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THE 
 
 GENERALS 
 
 or THB 
 
 LAST WAR ¥ITH GREAT BRITAIN. 
 
 BY JOHN S. JENKINS, 
 
 w 
 40TUUR OF THE "HISTORY OP THE WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES 
 JlND MEXICO," ETC. ETC. 
 
 "There are deeds which should not pass away, 
 And names that must not wither." 
 
 AUBURN: 
 DERBY, MILLER & CO., PUBLISHERS, 
 
 buffalo: G. II, DERBY <t CO. 
 
 1819. 
 

 ^ -^ -"^^^ N-'*v^\y 
 
 Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1848, by 
 DERBY, MILLER & CO. 
 In the Clerk's Office for the Northern DisUict of New York 
 
 In exchanfrft 
 MAR 2 9 1315 
 
 •TEREOTYPED BY THOMAS B. SMITH, 
 21(5 NVILU*M STRKKT, N. T. 
 
TO 
 
 MAJOR GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR, 
 
 OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY, 
 THESE MEMOIRS, OF DISTINGUISHED SOLDIERS, 
 
 WHOSE BRIGHT EXAMPLES HAVE BEEN 
 
 WORTHILY EMULATED IN HIS OWN MILITARY CAREER, 
 
 ARE MOST RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 If authors -would only adopt the prayer of the honest- 
 hearted Scotch pedlar, — " God send us a good conceit of our- 
 selves !" — would they not soon get rid of what is, at best, a 
 thankless task — that of writing prefaces ? Who, then, would 
 care a fig for the Pubhc's whims or prejudices ? — the Public 
 might be satisfied, or not, just as the Public pleased. A great 
 many readers now regard prefaces with abhorrence, and 
 lengthy ones are sure to be pronounced, in advance, 
 
 " As tedious as a twice-told tale, 
 Vexing the dull ear of a drowsy man." 
 
 Still, there is no end to fault-finding, if an author does not 
 put a window in the front of his book, — like that the old Roman 
 wished in every man's breast ; and yet, the poor wight who 
 thus pretends to gratify vulgar curiosity, racks and puzzles 
 his brains in order to screen and curtain his window, so that 
 nobody will be a whit the wiser, till the volume is opened, and 
 the contents carefully examined. It is no wonder that few 
 people like to read prefaces, — or that fewer still are satisfied, 
 when they do read them ! 
 
 I feel confident, however, that it would be a work of super- 
 erogation, to offer any apology — for that is the gist of most 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 prefaces — for the publication of these biographical sketches of 
 distinguished generals, whose gallant deeds, whose bravery 
 and heroism, are enshrined in the memories of the American 
 people. My only fear is, that it may seem that other officers, 
 equally entitled to consideration, have been intentionally over- 
 looked, in making the selections for the work. That it was 
 deemed necessary to make a selection at all, is the single ex- 
 cuse that need be offered for the omission, — which, it is not 
 impossible, may be hereafter supplied, by another volume. 
 
 The Histories of Ramsay, Perkins, and Brackenridge, Chris- 
 tie's Memoirs of the War in Canada, Thompson's Historical 
 Sketches, James' Military Occurrences, Wilkinson's Memoirs, 
 The British Annual Register, Tlie Historical Register, Arm- 
 strong's Notices, the interesting, but desultory melange of Mr. 
 IngersoU, the National Portrait Gallery, and numerous biog- 
 raphies, more or less extensive, have been consulted in the 
 preparation of the volume. There has been no attempt at 
 fine writing, but great pains have been taken to render the no- 
 tices full, comprehensive, and historically accurate ; and they 
 are believed to be more entitled to confidence, in this respect, 
 than any which have preceded them. 
 
 Auburn, December 1, 1848. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Paob 
 
 JACOB BROWN, 13 
 
 Situation of the country at the commencement of the war \vitli 
 Great Britain — Parentage of General Brown — Early Vicis- 
 situdes — Teaches school — Commences tlie Study of the Law 
 — Abandons his studies, and removes to Jefferson county, 
 New York — Settlement at Brownville — Attack on Ogdens- 
 burgh — Gallant conduct of General Brown — Oifered the com- 
 mand of a regiment in the Regular Service — Declines it — 
 Brave defence of Sacketts Harbor — Appointed a Brigadier 
 General — Expedition down the St. Lawrence — Promoted to 
 the rank of Major General — March to Buffalo — Invasion of 
 Canada — Capture of Fort Erie — Battles of Chippewa and 
 Niagara — Severely Wounded, and temporarily surrenders the 
 command — Siege of Fort Erie — Successful Sortie — Close 
 of the war — Appointed General-in-chief — His Death. 
 
 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES, 61 
 
 The " Old Dominion" — Birth and Early History of Gaines — 
 Receives his first commission as an ensign — Claim of the 
 Spanish Government — Projects of Aaron Burr — His arrest 
 and trial — Temporary retirement of Gaines from the army 
 — ^Obtains a regiment — Abortive Expedition against Mon- 
 treal — Made a Brigadier-general — Siege of Fort Erie — The 
 Assault — Gallant defence of Gaines — Brcvetted a IM.njor- 
 general — War willi the Seminoles — Tlie " Black Hawli War" 
 
TIU CONTENTS. 
 
 Pas I 
 
 — Outbreak in Florida — Tlie War witli Mexico — Patriotic 
 conduct of General Gaines — Personal appearance and traits 
 of character. 
 
 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, 88 
 
 His Popularity — Benjamin Harrison — Anecdote — Birth and 
 Education of General Harrison — Enters the army — Ken- 
 tuckee — Campaign under Wayne — ^Defeat of the North 
 Western Indians — Fortunate incident — Is married — Civil 
 career — Secretary under Governor St. Clair — Delegate to 
 Congress — Improvement of the Land System — ^Appointed 
 Governor of Indiana Territory — Important services — Fron- 
 tier Life — Designs of Great Britain — Subornation of the 
 Indian tribes — Attack on the Chesapeake — Speech of Har- 
 rison — Council at Vincennes — Tecumseh — ^Indian Depreda- 
 tions — Battle of Tippecanoe — Declaration of War against 
 England — Patriotism of tlie citizens of tlie West — Harrison 
 invested with a military command — Expedition of General 
 Hopkins — Defence of Fort Harrison — Destruction of Indian 
 Towns — Harrison appointed Brigadier-general — Disposi- 
 tions for the Campaign — Difficulties and Embarassments — 
 Masssacre at Frenchtown — Siege of Fort Meigs — Narrow 
 Escape — Defence of Fort Stephenson — Perry's Victory — 
 Pursuit of Proctor — Battle of the Thames — ^Fruits of the 
 Victory — Letter to General Vincent — ^Demonstrations of 
 Respect — His Gallantry — Resigns his commission — Senator 
 in Congress — Minister to Colombia — Retires to Private Life 
 — Elected President — Sudden Illness and Death — ^His char- 
 acter. 
 
 ANDREW JACKSON, 163 
 
 Of Irish descent — English oppression — His Father Emigrates 
 to America — Birth of Andrew Jackson — Youthful Adven- 
 tures — War of the Revolution — Invasion of Soutli Carolina 
 — Patriotic conduct of young Jackson and his brothers — 
 Anecdotes — Ills Daring and Resolution — Attack on the. 
 Waxlwxw R«ttl«rs — Tak«» sa a pri-en^v to Cam«l«n — Si*f- 
 
CONTENTS. IX 
 
 Faob 
 
 ferings of the Prisoners — Battle of llolikirk's Hill — A Moth- 
 er's Devotion — Release from Captivity — Close of the War 
 — Praiseworthy Resolution — Andrew Jackson studies law — 
 Emijrrates to Tennessee — Life in the Loff Cabin — Incidents 
 of the Wilderness — Establishes himself at Nashville — The 
 Debtors — Married to Rachael Donelson — Member of the 
 Tennessee Convention — Representative and Senator in Con- 
 gress — Judge of the Supreme Court — Ditticulty with Gov- 
 ernor Sevier — Duel with Dickinson — Altercation with Col- 
 onel Benton — Aaron Burr — War with Great Britain — Jack- 
 son tenders the services of his Division — Expedition to 
 Natchez — The Southern Indians — War with the Creeks — 
 General Jiickson takes the field at the head of the Tennes- 
 see volunteers and militia — Difficulty in obtaining supplies 
 — Battle of Talluschatchee — Lincoyer — Battle of Talladega 
 — Destitution of the Troops — Mutiny — Firmness and deter- 
 mination of General Jackson — Patriotic letter to Governor 
 Blount — Battles of Emuckfaw and Enotochopco — Arrival 
 of Reinforcements — Battle of Tohopeka — Terrible slaughter 
 of the Creeks — Termination of Hostilities — Return Home — 
 Jackson appointed a IMajor-general in the Regular Army — 
 Capture of Pensacola — Expedition of the British against 
 New Orleans — Defences of the city — Arrival of Jackson — 
 Landing of the Enemy — General Jackson attacks them with 
 a part of his command — Fortifications — Battle of the Eighth 
 of January — Complete Rout of the British Army — The en- 
 emy retire to their Shipping — Treaty of Peace — Fine im- 
 posed by Judge Hall — Gratitude of the citizens of New 
 Orleans — The Seminole War — Appointed commissioner to 
 receive the Territory of Florida — Resignation of his com- 
 mission — Again elected Senator — Chosen President — Im- 
 portant Events of his Administration — Final Retirement — 
 Death and character. 
 
 ALEXANDER MACOMB, 295 
 
 Military Institution at West Point — Ancestors of General 
 IMacomb — His Youth — Education — Enters the army as « 
 
 1* 
 
M CONTENTS. 
 
 Pxas 
 
 Cornet of Dragoons — ^IMilitary Education and Accomplish- 
 ments — Promotions — Marriage — Superintends the Construc- 
 tion of Coast Defences — Prepares a work on Courts Martial 
 — Appointed Colonel of Artillery — Raises a Regiment — 
 Stationed at Sacketts Harbor — Projected Attack on Kings- 
 ton — Participation in the Capture of Fort George — Expedi- 
 tion under Wilkinson — Promoted to Brigadier-general — At- 
 tack on La Cole Mill — Invasion of New York by the British 
 under Sir George Prevost — Skirmishing — Battle of Platts- 
 burg — Attack and Repulse of the Enemy — Victory of Com- 
 modore Macdonough — Thanks of Congress and State Leg- 
 islatures — Macomb appointed Chief Engineer — General-in- 
 chief of the Army — His Death. 
 
 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE, 323 
 
 His family and Education — ^Receives a Commission — Fond- 
 ness for reading and study — His Marriage — E.xpedition to 
 the sources of the Mississippi — Ordered to explore the in- 
 terior of Louisiana — Hardships and Suflerings of his party 
 — Loses his way — Taken prisoner to Santa Fc and Chihua- 
 hua — Permitted to Return Home — Publishes Nan-atives of 
 his Expeditions — Rapid Promotions — Deputy Quarter Mas- 
 ter General — Appointed Colonel of Infantry — Mode of drill- 
 ing his regiment — Incursion into Canada — Raised to the 
 rank of Brigadier General — Expedition against York — His 
 Gallant Conduct — Explosion of the Magazine — ^Death of 
 Pike — Bravery and Heroism. 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT, 338 
 
 Napoleon's Remark in regard to Turenne — The Pretender — 
 Scott's Ancestors — His birth — Education — Enters the lethal 
 Profession — Commences Practice — ^Obtains a commission as 
 captain of Artillery — Difficulty with General Wilkinson — 
 Promoted to Lieutenant Colonel— Attack on Queenston — 
 Scott crosses the river and takes the command — The Enemy 
 driven off— Arrival of General Shealfe with reinforcements, 
 and surrender of the Americans — Encounter with the Indian 
 
CONTENTS. XI 
 
 Paqb 
 
 Warriors — Interference in behalf of Irish prisoners — Is ex- 
 changed and returns to duty — Colonel of the second artil- 
 lery — Attack on Fort George — Scott commands the ad- 
 vanced guard — Capture of the Fort — Wilkinson's Expedi- 
 tion — Skirmishing — Appointed a brigadier general — Camp 
 of Instruction at Butfalo — Invasion of Canada — Battle of 
 Chippewa — Scott's cliarge — Battle of Niagara — His heroic 
 conduct — Is severely wounded — Complimentary Resolu- 
 tions — ^\^isit to Europe — Return Home and Marriage — ^j\Iil- 
 itary Reports and Publications — Controversy in regard to 
 brevet rank — War with the Sacs and Foxes — Campaign in 
 Florida — Disturbances in Canada, and on the frontier — Re- 
 moval of the Cherokees — The North Eastern Boundary — 
 Raised to the chief command of the Army — The War with 
 Mexico — Expedition against Vera Cruz — Reduction of the 
 city and the castle of San Juan de Ulua — Battle of Cerro 
 Gordo — ^larch to Puel)la — Advance to the Mexican Capital 
 — Contreras and Churubuseo — El Molino del Rey — Capture 
 of the City of Mexico — Treaty of Peace concluded — Return 
 of General Scott — Reflections. 
 
JACOB BROWN. 
 The first General in Chief. 
 
THE GENERALS 
 
 OP THE 
 
 LAST WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN, 
 
 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 The opening scenes of the second, and last contest, 
 between the United States and Great Britain, were, 
 to the former, disastrous in the extreme. The appre- 
 hension long entertained, and, in the western part of 
 the Union, the openly avowed desire of a war witli 
 Spain, who took little pains to conceal her dissatisfac- 
 tion with the cession of Louisiana, — and the protracted 
 agitation of the various questions in dispute with Eng- 
 land and France ; the two great powers contending for 
 the mastery, or, at least, the commercial supremacy 
 in the world, — had aroused, in some degree, the patri- 
 otic emotions of our countrymen. The impressment 
 of American seamen, the outrage on the Chesapeake, 
 the affau- of the Little Belt, and the acts of violence 
 committed by the savages on the north-western fron- 
 tier, — who were prompted and encouraged by the 
 agents of the British government, — had also excited a 
 war-spirit that needed but a breath to fan it into a 
 flame. Volunteer companies for improvement in ^s- 
 cipline, were everywhere formed ; the regular military 
 
14 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 force of the nation was augmented ; and our chivalrio 
 young men sought eagerly for commissions in the 
 army. 
 
 But the declaration of war, on the 18th of June, 
 1812,' found the country almost entirely unprepared 
 fur hostilities. — Upon whomsoever the blame may fall, 
 the fact is too glaring to admit of contradiction ; 
 and its consequences, at the outset, were signally 
 unfortunate. — The long line of sea-coast was in a 
 defenceless condition. The army was feeble in num- 
 bers, and feebler still in skill and experience. The 
 prominent officers of the Revolution were either dead 
 or superannuated, and recourse was had to those who 
 had held subordinate positions in that great struggle, 
 under what proved to be the mistaken notion, that 
 they only could be relied on in such an emergency. 
 One reverse followed closely after another ; and it was 
 not until a different policy prevailed, and younger, 
 and more skilful and enterprising officers, were placed 
 at the head of the brave yeomen who flocked around 
 the American standard, that the tide of defeat was 
 turned. Among those who contributed to retrieve the 
 disasters of 1812 and 1813, and to terminate the war 
 by a series of brilliant achievements that elicited the 
 applause of the nation, and enforced admiration at 
 home and abroad, was Major General Jacob Browx. 
 
 General Brown was born in Bucks county, Penn- 
 sylvania, on the ninth of March, 1775. His ancestors, 
 for several generations, followed the ])eaceful occupa- 
 tions of an agi-icultural life. George Brown, the first 
 of tlie family in this country, emigrated from England 
 previous to the estabUshment of William Penn on the 
 
EARLY VICISSITUDES. 15 
 
 Delaware, and was well known as a man of strong and 
 well-informed mind. His descendants resembled him 
 in character, and a number of them were, for many- 
 successive years, prominent and influential members 
 of the provincial government. With few exceptions, 
 they belonged to the Society of Friends. The early 
 associations, therefore, of General Brown, were not 
 calculated to awaken a desire for enfraafin^ in those 
 warlike pursuits, in which he subsequently acquired so 
 much distinction.* 
 
 In the language of the inscription on the monument 
 erected to his memory, in the Congressional Cemetery, 
 at Washington, he was "by birth, by education, by 
 principle, devoted to peace!" But the fire of patriot- 
 ism often burns the purest and the freest beneath the 
 plainest garb ; and the heart warmed by the manly 
 and generous impulses which it quickens into exist- 
 ence, is easily moved by the incentives that arouse the 
 soldier's ambition. Love of country, where it is honest 
 and sincere, will outweigh a thousand cold and selfish 
 considerations, and to him who cherishes it, in the 
 hour of danger, there is no post so acceptable as that 
 which will secure the protection of the. land that gave 
 him birth. 
 
 Samuel Brown, the father of Jacob, was a man of 
 intellisrence and hi^h character. He was liberal and 
 enterprising, though not always successful in his 
 undertaking's. He inherited a large and unincum- 
 
 * General Brown is frequently compared with General Greene, who, 
 like him, was descended from a Quaker family ; and it has been jocu- 
 larly said of them, that, although one was green, and the other brown, 
 both were true blue ! 
 
16 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 bered estate, which, with proper care and attention, 
 yielded a very respectable income ; but, unfortunately, 
 he was not content with the moderate gains thus 
 realized, and, with the hope of increasing them, was 
 induced to embark in commercial enterprises that 
 wholly failed of success. A total sacrifice of property 
 Avas the consequence ; and his children were left to 
 depend upon their own efforts and exertions to make 
 their way in the world. 
 
 At the time of his father's failure, our hero was 
 about sixteen years of age ; but, though still a mere 
 vouth, he was not unjirepared for practising that self- 
 reliance which had now become a necessity as well as 
 a duty. So far from being dispirited, because he was 
 compelled to rely upon liis own unaided resources, he 
 nerved himself manfully for the task before him, deter- 
 mined, if possible, to secure the rewards of honest and 
 industrious enterprise. The evil consequences of a 
 hasty and unwise act were brought home to him in 
 such a manner, that he could not well forget them ; 
 and thus it was in after years, that caution and pru- 
 dence were such conspicuous features in his disposi- 
 tion. When he arrived at the age of eighteen, he 
 commenced teaching school at Crosswicks, New Jer- 
 sey, and remained there in that capacity, till he was 
 twenty-one. Wiiile engaged in this vocation, — in 
 itself a noble school, and one that has served as the 
 introduction to a brilliant career of usefulness, to so 
 many of our most distinguished citizens, — he devoted 
 all his leisure time, witli great assiduity, to the culti- 
 vation of his mind. 
 
 After leaving Crosswicks, ho spent two years in 
 
TEACHES SCHOOL. 
 
 17 
 
 Ohio, in the vicinity of Cincinnati, during which 
 time he was employed in surveying and laying out the 
 public lands. On his return from the west, he went 
 to the city of Ne^v York, and, upon the urgent solici- 
 tation of his friends, taught a public school for a few 
 months. This was in the year 1798 — a most excit- 
 ing period in the history of the country. The depre- 
 dations committed on the commerce of the United 
 States, the insults offered to our ministers by the 
 French Directory, and the arrogant tone of their En- 
 voy and his agents, threatened seriously to disturb the 
 friendly relations which had formerly existed between 
 the two governments. 
 
 The political discussions of that day were animated 
 and earnest in their tone, and there were few possess- 
 ing the cajmcity who did not engage in them. Young 
 Brown had constantly kept in view the importance of 
 disciplining and strengthening his mental powers, and 
 the magnitude of the questions, in relation to which 
 parties were then divided, was such, that he devoted a 
 considerable portion of his time to their examination. 
 He was an active participant in the debates which 
 took place among his associates, and wrote several es- 
 says, that were published in the city papers, and at- 
 tracted the favorable attention of that portion of his 
 fellow-citizens whose views coincided with those of the 
 MTiter. While he remained in New York, he com- 
 menced the study of the law, but, on discovering that 
 it was not congenial with his disposition or tastes, he 
 immediately abandoned it. These repeated changes in 
 his occupation were not caused by any indecision, or 
 want of energy on his part, but rather by the omission 
 
18 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 to seek a iiclJ where his active and ardent tempera- 
 ment would have the opportunity to develop itself, and 
 his love of adventure find those projects better adapted 
 to its gratification. 
 
 In 1799, he purchased, at a low price, a large tract 
 of land on the borders of Lake Ontario, lying between 
 the Black river and the St. Lawrence, and embraced 
 within the limits of the present county of Jefferson. 
 As soon as his arrangements were completed, he re- 
 moved thither, for the jjurpose of establishing himself 
 and effecting a settlement. At this time the country 
 was rude and uncultivated, and the first human habi- 
 tation within thirty miles of the lake was erected by 
 him. The settlement that he founded, now a large 
 and flourishing village, was called Brownville, and the 
 same name was afterwards applied to the town in 
 which it was located. Both the village and town, and 
 the county of Jefierson, are much indebted to him for 
 their prosperity and wealth. His activity and enter- 
 prise were rewarded by pecuniary advancement ; and 
 his kindly disposition, his integrity and intelligence, 
 secured him a large share of popularity. He was ap- 
 pointed to fill various public situations, and acquired 
 an extensive influence in his own immediate vicinity, 
 and in the state at large. He was distinguished as an 
 enlightened and practical agriculturist, and for the 
 ability and energy with which he prosecuted such 
 measures as were most likely to improve the appear- 
 ance and condition of the country. But these were 
 not the only commendable traits that deserve to be 
 mentioned. After he had effected the necessary im- 
 provements, ho brought his parents to his home in the 
 
SETTLEMENT AT BROWN VILLE. 19 
 
 wilderness, and having placed them in a comfortable 
 sitaation near him, to the end of his life did every 
 thing in his power to promote their happiness. 
 
 Though occasionally meeting with reverses and 
 disappointments, his firmness and perseverance never 
 deserted him, and his unconquerable resolution enabled 
 him to overcome every obstacle that interfered with the ' 
 success of his plans. 
 
 In 1809, he received the appointment of colonel in 
 the state militia, and, in the following year, was pro- 
 moted to the rank of brigadier general. He had ever 
 been fond of perusing works on military science, and 
 the certain prospect of a war with Great Britain now 
 made him the more anxious to prepare himself for the 
 proper discharge of those duties which he might be re- 
 quired to perform, as it was a favorite wish with him, 
 to acquit himself creditably in every position he was 
 called upon to fill. At the commencement of hostil- 
 ities, in the summer of 1812, he was placed in com- 
 mand of a brigade in the first detachment of New 
 York militia mustered into the service of the United 
 States, and the defence of the eastern frontier of Lake 
 Ontario, and the southern shore of the St. Lawrence, 
 was intrusted to him. 
 
 The line under the charge of General Brown ex- 
 tended from Oswego to Lake St. Francis, a distance 
 of nearly two hundred miles ; and throughout the 
 greater portion of its extent, it was but thinly inhab- 
 ited. The exposed situation of the country, on account 
 of its proximity to the Canadian provinces, rendered 
 the duty assigned him as responsible as it was ardu- 
 ous ; and the small force under his command, and the 
 
20 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 inadequate supply of means at his disposal, frequently 
 occasioned vexation and embarrassment. Owing to 
 the repeal of the orders in council, and the temporary 
 armistice entered into between Sir George Prevost, 
 Governor General of Canada, and Major General 
 Dearborn, the Commander-in-chief of the American 
 forces, it was late in the season before any action of 
 importance took place on the northern frontier of New 
 York. Both the resfular and the militia officers were 
 constantly employed, in the meantime, in organizing 
 and disciplining their respective commands. 
 
 After completing the organization of his brigade, 
 General Brown fixed his head-quarters at Ogdens- 
 burgh. On the twenty-first of September, 1812, Cap- 
 tain Forsyth, the immediate commander of the regular 
 troops at that post, was directed to cross the St. Law- 
 rence, with a small party, in pursuit of some prisoners 
 whom the English had taken from that vicinity. He 
 was met by a superior force of the enemy, whom he 
 defeated. He then entered the village of Gananoque, 
 and destroyed and brought oft* a large quantity of mil- 
 itary stores, together with some prisoners. 
 
 In retaliation for this successful exploit, the British 
 commenced a heavy cannonade upon Ogdensburgh, on 
 the second of October, from their batteries at Prescott, 
 on the opposite side of the river. This was continued 
 for two days in succession, and on Sunday, the fourth 
 of October, they attempted to storm the town. For 
 this purpose, about six hundred men were embarked 
 in forty boats. General Brown had anticipated the 
 attack, and collected together a force not far from four 
 hundi-ed strong to resist it. As the enemy approached 
 
THE BRITISH ATTACK OGDENSBURGH. 21 
 
 the shore, he ordered his troops, whom he had advan- 
 tageously posted along the bank, to fire upon them. 
 The command was obeyed with alacrity, and a spir- 
 ited contest was kept up for two hours. The British 
 made several ineffectual attempts to land ; but the 
 galling fire poured upon them was too severe to be en- 
 dured. Deceived and disappomted in regard to the 
 firmness of the militia, and the spirit and energy of the 
 officer who commanded them, they were at length 
 compelled to retire across the river to Prescott, having 
 lost a number of men, and leaving one of their boats 
 in the hands of the Americans. 
 
 Frequent collisions occurred between small parties 
 of the two armies, in this quarter, during the autumn, 
 and the following winter. Early in February, 1813, 
 a body of the enemy crossed the St. Lawi-ence in pur- 
 suit of some deserters, and committed a number of 
 wanton and unprovoked outrages. Major Forsyth, 
 then in command at Ogdensburgh, determined, as the 
 only mode of obtaining satisfaction, to make an incur- 
 sion into Canada. Passing over the river with a part 
 of his riflemen, and a number of militia, many of the 
 latter beinsf volunteers for the occasion, in all about two 
 hundred men, he surprised the guard at Brockville, 
 captured the military stores, and returned in safety, 
 without the loss of a single man, bringing with him 
 fifty-two prisoners, among whom were eight officers. 
 
 In return for this second aftront, the British at- 
 tacked Ogdensburgh in force, being near twelve hun- 
 dred strong, under Colonel Frazier, on the twenty- 
 second of February. JNIajor Forsyth, in connection 
 with Colonel Benedict, of the New York militia, made 
 
22 JACOB BROWrC. 
 
 a gallant defence ; but they were finally forced to fall 
 back into the interior, before the superior numbers of 
 the enemy. The latter destroyed two schooners, two 
 gunboats, and the soldiers' barracks, and then retired 
 across the river. In consequence of this event, seri- 
 ous apprehensions were entertained for the safety of 
 Sacketts Harbor, which had been selected as the prin- 
 cipal naval and military depot on the lake frontier, on 
 account of the excellence of its harbor, and prompt 
 measures were taken for its security ; — bat the British 
 made no further attempts at invasion, during the win- 
 tor. 
 
 The term for which he was called into service hav- 
 ing expired soon after the close of the campaign of 
 1812, General Brown returned to his civil pursuits at 
 Brownville. But the bravery and skill which he had 
 manifested in repelling the attack on Ogdensburgh, 
 had attracted the favorable notice of the national ad- 
 ministration, and they were unwilling to be even tem- 
 porarily deprived of his valuable services. Accord- 
 ingly, the command of a regiment in the regular army 
 was tendered to him. — At the opening of hostilities, 
 extensive preparations had been made, and orders had 
 been issued, for tlie invasion of Canada ; and it was 
 confidently predicted that the campaign would be sig- 
 nalized by the conquest of the two provinces. The 
 surrender of General Hull, the failure of the at- 
 tempted invasion under General Van Rensselaer, and 
 the inaction of General Dearborn, put an end to the 
 brilliant hopes and expectations that had been formed, 
 and created a very general feeling of dissatisfaction in 
 regard to the manner in which the war had been car- 
 
IS TENDERED A REGIMENT. 23 
 
 ried on, and the conduct of many of the principal offi- 
 cers of the army. As was quite natural, General 
 Brown shared in this feeling, and was unwilling to 
 enter the regular service if required to submit to a 
 sacrifice of rank. He therefore declined the appoint- 
 ment ; but, at the same time, acknowledging the duty 
 of every good citizen to aid in the defence of the 
 country, he held himself in readiness to bestow his 
 services, voluntarily and gratuitously, in case they 
 should be needed in any emergency. 
 
 In the spring of 1813, the American fleet and land 
 troops were withdrawn from Sacketts Harbor, to co- 
 operate in the reduction of York and Fort George at 
 the upper end of Lake Ontario. Lieutenant Colonel 
 Backus, of the 1st dragoons, was afterwards placed in 
 command of the post, whose garrison consisted of two 
 hundred and fifty dragoons, Lieutenant Fanning's ar- 
 tillery, two hundred invalid soldiers, and a few sea- 
 men. This was but a feeble force for the defence of 
 the important military stores collected at that point, 
 and especially so, because the batteries on the shore, 
 and the vessels of war that were left behind, had been 
 dismantled of nearly all their heavy ordnance. The 
 commanding officer was active and vigilant, however, 
 and he had been instructed to communicate with Gen- 
 eral Brown, who resided within eight miles of the 
 Harbor, if an attack should be threatened. The lat- 
 ter was not then in military command, but he was 
 relied on to rally the militia from the surrounding 
 country, if it became necessary. Signal guns were 
 directed to be fired, on the approach of a hostile force, 
 in order to give the alarm with the least possible delay, 
 
24 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 and such other preparations were made as were sup- 
 posed to be requisite. 
 
 On the evening of the twenty-seventh of May, the 
 British fleet from Kingston was discovered bearing in 
 the direction of Sacketts Harbor, by the small vessels 
 under Lieutenant Chaunoey, who had been sent out 
 to recomioitre. The alarm guns were instantly fired, 
 and a messenger was also dispatched to General Brown 
 with the information. After issuing orders for the 
 militia to assemble, he repaired to the post of danger. 
 The delay experienced by the enemy, in the attempt, 
 but partially successful, to capture a number of boats 
 coming from Oswego with troops, fortunately gave 
 time to collect some five or six hundred men : but not 
 more than one thousand could be assembled, in all, 
 including the invalids. At the request of Lieutenant 
 Colonel Backus, who had been but a short time at the 
 station, and was unacquainted with the localities, 
 General Brown took command of the united force. 
 
 In the afternoon of the twenty-eighth, the hostile 
 fleet, which consisted of four ships, one brig, two 
 schooners, two gunboats, and thirty-three flat-bottomed 
 boats, containing one thousand picked troops, under 
 Sir George Prevost and Commodore Sir James Yeo, 
 appeared in the offing. Under the orders of General 
 Brown, a breastwork was hastily, but skilfully thrown 
 up, at the only point where a landing could be readily 
 eflectcd, — the primeval forests sweeping away, for 
 miles on miles, in rear, of the town, and on either 
 side of the opening leading down to the margin of the 
 lake. The militia, and the Albany volunteers, under 
 Colonel Mills, who had recently arrived, were posted 
 
ATTACK ON SACKETTS HARBOR. 25 
 
 behind the breastwork with a field-piece. The regular 
 troops, under Lieutenant Colonel Backus, were sta- 
 tioned in a second line, i;i rear, and near the barracks 
 and public buildings. Lieutenant Fanning, with his 
 artillerists, occupied Fort Tompkins, at the barracks ; 
 and Lieutenant Chauncey and his men were ordered 
 to defend the stores at Navy Point. 
 
 During the night of the twenty-eighth, General 
 Brown was constantly on the alert. His men slept on 
 their arms, while ho and his officers reconnoitred the 
 shores of the lake. All was quiet, however, save the 
 mournful sighing of the breeze among the dark pines 
 and hemlocks, the tall oaks and maples, in the neigh- 
 boring forests, and the constant dashing of the tiny 
 waves on the pebbly beach, till the early dawn on the 
 following morning. The British were then descried 
 pushing rapidly towards the landing in their small 
 boats. As they approached, the American militia ap- 
 peared cheerful and animated, and betrayed no symp- 
 toms of fear ; on the contrary, they seemed anxious to 
 participate in the conflict. 
 
 The orders of General Brown were, to permit the 
 enemy to come within pistol shot, and then, taking 
 deliberate aim, to open on them vigorously with the 
 field-piece and musketry. The fii-st fire was well-di- 
 rected, and very destructive ; the shot tearing and 
 crashing through the sides of the boats, knocking off 
 the gunwales, splintering the bowls of the oars, and 
 killing and wounding several officers and men. Tho 
 British were thrown into confusion ; their advance was 
 cheeked ; and a few more rounds would undoubtedly 
 have terminated the engagement. But after firing the 
 
26 JACOB BRO\V?r. » 
 
 second round, tlic militia, for the first time in action, 
 were seized with a sudden panic, and, in spite of tlie 
 efforts of their officers, retreated in disorder. Colonel 
 Mills lost his life in the vain attempt to prevent the 
 retreat. General Brown succeeded in rallying about 
 ninety men belonging to the company of Captain 
 IMcNitt, whom he formed in line Vvdth the regulars, 
 who maintained their position with spirit and bravery. 
 
 Meanwhile Sir George Prevost had disembarked his 
 troops on the beach, and commenced his march towards 
 the village. But the enemy nov/ encountered the most 
 desperate opposition from the little band of Americans 
 who remained firm, encouraged by the presence of 
 General Brown, and the heroic example of the brave 
 but unfortunate Backus, who fell mortally wounded 
 during the attack. Though compelled to give way 
 before superior numbers, they disputed every inch of 
 ground, and finally took possession of the barrack 
 buildings. Here, partially sheltered, they poured their 
 galling volleys on the enemy ; at the same time, Lieu- 
 tenant Fanning, though severely wounded, directed 
 the fire of his gun vrith remarkable precision and ef- 
 fect. 
 
 The British having made repeated efforts to dislodge 
 the Americans, vv'ithout success, General Brown ex- 
 horted his men to continue the defence of the position 
 to the last extremity, vfhile he made another effort to 
 rally the militia to their assistance. He then hastened 
 to overtake the fugitives. Having collected a large 
 number of them together, he earnestly addressed them, 
 rebuking both officers and men for their lack of cour- 
 age, with such force and eloquence, that many of them 
 
ATTACK ON SACKETTS llARfiOR. 27 
 
 shed tears when he alluded to the brave conduct of the 
 resrulars and volunteers, who, tliouirh stranf^ers to the 
 soil, Vv^ere more prompt to defend it, than tlicy, its 
 owners and occupants. He now ordered them to form 
 and follow him, declaring that he would punish the 
 first act of disobedience with instant death. Although 
 his orders were obeyed without reluctance, he was 
 afraid to rely upon their firmness in an open attack. 
 
 Being unwilling, therefore, to meet the enemy with 
 the troops whom he had just rallied. General Brown 
 determined to efl'ect by stratagem what he was fearful 
 he could not otherwise accomplish. Directing the 
 militia to pass through the edge of the forest, in sight 
 of the field of battle, as if affecting to conceal the 
 movement, he marched them by a circuitous route 
 towards the place of landing. The British, suspecting 
 an attempt to turn their flank and capture their boats, 
 became alarmed, and made a precipitate retreat, 
 leaving behind them all their killed, a number of 
 their wounded, and thirty-five prisoners. They 
 were suffered to re-embark without serious molesta- 
 tion, though a dropping fire was kept up till they 
 were out of reach. After retiring to his shipping. Sir 
 George Prevost demanded the surrender of the town, 
 which was promptly refused. All danger had now 
 passed, as reinforcements were rapidly coming in, and 
 the British commander subsequently modified his 
 demand into a request that his killed and wounded 
 might be properly cared for, and then returned, quite 
 crest-fallen, to the Canada shore. 
 
 While the action was at its height, a false report 
 reached Lieutenant Chauncey, to the effect that the 
 
29 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 American trooi)s had been defeated, and were about to 
 surrender ; whereupon, in compliance with his orders, 
 he set fire to the stores and shipping, to prevent their 
 falling into the hands of the enemy. The flames were 
 afterwards .extinguished, but not until more damage 
 had been done than had been effected by the British 
 soldiery. The loss of the enemy in this alfair was 
 very severe ; their total of ]i;illed, wounded, and taken 
 prisoners, being about four hundred and fifty. The 
 Americans lost tvv^enty-tAvo killed, eighty-four wounded, 
 and twenty-six missing. 
 
 The gallant defence of Sacketts Harbor laid the 
 foundation of the military fame of General Brown. 
 As a reward for the tact, courage, and promptitude, 
 which he had exhibited, he Avas appointed, in the en- 
 suing m.onth of August, a brigadier general in the 
 regular army. In this capacity he accompanied Gen- 
 eral Wilkinson, who had been appointed to succeed 
 General Dearborn, in his unsuccessful expedition 
 down the St. Lawrence. General Brown was sent 
 forward to take command of the advance, at French 
 Creek, which had lieen fixed upon as the place of ren- 
 dovous for the various detachments composing the 
 Army of the Centre. On the first, and again on the 
 second of November, a British Squadron, with a largo 
 force of infantry, attacked the troops who had already 
 arrived tliere ; but, on each occasion, they were re- 
 pulsed by the fire of a battery of three 18-pounders, 
 skilfully managed by Captains McPherson and Fan- 
 ning. After many delays. General Wilkinson em- 
 barked from French Creek with his whole force, 
 amounting to near seven thousand men, on the sixth 
 
EXPEDITION DOWN THE ST. LAWRENCE. 29 
 
 of November, General Brown being placed in com- 
 mand of the second brigade. In the evening they ar- 
 rived a few miles above the British batteries at Pres- 
 cott. The main body of the army, carrying with them 
 their powder and fixed ammunition, now landed, and 
 moved round to a point on the river below the enemy's 
 batteries. 
 
 The commander-in-chief, taking advantage of a 
 dense fog which came on early in the night, endeav- 
 ored to pass down the stream, in his boat, unobserveJ ; 
 but the fog rising before he had effected the passage, 
 the enemy discovered him, by the light of the moon, 
 and o])ened their fire. General Brown was in the rear, 
 in charge of the flotilla, consisting of three hundred 
 boats ; and, upon discovering that the British were on 
 the alert, he concluded to halt till the moon had set. 
 He then gave orders for the flotilla again to get under 
 way. The movement was discovered, however, and 
 for three hours the American flotilla was exposed to a 
 heavy fire from the guns of tlio enemy ; yet such was 
 tlie foresight and vigilance of General Brown, that not 
 a single boat suffered the slightest injury, and but one 
 man was killed. 
 
 On the seventh, the army continued its progress 
 down the river, preceded by an advanced corps of 
 twelve hundred men, under Colonel Macomb, M'ho 
 were ordered to remove the obstructions in the stream, 
 and drive the light parties of the enemy occupying the 
 commanding points on its northern ban!c. The flotilla 
 arrived at the White House on the eighth of November, 
 and General Brown was then ordered forward with 
 his brigade, to reinforce Colonel IMacomb and take 
 
30 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 command of the advance. Clearing the bank of the 
 river as he proceeded, he arrived on the ninth instant, 
 at the head of the Longue Sault, without the occur- 
 rence of any incident of unusual moment. In the 
 morninsf of the tenth he continued his march, and soon 
 became engaged with a strong party posted at a block- 
 house near the rapids, who were handsomely driven 
 otr by the rifles under Major Forsyth. 
 
