a test of strength between this country and Great Britain. On land and sea the British were in- comparably stronger. The United States conquered because her giant adversary was so beset with stronger enemies, that but a small force could be spared for campaigning in the wilderness. Napoleon Bona- parte, the greatest military genius of modern times, was threatening England with invasion, and Great Britain's fleets were engaged in 350 clipping his wings and keeping them trimmed. Her armies were en- gaged in assisting Spain and Portugal to shake off the grip of this mod- ern Caesar, who seemingly aspired to rule the world. It was the selfish policy of the British government which alienated the loyalty of the American colonies. They were denied rights which should have been theirs without the asking, but the people at home regarded them as self-exiled and expatriated persons who should be hampered as much as possible in their efforts to help themselves, and taxed to the limit of endurance for the support of a government in which they had no voice. Napoleon once cynically remarked, " Providence favors the army with the better artillery," but Providence sometimes entangles the oppressor in his own toils, and while he is extricating himself the oppressed obtain their liberty. When Detroit began to rise again from its ashes, the Indians of the vicinity sought to discourage the settlers from rebuilding in the hope of ultimately driving them away. They stole cattle and ponies from the common, and sometimes killed the domestic animals belonging to the settlers. They also made threats of hostility, and their attitude became so truculent that the small garrison had to be strengthened by calling out volunteers to assist in guarding the town. At night the ramparts inside the stockade were patrolled by sentinels, and guards were maintained during the day at the massive gates, so that they might be closed at the first show of an attack. One body of troops was quartered in the Indian council house near the west end of the town, and another was posted on the east in a new blockhouse, which stood near the present intersection of Jefferson avenue and Brush street. All the residents were in a state of nervous excitement, and when a sentinel happened to fire at a suspicious looking object in the darkness, the alarm drum would sound and the volunteers would hurry to the spot for defense. As soon as General Cass was appointed governor of Michigan, on October 29, 1813, he resigned his commission in the army, but retained the powers of commander-in-chief in his territory. The Indians were still hostile and frequently murdered settlers who penetrated too far into the wilderness of the interior. In order to inspire them with a proper re- spect for the government the governor was compelled to call upon the militia now and then and administer punishment to marauders. At length the hostile Indians retired to the Saginaw valley, but some who were friendly remained about Detroit. Governor Cass advised concilia- 351 tory methods with the Indians, and sought to obtain their good -will by fair treatment and government protection against land-grabbers. He proposed to obtain land from them by purchase and treaty, and to allot them reservations which should be respected by all settlers and with- held from other occupants In July, 1814, in company with General Harrison, Governor Cass effected a treaty with all the neighboring tribes, and peace was then practically restored. Later, in 1814, how- ever. General Cass sent all the able bodied men of his regular garrison down to Niagara to assist General Brown against the British. Again the Indians became bold and began to make trouble. On September 15, 1814, Ananias McMillan, who had just returned from an expedition to Rondeau Bay, Kent county, Ontario, started out on the common with his musket. He was accompanied by his boy Archi- bald, aged eleven years. The family cow had not come home on its usual time, and they went in search of her. Father and son passed out at the west gate of the town, and a few rods away, on the Macomb farm, as it was then called, they came upon William McVey and Daniel and William Burbank. After a few words explaining his purpose Mr. McMillan proceeded northward over the common. " Better not go too far from the town gates alone as you are," called McVey ; " there are some ugly looking savages about in the woods." These three men were seated on a log near the present corner of Lafayette avenue and Wayne street, when this warning was given. On the ground now occupied by Capi- tol Square apd the Chamber of Commerce building was a thick copse which obscured the view of the common beyond. As McMillan and his boy were about to pass this clump of bushes four shots were fired by unseen Indians. McMillan returned the fire and fled with his boy. Four Chippewa Indians leaped out and McMillan was shot and scalped. A fifth dashed around the end of the copse riding a pony. The latter pursued the boy, who ran screaming toward the fort, holding an ox gad in his hand. As the pony came close behind him he dodged like a frightened hare and swung his gad in the face of the pony, causing it to sheer off. Again he fled toward the gate, and again the savage pur- sued, cutting him off, but the boy used his gad again, thus escaping the clutch of the Indian. This maneuver was repeated several times until the Indian jumped off his pony and caught the boy on foot. He carried him off to the woods, the boy waking the echoes with his despairing cries. A few days later Michael Murphy, a young Irishman who worked for Abraham Cook, went into a field on Judge Moran's farm to 352 HENRY M. CAMPBELL. get a load of potatoes. He had a pony and cart, but while he was at work he was shot dead from an ambush, and scalped and mutilated in horrible manner. The time had come for aggressive action. Governor Cass called for volunteers to go out and punish the Indians, and the young men of the town responded promptly. They armed themselves in Indian fashion, carrying knives, clubs and tomahawks in addition to their rifles, as they expected to do some hand-to-hand fighting in the woods. The older men of the party were General Cass, Shubael Conant, Capt. Francis Cicotte and Col. H. J. Hunt. They were accompanied by George and Edward Cicotte, William, John and James Meldrum, Lambert Beaubien, John B. Beaubien, Joseph Andre, Louis Moran, Louis Dequindre, Lambert La Foy, Joseph Riopelle, Joseph Visger, Jack Smith, Ben Lucas, John Ruland.and Peter, James and John Riley. The three Rileys were the half-breed sons of Judge Riley of Schenec- tady, N. Y. , who had once been a trader in the Saginaw Valley. They were the most expert woodsmen in Detroit, and had learned to trail an enemy through the forest. They knew all the Indian craft, spoke several of the Indian languages, and had been in the white schools of the settlement. The Rileys led the party, some of whom were mounted on ponies, to the Indian camp, which was then on the Witherell farm, but the Indians had just vacated it, leaving the hat of the boy Archi- bald McMillan on the ground. The Rileys trailed the savages west- ward until the party overtook them just back of the Cass farm. Peter was the first to sight the enemy. He dropped quickly from his pony and leveling his rifle across its back he brought a tall savage to the ground. Springing forward with a yell he tore off the scalp. While this was taking place the other white men were cracking away at the flying Indians who took to the thick brush where the pursuers could not follow. One of the Meldrums and Louis Moran each got a scalp. The whites were satisfied that several of the Indians had been badly hurt. Ben Lucas had a hand-to-hand fight with an Indian, close be- side Governor Cass, and came off victor. The party then marched westward as far as the River Rouge, driving the Indians before them. On their way home they gave the scalp yell in Indian fashion. This so frightened the women of the town, who feared they had been massa- cred, that several of them took their children into boats and paddled across the river. Next day a squaw came to the town with a white flag to say that if the Detroitej-s would not pursue the Indians any 353 45 more, they would agree not only to keep