HISTORY WEST POIE'T, MILITARY IMPORTMCE DURING THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION: OEIGIK A]S"D PEOGEESS T^^ITED STATES MILITARY ACADEMY. BY BVT. MAJOR EDWARD C. BOYNTON, A.M., ADJUTANT OF THE MILITARY ACADEMY. SECOND EDITION. NEW YORK : D. VAN NOSTRAND, PUBLISHER, 33 MURRAY AND 27 WARREN STREET. 1871. nH'\ Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1863, BY EDWARD C. BOTNTON, In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern District of New York. C. A. ALVOED, ELECTROTTPEE AND PEINTEK. LOTEJOT * SON, ELECTBO. " I give it as my fixed opinion, tliat but for our gradu- ated Gadets, the war between the United States and Mexico might, and probably would, have lasted some four or five years, with, in its first half, more defeats than victories falling to our share ; whereas, in less than two campaigns we conquered a great country and a peace, without the loss of a single battle or skirmish." — Misc. Doc. Senate, 2d Session, XXXVI. Gong, 176, 1861. WINFIELD SGOTT. ) PREFACE. This History of West Point is designed to supply a want which all interested in the antecedents of the Post, or in the origin and progress of the United States Mili- tary Academy, have long desired to see supplied. Emanating from the Custodian of the records of the Academy, who has been an instructor for many years in the Institution, and for many years in one of our prominent literary Colleges, the statements put forth are believed to be correct, and the comparisons instituted cannot be regarded as purely speculative. If errors are found to exist, it is hoped, nevertheless, that a nucleus of truth has been established, which invites amendment and improvement. No claim to literary merit or originality is asserted. The labors of Ruttenber on the "Obstructions of the Hudson," and of Sargeant on the " Life of Andre," have been freely used, with the consent of the authors or pub- lishers. To these may be added extracts from the North American and Quarterly Reviews ; and the whole, having been subjected to revision by competent authorities at the Academy, is, with their approbation, respectfully submitted. To the Rev. Roswell Park, D. D., Chancellor of Racine College, Wisconsin, and pioneer author of a Sketch ^j Pkeface. of West Point; Mr. George H. Mooee, Librarian of the New Yorlc Historical Society; Mr. H. B. Dawson; Lieutenant Elbekkin, U. S. A., and Cadets Lydeckee and Peteikin, of the Military Academy, the author is indebted for courteous assistance in the preparation of the volume. Adjutant's Office, West Point, N. Y., September 30th, 1863. LIST OF AUTHORITIES. In the preparation of this History the following works have been freely consulted, and from some of them copious extracts have been taken : AxTTHENTio Nabbative OF THE Captuee OF Andbe. Bj Joshua Hctt Smith. American State Papees, — Military Affairs. Ameeioan Aechives. Ameeioan QtrAKTEELY Eeview. Vol. XXII. Ameeioan Historical Magazine, Notes and Queries, &c., of America. Battles of the United States, by Sea and Land. By H. B. Dawson. Correspondence of the American Revoltttion, beiog Letters of Eminent Men to George Washington. By J. Sparks. History of Westchester County. By R. Bolton, History of Orange County. By S. W. Eager. HisTOEY OF Putnam County. By W. J. Blake. Life of Benedict Arnold : Library of American Biography. By J. Sparks. Life of Major John Andre. By W. Sargeant. Manuscripts of Major George Fleming. Library of the U. S. Military Academy. Manuscripts of Major-General Gates : Library of the New York Histor- ical Society. Manuscripts of Colonel Lamb : Library of the New York Historical Society. Memoirs of Major-General Heath. By Himself. Memoirs of Colonel Benjamin Tallmadge. By Himself. Memoirs of the Life and Times of General John Lamb. By L Q. Leake. Military Journal dueing the Ameeican Eevolutionaey War. By James Thatcher. f viii List of Authorities. North American Review. LVII. 1843. Obstritotions of the Hudson River. By E. M. Ruttenber. [Munsell'a Hist. Series. No. V.] Official Records at the United States Military Academy. Pictorial Field-Book of the Revolution. By B. J. Lossing. Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U. S. Military Academy. By Capt. G. W. Oullum. Reports of the Boards of Visitors at the U. S. Military Academy. Report Mil. Committee : House of Representatives, No. 466. Revolutionary Orders of General Washington. By H. Whiting. Writings of George Washington. By J. Sparks. I I COl^TENTS. CHAPTER I. Early grants of the Lands at "West Point. — Title acquired by THE United States by Purchase. — Commissioners Settle the Boundaries. — Further Purchase by the United States. — Jurisdiction ceded by the State of New York. — Early im- portance OF THE Control of the Hudson during the Revo- lution. — Resolutions of the Continental Congress, May 25, 1775. — Appointment of Committee by the Provincial Con- gress, AND Resolutions of the latter, August 18, 1YY5. 9-19 CHAPTER n. Entrance to the Upper Highlands. — Martelaer's Rock. — Ar- rival OF THE Commissioners with Col. Romans, the Engi- neer. — Possession taken of the Island. — Correspondence WITH Col. Beverly Robinson. — Controversy between Romans AND the Commissioners. — A Garrison ordered to Fort Con- stitution. — First Proposition to occupy West Point and ERECT Redoubts on the east side of the River. — Removal of Romans, and Report of the Commissioners en route to Can- ada. — Order of Washington for a Board of Officers to Report upon the Condition of the Fortifications in the Highlands. — Report of the Board. 20-38 CHAPTER III. Appointment of a Secret Committee for Obstructing the Chan- nel of the Hudson. — Their Action and Letter to Washing- ton. — Assignment of General Geo. Clinton to Command in the Highlands. — General Clinton and other Officers ex- X Contents. AMINE THE "WORKS AND RePORT UPON THE NECESSITY OF A BoOM AND Chain at Fort Montgomery. — Major-General Putnam ap- pointed TO Command. — Advance of Sir Henry Clinton up the Hudson to Co-operate with General Burgoyne. — Assault AND Capture of Forts Montgomery and Clinton. 39-47 CHAPTER IV. Renewed Efforts to Obstruct the Hudson. — Selection of West Point as a Suitable Place. — Letters of "Washington to Put- nam ANDi Clinton upon the Subject. — Appointment of a Com- mittee BY the New York Provincial Convention to confer WITH Putnam. — Report of the Committee, in which they Recom- mend THE Fortification of West Point. — Commencement of THE Works by General Parsons. — Contract made by Colonel Hughes for the Great Chain at West Point. — Report of General Putnam on the Progress of the Fortifications. — Report of General Parsons on the same. — General McDou- GALL ordered TO ReLIEVE GeNERAL PuTNAM. INSTRUCTIONS TO General Parsons relative to the Construction of the Works 48-68 CHAPTER V. Progress of Obstructing the Hudson. — Relic op the Boom and Chain. — Letters of General Glover and Captain Machin. — Disposition of the Boom, Chain, etc. — Fort Arnold. — Dis- crepancies in the Name of the Work. — Assignment of Major- General Heath to the Command. — Head-quarters of Wash- ington Established at West Point. — Washington's Orders. — Severity of the Winter of 1779-80. — Assignment of Gen- eral Howe to the Command of the Post. 69-86 CHAPTER VL Major-General Arnold ordered to Relieve General Howe. — Disaffection of Arnold. — Disheartening Condition of the American Cause. — Advantages of West Point if C-.-iptured by the Enemy. — Sir Henry Clinton's Idea. — The Secret Cor- respondence with Arnold. — Appointment to meet John An- DERSOsr. — The " Robinson House," and its Original f roprie- I J 1 r Contents. xi TOR. — The Meeting between Arnold and Anderson Thwarted. — A Flag of Truce from the Vulture, and its Purport. — Smith's House. — Joshua Hett Smith. — Meeting between Ar- nold AND Anderson. — Attempt of Anderson to Return to New York by Land. — Cow-boys and Skinners. — Capture of Anderson. 87-106 CHAPTER VII. Narrative of One of the Captors. — Anderson Conveyed to North Castle. — The Papers found on his Person. — Ander- son's Appearance Described. — He is Transferred to the " Robinson House." — Arrival of Washington. — The Plot Dis- covered. — Flight of Arnold. — Andre Conveyed to "West Point and from thence to Tappan. — Board of General Offi- cers Convened. 107-124 CHAPTER VIII. Proceedings of the Board of General Officers. — Letters of Washington to Congress. — Andre to Washington and Shel- don. — Letter from Arnold to Washington. — Robinson to Washington. — Clinton to Washington. — Arnold to Clinton. — Report of the Board. — Andre to Clinton. — Washington to Clinton. — Robertson to Washington. — Reply of Washington. — Clinton to Washington. — Arnold to Washington. — Rob- ertson to Washington. — Arnold to Washington. — Andr^ to Washington. 125-147 CHAPTER IX. Andre's Statement. — His Execution. — Assignment of General McDoUGALL TO COMMAND AT WeST PoINT. GeNERAL GrEENE Ordered to Relieve Him. — The Army go into Winter Quar- ters. — Visit of the Marquis de Chastellux. — Celebration at West Point of the Birth of the Dauphin of France. — Gen- eral Knox Ordered to Command at West Point. — Major Fleming Succeeds Him. — Removal op the Great Chain from THE Hudson. — Attempt to Raise the Old Iron in the Sunken Frigates. — Captain Molly. — The Artillerists and Engineers. — Establishment of a Military School. — Repairs on the Forti- xii Contents. FicATioNS. — Report of Major Niven. — Visit of Liancourt. — West Point no longer of Importance as a Defensive Point. 149-171 CHAPTER X. Early Necessity for a Military Academy Recognized at the Commencement of the Revolution. — Appointment of a Com- mittee to Visit the Army by Congress, and their Report in Favor of such an Institution. — Resolution of Congress upon THE Subject. — Necessity for a Military Academy on th? Establishment of Peace. — Arguments of Generals Hunting- don AND Pickering. — Value of their Experience and Opin- ions. — Official Report of General Knox on Military Educa- tion. — Brief Career of Military Men. — Citizen Graduates AND their Services. — Opinions of Washington and Jefferson on the Establishment of a Military Academy. — Organization of the Corps of Artillery and Engineers, and Appointment OF Cadets thereto, in 1794. — Increase of the Corps and of the Number OF Cadets IN 1798. — Provision for their Education. — Inadequate Means for this Purpose. — Views of President Adams and Mr. McHenry, the Secretary of War. — Organiza- tion of the Military Academy by Congress, to be Stationed AT West Point. — Message of President Jefferson Relative to the Subject. — Report of Colonel Williams, the First Superintendent of the Academy. 175-196 CHAPTER XL Action taken by Congress and Increase of the Number of Ca- dets.^Urgent Recommendations in Favor of the Institution by President Madison. — Reorganization of the Institution in 1812, by which it became a Branch of the Army. — Reduc- tion OF THE Latter, and Recommendation of the President to Enlarge the Academy. — Inquiry into the Constitutionality OF THE Institution. — Unanimity of Boards of investigating Committees on the Subject. — Progress of the Institution, and THE Difficulties it Encountered. — Changes among the Teach- ers. — Organization under the Law of 1812. — Resignation op Colonel Williams; Colonel Swift his Successor. — Introduc- Contents. xiii TION OF THE INSPECTOR. RuLES WITH RESPECT TO THE PROMOTION OF Cadets. — Appointment of a Board of Visitors. — Uniform OF the Cadets. — Report of the Chief-Engineer. 197-216 CHAPTER XII. Appointment of Brevet-Major Thayer as Superintendent. — Im- petus imparted to the Institution. — Organization of the Battalion of Cadets. — Improvements in the System of Educa- tion. — The Secretary of War directs Five most Distinguished Cadets in each Class, to be Annually Reported. — Amenabil- ity OF Cadets to Martial Law. — Cadet Assistant Professors. — General Examinations in January and June. — Furloughs. — Major De Russy Appointed to Succeed Colonel Thayer as Su- perintendent. — Destruction by Fire of the Academic Build- ing. — New one Erected. — Organization of the Department of Chemistry, &c. — The Cadets Sworn to Serve Eight Years. 217-224 CHAPTER XIII. Major Delafield Appointed to Succeed Colonel De Russy as Superintendent. — Progress in Improvements. — Establishment of Cavalry Instruction. — Commandant of the Post. — Method OF Appointing the Cadets. — Principles Regulating it. — Not Controlled by the "Wealthy. — Open to all. — Substitutes for the Present System of making Appointments. — Enormous Ex- pense of the Proposed Change. — Comparison of a Cadet and Citizen Applicant for Grade of Lieutenant. — The Military Academy said to be "Only a School of Art," and Accused OF HAVING Produced no " Great Military Genius." — An Ap- peal TO ITS Records. — Term of Service of Graduates, and of Citizens in the Army. 225-243 CHAPTER XIV. Law of Congress Regulating the Appointment of Cadets. — Suspension of the Board of Visitors. — Pay of the Cadets Increased. — Major Delafield Succeeded by Captain Brewer- ton AS Superintendent, — Reappointment of the Board of xiv Contents. Visitors. — Teachers Discoxtinued by Professorships. — Pros- perity OF the Academy. — Demolition of the Old Barracks AND Erection of New. — Captain Brewerton Succeeded by Colonel Lee as Superintendent. — Extension of the Term of Study from Four to Five Years. — Major Barnard and Col- onel Delafield Succeed as Superintendents. — Continued Im- provements. — Establishment of Local Rank of the Superin- tendent AND the Commandant of Cadets. — Return from a Five to a Pour Years' Course of Study. — Academic Board NOT Sustained. — A Commission from both Houses of Congress Examine into the Institution. — Major Beauregard and Major Bowman Succeed as Superintendents. — Loyalty of the Cadets. — Description of the Public Buildings. 244^-264 CHAPTER XV. Appointment of Cadets. — The Qualifications Necessary. — Ad- mission into the Academy. — Instruction and Examination of THE Candidates. — Outfit Procured for the New Cadet. — Classification and System of Military Instruction. — Aca. demic Instruction. — Arrangement into Classes and Sections. — Programme for the Employment of Time. — Thoroughness in Learning and Teaching. — Importance of the Conduct-Roll. — Successful Workings of the System. — Discipline among the Cadets. — Determination of Class-Rank, and its Impor- tance. — Proportion of Graduates to the Number of Cadets Admitted. — Services of the Graduates. 265-282 CHAPTER XVL "West Point in 1863. — Scenery. — Principal Objects of Interest. — Fort Clinton. — Kosciuszko's Monument. — Dade's Monument. — Narrative of the Survivor of the Massacre. — Chain Bat- tery Walk. — Library and Observatory. — Chapel. — Trophies ON the Walls. — Academic Building. — Museum. — Picture Gal- lery. — Sculpture Gallery. — Engineering and Chemical De- partments. — Cadets' Barrack. — Mess-Hall. — Hospital. — Rid- ing-Hall. — Scenery from Fort Putnam. — The Cemetery. — Mexican Trophies. — The Great Chain. — The Encampment. — Autumnal Landscape at West Point. 28.S-307 Contents. yy APPENDIX. PA6B Appropriations for the Military Academy . . .311 Secretaries of War, from 1789 to 1863 .... 312 List of Inspectors, Superintendents, Professors, Teachers, Heads of Departments, Surgeons, and Adjutants, and their Term of Service at the Military Academy, from its Origin to the present Date ..... 313-319 Statement showing the Number of Cadets actually Admit- ted INTO THE United States Military Academy from its Origin, March 16, 1802, to October, 1863 . . .320 Statement exhibiting the actual Number of Cadets who HAVE Graduated at the Military Academy, from its Origin TO THE PRESENT DaTE, WITH THE StATES AND TERRITORIES whence appointed ........ 322 Statement exhibiting the Condition in Life of the Parents OF the Cadets of the United States Military Academy, FROM 1842 to 1863, INCLUSIVE 324 List of Cadets attached to the Army Register annually, IN conformity with a Regulation requiring the Names of the most Distinguished Cadets, not exceeding Five in each Class, to be reported at each Annual Examination 325-334 Military Academy Band ....... 335 Abstract of all the Acts of Congress providing for the Appointment of Cadets in the Army, and for the Estab- lishment AND Organization of the United States Military Academy 337-361 Military Education in Europe ... ... 362 Special Military School of St. Cyr 364 The Polytechnic School 368 School of Application for the Artillery and Engineering at Metz 371 School of Application for the Staff 373 Military Education in England ...... 377 Royal Military Academy at Woolwich 378 Prussian System of Military Education .... 382 Cadet Schools 382 School of Artillerists and Engineers ..... 383 The Staff School at BerUn 385 XVI Contents. Austrian System of Military Education The Artillery Academy The Engineer Academy The School of the Staff. Military Education in Eussia General Index PAGE 386 387 388 389 390 401 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE 1. Map of West Point and its Vicinity. 1866 Front. 2. Map of the Commission in 1812 face 11 3. Survey of the United States Lands at West Point. 1839 — face 14 4. Martelaeb's Rock (Constitution Island) 20 5. Map of Fort Constitution, Constitution Island. 1776 face 27 6. Map of the West Side op the Hudson River. 1780. {Facsimile) face 45 7. Arrangement op the Great Boom and Chain Across the Hudson AT West Point. 1780 face 70 8. Relic of the Great Chain of the Revolution 78 9. Map op Fort Arnold. 1780. {Facsimile) face 79 11. Chapter Vignette 87 12. Robinson's House in the Highlands „ 97 13. Map op the Scene of Arnold's Treason 104 14. Fort Putnam,— from the West Point Hotel 1863 153 15. Grand Arbor and Colonnade at West Point in 1782. {Facsimile) face 161 16. Ruins op Port Putnam (Interior View) 170 17. The Old North Barracks 254 18. The Old South Barracks 254 19. The Old Academic BuiLDiNa 255 20. The Old Mess-Hall 256 21. The West Point Hotel 257 xviii List .of Illustrations. PAGE 22. The Chapel 257 23. The New Academic Building 258 24. The Library and Observatory 259 25. The New Cadet Barracks 260 26. The New Mess-Hall 262 27. Map of West Point in 1»63 face 2S3 28. Ruins op Fort Constitution 285 29. KosciuszKO's Monument 287 30. Dade's Monument 288 31. The Thtrteen-inch Mortar 295 32. The Cadets' Monument 301 33. "Wood's Monument 302 34. The Trophy Guns 303 35. The Encampment 304 36. Militart Academy Band 335 PART I MILITARY LIPORTANCE OF WEST POINT DXJBING THE AMEEIOA^ EEYOLUTIOK HISTORY OF WEST POINT. CHAPTER I. Early grants op the Lands at West Point. — Title acquired by THE United States by Purchase. — Commissioners Settle the Boundaries. — Further Purchase by the United States. — Jurisdiction ceded by the State of New York. — Early im- portance OF THE Control of the Hudson during the Revo- lution. — Resolutions of the Continental Congress, May 25, I'^'^S. — Appointment of Committee by the Provincial Con- gress, AND Resolutions of the latter, August 18, 1775, The United States tract at West Point includes 2,105 acres of land, the title to which was secured by purchase, as herein described. West Point proper was originally granted to Captain John Evans ; but, having been vacated by him, it was a;fterwards reassumed and held by the English Crown. On May 17, 1723, by Royal Letters-Patent, a tract, including the northern portion of the Point, and embra- cing 1,463 acres of land, was granted to Charles Con- greve, upon the condition that, within three years, he or his heirs or assigns should settle and cultivate at least three acres for every fifty acres of land described in the grant. The first settlement at West Point may there- fore date from this period. On March 25, 1747, an- other portion of the Evans grant, adjoining the south- west corner of the Congreve patent, and embracing 332 10 History of West Point. acres of land, was patented to John Moore, on like con- dition of settlement within three years. The patent of Congreve having been purchased in later years by Moore, was conveyed by will, together with the Moore patent, to his son, Stephen Moore, merchant, of Caswell County, N. C. It appears that a petition was presented to Congress by the latter, praying that the United States would pur- chase West Point, which had already been so long occu- pied for public purposes. On this petition Greneral Ham- ilton, then Secretary of the Treasury, made a ftivorable report, June 10, 1790. He quoted the opinion of General Knox, the Secretary of War, as set forth by him in a report to Congress, dated July 31, 1786, that West Point is of the most de- cisive importance to the defence of the Hudson River, for the following reasons : First. " The distance across the river is only about fourteen hundred feet, a less distance by far than at any other part. Second. The peculiar bend, or turn of the river, form- ing almost a re-entering angle. Third. The high banks on both sides of the river, favorable for the construction of formidable batteries. Fourth. The demonstrated practicability of fixing across the river a chain or chains, at a spot where ves- sels in turning the Point invariably lose their rapidity, and, of course, their force, by which a chain at any other part of the river would be liable to be broken." These considerations, together with the difficulty [at that time] of taking West Point by siege ; its being with- in a single night's sail of New York, and its importance History of West Point. 11 in preserving communications between the Eastern and Middle States, induced General Hamilton to recommend its purchase by the United States, as a permanent mili- tary post.* Accordingly, /1both the patents held by Stephen Moore were deeded to the United States, on the payment of the sum of $11,085, September 10, 1790, in compliance with the act of Congress of July 5, of the same year./ A controversy having arisen in relation to the boun- dary of the public lands in after years, a commission was appointed by the Hon. Secretary of War, under an act approved January 22, 1811, to ascertain and settle the exterior lines of the Government property at West Point. This commission surveyed the tract, and submitted a report with map, dated January 22, 1812, establishing the boundary. Which report was accepted and approved by act of Congress, dated January 5, 1813. The tract adjoining Congreve's patent, immediately on the south, was one of the six tracts originally granted to Gabriel and William Ludlow, October 18, 1731, under the same condition of early settlement in the three years before referred to. It was successively owned and afterwards occupied by Richard Williams, of Cornwall, N. Y., and Robert Arm- strong, of Sussex County, N. J., by whom it was deeded toBenjamin Rose, December 1, 1785; by Rose to John Dunlap, of Ulster County, N. Y., September 6, 1788, and by Dunlap to Thomas North, of Cornwall, November 22, 1794. North also purchased a tract lying south of the * Am. State Papers— Claims— 19. 12 History of West Point. one under consideration, from Isaiah Smith, June 3, 1796, and on the 28th December, 1819, he deeded both tracts to Oliver Gridley, of Bergen County, N. J. '^ On the 13th of May, 1824, Gridley deeded them to the United States for the sum of $10,000, in accordance with the act of Congress, approved March 10, of the same year. Vexatious claims having in later years arisen between the Government and citizens who resided on the lands, application was made to the legislature of the State of New York, to transfer to the United States a portion of the territory in question. Accordingly, on March 2, 1826, an act passed the Senate and Assembly, ceding jurisdiction over the tract here described : * Beginning at the mouth of a small brook or creek, northwest of the present Engineer Bar- racks, and the Powder Magazine ; thence up said creek to its intersection with the road leading west to the Cem- etery; thence easterly along the northern brow of the bank bounding the road, to its intersection with the road near the west gate leading to Fort Putnam ; thence due south until the line intersects a line beginning thirty-eight chains south of Gee's Point, and running westerly. The latter crosses the road about 180 feet south of the centre of the entrance to the Cadets' Mess. The ceded district contains nearly two hundred and twenty acres. The State reserved the right to execute any process, civil or criminal, wherein the real or personal property of the United States was not affected. Taxes have never been claimed by the State authori- * Official Records, U. S. M. A. History of AVest Point. 13 ties but once (in 1828), and then only the road-tax was demanded ; but, in consideration of the liberal repairs habitually made by the Government, it was relinquished.* A portion of the Moore patent having been offered for sale by the State of New York, for the payment of quit- rents, was purchased by William S. Watkins in 1828, and sold by him, in 1833, to Timothy Mahoney. A suit for trespass having been instituted against the latter, and the illegality and impossibility of his holding the land having been made manifest, in 1839, Mahoney determined to avoid trouble by giving a quit-claim to the United States. When the Moore and Congreve patents were purchased by the United States, Hugh McCleUan, a Revolutionary soldier, occupied a small house on the patent first named ; and in consequence of distinguished services, the soldier was permitted by General Knox, then Secretary of War, to remain in occupancy and cultivate a garden. McClel- lan accordingly lived and died on the spot undisturbed, leaving a widow and daughter. The latter, having mar- ried, remained on the premises to aid and assist her aged mother. After the lapse of a few years, her husband claimed the whole of Moore's patent as the property of his wife, on the plea that, under the laws of the State of New York, McClellan had acquired a title to the land by years of undisputed possession, and that his own wife was the only lawful heiress. A suit for ejectment was instituted, and a judgment, rendered in 1839, decided in favor of the United States. A third suit for trespass, brought against Andrew * Pub. Doc, 1848. 14 History of West Point. Swim, for the recovery of a portion of the Ludlow patent, which had also been sold for the payment of quit-rents, resulted in the removal and ejectment of the trespasser, in 1840.* The annoyances caused by these parties led to a new survey of the boundaries of the pubhc lands in April, 1839, and the lines as then established have remained unchanged to the present day. The intervals between the granting of the patents and the transfer of the titles, before described, down to the period at which the American Revolution commenced, are blanks in historical literature. No traditions even of early settlers are extant, and the probabilities are, that beyond a settlement made to secure a title or grant, West Point — being in a region of primary stratified rocks, heavily covered with drift depos- its, and without a suitable soil for cultivation — remained a mere wood-land tract, possessing no higher value than attaches to similar adjoining points in the Highlands, which have ^'emained unsettled and uncultivated to the present day. Even after hostilities commenced, its importance as a key to the passage of the Hudson remained, for a period of nearly three years, practically of no interest to the Provincial or Continental authorities. f The student of American history is familiar with the fact, that to obtain control of the navigation of the Hud- son River, Avas a favorite project with the British Govern- ment, during the whole progress of the War of Inde- pendence. * Official Records, U. S. M. A. f Munsell's Historical Series, No. V. I/I.lf'x yO^iif^ '^"U V History of West Point. 15 In order to a proper understanding of the reasons on which this project was based, we should examine with some attention the topography of the river, not simply as limited to the section of country through which its waters flow, but taking a broader view, and regarding its con- nection with those more remote and wide-spread regions, that find through it their most direct and natural chan- nel to the seaboard. Even at the present day, when the skilled enterprise of a numerous and commercial people has linked the in- terior to the coast, by many and various artificial chan- nels, the great thoroughfare of the State of New York holds a pre-eminent position, mainly due to its unrivalled natural advantages. But these advantages were of paramount importance, both before and during the Revo- lutionary struggle, when the canoe of the Indian, or the bateau of the voi/ageur, furnished the most convenient and speedy transportation, for purposes either of com- merce or of war. Then, to the north, at the head of boat navigation, the Hudson was connected by an easy port- age with Lakes George and Champlain, and through them with the St. Lawrence, the great river of the Cana- das ; whilst, towards the west, its principal affluent, the Mohawk, gave easy access, scarcely interrupted by a few short portages, to the basin of the great lakes, and to the magnificent river system of the Mississippi. Thus established by nature as the main artery, con- necting a vast network of interior water communications with the Atlantic, and draining the resources of almost half a continent, the Hudson occupied a position of the highest strategic importance. The British Government had been taught this fact in 16 History of West Point. the course of the long struggle between England and France, then but recently terminated. They knew that by the possession of the Hudson they could separate the eastern part of the Province of New York and the Prov- inces of New England from the remainder of the Confed- eracy, and thus, by cutting off communication betw^een these points, speedily reduce the patriots to subjection. Hence, in a letter dated London, July 31st, 1775, con- veying to the colonists the plan of operations decided upon by the British Government, it is said that their design is; "to get possession of New York and Albany; to fill both of these cities with very strong garrisons ; to declare all rebels who do not join the King's forces ; to command the Hudson and East rivers with a number of small men-of-war, and cutters, stationed in different parts of it, so as to cut off all communication by water between New York and the Provinces to the northward of it, and between New York and Albany, except for the King's service ; and to prevent also all communication between the city of New York and the Provinces of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and those to the southward of them. By these means," continues the letter, "the Administration and their friends fancy that they shall soon either starve out or retake the garrisons of Crown Point and Ticon- deroga, and open and maintain a safe intercourse and correspondence between Quebec, Albany, and New York, and thereby afford the fairest opportunity to their soldiery and the Canadians, in conjunction with the Indians, to be procured by G. J.,* to make continual irruptions into New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, and so * Col. Guy Johnson, a son-in-law of Sir William Johnson, Superintendent of Indian affairs of the Province of New York. History of West Point. 17 distract and divide the Provincial forces as to render it easy for the British Army at Boston to defeat them, break the spirits of the Massachusetts people, depopulate their country, and compel an absolute subjection to Great Britain."* But the colonists were equally familiar with the im- portance of maintaining possession of the river. In a report submitted by the Provincial Congress of New York to the Continental Congress, early in 1775, the subject is thus treated: "If the enemy persist in their plan of subjugating these States to the yoke of Great Britain, they must, in proportion to their knowledge of the country, be more and more convinced of the necessity of their becoming masters of the Hudson river, which will give them the entire command of the water communication with the Indian nations, effectually prevent all intercourse between the eastern and southern Confederates, divide our strength, and enfeeble every effort for our common preservation and security. That this was their original plan, and that General Carlton and General Howe flattered themselves with the delusive hope of uniting their forces at Albany, every intelligence confirms, and it appears to the Committee that they will not give up this grand object until they shall finally relinquish the project of enslaving America.''^ With this brief explanation of the natural causes which gave to the Hudson river its importance in the struggle for Independence, and of the plans adopted by the British Government to secure its control, Ave come to consider some of the means employed by the colonists to defeat * Jour, of the Proy. Cong, of N. T., 172, f Jour. Prov. Cong. K Y., 723. 18 History of West Point. the efforts of the English. The general operations of the Continental forces are amply detailed in our histories. Still, there are many facts of interest which have not been recorded, especially in regard to the Fortifications in the Highlands, and the character of the obstruction to the navigation of the river. To supply details in reference to these subjects, will constitute an interesting section in this history. The plan of operations adopted by the British Govern- ment, while aiming at general results, immediately involved the Province of New York; and hence the Congress of that Province took early steps to prevent its consumma- tion. Prior to the recej)tion of the letter of July 31st, already quoted, the Provincial Congress had taken action upon the subject of fortifying the Highlands and obstruct- ing the navigation of the river, and had invited the prompt action of the Continental Congress. On the 25th Ma?/, 1775, the latter body communicated to the former a series of resolutions in reference to the defence of New York, one of which is as follows : " Resolved, That a post be taken in the Highlands, on each side of the Hudson river, and batteries erected ; and that experienced persons be immediately sent to examine said river, in order to discover where it will be most advisable and proper to obstruct the navigation."* This Resolution received the action of the Provincial Congress at its session held Ma?/ 30th, 1775, when the following order was passed : " Ordered, That Col. Clinton and Mr. Tappan be a Committee (and that they take to their assistance such persons as they shall think necessary) to go to the High- * Jour. ProT. Cong., 16. History of West Point. 19 lands and view the banks of the Hudson River there; and report to this Congress the most proper place for erecting one or more fortifications, and likewise an estimate of the expense of erecting the same."* This Committee made a report on the loth of June, 1775, in which they suggested the erection of what were afterwards known as Forts Constitution, Clinton, and Mont- gomery. In their report they also say: " Your Committee begs leave to observe, that they are informed that by means of four or five Booms, chained together on one side of the river, ready to be drawn across, the passage can be closed up to prevent any vessel passing or repassing.''^ On the \Wi of August, 1775, the Provincial Congress passed the following resolution : " Resolved and ordered, That the Fortifications form- erly ordered by the Continental Congress [May 25, 1775], and reported by a Committee of this Congress, as proper to be built on the banks of Hudson's River, in the Highlands, be immediately erected. Mr. Walton dis- sents. And that Mr. Isaac Sears, Mr. John Berrien, Colonel Edward Flemming, Mr. Anthony Rutgers, and Mr. Christopher Miller, be Commissioners to manage the erecting and finishing the fortifications. That any three or more of them be empowered to act, manage, and direct the building and finishing thereof." * Jour. ProT. Cong., 20. f Ibid., 41. jaAi;Tii:i.Ai!.u b uuci^. y^tjuriSTiTUTIO. CHAPTER II. Entranck to the Upper Highlands. — Martelaer's Eock. — Ar- rival OF THE Commissioners with Col. Eomans, the Engi- neer. — Possession taken of the Island. — Correspondence WITH Col. Beverly Robinson. — Controversy between Romans AND THE Commissioners. — A Garrison ordered to Fort Con- stitution. — First Proposition to occupy West Point and erect Redouts on the east side of the River. — Removal of Romans, and Report of the Commissioners en route to Can- ada. — Order of Washington for a Board of Officers to Report upon the Condition of the Fortifications in the Highlands. — Report of the Board. The Hudson Eiver, in passing the upper Highlands, flows south through the gorge between abrupt and lofty mountains for a distance of nearly eight miles ; the chan- nel then changes east about one-fourth of a mile, and, thence changing, again pursues its southerly direction. Projecting half way across the river, and forming the left bank opposite AVest Point on the north, between the two right angles made by the channel, is an island ; its History of West Point. 21 west and northwestern sides are formed of bold and in- accessible precipices, while on the east is a large flag meadow, partially drained by ditches recently cut through it. This island, nowhere more than one hundred and thirty-four feet high, is probably two miles in circumfer- ence, and half a mile in width from north to south. It is covered with timber of an inferior description, and un- cultivated, except on its southern and eastern edges. The marsh meadow on the east, separated now from the island by the Hudson River Railroad, contains about three hundred acres, and the island probably two hun- dred and fifty. Previous to, and at the commencement of the Revolu- tion, this island was knoAvn as Martelaers Rock Island, and otherwise as Martlers Rock, or Martyr s Cliff. The name is derived from a French family named Mafielaire, who resided upon, or in its vicinity, about the year 1720. After the erection of the fortification known as Fort Con- stitution, the island received, and has retained to the present day, the name of Constitution Island^' " The Commissioners appointed by the Provincial Con- gress, accompanied by an escort of twenty-four men and Col. Bernard Romans,'\ as an engineer, arrived at the , , * Hist. Putnam Co. f Bernard Romans was born in Holland, but early in life removed to England, where he studied the profession of an engineer, and was employed as such by the British Government in America some time before the Revolution. Subse- quently he was employed as a botanist, under the auspices of the same govern- ment ; and while in New York, engaged in the publication of a Natural History of Florida, he was offered a position as military engineer by the New York Commit- tee of Safety. In this capacity he submitted to Congress, on the 18th September, 1775, plans for fortifications to be erected in the Highlands opposite to West Point (Am. Archives, III.). Colonel Romans remained in service (Captain Pennsyl- vania Artillery, Feb. 8, 1776) until near the close of the war, when he was cap- tured at sea by the British, en route from New Haven or New London to Charles- ton, S. C. He is reported to have died about 1783. 3 22 History of West Point. island on the 29tli of August, 1775, and immediately commenced the erection of the first of the ' Fortifications in the Highlands.' " The " Fortifications in the Highlands" embraced not only the works to be erected on Constitution Island, but those also on Fort Hill, directly east of " Garrison's Sta- tion," known as the North and South Redoubts [the lat- ter afterwards called Middle Redoubt] ; one on Sugar-loaf Mountain, and the two Forts, Montgomery and Clinton, on the north and south sides of Pooplopen's Kill. The New York Committee of Safety, to whom had been intrusted the management of public afilairs during the recess of the Provincial Congress, transmitted to the Continental Congress, on the 19th of September, the plans, estimates, and report, prepared by Colonel Romans, of the works then in process of construction at Martelaer's Rock Island. From the accompanying report it appears that Colonel Romans proposed to erect five block-houses ; barracks, eighty by twenty feet; store-houses and guard-room, sixty by twenty feet ; five batteries, mounting sixty-one guns and twenty swivels ; a fort with bastions, and a curtain two hundred feet in length; a magazine, — and the whole was estimated at <£4,645 4^. 4:cL On the same day the Committee forwarded the plans of Mr. Romans to Congress, the following note was ad- dressed to Colonel Beverly Robinson, with a view to the purchase of the island, of wdiich he was reputed to be the owner : "In Committee of Safety, ''New York, Sept. 19th, 1775. " Sir : — By order of the Continental Congress, founded History of West Point. 23 on the necessities of the present times, the Provincial Congress of this Colony has undertaken to erect a fortifi- cation on your land, opposite to the West Point, in the Highlands, As the Provincial Congress by no means in- tend to invade private property, this Committee, in their recess, have thought proper to request you to put a reasonable price upon the whole point of dry land, or island, called Martelaer's Rock Island ; which price, if they approve of it, they are ready to pay you for it. " We are. Sir, your humble servants. " To Beveelt Robinson, Esq., at his seat in the HigUands." " In Peovincial Congeess, New Yoek, ^tJi October^ Vl*lh. " A letter from Beverly Robinson, Esq., was read and filed, and is in the following words, to wit : "Highlands, October 2d, 1775. " Sir : — Your letter of the nineteenth of September I received a few days ago, in answer to which I must in- form you that the point of land on which the fort is erecting does not belong to me, but is the property of Mrs. Ogilvie and her children. Was it mine, the public should be extremely welcome to it. The building a fort there can be no disadvantage to the small quantity of arable land on the island. I have only a proportion of the meadow land, that lays on the east side of the island. " I am. Sir, your most humble servant, " Bev. Robinson. " To John Haeing, Esq., " Chairman of the Committee of Safety, at New York." In the mean time the Commissioners, Bedlow, Grenell, and Bayard, writing from Fort Constitution, Sept. 25, 1775, strongly urged upon the Committee of Safety, that Romans's plan was not sufficient, and being but a tempo- rary expedient, the ruin of the Province would be insured if the position were permitted to fall into the possession of the enemy. 24 History of West Point. To these objections the Committee rej^lied, that upon the re-assembling of the Provincial Congress, the subject would be laid before them. As might have been anticipated, the Commissioners and Romans soon became involved in an unpleasant con- troversy; the former claiming, as superintendents, the right to approve or reject his plans, and to direct the mode of operations, while they openly declared the ex- pense to be greater than the Province could tolerate. Romans as emphatically informed the Commissioners that they had simply to furnish men and money, and while by virtue of his appointment he would build the works, they must reserve their condemnation or approval until the Fortification was completed. The Continental Congress, while debating Romans's plans early in October, passed a resolution of inquiry as to the propriety of constructing a battery at '''• Moore s house' [situated in what is now known as Washington's Valley], and at a point on the west side of the river, above Verplanck's [now Caldwell's Landing]. To this inquiry the Commissioners replied on the 16th of October, noting the progress of the works on the island, and declaring that a battery at " Moore's house" would be entirely useless. The point above Verplanck's they pronounced too easy of access, but at Pooplopen's Kill, opposite Anthony's Nose, they earnestly recom- mended that defences be erected. This is the earhest mention made of the position afterwards known as Fort Montgomery. The Provincial Congress, on the 3d of November, hav- ing ordered three companies to proceed to, and constitute the garrison at Martelaer's Rock, it was '^ResolvecV on the History of West Point. 25 8th, by the Continental Congress, " That a Commander, Avith the rank of Colonel, be appointed to take command of the Fortifications or Fortresses in the Highlands on Hud- son's River." On the same day this body further appoint- ed Robert R. Livingston, Robert Treat Paine, and J. Langdon a Committee, to " take an accurate view of the state of our Fortifications on Hudson's River, and to report as soon as it can be conveniently done." This Committee reported to John Hancock, the Presi- dent of Congress, on the 23d of November, " That the Fortress at Martelaer's Rock was in charge of Messrs. Grenell, Bedlow, and Lanman, Commissioners appointed by the Provincial Congress to superintend the work, which was carried on by Mr. Romans, agreeably to his plans presented to Congress. We must own," continues the report, " that we found the Fort in a less defensible situation than we had reason to expect. It does not command the reach to the southward, nor can it injure a vessel turning the West Point; and after she has got around, a small breeze, or even the tide, will enable a ship to pass the curtain in a few minutes. " The Fortress is unfortunately commanded by all the grounds about it ; but the most obvious defect is, that the grounds on the West Point are higher than the Fortress, behind which an enemy might land without the least danger. In order to render the position impassable, it seems necessary that this place should be occupied, and batteries thrown up on the shore opposite, where they may be erected with little expense, as the earth is said to be pretty free from stone, &c."* * Am. Arch., IV., III., 1657. 26 History of West Point. This is the first official recommendation to occupj West Point, and establish batteries on the east side of the river, near Garrison's, on record [Nov. 23, 1775]. From Fort Constitution, December 7, the Commission- ers again reported to the Provincial Congress, that " the point at Pooplopen's Kill is the best by far for any de- fensive works in the Highlands, and that a battery there would command the river up and -down, the length of point-blank shot." The controversy with Colonel Romans at this time had attained such proportions, and was accompanied with such exhibitions of warmth, that Messrs. NicoU, Palmer, and Drake were directed by the Provincial Congress to repair to the Highlands, and there endeavor to adjust the difference between the parties. Mr. Palmer, on the part of this Committee, reported on the 14th of December, that Romans "must, either have mistaken the charge committed to him, or else he has assumed powers with which he was not intrusted." The report reiterated the opinion before given, that the works did not sweej) the river southward ; and to effect this a barbette battery on the Gravel Hill, on the southeast shore of the island, to mount eight eighteen-pound guns, was recommended. [The Hudson River Railroad now skirts the Gravel HiU.] The Committee were earnest in the opinion that the works on the island were insufficient, and strong in their recommendation to plant a work at Pooplopen's Kill, which would mount sixteen or eighteen guns, and " sweep the river to the point of the Dunder- berg, a distance of three miles, and up the river quite as far."* * Am. Arch., IV., IV., 421. History of West Point. 27 This report having been favorably received by the Provincial, and transmitted to the Continental Congress, the latter body, on the 5th January, 1776, '^Resolved, That no further Fortifications ought to be erected at Mar- telaer's Rock on the Hudson River, and that a point of land at Pooplopen's Kill, on said river, ought to be ejffectually fortified without delay."* On the 15th of February following, notwithstanding the foregoing reso- lution, Congress authorized the erection of the barbette battery on the Gravel Hill before mentioned, to mount eighteen heavy guns. And further Resolved, " That a redoubt be erected on the eminence on the east side of the river opposite the West Point, to mount thirty guns," urging at the same time the early completion of works at Pooplopen's Kill. In the mean time, and in compliance with the resolution of Congress, the Committee of Safety appointed, on January 16th, Colonel Isaac Nicoll to the command of the Fortifications in the Highlands ; and Mr. Romans having been superseded by Col. Smith, Engi- neer, ordered up by General Lee, the barbette battery on the island was laid out by him — so wrote the Commis- sioners, Feb. 29th — ''much to our satisfaction. "f On the 20th of March, Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Chase, and Charles Carroll of Carrolton, were appointed by the Continental Congress, Commissioners to visit Can- ada, and invite the co-operation of the people of that Province in the strusrarle for freedom. While en route to their destination, they arrived "off Constitution Fort, April 5th," and going ashore, "from curiosity," they reported the state of the Fort as follows : * Am. Arch., IV., IV., 1033. f Am. Arch., IV., Y., 326. 28 History of West Point. The garrison consisted of three companies of minute-men, whose combined strength was 124 men, "On the south bastion, thirteen six-pounders and one nine-pounder were mounted; the east bastion mounted seven nine-jDOunders and one six-pounder. The block-house contained eight double fortified four-pound guns, mounted; and that the fortifications ordered by Congress on the 15th of Feb- ruary, and laid out by Engineer Smith, remain wholly neglected." At this time the head-quarters of the army were in New York. On the 4th of May, Washington directed Lieut.-Col. Livingston, of Col. James Clinton's regiment, to repair to the Highlands and relieve Col. Nicoll of the command, to which he was but temporarily assigned. The latter, however, refused to be superseded, and remained until discharged by the Provincial Congress, on the 8th of June. Col. James Clinton followed Livingston, and, arriving on the 20th of May, reported to head- quarters that he had discharged all the Commissioners except two, which he would retain until an Engineer was sent to him. On the 21st of May, Washington wrote Gen. Putnam, then in the city and under his command : — " I have great reason to think that the Fortifications in the Highlands are in a bad situation, and the garrison, on account of arms, worse. " I would have you send Brigadier Lord Stirling, with Col. Putnam, and Col. Knox (if he can be spared), to see and report such alterations as may be judged necessary for putting them into a fit and proper position for de- fence."* * Am. Arch., IV., YL, 534. History of West Point. ^ 29 Putnam reported, on the 27th of May, that Lord Stirling, Col. Putnam, and Captain Sargeant left on this mission the day before. The report of this Board is given at length, because the works, and the grounds adjacent thereto, were then surveyed for the first time by officers possessing military experience, and whose opinions were valuable and pow- erful in deciding the after operations on the points in question. Lord Stirling to General Washington.'^ "JuNEl, 1776. " Sir : — Agreeable to your request, I left New York on Sunday last, in order to view the fortifications on the Hudson's River in the Highlands. I took with me Colonel [Rufus] Putnam, Chief Engineer, and Captain Sargeant, of the Artillery. The winds were so adverse that we did not reach Fort Montgomery until Wednesday even- ing; but, with the help of our boat, we employed our time in visiting several other parts of the river that appeared proper for fortifying. At the mouth, or south end of the Highlands, about four miles below Fort Mont- gomery, there is a post [Stoney Point] which to me appears well worth possessing on many accounts ; should the enemy be in possession of it, we should be cut ofi* from our best communication with the whole country below the Highlands, eastward as Avell as westward. There is a very remarkable spot of ground [Verplanck's Point], easily fortified, which commands the passage of the river as well as either of the other posts j it also * Am. Arch., IV., VI., 672. 30 History of West Point. commands the mouth and knding of Peek's Kill, from which there is an excellent road into Connecticut, which is only twenty miles off; on the opposite side is an excellent road into New Jersey and Pennsylvania. In the passage from this place to Fort Montgomery is a large island, which would be A^ery useful to the enemy in their approaches to that place. " Fort Montgomery is situated on the west bank of the river, which is there about half a mile broad, and the bank one hundred feet high ; on the opposite shore is a point of land called Anthony's Nose, which is many hun- dred feet high, very steep, and inaccessible to any thing but goats, or men very expert in climbing. A body of riflemen placed here would be of very great use in an- noying an enemy, as the decks of every vessel that passes must lie open to them. " The works begun and designed at Fort Montgomery are open lines, and all lie on the north side of a small creek called Pooplopen's Kill, on the south side of which is a point of land which projects more into the river, commands all the principal works, and is within two and three hundred yards of them. On the top of this point is a level spot of ground, of near an acre, commanded by nothing but the high, inaccessible mountains, at about twelve hundred yards distance ; this spot, I think, should by all means be fortified, as well for the annoyance of the enemy in their approach up the river, as for the pro- tection of the works at Fort Montgomery. Indeed, this appears to me the most proper place I have seen on the river to be made the grand post; and, in my opinion, should be a regular strong work, capable of resisting every kind of attack, and of containing a grand magazine History of West Point. 