 In the meantime the British troops from Kingston 
 had made their appearance in the rear of the Ameri- 
 can army, and several skirmishes had taken place. 
 While General Brown was still separated from the 
 main body. General Boyd was ordered by the com- 
 manding general, to face about and attack the enemy, 
 witli the remaining troops on shore. An action was 
 consequently hazarded on the eleventh of November, 
 in Chrystler's fields near Williamsburg, which termi- 
 nated in no decisive result ; the British retiring to their 
 encampments, and the Americans to tlieir boats, each 
 with the loss of over four hundred men. Without 
 being further molested by the enemy. General Wil- 
 kinson continued the descent of the river to St. Regis, 
 at which point he expected to be joined by General 
 Hampton, with the Army of the North. Owing to 
 the want of harmony and concert of action between 
 the two generals, a junction was not effected ; the re- 
 duction of Montreal, — understood to have been the 
 object of the expedition, — was abandoned ; and, on the 
 tliirteenth of November, General Wilkinson retired 
 into winter quarters at French jMills, now Fort Cov- 
 ington, in the forks of the Salmon river. 
 
 The capture of York and Fort George, and the sue- 
 
APPOINTED A MAJOR GE.VERAL. 31 
 
 cessfnl operations of the North-western army in tho 
 early part of the season, had raised the public expecta- 
 tion to the highest pitch. Every thing was hoped from 
 the expedition under General Wilkinson, for which ex- 
 tensive preparations had been made. The Secretary 
 of AVar, General Armstrong, in person superintended 
 the moveraoint^ yet it was attended with complete fail- 
 ure. The feeling of dissatisfaction thereby engendered, 
 v/as not confined to the rank and jEile of the army, but 
 extended throughout the nation. The expedition had 
 attracted a more than ordinary degree of attention ; 
 and, although the censures of the public were mainly 
 confined to those who were alone responsible for its un- 
 fortunate issue, all connected with it, both officers and 
 soldiers, felt themselves, to a greater or less extent, the 
 objects of reproach. The tendency of this feeling was 
 to produce disaffection, even where it did not already 
 exist ; to discourage tlie troops ; and to impair, if not 
 to destroy, their efficiency. 
 
 Soon after the retirement of the army into winter 
 quarters, the command devolved on General Brown, in 
 consequence of the sickness of General Wilkinson, 
 and the absence of the other senior officers. Early in 
 the year 1814, he was promoted to the rank of major 
 general, and, in connection with the able and efficient 
 officers under his orders, immediately applied himself 
 to the work of reviving and perfecting the diseiplina 
 of the troops, and restoring their esprit du corps. 
 
 The brilliant achievements of the heroic soldiers wlio 
 rallied around the eagle sta'ndard of Napoleon, and fol- 
 lowed it, reckless of danger and peril, to battle and to 
 death, had awakened impulses that prompted to like 
 
32 JACOB BROAVN. 
 
 acts of daring ; and it only required, among the Amer- 
 ican troops, the presence of a gallant and chivalrous 
 commander to inspire that enthusiasm, and enkindle 
 that patriotic ardor, which were sure to accomplish the 
 same results. General Brown was a soldier by na- 
 ture. His devotion to his profession assumed the 
 character of a romantic attachment. Foremost in 
 every thought, was a desire to redeem the honor of 
 the flag that waved above him, and to achieve some- 
 thing worthy to be recorded, side by side, with the 
 storied annals of the Revolution. His less fortunate 
 contemporary, " whose glorious name might turn a 
 coward brave" — the accomplished Ney — though the 
 loader of mightier armies, and the hero of prouder 
 fields, was neither more brave, nor more highly gifted 
 with those qualities which are necessary to constitute 
 a great and a successful warrior. 
 
 The withdrawal of the greater part of the troops on 
 the Niagara frontier, for the expedition down the St. 
 Lawrence, left it almost defenceless. Fort George, in 
 Canada West, was evacuated by General McClure 
 who had been left in command ; but, before crossing 
 the river, exceeding his orders, he directed the village 
 of Newark to be burned. In retaliation for this act, 
 which was promptly disavowed by the American gov- 
 ernment, Fort Niagara was surprised on the night of 
 the eighteenth of December, 1813, and its whole gar- 
 rison, of near three hundred men, principally invalids, 
 with the exception of a small number who made their 
 escape, were put to tlio sword. Lewiston, Manches- 
 ter, Youngstown, BuiTalo, and the village of the Tus- 
 caroras, many of whom ha'l entered the service of the 
 
DUTIES OF HIS NEW OFFICE. 33 
 
 United States, were burned, and the whole frontier 
 laid waste. It was therefore determined to remove 
 tlie principal scat of war to tliat quarter, during the 
 approaching campaign, and about the middle of Feb- 
 ruary, 1814, the American army abandoned their can- 
 tonments at French Mills, in two columns ; — one 
 marching to Sacketts Harbor, and subsequently pro- 
 ceeding to Butlalo, under General Brown, and the 
 other towards Lake Champlain, under Generals Wil- 
 kinson and Macomb, for the purpose of making a di- 
 version in favor of the contemplated operations on the 
 Niagara. 
 
 The column under General Brown reached Buffalo 
 in March, where it was joined by the new volunteer 
 levies. Having directed a camp of instruction to be 
 established, for drilling the troops, and the regimental 
 and company oflicers, he went back to Sacketts Har- 
 bor, to complete the arrangements for the effectual co- 
 operation of the naval force on Lake Ontario, under 
 Commodore Chauncey. The spring of 1814 opened 
 gloomy and inauspicious for the American cause. 
 Party spirit ran high ; the country was laboring under 
 severe pecuniary embarrassments ; bitter complaints 
 were uttered in some quarters ; and in numerous in- 
 stances the measures of the administration were 
 thwarted, and its plans defeated. The temporary sus- 
 pension of hostilities, on the European continent, left 
 Great Britain at liberty to employ a larger portion of 
 her army and navy in carrying on the war against the 
 United States. It was now announced, -that she in- 
 tended to prosecute a vigorous system of offensive 
 measures ; to plunder and devastate our sea-coast ; and 
 
34 Jacob brown. 
 
 desolate our frontiers with fire and sword. "When her 
 designs were unilerstood on this side of the Atlantic, 
 our citizens, with few exceptions, forgot, for tlie time, 
 their political prejudices, and rallied with enthusiasm 
 in support of the government. At no time daring ths 
 war was the country provided with a suitable mditary 
 establishment ; collections, therefore, were now made 
 in the principal towns and cities, and large numbers 
 of volunteers were equipped, and means furnished for 
 their support, by voluntary contribution. 
 
 Fortunately, too, at this important crisis, there were 
 such men as Brown, Jackson, and INIacomb, to take 
 command of our armies, and lead thcra on to victory. 
 General Brown returned to Buffalo in June, and re- 
 sumed the command of the army, which consisted, at 
 this time, of the regular brigades under Generals 
 Scott and Ripley, and a brigade of volunteers, with a 
 few Indians, under Generals Porter and Swift. Not- 
 withstanding his utmost exertions, he was unable to 
 take the field vv'ith his command before the first of 
 July. It was then determined to cross the river and 
 capture Fort Erie, in the expectation that tiie British 
 would be compelled to abandon Fort Niagara, and fall 
 back on their posts on the head of the lake. During 
 the night of the second instant, General Brown em- 
 barked his troops, but little more than three thousand 
 strong, at Black Rock ; and early in the morning of 
 the third. General Scott landed below the fort with 
 his brigade, and a battalion of artillery under Major 
 Hindman, and General Ripley, with his brigade, above. 
 The commanding general followed with the volunteer 
 forces, — and a party of Indians were sent round 
 
ItATTLE OF CIIIPrEAVA. 35 
 
 through the woods in rear of the enemy's position. 
 The fort was soon invested, and a battery of heavy 
 guns planted in a position that completely commandei 
 its defences. Without awaiting the threatened as- 
 sault, after firing a few guns, the garrison, to the num- 
 ber of one hundred and seventy men, surrendered 
 themselves prisoners of war. 
 
 The main body of the British troops in the imme- 
 diate vicinity of the river, amounting to over three 
 thousand men, under INIajor General Riall, occupied 
 an intrenched camp at Chippewa, about two miles 
 above the 'Falls. Leaving a small garrison in Fort 
 Eric, General Brown advanced, on the day after its 
 reduction, against the position of General Riall. Tho 
 brigade of General Scott, wliich, with Captain Tow- 
 son's battery, formed the advance, had a running fight, 
 for sixteen miles, with the 100th regiment, commanded 
 by the Marquis of Tweedale, and finally drove it 
 across the CJnppewa Creek. In the evening, the 
 whole army encamped on the south bank of Street's 
 Creek, the bridge over which had been destroyed by 
 the jMarquis, w-ithin two miles of the enemy's works. 
 Between this stream and the Chippewa, lay the broad 
 plain on which the sanguinary engagement of the fol- 
 lowing day took place. On the east were the waters 
 of the Niagara, speeding along in their arrowy flight, 
 to the cataract beyond ; and on the west was a dense 
 forest of oaks, and beeches, and maples, extending for 
 several miles into the interior. 
 
 At an early hour on the morning of the fifth of July, 
 the British light troops, consisting of Canadian militia 
 and Lidians, who were posted in the woods on the left, 
 
36 JACOB BROA\'N. 
 
 commenced making attacks on the American pickets 
 placed on that flank, and small parties of the enemy 
 occasionally appeared in the open plain in front. The 
 commanding officer of one of the pickets having made 
 a hasty retreat, and left one of his men woimded upon 
 the ground, he was ordered instantly to give up his 
 command, and another officer was directed to take 
 charge of his party, and bring off the wounded man, 
 which was accomplished without loss. General Brown 
 could never look with complacency on a breach of dis- 
 cipline, or violation of orders ; and when. accompanied 
 with anything that bore the appearance of ci)wardice, 
 it was sure to be visited, not merely with an indignant 
 rebuke, but with summary punishment. He would 
 tolerate the presence of no officer with the army, who 
 could forget, under any circumstances, the honor of the 
 profession to which he belonged. It is due to the offi- 
 cer referred to, to remark, that he was permitted to 
 engage in the battle as a volunteer, and discharged his 
 duty manfully. He was afterwards tried by a court- 
 martial, and honorably acquitted. 
 
 General Brown was anxious to brinaf on an enwasre- 
 ment with the enemy, and, in order to eireot this ob- 
 ject, or, if that were found impossible, to put an end 
 to the annoying fire of their skirmishers, he directed 
 General Porter to fetch a circuit through the forest 
 with the volunteers and Indians, and cut off their re- 
 treat ; and the advanced parties were ordered to fall 
 back before the fire of their opjwnents, and thus favor 
 the movement. About four o'clock in the afternoon, 
 General Porter encountered the light companies of the 
 Royal Scots and the 100th regiment, in the woods. 
 
BATTLE OK ClUPPEWA. 37 
 
 and drove them back upon the Chippewa, where they 
 met the whole British column, under General Rial), 
 who had anticipated the intentions of General Brown, 
 and was now rapidly approaching, with the hope of 
 finding the Americans unprej)ared for his reception. 
 
 The commanding general had accompanied the vol- 
 unteers, but, on hearing the roar of the artillery, and 
 discovering the clouds of dust rising in the vicinity of 
 (Chippewa bridge, he returned to camp, and ordered 
 General Scott to advance forthwith, with the first bri- 
 gade and Towson's battery, and engage the enemy on 
 the open plain, while he brought up the second bri- 
 gade, under General Ripley, to act at whatever point 
 it might be needed. The order was executed with all 
 possible speed. The troops under General Scott dashed 
 across the creek, and through the clumps of bushes 
 fringing its bank, under a galling fire of musketry and 
 artillery, and were soon enveloped in the wreaths of 
 sulphureous smoke rising over the battle field ; their 
 shouts and cheers, borne merrily on the breeze, and tliu 
 deep-toned thunder of their artillery, and their sharp 
 rattling volleys, announcing the spirit and eagerness 
 with which they entered into the contest. Meanwhile 
 the British light troops had rallied, and compelled the 
 volunteers of General Porter, in turn, to give way. 
 The left flank of Scott's brigade, therefore, became 
 much exposed ; and the 21st infantry, forming part 
 of General Ripley's brigade, which had been held in 
 reserve, was detached to gain the rear of the enemy's 
 right flank. The greatest exertions were made to reach 
 their position in time, but in vain ; for such was the 
 impetuosity of the attack made by General Scott, that 
 
38 JACOU BROWN. 
 
 the battle vras fnught, and the victory won, before they 
 had time to participate in the conflict. 
 
 After the retreat of the volunteers, the 25th infan- 
 try, cominanded by iNIajor Jesup, on the extreme left 
 of Scott's brigade, in the forest, was warmly pressed 
 in front and in flank, being exposed to a withering 
 tempest of musket balls that was fast thinning their 
 ranks ; but, at this critical period, their brave leader 
 gave his well-]cno\vn order, — " Support arms — forward 
 march !" — ]Men who could advance without faltering 
 in such fearful peril were not to be resisted. Having 
 gained a more favorable position, they returned the 
 Are of the enemy, with interest, and in a few minutes 
 compelled them to seek safety in flight. 
 
 In the otlier part of the field, equal zeal and gal- 
 lantry were displayeil. The strife was bloody and 
 fiercely contested on both sides, but of short duration. 
 A warm fire was kept up for about an hour, when the 
 enemy's artillery was silenced ; but their infantry were 
 now ordered to move forward with charged bayonets. 
 As they advanced, a raking fire was poured upon them 
 from Towson's guns, winch Scott had posted in the 
 road to Chippewa, and this was followed, almost in- 
 stantly, by a destructive volley from the 9th and 11th 
 infantry, thrown forward on their outer flanks, and that 
 tremendous charge vrhich scattered tlie pride of the 
 English soldiery like chafi" before the wind.* The 
 enemy's whole line now wavered and broke, and they 
 were hotly pursued to their intrenchments. Here the 
 advance of the victors was checked by the batteries 
 which opened their fire. General Brown had already 
 
 ♦ See Memoir of General Scott. 
 
THE VICTORY AND ITS RESULTS. 39 
 
 hastened forward with the reserve, and joined in the 
 pursuit. He at once decided to force tlie British posi- 
 tion, whicli was well fortified, having a heavy battery 
 on one flank, and a strong block-house on the other. 
 The ordnance was brought up for the purpose, but, as 
 the hour was late, and the men burning with thirst, 
 and wearied with the fatigues of the day, upon consult- 
 ing with his officers, it was concluded to retire to camp 
 rather than hazard what had been gained by an attack 
 which might terminate in a disastrous repulse. 
 
 The number of troops actually engaged in this bat- 
 tle, on the side of the British, was not far from twenty- 
 one hundred : the American force was about nineteen 
 hundred. The loss of the enemy, accordinsf to the 
 official report of the action, was one hundred and thirty- 
 eight killed, and three hundrcJ and sixty-five wounded 
 and missing. Of the Americans there were sixty 
 killed, and two hundred and sixt^'^-seven wounded and 
 missinsf. 
 
 This auspicious opening of the campaign, in a quar- 
 ter, too, which had previously witnessed so much of 
 defeat and disgrace, was hailed with acclamations of 
 joy, in the farthest borders of the Union. Resolutions 
 of thanks and congratulations were liberally shovrered 
 on the American commander, and his brave officers and 
 soldiers. No doubt, the associations connectel with 
 the anniversary of Independence were of invaluable 
 service in encouraging and inspiriting his troops ; still 
 he was none the less deserving of commendation, for 
 wisely availing himself of the emotions which the re- 
 collections of that day were calculated to arouse. But 
 the victory, in itself, was one of which all who partici- 
 
40 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 pated in it might well be proud. Exposed to the fierce 
 radiance of a summer's sun, with inferior numbers, 
 they had met and vanquished disciplined troops, famil- 
 iar with every art and device of war, and who had 
 often fought and conquered, with Wellington, in the 
 Spanish Peninsula. The battle took place in an open 
 field ; the enemy had selected their position ; and the 
 contest was determined solely by the superior bravery 
 and skill of their opponents. The weapon, also, that 
 decided the fate of the day, had for years been the 
 Briton's pride and boast. To the bayonet he had arro- 
 gantly pointed, as " the test of invincibility," and the 
 sure and certain resource when all other means proved 
 unavailing ; but courage and presumption went down 
 together, before the shoclc of the glittering steel, that 
 (lashed back the rays of the blazing orb whose parting 
 cii'ulgence lingered around the spot hallowed by the re- 
 cent triumph of American valor, and the success of the 
 Am.erican arms ! 
 
 After their defeat at Chippewa, the British were 
 unwilling to hazard another action. On the eicjhth of 
 July, General Ripley, who had been detached by Gen- 
 eral Brown for that purpose, forced his way over the 
 Chippewa Creek, about three miles above the enemy's 
 camp ; whereupon. General Riall, thoiigh he had been 
 reinforced by another regiment, abandoned his works, 
 which were occupied by General Brown that evening. 
 On the following day the British commander continued 
 his retreat to Twenty-mile Creek. 
 
 General Brown followed closely the retrograde move- 
 ment of the British army, and encamped at Queens- 
 town, or Queenston, as it is now usually \^1•itten, where 
 
SKIRMISHING. 
 
 41 
 
 he remained for several days, awaiting the arrival of 
 some heavy guns, and the rifle regiment, which he had 
 ordered from Sacketts Harbor, On the twelfth in- 
 stant, a reconnaissance of the works at Fort George, 
 preparatory to an investment, was made by General 
 Swift, with a detachment of volunteers, one hundred 
 and twenty in number. A picket guard were sur- 
 prised and taken ; but, after their surrender, one of the 
 prisoners turned and shot the general through the body. 
 This cowardly act exasperated his men to such a de- 
 gree, that they attacked a patrolling party who now 
 made their appearance, alarmed by the report of the 
 piece, with great gallantry, and succeeded in driving 
 them into the fort. They then returned to camp, bring- 
 ing with them their expi]-ing commander, who died in 
 a few hours. 
 
 On the eighteenth instant Lieutenant Colonel Stone 
 was detached with a small volunteer force to dislodge 
 a party posted four miles west of Queenston, near the 
 village of St. David's, who were lying in wait to attack 
 the reconnoitering parties of the American army. The 
 party was routed and driven in to the main body, with 
 commendable alacrity and zeal ; but after the action, 
 the village was set fire to, and burned, by some of the 
 volunteers, without the orders or knowledge, as was 
 .alleged, of the officer commanding the expedition. — 
 It had long been a favorite idea, and very properly so, 
 with the American authorities, to conciliate the Cana- 
 dian people. The latter were assured by the invading 
 forces, on this as on other occasions, that they came 
 " to conquer, but not to destroy ;" and strict orders 
 had been issued against the commission of any out- 
 
42 JACOB EROV/N. 
 
 rages iiron the persons, or pronerty, of private citizens. 
 General Brown regarded the officer in command of the 
 detachment as being responsible for this glaring viola- 
 tion of duty, inasmuch as it was scarcely possible for 
 the act to have been committed, except tln-ough negli- 
 gence or connivance on his part ; and, on the following 
 morning, he issued a peremptory order directing him to 
 retire forthwith from the army. 
 
 This prompt mode of dismissal occasioned considera- 
 ble remark in military circles, and was pronounced, by 
 many, an unwarranted assumption of authority. Un- 
 der ordinary circumstances, it wo aid certainly have 
 been regarded as an usurpation of power that ought 
 not to be tolerated ; but the situatioj^ of the army was 
 peculiar — they were in an enemy's country, and the 
 neutrality of the inhabitants was absolutely essential 
 to the accomplishment of their paramou.nt object, that 
 of dislodging the enemy from the peninsula. An out- 
 rage of this character could not remain unnoticed, and 
 a delay, even of a few days, in meting out the appro- 
 priate punishment, might put an end to all the hopes 
 and expectations of the campaign. The case, there- 
 fore, was one that required immediate action, and, 
 tliougli General Brown was always careful not to in- 
 fringe the rights of other officers unnecessarily, whether 
 above or beneath him in rank, he never shrank from 
 any responsibility, or hesitated in the performance of 
 any duty. His course, however harsh it may seem, 
 was approved by President Madison, who was never 
 fond of the exercise of doubtful powers, — and by JNIr. 
 Monroe, then his Secretary of State, in a letter ad- 
 dressed to Admiral Cochrane. 
 
EFFORTS TO BRING ON ANOTHER ENGAGEMENT. 43 
 
 Daring reconnaissanc3s of Forts George and Niagara 
 were made by Generals Porter and-Hipley, and it was 
 then decided at a council of war, to attack these posts, 
 instead of following up the retreating forces under Gen- 
 eral Riall. On the thirteenth of July, General Brown 
 had written a pressing letter to Commodore Chauncey, 
 informing hiia of his situation, and requesting him to 
 luisten forward the ordnance and the reinforcements, 
 which were to be transported in the vessels under 
 his command, and inviting his couperation in a com- 
 bined attack-, by land and water, on the forts at the 
 mouth of the Niagara. No answer to this letter was 
 received till the following September, in consequence 
 of the illness of Commodore Chauncey. 
 
 While in this state of suspense, the General decided 
 to make a demonstration on Fort George, and to at- 
 tempt to draw the enemy out into the open field. The 
 inactivity which had prevailed since the previous bat- 
 tle was no longer to be endured ; — and on the twentieth 
 instant, he advanced with his whole army, drove in the 
 enemy's outposts, and encamped near Fort George, in 
 the expectation that General Riall would be drawn 
 from his position, and offer him battle. Disappointed 
 in this, he returned to Queenston on the twenty-second, 
 and on the ensuing day he received a letter by express, 
 from General Gaines, then in command at Sacketts 
 Harbor, informing him that that port was blockaded 
 by a strong naval force, — the enemy now having the 
 ascendency on the lake, — and that Commodore Chaun- 
 cey was seriously ill with a fever. 
 
 This information materially changed the aspect of 
 affairs. The artillery and reinforcements, upon which 
 
44 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 he had confidently calculated, were no longer to be ex- 
 pected ; and his future operations must be conducted 
 entirely independent of them. Other Generals, per- 
 haps equally as brave as himself, — and the history of 
 modern warfare furnishes numerous examples in sup- 
 port of the assertion, — would have susjiended all fur- 
 ther efforts, or ordered an inglorious retreat, relying, 
 for their justification, on the neglect of the government 
 to provide the means and supplies which they desired. 
 But, among the other valuable traits in his character, 
 General Brown possessed that highest quality of the 
 soldier — fertility of invention and resource. If the 
 force placed at his disposal was not sufficient to accom- 
 plish a favorite project, the energies of his mind were 
 at once employed in achieving something besides, that 
 would redound to the credit of the country, and the 
 honor of her flag. With his little army of three thou- 
 sand men he had crossed the Niagara, and established 
 himself on British soil ; there he was determined to 
 remain, and dispute its possession with the enemy, 
 while there was a single chance, or hope of success, 
 still left to cheer and encourage his brave and devoted 
 band ! 
 
 Being without the heavy guns necessary for an at- 
 tack on Fort George, General Brown was forced, tliough 
 much against his will, to abandon his designs on that 
 post. But he was anxious, nevertheless, to bring on 
 another engagement with General Riall ; and, influ- 
 enced by this desire, continued his feigned retreat up 
 the river, on the twenty-fourth, recrossed the Chip- 
 pewa, and encamped. If 1his movement failed to draw 
 the enemy from their position, he designed to make a 
 
BATTLE OF NIAGARA. 45 
 
 rapid march on Burlington. About noon on the twen- 
 ty-fifth, while his men were busily engaged in making 
 preparations for the march, he was intbrmed tiuit the 
 B^iti^^h appeared in considerable force on Queenston 
 heights ; that four of their vessels had arrived during 
 the previous night at the mouth of the Niagara ; and 
 that a number of boats were moving up the stream. 
 A few minutes later he received the further informa- 
 tion, which proved to be incorrect, that the enemy had 
 landed one thousand men at Lewiston, and were threat- 
 cninaf his basfLraije and stores at Schlosser. 
 
 The troops w^ere instantly ordered under arms, and 
 in twenty minutes General Scott was on the road to 
 Queenston with his brigade, Towson's artillery, and a 
 troop of dragoons. About two miles from the Ameri- 
 can camp, and within a short distance of the Falls, he 
 learned that the enemy were in force in his front, sepa- 
 rated from view only by a narrow piece of wood. Hav- 
 ing dispatched Assistant Adjutant General Jones, to 
 General Brown, with the intelligence, he held on his 
 march, and in a short time discovered the British army, 
 treble his own force in numbers, strongly posted on 
 Lundy's Lane, which led up from the Falls to Beaver 
 Dams. Regardless of the great disparity between the 
 two armies. General Scott promptly made his disposi- 
 tions for battle, fully determined to maintain hisgi'ound 
 till the reserve came up. As the head of his column 
 cleared the wood on the brink of the cataract, whose 
 low deep thunder was echoed by the enemy's artillery, 
 which immediately opened its fire, it was encircled by 
 the rainbow that spanned the boiling Phlegethon beside 
 it. Like the cross that infused new ardor into the sol- 
 
46 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 cliers of Constantine, tliis was regarded as the omen, 
 the sure presage of victory. With their sabres and 
 bayonets gleaming in the rays of the setting sun, and 
 their faces flowing with 
 
 " The stern joy which warriors feel, 
 In foemen worthy of their steel," 
 
 the Americans now deployed in line on the left of the 
 Queenston road. Major Jesup was thrown forward on 
 the right with his regiment, and Captain Towson was 
 posted on the left opposite the enemy's artillery. All 
 were elated with their recent victory, and animated l?y 
 the best spirit. Undismayed by the terrible fire which 
 they encountered, they advanced firmly and steadily 
 against the closely serried columns of the enemy. 
 
 The British position was well cliosen. They had 
 seized a commanding eminence at the head of Lundy's 
 Lane, upon which their battery of nine guns was planted, 
 and swept the field of battle with an incessant torrent 
 of cannon balls. Their forces, at first engaged, con- 
 sisted of the whole army under General Riall, who had 
 marched down from his position, directly to the Falls, 
 with the expectation of meeting Lieutenant General 
 Drummond at this point. The latter had arrived at 
 the mouth of the Niagara on the evening of the twen- 
 ty-fourth, with large reinforcements, collected at Kings- 
 ton and various other points on the lake, and was has- 
 tening as rapidly as possible to join General Riall. 
 He arrived on the ground shortly after the commence- 
 ment of the action, accompanied by his men, and 
 assumed the command of the united force, now between 
 four and five thousand strong. 
 
INCIDENTS OF THE BATTLE. 47 
 
 General Scott and his men held their ground man- 
 fully, till the arrival of General Brown, who had hur- 
 ried forward with his suite, in advance of the brigades 
 of Generals Ripley and Porter, as soon as the firing was 
 heard. Meanwhile the 11th and 22nd infantry, under 
 Colonel Brady and Major JMcNeil, both of whom were 
 severely wounded, having expended their ammunition, 
 were withdrawn from action, and the whole brunt of 
 Ihe battle in front, was sustained by the 9th infantry, 
 commanded by Major Leavenworth. With unswerv- 
 ing courage this regiment resisted every effort of the 
 enemy, though with the loss of half their number, un- 
 til their opponents suspended the attack. General 
 Riall was deceived by the obstinacy of their resistance, 
 and as it was impossible to distinguish objects with any 
 precision in the gloaming, he supposed the entire Amer- 
 ican army was engaged, and was therefore content to 
 wait for General Drummond to come up with the rein- 
 forcements. 
 
 For a few mom.ents the roar of battle was hushed, 
 and the silence was only broken by the unceasing mur- 
 mur of the cataract, and the groans of the wounded 
 and the dying. During the temporary suspension of 
 the fire, General Ripley, with his brigade and the re- 
 mainder of the artillery under Major Hindman, and 
 tlie volunteers under General Porter, arrived upon the 
 giound. With these fresh troops General Brown 
 formed a new alignment, to cover the exhausted com- 
 mand of General Scott, who fell back behind their 
 comrades. The respite was of brief duration, and the 
 action was soon renewed with increased warmth. 
 Wider and wider reverberated the deep echoes of the 
 
48 JACOB BRO■^^'Tf, 
 
 artillery ; higher and higher rose the sharp, continued 
 roll of musketry ; loud was the Briton's cheer, and 
 louder yet the answering shout of defiance ! 
 
 Captain Towson had failed to make any impression 
 on the enemy's battery, though his guns were skilfully 
 and actively directed; and on the renewal of the en- 
 gagement, under the advice of jMajor McRee, the senior 
 engineer officer, General Brown determined to carry 
 the eminence on which it was posted, at the point of 
 the bayonet. The execution of this enterprise was in- 
 trusted to Colonel Miller with the 21st infantry. The 
 reply of the gallant colonel, when he received the order 
 to advance, from General Ripley, is memorable in his- 
 tory — " I u'ill trji, sir .'" said the intrepid soldier.* 
 The trial was made, — nor made in vain. Supported 
 by the 23rd infantry under Major McFarland, while 
 the Ist infantry, under Colonel Nicholas, which had 
 joined the army that day, was left to receive the ene- 
 my's fire in front. Colonel Miller moved up the hill 
 through a raging flood of missiles. The 1st staggered 
 under the tremendous fire to which it was exposed, 
 the 23rd faltered, but the brave 21st, following their he- 
 roic leader, rushed up the height with accelerated speed. 
 On reaching the summit they paused an instant, and 
 then rushed forward with shouts and cheers. The Brit- 
 isii troops had fought bravely, for tliey were anxious to 
 wipe out the discredit of their late defeat. The can- 
 noniers were transfixed at their posts, and for a few 
 seconds there was a fierce contest fought hand to hand, 
 over the loaded guns. But the daring onset of the 
 
 • The reply of Colonel Miller was adopted as the motto of liis regi- 
 ment, and was worn on their buttons. 
 
GENERAL RIALL TAKEN PRISONER. 49 
 
 Americans was not to be resisted ; the discipline of the 
 British soldiery gave way before it ; their artillery was 
 cajitured, and their routed columns, sullen and discon- 
 tented, retired slowly down the hill. 
 
 Meanwhile Major Jesup had turned the enemy's left 
 with the 2oth infantry, and, favored by the darkness, 
 had cautiously advanced in their rear. A detachment 
 from his command, und(;r Captain Ketchum, succeeded 
 in reaching the place where Generals Drummond and 
 lliall were stationed with their suites. The former 
 made his escape, but the latter was taken prisoner with 
 his staff". A large number of prisoners, in addition, 
 were captured by Major Jesup, and he then moved to 
 the left to attack the enemy in rear. Coming upon a 
 body of their troops posted in the Queenston road, about 
 the time of the capture of the battery, his men deliv- 
 ered their fire, as galling as it was unexpected, and in- 
 stantly dashed over the fence that separated them. The 
 enemy broke and fled, and, as the 1st and 23rd infan- 
 try had been already rallied by the animated efforts of 
 General Ripley, the whole British line was now forced. 
 
 General Brown M'as prompt to improve the advan- 
 tage he had gained, as the British officers were heard 
 encouraging their men for a desperate effort to recover 
 their cannon. While they were engaged in, reforming 
 their broken masses under the hill, he advanced his 
 line, placing the captured guns in his rear; General 
 Porter being on the extreme left with his volunteers. 
 General Ripley's brigade occupying the centre, and 
 Major Hindman being stationed in the interval between 
 the second brigade and the 25th infantry, which was 
 
 S 
 
50 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 posted on the right of the line. The first brigade, un- 
 der General Scott, was held in reserve. 
 
 A gloomy and ominous silence prevailed for a short 
 time, and it was then interrupted by the lively strains 
 of martial music, as the British columns were again 
 ordered to advance. General Druramond had given 
 his men but a few moments to recover from the effects 
 of their repulse. With great daring and intrepidity 
 they marched up the height, at double quick time, pre- 
 senting an extended \me outflanking the Americans on 
 both extremes. Within twenty yards of the crest of 
 the eminence, they poured forth their volleys, and 
 prepared to rush forward with their bayonets. In 
 an instant the American line was one blaze of fire. 
 The enemy staggered ; another volley, follovv'ed rapidly 
 by another, and still another, caused them to break 
 and retire down the hill in confusion, despite the 
 exertions of their officers to inspire them with confi- 
 dence. 
 
 Another half hour passed in suspense, and again the 
 measured tread of the advancing columns was heard, 
 as they rose the hill. The Americans reserved their 
 fire till it could be most effective, and when the enemy 
 came within range, the artillery of Major Hindman 
 once more pealed forth its brazen notes, and, as they 
 pressed nearer and nearer, the rattling musketry was 
 added to the din. But the constant shower of shot 
 and ball poured upon them soon chocked their ad- 
 vance. For nearly half an hour they strove in vain to 
 overcome the firmness of the American troops. The 
 contest was warm and animated ; and, daring its 
 continuance, General Scott, who had consolidated his 
 
LAST EFFORTS OF THE EXEMY. 51 
 
 brigade into one battalion, under Major Leaven- 
 worth, made two effective charges on the li^i't and 
 right of the British line, in the latter of wliicli he 
 received two severe wounds, that soon after obliged 
 him to quit the field. General Brown was always 
 where his presence was needed — in the front of 
 the battle. Heedless of the exposure of his per- 
 son, he was ever ready to utter words of encour- 
 agement where symptoms of hesitation were mani- 
 fested ; to commend every act of noble daring ; and 
 to arouse his men to further exertions. His elforts 
 were well seconded by the chivalric bearing and the 
 dauntless intrepidity of Scott and Ripley and Por- 
 ter. Unable to make head aii^ainst the stern and 
 unyielding resistance of the American soldiers. Gen- 
 eral Drummond was a second time forced to draw off 
 his men. 
 
 The contest was not yet ended. Additional rein- 
 forcements had joined the enemy, and, after the lapse 
 of another hour, their hesitating columns were encour- 
 aged to make one more effort for the victory. Regard- 
 less of the havoc made in their ranks, the British 
 troops advanced boldly under a withering fire. This 
 time they gained the summit of the hill, never pausing 
 after they had delivered their fire, and closed with 
 their antaafonists. The battle was now at its height. 
 The beams of the rising moon struggled vainly to pen- 
 etrate the murky pall that overhung the field of com- 
 bat, but the darkness was illuminated by the constant 
 flashing of musketry and artillery. Two lines of 
 armed men, merged with each other, were seen surging 
 to and fro. The earth shook beneath their feet. Foot 
 
52 JACOB CROWN. 
 
 to foot, and breast to breast, they fought. Locked 
 in the death struggle, the Briton and the American 
 fell together. The green sward was soaked with 
 blood ; it collected in pools in the ridges made by the 
 ploughing shot ; and ran down in rivulets to mingle its 
 crimson dyes with the limpid waters of the Niagara. 
 
 General Brown had previously received a severe 
 wound from a musket ball which passed through his 
 right thigh, and as he now moved to the left of the 
 American line, to encourage the volunteers to remain 
 firm, he was struck violently upon his left side by a 
 missile of some description. The blow nearly unhorsed 
 him, and on meeting Colonel Wood, he expressed his 
 doubts as to his ability to keep the saddle. " Never 
 mind, my dear general," was the reply, " you are gain- 
 ing the greatest victory that was ever gained by your 
 nation I" Cheered by these words, which indicated the 
 spirit prevailing among his officers and men. General 
 Brown remained on his horse, giving his orders with 
 wonted firmness and promptitude. The American 
 troops were sorely pressed, but they were more than a 
 match for their opponents. In vain was every ellbrt 
 of the latter. The artillery on both sides was taken 
 and retaken during the struggle, but the British were 
 finally forced to yield the ground, leaving their guns in 
 the hands of the Americans. 
 
 At midnight the contest terminated. The British 
 made no further effort to regain the position, but 
 shrunk silently away in the darkness. Faint from ex- 
 ce.ssive pain and the loss of blood, General Brown was 
 now assisted from the field by his staff. General 
 Scott being also disabled, the command was assumed 
 
 i 
 
LOSSES OF THE TWO ARMIES. 53 
 
 by General Ripley, under whose directions the wounded 
 were collected, and orders were then issued for a return 
 to camp. The artillery horses being all killed, and 
 there being no drag-ropes at hand, General Ripley 
 very reluctantly left the captured guns on the ground, 
 having rolled the smaller pieces down the hill. This 
 circumstance was seized with avidity by the British 
 officers to give color to their claim that they had de- 
 feated the American army, and it has frequently served 
 a similar pvu'pose in the works of British writers. A 
 few considerations Avill show how utterly unfounded was 
 this claim. The Americans attacked their opponents 
 in a position of their own .selection. This position they 
 seized, and held against three daring and desperate 
 efforts to regain it. It was yielded, but yielded volun- 
 tarily ; and being withojit the means to remove the 
 guns. General Ripley left them on the field, and re- 
 turned to the American camp unmolested. The enemy 
 remained nearer the battle-ground, as their tents and 
 baggage were directly in rear of their line ; and when 
 they discovered on the following morning, that the 
 guns had been abandoned, they took possession of 
 them without difficulty, there being no one to oppose 
 them. 
 
 The truth is, that both parties sustained a severe 
 loss in this sanguinary conflict, and neither desired to 
 renew it while the odds were in favor of their antago- 
 nists. In the morning of the twenty-sixth, General 
 Ripley collected all the American troops fit for duty, 
 and with this force, which barely amounted to fifteen 
 hundred men, he sallied out to seek another contest 
 with the enemy. On approaching the field on which 
 
54 JACOB BROWK. 
 
 the action of the previous day had been fought, he 
 found them strongly posted in a still iTiore favorable 
 position, slightly in advance of that formerly oocapied. 
 Becoming satisfied that it would be unwise to attacl-i 
 a superior force under such circumstances, he again 
 returned to camp, and subsequently retired to Fort 
 Erie, the defences of which were immediately strength- 
 ened and extended, m accordance with the instructions 
 of General Brown. 
 
 The British force engaged in the battle of Niagara, 
 was little short of five thousand ; that of the Ameri- 
 cans was nearly one third less. The latter sustained 
 the heaviest loss in killed and wounded, however, on 
 account of the galling severity of the British fire previ- 
 ous to the capture of their guns. The Americans had 
 seven hundred and forty -three men killed and wounded, 
 and the British sLx hundred and forty -three. The lat- 
 ter lost two hundred and thirty-five men taken prison- 
 ers, and the former one hundred and seventeen. The 
 aggregate loss of the British, therefore, was a trifle 
 greater than that of the Americans. Generals Brown 
 and Scott, as has been mentioned, were badly wounded; 
 Generals Drummond and Riall, the latter being like- 
 wise captured, also received severe wounds. 
 