the peace, but to go away to Sagina.w. She told the people of the town that several of the Indians who had escaped had died of their wounds, and that Chief Kishkawkee had to be carried about in a blanket. Late that fall Capt. James Knaggs seized three Indians who had come to Detroit, and held them as hostages until their tribe should surrender little Archie McMillan, Meanwhile Archie was carried to Saginaw and beyond by his captors. One time he endeavored to escape and climbed into a tree, but the Indians soon found that he had not left the neighborhood, and literally " treed" him. He refused to come down when an arrow was shot into the tree and the boy then surrenderee. John Riley went to the Saginaw valley to negotiate the exchange, and Archie, after four months' captivity, was brought on January 12, 1815, to Amherstburg, then in the possession of the Americans, and restored to his frantic mother. Mrs. McMillan at that time lived at the southwest corner of Larned and Bates streets, where she afterward kept a boarding house for many years. She has numerous descend- ants in this city and State. Archie died at Jackson, Mich., in 1860. General Cass soon found that most of the laws which had been en- acted since 1774 were still in force, having never been repealed. He also found that the people of Detroit had been deprived of their right to self-government by the act of the governor and judges of 1806. One of his earliest official acts was to bring about a repeal of all the laws of the old regime, which had become inoperative and to reinstate the town government by a board of trustees. On October 24, 1815, the new governor and Judges Witherell and Griffin (Woodward being probably absent) passed an act repealing all the laws of Great Britain, the law of 1806 and the laws of the Northwest Territory, so far as Michigan was concerned. Beginning with that date Governor Cass and his associates prepared a new code for the territorial government, and in place of the old village ordinances of 1802-6, a new set were formulated and adopted, placing the town government in the hands of the trustees. The office of mayor, which was somewhat ridiculous when the population of the town is considered, was not reinstated. The government of the town was vested in the board of trustees and the presiding officer of the board was the chairman, who was elected by the board. The new regulations went into effect in December, and the trustees of the town met and adopted sixteen standing rules, which bear date of December 4, 1815, and the signature of Solomon Sibley, 354 chairman, and Thomas Rowland, secretary. When the treaty of peace between Great Britain and the United States was ratified in the winter of 1815, Michigan's population did not exceed 6,000, and these settlers all lived on the banks of Lake Erie and the river frontage. CHAPTER XLIX. Detroit Begins to Develop under the Peace of 1815— Road Building Begun— The First Steamboat Arrives, August 27, 1818— Sedate Men Lay Aside Their Dignity and Indulge in a Frolic— Founding of Pontiac in 1819. Constant war had hindered the development of the Territory and cheap whisky had been a demoralizing influence upon the people. The finances of the community were also no better than its morals. Wildcat money, issued by Ohio banking firms, was the chief circu- lating medium, and, as this was of doubtful and fluctuating value, business was hampered. There was not a public highway in the terri- tory, the nearest approach to one being the roads cut through the swamps and woods by which the soldiers of Ohio and Kentucky had made their way to Detroit. To open the way for public roads General Cass effected a most important treaty with the Indians in 1818, by which they surrendered claim to all lands in Ohio and Indiana and about the River Raisin and Monguagon, and accepted reservations in Michigan, sufficiently removed from Detroit to avoid any disputes for a long time to come. Then a road was built through the great Black Swamp of northwestern Ohio, connecting Detroit with Vistula (Toledo) and Sandusky. When Congress appropriated a tract of 2,000,000 acres of land, in 1812, to be set apart for the soldiers of the war, and giveij to them in parcels of 160 acres, the report of the surveyor-general was so discouraging that the government substituted 1,500,000 acres in Illinois and 500,000 in Missouri. In 1818 some of the lands in the southern part of Michigan were surveyed and sold to settlers and im- migration soon began in earnest. Territorial boundary changes did not cease. In 1816 a narrow strip of southern Michigan was cut off and added to Indiana,- to the great dissatisfaction of the Michiganders. This left the southern boundary irregular, as the territory about To- 355 ledo was still attached to Michigan. Two years later Wisconsin and the greater part of Minnesota, including the Lake Superior region, were attached to northern Michigan. It was proposed that the terri- tory should that year advance to the second grade of government by establishing a general assembly, but the proposition was lost at the polls for some unexplained reason. In 1818 the town burying ground, which lay open to the visitation of wandering swine and cattle, was in so deplorable a condition that a notice was inserted in the Gazette, call- ing a meeting for the purpose of taking action toward inclosing the grounds with a fence, and repairing the ravages of the four-footed visitors. On August 27, 1818, the era of transportation dawned at Detroit. The Walk-in-the- Water, a small steamboat bearing the name of the old Wyandotte chief, came from Buffalo. As she forged up the De- troit River with a great splashing of paddle wheels, the whole country- side turned out to see her, gazing in wonder at her pennon of sparks and smoke. She made the round trip from Buffalo to Mackinaw and return in twelve days, carrying a number of passengers and $200,000 worth of merchandise. In 1818 the Bank of Michigan was incorporated. It was the second bank organized in Detroit and for a number of years was a potent aid in developing the resources of the Territory and State. A more ex- tended notice of the bank will be found in a chapter devoted to finan- cial legislation and the banks of Michigan. The government land surveys were about finished at the beginning of 1818, and sales were ordered in the fall of that year. Col. Stephen Mack, then in partnership in mercantile business with Shubael Conant, organized an extensive land company. It was known as the " Pontiac Company," and consisted of Stephen Mack, William Woodbridge, Solo- mon Sibley, John L. Whiting, Austin E. Wing, David C. McKinstry, Benjamin Stead, Henry Jackson Hunt, Abraham Edwards, Shubael Conant, Alexander Macomb, Archibald Darrow, and Andrew G. Whit- ney, of Detroit, and William Thompson, Daniel Le Roy and James Fulton, of Macomb county. Mr. Mack was appointed agent of the company and purchased the greater part of the present site of the city of Pontiac, which was subsequently designated by Governor Cass as the county seat of Oakland county. Here a saw mill, flouring mill and mercantile establishment were built, and subsequently a road was opened between the new settlement and Detroit, which was called the 356 Pontiac Road, and is now known as Woodward avenue. When the new enterprise was established in 1819 the occasion was celebrated in an elaborate manner and in a style which exhibited the utter uncon- ventionality of the day. All of the above named persons were present together, with nearly every male Detroiter of business or professional rank, or social consideration, including Governor Cass, John Roberts, Dr. Chamberlain and George A. O'Keefe. A fine dinner was provided, toasts were drank, and various sports ensued. At that time the question of electing a delegate to Congress was to come before the people in the fall, for which no nomination had yet been made. In the happy frame of mind which follows a good dinner and an abundance of liquid refreshments, the company present resolved itself into a committee of the whole on the' condition of the Territory of Michigan, and proceeded to nominate a candidate for that distinguished and honorable position. There were three persons present who by education and position were deemed to