31 of all kinds of warlike stores. The whole would then command the passage of the river with so formidable a cross fire as would deter any attempt to approach with shipping. Those works built are all faced with fascines, and filled in with strong, good loam ; but as they are liable to take fire, the Commissioners who have the care and direction of the works, propose to roughcast the faces of the embrasures with a strong mortar made of quicklime and sharp sand, of which there is plenty at hand. I advised them to try the experiment on part of the work as soon as possible. As these open lines are entirely defenceless on the land side, it will be very proper to erect a small redoubt on the hill, in the rear of them. " Fort Constitution is about six miles above Fort Mont- gomery, on an island near the east side of the river, and near the north end of the Highlands, which on the west and south sides is bounded by the river, and on the north and east sides by low marsh and small creeks run- ning through it. The works here consist of four open lines or batteries, fronting the river; the two eastern- most command the approach up the river very well ; the next, or middle line, commands the approach from West Point upwards ; the westernmost battery is a straight line, constructed by Mr. Romans, at a very great ex- pense ; it has fifteen embrasures, which face the river at a right angle, and can only annoy a ship in going past ; the embrasures are within twelve feet of each other ; the merlons on the outside are but about two feet in the face, and about seven feet deep, made of square timber cov- ered with plank, and look very neat; he also built a log-house or tower on the highest cliff, near the water, 32 History of West Point. mounted with eight cannon (four-pounders) pointed out of the garret windows, and looks very picturesque. Upon the whole, Mr. Romans has displayed his genius at a very great expense, and to very little public advan- tage. The works, in their present open condition and scattered situation, are defenceless ; nor is there one good place on the island on which a redoubt may be erected that will command the whole ; however, I have marked in the plan (No. 3) those heights which are most commanding; yet every work on the island is com- manded by the hill on the West Point, on the opposite side of the river, within five hundred yards, where there is a level piece of land of near fifty acres in extent. A redoubt on this West Point is absolutely necessary, not only for the preservation of Fort Constitution, but for its own importance on many accounts. One also is neces- sary at the west end of the island, to command the ap- proach that way, and to prevent a landing at the north side of the island. An easy communication by land, as well as by water, may be made with Fort Montgomery from the West Point. " The garrison of Fort Constitution consists of two com- panies of Colonel James Clinton's regiment, and Captain Wisner's company of minute-men, in all about one hun- dred and sixty, rank and file. The garrison at Fort Montgomery consists of three companies of the same regiment, amounting to about two hundred men, rank and file. The field-officer of the regiment is Lieutenant- Colonel Livingston ; but the command of the whole of both garrisons is still in the hands of Colonel Nicoll, who, it seems, last fall raised a regiment of minute-men for the purpose of garrisoning Fort Constitution, which regi- History of West Point. 33 ment is all dismissed except Captain Wisner's Company of about forty privates. Lieutenant-Colonel Livingston has very prudently avoided any dispute with Col. NicoU about the command, rather referring the matter to your Excellency's determination. The whole of the troops at both these posts are miserably armed, as will appear by the return (No. 4). Lieutenant-Colonel Livingston informs me he has lately received about forty fire-locks, all in very bad order, from the Committees of Dutchess County, and expects several hundred more m a few days in the same condition. I have therefore directed the black- smith's shop at Fort Constitution to be enlarged, so that it will at the same time serve for an armory. A black- smith's shop and armory of the like kind, I have directed at Fort Montgomery, and the artificers in those branches in Clinton's Regiment to be employed in them. " The direction of the works at both these forts is in the hands of Commissioners appointed by the Provincial Congress of New York. Two Commissioners, with four carpenters, two blacksmiths and seven attendants, are at Fort Constitution ; two Commissioners, one clerk, fifteen carpenters, and four masons, are at Fort Montgomery ; the pay of these amounts to at least eight hundred dollars per month, besides their provisions, &c. One good engi- neer, with artificers from the army, might, I think, do the whole business as well. "The artillery and ordnance stores, at these posts, appear by Captain Sargent's reports herewith (No. 6). The cannon in general are, to all appearance, excellent of their kind, excepting two nine and three six-pounders, 34 History of West Point. which are dubious. There are also, I am informed, six cannon, six-pounders, four of them good and two dubious, at New Windsor, a place about six miles above Fort Constitution ; they had better be brought down to Fort Montgomery. " Considering the different directions all these matters are under, I have avoided giving any determinate orders about them, but it is highly necessary that explicit orders should soon issue. "I am your Excellency's most humble servant, (Signed) " Stirling. " To his Excellency, Gbnebal Washington." History of West Point. oD t=j H •-' o O o S3 fo •13 Ti S3 g_ tn gp- P ? g 5 =-i c o g o o fD ^ CO B O >«1 O 3 . c . CD ►1 H CI- >^ Ol any ion. • o • o : R p_ H . -« O > ;l O B i • o s= • 1-^ to _■ H-i ^ Captains. «5 M w * Subalterns. lO ^ tf^ rf^ Sergeants. - rf^ Corporals. cn _, lO bO Drummers and Fifers. t-_i w Ji *^ -J Privates. to -.T to to -J o -T Sick and Lame. 1— ' ^ Absent by Leave. CO 00 On Command. Deserted. lb. 7i CO *^ Guns fit for Use. lo w Guns not fit. 00 CD M 00 Cartridge-Boxes. tf^ ! JJ ^_, Bayonets. 1 1 Tomahawks. | bO I. U CD Guns Wanting. M ► — ' ^^D f^ oo to Bayonets Wanting. to H f^ 00 Tomahawks Wanting. lO 1 — * to 1 Axes Wanting. 1 Pails Wanting. tf^ ri ^ Cartridge-Boxes Wanting. ) m o Q M H-l [th O ^ !2i O o o !zi CO H I— I 1-3 a t— I O o 1^ I do hereby certify the above to be a true return. (Signed) Isaac Nicoll, Commissar?/ of stores. 36 History of West Point. No. 5. COMMISSIONERS, SUPERINTENDENTS, MECHANICS, ETC., AT THE WORKS CARRYING ON AT FORT CONSTITUTION. Two Commissioners, — William Becllow and Jonathan Lawrence. One Clerk of the Check, — Jonathan Lawrence, Jr. One Steward, — Adolph Delgrove. Mechanics at work : — 4 Carpenters, 2 Blacksmiths, 1 Overseer, 1 Cook for the Commissioners, 1 Cook for the Artificers, 1 Waiter on the Commissioners, 1 Seaman in care of the barge. The Sloop Liberty, Henry Palmer, in the service of Fort Constitution and Fort Montgomery : Master and two hands. (Signed) William Bedlow. Fort Constitution, May 31, 1776. RETURN OF PERSONS EMPLOYED AT FORT CONSTITUTION. 2 Commissioners, pay 10s. per day each 2 Waiters, 53s. 4d. 4 Carpenters, at 6s. per day each - 1 Overseer, 80s. per month - - 1 Clerk, at 100s. . - - - 1 Steward, at 100s. - - - - - 1 Cook, at 53s. 4d. - - - - 1 Hired man, at 53s. 4d. -. - - - 1 Blacksmith, at 6s. per day 1 Blacksmith ------ £104 FoET Constitution, May 31, 1776. Per Month. £30 5 6 8 - 36 4 - 5 5 - 2 13 4 2 13 4 - 9 4 10 History of West Point. 37 •^ I — ^ w A tzi fea C! w o CO Q H f •i^ ^ to rf». CT r:^ S2 5 Number of Cannon. l-l to CO *.. o» to to Size — Pounders. o o o o" §* o 3 Metal. a : S «» !^ ; 1 Carriages, Garrison. ; 1 to ' j Carriages, name unknown. : 00 o> «o \ Sponges with Rammers. \ OJ -» lf>. j 1 Ladles with Worms. i-» to to OS OS 1-^ ; 1 Cartridges, filled. 1,470 752 1,217 64 Cartridges, empty. • to to to Cartridge-cases. 1,010 900 654 86 Round-shot. ; CO ; ! to *. : Double-headed Shot. : : S : Chain-shot. : • "^ : Star-shot. i-i to I-' CO r-» to «0 I-' Grape-shot. 00 j '■ Canister-shot. o • : Empty Canisters. o o o OO 00 OD Wads. • to ■ Cannon Covers. to *.. '■ Formers. l-l l-i H» Copper Measures. CO O OD Aprons. O Ca 00 Pompions. C5 Priming- Wires. § Powder-horns. Ol Linstocks. § Handspikes. 00 Budge-barrels. o> Lanthorns. CO Six-ounce Shot, Lead — pounds. o Cartridge-paper, in reams. o Junk, for Wads — pounds. ^ Sheet Lead. g Hand-grenades. g Slow-matches. g|^ Powder— 77 qr. Casks and li bis. ^j Small Gin, with its Apparatus. Iz5 W > W fei Hi o ts >- 02 H H O O Q O a !^ IPl a c m tn • H 1— 1 d o 1-3 t^ W M M 1— 1 > g h3 w tH o H ^ g .^ t?d -J !zi H m >^ o tti H w M m t?3 Ed <^ o H O •^ H W a >► W 38 History of West Point. The views contained in Lord Stirling's report were transmitted by Washington, on June 10th, to the officers in charge at Fort Constitution, and the desire expressed to have them adopted with as little delay as possible. In acknowledging their receipt. Colonel Livingston called attention to the omission in the copy of the importance " of throwing up a work on a point called West Point, directly opposite to us, which would be easy of access to our enemies should they pass or take Fort Montgomery. If," said this efficient officer, " I could obtain your Ex- cellency's approbation, a work should be immediately thrown up on this place." At this time, while Lieutenant-Colonel Livingston held the immediate charge of Fort Constitution, the whole command in the Highlands was exercised by Colo- nel James Clinton, who was more particularly interested in the construction of the works at Pooplopen's Kill, and which, as early as the 14th of May, had been commenced under Messrs. Palmer and Livingston, Commissioners un- der the Provincial Congress.* * Am. Arch., lY., V., 1414 History of West Point. 39 CHAPTER III. Appointment of a Secret Committee for Obstructing the Chan- nel OF the Hudson. — Their Action and Letter to Washing- ton. — Assignment of General Geo. Clinton to Command in the Highlands. — General Clinton and other Officers ex- amine THE "Works and Report upon the Necessity of a Boom AND Chain at Fort Montgomery. — Major-General Putnam ap- pointed to Command. — Advance of Sir Henry Clinton up the Hudson to Co-operate with General Burgoyne. — Assault AND Capture of Forts Montgomery and Clinton, The suggestions of the Committee of Ju7ie 13th, 1775 (p. 14), in regard to ohstructi7ig the navigation of the river, do not, however, appear to have been acted upon, further than to order the survey mentioned, until the subsequent year (1776) ; when, on the 16th of July, a few days after the Declaration of Independence, the Pro- vincial Convention* again took up the matter, and ap- pointed a Secret Committee to take the whole subject in charge, as will be seen by the following resolutions : " Resolved, unanimously. That a Secret Committee be ap- pointed to devise and carry into execution such measures as to them shall appear most eiFectual for obstructing the channel of the Hudson River, or annoying the enemy's ships in their passage up said river ; and that this Con- vention pledge themselves for defraying the charges inci- dent thereto. ''Resolved, That Mr. Jay, Mr. Robert Yates, Major C. Tappan, Mr. Robert R. Livingston, and Mr. Paulding, be said Committee." * The title of the Legislature of the State was changed on the 10th July, It^G, from Congress to Convention. 40 History of West Point. The proceedings of this Secret Committee, appointed 16th July, 1776, have been recently discovered by Mr. James C. Bolton, among the papers of his grandfather, General James Clinton. Besides these minutes, Mr. Bolton has found maps of the Chain at Fort Montgomery, showing the manner in which it was fastened and floated, and the character of the Booms placed in front of it. These long-hidden and valuable documents receive ad- ditional illustration from a relic of the original obstruc- tion at West Point, which was raised from the river's bed by Bishop's derrick, in 1855. Collating and combin- ing this mass of new and important materials, with that to be derived from the proceedings of the Provincial Con- vention, and from other previously known sources, we find that — There were four points at which it was sought to ob- struct the navigation of the river, by means, either singly or combined, of fii^e-ships, booms and chains, and chevaux- de-frise. The first point was at Fort Washington, the second at Fort Montgomery, the third at Pollopel's Island, and the fourth at West Point. The fire-ships and ob- structions at Fort Washington were constructed in the summer of 1776; the obstructions at Fort Montgomery and PoUopel's Island, in the autumn of 1776 and springs of 1777 and 1778 ; and those at West Point in 1778. The Secret Committee, on the 17th of July, addressed a letter to the Commander-in-chief, soliciting his advice as to a plan for the defences of Hudson's River, which, they alleged, had been unfortunately too long neglected. To this Washington replied on the 21st, detailing his order to Lord Stirling, and stating that while he had repeatedly urged on Colonel Clinton to spare no pains to put them History of West Point. 41 on the best possible footing, he had reason to suppose they were in tolerable order to receive the enemy. On the same day Lieutenant Machin was despatched by him to Colonel Clinton, as the Engineer of the works in the Highlands. He was described as " an ingenious man, who was a proper person, and one who had given great satisfactitin as an engineer." As early as the 15th of July, at the request of the Commander-in-chief, General George Clinton had been appointed by the Provincial Congress to command the newly raised levies, and this officer was now actively co- operating with his brother in obstructing the river at PoUopel's Island, and expediting the erection of Forts Clinton and Montgomery, at Pooplopen's Kill. The garrison at Fort Constitution, weakened by de- tachments to prosecute the latter operations,* was, on the 1st of December, strengthened by the addition of two regiments, which, under the command of General George Clinton, were to furnish working parties to aid in obstructing the channel of the Hudson at PoUopel's Island ;f this General being, in addition, specially in- structed on the 10th of December, by the New York Committee of Safety, in relation to the necessity of se- curing the passes in the Highlands, and on " no account to place himself beyond the power to regain them. "J The spring of 1777 approached, and the task of strengthening the defences in the Highlands still con- tinued. On the 25th of March, Congress appointed George Clinton a brigadier-general, thus transferring him from the Provincial rank before held by him, to the * Am. Arch., V. HI., 1040. f Am. Arch., Y. in., 348. ^:Am. Arch, v., III., 1157. 42 History of West Point. Continental Service ; and although, upon the adoption of the State Constitution, he was chosen Governor in July, he nevertheless continued cordially co-operating in the work before mentioned. On the 7th of May, from head-quarters at Morristown, N. J., Washington wrote Brigadier-General McDougall, who had succeeded Brigadier-General Heath in the com- mand of the New England troops at Peekskill* and vicinity, that the imperfect state of the fortifications at Fort Montgomery gave him great uneasiness, and that a concurrence of circumstances indicated a movement of the enemy up the North River. General McDougall was directed, in connection with General George Clinton, to employ every measure to put the works in a condition to resist a sudden attack, or de- tain the enemy until re-enforcements could arrive. f In compliance with these instructions, Generals Mc- Dougall, Knox, Greene, George Clinton, and Wayne, proceeded to examine the works already erected; and on the "ITtli of May, these officers submitted a joint report to the Commander-in-chief, in which they recommended the obstruction of the river at Fort Montgomery by stretching a boom or chain across, in front of which should be one or two cables, to break the force of a vessel before it should strike the chain; that two Continental ships then on the spot, and two row-galleys, should be manned and stationed just above the obstruction, in such * The command of the department in the Highlands and vicinity, inckiding Forts Constitution, Montgomery, and Independence, the passes, and the Division of Con- necticut and Massachusetts troops, had been assigned to Brigadier-General Heath, 12th November, 1776 — ^head-quarters at Peekskill. — [Heath's Memoirs, 85.] \ Writings of Washington, Sparks, IV., 409. History of "West Point. 43 a manner as to fire upon the enemy's ships in front when they approached." They also added : " We are very confident, if the obstructions of the river can be rendered effectual, the enemy will not attempt to operate by land, the passes through the Highlands are so exceedingly difficult."* Unfortunately, this latter course, by penetrating over- land, through the defiles in the mountains, was the very one adopted, and so successfully carried out by the enemy. At this time the command of the forces in and near the Highlands had assumed such ^proportions as to require a Major-General for its head, and accordingly Major-Gen- eral Putnam was directed to relieve General McDougall early in the month of May. On the 1st of July, from head-quarters at Middlebrook, Washington wrote Putnam : * * * "It appears almost certain to me that General Howe and General Burgoyne design, if possible, to unite their attacks and form a junction of their two armies, * * hj ^^^ I am persuaded, if General Howe is going up the river, he will make a rapid and vigorous push to gain the High- land passes. "f These indications of an active movement on the part of the enemy were continued throughout the summer, and served to prepare the way for more decisive results in the autumn of 1777. "The advance of General Burgoyne from the North towards Albany had been checked, and his army was suffering from want of provisions, while at the same time * Spark's Writings of Washington, IV., 416. f Id., IV., 476. 44 History of West Point. General Howe, with the main body of the army under his command, was striiggUng w^ith General Washington for the possession of Philadelphia. For the purpose of diverting the attention of the American forces, to secure the passes in the Highlands, and, if possible, to withdraw a portion of General Gates's army from its careful atten- tion to General Burgoyne, General Sir Henry Clinton, then in command in the city of New York, organized an expedition for the capture of the forts in the Highlands, and for such other movements in that direction as the circumstances might warrant."* In addition to the works already mentioned, redoubts had been thrown up by the troops encamped around Peekskill, at Verplanck's Point, and on the southern base of Anthony's Nose. " Early in October the British General embarked his forces, ostensibly for a southern expedition, and awaited a favorable wind for the execution of his real design. "The opportunities were propitious, and a powerful naval armament, with about four thousand troops on board, suddenly menaced Putnam's position and landed at Verplanck's Point, the garrison at which retreated on the approach of the fleet. Putnam was caught by the device ; and, believing the defences on the east side of the river to be the object of the British General, obstinately refused the entreaties of officers more sagacious than himself, to send adequate succors to the posts opposite. Nor after the main body of the British had on the next day crossed over to Stony Point, and were on their march to Forts Clinton and Montgomery, and even after * Battles of the U. S., I., 332.— Dawson. MAP (M" IIm'WVsI Side (.r i|i<. DXan Nostrrarf Rjljlishfj ^'^Jiarmird Sc. History of West Point. 45 the firing was heard at the forts above him, could he be persuaded to send forces to the relief of the beleaguered posts." "But Governor George Clinton was not so easily bhnded. As soon as he heard that the fleet was on the fiver, he adjourned the Legislature, then in session at Kingston, and collecting such militia as could be assembled, pro- ceeded to the point to which he had before been assigned by Congress. He had scarcely time to throw himself with four hundred followers into the works, when the British, having deceived Putnam, landed at Stony Point at daybreak on the morning of the 6th of October."* " Five hundred regulars and four hundred loyal Amer- icans under Colonel Beverly Robinson, the whole com- manded by Lieutenant-Colonel Campbell, moved as an advanced guard around the Dunderberg to the base of Bear Mountain, followed by General Vaughn with twelve hundred men. Lieutenant-Colonel Campbell was directed to make the detour of Bear Mountain seven miles around to the west, and dehouche in rear of Fort Montgomery ; while General Vaughn was to proceed eastward between the two mountains, accompanied by Sir Henry Clinton, and assail Fort Clinton on its south flank and rear. The rear-guard, under Ex-Governor General Tryon, was left in the valley, at the point of separation of the two columns. " The former body reached the vicinity of Fort Clinton at about 5 p. m., and receiving a scornful refusal from the garrison to surrender, commenced the assault at about the same moment the first column under Campbell at- * Life and Times of Colonel Lamb, 174. — Leake. r^ 46 History of West Point. tacked Fort Montgompry, aided by the vessels of war which had moved up the river to participate in the con- flict."* The garrisons, for the most part composed of untrained militia, and wholly inadequate to man the extensive lines, resisted and repeatedly repulsed with great vigor the attack of superior numbers, and not until darkness closed around were the six hundred brave defenders over- powered. , Part of the garrisons were made prisoners, but both commanders escaped : Governor George Clinton by a boat across the river, while General James Clinton, the com- mander of the fort bearing his name, forced his passage to the rear. A sloop of ten guns, the frigate Montgomery, and two row-galleys, stationed near for the defence of the boom and chain, were burned to prevent their capture by the enemy. The frigate Congress, ordered up the river on the 5th, ran on the flats near Fort Constitution, and shared the same fate. Lighted by the flames of the burning vessels, the fugi- tives dispersed through the mountains, and pursuing their flight over the plain at West Point, found a resting-spot with General James Clinton, at New Windsor. "The garrison at Fort Constitution, reduced to a mere guard under Captain Gershom Mott, who had there as- sumed command on the 9th of August, and now com- pletely at the mercy of an enemy's battery if planted at West Point, awaited a summons to surrender, borne un- der a white flag, on the morning of the 7th. Captain * Sir H. Clinton's Despatch. History of West Point. 47 Mott fired on the flag, and that night abandoned the island, after burning the barracks and leaving his guns unspiked, with a portion of his stores unconsumed. " On the morning of the 8th, two thousand men under General Tryon proceeded on the fleet from Fort Mont- gomery up the river, and landing on the east side, com- pleted the demolition of the ' Fortifications in the High- lands.' "^ Thus was effected, in the brief time of two days, the destruction of works and stores which had cost the coun- try not less than a quarter of a million of dollars, no por- tion of which had been appropriated to the erection of a single battery at West Point, so often urged as "the key to the passage in the Highlands." A portion of the British force, left as a garrison at Fort Clinton, commenced its reconstruction under the name of Fort Vaughn, while another party made an ex- pedition to " Continental Village," on the east side of the river, and about four miles distant. At this point a large amount of supplies, and barracks for fifteen hundred men, were destroyed without moles- tation. The capture of the army under General Burgoyne having been ascertained, the whole expedition abandoned the Highlands, after twenty days' occupation, and re- turned to New York. * Life and Times of Colonel Lamb, 185. Idem, MSS. N. T. Hist. Col. 48 History of West Point. CHAPTER IV. Renewed Efforts to Obstruct the Hudson. — Selection of TVest Point as a Suitable Place. — Letters of Washington to Put- nam AND Clinton upon the Subject. — Appointment of a Com- mittee BY THE New York Provincial Convention to confer "WITH Putnam. — Report of the Committee, in which they Recom- mend THE Fortification of West Point, — Commencement of the Works by General Parsons. — Contract made by Colonel- Hughes FOR the Great Chain at West Point. — Report of General Putnam on the Progress of the Fortifications. — Report of General Parsons on the same. — General McDou- gall ordered to Relieve General Putnam. — Instructions to General Parsons relative to the Construction of the AVorks. Immediately after the return of Sir Henry Clinton's expedition to New York, the necessity for a more thorough fortification of the Highlands engaged the attention of those to whom the defence of this most important point had been intrusted. On the 6th of November, Colonel Hughes wrote General Gates from Fishkill : * * * u rpj^^ General, Governor Clinton, and General James [Clinton], an Engineer, and your humble servant, were at the forts yesterday, viewing the River, Bluffs, Points, &c., in order to erect some fur- ther obstructions, which are immediately set about. The Boom will be near Fort Constitution, and a work on the west shore to defend it."f * * From New Windsor, on the 24th of November, General Clinton wrote General Gates : " I know of no other method of obstructing the passage of Hudson's River, but by Chevaux-de-frise, t Gates, MSS. N. Y. Hist. CoL History of West Point. 49 Chains, and Booms, well defended by heavy artillery and strong works on the shore. The former is impracticable at any place lower down than where the present are, near this place ; and even there, the river is rather too wide to admit of their being properly defended ; they may, however, when completed, be a very considerable obstruc- tion. This with a chain or boom, at a part of the river called the West Point, where it is quite narrow, and the wind, owing to the crookedness of the river, very uncer- tain, with proper works on the shore to defend it, and water-batteries on shore calculated to annoy shipping, would, in my opinion, perfectly obstruct the navigation." * "'^ * "We have a boom, calculated for the narrow part of the river, well forward, but our works go on extremely slow indeed, for want of tools,"* &c. * "^^ * This feeling of solicitude was not confined to the local commanders. The comparative ease with which the British expedition had passed the Highlands had awak- ened an apprehension of its early repetition in the mind of General Washington, who, in a letter dated December 2d, 1777, instructed General Putnam to consult with Governor Clinton, General Parsons, and the French engi- neer, Lieutenant^Colonel Radiere, with a view to the erection of such "works and obstructions as may be necessary to defend and secure the river against any future attempts of the enemy." The following is Washington's letter : "Head-Quarters, 2d December, 1777. " Dear Sir : — The importance of the Hudson River in the present contest, and the necessity of defending it, are subjects which have been so frequently and fully * Gates, MSS. N. Y. Hist, Col. 50 History of West Point. discussed, and are so well understood, that it is unneces- sary to enlarge upon them. These facts at once appear, when it is considered that it runs through a whole State ; that it is the only passage by which the enemy from New York, or any part of our coast, can ever hope to co-operate with an army from Canada ; that the posses- sion of it is indispensably essential to preserve the com- munication between the Eastern, Middle, and Southern States ; and further, that upon its security, in a great measure, depend our chief supplies of flour for the sub- sistence of such forces as we may have occasion for, in the course of the war, either in the Eastern or Northern Departments, or in the country lying high up on the west side of it. These facts are familiar to all ; they are familiar to you. I therefore request you, in the most urgent terms, to turn your most serious and active attention to this infinitely important object. Seize the present opportunity, and employ your whole force and all the means in your poiver for erecting and completing ^ as far as it shall he possible, such tvorks and obstructions as may he necessary to defend and secure the river against any fu- ture attempts of the enemy. You will consult Governor Clinton, General Parsons, and the French engineer, Lieu- tenant-Colonel Radiere, upon the occasion. By gaining the passage, you know the enemy have already laid waste and destroyed all the houses, mills and towns ac- cessible to them. Unless proper measures are taken to prevent them, they will renew their ravages in the spring, or as soon as the season w^ill admit, and perhaps Albany, the only town in the State of any importance remaining in our hands, may undergo a like fate, and a general havoc and devastation take place. History of West Point. 51 " To prevent these evils, therefore, I shall expect that you will exert every nerve, and employ your whole force in future, while and whenever it is practicable, in construct- ing and forwarding the proper ivot^ks and means of defence. The troops must not be kept out on command, and acting in detachments to cover the country below, which is a consideration infinitely less important and interesting. " I am, dear Sir," &c. In a letter to Governor Clinton of the same date. Gen- eral Washington expressed much solicitude on the sub- ject. Governor Clinton, in reply, assured the Com- mander-in-chief of his hearty concurrence in any effort that might be agreed upon ; and he gave several import- ant hints respecting the construction of new works on the river, and especially recommended that a "strong fortress should be erected at West Point opposite to Fort Constitution."* On the same date, Washington also addressed a letter to Major-General Gates, directing him, " with a certain part of the Northern army, and the assistance of the militia of New York and the Eastern States, to attempt the recovery of the posts upon the North River from the enemy, and to put them, if recovered, in the best posture of defence." But General Gates was appointed, at about the same time. President of the Board of War, and did not act in the matter. Washington also ad- dressed a letter, to Governor Clinton, requesting him " to take the chief direction of superintendence of this business." Governor Clinton replied, that he w^ould co- operate with any one charged with the chief direction * Sparks's Writings of Washington, V., 178. 52 History of West Point. of the works, but in consideration of his other duties must decline the appointment. The matter thus remained under the direction of General Putnam, who, early in January, 1778, brought the subject before the Provincial Convention of New York, as apj)ears from the following j)roceedings : — "Thuesdat, Jan. 8, 1778. " Application being made by Major-General Putnam, Commanding Officer of the Middle Department, that this Convention would appoint a committee to confer with him relative to the necessary works to be constructed for the defences of the passes in the Highlands — ^'^ Resolved, That the General's request be complied with, and that Mr. Scott, Mr. Pawling, Mr. Wisner, Mr. Snyder, Mr. Killian Van Rensselaer, Mr. Drake, Mr, Hathorn, and Mr. Hoffman, be a committee for that pur- pose."* " Friday, January 9, 1778. " General Scott, from the Committee appointed yester- day evening, to confer with General Putnam and General James Clinton, the Lieutenant-Colonel of Engineers, and other military officers, relative to the necessary works to be constructed for the passes in the Highlands, and the place or places where the same ought to be erected, re- ported that they had conferred with the said Generals and other officers ; that on such conference there was a disagreement in sentiment between those gentlemen (arising from certain different facts alleged), as to the place where such works ought to be erected ; and, there- fore, that it was the opinion of the said Committee and the military gentlemen, that this Convention appoint Commissioners to view the several passes on Hudson * Jour. Prov. Conv., 1113. History of Wesj. "^-)ii^t. 53 River, with the Generals and other officers, and advise in fixing the places where such fortifications «hould be erected. '^Resolved, That John Sloss Hobart, Esq., one of the Justices of tlie Supreme Court, the Hon. Robert R. Liv- ingston, Chancellor of this State, Mr. Piatt, Mr. Wisner, and Colonel Hathorn, be, and hereby are, appointed Com- missioners for the purpose above mentioned, and proceed in that business with all possible despatch."* The result of the conference of these two Committees, after devoting three days in examining the ground at and near West Point, will be found in the following re- " Wednesday, January lAth, 1778. "Your Committee, who were sent to ascertain the place for fixing a chain and erecting fortifications for obstructing the navigation of the Hudson River, beg leave to report. That they have carefully viewed the ground on which Fort Clinton lately stood, and its en- virons, and find that the ground is so intersected with long, deep hollows, that the enemy might approach with- out any annoyance from the garrison within the Fort, to within a few yards of the walls, unless a redoubt should be raised to clear the hollows next the Fort, which must be built at such distance from the Fort that it could not be supported from thence in case of an assault, so that the enemy might make themselves masters of the re- doubt the first dark night after their landing, which would be a good work, ready to their hand, for annoying * Jour. Prov. Conv., 1113. 54 H-^ORY .r-Qp -y^Es^ Point. the Fort and facilitating their operations against it ; and, together with the eminences and broken grounds within a short distance of the Fort, would render it impossible for the garrison to resist a general assault for many hours together. Another objection that appeared to the Committee w^as the want of earth on the spot, which would reduce the engineer to the necessity of erecting his works entirely of timber, which must be brought to Pooploop's Kill in rafts, and from thence drawn up a steep and difficult road to the top of the hill. The rafts cannot be made till the water is warm enough for men to work in it, by which it is probable that a Fort cannot be erected before the ships of the enemy will come up the river. Beside, at this place, the chain must be laid across the river, so that it will receive the whole force of the ships coming with all the strength of tide and wind on a line of three or four miles. Add to these, if the enemy should be able to possess themselves of the passes in the mountains through which they marched to the attacks of Forts Montgomery and Clinton, it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the militia of the country to raise the siege. " Upon viewing the country at and about West Point, the Committee found that there were several places at which the enemy might land and proceed immediately to some high grounds that would command a Fort erected at West Point, at the distance of six or seven hundred yards, from which they might carry on their approaches through a light gravelly soil, so that it would be impos- sible for the Fort to stand a long siege. But to balance this disadvantage in this place, there is j)lenty of earth. The timber may be brought to the spot by good roads History of West Point. 55 from the high grounds at the distance of one to three miles. Three hundred feet less of chain will be requisite at this i^lace than at Fort Clinton. It will be laid across in a place where vessels going up the river most usually lose their headway.* Water-batteries may be built on both sides of the river for protecting the chain and an- noying the ships coming up the river, which will be com- pletely commanded from the walls of the Fort. There are so many passes across the mountains to this place, that it will be almost impossible for the enemy to pre- vent the militia from coming to the relief of the garrison. " From these considerations, the Committee are led to conclude that the most proper place to obstruct the navi- gation of the river is at West Point ; but are at the same time fully convinced that no obstructions on the banks of the river can effectually secure the country, unless a body of light troops, to consist of at least two thousand effec- tive men, be constantly stationed in the mountains while the navigation of the river is practicable, to obstruct the enemy in their approach by land. "Jno. Sloss Hobart, "Henry Wisner, "John Hathorn, " Zeph. Platt. " PoTJQHXEEPSiE, Jan. 14iA, l7T8."f Immediately following the reception of this report, on or about the 20th of January, the brigade of General * Those who are acquainted with the place where the obstruction was fastened to the shore, will see the force of this description. A point of land here juts out into the stream abruptly, and compels vessels, saiUng under even the most favor- able breeze, to make such change in their course as will materially lessen their headway. f Jour. Prov. Conv., 1117. 56 History of West Poixt. Parsons crossed over to the Point, and notwithstanding the severity of the winter, and a deep fall of snow on the ground, operations were commenced. Without shelter, materials for building, or proper tools to labor with, a work was laid out on the northeast angle of the Plain, and a series of water-batteries com- manded by it, were located on the eastern front by Lieutenant-Colonel Radiere, Engineer, under the super- vision of Major-General Putnam. Radiere, an impatient, petulant officer, planned the work at the outset, on a scale entirely too large. He required means altogether beyond the resources at com- mand, and projected curtains, banquettes, and terre- pleins sufficient to enclose the greater portion of the north and east crest of the river's bank.* Embarrassing as this display of science was, the work of construction progressed as rapidly as the difficulties first mentioned would permit, and zealous means were taken to carry out the recommendation of the Commit- tee to obstruct the navigation of the river. By direction of General Putnam, Hugh Hughes, Deputy Quartermaster-General, visited the Stirling Iron Worksf of Noble, Townsend and Company on the 2d of February, and entered into a contract with the proprie- tors to construct a chain. This contract was as fol- lows : — " Articles of Agreement between Noble, Townsend and Company, proprietors of the Stirling Iron Works, * Zodiac, Nov., 1835, 67. f The Stirling Iron Works are still in operation. They are situated on the outlet of Stirling Pond, about five miles southwest of the Sloatsburgh Station, on the Erie Railway. They are owned by descendants of ^eter Townsend, and have now been in operation about one hundred years. History of West Point. 57 in the State of New York, of the one part, and Hugh Hughes, Deputy Quartermaster-General to the Army of the United States, of the other part, witnesseth : — " That the said Noble, Townsend and Compan}^, jointly and severally engage to have made and ready to be delivered at their works to the said Hugh Hughes, Deputy Quartermaster-General, or to the Deputy Quar- termaster-General of the Middle Department for the time being, on or before the first day of April next ensuing the date hereof, or as much sooner as circum- stances wdll admit, an iron chain of the following dimen- sions and quality : that is, in length five hundred yards, each link about two feet long, to be made of the best Stirling iron, two inches and one-quarter square, or as near thereto as possible, with a swivel to every hun- dred feet, and a clevis to every thousand feet, in the same manner as those of the former chain. " The said Noble, Townsend and Company also en- gage to have made and ready to be delivered at least twelve tons of anchors of the aforesaid iron, and of such sizes as the said Hugh Hughes or his successors in office shall direct, in writing, as soon as the completion of the chain will admit. " In consideration of which the said Hugh Hughes, in behalf of the United States, agrees to pay to the said Noble, Townsend and Company, or their order, at the rate of four hundred and forty pounds'-' for ever}^ ton weight of chain and anchors delivered as before men- tioned, unless the general regulations on trade, proAd- sions, &c., which are now supposed to be framed by * Continental money, probably. 58 History of West Point. deputies from the United States, shall be published and take effect before the expiration of four months from the date of this ; in which case the price is to be only .£400 per ton for the said chain and anchors. The pay- ment, if demanded, to be made in such proportion as the work shall be ready to be delivered, which shall be determined in ten days after requisition made by a number of competent judges, not less than three nor more than five, unconcerned with the proprietors, or the works, and, if condemned, to be completed at the ex- pense of the said Company, who are also to repair, as aforesaid, all failures of their work, whenever happen- ing, whether at the works or river, or in extending it across, " The said Hugh Hughes also engages to procure of the Governor of this State, for the said Noble, Town- send and Company, an exemption for nine months from the date hereof, from military duty, for sixty artificers that are steadily employed at the said chain and anchors till completed. Agreeable to the said exemption, the said Company complying with the terms thereof. Pro- viding also that the said Company give the said Hugh Hughes, or his successors in office, the refusal, by let- ter, of all the bar iron, anchors, &c., made at the said works in the said term of nine months, at the current price, unless what is necessary to exchange for clothing and other articles for the use of the w^orks. " It is also agreed, by the said parties, that if the teams of the said Company shall transport the said chain or anchors, or any part thereof, to any assigned post, they shall receive for such services the same pay as shall be given by the United States for the like ; the History of West Point. 59 teams of the Company being exempted from impress by any of the Quartermaster-General's deputies during the space of nine months. " Lastly, the said Company engage to use their ut- most endeavors to keep seven fires at forging and ten at welding, if assisted with such hands as are necessary and can be spared from the army, in case of their not being able to procure others, the said Company making deduction for their labor. " In witness whereof, the parties have interchangeably subscribed their names this second day of February, one thousand seven hundred and seventy-eight, and in the second year of American Independence. " Peter Townsend, ^' In behalf of Noble & Company. " Hugh Hughes,* " In behalf of United States. " In presence of " P. TlLLINGHAST."t On the 13th of February, General Putnam wrote to the Commander-in-chief as follows : " At my request the Legislature of this State have * Bugh Hughes was of Welsh origin, born in 1727. He resided in New Jersey in 1765, removing to New York tlie same or in the following year. Closely identified with the Revolutionists in 1769, he was appointed in 1776, by the Provincial Convention, Commissary of Military Stores, and by Washington, Deputy Quartermaster-General of the forces. Resigning in 1778, he was in 1780 urgently solicited by Colonel Pickering, then Quartermaster-General, to resume his former rank in the American Army, which invitation was accepted. In this capacity he served througliout the war until 1784, at which time he was elected a member of the General Assembly from the city of New York. The writings of Washington and General Greene furnish strong testimony to his spotless integrity and fitness for the faithful discharge of his duties. He died at Tappan, March 15, 1802. f Copy of original in Clinton Papers, State Library. 60 History of West Point. appointed a Committee to affix the places and manner of securing the river, and to afford some assistance in expediting the work. The state of affairs now at this post, you will observe, is as follows : the chain and necessary anchors are contracted for, to be completed by the first of April ; and from the intelligence I have received, I have reason to believe they wdll be com- pleted by that time. Parts of the boom intended to have heen used at Fort Montgomery ^ sufficient for this place, are remaining. Some of the iron is exceedingly bad ; this I hope to have replaced with good iron soon. The chevaiix-de-frise will be completed by the time the y'yvqv will admit of sinking them at (Pollopel's Island). The batteries near the water, and the Fort to cover them, are laid out. The latter is, within the walls, six hundred yards around, twenty-one feet base, fourteen feet high, the talus two inches to the foot. This, I fear, is too large to be completed by the time expected. Governor Clinton and the Committee have agreed to this plan; and nothing on my part shall be wanted to complete it in the best and most expeditious manner. Barracks and huts for about three hundred men are completed, and barracks for about the same number are nearly cov- ered. A road* to the river has been made with great difficulty." On the day following the date of this report, General Putnam left West Point for Connecticut, to attend to some private affairs, leaving the prosecution of the de- fences in charge of Brigadier-General Parsons, who re- * This road, doubtless, was the one leading down to Gee's Point. "ViUe- franehe's" Map shows a road to, and a dock at, that place in 1780. Tlie road is yet visible. History of West Point. 61 ported, on the IStli of February, "that almost every ob- stacle within the circle of possibility has happened to retard their progress. Preparations [continues this officer] for completing them in April are now in a state of forwardness, unless something unforeseen as yet should prevent." Again, from the " Camp at West Point, March 7, 1778," General Parsons communicated to Washington the perplexities arising from the Acts of Congress rela- tive to the direction of the works, and declared : " I most ardently wish to aid Governor Clinton, or any other gentleman appointed to superintend the work. At present, no person has the direction. I have kept the troops at work because I found them here when I took the command. The Aveather has been such, since the 15th of February, as has greatly retarded the works — about seven days of the time has been such that we could do nothing. " Lieutenant-Colonel Radiere, finding it imiDossible to complete the Fort and other defences intended at this post, in such a manner as to render them effectual early in the spring, and not choosing to hazard his reputation on works erected on a different scale, calculated for a short duration only, has desired leave to wait on Your Excellency and Congress, which I have granted him." On the 16th of March, General Parsons reported : " If the chain is completed we shall be ready to stretch it over the river next week. I hope to have two sides and one bastion of the Fort in some state of defence in about a fortnight ; the other sides need very little to secure them. We have the works going on as fast as could be expected from our small number of men and total want i 62 History of West Point. of money and materials j)rovided. I have several times advanced my last shilling towards purchasing materials, &c., and I believe this is the case with almost every officer here."* The absence of General Putnam still continued, and the people of the Province, still regarding the works as under his command, and greatly incensed at the course he had pursued as Commander in the Highlands, refused to render the necessary assistance while he remained even nominally at the head of the Department ; indeed, the current of public opinion ran so strongly against him, that on the 16th of March, Washington ordered Major-General McDougall to repair to the Highlands, and assume the chief command there, comprehending *' the Forts among the other objects of his trust." Radiere had left as early as the 11th of March, and, visiting Congress, was relieved from duty by the ap- pointment of Kosciuszko as the Engineer, Avho arrived at the works on the 26th of March. General McDougall arrived on the 28th of the same month and assumed the command. Colonel Rufus Putnam^j" had early in the war been ap- pointed an Engineer with the rank of Colonel, which position he subsequently resigned to take the command of a Massachusetts regiment, and with it he had shared * Early Settlers of Ohio.— Hildreth. f Rufus Putnam was born April 9, 1738, at Sutton, Massachusetts, and enlisted as a soldier on 15th March, 1757, to serve in the French war. After the outbrealc of the Revolution he joined a Massachusetts regiment, and at Boston, Roxbury, &c., he displayed marked abilities as an Engineer. On the 11th of August, 1776, he was appointed by Congress an Engineer with the ranlc of Colonel. Resigned to take the command of the 5th Massachusetts Regiment, Dec. 8, 1776. Briga- dier-General January 8th, 1783. Resigned February 15, 1793 ; died in May, 1824. — [Hildreth's Early Settlers of Ohio.] History of West Point. 63 the triumph of Gates over Burgoyne. Early in March he was ordered with his regiment to repair to West Point, at which post he arrived at the same time with General McDougall. As he had been a co-laborer with Kosciuszko under General Gates at the North, his prac- tical skill and experience rendered him a valuable as- sistant to advise in concert with the Engineer. Operations were at once resumed, and pushed forward with great vigor. " As the Fort then in progress was designed to annoy the enemy's shipping, should they at- tempt to turn the Point and force the boom a little higher up, no provision existed against a land attack in its rear. A chain of Forts and redoubts was therefore laid out on the high ground bordering the plain." [Forts Wyllis, Webb, and Putnam.] " The principal Fort was built by Putnam's own regi- ment, and was named by General McDougall, Fort Put- nam. It stood on an elevated rocky eminence command- ing both the plain and the Point. This rock sloped gra- dually to the plain on one side, while to the assailants [in rear] it presented a mural front of fifty feet perpen- dicular,"* Colonel Putnam joined the army at Peekskill in the following June. On the 11th of April, 1778, General McDougall issued to General Parsons the following " Instructions : " The hill which Colonel Putnam is fortifying is the most commanding and important of any that we can now ♦Early Settlers of Ohio, 73.— HUdreth. 64 History of "West Point. attend to. Although it is secure in the rear from esca- lade, yet as it is practicable to annoy the garrison from Snook Hill, the parapet in the rear should be made can- non-proof against such as may be fired from Snook Hill. The parapet should be raised as much as possible with fascines and earth, to prevent the ill consequence of splinters from the rocks. The easternmost face of this work must be so constructed as to command the plain on which Colonel Putnam's regiment is now encamped, and annoy the enemy if he should force the works now erecting by Colonel Meigs' and Colonel Wyllis' regi- ments, as well as to command the northernmost and high- est part of the ground last mentioned, which commands the plain in the rear of the principal works at West Point. A temporary magazine should be built without delay on Colonel Putnam's hill, and have ten days' pro- vision, of salt meat and biscuit, for his regiment, de- posited on the hill as soon as it arrives at West Point. This store must not be broke in upon on any pretence, till the enemy appears in force, and puts it out of Colo- nel Putnam's power to procure supplies from West Point. The next principal ground to be occupied for the safety of the Post, is the rising ground to the northward of the Fort, near the northwest corner of the Long Barrack. It will be necessary to erect a redoubt on this ground, capable of containing one hundred and twenty men. The west, north, and east faces should be proof against battering cannon, and the south slightly palisaded to guard against surprise. The westernmost face, flanked by the fire of the Fort, must be ditched, and to mount two pieces of cannon. The north face strongly abba- tised. The parapet of the west face should be raised so History of West Point. 