 General Drummond did not offer to molest the 
 American army in their march to Fort Erie, or ven- 
 ture to make an attack on that post, till the 3rd of 
 August, when he had been reinforced by General De 
 Watteville, with one thousand men. He then invested 
 the fort, and made preparations for its reduction. On 
 the fifth of August, General Gaines arrived from 
 Sackctts Harbor, and assumed the command. The 
 
ATTACK or lOUT EKIU. 65 
 
 enemy continnetl thtiir approaches, and on the thir- 
 teenth and fourteenth a heavy cannonade was kept 
 up, which was followed by an assault early in the 
 morninG: of the fifteenth instant.* The work was 
 poorly calculated to withstand a siege, being nothing 
 more tlian a small redoubt, occupying the centre of an 
 intrenched camp, of which it formed the strong point. 
 The enemy were, notwithstanding, repulsed with great 
 loss, by the gallantry and good conduct of General 
 Gaines and the otficers and men under his command. 
 During the siege General Gaines was severely 
 wounded by the bursting of a shell, and on the twenty 
 eighth instant, he retired to Buffalo, leaving General 
 Ripley in charge of the post. 
 
 Having partially recovered from his wounds, General 
 Brown once more resumed the command on the second 
 of September. The defences of Fort Erie had already 
 suffered considerable injury from the enemy's fire, and 
 the garrison were kept constantly at work repairing 
 the damages, and adding to the works. Frequent 
 skirmishes took place, and the cannonading on either 
 side was maintained, at intervals, with spirit and 
 warmth. Reinforcements were daily expected to ar- 
 rive from the army on Lake Champlain, but they did 
 not make their appearance, and it was soon evident 
 that the post could not be held much longer against 
 the efforts of the enemy. General Brown fretted like 
 an imprisoned lion, and, on the seventeenth of Septem- 
 ber, discovering that General Drummond had con- 
 structed another battery, that would open a destructivo 
 
 * See Memoir of General Guides. 
 
56 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 fire on the following day, he planned a sortie, which 
 has been justly considered as the chef cP OBUvre of his 
 military career. 
 
 The infantry of the besieging force was divided into 
 three brigades, each containing twelve or fifteen hun- 
 dred men, one of which was stationed alternately in 
 the works in front o-f the fort, for the protection of 
 the artillerists, and the other two occupied the main 
 camp about two miles in the rear. The circumvalla- 
 tion consisted of two lines of intrenchments supported 
 by blockhouses, in advance of which the enemy had 
 constructed their batteries. It was General Bro^A^l^s 
 intention " to storm the batteries, destroy the cannon, 
 and roughly handle the brigade on duty, before those in 
 reserve could be brought up." The project was well 
 conceived and admirably executed. 
 
 At noon on the seventeenth, the troops intended to 
 make the sortie were paraded under arms. The sally- 
 ing force was divided into two columns ; the left, com- 
 manded by General Porter, and consisting of the rifles 
 and a body of Indians under Colonel Gibson, the Penn- 
 sylvania volunteers under Colonel AVood, the New York 
 volunteers under General Davis, and the 1st and 23rd 
 infantry under Major Brooks, was ordered to move 
 cautiously upon the enemy's right, by a circuitous road 
 previously opened through the woods ; and the right, 
 commanded by General Miller, and consisting of the 
 first brigade, was directed to enter a ravine between 
 the fort and the British lines, and advance rapidly u]ion 
 the enemy's works as soon as General Porter became 
 engaged. General Ripley remained in reserve with 
 the 21st infantry, between the new bastions of the fort ; 
 
SORTIE FROM FORT ERIE. 57 
 
 his command, and that of General Miller, being both 
 out of view of the enemy. 
 
 The day was dark and lowering. A thick mist 
 rested upon the lake and river, and floated lazily along 
 their banks. The clouds overhead were surcharged 
 with moisture, and sent down copious showers of rain. 
 Favored by these circumstances, the American columns 
 gained their positions unperceived. General Porter ad- 
 vanced with such celerity and caution, that his men 
 sprang upon the enemy's pickets before they were 
 aware of his presence. As soon as the rapid volleys of 
 General Porter were heard, General Brown ordered 
 General Miller to advance, the head of his column 
 being directed towards the interval between batteries 2 
 and 3. Dashing forward at full speed, General Miller 
 reached the enemy's line and pierced their entrench- 
 ments. The British were taken by surprise, yet they 
 fought bravely and well. The contest was close and 
 animated, but brief. Within thirty minutes after the 
 first gun was fired, batteries 2 and 3 were in possession 
 of the American troojjs, who swept every thing before 
 them with the bayonet. Battery number 1 was then 
 abandoned by the enemy, and the Americans, without 
 loss of time, commenced the work of demolition. The 
 British guns were spiked or otherwise destroyed, their 
 breastworks levelled, and the magazine of battery num- 
 ber 3 was blown up. 
 
 General Ripley had now brought up the reserve, and 
 was making preparations for a demonstration on the 
 enemy's camp, when he was disabled by a severe wound. 
 The object of the sortie having been accomplished, in 
 the destruction, by a force of regulars and volunteers, 
 
 3* 
 
58 JACOB BRO-VViV*. 
 
 only two thousanJ strong, of the labors of (out thou- 
 sand men for a period of near fifty days, General iNIil- 
 ler ordered his men to fall back to the ravine, and Gen- 
 eral Brown then directed all the corps to return to camp 
 with their prisoners, which was done in good order. In 
 this affair the Americans had eighty-three men killed, 
 two hundred and sixteen wounded, and there w^ere two 
 hundred and sixteen missing. Three hundred and 
 eighty-five of the enemy were taken prisoners, and 
 there were between four and five hundred killed and 
 wounded. 
 
 This daring sortie put an end to the leaguer. Dur- 
 ing the night of the twenty-first of September, Gene- 
 ral Drummond broke up his camp, and retreated to his 
 intrenchments behind the Chippewa. Not long after, 
 General Izard arrived from Sacketts Harbor with large 
 reinforcements, and on the twelfth of October, being 
 the senior officer, he superseded General Brown in the 
 command. No further incident of importance occurred, 
 however, on this frontier. The gallant exploit of the 
 seventeenth of September was the appropriate /?;2 a /e 
 of a bloody campaign, unsurpassed, during the war, for 
 the display of firmness, valor, and intre])i(lity. Leav- 
 ing a sufficient garrison at Fort Erie, General Izard 
 moved down towards the Chippewa with the remainder 
 of jiis forces, and offered battle to the enemy, but they 
 declined leaving their intrenchments. A partial en- 
 gagement took place between detached corps on the 
 nineteenth of October, which closed the operations of 
 the campaign ; and early in November the American 
 army retired into winter quarters on the opposite side 
 of the Niagara 
 
HIS DECEASE. 59 
 
 The treaty of Ghent, in December of this year, ter- 
 minated the war, and the services of General Brown 
 in the field. Upon the reduction of the army he was 
 retained on the peace establishment, and placed in com- 
 mand of the northern military division. In 1821 ho 
 was appointed General-in-chief, and from that time till 
 his death, whicli occurred on the twenty-fourth of Feb- 
 ruary, 1828, he resided at Washington. The disease 
 which terminated his life was superinduced by another 
 contracted at Fort Erie, from which he was never wholly 
 exempt. 
 
 General Brown did not enter the military profession 
 solely from motives of patriotism, though these ever 
 guided and governed his conduct ; — he was a soldier 
 con amore I Early disciplined in the school of adver- 
 sity and trained to habits of self-reliance, — and gifted 
 with superior mental endowments, which had been 
 carefully cultivated, — he possessed that happy combi- 
 nation of faculties and acquirements which rarely fails 
 to aeliieve success. He was a correct and thoroua^h 
 disciplinarian ; industrious, methodical, and indefatiga- 
 ble ; brave, both physically and morally ; stout in per- 
 son and strong of nerve ; bold and energetic in carry- 
 ing out his offensive movements ; firm, but cautious, 
 when acting on the defence ; sagacious in council ; and 
 coo], calm, and collected, amid the roar of battle. In 
 the language of the general order announcing his de- 
 cease to the army — " Quick to perceive and sagacious 
 to anticipate, prompt to decide and daring in execution, 
 he was born with the qualities which constitute a great 
 commander. His military coup iV (tU^ his intuitive 
 penetration, his knowledge of men and his capacity to 
 
60 JACOB BROWN. 
 
 control them, were known to all his companions in arms, 
 and commanded their respect ; while the gentleness of 
 his disposition, the courtesy of his deportment, his scru- 
 pulous regard to their rights, his constant attention to 
 their wants, and his afliectionate attachment to their 
 persons, universally won their hearts, and bound them 
 to him as a father." 
 
 The death of one so highly esteemed produced a 
 deep impression, and was sincerely lamented, not only 
 by his brethren in arms, but by all to whom he had 
 become endeared in the relationships of private life. 
 Cut off in the vigor of manhood by a disease contracted 
 in the service of his country, she still treasures his 
 memory as that of one among the most honored of her 
 sons. Like the amaranth, his fame is endm-ing and 
 imperishable ; and while the ceaseless murmurs of the 
 cataract rise beside the battle-field of Niagara, his gal- 
 lant daring and determined courage will be gi'atcfully 
 remembered by his countrymen. 
 
I?, ^~ 
 
 
 EDMOND PENDLETON UAINES, 
 Brigadier General, Major General by Brevet. 
 
EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 
 
 It is no slight praise to say of the subject of this 
 memoir, that his name is honorably associated with the 
 war of 1812, from its commencement to its termination. 
 When disasters were so frequent, and defeat so often 
 sustained, where others were concerned, it is refreshing 
 to find, that he never wanted the will, and when his 
 means were sufficient, never lacked the ability, to re- 
 trieve the one, and to wipe out the disgrace of the other. 
 Ever to be found where duty placed him, — prompt, 
 brave, and skilful, — these are high merits in a soldier, 
 and entitle their possessor to a worthy place among his 
 compeers. 
 
 Virginia is often termed "the mother of statesmen," 
 — and she may also be regarded as the birth-place of 
 heroes. Like Harrison and Scott, General Gaines 
 drew his first breath in the Old Dominion. He was 
 born on the twentieth day of March, 1777, in Culpep- 
 per county, near the eastern base of the Blue Ridge, 
 where it looks down upon the rolling table land, and 
 undulating slopes, drained by the waters of the Rappa- 
 hannock. His father, James Gaines, was a nephew of 
 Edmund Pendleton, — after whom his son was named, 
 — a profound and able lawyer, who was for many years 
 
62 EDMUND PENDLETOX GAINES. 
 
 presiding julge of the Court of Appeals of the state of 
 Virginia. In the latter part of the Revolution, the 
 father conimamled a company of volunteers, and did 
 good serviee in that capacity. At the close of the war 
 he removed to the northwest border of North Carolina. 
 He represented the county in which he resided, in the 
 legislature of that state, and was afterwards a member 
 of the convention by which the federal constitution was 
 rejected. Like many of the most patriotic citizens of 
 Virginia, North Carolina, and other states, he was at first 
 opposed to that instrument ; but, his objections having 
 been removed by the adoption of the " bill of riglits," 
 he v^oted in its favor. 
 
 Young Gaines was early familiarized to scones of 
 war and bloodshed. Born in a frontier settlement, dur- 
 ing the perilous times of the revolutionary struggle, 
 when the whole colony was in a state of constant fer- 
 ment and agitation, though not old enough to appre- 
 ciate the importance of the principles for Avhich his 
 countrymen were contending, he was deeply imbued 
 with the spirit that animated the men of that great era 
 in the history of our nation. In the s])arsely-peopled 
 region to which his j)arcnts had removed, the means 
 of obtaining information were very limited, and, as 
 his father was in moderate circumstances, he enjoyed 
 but few advantages of that character. These were 
 carefully improved, however, under tlie direction and 
 superintendence of his mother, who possessed a fine 
 mind, and had received a goo.l education. A friend, 
 by the name of Ralph Mitchell, whose acquaintance he 
 formed while a more youth, instructed him in mathema- 
 tics, and he subsequently became an accurate surve3^or. 
 
RECEIVES HIS FIRST COMMISSION. * 63 
 
 When he was about thirteen years of age, his father 
 emigi'ated to Sullivan county, in tliat mountainous 
 tract of country, now known as East Tennessee, lying 
 between the Stone and Cumberland mountains. This 
 section of the union was then new, and but thinly in- 
 habited. Being in the immediate vicinity of the theatre 
 of the depredations committed by the Creeks and Cher- 
 okees, tales of border warfare were rife, and the legends 
 of " the dark and bloody ground " were often repeated 
 by the fireside of the elder Gaines. Themes like these 
 were calculated to enkindle a desire for entering the 
 profession of arms in the bosom of his young son, who 
 listened to them with eager interest, and he soon gave 
 unequivocal indications that his thoughts were turned 
 in that direction. From bovhood he had been taught 
 to labor, — to swing the axe, and follow the plough. 
 When not thus employed, or busy in storing his mind 
 with useful information, he rambled throuijh the forests 
 in search of game. In his hours of pastime the rifle 
 was his constant companion, and he is said to have ex- 
 celled all his companions in the use of that weapon. 
 Passing his time in these occupations, his constitution, 
 naturally strong and vigorous, had become hardened 
 and invigorated, and fitted to endure the sufferings and 
 vicissitudes of a soldier's life. He was likewise bold 
 and fearless, daring and determined ; — no difficulty 
 retarded him, no dansrer deterred. 
 
 He now occupied his leisure hours in reading and 
 studying such military and historical works as he could 
 procure ; and at the age of eighteen he was elected to 
 a lieutenancy in a rifle company commanded by Cap- 
 tain J. Cloud. No opportunity was yet presented for 
 
■J 
 64 4||;, ED^ruND pendleton gaines. 
 
 gi-atiiying the first wish of his heart, and he concluded 
 to turn his attention to another profession. When not 
 otherwise busied, much of his time had latterly been 
 spent in surveying. In this way he had provided him- 
 self with a small supply of funds, and on attaining his 
 majority, he commenced the study of the law, and pur- 
 sued it as fast as his limited means would allow.v 
 Wliile thus engaged, he was recommended by his friend, 
 the Hon. W. C. C. Claiborne, then a member of Con- 
 gress from the state of Tennessee, and afterwards gov- 
 ernor of Louisiana, for an appointment in the army 
 The recommendation proved successful, and on the 
 tenth of January, 1799, he received his first commis- 
 sion, as an ensign. 
 
 The long-cherished desire of young Gaines was now 
 gratified, and the way opened for him to win honor and 
 renown in the armies of his country. In the autumn 
 of 1799, he was promoted to the rank of 2nd lieutenant 
 in the 6th infantry, and sent on the recruiting service. 
 His regiment being afterwards disbanded, he was at- 
 tached to the 4th infantry, then under the command of 
 Colonel Thomas Butler. In the summer of 1801, 
 Colonel Butler received orders from tlie War Depart- 
 ment, to select a subaltern from his regiment to make 
 a tojKjgraphical survey from Nashville to Natchez, for 
 the location of a military road. Lieutenant Gaines 
 was selected for tliis duty, and was employed in dis- 
 charging it, and in the survey of some Indian boundary 
 lines, till the winter of 1803-4, — having, in the mean- 
 time, been raised to the rank of 1st lieutenant. 
 
 The Spanish government, being dissatisfied with the 
 transfer of Louisiana to the United States, refused to 
 
APPOINTED MILITARY COLLECTOR. -»*■ DO 
 
 witiiilraw her troops from Fort Conde, at Mobile, and 
 from Baton Rouge, — and to deliver up possession of 
 (he country lying north of the Isle of Orleans, and the 
 (lulf of Mexico, and between the Mississippi and the 
 Perdido, — insisting that the territory embraced within 
 those limits formed a part of her Florid i an possessions, 
 and was not included in the cession to Francs. Mr. 
 Jeilerson well knew that the country was wholly un- 
 prepared for M'ar, and, in conformity with the peaceful 
 policy of his administration, was unwilling, at that 
 time, to submit the question in dispute to the arbitra- 
 ment of the sword ; yet, lest it might be said that the 
 United States had tacitly acquiesced in the claim of 
 the Si)anish authorities, he resolved to appoint a mili- 
 tary collector for the district of Mobile. The appoint- 
 ment was conferred on Lieutenant Gaines, in 1804, 
 and he immediately estabUshed himself at Fort Stod- 
 dart, thirty-six miles north of Mobile. 
 
 He at once looked forward, with eager hope and ex- 
 pectation, to the time when he would be required " to 
 flesh his maiden sword ;" a collision seemed unavoida- 
 ble, and he supposed it would soon be necessary to as- 
 sert the rights of his government, and the authority 
 deputed to him, by force of arms. In this lie was dis- 
 appointed ; but a circumstance shortly after transpired, 
 that brought him into notoriety, — of a very different 
 character, indeed, from what he had desired or antici- 
 pated, yet it is not at all probable that he ever regret- 
 ted his connection with the transaction. — In 1806 he 
 was appointed postmaster, and selected as the confiden- 
 tial agent of the post-office department, being clothed 
 with the power of suspending postmasters and con- 
 
66 ' EDMUND PENDLETON tJAINES. 
 
 tractors concerned in what was called, " the conspiracy 
 of Aaron Burr." Young and ardent, in heart and soul 
 a patriot, it is not strange that he should have shared 
 ill the prevalent feeling, and approved the public judg- 
 ment that denounced Colonel Burr as a traitor. Ho 
 may have been mistaken in this, and if so, it was an 
 error into which he was very likely to fall : — the projects 
 , of Colonel Burr are still shrouded in mystery ; he who 
 was chiefly interested in removing the odium attached 
 to them in the estimation of his countrymen, if that 
 were possible, refused to make any explanations ; to 
 the close of his life he maintained a studied reserve, 
 and when he died, " he made no sign" ! 
 
 Lieutenant Gaines was quite active in discharging 
 the extraordinary mission intrusted to him, and in fer- 
 reting out the parties implicated in the supposed con- 
 spiracy. He arrested Colonel Burr ; and, on account 
 of his acquaintance with the western country, he re- 
 ceived the temporary appointment of marshal, in which 
 capacity he summoned a number of witnesses to attend 
 the trial. About the same time he was promoted to 
 the rank of captain. Although his conduct had been 
 governed by the best and purest motives, and he had 
 but faithfully carried out the instructions of those whom 
 it was his duty to obey, he incurred the bitterest ani- 
 mosity of the friends of Colonel Burr, and was severely 
 attacked on the trial ; and, in his subsequent life, he 
 was often taught to feel, that they had neither forgot- 
 ten nor forgiven him. 
 
 Soon after his connection with this affair terminated, 
 seeing nothing before him but a life of inaction wholly 
 unsuited to his active temperament, he decided to re- 
 
RE-ENTERS THE ARMY, 67 
 
 tii\^ frnm ilie army, and enter the legal profession. 
 Before announcing lii^ determination, he wisely hesi- 
 tated : — iliCYc was a prospect of war with England, — 
 though, after the settlement of the affair of the Chesa- 
 peake, a remote one, — and he therefore concluded 
 merely to apply for leave of absence. This was cor- 
 dially sjranted bv his commandinof officer, General 
 Hampton, and he now commenced the practice of the 
 law in the counties of Washington and Baldwin, in 
 what was then the Mississippi territory, but now the 
 State of Alabama. He had just rode his second cir- 
 cuit, under auspices highly flattering to his talents and 
 abilities, when the alternative, of rejoining the army 
 or finally throwing up his commission, was presented. 
 The call of his country was the catl of duty. The 
 summons to arms was joyfully obeyed, and at the com- 
 mencement of tlie war of 1812, he resumed his sword, 
 and his position in the service. 
 
 The year 1812 closed without furnishing him an op- 
 portunity to distinguish himself. In the spring of 
 1813, he was attached to the North-western army, and 
 rose, by rapid promotions, to the command of a regi- 
 ment. A long and tedious illness prevented his parti- 
 cipation in the battle of the Thames, but he recovered 
 in time to accompany the ill-fated expedition of Gene- 
 ral Wilkinson down the St. Lawrence.* Ha was 
 present at the battle of Chrystler's fields, on the elev- 
 enth of November, and for his gallantry on that occa- 
 sion was mentioned in terms of high commendation, in 
 the official dispatch of General Boyd. In the action 
 he commanded the 25th infantry, one of the finest and 
 ♦ See Memoir of General Brown, a7ite. 
 
^ EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 
 
 most effective regiments in the service, and after the 
 British had been beaten back, in accordance with the. 
 instructions of the commander-in-chief to General 
 Boyd, he was directed to cover the re-embarkation of 
 the American troops. 
 
 This service was performed with skill, fearlessness, 
 and promptitude. Colonel Morrison, of the 89th Brit- 
 ish foot, the oflicer in command of the enemy, ani- 
 mated by the hope of achieving some certain success 
 during the day, pushed hard upon him with a large 
 body of troops. His men stood firm and immovable as 
 the rocks beneath their feet. A desperate onset was 
 made by the enemy to overwhelm him, but after an ob- 
 stinate struggle they were completely repulsed. He 
 then joined the advance, retiring with his command 
 slowly and deliberately to their boats. Colonel Morri- 
 son was so well pleased with the brave conduct of the 
 regiment, that, after the action, he sent his card to its 
 commanding officer, with a message expressing his ad- 
 miration, and desiring to know his name, in order that 
 if they should chance to meet when the two countries 
 were at peace, he might claim the privilege of an old 
 friend and fellow soldier. It need not be added, that 
 Colonel Gaines promptly complied with the request and 
 returned the compliment. 
 
 Colonel Gaines accompanied the army into winter 
 quarters at French Mills, and, on the ninth of March, 
 1814, he received the commission of a brigadier gene- 
 ral. At the opening of the following campaign, we 
 find him placed in command at Sacketts Harbor, upon 
 the departure of General Brown and his army for the 
 Niagara frontier. Here he was assiduously employed 
 
DEFENCE OP FORT ERIE. 69 
 
 in providing for the defence of the post, and, when it 
 was blockaded by the British squadron, in preventing 
 their attempts to cut off the supplies and munitions of 
 war, conveyed through the interior of New York, by 
 way of the IVIohawk, the Oneida Lake, and the Oswego 
 river, and the connecting canals, and then transported 
 over Lake Ontario to Sackctts Harbor. He remained 
 at this post, till he was summoned by General Brown 
 to join the army on the Niagara, after the battle of the 
 twenty-fifth of July. On the fifth of August he ar- 
 rived at Fort Erie, then beleaguered by tiie British 
 forces under General Drummond, and assumed the 
 command. 
 
 The construction of the additional defences of the 
 fort had already been commenced, under the direction 
 of General Ripley, with whose arrangements he inter- 
 fered no further than to press the rapid completion of 
 the works. The main structure was a small unfinished 
 redoubt, and in a very dilapidated condition. It was 
 situated about one hundred yards from the lake, above 
 which it was elevated some fifteen or twenty feet. 
 Towards the water it was left exposed, though partially 
 repaired ; on the right it was strengthened, and extended 
 by a breastwork, to the river, where it terminated in a 
 battery, and on the left a line of intrencimients and 
 abattis was formed, extending to an eminence called 
 Snake hill, which formed the southern angle, and on 
 which a redoubt was constructed. From thence east- 
 wardly, to the shore of the lake, there was a defence 
 of abattis. 
 
 The British general had fancied that the American 
 army was now within his grasp, and that a single blow 
 
70 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 
 
 would be followed by their immediate surrender, or their 
 withdrawal from the Canadian territory. Upon his ar- 
 rival before the post he found its ooeujiants much better 
 prepared for his reception than he expected to find them.' 
 He therefore sat himself down coolly and deliberately, 
 established his main camp about two miles distant, 
 threw up two lines of intrenchments, supported by 
 strong block houses, in front of the works, planted his 
 batteries at favorable points, and contented himself 
 with drawing closer the investment, but, nevertheless, 
 pushing his operations with great activity. 
 
 The American soldiers labored incessantly on the 
 fortifications ; and on the seventh of August, though 
 still incomplete, they were in a sufficient state of for- 
 wardness to withstand an attack. From that time till 
 the fourteenth instant, a constant cannonade was kept 
 up, on one side or the other ; the earth shaking for miles 
 around, as the thunders of the artillery boomed over 
 the lake, or rolled along its shores, echoing from one 
 headland to the other, and muttering among the fis- 
 sures of the rocks and recesses of the forest, till they 
 were lost in the distance. Several skirmishes also took 
 place, in which the British were generally defeated. 
 The works were considerably crippled, however, as they 
 were enfiladed by one of the enemy's batteries ; but the 
 garrison did not suffer materially from the fire, there 
 being but seven men killed, and thirty-six wounded, 
 up to the night of the fourteenth instant. 
 
 Towards evening on the fourteenth a bustle was ob- 
 served in the British lines, from which General Gaines 
 rightly conjectured that the enemy designed to hazard 
 an assault, and his dispositions were at once made to 
 
PREPARATIONS OF THE EXEMY. 71 
 
 rc]>el it. The garrison was feeble enough, there being 
 but about twenty-five hundred effective men, while the 
 besieging force was nearly double that number ; but 
 what they lacked in this respect was more than made 
 u|i in the cheerfulness with which the officers seconded 
 the wishes of the commander, the unflinching firnmess 
 of the men, and the readiness with which they obeyed 
 every call of duty. The main fort and its bastions 
 Vv"ere placed under the command of Captain Williams, 
 of the artillery : the battery on the margin of the lake, 
 on the right, was commanded by Captain Douglass, of 
 the engineers : the batteries in front were placed in 
 charge of Captains Biddle and Fanning ; and Captain 
 Towson's battery occupied the south-western angle of 
 the works, — all being under the command of Major 
 Hindman, chief of artillery. The first brigade, under 
 Lieutenant Colonel Aspinwall, — its former commander. 
 General Scott, having been wounded at the battle of 
 Niagara, on t)ie twenty-fifth of July, — was posted on 
 the right, and the second brigade, under General Rip- 
 ley, on the left. The riflemen and volunteers, under 
 General Porter, were directed to support the batteries 
 in front, and the block house, near the salient bastion 
 of the fort, was occupied by a detachment of infantry, 
 under Major Trimble. 
 
 Tlie preparations of General Drummond were com- 
 pleted soon after nightfall on the fourteenth ; it was 
 arranged that the projected assault should be made 
 early on the following morning, in three columns, — 
 that on the right designed to attack tiie left of the 
 American works, consisting of thirteen hundred men, 
 being placed under the command of Lieutenant Colonel 
 
72 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 
 
 Fischer, that on the left, of about tlie same number, 
 under Colonel Scott, and the central column, composed 
 of eight hundred select troops, under Lieutenant Colonel 
 DrumnK)nd. A few hours before the assault was or- - 
 dered, one of the enemy's shells lodged in a small mag- 
 azine in the fort, which exploded with a deafening 
 noise, shaking the solid earth, and shooting a vast pillar 
 of smoke and flame up towards the sky, which ex- 
 panded at the top, and rained down showers of frag- 
 ments on the heads of the garrison. Not a man was 
 injured, or a gun disabled, by the explosion ; but the 
 British soldiers, fancying some serious injury had been 
 effected, raised a loud and joyous shout. This was 
 promptly answered by the Americans, and in the midst 
 of the confusion, and before the smoke had cleared 
 away, Captain Williams discharged his heavy guns. 
 For a few moments an animated fire was kept up, and 
 the air was filled with a storm of projectiles, with crash- 
 ing balls, and falling shells, — but it died away again, 
 and all was still. It was the silence that forebodes 
 the storm — the hush that precedes the whirlwind ! 
 
 It had been rainy throughout the day, and the rolling 
 thunders of the tempest mingled with the loud roar of 
 cannon, and the noise of exploding bombs. When the 
 night set in, the rain continued to ftill ; heavy masses 
 of clouds swept athwart the sky, curtaining the scene 
 with a dark and gloomy pall ; and the fires in the ene- 
 my's camp could scarcely be discerned, glimmering 
 feebly through the obscure haze. The breastworks of 
 Fort Erie sheltered many an anxious bosom, but the 
 fire of a noble courage, tliat knew not how to falter, 
 sparkled in every eye, and beamed on every counter 
 
THE ASSAULT. 73 
 
 nance. General Gaines, whose dauntless intrepidity 
 was never more conspiouons tlian on this occasion, was 
 active in encouraging and inspiriting his men, both by 
 his language and his example. Every necessary order 
 was issued with promptitude, and obeyed with alacrity. 
 
 Midnight came, — and yet there were no indications 
 of an attack. Another, and another hour passed by in 
 silence. Ere the next half hour was told, a low, faint 
 sound was heard, like the rustling of the wind among 
 the leaves of the forest. It approached nearer and 
 nearer, — and the eager listeners soon caught the meas- 
 ured tread of the approaching columns, enveloped in 
 thick darkness, but hurrying onward with rapidity to 
 the assault. The column led by Lieutenant Colonel 
 Fischer was the first to reach the works. The enemy 
 advanced steadily and quickly, — ons portion approach- 
 ing the battery at the southwestern angle, with scaling 
 ladders ; and the other advancing against the line be- 
 tween it and the lake, with the desie:n of terminatinsf 
 the contest, in an instant, by the decisive shock of the 
 bayonet. They were allowed to approach within good 
 range, when the American musketry and artillery opened 
 suddenly upon them. Broad sheets of flame leaped 
 from the breastworks ; shot and shell were vomited in 
 torrents from the batteries ; and the dense waves of 
 smoke that surged over the combatants, were lighted 
 constantly by the vivid flaslies of the artillery. 
 
 The edect was terrific. The enemy were mowed 
 down in platoons, and scores were swept away at every 
 discharge. They hesitated for a moment, — another 
 scorching blast burst from the American batteries, — 
 and they recoiled in terror and alarm. They were soon 
 
 4 
 
74 bux;i?ND i>i:ndlkto\ oaim:s. 
 
 rallied, however, and again led to the attack ; but they 
 were again repulsed with fearful slaughter. The Brit- 
 ish officers once more succeeded in animatins? their wa- 
 vering troops for another onset. They now attempted 
 to pass round the abattis by wading through the lake, 
 the water of which came nearly to their arm-pits. The 
 American soldiers, cheered by the presence of General 
 Gaines, who had mounted his horse and hastened at 
 the first alarm to participate in the dangers, and share 
 the perils of the conflict, made every preparation to 
 receive them. Some few succeeded in reaching the 
 firm earth on the opposite side of the abattis, but it 
 was only to be pierced by a dozen wounds. Many 
 were drowned in the lake ; others sank exhausted by 
 their wounds, beneath the water dyed with the life 
 blood which they had vainly shed ; and others found 
 their only safety in surrendering themselves prisoners 
 of war. I'hc officers no longer endeavored to prevent 
 the retreat, but all, as if animated by one impulse, 
 hurried, in haste, from the scene of their disaster. 
 
 On the other flank the enemy were equally unsuc- 
 cessful. The column under Colonel Scott became en- 
 tangled in the rocks near the river, on the right of the 
 intrenched camp, and were delayed for a short time ; 
 but when they discovered their error, and regained their 
 line of march, thoy pushed on more rapidly than before. 
 The sleepless vigilance of tlie besieged could not be 
 taken by surprise. The assailing column were heard 
 distinctly behind the ramparts as they approached, and 
 Avhcn v.-ithin fifty yards of the American lines, t!iey 
 cncoiH^itcrod an appalling fire that forced them to halt. 
 To advanoo further was impossible. The batteries 
 
INCIDENTS OP THE BATTLE. 75 
 
 before them presented a constant blaze of fire, and the 
 air was full of bursting balls and missiles. In the 
 meantime, the central column, commanded by Lieu- 
 tenant Colonel Drummond, had advanced boldly against 
 the fort ill front. A rapid, and well-directed fire was 
 turned upon them by Captain Williams, but, unap- 
 palled by the carnage, they succeeded in applying their 
 ladders to the walls of the salient bastion. As they 
 were striving to gain the parapet, their officers shouted 
 to their comrades, in the column under Colonel Scott, 
 to " cease firing" ! 
 
 This proved to be a mere trick, but it succeeded for 
 a moment. Tiie order was heard by Captain Doug- 
 lass, and supposing that it emanated from his own su- 
 perior officers, both he and his infantry support tempo- 
 rarily suspended their fire. Favored by this circum- 
 stance. Colonel Scott once more led on his men, — but 
 they had only provoked their doom. The deception 
 was now manifest, and a still more galling fire was 
 sustained, which caused them again to pause. Their 
 commander and a number of liis officers were cut down ; 
 their loss was dreadfully severe ; they were unable to 
 continue the advance, and a retreat was ordered. They 
 commenced retiring slowly, but the movement termi- 
 nated in a disorderly flight. 
 
 Drummond's column, however, had achieved a slight 
 advantage, yet it was brief as it was unimportant. 
 The first attempt to carry the bastion entirely failed ; 
 a second, and a third eflbrt was made, with sim.ilar re- 
 sults. But the British commander lacked not in brutal 
 courage, though sadly deficient in the more ennobling 
 qualities of the gallant soldier. Under cover of the 
 
76 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 
 
 intf^nse darkness, just before the break of Jay, he led a 
 portion of his men silently along the ditch, applied his 
 ladders at a point where he was not expected, and 
 mounted the parapet. With a daring intrepidity wor- 
 thy of a better cause, he led his men forward to the 
 charge, shrieking out in the tones of baffled rage and 
 hate — " No quarter I — give the Yankees no quarter !" 
 This dastard order was faithfully obeyed. A fierce and 
 maddening contest took place for the possession of the 
 bastion. Major Ilindman and his artillerists, with their 
 supporting force, bravely stood their ground. Their 
 efforts proved unavailing. Captain Williams, and a 
 number of the men, were killed or mortally wounded, 
 and his lieutenants, Watmough and Macdonough, were 
 also severely wounded. The latter disdained to yield 
 till he vras completely disabled, and then asked for 
 quarter. Tliis was refused, — when, rallying his re- 
 maining strength, he snatched a liandspike, and, with 
 the madness of despairing humanity, strove to beat olf 
 his assailants. As he held them at bay, the infuriated 
 Drummond rushed forward, and shot him down with 
 his own hand. But this coward act received a fearful 
 retribution. The next instant an avenging bullet found 
 its way to the heart of the British leader, and he fell 
 beside his victim, — a horrid blasphemy gurgling, with 
 the death rattle, in his throat ! 
 
 Notwithstanding the fall of their commander, tho 
 men who had effected a lodgment in the bastion, suc- 
 cessfully resisted every attempt to dislodge them till 
 daylight, (general Gaines then ordered up larger re- 
 inforcements, and the eneiuy began speedily to fall 
 back. They were now at the mercy of the American 
 
FINAL REPULSE OF THE ENEMY. 77 
 
 soldiers, who had not forgotten the savage cry which 
 had been the dcath-knell of many a brave spirit. Ex- 
 pecting no favor, as none was merited, they had com- 
 menced tumbling pellmell over the parapet into the 
 ditch, when a strong reserve was descried rapidly com- 
 ing lip under Lieutenant Colonel Tucker. An enfilad- 
 ing fire from Captain Douglass' battery upon the ap- 
 proaching column, and a few rapid and effective dis- 
 charges from the guns of Captains Biddlc and Fanning, 
 checked their advance. Between three and four hun- 
 dred of the enemy advanced to within a short distance 
 of the bastion ; but, at this moment, and while t!ie 
 Americans, under the orders of General Gaines, were 
 preparing for a vigorous rush upon the remnant of 
 Drummond's column, a number of cartridges deposited 
 in one enl of the stone building adjoining the bastion, 
 caught fire, and exploded, with a tremendous roar, car- 
 rying away the whole platform. The loss of the ene- 
 my by the exjilosion was small in comparison with 
 what they had previously sustained, but it served to 
 add to their confusion, and to increase their anxiety to 
 escape beyond the reach of the American guns. No 
 effort was made to pursue the assault further, and a 
 general retreat of the enemy now took place, as tumult- 
 uous and disorderly, as their advance had been brave 
 and imposing. 
 
 The British lost one hundred and fifty-seven men 
 killed, in the assault, three hundred and eight wounded, 
 and one hundred and eighty-six prisoners ; besides a 
 number who were drowned in the lake, and a still 
 greater number who deserted under cover of the dark- 
 
78 EDMLTV'D PENDLETON GAINES. 
 
 ness. The American loss "was only seventeen killed, 
 fifty-six wounded, and eleven missing. 
 
 General Drummond had indulgexl the hope that a 
 single inant stroke wonkl retrieve the fortunes of the 
 British arms in the peninsula, and enable him to " ride 
 in triumph over all mischanee." The attack was well- 
 laid, but failed in every respect. This abortive attempt 
 sadly crippled his strength, and though he was rein- 
 forced by two regiments on the following day, he durst 
 not hazard a second assault. His batteries were en- 
 larged, and the bombardment continued, tliough with- 
 out any sensible effect. On the twenty-eighth of 
 August, General Gaines, having been severely wounded 
 by the bursting of a shell, was obliged to retire to Buf- 
 falo, leaving General Rij^ley in charge of the post which 
 had been thus bravely defended. General Brown re- 
 sumed the command on the second of September, and 
 soon after compelled the British commander to raise the 
 siege, and retire to his intrenched camp beyond the 
 Chippewa.* 
 
 General Gaines did not recover from his wound in 
 time to take part in the further operations of the bel- 
 ligerent forces during the few months which elapsed 
 previous to the conclusion of the treaty of peace. — 
 Ilis gallant service in the defence of Fort Erie, did not 
 go unrewarded. He was brevetted a major-general; 
 Congress honored him, also, and the officers and men 
 under his command, with a vote of thanks, and author- 
 ized the president to procure and present him with a 
 gold medal. Similar votes of thanks were likewise 
 
 • See Memoir of General Brown, ante. 
 
THE SEMINOLE WAK. 79 
 
 passed, and gold-hilted swords presented to him, by the 
 legislatures of New York, Virginia, and Tennessee. 
 
 After the termination of hostilities with Great Britain, 
 bein^ retained on the peace-establishment, General 
 Gaines was ordered to relieve General Jackson in the 
 command of the southern district. He was engaged in 
 the discharge of the duties appertaining to his position, 
 in the summer of 1817, when the Seminoles, a branch 
 of the Creek tribe, and the Red Sticks, or Mickasau- 
 kians, also a branch of the same nation, who were 
 driven from the Mississippi territory by General Jackson, 
 in 1814, in connection with a number of runaway 
 negi'oes, — all instigated by Nichols and Woodbine, and 
 other British agents, and the Spanish authorities of Flo- 
 rida, — began to renew their depredations on the south- 
 ern frontiers of Georgia. In July, a large band of these 
 savages and outlavrs were dislodged from a fort in which 
 they had established themselves, on the A})palachicola, 
 by a body of regulars and friendly Indians, under 
 Colonel Clinch ; but, as their outrages were frequently 
 repeated, General Gaines immediately commenced 
 erecting forts for the defence and protection of the bor- 
 der settlements. Fort Scott was constructed on t'le 
 Flint river, a short distance above Spring Creek ; Fort 
 Gaines on the left bank of the Chatahoochee, about 
 midway between the Petawla and Yattayabba creeks ; 
 and a third furt on the Conecuh. 
 