be qualified for delegate, namely: David Le Roy, A. B. Woodward and Solomon Sibley. Thereupon Judge Woodward, entering into the spirit of the occasion, proposed that each candidate should be put through the mill, secundum artem, each one getting into the hopper of the mill alter- nately, and the one whose manipulation and skill in the hopper should produce the best meal should be declared the candidate. The prop- osition was unanimously approved, and Colonel Mack and the miller were appointed as umpires. Judge Le Roy mounted the hopper and it was unanimously agreed that he went through the performance ad- mirably. Next Judge Woodward tried his chances and won great ap- plause. The mill was beginning to work well, but Judge Sibley carried off the palm. The miller took up handful after, handful of the meal and praised it enthusiastically. Mr. Sibley was then pronounced the favorite candidate of Oakland county. Then Governor Cass tried his hand and was pronounced superfine. Others earned the titles of bran, shorts, middlings, etc. Then there were arrests for ludicrous offenses, and the parties were tried before a judge and jury, who invariably rendered a verdict of guilty and prescribed fitting punishments. O'Keefe, who prided himself on being a "four-bottle man," found the pace too fast to follow, so he slipped away and hid himself in a haymow. He was missed, searched for, and taken into custody. A committee was appointed to try him, and Colonel Mack, dressed as an Indian chief, was the presiding judge. In spite of the culprit's learned and 357 eloquent defense he was found guilty and Colonel Mack sentenced him to pick with his teeth an ounce of the pitch which exuded from the neighbor ng pine trees. After the penalty had been paid, other guests were tried in order, and all sorts of laughable penalties were imposed. On the way back to Detroit the party whooped it up all the way, mak- ing the woods echo with their yells. At Royal Oak they stopped at the shanty of a Frenchman who had also been indulging in drink. They urged hin^ to drink more, but he stubbornly refused. Court was im- mediately organized, and the Frenchman for his contumacy was sen- tenced to be hanged by the neck until he was "dead! dead! dead! and may the Lord have mercy on your s ul," finished the judge solemnly. A rope was tied about his neck and attached to the shafts of a cart. A number of the revelers then climbed into the rear of the cart so that the Frenchman was swung clear from the ground. He was actually suspended for several seconds and when he was let down he sank limp and insensible upon the ground. Dr. Chamberlain, to keep up the ghastly joke, pronounced the man dead. This awful announcement sobered the party in a moment and all hands tu ning to the task, they soon resu.scitated the Frenchman. Dr. Chamberlain assured them that had he not been a surgeon of surpassing skill the man would have died and all who had assisted in maltreating him would have been hanged for murder. Governor Cass secured permission from Congress to make an explora- tion of the northern peninsula and on May 34, 1820, set out from De- troit with Robert A. Forsyth, his private secretary, Henry R. School- craft, mineralogist; Capt. D. B. Douglass, topographer; Dr. Alexander Wolcott, James Duane Doty, Charles C. Trowbridge, Lieut. Evans Mackay, and an escort of ten soldiers of the United States army. They took with them ten Canadian boatmen and ten Indians to act as hunters, paddlers and interpreters. At Mackinaw they were joined by other explorers and the company numbered sixty-four men. An at- tempt was made to effect a treaty with the Chippewas at Sault Ste. Marie, but the Indians were completely under British influence, and the council broke up without having effected its purpose, which was to take possession of lands formerly ceded by the treaty of Greenville. These lands had been ceded to the Americans, but the latter had never taken possession. Some of the chiefs wore British medals, and one of them, Sassaba, wore the uniform of a British brigadier. He made a violent speech against the Americans, drove his lance into the ground 358 and led his followers from the council. Retiring to his own camp he raised the British flag. In that critical situation General Cass showed what manner of man he was. The Indians were strong in numbers, and greatly enraged at being reminded of their former cession of lands. Governor Cass saw that they must not be permitted to insult his gov- ernment with impunity, and ordering his followers under arms he walked alone to Sassaba's lodge, where he tore down the British flag and trampled it in the dust. Then he told the astonished chief that he was standing on United States soil, and that the hoisting of a British flag was an insult which ■yvould not be tolerated. The Indians were awed by the bravery of the governor, who walked away unmolested with the foreign flag folded under his arm. Instead of attacking the little band of explorers, they renewed the negotiations and before night they had ceded a tract four miles square, for military purposes, at Sault Ste. Marie village, reserving the perpetual right to fish in the St. Mary's River. Sassaba was the only chief who did not sign. The party proceeded up Lake Superior as far as Keewenaw Point, which they crossed, and later explored the head waters of the Mississippi and returned home by Lake Michigan. A system of surveys was adopted in 1820 by which two straight lines were drawn through the center of the territory, one north and south, the other east and west. The former was called the principal meridian, and the latter the base line. From these lines the State was laid out into townships six miles square, and into sections of a mile square, the sections numbering each way from the meridian and base lines. Governor Cass and Judge Solomon Sibley went to the Indians south of Grand River, in 1831, and secured a cession of nearly all the lands of the Ottawas and Potawatomies in southern Michigan to the United States. In 1822 the counties of Washtenaw, Lenawee, Lapeer, Sanilac, Saginaw and Shiawassee were laid out for the better accommodation of the growing settlements, and a line of stages communicating with Mt. Clemens, was put on the Fort Gratiot road. Soon after his return from his tour of the northwest Governor Cass was appealed to for executive clemency in behalf of two condemned murderers. A Chippewa warrior named Ketawka had murdered Dr. Madison, a surgeon of the United States army at Mackinaw; an 1 Kewabishkim, another warrior of the same tribe, had murdered a trader at Green Bay at about the same time. The Indians were brought to Detroit in 1831, and after a fair trial were condemned to 359 death. The appeal was not made because of extenuating circum- stances, but because the Indians hoped to profit by certain political exigencies. General Cass had recently effected a treaty with the In- dians of the north at Sault Ste. Marie, and it was of course desirable to maintain friendly relations with them. The British, on the other hand, were using their utmost efforts to alienate the Indians from the Americans. It would therefore have been an act of political policy to pardon the murderers. To have done this, however, would have shown a disregard for justice, and it would have encouraged other murders. Pardon was refused in both cases, and the Indians prepared for death after the manner of their race. They were confined in the new jail, which had been built in 1819, on the site of the presen public library building. On December 24, 1831, while workmen were building the scaffold on which they were to die on Christmas day, the Indians watched the progress of the work with interest, and sketched on the walls of their cell a rude picture of an Indian hanging from a gibbet. They made a sort of torn torn by stretching a piece of raw hide over their water bucket, and took turns, one beating the drum while the other danced and chanted his death song. That finished, they painted their faces black, and when they were led out for execution they were apparently the niost indifferent parties within sight of the scaffold- They met their doom on the spot now occupied by the Public Library lawn. CHAPTER L. Michigan's First Delegate to Congress — Politics