65 high, if practicable, as to cover the garrison from the fire that may be made against it from the ground on which Colonel Putnam is now encamped. This redoubt is so important, that it must be finished without delay. The chain to be fixed on the west side, in or near the Gap of the Snook, commanded by the fire from the east curtain of the work. The water-batteries now erected on the Point, to be completed as soon as possible, and two cannon placed in each, with the necessary shot and stores placed near them ; if any of the cannon to be placed there require to be proved, it must be done be- fore they are brought into the batteries. Such provi- sions as are on the Plain, to be removed into the Fort on the enemy's first appearing in force on the river, and no quantity left out at any time. Two small temporary magazines for amniunition to be made in the Fort for the present, to guard against railft; one also to be made for that of the cannon, in the batteries on the Point. " It must be left to the discretion of the commanding officer at West Point, all circumstances considered, when to fire the alarm. In case of this event taking place in the present state of the works, the security of the Fort depends so much on the heights in the rear, on which the greatest force should be placed, that the command- ing officer at West Point should take his quarters on the hill Colonel Putnam is now fortifying. Colonel Meigs's regiment, now at Robinson's farm, on hearing the alarm, will repair to West Point by the safest and securest fjassage. Six companies of his and Colonel Wyllis's regiment will take post in the works they are respec- tively erecting. The other two companies, with the in- valids of the post and artificers, are to garrison the Fort, 66 History of West Point. ■under the orders of Major Grosvenor. Colonel Webb's regiment is to take post in the works they are now mak- ing, and Colonel Sherbnrn's to defend the redoubt to be erected near the northwest corner of the Long Bar- rack. Colonel Putnam's to take post on the hill which they are now fortifying, and not to be ordered from thence, but such detachments as he or the commanding officer at the Post may judge necessary to secure the avenues to his works. Should the enemy force the regi- ments of Colonels Wyllis, Meigs and Webb from their works, it will be most advancive of the defence of the hills, which command the Fort, that those corps retire to defend to the last extremity, the avenues leading to Colonel Putnam's redoubt, and the ground on which he is now encamped, unless some manoeuvre of the enemy should induce the commanding officer of the post to de- tach some of those corps for the security of Putnam's redoubt. If the ground on which the enemy intend to land, or the route on Avhich he advances to our works, render it necessary to detach any corps to oppose him, it must be taken from the works erecting by Colonel Wyllis's, Meigs's or Colonel Webb's regiment, and not from the Fort, or Putnam's redoubt, as in case of mis- fortune, the enemy's possessing the works first mention- ed, will not be so fatal to the Post as his getting posses- sion of the Fort, or Putnam's redoubt." " P. S. The Avest face of the redoubt to be built near the Long Barrack, to be eighteen feet [high], the north and east faces fourteen feet ; the stones to be kept as much as possible from the upper part of the parapet of the works."* * Zodiac, Nov., 1835, 67. History of West Point. 67 Two days after the foregoing instructions were issued [13th], General McDougalP wrote that " the Fort was so nearly enclosed as to resist a sudden attack of the enemy ; but the heights near it were such that the Fort would not be tenable if the enemy should possess them. For this reason we are obliged to make some works on them. "Mr.Kosciuszko is esteemed by those who have attend- ed the works at West Point to have more practice than Colonel Radiere,* and his manner of treating the people is more acceptable than that of the latter, which induced General Parsons and Governor Clinton to desire the former may be continued at West Point." -|* On the 18th of April, Colonel Robert Troup wrote from Fishkill to General Gates, President of the Board of War, that the works at West Point were in a great state of forwardness ; that KosciuszkoJ was very much * Colonel Louis Deshaix de la Radiere, was one of four Engineers sent over from France by the Commissioners Franklin and Deane, and was employed by order of Congress. On the 8th of July, 1777, he was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of Engineers, in accordance with a Treaty made in France. Feb. 13, 1777; pro- moted to the rank of Colonel, Nov. 17, 1777 ; retained at reorganization of the Army, January 1, 1779, and died in service, at New Windsor [in camp], on the 30th of October, 1779, in the 35th year of his age.* f Writings of Washington, Sparks, V., 311. \ Thaddeus Kosciuszko was born in Lithuania, Feb. 12, 1746, and educated in the Military School at Warsaw. Under the auspices of Franklin, he came to America and was appointed an Aide to Washington. In October, 1776, he was appointed by Congress an Engineer, with the rank of Colonel. In this capacity he served as the Chief Engineer of the Northern Army against Burgoyne, and was subsequently assigned to the works in progress at West Point, where his reputation became greatly increased. He remained in service until the close of the War, receiving the thanks of Congress, and the grade of Brigadier-General by Brevet, Oct. 13, 1783. Returning to his native country in July, 1784, and becom- ing identified with the Polish Revolution, he there rose to the rank of Major- ■ See page 68. * Phila. Packet, Nov. 9, 1779. 68 - History of West Point. esteemed as an able engineer, and that the latter had made many alterations in the works, which were univer- sally approved. The chain, he added, " will be put across the river this week, and. if the enemy let us alone two weeks longer, we shall have reason to rejoice at their moving this way."* General under Poniatowski. On the 10th of October, 1794, he was captured by the Russians and confined at St. Petersburg. After his Hberation he visited the United States, in 1797, at which time Congress presented him a grant of land. He died in Switzerland, Oct. 16, 1817, and was buried at Warsaw, with the highest honors. — [Encyclopeedia Americana.] * Gates, MSS. N. Y. Hist. Col. ' Alexander McDougall, born in Scotland in 1732. In early life a seaman. In the war of 1756, commanded the private armed vessels " Barrington" and " Tiger," out of New York. Subsequently a successful merchant in that city. Devoted himself ardently to the cause of the Colonies. In 1770, one of the most active of the " Sons of Liberty," and a promoter of the Non-importation measures. In 1774, presided at " the great meeting in the fields" in New York, and drafted its ener- getic Resolutions. Was the first person arrested by the British authorities, after the united action of the Colonies. Was in prison twenty-three weeks. Was a member of the Provincial Congress of New York. In 1775, Colonel of the " First New York Regiment." In 1776, Brigadier General. In October 1776, commanded the division of the army at Chatterton Hill, Westchester, where he twice repulsed the British and Hessians. In 1777, Major General. In 1778, in command of "all the posts in the Highlands." Commanded at West Point from 19th July to 6th Dec. 1779 ; from 26th June to 4th July, and from 20th Sept. to 5th Oct. 1780 ; from 24th June, 1781, to 18th January, 1782. In 1780-1, also, a Member of Con- gress. In 1781, elected by that body " Minister of Marine," but declined the posi- tion for renewed active service in the field. First President of the N. Y. State Society of the Cincinnati. After the Revolution, a leading member of the New York State Senate. Died in 1786. His two sons served also throughout the War. His son-in-law, Colonel John Laurance, Judge Advocate General, ofiiciated on the trial of Major Andre. Mc- Dougall was described by Washington as " a brave soldier and a disinterested patriot." — [Family MSS., W. Weight Hawkes.] History of West Point. 69 CHAPTER V. Progress of Obstructing the Hudson. — Relic of the Boom and Chain. — Letters of General Glover and Captain Machin. — Disposition of the Boom, Chain, etc. — Fort Arnold. — Dis- crepancies in the Name of the Work. — Assignment of Major- General Heath to the Command. — Head-quarters of Wash- ington Established at West Point. — Washington's Orders - Severity of the Winter of 1779-80, — Assignment of Gen- eral Howe to the Command of the Post. The obstructions to the navigation of the river had suffered less from the delay before mentioned than the Forts. Governor Clinton, in accordance with his pro- mise to " render any assistance in his power," had exercised considerable supervision over that branch of the service ; and had directed Captain Machin,* who had been employed in completing the obstructions at Polio- pel's Island, to take charge of the obstructions at West Point also. The links of the Chain were brought from the Stirling Iron Works to Captain Machin's Forges at New Windsor, where they were joined together and properly fastened to the logs which formed the support of the Chain when completed. From the Contract of Noble & Townsend, dated Feb. 2d, 1778, we are enabled to fix the time of the com- * Thomas IfacMn was born in Stafifordshire, England, 20th March, 1744. He took up his residence in Boston, and, espousing the popular feeling of the time, made one of the Tea-Party in 1773 ; was wounded at Bunker Hill, while acting as Lieutenant of Artillery. He continued in service until the close of the War, having attained the rank of Captain of Artillery, and died April 3d, 1816, at the age of 72. — [Sim's History of Schoharie County.] 6 70 History of West Point. mencemeiit of the manufacture of the Chain. The let- ter of General Putnam, dated 13th February, same year, referring to " Parts of the Boom intended to have been used at Fort Montgomery ;' the Plans accompanying the Proceedings of the Secret Committee, showing how the Chain and Boom were disposed at the latter place ; the relic found in the river at West Point, in the sum- mer of 1855 ; and the subjoined bill for the Boom at latter place, the last payment for which was made on the day the Chain was contracted for, demonstrate that the obstructions at West Point consisted of a Boom and a Chain, the former being in front of the latter. The Relic here referred to consists ofHwo logs, one of white wood and the other of white pine, about eighteen feet in length, and about fifteen inches in diameter, dressed in the centre in the form of an octagon, and rounded at the ends. These logs are united to each other by an iron band around each end, and two links of Chain of nearly two-inch bar iron, but which have evidently lost much of their original size from corrosion. This Boom extended the whole width of the river. The Plan of its construction and disposition is repre- sented by the accompanying engraving. The strength of this Boom may be inferred from the bill of Noble & Townsend, which specifies 136 tons of iron wrought into booms, bolts, clips, chains, swivels, and bands, the very articles of which the relics are com- posed, and which were in part recovered. The follow- ing is the Bill for the Boom — that for the Chain has not been found.* * A part of the chain at Fort Montgomery, near Pooplopen's Kill, was brought from Lake Champlain, having been designed to obstruct the River Sorel; the ^ri'augement of' Hie great Jiovm and Chuut iit WesTToint . ToTDfin of ihe Xoom aJ West Fomt DuTint) rJie JifVolutioJiarv'War ■ History of West Point. 71 Quarter Master General, hy Messieurs Thomas Machin and John Nicoll. To Noble & Townsend, Dr. 1777. d d.S 5 on BY WHOM SENT. Aug. 6 " 21 24 24 20 16 12 12 12 22 142 8 6 8 9 9 18 6 6 5 3 1 21 6 1 7 24 24 20 6 16 12 12 12 22 36 184 6 2 8 Daniel McCoun. Francis Welding. Amos Mills. 11 <( " 23 Francis Welding. David Sutherland. Sept. 2 " 6 D. McCoun, as far as Thorn's. " 17 Partrick Sutherland. " 25 David Sutherland. Oct. 2 Daniel McCoun Nov. 13 Solomon Curtis Still at Works And one Lod was sent by the Clove that I have not got the number Chps, &o. 58 To making 29,249 lbs. clips, chains, &c., at Is. 8(1. The Wgt. June 19. " 24. " 26. July 7. u a 1778. Jan. 20, " 28. Augt. Sept. 14. Nov. 14. Feb. 2, Tons. 17 20 30 20 20 C. 10 Qrs. 1 14 4 14 10 14 10 1 14 Carting 78 of Boome Iron &c., at 140s. Bar Iron by my team, at 140s. do. do. at 140s. do. Col. Curlies, at 140s. do. our team, at 140s. do. Sam. Bi-uster, at 140s. do. by Mandeville, at 330s. do. do. do. of the Boome Bar Iron £ s. d. 2,453 1 3 2,453 1 8 140 210 17 6 140 5 140 56 17 6 167 1 3 171 3 4 12 16 £5,945 3 1 By Cash paid Mr, Hawxhurst £ 500 By Cash 1,000 By Cash paid Nathaniel Satly 240 By Cash received by Col, Hughes. . . 4,027 5,747 Ballancedue £ 198 3 1 other part was made at Poughkeepsie, out of iron furnished from the Livingston Manor. [Am. Arch., V. III.] This chain was first stretched across the river in October, 1776. It broke by the action of accumulated water, and after repairing and adding new floats, it was finally placed in position in March, 1777, and re- mained until removed by the British at the capture of the Fort. — [Munsell's Hist. Series, No. V., 68.] 72 History of West Point. By the Bill of CaiDtain Machin, which is also annexed, it will be observed that he calls the Boom, Chain Logs, and that they were taken to West Point on April 7th. The Chain appears from the same Bill to have been taken down on the 16th April, and stretched across the river on the 30th. The United States of America — To Thomas Maohin Dr. for Travelling ex- penses and Money paid out in their service from January 1778 to Sept. 20 Agreeable to the Aeount here under. 1778. Jan. 1. do. 7. do. 12. do. 16. do. 20. do. 26. Feb'y 2. do. 2. do. 12. do. 17. do. 24. do. do. do. March 5. do. 11. do. 14. do. 15. do. 16. do. 24. do. 26. do. 29. Apri I 7. £ s. 6 10 1 10 Exploring Hudsons Eiver witli 7 Men six days Espences to Poughkeepse Expences at Fish Kill four Days Detayned on the publick service 4 Expences on the Koad to Chester to agree for the New Chain 3 Days 3 Expences Getting Timber for the Chain four Days 4 Getting up Drift Timber 1 Expences to New Burgh, New Malbrough and New Paltz 4 Days 4 For Ten Quire of Paper 2 Expences to New Paltz 3 Days, Hiring on Hand two Days 4 Expences to West Point Expences when in persute of Deserters, for Myself and Men, at McDonelds at Capt. Smiths 4 at Sidraans 5 paid Onderdunk to Carry a Letter 1 Getting the Logs to Drye for the Chain at New Paltz 3 Expences to Jews Creek, Plattor Kill and New Burgh, two days 2 Expences to West Pt 12 Expences from West Pt 12 Expences to Fish Kill, Pough Keepse, New Paltz and New Malbrough, six Days 6 Expences to Fish Kill for Eigging 10 Expences Down the High Lands collecting Drift Timber 12 Expences to West Pt 8 Expences Getting Down the Chain Logs with 40 Men, 4 Days 6 12 6 4 6 10 10 6 12 6 6 8 10 12 10 History of West Point. 73 1778. £ s. (I Expences to Chester 1 Taking Down the Chain 16 Expences to Jews Creek 10 Expences to Sterling 110 6 While Getting the New Chain* across ..... 11 Expences when Reascending the Lady Wash- ington Galley at Kingston Creek, 20 Days. 9 10 6 Expences to Peeks Kill Ill Expences to Pough Keepse 2 Expences to Fish Kill 12 Expences to Kingston 4 Expences to Peeks Kill with four men 2 Expences to Fish Kill with Ferrys 1 12 6 Expences to Pough Keepse and Ferrys 2 10 Expences to Fish Kill 10 8 Expences to Pough Keepse and Ferrys with four men 8 16 Expences to Chester 1 6 Expences to Fish Kill Oil John Buchanons Bill for Travelling Expences. 5 1 William McBrides Bill for Travelling Ex- pences in the service of the States 5 4 Joseph Holsteads Bill for Travelling Expences in the service of the States 3 6 4 Expences to Pough Keepse 2 Expences to Fis^h Kill 12 Expences to Wit Plains 6 £126 1 6 It will be observed that the Boom combined great strength with practicability. It was indeed the main obstruction, and placed below the Chain to receive the first shock of approaching vessels. Contrary to the usual belief, the Boom must have been placed in position some time after the chain had been drawn across. The following letter confirms this opinion : — * So called in the correspondence of the day, to distinguish it from the older chain at Fort Montgomery. " April 12. " do. 16. do. 19. " do. 26. do. 30. " May 3. " June 1. do. 4. do. 6. " do. 10. do. 19. do. 24. do. 29. " July 2. do. 10. do. 19. do. 20. " Augt 1. do. 2. do. 7. do. 20. do. 74 History of West Point. Fort Arnold, 2^ July, 1778. " Hon. Major-General Gates : — ^'SiR : — These [enclosed] will inform your honor the state of the garrison at this place, ' which is by no means in a defensible condition, the works not near finishe'd.' Fort Putnam, ' on which the strength of the Post depends, is far from being complete ; the Boom is not yet come down, nor do I know when it will, or who to apply to about it.'f * * =5= * * * [Signed] "John Glover, " Brigadier-Generair The Chain designed to obstruct the river is fully de- scribed in the contract with Noble & Townsend, already quoted, and its accuracy is confirmed by an examina- tion of the portion yet remaining at West Point. On the 20th of April, 1778, Captain Machin, the Engineer, wrote General McDougall : " Lieutenant Woodw^ard, who I told you was at the Stirling Iron Works inspecting the Chain, is now returned, and in- forms me that seventeen hundred feet of the great Chain, which is more than equal to the breadth of the river at the place last fixed upon, is now ready for use. * "^ * The capson [capstan] and docks are set up in the lower place ; the mud blocks are launched, and only wait for good weather to carry them down. * * * * If the weather should be faA^or- able, I am in hopes to take the Chain down all fixed in about six days." J If the date of this letter has been erroneously printed 20th, instead of 10th, the latter will be found to agree with Captain Machin s bill. The f Gates, MSS, N. T. Hist. CoL % Sim's Hist. Schoharie Co., 566. History of West Point. 75 chain was put together, " all fixed,'' at New Windsor, and floated down to West Point, and secured in its pro- per place in the latter part of April, 1778, as appears from the following extract from a letter from General Clinton to Captain Machin, dated Poughkeepsie, 3d of May, 1778 :— " Dear Sir : — I received your letter, and am happy to learn that the Chain is across the river, and that you had the good fortune to accomplish it so expeditiously and so much to your satisfaction." The chain, as it appeared when placed in its position, is thus described by General Heath in his Memoirs : " November 14M, 1780. — The great chain, which was laid across the Hudson at West Point, was taken up for the winter. It was done under the direction of Colonel Govion, Captain Buchanan, and Captain Nevers [Niven], with a strong detachment of the garrison, and with skill and dexterity. This chain was as long as the width of the river between West Point and Constitution Island, where it was fixed to great blocks on each side, and under the fire of batteries on both sides of the river. The links of this chain were probably 12 inches wide, and 18 inches long; the iron about 2 inches square. \J This heavy chain was buoyed up by very large logs, of perhaps 16 or more feet long, a little pointed at the ends, to lessen their opposition to the force of the water on flood and ebb. The logs were placed at short dis- tances from each other, the chain carried over them, and made fast to each by staples, to prevent their shift- ing ; and there were a number of anchors dropped at distances, with cables made fast to the chain, to give it a greater stability. The short bend of the river at this 76 History of West Point. place was much in favour of the chain's proving effec- tual ; for a vessel coming up the river with the fairest wind and strongest way must lose them on changing her course to turn the Point ; and before she could get under any considerable way again, even if the wind was fair, she would be on the chain, and at the same time under a heavy shower of shot and shells." '■'April \()th, 1781. — The great chain was hauled from off the beach near the Red House at West Point, and towed down to the blocks, in order to its being laid across the river. About 280 men were ordered on this duty." ''■April 11th. — The chain w^as properly fixed with great dexterity, and fortunately without any accident." A great variety of traditions have been repeated, his- torically, in reference to the obstructions at West Point, and wdiich may be fully explained when the j^recise character of the latter is understood. For example, it is said in the "Field-Book of the Revolution:" "Arnold wrote a letter to Andre in a disguised hand and manner, informing him that he had weakened the obstruction in the river by ordering a link of the chain to be taken out and carried to the smiths, under a pretence that it needed repairs." He assured his employer that the link would not be returned to its place before the Forts should be in pos- session of the enemy. A link could not have been thus displaced without re- moving that part of the obstruction altogether ; but the boom might easily have been weakened by taking out a link from either side. Governor Clinton, it is further said, walked across the river on. the chain, and this History of West Point. 77 statement is repeated in the narratives of others as having been accomplished by them. These traditions are easily reconciled by substituting the word Boom for that of the Chain. The Boom could readily be converted into a bridge, and it is not improb- able that in its construction reference was had to this object, as it would afford facilities for the transport of troops from one side of the river to the other. Another writer affirms that the Chain was removed every winter " by means of a large windlass," and that it made a " huge pile on the river-bank." It has also been represented that one end of the Chain and of the Boom being loosened from its fastenings, a windlass was employed to swing the whole around to the shore, — a process easily accomplished. Those who have witnessed the movements of the im- mense fields of ice in December and March at West Point, ebbing and flowing with the tide, will perceive the impossibility of the Chain remaining attached by one end, floating as it would with the masses of ice; nor would securing both ends have prevented its destruction from the agency mentioned. The first statement concerning its disposition is doubt- less the correct one, and is sustained by the following, from "Heath's Memoirs:" '^ April 10. — The great Chain was hauled from off" the beach near the Red House, at West Point, and towed down to the blocks, in order to its being laid across the river." The Red House was situated in " Washington's Val- ley," where a safe anchorage on the flats, from the mov- ing fields of ice, could be secured. The Chain and Boom were fastened when in position to cribbage-blocks, the 78 History of West Point. remains of which are yet visible in the little cove just above the boat-house, on Constitution Island, and direct- KKLIC OF THE GBEAT CHAIN, 1863. ly across from the " Chain Battery," yet in existence, and near which the south end was secured. Sixteen links of the Chain yet remain united at West Point, in- cluding a swivel and clevis. Two of the largest links weigh respectively 130 and 129 pounds. Two of the smallest weigh 109 and 98 pounds, while the medium Aveight is 114 pounds. The whole Chain is said to have weighed 186 tons.* A portion of the Chain [about thirty-four tons] was sold to the Cold Spring Foundry Association, and re- moved to New York many years ago, where it was worked up. In removing the Boom finally, a portion of it became detached, and the logs, being water-soaked, sank to the bottom of the river, where, after being washed by the tide for eighty years, they have been in part recovered, and now serve the noble purpose of elucidating an * Hist. Orange Co. — Eager. 1780. F,iil:ir>;e(l Iroiii MMJoi- Villdbtiulu' s MAF. ScftU- oi"Yar,,i,^ r History of West Point. 79 important point in the defensive operations at West Point, in the struggle for independence. Returning to the fortifications at West Point, the work on which continued to progress under the general direction of General McDougall, superintended by Kos- ^ ciuszko as engineer, until the assignment of General Gates to command the Northern department [Head- Quarters at Fishkill, and at Robinson's house], when, on the 22d of April, 1778,' General McDougall was ordered to join the main army* at Valley Forge, leaving the command again under General Parsons. The operations of the army in the Eastern depart- ment led this officer, at intervals, to the performance of duties in that quarter to which his brigade had been ordered ; but his nominal command was not changed thereby. The principal work on the eastern angle of the Plain at West Point had, early in June, so far advanced as to receive its garrison, and was named Fort Arnold.-^ Some discrepancy exists in regard to the name of this work, for Washington, while en route from Head-Quarters, at White Plains, to Fishkill, to examine the condition of the Highlands, first visited West Point, and to General Duportail, the Chief Engineer of the army, he addressed the following, dated, "Fort Clinton, "West Point, Sept. 19, 1778. '-^ *' Sir: — I have perused the memorial which you deliv- ered relative to the defence of the North River at this place, and upon a view of it, highly approve what you have offered upon the subject. Colonel Kosciuszko, who * Sparks, v., 333. f Gates, MSS. N. T. Hist. CoL 80 History of West Point. was charged by Congress with the direction of the Forts and batteries, has already made such progress in the constructing of them as would render any alteration of them in the general plan a work of too much time, and the favorable testimony which you have given of Colonel Kosciuszko's abilities prevents any uneasiness on this head."* Again, nine months later, he reported to Congress from the " Ringwood Furnace," the intention of the enemy to advance via Continental Village, and " gain, if possible, Nelson's Point opposite to Fort Arnoldr-\ Many other authorities conduce to the belief, now become general, that Fort Arnold, the original appellation, was continued until the defection of Arnold was made known, at which time every individual in the army seemed to vie with each other in the bitterness of their denunciations of him. Then every memento of his existence was expunged from the garrison he had so basely undertaken to be- y^ tray; and the name of Fo7^t Clinton was bestowed in place of one unknown in history, save in the military correspondence and garrison orders of that day. In response to the inquiries of the Commander-in- chief as to the disposition of the army for the winter. General Parsons urged, on the 17th of October, that six or seven thousand men be stationed at Fishkill, or near it; one thousand be posted as the garrison at West Point ; three thousand near the Clove on the west side of the river ; and the remainder, two thousand, in Con- necticut. * Writings of Wasliington, Sparks, YI., 6t. \ Id., ibid., 269. History of West Point. 81 This arrangement was partially adopted ; for in the assignment of the army to winter quarters in November, nine brigades were stationed on the west side of the Hudson, covering the lower part of New Jersey, and six on the east side of the river. Three Massachusetts regiments were assigned, one to West Point, in addition to the garrison, and two to Fish- kill and the Continental Village. The remaining three brigades were to cover the Sound in Connecticut, while the general Head-Quarters were located at Middlebrook. The spring of 1779 brought no change in the dispo- sition of affairs until the end of May, at which time Verplanck's and Stony Points were captured by the enemy, and directly afterwards the American army was concentrated in the Highlands. General McDougall was again transferred to the com- mand at West Point, on the 23d of June ; the garrison at the time consisting of Larned's, Patterson's, and the Carolina Brigades ; while at the same time, the command of the troops on the east side of the river was assigned to Major-General Heath.* The main body of the army, under Major-General Putnam, was posted at Smith's Clove ; Nixon's Brigade on Constitution Island ; Parsons's, near the Robinson House, opposite West Point ; and Huntington's, on the road above, leading to Fishkill.-j- On the twenty-fifth of July, the Head-Quarters of the Commander-in-chief were transferred to West Point, and there remained until the twenty-eighth of November following. J * Heath's Memoirs, 205. f Sparks, YI., 276, Writings of Washington. ^ Heath's Memoirs, 224. 82 History of West Point. During the summer, the completion of the works around and above Fort Putnam was effected, there being no less than two thousand five hundred men on fatigue duty daily.* It was at this period that the following General Orders, selected from the MS. Order Book of the General, were issued. Aside from the interest they impart to the lo- cality, they portray in a strong manner the decision, patriotism, and religious character of Washington.f [Head-Quaeters, Mooee's House], " West Point, July 4, 1779. *^ This day being the anniversary of our glorious inde- pendence, will be commemorated by the firing of thirteen cannon from West Point, at one o'clock, p. m. ''The Commander-in-chief thinks proper to grant a general pardon to all prisoners in this Army under sen- tence of death. They are to be released from confine- ment accordingly." [Hbad-Quaetees, Mooee's Hottse], "West Point, July 10, 1779. " At a Brigade General Court Martial, held by order of General Woodford, the 2d instant, Major Clark, Pre- sident, John Develiri, of the 8th Virg* Regiment, was tried for ' Desertion in attempting to go to the enemy,' found guilty and sentenced to suffer death, two-thirds of the Court concurring therein. The Commander-in- chief confirms the sentence — but as it Avas previous to the pardon of the 4th instant, the prisoner is compre- hended in the benefit of it." * Sparks, VI., 304, Writings of Washington. f The original MS. Order-Book, in Washington's own hand-writing, is in the possession of Professor Weir, at the Military Academy. History of West Point. 83 [Head-Quarters, Moore's House], " West Point, July 16, 1779. " The Commander-in-chief is happy to congratulate the Army on the success of our arms under Brigadier- General Wayne, who, last night, with the Corps of light infantry, surprised and took the enemy's post at Stony Point with the Avhole garrison, cannon and stores, with Yery inconsiderable loss on our side. The General has not yet received the particulars of the affair ; but he has the satisfaction to learn that the officers and men in general gloriously distinguished themselves in the at- tack. He requests the Brigadier and his whole Corps to accept his warmest thanks for the good conduct and signal bravery manifested upon the occasion." [Head-Quarters, Moore's House], " West Point, July 18, 1779. " At a General Court Martial held at Stony Point in the light infantry on the 17th inst., by order of Briga- dier-General Wayne, whereof Colonel Meigs was Presi- dent, William Fitzgerald, of the 9th Penn'' Regiment, Isaac Wilson, of Colonel Bradford's, John Williams, of the 4th Maryland, Joseph Chace, of the 1st Connecticut, and John Blackman, of Colonel Bradley's — were tried for ^ Deserting to the enemy,' found guilty, and sentenced (two-thirds of the Court agreeing there- to) to suffer death. His Excellency the Commander-in- chief confirms the sentences, and orders the above-men- tioned criminals to be hanged this afternoon at 5 o'clock, in the flag bastion [at Stony Point]." 84 History of West Point. " Head-Qttaetees, Moore's Hottse, [West Point,] July 29, 1779. " Many and pointed orders have been issued against that unmeaning and abominable custom of swearing, notwithstanding which, with much regret, the General observes that it prevails, if possible, more than ever; his feelings are continually wounded by the oaths and im- precations of the soldiers whenever he is in hearing of them. "The name of that Being from whose bountiful good- ness we are permitted to exist and enjoy the comforts of life, is incessantly imprecated and profaned, in a man- ner as wanton as it is shocking. For the sake therefore of religion, decency, and order, the General hopes and trusts that officers of every rank will use their influence and authority to check a vice which is as unprofitable as it is wicked and shameful. " If officers would make it an unavoidable rule to reprimand, and, if that does not do, punish soldiers for offences of this kind, it could not fail of having the desired effect." To superintend the fatigue parties employed on the works, the following orders were issued : [Head-Quarters, Moore's House], " West Point, July 30, 1779. " Lieutenant Colonel Howard, with Lieutenant Hugo as his assistant, the redoubts assigned to General Small- wood's brigade. Lieutenant Colonel WilliaiMS, with Captain Gosmer, Fort Putnam and Fort Webb. Colonel TuppER, with Captain Drew, the works at the Point, in- History of West Point. 85 eluding Fort Clinton [Fort Arnold] . Capt-ain Hall and Captain Tatum, the works on Constitution Island. Major Troop, with Captain Holmes, the works on the east side of the river." In the autumn of this year, the garrison consisted of two Massachusetts brigades on the Point; the Connecti- cut line on the east side of the river, between Garrison's and the Pv>obinson House ; and the North Carolina bri- gade on Constitution Island. The light infantry and the Maryland line were encamped from Fort Mont- gomery northward, and Nixon's brigade occupied the Continental Village. In the assignment of the army to winter quarters, the Massachusetts line were left to garrison West Point and the Highlands, the command of which General Heath assumed on the 28th of November.* The winter of 1779 and 1780 was one of unexampled severity at West Point. The troops, except those on garrison duty, were cantonized in huts two miles back of West Point, on the "public meadows," and at " Budd's," on the east side of the river. So intense was the cold, that for a period of forty days, no water dripped from the roofs which sheltered them.f The snow was four feet deep on a level, requiring a heavy force to be constantly engaged in keeping open the communication with the six or seven redoubts built and building. Twice during the winter the North Redoubt barely escaped total destruction by fire. The parapet, built of logs, covered with earth, and difficult of access, burned nearly three days before the fire could * Heath's Memoirs. f Sim's Hist. Schoharie Co. 7 86 History of West Point. be extinguished. The South Barrack in Fort Arnold was entirely consumed, with a large quantity of stores ; but the adjacent buildings were saved by the indefati- gable labor of the garrison, and the personal efforts of General Patterson.* On the 21st of February, General Heath obtained a leave of absence, and being shortly afterward appointed by the State of Massachusetts to superintend the re- cruiting service, the command at West Point was trans- ferred, early in April, to General Robert Howe. Through- out the spring of 1780, the movements of the enemy so fully impressed the Commander-in-chief with their in- tention to assail West Point, that he directed Generals McDougall and Steuben to repair thither. The garrison was reinforced, and the army moved up to cover the entrance of the Highlands. * Heath.' 3 Memoirs. History of West Point. 87 CHAPTER VI. Major-General Arnold ordered to Relieve General Howe. — Disaffection of Arnold. — Disheartening Condition of the American Cause. — Advantages of West Point if Captured BY THE Enemy. — Sir Henry Clinton's Idea. — The Secret Cor- respondence with Arnold. — Appointment to meet John An- derson. — The " Robinson House," and its Original Proprie- tor. — The Meeting between Arnold and Anderson Thwarted. — A Flag of Truce from the Vulture, and its Purport. — Smith's House. — Joshua Hett Smith. — Meeting between Ar- nold AND Anderson. — Attempt of Anderson to Return to New York by Land. — Cow-boys and Skinners. — Capture of Anderson. On the 3d of August, Major-General Arnold was instructed from general head-quarters at Peekskill, to proceed ]^l ^ ^ I to West Point and relieve General Robert Howe of the command of that Post, and its dependencies. In pursuance of this order, Arnold arrived on the 5th, and established his Head-Quarters at the " Ptobinson House."* Real and imaginary grievances had already unsettled *0n the 8th of August, Arnold wrote Washington: "I wish your Excellency would be kind enough to order Mr. Erskine [Geographer to the Army] to send me a map of the Country from this place to New York, particularly on the east side of the river, which would be very useful to me." ***** "Major Villefranche has surveyed the works at West Point, and informs me that there is a vast deal to do to complete them." * * * — [Correspondence of the Revolution, III., 57. — Sparks.] 88 History of West Point. this officer's attachment to the cause of the Revolution, and later evidences have brought to light the fact, that he sought this command with a predetermination to abandon the cause, and betray his trust and associates into the hands of the enemy. " The moment was truly a favorable one. The English w^ere weary of the con- tinued strife, and really anxious for peace with America on any terms that might not involve Independence. The mess-rooms no more, as in Howe's days, echoed the toast of ' A glorious war, and a long one !' The Royal officers now pledged ' A speedy accommodation of our present unnatural disputes !' On the other hand, America too was tired of the war. A cloud of witnesses of the best authority, testify to the probability of a majority of our people being desirous of accommodating the quarrel, and of reuniting with England on condi- tions of strict union, if not of mediated dependence. The public chest was empty. The miserable bubble by w^hich it had hitherto been recruited was on the verge of explosion, and the Continental paper-money, always really worthless, though long sustained by the force of laws and bayonets, was now rapidly approximating its ultimate value. The ranks were supplied with children, whose service for nine months was bought for $1,500 apiece. 'Hundreds even of the staff officers,' said Greene, in May, 1780, 'were ruined by the public charges they had been forced to incur, wiiile every ob- stacle was opposed to a settlement of their accounts, lest their demands on government should become fixed.' 'However important our cause, or valuable the blessings of liberty,' he continues to Washington, ' it is utterly impossible to divest ourselves of our private feelings History of West Point. 89 while we are contending for them.' ' It is obvious that the bulk of the people are weary of the war,' said Reed, in August. ' There never has been a stage of the w^ar,' said Washington, ' in which the dissatisfaction has been so general and so alarming.' The army, ill-paid, ill-fed, ill-clad, avenged its sufferings and its wrongs by such means as lay in its power. Martial law w^as published to procure its supplies in States that had not a hostile ensign within their borders. Regiment after regiment rose in mutiny ; nor could the rope or the scourge check the devastation and desertion that marked the army's course. At this very period, despite the repeated sentences of courts-martial, and the general order for the officer of the day, on his individual authority, to flog any straggler within the limit of fifty lashes, we find in Washington's own words the most unwelcome evidences of the necessities of his followers, and their consequent marauds along the banks of the Hudson. " Not until the end of August, was the pay due in the preceding March forthcoming. In September, Hamil- ton found the army a demoralized, undisciplined mob ; disliking the nation for its neglect, dreaded by the nation for its oppressions. Our chiefs, with mortification and regret, confessed the day impending, when, unless the war was carried on by foreign troops and foreign treasure, America must come to terms. " ' Send us troops, ships, and money,' wrote Rocham- beau to Yergennes, ' but do not depend upon these people, nor upon their means.' Yet it was known that the aid of France and Spain was merely sporadic ; and there was now reason to fear that, without some great stroke on our part, the former would soon abandon us 90 History of West Point. as a profitless ally, and make her own peace with Bri- tain. " Congress too, rent by faction and intrigue, no longer commanded the entire confidence of the Whigs. Its relations with the States were not satisfactory, and with the army were decidedly bad. Jealousy on the one hand, aversion and distrust on the other, daily widened the unacknowledged breach. . * * * -pj^^ party hostile to the Chief — deep-rooted in New England, and pervad- ing Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia — which, from the beginning of the war to its end, dreaded lest the tyranny of a Commodus should lurk behind the wise virtues of a Pertinax, though foiled in a former effort to displace him, still retained power to hamper his movements and embarrass his designs. It was very evident that his removal would be the signal for the army's dissolution, and the inevitable subjection of the infant State ; but it was yet feasible to limit his powers, deny his require- ments, and in a hundred ways exhibit a distrust of his capacity or integrity that would have caused many sol- diers to throw up the command." " Much of this was known to the British, and the re- duction of West Point had long been their hope ; but to accomplish it without loss of life would indeed have been a triumph for Sir Henry Clinton, and a most bril- liant conclusion to the campaign. Mr. Sparks has clearly mapped out the advantages he must have con- templated in this contingency. In the first place, the mere acquisition of a fortress so important, with all its dependencies, garrison, stores, magazines, vessels, &c., was an achievement of no secondary magnitude. The supplies gathered here by the Americans were very History of West Point. 91 great, and, once lost, could not have been readily, if at all, restored. The works were esteemed our tower of salvation, an American Gibraltar, impregnable to an army 20,000 strong. Even though yet unfinished, they had cost three years' labor of the army, and $3,000,000, and were thought an unfailing and secure resort in the last extremity. But the ulterior consequences of its possession were of even greater importance. It would have enabled Sir Henry to have checked all trade be- tween New England and the Central and Southern States. It was in Washington's eyes the bolt that locked this communication. The Eastern States, chiefly dependent for their breadstuifs on their sisters in the Union, were commercial rather than agricultural com- munities ; and the power that at once commanded the seaboard and the Hudson might easily bring upon them all the horrors of famine. " From Canada to Long Island Sound, a virtual barrier would have shut out New England from its supplies, as the wall of Antonine barred the free and rugged Caledo- nians from the Roman colonies and the south of Britain. But even these advantages were of less moment than those more immediate. The French, under D'Estaing, had already bickered with the Americans. It was hoped that similar ill-blood might arise in Rochambeau's camp, and be fanned into a flame. It was shrewdly and cor- rectly suspected by Clinton, that the allies meditated a combined attack on New York. To execute this move- ment, with West Point strongly garrisoned by the Brit- ish, would be impossible ; and nothing was more likely than that the French should have all their jealousies aroused by the defection of one of the most distinguished 92 History of West Point. American generals, and the surrender of the most im- portant American citadel, on the very ground of repug- nance to the alliance. Ignorant of the extent of the plot, it would be difficult for them to repose in confidence with an American army by their side, and a British be- fore them and in their rear.' ' My idea,' said Sir Henry Clinton, ' of putting into execution this concerted plan with General Arnold with most efficacy, was to have deferred it till Mr. Washington, co-operating with the French, moved upon this place to invest it ; and that the Rebel magazines should have been collected and formed in their several depots, particularly that at West Point. 'General Arnold surrendering himself, the forts, and garrisons at this instant, would have given every advan- tage that could have been desired. Mr. Washington must have instantly retired from King's bridge, and the French troops on Long Island would have been consequently left unsupported, and probably would have fallen into our hands.' " A secret correspondence had been commenced as early as 1779, between John Anderson, who afterwards proved to be Major John Andre, the Adjutant-General of the British army, and Arnold, in which the latter wrote over the pseudonym of " Gustavus." The value of the informa- tion imparted in this way had, at an early day, attracted the attention of the British Commander, and led him to infer the character and rank of the writer. The kind of information thus obtained was greatly en- hanced in importance by the assignment of Arnold to the command at West Point ; and that the correspondence was regular and rapid will be seen from the following let- ter, written five days after Arnold arrived at his station : History of West Point. 93 '' Augmt SOth, 1780. "Sir: — On the 24th instant, I received a note from you without date, in answer to mine of the 7th of July ; also a letter from your house of the 24th July, in answer to mine of the 15th, with a note from Mr. B of the 30th of July; with an extract of a letter from Mr. J. Osborn of the 24th. I have paid particular attention to the contents of the several letters: had they arrived earlier you should have had my answer sooner. A variety of circumstances has prevented my writing you before, I expect to do it very fully in a few days, and to procure you an interview with Mr. M e, when you will be able to settle your commercial plan, I hope, agreeable to all parties. Mr. M e assures me that he is still of opinion that his first proposal is by no means unreasonable, and makes no doubt when he has had a conference with you that you will close with it. He expects when you meet, that you will be fully authorized from your House ; that the risks and profits of the copartnership may be fuHy and clearly under- stood. "A speculation might at this time be easily made to some advantage with ready money, but there is not the quantity of goods at market which your partner seems to suppose, and the number of speculators below, I think, will be against your making an immediate purchase. I apprehend goods will be in greater plenty and much cheaper in the course of the season : both dry and wet are much wanted, and in demand at this juncture : Some quantities are expected in this part of the country soon. Mr. M e flatters himself that in the course of ten days he will have the pleasure of seeing you : he re- 94 History of West Point. quests me to advise you, that he has ordered a draft on you in favor of our mutual friend S y for £300, which you will charge on account of the tobacco. " I am, in behalf of Mr. M e & Co., " Your obedient, humble Servant, " GUSTAVUS." " Mr, John Anderson, Merchant. " To the Care of James Osborne — to be left at the Reverend Mr. Odell's, New York." " Translated from its commercial phraseology into plain English, this letter teaches us that on the 7th of July, Arnold had declared the probabiHty of his obtain- ing the command of West Point, and the tour of inspec- tion he had just made of its defences ; and had written on the 15th, when the project connected with the arrival of the French may have been mentioned. The terms on which he was to surrender were also doubtless named. To these Anderson had repHed in two notes ; and if we suppose B. stood for Beverly Robinson, and J. Osborn for Sir H. Clinton, communications from these were apparently conveyed. It may be easily gathered that the present strength of the garrison, both in militia and Continentals, was indicated, and that the feasi- bility of a coup de main, and the danger of the troops at Verplanck's retarding such an undertaking, were sug- gested. "It will be observed, that Gustavus writes as agent for Mr. M e ; elide the dash and we have Mr. Me — in other words, himself y " It became necessary at this instant" [says Sir Henry Clinton], "that the secret correspondence under feigned names, which had so long been carried on. History of West Point. 95 should be rendered into certainty, both as to the per- son being General Arnold, commanding at West Point, and that in the manner in which he was to surrender himself, the forts, and troops to me, it should be so con- ducted, under a concerted plan between us, as that the King's troops sent upon this expedition should be under no risk of surprise or counterplot ; and I was determined not to make the attempt but under such particular security. " I knew the ground on which the forts were placed, and the contiguous country, tolerably well, having been there in 1777; and I had received many hints respect- ing both from General Arnold. But it was certainly necessary that a meeting should be held with that offi- cer for settling the whole plan. My reasons, as I have described them, will, I trust, prove the propriety of such a measure on my part. General Arnold had also his reasons, which must be so very obvious as to make it unnecessary for me to explain them. " Many projects for a meeting were formed, and con- sequently several attempts made, in all of which General Arnold seemed extremely desirous that some person, who had my particular confidence, might be sent to him — some man, as he described it in writing, of his own mensuration. " I had thought of a person under this important de- scription, who would gladly have undertaken it, but that his peculiar situation at the time, from which I could not release him, prevented him from engaging in it. General Arnold finally insisted that the person sent to confer with him should be Adjutant-General Major Andre, who indeed had been the person on my 96 History of West Point. part, who managed and carried on the secret corre- spondence."* On the 7th of September, Anderson wrote Colonel Sheldon, the commander of an American cavalry out- post [page 135, Proceedings of the Board], that he desired permission to meet a friend near his lines on Sunday, the 11th, at 12 o'clock. This letter was artfully designed to secure two ob- jects ; for presuming, as was the case, that the note would be transmitted to the Commanding General, it in- formed Arnold that the writer sought an interview with him, and afforded the former an opportunity to instruct Colonel Sheldon to escort Anderson to head-quarters, in case he should arrive within the American lines. Arnold accordingly notified Sheldon that he expected to meet a person at his quarters, with whom he could open a regular " channel of intelligence;" to which Shel- don replied, pleading his inability to be present at the meeting with the emissary, on account of ill health, and advising Arnold to meet him at Dobb's Ferry at the appointed time. Arnold left the Hobinson House in his barge on the afternoon of the 10th, and reaching Haverstraw, passed the night at the house of Joshua Hett Smith. On the next morning, he proceeded in the barge down the river twenty miles to Dobb's Ferry, where lay the Vulture, which had brought up Anderson and Colonel Beverly Robinson. The " Robinson House" yet stands in the Highlands on the east side of the Hudson, two miles below West * Clinton to Lord G. Germain. — Sparks's Arnold, 168. History of West Point. 97 Point. Three buildings joined together, extending east and west, and fronting north and south, constitute the mansion. Nearest to the river is the farm-house, one story high. Next east are the main buildings, each two stories high. A neat piazza surrounds the eastern structure on the north, east, and south sides, which THB "BOBINSON house" — SOUTH FBONT. extends also along the south side of the central build- ing. The house now belongs to Hon. Hamilton Fish, Secre- tar}^ of State for the United States, who, in making the needful repairs, has in no way changed its original appear- ance, either inside or out. The same low ceiling, with large bare beams overhead ; the same panel-work and polished tiles adorn the fireplace without a mantel ; and the absence of all ornament, so characteristic of progress in architecture, preserves complete the interest which the stirring scenes of the Revolution have flung around the Robinson House. 98 History of West Point. " Beverly Robinson was a gentleman of high standing. His father, speaker of the Virginia legislature, was an early friend of Washington, whose modesty and valor he complimented in language that is yet remembered. The son was married to a great heiress of the day, the daughter of Frederic Philipse, and with her acquired large estate on the Hudson. At his house Washington had met, and sought to win, the younger sister and co- heiress. His country-seat in the Highlands, surround- ed by pleasant orchards and gardens, and environed by sublime scenery, was the head-quarters of the Ameri- can generals, who, considering it public property, since its owner was in arms for the crown, were wont to use it as their own. It was now Arnold's, and sometimes Washington's Head-Quarters. " Robinson's circumspect and cautious character was thought needful to check the buoyancy of his comrade, and he was likewise fully acquainted with the pending negotiations. Indeed, it was probably through him that Arnold's first overtures were made. But the large ac- quaintance and interests he had in the region, and his knowledge of the country, made his presence addition- ally desirable. " The interview was to occur on the east side of the river, at Dobb's Ferry ; but as Arnold drew near, one of those circumstances which the pious man calls provi- dence, and the profane calls luck, prevented an encoun- ter, that must in all human probability have resulted in the consummation of the jilot. Some British gunboats were stationed at the place, which opened such a fire on the American barge that Arnold, though twice he strove hard to get on board, was put in deadly peril of his life History of West Point. 