 In order to put an end to the atrocities perpetrated 
 by the hostile savages and their associates, orders were 
 issued to General Gaines from the War Department, 
 " to remove the Indians still remaining on the lands 
 ceded by the treaty made by General Jackson with th«; 
 
80 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 
 
 Creeks ;" and, in pursuance of these instructions, on 
 the nineteenth of November, he sent an officer to Fowl- 
 town, with a message requiring the removal of the In- 
 dians at that place. The chief in command returned 
 a haughty refusal ; whereupon. Major Twiggs was 
 dispatched with a strong force, to compel an observance 
 of the order, and to bring the chief and his party to 
 Fort Scott. He wa's attacked on the way, but suc- 
 ceeded in repulsing the Indians, and arrived safely at 
 Fowltown, which was found entirely deserted. On the 
 thirtieth instant. Major Muhlenburgh arrived in the 
 Appalachicola, with three vessels, containing supplies 
 for Fort Scott, but was unable to ascend the river on 
 account of the adverse winds. Lieutenant Scott v.'as 
 therefore sent down to his assistance, with a boat and 
 forty men. Twenty of bis men were left with the ves- 
 sels, and their places in the boat were filled by sick 
 soldiers and women. Lieutenant Scott then started to 
 return to the fort, but on reaching the mouth of the 
 Flint river, he was suddenly attacked by a band of In- 
 dian warriors, under their chief Hornotlimed. The 
 whole party, with the exception of six soldiers, who 
 made their escape by swimming to the shore, were in- 
 humanly butchered, and their scalps taken to the Indian 
 town of Mickasauky, to adorn the war-pole, striped 
 with red paint, which had already been erected. 
 
 Offensive measures of the most rigorous character, 
 were now rendered unavoidable. The experience ac- 
 quired by General Jackson in his Indian campaigns, led 
 to his being selected to conduct the war against the 
 Seminoles and their allies. He arrived at Fort Scott, 
 with nine hundred Georgia militia, on the ninth of 
 
CONTROVERSY WITH GENERAL SCOTT. 81 
 
 March, 1818, and, as the senior oflicer, assumed the 
 command. General Gaines acted mider his orders 
 during the short, but decisive campaign, that termi- 
 nated in the ctlectual chastisement of the savages, and 
 their Spanish abettors.* The services of the former 
 were invakiable to the commanding general ; he was 
 always to be relied on, ever ready for any service, 
 prompt, skilful, persevering and industrious. He was 
 present at the reduction of Fort Barrancas, on the 
 twenty-eighth of May, and immediately thereafter was 
 ordered to St. Augustine, with a detachment, which 
 surrendered to him without serious opposition. 
 
 The hostile Indians being now quieted. General 
 Jackson was relieved from duty, and General Gaines 
 again took the command. He continued in charge of 
 the southern district, till the further reduction of the 
 army in 1821. He was then selected as one of the 
 two brigadiers retained in service, and assigned to the 
 command of the western military division. Upon the 
 death of General Brown, in 1828, he was a candidate, 
 with General S(!ott, for the vacant office of General-in- 
 chief. The appointment, however, was conferred on 
 General Macomb, then at the head of the engineer 
 bureau. Pending the selection of an officer to supply 
 this vacancy, a warm controversy took place between 
 General Scott and himself, in relation to their respective 
 priority of rank, which led to an unfortunate estrange- 
 ment between them, and has since been a fruitful sub- 
 ject of contention and difficulty, occasioning not more 
 embarrassment to the individuals particularly concerned, 
 than to the national authorities, and their mutual 
 
 * See Memoir of General Jackson. 
 
 4* 
 
82 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 
 
 friends, who are perhaps equally proud of the military 
 services of both officers. 
 
 General Gaines was continued in command of the 
 western division, his head-quarters being established at 
 Jefferson barracks, and on the breaking out of disturb- 
 ances with the Sacs and Foxes, in May, 1881, he promptly 
 repaired to the theatre of contention, having previously 
 dispatched thither a large body of troops. The princi- 
 pal village of the Sacs and Foxes lay in the beautiful 
 peninsula between the transparent waters of the Rock 
 river, and the Mississippi. In 1804, a treaty was con- 
 cluded by Governor Harrison with their principal 
 chiefs, by the terms of which all their lands east of the 
 Mississippi were ceded to the United States ; the In- 
 dians reserving to themselves the right of living and 
 hunting upon the territory ceded while the same was 
 unsold. A large number of the Sacs remained in the 
 peninsula, and continued peaceably to enjoy the rights 
 which had been reserved, till the admission of Illinois 
 into the Union. The state then began to be more rap- 
 idly populated, and the valuable lead mines at Galena 
 attracted a vast body of emigrants. In a few years 
 the Indians were entirely surrounded by the settle- 
 ments of the whites. Collisions frequently occurred ; 
 excesses were committed on one side, and retaliatory 
 measures, far more aggravated hi character, were 
 adopted on the other. 
 
 With a view of removing the cause of dispute, the 
 general government, in 1829, ordered the lands occu- 
 pied by the Indians to be sold. The Sacs, under their 
 celebrated chicif. Black Hawk, now insisted that the 
 treaty of 180 1 was concluded by a few chiefs without 
 
DIFFICULTY WITH THE SACS AND FOXES. 83 
 
 the knowledge or consent of the nation at large, and re- 
 fused to give up possession to purchasers. The author- 
 ities of the state were called ujjon to interfere for the 
 protection of the whites, and in May, 1831, Governor 
 Reynolds called out seven hundred militia, to remove 
 the Indians by force. A collision had been antici- 
 pated by the Executive of the United States, and Gen- 
 eral Gaines had received orders to proceed to the seat 
 of disturbance, if it should appear to be necessary. Ha 
 instantly ordered six companies of regular troops from 
 Jefferson Barracks to Rock Island, and four companies 
 from Prairie du Chien. On the thirteenth of May, 
 General Gaines arrived with this force at Fort Arm- 
 stronof. A conference was here held with the Indian 
 chiefs, but as they were unwilling to agree to any sat- 
 isfactory terms, he called on Governor Reynolds of Il- 
 linois, for an additional force of militia. The governor 
 joined him on the Rock river, with sixteen hundred 
 mounted men, on the twenty-fifth of June, and in the 
 morning of the ensuing day. General Gaines took posses- 
 sion of the Indian town, at the head of the united force, 
 without firing a gun. or meeting a single Indian, — the late 
 occupants of the village having crossed the Mississippi, 
 with their women and children, on the previous night. 
 General Gaines again dispatched a message to the 
 Sac chiefs, proposing another conference. This was 
 finally acceded to, and on the thirtieth of June they 
 entered into a treaty with him and Governor Reynolds, 
 by which it was agreed that they sh(Uild permanently 
 remove beyond the Mississippi. Having brought this 
 aflair to what, at the time, promised to be a satisfac- 
 tory termination, General Gaines returned to his head- 
 
84 EDMUND PErvDLETON GAIXES. 
 
 quarters. The treaty stipulations of the Indians proved 
 to be delusory, however. In the following year Black 
 Hawk led his warriors across the Mississippi, and re- 
 fused peremptorily to retire, till he and his band were 
 completely routed at the battle of the Bad- Axe, on the 
 twenty-seventh of August, after which a treaty was 
 concluded with General Scott and Governor Reynolds, 
 in accordance with which the Sacs and Foxes removed 
 to the vicinity of the Iowa and Des Moines rivers. 
 
 Another long interval of comparative inaction now 
 occurred in the military service of General Gaines. 
 Little more can be said of him, during this time, than 
 that all his duties as the commander of the western 
 division, vvero discharged with punctuality and dis- 
 patch. We bear nothing further from him of espe- 
 cial moment, till the renev/al of hostilities with the 
 Seminoles of Florida, in the fall of 1835. On re- 
 ceiving intelligence of the massacre of IMajor Dade's 
 command, and the battle of the Withlacoochee, ho 
 collected all the dispo.->able troops in the vicinity of 
 New Orleans, to wliich point his head-quarters had 
 been removed, and immediately repaired to the seat of 
 war. He landed at Fort Brooke, at the head of Tampa 
 Bay, on the fourth of February, 1836, and at onco 
 proceeded in search of the savages, following the route 
 of the unfortunate Dade down the riq-ht bank of the 
 Withlacoochee. Oii arriving at the scene of the mas- 
 sacre, he caused the remains of the brave soldiers who 
 had fallen victims to the wiles of the Indian warriors, 
 to be decently and carefully interred. On the twenty- 
 eiglith of February, he encountered a body of Indians 
 not far from Fort King, but repulsed them with loss. 
 
THE FLORIDA WAR, 85 
 
 Soon after this affair he entered into a parley with As- 
 ceolah, or Osceola, the principal chief of tlie Seminolcs, 
 which, like most obligations and pledges of a similar 
 character, proved to be a mere rnse, — the object of 
 which was to erain time for the removal of the women 
 and children to places of security, in the marshy ever- 
 glades, and leafy hummocks, in the southern part of 
 the peninsula. 
 
 Previous to these occurrences, General Scott had 
 been ordered to take command of the troops, and to 
 prosecute the war in Florida. He arrived at St. 
 Augustine on the eighth of February, and on receiving 
 authentic iziformation of the fact, and on being informed 
 of the orders issued at Washington, General Gaines 
 gave up the command, and shortly afterwards returned 
 to New Orleans. 
 
 His skirmish with the Indians, on the banks of the 
 AVithlacoochee, terminated, in all probability, forever, the 
 active service of General Gaines in the field. Incapaci- 
 tated, by reason of his age, and physical inability to en- 
 dure the hardships and privations of a campaign, he was 
 not employed in the prosecution of the war with Mexico, 
 except in forwarding sujjplies, and hastening on troops, 
 to the camp established by General Taylor at Corpus 
 Christi, in the summer of 1845, and in discharging the 
 other duties, in connection therewith, that devolved on 
 him as the commanding officer at New Orleans. Though 
 yielding to the influence of advancing years, he still 
 possessed the chivalric fire, and the ardent patriotism, 
 which had distinguished him in his younger days. Like 
 the war-horse no longer fitted to endure the shock of 
 battle, he snuffed the breeze that came from the field 
 
86 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 
 
 of strife, aiav oiT, and when the information was re- 
 ceived that General Taylor and his little band of sol- 
 diers were surrounded on the Rio Grande, and cat off 
 from their sujiplies, he was impatient to rush to the 
 assistance of his gallant brother in arms. 
 
 Restraining his irajuilscs, he did all that was possi- 
 ble to be done, to relieve the army supposed to be in 
 such imminent peril. All the regular troops that could 
 be sent to the scat of war, were dispatched thither as 
 expeditiously as possible. He also caused a large 
 number of volunteers to be enrolled, mustered into ser- 
 vice, and transported to the Rio Grande, without wait- 
 ing for orders from Washington ; in this he exceeded 
 his authority, and it was thought })roper to submit his 
 conduct to a court of inquiry. The court assembled at 
 Fort Monroe, in July, lb46, and after a full investiga- 
 tion, determined that he had transcended his powers, 
 but that the act was prompted by the purest and most 
 praiseworthy motives. The executive and the people 
 of the United States, it is needless to say, cordially ap- 
 proved of the decision. Not long after General Gaines 
 was assigned to the command of the eastern division, 
 and established his head-quarters at New York, where 
 he remained till the close of the war with Mexico, 
 when he was relieved from duty at his own request. 
 
 General Gaines yet lives, in the enjoyment of " all 
 that should accompany old age," to recount the thrill- 
 ing incidents of his campaigns, and " fight his battles 
 o'er again." One of that class of men is he — but too 
 few in number — belonging to a past regnme, who, 
 though he has vindicated his title to be ranked among 
 the military heroes of the nation, has never forgotten 
 
PERSONAL APPEARANCE AND CHARACTER. 87 
 
 those noble qualities which characterize the gentleman 
 of the old school. He is scarcely above the ordinary 
 height, and slight of person, but straight as the arrow 
 of an Indian warrior. He is somewhat reserved, but 
 not taciturn, — courteous and urbane in his manners, 
 but dignified and high-minded. Though his head is 
 silvered with the frost of many winters, he is still hale 
 and erect, and brave and generous, as in the hey-day 
 of youth, when he rambled along the banks of the 
 Yadkin ; or, in the pride of manhood, when he stood 
 unmoved, gazing with an unblenched eye on the car- 
 nage around him, and issuing his orders with an unfal- 
 tering lip, amid the whirling balls and blazing shells, 
 on the ramparts of Fort Erie I 
 
WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 Among the most successful officers of the war of 
 1812, was Major General William Hetvry Harrison. 
 Descended from a good old revolutionary stock, and 
 tlioroughly imbued, in his boyhood, with sentiments of 
 the most sincere and devoted patriotism, he laid the 
 foundation, at an early age, of the fame and distinction 
 which he acquired in maturer years. Throughout a 
 long life, — one full of interest, and replete with impor- 
 tant incidents, — he enjoyed a wide-spread popularity, 
 which, in the western states of the Union, was some- 
 times manifested with all the fervor of enthusiasm. No 
 one better deserved the respect and esteem of his coun- 
 trymen, and there are few whose character has come 
 brighter or purer from the ordeal, when submitted to 
 that Areopagus of public opinion, whose decisions admit 
 not of dispute. 
 
 He was born at Berkeley, the family seat of his fa- 
 ther, on James river, Virginia, on the ninth day of 
 February, 1773 ; being the youngest of three sons. 
 His father, Colonel Benjamin Harrison, was a descend- 
 ant of the celebrated officer of the same name, who 
 fought by the side of Cromwell for civil and religious 
 liberty, but, preferring a turbulent democracy to a quiet 
 
WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, 
 Late Major General. 
 
HIS FATHER. 89 
 
 despotism, opposed the ambitious projects of the Lord 
 Protector, with the same stubborn vehemence with 
 which lie had contended against the attempted usurpa- 
 tions of the tyrant Charles. But — what is of more 
 immediate value to us as Americans — he was one of 
 the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and 
 '• the intimate friend of Washington" ! 
 
 Colonel Harrison took his seat in the Congress of the 
 Confederation, as one of the delegates from Virginia, 
 in 1774, and remained a member of that body, during 
 that and the two following years. On the resignation 
 of his brother-in-law, Peyton Randolph, the president 
 of Congress, he was urged by a number of friends to 
 take the vacant place, but declined the honor, and, on 
 his nomination, John Hancock was appointed to fill the 
 station. It is also stated, in connection with this circum- 
 stance, that when the latter manifested some hesitation 
 about accepting the office. Colonel Harrison caught the 
 modest patriot in his arms, and almost carried him to 
 the chair, nolens volens. He took an active part in the 
 discussions and deliberations that preceded the adoption 
 of the Declaration, and was the chairman of the com- 
 mittee of the whole when the vote to agree to it was 
 taken. There is an anecdote related of him at this 
 juncture, which attests the warmth of his feelings, and 
 the sterling genuineness of his patriotism. Although 
 John Dickinson was openly and avowedly op])osed to 
 the separation from the mother country, his honesty 
 and integrity were never questioned, and his conceded 
 ability secured the respect of the other members of 
 Congress. Upon his urgent request, he was permitted 
 to draw the second petition to the King, which was 
 
90 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 adopted, though with considerable reluctance. After 
 the vote was taken, IMr. Dickinson could not refrain 
 from expressing his satisfaction, and, at the close of {lis 
 remarivs, said, that there was but one word which he 
 disapproved, and that was the word " Congress^ 
 Colonel Harrison sprang to his feet the instant Mr. 
 Dickinson was seated, and exclaimed with emphatic 
 earnestness — "There is but one word in the paper, Mr. 
 President, of which I approve, and that is the word 
 ' Congress' .'" 
 
 Colonel Harrison was afterwards, for several years 
 in succession, a member of the Virginia house of dele- 
 gates, and filled the office of speaker till the close of 
 the year 17S1, when he succeeded Governor Nelson in 
 the executive chair of that state. On the expiration of 
 his official term in 1784, he retired to private life, but 
 to the time of his death, which occurred in 1791, he 
 was known and esteemed by the ablest men in the na- 
 tion, and revered and honored by all classes and parties 
 of his fellow-citizens. 
 
 The subject of this biography, William Henry Har- 
 rison, was early placed at Hampden-Sidney college. 
 At the age of seventeen he left the institution with his 
 mind well stored with classical lore, and not long after, 
 in compliance with the wishes of his father, whose lib- 
 eral hospitality forbade the bestowal of large fortunes 
 on his children, commenced the study of medicine. 
 Having completed a short preparatory course of read- 
 ing, he proceeded to Philadelpliia, in the spring of 1791, 
 to attend the lectures at the University, and avail him- 
 self of the other facilities afforded in that city for ob- 
 taining a knowledge of the profession whicli he had 
 
DEFEAT OF ST. CLAIR. 91 
 
 selected. He liad but just arrived there and resumed 
 his studies, when the intelligence of his father's death 
 reached him, and efiectcd an entire change in his plans 
 for the future. 
 
 Notwithstanding the earnest remonstrances of his 
 guardian, Robert Morris, the celebrated financier, who 
 depicted, in glowing colors, the fatigues and hardships 
 which lie would be compelled to undergo, he determined 
 to enter the army, and with his own good sword hew 
 out a way to distinction. Preparations were then mak- 
 ing for another campaign against the Indians on the 
 northwestern frontier, — the expedition of the previous 
 year, under General Harmar, having failed of ac(Jom- 
 phi^hing any decisive results. This added fire to the 
 spirit of young Harrison. Washington was applied 
 to, — and respect for the memory of the father, and es- 
 teem for the son, whose importunities could not be dis- 
 regarded, procured for the latter an ensign's commis- 
 sion in the regular service. He departed immediately 
 for Fort Washington, now Cincinnati, but, though he 
 hurried forward with eager impetuosity, did not succeed 
 in joining the army, then but a remnant of what it had 
 once been, till after the disastrous defeat of the brave 
 and honest, but unfortunate St. Clair, on the fourth of 
 November, 1791. On joining his regiment, at Fort 
 Washington, he learned the particulars of the sad tra- 
 gedy which had just been enacted. The melancholy 
 fate of Butler, Oldham, Hardin, and their companions, 
 who had fallen victims to the wiles of a barbarous and 
 cruel enemy, so far from damping his ardor, or chilling 
 his enthusiasm, only heightened the fire of patriotic in- 
 dignation that burned in his bosom, and increased his 
 
92 -WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 anxiety to take the field, and aid in inflicting a sum- 
 mary punishment upon the merciless savages. 
 
 At this time there were no settlements of conse- 
 quence north of the Ohio, except those at Kaskaskia, 
 Vincennes, Fort Washington, and Marietta ; and, on 
 the south, between that river and the Tennessee, there 
 were comparatively few inhabitants scattered over the 
 territory previously Icnown as Kentuckee, V the Bloody 
 Land," — for many years the battle-ground of the North- 
 ern and Southern Indians. The protection, therefore, 
 of the exposed frontiers, depended mainly on the regu- 
 lar force of the General Government, and the militia 
 of Pennsylvania and Virginia; for, though the citizens 
 of this remote region were ever prompt to obey the call 
 to arms, they were too feeble in numbers, to cope, un- 
 assisted, with so powerful a foe. General St. Clair, 
 governor of the " Territory north-west of the Ohio," 
 had moved upon the Miami villages with over fourteen 
 hundred men ; of this number, six hundred and thirty- 
 one were killed in the fearful onslauafht of the fourth 
 of November, and there were two hundred and sixty- 
 seven wounded ; consequently, it was necessary to 
 raise a large additional force, before offensive operations 
 could be further prosecuted. President Washington 
 immediately recommended a considerable increase of 
 the army, and Congress adopted his suggestions. 
 
 In the then state of the country, it required no little 
 time and preparation to fit a great body of troops for 
 the field ; numerous and unavoidable delays occurred ; 
 and, in the meanwhile, attempts were made to conclude 
 a peace with the hostile Indians. The messengers dis- 
 patched by the Executive of the United States were 
 
CAMPAIGN UNDRR WAYNE. 93 
 
 treacherously murdered, and negotiation was no longer 
 admissible, save at tiie point of the bayonet. In the 
 autumn of 1793, a force of twenty-six hundred men, 
 nearly all of ^Yhom were regulars, under the command 
 of General Wayne, were concentrated at an encamp- 
 ment established near Fort Washington on the Ohio. 
 
 Wiiile these preparations were in progress, young 
 Harrison, who had been promoted to a lieutenancy, 
 was sedulously employed in studying his profession. 
 His skill and proficiency as a tactician, attracted the 
 attention of the officer selected to take command of the 
 projected expedition, and he was designated as one of 
 his aids. Having completed his arrangements, General 
 Wayne took xxp tiie line of march for the Indian coun- 
 try, early in October. The lateness of the season ren- 
 dered it impossible to accomplish anything till another 
 campaign, anvl on his arrival at one of the tributaries 
 of the Stillwater branch of the Big xMiami, he estab- 
 lished himself in v.'inter quarters, and commenced or- 
 ganizing and disciplining his troops. Lieutenant Har- 
 rison was prominent among the young officers engaged 
 in the work of instruction, and his services were flat- 
 teringly noticed by the commanding general. 
 
 In the summer of 1794, General Wayne was joined 
 by upwards of one thousand mounted militia, and with- 
 out delay set out in pursuit of the enemy, who, he 
 learned, were in strong force at the Rapids of the Mau- 
 mee. On the twentieth of August, he encountered the 
 Indians, who had vainly attempted to draw him into 
 an ambush, near the Roche de Bouc, on the north bank 
 of the river, and defeated them with great slaughter. 
 Their chief, Turkey-foot, and a large number of their 
 
94 . WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 best and bravest warriors, were slain ; and the remain-i^ 
 der either dispersed, or sought shelter under the guns; 
 of Fort Maumee, then occupied by a British garrison.! 
 The brav^ery and intrepidity of Lieutenant Harrison in: 
 this afiair, were conspicuous ; and in the official reporti 
 of the action, his name is mentioned in terms of high 
 commendation."^' AVhile the army lay in the vicinity* 
 of Fort Maumee, an incident transpired, which came 
 very near terminating, in all probability, the life ofl 
 General Wayne, and that of his frallant aid. 
 
 Positive instructions had been received to demolish, 
 the fort occupied by the English troops, in utter disre-! 
 gard of the provisions of the treaty of 1783, and in ' 
 order to enable him to decide upon the propriety of an ; 
 attempt to reduce it. General Wayne, accompanied by 
 his suite, advanced to reconnoitre. In this daring re- 
 connaissance, the general, who possessed a constitu- 
 tional indifference to danger, with Lieutenant Harrison 
 at his side, rode within eighty yards of the fort, and 
 within point blank range of its guns. While making 
 their observations, with the utmost coolness, an Eng- 
 lish captain of marines turned one of the pieces upon 
 them, and was about to apply the port-hre, when 
 Major Campbell, the commandant of the garrison, in-- 
 terposed, just in time to prevent the catastrophe that; 
 would most likely have occurred. Major Campbelll 
 subsequently apologized for the unofficerdike conduct t 
 of his subordinate, and to his gentlemanly behavior the 
 
 * The dispatch of General Wayne has been erroneously printed, 
 without the commendatory notice of Lieutenant Harrison, and other 
 officers, but it may be found in the original. 
 
COMMENCES HIS CIVIL CAREER. 95 
 
 preservation of peace between the two countries may- 
 be attributed. 
 
 General Wayne did not deem it advisable to attack 
 the post with the means at his command, and having 
 destroyed tlie Indian villages within fifty miles of either 
 side of the river, he returned to Fort Defiance, at the 
 conlluence of the An Glaize and Maumee. The defeat 
 wiiich the Indians had sustained was decisive ; every- 
 tliing remained quiet during the ensuing winter ; and 
 in July, 1795, General Wayne concluded a favorable 
 treaty, at Greenville, with a number of chiefs repre- 
 senting ten different nations. 
 
 Upon the conclusion of the treaty, Harrison, now 
 raised to the rank of captain, was placed in command 
 of Fort Washington, and, shortly after, was married 
 to a daughter of Judge Symmes, — a most amiable 
 woman ; distinguished for high moral worth, for her 
 piety and benevolence ; and esteemed and loved by a 
 large circle of friends and acquaintances. 
 
 Captain Harrison soon became dissatisfied with the 
 idle routine of a garrison life ; there seemed to be 
 no prospect that his services would be required in the 
 field ; and he longed for more active employment. 
 Accordingly he resigned his commission, and in 1797, 
 at the age of twenty-four, commenced his civil career, 
 as secretary of the territory, under Governor St. Clair. 
 His talents and many estimable qualities had already 
 brought him into favorable notice, and the duties of 
 his ofHce were discharged with so much promptitude 
 and fidelity, that he was regarded as one of the ablest 
 young men in the territory. His popularity steadily 
 increased, and in 1799, he was elected as the first del- 
 
96 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 egate in congress. On taking his scat, in December, 
 of that year, he was appointed, upon his urgent solici- 
 tation, chairman of the committee on the public lands, 
 — the only instance, it is stated, in which a delegate 
 was so distinguished. 
 
 The improvement of the existing land system had 
 long been a favorite object with him. Many of its 
 features were wholly inconsistent with the genius and 
 spirit of democratic institutions, and calculated to re- 
 tard the growth and prosperity of the great West. 
 Among other provisions equally odious in their charac- 
 ter, was one forbidding the sale of land by the govern- 
 ment, in quantities of less than four thousand acres, 
 except where there were fractions on the banks of large 
 streams. Harrison had the forecast to discover, what 
 a boundless field would be opened for the enterprising 
 youth and industrious laboring classes of the Atlantic 
 states, by tiio removal of this obstacle to the settlement 
 of the territory, the development of the resources which 
 nature had so lavishly bestowed upon it, and its rapid 
 advancement to wealth and greatness. Through his 
 instrumentality, aided by the efforts of other able meai- 
 bers of both houses, who united with him in procuring 
 this reform, a law was enacted, requiring one half of 
 the public lands remaining unsold, to be divided into 
 sections of six hundred and forty acres each, and the 
 remaining moiety into sections of three hundred and 
 twenty acres ; tin? old system of forfeiture for non-pay- 
 ment was abolished, and payments were directed to be 
 made, in future, one quarter down, and the remainder 
 in two, three, and four years, with a further forbear- 
 ance of one year on the last payment, if desired. 
 
GOVERNOR OF IXDIANA TERRITORY. 97 
 
 This was not all that Ilarrisoa wished to efloct ; but 
 an important point was gained. Emigrants flocked 
 into the territory by scores and hundreds, and the grati- 
 tude of the citizens, both the old inhabitants, and the 
 new-comers, who had been benefited by his exertions, 
 never failed to follow his footsteps as those of a bene- 
 factor and friend. — Such was the estimation in which 
 he was held by his constituents, that he was solicited, 
 on all hands, to take the place of Governor St. Clair. 
 In reply to every intimation of this kind, Harrison 
 steadily refused to permit any effort to be made, to su- 
 persede the war-worn veteran, whose only fault, if fault 
 it be, was, that fortune had been chary of her favors to 
 him, when her smiles, doubtless for some wise purpose, 
 were showered upon those not more able, not more de- 
 serving, nor more prompt in the performance of every 
 duty. The desire of Harrison's friends was soon grati- 
 fied, however, in his appointment by President Adams, • 
 in IbOO, as the first governor of the newly erected ter- 
 ritory of Indiana. Though deprived, by his position as 
 a delegate, from taking part in the general legislation 
 of the country, his sound judgment and sterling worth 
 had secured him an enviable reputation, and when he 
 left Congress, he was followed by the regard and cordial 
 good wishes of his associates. 
 
 Shortly before his leaving the Capital, a circumstance 
 occurred, which deserves to be mentioned, as illustrat- 
 ing the purity of motive, and honesty of purpose, which 
 marked l>is public conduct. His father-in-law. Judge 
 Symmes, was the proprietor of the jMiami purchase ; 
 and previous to obtaining his patent, he had made a 
 number of sales. It was doubtful whether the rights 
 
 6 
 
98 AVi;,l.tA.M IIi:.\RV HARRISON. 
 
 thus acquired \vere of any value, even in equity ; but, 
 upon the introduction of a bill in Congress providing 
 for the settlement of the purchase, although the inter- 
 ests of Judge Symmes, and, indirectly, his own, were 
 jeoparded, Harrison went before the committee having 
 the bill in charge, and successfully urged the insertion 
 of a clause ampl}^ protecting the claims of the pur- 
 chasers. 
 
 In 1801, Governor Harrison entered upon the dis- 
 charge of his official duties, at Vincennes, an old mil- 
 itary and trading ])ost, on the left bank of the AVabash, 
 which was settled by the French aboiit the year 1730. 
 Though invested with extraordinary powers, the otfice 
 to which he had been appointed was no sinecure. Be- 
 sides the settlement at Vincennes, there were but two 
 others, of importance, in the whole territory, out of 
 which M'as afterwards formed the states of Indiana and 
 Illinois, viz. ; Clarke's Grant at the falls of the Ohio, 
 and the settlement extending along the Mississippi, 
 from Kaskaskia to Cahokia. The white population did 
 not exceed five thousand souls, and they were entirely 
 surrounded, on the north and west, by numerous bands 
 of Indians, who were either openly and avowedly hos- 
 tile, or wanted but a favorable opportunity to manifest 
 their hatred and ill-will. 
 
 To provide for the security of the settlements in the 
 territory, however remote, or widely separated ; to over- 
 awe the savages, or hold them in check ; to encourage 
 immigration ; and to promote, in all things, the happi- 
 ness and welfare of the inhabitants, — were the objects 
 to which Governor Harrison unremittingly devoted his 
 time and attention. In addition to his other duties, ho 
 
VARIED SERVICES. 99 
 
 acted as commissioner of Indian affairs, in which ca- 
 pacity he concluded fifteen treaties, and extinguished 
 the title of the aborigines to more than seventy million 
 acres of land — then, for the most part, an unbroken 
 wilderness, but now dotted all over with the abodes of 
 wealth and contentment, and teeming with a thriving 
 and industrious population. Frequent journeys were 
 performed by him, along the wild forest paths, and 
 miserable traces, which led from one station or settlement 
 to another. Dangers were fearlessly encountered ; fa- 
 tigue never disheartened him. He cheerfully shared 
 the privations of the settlers ; partaking with them of 
 tlie rudest cheer, or, seated on a hewed block before a 
 roaring fire, listening attentively to tales of trial and 
 hardship, and offering the kind word of sympathy and 
 encouragement. Wrapt in his blanket, or enveloped 
 in the folds of a bear skin or buffalo robe, he slept, too, 
 as soundly and sweetly on the bare earth in the hunt- 
 er's lodge, or the puncheon floor of a log cabin, as upon 
 the beds of down in his father's mansion. 
 
 In 1802, Ohio was admitted into the Union as a 
 state, and Wayne county, — afterwards the territory, 
 and, still later, the state of Michigan, — was then at- 
 tached to the territory of Indiana. The duties of Gov- 
 ernor Harrison were thus rendered still more arduous. 
 He was relieved from this additional care, however, in 
 1805, when Michigan was erected into a separate ter- 
 ritory. The country filled up so rapidly, that it be- 
 came necessary, in a few years, to relieve him yet fur- 
 ther, and in 1809, a territorial government was formed 
 for Illinois. 
 
 Many years elapsed after the conclusion of the treaty 
 
100 WILI-IAM HENRY HAXIRISOJC, 
 
 of peace, in 1783, before Great Britain entirely aban- 
 doned her expectations of reestablishing, at some future, 
 and not very remote day, her authority over her revolted 
 American colonies. It was customary for her writers 
 and politicians to underrate the importance, and sneer 
 at the pretensions of the young republic, till they saw, 
 in the rapidly-extending commerce and growing pros- 
 perity which followed the restoration of peace and tran- 
 quillity, unmistakable indications that the daughter 
 would soon be no mean rival of the mother country in 
 the race of nations. To check these germs of great- 
 ness, ere they should bud and blossom, was now the 
 favorite object of English statesmen. As no pretext 
 existed for open hostilities, resort was had to the low 
 arts of diplomacy — to intrigue and cunning ; and amid 
 the moral and political corruption, which, at that era, 
 polluted the atmosphere of St. James, plans were con- 
 cocted, whose atrocity must ever stand out in bold re- 
 lief on the page of impartial history. 
 
 Disregarding tiie provisions of the treaty of 1 783, the 
 British authorities retained possession of the military 
 posts northwest of the Oliio, and to these, and similar 
 establishments in the Canadas, agents were sent, to 
 suborn, and tamper with, the savages on the northern 
 frontiers of the American Union, and incite them to 
 commit acts of hostility upon the persons and property 
 of the settlers who had found their way into the rich 
 valley of the Mississippi. It was the policy of Wash- 
 ington, — and, after him, of Adams, Jeiterson, and 
 Madison, — to purchase the lands belonging to the In- 
 dian tribes, required by the increasing white population 
 of the country, at a fair equivalent ; to furnish them 
 
ENGLISH INTRIGUES. • 101 
 
 the means of civilization ; to provide for them the re- 
 straints of well-or(lcre:l aiii wholesome regulations ; to 
 enlvindle new desires, and implant new motives in their 
 breasts; to enlighten their ijiinds and Christianize their 
 .hearts. England, on the contrary, forgetting the elo- 
 qnent and indignant denunciations of her Chatham, 
 and careless how she sullied the national escutcheon, 
 already stained by many a foul blot, supplied them with 
 arms and ammunition, — with blankets, tobacco, and 
 *' fire-water," — not to induce tliem to cultivate har- 
 mony and good-will with their neighbors, the citizens 
 of the United States ; but to minister to their most 
 depraved appetites, and arouse the most vindictive pas- 
 sions of their natures. She asked them, not to lay 
 •aside the implements of death, and engage in the pur- 
 suits of peace ; but invited them to continue their bar- 
 barous warfare, and glut their vengeance, to the full, 
 with the tomahawk and scalping-knifc I 
 
 Under the auspices of Simcoe, and other agents of 
 Great Britain, immediately after the peace, a combi- 
 nation was formed among the Northwestern Indians, 
 the object of which was to prevent the Americans from 
 extending their settlements beyond the AUeghanies. 
 The border inhabitants were constantly harassed by 
 the irruptions of the savages ; scenes of bloodshed and 
 murder were of frequent occurrence ; and when efforts 
 were made to chastise the perpetrators of these out- 
 rages, they found in England a fast and firm friend, 
 whose assistance, though not openly rendered, proved 
 of essential service to her allies. Her influence was felt 
 in the defeat of Harmar and St. Clair, and when the 
 mounted volunteers under the gallant Wayne scattered 
 
102 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, 
 
 the savages in confusion, on the banks of the IMaumee, 
 they fled for protection beneath the guns of a fortress 
 over which floated the red cross of St. George. 
 
 The defeat of the Indians by Wayne was a severe 
 lesson, and it was long remembered. Fortunately, too, 
 for our country, — who needed only a season of peace, 
 and repose from "war's alarms," to advance with rapid 
 strides to the high destiny before her, — the revolution- 
 ary spirit had, at this time, crossed the Atlantic, and 
 the watch-fires of liberty were blazing on the conti- 
 nent of Europe. Alarmed for the stability of her in- 
 stitutions at home, England had no time to spend in 
 courting the favor of the North American savages, 
 even though her machinations promised to terminate in 
 the restoration of " the brightest jewel of her crown." 
 In November, 1794, three months after Wayne's vic- 
 tory, Mr. Jay concluded his commercial treaty, in which 
 it was stipulated that the western posts should be sur- 
 rendered by the first of June, 1796, which was accord- 
 ingly done ; and in the summer of 1795, as we have 
 seen, the treaty of Greenville was made with the In- 
 dian tribes. — The quiet thus restored was deceitful, and 
 temporary in its duration. 
 
 The treaty of Mr. Jay provided, among other things, 
 for compensation for British spoliations on American 
 commerce, growing out of the war with France ; yet 
 the ratifications of that instrument had scarcely been 
 exchanged, when outrages of the same character, but 
 greater in degree, were committed. Taking advantage 
 of the distracted state of affairs on the continent, the 
 enterprising citizens of America had extensively en- 
 gaged in the carrying trade ; and their commerce had 
 
SEIZURES BV THE ENGLISH. 103 
 
 increased with so mvicli rapidity, that the jealousy of 
 England was again awakened. Largvi quantities of 
 American provisions were also shipped to Europe, and 
 especially to France, and to her possessions in the West 
 Indies, the prices paid for which, during the continu- 
 ance of hostilities, afforded handsome profits ; but this 
 interfered, very materially, with the determination of 
 England, by means of her maritime supremacy, to 
 starve the French people into an abandonment of their 
 republican notions, and to prevent it, she caused block- 
 ades to be declared, which were enforced by no suita- 
 ble naval power, and orders to be issued, in defiance of 
 the law of nations, requiring neutral vessels to be seized 
 though not carrying articles contraband of war. 
 
 Remonstrance on the part of the authorities of the 
 United States, was of no avail. The example set by 
 England was followed by France — every act of injus- 
 tice on the one side being succeeded by a still more 
 odious one on the other. The treaty of Amiens, in 
 1S02, afforded the Americans a brief respite ; but, on 
 the renewal of the war, in the following year, seizures 
 and condemnations of our vessels became more fre- 
 quent than ever. England joined the coalition formed 
 to establish Continental despotism on a firmer basis, 
 and restore the Bourbon dynasty to the throne which 
 they had disgraced ; and she stopped at nothing to ac- 
 complish her purposes. Not content with watching 
 the ports of France, she sent her privateers and vessels 
 of war, under her pirate flag, to hover on our coast, 
 and plunder our commerce. ITcr navy having been 
 seriously reduced, in men, by the long continued war- 
 fare in which she had been engaged, she likewise re- 
 
104 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 sorted to the impressment of American seamen, to fill 
 up the complements of her crews. Large numbers of 
 sailors were taken from onr merchantmen : and, to 
 conclude these high-handed offences, the frigate Chesa- 
 peake was despoiled of a portion of her crew, on the 
 twenty-second of June, 1807. 
 
 In the meantime the emissaries of Great Britain 
 had been busy among the savages on the Northwest- 
 ern frontier. So complete and irrefragable were the 
 proofs furnished to Congret^s of this fact, that, in 1797, 
 a law was passed to prevent the tampering of foreign 
 agents with the Indians, which imposed severe penal- 
 ties and punishments. This law was easily evaded, 
 and it was ' therefore ineffectual. The Indians were 
 invited to the British posts ; they were flattered and 
 caressed, and loaded with gifts and favors ; their minds 
 were soured ; and no means were left untried to keep 
 up a constant strife between them and the settlers. It 
 has often been said, that the interference of British 
 agents in this particular existed only in imagination, 
 and that the Indians were provoked to hostilities by 
 acts of violence committed by the Americans. Doubt- 
 less, there were isolated cases of wrong and injustice, 
 which cannot, and should not, be palliated or excused ; 
 but it is idle to suppose, that the settlers generally 
 would have so causelessly endangered their own secu- 
 rity, and so recklessly jeoparded the lives of those who 
 leaned on them for protection, and looked up to them 
 for sympathy and love. 
 