were Politics Even in the Olden Time — Father Gabriel Richard Locked up in Jail to Prevent His Candidacy — The French Residents Give Him a Plurality over His Unscrupulous Competitors. By the original ordinance of 1787 the election of a delegate to Con- gress was to follow the legislative organization and not to precede it. But inasmuch as the population was large enough to warrant it, being 8,89G, Congress, in the spring of 1819, enacted a law by which the citi- zens of Michigan might elect a delegate by a plurality of the free white male citizens, over the age of twenty- one, who had resided in the Terri- tory one year and paid a county or territorial tax. The first delegate 360 FORDYCE H. ROGERS. chosen was William Woodbridge, then secretary of the territory and United States customs collector, who received 339 votes. His compet- itors received the following votes: John R Williams, 196; Henry Jack- son Hunt, 97; James McCloskey, 55; Judge A. B. Woodward, 28. In 1820 the citizens of Detroit exclaimed against Woodbridge's pluralism in holding two federal offices, and, bending before the storm, he re- signed and Solomon Sibley was elected for the unexpired term. Sibley held the office until 1823, when he was succeeded by Rev. Gabriel Richard, pastor of St. Anne's church. In 1825 Austin E. Wing, of Monroe, was elected, and was re elected in 1827. The succession of subsequent delegates was John Biddle, 1829-31; Austin E. Wing, 1831-33; Lucius Lyon, 1833-34; George W. Jones, 1835-36 Mr. Jones was a resident of what is now Wisconsin, which was then in Michigan Territory. His office terminated when Wisconsin was erected into a separate Territory in 1836. The story of Father Richard's election to Congress in 1823 was one of the most interesting events of that eventful year in Michigan. C. M. Burton has thus related it: " There was no civil service in those days, and no caviling about officials mingling in politics. Sheriff Austin E. Wing and John Biddle, receiver of the land office, were prominent candidates for delegates to Congress. Major Biddle placed the management of his campaign in the hands of Attorney William A. Fletcher, apd Wing entrusted his cause in the hands of John Hunt, afterward supreme justice. Just as the canvass was well under way the candidates were informed that Father Richard was being boomed as a. third candidate bj' the French residents. At first the idea that a Roman Catholic priest in charge of a parish, a man whose English was but limited, and who was not a citizen of the United States, should become a candidate for so important an office, seemed preposterous, but the popular priest gained ground in an alarming fashion. On June 9, 1823, Father Richard applied for citizenship papers, but Mr. Fletcher, who had just been appointed chief justice of Wayne county by Governor Cass, raised the point that the County Court was not the proper tribunal for granting such papers. His colleagues. Judges Witherell and Lecuyer, however, issued the papers on June 38, and the presiding judge found his political candidate face to face with a dangerous competitor. The first candidates in the field had already subsidized the press, and the Gazette utterly ignored the pretensions of Father Richard. The campaign caused great excitement and pro- duced some remarkable ruptures. John R. Williams, a merchant of the town, son of Thomas Williams, a former British official, and Celia Campau, sister of the wealthy Joseph Campau, had been reared in the Catholic faith and was a warden of Ste. Anne's. He had been elected a delegate to the convention, and he undertook to head off Father Richard's campaign and compel him to withdraw from the race. He issued a circular iu the French language setting forth the trials and perils of 'n 361 46 church deserted by its pastor, and calling upon the straying shepherd to return to his flock. Father Richard said he had a perfect right to become a candidate, and upon his refusal to withdraw, John R. Williams and his uncle, Joseph Campau, left the church, never to return. They became Free Masons and died full of years, honored and wealthy, but they were apostates and were buried in nnconsecrated soil. Then the rival candidates looked about for some means to compel the withdrawal of the priest, and at first they were apparently successful. Three years before this time Francis I^abadie had been accused of deserting his wife, Apoline Girardin, in the parish of St. Berthier, Canada. He came to Detroit, became a member of Ste. Anne, and married Marie Anne Griffard, widow of Louis Dehetre, the ceremony being per- formed on February 17, 1817. Father Richard, in the discharge of his duty, tried to make Labadie abandon his new wife, and return to his lawful mate, but Labadie refused to obey. Then Father Richard gave three public warnings to Labadie for his contumacy, but without effect, whereupon he formally excommunicated him on July 16. 1817. Labadie took his revenge by bringing suit for defamation of character and employing Lawyer George A. O'Keefe to prosecute the case. Father Richard employed William Wood- bridge to defend him. In the winter of 1831 the Supreme Court rendered a verdict for Labadie in the sum of |1,116, but Father Richard refused to pay. As a judg- ment was still hanging over him, and Wing, one of the candidates for congressional delegate was sheriff, the priest was taken on a writ of execution and locked in jail. This merely served to increase his popularity, for his parishioners now considered him a persecuted man, and the French population rallied to his support. As a final resort the Wing and Biddle factions tried to unite against Father Richard. Both managers were scheming for their personal advantage. Hunt thought that if Biddle would resign the land ofRce to Wing, the latter would be content to retire from the field. Fletcher, it is said, wanted Biddle to promise that if he was elected to Con- gress he would favor the appointment of himself (Fletcher) to the Supreme Court, then about to be reorganized. Fletcher denied that he had tried to make such a bargain, and in the wrangling that ensued between the managers. Hunt and Fletcher came near meeting 'on the field of honor.' The election occurred on the first Tuesday of September, and the early returns showed that Father Richard was probably elected. The returns were slow in coming in. John P. Sheldon, editor of the Gazette, delayed issuing his paper for three days in the hope that full returns would show a different result, but with the counties of Macomb and St. Clair unre- ported, the paper came out with the following result: Richard 373; Wing, 286; Bid- dle, 235; Whitney, 143; McCloskey, 134; and Williams 41. Subsequent returns did not alter the result, and the notice of election was handed to Father Richard in jail, and he was thereupon released. The defeated factions were very glum over the election, but the French were jubilant. A member of Congress cannot be held in jail on a civil process during his term of office, so Sheriff Austin E Wing unlocked the doors that shut Father Richard from his liberty, and the triumphant priest walked forth to be greeted by his ardent supporters. Major Biddle contested the seat,, but the committee on elections allowed his petition to slumber in a pigeon hole and never investigated or reported on the subject." Fathers Richard's personality excited much interest in Washington, 363 as no Catholic priest had ever before been a member of Congress. His gaunt, sepulchral figure and face, his attire, which was black through- out, with small clothes, silk stockings, silver buckles on his shoes, broken English, quaint ways and copious use of snuff, attracted much attention. A number of his fellow congressmen talked with him one day, and in answer to questions he said that he came there to do his people some good. " But," he modestly added, " I do n t see how I can do it; I don't understand legislation; I want to give them good roads if I can." His hearers then and there said thej' would aid him, and the result was the law of 1825, making an appropriation for a road from Detroit to Chicago. The ends of the road are on Michigan avenue, in both Detroit and Chicago. He died in Detroit of exhaustion, occa- sioned by overwork in ministering to