99 and obliged to fall back. How this came to pass without Robinson's intervention we cannot imagine ; for it is im- possible but that an intimation from him would have caused the firing to cease. Or had he repaired, with Anderson and his flag, to meet the solitary barge that evidently belonged to an officer of rank, an interview might at once have been effected in the most plausible manner in the world. The circumstances of the case would have rendered it easy for Arnold to publicly say that he would, since they were thus thrown together, waive the prerogative of rank that otherwise might have induced him to refer the enemy's flag to an officer of an equal grade, and to grant an interview on shore. The condition of Robinson's estate was a ready pretext for even a private reception, and there was no obstacle to Anderson being of the party. In the hope of being thus followed, Arnold retired to an American post on the west shore, above the Ferry, Avhere he remained till sundown, but no flag came. It is scarcely possible that the statement attributed to Rodney could have had an actual foundation here. At all events, he went back that night to West Point, and his coadjutor returned to New York. The failure of the meeting can only be accounted for by supj)osing that the English messengers were on the east bank of the Ferry when Arnold was fired at, and could not interfere in season. They could hardly have been on the Vulture, since its boat was lowered to pursue the American barge, which it did so far and so vigorously as to have nearly captured it." To avoid suspicion, Arnold wrote on the same day, dating his letter " Dobb's Ferry," to the Commander-in- chief, informing him of his trip to that point for the L.cFC. 100 History of West Point. purpose of establishing a beacon on the mountain, and a set of signals to give the alarm, in case the enemy came up the river. On the 16th of September the Vulture again appeared up the river, with Colonel Robinson on board, and anchored off Teller's Point, in full view of King's Ferry, and about fifteen miles from Arnold's quarters. From this anchorage, on the 17th, under a flag of truce? and with the pretext of desiring to inquire about his property affairs, he thus managed to signify to Arnold his presence, and wish to renew negotiations with him. On Monday, the 18th, Washington and his staff ar- rived at King's Ferry, and crossed the Hudson with Arnold in the ferry-barge, on his way to meet the French Commander at Hartford. With the Vulture in full view, the object of her visit was discussed, during which Arnold exhibited the letter of Robinson, and he received the strong disapproval of his Commander upon the propriety of the proposed interview. The night was passed at Peekskill, and on Tuesday, the 19th, Arnold parted from Washington for the last time, and returned to the Robinson House, leaving the Chief to pursue his journey. The same day, Arnold replied to Robinson's note, and declined to hold further communication with him in relation to pri- vate affairs, declaring that all such ought to be referred to the civil, and not to the military authorities ; but within the official letter were enclosed and sealed two notes, one for Colonel Robinson, and the other from ^^Gustavus' to John Anderson. To Robinson he wrote that he would send a trusty person to the Vulture, or to Dobb's Ferry, with a boat History of West Point. 101 and a flag of truce, on Wednesday night, the 20th. To Anderson he signified his wish to meet him, and that a person would be at Dobb's Ferry, on the east side of the river, on the night of the 20th, who would conduct him to a place where a meeting could be held in safety. These letters were forwarded to New York, and on the morning of the 20th, Anderson left the city and arrived at Dobb's Ferry in the afternoon, where, instead of remaining, he proceeded on up to Teller's Point, and went on board the Vulture at 7 o'clock that evening. The night passed, and no person appeared. On Thursday, the 21st, an excuse was found to send a flag to the shore, with a complaint signed by the captain of the vessel, but countersigned by John Anderson as his secretary, and by this expedient the presence of the latter in the vessel was made known to Arnold. A ride of thirteen miles south from West Point, on the Hudson River Railroad, carries the traveller to Ver- planck's Point, on the east side of the river. King's Ferry, the principal channel of communication between the Eastern and Southern States, crossed from this point to Stony Point, on the west side. Two and a half miles below Stony Point is yet to be seen a commodious two- story stone house, standing on an elevated position, and commanding an extensive view southward of Haverstraw Bay and Teller's Point. Joshua Hett Smith, the former occupant of this mansion, was a man of education and ample estate. Politically opposed to the Convention which adopted the Declaration of Independence, he was, with his family in general, classed among those who were not cordial in their attachment to the American cause. 102 History of West Point. He was hospitable and courteous in his demeanor ; and as no stronger evidence existed of his disaffection than suspicion, his society, and his services in obtaining sup- phes, made him acceptable to General Howe, Arnold, and other American officers. To this man Arnold had re- course, to assist him in the fulfilment of the plan which thus far had so signally failed. To what extent he was admitted into Arnold's confi- dence will never probably be known ; but under the pre- tence that an agent from the enemy was to communicate valuable information to the American Commander, Ar- nold induced him to become the messenger before desig- nated to proceed to Dobb's Ferry, on the night of the 20th September. Why he failed in his mission at that time does not appear ; but having determined to select Smith's house for the interview, should concealment become ne- cessary. Smith's family were sent on a visit to Fishkill ; and on Thursday, the 21st, at about midnight. Smith, wdth two of his tenants as boatmen, was despatched by Arnold without a flag to the Vulture, while himself, ac- companied by Smith's negro servant, both mounted, pro- ceeded to an appointed spot some two miles from the house, down on the river's bank. A favorable tide, and a calm sea in the bay, soon brought the boat with muffled oars alongside of the Vul- ture. The object of his mission was quickly made known, and after a shght delay, Anderson, in his uniform, entered the boat with Smith, and was swiftly rowed to the western bank. On its arrival Arnold was found — " hid among the firs' — and, leaving Anderson in consulta- tion with him. Smith was dismissed, to return to the boat and its oarsmen. History of West Point. 103 The interview was prolonged until the morning of Friday approached, when Smith sought the conspirators and proclaimed that concealment was no longer prac- ticable. The difficulty of returning to the Vulture was here increased by an insurmountable obstacle : the boatmen, weary, and alarmed at the risk before them, positively refused to act, nor were the inducements or threats of Smith or Arnold sufficient to change their purpose. Leaving Smith and the remainder of the party to re- turn by the boat to the starting-place, Arnold, accom- panied by Anderson, mounted on the servant's horse, returned to Smith's house. The day had fully dawned when Smith joined his two companions, and while waiting within the house for breakfast to be served, attention was directed down the river by the report of artillery. The proximity of the Vulture, and her prolonged stay so near the works at Verplanck's Point, aroused the anger of the vigilant commander,* who, planting a field-piece upon the lesser of the two promontories known as Gallows Point, opened an incessant fire upon the vessel, and for a time she seemed to have been set on fire by the shot. From the window of Smith's house, the Vulture was * The ammunition for this purpose was furnished from West Point, accompa- nied by the following letter to Colonel Livingston, commanding at Verplanck's Point :— " "West Point, Sept. 20th, 1780. " Sm : — I have sent you the ammunition you requested, but at the same time I wish there may not be a wanton waste of it, as we have little to spare. Firing at a ship with a four-pounder is, in my opinion, a waste of powder ; aa the damaaje she will sustain is not equal to the expense. Whenever applications for ammuni- tion are made, they must be through the commanding officer of artillery, at the Post where it is wanted. " I am, Sir, yours, &c., John Lamb." [Life John Lamb, 258. — Leake.] 104 History of West Point. seen to swing off her anchorage, and slowly drop down the river with the ebbing tide. Breakfast was despatched, when the two plotters, ascending to a chamber, passed the greater part of the day in perfecting their plans. Late in the afternoon, Arnold, bidding an adieu to his companion, returned in his barge to the Robinson House. BEUION OF AUNOLU b fKEACUEKV. The shadows of evening sunset were fast disappearing when Smith, accompanied by Anderson, disguised in a coat belonging to the former, rode forth on horseback History of West Point. 105 and crossed King's Ferry, in the hazardous attempt to reach New York by the land route, on the east side of the river. Furnished with the necessary passes, in Arnold's own writing, to go by any of the practicable routes, the party pursued the road in a northeast direction to the little village of Crompond, six miles from Verplanck's Point, where they passed the night. On the morning of Satur- day, the 23d, the journey was resumed in a direction almost due south, until Pine's Bridge, crossing the Cro- ton River, was reached, where Smith, separating from his companion, returned to the Robinson House, dined with Arnold, and pushed on up to join his family at Fishkill the same night. At this time a local war raged over the thirty miles of territory along the river separating the two armies, between two factions known as the Cow-Bof/s and SJcin- ners. The former ostensively affected to be in the interest of the enemy, and the latter were supposed to be iden- tified with the Americans. Both parties were in truth unprincipled robbers and perfidious villains, plundering alike the inhabitants, the enemy, each other, Congress, and the King. The country below Pine's Bridge, in the direction of Tarrytown having been represented to the travellers at Crompond as infested with Cow-Boys, Anderson, after parting from Smith, resolved to leave the road to White Plains, whither his pass took him, and trust himself on the Tarrytown road, doubtless in the belief that protec- tion would be secured from partisans in the friendly faction. 106 History of West Point. He had advanced so far as to have left the Bridge some ten miles behind him, when, descending a hill, and crossing a little rivulet at its foot, three armed men sprang from the bushes and interrupted his further pro- gress. History of West Point. 107 CHAPTER VII. Narrative of One of the Captors. — Anderson Conveyed to North Castle. — The Papers found on his Person. — Ander- son's Appearance Described. — He is Transferred to the "Robinson House." — Arrival of Washington. — The Plot Dis- covered. — Flight of Arnold. — Andre Conveyed to West Point and from thence to Tappan. — Board of General Offi- cers Convened. From the many published accounts of the scene which ensued, the narrative of David Williams is selected, part of which is sworn evidence, and the remainder given by him at a later day. " Myself, Isaac Van Wart, and John Paulding were lying in the bushes in the morning, about 9 or 10 o'clock, on Saturday, the 23d of September last, about half a mile, as near as I recollect, above Tarrytown, on the east side of the North River. Several per- sons came along whom we knew, and let pass, and presently came along a person whom we told Mr. Paulding to stop. Mr. Paulding stepped out and pre- sented his piece to his breast, and bid him stand, which he did. The person said, ' Gentlemen, I hope you be- long to our party.' Mr. Paulding made answer, ' What party ?' He said, ^ The lower party,' which Mr. Paulding told him we did. The person said, ^ I am glad to see you ; I am an officer in the British service, and have now been on particular business in the coun- 108 History of West Point. try, and I hope you will not detain me.' And for a token, to let us know he was a gentleman, he pulled out his watch. Mr. Paulding told him to dismount, on which the pei;son found out that we belonged to the upper party. He said, ' My God, I must do any thing to get along,' on which he pulled out General Arnold's pass, and gave it to Mr. Paulding, who read it, on which Mr. Paulding again told him to dismount. The person said he was to pass down as far as Dobb's Ferry, and was to meet another gentleman there, and was to get intelli- gence for General Arnold ; he told us we Avould bring ourselves into trouble if we did not let him go." Wil- liams further says : " We were about allowing him to proceed, and he was reining his horse into the road, when Paulding, in an under-tone, exclaimed : ' D — n him, I do not like his looks.' He was then ordered again to stop, and one of the party asked him wdiat he had done with the paper he had in his hand when first discovered (this, it afterwards appeared, was a sketch of the route). The question produced a momentary hesitation, and his embarrassment being noticed by the party, he was told that the circumstance of his first avowing himself to be of the lower party, required their searching his person. They led his horse into a field, partly covered with underwood. His person was strictly searched, including his hat, coat, vest, shirt, and breeches ; even his hair, which was done up in a queue, in the fashion of the day, was untied without creating any unusual anxiety in Andre until he was told to take off his boots, when he changed color, and manifested fear in his countenance. The papers were then dis- covered. He had eighty dollars in Continental money." History of West Point. 109 Mr. Williams, in his sworn statement, goes on to say : ^' Mr. Paulding looked at the papers, and said he was a spy. We made him dress himself, and I asked him what he would give us to let him go ; he said he would give us any sum of money. I asked him whether he would give us his horse, saddle, bridle, watch, and one hundred guineas, upon which he said yes, and told us he would direct it to any place, even if it was that very spot, so that we could get it. I asked him whether he would not give us more ; he said he would give us any quantity of dry goods, or any sum of money, and bring it to any place that we might pitch upon, so that we might get it ; upon which Mr. Paulding answered no ; if you would give us ten thousand guineas you shall not stir one step. A¥hile the search was going on the horse had strayed some distance, grazing on the underbrush ; when it was completed, one of us led up the horse, and he was permitted to mount, and he was then taken to the military post commanded by Colonel Jameson."* North Castle at this time was a cavalry outpost, and, with some Connecticut militia, constituted Lieutenant- Colonel Jameson's command. This officer, following the usual channel of military correspondence, despatched the captive with a note to his immediate commanding officer (Arnold), detailing the occurrence ; but the papers being, as he expressed it, " of a very dangerous tendency," were forwarded to the Commander-in-chief, in the hope of in- tercepting him on his return from Hartford. Late in the afternoon. Major Benjamin Tallmadge, an officer of rare merit and sterling patriotism, arrived at * Capture of Andre.— John Paulding, Esq., N. T. Hist. Mag., 334, Nov., 185T. 110 History of West Point. the Post, and, learning the whole occurrence, prevailed with much entreaty on Jameson to order the return of Anderson, who was brought back that night ; while the note to Arnold, to the chagrin of Tallmadge, was per- mitted to proceed to its destination. This error* in the decision of Jameson saved the life of Arnold. The following papers were in the possession of Ander- son. All, except the first, were found disposed inside of his stockings and beneath his feet. These documents have been carefully corrected from the originals, which are preserved in the N. Y. State Library at Albany. No. 1. [In Arnold's handwriting.] " Head Quarters Robinson's House, ''Sept. 22d, 1780. " Permit Mr. John Anderson to pass the Guards to the White Plains, or below if he Chuses. He being on Pub- lic Buisness by my Direction. " B. Arnold, M. Gen'>" No. 2. [In Arnold's handwriting.] " WsT Point, September 5th, 1780. ^'Artillery Orders. " The following disposition of the corps is to take place in case of an alarm: [The enemy were to give the alarm.] * On the 2Tth of September, Jameson wrote Washington : " I am very sorry that I wrote to General Arnold. I did not think of a British ship being up the river, and expected that, if he was the man he has since turned out to be, he would come down to the troops in this quarter, in wliich case I should have Becured him." —[Correspondence of the Revolution, III, 102.— Sparks.] History of West Point. Ill " Capt. Dannills with his Comp'y at Fort Putnam, and to detach an officer with 12 men to Wyllys's Re- doubt, a Non Commissioned officer with 3 men to Webb's Redoubt, and the like number to Redoubt No. 4. " Capt. Thomas and Company to repair to Fort Ar- nold. " Captain Simmons and Company to remain at the North and South Redoubts, at the East side of the River, until further Orders. " Lieutenant Barber, with 20 men of Capt. Jackson's Company, will repair to Constitution Island; the re- mainder of the Company, with Lieut. Mason's, will re- pair to Arnold. " Capt. Lieut. George and Lieut. Blake, with 20 men of Captain Treadwell's Company, will Repair to Re- doubt No. 1 and 2 ; the remainder of the Company will be sent to Fort Arnold. ^' Late Jones's Company, with Lieut. Fisk, to repair to the South Battery. " The Chain Battery, Sherburn's Redoubt, and the Brass Field pieces, will be manned from Fort Arnold, as Occation may require. " The Commissary and Conductor of Military Stores will in turn wait upon the Commanding Officer of Artil- lery for Orders. " The artificers in the garrison, (agreeable to former Orders), will repair to Fort Arnold, and there receive further Orders from the Command'g Officer of Artil- lery. " S. Bauman,* Major Commt Artillery. '' * Major Sehastian Bauman was, early in ITTG, appointed a captain of artillery. He served throughout the war, and was afterwards the Postmaster of the city 112 History of West Point. This document gave the British full information of what would be the disposition of the Americans on the occasion; and as Sir Henry Clinton and many of his officers were acquainted with the ground, they would know at what particular points to make their attacks. No. 3. [In Arnold's handwriting.] "ESTIMATE OF FORCES AT WST POINT AND ITS DEPENDENCIES, Septmiber 13, 17S0. *' A brigade of Massachusetts Militia, and two regiments of Rank and File New Hampshire, Inclusive of 166 Batteaux Men at Verplanck's and Stony Points 992 " On command and Extra Service at Fishkills, New Windsor, &c., &c., who may be called in occationally 852 " 3 regiments of Connecticut Militia, under the Com'd of Colonel Wells, on the lines near N. Castle 488 " A detachment of New York levies on the lines 115 Militia.... 2,447 " Colonel Lamb's Regiment 167 " Colonel Livingston's, at Verplank and Stony Pts. 80 Continent : 247 "Colonel Sheldon's Dragoons, on the lines, about one half mounted 142 " Batteaux Men and Artificers 250 Total 3,086 of New York. He died October 19th, 1803. The following correspondence with Colonel Lamb is inserted to show a trait in liis character : " Fort Arnoli>, June 7, 1779. * * * * "I siiould be exceedingly obliged to you if you could procure me a Horsemans Tent, as I am without Quarters, without any Bedding, and some- time without eating, and if nature had not provided Water, [which is in great plenty here] would be without drink, too." * * * * " S Bauman." Again he says : ^ West Point, June 80, 1779. " I should be exceedingly happy if you would pay me a visit. I have at pres- ent middling good quarters. I could accomodate you in a manner so as to afford you a nights lodging, and give you Continental fare. As for Uquors I have none, my daily drink is Water, which I tWnk rather hard for a man in years, and who is on continual fatigue, and who never before experienced so mean nutriment." * * * * "S. Bauman." [Lamb MSS., N. Y. Hist. Col.] History of West Point. 113 No. 4. [In the handwriting of Vlllefranche, a French engineer.] "ESTIMATE OP THE NUMBER OF MEH" NECESSAET TO MAN THE WORKS AT WEST POINT AND IN THE VICINITY. "Fort Arnold 620 Putnam 450 Wyllys 140 Webb 140 Redoubt No. 1 .... 150 " ViLLEFEANOHE, Engineer. " N. B. — The Artillery Men are not included in the above estimate." Redoubt No 2.. . 150 Redoubt No. 7.. .. 78 ditto 3.. . 120 North Redoubt. . .. 120 ditto 4.. . 100 South Redoubt . .. 130 ditto 5.. . 139 ditto 6.. . 110 Total... 2,438 114 History of West Point. .1 § g p % s SS. '^, ti. : : 3 ? ^ * =7^° z^- ■ '^ : : ry^r'f^"-. : • & "^ : ' S i ::::::::;."":'•• "^ y 51 ►a > 3 c 1 E i 3 Iron. . Brass. Iron. 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 iron. . Iron.. Iron. . Iron. . g g g Metal. '-*:::: • *-: Ko 1 Garrison "^ 1 Carriages. ao j ! 1 ! • • 05- '■_ *.: c;< • cs' M Garrison Carriages. CO i-"; ; ; i to- • Traveling Carriages. *" : : i '" ^: : COI-' : '. '^i '-"-'*' to : : : Garrison Carriages. (ai toj j ! i i toj • ■ ! "i 1 Stocked Carriages. «> ; • to* : ■* : --: 53 1 Garrison 1 Carriages. *':::: toi : -^^^ : ": e> Garrison Carriages. w : : : • ■ cots Stocked Carriages. to • • • • to- • 1 Traveling 1 Carriages. ^ ■.':': ': : : ►- *■ 1 1 1 Garrison Carriages. CO : : : ; --; "^i -" Traveling Carriages. OS j j 1 j : ": : CO' ij, 1 Traveling 1 Carriages. o> 1 j 1 j : ^ '=' 1 Inches. 1 2 2 p ^ : •*: : (-'■ CT Cl> Inches. to : i-il ; ; - Inches. - -; ; ; cc ? Total. o *>. CO to w to W OS en to Oi rf>. to CO Ol < S E S? N. B.— The following ordnance not distributed : No. 6 Iron 12 Pounder. 4 do. 9 do. 1 do. 6 do. 1 do. 4 do. 2 do. 3 do. 14 3 Brass 24 Pounders. 7 do. 12 do. 1 do. 8 inch howitzer. 11 Pi d SI o »^ O t) t> o *^ !^ H O •^ GQ ~ ^ 00 H pH fO I— I p History of West Point. 115 No. 6. [In Arnold's handwriting.] [endorsement.] " Remarks on "Works at "West Point. A copy to be transmitted* to His Excellency General "Washington, Sep'r, 1780. " Fort Arnold is built of Dry Fascines and Wood, is in a ruinous condition, incompleat, and subject to take Fire from Shells or Carcasses. " Fort Putnam, Stone, wanting great repairs, wall on the East side broke down, and rebuilding From the Foundation. At the West and South side have been a Chevaux-de-Frise ; on the West side broke in many Places. The East side open ; two Bomb Proofs and •Provision Magazine in the Fort, and Slight Wooden Barrack. A commanding piece of ground 500 yards West, between the Fort and No. 4 — or Rocky Hill. '^ Fort Webb, built of Fascines and Wood, a slight Work, very dry, and liable to be set on fire, as the ap- proaches are very easy, without defenses, save a slight Abattis. " Fort Wyllys, built of stone, 5 feet high, the Work above plank filled with Earth, the stone work 15 feet, the Earth 9 feet thick. — No Bomb Proofs, the Batteries without the Fort. " Redoubt No. 1. — On the South side wood 9 feet thick ; the Wt., North and East sides 4 feet thick, no can- non in the works ; a slight and single Abattis, no ditch or Pickett. Cannon on two Batteries. No Bomb Proofs. " Redoubt No. 2. — The same as No. 1. No Bomb Proofs. " Redoubt No. 3, a sHght Wood Work 3 Feet thick, * This was intended to deceive, should it fall into improper hands. 116 History of West Point. very Dry, no Bomb Proofs, a single Abattis, the work easily set on fire — no cannon. " Redoubt No. 4, a Avooden work about 10 feet high and fore or five feet thick, the West side faced with a stone wall 8 feet high and four thick. No Bomb Proof, two six pounders, a slight Abattis, a commanding piece of ground 500 yards Wt. " The North Redoubt, on the East side, built of stone 4 feet high ; above the stone, wood filled in with Earth, very Dry, no Ditch, a Bomb Proof, three Batteries with- out the Fort, a poor Abattis, a Rising piece of ground 500 yards So., the approaches under cover to within 20 yards. — The Work easily fired with Faggots diptd in Pitch, &c. " South Redoubt, much the same as the North, a Commanding piece of ground 500 yards due East — 3 Batteries without the Fort." These '^ Remarks" were accompanied by the report of the Council of War held at Washington's head-quar- ters, September 6, 1780, which document, setting forth the weakness, wants, and gloomy prospects of the American army, is as follows :— " At a Council of War, held in Camp Bergen County, Sept. 6th, 1780. "- Present — the Commander-in-Chief " The Commander-in-Chief states to the Council, that since he had the honor of laying before the General Officers, at Morristown, the 6th of June last, a general view of our circumstances, several important events have occurred, which have materially changed the pros- pects of the Campaign. History of West Point. 117 "That the success [assistance] expected from France, instead of coming out in one body, and producing a Naval Superiority in these Seas, has been divided into two Divisions, the first of which only consisting of seven ships of the line, one forty-four and three smaller Frigates, with five thousand land Forces, had arrived at Rhode Island. ^' That a Reinforcement of six ships of the line from England having reinforced the Enemy, had made their Naval Force in these seas amount to Nine Sail of the Line, Two Fifties, two forty-fours, and a number of smaller Frigates, a Force completely superior to that of our Allies, and which has in consequence held them Blocked up in the harbor of Rhode Island till the 29th ult., at which Period the British Fleet disappeared, and no advice of them has since been received. " That Accounts received by the Alliance Frigate, which left France in July, announces the Second Divi- sion to be confined in Brest with several other Ships by a British Fleet of thirty-two Sail of the line, and a Fleet of the Allies of Thirty-six, or thirty-eight Ships of the line ready to put to sea from Cadiz to relieve the Port of Brest. " That most of the States in their answers to the re- quisitions made of them, give the strongest assurances of doing every thing in their power to furnish the men and supplies required for the expected Co-operation. The effect of which, however, has been far short of our expectations, for not much above one-third of the Levies demanded for the Continental Battalions, nor above the Same proportion of Militia have been assembled, and the Supplies have been so inadequate that there was a 118 History of West Point. necessity for dismissing all the Militia, whose immediate services could be dispensed with to lessen our consump- tion, notwithstanding which the Troops now in the Field are severely suffering for want of Provision. " That the army at this Post and in the vicinity in opperating Force consists of 10,400 Continental Troops, and about 400 Militia, besides which is a Regiment of Continental Troops of about 500 at Rhode Island, left there for the assistance of our Allies, against any attempt of the enemy that way, and two Connecticut State Regiments amounting to 800 at North Castle. " That the Times of Service for which the Levies are Engaged will expire the first of January, which, if not replaced, allowing for the usual Casualties, will reduce the Continental Army to less than 6,000 men. '^ That since the state [ment] to the Council above Re- ferred to, the Enemy have brought a detachment of about 3,000 men from Charles Town to New York, which makes the present opperating Force in this Quarter between Ten and Eleven Thousand men. " That the Enemies Force now in the Southern States has not been lately ascertained by any distinct accounts, but the General supposes it cannot be less than 7,000 (of which about 2,000 are at Savannah) in this estimate the Diminution by the Casualties of the Climate, is sup- posed to be equal to the increase of Force derived from the Disaffected. " That added to the loss of Charles Town and its Gar- rison accounts of a recent misfortune are just arrived from Major-General Gates, giving advice of a general action which happened on the 16th of August near Ca.mpden. in which the army under his Command met History of West Point. 119 with a total defeat, and in all probability the whole of the Continental Troops, and a considerable part of the Militia would be cut off. " That the State of Virginia has been some time exert- ing itself to raise a Body of 3,000 Troops to serve till the end of December, 1781, but how far it has succeeded is not known. " That Maryland had Resolved to raise 2,000 Men, of which a sufficient number to compose one Battalion was to have come to this army. The remainder to recruit the Maryland line — but in consequence of the late advices, an order has been sent to march the whole Southward. " That the Enemies Force in Canada, Halifax, St. Augustine, and at Penobscot, remains much the same as stated in the preceding Council. " That there is still reason to believe the Court of France will prosecute its original intention of giving effectual succor to this Country, as soon as circum- stances will permit; and it is hoped the second Divi- sion will certainly arrive in the course of the fall. " That a Fleet greatly superior to that of the Enemy in the West Indies, and a formidable land Force had sailed sometime since from Martinique to make a com- bined attack upon the Island of Jamaica, that there is a possibility of a reinforcement from this quarter also, to the Fleet of our Ally at Rhode Island. " The Commander-in-Chief having thus given the Coun- cil a full view of our present Situation and future pros- pects, requests the Opinion of each Member, in writing, what plan it will be advisable to pursue, to what objects Our Attention ought to be directed in the course of this 120 History of West Point. fall and winter, taking into consideration the alternatiye of having or not having a Naval Superiority, whether any Offensive operations can be immediately undertaken and against what Point, what ought to be our immediate Preparations and dispositions, particularly whether we can afford or ought to send any Reinforcements from this Army to the Southern States, and to what amount. . The General requests to be favored with these opinions by the 10th instant at farthest."* On Sunday, the 24th, Anderson was conveyed to Lower Salem, and committed to the custody of a guard under Lieutenant King, who thus describes the prisoner : '^ He looked somewhat like a reduced gentleman. His small clothes were Nankeen, with handsome whitetop |)oots — in fact his undress military clothes. His coat purple, with gold lace, worn somewhat threadbare, with a small brimmed, tarnished beaver on his head. He wore his hair in a queue, with long black beard, and his clothes somewhat dirty. In this garb I took charge of him. After breakfast my barber came in to dress me, after which I requested him to undergo the same opera- tion, which he did. When th^ ribbon was taken from his hair I observed it full of powder ; this circumstance, with others that occurred, induced me to beheve I had no ordinary person in charge. He requested permission to take the bed whilst his shirt and small clothes could be washed. I told him that was needless, for a shirt was at his service, which he accepted. We were close pent up in a bed-room, with a Vidette at the door and ♦Arnold's reply in writing, to the foregoing, is given in the "Correspondence of the Kevolution," III., 85.— Sparks. History of West Point. 121 window. There was a spacious yard before the door, which he desired he might be permitted to walk in with me. I accordingly disposed of my guard in such a manner as to prevent an escape. Whilst walking together he observed he must make a confidant of somebody, and he knew not a more proper person than myself, as I had appeared to befriend a stranger in dis- tress. After settling the point between ourselves, he told me who he was, and gave me a short account of himself, from the time he was taken in St. John's in 1775, to that time. He requested a pen and ink, and wrote immediately to General Washington, declaring who he was. [Page 132, ^'Proceedings of the Board."] About midnight the express returned with orders from General Washington to Colonel Sheldon to send Major Andre immediately to Head-Quarters."* In the midst of a drenching rain, in the dark and dis- mal night a strong escort commanded by Major Tall- madge set out, and with the unfortunate captive reached the Robinson House about daylight on Tuesday morning, the 26th. Returning to the papers which had been forwarded to Washington, and the note sent to Arnold by Jameson, it was supposed that the former would return from Hartford by the same route he had pursued in going to that point ; but, for some reason not explained, he took the upper road which approached the Hudson at Fishkill, thirteen miles, as the road then ran, above the Robinson House, arriving there in the afternoon of Sunday, the 24th. It was the intention of Washington to press on that * 2J. T. Hist Mag., 293, Oct., 1857. . 122 History of West Point. evening and pass the night at Arnold's Head-Quarters ; but meeting the French envoy, then on his way to meet Rochambeau, he decided to pass the night at Fishkill. That evening the Cliief and his staff were entertained at a festive board where sat Joshua Hett Smith, little thinking that the stroke arrested from one, would so completely overwhelm the other. Early on Monday, the 25th, Washington set out for the Robinson House, designing to reach there in time for breakfast. Arriving opposite West Point, he de- spatched two of his aides to announce his arrival, while he with his remaining staff, ascended the hill to inspect the North and Middle Redoubts.* Breakfast was served on the arrival of the two aides, and while seated at the table with Arnold and his family, the note from Jameson announcing the capture of Andre was placed in Arnold's hand. With a slight apology, and but little discomposure, he left the table, summoned the cockswain of his barge, ordered a horse, and ascended to the northeast chamber, followed by Mrs. Arnold. There he informed her of his danger, and leaving her in a swoon, he pressed a kiss upon his sleeping infant boy,-|- and returning to his guests, he informed them that it was necessary for him to repair to West Point, to make arrangements for the reception of his Commander ; then mounting his horse, followed by the cockswain on foot, he dashed down the path yet called "Arnold's path," to * Heath's Memoirs. \ Edward Shippen Arnold was born in Philadelphia, March 19th, 1780 ; he en- tered the East India Company's service, and became a Lieutenant of Cavalry and Paymaster of Mattra. He died in India in 1813, History of West Point. 123 the dock on the south side of the point, a little below the Robinson House, through which the Hudson River Railroad now cuts its way. A barge with the breath- less, panting renegade, under cover of a white handker- chief raised upon a stick, sped its way down the river to the Vulture. Upon completing the inspection of the Redoubts, Washington repaired to the Robinson House, and learn- ing that Arnold had crossed to West Point, he proceeded after a hasty breakfast, accompanied by all his staff except Hamilton, to examine the works at that garrison, while the General Commanding was on the spot. On his arrival, he found, to his astonishment, that Arnold had not been there, and after a general inspection of the works, the party returned to the east side of the river. Jameson's courier, with the papers of a " danger- ous tendency," had arrived during the absence of the Chief at West Point, and while ascending the path to the Robinson House, Hamilton placed them in his hand. A few moments later. La Fayette and Knox were made acquainted with the traitor's design, and to them the Chief tearfully and pathetically appealed, " Whom can we trust now ?" The moment was indeed a trying one, and measures were promptly taken to prevent further disastrous results. That night every camp and garrison in the army was warned of approaching danger, fatigue parties were called in, and the troops held in hand to move to the assistance of the garrison at West Point at a moment's warning. 124 History of West Point. At midnight, Joshua Hett Smith* was arrested at Fishkill, and on the morning of Tuesday, the 26th, both Andre and himself were prisoners in the Robinson House. In the afternoon of the same day, Andre and Smith were removed for greater security to West Point,f and on Thursday morning, the 28th, both were conveyed in separate barges, under a guard commanded by Major Tallmadge, down the river to Tappan, where the main body of the army lay encamped. A Board of General Officers constituting a Court of Inquiry, instructed to report the facts and give an opinion, was convened to investigate the case of Andre. Their proceedings, as published by Congress, are here- with given. * Smith was tried by a Court-Martial, -whicli failing to convict him, he was conveyed to Goshen and turned over to the civil authorities. He escaped from jail at this point, and made his way in disguise to New York. At the close of hostihties he went to England ; but afterwards returned and died in New York, in 1818. — [Field-Book of the Revolution, I., 752. — Lossing."" f The traditions extant, that Andre was confined in the magazine in Fort Putnam, have no official authority. The work at that time was undergoing demolition and rebuilding. The present work was for the most part enlarged from the old one, and rebuilt, fifteen years later. The regard sho-mi Andre in the measures else- where adopted for his security, affords reason to believe that no deprivation of Mght or society attended his confinement at West Point. History of West Point. 125 CHAPTER yill. Proceedings of the Board of General Officers. — Letters of "Washington to Congress. — Andre to "Washington and Shel- don. — Letter from Arnold to Washington. — Robinson to Washington. — Clinton to Washington. — Arnold to Clinton. — Report of the Board. — Andre to Clinton. — Washington to Clinton. — Robertson to Washington. — Reply of Washington. — Clinton to Washington. — Arnold to Washington. — Rob- ertson TO Washington. — Arnold to Washington. — Andre to Washington. History of West Point. 127 [Fac-Swiiie.^ PROCEEDINGS OF A BOARD F GENERAL OFFICERS, Held By Order Of His Excellency Gen. WASHINGTON, Commander in Chief of the Army of the United States of America. RESPECTING Major JOHK, AlSLDHEy Adjutant General of the British Army. September 29, 1780. PHILADELPHIA: Printed by FRANCIS BAILEY, in Market-Street. M.DCC.LXXX. History of West Point. 129 EXTRACTS OF LETTERS from General Washington, to the President^ Congress. Robinfon's Hoiife, in the Highlands, Sept. 26, 1780. SIR, I HAVE the honor to inform Congrefs, that I arrived here yefterday about twelve o'clock on my return from Hartford. Some hours previous to my arrival Major Ge- neral Arnold went from his quarters, which were this place, and, as it was fuppofed, over the river to the garrifon at Weft Point, whither I proceeded myfelf, in order to vifit the poft. I found general Arnold had not been there during the day, and on my return to his quarters he was ftill abfent. In the mean time, a packet had arrived from Lieut. Colonel Jamefon, announcing the capture of a John Anderfon, who was endeavouring to go to New-York with feveral interefting and important papers, all in the hand writing of general Arnold. This was alfo accompanied with a letter from the prifoner, avowing himfelf to be major John Andre, Adjutant General to the Britifh army, relating the manner of his capture, and endeavouring to fhew that he was not come under the defcription of a Jpy. From thefe feveral circumftances, and information that the General feemed to be thrown into fome degree of agitation, on receiving a letter a little time before he went from his quarters, I was led to conclude immediately that he had heard of major Andre's captivity, and that he would, if poffible, efcape to the enemy, and accordingly took fuch meafures as appeared the moft prob- able to apprehend him. But he had embarked in a barge and proceeded down the river, under a flag, to the Vulture fhip 130 History of West Point. ( 4 ) fhip of war, which lay at fome miles below Stoney and Ver- plank's Points. He wrote me a letter after he got on board. Major Andre is not arrived yet, but I hope he is fecure, and that he will be here to-day. I have been and am taking precautions, which I truft will prove effeftual to prevent the important confequences which this conduct, on the part of General Arnold, was intended to produce. I do not know the party that took Major Andre, but it is faid that it con- fifted only of a few militia, who afted in fuch a manner upon the occafion, as does them the higheft honor, and proves them to be men of great virtue. As foon as I know their names, I ftiall take pleafure in tranfmitting them to Congrefs. Paramus, October 7, 1780. SIR, I HAVE the honour to enclofe Congrefs a copy of the proceedings of a Board of General Officers in the cafe of Major Andre, Adjutant General to the Britifli army. This officer was executed in purfuance of the opinion of the board, on Monday, the 2d inftant, at 1 2 o'clock, at our late camp at Tappan. Befides the proceedings I tranfmit copies of fun- dry letters refpefting the matter, which are all that pafled on the fubjed, not included in the proceedings. I have now the pleafure to communicate the names of the three perfons who captured Major Andre, and who refufed to releafe him, notwithftanding the moft earneft importunities and afliarances of a liberal reward on his part. Their names are John Paulding, David Williams, and Ifaac Van Wert. PROCEEDINGS History of West Point. 131 PROCEEDINGS O F A Board of General Officers, Held by order of his Excellency General Washington, commander in chief of the army of the United States of America, refpefting Major Andre, Adjutant General of the Britifh army, September the 29th, 1780, at Tappan, in the State of New-York. PRESENT, Major General Greene, Prefident, Major General Lord Stirling, Major General St. Clair, Major General The Marquis de la Fayette, Major General Howe, Major General The Baron de Steuben, Brigadier General Parfons, Brigadier General Clinton, Brigadier General Knox, Brigadier General Glover, Brigadier General Patterfon, Brigadier General Hand, Brigadier General Huntington, Brigadier General Starke, John Lawrence, Judge-Advocate General. MAJOR Andre, Adjutant General to the Britifh army was brought before the Board, and the following letter from General Wafhington, to the Board, dated Head Quar- ters, Tappan, September 29th, 1780, was laid before them, and read. *' GeMlemen, " Major Andre, Adjutant General to the Britifh army, ** will be brought before you for your examination. He " came within our lines in the night, on an interview " with Major General Arnold, and in an afTumed charac- " ter ; and was taken within our lines, in a difguifed ha- " bit, with a pafs under a feigned name, and with the " inclofed papers concealed upon him. After a careful examination. 132 History of West Point. ( 6 ) " examination, you will be pleafed, as fpeedily as poffible, " to report a precife ftate of his cafe, together with your ** opinion of the light in which he ought to be confidered, ** and the punifhment that ought to be inflifted. The Judge- " Advocate will attend to affift in the examination, who has " fundry other papers, relative to this matter, which he will " lay before the Board. " / have the honour to be, " Gentlemen, " Your viojl obedient and humble Jervant, " G. Washington." *' The Board of General Officers, convened at Tap pan." The names of the officers compofmg the board were read to Major Andre, and on his being afked whether he confefled the matters contained in the letter from his Excellency General Wafhington to the board, or denied them, tie [aid, in addi- tion to his letter to general Wajhington, dated Salem, the z\th September, 1780, (which was read to the board and acknowledged by Major Andre, to have been written by him, which letter is as follows : Salem, 24th Sept. 1780. "SIR, " What I have as yet laid concerning myfelf, teas in the " jujiifiable attempt to be extricated; I am too little acciij- " tamed to duplicity to have fucceeded. "I beg your Excellency will be perjuaded, that no alter- " ation in the temper of my mind, or cij)prehenJion for my "fafety, induces me to take the /lep oj addrejjing you, but " that it is to fecure myfelf from an imputation of having " a/fumed a mean charaaer for treacherous purpqfes or "Jelf intereft. A condud incompatible with the principles " that aduated me, as well as with my condition in life. " It is to vindicate my fame that I f peak and not to fo- " licit fecurity . " ihe peifon in your po/fejfion is Major John Andre, " Adjutant General to the Briti/h army. " The influence of one commander in the army of his " adverfary is an advantage taken in war. A correjpon- " dene e for this purpofe I held; as confidential [in the pre- "fent injiance) with his Excellency Sir Henry Clinton. " To favour it, I agreed to meet upon ground not "within pojis of either army, a perfon who was to give *'me intelligence; I came up in the Vulture man of war for History of West Point. 133 ( 7 ) **for this effeB, and was fetched by a boat from thejliore to " the beacn: Being there I was told that the approach of day " would prevent my return, and that I miijl be concealed *' until the next night. I was in my regimentals and had * fairly rfked my perfon. " Againjl my Jiipulation, my intention and zvithout my '' knowledge bfore hand, I zvas condutled within one of "your pqjls. Your Excelleucy may conceive my fenfation "on this occci/zon and will imagine how much more Imujl "have been affeded, by a rfufal to recondud me back "the next night as I had been brought. Thus become a "• prifoner I had to concert my efcape. I quitted my uni- **form and was paffed another way in the night without " the Ajnerican pojls to neutral ground, and informed I was "beyond all armed parties and left to prejs Jor New-York. " I was taken at Tarry Town by fome volunteers. " Thus as I have had the honor to relate was I betrayed " ( being adjutant general of the Bntfli army ) into the " vile condition of an enemy in difguife within your pq/ls. " Having avowed myfelf a Bntifli ofp,cer I have nothing "to reveal but what relates to myfelf which is true on " the honor of an officer and a gentleman. *' The requejl I have to make your Excellency and I am " confcious I addrefs 'mjfef well, is, that in any rigor "policy may diBate, a decency of condud towards me may "mark, that though unfortunate I am branded with no- *'' thing dfhonourable, as no motive could be mine but the "fervice of my king and as I was involuntarily an impq/hr. " Another requeji is, that I may be permitted to write *' an open letter to Sir Henry Clinton and another to a 'friend for cloaths and linen. "I take the liberty to mention the condition of fome "gentlemen at Charles-Town, who being either on parole "or under protedion were engaged in a conf piracy againft "us. Though their ftuation is not fmilar, they are objetls " who may be fet in exchange for me, or are perfons whom " the treatment I receive might affed. "It is no lefs Sir in a confidence in the generojity of your "mind than on account of your fuperior Jiation that 1 have " chofen to importune you with this letter. " I have the honour to be, with great refped. Sir, " Your Excellency's moft obedient "and moll humble fervant, "JOHN ANDRE, "His Excellency adjutant general." " General Wcfhington "&c. &c. &c."J That 10 134 History of West Point. ( 8 ) That he came on Ihore from the Vulture floop of war in the night of the twenty firft of September inftant, fome- where under the Haverftraw Mountain That the boat he came on fhore in carried no Jlag, and that he had on a fur- tout coat over his regimentals, and that he wore his furtout coat when he was taken. That he met general Arnold on the fhore and had an interview with him there. He alfo faid that when he left the Vulture floop of war, it was un- derftood he was to return that night ; but it was then doubted, and if he could not return he was promifed to be con- cealed on fhore in a place of fafety, until the next mglit, when he was to return in the fame manner he came on fhore ; and when the next day came he was folicitous to get back, and made enquiries in the courfe of the day, how he fhould retnrn, when he was informed he could not return that way and mull take the rout he did afterwards. He alfo faid. That the firft notice he had of his being within any of our pojls, was, being challenged by the fentry, which was the firfl night he was on fhore. He alfo faid, that the evening of the twenty-fecond of September inftant, he paffed King's Ferry between our pojls of Stoney and Ferplank's Points, in the drefs he is at prejent in and tvhich he faid was not his regimentals, and which drefs he procured, after he landed from the Vulture and when he was within our pojl, and that he was proceeding to New-York, but was taken on his way, at Tarry Town, as he has mentioned in his letter, on Saturday the twenty-third of September inftant, about nine o'clock in the morning. The following papers were laid before the board and fhewn to major Andre, who confefTed to the board that they were found on him when he was taken, and faid they were concealed in his boot, except the pafs : A pafs from general Arnold to John Anderjon, which name major Andre acknowledged he ajjumed : Artillery orders, September 5, 1780. Eftimate of the force at Weft Point and it's dependencies. September 1780. Eftimate of men to man the works at Weft Point, &c. Return of ordnance at Weft Point, September 1780. Remarks on works at Weft Point. Copy of a ftate of matters laid before a council of war, by his Excellency general Walhington, held the 6th of September 1780. A letter History of West Point. 135 ( 9 ) A letter figned John Anderfon, dated Sept. 7, 1780, to Colonel Sheldon*, was alfo laid before the Board, and fhewn to Major Andre, which he acknowledged to have been written by him, and is as follows : "SIR, « New-York, the jth Sept. 1 780. " I AM told my name is made known to you, and that " I may hope your indulgence in permitting me to meet " a friend near your out pq^s. / will endeavour to obtain ** permiffion to go out zvith a Jlag which will be fent to " Dobb's Ferry on Monday next, the nth, at twelve o'clock, " when I fliall be happy to meet Mr G — §. Should I not " be allowed to go, the officer who is to command the efcort, " between whom and myfelf no diftinftion need be made, can " fpeak on the affair. " Let me entreat you, Sir, to favour a matter fo intereft- ** ing to the parties concerned, and which is of fo private a " nature that the public on neither fide can be injured by it. " I fliall be happy on my part in doing any aft of kindnefs " to you in a family or property concern of a fimilar nature. " I truft I fhall not be detained, but fliould any old " grudge be a caufe for it, I fliall rather rifk that, than neg- " left the bufinefs in queftion, or a/fume a m\Jierious cha- " racter to carry on an innocent affair, and, as friends have " advifed, get to your lines by ftealth. I am. Sir, with all " regard, *' Your mojl obedient humble ferv ant, "John Anderson." " Col. Sheldon." * Left it Jliould be Juppe fed that Colonel Sheldon, to zvhom the above letter is addrejea, was privy to the plot carrying on by general Arnold, it is to be objerved, that the letter was jound among Arnold's papers, and had been tranjmitted by Colonel Sheldon, zuho, it appears from a letter oj the gth of September to Arnold, which inclofed it, had never heard of John Anderjon before. Arnold in his anfwer on the \oth, acknowledged he had not communicated it to him, though he had informed him that he expeded a perfon would come fom New- York, for the purpoje of bringing him intelligence. ( § ) /f appears by the fame letter that Arnold had written to Mr. Anderfon, under the pgnature of Gii/favus. His words are. "/ was obliged to write with great caution to him, m,y letter was Jigned Gujlavus to prevent any difcovery in cafe it fell into the hands of the enemy." 136 History of West Point. ( lo ) Major Andre obferved that this letter could be of no force in the cafe in queftion, as it was written in New York, when he was under the orders of General Clinton, but that it tended to prove that it was not his intention to come within our lines. The Board having interrogated Major Andre about his conception of his coming on fhore under the fanftion of a flag, he Jaid, That it was impojjible for him to Juppoje he came on Jliore under that Jantlion ; and added. That if he came on fhore under that fanftion, he certainly might have returned under it. Major Andre having acknowledged the preceeding fa£ls, and being afked whether he had any thing to fay refpedling them, anfwered. He left them to operate with the Board. The examination of Major Andre being concluded, he was remanded into cuftody. The following letters were laid before the Board, and read : Benedift Arnold's letter to General Wafhington, dated September 25, 1780, Col. Robinfon's letter to General Wafhington, dated September 25, 1780, and general Clinton's letter, dated the 26th September, 1780, (inclofmg a letter of the fame date from Benedift Arnold) to General Wafh- ington. SIR, " On board the Vulture, Sept. 25, 1780. " THE heart which is confcious of its own reflitude, can- not attempt to palliate a ftep which the world may cenfure as wrong ; I have ever afted from a principle of love to my country, fmce the commencement of the prefent unhappy conteft between Great-Britain and the Colonies ; the fame principle of love to my country actuates my prefent conduft, however it may appear inconfiftent to the world, who very feldom judge right of any man's adions. " I have no favour to afk for myfelf. I have too often experienced the ingratitude of my country to attempt it : but from the known humanity of your Excellence, I am induced to afk your proteftion for Mrs. Arnold, from every infult and injury that the miftaken vengeance of my country may expofe her to. It ought to fall only on me ; fhe is as good and as innocent as an angel, and is incapable of doing wrong. I beg fhe may be permitted to return to her friends in Philadelphia, or to come to me as fhe may choofe : from your Excellency I have no fears on History of West Point. 