 Governor Harrison was not an indifferent, nor, from 
 his position, an uninterested spectator, of these events. 
 The movements of the British emissaries did not escape 
 
TAMPERING WITH THE INDIANS. 105 
 
 his attention ; lie repeatedly eautioned his government 
 against their designs, and labored incessantly to coun- 
 teract them. He endeavored in everyway to conciliate 
 the savages, but his efforts were often frustrated by the 
 unseen power so long felt in these border troubles. 
 When the attack on the Chesapeake was made known 
 in the United States, it excited a general sentiment of 
 indignation. He shared deeply in this feeling, and em- 
 braced the first public opportunity to make known his 
 opinions. In his speech delivered on the eighteenth of 
 August, 1807, before the General Assembly of Indiana 
 Territory, at their regular session, he referred, in em- 
 phatic terms of condemnation, to the conduct of the 
 British agents who were secretly instigating the Indians 
 on tlie frontier, and, avowing himself in favor of im- 
 mediate hostilities, alluded to the affair of the Chesa- 
 peake, as being necessary, perhaps, to arouse the Amer- 
 ican people from their lethargy, and awaken them to 
 the importance of teaching other countries and gov- 
 ernments, that " a nation of freemen," to quote his 
 own language, " are not to be insulted with impu- 
 nity" ! 
 
 France, at length, ceased her unjust and oppressive 
 measures; but England refused to abandon her posi- 
 tion. Embarfjo and non-intercourse were tried in vain. 
 The commercial relations of the country suffered more 
 and more. Jefferson and Madison both desired peace ; 
 yet, notwithstanding their pacific inclinations, affairs 
 daily grew worse, and war seemed inevitable. While 
 matters were fast verging towards the crisis, the agents 
 of Great Britain were actively engaged among the 
 Northwestern Indians. Governor Harrison watched 
 
106 WILLIAM HKNRY HARRISON. 
 
 their movements with a vigilance that never slumbered, 
 and sought by every means in his power to defeat their 
 plans and combinations, and, at least, to prevail upon 
 the Indians not to take up arms in favor of either 
 party, in case hostilities should commence between 
 England and the United States. 
 
 In the winter of 1810-11, crowds of Indian war- 
 riors collected around the British posts in Upper Can- 
 ada, — their war-plumes streaming from their scalp- 
 locks, and their cheeks disfigured with the war-paint ; 
 and when the sweet notes of the blue robin, the wel- 
 come harbinger of spring, were heard echoing through 
 the western forests, they went forth upon their bloody 
 mission. Nature's hymn of melody was hushed, as 
 their shrill war-whoop resounded through valley and 
 woodland, and the heavens became resplendent with 
 the How of blazing ricks and cabins. 
 
 Meanwhile Governor Harrison had succeeded in par- 
 tially conciliating the Kickapoos, and some other tribes, 
 and had effected the purchase of a large tract of land 
 from them. It was the anxious desire of the General 
 Government, to secure, at every hazard, the neutrality 
 of the Indian tribes, in the event of a collision with 
 Great Britain. This was regarded as of paramount im- 
 portance ; for the sad experience of the past had shown 
 how much they were to be feared and dreaded, particu- 
 larly when the military strength and resources of the 
 nation should be employed in a contest with a power- 
 ful opponent. Governor Harrison faithfully reflected 
 the views, and carried out the wishes of those whoiii 
 he represented, and in the summer of 1811, a council 
 was held at Vincennes, for which extensive prepara- 
 
COUNCIL AT VINCENXnS. 107 
 
 tions ^V(?re maJe, and at which the leading, and most 
 influential chiefs, of the Nortlnvcstern tribes, were 
 present, by his invitation. The object of this assem- 
 blage was, to conclude a more general treaty, and com- 
 plete the efforts which had been made to induce the 
 Indians to remain neutral. 
 
 Among the forest warriors who came to Vincennes, 
 in pursuance of the summon^ of Governor Harrison, was 
 Tecumseh'', the Shawano chief, — conspicuous, then, for 
 his tall and manly frame, his earnest and thrilling elo- 
 quence, his hostihty to the whites, his boldness, bravery, 
 and sagacity, and his feats of daring in the chase and 
 valor on the war-path ; and afterwards celebrated, for 
 the ascendency he acquired over his red brethren, and 
 for his steadfast devotion to the English cause. Deep 
 rankling in his heart there had long existed a feeling 
 of inveterate hatred towards the American people, which 
 had been carefully nurtured and cherished. Several 
 years previous, he had formed the project of uniting the 
 tribes, north, south, and west of the United States, in 
 a combination, to refuse to sell any portion of their re- 
 maining lands, to resist every effort to dispossess them, 
 and, if possible, to drive back the white settlers from 
 the Mississippi valley. Motives of ambition may have 
 been mingled with his aspirations, and it is not improb- 
 able, that he looked forward to the day when a grand 
 native confederacy should be established Jjeyond the 
 Alleohanies, with himself as its leader and head. 
 
 The project of this " forest-born Demosthenes" was 
 a vast one, and lie devoted himself with untiring zeal 
 and pertinacity to its accomplishment. His exertions 
 were powerfully seconded by his brother, Tensquata- 
 
103 WILLIAM HENRY IIARRISOJf. 
 
 way — so well known as the Shawnee Prophet, or Im- 
 postor. The latter was blind of one eye, and lacked 
 the oratorical powers of Tecumseh ; but, claiming to 
 receive direct revelations frOm the Great Spirit, which? 
 though always possessing a singular resemblance to the 
 pubhc harangues of his brother, he imparted to his sav- 
 age hearers, — and availing himself of that superstitious 
 reverence, that, in a rude and uncultivated people, ren- 
 ders them so impressible, so credulous, and so easy to be 
 governed and directed, by the practice of rites and in- 
 cantations which are said to have tlirilled and terrified 
 the hearts of those who witnessed them — ^lie acquired 
 an influence second only to that of the chieftain whose 
 ambitious designs he hoped to further. Tecumseh had 
 already visited most of the Northwestern tribes, and 
 Vv'as only waiting for the anticipated war with England, 
 to marshal his bands and lead them out under her ban- 
 ner, hoping wdth her assistance to accomplish the great 
 object he had so much at heart ; and he now appeared 
 in the council held at Yincennes, not to bury the toma- 
 hawk and smoke the calumet of peace, but to remon- 
 strate against the purchase from the Kickapoos and 
 other tribes, and hurl the gauntlet of defiance. 
 
 What excited the indignation of Tecumseh, more 
 than all, was the claim of the white man to superiority, 
 and the arrogance, as he termed it, evinced in calHng 
 the Indians his children. Upon the opening of the 
 council, Governor Harrison kindly handed him a chair, 
 saying, at the same time, in a courteous, yet dignified 
 tone, " Your father offers you a seat." " My fa- 
 ther /" — exclaimed the chief, while he drew his form 
 up to its full height, and his eye flashed with the fire 
 
SPEECH OF TECUMSEH. 109 
 
 i 
 
 of insulted priile — " Mr/ father ! — the Sun is my 
 father, and tlic Earth my mother ; she gives me suste- 
 nance, and I will rest on her bosom I" Thus speaking 
 he seated himself upon the ground, with as lofty and 
 commanding an air, as if the green sward beneath him 
 ])ad been the throne of the Csesars. 
 
 After the preliminary business of the council was 
 disposed of, Tecumseh rose, and in a strain of impas- 
 sioned eloquence, which lias rarely been equalled, and 
 never, perhaps, surpassed, by any native orator, reviewed 
 the conduct of the whites, and the wrongs of the In- 
 dians, from the time when the former first disembarkeil 
 on the Atlantic coast, to that moment — insisting that 
 the land was given by the Great Sjiirit to the red men 
 in common, and that no portion of it could be sold 
 without the consent of all. His speech was well cal- 
 culated to inflame the prejudices, and arouse the pas- 
 sions, of his savage listeners, and vv'hen ho had con- 
 cluded. Governor Harrison commenced a reply. While 
 the latter was speaking, Tecumseh, carried away by 
 his emotions, sprang to his feet, and, grasping his tom- 
 ahawk, boldly charged the governor with having uttered 
 a falsehood. Twenty or thirty of the warriors followed 
 the example of the chief, and instantly arrayed them- 
 selves in a hostile attitude. 
 
 Governor Harrison was no " weak-heart;"* nor was 
 he to be intimidated by menace. Anticipating a sud- 
 den outburst of ill-temper, as he had discovered soirie 
 unfriendly indications, he had posted a guard of sol- 
 diers within call. At the signal, they darted forward 
 to take part in the threatened struggle. But Tecum- 
 
 * The expressive term among the Indians for " coward." 
 
110 WILLIAM HEMIY IIARRISO^^ 
 
 sell was as pf)litic as he was brave ; he saw that the 
 time had not yet come for him to strike ; and he wisely 
 avoided a conflict. The council w^as broken up, how- 
 ever ; uiid all liope of securing the neutrality of the 
 Indians was abandoned. The savages returned to their 
 homes in the wdlderness, and shortly after renewed 
 their outrages, murdering the frontier settlers, plunder- 
 ing and burning their homes, and destroying or carry- 
 ing off large quantities of property. 
 
 Governor Harrison's decision was soon taken. Hav- 
 ing obtained permission from the government to march 
 into the Indian country with a military force, he made 
 his preparations w^ith his accustomed promptness and 
 energy. Orders were sent to Colonel Boyd, of the 4th 
 infantry, then at Pittsburgh, to join him forthwith with 
 his regiment, and a .=;trong militia force, part of whom 
 ^vcre mounted, were imbodied in Kentucky and Indi- 
 ana — the citizens gladly responding to the call of pa- 
 triotism — and marched to Vincennes. Leaving that 
 place at the head of about fourteen hundred men, con- 
 siderably less than one half being regulars, the gover- 
 nor moved up the AVabash. About fifty miles above 
 Vincennes ho constructed a stockade fort, afterwards 
 kfiown as Fort Harrison, and then directed his course, 
 \vithout loss of time, to Tippecanoe, the Pro])het's 
 Town, wdiich lay on the west bank of the Tippecanoe 
 river, not far from its junction with the Wabash. 
 
 On approaching the Indian town, on the sixth of 
 November, Governor Harrison proceeded slowly and 
 cautiously ; as the enemy's warriors were frequently 
 seen flitting through the woods in advance of the army, 
 and their scouts were discovered posted on the hills in 
 
BATTLE OF TIPPECANOE. Ill 
 
 every direction. Within a short distance of the vil- 
 lage, he was met by the principal chiefs — Tecumseh 
 liimself being absent on a mission to the southern 
 tribes — who, in reply to Harrison's demand of satisfac- 
 tion for the outrages which had been perpetrated, pro- 
 posed that an amicable conference should be held on 
 the following morning, and that, in the interim, nei- 
 ther party should commit any act of hostility. Dur- 
 ing the day he had made repeated efforts, without suc- 
 cess, to bring the Indians to a parley, and he still dis- 
 trusted their sincerity ; but, being willing to grant them 
 favorable terms of peace, if his demands were complied 
 with, he acceded to their request. 
 
 Orders were now issued to encamp for tlie night. 
 Majors Clarke and W. Taylor were sent forward to se- 
 lect a suitable position, and on their report Governor 
 Harrison marched his command to an elevated knoll 
 of dry oak land, rising in the midst of the open prairie, 
 about one mile northwest of the villaije. The horses 
 were picketed, the guards posted, and every preparation 
 made for the bivouac. Having partaken of their even- 
 ing meal, the Americans lay down upon the bare earth, 
 to refresh their wearied limbs. From his long ac- 
 quaintance with the character of Indian warfare. Gov- 
 ernor Harrison was fam.iliar with the arts and devices 
 of the savages ; and apprehending treachery, and know- 
 ing, that, if attacked at ail, it would be under cover 
 of the darkness, he required his men to sleep on their 
 .arms, and directed that the order of encampment should 
 be the order of battle. 
 
 . The troops were arranged in two columns, separated. 
 on the left, one hundred and eighty yards, and about 
 
112 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 half that distance on the ri^ht. The front line con- 
 sisted of the first battalion of the 4th infantry, under 
 Major Floyd, flanked, on the right, by two companies, 
 and on the loft by one company, of the regiment of 
 Indiana militia, under Colonel Bartholomew ; and the 
 rear line was composed of the second battalion of tha 
 4th infantry, under Captain Baer, flanked by four com- 
 panies of the Indiana militia, under Lieutenant-Colonel 
 Decker. Two companies of Indiana and Kentucky rifles, 
 under General Wells, were thrown out to cover the left 
 fl.ank, and Captain Spencer's troop of Indiana rifles was 
 posted on the right. Two troops of dragoons were sta- 
 tioned in rear of the left flank, and one in rear of the 
 front line, under Major Daviess. The left front and left 
 rear angles, — that flank being the most exposed to an 
 attack, — were turned by a portion of the regular troops. 
 A strong guard was also detaileJ, each man of which 
 was instructed to be jirompt and vigilant. In the event 
 of an assault, the dillerent corps were ordered to main- 
 tain their respective jiositions till they were relieved ; 
 and the cavalry were directed to parade on foot, with 
 their swords and pistols, and wait for orders. 
 
 These dispositions being completed, Governor Har- 
 rison lay down among his men, having his horse near 
 him, saddled, and in readiness for him to mount at a 
 moment's warning. Hour after hour went by in si- 
 lence. The camp fires gleamed brightly in the distance 
 till long after midnight, when they were suffered par- 
 tially to die away. The cold chilling wind moaned 
 dismally as it swept through the encampment, gently 
 lifting the locks of many a tired sleeper who had looked 
 for the last time on the setting sun, and fanning into a 
 
ATTACK OX THE LEFT. 
 
 113 
 
 bris-liter irlow the smnuldorinsr embers of the watch- 
 fires. The beams of the young moon struggled ah-nost 
 vainly to pierce through the thick veil of clouds, from 
 which a drizzling rain descended that hissed and sput- 
 tered as it fell on the heated ashes. The hour of dark- 
 ness which precedes the dawn had nearly passed, when 
 the governor rose from his rude couch, and ordered the 
 reveille to be beaten. He then sat down before the fire, 
 and commenced a conversation with some of his offi- 
 cers. While thus engaged, the stillness was suddenly 
 broken, by the sentinels discharging their pieces, on the 
 left of the encampment, and a fierce and hideous yell 
 that roused every man from his slumbers. 
 
 Wistful and inquiring glances were at once turned 
 towards the quarter from whence the alarm proceeded"; 
 the cry, " To arms I — To arms I" was raised on every 
 side ; and the wild slogan of the savage bands, rising 
 higher and higher as the conflict deepened, was echoed 
 far down the valley of the Wabash. For a few mo- 
 ments the encampment presented a scene of confusion; 
 but the active exertions of Governor Harrison, Colonel 
 Boyd, and other officers, soon restored order and disci- 
 pline. 
 
 At first the attack was partially successful. The 
 stealthy approach of the enemy was not observed until 
 they were in the immediate vicinity of the pickets. It 
 was their intention to creep up to the sentinels as close 
 as possible, and then to spring upon them, and kill 
 them, before they could fire ; but, on finding that they 
 were discovered, and the alarm given, they gave a deaf- 
 ening yell, rattled their deer hoofs — by which their 
 movements in battle were guided — and rushed furl- 
 
114 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 onsly on tlio guard posted on the left flank. The latter 
 gave way almost instantly, and the whole brunt of the 
 onset was sustained by Captain Barton's regulars, and 
 tlie mounted rifles of Captain Guiger, who occupied 
 the left angle of the rear line. In every other part of 
 the encampment the fires had already been extinguished, 
 in obedience to the directions of Governor Harrison ; 
 — but, on this flank, there was not sufficient time, 
 and tlie troops were exposed to the murderous aim of 
 the Indian warriors, without even the protection af- 
 forded by the darkness. Nevertheless, they held their 
 position gallantly, amid the storm of bullets that whis- 
 tled incessantly through their ranks, till they were re- 
 inforced by two companies from the centre of the rear 
 line, ordered to their support by the governor. 
 
 Such was the desperation evinced by the savages, at 
 the outset of the action, that a number of them forced 
 ' their way into the centre of tlio encampment. Here, 
 for a brief space, the contest was foot to foot, and man 
 to man. Fire brands were hurled, and rifles and mus- 
 kets clubbed. The scalping knife glistened momenta- 
 rily, as it cut the air in its descending course ; and a 
 dull crashing sound was heard, as the tomahawk sank 
 into the quivering brain of some unfortunate victim. 
 Louder and louder rang the Indian war-whoop ; but 
 the American soldiers — their confidence now reo^ained — 
 returned shout for shout, and yell for yell. Vengeance 
 was not long deferred. Not one of the enemy who 
 had entered within the lines was suffered to escape : — 
 all were cut down, uttering, as they fell, in shrieking 
 tones, their bitter and unrelenting curse upon the white 
 man. 
 
FORTUNATE CIRCUMSTANCE. 115 
 
 A sliort distance in front of the American left, there 
 was a small group of stm-Jy oaks, which aflorded shel- 
 ter to a number of the most skilful marksmen amonir 
 the assailing band, who poured a galling and intense 
 fire, mingled with rapid flights of arrows, from their 
 concealment. Major Daviess instantly requested per- 
 mission to charge upon the cover with his cavalry. 
 Governor Harrison granted the request, and the major 
 orderetl his bugles to sound the charge. His manly 
 tones rung cheerily out on the night air, as he called 
 upon his men to follow. Nobly did they second him. 
 The charge was made, and the Indians scattered like 
 the leaves of the forest before the fury of the autumn 
 blast ; but it was the last bold stroke of him, whose 
 eloquence is yet remembered, and whose memory is 
 still carefully treasured, among the people of the West. 
 By his side, too, fell Colonel White, of the Indiana 
 militia, like him, mortally wounded, in that sangTiinary 
 fray. Disheartened by the loss of their leader and 
 many of their comrades, the cavalry fell back, and the 
 Indians recovered the ground, opening a still more de- 
 structive fire on their opponents. As the dragoons re- 
 tired. Captain Snelling promptly led forward his com- 
 pany of the 4th infantrv, and again drove the savases 
 from their shelter with the bayonet. 
 
 In the meantime, a heavy fire had been opened on 
 the companies of Captains Spencer and Warwick, on 
 the right of the line. The former, and his two lieu- 
 tenants, were killed, and Captain Warwick was mor- 
 tally wounded. All immediate danger being over on 
 the left flank. Governor Harrison hastened to the right, 
 to encourage the men to remain firm, and maintain the 
 
IIG AVILLIAM HENRY HARRISOX. 
 
 gi-ound till daylight. At the first alarm, ho had fortu- 
 nately monntcd the horse nearest hini, without wait- 
 ing lor his own to be brought up, which was well 
 known to the enemy. The dark eyes of many a red 
 warrior glared fiercely, as they were turned hither and 
 thither tln-ough the encampment, in search of the favo- 
 rite steed of the governor. As he dashed to the right, 
 he was accompanied by his aid, Colonel Owen, who 
 rode a horse similar in color to that on which he had 
 been mounted the previous day. A shower of rifle 
 balls fell around them. Colonel Owen was killed, and 
 the governor's cravat was pierced by a bullet, that 
 chanced not to injure "his person. 
 
 In passing to the right flank, the governor found the 
 company of Captain Robb, which had fallen back at 
 the commencement of the attack, in the centre of the 
 camp. Leading them to the support of Spencer's and 
 Warwick's companies, he strengthened this part of the 
 line, and i)y his presence encouraged the men to more 
 animated exertions. A warm fire was now kept up 
 till the early dawn, in front, on both flanks, and partly 
 in rear of the encampment ; the sharp crack of the 
 rifle, and the prolonged rattle of musketry, mingling 
 with the shouts and cheers of the American soldiers. 
 Governor Harrison well knew, as the great father of 
 the English drama had written years before, that " ad- 
 vantage is a better soldier than rashness," and he did 
 not hazard the safety of his command, though sufl'er- 
 ing severely from the heavy fire, by any offensive move- 
 ment, till the light of day enabled him to ascertain the 
 position and numbers of the enemy. 
 
 But whpn the morning broke, a general charge was 
 
THE INDIAN VILLAGE BURNED. 117 
 
 ordered. Tho left wing, consisting of five companies 
 of the 4th infantry, and a party of dragoons, led by 
 General Wells, — and the right, consisting of the re- 
 maining companies of the 4th infantry and cavalry, 
 and the mounted riiles and militia, — moved rapidly 
 upon the })ositions occupied by the savages. The latter 
 made no further effort to continue the fic^ht. Their 
 desperate bravery had proved of no avail against the 
 disciplined valor ■ and persevering courage of the Ameri- 
 can troops. Hotly pursued by the gallant soldiers of 
 Harrison, they fled in dismay to the neighboring swamps 
 and thickets, in whose impenetrable recesses they at 
 length found a secure retreat. The Prophet's town 
 was entirely abandoned by its late occupants. Having 
 collected his v.'ounded, and buried his dead, Governor 
 Harrison advanced with his forces to the village, which 
 he ordered to be burned. The surrounding district was 
 also laid waste, and he then returned into the settled 
 country. 
 
 The battle of Tippecanoe was one of the bloodiest 
 engagements recorded in the annals of Indian warfare. 
 It was bravely fought and bravely won. The cautious 
 foresight, the prudence and vigilance of Governor Har- 
 rison, alone saved his little army from destruction. His 
 loss in killed and wounded, was one hundred and eighty- 
 eight ; that of the enemy was supposed to be about the 
 same. 
 
 Tecumseh,as has been mentioned, was absent at the 
 time of this engagement. Had he been present, j)er- 
 haps the result might have been different. When the 
 particulars of the disaster reached him, he affected to 
 regard it as of little moment, and always spoke of it, 
 
118 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 as the "unfortunate transaction that took place be- 
 tween the wliite people and a few of his young men" ; 
 yet it is very evident that this untoward oocurrence 
 preyed deeply on his spirits, since it tended, probably 
 more than any other single circumstance, to the defeat 
 of his plans. The result of the action intimidated 
 many of the tribes who were preparing to join his con- 
 federacy, and they immediately sent deputations to 
 Governor Harrison to sue for peace. 
 
 The general assembly of Indiana territory passed a 
 resolution, at the next session after the battle of Tip- 
 pecanoe, complimenting Crovernor Harrison in the high- 
 est terms, and the Legislature of Kentucky also testi- 
 fied, in a similar manner, their approbation of " iiis 
 cool, deliberate, skilful, and gallant conduct." — Thus 
 was laid the foundation of that military reputation, 
 which secured him the regard and esteem of his coun- 
 trymen, and elevated him, in after times, to a memo- 
 rable distinction among the great men of tlie Nation. 
 
 Another effect of the battle of Tippecanoe was soon 
 witnessed. The tone of the ])ublic press became more 
 bold and warlike, and the public temper was inflamed 
 to the highest degree. Doubts as to the necessity of a 
 war with England were speedily transformed into set- 
 tled convictions. After a long and tedious negotiation, 
 in the summer of 1811, reparation was offered for the 
 attack on the Chesapeake ; but (Ireat Britain aban- 
 doned not one of her objectionable positions, nor ceased 
 the piratical plunder of our commerce, so long stimu- 
 lated and encouraged by Lords Liverpool and Castle- 
 reaich. Forbearance could no longer bo regarded as a 
 virtue ; nor was peace desirable, when it could only be 
 
DECLARATION OF WAR. 119 
 
 preserved by the sacrifice of national honor and dignity. 
 War was therefore declared, on the eighteenth of June, 
 1S12, and pubhcly proclaimed by President Madison on 
 the following day. 
 
 The declaration of war found Governor Harrison ac- 
 tively engaged in the discharge of his duties as gover- 
 nor of the territory of Indiana, and in his endeavors to 
 secure the neutrality of the Northwestern savages. 
 The general sentiment of that section of the country 
 would then have applauded his selection as the com- 
 manding officer of the forces destined to operate in that 
 quarter ; but the appointment was conferred on William 
 Hull, governor of the territory of Michigan, an officer 
 who had served with credit and ability during the war 
 of the Revolution. 
 
 The campaign of 1812 was signalized by General 
 Hull's invasion of Canada, in July, and his humiliating 
 surrender, at Detroit, in the following August. When 
 the tidings of this event were made known in Ohio, 
 Kentucky, and Tennessee, they were scarcely credited. 
 Subsequent information confirmed the rumor, however, 
 and the intelligence produced a spontaneous outburst 
 of indiofnation. To retrieve the tarnished honor of the 
 country, was the first impulse of every heart. An ir- 
 repressible feeling of enthusiasm pervaded all classes. 
 The people rose, in a mass, like the upheaving of the 
 ocean. Places of rendezvous were appointed, and the 
 hunters of the west flocked in crowds around the na- 
 tional standard — all animated by one motive, and influ- 
 enced by one desire. They were cheered, too, by the 
 approving smiles, and encouraged by the kind words 
 of their wives and mothers, their sisters, daughters, and 
 
120 AVILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 sweet-hearts, Avhose hands were constantly employed 
 in furnishhio' them with clothins: and other necessaries 
 for the march. Such was the alacrity displayed in 
 responding to the call to arras, tliat whole companies 
 were frequently enrolled, and equipped, in a single 
 day! 
 
 In Ohio, the most patriotic exertions were made by 
 Governor Meigs, to fit the militia of that state for the 
 field. In Kentucky, an unusual degree of ardor was 
 manifested. The fire of '76 was rekindled in the bosom 
 of the veteran Shelby. Infected with the spirit pre- 
 vailing among their constituents, several members of 
 Congress enrolled themselves as privates, and cheer- 
 fully shouldered the rifle or musket. Henry Clay, the 
 eloquent' advocate of the war on the floor of Congress, 
 though not under arms, ajipeared at the musters, and 
 addressed the volunteers in fervid and impassioned ap- 
 peals to their patriotism, that thrilled the hearts of 
 those who heard him. Large numbers of militia were 
 also imbodicd, in ^^irginia, and in the western part of 
 Pennsylvania. In Tennessee, likewise, the utmost 
 eagerness to take the field was exhibited by the hardy 
 yeomanry, who were doubtless inlluenced by the no- 
 ble ex:am})le of General Jackson and his patriotic 
 division. 
 
 In a few weeks, about eight thousand men were col- 
 lected at various points on the Ohio river and izi its 
 vicinity. The selection of an officer to take command 
 of the army, was attended with considerable difficulty; 
 but it was finally determined, at a sort of military cau- 
 cus, at which Isaac Shelby, Judge Todd of the Su- 
 preme Court of the United States, Mr. Clay, and other 
 
APPOINTED A MAJOR GENERAL. 121 
 
 Icadin!^ men, were present, that Governor Harrison 
 shonlJ be commissioned a major general by brevet, by 
 Governor Scott, of Kentucky, and temporarily invested 
 with the command. This was accordingly done, and 
 General Harrison immediately entered upon the per- 
 formance of his duties. His militaiy life had been an 
 irregular one, and his experience, therefore, was ex- 
 tremely limited ; yet he found himself placed at the 
 head of a numerous body of troops, under such dis- 
 heartening circumstances, and in a season of despond- 
 ency and gloom. To add to his embarrassments, he 
 discovered, on examination, that everything was in 
 confusion. Men there were in abundance; but they 
 were deficient in arms and ammunition, and poorly 
 provided with supplies of every kind. Still, he did not 
 lack the moral courage necessary to sustain him at so 
 important a crisis, but labored iudefatigably to correct 
 what had been done amiss, and to secure the efiicient 
 action of the army placed under his orders. 
 
 The capture of Detroit, and the consequent occupa- 
 tion of all the important posts in the territory of Mich- 
 igan, and about the head of Lake Erie, by the British 
 troops, removed every restraint from the savages on ths 
 frontier, who poured down from their northeiyi hives in 
 torrents. The security of the border settlements against 
 their murderous incursions was the first object to be at- 
 tained ; and in order to accomplish this ell'ectually, it 
 was necessary to move without delay to the relief of 
 the frontier posts, — particularly Fort Harrison, on the 
 Wabash ; and Fort Wayne, at the confluence of the 
 St. Mary's and St. Joseph's, v/hich form the IMaumee, 
 or Miami of the Lakes, as it was originally called. It 
 
 6 
 
122 WlLtrAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 was determined to penetrate the Indian country in two 
 columns ; one, under General Harrison, being ordered 
 to rendezvous at Cincinnati andUrbanna, and the other, 
 under General Hoplcins, of the Kentucky militia, at 
 Vincennes. 
 
 General Harrison put his troops in motion from Cin- 
 cinnati, on the twenty-ninth of August, and reached 
 Piqua on the thirtieth instant, with about twenty-five 
 hundred men. Here he completed his final arrange- 
 ments, and received his military stores ; and, on the 
 sixth of September, he resumed bis march for Fort 
 Wayne, where he arrived on the twelfth, to the great 
 joy of the garrison, which consisted of only seventy 
 men. The post had been for several days invested by 
 a large body of Indians who resorted to every strata- 
 gem and device to induce the garrison to surrender, 
 and, failing in this, made repeated attempts to carry 
 the fort by assault. On heai-ing of the approach of 
 General Harrison, the savages retreated precipitately, 
 after destroying everything outside the works. 
 
 On his arrival at Fort AVavne, General Harrison 
 forthwith organized two expeditions to lay waste tho 
 Indian villages. Colonel Wells, of the 17th infantry, 
 was dispatched on the fourteenth of Septonber, with 
 his reginilnt, and that of Colonel Scott of tlie Ken- 
 tiicky militia, and two hundred mounted ri/les, against 
 the Potowatomie town on the upper St. Joseph, which 
 disembogues into Lake Michigan. Another detaeh- 
 m.ent, commanded by General Payne, consisting of 
 two Kentucky regiments, under Colonels Lewis and Al- 
 len, and one company- of mounted men, marched 
 against the Miami villages. Both expeditions were 
 
DEFENCE OF FORT HARRISON. 123 
 
 successful. Nine Indian towns, which had been aban- 
 doned by the inhabitants, on the approacii of the Amer- 
 ican troops, were utterly destroyed ; the v/igwams 
 and wooden huts were burnt, and the growing corn 
 Cut up. 
 
 Meanwhile, the column under General Hopkins, 
 Mdiich had rendezvoused at Vincennes, had moved to 
 the relief of Fort Harrison. This post was occupied 
 by Captain Z. Taylor, of the 7th infantry, with a fee- 
 ble garrison of fifty men, not one half of whom were 
 effective. On the night of the fourth of September, it 
 was assaulted by between four and five hundred In- 
 dians, who succeeded in firing one of the block-houses, 
 in which a large quantity of spirits was stored. The 
 flames spread with great rapidity, and the garrison were 
 fast giving way to despair, when Captain Taylor 
 directed the roofs of the adjoining barracks to be re- 
 moved. This was quickly accomplished, and the fire 
 prevented from extending to the other buildings in the 
 fort. Animated by the heroic example of their com- 
 mander, and reassured by the admirable coolness and 
 presence of mind which he had exhibited, the soldiers 
 then engaged in the defence of the post, with a courage 
 akin to desperation. The assailants failed to make 
 any further impression, and after daylight on the morn- 
 ing of the fifth, the American fire became so destruc- 
 tive, that they moved out of range. They lingered 
 near the post during the day, but retired early on the 
 j following morning, though they still hovered in the vi- 
 I cinity, keeping watch on the principal roads, cutting 
 ofT the communications with the fort, and committing 
 their depredations through the surrounding country. 
 
I!f4 AtiLLlAM HEXRY HAftRrSoW. 
 
 The long-continued anxiety of the garrison was re- 
 lieved on the sixteenth of September, by the arrival of 
 Colonel Russell, v.'ith eleven hundred men, and a few 
 days later General Hopkins came up with the remain- 
 der of his column. Preparations were now made for 
 an expedition against the Peoria villages, on the Illi- 
 nois river, and other Indian towns on that stream and 
 the Wabash, which had been determined on previous 
 to the march of the troops from Vincennes. It was 
 agreed that Colonel Russell should proceed directly 
 across the country, with his corps of Kentucky rangers, 
 and a party of mounted rifles under Governor Ed- 
 wards of IlHiiois Territory, three hundred and sixty 
 men in all ; and that General Hopkins, with the main 
 body, should advance by a more northern route, and 
 effect a junction with him at the Peoria towns. An- 
 other detachment, of eighty men, under Captain Craig, 
 was ordered to move up the Illinois, and join them at 
 the same place. 
 
 Colonel Russell left Fort Harrison with his command 
 on the seventh of October, and General Hopkins com- 
 menced his march on the fifteenth instant. The route 
 pursued by the latter lay through a pleasant champaign 
 country, and his force was strong enough to set all op- 
 position at defiance. But the men were totally undis- 
 ciplhied and unaccustomed to restraint ; and on the 
 fourth day out refused to proceed any further. The 
 remonstrances and entreaties of the general produced 
 no effect, and he was compelled to follow his refractory 
 troops, in their retrograde march to Fort Harrison. 
 Colonel Russell, however, continued his course to tlio 
 Illinois river. Though disappointed in not meeting 
 
INDIAN TOWNS DESTROYED. . 125 
 
 General Hopkins, he persevered in his enterprise, and 
 destroyed one of the principal villages of the Peorias, 
 called Pamitaris' town, together with their winter stock 
 of provisions. The Indians were pursued into a swamp 
 in the vicinity where they had fled for shelter, — Colonel 
 Russell and his men wading for several miles up to their 
 waists in water, — and upwards of twenty of them 
 were killed on the bank of the river. After the de- 
 struction of the town, the detachment returned to Fort 
 Harrison, where they arrived on the twenty-first of 
 October. 
 
 In November, General Hopkins made a more success- 
 ful foray. Leaving Fort Harrison on the eleventh in- 
 stant, at the head of about twelve hundred men, he ]Dro- 
 ceeded up the Wabash, and destroyed the Prophet's town, 
 and a large Kickapoo village near it, with the store of corn 
 provided by the savages for the coining winter. The 
 Winnebago towns on Ponce Passu creek were also de- 
 stroyed by a detachment vinder Colonel Butler. 
 . About the same time. Lieutenant Colonel Campbell, 
 of the 19th infantry, was dispatched from Greenville, 
 I with a party of six hundred men, against the Indian 
 I towns on tlie Mississinewa river, one of the tributaries 
 of the Wabash. On the seventeenth of November, he 
 I surprised a village inhabited by Delawares and Mi amis, 
 li captured thirty-seven prisoners, and killed eight of the 
 !' enemv's warriors. The town, and two others in the 
 I neighborhood, were then burned, and the party en- 
 ji camped for the night. Just before daylight, the next 
 li morning, they were attacked by a party of Indians 
 If three hundred strong. A desperate contest was kept 
 ;; up for nearly an hour, when the enemy were driven: 
 
126 AVILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 off by a charge of cavalry, leaving forty of their best 
 and bravest warriors dead on the field. The Americans 
 lost eight men killed, and about thirty wounded. An- 
 other attack was anticipated, as Tecurasch was under- 
 stood to be in the vicinity with four or five hundred 
 warriors, but reinforcements soon coming up from 
 Greenville, the detachment completed the destruction 
 of the towns on the river, and returned without moles- 
 tation. 
 
 These repeated incursions had the desired effect. 
 Frequent hostilities afterwards arose and engagements 
 took place, but these were confined to small parties of 
 volunteers and similar bands of savages ; exempted 
 from the irruptions of the Indians, the border settle- 
 ments continued to enjoy, for a long period, a degree 
 of tranquillity which they had never before witnessed. 
 
 After the return of the troops sent out by General 
 Harrison, from Fort Wayne, it was his intention to 
 advance towards Detroit, and recover the territory oc- 
 cupied by tlie British forces, as soon as he found his 
 means adequate to the object. His plans were tempo- 
 rarily disarranged by the arrival of Brigadier General 
 Winchester, who had originally been designated for the 
 command of the northwestern army, with large rein- 
 forcements from Ohio and Kentucky. General Harri- 
 son accordingly relinquished the command, and set out 
 on his return to Indiana territory, accompanied by a 
 considerable force of mounted men with which he de- 
 signed to break up the Indian towns in that quarter. 
 It subsequently appeared, that President Madison was 
 ignorant of his bi-evet appointment, and of the general 
 desii-e of the western people that he should be placed 
 
DISPOSITION OF THE TlLVOfS. 127 
 
 in command, at the time the orders to General Win- 
 chester were issued. General Harrison had not pro- 
 ceeded far on his return, when lie was overtalcen by an 
 express bearing a commission as brigadier general in the 
 regular army, together with instructions requiring liimto 
 take command of the forces on the northwestern frontier. 
 
 General Harrison returned to Fort Wayne, and re- 
 sumed the command, on the twenty-third of Septem- 
 ber. Arrived here, he learned that General Winches- 
 ter had marched on the previous day, for P'ort Defiance, 
 on his vv^ay to the Rapids of the Maumee, the place 
 fLxed upon for the general rendezvous preparatory to 
 the contemplated movement for the recovery of Michi- 
 gan, vrith four hundred regulars, a brigade of Ken- 
 tucky militia, and a troop of horse, — in all two thou- 
 sand men. He then proceeded to Fort St. Mary's to 
 make further [^reparations for the campaign, and dis- 
 patched Colonel Jennings down the Au Glaizo, with a 
 detachment, having in charge a quantity of supplies for 
 General Winchester, whose men had but a limited stock 
 of provisions. 
 
 The march of General Winchester was impeded, not 
 only by the natural obstacles of the wet and marshy 
 country through vvhich he was compelled to pass, but 
 also by a series of annoying skirmishes with the ad- 
 vanced parties of a force lying in and near Fort Defi- 
 ance, consisting of two hundred British regulars and 
 one thousand savages, which was destined for the cap- 
 ture of Fort Wayne. Making his way through the 
 numerous difficulties that retarded his progress, and 
 forcing the enemy to retire down the river as he ad- 
 vanced, he reached Fort Defiance on the thirteenth of 
 
128 
 
 WILMAM IIEXRY IIARRISO.'T. 
 
 September, where he was joined by the detachment un- 
 der Colonel Jennings. AVhile on his way, he had sent 
 an express to General Harrison, informing him of the 
 situation of his troops, and the harassing warfare kept 
 up with the enemy. The latter arrived at the fort on 
 the third of October, with additional reinforcements, but 
 returned again, on the ensuing day, to the settled coun- 
 try, to bring the remainder of the troops, composing the 
 centre and right wing of his army, into the field. Gen- 
 eral Winchester remained at Fort Defiance in com- 
 mand of the left winar. 
 
 Before leaving the fort, General Harrison directed 
 General Tupper to proceed down the river with the 
 Ohio mounted men, about one thousand strong, and 
 drive the enemy from the Rapids. The command of 
 General Tupper consisted of raw and inexperienced 
 militia, and, though he made every effort, he was una- 
 ble to comply with the orders he had received. In con- 
 sequence of some misunderstanding between himself 
 and General Winchester, he soon after returned with 
 the Ohio cavalry, to Urbanna, whence he was ordered 
 forward, with the centre of tlie northwestern army, 
 which was composed of one regiment of regulars, and 
 the Ohio volunteers and militia, to Fort M' Arthur. 
 About the same time, the right wing, consisting of the 
 Pennsylvania and Virginia brigades, under Generals 
 Crooks and Leftwicli, was advanced to Sandusky. 
 