the victims of the Asiatic plague, on September 13, 1832, aged sixty five years. Michigan's government advanced another step in 1823. By this time the rule of the governor and judges had proved inadequate and un- satisfactory, and on March 3, 1833, Congress abrogated the former regulations for Michigan's government and instituted a legislative council of nine members. The people were entitled to elect eighteen candidates for this body, and from these the president selected the lawful number. The governor and council were invested with all the powers that were once delegated to the legislature of the Northwest Territory. The act was to go into effect in 1824. Judges Woodward and Griffin resigned at once, and were succeeded by Solomon Sibley and John Hunt. Judge Witherell was then made the presiding judge. John Hunt, the new supreme justice, was born in either Massachu- setts or Berkshire, Pa., the last locality being the statement of John Winder. He came here in 1818 or 1819, a full fledged lawyer, and entered into partnership with Gen. Charles Lamed, the attorney-gen- eral, to whose sister, Martha B. Larned, he was united in marriage. He was an honest man, an excellent lawyer and an able jurist. His first office was trustee of the town in 1820; in the fall of 1823 he was the campaign manager of Austin E. Wing's candidacy for territorial delegate to Congress. In 1823, when Woodward and Griffin resigned as justices of the Supreme Court, John Hunt and Solomon Sibley were appointed and became colleagues of James Witherell, who did not re- sign. He then dissolved partnership with General Larned and entered on the duties of his office. In 1825 he again supported Austin E. Wing for Congress against the same two opponents, and his candidate won. 363 During the campaign John P. Sheldon, editor of the Gazette, printed some strong charges against General Larned and Mr. Hunt. They were to the effect that they had combined to make money in a scan dalous manner, the attorney-general managing it so that Hunt should be attorney for the defendant in government cases, and thus all the fees were enjoyed by the firm. General Larned then commenced the first libel suit in Michigan, but the case was never tried, and Ebenezer Reed, the editorial successor of Sheldon, afterward made a full re- traction in 1828. At the time of those charges Judge Hunt had met with reverses in fortune, and was in poor health. These troubles caused his mind to give way, and he became a victim of mental delusions. One of these was that his legs were made of straw and that he could not walk. Dr. Delevan tried to reason him out of this delusion, but could not. Finally the doctor took a whip and struck him on the bare legs. The judge howled with pain and was rushing out of the room until stopped. He died insane at Hartford, near Utica, N. Y. , in June, 1827. Solomon Sibley, who was a justice of the Supreme Court from 1823 to 1837, was short in stature and very stout, with a large head, long gray beard, large projecting eyebrows and heavy jaws; was an e^tcel- lent, painstaking judge, and commanded respect from all classes of the community. He was always courteous and dignified, deliberate in his motions, and had the disadvantage of being very deaf. He was born at Sutton, Mass., on October 7, 1769, and studied law in Boston, under William Hastings, a distinguished lawyer. In 1796 he removed to Marietta, O. , and next year removed to Cincinnati, where he became a law partner of Judge Burnett. He visited Detroit in 1796, and after- ward settled there. He was elected to the General Assembly of the Northwest Territory, then held in Chillicothe, O. In Detroit he held the following offices : Justice of peace, 1802-06 ; mayor in 1806; auditor of territory, 1814-17; United States attorney in 1815-23; delegate to Congress in 1821 ; and lastly justice of the Territorial Supreme Court. He died in Detroit on April 4, 1846, aged seventy- seven years. James Duane Doty, was also appointed one of the territorial judges in 1823, but his jurisdiction was in the northern part of the Territory. He was a well known and prominent citizen of Detroit in early days, but spent most of his after life in Wisconsin. He was born at Salem, Washington county, N. Y., in 1799. He came to Detroit well recom- mended in 1818, when he was nineteen years of age, and improved his 364 knowledge of law by studying. Next year he was admitted to the bar and went into partnership with George McDougall, an eccentric citizen, who was the son of Lieutenant-Colonel McDougall, the ^first owner of Belle Isle. He was a room mate of the late C. C. Trowbridge, and was a favorite in the leading circles of society, having a fine command- ing figure, pleasing countenance, and most winning address. In 1819 he was appointed to take the place of Peter Audrain, then superan- nuated as secretary of the Territorial Supreme Court. In 1820, with his friend Trowbridge, H. R. Schoolcraft and others, he went to the upper country with the expedition organized by Lewis Cass. In 1833 he was appointed judge of the Northern District of Michigan Territory, comprising the counties of Mackinac, Brown and Crawford, the two last named counties being now in Wisconsin, and held his first court at Green Bay. In 1838 he was elected to the Legislative Council and served two years. When the great rush for western lands commenced in 1835-36, he became an extensive operator at the public land office at Green Bay, and hundreds of thousands of dollars were placed in his hands for investment. The confidence in his honesty and judgment was not misplaced, although he suffered serious financial reverses in his own interests by land speculation. When Wisconsin was set off from Michigan and erected into a separate Territory in 1836, he man- aged to have the capital located at Madison. He served as delegate to Congress in 1838 to 1841, and was appointed governor of Wisconsin Territory in 1841. In 1846 he was a member of the first constitutional convention and served as congressman of the new State from 1849 to 1853. Lincoln appointed him superintendent of Indian affairs in 1861, and subsequently governor of Utah. He died while holding that office on June 13, 1865, and was buried in the cemetery of Camp Douglass near Salt Lake City. 365 CHAPTER LI. Detroit under a New R%ime — The Territorial Ordinance of 1823 Puts an End to the Autocratic Sway of the Governor and Judges — The Ferry Established by Cape. John Bartis — The Erie Canal Opened in 1825 — Stephen G. Simmons Hanged at De- troit for Murder. The first session of the newly created Territorial Council, which was to assume the legislative functions heretofore exercised by the governor and judges, met at Detroit, in the council house, on June 7, 1824. This instituted a form of territorial government which continued until the election of State officers in 1836. The members elected Abraham Edwards as president of the council, and John P. Sheldon, editor of the Gazette, as clerk. With the spirit of thrift which actuated most of the early officials they next proceeded to pass an act fixing their com- pensation for public service, and also an act fixing punishment for offenses against their dignity. General Cass read an elaborate mes- sage, setting forth the progress of the Territory under his rule. He counseled the encouragement of public schools throughout the Terri- tory, the development of the mineral resources of the northern penin- sula, and to this end advised that treaties be effected with the Indians which would permit exploring and mining on their lands. The council did not pass a mining act until the next session, but they passed a num- ber of acts of minor importance. They modified punishment at the whipping post, which had long been the custom, by requiring the con- currence of two justices upon such sentences. The punishment was extended, however, to a greater number of offenses. Up to this time there had been a River Huron of Lake Erie, and a River Huron of Lake St. Clair. To avoid confusion, the latter river was renamed the ■Clinton. In 1825 the rapid development of the Territory caused Congress to increase the number of councilors from nine to thirteen, the people electing twenty-six for the president to choose from. The allotment of these