137 ( ^1 ) on her account, but fhe may fufFer from the miftaken fury of the country. " I have to requeft that the inclofed letter may be deli- vered to Mrs. Arnold, and fhe permitted to write to me. " I have alfo to a(k that my cloaths and baggage, which are of little confequence, may be fent to me, if required their value fhall be paid in money. " / have the honour to be, with great regard and ejleem, " Your Excellency's mqft obedient humble ferv ant, "B. ARNOLD." " His Excellency " General Washington." *'N. B. In juftice to the gentlemen of my family. Col. Varrick and Major Franks, I think myfelf in honour bound to declare, that they, as well as Jofhua Smith, Efq, (who I know is fufpefted) are totally ignorant of any tranfadions of mine, that they have reafon to believe were injurious to the public." *' Vulture, off Sinfinck, Sept. 25, 1780. "SIR, " I AM this moment informed that Major Andre, Adju- tant General of his Majefty's army in America, is detained as a prifoner, by the army under your command. It is therefore incumbent on me to inform you of the manner of his falling into your hands : He went up with a flag at the requefl of General Arnold, on public bufinefs with him, and had his permit to return by land to New-York : Under thefe circumftances Major Andre cannot be detained by you, without the greatefl violation of flags, and contrary to the cultom and ufage of all nations ; and as I imagine you will fee this matter in the fame point of view as I do, I mull defire you will order him to be fet at liberty and allowed to return immediately : Every ftep Major Andre took was by the advice and direftion of General Arnold, even that of taking a feigned name, and of courfe not liable to cenfure for it. " / am, Sir, not forgetting our former acquaintance, " Your very humble Jervant, BEV. ROBINSON, Col. Loyl. Americ." " His Excellency " General Washington." "New- 138 History of West Point. ( 12 ) "New-York, Sept. 26, 1780. "SIR, " BEING informed that the King's Adjutant General in America has been ftopt under Major General Arnold's paiT- ports, and is detained a prifoner in your Excellency's army, I have the honour to inform you. Sir, that I permitted Major Andre to go to Major General Arnold at the particular re- queft of that general officer. You will perceive. Sir, by the inclofed paper, that a flag of truce was fent to receive Major Andre, and paffports granted for his return, I there- fore can have no doubt but your Excellency will immediately direft, that this officer has permiffion to return to my orders at New-York. " I have the honour to be your Excellency'' s " mojt obedient & mojl humble Jervt. "H. CLINTON." "His Excellency General Washington." "New-York, Sept. 26, 1780. "SIR, " IN anfwer to your Excellency's meflage, refpeding your Adjutant General, Major Andre, and deliring my idea of the reafons why he is detained, being under my paflports, I have the honour to inform you, Sir, that I apprehend a few hours mull reftore Major Andre to your Excellency's orders, as that officer is afluredly under the protedlion of a flag of truce fent by me to him for the purpofe of a conver- fation which I requefted to hold with him relating to myfelf, and which I wifhed to communicate through that officer to your Excellency. " I commanded at the time at Wefl Point, had an un- doubted right to fend my flag of truce for Major Andre, who came to me under that protedlion, and having held my converfation with him, I delivered him confidential pa- pers in my own hand writing, to deliver to your Excel- lency, thinking it much properer he ftiould return by land, I direded him to make ufe of the feigned name of John Anderfon under which he had by my diredlion come on fliore, and gave him my paflports to go to the White Plains on his way to New-York. This officer cannot there- fore fail of being immediately fent to New-York, as he was invited to a converfation with me, for which I fent him a flag of truce, and finally gave him paflports for his fafe return to your Excellency; all which I had then a right to do, being in the adual fervice of America, under the orders of Gene- ral History of West Point. 139 ( 13 ) ral Wafhington, and commanding general at Weft Point and its dependencies. " / have the honour to be, your Excellency's " moll obedient and very humble fervant, "B. ARNOLD." " His Excellency Sir Henry Clinton." The Board having confidered the letter from his Excel- lency General Wafhington refpefting Major Andre, Adjutant General to the Britifh army, the confeffion of Major Andre, and the papers produced to them, REPORT to His Excel- lency, the Commander in Chief, the following fa£ls, which appear to them relative to Major Andre. Firjl, That he came on fhore from the Vulture floop of war in the night of the twenty-firft of September inftant, on an interview with General Arnold, in a private and Jecret manner. Secondly, That he changed his drejs within our lines^ and under a feigned name, and in a difguijed habit, pafled our works at Stoney and Verplank's Points, the evening of the twenty-fecond of September inftant, and was taken the morn- ing of the twenty-third of September inftant, at Tarry Town, in a difguifed habit, being then on his way to New York, and when taken, he had in his poffeffion feveral papers which con- tained intelligence for the enemy. The Board having maturely confidered thefe fa£ls, DO ALSO REPORT to His Excellency General Wafhington, That Major Andre, Adjutant General to the Britifh army, ought to be confidered as a Spy from the enemy, and that agreeable to the law and ufage of nations, it is their opinion, he ought to fufFer death. Nath. Greene, M Genl. Prefident. Stirling, M. G. Ar. St. Clair, M. G. La Fayette, M. G. R. Howe, M. G. < Stuben, M. G. Saml. H. Parfons, B. Genl. James Clinton, B. Genl. H. Knox, Brigr. Genl. Artillery. Jno. Glover, B. Genl. John Patterjon, B. Genl. Edwd. Hand, B. Genl. J. Huntington, B. Genl. John Starke, B. Genl. John Lawrence, J. A. Genl. 140 History of West Point. A P P E N D I X. Copy of a Letter from Major Andre, Adjutant General, to Sir Henry Clinton, K. B. &c. &c. Tappan, Sept. 29, 1780. SIR, YOUR Excellency is doubtlefs already apprifed of the manner in which I was taken, and poffibly of the ferious light in which my condufl is confidered, and the rigorous determination that is impending. Under thefe circumftances, I have obtained General Wafh- ington's permiffion to fend you this letter ; the objefi; of which is, to remove from your breaft any fufpicion, that I could imagine I was bound by your Excellency's orders to expofe myfelf to what has happened. The events of coming within an enemy's polls, and of changing my drefs, which led me to my prefent fituation, were contrary to my own intentions, as they were to your orders ; and the circuitous route, which I took to return, was impofed (perhaps unavoidably) without alternative upon me. I am perfectly tranquil in mind, and prepared for any fate, to which an honeft zeal for my King's fervice may have de- voted me. In addreffing myfelf to your Excellency on this occalion, the force of all my obligations to you, and of the attach- ment and gratitude I bear you, recurs to me. With all the warmth of my heart, I give you thanks for your Excellency's profufe kindnefs to me ; and I fend you the moft earneft wilhes for your welfare, which a faithful, afFedlionate, and refpeftful attendant can frame. I have a mother and three fillers, to whom the value of my commiffion would be an objeft, as the lofs of Grenada has much affefted their income. It is needlefs to be more explicit on this fubjedt; I am perfuaded of your Excellency's goodnefs. I receive History of West Point. 141 ( 15 ) I receive the greateil attention from his Excellency General Wafhington, and from every perfon, under v/hofe charge I happen to be placed. / have the honour to be. With the mojl rejpedful attachment. Your Excellency's moji obedient and mqji humble Jerv ant, JOHN ANDRE, (Addrefled) Adjutant General. His Excellency General Sir Henry Clinton, K. B. &c. &c. t3c. Copy of letter from His Excellency General Wafhington, to His Excellency Sir Henry Clinton. Head Quarters, Sept. 30, 1780. SIR, IN anfwer to your Excellency's letter of the 26th inftant, which I had the honour to receive, I am to inform you that Major Andre was taken under fuch circumftances as would have juftified the moll fummary proceedings againft him. I determined, ho.wever, to refer his cafe to the examination and decifion of a Board of General Officers, who have re- ported, on his free and voluntary confeffion and letters, " That he came on fhore from the Vulture floop of war in " the night of the twenty-firlt of September inflant," &c. &c. as in the report of the Board of General Officers. From thefe proceedings it is evident Major Andre was employed in the execution of meafures very foreign to the objefls of flags of truce, and fuch as they were never meant to authorife or countenance in the mofl diftant degree ; and this gentleman confefTed, with the greateft candor, in the courfe of his examination, " That it was impoffible for him " to fuppofe he came on fhore, under the fanftion of a "flag." / have the honour to be your Excellency's Mojl obedient and moJi humble Jerv ant, G. WASHINGTON. (AddrefTed) His Excellency Sir Henry Clinton. In this letter. Major Andre's of the 29th of September to Sir Henry Clinton, was tranfmitted. New- York, 142 History of West Point. ( 16 ) New-York, 29, Sept. 1780. SIR, PERSUADED that you are inclined rather to promote than prevent the civilities and ads of humanity, which the rules of war permit between civilized nations, I find no diffi- culty in reprefenting to you, that feveral letters and meflages fent from hence have been difregarded, are unanfwered, and the flags of truce that carried them, detained. As I ever have treated all flags of truce with civility and refped, I have a right to hope, that you will order my complaint to be imme- diately redrelTed. Major Andre, who vifited an officer commanding in a diftrift at his own defire, and aded in every circumftance agreeable to his dire6lion, I find is detained a priloner ; my friendfliip for him leads me to fear he may fuffer fome incon- venience for want of neceffaries ; I wifli to be allowed to fend him a few, and fhall take it as a favour if you will be pleafed to permit his fervant to deliver them. In Sir Henry Clinton's abfence it becomes a part of my duty to make this reprefenta- tion and requeft. / am. Sir, your Excellency's Mo/i obedient humble fervant, JAMES ROBERTSON, Lt. General. His Excellency Ge?ieral Wafhington. Tappan, Sept. 30, 1780. SIR, I HAVE juft received your letter of the 29th. Any delay which may have attended your flags has proceeded from accident, and the peculiar circumftances of the occafion, — not from intentional negleft or violation. The letter that admit- ted of an anfwer, has received one as early as it could be given with propriety, tranfmitted by a flag this morning. As to mefl'ages, I am uninformed of any that have been fent. The neceflaries for Major Andre will be delivered to him, agreeable to your requeft. / am. Sir, Your viojl obedient humble fervant, G. WASHINGTON. His Excellency Lieut. General Robertfon, New-York. New-York, History of West Point. 143 ( 17 ) New-York, Sept. 30, 1780. SIR, FROM your Excellency's letter of this date, I am per- fuaded the Board of General Officers, to whom you referred the cafe of Major Andre, can't have been rightly informed of all the circumftances on which a judgment ought to be formed. I think it of the higheft moment to humanity, that your Excellency fhould be perfedlly apprized of the iiate of this matter, before you proceed to put that judgment in exe- cution. For this reafon, I Ihall fend His Excellency Lieut. Ge- neral Robertfon, and two other gentlemen, to give you a true ftate of fadls, and to declare to you my fentiments and refolutions. They will fet out to-morrow as early as the wind and tide will permit, and will wait near Dobbs's ferry for your permiffion and fafe conduft, to meet your Excellency, or fuch perfons as you may appoint, to converfe with them on this fubjeft. / have the honour to be, yotir Excellency'' s Mojl obedient ana viojl humble J erv ant, H. CLINTON. P. S, The Hon. Andrew Elliot, Efq. Lieut. Governor, and the Hon. William Smith, Chief Juftice of this pro- vince, will attend His Excellency Lieut. General Robert- fon. H. C. His Excellency General Wafhington. Lieut. General Robertfon, Mr. Elliot, and Mr. Smith came up in a flag veflel to Dobbs's ferry, agreeable to the above letter. The two laft were not fuffered to land. Ge- neral Robertfon was permitted to come on fhore, and was met by Major General Greene, who verbally reported that General Robertfon mentioned to him in fubftance what is contained in his letter of the 2d of Odober to General Wafhington. New-York, OSl. 1, 1780. SIR, I TAKE this opportunity to inform your Excellency, that I confider myfelf no longer afting under the commiffion of Congrefs : Their laft to me being among my papers at Weft-point, you. Sir, will make fuch ufe of it, as you think proper. C At 144 History of West Point. ( 18 ) At the fame time, I beg leave to aflure your Excellency, that my attachment to the true intereft of my country is invariable, and that I am adluated by the same principle which has ever been the governing rule of my conduft, in this unhappy conteft. / have the honour to be, very reJpeBfully, Your Excellency's mojl obedient humble fervant, B. ARNOLD. His Excellency General Wafhington. Greyhound Schooner, Flag of Truce, Dobbs's Ferry, Odober 2, 1780. SIR, A NOTE I have from General Greene, leaves me in doubt if his memory had ferved him, to relate to you vt^ith exaftnefs the fubftance of the converfation that had pafled between him and myfelf, on the fubjed of Major Andre. In an affair of fo much confequence to my friend, to the two armies, and humanity, I would leave no poflibility of a mif- underftanding, and therefore take the liberty to put in writing the fubftance of what I faid to General Greene. I offered to prove, by the evidence of Colonel Robinfon and the officers of the Vulture, that Major Andre went on fhore at General Arnold's defire, in a boat fent for him with a flag of truce ; that he not only came afhore with the know- ledge and under the protedlion of the General who commanded in the diftrift, but that he took no ftep while on fhore, but by direftion of General Arnold, as will appear by the inclofed letter from him to your Excellency. Under thefe circumftances I could not, and hoped you would not, confider Major Andre as a fpy, for any improper phrafe in his letter to you. The fa6ts he relates correfpond with the evidence I offer; but he admits a conclufion that does not follow. The change of cloaths and name was ordered by General Arnold, under whofe diredions he neceffarily was, while within his com- mand. As General Greene and I did not agree in opinion, I wifhed, that difinterefted gentlemen of knowledge of the law of war and nations, might be afked their opinion on the fubjeft ; and mentioned Monfieur Knyphaufen, and General Rochambault. I related that a Captain Robinfon had been delivered to Sir Henry Clinton as a fpy, and undoubtedly was fuch : but that it being fignified to him that you were defirous History of West Point. 145 ( '9 ) defirous that this man fhould be exchanged, he had ordered him to be exchanged. I wifhed that an intercourfe of fuch civilities, as the rules of war admit of, might take off many of its horrors. I ad- mitted that Major Andre had a great fhare of Sir Henry CHnton's efteem, and that he would be infinitely obliged by his liberation ; and that if he was permitted to return with me, I would engage to have any perfon you would be pleafed to name fet at Hberty. I added, that Sir Henry Clinton had never put to death any perfon for a breach of the rules of war, though he had, and now has, many in his power. Under the prefent cir- cumftances, much good may arife from humanity, much ill from the want of it. If that could give any weight, I beg leave to add, that your favourable treatment of Major Andre, will be a favour I Ihould ever be intent to return to any you hold dear. My memory does not retain with the exaftnefs I could wifh, the words of the letter which General Greene fhewed me from Major Andre to your Excellency. For Sir Henry CHnton's"^ fatisfadlion, I beg you will order a copy of it to be fent to me at New-York. / have the honour to be, your Excellency's Mqjl obedient and viojl humble J erv ant, JAMES ROBERTSON. His Excellency General Wafhington. New-York, Odober i, 1780. SIR, THE polite attention fhewn by your Excellency and the Gentlemen of your family to Mrs. Arnold, when in diftrefs, demand my grateful acknowledgment and thanks, which I beg leave to prefent. From your Excellency's letter to Sir Henry Clinton, I find a Board of General Officers have given it as their opinion, that Major Andre comes under the defcription of a fpy : My good opinion of the candor and juftice of thofe Gentlemen leads me to believe, that if they had been made fully acquaint- ed with every circumftance refpedting Major Andre, that they would by no means have confidered him in the light of a fpy, or even of a prifoner. In juftice to him, I think it my duty to declare, that he came from on board the Vulture at my particular requeft, by a flag fent on purpofe for him by Jofhua Smith Efq. who had permiffion to go to Dobbs's ferry to carry letters, and for other purpofes not mentioned, and 146 History of West Point. ( 20 ) and to return. This was done as a blind to the fpy boats : Mr. Smith at the fame time had my private diredions to go on board the Vulture, and bring on fhore Col. Robinfon, or Mr. John Anderfon, which was the name I had requefted Ma- jor Andre to afliime : At the fame time I defired Mr. Smith to inform him, that he fhould have my proteftion, and a fafe paflport to return in the fame boat, as foon as our bufinefs was compleated. As feveral accidents intervened to prevent his being fent on board, I ga/e him my paflport to return by land. Major Andre came on fhore in his uniform (without difguife) which with much reluftance, at my particular and prefling inftance, he exchanged for another coat. I furnifhed him with a horfe and faddle, and pointed out the route by which he was to return. And as commanding officer in the department, I had an undoubted right to tranfaft all thefe matters ; which, if wrong. Major Andre ought by no means to fuiFer for them. But if, after this juft and candid reprefentation of Major Andre's cafe, the Board of General Officers adhere to their former opinion, I fhall fuppofe it didated by paffion and re- fentment ; and if that Gentleman fhould fuffer the feverity of their fentence, I fhall think myfelf bound by every tie of duty and honour, to retaliate on fuch unhappy perfons of your army, as may fall within my power, that the refpeft due to flags, and to the law of nations, may be better underftood and obferved. I have further to obferve, that forty of the principal inhab- itants of South-Carolina have juftly forfeited their lives, which have hitherto been fpared by the clemency of His Excellency Sir Henry Clinton, who cannot in juflice extend his mercy to them any longer, if Major Andre fuffers ; which in all proba- bility will open a fcene of blood at which humanity will revolt. Suffer me to intreat your Excellency, for your own and the honour of humanity, and the love you have of juftice, that you fuffer not an unjuft fentence to touch the life of Major Andre. But if this warning fhould be difregarded, and he fuffer, I call heaven and earth to witnefs, that your Excellency will be juftly anfwerable for the torrent of blood that may be fpilt in confequence. / have the honour to be, with due refped, your Excellency's Mqji obedient and very humble Jerv ant, B. ARNOLD. His Excellency General Washington. Tappan, History of West Point. 147 ( 21 ) Tappan, Od. i, 1780. SIR, BUOY'D above the terror of death by the confcioufnefs of a life devoted to honourable purfuits, and ftained with no aftion that can give me remorfe, I truft that the requeft I make to your Excellency at this ferious period, and which is to foften my laft moments, will not be rejefted. Sympathy towards a foldier will furely induce your Excel- lency and a military tribunal to adopt the mode of my death to the feelings of a man of honour. Let me hope. Sir, that if ought in my charader imprefles you with efteem towards me, if ought in my misfortunes marks me as the viftim of policy and not of refentment, I fhall expe- rience the operation of thefe feelings in your breaft, by being informed that I am not to die on a gibbet. / have the honour to he, your Excellency's Moji obedient and mojl humble J erv ant, JOHN ANDRE, Adj. Gen. to the Bntifli army. The time which elapfed between the capture of Major Andre, which was on the morning of the 23d of Sept. and his execution, which did not take place till 12 o'clock on the 2d of Oftober ; — the mode of trying him ; — his letter to Sir Henry Clinton, K. B. on the 29th of September, in which he faid, " I " receive the greateft attention from his Excellency General " Wafhington, and from every perfon under whofe charge I *' happen to be placed ;" — not to mention many other ac- knowledgments, which he made of the good treatment he re- ceived ; — muft evince, that the proceedings againft him were not guided by paffion or refentment. The pracElice and ufage of war were againft his requeft, and made the indulgence he folicited, circumftanced as he was, inadmiffible. Publi/hed by order of Congrefs, CHARLES THOMSON, Secretary. History of West Point. 149 CHAPTER IX. Andr6's Statement. — His Execution. — Assignment of General McDoUGALL TO CoMMAND AT WeST PoINT. — GENERAL GreENE Ordered to Relieve him. — The Army go into "Winter Quar- ters. — Visit of the Marquis de Chastellux. — Celebration at "West Point op the Birth of the Dauphin of France. — Gen- eral Knox Ordered to Command at West Point. — Major Fleming Succeeds Him. — Removal of the Great Chain from the Hudson. — Attempt to Raise the Old Iron in the Sunken Frigates. — Captain Molly. — The Artillerists and Engineers. — Establishment of a Military School. — Repairs on the Forti- fications. — Report of Major Niven. — Visit of Liancourt. — West Point no longer of Importance as a Defensive Point. These Proceedings were not followed by the usual formality of a trial by a court-martial, nor were wit- nesses summoned ; but the following paper, submitted by Andre, was placed before the Board : "AXDR]&'S STATEMENT. " On the 20th of September I left New York, to get on board the Vulture, in order [as I thought] to meet General Arnold there in the night. No boat, however, came off, and I waited on board until the night of the 21st. During the day, a flag of truce was sent from the Vulture to complain of the violation of a military rule, in the instance of a boat having been decoyed on shore by a flag, and fired upon. The letter was addressed to General Arnold, signed by Captain Sutherland, but 11 150 History of West Point. written in my hand, and countersigned ' J. Anderson, Secretary.' Its intent was to indicate my presence on board the Vulture. In the night of the 21st, a boat with Mr. '^ and two hands came on board, in order to fetch Mr. Anderson on shore, and, if too late to bring me back, to lodge me until the next night in a place of safety. I went into the boat, landed, and spoke with Arnold. I got on horseback with him to proceed to * house, and in the way jmssed a guard I did not expect to see, having Sir Henry Clinton's direc- tions not to go within an enemy's post, or to quit my own dress. " In the morning A. quitted me, having himself made me put the papers I bore between my stockings and feet. Whilst he did it, he expressed a wish, in case of any accident befalling me, that they should be de- stroyed, which I said, of course would be the case, as when I went into the boat I should have them tied about with a string and a stone. Before we parted, some mention had been made of my crossing the river, and going by another route ; but, I objected much against it, and thought it was settled that in the way I came, I was also to return. " Mr, * to my great mortification persisted in his determination of carrying me by the other route; and, at the decline of the sun, I set out on horseback, passed King's Ferry, and came to Crompond, where a party of militia stopped us and ad^dsed we should remain. In the morning I came with * as far as within two miles and a half of Pine's Bridge, where he said he must part with me, as the Cow-Boys infested the road thencefor- * Joshua Ilett Smith. History of West Point. 151 ward. I was now near thirty miles from Kingsbridge, and left to the chance of passing that space undiscovered. I got to the neighbourhood of Tarrytown, which was far beyond the points described as dangerous, when I was taken by three volunteers, who, not satisfied with my pass, rifled me, and, finding papers, made me a prisoner. " I have omitted mentioning, that, when I found my- self within an enemy's posts, I changed my dress." " There is a tide" in the annals of war, as well as " in the affairs of men," which must be "taken at its full." The period was a critical one — distrust, suspicion, and lack of confidence, amounting almost to demoralization, prevailed in the army. If, in the history of a nation, an hour arrived when a " military necessity" justified the infliction of the penalty of death, the time had surely come. At 12 o'clock on Monday, the 2d of October, Andre was executed in the presence of the army, at Tappan. Dressed with scrupulous neatness, in full uniform, he said to those who, drawn by his gentle, truthful, and candid nature, clustered around him to take his hand : "All I request of you, gentlemen, is, that you Avill bear witness to the world that I die like a brave man;" and adding, " It will be but a momentary pang," Major Andre died, " lamented even by his foes." Eighty-three years have passed, bringing to light the memoirs, incidents, details, and opinions of those who participated on that trying occasion ; but nothing has transpired to indicate that the measure of justice then meted out was not even-handed and impartial.* * The remains of Major Andre were interred at Tappan, on the spot where he 152 History of West Point. On the 27th of September, General McDougall was ordered to assume the command at West Point, until the arrival of General St. Clair. Three days after, the lat- ter was directed to take command of the Post and its dependencies ; his command was to consist of the Penn- sylvania division, Meigs's and Livingston's regiments of Continentals, and a body of Massachusetts and New Hampshire militia.* In the mean time Major-General Greene made application for the command, and on the 6th of October he was directed to repair to West Point, taking with him the Jersey, York, and Starke's Brigades, and on his arrival to reheve General St. Clair. The latter, with the Pennsylvania division and Meigs's regi- ment, was directed to join the army.-j* General Greene was enjoined to exercise great vigi- lance in completing the works, and providing magazines and shelter for the troops. A delegation of the Southern States having applied to have General Greene succeed General Gates in the command of the Southern army, on the 14th of October Major-General Heath was ordered to repair to West Point and relieve General Greene. The latter left to join his new command on the 19th. On the 28th of November, the army went into winter quarters in the Highlands and its vicinity. The Jersey brigades returned to that State. Four Massachusetts brigades were added to the garrison at West Point, was executed; they were exhumed in 1821, under the direction of the British Consul, and conveyed to England. A very interesting account of this occurrence wiU be found in the United Service Journal [British], November, 1833. * Writings of Washington, Sparks, VIL, 223. f Id., Sparks, VIL, 232. | Heath's Memoirs. History of West Point. 153 and two from Connecticut were stationed on the east side of the river opposite, and on Constitution Island, while General Head-Quarters were established at New Windsor. It was at this period that the Major-General, the Marquis de Chastellux, visited West Point, and the fol- lowing description of the works, at that time, is taken from his narrative : * * * * ♦ FOET PUTNAM — FBOM TUB WEST POINT HOTEL. " The first fort we met with above West Point, on the declivity of the mountain, is called Fort Putnam, from the Generar" of that name. It is placed on a rock, very steep on every side ; the ramparts were at first constructed with trunks of trees ; they are rebuilt with stone, and are not quite finished. There is a powder magazine, bomb-proof, a large cistern, and souterrains for the garrison. Above this fort, and when w^e reach * Named from Colonel Rufus Putnam. 154 History of West Point. the loftiest summit, there are three strong redoubts, lined with cannon, at three different eminences, each of which would require a formal siege. The day being nearly spent, I contented myself with judging by the eye of the very intelligent manner in which they are calculated for mutual protection. Fort Wyllis, whither General Heath conducted me,''' was near and more ac- cessible. Though it be placed lower than Fort Put- nam, it still commands the river to the south. It is a large pentagonal redoubt, built of huge trunks of trees ; it is picketed and lined with artillery. Under the fire of this redoubt, and lower down, is a battery of cannon, to range more obliquely the course of the river. This battery is not closed at the gorge, so that the enemy may take, but never keep it ; which leads me to remark that this is the best method in all field fortifications. Batteries placed in works have two inconveniences : the first is, that if these works be ever so little elevated, they do not graze sufficiently ; and the second, that the enemy may at once attack the redoubt and the battery; whereas the latter, being exterior, and protected by the redoubt, must be first attacked ; in which case it is sup- ported by troops who have nothing to fear for them- selves, and whose fire is commonly better directed, and does more execution. A battery yet lower, and nearer to the river [Fort Meigs], completes the security of the southern part. " In returning to West Point, we saw a redoubt that is suffered to go to ruin, as being useless, which in fact it is.f It was night when we got home, but what I had * The General, it appears, did not visit Fort Webb, f Probably on Block-House Point, near Mr. Kinsley's. History of West Point. 165 to observe did not require daylight. It is a vast souter- rain, formed within the Fort of West Point [Fort Clin- ton], where not only the jjowder and ammunition neces- sary for this Post are kept in reserve, but the deposit of the whole army. " These magazines completely filled, the numerous artillery one sees in these different fortresses, the prodi- gious labour necessary to transport, and pile up on steep rocks, huge trunks of trees, and enormous hewn stones, impress the mind with an idea of the Americans very difiierent from that which the English ministry have laboured to give to Parliament." f * * * With the exception of Fort Putnam, upon which repairs were commenced fourteen years later, these works remain at this moment, with no change other than that wrought by neglect and decay. The age of progress and the march of empire have left these monuments of the labor and skill of that patriot band, not one of whom, it is believed, is still among the living inhabitants of the present day. One incident only, of interest, occurred from the date last mentioned until the close of hostilities, and this was the celebration of the birth of the unfortunate Louis the XVII. of France. The army had passed the winter in the Highlands, and the following extracts explain the character of the rejoicing held over the event referred to : " Head-Quaeters, Newburg, " Tuesday, May 28th, 1782. '^ Orders : " The Commander-in-Chief is happy in the opportu- \ Travels in North. America. — Chastellux. 156 History of West Point. nity of announcing to the Army, the birth of the Dau- phin of France ; and desirous of giving a general occasion of testifying the satisfaction which he is convinced, will pervade the breast of every American officer and soldier, on the communication of an event so highly interesting to a monarch and nation, w^ho have given such distin- guishing proofs of their attachment, is pleased to order 2i,feu dejoie on Thursday next; and requests the com- pany of all the General, Regimental, and Staff Officers of the Army, who are not necessarily detained by duty, at West Point on that day at four o'clock. Command- ing Officers of Brigades and Corps will receive particular instructions for their government." "Head-Quarters, Ne-wbttrg, " Wednesday, May 29th, 1782. " The Troops are to be supplied with an extra gill of Rum per man to-morrow. " Memorandum. " The Commander-in-Chief desires his compliments may be presented to the Officers' Ladies, Avith and in the neighborhood of the Army, together with a request that they will favor him with their company at dinner on Thursday next, at West Point. The General will be happy to see any other Ladies of his own or his friends' acquaintance, on the occasion, without the formality of a particular invitation." " Inspector-General's Order, [West PomT,] ''May 30, 1782. " The Regimental Quarter-Masters will instantly apply to the Conductor of Military Stores for three blank car- tridges for each man and Non-commissioned officer ; they History of West Point. 157 will be careful that all the other cartridges are taken out of the boxes, and delivered to the men as soon as the feu dejoie is over. Colonel Crane will please to di- rect that the thirteen cannon which are to compose the Park are furnished with two hundred and eight blank cartridges ; Fort Sherburne* six ; the South Redoubt with three ; and the Garrison at Stoney Pointf with thirteen. " Colonel Crane's Regiment of Artillery will parade and receive his Excellency on his arrival ; after which, one Captain, Captain-Lieutenant, and two Sub-Lieuten- ants, with sixty privates of the same Regiment, will form a Guard of Infantry, and receive the Inspector- General's particular orders ; the remainder of the Regi- ment will man the Batteries. " The discharge of thirteen cannon from the Park, after the first toast, will be followed by a similar dis- charge from the Garrison of Stoney Point. " The signal for the commencement of the feu dejoie will be given by the cannon from Fort Sherburne, and, in each volley, as soon as the Regiment on the left of the Line has finished to fire, one cannon from the South Redoubt will be given, as a signal for the Park to renew the firing, which will be repeated three times. "After the fire-works are played off, the ceremony will be concluded by a discharge of three cannon from Fort Sherburne. " The Officers will pay the most minute attention to the arms of the Troops, that they may be in the best possible order." * Where the Mexican Trophy Guns now rest. f Gee's Point. 158 History of West Point. " Head-Quarters, Newbtteg-, " Thursday, May 30, 1782. " The celebration of the birth of the Dauphin of France, which was to have taken place this day, is to be postponed until to-morrow, the 31st inst. " A Plan for conducting the Rejoicing on Thursday, THE 31sT May, 1782.* " The Troops, having previously cooked their provi- sions, will march from their Cantonments at such an hour as will admit of their being at the places severally assign- ed them by half after two o'clock, 2^ost meridian, where they will remain in columns under cover, until the dis- charge of three pieces of cannon at West Point, which will be a signal for the columns to advance and display in full view of the Point, and stack their arms. That done, " *It appears, by several orders issued at "Highlands," [the Head-Quarters of General Heath were at the " Robinson House"] between the dates, May 28 and the above date, tliat large fatigue parties had been constantly at work in procur- ing " small timber and some other materials," from the neighborhood of West Point. On the 24th it was ordered that "the 30 fatigue men now with the Engineer at West Point, having some particular knowledge of a particular piece of business which the Engineer has on hand, are not to be relieved until the 31st inst." — On the 25th it was stated in orders, that " All the Carpenters and Joiners in the Army are wanted for a few days at West Point, to assist in erecting and com- pleting an arbor; they are to be immediately draughted and sent for that purpose." On the 26th it was ordered, tliat "tlie Connecticut Line, and 3d Massachusetts Brigade, are to cover the arbor building at West Point. Tiie Commanding Officers of the Brigades wiU appoint an officer from each to attend Major Vniefranche this evening, who wiU designate the part they are severally to perform, and when it is to be completed. The Superintending Officers are to be furnished witli such numbers of men from their respective Brigades, as they think necessary to finish the Bower in tlie time limited, for wliich they are responsible." On the 27th it was ordered, that " 2 captains, 4 subalterns, 6 sergeants, and 150 rank and file, be for fatigue to-morrow; a Captain, Subaltern, and 50 men of which are to parade at reveille beating, and work until 8 o'clock in the mornLag, at whicli time the remainder are to turn out, and work untU 6 o'clock in the evening ; then the others are to work again until dark. This is to be done until the Bower is completed." "They are to be under the direction, of Major VUlefranche." History of West Point. 159 all the Officers (except one Field Officer to each Bri- gade, and one Battalion Officer to each Regiment on the east side of the river, who are to remain Avith their Corps) are requested to repair to West Point, where the General expects the pleasure of their company at dinner. " Dinner will be on the table at four o'clock, at which time a j)roportion of liquor will be distributed to each Regiment and Corps by their respective Quarter-Mas- ters. " After dinner thirteen Toasts will be drank, and each Toast announced by a discharge of Artillery. " As soon as the thirteenth is drank, the Officers will rise from the table, and join their respective Regiments. '^ At half after seven, the feu de Joie will commence with the discharge of thirteen pieces of cannon from the Park, succeeded by a fire of musketry from the Infantry, in the following order, viz. : — 2d Massachusetts Brigade. 1st ditto ditto 1st Connecticut ditto 2d ditto ditto 10th Massachusetts Regiment. 3d ditto Brigade. " The firing being three times repeated in the same order, the Officers commanding Corps will, with an audible voice, pray to God to bless the Dauphin of France, and grant him long life and happiness, and the Troops give three cheers. " The fireworks will then be dis2:)layed from Fort Webb, and the ceremony concluded by a discharge of three pieces of cannon from the Park, which will also serve 160 History of West Point. as a signal for the Troops to return to their canton- ment."* The expectations which these preparations gave rise to were amply realized, and are thus fully described: " The 31st of May being the day appointed for the cele- bration, between 12 and 1 o'clock p. m., His Excellency General Washington and Lady, and Suite, His Excel- lency Governor Clinton, with his Lady, Major-General Knox and Brigadier-General Hand, with their Ladies, Mr. Benson, the Attorney-General, Mrs. Livingston [of the lower Manor], Mrs. Montgomery [widow of the Hero who fell at Quebec], and a great number of ladies and gentlemen from the States of New York and New Jer- sey, arrived in their barges at West Point, and were conducted through the grand colonnade which had been erected for the entertainment, situated on the gently rising ground in the rear of Fort Clinton, commanding the level of the Plain with a variegated view of all the barracks, encampments, and fortifications of the garrison. " The situation was romantic, and the occasion novel and interesting. Major Villefranche,"j* an ingenious * Revolutionary Orders. — Colonel Whiting. U. S. A. f Major ViUefranche was one of the many French Officers who came to America early in the autumn of 1777, after the news of Burgoyne's overthrow reached Europe, to seek employment in the army. On the 4tii of October of that year, Congress " Ordered," That there be paid to Mons. ViUefranche, who has ten- dered his services to the United States, $100, for which he was to be accountable.* In the following winter, Mons. ViUefranche laid a memorial before Congress, set- ting forth that though he had received a " gratification" and money, to return to Prance, he would prefer to remain, if he could be employed as an Engineer, under General Du Portail. Whereupon, on January 1st, 1778, Congress " Resolved, That the Chevalier de ViUefranche be appointed a Major of Engineers under Brigadier Du Portail."-|- [The Corps of Engineers was organized as a distinct branch of the army, March 11, 1779.]:]: He buUt the stone magazine on the west end of Con- * Journals of Congress, II., 274 t Journals of Congress, II., 390. X Journals of Congress, III., 224. •»=^5-l*\' ■5 >> - pa s; t«j ii ^ 3 History of West Point. 161 French Engineer, had been employed with one thousand men about ten days, in constructing the curious edifice. It was composed of the simple materials which the com- mon trees in the vicinity afforded, being about two hun- dred and twenty feet in length, and eighty feet wide, supported by a grand colonnade of one hundred and eighteen pillars, made of the trunks of trees. The covering of the roof consisted of boughs, or branches of trees curiously interwoven, and the same materials formed the walls, leaving the ends entirely open. On the inside, every pillar was encircled with muskets and bayonets, bound round in a fanciful and handsome man- ner, and the whole interior was decorated with ever- greens, festoons of flowers, garlands, emblematical de- vices. Fleur-de-lis, and other ornaments significant of the existing alliance. " This superb structure in symmetry of proportion, neatness of workmanship and elegance of arrangement, has seldom perhaps been surpassed on any temporary stitution Island in 1782. [Heath, 351.] On the 2d of May, 178.3, Congress ''Re- solved, Tliat Major Villefranche be a Lieutenant-Colonel by Brevet in the Corps of Engineers."* It is probable that he returned to France on the close of the war. Tlie numerous drawings he left, show him to have been an officer of great value as an Engineer and Draughtsman. Major Peter Gliafles U Enfant, Engineer, was born in France, in 1755. He was appointed a lieutenant in the French provincial forces, which position he vacated, and tendered his services to the United States in the autumn of 1777, as an Engi- neer. He was appointed Captain of Engineers on 18th February, 1778, and was at the siege of Savannah, where he was wounded and left on the field of battle. He afterwards served in the army under the immediate command of Washington, and was promoted Major of Engineers, May 2, 1783. He was employed as the Engineer at Fort Mifflin in 1794, and appointed Professor of Engineering at the United States Mihtary Academy in July, 1812 (dechned). He died in Prince George's County, Md , June, 1825. He was an accomplished draughtsman and made himself greatly respected. It is worthy of remarlc, that both he and Major YUlefranciie expended their fortunes in the service of the United States, f * Journals of Congress, IV., 219. + Army Diet, Journals Congress, III., 243 ; IV., 219. French Archives, Hon. Eichard Eush. 162 History of West Point. occasion ; it affected the spectators with admiration and pleasure, and reflects much credit on the taste and ability of Major Villefranche. Several appropriate mot- toes decorated the grand edifice, pronouncing benedic- tions on the Dauphin and happiness to the two allied nations. The whole army was paraded on the conti- guous hills on both sides of the river, forming a circle of several miles in open view of the public edifice, and in the following order. The 2d Brigade of Massachu- setts on the ridge of the hills beneath Fort Putnam, with its right extending towards the river ; the 1st Bri- gade continuing the line on the left, stretched its flank to the Red House in the valley, and enveloped the point. On the eastern shore, the 1st and 2d Connecticut Bri- gades were drawn up on the high grounds in the rear of Constitution Island ; the 10th Massachusetts regiment, on the cleared fields above Nelson's Ferry ; and the 3d Massachusetts Brigade on the heights, between the North and Middle Redoubts. " At the signal designated, by firing three cannon, the regimental officers all left their commands, and repaired to the building to partake of the entertainment which had been prepared by order of the Commander-in-Chief. At five o'clock, dinner being on the table, his Excellency General Washington, and his Lady and suite, with the invited guests, moved from Major-General McDougall's quarters through the line formed by Colonel Crane's regiment of Artillery, to the Arbor which was guarded by the Commander-in-Chief's Guard, where more than five hundred gentlemen and ladies partook of a magnifi- cent festival. A martial band charmed the senses with music ; and while the appetite feasted, all gazed with History of West Point. 163 admiration on the illustrious guests, and the novel spec- tacle presented to the view. The cloth being removed, thirteen appropriate toasts were drank, each one being announced by the discharge of thirteen cannon and ac- companied by music. The guests retired from the table at seven o'clock, and the regimental officers repaired to their respective commands. " The Arbor, in the evening, was illuminated by a vast number of lights, which, being arranged in regular and tasteful order, exhibited a scene vying in brilliancy with the starry firmament. The Officers having rejoined their regiments, thirteen cannon were again fired as a pre- lude to a general feu dej'oie, which immediately succeeded throughout the whole line of the army on the surround- ing hills, and being three times repeated, the mountains resounded and echoed like tremendous peals of thunder, and the flashing from thousands of fire-arms in the darkness of evening, could be compared only to the most vivid flashes of lightning from the clouds. The feu dejoie was immediately followed by three shouts of acclamation and benediction for the Dauphin, by the united voices of the whole army on all sides. The celebration was concluded by the exhibition of fire- works, consisting of rockets, wheels, fountains, trees, bee-hives, balloons, stars and fleur-de-lis, admirably con- structed and played off at twenty minutes past 11 o'clock. " His Excellency General Washington was unusually cheerful. He attended the ball in the evening, and with a dignified and graceful air, having Mrs. Knox for his partner, carried down a dance of twenty couple in the Arbor on the green grass."* * Thacher's Military Journal ; Now Jersey Gazette, June 12th, 1T82. 164 History of West Point. On the 29th of August, General Knox was ordered to relieve General Heath, and instructed from Head- Quarters at Newburg to visit the redoubts frequently, to see that the garrisons were kept on the alert, and to make them invariably sleep within the works. The care of the public buildings and the repair and alteration of the works were especially enjoined, and a timely order prohibited private buildings from being erected without his knowledge and consent. General Knox held the command until the latter part of January, 1785, and receiving the appointment of Secretary of War in March of that year, he was suc- ceeded by Major George Fleming,* who commanded the arsenal and ranked as an Ordnance and Military Storekeeper. Under Major Fleming's administration, the old arms and camp equipage of the army were preserved and stored, or condemned and sold, as opportunities pre- sented. Immense quantities of powder were stored in the magazines at Fort Putnam and on Constitution Island. The work of dismantling the redoubts of their artillery occurred in 1787, at which time a large number of guns were sold for old iron. The time of the removal of the Boom and Chain has not been ascertained, but on the 29th of September, 1783, a memorial from Mark Bird was read in Congress, requesting that the great Chain used for the defence of Hudson's Biver be delivered to him at a reasonable price. Whereupon Congress Re- solved, " That at this time it is improjier to dispose of the * Major Fleming had been a captain of artillery during the war. He remained at West Point until after the establishment of the Military Academy, in charge of the Arsenal of Repairs and Storage. The " Long Barrack " near the present Hotel was used for this purpose. — [Fleming, MSS.] History of West Point. 165 chain made for the defence of Hudson's River."* Six years afterwards, Major Fleming informed the Secretary of War that he had agreed with a party to raise some, cannon and old iron in the river; of which one-half of the cannon and one-fourth of the wrought iron was to revert to the United States. The wrought iron, he stated, "lies in fourteen fathoms of water, besides being fastened to some very large logs which must be hoisted to the surface to cut away the iron."f In April, 1787, efforts were made to raise the pig-iron used as ballast on the frigates which were burned after the fall of Forts Clinton and Montgomery. " The fri- gates," said Major Fleming, in his report to the Secre- tary of War, "were set on fire opposite Constitution Island, and it being ebb tide, they drifted down the river nearly as far as Fort Montgomery, where one burnt to the water's edge and sunk. The other one I have found. She lies fore and aft the channel on the east side of the river, better than three miles from this Point. The timbers of her starboard side are to be seen at low water, and the other side is about ten feet under water at the same time, owing to her listing off as the edge of the channel runs. " The iron was cast at the ' Forest of Dean', and from the quantity of stone ballast now resting upon it, it can- not be raised short of a round sum." J The buildings, magazines, barracks, &c., on Constitu- tion Island, were sold early in 1788, to Gideon Salmon. " Mr. Bunn, who occupied the barrack at the time, was the owner of the Island, and requested that one-fifth of * Jour. Congress, IV., 280. f Fleming, MSS. U. S. M. A. t Fleming, MSS. U. S. M. A. 12 166 History of West Point. the building be given him, for the use of the land on which the Block-house, Forts, and magazines stood."* Near Swimstown, now called Buttermilk Falls, upon the premises now owned by Mr. Alfred Pell, there lived and died the soldier's wife, " Molly ***** better known as Captain Molly. She w^as in Fort Clinton at the time of its capture by the British, in October, 1777. When the enemy scaled the parapet, her husband, who was an artilleryman, dropped his port-fire and fled, but Molly caught it up, and discharged the last gun fired by the Americans. Nine months afterwards, at the memo- rable battle of Monmouth, although but twenty-two years of age, she illustrated her devotion to her husband, who was serving a gun, by bringing him water during the action from a neighboring spring. A shot from the enemy killed him at his post, and the officer in command,, having no one competent to fill his place, ordered the piece to be withdrawn. Molly saw her husband fall as she came from the spring, and also heard the order. She dropped her bucket, seized the rammer, and vowed she would fill his place at the gun, and avenge his death. She per- formed the duty wdth a skill and courage which attracted the attention of all who saw her. On the following morning, covered with dirt and blood, General Greene presented her to Washington, who, admiring her bravery, conferred upon her the appoint- ment of a Sergeant. By his recommendation her name was placed upon the half-pay list for life. She is de- scribed as a stout, red-haired, freckled-faced young Irish woman, with a handsome, piercing eye.f She was a great * Fleming, MSS. U. S. M. A. f Field-Book of the Revolution. — Lossing, II., 155. History of West Point. 