 On his arrival at Fort JNF Arthur, General Tapper 
 organized another expedition to proceed to the Rapids. 
 He left the fort on the tenth of November, with six 
 hundred men, carrying five days' rations in their knap- 
 sacks. Oji the evening of the thirteenth instant, he 
 
WINTER CAMPAIGN. 129 
 
 arrived within thirteen miles of the Rapids, and sent 
 an ufficer in advance to reconnoitre. It was ascertained 
 that Fort Maumee, and the settlement, were still occu- 
 pied by the British and their savage allies, and their 
 boats and vessels were discovered in the stream below. 
 General Tupper made several unavailing attempts to 
 cross the river, and then endeavored to decoy the enemy 
 over. In this he was more successful ; a large party 
 of Indians crossed the river, whom he attacked and 
 routed ; but, on account of the failure of his provisions, 
 he was soon obliged to return to Fort M' Arthur with- 
 out accomplishing the object of the expedition. On the 
 thirteenth of December, he conducted another detach- 
 ment to the Rapids, between fifteen hundred and two 
 thousand strong. On this occasion he encountered 
 about three hundred British regulars and seven hun- 
 dred Indians, on the right bank of the stream, a few 
 miles above the Rapids. These he attacked and com- 
 pletely routed. The enemy left one hundred of their 
 number on the field, and many were killed while at- 
 tempting to swim across the river. Shortly after this 
 affair, the British evacuated the post and retired to 
 Maiden and Detroit. 
 
 In the meantime, General Harrison, whose head- 
 quarters were established at Franklinton, had labored 
 unceasingly, in connection with Governor Meigs, to 
 complete his preparations for the projected winter cam- 
 paign. It was designed that the army should advance, 
 in three divisions, from Fort Defiance, Fort M'Arthur, 
 and Sandusky, to the Rapids of the Maumee, where 
 they were to receive their supplies of ordnance and 
 
 provisions. A feint was then to be made upon Detroit, 
 
 g* 
 
130 AVILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 when tlie troops were to cross the river and invest Fort 
 Maiden. 
 
 The army under the orders of General Harrison 
 nominally consisted of ten thousand men. But little 
 over six thousand of these were effective, and many of 
 the latter number were undisciplined and inexperienced. 
 All were poorly clothed and worse fed. The efforts of 
 the commanding general were unwearied and untiring, 
 but he encountered obstacles and difficulties at every 
 step. The army rendered an important service in hold- 
 ing the Indians in check, yet they were unable to move 
 forward, and General Harrison was warmly censured, 
 by those who were unacquainted with the real state of 
 things, for his inactivity. A simple statement of the 
 position of affairs on this frontier will be his best de- 
 fence. — The enemy had the command on Lake Erie, 
 and it seemed almost impossible to furnish the troops in 
 this remote region with the supplies that they needed, 
 and without which it would have been mere fool-hardi- 
 ness to advance. It was necessary to transport the ord- 
 nance and heavy stores over the AUeghanies, and down 
 the Ohio, and thence they were hauled, over land, hun- 
 dreds of miles, along blazed forest paths and miserable 
 trails, across half-frozen swamps and through trackless 
 forests, to the banks of the Maumee. 
 
 Against such embarrassments. General Harrison 
 struggled almost hopelessly, yet as it proved in the se- 
 quel, successi'ully, notwithstanding that his plans were 
 frequently thwarted, and his measures disconcerted, by 
 the War Department. In January, 1813, Dr. Eustis 
 was succeeded by General Armstrong as Secretary of 
 War. The latter had imbibed strong prejudices against 
 
DIFIICULTIES AND EMBARRASSMENTS. 131 
 
 a militia force, and entertained a marked dislike towards 
 General Harrison, who, — though possessing the confi- 
 d(^nce of r\Iadison himself, — never knew what it was 
 to be cordially sustained by the executive officers of the 
 government, while he remained in service. 
 
 While General Harrison was busilv engasfed in dis- 
 tributing the supplies, and organizing the reinforce- 
 ments, as they arrived, an event took place, which, it 
 has been truly said, " clothed Kentucky in mourn- 
 ing." — The left wing of the army, under General 
 Winchester, remained at Fort Defiance, on the site of 
 which they constructed a new fort, named, after the 
 geiieral in command. Fort Winchester, till November. 
 Having constructed a number of pirogues, for the trans- 
 portation of their baggage, they moved down the river 
 about six miles, to camp No. 3, where they were de- 
 layed until the eighth of January, 1813 — suffering 
 greatly, in the meantime, for the want of clothing and 
 ])rovisions. Orders were then issued for tlie advance. 
 The weather was exceedingly inclement, the river 
 blocked up with ice, and the ground covered with snow 
 to the depth of twenty-seven inches ; — yet the bravo 
 Kentuckians, of whom General AVinchester's command 
 was almost exclusively composed, harnessed themselves 
 to sleighs on which they placed their baggage, and per- 
 formed the weary march of twenty-seven miles, to the 
 Rapids, in two days. Immediately after his arrival at 
 this point, the general received a message from the in- 
 habitants of Frenchtov/n, a small village situated on 
 the left bank, and near the mouth, of the river Raisin, 
 ' informing hiin that a large body of British and In- 
 dians were about to make a descent on tiiat place, 
 
132 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISOrf. 
 
 and urgently entreating him to hasten to their assist- 
 ance. 
 
 Sickness, and the expiration of the terms of service 
 of the volunteers, had reduced the strength of his col- 
 umn to but little over eight hundred men ; and Gene- 
 ral Winchester hesitated to place any portion of this 
 small command, within a single day's march, — as tha 
 Detroit river was then frozen over,— of the British 
 forces concentrated at Maiden. His officers, however, 
 t^nanimously, and earnestly, advised a compliance with 
 the request ; and, impelled by motives of humanity, 
 without waiting to communicate with General Harri- 
 son, and, indeed, contrary to his own better judgment, 
 he detached Colonels Lewis and Allen, wuth about five 
 hundred men, on the seventeenth of January, instruct- 
 ing them to proceed to Presque Isle, and there await 
 his arrival with the remainder of the column. 
 
 At Presque Isle, Colonel Lewis, who had been placed 
 in command of the detachment, learned that an ad- 
 vanced party of British and Indians were already in 
 possession of Frenchtown. He therefore determined to 
 hasten forward and attack them. The march was re- 
 sumed, through the ice and snow, and at three o'clock 
 in the afternoon of the eighteenth instant, he arrived 
 on the southern bank of the river, opposite to the vil- 
 lage in which the enemy, about five hundred in num- 
 ber, under the command of Major Reynolds, were 
 posted. The stream being bridged with ice, Colonel 
 Lewis formed his men for action, and advanced stead- 
 ily to the further shore. A warm contest ensued, which 
 was terminated only by the darkness. The enemy were 
 forced from their position, and driven nearly two miles. 
 
MASSACRE ON THE RAISIN. 133 
 
 into the woods, under a continual charge. Colonel 
 Lewis had twelve men killed and fifty-five wounded. 
 The enemy's loss was supposed to be far more severe, 
 as fifteen Indian warriors were found on the field, — 
 thougli it could never be ascertained with certainty. 
 
 Colonel Lewis was joined on the twentieth instant 
 by General Winchester, with two hundred and fifty 
 men, — the latter having previously advised General 
 Harrison, then at Lower Sandusky, of the advance to 
 Frenchtown. General Harrison received the dispatch 
 of General Winchester on the nineteentii of January, 
 and, though deeply chagrined at this interference with 
 the general plan of his operations, he set out imme- 
 diately for the Rapids. His inspector general, Captain 
 Hart, was dispatched to General Winchester, with or- 
 ders to maintain the position to which he had advanced 
 at all hazards. On the twenty-third instant, a rein- 
 forcement of three hundred men, under Major Cot- 
 greves, took up the line of march for Frenchtown, and 
 on the same day General Harrison followed, with an- 
 other corps, three hundred and sixty strong. 
 
 It was all too late ! The catastrophe which Gene- 
 ral Harrison feared had already occurred ; — the blow 
 had been struck that desolated so many homes, and 
 widowed so many hearts, in the fair state of Kentucky. 
 — Early in the morning of the twenty-second. General 
 Winchester was attacked by an overwhelming force of 
 British and Indians, numbering at least fifteen hundred 
 men, with six pieces of artillery, under Colonel Proc- 
 tor and the chiefs Round-Head and Split-Log. His 
 men maintained a stout resistance — fighting bravely 
 for hours, exposed to a most murderous fire. At length, 
 
134 AVILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 after ono half their number were either killed or 
 woumled, the remainder — a sadly diminished band — 
 surrendered themselves prisoners of war, upon the pledge 
 of the British commander to protect them from Indian 
 violence. 
 
 The pledge vv'as basely violated. Another, and still 
 darker feature, was added to the worse than brutal 
 warfare waged on the part of the English government. 
 On the day after the engagement, Colonel Proctor re- 
 turned to Detroit, leaving between fifty and sixty 
 wounded prisoners at Frenchtown, who were cruelly 
 butchered bv his savage associates, — a half-breed, who 
 held a high commission in the Royal service, boast- 
 ing, in the presence of the British oflicers, that the In- 
 dians were " excellent doctors^'' ! The houses in which 
 the unfortunate victims perished were set on fire, and 
 their bodies consumed. Other prisoners, not wounded, 
 "were murdered in cold blood ; the rites of sepulture 
 were denied to their remains, and those of their com- 
 rades who had fallen in the action ; and their bones 
 were left to whiten in the wintry storm that howled its 
 requiem above their resting place. Some perished by 
 the wayside, on the march to Detroit, from the incle- 
 mency of the weather ; others sank beneath the toma- 
 hawk of the savage. The survivors, — few in number, — 
 to the lasting dishonor of a nation whose sovereign re- 
 warded the oflicor, who connived at, or tolerated these 
 abuses, with the commission of a brigadier general, were 
 stripped and plundered, and subjected to the grossest 
 indignities and outrages. 
 
 General Harrison was three miles in advance of the 
 Rapids, hurrying rapidly on with his reinforcements, 
 
BRUTAL CONDUCT OF THE ENEMY. 135 
 
 when ho received the intellisrence of this sad disaster. 
 Selecting a picked corps of one hundred and seventy 
 men, he detached them to the assistance of the fusfi- 
 tives, but few of whom made their escape from the 
 field of battle, in consequence of the great depth of 
 snow. He also dispatched a surgeon, with two com- 
 panions, provided with money, under a flag of truce, to 
 attend the sick and wounded prisoners of General Win- 
 chester's command. One of the party was murdered 
 by the Indians, and the others were robbed, and other- 
 wise inhumanly treated, by both British and savages. 
 After suiiering for several months in confinement, hav- 
 ing been transferred from one dungeon to another, they 
 were finally set at liberty in Quebec. 
 
 Had General Harrison consulted his first impulses, 
 he would have hastened forward with his whole dispos- 
 able force, to avenge the massacre at Frenciitown. 
 Doubtless, it would have been better, had he done 
 so — provided he could have been successful, which is 
 not entirely free from doubt — and he would then have 
 escaped the censure bestowed on his conduct, unde- 
 served and ungenerous though it was. But the roads, 
 miserable as they were in the most favorable Aveather, 
 were covered with three feet of snow, and almost im- 
 practicable for artillery ; it was not then known that 
 Proctor had himself retired ; the force of the enemy 
 was greatly exaggerated ; and the unanimous advice 
 of his officers counselled iiim to fall back without de- 
 lay. It might be improper to call him a bold man, — 
 l)ecause he did not court danger unnecessarily. Yet 
 he did not lack bravery; he was not timid; nor was 
 his courage like " fire in a flint which will not show 
 
136 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 without knocking." He was firm, resolute, and un- 
 fi inching, wlicn occasion required, — he was only not 
 rash, not reckless. lie was responsible for the success, 
 or failui'e, of the whole campaign ; the security of the 
 entire frontier depended on his army alone, — the only 
 barrier against the swooping torrent of Indian warriors 
 who wanted but the opportunity to precipitate them- 
 selves on the defenceless settlements, in terror and 
 blood. 
 
 In conformity with the advice of his officers. Gene- 
 ral Harrison fell back to Carrying river, about midway 
 between the Sandusky and Maumee, on the twenty- 
 third of January, in order to effect a junction with the 
 troops in the rear, and to cover the transportation of 
 artillery, and other stores, from Upper Sandusky. Hav- 
 ing been reinforced by two Ohio regiments, promptly 
 dispatched to his assistance by Governor Meigs, lie 
 again advanced, in the month of February, to the Rap- 
 ids, at the foot of which, and nearly opposite Fort 
 Maumee, he commenced the construction of a fort, 
 named, in honor of the governor. Fort Meigs. 
 
 The advance of General Winchester to Frenchtown, 
 and the consequent defeat and surrender of his com- 
 mand, entirely deranged the plans of General Harrison 
 for the winter campaign. The term of service of a 
 large portion of his militia force shortly after expired, 
 and it became necessary to call out new levies before 
 anything further could be attempted. He therefore 
 returned to the interior of Ohio, to procure additional 
 troops from that state, and Kentucky. In neither was 
 there any lack of patriotism exhibited, — but, in the lat- 
 ter, where there was scarcely a family that did not 
 
SIEGE OF FORT MEIGS. 1S7 
 
 mourn the loss of some near friend or relative, one gen- 
 eral outcry was raised, for vengeance upon the perpe- 
 trators of that bloody massacre on the banks of the 
 Raisin. 
 
 The legislature of Kentucky, at its winter session, 
 authorized Governor Shelby, who had been elected the 
 year previous, to take command in person of three 
 thousand militia ; and Colonel Richard M. Johnson, 
 also of that state, was empowered by the War Depart- 
 ment to raise a regiment of mounted men — which troops 
 were desisfned for the reinforcement of General Harri- 
 son in the spring. 
 
 Early in April, General Harrison, now promoted to 
 the rank of major general by brevet, and appointed to 
 the command of the eighth military district, learned 
 tliat extensive preparations were being made by Gene- 
 ral Proctor and Tecumseh, for a combined attack on 
 Fort Meigs. He immediately returned to the fort, and, 
 in connection with the engineer officers, Captains Wood 
 and Gratiot, labored indefatigably, night and day, to 
 put it in a more favorable posture of defence. The 
 fort was an octagon, containing about nine acres, and 
 vras situated on the rising ground overlooking the river 
 bottom. At each corner there was a strong block- 
 house, " with cannon planted so as to rake each front 
 and command every elevated point near the fort" ; the 
 block-houses were connected by strong picketings fifteen 
 feet high, against which a breastwork of clayey earth 
 was thrown up, on either side. There were several long 
 batteries also constructed, which were well garnished 
 with cannon. The means of defence were ample, with 
 the exception of the garrison, which consisted of only 
 
138 ^^^LLIAM henry Harrison. 
 
 twelve hundred men, the greater pnrt of whom were 
 volunteers. The regulars Avere the 19th infantry, un- 
 der Lieutenant Colonel Miller ; and the volunteers 
 preseiit, composed the Pennsylvania brigade comrnan^led 
 by General Crooks. The term of service of the Penn- 
 sylvanians had expired, but they generously volunteered 
 to remain and defend the fort. All were animated by 
 the best spirit, and determined on holding the work as 
 long as it proved tenable ; and, when their defences 
 failed, to sell their lives dearly. 
 
 On the twenty-eighth of April, one of the patrolling 
 parties reported that the enemy were ascending the 
 river from the lake, and that they were in great force 
 about three miles below. A few British and Indians 
 were also discovered on the opposite bank of the river, 
 who were driven off by the fire of an eighteen-pounder 
 gun. A brigade of Kentucky militia, twelve hundred 
 strong, under General Green Clay, were, at this time, 
 approaching the fort from Cincinnati, and a dispatch 
 was now sent to quicken their march. 
 
 It was the intention of Greneral Proctor, who com- 
 manded the British force, which consisted of between 
 nine and ten hundred regulars and Canadian militia 
 and twelve hundred Indians, to make a dash at the 
 American works, and carry them, before the garrison 
 could be reinforced. The wary foresight of General 
 Harrison frustrated his design. Disappointed in his 
 original purpose, the British commander sat down de- 
 liberately before the fort, and began his prej:>arations for 
 a regular investment. The light troops, and a part of 
 the Indians, were thrown across the river, with direc- 
 tions to occiipy the most favorable positions for annoy- 
 
FORTUNATE ESCAPE. 
 
 139 
 
 ing the garrison, while General Proctor superintended 
 the erection of batteries on the left bank. The firo 
 from the fort prevented the speedy completion of the 
 batteries, as the enemy were obliged to perform most 
 of the work under cover of the night. A warm firo 
 was kept up on the garrison by their skirmishers, but 
 it produced little effect. No inconvenience, of especial 
 importance, was felt by the Americans, except the want 
 of water ; the well in the fort not being completed, it 
 was necessary to procure it from the river, after night- 
 f;i!!, which was attended with considerable risk, as bands 
 of Indians were constantly lying in wait to intercept 
 stragglers. 
 
 General Proctor completed his batteries, and mounted 
 his guns, on the first of May, and immediately opened 
 a vigorous fire from one twenty-four, one twelve, and 
 one six-pounder, and one howitzer. The guns in the 
 fort were effectively served, in return. The enemy 
 produced no sensible impression, although General Har- 
 rison made a fortunate escape. During the cannonade, 
 he was seated on a bench attentively watching the play 
 of the guns, when a ball came plunging down into the 
 fort close beside him. AVith Napoleon at Montereau, 
 he raidit have said, " The bullet which is to kill me, 
 is not yet cast !" — The bench on which he was sitting, 
 was shivered in pieces, but he himself received no 
 injury. 
 
 An additional battery was opened, on the third in- 
 stant, at a distance of two hundred and fifty yards 
 from the fort, on the south side of the river. On this 
 a mortar was planted, from which a number of shells 
 were thrown. The Americans turned their guns upon 
 
140 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 it, liowever ; and their fire told so well, that it was 
 soon silenced. After the opening of the fu'o from the 
 mortar battery, the garrison was for the first time sum- 
 moned to surrender. General Proctor assured the 
 American commander, in his summons, with the most 
 bare-faced effrontery, that he was actuated solely by the 
 desire of sparing the effusion of blood ; that successful 
 resistance was out of the question against so numerous 
 a force ; and that a prompt surrender could alone save 
 the garrison from the horrors of Indian warfare. The 
 reply of General Harrison was such as became him: — 
 while he had the honor to command an American fort, 
 he said, it should never be surrendered, and, least of all, 
 to General Proctor and the savage hordes with whom 
 he fraternized. 
 
 The enemy now pressed the siege with increased 
 zeal, and the garrison suffered far more than they had 
 previously done, from the fire of the Indians on the 
 right bank of the river, who climbed the tall forest trees, 
 and, sheltered by the intertwining branches, rained their 
 rifle balls upon the heads of the American troops. A 
 brisk fire was maintained on both sides, till the morn- 
 ing of the fifth instant, when a small party from the 
 brigade of General Clay, then descending the river 
 from Fort Defiance, arrived at Fort Meigs, with the 
 information that the column to which they belonged 
 M^as rapidly approaching. General Harrison's decision 
 was soon taken : he resolved on making an effort that 
 day to raise the siege, and, having matured his plans, 
 dispatched a messenger to General Cla}^, with orders to 
 land eight hundred of his men on the left bank of the 
 river and destroy the enemy's batteries, while a sortio. 
 
APPROACH OF REINFORCEMENTS, 141 
 
 should be made from the fort upon those on the other 
 side. The remainder of General Clay's brigade were 
 direeted to descend the right bank of the stream to the 
 fort. 
 
 General Harrison's plan was a skilful one, and would 
 have been attended with complete success, had it not 
 been for the " superabundant bravery" of the Kentuck- 
 ians. In compliance with his orders, General Clay 
 detached eiglit hundred of his best troops, under Colo- 
 nel Dudley, who landed his men in good order, and ad- 
 vanced boldly upon the enemy's batteries, in three col- 
 umns. The British were surprised at the suddenness 
 of the attack, and abandoned their guns almost instantly, 
 leaving them in possession of the victors. Unfortu- 
 nately, the American officers lost all control over their 
 men. Animated by a burning thirst for vengeance, 
 they refused to obey the orders of General Harrison, 
 directing them to spike the cannon and retire across 
 the river, but eagerly pursued the fugitive artillerists, 
 or engaged in a strasgling contest with the Indians 
 who now made their appearance. The consequence was 
 what might have been foreseen. The enemy rallied, 
 and being joined by a reinforcement from the main 
 camp about two miles below, and a strong body of In- 
 dian warriors under Tecumseh, who had just arrived, 
 they became, in turn, the aggressors. Colonel Dudley 
 exerted himself to the utmost, to draw otT his men in 
 safety, and lost his life in the attempt. The Ameri- 
 cans fought bravely ; but they lacked discipline, as they 
 wanted discretion. But one hundred and fifty men of 
 the command succeeded in crossing the river and reach- 
 
142 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 ing the fort ; the remainder being killed, wounded, or 
 taken prisoners. 
 
 The sortie on the rjght bank of the river was made 
 by a detachment of three hundred and fifty men, headed 
 by Lieutenant Colonel Miller, of the 19th infantry. 
 Imitating the intrepid conduct of their leader, they 
 dashed upon the batteries, and drove out the artillei-ists 
 and their supporting party, at the point of the bayonet. 
 After spiking the cannon and destroying the carriages, 
 Lieutenant Colonel Miller returned with forty-two pris- 
 oners. While in the act of retiring, the enemy rallied 
 and pressed upon him ; but he gallantly hekl them at 
 bay till he reached the fort, — having accomplished the 
 object for which his command was detached, in a short 
 time, and with comparatively trifling loss. 
 
 ♦ Meanwhile the remainder of General Clay's com- 
 mand encouatered the Indians on the right bank of the 
 river, where they landed, and routed them with great 
 ease. Incautiously advancing too far, they came very 
 near being drawn into an ambush, from which they 
 were timely rescued by General Harrison, who dis- 
 patched a troop of horse to cover their retreat into the 
 fort. 
 
 On the sixth a tacit suspension of hostilities took 
 place, which continued dnring that and the two follow- 
 ing days. After the sortie, the Indian warriors, in ac- 
 cordance with their custom, began to return, in large 
 numbers, to their villages, — the eloquent remonstrances 
 of Tecumseh proving powerless to detain them. Gen- 
 eral Proctor now feared that the Americans would soon 
 turn upon him, and he well knew that he had but little 
 to hope from the outraged KentucJcians, should the for- 
 
RETREAT OF PROCTOR. 143 
 
 tunc of war place him in their power. lie therefore 
 ch^cided to abandon the attempt on the fort, and on the 
 evening of the ninth instant commenced embarking his 
 ordnance and stores. A warm fire from the American 
 gnns checked the movement for the time ; but, early in 
 the morning of the tenth, he made a precipitate retreat 
 down the river with his whole command. 
 
 The Americans lost two hundred and seventy men, 
 killed and wounded, during the siege. That of the 
 enemy was probably about one hundred. Although 
 the defence of the fort was attended by no brilliant 
 successes, the savages were thereby prevented from 
 making their hostile incursions into the settlements. 
 
 At the opening of the season, General Harrison- be- 
 came convinced that the command of Lake Erie would 
 be decisive of the campaign, and that without it a coJ- 
 umn could not be supplied with the ordnance and heavy 
 stores necessary for a march on Detroit, or Maiden. 
 He therefore recommended the construction of a fleet, 
 and Captain Perry was detailed for this service. While 
 the naval preparations were in progress, General Har- 
 rison left Fort Meigs in charge of General Clay, and 
 repaired to Franklinton, where the new regiments from 
 Ohio and Kentucky were ordered to rendezvous. At 
 this place, also, he received into the service a large 
 body of Indian warriors, belonging to the friendly tribes 
 in the state of Ohio, and the territories of Indiana and 
 Illinois, who could not be induced to remain neutral, 
 especially as they had recently been attacked by the 
 hostile Indians ; but, unlike the British officers, whose 
 conduct throughout contrasts so unfavorably with his, 
 
144 -WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 he pledged them to spare their prisoners, and to refrain 
 from injuring defenceless women and children. 
 
 During the summer months, while General Harrison 
 necessarily remained inactive, the British made several 
 threatening movements upon Fort Meigs, Fort Stephen- 
 son, {at Lower Sandusky,) Cleveland and Erie. To- 
 wards the latter part of July, General Proctor again 
 made his appearance before Fort Meigs, with between 
 three and four thousand troops, including his Indian 
 alliesi. General Clay was well prepared for his recep- 
 tion, and on discovering this, he retired down the river. 
 Accompanied by about five hundred regulars and mi- 
 litia, and seven or eight hundred savages, he proceeded 
 to Fort Stephenson, then garrisoned by Major Croghan, 
 with one hundred and sixty men, and a single .six- 
 pounder gun. The fort was invested, and the garrison 
 summoned to surrender; the usual threat in regard to 
 the ferocity of the Indians being added, with a view of 
 terrifying the garrison. Nowise intimidated by the su- 
 perior force of the enemy, the gallant Croghan replied 
 that, " when the fort should be taken, there would be 
 none left to massacre, — as it would not be given up 
 while a man was able to fight." 
 
 The breaking day was spreading its warm bright 
 flush over the surrounding scenery, on the second of 
 August when the enemy opened a vigorous fire from 
 three six-pounders planted on the shore during the night, 
 and two six-pounders and a howitzer in their gunboats 
 lying in the Sandusky. The fire was kept up all day, 
 though with trifling eflect, and just before sunset, an 
 assaulting column of three hundred and fifty men, led 
 by Lieutenant Colonel Short, advanced to the storm, — 
 
perry's victory. 145 
 
 several feints beini^ made, at the same time, to draw 
 the attention of the besieged from the real point of at- 
 tack. Major Croghan was not to be deceived ; loading 
 his six-pounder to its utmost capacity, witli grape and 
 slugs, lie placed it at a masked porthole in a block- 
 house at the northwestern angle of the work, so as to 
 rake the ditch. This proved to be the point assailed. 
 Enveloped in smoke, the assailants advanced rapidly 
 up the glacis. When within twenty paces of the ditch, 
 a volley of musketry caused them to stagger. Rallied 
 by their commander, the foremost files sprang with him 
 into the ditcji. At the instant, the charge of the six- 
 pounder was poured in upon them, strewing its fiery 
 pathway with the dying and the dead. The head of 
 the column was completely cut off, and the remainder 
 fled in confusion, leaving behind them their fallen 
 leader, and a great number of their comrades. 
 
 General Proctor made no further eflbrt to reduce the 
 fort. Retreating in haste to his boats, he retired down 
 the river to the lake, and thence to Maiden, — having 
 lost, in this fruitless attempt, one liundred and fifty 
 men, either killed or wounded. The Americans had 
 but one man killed and seven wounded. 
 
 After weeks and months of incessant toil. Commo- 
 dore Peiry finally got his fleet in readiness. On the 
 fourth of August he crossed the bar at Erie with his 
 squadron, — consisting of three brigs, five schooners, and 
 one sloop, carrying fifty-four guns, — and sailed in quest 
 of the eneipy. On the tenth of September, off Put-in 
 Bay, he encountered the British squadron, under Cap- 
 tain Barclay, consisting of two ships, one brig, two 
 schooners, and one sloop, carrying, in all, sixty-three 
 
 7 
 
146 William HENRY Harrison. 
 
 guns. A desperate engagement, of three hours' dura- 
 tion, terminated in the surrender of the hostile ilect. 
 This well-fought action was the prelude to one equally 
 glorious, and removed the only obstacle to the advance 
 of the northwestern army into Canada. 
 
 Commodore Perry immediately returned to Put-in 
 Bay, to cooperate Avith the land forces in an expedition 
 already projected. General Harrison soon concentrated 
 all his disposable troops, among whom were between 
 three and four thousand Kentucky volunteers, under 
 Governor Shelby, at this point. The regiment of 
 mounted men commanded by Colonel R. IM. Johnson, 
 one thousand strong, was ordered to proceed to Detroit 
 by lanJ ; and the remainder of the army embarked on 
 tlie vessels of Commodore Perry, in which they were 
 transported to the islands in the vicinity of Maiden. 
 On the twenty-seventh of September they effected a 
 landinsf on the Canada shore, about three miles below 
 that post. 
 
 The hour of reckoning had come for General Proctor 
 and the savage banditti whom he had gathered round 
 him. Strong in his position at Maiden, and in the men 
 and means necessary for its defence, be yet lacked the 
 couraije to maintain it. The earnest exhortations of 
 TecumsT?h and the other Indian chiefs, who entreated 
 him to remain firm, failed to reiissure him. He felt 
 that a cause which had been sullied by so much of dis- 
 honor, was, indeed, hopeless ; and he feared, as well he 
 might, to meet the awakened wrath of the kinsmen 
 and friends of the brave men who perished on the Rai- 
 sin. Under his orders, the fort was dismantled and 
 blown up, and the navy yard, barracks, and store-houses 
 
PURSUIT OF PROCTOR. 147 
 
 were bnrned. He then retreated liastily towards the 
 river Thames, or La Tranchee, with his whole force, 
 taking with him large stores of private property, whicli 
 he had plundered from American prisoners, and the 
 citizens of Detroit. 
 
 General Harrison followed the flying Proctor on the 
 twenty-eighth, moving forward with as much rapidity 
 as was possible. INIany of the Kentnckians were 
 mounted men, but they had been obliged to leave their 
 horses on the American shore. The enemy had taken 
 away everything of the kind, except a single horse, on 
 M'hich Governor Shelby was mounted ; who, though in 
 his sixty-third year, pressed forward with all the ardor 
 and enthusiasm of twenty-one. The army reached 
 Sandwich on the twenty-ninth instant, and General 
 Harrison sent a detachment across the river to take 
 possession of Detroit, then occupied by hostile Indians. 
 On the thirtieth. Colonel Johnson joined the army 
 with his regiment, and preparations were at once male 
 for continuing the pursuit of General Proctor, — who, 
 on arriving at the Thames, had proceeded up the valley 
 of the river, with the intention of making his wav to 
 ■ the British posts about the head of Lake Ontario. 
 
 The Americans resumed the march on the second 
 of October, — the mounted rifles of Colonel Johnson 
 leading the van. General Harrison was accompanied 
 by Commodore Perry and General Cass, as volunteer 
 aids ; his whole force consisted of about thirty-five 
 hundred men, most of whom were Kentuckians.* From 
 
 * Among the Kentucky volunteers, concerned in this expedition, were 
 Wiliium T. Barry and Charles A. Wiekliffe, afterwards Postmasters-gen- 
 eral of the United States, and John J. Crittenden, for many years a dis- 
 
148 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 the highest to the lowest, all manifested tlie same eager 
 spirit ; every heart throbbed high with -excitement. 
 The time to which tlsey had looked forward with so 
 many anxious liopes, had arrived : Proctor and Tecum- 
 seh, — the marauders of the one, and the murderers of 
 the other, — were before them I 
 
 General Harrison and his men pressed forward with 
 such rapidity, that, on the first day of their march, 
 they made twenty-six miles. On the next, they cap- 
 tured a British officer and eleven men, from whom they 
 learned tliat Proctor had not received any intimations 
 of their approach that he could rely upon. On the 
 fourth instant, they were detained several hours at 
 Chatham, seventeen miles above Lake St. Clair, at a 
 deep creek that flowed into the Thames, the bridge over 
 which had been partly destroyed by the enemy. While 
 the men were engaged in repairing it, they were fired 
 on by some Indians who appeared on the opposite bank; 
 but the latter were quickly dispersed by the artillery 
 of Colonel Wood, and the rifles of Colonel Johnson's 
 command. At this place, also, the Americans found 
 two thousand stand of arms, and a quantity of cloth- 
 ing, which had been abandoned by Proctor in his flight. 
 After crossing the creek. General Harrison continued 
 the pursuit for four miles, capturing several pieces of 
 cannon, and forcing the enemy to destroy three of the 
 vessels containing their supplies. His men being con- 
 siderably jaded by the march, he encamped, late at 
 night, almost within striking distance of the allied 
 
 tinguishi'd srnnfor in Congress, subsequently attorney general, again a 
 member of the Senate, and, at the present time, (1848,) governor of the 
 State of Kentucky. > 
 
PROCTOR AND TECUMSEII. 149 
 
 force of British and Indians. On the morning of the 
 fifth of October, the mounted men, marching from two 
 to three miles in front of tiic infantry, discovered the 
 enemy drawn up in order of battle, across a narrow 
 strip of woodland on the north bank of the Thames, 
 near the Moravian villasje. 
 
 The nobler aspirations of the soldier, — if, indeed, they 
 ever existed in the breast of General Proctor, — had 
 long since given way to cowardice and avarice. His 
 chief anxiety now was, to escape with his ill-gotten 
 booty. Unwisely incumbered with baggage, his army 
 was delayed till their pursuers were close upon them. 
 On the afternoon of the fourth instant, it became evi- 
 dent that he must soon be overtaken. When he halted 
 for the night, he was still uncertain what to do. After 
 all was still, at a late hour, Tecumseh and himself si- 
 lently descended the river in a boat, and reconnoitred 
 the American position. The former earnestly advised 
 a night attack, but the latter dared not risk the encoun- 
 ter, and determined to make one more effort for escape 
 on the morrow. 
 
 What a study would that be for the painter! — 
 Proctor and Tecumseh on the Thames, at the dead 
 hour of nii^ht — no moon to cheer or li^fht them — the 
 
 O CD 
 
 stars gleaming dimly over their heads — and the solemn 
 stillness unbroken, save by the gentle murmuring of 
 the river, the low sighing of the breeze, or, it might 
 be, the deep, melodious notes of the wood thrush, echo- 
 ing sv.'eetly through the forest ; the red warrior arrayed 
 in all the gorgeous attire of his race, his tali frame 
 swelling with a manly pride, and his eye blazing like 
 the young eagle's^ as, in clear ringing tones, he thun- 
 
150 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 dered forth his fierce invectives on the American peo- 
 ple, and entreated his companion to give the signal for 
 a midnight onset; the other shrinking, like a craven, 
 beside him, and with faltering lips expressing his fears 
 and doubts, — his tears, lest the vigilance of Harrison 
 had provided against a surprise, and his doubts as to the 
 issue ! 
 
 General Proctor persevered in his retreat, on the 
 morning of the fifth, until he found that it would bo 
 absolutely impossible to make his escape. He then de- 
 cided to make a stand. Ordering a halt, he prepared 
 his men for action. His regular troops, about eight 
 hundred strong, were formed across the road, in two 
 lines, in open order, on a narrow isthmus covered with 
 thrifty beeches ; their left, supported by the artillery, 
 resting on the river, and their right on a swamp run- 
 ing parallel to the stream. The Indians, under Te- 
 cumseh, to the number of two thousand, were posted 
 beyond the swamp, their right thrown forward, and 
 resting on another dense morass, — thus forming an ob- 
 tuse angle with the allignment of the regular troops. It 
 was the intention of the British general, that the In- 
 dians should precipitate themselves upon the left flank 
 of the American troops as soon as the latter were en- 
 gaged with the regulars ; and the ground highly favored 
 his purpose. Had he protected his front by an abattis, 
 or even thrown a few trees horizontally across the road, 
 the result might have been more doubtful, but, as it 
 was, the action was scarcely contestetl, so far as he 
 was concerned, and soon became a complete rout. 
 
 The original plan of General Harrison, when he saw 
 the advantages of the enemy's position, was, to advance 
 
BATTLE OF THE THAMES. 151 
 
 upon them with his infantry regiments ; and for this 
 ])urpose he had formed the division of General Henry, 
 in three lines, on the right, with the division of Gene- 
 ral Desha, en potence, on their left. The regulars, but 
 one hundred and twenty in number, were stationed on 
 the margin of the river, and instructed, at the favora- 
 ble moment, to advanee upon and seize the enemy's 
 guns. But on the return of Colonel Wood, who had been 
 sent forward to reconnoitre, the fact was disclosed, that 
 General Proctor liad formed his men, as has been men- 
 tioned, in open order ; whereupon General Harrison 
 instantly varied his mode of attack, and directed Colo- 
 nel Johnson, wdio had urgently solicited the honor, to 
 charge upon the British line with his regiment of 
 mounted rifles, while the infantry should promptly fol- 
 low the movement. — This order was certainly an un- 
 usual one, in military tactics, — although the regiment 
 had been carefully drilled to charge upon infantry, es- 
 pecially in the woods, — and it has been severely criti- 
 cised, and sometimes censured. It was, doubtless, un- 
 expected by General Proctor ; and for that reason, if 
 no other, was the best, as it proved to be the most fortu- 
 nate, that could have been adopted under the circum- 
 stances.* 
 
 Just before the trumpets sounded the attack, Colonel 
 
 ♦ Nevertheless, it was the decided opinion of Napoleon, (Las Casas, 
 vii,, 181,) that cavalry must always break infantry, if led by equally brave 
 and resolute men. His cavalry won the victories of Marengo, Austerlitz, 
 and Jena ; and a charfje of English dratjoons, on the flank of his Old 
 Guaril, lost him the day at Waterloo. It should be borne in mind, how- 
 ever, that the mounted men of Colonel Johnson were armed with rilies 
 only, and, with the exception of the ofScers. were without pistols and 
 Babres. 
 
153 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 Johnson discovered a narrow passage of firm earth 
 leading across the swamp on his left. He then directed 
 his brother, Lieutenant Colonel James Johnson, to 
 charge the British line with the first battalion of his 
 regiment, while he crossed the swamp with the second, 
 and engaged the Indians. At the signal, the two bat- 
 talions advanced slowly, in parallel columns, — the in- 
 fantry following closely in their rear. 
 
 At the first fire, the horses in front of the column led 
 by Lieutenant Colonel Johnson, recoiled, — but it was 
 corrected in a moment. The bugles pealed forth their 
 cheering notes ; the men plunged their rowels into their 
 chargers' sides ; and away they all went, thundering 
 down upon the enemy — an army of avengers — ready 
 to smite and to slay. Bounding over every obstacle, 
 teceiving another fire almost unharmed, and riding 
 down all who opposed, with fearful yells they dashed 
 through and through the British columns, showering 
 their balls on every side. In an instant tliey turned 
 and delivered a most effective volley. Stupefied and 
 disconcerted by the suddenness of the onset, and nearly 
 hemmed in between two walls of fire, the enemy made 
 no resistance, but threw down their arms, and begged 
 for quarter. The brave Kentuckians — to their honor 
 be it said — spared all who surrendered. Proctor him- 
 self, accompanied by about forty regulars and some 
 mounted Indians, made his escape, though hotly pur- 
 sued, to Burlington heights, where he was publicly rep- 
 rimanded for his cowardly conduct, by the same offi- 
 cer — Sir George Prevost — who had commended his 
 brutality at Frenchtown. Ilis private carriage and pa- 
 
DEATH OF TECUMSEli. 153 
 
 pers, his sword, and all his plunder, fell into the hands 
 of the victors. 
 