candidates for appointment was as follows: First district Wayne county, eight persons; Monroe county, six persons; Oakland 366 county, four persons; Macomb county, four persons; St. Clair county, two persons; sixth district, Mackinaw, Brown and Crawford coun- ties, two persons. The election was held on the last Tuesday in May. John Trumbull, of Hartford, Conn., a man of considerable note in the country, came to Detroit in the fall of 1834 to spend the rest of his days with his daughter, Mrs. William Woodbridge. Mr. Trumbull was about seventy-six years of age at that time, and during the next six years he was a notable figure on the streets whenever he stirred abroad. He clung to the fashions of his youthful days to the very last, and always wore knee breeches and a curly wig. A counterpart of this last figure of the old regime is described in the little poem of Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes, "The Last Leaf," which accurately pictures the men of his type. Mr. Trumbull was a man of great learning and was one of the early poets of the United States. In company with Timothy Dwight he employed his leisure in the early days of the Revolution in writing articles after the style of Addison and Sterne. Both were tutors in Yale College from 1771 to the breaking out of the war, and Mr. Trumbull also studied law, being licensed to practice in 1773. "McFingall," the chief literary work associated with his name, was a satirical poem after the style of Butler's Hudibras, in which he pictures the customs of his own times. It was finished in 1793, and is still a very readable poem, although somewhat pedantic. Mr. Trumbull died in May, 1831, and his memory is honored in the name of Trumbull avenue. On February 25, 1835, Congress passed an act to further popularize the government of Michigan. The governor and council were author- ized to divide the territory into townships ; to incorporate them and to provide for local elections. The offices of circuit judge, probate judge, sheriff, county clerk and justiceof the peace were not yet made elective, because their functions belonged to the administration of justice, which was of public rather than of local concern. General Cass, however, made the offices practically elective by agreeing to appoint such persons as the people would elect. In 1825 Captain John Burtis established the first ferry system for plying between Detroit and the Canadian shore. He began with a small craft which was propelled by horse power, and it was liberally patronized by the public. A few years later his business became so profitable that he constructed a remarkable steam craft, which was a compromise between a huge war canoe and a house boat. Its engine 367 power was small, and the progress of the boat was slow, but people of those days were not in such a desperate hurry to get through the world as their posterity, and the Argo, which was named after the mythical craft which sailed in search of the Golden Fleece, gave perfect satis- faction for many years. It had several successors of the same name. Congress gave to the city a portion of the military reserve in 1824- and in 1836 gave the remainder. The land thus acquired by the city now includes a portion of the present business district, and is bounded on the south by the alley next north of Jefferson avenue, on the west by the Cass farm line, on the east by Griswold street, and on the north by Michigan avenue, thus inclosing all of the grounds of Fort Shelby, the center of which was situated about the intersection of Fort and Shelby streets. Some streets were opened through this tract in 1826, and the military burying ground, on apart of which the Moffat block now stands, was opened. In this graveyard were the remains of many soldiers who died at the fort in 1814, and in consequence there was much sickness and several citizens died, including Henry Jackson Hunt, then mayor of the city. The arsenal, which stood at the north- west corner of Jefferson avenue and Wayne streets, had been built in 1816, and was a very substantial stone structure. It was reserved by the government, and being available for other purposes, remained standing for forty years after the old fort had disappeared. In the summer of 1825 another important link in the system of trans- portation between the East and the West was completed when the Erie Canal provided a waterway from Lake Erie to the Hudson River, and also connected the great lakes with the ocean by navigable water. I worked a surprising change upon Detroit and the West. The Falls of Niagara had been considered a fatal impediment to through transit by water, but this difficulty removed, the tide of immigration began to flow westward in great volume. The exodus for a short time threat- ened the prosperity of the seaboard States. Western New York filled up rapidly, and thousands of emigrants pressed on and took up lands in Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and Illinois, and also spread north and south. The second permanent paper started in Michigan was the Michigan Herald, founded by Chipman and Seymour in 1825. In 1826 the greater part of the Chippewa tribe came to Detroit, making the trip from Fond du Lac by canoes in twenty-two days, an average of more than fifty miles a day. -They came to draw certain annuities which had been awarded them by a treaty which Governor Cass and Colonel McKenney had 368 CAMERON CURRIE. effected with them near the present site of Duluth in 1825. The terri- torial government agreed to grant the tribe these annuities for their support and education, on condition that the white men should be per- mitted to engage in mining on the upper peninsula, but their titles were limited to the underground portion of the territory, and they were to acquire no claims to possession of the surface. Another Indian homicide caused a little temporary excitement in 1836. Kishkauken, a chief of the Saginaw Indians, and another In- dian named Big Beaver, murdered Chief Wawasson at Detroit. Kish- kauken was captured, tried and condemned to be hanged. His wives gathered about him with extravagant demonstrations of grief, and it is supposed that one of them gave him a dose of poison, for Kishkauken was found dead in his cell one morning and the gallows was cheated of its prey. In this year the development of the Michigan fisheries began, and considerable quantities of white fish and Mackinaw trout were shipped to the East. Seven steamers were running between Detroit. and Buf- falo, and oysters were regularly sold for the first time in the city, al- though an old account shows that some were brought here by John Askin in 1796. Henry Chipman succeeded John Hunt as supreme justice in 1827. He was born at Tinmouth, Rutland county, Vt., July 25, 1784. His father, Nathaniel Chipman, was a Revolutionary soldier, a United States senator for Vermont, and chief justice of the Supreme Court of that State. After studying law young Chipman went south and com- menced to practice at Waterborough, S. C, forty miles from Charles- ton, and was adjutant of a South Carolina regiment stationed at Beau- fort during the war of 1812. In 1824 he removed to Detroit where he won distinction as a lawyer and editor of the Herald, and next year was appointed chief justice of the County Court. In 1827 he succeeded John Hunt as supreme judge. In 1832 President Jackson removed him and also Woodbridge and Doty, because they were Whigs, and ap- pointed George Morell, David Irvin and Ross Wilkins in their places, retaining Solomon Sibley. Mr. Chipman was afterward secretary of the Land Board, city recorder, school inspector and judge of the Dis- trict Criminal Court. In person he greatly resembled his son, the late John Logan Chipman, being of medium height and solidly built, with a high broad forehead, clear bright blue eyes, large nose and wide mouth, his face giving a general expression of sagacity, benevolence 300 47 and determination. He was very absent-minded and at home always pocketed the handkerchiefs and napkins that came within his reach. One time while on a visit to Niagara Falls and after taking dinner at a hotel, he put one of the napkins in his pocket. The landlord saw the act and charged him with taking it, and only the presence and ex- planation