167 favorite in the army, usually appearing with an artillery- man's coat over her dress, and wearing a cocked hat. After taking up her residence near West Point, she received her subsistence through the Commissary at the Post, and supplies of various kinds were sent to the family employed to take care of her, direct from the Secretary of War. The extracts below* are from Major Fleming's MSS., and the letters are addressed to " Major-General Henry Knox, Secretary of War." Molly, it is believed, died on the spot where she lived for so many years, in 1789, as at that date her name ceases to appear on the Commissary's books. By the act of May 9th, 1794, Congress authorized the raising of a Corps of Artillerists and Engineers, to con- sist of four battalions, which Corps was stationed at * "West Point, Ith of October, 1786. * * * * "Sir: — I have sent another account of Mrs. Swim's for taking care of Captain Molly up to the 27th of Sept., and have removed lier to another place, as I thought she was not so well treated as she ought to be." ****** " West Point, i,th of July, 17ST. ***** "Sir: — I have drawn three orders on you, for the maintainance of Captain MoUy, in favor of Mr. Deuniston: one is from January 19th to April 12th, the other from April 13th to July 5th, 1786, inclusive, which accounts were lodged in the War Office last fall, and are Mrs. Swim's. The other is from September 28th to July 5th, 1786, inclusive, and wiU be delivered by Mr. Denniston for Mrs. Randall. " As MoUy IS such a disagreeable object to take care of, and I promised to pay them every quarter, I have been obliged to borrow the money to pay the people ; if it can possibly be replaced, I should be very glad." * * * "West Point, April 21< 178T. * * * * " Sir : — I am informed by the woman that takes care of Captain Molly, that she is much in want of Shifts. If you thiuk proper to order three or four, I should be glad." * * * * "West Point, June Vlth, 1787. * * * * " Sir: — If the Shifts which you informed me should be made for Captain Molly are done, I should be glad to have them sent, as she complains much for want of them.'' * * * * 168 History of West Point. West Point, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Stephen Rochefontaine/^- with Maj. Louis de Tousard, and Major J. J. U. Ptivardi as the field officers. In the summer of this year, the work of repairing Fort Putnam was commenced, under Colonel Vincent, a French Engi- neer, assisted by Major Niven. The following report, rendered by Colonel Vincent in August, 1794, repre- sents the condition and progress of the works : — " fortifications at west point. " State op the Works Ordered at West Point, N. Y.,August 31st, 1794. By Colonel Vincent. '' Fort Putnam. — The repairing of the enclosure of the fort is now going on ; one ]3art has been altered, accord- ing to the strong reasons reported in one memorial, which has not yet been seen by the minister ; but, as that part of the enclosure to be changed was to be new built, it will be a very trifling expense to make the useful proposed alteration. " Fort Clinton. — It will not be possible for this year to begin any works ; and it will be sufficient to collect every necessary material, during this season, in order to be ready to begin very early in the beginning of the spring. It should be also very useful to begin this year the digging of the foundations, in employing the diggers at the task by cubic fathoms. We think that this way is the only one to be used in the works ordered by the General Government, inasmuch as the laborer's day's work is very high. " Ohservations. — The works at West Point are directed by the Major Niven, who may hardly be sufficient for * Colonel Rocliefontaine had been an officer of the army of France, and served in the Revolutionary war in America. History of West Point. 169 so great a business. It will be necessary to employ one engineer more, principally for the important masonry to be erected there, which will require great knowledge in that line. The manner of carrying on all the necessary diggings by task, requires also one man accustomed to such works, and daily upon the spot. The able com- mander and clever man. Captain Fleming, ought also obtain the first superintendency upon these important works."* " report of major daxiel niyen to the secretary of war. Relative to the Fortifications at West Point, December 12, 1794. *' Sir : — I conceive it my duty to make the follow^ing report : That, from the 20th of May to the 18th day of July last, I was employed in superintending lime-burn- ing, collecting stone to Fort Clinton, making and repair- ing roads, making and repairing tools, and repairing such parts of the rear wall of Fort Putnam as I judged suffi- cient. On the said 18th day of July, Colonel Vincent, Captain Fleming, and myself, concluded that all the old wall of Fort Putnam, facing Fort Clinton, be taken doAvn and rebuilt ; enclosing the point, for the advantage of enlarging the battery facing the ridge, where Forts Webb and Wyllis stood. Accordingly, I proceeded, and em- ployed as many miners, masons, laborers, and teams, as I could find, that would work to advantage, and have taken away the old wall and built a new one, w^ith the foundation on the rock, agreeably to your instructions, on durable principles of masonry. The said new wall is raised from twenty to twenty-five feet high, except the gate-way, for want of free-stone to face the arch. Nine * S. p. Mil Affairs, L, 104. 170 History of West Point. bomb-proof arches are closed over the barracks and magazines, I had hopes to finish four more, but the days are so short and cold, and the frost would damage the masonry so much, if the mortar could be worked, that I judged it best to discharge the workmen on the 22d day of November, except a very few under the direction of Captain Fleming. It was impossible to carry on the works without great damage to the public service. KDIN8 OF FORT PUTNAM — INTERIOR VIEW. ^' Several arrangements ought to be made this winter, that the works may be carried on to advantage the ensuing season ; that the laborers be hired by the month, and forfeit something if they leave the works without timely notice ; that a forage store be established ; that the brick be moulded in the shape of a key-stone, to turn the arches. This will make strong work, and save great labor.* (Signed) " D. Niven." * S. p. Mil. Afifairs, I., 104. History of West Point. 171 In 1796, Liancourt visited West Point, and remarks that thirty-five thousand dollars had been uselessly expended in repairing Fort Putnam, because forty-five thousand more, necessary to complete the work, were refused by Congress. The same traveller found the four battalions of artillerists and engineers, composed of about two hundred and fifty men each, mostly made up of foreigners. But ten officers were present, representing " all nations ;" they were, however, better provided than the officers in the French service.* A Military -School, through the instrumentality of President Washington, was established in 1794, for the instruction of this corps, and books and apparatus were supplied. The building used for this purpose, called the *' Old Provost," was situated on the northwest side of the "Ice-House Hollow;" it was two stories high, and built of stone. It was destroyed by fire, with its books and contents, in 1796, and the School was suspended until ISOl.f The importance of West Point for defensive purposes in a military point of view belongs to the past; but the soil hallowed by the footsteps of Washington, Greene, Knox, and almost every General officer of the Revolution, secluded in its mountain position, as it were purposely for retirement and study, was henceforth to be conse- crated by the Nation to the education of her chosen youth, for the advancement and welfare of the Re- public. * Travels in the United States. — Liancourt. f MSS. Gen, J. G, Swift. PART II. THE OEIGIN AIsTD PEOGEESS UNITED STATES MILITARY ACADEMY. History of West Point. 175 CHAPTER X. Early Necessity for a Military Academy Recognized at the Commencement of the Revolution. — Appointment of a Com- mittee TO Visit the Army by Congress, and their Report in Favor of such an Institution. — Resolution of Congress upon the Subject. — Necessity for a Military Academy on the Establishment of Peace. — Arguments of Generals Hunting- don AND Pickering. — Value of their Experience and Opin- ions. — Official Report of General Knox on Military Educa- tion. — Brief Career of Military Men. — Citizen Graduates AND their Services. — Opinions of "Washington and Jefferson on the Establishment of a Military Academy. — Organization of the Corps of Artillery and Engineers, and Appointment of Cadets thereto, in 1794. — Increase of the Corps and of the Number of Cadets in 1798. — Provision for their Education, — Inadequate Means for this Purpose. — Views of President Adams and Mr. McHenry, the Secretary of "War. — Organiza- tion OF THE Military Academy by Congress, to be Stationed AT "West Point. — Message of President Jefferson Relative to the Subject. — Report of Colonel "Williams, the First Superintendent of the Academy. The idea of establishing a National Military Academy dates back to an early period in our history; indeed, at the very outset of the struggle for independence, it forced its claims upon the attention of those invested with the control and direction of public authority. On the 20th of September, 1776, the Continental Congress appointed a Committee, consisting of Messrs. Sherman, Gerry, and Lewis, in accordance with a resolution of the same date, " to repair to Head-Quarters 176 History of West Point. near New York, to inquire into the state of the army, and the best means of su23plying its wants."* On the od of October this Committee submitted a report, which was read, and ordered to lie on the table. The following extracts are taken from the report : " The Committee appointed to inquire into the State of the Army at New York, left on the 21st, and arrived at Camp on the 24th of September; and after three days' conference with the General officers, and an inter- view with many of the Staff, they found the following to be a statement of the facts * * * * * * * * "That some of the troops in Camp were badly officered, and not subject to the command which good troops ought ever to be. The Articles of War and General Orders were frequently transgressed, and the Commander-in-chief had the mortification to see, that some of his officers, instead of suppressing disor- derly behavior, encouraged the soldiers by their examples to plunder and commit other offences, or endeavored to screen them from just punishment by partial trials." These and other practices and evils, so deeply impressed the Committee with the importance of having officers of known honor, ability, and education, to officer the regi- ments, that they earnestly called on the States to re- sort to more effective measures for the purpose ; and among many resolutions then adopted, the following is to be found: ^'^ Resolved, That the Board of War be directed to pre- pare a Continental Laboratory, and a Military Academy, and provide the same with proper Officers." -^t- -s^- * This Committee, while at the camp, among others, * Am. Arcliives, V., II., 1373. HiSTOiiY OF West Point. 177 conferred with Colonel Henry Knox, of the Artillery, and on the 27th of September, 1776, this afterwards greatly distinguished officer furnished the Committee with "Hints for the Improvement of the Artillery of the United States," from which the following extract is taken, under the belief that it is the earliest record of a plan for a United States Military Academy bearing any resemblance in its design to the one now in existence : * * * * "And as officers can never act with confidence until they are masters of their profes- sion, an Academy established on a hberal plan would be of the utmost service to the Continent, where the whole theory and practice of fortification and gunnery should be taught ; to be nearly on the same plan as that at Woolwich, making allowance for the difference of circumstances ; a place to which our enemies are indebted for the superiority of their artillery to all who have opposed them."* Three days after these "Hints" were furnished, and two days before the Committee submitted their report, the following entry is to be found on the Journal : " Continental Congress, Oct. 1, 1776. '^Re-solved., That a Committee of five be appointed to prepare and bring in a plan of a Military Academy at the Army. " The members chosen, Mr. Hooper, Mr. Lynch, Mr. Wythe, Mr. Williams, and Mr. J. Adams."t It does not appear that this Committee ever reported, or that any further active measures were ever devised to carry out the intention so clearly disclosed, and so distinctly recognized as necessary to the welfare of the * Am. Archives, V., II., 1387, \ Am. Archives, V., II., 1383. 1T8 History of West' Point. army, until the termination of the Revolutionary War. The Proclamation for a cessation of hostilities was adoioted in Congress on the 11th day of April, 1783; on the same day Colonel Alexander Hamilton, the chair- man of the Committee for Peace Arrangements, commu- nicated to the General-in-chief a wish to be furnished with his opinions, as to what ought to constitute a proper peace establishment. This request was laid before the officers of the army, then encamped at Newburg and New Windsor, who were requested to report to the Commander, in writing, their views; and, guided by the experience of eight years in active field service, the necessity for a Mihtary Academy was not overlooked in the voluminous papers submitted. Brigadier-General Huntingdon declared that "West Point has been held as the key to the United States. The British viewed it in the same point of light, and will, it is presumed, keep their eye upon it as long as they regret the loss of the country, or have a passion for power and conquest. " West Point is exposed to a coiip-de-main, and ought therefore to be always in a complete condition of defence. With a little more expense than that of maintaining a garrison of five hundred or six hundred men, it may be made a safe deposit, where every military article may be kept in good order and repair ; and, with a small additional expense, an academy might be here instituted for instruction in all the branches of the military art."* Colonel Timothy Pickering, the Quartermaster-General of the army, after combating the idea of instituting aca- * Correspondence of the Revolution.— Sparks, IV., 27. History of West Point. 179 demies for military purposes at the different arsenals in the United States, a scheme that had found favor with some of the officers, proceeds to say : '' If any thing like a military academy in America be practicable at this time, it must be grounded on the permanent military establishment for our frontier posts and arsenals, and the wants of the States, separately, of officers to com- mand the defences on their seacoasts. " On this principle it might be expedient to establish a military school or academy at West Point. And that a competent number of young gentlemen might be induced to become students, it might be made a rule, that vacan- cies in the standing regiment should be supplied from thence ; those few instances excepted where it would be just to promote a very meritorious sergeant. " For this end the number, which shall be judged requi- site to supply vacancies in the standing regiment, might be fixed, and that of the students, who are admitted with an expectation of filling them, limited accordingly. " They might be allowed subsistence at the public expense If any other youth desired to pursue the same studies at the Military Academy, they might be admitted, only subsisting themselves. " Those students should be instructed in what is usually called military discipline, tactics, and the theory and practice of fortification and gunnery. " The Commandant and one or two other officers of the standing regiment, and the Engineers, making West Point their general residence, would be the masters of the Academy; and the Inspector-General superintend the whole."* * Writings of "Washington. — Sparks YIII., 417. 180 History of "West Point. These suggestions, although not productive of imme- diate results, did not fail to arrest the attention of states- men and legislators on the general subject of military I education at a later day. ■ " They' perceived that although the ordinary, subordi- nate, and mechanical duties of a soldier and officer might /'be performed without especial training, the higher class / of duties, and the capacity for command, could be under- stood and exercised only by those whose intellectual faculties had been carefully cultivated. They felt that the common interpretation of the axiom that, ' know- ledge is power,' significant and important as it is, was not its^ noblest and worthiest interpretation. "*<1^ "T^ " Power over matter, and over the minds of others, is / not the choicest gift of knowledge, enviable and glorious / though it be ; it is, in truth, a dangerous gift. But I power over the mind of its possessor, purifying and ele- vating it, subduing all that is low or selfish to the ; authority of duty and virtue, this is the distinguishing, the kingly gift of knowledge. They felt, therefore, that the moral, as w^ell as the intellectual nature should be sedulously nurtured, -.•^hey were convinced, also, that in a ffee''"state7 it was most impolitic and unsafe for the army to be separated, in habits, interests, and feelings, from the other orders of society ; and they recognized in knowledge, which is, in a great measure, the result of mutual interchange of thoughts, the true principle of amalc-amation. '' Many of them had been observers or partakers of the moral dangers of a military life ; they were aware of the impoverished means of the members of the army, and of the probable inability of the country, for a long History of West Point. 181 period, to provide more for them than a mere support ; and they were, consequently, solicitous to impart to them knowledge, ' in itself an economical possession,' the pursuit of which is inconsistent with, and destroys the desire for indulgence in, idle or vicious amusements. To these general considerations were added others, growing out of our peculiar form of government, and the sentiments and prepossession of the people. " As an almost necessary consequence of the national experience during the war of the Revolution, the sub- ject of military education first presented itself, in con- nection with the organization and improvement of the militia. While they bore grateful testimony to the ser- vices and valor of those of their countrymen who upheld the standard of the United Colonies in the hours of dark- est gloom, they could not be insensible that the struggle for independence would have been sooner triumphantly closed, if those gallant men had been disciplined, or had been led on by officers accomplished in the various branches of the art of war. They accorded a cordial tribute to the few brave spirits who devoted all the skill and science they had acquired in the ' seven years' war,' which commenced in 1754, to the formation of military habits in the new levies, which were raised in rapid succession, during the whole progress of the con- test. But they had before them the admissions of these officers, and of their beloved commander, that the diffi- culties of their perilous undertaking Avould have been greatly diminished, if a knowledge of the theory and science of war had been more generally diffused through the army. "A striking illustration of the justness of these views 13 182 History of West Point. is contained in an official report, made by General Knox, then Secretary of War, to the President, January 21st, 1790. In this report the position is laid down, that 'all discussions on the subject of a powerful militia, will result in one or other of the following principles.'* ''1. Either efficient institutions must be established for the military education of youth, and the knowledge acquired therein be diffused throughout the country by the means of rotation ; or, ''2. The militia must be formed of substitutes, after the manner of the militia of Great Britain. " ' If the United States possess the vigor of mind,' says the Secretary, 'to establish the first institution, it may reasonably be expected to produce the most une? quivocal advantages ; a glorious national spirit will be introduced, with its extensive train of political conse- quences.' " The only provision immediately applicable [in this able state paper] to the present inquiry is that, which required the young men, from the age of 18 to 20 years, to be disciplined for thirty days successively in camps of instruction, where, in addition to their military tuition, they were to receive lectures from the chaplains, explanatory of the value of free governments, and of their dependence upon the knowledge and virtue of the youth of the country. A proposition similar to this, with the exception that the term of instruction was limited to six days instead of thirty, was submitted to the House of Representatives in 1821. And it may induce those who are inclined to adopt this course, to be reminded how soon it was abandoned by its first projectors. The * Penn. Daily Adv. Feb. 3d, 1190. History of West Point. 183 obvious objections arising from the expenditure of time and money, from the loss occasioned by the periodical abstraction of labor, and from the but too probable for- mation of licentious or indolent habits, seem to have been justly regarded as decisive." But the principle underlying all these propositions continued to germinate, and stimulated those intrusted with the direction of national affairs, to labor for the establishment of an institution at which young men might receive a military education, who, when separated from it, and scattered throughout the length and breadth of the land, might serve as instructors of the untrained militia in times of peace, and, upon the outbreak of war, furnish a powerful aid in organizing and concentrating the enormous military resources of the country. Herein lies the chief, and by far the most valuable and comprehensive motive, which gave origin to the Military Academy. Remote from foreign jealousies and hostile powers, save those hidden in our own forests, it was foreseen that the presence of large stand- ing armies was inimical to republican development, and that an army small as that of the United States has always been, and ought ever to be, could only supply an insignificant quota upon emergencies of great magni- tude. Absorbed in the temptations and allurements to the acquisition of wealth which the numerous fields of American enterprise and labor aiford, it is vain, in time of peace, to expect civilians to qualify themselves for the performance of military duties, with little or no prospect of pecuniary remuneration or military renown ; and were there even any such inclined, there are no 184 History of West Point. institutions where the necessary qualifications could be secured. In the few conflicts, happily, in which the nation has been engaged, from the first period of its existence to the present, scarcely more than three or four who were not resigned graduates of the Military Academy, came into service, possessed of any marked aptitude or acquaintance with the art of war. Even in the un- exampled successful war with Mexico, all who were appointed to high commands from civil life, without an exception, sought and invited those, who by their edu- cation and professional skill were fitted to become their aides, and staff officers, and military advisers. In all our wars, but very few indeed of those who have been actively engaged, and who have thereby qualified themselves for after service, remain in the profession of arms. From the wear and fatigue of camp life, from the hope of political advancement, or from broken health, they disappear after the lapse of a few years. It is thus that the war of 1812 exhibits but few names conspicuous during the Revolution; that the names familiar in 1812 are seldom found in the history of our Indian conflicts; and that the heroes of the war in Mexico, save the graduates of the Military Academy, constitute but a small proportion of those now actually engaged in the present melancholy internal strife. ^ The roll of citizen graduates of the Military Acade- my, who responded at the nation's call in 1816, affords an impressive illustration of the wisdom of those who labored for the establishment of an institution, whose principal design was to diffuse and disseminate among tlie people a class of military educated citizens, whose History of West Point. ISo services might be relied on, when encroachments upon or non-fulfilment of treaty stipulations rendered resist- ance necessary by an appeal to arms. To the names of Clay, McKee, Davis, and upwards of a hundred others who entered the volunteer service, may be added by the score those who proffered services to such an extent, that the Government declined to receive them. But brighter yet, in the present civil war, does the usefulness of the Military Academy gleam forth, in im- pelling from the secluded and lucrative pursuits of civil life nearly every living graduate, including those long disconnected with the soldier's profession, to struggle, with Grant, Sherman, McCMlan, Biirnside, Hooker, Rose- crans, and the lamented Stevens, Sill, and Mitckel, for the maintenance of the unity of the nation. In every State, and upon every tented field, the citizen graduates of the Military Academy are found, with their thousand former associates who failed to meet the rigid requirements of the institution, repaying their indebtedness for an education, and offering them- selves as willing victims at the shrine of duty. " In 1793, the establishment of a military academy is known to have been a favorite object of the Executive. In the annual message, dated the 3d of December of that year. General Washington suggests the inquiry,* ' whether a material feature in the improvement ' of the system of military defence ' ought not to be, to afford an opportunity for the study of those branches of the art which can scarcely ever be attained by prac- tice alone.' * Journal House Reps., 3d and 4th Cong., T. 186 History of West Point. " Mr. Jefferson has informed us,* that when the pre- paration of this message w^s discussed in the Cabinet, the President mentioned a military academy as one of the to]3ics which should be introduced, and that he himself raised the objection, that there was no clause in the Constitution which warranted such an establish- ment : that the above sentence was nevertheless incor- porated in the message, and was again the subject of special deliberation. The reply of Washington was, that he would not recommend any thing prohibited by the Constitution, ' but if it was doubtful, he was so impressed with the necessity of the measure that he would refer it to Congress, and let them decide for themselves whether the Constitution authorized it or not.' '^ An authentic exposition of the views of Congress is contained in the Act of the 7th of May, 1794, which provided for a corps of Artillerists and Engineers, to consist of four battalions, to each of which eight cadets were to be. attached ; and made it the duty of the Secretary of War to procure, at the public expense, the necessary books, instruments, and apparatus, for tKe use and benefit of said corps. The result of his subse- quent reflection upon the opinions of Washington him- * "November 28, 1'793. — Met at the President's, * * * Randolph had pre- pared a draught of the speech. The clause recommending fortifications was left out, but that for a Military Academy was inserted. I opposed it, as unauthorized by the Constitution. Hamilton and Knox approved it without discussion. Ran- dolph was for it, saying that the words of the Constitution authorizing Congress to lay taxes, &c., for the common defence, might comprehend it. The President said he would not choose to recommend any thing against the Constitution, but if it were doubtful, he was so impressed with the necessity of the measure that he would report it to Congress, and let them decide for themselves whether the Con- stitution authorized it or not. It was therefore left in." — Jefferson's Memoirs; Correspondence, &c., Vol. IV., p. 499. History of West Point. 187 self, whose attachment to the national charter was too pure and firm to be perverted by any prepossessions for a particular object, is manifested by his declaration in December, 1796,* that *^the desirableness of this insti- tution had constantly increased wijth every new view he had taken of the subject.' ' The institution of a mili- tary academy,' he observes in this annual communica- tion to Congress, ' is also recommended by cogent reasons. However pacific the general policy of a nation may be, it ought never to be without an adequate stock of military knowledge for emergencies. The first would impair the energy of its character, and both would hazard its safety, or expose it to greater evils, when war could not be avoided. Besides, that war might not often depend upon its own choice. In proportion as the observance of pacific maxims might exempt a nation from the necessity of practising the rules of the military art, ought to be its care in preserving and transmitting, by proper establishments, the knowledge of that art. AVhatever argument may be drawn from particular ex- amples, superficially viewed, a thorough examination of the subject will evince that the art of war is extensive and complicated; that it demands much previous study; and that the possession of it in its most improved and perfect state is always of great moment to the security of a nation. This, therefore, ought to be a serious care of every government ; and for this purpose, an academy, where a regular course of instruction is given, is an ob- vious expedient, w^hich different nations have success- fully employed.' " * Journal House Reps., 3d and 4th Cong., 610. 188 History of West Point. In 1798, Congress authorized the raising of an addi- tional regiment of artillerists and engineers, and in- creased the number of cadets to fifty-six. Provision was also made to secure books and apparatus for their instruction. In July of the same year the President was empowered by another act to appoint four teachers of the arts and sciences necessary for the instruction of this corjjs. Thus far the legislative proceedings had been in accordance with Executive recommendation, except that they did not provide for the collection of the regiment of artillerists and engineers at one point, and the erec- tion of buildings adapted to the purposes of education. But the principle upon which the institution as at present organized rests was fully sanctioned : a new grade [cadet] was created in the army, to which young men were exclusively entitled to be admitted, and means were appropriated for their education in the science of war, that they might be fitted for stations of command. It was soon apparent, however, that something more was required to afford a fair opportunity for imparting systematic instruction. The subject seems to have been carefully investigated in 1800, by Mr. McHenry, then the head of the War Department, and his report was communicated to Congress by President Adams, on the 13th of January, with a special message, in which it was characterized as containing ' matter in which the honor and safety of the country are deeply interested;'* and a supplemental one of the 31st of January, which * American State Papers, 1800, I., 299, 485. History of West Point. 189 are equally illustrative of the comprehensive and dis- criminating talent of their author, and of the beneficial consequences to be anticipated from the establishment of a military academy. "No sentiment can be more just than this: that, in proportion as the circumstances and policy of a people are opposed to the maintenance of a large military force, it is important that as much perfection as possible be given to that which may at any time exist. "It is not however enough, that the troops it may be deemed proper to maintain be rendered as perfect as possible in form, organization, and discipline; the dignity, the character to be supported, and the safety of the country further require, that it should have military instructions capable of perpetuating the art of war, and of furnishing the means for forming a new and enlarged army, fit for service in the shortest time possible, and at the least practicable expense to the State. " Since, however, it seems to be agreed that we are not to keep on foot numerous forces, and it would be impossible on a sudden to extend to every essential point our fortifications, military science, in its various branches, ought to be cultivated with peculiar care, in proper nurseries; so that a sufficient stock may always exist, ready to be imparted and diffused to any extent, and a competent number of persons be prepared and qualified to act as engineers, and others as instructors to additional troops, which events may successively require to be raised. This will be to substitute the elements of an army to the thing itself, and will greatly tend to enable the Government to dispense with a large body of standing forces, from the facility which it will 190 History of West Point. give of procuring officers and forming soldiers promptly, in all emergencies. " To avoid great evils, we must either have a respect- able force always ready for service, or the means of preparing such a force wdth certainty and expedition. The latter, as most agreeable to the genius of our Government and nation, is the object of the following propositions." The laws wdiich have been framed having proved inadequate, he adds, "to afford the requisite instruction to officers and others in the principles of war, the exer- cises it requires, and the sciences upon which they are founded, it is proposed that the academy shall include four schools: one to be called the Fundani^ital^ School; another the School of Engineers and Artillerists ; a third, the School of Cavalry and Infantry; and a fourth, the School of the Navy. The Fundamental School, it is sup- posed, will be the only one required for the first two years. It is designed to form in this engineers (including geo- graphical engineers), miners, and officers for the artillery, cavalry, infantry, and navy; consequently, in this school are to be taught all the sciences necessary to a perfect knowledge of the different branches of the military art. "These schools to be provided Avith proper apparatus and instruments for philosophical and chemical experi- ments, for astronomical and nautical observations, for surveying, and such other processes as are requisite to the several branches of instruction. Barracks and other proper buildings must be erected for the accommodation of the directors, professors, and students, and for the laboratories and other works to be carried on at the respective schools. These selections demonstrate, that History of West Point. 191 the conception the Secretary of War had formed of the true character of a national institution for military edu- cation, was in very near accordance with the character of the one, which has been long sustained by the bene- ficent and wise legislation of Congress. The whole report contemplates certain military schools as an essen- tial mean, in conjunction with a small military establish- ment, to prepare for, and perpetuate to the United States, at a very moderate expense, a body of scientific officers and engineers, adequate to any emergency, quali- fied to discipline for the field, in the shortest time, the most extended armies, and to give the most decisive and useful effects to their operations." These rej^orts were referred to a committee of scA'en in the House of Representatives, who submitted a bill,* creating a Military Academy, which, in the absence of the chairman, was postponed to a day beyond the close of the session, one member only of the committee voting for the postponement. The Secretary of War was called upon by a resolution, dated 22d December, 1801,f to lay before the House a statement of the existing mili- tary establishment, Avhich was furnished accordingly on the 24th. Out of these proceedings grew the act of the 16th of March, 1802, by which the military peace es- tablishment was determined. By this act, the Artiller- ists and Engineers were made to constitute two distinct corps. To one regiment of Artillery, forty cadets were attached ; and to the Corps of Engineers, ten cadets. The 27th section provided that the said Corps, when organized, shall be stationed at West Point, in the State * Journal House Reps., 5th and Gth Cong., 634. f Ibid., 7th Cong., 1st Ses., 56. 192 History of West Point. of New York, and shall constitute a Military Academy. It also provided that the senior Engineer officer present shall be the Superintendent of the Academy, and author- ized the Secretary of War to procure, at the public ex- pense, the necessary books, implements, and apparatus for the use and benefit of the Institution. In the follow- ing year, another act, dated 28th of February, 1803, empowered the President to appoint one teacher of the French language, and one teacher of Drawing. These acts afforded some of the desired facilities for developing the tendencies of the principle, which had been sanctioned by the previous acts of 1794 and 1798. At the expiration of six years, however, further legisla- tion was considered necessary. And the attention of Congress was called to the subject by Mr. Jefferson in the following Message, which evinces not only his deep interest in the Institution, but that he no longer enter- tained the opinion of its unconstitutionality, which he expressed while a member of General Washington's cab- inet, in 1793. " The scale on which the Military Academy at West Point was originally established, is become too limited to furnish the number of well-instructed subjects in the different branches of artillery and engineering, which the public service calls for. The want of such characters is already sensibly felt, and will be increased with the enlargement of our j^lans of military preparation. The Chief Engineer having been instructed to consider the subject, and to propose an augmentation, which might render the establishment commensurate with the i:)resent circumstances of the country, has made his report, which I now transmit for the consideration of Congress. The History of West Point. 193 plan, suggested by him, of removing the Institution to this place, is also worthy of attention. Besides the advantage of placing it under the immediate eye of the Government, it may render its benefits common to the Naval department, and will furnish opportunities of select- ing, on better information, the characters most qualified to fulfil the duties which the public service may call for."* The following Report on the condition of the Academy, by Colonel Jonathan Williams,-]- head of the Corps of Engineers, dated March 14th, 1808, accompanied the Message. / " This Institution was established at West Point, in the year 1801, under the direction of a private citizen [George Barron], and was nothing more than a mathe- matical school for the few cadets that were then in ser- vice. It was soon found that the government of young military men was incompatible with the ordinary system of schools, and, consequently, this Institution ran into disorder, and the Teacher into contempt. " When the peace estabUshment was made, the Corps of Engineers was created, and the twenty -seventh section enacts that the Corps 'shall be stationed at West Point, in the State of New York, and shall constitute a Military * Journal House Reps., 10th Cong., 234. \ Jonatliaii Williams was bora in Boston, 1*750. During the Revolution he resided abroad, acting part of the time as Commercial Agent for the United States. In 1790 he -returned and resided near Philadelphia. Appointed Major of Artillery and Engineers, Feb. 16, 1801. Inspector of Forti- fications and Superintendent at West Point, Dec. 4, 1801. Retained, at reorgani- zation of the Army, as Major of the Corps of Engineers, and Superintendent of the Military Academy, April, 1802. Lieutenant-Colonel Engineers, April 19, 1805. Colonel and Chief Engineer, Feb. 23, 1808; resigned July 31, 1812. Representa- tive in Congress from Philadelphia; died May 20, 1815.* * National Port. Gallery, vol I.; Gardner's Anny Diet " ' 194 History of West Point. Academy, and the Engineers, assistant Engineers, and Cadets, shall be subject to do duty at such places, and on such service, as the President of the United States may direct.' It was not probably foreseen, that although the head-quarters of the Corps might be at West Point, yet the duties of the individual officers necessarily spread them along our coast from one extremity of the United States to the other ; and as the whole number of officers can be no more than sixteen, they could not, in their dispersed state, constitute a Military Academy. The in- congruity of a stationary and errant existence, in the same Corps, has been amply exemplified by experience. Indeed, it never can be supposed that Engineers, as such, could be efficient elementary teachers ; their capability, consistent with other - duties, is confined to practical teaching, by combining example with precept, and carry- ing the rudiments of the art into practical execution ; in the same manner as other professional men do who have youth under their tuition, after they have gone through every branch of elementary learning relating to their profession. " A part only of the officers were appointed soon after the passage of the act, of whom the Major, [Williams] who was ex-officio the Chief Engineer, and two Captains [Barron and Mansfield] took charge of the Academy, the students of which were the cadets belonging to the regiment of Artillery. The Major occasionally read lec- tures on fortifications, gave practical lessons in the field, and taught the use of instruments generally. The two Captains taught mathematics ; the one in the fine of geometrical, the other in that of algebraical demonstra- tions. History of West Point. 195 "As the Corps Avas small, as it had little or nothing to do in its more appropriate professional duties, and as the students were few, the institution went on producing all the effect in its power, and all that could be expected on its limited scale. It was soon discovered that mere mathematics would not make either an Artillerist or an Engineer, and a power was given, by law, to appoint a teacher of Drawing and of the French language. Had this law, instead of absolutely limiting ' the number of teachers and designating their duties, left it general in the discretion of the President to appoint such and so many as he might find requisite to produce the effect contemplated by the establishment, and left the internal organization to him, who, from constant observation, could judge of the most expedient one, with a reasonable but ample appropriation, we should, at this day, have a greater number of well-instructed young officers than we can boast of. From that time to this, however, the Academy has progressed beyond what could liaA^e been expected from its means; but now the first mathematical teacher has resigned, and the second has, for several years, been employed as Surveyor-General of the United States in the Western country. " During the last year, a citizen, of eminent talents as a mathematician, has been employed as principal teacher, and a first lieutenant of Engineers performed the duties of assistant teacher, while the professor of French and Drawing confined his abilities to these branches. So far as talents can go, nothing is wanting as to these teachers ; they are all capable in the highest degi'ee ; the subscriber is only apprehensive that he shall not be able to retain them. Mr. Hassler, the chief mathematician, is already 196 History of West Point. designated for a survey of the coast when circumstances shall permit that business to be undertaken, and it could not be committed to more able hands. Mr. de Masson, the professor of French and Drawing, being the only teacher designated by the law, he is the only one that, exclusive of the Corps of Engineers, can be said to belong to the Institution. " In short, the Military Academy, as it now stands, is like a foundling, barely existing among the mountains, and nurtured at a distance out of sight, and almost un- known to its legitimate parents. The questions that have been frequently put to the subscriber, by members of Congress, evidently show that the little interest the In- stitution has excited arises solely from its being unknown to those who ought to be, and doubtless would willingly become, its generous guardians and powerful protectors. Had it been so attached to the Government (its real and only parent) , as to be always with it, always in sight, and always in the way of its fostering care, it would probably have flourished, and have become an honorable and inter- esting appendage to the national family." History of West Point. 197 CHAPTER XI. Action taken by Congress and Increase of the Number of Ca- dets. — Urgent Recommendations in Favor of the Institution BY President Madison. — Reorganization of the Institution in 1812, BY WHICH IT BECAME A BrANCH OF THE ArMY. REDUC- TION OF THE Latter, and Recommendation of the President to Enlarge the Academy. — Inquiry into the Constitutionality of the Institution. — Unanimity of Boards of Investigating Committees on the Subject. — Progress of the Institution, and the Difficulties it Encountered — Changes among the Teach- ers. — Organization under the Law of 1812. — Resignation of Colonel Williams ; Colonel Swift his Successor. — Introduc- tion OF THE Inspector. — Rules with respect to the Promotion of Cadets. — Appointment of a Board of Visitors. — Uniform OF THE Cadets. — Report of the Chief-Engineer. The Message before mentioned was referred to Messrs. Nicholas, of Virginia, Troup, of Georgia, Desha, of Ken- tucky, Upham, of Massachusetts, and Milner, of Penn- sylvania. The names of some of these gentlemen are identified with republican principles, and they Avill not be suspected of having lost sight of or disregarded the strict requirements of the Constitution. This Commit- tee reported a bill on the 12th of April, 1808, which added one hundred and fifty-six members to the corps of cadets, and which passed in the House by a vote of 95 to 16. Under the succeeding administration, the welfare and interests of the Institution were repeatedly recommended 14 ^ 198 History of West Point. to the favorable consideration of Congress by the Execu- tive. In his annual communication, dated 5th Decem- ber, 1810, Mr. Madison maintains its usefulness with great earnestness and power, and combats successfully a popular impression, that such estabUshments were only suited to nations whose pohcy was, to a considera- ble extent, and by the necessity of their position, war- like. " The Corps of Engineers, with the Military Academy, are entitled to the early attention of Congress. But a revision of the law is recommended, principally with a view to a more enlarged cultivation and diffusion of the advantages of such institutions, by providing professor- ships for all the necessary branches of military instruc- tion, and by the establishment of an additional Academy at the seat of government or elsewhere. " The means by which wars, as well for defence as offence, are now carried on, render these schools of the more scientific operations an indispensable part of every adequate system. Even among nations whose large standing armies and frequent wars afford every other opportunity of instruction, these establishments are found to be indispensable for the due attainment of mili- tary science, which requires a regular course of study and experiment. "In a country, happily without the other opportunities, seminaries, w^here the elementary principles of the art of war can be taught without actual war, and without the expense of extensive and standing armies, have the precious advantage of uniting an essential preparation against external dangers, with a scrupulous regard to in- ternal safety. In no other way, probably, can a pro- History of West Point. 199 vision of equal efficiency for the public defence be made at so little expense, or more consistently with the public liberty."* It seems almost superfluous to remark, that the recommendation for creating a new Academy, as well as the whole tenor of this extract, is conclusive evidence that the constitutionality of these institutions was con- sidered by Mr. Madison to be unquestionable. The maintenance of an unconstitutional establishment could not, with any propriety, be said to be consistent " with a scrupulous regard to internal safety," and " with pub- lic liberty." In 1811, Congress was again reminded by the President " of the importance of these military sem- inaries, which, in every event, will form a valuable and frugal part of our military establishment."^ And before the close of the session, the Act of April 29, 1812, was passed, which declares that the Military Academy shall consist of the Corps of Engineers, and the following professors and assistants, in addition to the teachers of French and Drawing already provided for : viz., a Professor of Natural and Experimental Phi- losophy ; a Professor of Mathematics ; a Professor of Engineering; with an assistant for each. A Chaplain was also to be apj)ointed, and required^o officiate as Pro- fessor of Geography, Ethics, and History. The num- ber of cadets was limited to two hundred and sixty; the requirements for admission, the term of study and service, and the rate of pay and emoluments were pre- scribed. The broad basis of the Military Academy was thus laid; and as the Act of 1802 expressly declares, "that * Jour. House Reps., 11th Cong., 436. f Jour. House Reps., 12th Cong., 8. 200 History of West Point. the Corps of Engineers shall constitute a Military Acad- emy," and the Act of 1812 reiterates " that the Military Academy shall consist of the Corps of Engineers and the following professors and assistants, in addition," &c. ; it will be perceived that the Military Academy, as de- signed by its founders, does not consist in buildings, apparatus, and location, where instruction is communi- cated, but in a regularly constituted military body, whose officers and professors are appointed, confirmed, and commissioned, in the same manner and form as other army officers, and subjected to the same Rules and Articles of War as govern all the land forces of the United States.* By the Act of March 3, 1815, the Army was reduced to ten thousand men, a number deemed to be sufficiently large, in view of the segregation of this country from Europe, and the diminished strength of the Indian tribes. In his last Message, dated December 5, 1815, Mr. Madi- son urged " an enlargement of the Military Academy, and the establishment of others in sections of the Union. " If experience has shown in the recent splendid achieve- ments of the militia the value of this resource for public defence, it has shown, also, the importance of that skill in the use of arms, and that familiarity with the essen- tial rules of discipline, which cannot be expected from the regulations now in force." During the sessions of Congress in 1815 and 1817, bills were introduced in the House of Representatives for creating additional Military Academies, which, how- ever, received no decisive action. In 1821 the Army * Attorney Gen. U. S., Aug. 2G, 1819 ; Sect, of War, May C, 1846. History of West Point. 20 i was further reduced to six thousand men, but the act of this year, as well as that of 1815, authorized the retaining of the Corps of Engineers as already organ- ized. These legislative enactments in relation to the Acade- my, considered in connection with the army, clearly indi- cate it to have been the settled policy of that day not to rely upon the rank and file of the army, which were en- listed for a short period, and could never be thoroughly disciplined, but to educate officers, so that instructors could always be found ready and competent to teach new levies, whenever changes in the political condition of the country might require them to be raised. The proceedings in the House of Representatives in 1821, demonstrate most conclusively that public senti- ment, so far as it could be expressed through the repre- sentatives of the people, was strongly and almost unani- mously in favor of the perpetuity of this method of pro- viding for future military instruction. On February 6th, of that year, a resolution was intro- duced, proposing an inquiry into the constitutionality of the Military Academy. Ten days after, a motion was made to discontinue the pay and rations of the Cadets, and discharge them from the Academy and the service of the United States — a motion, the certain effect of which would have been the abolition of the Institution. The opinion of the House upon the subject in general, and the two propositions in particular, was emphatically shown in the vote on the last, which was rejected by a majority of eighty-nine. Subsequent to these proceed- ings in the popular branch of the government. President Monroe, in his annual message in 1822, pronounced this 202 History of West Point. strong commendation upon the discipline and manage- ment of the Academy : " Good order is preserved in it, and the young men are well instructed in every science connected with the great objects of the Institution. They are also well trained and disciplined in the practi- cal parts of the profession. It has always been found difficult to control the ardor inseparable from that early age, in such a manner as to give it a proper direction. The great object to be accomplished is the restraint of that ardor by such wise regulation and government as will keep it within a just subordination, and at the same time elevate it to the highest purposes. This object seems to be essentially obtained in this Institution, and w^ith great advantage to the nation. '' The Military Academy forms the basis in regard to science, on which the military establishment rests. It furnishes annually, after due examination, and on the report of the Academic Staff, many well-informed youths, to fill the vacancies w^hich occur in the several corps of the army ; while others, who retire to private life, carry with them such attainments, as, under the right reserved to the several States to appoint the officers and to train '] the militia, Avill enable them, by affording a wider field for selection, to promote the great object of the power vested in Congress of providing for the organizing, arm- ing, and disciplining the militia." It has been mentioned that, during the inception of the Military Academy, 3Ir. Jefferson entertained doubts as to the constitutional power of the Government to create a Military Academy, and that in the end, he not only yielded them, but, during his administration, gave his active support to the legislative measures for History of West Point. 