 On the left, Tecurasch and his -warriors refused to 
 fly. The advance of the column headed by Colonel 
 Johnson was retarded by the uneven character of the 
 ground ; his horses floundered in the morass, and strove 
 in vain to penetrate the dense thickets of underbrush. 
 He soon found that the charge must fail, and directed 
 his men to dismount and take cover. Darting from 
 tree to tree, they now pressed upon the enemy, and 
 after a short, but animatoi contest, broke through the 
 line and gained their rear. The Indians quickly rallied 
 in force, further to the left, and threw their whole 
 weight on the column of infantry under General Desha, 
 A slight impression was at one time made, but Gov- 
 ernor Shelby immediately restored the line by leading 
 up another regiment to the support of the wavering 
 column. 
 
 Still the battle raged with great fury. The voice 
 of Tecumseh was heard above the din of arms, and his 
 tones rang loud and clear as the notes of a trumpet, as 
 he called upon his gallant braves to stand firm to the 
 last. Colonel Johnson, though severely wounded, and 
 a number of his best officers and soldiers, had already 
 made their way to the spot where the undaunted chief- 
 tain and his bravest warriors had collected. Here the 
 battle was fiercely fought. In the 7nelee, Tecumseh 
 fell, as it is supposed, by the hand of Colonel John- 
 son.* This determined the contest. On the fall of 
 
 » The honor of killing Tecumseh has been denied Colonel Johnson 
 upon strong circumstantial evidence. In opposition to this we have the 
 sincere belief of the Colonel himself, that he shot the distinguished Indian 
 
154 ^VILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, 
 
 their leader, the Indians abandoned the ground, and 
 with an unearthly whoop, like the wail of lost spirits, 
 disappeared in the forest. It was the death-halloo for 
 their leader — the most formidable enemy among the 
 red men with whom the whites have had to contend, 
 since the days of Pontiac. With him their cause was 
 prostrated — with him perished their hopes, forever ! 
 
 The American force actually engaged in this battle, 
 numbered about twenty-five hundred ; the enemy had 
 eight huntlred and forty-five regular troops, and there 
 were two thousand Indians. The former lost fifty 
 killed and wounded ; of the British there were eighteen 
 killed, twenty-six wounded, and about six hundred 
 made prisoners. The Americans also captured a large 
 quantity of arms, ammunition, and provisions, and six 
 pieces of artillery — three of which were captured in 
 the Revolution, at Saratoga and Yorktown, and had 
 been surrendered by General Hull. But, what was of 
 vastly more importance, the territory wliich had been 
 overrun by the enemy, was recovered, and the frontiers 
 were rescued from the depredations of the savages. By 
 the result of this engagement, the hostile Indians were 
 cut off from their communications with the British 
 posts in Canada, except the remote one at Mackinaw. 
 Previous to the battle, an armistice had been entered 
 into with the Ottawas and Chi]ipewas, who agreed to 
 take up arms against the British, and shortly after- 
 chief with his pistol ; he could not wrll be positive upon the subject, as 
 he sank upon his dying steed, the tnoinent after he fired his piece, com- 
 pletely exhausted from the loss of blood. His bravery, however, cannot 
 be questioned, — though Tecuinseh may not have fallen by his hand, — as 
 he was borne from the field in a blanket, while his blood ran out at the 
 ends. 
 
EFFECTS OF THE VICTORY. 155 
 
 wards a similar arransrement was entered into with the 
 Miarnis and Potowatomies. 
 
 " The victory of Harris^on," said Langdon Cheves, 
 alluding, on the floor of Congress, to the battle of the 
 Thames, " was such as would have secured to a Ro- 
 man genera], in the best days of the republic, the hon- 
 ors of a triumph." It was the first considerable action 
 in Vv^hich the American arms were triumphant, and, in 
 connection with Perry's success on Lake Erie, served 
 greatly to revive the drooping spirits of the American 
 people. The heroes of the two engagements were 
 toasted and feted Vvdierever they went ; salutes, bon- 
 fires, illuminations, and resolutions of thanks, attested, 
 alike, their merits, and the gratitude of their country- 
 men.. 
 
 Having completed the object of the expedition, and 
 not having orders to proceed further into the enemy's 
 country, General Harrison commenced his retrograde 
 march to Detroit, eighty miles distant, on the seventh 
 of October, and arrived there on the tenth. The Ken- 
 tucky volunteers were soon after conducted to their 
 homes by the venerable Governor Shelby, and in a few 
 days General Harrison embarked in the fleet of Com- 
 modore Perry, for Buffalo, with the brigade of General 
 M' Arthur. — General Cass remaining with his brigade 
 at Detroit. Harrison reached Buflalo on the twenty- 
 fourth of October ; the brigade of General M' Arthur 
 proceeded down Lake Ontario to join the unsuccessful 
 expedition under General Wilkinson ; and there being 
 a sufficient number of general officers already assigned 
 to that duty, General Harrison was permitted to return 
 home on a furlough. 
 
156 "WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 While at BufTalo, General Harrison addressed a let- 
 ter to General A^incent, the officer commandinsr the 
 British troops in the Peninsula, in reply to one he had 
 received from General Proctor, immediately after the 
 battle of the Thames, requesting the restoration of the 
 private property and papers captured on that occasion. 
 The letter entered into a lengthy review of the course 
 of the English government in employing the savages, 
 the barbarities committed by their allies, and the cruel 
 manner in which prisoners of war had been treated 
 by both Indians and British ; contrasting with the 
 conduct of the English and their allies, the kindness 
 and clemency which bad distinguished the American 
 officers and soldiers, during the war. While he de- 
 clared that, in future, retaliation would be made for 
 Indian outrages, he appealed to General Vincent, as a 
 man, to exert his influence in preventing the commis- 
 sion of such atrocities. " Use, I pray you, your au- 
 thority and influence," said the letter of Harrison, "to 
 stop the dreadful effusion of innocent blood which pro- 
 ceeds from the employment o[ those savage monsters, 
 whose aid, as must now be discovered, is so little to be 
 depended on when most wanted, and which can have 
 so trifling an effect on the'^issue of the war." The re- 
 ply of General Vincent to this letter, so creditable to 
 the heart of the writer, was evasive, although he pledged 
 himself to join with General Harrison in attempting 
 to alleviate the calamities to which the latter had re- 
 ferred. 
 
 This was the last important act of the military ser- 
 vice of General Harrison. Shortly after the letter was 
 written, ho returned home, on a visit to his family, by 
 
DEMONSTRATIONS OF RESPECT. 157 
 
 ^Yay of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Wash- 
 ington ; being received at eacii place on his route with 
 the most flattering demonstrations of respect. After 
 spending a few weeks at the capital, he continued his 
 journey homeward, everywhere encountering the same 
 unmistakable evidences of esteem and gi-atitude. 
 
 Connected with his stay at Washington, there is an 
 anecdote on record, which shows that his gallantry 
 towards his fair countrywomen, was fully equal to that 
 other quality, bearing the same name, that he had cx- 
 liibited on the field of battle. At one of the drawing- 
 rooms of ^Irs. Madison, a handsome and highly con- 
 nected lady, one of the reigning belles at the capital, 
 informed the president that she had laid her commands 
 on General Harrison to meet her there on that occa- 
 sion. — " That he cannot do," said Mr. Madison, in his 
 usual bland, but positive tone ; " he left Washington 
 this morning, with his horses and attendants, and must 
 now be some twenty or thirty miles on his way to the 
 west." — " Still," replied the lady, archly, " he must be 
 liere, for I laid ray commands on him, and he is too 
 gallant a man to disobey me I" — " We shall soon see," 
 returned the president, " whose orders he obeys." — Af- 
 ter the lapse of a few moments, the question was set- 
 tled by the appearance of General Harrison and his 
 suite in full military costume, and President Madison 
 was for once obliged to acknowledge that he was mis- 
 taken. 
 
 The military districts into which the country was 
 divided during the war of 1812, were so extensive, that 
 it was very often deemed necessary to transmit orders 
 directly from the War Department to a subordinate 
 
158 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 officer, at tlic same time forwarding duplicates to the 
 commander of the di.striGt. This practice frequently oc- 
 casioned, as it has since done, ill-feeling and dissatisfac- 
 tion. It was condemned by General Harrison as being 
 wholly inconsistent with subordination, and similar views 
 were afterwards taken by some of our most distin- 
 guished officers — among others, Generals Jackson, 
 Scott, and Taylor. Harrison remonstrated against the 
 practice in earnest terms. The Secretary of War, 
 General Armstrong, being not well disposed towards 
 him, a sharp and acrimonious correspondence ensued. 
 President Madison insisted on continuing the practice, 
 and in the spring of 1814, General Harrison tendered 
 his resignation. The president was absent from Wash- 
 ington at the time the letter was received, and the 
 resignation was acccj^ted by the Secretary. 
 
 President Madison sincerely regretted the separation 
 of General Ilarri.son from the army, and in a letter 
 soon after written to Governor Shelby, he said, that the 
 resignation "would not have been accepted, had he 
 been in Washinii-ton." That his confidence in Harri- 
 son was never in the least degree weakened, is evident, 
 froiu the fact that he afterwards employed him to con- 
 duct several extremely difficult negotiations with vari- 
 ous tribes of Indians. 
 
 General Harrison continued to discharge the duties 
 of governor of the territory of Indiana, until it was ad- 
 mitted into the Union as a state, in 1816, when he 
 retired to his farm at North Bend, a few miles below 
 Cincinnati, in Hamilton county, Ohio. In the same 
 year he was elected a member of the House of Repre- 
 sentatives of the United States. He afterwards repre- 
 
APPOINTED MINISTER TO COLOMBIA. 159 
 
 sented the district in which he resided in the State Sen- 
 ate, and in 1824 was chosen a Senator in Congress. 
 As a legishitor, General Harrison was distinguished for 
 his practical common sense. Though he spoke but 
 rarely, he was considered an efficient debater. His 
 views on all subjects were regarded with respect, and 
 those having reference to the reorganization of the 
 array, and the peculiar interests of the western states 
 and territories, were listened to with especial deference. 
 
 In 1828, at his solicitation, he was appointed by 
 President J. Q. Adams, Minister Plenipotentiary to the 
 Republic of Colombia. The distracted condition of the 
 country prevented his accomplishing anything of im- 
 portance, though his brief residence there was signal- 
 ized by a letter addressed to Bolivar, replete with good 
 advice, and full of noble and manly sentiments. " To 
 be esteemed eminently great," said he, " it is neces- 
 sary to be eminently good. The qualities of the hero 
 and the general must be devoted to the advantage of 
 mankind, beforehe will be permitted to assume the title 
 of their benefactor ; and the station which he will hold 
 in their regard and affections, will depend, not upon the 
 number and splendor of his victories, but upon the re- 
 sults, and the use he may make of the influence he 
 acquires from them." — Trite and common-place as 
 these sentiments may at this day seem to the American 
 reader, had they but formed the rule of the public con- 
 duct of Bolivar, he would now be remembered only as 
 the Liberator, not as the Dictator. 
 
 On the accession of General Jackson to the presi- 
 dency, in 1829, as the views of General Harrison in 
 regard to the Panama question differed from those of 
 
160 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 the new administration, he was recalled, and again re- 
 turned to the avocations of private life. Though he 
 had had numerous opportunities of amassing wealth in 
 the various ofllces which he had filled, he was still in 
 moderate circumstances. In 1834, on the almost 
 unanimous petition of the citizens of Hamilton county, 
 he was appointed prothonotary of the county court, the 
 duties of whicli he discharged, in person, for several 
 years. In 1836, he was supported, in some of the states, 
 though v.'ith no expectation of being elected, for the 
 office of President, and received seventy-three of the 
 electoral votes. 
 
 He was still leading a happy and contented fife in his 
 retirement at North Bend, — 
 
 " A simple husbandman, in garments gray," — 
 
 when he was nominated as the candidate of the whig 
 party for the presidency, in December, 1839. In the fol- 
 lowing year, he was elected to the office, over his com- 
 petitor, Mr. Van Buren, by an overwhelming majori- 
 ty,— receiving two hundred and thirty-four out of two 
 hundred and ninety-four electoral votes. On the fourth 
 of March, 1841, he took the oath of office, and de- 
 livered his inaugural address, amid a large concourse of 
 spectators. Selecting as his cabinet advisers, some of 
 the most distinguished statesmen of the country, frcim 
 the party to which he belonged, he entered on his admin- 
 istration under the most flattering prospects of success. 
 One brief month terminated his earthly career, and 
 marred all the bright hopes of those who had elevated 
 him to tliat high station. Instead of the brilliant cor- 
 
ELECTED PRESIDENT. HIS DEATH. 
 
 161 
 
 ie2;e tliat accompanied him on the occasion of his in- 
 auguration, another procession — ^yithout the joyous 
 salvos of artillery, or the lively strains of martial mu- 
 gic — but clothed in the habiliments of mourning, with 
 banners shrouded in crape, with weeping plumes, with 
 arms reversed, and muffled drums, followed his remains 
 to the Congressional Cemetery. 
 
 A few days after his arrival at Washington, the 
 president caught a severe cold, which, in connection 
 with the unaccustomed excitement, and the harassing 
 nature of his new duties, soon prostrated him on a sick 
 bed. In spite of the utmost efforts of his medical at- 
 tendants, he rapidly grew worse. His system had re- 
 received a fatal shock ; and on the fourth day of April, 
 1841, — in the same mansion where, nearly thirty years 
 before, he had attended the gay soiree of Mrs. Madi- 
 son — he died, expressirg, with his latest breath, as his 
 spirit gathered its pinions for its eternal flight, his anx- 
 ious desire, that the constitution of the country should, 
 ill all things, be the guide of those upon whom his otH- 
 cial duties were about to devolve. 
 
 General Harrison was simple and frugal in his habits, 
 and, until his last fatal illness, enjoyed good bodily health. 
 He was tall and slender in person, and his dark eyes 
 gleamed with intelligence. An analysis of his charac- 
 ter presents few marked, or striking points. The qual- 
 ities of his heart were probably more conspicuous than 
 thnpe of his head. He was liberal and friendly, social 
 and generous in his disposition. " His heart," says 
 Governor Metcalfe, " was expanded, and always in the 
 right place" : — it Avas brimful of kindly aliections — 
 overflowing with benevolence and love. 
 
162 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 
 
 He possessed a happy combination of mental facul- 
 ties ; ho was a plain, practical man, — a man, not of 
 pretence, but of action. His voluminous correspond- 
 ence, as governor of Indiana TeiTitory, his speeches in 
 Congress, his official dispatches, and his inaugural ad- 
 dress, indicate a sound judgment, strong good sense, 
 and a well-cultivated mind. His integrity was of that 
 sterling character which is proof against temptation. 
 As a soldier, he was usually successful, because he was 
 not rash or impulsive, but' cautious and prudent. He 
 was patient in adversity, and never easily disconcerted ; 
 he was calm, collected, and resolute — and therefore 
 always fitted for an emergency, how trying soever it 
 might be. But, what was still worthier and better, 
 throughout his life, even to the closing hour of his ex- 
 istence, he was cheered and sustained, by the hopes of 
 the patriot, and the consolations of the Christian. 
 
ANDREW JACKSON, 
 
 " It is not in Indian wars", said an eloquent writer 
 and speaker of a by-gone age,^^ " that heroes are cele- 
 brated ; but in them they are formed." — Applied to the 
 subject of this biographical sUetch, the remark is partly 
 correct, partly not correct. His brilliant success at 
 New Orleans undoubtedly eclipsed all his former victo- 
 ries ; but, had that battle never been fought, it may be 
 questioned whether the Creek campaign would not have 
 established his celebrity as a hero, beyond dispute. 
 Yet it must be admitted, that his military experience 
 was mainly acquired, and his military character formed, 
 amid the hardships and vicissitudes, the trials and dan- 
 gers, of that campaign. In this respect, he resembles 
 some of the most eminent warriors that America has 
 produced, many of whom laid the foundation of future 
 renown and distinction, in the border wars with the 
 aboriginal inhabitants, which grew out of the discovery 
 and settlement of the country, or the subsequent en- 
 croachments of the whites. 
 
 The father of Andrew Jackson, though a native of 
 Ireland, was of Scotch descent. — During the reign of 
 Henry II, in 1172, the subjugation of the Emerald 
 
 ♦ Fisher Ames. 
 
164 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 Isle was? effected, — not so much by the sujDerior bravery 
 of the EngUsh soldiery, as by the defection of her own 
 sons. The conquest entailed, on both oppressor and 
 victim, a fruitful legacy of war and bloodshed. It was 
 followed by years of strife and dissension — by centu- 
 ries of tyrannical misrule on the one hand, and resist- 
 ance to wronar on the other. Time did not change the 
 character of the Irish peasantry ; they were no loyal 
 subjects of their new masters, — neither did they remit 
 their eflorts to regain their independence. Among 
 other expedients resorted to by the English government, 
 for confirming their ascendency, was the confiscation 
 of all the lands in Ulster, and large portions of the other 
 provinces. These were granted to new proprietors, and 
 measures were taken to colonize them from England 
 and Scotland. 
 
 The Jackson family emigrated from Scotland at a 
 very remote period, and settled in the county of An- 
 trim. Whether it was on account of their proximity 
 to the ancient seat of the O'Neals, in Tyrone, or their 
 intermarriage and intcrcovirse with the original natives 
 of the country, is unknown ; but it is nevertheless cer- 
 tain, that they soon became imbued with the spirit of 
 disaffection that had so long prevailed in that quarter ; 
 and when the colonists began to experience the bitter- 
 ness of oppression, they, too, learned to hate the name 
 and authority of England. 
 
 Hugh Jackson, the grandfather of General Jackson, 
 Avas a linen-draper, and resided near Carrickfergus, on 
 the Lough of Belfast. He had four sons, who were 
 plain respectable farmers, liberal and hospitable, of 
 strict integrity, and, like their forefathers, firm in their 
 
HIS BIRTH. 165 
 
 adherence to the Churcli of Scotland. Andrew, the 
 youngest, married Elizabeth Hutchinson, by whom ho 
 had two son?, Hugh and Robert, born in IrL-land. Tired 
 of the ceaseless turmoil and confusion that distracted 
 the country, and despairing of the success of any at- 
 tempt to relieve the Irish people from the grievances 
 of which they complained, he sold his farm, and, in 
 1765, determined to seek a more tranquil and peaceful 
 home in the western wilderness. Accompanied by 
 three of his neighbors, James, Robert, and Joseph 
 Crawford, the first of whom had married a sister of his 
 wife, he embarked for America with his family, and 
 landed in safety, at Charleston, South Carolina. 
 
 Dissatisfied with the low country bordering on the 
 coast, the immigrants pushed into the interior of the 
 colony. Lands were pvirchased, and they all settled 
 near each other, on Waxhaw creek, one of the branches 
 of the Catawba, in Lancaster district, about forty-five 
 miles above Camden, and near the boundary line of 
 North Carolina. Here, in this fine and healthy region, 
 agreeably diversified with hills and dales, and drained 
 by the romantic Catawba, Andrew Jackson, the 
 younger, was born, on the fifteenth day of March, 1767. 
 
 Not long after the birth of his third son, the elder 
 Jackson died, leaving to his wife and children a limited 
 iproperty, yet with an honest and unsullied name. A 
 double duty now devolved on the surviving parent. 
 Faithfully and nobly was it discharged. To the reso- 
 lute firmness and unflinching fortitude of the Spartan 
 mother, she united tiie piety and resignation, the trust- 
 ful faith and confidence, of the devoted Christian. 
 Naturally gifted with a strong mind, early disciplined 
 
166 ANDRKW JACKSON. 
 
 in the school of adversity, and strengthened by Him 
 who is ever the stay and helper of tlia widow and or- 
 phan, no difRcnlties deterred her from the accomplish- 
 ment of her liigh and holy task. 
 
 The property of which I\Irs. Jaclcson was left in pos- 
 session, consisted of a new farm, without slaves ; and 
 it required the constant practice of the most rigid econ- 
 omy and prudence, to enable her to provide for the 
 maintenance and education of her three young sons. 
 After her husband's death, she too!v charge of Mr. 
 Crawford's family, — her sister, Mrs. Crawford, being 
 in feeble health. Her two younger sons, Robert and 
 Andrew, remained with her, and the oldest went to re- 
 side with a neighbor. Hugh and Robert received only 
 a common-school education ; but Andrew w^as desiarned 
 by the, perhaps, partial mother, for a more enlarged 
 sphere of usefulness. She intended him for the church, 
 and 'therefore sent him to the Waxhaw Academy, then 
 under the charge of Mr. Humphries, where he acquired 
 a knowledge of the various English branches tauglit 
 at that time, and had made considerable progress in the 
 Latin and Greek languasjes, when the ravaijes of the 
 revolutionary war, approaching nearer to this remote 
 settlement, put an end to his studies. 
 
 Sentiments of patriotism were early imbibed by the 
 sons of Mrs. Jackson. Her instructions, and the exam- 
 ple of their friends and kindred, inspired them, in child- 
 hood, with an ardent love of liberty. Reminiscences 
 of" father-land" were often mingled with her teachings; 
 she recounted deeds of cruelty and oppression that fired 
 their youthful bosoms with indignation ; she told them 
 of th^njustice under which their ancestors had sutlered, 
 
INVASION OF SOUTH CAROLINA. 167 
 
 and from wliich their father had fled ; and she reminded 
 tliem, also, that the same tyrannical power which had 
 perpetrated these wrongs, was endeavoring to reduce 
 the American colonists to a state of abject and hopeless 
 slavery. Soon they beheld the watch-fires of liberty 
 blazing up on every hill-top and mountain, and heard 
 the deep thunders of war echoing through the pine- 
 barrens and savannas of their own sunny clime. The 
 vouno- and middle-asred men, in the Waxhaws and its 
 vicinity, were enrolled in companies, and met frequently 
 for military discipline, while their gray-headed sires 
 looked on approvingly, and bade them never shame the 
 blood from which they sprung. ■ 
 
 Boys though they were, the young Jacksons became 
 deeply imbued with the prevailing spirit. This was 
 especially the case with Andrew, who longed for the 
 hour to arrive, when he would be able to shoulder a 
 musket, and perform some doughty enterprise, in de- 
 fence of the liberties of his country. 
 
 The officers charged with, what proved to be the 
 Sisyphian task, of subjugating the colonial rebels, made 
 their first principal efforts in the northern provinces.^ 
 Foiled, or beaten here, they turned their attention to 
 the South. Savannah was reduced in December, 1778, 
 and South Carolina invaded in the spring of 1779. 
 Among those who marched out to meet the enemy, 
 was Hugh Jackson, the oldest of the three brothers : 
 he belonged to the company commanded by Captain, 
 afterwards Colonel Davie, and was present at the battle 
 of Stono, on the twentieth of June, where he lost his 
 
 * An attempt was made on Charleston, in June, 1776 ; but the enemy 
 were ifepulsed with great loss. * 
 
168 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 life from the excessive heat of the day. Early in 1780, 
 a more formidable effort was made by the enemy, in 
 South Carolina. Charleston was invested by a strong 
 force, under Sir Henry Clinton, on the thirtieth of 
 March ; General Lincoln, then at the head of the 
 southern army, stoutly defended the post, but was 
 compelled to capitulate on the tv.^elfth of May 
 
 After the surrender of Charleston, the British com- 
 mander divided his army into three columns ; one being 
 directed to move up the Savannah river to Augusta, 
 another up the Congaree and Saluda to Ninety-six, and 
 the third, under Lord Cornwallis, up the Wateree to 
 Camden. At this time, there were several detachments, 
 belonging to the American army, in the country, who 
 were not included in the capitulation. One of these, 
 consisting of about four hundred men, with two pieces 
 of artillery, was commanded by Colonel Buford, who, 
 on the advance of Cornwallis, retired up the Catawba, 
 towards Charlotte, in North Carolina. Colonel Tarleton 
 was immediately dispatched, with two hundred and 
 seventy mounted men, in pursuit ; by making rapid 
 marches, he came uj) with the party under Colonel 
 Buford, at the Waxhaw settlement, on the twenty- 
 ninth of May. A brief, but bloody contest, took place ; 
 the Americans were soon overcome by the dragoons of 
 Tarleton ; quarter was rarely given when demanded ; 
 upwards of two hundred and sixty of the detachment 
 were killed, or desperately wounded ; and their artillery, 
 with their ammunition and stores, fell into the hands 
 of the enemy. 
 
 A great portion of the American soldiers wounded in 
 this conflict were paroled on the spot, and left at the 
 
DEFEAT OF COLONEL BUFORD's TAUTY. 169 
 
 "Waxhaws, to the humanity of tlic inhabitants. The 
 latter were not wanting in kind and generous feelings, 
 and their sympathy was freely bestowed on those who 
 had suffered and endured so much in behalf of the com- 
 mon cause. The meeting-house in the settlement was 
 speedily converted into a hospital ; nurses were pro- 
 vided, — Mrs. Jackson offering her services with others ; 
 and every attention was paid to the comfort and wants 
 of the unfortunate victims of tlic brutal ferocity of 
 Tarleton and his followers. This was the first lesson 
 learned by Andrew Jackson from actual observation, in 
 regard to the horrors of war, — and it produced a pow- 
 erful impression on his mind. So far from being intim- 
 idated, however, by the sufferings which ho witnessed, 
 his desire for taking part in the struggle was only stim- 
 ulated and quickened. 
 
 Not long after this bloody catastrophe, Lord Rawdon 
 was dispatched by Cornv/allis into the Waxhaw settle- 
 ment, with a large body of troops, to practice the same 
 sanguinary measures which had been adopted in other 
 parts of the province. Upon the fall of Charleston, 
 marauding parties of British dragoons were sant out to 
 scour the country ; the timid were conciliated, and the 
 refractory punished ; rapine, murder, and violence, were 
 committed with impunity ; members of the same family 
 were arrayed against each other, and all were made to 
 suffer the misery and wretchedness ever attendant on 
 civil war. The loyalists, or Tories, gladly hailed the 
 appearance of the British troops ; others consented to 
 take protection, as it was called, in the hope, often a 
 mistaken one, of enjoying an immunity from attack ; 
 
 8 
 
170 ^M)Hi:\V JACKCJUN. 
 
 bnt there were many who refused to waver in their 
 alleofianco to the Confederation. 
 
 Mrs. Jackson and her two sons, with a number of 
 the Waxhaw settlers, retired before Lord Rawdon, into 
 North Carolina, where they remained for several days, 
 and mitil he was recalled to Camden. Resistance had 
 now nearly ceased ; and the British officers began to 
 flatter themselves with the belief that the province was 
 completely subdued. But a few weeks elapsed, how- 
 ever, ere General Sumter, vvdio resided near the Wax- 
 haws, returned from North Carolina, where he had also 
 been a voluntary exile, and raised the patriot .standard, 
 at the head of his small but gallant band. Other par- 
 tisan corps, under Marion, Pickens, and Davie, were 
 soon formed. WitJiout pay ; scantily sripplied with 
 clothmg and subsistence ; provided with guns of every 
 form and calibre, and swords and lances fashioned out 
 of the rude implements of husbandry ; and mainly rely- 
 ing for ammunition on their captures from the enemy, 
 — these brave yeomen rendezvoused in the swamps and 
 forests of South Carolina, where they bivouacked, night 
 after night, in the open air, and from v/hich they darted 
 forth on detached parties of British and Tories, like the 
 eagle on its prey. 
 
 On the thirtieth of July, General Sumter, with 
 about six Imndred men, made an unsuccessful attack 
 on the advanced post of the British, at Rocky Mount. 
 Three dcisperatc efforts demonstrated the impractica- 
 bility of carrying the enemy's fortifications, and being 
 entirely without cannon, he was obliged to draw off his- 
 command. He was now reinforced by a party of the 
 Waxhaw settlers, under Colonel Davie., and, on thS 
 
HIS FIRST BATTLE. 
 
 I'^l 
 
 sixth of August, proceeded against the post at Hanging 
 R(H-k, midway between Camden and the Waxhaws. 
 The first onset was attended with complete success. 
 The enemy were driven from their camp, and tooic 
 shelter in the main work. Unfortunately, many of 
 Sumter's men had fasted so long, that they preferred to 
 search for something to eat and drink, rather than to 
 advance and secure the victory, by carrying the post, 
 which might then have been easily accomplished. A 
 quantity of liquor was found in the camp, and they 
 commenced drinking, in opposition to the urgent re- 
 monstrances of their commander. Apprehending the 
 worst consequences if they remained, he resolved to 
 retire to his encampment before they became wholly 
 ungovernable. 
 
 The corps of Colonel Davie particularly distinguished 
 itself on this occasion. Prominent among its members, 
 were Lieutenant James Crawford, and Robert and 
 I Andrew Jackson, — the latter a mere stripling, but 
 thirteen years of age ; yet, in heart and soul, he was a 
 man. This was his first battle, and the accounts wo 
 have of it show that both he and his brother rendered 
 good service. 
 
 Ten days after this affair. General Gates \A^as terribly 
 defeated by Lord Cornwall is, and, two days later. 
 General Sumter, overburdened with baggage and pris- 
 oners — having recently captured a convoy of British 
 stores, with their escort, coming up from Charleston to 
 Camden — was surprised by Colonel Tarleton, and his 
 band routed and dispersed. Following up the advan- 
 tage he had gained, Cornwallis marched with his whole 
 army, on the eighth of September, in the direction of 
 
172 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 Charlotte, wIiitluT the remnant of Gates' army had 
 fled. On I)is approach to the Waxhaw settlement, 
 Mrs. Jackson again retired into North Carolina, passing 
 through Charlotte, on her way to Guilford county, on 
 the morning of the day upon which the British van 
 approached the town. She was accompanied by her 
 two sons, neither of whom, on account of their youth, 
 was yet permanently attached to a military corps. 
 
 Cornwallis soon found great difficulty in maintaining 
 himself at Charlotte. His communications with the 
 seaboard were cut off, and iiis supplies intercepted, by 
 the partisans ; and his position became still more em- 
 barrassing, upon the defeat, and almost total annihila- 
 tion, of Major Ferguson's command, at King's Mountain, 
 on tiie seventh of October. He therefore determined 
 to retreat, before he was entirely surrounded by the 
 aroused and patriotic militia of the Carolinas. On the 
 fourteenth of October, he retraced his steps to the 
 Waxhaws, and shortly after established himself at 
 Winnsborough, where he awaited the arrival of re- 
 inforcements. 
 
 Besides other affairs, of minor importance, but equally 
 honorable to the American cause, the battle of the 
 Cowpens, and the masterly retreat of General Greene, 
 took place during the ensuing winter, while Mrs. Jackson 
 and her sons, with other Waxhaw settlers, remained in 
 North Carolina. Early in February, 1781, Cornwallis 
 cro.ssed the Yadkin, in pursuit of Greene ; and she and 
 her friends thereupon returned to their homes, although 
 they were in the immediate vicinity of the British posts, 
 and the country around was full of armed parties of 
 
DARING AND RESOLUTION. 173 
 
 Tories, whose cruelties and enormities were every day 
 becominj^ more barbarous and revolting. 
 
 The struggle now began to assume, especially in the 
 Carolinas, a yet more direful aspect. A fierce war of 
 extermination was waged between Whigs and Tories. 
 The two parties, or factions — call them what we may 
 — could not exist on^the sai^ie soil. The former had 
 imperilled everything in the effort to secure their inde- 
 pendence, and they fought for the safety, not merely of 
 themselves, but of their wives and children, their prop- 
 erty, their all ! Boys, as well as men, engaged in this 
 bloody warfare, and it was amid its trying scenes, that 
 the stern and inflexible daring and resolution were 
 formed and manifested, which distinguished Andrew 
 Jackson in after life. 
 
 The two young Jacksons kept their horses and guns, 
 like their neighbors, and were always ready for any 
 enterprise of danger or ditliculty. Among other ser- 
 vices wiiich they performed, was that of keeping guard 
 at the houses of the Whig officers who resided near 
 them, when they desired to visit their famili'^s. The 
 conduct of Andrew on one of these occasions, — his 
 rapidity of thought and action, — afforded a signal 
 presage of future ability : — 
 
 A captain in the colonial service, by the name of 
 Lands, desired to spend a night with his family, at his 
 house, on the right bank of the Catawba, a short dis- 
 tance below the mouth of the Waxhaw. Robert and 
 Andrew Jackson, one of the Crawfords, and five other 
 men, including a recent deserter from the British army, 
 constituted his guard. W^ith the captain, there were 
 nine men, and but seven muskets. Having no appre- 
 
174 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 hensions of an attack, they laid down on their arms, 
 upon the floor of the house, and all went to sleep, except 
 the deserter, whose fears of a recapture kept him awake. 
 Meantime a party of Tories, who had been apprised of 
 Lands' return, were on the way to sm-prise and Iviil 
 him. The house was approached on the south, by a 
 road leadini? through a w^ood. The Tories gained tlie 
 rear of the stable, that stood in one corner of the in- 
 closed yard around the house, unobserved. Behind this 
 their horses were tied, and, dividing into two parties, 
 they then advanced against the dwelling, which had 
 two doors ; one facing the east, — in front of which was 
 a forked apple tree, — and the other the west. 
 
 The deserter, who remained on the watch, hearing a 
 noise about the stable, went out to discover from whence 
 it proceeded. He had gone but a few steps from the 
 door, when he descried the party of Tories approaching 
 the east end of the building. Instantly darting back, 
 he caught Andrew Jackson, who lay nearest the door, 
 by the hair, crying out in alarm, " The Tories are upon 
 us — the Tories are upon us ! " Andrew was on his 
 feet in a moment ; seizing his gun, he darted out of the 
 house, and thrusting the piece through the fork of the 
 apple tree, loudly hailed the advancing party. No an- 
 swer was given. He repeated the hail, — still there was 
 no reply. He then fired, and at the same instant a 
 volley was returned by the enemy, which killed the 
 deserter, who stood at his side. This prompt movement 
 on his part, however, saved the inmates of the house. 
 The first party of Tories were brought to a stand, and, 
 in the darkness, their fire was mistaken by their com- 
 rades, who were moving towards the west door, for 
 
ATTACK ON THE "WAXIIAAV SETTLERS. 175 
 
 that of a sallying party. The latter also halted, and a 
 brisk fire commenced between the two parties. After 
 discharging his piece, Andrew Jackson returned into 
 the lion.se, and, with two others, commenced firing 
 from tlie west door. Both his companions were shot 
 down, one of them being mortally wounded ; but he 
 escaped untouched. The two bands of Tories still 
 continued to ]3our their volleys into each other, and 
 upon the house, till they were alarmed by the notes of 
 a cavahy trumpet, sounding the charge, in the distance, 
 when they mounted their horses, and fled in hot haste. 
 The charge was sounded by a Major Isbei, who was 
 in the neighborhood, but had not a single man with 
 him. He had heard the firing, and, presuming that 
 Lands' house was attacked, had taken this means to 
 alarm the assailants, which fortunately proved effectual. 
 After the departure of Cornwallis from South Caro- 
 lina, Lord Rawdon, whose head-quarters were at 
 Camden, was left in command. By this time, the 
 stubborn patriotism of the Waxhaw settlers was well 
 understood ; and on being advised of their return, ha 
 dispatched Major Coffin, with a corps of light dragoons, 
 a company of infantry, and a number of Tories, to 
 capture them. On being informed of their danger, the 
 settlers resolved that they would no longer fly, but 
 maintain their ground at all hazards. A day was 
 appointed for the male inhabitants in the settlement, 
 capable of bearing arms, to assemble at the Waxhaw 
 meeting-house, which was fixed upon as the place of 
 rendezvous. Punctual, at the time and place, about 
 forty of the settlers, — Robert and Andrew Jackson 
 being among the number, — had collected, and were 
 
176 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 waiting for a friendly company, under Captain Nesbit, 
 when they saw what they supposed to be tlie expectedl 
 reinforcement, — but which, in reality, was the detach- 
 ment of Major Coffin, with the Tories, who wore the 
 usual dress of the country, in front, — approaching at a 
 rapid rate. The deception was not discovered, till the 
 British dashed in among them, cleaving down all who 
 stood in their way. Eleven of the party were taken 
 prisoners ; the remainder sprang upon their horses, and 
 most of them made their escape. 
 
 Andrew Jackson was accompanied in his flight, by his 
 cousin, Lieutenant Thomas Crawford ; but, in passing 
 over a piece of marshy ground, the horse of the latter 
 mired and fell, and he was wounded and taken prisoner. 
 Young Jackson shortly after encountered his brother, 
 who had also eluded pursuit. They remained together 
 during the night, and, at dawn on the following morn- 
 ing, concealed themselves in a dense thicket, on the 
 bank of Cain Creek, near the house of Lieutenant 
 Crawford. During the day they became very hungry, 
 and, deeming themselves secure, ventured out to the 
 house. A boy was directed to watch the road ; but 
 while they were satisfying their hunger, a band of 
 Tories and dragoons, who had discovered their retreat, 
 and captured their horses and guns, whicli were left 
 behind them, suddenly maile their appearance, and 
 surrounded the house. Resistance coald be of no 
 avail, and escape was impossible. They therefore sur- 
 rendered themselves prisoners of war. 
 
 Not content with the capture of the two young men, 
 the dragoons and Tories commenced' abusing and mal- 
 treating Mrs. Crawford and her cliildrcn. The crockery 
 
TAKEN PRISONER TO CAMDEN. 177 
 
 and furniture in the house were broken in pieces ; and 
 the beds and bedding, and all the clothing of the family, 
 including that of an infant at the breast, was torn into 
 shreds. While the work of destruction was going on, 
 the British officer, in command of the party, directed 
 Andrew Jackson to clean the mud from his boots. 
 As might be supposed, he indignantly refused to do 
 the menial office. Enraged at this reply, the officer 
 drew his sword, and aimed a dastard blow at the head 
 of his unarmed prisoner. The latter parried it with his 
 left hand, but, in so doing, received a cut, the scar of 
 which was carried to his grave. Disappointed in the 
 spirit of the intrepid youth, the oilicer turned to his 
 brother, and required him to perform the task. Robert 
 likewise refused ; a furious blow from the infuriated 
 Briton, was the consequence ; and a wound was inffict- 
 ed, from the effect of which his victim never recovered. 
 Andrew Jackson was then placed on a horse, and di- 
 rected, under a threat of instant death if he refused, to 
 guide the party to the house of Major Thompson, a 
 well-known Whig, who lived below Crawford's, on the 
 same side of the stream. Fearing that Thompson 
 might be at home, our hero resorted to a stratagem to 
 save him ; which, though it might naturally have sug- 
 gested itself to his mind, seems strange enough when 
 we reflect that it was not only conceived, but executed, 
 by a lad scarcely fourteen years of age. — Leading the 
 party by a circuitous route, he brought them within 
 full view of Thompson's house, at the distance of a 
 half mile. Nothing more was necessary. The dra- 
 goons spurred onward, but they were still several hun- 
 dred yards distant, when they saw the major issu,e 
 
 8* 
 
178 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 forth, mount his horse, which, as was then customary, 
 was kept ready saddled, and dash towards the creek. 
 The British darted alter him in pursuit, but reached 
 the stream only in time to hear his loud shout of defiance, 
 as he rode leisurely off along the opposite bank. The 
 current was so much swollen by the influx during the 
 rainy season, that they dare not attempt to cross it, 
 and therefore reluctantly abandoned the chase. 
 