of his friend, ex-United States Senator Augustus S. Porter, who had left Michigan and returned to his birthplace at the Falls, re- lieved him from the embarrassing position. He died in Detroit in 1867, aged eighty-three years. In 1827 the Mansion House, on the northwest corner of Jefferson avenue and Wayne street, after serving a variety of purposes, was opened as a hotel. This building was a historic structure in more senses than one, for not only did it have a history peculiarly its own, but the material of which it was built was the bones of old Detroit. It was constructed out of the stones of the chimneys which were left after the great fire of 1805, and was built by James May. In 1827 public schools were placed under township control instead of under direction of the University Board as theretofore. In the follow- ing year the commerce of Detroit had increased materially and flour and tobacco became important exports. The capitol building, commenced in 1823, was first occupied in 1828. Following the custom of the day it was constructed with a Greek por- tice, with six lofty Doric columns across the front. The building was quite plain, its chief distinctive feature being a lofty tower of four stages, which reared its pepperbox top 140 feet in the air. This tower commanded the best available view of the city at that time and was much frequented by visitors. When the capital was removed to Lan- sing in 1847 the Detroit building was remodeled, and it subsequently became the Detroit High School building. In the winter of 1893 it burned to the ground and the brick walls were razed. The site is now permanently converted into a public park known as Capitol Square. In 1830 a public execution took place in Detroit, which was all the more notable because Stephen G. Simmons, who paid the penalty for murder, was the only white man who was hanged in Wayne county under American rule. Simmons was a man of herculean strength and build, peaceable when sober, but a dangerous ruffian when drunk. While on a spree he insisted that his wife should drink with him, and after she had repeatedly done so to gratify him, she refused to drink more. Thereupon he struck her a terrible blow in the abdomen burst- 370 ing a blood vessel and she died in a few minutes. Simmons's two daughters were witnesses of the crime. He was tried before Judges Solomon Sibley, Henry Chipman and William Woodbridge, B. F. H. Witherell acting as prosecuting attorney. George A. O'Keefe conducted the defense. The evidence was conclusive and in spite of O'Keefe's eloquent plea for mercy the jury found Simmons guilty. On the morn- ing appointed for the execution Sheriff Thomas A. Knapp, being un- able to find a substitute hangman, tendered his resignation to Governor Cass. Ben. Woodworth, who kept the Steamboat Hotel, was not so squeamish about serving as Jack Ketch, however, and he volunteered his services. Simmons was truly repentant and his address from the scaffold was a warning against strong drink. He concluded his oration by singing the old hymn : ' ' Show pity, Lord ! O Lord, forgive ! Let a repenting rebel live ! Are not thy mercies large and free? May not a sinner trust in Thee?" The execution took place in front of the jail, which was on the site of the Public Library. After Woodworth had swung his victim off Gov- ernor Cass appointed him sheriff in place of Knapp, and he served to the end of the term. In 1831 De Tocqueville, the celebrated French author and publicist, was commissioned by King Louis Phillippe of France, to visit the prisons of America and he came to Detroit. The only prison in Detroit was on the site of the present Public Library and had been built in 1819. It was empty most of the time and could not have afforded De Tocqueville any food for comment, as he did not mention it in his published report. In 1831 Governor Cass was appointed secretary of war by President Jackson and removed to Washington. He was succeeded by George B. Porter, a prominent Pennsylvanian, whose home was at Lancaster. Mr. Porter belonged to a distinguished family, and was the head of the " Lancaster regency," a Democratic quadrumvirate of which the other three members were James Bixchanan, Benjamin Champneys and Rhea Frazer, all of Lancaster. This junta in Democratic administrations controlled the federal patronage of Pennsylvania, and Porter was the political Warwick of his day, and made presidents and governorsat will. He was an elegant and lavish entertainer, and the reason why he ac- cepted the governorship of a Territory like Michigan was probably because of the fact that his hospitality had depleted his means, and 371 that he came to a new section of the country to recuperate financially. The only notable event of his administration was the brief excitement in 1832 known as the Black Hawk war. This Indian uprising did not affect the territory embraced within the present boundaries of Michigan, but it was the cause of much uneasiness in Wisconsin, which was then a part of Michigan. The Indians concerned in this war Tvere the Winne- bagoes and the Sacs and Foxes, who had always been subject to Brit- ish influence, and had been educated to hate the Americans every time they came to Maiden to secure their annual presents. The country was then at peace, and the West hafl so filled up with settlers that it was abundantly able to take care of its own Indian troubles. Chief Black Hawk was a Sac, sixty-five years of age, and a man of great in- fluence. He headed a revolt of the tribes mentioned, to avenge some real and fancied encroachments and injuries on the part of the settlers. Michigan sent a body of militia from Detroit to co-operate with militia from Indiana, Missouri and Illinois, but before they reached the scene of war the Indians had been brought into subjection and Black Hawk was captured. He was imprisoned in Fortress Monroe for a time, and after his release was given a tour embracing the larger cities in the East, in order to impress his mind with the futility of Indian attempts to cope with civilized forces. He arrived in Detroit during the next year on his way home, and was quartered at the Mansion House. Meanwhile the government sent forward regular troops, and Gen. Winfield Scott passed through Detroit on his way to the troubled dis- trict. The result of the " war " was the ceding by the offending tribes of a wide area of territory in Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa to the United States. While it was in progress during the spring and summer of 1832, Governor Porter was detained at his home in Pennsylvania by sickness, and the military affairs of Michigan were directed by Stevens T. Mason, secretary of the Territory and acting governor, and John R. Williams as military commandant. 372 CHAPTER LII. Michigan's Early Supreme Judges— David Irvin, George Morell and Ross Wilkins —William Woodbridge and His Father-in-,Law, Jonathan Trumbull— Dr. Douglass Houghton and Henry R. Schoolcraft Explore the Upper Peninsula and the Sources of the Mississippi. In 1832 the terms of Supreme Judges Woodbridge, Chipman, Doty and Sibley expired. They were all Whigs, and President Jackson in- tended to fill their places with Democrats, but was induced to allow Sibley to continue in office. Woodbridge, Doty and Chipman retired, and David Irvin, George Morell and Ross Wilkins were appointed. Sketches of these gentlemen latter named and William Woodbridge are as follows : David Irvin was born in Virginia and first saw the light in the Shen- andoah valley in 1799. He early studied law, and by family interest was appointed judge of the Michigan Territorial Supreme Court in 1833. He succeeded James Duane Doty in the Northern District, and held court at Mackinac, Green Bay and Mineral Point. When Wis- consin was carved out of Michigan and became a separate Territory, on July 4, 1836, he was appointed associate judge of the Wisconsin Terri torial Supreme Court. When Wisconsin was admitted to the Union in 1848 his official career terminated and he removed to Texas. He lived and died a bachelor, full of whims and oddities, and was dignified and courteous. Personally he was about six feet in height, very erect and well proportioned, with auburn hair, blue eyes and rather thin narrow, features. He was a gentleman