203 creating and adding to the efficiency of the one exist- ing. Like objections have been raised from time to time, which have met with little or no success. On this subject it may be briefly observed, that Con- ^ gress, in the exercise of its constitutional power " to raise and support armies," and " to make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces," has enacted, that a number of cadets may be appointed as a part of the army, " at no time to exceed two hun- dred and fifty." Under this law it will be conceded, that these cadets, on receiving their warrants, could be assigned to companies as in other armies, and instructed in such way as would best qualify them for the duties for which they are candidates, and that the expense could be provided for by Congress in the usual man- ner. Economy would dictate that these cadets should be embodied, and that all requisite means to effect the proper training and instructing of them, as officers and soldiers, were included in the powers granted by the Constitution. The only question to be decided then is, What are the necessary means for this purpose ? In other military States, military schools are found to exist, provided not only with every thing necessary for military instruction, but with professors for all those branches of science connected with the military profes- sion. The most strict constructionist would hardly question the power to provide masters of Riding, of the Sword, and of Gymnastics ; and yet these are no more a part of a military education than a knowledge of Surveying, of 204 History of West Point. Ballistics, and of the composition and fabrication of Gun- powder, of the construction of Ordnance, and of the art of Fortification, — all of which require for their attain- ment and practice scientific culture of the highest order. It is the fate of every institution of National impor- tance, which is fostered and sustained by our Govern- ment, to undergo, periodically, probing and investiga- tion. Nothing, established by the legislators of one day, is exempt from inquiry and examination by those who follow them in after-life. In looking over the lists of the Boards of Visitors, who, for more than forty years, have attended the annual examinations at the Military Academy, the names of individuals known throughout the country, as eminent in Arts, Sciences, and Literature, are found to be conspicuous. These Boards have been composed of men of all poli- tical parties, and from all sections of the Union; men whose reputation was of such a character, as to forbid the imputation of rendering false testimony as to the merits of the Institution ; and yet, whatever may have been their prejudices or predilections, they have melted away, and been converted into the strongest approba- tion, in the crucibles of personal inquiry and conscien- tious judgment. No Institution in the land has undergone such an ordeal of investigations from Boards and Congressional Committees, and none courts closer examination and scrutiny. " The history of the origin of the Military Academy, and the opinions and action of the Executive and Legis- History of West Point. 205 lative Departments in regard to it, exhibits the correctly balanced mind of Washington, passing from doubt to assured conviction, uj)on the question of its constitution- ality ; the philosophic mind of Jefferson, who was ever biased against free constructions, relinquishing the con- fident opinion he had expressed in the negative upon the same question, and proposing an enlargement of the Institution ; the clearly discriminating mind of Madison, exerting its great powers to perpetuate the existing, and create new establishments, untrammelled by a doubt of the constitutional authority of the Government, and his example imitated by his friend and successor. " It shows the recognition by Congress of the sound- ness of the principle, constituting the basis of such an Institution in the Acts of 1794 and 1798 ; the distinct and not to be mistaken expression of the conviction of the same body, of their power, and of the expediency of exercising their power, to establish a Military Aca- demy in the Act of 1802 ; and this, too, after the projet of such an institution had been fully developed in all its extent, in the official report of 1800, and had been two years open for their consideration, and that of their con- stituents ; and, lastly, it exhibits an unbroken series of legislative enactments for the support and extension of the Academy, running through a period of twenty years, and the failure of the attempts which have been made to induce an opposite course of legislation." It will be difficult to find in the recorded history of the country, a question upon which public senti- ment has been more fully and fairly tested, and one which has so closely approached unanimity in its settle- ment. 206 History of West Point. Under the Act of July 16, 1798, the President was authorized to appoint four teachers of the " Arts and Sciences," for the instruction of the regiment of Artil- lerists and Engineers ; and accordingly, a number of officers and men from that regiment were collected at West Point, and the attempt made to organize a school for military instruction at that place. It soon became apparent, however, that the want of a preparatory induction into the " Arts and Sciences," rendered it diffi- cult for the officers to impart the necessary instruction. The school, as a consequence, progressed slowly, and with little success.* Of the four teachers, none were appointed prior to January 6, 1801 ; at which time Mr. George Barron was appointed teacher of Mathematics, and served as such until his dismissal from service, February 11, 1802. On December 4, 1801, Major Jonathan Williams, of the regiment of Artillerists and Engineers, assumed the command of the Post and the duties of instruction,f assisted by Captain W. A. Barron, of the same corps. It was soon discovered that the regiment of Artillerists and Engineers could not combine with eff'ect the two duties assigned to its members, and a law was therefore framed, separating them into two corps, and declaring that the Corps of Engineers should be stationed at West Point, N. Y., and should constitute a Military Academy. The following extracts include all the law that relates to the subject under consideration : * Seventeenth Cong., First Session, No. 226. f Williams's Report. — General Swift, MSS. History of West Point. 207 "ACT OF MAECH 16, 1802, ENTITLED, 'AN ACT FIXING THE MIL+ ITARY PEACE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE UNITED STATES.' / " Sec. 2. — That the regiment of Artillerists shall con- sist of one colonel, one lieutenant-colonel, four majors, one adjutant, and twenty comjmnies, each company to consist of one captain, one first lieutenant, one second lieutenant, two cadets, four sergeants, four corporals, four musicians, eight artificers, and fifty-six privates ; to be formed into five battalions. '*' * '"•' * "Sec. 26.— That the President of the United States is hereby authorized and empowered, when he shall deem it expedient, to organize and establish a Corps of Engineers, to consist of one engineer, with the pay, rank, and emoluments of a major ; two assistant engineers, with the pay, rank, and emoluments of first lieuten- ants ; two other assistant engineers, with the pay, rank, and emoluments of second lieutenants ; and ten cadets, with the pay of sixteen dollars per month, and two ra- tions per day ; and the President of the United States is in like manner authorized, when he shall deem it proper, to make such promotions in the said Corps, with a view to particular merit, and without regard to rank, so as not to exceed one colonel, one lieutenant-colonel, two majors, four captains, four first lieutenants, four second lieutenants, and so that the number of the whole Corps shall at no time exceed twenty officers and cadets. '' Sec. 27. — That the said Corps, when so organized, shall be stationed at West Point, in the State of New York, and shall constitute a Military Academy; and the Engineers, assistant Engineers, and cadets of the said Corps, shall be subject, at all times, to duty in such 208 History of West Point. places, and *on such service, as the President of the United States shall direct. " Sec. 28. — That the principal Engineer, in his absence the next in rank, shall have the Superintendence of the said Military Academy, under the direction of the Pres- ident of the United States ; and the Secretary of War is hereby authorized, at the public expense, under such regulations as shall be directed by the President of the United States, to procure the necessary books, imple- ments, and apparatus for the use and benefit of the said Institution." Under the foregoing Act the following officers were appointed : * Jonathan Williams, Major of Engineers and Principal Engineer, became the Superintendent of the Military Academy, April, 1802. William A. Barron, Captain Engineers, Teacher Mathematics, April, 1802. Jared Mansfield, Captain Engineers, Teacher Natu- ral and Experimental Philosophy, May, 1802. James Wilson, First Lieutenant Engineers, Student. Alexander Macomb, First Lieutenant Engineers, Stu- dent. Joseph G. Swift, Second Lieutenant Engineers, Student. Simon M. Levi, Second Lieutenant Engineers, Student. By the Act of February 28, 1803, there were added to the Academy, a teacher of French and a teacher of Drawing ;f but both positions were filled by Francis De Masson from July, 1803, until September, 1808, at which time Christian E. Zoeller was appointed teacher of Drawing. Upon the resignation of the latter, in April, 1810, De Masson again resumed the duties. *im. Affairs, II., 634. f MQ. Affairs, II., 634. History of West Point. 209 The same Act authorized forty Cadets from the Ar- tillery, in addition to the ten from the Engineers already providedT; and by another Act, passed April 12, 1808, twenty Cadets from the Light Artillery, one hundred from the Infantry, sixteen from the Cavalry, and twenty from the Hiflemen, were authorized. But few, if any, of the Cadets thus designated were appointed. No law attached them to the Military Academy ; no provision existed for the reception or instruction of such a num- ber at West Point, and to order them to their regiments without instruction Avas deemed useless. Thus, at this early period, the Military Academy was recognized as a Scientific Institution for the education of the Corps of Engineers, and as such, its existence was not made contingent upon the presence or absence of Cadets appointed in the army. Some changes occurred among the teachers meanwhile ; Captain Barron having been re- lieved in February, 1807, by Ferdinand R. Hassler ; and the latter, having been called on the Coast Survey in February, 1810, was succeeded by Captain Alden Par- tridge, of the Engineers, who discharged the duties until his appointment as Professor, under the Act of 1812. Captain Mansfield was relieved in 1805, leaving his position vacant until his return as Professor, under the same Act. The Cadets were quartered in the old " Long Barrack"* * " War Department, Dec. 8, 1S13. *' The Cadets of the Mihtary Academy shall, as early as possible, be fed at a common table. The present method of boarding at different and private houses, ought to be discontinued ; you are accordingly authorized to take measures neces- sary to this end, making a report of what you do to this Department.* [Signed] " J. Armstrong." "To Capt. Paeteidge." \Stci. of War.^ * Order-Book, 1813, U. S. M. A. 210 History of West Point. of the Revolution, boarded promiscuously, and in^ structed in a two-story wooden building, serving as the " Academy," and at the same time as the quarters of the Superintendent. It stood on the site now occupied by the latter. In this embryonic condition the Military Academy furnished but seventy-one graduates during the first ten years of its existence, and was indeed appropriately com- pared to " a foundling barely existing among the moun- tains, nurtured at a distance, out of sight of, and almost unknown to, its legitimate parents." The urgent recommendation of Mr. Madison, in 1810, and its repetition the following year, at length awakened Congress to the necessity of revising the existing laws relative to the Institution. On April 29th, 1812, an Act was passed, entitled, "AN ACT MAKING FURTHER PROVISION FOR THE CORPS OF EN- GINEERS. " Sec. 2. — That the Military Academy shall consist of the Corps of Engineers, and the following professors, in addition to the teachers of the French language and Drawdng', already provided, viz. : one professor of Natural and Experimental Philosojihy, with the joay and emolu- ments of lieutenant-colonel, if not an officer of the Corps, and, if taken from the Corps, then so much in addition to his pay and emoluments as shall equal those of a lieu- tenant-colonel ; one professor of Mathematics, wdth the pay and emoluments of a major, if not an officer of the Corps, and, if taken from the Corps, then so much in addition to his pay and emoluments as shall equal those of a major ; one professor of the art of Engineering in all its branches, with the pay and emoluments of a major, if History of West Point. 211 not an officer of the Corps, and, if taken from the Corps, then so much in addition to his pay and emoluments as shall equal those of a major ; each of the foregoing pro- fessors to have an assistant professor, which assistant professor shall be taken from the most prominent charac- ters of the officers or cadets, and receiA^e the pay and emoluments of captains, and no other pay or emolu- ments while performing these duties. Provided, That nothing herein contained shall entitle the Academical Staff, as such, to any command in the army separate from the Academy. \ " Sec. 3. — That the cadets heretofore appointed in the\ \ service of the United States, whether of Artillery, Cav- j airy. Riflemen, or Infantry, or that may in future be/ appointed as hereinafter provided, shall at no time exV ceed two hundred and fifty ; that they may be attachec^, at the discretion of the President of the United Stateis, as students, to the Military Academy, and be subject to the established regulations thereof; that they shall be arranged into companies of non-commissioned officers and privates, according to the direction of the commandant of Engineers, and be officered from the said Corps, for the purpose of military instruction ; that there shall be added to each company of cadets four musicians, and the said Corps shall be trained and taught all the duties of a private, non-commissioned officer, and officer ; be encamped at least three months of each year, and taught all the duties incident to a regular camp ; that the can- didates for cadets be not under the age of fourteen, nor above the age of twenty-one years ; that each cadet, previ- ously to his appointment by the President of the United States, shall be well versed in reading, writing, and 212 History of West Point. arithmetic, and that he shall sign articles, with the con- sent of his parent or guardian, by which he shall engage to serve five years, unless sooner discharged ; and all such cadets shall be entitled to and receive the pay and emoluments now allowed by law to cadets in the Corps of Engineers. " Sec. 4. — That when any cadet shall receive a regular degree from the Academic Staff, after going through all the classes, he shall be considered as among the candi- dates for a commission in any Corps, according to the duties he may be judged competent to perform ; and in case there shall not, at the time, be a vacancy in such Corps, he may be attached to it at the discretion of the President of the United States, by brevet of the lowest grade, as a supernumerary officer, with the usual pay and emoluments of such grade, until a vacancy shall happen. Provided, That there shall not be more than one supernumerary officer to any one company at the same time. " Sec. 5. — That $25,000 be appropriated for erecting buildings, and for providing an apparatus, a library, and all necessary implements, and for such contingent ex- penses as may be necessary and proper, in the judgment of the President of the United States, for such an insti- tution." This law furnished the jirinciples upon which the Military Academy has been conducted and controlled, without change to the present moment. In addition to the Departments of Engineering, Philosophy, Mathemat- ics, French, and Drawing, provided for, there haA'e been added in later years, as the Academy progressed in use- fulness, a Department of Geography, History, and Ethics; History of West Point. 21 B a Department of Chemistry, Mineralogy, and Geology ; a Department of Infantry Tactics,* a Department of Practical Engineering, a Department of Artillery and Cavalry, a Department of Spanish, a Department of Ordnance and Gunnery, a Department for Equitation and Cavalry instruction, and a Department of Fencing and Bayonet exercise. .Upon the resignation of Colonel Williams, July 31, 1812, he was succeeded by Colonel Joseph G. Swift, as senior ofl&cer of Engineers, and Superintendent. Although the law had contemplated that the Corps of Engineers should be stationed at West Point, its duties soon became so extensive that the chief of the Corps could not be present continuously at the Academy ; but by the direction of the President he was, previous to 1815, charged with the administration of its affairs, couA^eying his orders, when absent, to the senior Engineer officer at the Institution, who thus exercised the functions of Superintendent. The Regulations of the Military Academy, dated "War Department, January 3, 1815, Approved, James Monroe," and an Order from the War Department, dated February 28, 1815, approved in like manner, provided that, "*A Permanent Superintendent' shall be appointed to the Military Academy, who, under the direction of the Secretary of War, shall have exclusive control of the Institution and of those connected with it, and Avho * A General Order, dated "Dec. 8, 1813, signed, John Armstrong [Sect, of War], directs three hundred short muskets to be forwarded from the Springfield, Mass., Armory to West Point, for the use of the Cadets — and another of the same date, requires the Ordnance Officer at Albany to furnish one 18-Pounder, one 10^ inch Mortar, and one 5i-inch Howitzer, for the use of the Academy at the same place." [Order-Book, 1813, U. S. M. A.] 15 214 History of West Point. will be held responsible for its conduct and progress: he will direct the studies, field exercises, and other aca- demic duties. The Commandant of the Corps of Engi- neers shall be the ^Inspector' of the Academy, and shall visit it officially and report thereon to the War Department, with such alterations and improvements as he and the Superintendent may deem necessary. The Superintendent will receive orders from the Inspector, and will make all returns and communications relative to the Academy to him only." The Order declared that no officer of the Army, of any rank whatever, should exercise command at West Point, unless subor- dinate to the Inspector or the Superintendent of the Academy. These orders have remained in force to the present day. During the following year, the " Rules with respect to the Promotion of the Cadets at the Military Academy" were approved by Mr. Monroe, by which their distribu- tion to the different Corps in the army and their rela- tive rank were made to depend on their general merit, to be determined by a competent Board of Examiners, and that no Cadet should be promoted until after com- pleting his course of studies, and receiving his diploma, &c. It does not appear that these "Rules" were opera- tive until November, 1818, at which time they were published in Orders at the Academy, and the Academic Staff constituted the examining Board. Another series of Regulations for the Government of the Military Academy, dated West Point, May 22, 181G, was transmitted to the Inspector by Mr. Craw- ford, the Secretary of War, " approved" July 1, 1816, which contained, in addition to the foregoing, a pro- History of West Point. 215 vision for the appointment of a " Board of Visitors," to consist of five competent gentlemen, who should attend at each general examination, and report thereon to the War Department through the Inspector. Of this Board the Superintendent was constituted the President. It was also provided that annual and semi-annual exami- ' nations should be held in June and January, and that new Cadets should present themselves in the month of September, and be examined in spelling, reading, wri- ting, and arithmetic* During the same year a course of studies for each of the four years was drawn up, and received the sanction of the Secretary of War. A General Order on September 4, 1816, prescribed the uniform of the Corps of Cadets, the same as now worn, except that the hat and cockade have been displaced by a dress and fatigue-cap, and the pants are with- out the Austrian knot. Regulations and orders alike seemed unavailing in producing the expected results, for the Chief Engineer, in his report dated March 30th, ' 1822, declared that "the Military Academy may be considered as having been in its infancy until about the beginning of 1818, prior to which there was but little system or regularity. Cadets were admitted without examination, and without the least regard to their age or qualifications, as required by the law of 1812. Hence the Institution was filled with Cadets who were more or less unfit for their situations. It is not surprising, therefore, that a large portion of them have been under the necessity of leaving the Academy without com- pleting their education." f * NUes'a Reg., XYL, Supplement. f MiL Affairs, H., 381. 216 History of West Point. The Cadets were not regarded as amenable to martial law; no class-rank was established; no register of the classes was published ; and in the assignment to positions in the Army, they demanded the right to elect such Corps as seemed to them most satisfactory. * * The early Uniform of the Cadets was as follows : Coat. Blue cloth, single breasted, standing collar, single herring-bone cuff, eight buttons in front, six in rear, one on each side of the coUar with one blind button-hole, and one on each cuff. Under Clothes. — Nankeen in Summer, grey cloth in Winter. Black Stock. Chapeau. — Cockade with gilt eagle, and loop. Half-Boots and Shoes. Swords. — Cut and thrust, in a frog belt worn under the coat. The Buttons to be eagle impression, yellow gilt, f th inch diameter. — [Army Regulations, 1814.] History of West Point. 217 CHAPTER XII. Appointment of Brevet-Major Thayer as Superintendent. — Im- petus IMPARTED to THE INSTITUTION. ORGANIZATION OF THE Battalion of Cadets. — Improvements in the System of Educa- tion. — The Secretary of "War directs Five most Distinguished Cadets in each Class, to be Annually Reported.— Amenabil- ity OF Cadets to Martial Law. — Cadet Assistant Professors. — General Examinations in January and June. — Furloughs. — Major De Russy Appointed to Succeed Colonel Thayer as Su- perintendent, — Destruction by Fire of the Academic Build- ing. — New one Erected. — Organization of the Department of Chemistry, &;c. — The Cadets Sworn to Serve Eight Years. Submerged under these and other chaotic influences, Brevet-Major Sylvanus Thayer, of the Corps of Engi- neers, on July 28, 1817, assumed command as Superin- tendent of the Military Academy, and from this period the commencement of whatever success as an educa- tional institution, and whatever reputation the Academy may possess throughout our country and abroad, for its strict, impartial, salutary, elevating, and disciplinary government, must be dated. Major Thayer was an early graduate of the Academy; he had served with distinction in the War of 1812, and had studied the Military Schools of France, and profited by the opportunity to acquire more complete and just views concerning the management of such an institution than were generally entertained among educational and military men of that day. The field before him was 218 History of West Point. uncultivated; the period was one when rare qualifica- tions for position were not regarded as valueless ; and blessed with health, devotion to the cause, and firmness, of purpose, he was permitted to organize a system, and remain sixteen years to perfect its operation. Immediately after entering upon his duties, the Cadets were organized into a Battalion of two Companies, with a Colonel^ of Cadets, an Adjutant and Sergeant-Major, for its Staff; and within the year he created a " Com- mandant of Cadets," to be an instructor of Tactics, and superintend their instruction. The office thus intro- duced has recently been recognized by Congress, though it had, from its origin, continuously existed with no other sanction than a Regulation. The division of Classes into sections,f the transfers be- tween the latter,f the weekly rendering of class reports, showing the daily progress, the system and scale of daily marks,J the establishment of relative class rank among the members, the publication of the Annual Register, the introduction of the Board of Visitors,§ the Check-book system,|| the preponderating influence of the " Black-board," and the essential parts of the Regu- lations! | for the Military Academy, as they stand to * Battalion Orders, Sept. 23, 1817. — "For the designation of rank, chevrons will be worn on the arms of the Battalion OfiQcers and non-commissioned OflQcers. The Colonel shall wear three on each arm, the Captain shall wear two on each arm, the Adjutant one on each arm, the Lieutenant one on the left arm; the Sergeant-Major two on each arm, the Sergeants one on each arm, the Corporals one on the left arm. Those worn by the officers to be of gold lace, and those of the non-commissioned officers to be of yellow ribbon." — [Order-Book U. S. M. A., 1817.] f Order-Book, Oct., 1817, U. S. M. A. J Mil. Aft'airs, II., 659 § Although authorized by the "Crawford" Regulations of March 6, 1816, no record exists of the proceedings of such a Board previous to 1819. — [Off. Records, U. S. M. A.] J Oxder-Book, 1818, U. S. M. A. History of West Point. 219 this day, are some of the evidences of the indefatigable efforts of Major Thayer to insure method, order, and prosperity to the Institution. It was through the agency of Major Thayer that Professor Claude Crozet, the parent of Descriptive Geometry in America, and one of the first successful instructors of the higher Mathematics, permanent Fortifications, and Toj)ographical Curves, became attached to the Academy. On February 14, 1818, a communication from John C. Calhoun, Secretary of War, to the Superintendent, declares that it is the determination of the Department to aid in elevating the system of discipline, and create a spirit of emulation among the cadets ; and further dis- closes the belief, "that in future wars the Nation must look to the Academy for the skill to conduct valor to victory ;" it also adds, that as " publishing in the Army Register the names of cadets who are most distin- guished for attainments and meritorious conduct, may inspire attention to study, and create emulous exertion, you will report to this Department annually in Novem- ber for that object, the names of those who have most distinguished themselves in the examination, not exceed- ing five in each class, specifying the studies in which they may excel."* This order has fully sustained the object of its origi- nator ; and few among those thus honored have in after- life experienced a higher feeling of gratified ambition, than accompanied the annual publication, now presented in the appendix, for a period of forty-five years. The Department of Geography, History, and Ethics was organized by the Act of April 14, 1818 ; on the 18th, * Order-Book, 1818, U. S. M. A. 220 History of West Point. the Chaplain, Rev. Cave Jones, was appointed Professor. The clerical and secular duties thus combined have remained inseparable to the present period. In November of this year, there occurred a series of events which resulted in the memorable trial of Cadets F., H., L., R., and V., and established the amenability of the Corps of Cadets to martial law, and trial by gar- rison courts. The cadets referred to composed a committee repre- senting one hundred and eighty-nine others, who had formed a combination, under the impression that they had, as a corps in the army, rights to defend ; and that as cadets at the Military Academy, they were entitled to a free expression of opinion in regard to its manage- ment. A General Court-Martial, of which Brevet- Colonel J. Hindman, Corps of Artillery, was president, convened at West Point in May following, for the trial of the cadets named ; and upon the completion of the first case [Cadet R.], the court decided that, according to their construction of the Rules and Articles of War, they had no autlioriiy to try cadets. Upon this decision, August 21, 1819, Hon. William Wirt, then Attorney-General,* delivered an elaborate opinion, wherein the following views are supported : " It is suggested by Colonel Hindman, on behalf of the court-martial, that these cadets are merely students. In one sense they are so, and so was the old corps, known under the name of ' Artillerists and Engineers ;* so was * A decision of the Attorney-General, dated July 13th, 1837, places the sojourn of any person at West Point not connected with the Military Academy (denying the right of a citizen, even to visit the hotel, post-office, or use the public wharf) subject to a prohibition by the Superintendent, if in hia opinion the public interest requires it. — [Official Records U. S. M. A.] History of West Point. 221 the original corps of engineers who constituted the Mili- tary Academy ; for both ' books, instruments, and appa- ratus for study,' were expressly provided by law ; yet this character of students did not exempt them from liability to martial law. But if the suggestion is in- tended to place cadets on the footing of civil students, clothed with all their civil privileges and immunities, it is proper to remark, that these cadets occupy a very dif- ferent ground ; they are enlisted soldiers ; they engage, like soldiers, to serve five years unless sooner dis- charged J * * * * they are bound to perform military duty in such places, and on such service, as the Com- mander-in-chief of the army of the United States shall order; and, finally, by the Act of the 3d of March, 1815, fixing ' the military peace establishment of the United States,' the corps to which they are attached, and of which they form a part, is expressly recognized as a part of that military establishment, * * * After every allowance for the genius of our Constitution and laws, and after rejecting every thing like implication and inference from the consideration of this question, I come to the conclusion that the corps at West Point form a part of the land forces of the United States, and have been constitutionally subjected by Congress to the Rules and Articles of War, and to trial by courts-martial."* This opinion was confirmed by President Monroe and Mr. Calhoun, Secretary of War, and has prevailed from that day to this, as supreme law. An order from the Engineer Department, dated April 13, 1818, authorized the employment of cadets as acting * MU. Affairs, 11, 30. 222 History of West Point. Assistant Professors, " each cadet so detailed to receive ten dollars per month," and the appointment, declared an " honorable distinction," was further marked by the order of the Superintendent, dated September 10, 1823, which prescribed the additional number of buttons on the uniform of such as held these positions.* Practical instruction at this time was conveyed not only at the Academy, but excursion marches, under Major William J. Worth, the Commandant of Cadets, were made at different times by the cadets to Boston, Philadelphia, Princeton, and other points, during which all the duties incident to camp-life and field-service were regularly performed. A Regulation, approved by the Secretary of War, dated July 23d, 1818, introduced the following radical changes in the existing code : " I. There shall be two general examinations in each year ; the first to commence on the 1st of January, and the second on the 1st of June. " II. All newly appointed cadets will be ordered to join the Military Academy for examination by the 25th of June in each year, and no cadet shall be examined for admission after the first day of September following, un- less he shall have been prevented from joining at the proper time by sickness or some other unavoidable cause ; in which case he may be examined with the fourth class at the general examination in January, and if then found quahfied to proceed with that class, may be ad- mitted accordingly. "III. Until a revision of the laws relating to the ♦ Order-Book, 1823, U. S. M. A. History of West Point. 223 Military Academy, there shall be, in lieu of the vaca- tion authorized by the existing regulations, an annual encampment, to commence on the 1st of July and end on the 31st of August. " IV. The Superintendent is authorized to grant fur- loughs to the cadets, at the request of their parents, dur- ing the period of their encampment, provided that not more than one-fourth of the whole number be absent at any one time, and provided also that every cadet, pre- viously to his receiving a diploma, shall have been pre- sent at not less than two entire encampments."* At his own request, on July 1, 1833, Colonel Thayer was relieved as Superintendent by Major R. E. De RussY, of the Corps of Engineers. The upward impetus given to the Institution by the former, had attracted general observation. Cadet appointments became a '^ matter of greater importance and patronage. The as- perities of party were aroused ; politics invaded the Mil- itary Academy ; and the decisions of its controlling authorities were subject to reversion, by those who sought to perpetuate influence rather than uphold disci- pline. Under Colonel De Russy the present Academic HaU was commenced ; and while yet in progress, on February 19, 1838, the old two-story stone Academy, facing the north, and in front of the present Barracks, was destroy- ed by fire. The books and records of the Adjutant's Office, con- taining the history of the Academy, and of the Post since the Revolution, w^ere entirely consumed, and a loss * Order-Book, Aug., 1818, U. S. M. A. 224 History of West Point. was thereby sustained which can never be replaced. The contents of the Library, Engineering Department, and Chemical Laboratory, were rescued by the cadets in a seriously damaged condition. By the Act of July 5, 1838, it was provided, " That an additional professor be appointed to instruct in the studies of Chemistry, Mineralogy, and Geology," and the Secretary of War was authorized to assign an assistant professor, " to be taken from the officers of the line or cadets, and who should receive the same pay as the other assistant professors." The Department thus created was organized by the appointment of Lieutenant Jacob W. Bailey, as Pro- fessor. Section 28 of the same Act declared : " That the term for which Cadets hereafter admitted into the Military Academy at West Point shall engage to serve be, and the same is hereby, increased to eight years, unless sooner discharged." This engagement has remained unchanged ; and by it the United States claims the services of those who have been educated at the expense of the nation, though the latter is by no means bound to provide commissions to the cadets after passing the prescribed four years at the Military Academy. No instances, however, have occur- red where the services were refused, or the graduates left unprovided with commissions. History of West Point. 225 CHAPTER XIII. Major Delafield Appointed to Succeed Colonel De Russy as Superintendent. — Progress in Improvements. — Establishment OF Cavalry Instruction. — Commandant of the Post. — Method OF Appointing the Cadets. — Principles Regulating it. — Not Controlled by the "Wealthy. — Open to all. — Substitutes for the Present System of making Appointments. — Enormous Ex- pense of the Proposed Change. — Comparison of a Cadet and Citizen Applicant for Grade of Lieutenant. — The Military Academy said to be " Only a School of Art," and Accused OF HAVING Produced no " Great Military Genius." — An Ap- peal to its Records. — Term of Service of Graduates, and of Citizens in the Army. On September 1, 1838, Colonel De Russy was suc- ceeded by Major Richard Delafield, of the Corps of Engineers, as Superintendent. Endowed with adminis- trative abilities of a high order, and an inflexible resolu- tion to maintain the discipline of the Institution, one of the earliest efforts of this officer was directed towards defining and establishing the boundaries of the public lands at West Point, and removing all unauthorized indi- viduals who had settled thereon. Various suits of eject- ment were successfully instituted against those who, under divers pretences, occupied portions of the public domain. Under his direction. Lieutenant Knowlton was employed to search the State and County records ; and the result was most successful in effecting the removal of the off"ending parties, and the establishment by a new 226 History of West Point. survey, in 1839, of the boundaries before described, and which have remained ever since unchanged. The erec- tion of the Library Building and Artillery Laboratory, the enlargement of the Library, the imj^rovement of the Chemical Laboratory, many acquisitions to the Drawing department, and the construction of the roads leading towards Canterbury, to the North Wharf, and the Chain battery walk, are some of the efforts which attest Major Delafield's untiring energy. The repeated representations of the successive Boards of Visitors induced Mr. Poinsett, the Secretary of War, on June 12, 1839, to transfer a sergeant and five dra- goons from Carlisle Barracks, to aid in the introduction of exercises in Riding at the Academy. Twelve horses were supplied by the Quarter-Master's Department in the ensuing week. In September following, the Ser- geant was appointed Riding-Master ; and at the same time authority was given the Superintendent to recruit the detachment, purchase thirty additional horses with equipments, and the harness necessary for a battery of Light Artillery. From this period new life was infused into the Light Artillery and mounted corps of the army, and instruc- tion in both of these branches has continued without interruption. By the Act of July 20, 1840, it was declared that the Commandant of Cadets should be either the instructor of Artillery, Cavalry, or Infantry tactics, or the in- structor of practical Engineering ; and by the same Act, an Assistant professor was authorized in the depart- ment of Ethics as in other departments. Section 6th of the Act of August 23, 1842, declared, History of West Point. 227 that the Superintendent of the Military Academy should be the Commandant of the Post; and thus a vexatious question of .ank and command was defini- tively settled. Up to this period, the' mode of selecting and appoint- ing the Cadets had constituted a grave subject of inquiry and discussion in differe'nt sections of the country. An examination of the method, and the comparative merit of the system which was^jDroposed as a substitute, admit of a brief description, i Prior to 1817, various vdrcumstances connected with the condition of the country and of the Academy, con- tributed to render admission to it far less an object of ambition than it has since become. The openings for the aspiring, before the commencement of the second war of 1812, were indicated by the pacific policy of the country. The talents of the young were exerted in achieving pre-eminence in the legislative or judicial halls, or in acquiring the wealth to be gained in commercial intercourse with foreign lands. Undoubtedly military science and skiU assumed more important aspects in the public mind during the progress of that war ; but the sure means of obtaining this science and skill were not as perceptible in the then imperfect organization of, and instruction at the Military Academy, as they have been since the year 1817. From that period the increasing reputation of the Institution attracted towards it public attention; and young men of ardent minds and strong powers sought a participation in its privileges and advantages. This general emulation imposed upon the Department, by which the selection of candidates was to be made, the 228 History of West Point. necessity of adopting some general rule, which should exclude the imputation of favoritism, and be equitable for all. One principle was admitted to be fundamental — that the doors of an institution which was sustained by the munificence of the country should be first opened to receive the sons of those who had bravely perilled, or who had nobly lost their livVs in its defence. An- other principle, which naturally suggested itself to the minds of those who wished tliat the army should be deservedly honored, was, that ;.n uncommon intellectual ability should be a guarantee ^ success to an applicant. In the application of these princiiDles, however, even upon the supposition that selections were limited to these two classes, there might often occur a serious practical difficulty. The very word. Selection, implies a balancing of claims ; and it is not to be supposed that any individual, however extensive his intercourse with society might have been, would be able, from his per- sonal knowledge of candidates, to frame in all cases a just award. This difficulty increased as the number of admissions to be granted increased, and as the classes from which a selection was to be made were multiplied. To rely entirely upon the representations of individuals residing at a distance, and equally unknown with those whom they recommended, would be obviously most unsafe. It would be reposing confidence under circumstances which would not justify trust in ordinary matters of mere pecuniary interest. The representative branch of the Government, including under this denomination the Senate and the House, afforded a means of obtaining the information prerequisite to a decision, which pro- History of West Point. 229 mised an effectual security for the rights of all. No inference could be more legitimate than this : that they who were intrusted with the higher concerns of the people, and who were directly responsible to the people, would be safe counsellors in the administration of this interest. From these and similar views originated, probably, the custom of selecting one cadet from each Congressional district, and of allowing great weight to the recommendation of the representatives of the respective districts. This rule, while it afforded to the appointing power the means of judging correctly, or rather of avoiding error, was accej)table to the repre- sentatives and to their constituents. To the former, as it gave them opportunities of extending their personal influence, or of gratifying their feelings of personal regard. To the latter, who could thus present their claims with the more freedom and confidence through the medium which the Constitution and their own choice had provided. It is true that, in some instances, a representative might feel himself bound to present the names of seve- ral candidates, and that then the final decision must be made by the head of the Department. But such in- stances are of rare occurrence ; and it is believed the fact is susceptible of positive proof, that, in a vast majority of cases, the selections have been determined by the representative of the district, or by the joint action of all the members of a delegation from a State. The necessary operation of this rule leaves but little pat- ronage with the appointing power; and the danger of an abuse of the privilege allowed them by the representa- tives is guarded against, not only by their responsibility 16 230 History of West Point. to their constituents, but by the sense of honor which will forbid them to mislead the judgment of him who relies upon them for the means of deciding rightly. It has been charged, however, that under the influence of the motives which have been alluded to [the extension of their personal interest, and the gratification of personal regard], the representatives have exerted themselves for the success of the toealthy or powerful. The records of the Academy furnish a complete refutation to this charge. From them it prominently appears, that not more than one-eighteenth of those admitted during the last twenty- two years could have received, without this aid, more than a common English school education, and that a still smaller number of the officers of the army pos- sess any income or means of support beyond their regu- lar pay and emoluments. It seems that this accusation underrates the intelligence and moral feeling of both representatives and people. The sentiments of grati- tude and veneration for the worthies of the army have not so far subsided, nor the appreciation of uncommon mental power become so rare in any community, that the overlooking, by a representative or an officer of the Government, of a son of the former, or the possessor of the latter, in favor of one whose only recommendations were wealth or influence with a party, would not draw upon him their distrust and contempt. That appointments have been, and may again be made, without consulting those peculiar interests for which the Institution was designed, it is not unreasonable to sup- pose ; but the Academy itself furnishes the best possible corrective for abuses of this kind, in rejecting incompe- tent and unworthy members ; while, from the legal au- History of West Point. 231 thority* with which it is clothed, it can accomplish what no executive authority has hitherto been able to effect, by resisting all political and other influences for the restoration of such subjects. It thus secures the public interests, and the rightful claims of those of its members who faithfully perform their duties. All will readily admit that the military profession, like that of every other calling in life, requires a pecu- liar training and special qualifications to exercise it suc- cessfully. In most of the other Avocations of life, the welfare of the individual is the chief object — in this, the safety and honor of the State are involved. It is true that there are other bodies upon whom this guardian- ship rests, as the Executive, the Legislative, and the Judiciary ; but the acts of these, if erroneous, are seldom irreparable, and most of them are easily remedied. But this is far from being true in regard to the acts of armies. A battle lost, besides the effusion of blood, often entails an immense destruction of property, and other annihi- lating results ; moreover, a far greater and more mo- mentous loss — that of national existence — may depend upon victory or defeat. Hence the State has the greatest possible interest in maintaining her armies in the most effective condition ; and to neglect any of the means recognized by experi- ence as the best for attaining this purpose, would be not only a culpable, but might prove a fatal remissness. Among these means, there is no one which nations, obliged from their political condition to keep large armies on foot, regard as more important than that of securing a highly educated body of officers, whose instruction has * Act of Congress, August 3, 1861, Chap. 42, Sec. 8. 232 History of West Point. been specially designed to qualify them for the perform- ance of the various duties pertaining to the organiza- tion and discipline of armies. The inquiry naturally presents itself, in what way can these agents be best obtained ? The solution of this question is one which has claimed the attention of every statesman and political economist in Europe and America. From the period of disbanding the army of the Revo- lution on the banks of the Hudson, in 1783, down to the present moment, three methods only have been suggest- ed. It has been urged that individual enterprise might accomplish the end desired; that independent State in- stitutions would fill the necessary requirement ; or that the central Government, under the provision "to provide for the common defence," was clothed with all the au- thority requisite to obtain the desired service. The enormous outlay required by an individual at- tempt, the failure to maintain any thing hke a system of disciphne, from the feeble tie which binds the pupil, and the insignificant pecuniary return when contrasted with other avocations, have produced, in all efforts of this kind, no fruit beyond affording relief to the otherwise sedentary habits of student life. — Nor have the State military institutions enjoyed the measure of success so ardently desired. In every State, when not locally endowed, they have drooped and lan- guished, revived and drooped again. From the diversity of discipline, from the unwillingness to submit to or the inability to maintain it, from the great expense, and from more lucrative attractions, all, save two or three, have failed to enjoy even an ordinary measure of pros- History of West Point. 233 perity. And yet the opportunities for advancement in military life have ever remained open. The commissioned officers of the army are drawn from three sources : 1st, from ciAdl life ; 2d, from the rank and file ; and 3d, from the Cadets, who are warrant offi- cers of the army. The first are appointed without any previous military training, and without any specific examination as to their qualifications. The second are taken from the sergeants,* who have had some practical military training, subject to a pre- liminary examination on some of the very elementary branches of common school instruction. The thirds after four years' practical military instruc- tion, and after two half-yearly rigid examinations, upon branches of science and art connected with his profes- sional pursuits, acquires a claim to the commission only of the lowest grade. There are thus three doors open to army commis- sions, embracing all citizens of the proper military age, and no one in theory or practice excludes the others. The President of the United States alone is clothed with the power of selection and nomination from these classes — a power which, thus far in history, he has confined to no one of the three. How little the cadet excludes the citizen, or even his own military inferior, may be * "Sec. 5. — The President of the United States is authorized, by and with the ad- vice and consent of the Senate, to confer the brevet of second Ueutenant upon such meritorious non-commissioned officers as may be brought before an army board, composed of four officers of rank, specially convened for the purpose ; and if found qualified for the duties of commissioned officers, to attach them to regiments as supernumerary officers, according to the Act of April 29, 1812, entitled 'An Act making further provision for the Corps of Engineers,' Approved August 4, 1854." 234 History of West Point. shown from the fact, that vacancies have been repeatedly filled only a few days before the graduation of a class of cadets, which, had they been left open, the gradu- ates would in due course have filled. The average age of admission of the cadet is eighteen years ; he then enters the service at a period of life when the mind and the body are in the best condition to be moulded into any form. The State places him on active field service when his frame has become suffi- ciently matured to bear the wear and rough usage of military life, and thirty years of efficient service may be reasonably counted upon from him. The private citizen or sergeant, particularly the latter, as a general rule, is farther advanced in years ; and the cadet is therefore more likely to attain a responsible command when possessed of health and strength sufficient to endure its hardships and fatigue. For the staff. Engineers, Ordnance, and Artillery, high scientific attainments are indispensable ; and it is of the utmost importance to the efficiency of other arms, that a portion at least of its officers should be men of the same acquirements. These the Military Academy has hitherto supplied, and with a degree of economy which may well bear the closest examination. A recurrence to the remark in regard to the imputa- tion that undue preference has been shown for the wealthy, is made because the facts do not support the allegation. But it is by no means conceded, that where there are natural endowments and capacities of a high order, the possession of wealth would be a proper ground of exclusion from the Academy. It should be open to all. History of West Point. 235 Admitting, for the moment, that the objections of ex- clusiveness, favoritism, and aristocracy are well founded, the question immediately occurs, how will these objec- tions be removed ? While the Academy exists, the rank of cadet is the lowest grade in the army ; if it be discontinued, the rank of second lieutenant will be the lowest. The change is simple and apparently unim- portant; the consequences are worthy of grave consid- eration. The annual average number of vacancies for ten years in the army, just previous to 1861, is 42; the average number of admissions to the Military Academy for the same period is 78. The opportunities, therefore, for entering the army, being represented by the ratio of 78 to 42, do not, most certainly, render appointments in it less exclusive. But it is said it will be more popular, because the vacancies will be filled by selections from the community at large. Do not the wealthy, and those possessing political influ- ence, constitute a part of the community ? and will not the appointing power have the same inducements for preferring their applications for lieutenants' commissions that he now has for preferring their applications for cadets' warrants ? Will not these applications be made through the representatives, and will there not be the same reasons for relying upon their recommendations ? How then will the opportunities for favoritism be les- sened ? On the other hand, the vacancies which annu- ally occur are now supplied by those graduates of the Academy who have acquired distinction by their con- duct and attainments, and are prepared to undertake the higher duties of their profession. 