of the old school in every- thing except his parsimonious habits, which he carried to the extent of darning his stockings, mending his clothes, and sewing on his buttons. He fell in love with a rich lady at St. Louis, Mo., and they were en- gaged, but when she learned of his economical habits the match was broken off. He loved his horse Pedro, and his dog York, with an affection surpassing the love of woman. In Texas he bought a large tract of land near Galveston, which he peopled mostly with his own relatives. When the war of the Rebellion reached that State the mem- 373 bers of a Wisconsin regiment made a prolonged effort to capture him, but he removed beyond their reach. He died about June 1, 1872, aged seventy-three years. Judge George Morell was associate justice of the Michigan Terri- torial Court from 1833 to 1836, and after Michigan became a State was appointed associate justice of the State Supreme Court. The judge was a superior man of commanding presence. He was over six feet in height, well proportioned, with an erect and dignified carriage; a large Websterian head, prominent nose, blond complexion, grayish blue eyes, firm, well shaped mouth, and thick, curly iron gray hair. On the bench he generally wore a blue coat with brass buttons, a buff vest, a high shirt collar, and a black satin stock on his neck, below which was the ruffled bosom of his snow-white shirt. He was a gentleman of the old school, punctilious but not formal, and was kind and considerate to everybody. He was a Massachusetts man and a graduate of Williams College, and was afterward a successful lawyer in the New York courts, his home being in Cooperstown. He was appointed territorial judge, as above stated, in 1832, and was appointed one of the Supreme Court of the State in 1836.- In 1844 he retired from the bench and died in Detroit on March 1, 1845, aged fifty nine years. Judge Ross Wilkins was one of the most striking and unique figures of the Territorial Supreme Bench. His personality, in 1833, was de- scribed as follows by George A. Bates, in 1878, in his lecture on the " By-gones of Detroit": "In 1833 he was in his thirty-fourth year, and in the very strength and beauty of manhood. His whole make up attracted attention to him as a remarkable man. He was about five feet ten inches in height; well proportioned, lithe and graceful, with fine features, long hair, expressive eyes, magnificent teeth and a facial resemblance toLord Byron. He was one of the handsomest men of his day. His motions and his intellect were both quick, and his reasoning was clear and lucid. While reading and studying the papers and evi- dence before him he was always moving restlessly in his chair, and when he had finished he would rise and going to the back part of the court room, fill and light his long pipe and smoke as he walked around, always paying the strictest attention to the proceedings. When a case was finished he always had his decision ready. Some of his charges to grand juries will compare favorably with the best efforts by eminent judges of both American and British courts." He was born at Pitts- burg, Pa., on February 18, 1799, and came of good Revolutionary 374 stock. In 1816 he graduated from Dickinson College, being then in his seventeenth year. He practiced in Pittsburg and was elected prose- cuting attorney before he was age. He was an active Democrat and was appointed territorial judge of Michigan in 1832 by Andrew Jackson, and served until 1837, when Michigan was admitted to the Union. He was then appointed United States district judge, which position he held until 1870, when he retired. He died in Detroit, May 17, 1873, aged seventy- four years. William Woodbridge, who was one of the territorial judges from 1828 to 1832, when he was displaced by Jackson, was one of the most remarkable citizens of Michigan, and his name and personality figures largely in its history. He was born at Norwich, Conn., August 20, 1780, and finished his education in that State. Removing to Marietta, O., where his father lived, he commenced the study of law, and his most intimate friend was Lewis Cass. The two were afterward the most p eminent figures in Michigan, and in Detroit. Their residences were only a short distance apart, on the bank of the Detroit River. Young Woodbridge was married to Julianna Trumbull, daughter of John Trumbull, the author of "McFingall," and other poems. He was afterward representative in the Senate of the Ohio Legislature, supported the war measures of President Madison in 1812, and the lat- ter appointed him secretary of the Territory of Michigan and collector of the Detroit Custom House District in 1814. The land titles in the Territory were the subject of great solicitude, and many people were liable to be dispossessed of property which their ancestors had occu- pied for more than a hundred years. Woodbridge was appointed by the citizens to attend to these claims, and in 1819 he was elected with- out opposition as the first delegate to Congress for Michigan Territory. He was afterward appointed to many positions of honor and emolu- ment, had a large and lucrative practice, was elected State senator in 1835, and governor of the State in 1839. In 1840 the Whigs carried the State and the nation for Harrison, and a Whig United States senator was to be elected. Lieut. -Gov. J. Wright Gordon, a young man of ability, received the caucus nomina- tion, and treated his friends to a grand supper. Next morning the voting at the Capitol commenced. The first name called was that of a noted Democrat, and he called out loudly "William Woodbridge." The Whigs were astounded; as the roll was called it was soon seen that Woodbridge was elected, and he was elected amid great excitement. 375 Woodbridge sat in the Senate for six years, retiring from public life in 1847, when he was sixty-seven years of age. He died in Detroit, Octo- ber 20, 1861. In 1833 a vote was taken to ascertain the opinion of the people on the question of organizing as a State for admission to the Union. A petition was forwarded to Congress, but the proceedings were irregular, and Congress concluded that the time was not ripe for the change. During the Porter administration the price of public lands was re- duced from $3 per acre to $1.35. This was not because the lands were found to be inferior, but as a measure to stop obstructive speculation. When $3 was charged the purchaser could get possession on payment of one-fourth of the amount, and the remainder in three annual install- ments. This induced many speculators to buy up large tracts of the most desirable lands and hold them for a rise in value, thus delaying settlement. The reduction was made to get rid of the speculators and the terms were made spot cash. In 1832 an exploring party set out from Detroit under instructions from General Cass, then secretary of war, to explore the northern peninsula, and, if possible, to discover the headwaters of the Mississippi. An army officer and ten soldiers were detailed to accompany the ex- pedition, which was to be under direction of Henry R. Schoolcraft. Dr. Douglas Houghton, of Detroit, went in the capacity of surgeon and geological surveyor, and, with an interpreter and a missionary to the northwestern Indians, who accompanied the party, there was a total of thirty men. They left Sault Ste. Marie June 7, and after suffering many privations and hardships, they arrived at Cass Lake, one of the group of lakes about the source of the Mississippi, on July 10. This lake was visited and named by General Cass while on the exploration of 1821. At this point all but sixteen of the party turned back, but the others went on through the wilderness under guidance of Oza Win- dib, a Chippewa Indian, who was familiar with the desolate region, and at length arrived at Lake Itasca. This they concluded was the source of the great river, and it was so recognized by geographers for a per- iod of about forty years. Then it shifted to other quarters and the last exploration of the region was made by Willard O. Glazier about twenty years ago. The explorers returned by way of St. Croix and Brule Rivers to the head of Lake Superior, and again traversed the wilderness of the northern peninsula. They discovered abundant evidences of the pres- 376 / r