236 History of West Point. Assuming that forty-two vacancies are to be filled each year from the mass of our citizens, there will be thus added to the army forty-two lieutenants to whom every branch of duty and service will be new, and who, after four years, instead of being familiar with the theory, science, and practice of war, will be very slightly and imperfectly acquainted with the two first, and only tolerably proficient in the last. And to accomplish this result, a considerable pecuniary expenditure must be made. The pay of the forty-two lieutenants for the four years will be 212,688 dollars ; that of the forty-two cadets for the same time, including every thing for their education, will be 60,480 dollars. The difference, 152,208 dollars, is the amount the nation will be re- quired to pay for a change in the military establishment which will deprive it of its great ornaments of talent, learning, and skill, and effect a general deterioration in the character of the officers and the army. The mili- tary and scientific information diffused throughout the country by those who pass two or three years at the Academy, but do not complete the course, is considered in this estimate. But a fair equivalent for the expense of their education is, or may be found, in the employ- ment of their services in perfecting the discipline of the militia, and the construction of works of improvement. A comparison of the results of this change is quite as marked as the expense which would accompany it. In the one case, there stands a cadet graduate awaiting promotion, who has had four years of the very best kind of military instruction. His mind has been engaged in laborious study, affording him a large stock of profes- History of West Point. 237 sional knowledge, and preparing a foundation for all the acquisition his advancement may call for. Not only this : he has been drilled in practical military exercises ; he has served as a soldier for years in the ranks, or as a sergeant or corporal ; and for a year he has often, if not during that whole period, served as a commissioned officer, performing on the field all the appropriate duties, as Engineers, Infantry, Light infantry. Cavalry, and Artillery, both mounted and on foot. He can readily drill a Battalion of Infimtry, a Battery of Artillery, or a Squadron of Cavalry, with promptitude and exactness. He can take in at a glance an offensive or defensive position, and can stake out and direct the construction of a field fortification, block-house, bridge, building, or roadway. On paper, he can delineate maps and plans, and explain the ma- noeuvres of Battalions, Brigades, Divisions, and Army Corps. He has spent nearly a year in actual field service, under tents, performing all the military duties incident thereto ; his mind invigorated by constant exercise ; his habits moulded by the observance of order and discipline to a prompt and cheerful execution of duty ; his moral character elevated by the practice of virtuous habits, and the honorable emulation in which he has participated ; while, from the class which con- tains him and his fellows, the idle, the stupid, the inca- pable, and the vicious, have, in the four years passed at the Academy, been thoroughly weeded out. Admitting that he has been taught theories and satu- rated with mathematics, and that the genius of Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great, and Napoleon, has not descended upon him ; can there be a doubt as to his 238 History of AVest Point. superiority over one not thus instructed for appoint- ment into the army ? A citizen, after four years in the army, will be inferior even to what the cadet now is ; for his opportunities will have been less ; the stimulants by which the other was both urged and forced will be wanting ; and his mind and character will have passed the period when kindly nature could leave its deepest ^ impress.* \ It was to meet the absurd allegations that the cadets were drawn from the wealthy classes in the country, or were principally sons of high functionaries under the government, that the Superintendent, in 1842,-j- insti- tuted a classification of the circumstances in life of the parents of the cadets ; and, to insure a faithful record, the cadets were separately required to make the neces- sary entries, under appropriate headings, without affix- ing names, — to the end that the information might not affect the social relations among the cadets themselves, or be traceable, even by authorities, to the individual who furnished it. In this way, upon the entry annually of each class of new cadets, the information contained in the table in the appendix has been obtained, and is herewith given for a period of twenty-two consecutive years. Equally derogatory with the charge of fixvoring the wealthy classes, and alike depreciative, is the oft- repeated declaration that the Military Academy is merely a " School of Art," and that it has never yet produced " a military genius" like Napoleon. Without * Report of the Chiof-Engineer, 1844. \ A similar document, giving the names and parentage of the cadets, was pub- lished by order of Congress in the spring gf 1830. History of West Point. 239 enumerating the few great generals that the most mili- tary powers of ancient and modern times have fur- nished — powers which were almost always in a state of war, and Avhose military luminaries are so few that the number may be reckoned upon the fingers — it may be observed, that the province of the Academy is not to create genius, but to bring together the means of aiding its development and storing up its results for the benefit of less powerfully gifted or instructed minds. Schools are the great storehouses for gathering in all the detached germs of knowledge which would other- wise be lost ; for organizing, and systematizing, and dif- fusing them throughout the masses of society by means of the bodies of able men who, devoted to such objects, are naturally brought to concur to this end. From this point of view, the only true and fair one, the question may properly suggest itself, how does the Military Aca- demy compare with like institutions in fulfilling this object? As it is only by comparison that a correct judgment can be rendered upon the agency of the Aca- demy in accomplishing the end referred to, a brief reference to the results of the workings of other institu- tions becomes necessary. Besides our Colleges for preparing young men to enter with advantage upon their chosen professional career, there are many schools specially designed for prosecuting all the pursuits which require a higher order of elementary acquirement, as those for Theology, Law, Medicine, &c. Moreover, every one of these i3rofessions is, respectively, a practical school, where men are daily learning from each other. Our law courts, our hospi- tals, and our halls of legislation, are but so many schools 240 History of West Point. of practical instruction for Oratory, Surgery, and States- manship. Bearing this in view, and starting back from a period fifty years ago, when the Military Academy was fairly organized, how many great lawyers, great orators, great physicians, and great statesmen, have stood forth pre-eminently, as men of commanding genius, from all those institutions, Avho have left an impress through the country of the period of their existence ? Neither their numbers nor their names are long enshrin- ed ; yet the world has moved on, and each has added his mite to the general stock of human knowledge, while the external marks of civilization have been more strik- ing within this period than for any like period of the world's history. Has the Military Academy, wdiich from its organiza- tion has labored under greater disadvantages than any of the institutions referred to, produced no fruits worthy of commendation during this period ? An appeal to its records will demonstrate, that it has diffused military science throughout the country, both by its teachings and through its pupils who have retired to civil life, the results of which were glaringly visible in the war of 1812, in the war with Mexico, and in the present contest for national supremacy. In all these, it contributed its quota to the diffusion of science, and through the industrial pursuits depending upon or springing out of them. It has girdled our extensive sea-coast with permanent fortifications, which will com- pare favorably with the most celebrated of like works in Europe ; it has aided in fathoming and mapping our harbors and lakes ; it has explored our rivers and territo- ries ; it gave its quota to the pioneers of civil engineer- History of West Point. 241 ing ; its graduates mainly collected and organized the resources of the country in the Mexican war, and con- ducted them through a series of unparalleled triumphs ; while, in the present struggle for constitutional integri- ty, its graduates are not less entitled to praise, for the organization of the largest military force ever called into the field by a nation in the same space of time. These are the recorded results of the agencies ema- nating from the Military Academy, and it may be fairly claimed that the design of the Institution has not only been attained, by diffusing military knowledge and pro- viding officers conversant w^ith their ^professional duties, but, incidentally and directly, it has been of the great- est advantage to the public interests. — second alone to the military security of the nation. If it has thus far produced no "military genius," it has nevertheless furnished the means, without which genius would be to a great extent powerless to effect any great end, and equally helpless, without its intelli- gent agents, to accomplish momentous designs. The resignation of the graduates of the Military Academy at different periods has furnished another topic for animadversion ; and yet the period of service rendered by such as have separated from the army exceeds that rendered by those appointed from civil life, who have in like manner abandoned the profession. The average term of service of the graduates of the Academy, including the period of cadet life, who re- signed from 1802 to 1860, inclusive, was ten and a half years ; while the average term of service for the eleven years prior to 1861, was thirteen and a quarter years. The average term of service of those appointed from 242 History of West Point. civil life in this latter period, was only seven and a half years.* The period of cadet life is properly included in esti- mating the service of resigned graduates, when it is re- membered that their time between the age of eighteen and twenty-two was given to the public, when young men in most of the callings of civil life are embarked upon the future professional career upon which their fortunes depend. And although the Government bears the expense of the cadet's education, the latter fits him spe- cially for the military profession alone, although it ena- bles him to take up advantageously and particularly the pursuit of civil engineering and scientific instruction. The act of resignation does not deprive the country of the acquirements of its citizen graduate ; he carries them with him, it is true, but they are for the greater part useless to him as an individual. It is so much capital locked up, or awaiting investment. It is on hand when- ever the Government may stand in need of it, and it is ready to yield to the former a far greater interest than if it had been employed in the much more contracted sphere, — to which the graduate would have been assigned had he remained in the army, — than the one he usually is found to have reached in civil life. Experience has shown that in every war in which the nation has been engaged since the Academy went into operation, most of the citizen graduates have been re- turned to the service with a rank superior to that en- joyed by those Avho have remained continuously in the * This period of eleven years is selected, because, at its commencement, every inducement was furnished, by the tide of emigration setting toward the newly- discovered gold region of California, to young men to embark in a career promis- ing wealth, reputation, and distinction. History of "West Point. 243 army — a circumstance in itself of advantage to the country, however unfavorably it may operate on individ- uals, for the professional acquirements of most of the graduates are far beyond the military grades which most of them attain, until after many years of service during peace. In the latter state it is no unfrequent thing to find lieutenants of ten or fifteen years' standing, and cap- tains of over twenty, all of whom possess acquirements and experience, after very few years' service, fitting them for the superior grades of field officers. The war with Mexico and the present contest furnish abundant exam- ples of this kind. 244 History of West Point. CHAPTER XIV. Law of Congress Regulating the Appointment of Cadets. — Suspension of the Board of Visitors. — Pay of the Cadets Increased. — Major Delafield Succeeded by Captain Brewer- ton AS Superintendent, — Reappointment of the Board of Visitors. — Teachers Discontinued by Professorships. — Pros- perity OF the Academy. — Demolition of. the Old Barracks AND Erection of New. — Captain Brewerton Succeeded by Colonel Lee as Superintendent. — Extension of the Term of Study from Four to Five Years. — Major Barnard and Col- onel Delafield Succeed as Superintendents. — Continued Im- provements. — Establishment of Local Rank of the Superin- tendent AND THE Commandant of Cadets. — Return from a Five to a Four Years' Course of Study. — Academic Board not Sustained. — A Commission from both Houses of Congress Examine into the Institution. — Major Beauregard and Major Bowman Succeed as Superintendents. — Loyalty of the Cadets. — Description of the Public Buildings. The custom which had so long prevailed of appointing one cadet from each Congressional district, was, on March 1, 1843, made a law by Congress, with the con- dition affixed, that each cadet so appointed should be an actual resident of the District, State, or Territory from which the appointment purported to be made ; and thus the number of cadets was limited to the number of mem- bers of the House of Representatives. But as the Dis- trict of Columbia and the Army and Navy were not repre- sented, the President was empowered to appoint one cadet from the former and ten cadets " at large ;" the latter to be annually selected by the President from the History of West Point. 245 Army or Navy, or any other quarter at his option, Avith- out being confined to Congressional districts. Tlie same act declared, that in future a " Board of Visitors" should not be aj^pointed, unless otherwise or- dered by Congress. Thus far the monthly pay of the cadets, as fixed by the law of 1802, was sixteen dollars and two rations, being altogether valued at twenty-eight dollars ; but on March 3, 1845, Congress enacted, that in lieu of the pay and rations before allowed, each cadet should receive twenty-four dollars per month, and no more. Major Delafield was succeeded on August 15, 1845, by Captain Henry Brewerton, of the Corps of Engineers. The spirit for improvement which marked the career of this officer as Superintendent, and the faithful discharge of all the duties enjoined upon him, or exacted by him from others, have left their impress upon the Military Academy. The erection of the spacious Barracks and Mess-Hall, the grading of the surface of the Plain, the iron fences, the South Wharf, with the road leading thereto, the road leading southward to Cozzens' Hotel, the enlargement of the supply of water, and the erection of several cot- tages, for the accommodation of the officers and their families, had their origin during the administration of Captain Brewerton. By the Act of May 15, 1846, a company of Engineer soldiers was raised, and assigned, among other duties, to aid in conveying practical instruction in engineering to the cadets at the Military Academy. The outbreak of the war with Mexico having greatly increased the interest of the public in the necessity for 17 246 History of West Point. and importance of the Institution, on August 8, of the same year, Congress authorized the appointment annu- ally of a Board of Visitors, whose duty it was made to attend each yearly examination, and report to the Sec- retary of War upon the discipline, instruction, police, and fiscal affairs of the Academy. The members of the Board were to be selected by the President, and taken from one-half of the number of States, alternating yearly with the other half, each member being a hona fide resi- dent of the State from whence appointed, and each Con- gressional district being in turn designated to furnish the appointee. The same act declared that the teachers of French and Drawing should henceforth be entitled Professors in their respective departments, and subsequent laws placed them upon the same footing with regard to pay, and an Assistant, as all the other Professors. The brilliant success of the American army in Mexico, untarnished by a single defeat, or doubtful action, fur- nished the nation with ample proof of the wisdom of Knox, Hamilton, McHenry, Huntingdon, Pickering, Washington, and Madison, in their efforts to establish a Military Academy wherein officers might be educated and trained to organize and discipline citizen soldiers, and lead them to victory ; — while a network of railways, and innumerable public edifices, fortifications, light- houses, and harbor improvements bear witness to an educational course of incalculable value in periods of peace and prosperity. When the conflicting voices of partisan spirits are hushed, and the rancorous jealousies of envious and malignant disputants are consigned to oblivion, posterity History of West Point. 247 will gaze upon the pile of strange-looking artillery, and still stranger looking tattered flags, and their mutilated flag-staffs, deposited at the Military Academy in 1849, and read above them, in characters penned by the great soldier whose qualifications and position, as the Com- manding General of that army, gave him a right to pro- nounce an opinion ; * * * " A.s under Providence it is mainly to the Military Academy that the United States became indebted for those brilliant achievements, and other memorable victories in the same war, I have a lively pleasure in tendering the seven trophies [semi- national] to the mother of so many accomplished soldiers and patriots." * * * Posterity may then realize, diffi- cult as it may now seem, that these trophies are monu- ments to professional soldiers, who had no loftier incen- tive to action than duty to their country and the Institu- tion which nourished them. The close of the year 1849 found the Military Acad- emy in the full tide of usefulness and prosperity. At no time in its history had the institution stood higher in the estimation of the National Legislature. Its require- ments were carefully studied, and its wants fully sup- plied. On August 28, the western portion of the New Bar- racks, commenced in 1845, was first occupied by the cadets, the South Barracks having undergone demolition during the summer of 1850. One year later (August, 28, 1851), witnessed the completion and occupation of the whole edifice, and the removal of the North Barracks. The old Mess-Hall was demolished, and the New Hall occupied in the summer of 1852. Captain Brewerton was succeeded, on September 1, 248 History of West Point. 1852, by Captain and Brevet-Colonel Robert E. Lee, Corps of Engineers, as Superintendent, under whose administration the course of study, by direction of the Secretary of War, was on August 28, 1854, ex- tended so as to embrace a term of five years at the Academy. This change was made upon the repeated and urgent recommendation of the Boards of Visitors, w^ho had in preceding years reported upon the comprehensive range of subjects taught at the institution, and who had dwelt with much earnestness upon the necessity of an enlarge- ment of the course of English studies, so as to admit of the introduction of Declamation, Military Law, &c., as well as to permit, in several of the departments, field in- struction of a practical character. As the cadets were bound to serve for the period of eight years, unless sooner discharged, this change was wholly within the power of the Secretary of War, who directed the class which entered in June, 1854, to be divided, according to the age of the members, into two equal portions ; the youngest portion to remain and com- plete the curriculum of study, in accordance with the new programme for a five years' course. The new arrangement went into operation under the most favorable auspices, and for a time bid fair to ac- complish all that its ardent advocates had predicted. The amplest facilities were afi'orded the cadets to acquire practical instruction in the erection of pontoon bridges, field fortifications, duty of sappers and miners, topo- graphical drawing and sketching, and in other depart- ments of study ; while the completion of the new Riding- Hall in November, 1855, greatly increased the opportu- History of West Point. 249 nities for cavalry exercises, and excited additional in- terest in this department. Colonel Lee having been promoted to the cavalry arm of the service, and thereby by law incapacitated from exercising superintendence at the Military Academy, he was succeeded on April 1, 1855, by Captain and Brevet- Major Jonathan G. Barnard, Corps of Engineers, as Superintendent, whose term of service might have been indefinitely extended with advantage to the institu- tion; but on September 8, 1856, Major Barnard was re- lieved by the appointment of Major Richard Delafield, Corps of Engineers, as Superintendent for the second time. The erection of the bell and clock-tower on the Acad- emy, the completion of the gas-works for lighting the public buildings on the Post, the restoration of the old relic of the Revolution, Fort Clinton, and the enlarge- ment and erection of additional accommodations for the families of the officers and professors, demonstrated the possession still of the energy which had before marked Major Delafield's career. By the Act of February 16, 1857, Congress enacted that there should be, in addition to the professors author- ized by existing laws, a Professor of Spanish, who was placed upon the same footing as the other Professors ; and later, in the department thus created, Patrice De Janon was appointed Professor. On March 3, 1857, the monthly pay of each cadet was raised from twenty-four to thirty dollars ; and on June 12, 1858, Congress further provided that the Superintendent of the Military Academy should be appointed by the President of the United States, with 250 History of West Point. the local rank, the pay, and the allowances, while acting in this capacity, of a Colonel of Engineers. The same act declared that the Commandant of the Corps of Cadets, w^hile serving as such by appoint- ment of the President, should have the local rank, pay, and allowances of a Lieutenant-Colonel of Engineers, and be charged with the instruction of the cadets in the Artillery, Infantry, and Cavalry branches of the army. By this law the practice, w^hich had found favor hereto- fore, of appointing officers from these arms of the ser- vice respectively, to serve as instructors to the cadets, was virtually ignored. On October 11, 1858, the course of study, before prescribed for five years, was abruptly changed by the Secretary of War back to four years ; and on April 5, 1859, the course was again changed by the same author- ity from four back to five years. The indecision thus displayed, and the confusion arising from reversing the decisions, at Washington, of the Academic Board, and disregarding their recommendations, were among the lesser evils W'hich pervaded every department of the Government, and w^ere preliminary to still more disas- trous management on the part of those who controlled the nation. On June 21, 1860, Congress organized a Commission, to consist of two senators, two representatives, and two army officers, to examine into the organization, disci- pline, and course of instruction at the Military Aca- demy, with a view to ascertain what changes, if any, were desirable to enable the Institution to accomplish in the best possible manner the object of its establishment. This Commission, consisting of Jeff'erson Davis, Chair- History of West Point. 251 man^ and Solomon Foot, of the Senate, John Cochrane and H. Winter Davis, of the House of Representatives, Major Robert Anderson and Captain A. A. Humphreys, of the United States Army, with a Recording Secretary, met at West Point on July 17, and after a session of more than seven weeks, adjourned to meet at the city of Washington, November 28, 1860. On December 13 following, the Commission submitted to Congress a report"^ of three hundred and fifty pages of closely printed matter, in which they recommended an entire reorganization of the Academy. An Act was introduced for this purpose, but owing to the excited state of public affairs, or other causes, no action was taken upon the subject. On January 23, 1861, Major Delafield was relieved by the appointment of Captain and Brevet-Major Peter G. T. Beauregard, Corps of Engineers, as Superintendent. Five days after this officer entered upon his duties, an order from the Secretary of War directed him to transfer back to Major Delafield the command at West Point; and on March 1, 1861, the latter was succeeded by Major Alexander XL Bowman, Corps of Engineers, as Superintendent, who is yet present. The outbreak of the civil war was the signal for a number of the cadets who were appointed from the Southern States, influenced by family ties, tempting of- fers of position, and the examples in Congress, to tender their resignations and repair to their homes, in disregard of the sworn articles previously signed by them to serve faithfully the Government of the United States. As many published accounts, more or less incorrect, *XXXVI. Cong., 2d Session, Mis. Doc. No. 3. 252 History of West Point. have gone forth relative to the changes which occurred at this time, the following statement has been carefully prepared and may be regarded as authentic : The total number of Cadets present at the Acad- emy on November 1, 1860, was 278 Of this number, there were appointed from the Southern States 86 Of the number thus appointed, there were dis- charged, dismissed, or resigned, from causes con- nected with the civil war 65 Leaving at the Academy to prosecute their studies, from the Southern States 21 These changes failed in the slightest degree to affect the organization of the Institution, or seriously to im- pair its code of discipline : a return, however, from the five back to the old four years' programme of instruction was a measure w^hich experience dictated, and which the Secretary of War sanctioned in July, 1861. By the Act of Congress dated August 3, same year, the oath of allegiance to be administered to all cadets present, and to those appointed in future, was so amended as to abjure all allegiance, sovereignty, or fealty conceived to be due any State, County, or Country whatsoever, and further required unqualified support to the Consti- tution and the National Government. The same act secured the Academy from the repetition of an evil against which it had long struggled, and which, if un- checked, would have destroyed its vitality if not its existence. Section 8th declared that no Cadet, after having been pronounced deficient in conduct or studies, and recom- History of West Point. 253 mended for discharge, should be returned to the Acad- emy except upon the recommendation of the Academic Board; nor should any cadet be reappointed, or appointed into the army, while his class yet remained at the Acad- emy, except upon a like recommendation. The effect of this legislative enactment has been to produce a marked change, accompanied by the happiest results, in regard to the studious habits of the several classes at the Academy. The Act of July 2, 1862, prescribing the "Oath of Office," even more comprehensive in its requirements, has been substituted for the one already referred to, and is now administered to all cadets entering the Institution. Bills for enlarging the number of cadets at the Mili- tary Academy, by permitting each senator in Congress to appoint one cadet, as well as the attempt made to fill the vacancies from the portions of seceded States not represented, have been only partially successful. A brief description of the public buildings, past and present, comes within the design of this work, and may be here appropriately introduced. The only buildings of Bevolutionary origin yet in existence are, the first wooden cottage north of the Hospital, and the first wooden cottage south of the Superintendent's quarters. In 1780-82, the former stood directly south of the present Chapel, and was afterwards known as "North's," and then as "Gridley's" Tavern. A piazza has been added to it in later years. As already mentioned, the "Long Barracks" of the Revolution stood near the site of the present Hotel, and was destroyed by fire on December 26, 1827. / 254 History of West Point. _i^\i\° h m [^ i'll^ iL^ ^' TUE SOUTH IJAllHACKS. (L,„,kiii._- Erected, in ISlo , Demoliaheii, in 186U. This wooden two-storied building fronted south, with a piazza to each story, and in it the cadets were quar- tered until the completion of the South Barracks, in 1815. The latter, together with the Mess-Hall and the Academy, occupied an east and west line directly in front of the present Cadet Barracks. The South Barracks, constructed of stone, stuccoed, consisted of a central building, 128x25x35 feet, ter- minated at each end by two wings, each 25x43x35 feet. The former contained fifty rooms, forty-eight of which were 13x10 feet, and two 20x26 feetj these THE NOUTII BARRACKS. (Looking Northeast.) KreeteJ, in ItjH ; Demolished, iu 1861. History of West Point. 255 large central rooms were originally stairways by which access w^as had to the North and South piazzas, and thereby to the rooms without any other connection. The twelve rooms in the wings were used as offices and officers' quarters. The building was demolished in the summer of 1850. The North Barracks, four stories high, 164x56x45 feet, was built of stone, and placed at a right angle with the South Barracks, less than 100 feet distant from the northeastern corner of the latter. It was completed in 1817, and contained forty rooms 25x19 feet. It was demolished in July, 1851. THE ACADEMY. (Looking Southeast.) Erected, 1815; Destroyed by Fire, Feb. 19th, 1838. The Academy, next west of the South Barracks, was a stone building, two stories high, completed in 1815, having on its first floor, in the centre, a room used as a chapel ; the Chemical Laboratory adjoined on the west, and the Engineering Room on the east. The Library was above the Chapel, the Philosophical Department above the Laboratory, and the Adjutant's Office above the Engineering Department. It was destroyed by fire on February 19th, 1838. 256 History of West Point. The Mess-Hall, next west of the Academy, was also completed in 1815, two stories high, built of stone, and stuccoed, 144 x 30 feet. The Cadets occupied both the upper and lower floors for mess purposes, the steward residing in the western end. A kitchen was attached in rear, 46 x 25 feet. It was entirely demolished in the summer of 1852. ■mE MESS-HALL. (Looking Southwest.) Erected, ISIS; Demolished, 1S52. The Hospital for Cadets, built in 1830, 131 x 40 feet, is a stone building of two stories and a basement. In the centre are twelve wards for the sick, and a dispen- sary. The wings are occupied as quarters by the surgeon and assistant-surgeon, the basement of the main building furnishing similar accommodations for the at- tendants. The Band Barracks, built in 1829, 108x52 feet, is a wooden structure, one and a half stories high, containing twenty-two rooms; another building adjacent, 53x43 feet, also two stories, contains ten rooms. The Band and their families and the Field Music occupy both buildings. The Hotel, also built in 1829, is a stone building, stuccoed, 50x60 feet, and contains sixty-four rooms. History of West Point, 257 It was built chiefly from the proceeds of the sale of wood cut from the public lauds, and cost about $18,000. THE VEST POINT HOTEL (Looking Northeast) A wing three stories high, 62 x 29, of brick, correspond- ing with the main building, was added in 1850. THE CIIAPEIm (North Front.) The Chapel, a stone structure* west of the Library, * 400 feet north of tlie north face of the Chapel, a red sandstone bench level is planted in the ground. The surface of this stone is above low-water mark , . . 157 feet. The northeast angle of Fort Putnam above the stone . 338 feet. Height of Fort Putnam above low-water mark . 495 feet. 258 History of West Point. 83 X 54 feet, was built in 1836. It is fitted with pews, &c., for Church service. The Academy, fronting east, and situated directly west of the Chapel, was erected in 1838. It is a stone edifice, with red sandstone pilasters, 275x75 feet, and three stories high. In the first story, at the south end, is the Chemical Department, consisting of the Laboratory proper, a lecture-room, a room for electrical experi- ments, and a work-room : these four rooms are each about thirty-six feet square. The Fencing Department, 75 X 38 feet, occupies the north end of the first story, whUe the central portion contains a large gymnasium, and a room for courts-martial, committees, &c. In the second story, the Cabinet of Minerals and Fossils is over the Chemical Department, and over the Fencing is the Engineering Academy, of the same size as the former, to which are attached two Engineering model-rooms, TUB ACADE each 46 x 22 feet. On the same story are seven recita- tion-rooms, 24 X 22 feet. In the third story, over the Cabinet of Minerals, is the Artillery Model-Room, 75 X History of West Point. 259 38 feet ; the Mineralogical Recitation-Room, the Geo- graphical Room, the Mathematical Model-Room; and over the Engineering Academy is the Drawing Academy, of the same size. To the latter are attached the Picture Gallery and Gallery of Sculpture, each 70 X 22 feet. On this story are likewise three rooms used for recitations, which, with four store-rooms, complete the interior of the building. The clock occupies a tower on the northwest angle of the building. The original cost of the building was $68,254. THE OBSERVATORY AND LIBRARY. (Looking Soulhuast) The Observatory and Library, on the southeast corner of the Plain, was erected in 1841. It is a stone structure, 160 feet front and 78 in depth, castellated and corniced with red sandstone, in the Elizabethan style. The east wing contains the Library, forty-six feet square and thirty-one feet high ; it contains 20,000 vol- umes. The offices of the Superintendent, Adjutant, Quartermaster, and Treasurer of the Academy occupy the first floor of the west wing; while above them are the 260 History of West Poixt. History of West Point. 2bl Lecture Hall and apparatus of the Philosophical Depart- ment. The Equatorial Telescope, in a circular dome twenty-seven feet in diameter, surmounts the whole, the transit instrument being in the northeast tower, while the Mural Circle occupies a similar tower in the north- west angle. The original cost of the building was $50,216. The Ordnance and Artillery Laboratory, on the north side of the Plain, was erected in 1840, and consists of three two-story stone buildings, used for fabrication of ammunition, repairing, &c. ; all within a stone-enclosed yard, containing, besides, shelter for Field Batteries. Two stone buildings, 155x23 feet, and 75x23 feet, lower down, formerly used as stables, now serve as a storehouse, and for the Gas-Works. The Cadets' Barrack, on the south side of the Plain, four stories high, was completed in 1851. It constitutes the most imposing structure at the Institution. It is built of stone, with fire-proof rooms, castellated and cor- niced with red sandstone, in the Elizabethan style. The building is 360 X 60 feet, with a wing extending in rear of the west tower, 100 X 60 feet. It contains 176 rooms, of which 136 are Cadets' quarters, 14 X 22 feet, arranged in eight divisions, without interior communications. The West Tower and the adjacent division are at present used as officers' quarters. The basement contains a l^rofusion of bathing-rooms, the necessary apparatus for heating the whole building, and quarters for the em- ployes. The large Hall in the centre, over the sally- port, is appropriated to the Dialectic Society. The original cost of the building was $186,000. The Mess-Hall, built of stone, in 1852, stands 18 262 History of West Point. directly south of the Academy, fronting east, and is 170 feet front by 62 feet in depth. It is one of the struc- tures which command general admiration for their sym- metry and beautiful proportions. It comprises a Cen- tral Hall, 96 X 46 feet, and 20 feet high, which is the cadets' MESS-UALL. (Looking Southweot.) mess-room for all the cadets. The north wing affords quarters for the Purveyor, and that on the south is used for mess-rooms for the officers attached to the Academy. A kitchen and bakery in rear, and quarters for the employes in the basement, compose the re- mainder of the building. Its original cost was $43,187. The Cavalry Stables, built of brick, in 1854, occupy a plateau southeast of the Library, extending 301 X 38 feet along the bank of the Hudson, with a wing extend- ing west from the south end, 109 X 38 feet. The whole building is built upon the most approved princi- ples, containing stalls for 100 horses, and cost $20,468. A few yards south of the stables stands the Riding- Hall, 218 X 78 feet, built of stone, in 1855, and spanned History of West Point. 263 by a single curved roof. It is the largest building in the United States for equestrian exercises, and cost ^22,000. The Cavalry Barracks, 57x41 feet, occupy a posi- tion on the northwest slope of the Plain, and are two stories high, built in 1857, of brick, w^ith a stone base- ment, at a cost of $6,500. The Artillery Barracks, 46x40 feet, standing be- side the former, are also two stories high, of brick, with a stone basement; built in 1858, at an expense of $6,500. Both barracks front east, and each contains ample ac- commodations, kitchens, &c., for a full company of soldiers. Farther on to the northwest, near the ceded district line, stand the Engineer Barracks, fronting north, 100x43 feet, built in 1858, of brick, two stories high, with a stone basement. Besides officers' quarters in the east end, it contains kitchens and accommodations for one hundred men. Its original cost exceeded $10,000. In front of these barracks, and near the water's edge, stands the building, 154x54 feet, for the army pon- toon trains, built of brick. The Powder Magazine, a fire-proof brick building, 100x25 feet, stands directly in rear of the Engineer Barracks, and is one of the oldest buildings on the Post. Stretching farther away to the northwest, is a row of nine small double wooden cottages, erected in 1837, for the accommodation of the families of the non-com- missioned officers, and of laundresses for the cadets. The Hospital for Soldiers, 50x28 feet, near the Cavalry Barracks, is a two-story brick building, with a 264 History of West Point. basement; erected in 1851, at an expense of $5,530, and contains 4 wards, a dispensary, kitchen, &c., &c.. Of the brick dwellings situated on the west side of the Plain, the one nearest the Cadets' Barrack was built in- 1816 ; the second, northward, in 1829 ; the third and fifth, in 1816; the fourth, in 1858; the sixth, seventh, and eighth, in 1821; and the ninth, in 1857. Of the three double stone dwellings overlooking the north crest of the Plain, the one farthest west was erected in 1821, and the other two in 1826 and 1828. The buildings and dwellings described, with twenty- two smaller ones of the latter class, the Soldiers' Church, and six guardhouses, storehouses, workshops, &c., con- stitute all that are now in existence, and compose the Military Post at West Point.* * The Area of the Plain at West Point, bounded by the Carriage road passing the Superintendent's quarters, the Cadet Barracks, and around Fort Clinton, is 41^ acres. The distance around the Plain measured on the Carriage road men- tioned, is 1 mile 26 feet. Ferry route from West Point to Cold Spring 2,318 yards. Ferry route from West Point to Foundry Wharf 1,946 " Width of the Hudson River in front of Chain Battery to Con- stitution Island 566 " Tric?^ H CO M DEPARTMENT, EOTPIiOYMENT OF TIITIE. i r Mathematics. 3 hours daily, September to June. English Grammar, including Ety- mological and Ehetorical Ex- ercises, Composition, Declama- tion, and Geography of the United States. 4 hours daily, September to June. French. 4 hours every other day, January to June. Use of Small Arms. Practical instruction, 1 hour every other day, 23 weeks. W o c o i < V Q Pi Mathematics. 3 hours daily, September to June. French. 2 hours daily, September to June. Drawing. 2 hours daily, 20 weeks ; every other day,17 weeks. Cavalry. 2 hours every other day, 16 weeks, practical instruction. Q 3 < Q z V Natural and Experimental Phi- losoi)hy. 3 hours daily September to June. Chemistry. 2 hours every other day, September to June. Drawing. 2 hours every other day, September to June. Infantry Tactics. 2 hours every other day, G weeks. Artillery Tactics. 2 hours every other day 4 weeks. Cavalry. Practical instruction, every other day, Septem- ber to June. Pi' a o < M Engineering, Civil and Military. 3 hours d.aily, September to June. Practical Engineering. Practical instruction durinir a part of the En- ciunpincnt, and from 1st April to 15th May, 1 hour. Ethics, Constitutional, Interna- tional, and Military Law. 2 hours every other day, September to June. Mineralogy and Geology. | 2 hours every other day, IT weeks. Ordnance and Gunnery. 2 hours every other day, 14 weeks. Spanish. | 2 hours every other day, September to .Tune. Cavalry Tactics. 2 hours every other day, 5 weeks. Practical instruction, 1 hour every other day, Cavalry. September to June. History of West Point. 275 The studies pursued at the Academy are for the most part scientific. General literature, the languages, except French and Spanish, and classical studies, form no part of the course. The curriculum of study, as contrasted with that of our collegiate institutions, affords a marked difference in the small number of studies pursued. In place of the crowded array of branches taught, and the necessary half hourly recitations, to encompass the whole in the brief time allotted, it is the distinctive feature in the programme at the Military Academy to study but few subjects comparatively, and to learn those well. To the method of instruction, uniting the practice of the school with that of our universities, the success of the Military Academy as a Collegiate Institution is chiefly owing. It is the fault of most colleges that the students individually receive but little attention. Reci- tations so directed as to produce a perfect understand- ing and comprehension of the subject taught, are not among the prominent characteristics of American college management. Difficult parts of the course are slighted, and, in many cases, such a superficial knowledge is amassed as to render a diploma an uncertain criterion of the owner's acquirements. At the Military Academy the pupil does not go through a formal recitation merely ; he is subjected to a daily examination, which involves the reputation of his in- structor as well as his own in the effort to understand, as well as remember what he studies. Every cadet who passes annually from one class to a higher one, does so only when he has proven to the satisfaction of the Ex- amining Board that he is not only acquainted with, but 276 History of West Point. knows the course of study upon which he has been ex- amined. It is thus that a diploma granted at the Mili- tary Academy, affords a conviction that the owner was possessed of every thing taught at the Institution at the time he became the owner of it. The conduct-roll is the main-spring to the whole sys- tem of discipline at the Military Academy ; and yet it has been publicly censured, as based upon j^rinciples which permitted no discrimination between acts morally wrong in themselves, and acts which, destitute of im- morality, are nevertheless criminal, because prohibited by the Regulations of the Institution. No such charge, unless designed to be at variance with the facts, could have originated, except under a most thorough misconception of the subject ; for the conduct- roll is neither a record of immoralities nor criminalities, both of which are referred to the highest tribunal known to military life. But it is a record, and a most salutary one, of the delinquencies against a system having for its object to instill neatness, order, regularity, and implicit obedience to lawfully constituted authority. In every calling in life, where power is enforced, and command exercised, these requirements are rendered indispensable. Experience has taught, that Avhoever is careless, negligent, or indifferent in the performance of any legitimate and proper duty, is not likely to exact a rigid fulfilment of details from subordinates. The Code of Regulations is a code of preventions and warnings, not materially unlike those governing other collegiate institutions ; but its enforcement affords a marked difference, even to an untutored observer. It is admitted that the system is rigid, and it is all-important History of West Point. 277 that it should be so ; for the destiny of the cadet is not like that of a student in a private college. He is, and is to be, a soldier. Obedience is his first duty ; it is the pivot on which his profession and the whole army can alone successfully move. Thoughtlessness, carelessness, and inattention, are not tolerated ; for the faithful per- formance of the most minute duties on the part of a sol- dier is indispensable to military efficiency. And in regard to the successful workings of the sys- tem, without drawing invidious distinctions between the Military Academy and our most celebrated colleges, one may search in vain for the existence of riots, uprisings, and barrings-out. Looking to the army for its results, the very nature of the system is so impressed upon the character of the cadet, as to promote the exercise of gentlemanly courtesy, forbearance, morality, and Chris- tian feeling. When has the army furnished a scene for duels and brawls ? Where is the complaint of the soldier for inhumanity against the subaltern ? Where have the volunteers and militia complained of tyranny or super- ciliousness on the part of the graduates who command them ? And yet they have been associated together by strong ties of attachment, when not to murmur was a positive virtue. Fashioned under the eye of the Military Academy, the habits and destinies of the graduates of the Institu- tion inculcate the truly American doctrine of thorough contempt for all the adventitious advantages of wealth and fortune, and proclaim the innate nobility of individ- ual merit ; for here alone the poor boy feels that a man is but a man, and that native talent, with good conduct, is the true and real source of respectability. 19 278 History of West Point. Discipline among the Cadets is maintained by a sys- tem of punishments, not so remarkable for severity as " for rigid enforcement. They consist of privation of hours allotted to recreation, extra tours of guard, repri- mands in public, confinement to room, tent, or prison, and dismissal ; the two latter being only inflicted by a court-martial, while the others are decreed by the Super- intendent. For every minor offence against the standing Regula- tions, violations of special orders, and of what may be called common military law, including unsoldierUke con- duct and breaches of military etiquette, the offender is reported to the Commandant of Cadets. An opportunity is afforded for explanation ; and if the latter be unsatis- factory, the offence is registered against the Cadet, who receives one or more demerit, according to the magni- tude or criminality of the offence. For the purpose of determining the degree of the delinquencies, all offences which experience has shown that Cadets are liable to commit, are arranged in five classes. The first embraces all the minor infractions of the Code, for each of which one demerit is awarded; the gravity of other offences causes them to be classed in the second, third, fourth, or fifth grade, and a number of demerit is awarded equal to the number of the class in which the offence is enrolled. Any Cadet who receives 100 demerit in six months, ending June 6th and December 6th, is declared deficient in conduct, and discharged from the Academy. But the punishment of those who fail to reach this number does not cease with the entry on the Register. Each number, like a guilty conscience, accompanies them through Cadet-life, and History of West Point. 279 affects their after career in the Army ; for the conduct- roll is an element, in connection with proficiency in studies, in determining the relative rank of each mem- ber in the different classes. As the Cadets of the youngest class are less experi- enced, and more likely to err, one-third of the number of demerit incurred by them is stricken off at the end of each six months, and the remainder stands as a perma- nent record. But for the First class Cadet, the sum of all the demerit for the last three years is reduced by one-sixth, and the balance affords the basis by which the standing and proficiency of each member of the class, in conduct, is determined. As in the case of studies, an arbitrary number is assigned to conduct, and the rela- tive proficiency of the Cadet is combined with those which determine his final graduating class rank. Thorough knowledge of the course of study alone, therefore, does not secure the Cadet the highest rank. His general deportment sensibly affects his position, and he is thus urged by its permanent influence to ren- der, during his academic career, that spirit of subordi- nation and implicit obedience to lawfully constituted authority, without which a soldier is an enemy to him- self and his country. A general view of the system of discipline presents many features peculiar to the Military Academy. In whatever situation a Cadet may be placed, he is ob- served by some superior. If he is on military duty, he is watched from the colonel to the corporal; if at meals, the supervision extends from the Commandant of the Mess-Hall to the carver; if in his room, from the Super- intendent to a sentinel ; from the Officer of the Day to 280 History of West Point. the orderly; and if at recitation, from the Professor to the section-marcher. Under such close inspection, vio- lations of discipline are made known to some one whose duty it is to make a report of it. Military deportment, being everywhere and at all times required, becomes insensibly a fixed habit, and the effect of this system of discipline appears in the natural emulation it excites. The desire to stand high is more or less operative on each Cadet in the first half of every class, while the lowest strain every nerve to attain the minimum of merit, that they may not be degraded to the succeeding class, or be separated from the Academy. The Govern- ment requires not only those who are willing, but those whose capacity has been proved able to perform its required military duties. As several fail every exami- nation, and disappear from the Institution, every Cadet is impelled to save himself and his friends from disap- pointment, or to secure such a standing as foreshadows his future position in the army. The promotion of the class upon graduating is accom- plished by dividing it into three sections, accompanied by a recommendation from the Academic Board to the Sec- retary of War, that the first may be assigned to any corps in the Army that they may elect; the second to any corps except the Corps of Engineers ; and the last to the Infantry and Cavalry branches only. The rank of the young officer, in each corps, is made to correspond with that held by him among his classmates upon leav- ing the Academy. From an examination of the tables given in the Appen- dix, showing the number of cadets admitted and gra- duated, and dividing the years of the existence of the HiSTOEY OF West Point. 281 Military Academy into six decennial periods, it appears, that the proportion of graduates to the number of cadets admitted into the Academy was, for the First period of ten years, 1802 to 1811 . . 0.606 Second period of ten years, 1812 to 1821 . . 0.289 Third period of ten years, 1822 to 1831 . . 0.377 Fourth period of ten years, 1832 to 1841 . . 0.472 Fifth period of ten years, 1842 to 1851 . . 0.510 Sixth period of ten years, 1852 to 1861 . . 0.523 Such is the organization of the United States Military Academy. In the thoroughness of its course of instruc- tion and discipline, it compares favorably with similar European military academies, and rivals, if it does not excel, the principal scientific institutions of America. " Proved in all manner of ways by a half-century's trial, the two thousand graduates which the Institution has sent forth have maintained the highest reputation for integrity, zeal, efficiency, and high moral character — without which last attribute there can be no real integrity, zeal, or efficiency. "As soldiers, they have borne with unflinching forti- tude their life of exertion and privation; and,. notwith- standing the temptations to which their duties have exposed them, and their isolation (on frontier service) from the restraints of society, they have borne them- selves with a propriety which a high moral character only could maintain. "As disbursing officers of the Government, they have proved faithful, when too many, not graduates, have failed. "As Engineers, they have commanded the entire con- 282 History of West Point. fidence of the Government and the communities which they served, and have been the principal agents by which our fortifications, our magnificent Avorks of inter- nal improvement, our railroads, our canals, our public buildings, and our lighthouses and harbor Avorks have been brought into existence. "• In the ranks, too, of our legislators, our jurists, our agriculturists, our merchants, our ministers of the Gos- pel, even, they have been found, and have ever acquitted themselves with honor, and commanded their full share of resj)ect from their fellow-men."* * General J. G. Barnard, i o "••■■