 After this unsuccessful attempt to capture the "Whig 
 officer, the two Jacksons, with about twenty other 
 prisoners, were mounted on captured horses, and the 
 party set out on their return to Camden. Not a 
 mouthful of food, or drop of water, v/as given them on 
 the road ; and when they reached Camden, they were 
 thrust into a redoubt surrounding the jail, in which 
 some two hundred and fifty prisoners, besides those 
 taken at the Waxhaws, were confined. Here they 
 were stripped of part of their clothing, — xVndrew losing 
 his jacket and shoes ; their wounds were undressed ; 
 no attention was paid to their wants ; and when the 
 relationship between the two Jacksons and Lieutenant 
 Crawford was discovered, they were instantly separated, 
 and kept in ignorance of each other's fate. The Provost 
 was a Tory from New York, who, it was afterwards 
 said, took the provisions intended for the prisoners, to 
 feed a number of negroes whom he had collected from 
 different Whig plantations, with the intention of dis- 
 posing of them for his own benefit. Be that as it may, 
 the prisoners were but sparingly supj)liei] with bad 
 bread ; and to add to their wretchedness, the smallpox 
 appeared among them, and made frightful ravages. 
 
 Amid the accumulated horrors of his prison-house, 
 
BATTM; Ul' llOJJKiRK's HILL. 179 
 
 with sickness and starvation staring him in the face, 
 the groans ol" the dying constantly ringing in iiis cars, 
 and hourly exposed to the ill-trcatnient of his captors, — 
 Andrew Jackson never lost the fearlessness of spirit 
 which ever distininiished him. Availing himself of a 
 favorable opportunity, he boldly remonstrated with the 
 oliicer of the guard, in behalf of himself and his suffering 
 companions. His remonstrances had the desired effect ; 
 meat was added to the rations, and, in other respects, 
 the condition of the prisoners was decidedly improved. 
 
 Matters were in this situation, when General Greene 
 returned from North Carolina, in April, 1781, and en- 
 camped, with his army, on Hobkirk's Hill, a little over 
 a mile north of Camden, waiting only the ai'rival of his 
 cannon, before making his dispositions to assault the 
 post. 
 
 On the morning of the twenty-fourth of April, 
 Andrew Jackson discovered indications of a design to 
 attack General Greene. The jail and redoubt stood on 
 the eminence upon which Camden is situated, and a 
 tine view would have been afforded of the encampment 
 on Hobkirk's Hill, had not the British taken the pre- 
 caution to construct a high and tight plank fence on 
 the redoubt, inmiediately after the arrival of the Amer- 
 ican army in the neighborhood. He was determined, 
 nevertheless, to obtain a view of the anticipated conflict ; 
 and, by working nearly all night, with an old razor- 
 hl'dde, furnished the prisoners to cut their rations, he 
 succeeded in diwoing out a knot in one of the planks. 
 When Lord Rawdon led out his men, on the morning 
 of the twenty-fifth, for a bold stroke at the American 
 leader, Andrev/ mounted the breastwork, and placed 
 
180 ANDREW JACICSOiT. 
 
 himself at the look-out, while his fellow prisoners gath- 
 ered in groups below him, listening attentively, as he 
 detailed the varied incidents of the day. 
 
 His voice was tremulons with apprehension, as he 
 informed his companions, that the Americans had been 
 taken unawares, and their pickets were driven in ; it 
 was pitched to a louder key, wlien the cannon of Greene 
 opened their brazen throats, and vomited forth torrents 
 of flame and iron, tearing and rending through the 
 British columns ; again it sank, as the enemy rallied, 
 and pushed boldly forward; it rose once more, when 
 the regiments of Ford and Campbell pressed gallantly 
 upon their ilanks — when Washington and his brave 
 dragoons came thunderinaf down in their rear — and he 
 caught sight of the glistening bayonets of the 1st Ma- 
 ryland, and the Virginians, as they prepared to charge 
 home upon their assailants ; it fell again, as the veteran 
 regiment of Gunby recoiled before the British fire, and 
 died away into a whisper, when ail hope of deliverance 
 vanished, as the beaten, but not routed Greene, retired 
 slowly over the hill, and the pursuit was only checked 
 by the timely charge of Washington's cavalry. 
 
 The Jacksons were not deserted by one friend, in their 
 confinement — the mother who had reared them to serve 
 their country, and who knew no prouder joy, than to 
 see them do tiieir duty well. She followed them to 
 Camden, to aid and succor them, and, soon after the 
 battle of Hobkirk's Hill, procured their exchange, with 
 five of their neighbors, for thirteen British soldiers, 
 captured by a Whig ])artisan captain, by the name of 
 Walker. Pale, emaciated, barefooted, almost naked, 
 and infected with the smallpox, they presented them- 
 
RELEASE FROM CAPTIVITY. 181 
 
 selves before their surviving parent. The wound in 
 Robert's head had never been dressed ; and this, in 
 connection with hunger, and the disease that had fast- 
 ened itself upon him, had reduced [liin so low, that he 
 was unable even to ride, except as he was held on a horse. 
 
 There were but two horses for the whole party, 
 consisting of Mrs. Jackson and her sons, and the other 
 released prisoners, who accompanied them home. Mrs. 
 Jackson rode one, and Robert was supported on the 
 other by his companions. Thus wearily and sadly, did 
 they perform their melancholy journey of more than 
 forty miles, through a country blighted by the ravages 
 of war, as if the lightnings of Heaven had scathed it. 
 Within two hours' ride of the Waxhaws, they were 
 overtaken by a shower of rain, by which the company 
 were completely drenched. The smallpox was driven 
 in on both the boys ; Robert died in two days : and 
 Andrew at once became delirious. The fever raged 
 violently for several days, and his case was regarded 
 nearly hopeless. The kind nursing of his patient and 
 devoted mother, and the attentions of" his physician, at 
 length triumphed over the disease, and restored him to 
 consciousness and health. 
 
 He had scarcely recovered his strength, when his 
 mother, with characteristic energy and fortitude, in 
 company with four or five other ladies, providing 
 themselves with such necessaries as could be conve- 
 niently carried on horseback, set out to visit a number 
 of the Waxhaw settlers, including some of the Craw- 
 fords, who had been taken by the enemy, and were 
 confined on board the Charleston prison-ship — whose 
 history, like that of the Old Jersey, at New York, 
 
 8 
 
182 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 is but a tale of unmitisjated horror and siifTerinsf. 
 These goo>] Samaritan women reached Charleston, 
 obtained permir^sion to visit the vessel — a privilege that 
 had always been refused to relatives and friends of the 
 other sex — and delivered the supplies which they had 
 brought. Mrs. Jackson, however, never returned from 
 this errand of love and mercy. Enfeebled by constant 
 care and privation, worn down by the numerous hard- 
 ships and fatigues which she had endured, she was 
 seized with the fever prevailing among the prisoners, 
 which srx»n terminated her existence. She was buried 
 near Ihe enemy's lines, in the vicinity of Charleston, in 
 an unknown grave ; — but her memory, in after times, 
 was doubly honored, ns that of the noble, self-sacriiicing 
 mother, of Anslrew Jackson ! 
 
 Solitary and alone, her orphan son, at the time when 
 he most needed the care and advice of a parent, was 
 cast upon the world, to bulTet, as he might, the billows 
 of adverse fortune. His home was, indeed, desolate. 
 Like Logan, there ran not a drop of his blood in the 
 veins of any living creature. IMother and brothers, — 
 all ha<l perished — the victims of English cruelty ! — Is 
 it to be wondered, then, that he cherished such a feel- 
 ing of animosity towards the Britisli name ; or that he 
 hated everything akin to oppression, with a hatred so 
 dee]) and fervent ? 
 
 Early in the summer of 1781, the British voluntarily 
 evacuated, or were driven from, all their advanced 
 posts outside of Orangeburg. General Greene retired 
 M'ith his army, during the hot season, to the hills of 
 Santoe, but again made his appearance in the lower 
 country, near the clo.se of the month of August, with 
 
CLOSE OF THE WAR. 183 
 
 his command refreshed and reinvigorated. In Septem- 
 ber, he fought the indecisive battle at Eutaw Springs. 
 The pahii of victory was disputed, but the substantial 
 advantages of the action were his; and when the cam- 
 paign closed, the enemy were cooped up in Charleston 
 and Savannah. — In October, the war was finally ter- 
 minated, by the surrender of Cornwallis at York town. 
 
 After the evacuation of Camden, the Waxhaw set- 
 tlers, or rather, those of them who had survived the 
 perils of war, found the security and repose which had 
 so long been denied. Andrew Jackson remained, for 
 some time subsequent to the death of his mother, at 
 the house of Major Thomas Crawford ; but, in conse- 
 quence of a ditiiculty with Captain Galbrailh, an Amer- 
 ican commissary, whose quarters were at the same 
 place, and who became offended with him for some 
 trilling cause, he afterwards entered the family of Mr. 
 Joseph White, an uncle of Mrs. Crawford. Mr. White's 
 son was a saddler, and Andrew, though sulT'ering all 
 the while with the fever and ague, entered his shop, 
 and assisted him as far as he was able. 
 
 Unfortunately for him, the enemy still remained in 
 the possession of Charleston, and many of its wealthiest 
 and most polished citizens resided, temporarily, at the 
 Waxhaws, and in the neighborhood. It was quite 
 natural, in the reaction of his ardent temperament, 
 after the first shock of his sad bereavement had passed 
 away, that a carelessness and recklessness of disposition 
 should be manifested. His associates were the young 
 men from the city, and, with them, he spent most of 
 his time in idle sports and amusements. The studies, 
 which had been necessarily interrupted during the war, 
 
184 ANDREAV JACKSON. 
 
 were totally neglected ; his books were thrown aside ; 
 and a large portion of his little patrimony was squan- 
 dered, in the vain efl'ort to compete with his more 
 wealthy associates, in the liberality of his expenditures. 
 When they returned to Charleston, in the winter of 
 1784, he followed them on a fine mare belonging to 
 him. He found some of his old companions in the 
 tavern where he stopped, with whom he engaged in a 
 gama- of dice, called " Rattle and Snap." His mare 
 was staked against a sum of money — and he won. 
 Inspired by a sudden thought, he pocketed the money, 
 jiaid his bill, and returned home ; with a determination, 
 to which he inflexibly adhered, to change his course of 
 life. 
 
 How many there are, who would have yielded, like 
 Andrew Jackson, to the Circean charms and fascina- 
 tions of a career of dissipation ! — how few, like him, 
 M'ould have jiaused at the very entrance of the vortex, 
 and, in an instant, effected an entire reformation I — 
 The descent to Avernus is easy, said the Cumaian 
 Sibyl :— 
 
 " SeJ revocare gradum, superasque evadere ad auras, 
 Hoc opus, hie labor est." 
 
 Had he remained in Charleston another day, perhaps 
 another hour, he might have gone down to an early 
 grave, unhonored and unlamented. Though he came 
 off conqueror in a dozen well-fought fields, this was the 
 noblest of his victories — the conquest over himself ! 
 
 Arrived at the Waxhaws, young Jackson collected 
 together the remains of his small property, and, bidding 
 adieu to his friends, repaired to Salisbury, in North 
 
EMIGRATES TO TENNESSEE. 185 
 
 Carolina ; wliere he commenced the study of the law, 
 in the otlice of Spruce McCay, an eminent counsellor, 
 and afterwards a distinguished judge of that state. 
 His untiring industry and zeal, his talents, and his 
 correct and manly deportment, soon won the favorable 
 esteem of Judge McCay, and other prominent citizens 
 of North Carolina, whose acquaintance he formed. His 
 professional studies were completed under Colonel John 
 Stokes, and, in 17S6, he was admitted to the bar. He 
 remained in the state about two years subsequent to 
 this, constantly gaining ground in the regard of his 
 new friends and acquaintances ; and in 1788, at the 
 age of twenty-one, without solicitation on his part, he 
 was appointed by the governor, solicitor for the western 
 district, which afterwards became the state of Tennessee. 
 
 Near the close of the year 1788, in company with 
 John JMcNairy, the newly appointed judge of the west- 
 ern district, he crossed the mountains, for the purpose 
 of entering upon his official duties, and establishing 
 himself in practice. Jonesborough was then the prin- 
 cipal seat of justice, and they remained there for several 
 months. 
 
 The country was rapidly filling up with the hunters 
 of North Carolina and Virginia, — " the pioneers of civi- 
 lization," — v.'ho fearlessly entered the unbroken forest, 
 with the axe in one hand and the rifle in the other. The 
 territory lying between the Ohio and Tennessee rivers 
 had long before received the name of Kentuckee, or the 
 ''• Bloody Land," on account of its being the battle, as 
 well as the hunting ground, of the Northern and South- 
 ern Indians. The valley of the Cumberland river con- 
 tained some of the most fertile and beautiful lands, and 
 
186 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 abounded in the finest game. The principal tide of em- 
 igration, therefore, naturally turned in this direction, 
 notwithstantlingthe settlers thereby brought upon them- 
 selves the animosity of both parties of Indians. 
 
 In 1789, Judge McNairy, and his friend, first visited 
 the infant settlements on the Cumberland, including 
 that at French Creek, near the present site of Nash- 
 ville. Most of the settlers resided in stations, — fre- 
 quently built on the damping grounds of the butlalo, — 
 which were usually connected by the traces of the wild 
 beasts, that everywhere intersected the surrounding 
 forests. The log cabin was the abode of all classes, — 
 but these primitive dwellings were, perhajjs, oftener 
 tenanted by happiness and joy, than the marble palaces 
 of the great and opulent. Theirs was a life of peril, 
 indeed ; but it was well suited to Jackson's adventu- 
 rous disposition, and he gladly shared their dangers and 
 vicissitudes, and participated in their sports and fes- 
 tivities. 
 
 He was still undecided in regard to locating perma- 
 nently in the district, when he arrived at the settlements 
 on the Cumberland. He found, however, that the 
 debtor class constituted a large proportion of the popu- 
 lation, and that, having retained the only lawyer in 
 West Tennessee in their interest, they were enabled to 
 set their creditors at defiance. The latter flocked 
 around him in crowds, and in a few days after his arri- 
 val he issued a great number of writs. Threats of 
 personal violence were employed, in vain, to intimidate 
 him ; they had only the opposite effect, and induced him 
 to remain, and establish himself in the neighborhood of 
 Nashville. At that time there were no hotels, or reg- 
 
II 
 
 ADVENTURES IN THE WILDERNESS, 1^7 
 
 alar boarJing-iiouses, in the country, and none wero 
 needed, — as travellers, men of business, and professional 
 men, were cheerfully entertained by private families. 
 Jackson, and the late Judge Overton, boarded together, 
 with Mrs. Donelson, the widow of Colonel John Donel- 
 son, who had, some years previous, emigrated from Vir- 
 ginia to Kentucky, and thence to Tennessee, 
 r- Business of a public, or private nature, often called 
 Jackson to Jonesborough, about two hundred miles dis- 
 tant from Nashville, from which it was separated by a 
 dense wilderness, with only here and there a small sta- 
 tion. In those days, a journey was not the pastime 
 which it has latterly become ; and the traveller enjoyed 
 few of the comforts, and none of the luxuries, which 
 modern civilization has introduced. A horse ; a rifle, 
 to be slung over the shoulder ; a hunting knife ; a port- 
 manteau, containing a few clothes and provisions ; and 
 a blanket, — constituted his preparations for the road. 
 Sometimes journeys were performed singly, but, more 
 generally, in companies. At night, the travellers lighted 
 a hre with a tinder-box, or the flash of a rifle ; and 
 their horses were picketed. If they were supplied with 
 bacon, or game, it was roasted on a stick; otherwise, 
 jerked meat, parched maize, and the tough corn-dodger, 
 formed their frugal repast. After partaking of this, sen- 
 tinels were posted, if an attack from the Indians was 
 apprehended ; and, wrapping themselves in their blan- 
 kets, they lay down to sleep, with naught but the blue 
 canopy of heaven over their heads. 
 
 Numerous anecdotes are related of the fearlessness 
 and intrepidity displayed by Andrew Jackson, when 
 performing these weary pilgrimages through the forests 
 
 7 
 
188 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 of Tennessee. On one occasion, in the month of March, i 
 he was on his way from Jonesborou^h to the Cumber- 1 
 land, with three comjianions, and reached the east side 
 of the Emory, just below the gap in the mountains, l 
 shortly after dark. The fires of a large party of In- ■ 
 dians being discovered on the opposite bank, he instantly »j 
 assumed the direction of affairs, and, enjoining silence 
 upon liis comrades, led them back some distance into 
 the mountains. They then left the road at different 
 points, in order to elude pursuit, — reunited again,, and 
 proceeded up the stream, until two o'clock in the after- 
 noon of the following day, when they attempted to cross 
 it, at a basin between two cataracts. 
 
 A raft was constructed of logs bound firmlv together 
 
 O »/ CD 
 
 with hickory withes, upon which their clothes, blankets, 
 saddles, rifles and ammunition, were placed ; Jackson 
 and one of his companions intending to cross first with 
 these, and then, at a second trip, with their comrades, 
 to swim the horses over alongside the raft. But on 
 pushing from the shore, the under-tow seized the frail 
 craft, and hurried it rapidly down the stream. Jackson 
 and his friend vainly exerted themselves to arrest its 
 progress ; they were fast nearing the brink of the cata- 
 ract, when the former, wrenching one of the rude oars 
 from its fastenings, spi-ang to the stern, and braced him- 
 self there ; at the same time holding out the oar to his 
 companions on shore. They eagerly seized it, and drew 
 the raft safe to land, just as it was quivering on the 
 edge of the fall. On being ohided for his too venture- 
 some disposition, Jackson replied, "Amiss is as good as 
 a mile ; you see how near I can graze danger — come 
 on, and I will save you yet." — The route up the stream 
 
DESERTED BY HIS GUIDE. 189 
 
 was now resumed, and, after spending another niglit, 
 supperlcss, in the woods, they found a ford the next day, 
 at which they crossed, and ultimately reached a log 
 cabin on the road, about forty miles in rear of the In- 
 dian encampment. ^ 
 
 At another time, he reached Bean's Station, the ap- 
 pointed rendezvous of a party with whom he designed 
 to cross the wilderness, on the evening after they had 
 left. Nowise daunted by the perils of the way, he pro- 
 vided himself with a guide, and set out to overtake 
 them. lie travelled all night, and, in the gray of the 
 morning, came to the fires just deserted by the party be- 
 fore him. Pushing on, with increased speed, he soon 
 discovered the trail of a body of Indians, twenty-two in 
 number, who were evidently pursuing his friends in 
 front. He still followed on, until he was close upon the 
 savages, when the guide began to hesitate about advanc- 
 ing further, and finally refused, absolutely, to proceed. 
 This was an unexpected dilemma, but Jackson neither 
 feared danger, nor was he the man to desert his friends. 
 Dividing provisions with his timid guide, the latter re- 
 turned to the station, and he continued on cautiously, 
 in the opposite direction. Presently he found that the 
 Indians had turned oft' to the right, as he supposed, to 
 get ahead of the party, and lay an ambush for them, or 
 attack them at night. He at once hastened forward 
 with greater rapidity, and came up with his friends, as 
 they were preparing to encamp for the night. Being 
 apprised of their danger, in a few moments they were 
 again in motion, and continued their march without 
 halting, till the evening of the next day. Nothing 
 further was heard from the Indians, till the party had 
 
190 AXDREW JACKSOX. 
 
 reached their destination, in safety ; when it was ascer- 
 tained that a company of hunters, who had refused to 
 shelter theni in their I02: cabins, had been murdered by 
 the same band of savages from whom they had so for- 
 tunately escaped. 
 
 Besides crossing the wilderness intervening between 1 
 Jonesborough and the Cumberland twenty-two times, 
 while the country was yet new, Jackson frequently 
 volunteered, with others, to go out and meet parties of 
 emigrants from Virginia, or the Carolinas, who were 
 escorted half way by their friends in the states, or the 
 settlers in East Tennessee. The same service was 
 often performed for emigrants, or travellers, going from 
 Nashville to Lexington. An occasion of this Ivind fur- 
 nished him an opportunity to display his gallantry as 
 well as bravery : — He was proceeding with a com])any, 
 from Nashville to Lexington, among whom was a lady 
 going to join her husband at the latter place. The 
 second night out, she was suddenly taken sick, and, isi 
 the morning, was unable to proceed on her journey. 
 Disregarding her situation, a number of the party pre- 
 pared their horses as usual, and were about to resume 
 the march. Jackson earnestly remonstrated against 
 leaving the woman alone in the forest, but, finding 
 words of no avail, and that they insisted on proceeding, 
 lie levelled his rifle, and solemnly declared that he 
 would slioot the first man who put foot in the stirrup. 
 His companions cowed before the chivalric rage that 
 lighted up his cheek, and kindled in his eye ; and they 
 consented to remain for a day at the encampment, at 
 the expiration of which the lady was able to travel. 
 
 As the settlers in Kentucky were exposed to the ir- 
 
 
RACHAEL DONELSON. 
 
 191 
 
 niptions of the Shawanese, so those in Tennessee were 
 liable to similar visitations from the Choctaws and 
 Cherokees. Whenever the savages had committed any 
 d«^predations, volunteer parties were always formed to 
 ]mrsue them. Andrew Jackson was usually one of the 
 first to make his appearance at the rendezvous. He 
 once accompanied a party, between forty and fifty 
 strong, under Colonel Elijah Robertson, on an expedi- 
 tion of this character, to the head of a creek flowing 
 into Duck river. It was then proposed, that a part of 
 the company should penetrate through the cane-brakes, 
 a distance of ten miles, to the river, where the Indians 
 were supposed to have encamped. Colonel R. Weakly, 
 with Jackson and fifteen others, volunteered for the 
 enterprise. It was accomplished with great gallantry ; 
 the savages were surprised, and fled without firing a 
 gun, — leaving their camp, and their arms and ammu- 
 nition, in the hands of their pursuers. 
 
 Jackson was repeatedly engaged in affairs of the same 
 kind, and acquired a high, and wide-spread reputation, 
 for his bravery and skill. He also became well-known 
 to the red warriors, and received from them the epithets 
 of " Sharp Knife" and "Pointed Arrow." The most 
 important expedition in which he was concerned, was 
 undertaken in 1794, when a large party from Nashville 
 and its neighborhood, including himself, proceeded 
 against the Indian town of Nickajack, near the Ten- 
 nessee river, and razed it to the ground. 
 
 When Andrew Jackson entered the family of IMrs. 
 Donelson as a boarder, her daughter, Rachael, who had 
 married a man by the name of Robards, in Kentucky, 
 bnt had separated from him on account of his violent 
 
192 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 temper and vicions habits, resided with her. Judge 
 Overton and himself occupied another cabin, a few 
 steps distant from that in which Mrs. Donelson lived, 
 but met with her family, at the same table. Mrs. 
 Robards was as distinguished for her beauty, her 
 sweetness of temper, and her winning deportment, as 
 was her husband for the possession of the opposite 
 qualities. Through the mediation of Judge Overton, 
 Robards was at one time reconciled to his wife, rejoined 
 her at Mrs. Donelson's, and commenced preparations 
 for erecting a cabin, on a tract of land that he had 
 purchased, in which he intended to reside. 
 
 Jackson was then a young -man, frank and engaging 
 in his manners, and fond of female society. He un- 
 doubtedly paid Mrs. Robards many flattering attentions, 
 which — neither thinkinir ausjht of evil, or cherishin<]j an 
 impure thought — were reciprocated as they deserved, 
 with kindness and friendly esteem, but nothing more. 
 So far from rendering her husband more morose and ill- 
 tempered, this should only have led him to appreciate 
 better her charms and social virtues, and encouraged 
 him to become more pleasing and agreeable. But lagos 
 were not wanting to instil the doubts and suspicions of 
 jealousy, had not his gloomy and distrustful tempera- 
 ment predisposed him to such impressions. She was, 
 in consequence, rendered very unhappy. On being 
 made acquainted with this fact, Jackson sought an in- 
 terview with her husband, and remonstrated with him, 
 in a manly and iionorable way. This was of no avail, 
 and he then left Mrs. Donelson's, and took board at 
 Mansker's Station. 
 
 The excited jealousy of the husband could not be aX- 
 
HIS MARRIAGE. 193 
 
 layctl, however; and, in a few months, ho abandoned 
 his wife a second time, and started for= Kentucky, — de- 
 claring to a companion on the road, that he designed 
 never to return. Mrs. Robards now determined tliat 
 the separation should be final ; and on being afterwards 
 informed, that he intended to visit Tennessee and take 
 iicr back with him to Kentucky, under tlie advice of 
 lier friends, she accompanied the family of Colonel 
 Starlc to Natchez, in the spring of 1791. Stark was 
 an elderly man, and fearing that the Indians might at- 
 tack him, he invited Jackson to make one of the party. 
 The latter, perhaps unvv-isely, — though he certainly 
 never regretted it, — accepted the invitation, and de- 
 scended the rivers with them, to Natchez. 
 
 Robards had previously applied to the Ijcgislature of 
 Virginia for a divorce, and, soon after the return of 
 Jackson to Nashville, the intelligence was received that 
 his application had been granted. Desirous of testify- 
 ini? to the world, in the hisfhest and most solemn man- 
 ner, his confidence in her purity and innocence — pleased, 
 alike, with the charms of her person, and the graces of 
 her mind — and deeming her at perfect liberty to form a 
 new connection — Jackson forthwith repaired to Nat- 
 chez, and tendered his hand to iNIrs. Robards. She at 
 first hesitated, but finally accepted him. They were 
 married in the fall, and she returned with him to the 
 Cumberland, where she was greeted with the warm 
 and affectionate congratulations of her relatives and 
 friends. 
 
 Two years after his marriage, — in December, 1793, 
 — Jackson was on his way to Jonesborough, with Judge 
 Overton, when he learned, for the first time, equally to 
 
194 wNDREW JACKSON. 
 
 his cliagrin and surprise, that the intelligence received 
 in 1791, and upon which he had acted, was incorrect. — 
 Robards had, in 1791, procured the passage of an act 
 in the Virginia Legislature, authorizing a suit to bo 
 brought for a divorce in a court in Kentucky, which 
 suit had just been determined in his favor, — no opposi- 
 tion, of course, being made to the proceedings. Com- 
 munications between the Atlantic country and the in- 
 terior were then very irregular, and the exact particu- 
 lars of the aflair were not known, or inquired into, as 
 it was universally supposed in Tennessee, that the di- 
 vorce had been actually granted. On his return home, 
 in January, 1794, Jackson took out a license, and was 
 now regularly married. 
 
 The circumstances of his acquaintance and marriage 
 \vith Mrs. Robards, were long after seized upon by his 
 opponents, when he became connected with the politi- 
 cal controversies of the day, as a candidate for the pres- 
 idency, and were made the foundation of unmerited 
 and groundless calumnies. There were features in the 
 case, which, unexplained, might appear suspicious ; but 
 the evidence of all who were personally acquainted with 
 them, whose assertions are worthy of a moment's con- 
 sideration, acquit both parties of blame, and bear wit- 
 ness to the correct demeanor of JMrs. Robards, and the 
 chivalric conduct of Andrew Jackson. — -" While he 
 would have sacrificed his life," says his biographer, "to 
 prevent Mrs. Robards' ffiUijig unwillingly into the hands 
 of her cruel tormentor, iier husband though he was, he 
 never cast a look vipon her, or indulged a thought, un- 
 worthy of the purest knight in the days of honorable 
 chivalry. But, when no longer restrained by laM', 
 
ANIMOSITY OF THE DEBTOR CLASS. 195 
 
 honor or religion, pity, admiration, and a species of re- 
 gret, though free from gnilt, yet akin to remorse, kin- 
 dle 1 into love as pure and as holy as ever glowed in the 
 heart of man. Nor was the object unworthy of this 
 exalted passion. The united testimony of all who had 
 the pleasure of her acquaintance, the happiness which 
 during life she shed over the domestic circle, radiatins: 
 into the cabins of her servants and the houses of her 
 neighbors, and, above all, the sacred fervor with which 
 the bosom on which she rested in youth, cherishes her 
 memory, bear unequivocal testimony, that she was one 
 of the best of those beings whom God has given as the 
 companion and solace of man."* 
 
 After his marriage, Jackson devoted himself with 
 more assiduity than ever, to the practice of his profes- 
 sion. His firm and independent course in espousing 
 the cause of the creditors, though it elevated him in 
 the esteem of the better part of the community, ren- 
 dered the debtors peculiarly inimical towards him. 
 His daring and prowess were so well known, however, 
 that those who were nominally his equals in standing, 
 dared not assail him ; but they stimulated others to do 
 so, belonging to the very lowest class of bullies and des- 
 peradoes, so many of whom are always to be found in a 
 new country, who had neither character nor self-respect 
 to lose, but were not deficient in that brutal courage, 
 which the philosopher of Ferney terms, " a fortunate 
 quality, of which fools partake as well as great men." 
 
 A flax-breaker, of great strength and courage, was 
 the first person instigated to attack Jackson ; but the 
 latter soon tamed his spirit with his own winding-blades, 
 
 ♦ Kendall's Life of Jackson. 
 
196 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 the only weapon within reach. A noted bully next as- 
 saulted him, while he was con\ersing with a gentleman 
 on business, at a court in Sumner C(mnty. Jackson 
 seized a slab, and in a few seconds obliged the despe- 
 rado to make his escape into the woods. — These en- 
 counters resulted so unfavorably to those who were 
 induced to come in contact with him, that he was 
 ever after exempt from annoyances of a similar char- 
 acter. 
 
 In the course of his practice as a lawyer, Jackson 
 discovered that extensive frauds had been committed in 
 the North Carolina Land-Office, which he deemed it 
 his duty, as the former attorney of that State, to ex- 
 pose. Through his instrumentality, the perpetrators 
 were indicted and punished. Some of the most promi- 
 nent citizens of the western district were directly, or 
 indirectly, concerned in these transactions, and had 
 profited largely by them. Consequently, he incurred 
 their hostility ; and they sought by every means to in- 
 jure him. In the state of society then existing, a man, 
 like him, exposed to tlie hatred of powerful enemies, 
 may be said to have constantly carried his life in his 
 hand. Unawed by threats, he pui'sued his way steadily 
 and unerringly — daily adding to the number of his 
 friends, and gaining ground in the confidence and re- 
 gard of the wise and good. 
 
 The necessary preliminary measures for the forma- 
 tion of a state government, were taken by the citizens 
 of Tennessee, in 1795 ;* and Andrew Jackson was 
 
 * In 1790, the "Territory South of the Ohio," of which Tennessee 
 formed a part was erected. Kentucky was admitted into the Union as 
 a State, in 1792. 
 
REPRESENTATIVE AND SENATOR IN CONGRESS. 197 
 
 chosen one of the delegates to the convention, without 
 even ofFering himself as a candidate. The forest Solons 
 and Numas composing that body, met at Knoxville, in 
 the wilderness, on the eleventh of January, 1796, and 
 adjourned on the sixth day of February following ; hav- 
 ing, in the short space of less than four weeks, framed 
 and adopted a state constitution, which, for its republi- 
 can simplicity, compared most favorably with those of 
 other states. 
 
 On the first day of June, 1796, Tennessee was ad- 
 mitted into the Union as a State, and became entitled 
 to one representative i]i Congress. Andrew Jackson 
 was elected to the office, with great unanimity, and 
 took his seat in the House of Representatives on the 
 fifth of December, 1796. His reputation and popular- 
 ity continuing to increase, he was chosen a senator in 
 Congress the following year, when he had just reached 
 the age prescribed by the Constitution. He appeared 
 in the Senate of the United States on the twenty-sec- 
 ond of November, 1797. At this session, the alien and 
 sedition laws were passed. Jackson coincided and 
 voted with the republican members, and was therefore 
 in the minoritv. During the session, he became so 
 much dissatisfied with the course of the administration, 
 to which he was opposed in sentiment, that he returned 
 home in April, 1798, and shortly after resigned his seat. 
 He was succeeded by his friend and neighbor, Daniel 
 Smith. 
 
 Upon his resignation of the office of senator, Jackson 
 was appointed, by the Legislature of Tennessee, Judge 
 of the Supreme Court of Law and Equity. The office 
 was conferred on him unsolicited, and was accepted 
 
198 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 ■vrith reluctance. As a lawyer, he liad been distin- 
 guished for his fair and lionorable dealing ; for his ab- 
 horrence of low tricks and artifices ; and for the ability 
 with which he seized the strong points of a case, and 
 presented them to a court or jury : — as a judge, he be- 
 came equally well known, for his firmness and inde- 
 pendence ; for his integrity of purpose ; and his plain, 
 common sense adjudications. 
 
 His first court was held at Jonesborough, at which a 
 man, by the name of Russell Bean, was indicted for 
 cutting off the ears of his infant child, in a drunken 
 frolic. The sheriff dared not arrest the offender, who 
 was notorious for his strength and ferocity, though 
 present in the courtyard, and returned to the court, that 
 he would not be taken. Judge Jackson told the officer 
 that such a return was an absurdity, and that the man 
 must be taken, even though it became necessary to 
 summon the posse comitatus. When the court ad- 
 journed for dinner, the sheriff summoned the judge and 
 his colleagues, as part of the posse. Jackson saw that 
 the officer desired to avoid performing ins duty, and 
 therefore accompanied him. Learning that Bean was 
 armed, he provided himself with a loaded pistol. At 
 sight of him, the former attempted to make his escape ; 
 but the judge directing him to stop and submit to the 
 law, in a tone that showed he was not to be trifled with, 
 his weapons were thrown down, and he quietly surren- 
 dered. This incident was not lost upon other turbulent 
 spirits who had previously treated courts and officers 
 with contempt, and nothing of the kind was afterwards 
 attempted. 
 
 His health beginning to fail under the severe labor, 
 
DIFFICULTY AVITIl GOVERNOR SEVIER. 199 
 
 both mental and physical, required of him in tlic per- 
 formance of his olTicial duties, Jackson determined to 
 resign the judgeship ; but, when his intentions became 
 pubHo, he was urged, in such flattering terms, to aban- 
 don his design, in a communication addressed to him by 
 some of the most prominent citizens of the state, and a 
 large number of the members of the Legislature, that 
 he consented to remain in the office. 
 
 In 1801, an election was hold by the brigadiers and 
 field-officers of Major General Conway's division, to 
 fill the vacancy occasioned by his death. Andrew 
 Jackson, and John Sevier, formerly governor of the 
 state, were competitors for the office ; and the vote was 
 equally divided between them. The appointment then 
 devolved upon Governor Roane, who wisely conferred it 
 on Andrew Jackson. 
 
 Governor Sevier was connected, to some extent, with 
 a combination of land jobbers at Nashville, associated 
 together for the purpose of manufacturing fraudulent 
 grants of land, which Jackson had aided in breaking up. 
 This circumstance, and the preference of Governor 
 Roane, rendered him a most implacable enemy and op- 
 ponent. In 1803, he was a candidate for re-election as 
 governor, and in the course of the canvass, his antipa- 
 thy towards Judge Jackson, was imbibed by his party 
 friends. This was particularly the case in East Ten- 
 nessee. In the fall, the Judge proceeded to Jones- 
 borough, to hold his court; and, having been taken se- 
 riously ill on the road, he retired to his room, immc- 
 diately after his arrival, and lay down on the bed. In 
 a few moments he was waited on by a friend, who 
 bcirged him to lock his door — informinc; him that a large 
 
200 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 mob had collected, under a Colonel Harrison, and loudly 
 threatened to tar and feather him. Jackson declined 
 securing his door, but throwing it wide open, sent his 
 fi-iend to Colonel Harrison, with the message, that ho 
 was ready to receive him and his party, whenever they 
 chose to wait on him, and that he hoped the colonel's 
 chivalry would induce him to lead his men, and not fol- 
 low them. — This bold message operated like a charm ; 
 the mob dispersed ; Colonel Harrison apologized for his 
 conduct, and thereafter remained on good terms with 
 Jaclison. 
 
 The next court held by the latter, was at Knoxville, 
 where the Legislature were then in session. They had 
 just investigated the land frauds, of which mention has 
 been made, and had found some evidence tendinsf to 
 implicate Governor Sevier. His excellency evinced a 
 great deal of exasperation, and on leaving the court- 
 house, on the first day of the term. Judge Jackson 
 found a large crowd gathered in front of the building, 
 in the midst of which was Governor Sevier, with a 
 sword in his hand, haranguing them in a violent man- 
 ner. An altercation ensued between them, in which 
 the governor was the aggressor, and the Judge sent him 
 a challenge. This was accepted, but the governor failed 
 to give the promised meeting, and Jackson at once pub- 
 lished him in the usual form. A second meeting was 
 then appointed to take place, though without any formal 
 arransfement. 
 
 Jackson repaired to the designated spot, but the gov- 
 ernor failed to meet him. After v/aiting two days, he 
 set out to return to Knoxville, but had proceeded only 
 a short distance, when he encountered Governor Sevier, 
 
RETIRES TO PRIVATE LIFE. 201 
 
 escorted by about twenty men, and armed with a brace 
 of pistols and a sword. His friend in.stant!y bore a 
 challenge to the governor, who refused to receive it. 
 Jackson was provided with a brace of pistols and a 
 cane. On the return of his friend, with the insulting 
 message of the governor, he levelled his cane, as the 
 knight, in olden times, couched his spear in the rest, 
 and dashed furiously upon his opponent. The latter 
 hastily dismounted, in order to avoid the shock, but, in 
 so doing, trode on the scabbard of his sword, and was 
 thus rendered incapable of resistance. In the gover- 
 nor's escort there were mutual friends of both parties, 
 who interfered to prevent any further collision, and 
 Jackson accompanied them back to Knoxville. 
 
 Although Jackson was always prompt to defend 
 himself from insult or i^jur3^ these altercations and 
 disputes were by no means congenial to his spirit, and, 
 anticipating their more frequent recurrence, for the 
 reason that a number of cases, growing out of the 
 fraudulent land sales, were about to be brought before 
 him for decision, he concluded to retire from the bench ; 
 and his resignation was accepted by the I^egislature, on 
 the twenty-fourth of July, 1804, about six years after 
 his original appointment. 
 
 Previous to his resignation of the judgeship, the ser- 
 vices of General Jackson, in a military capacity, were 
 invoked by the General Government, in consequence 
 of the threatening aspect of its relations with Spain, 
 who had taken umbrage at the purchase of Louisiana 
 from France. Preparations were made to reinforce 
 General Wilkinson, then at Natchez, at the head of a 
 email force, with fifteen hundred men from the upper 
 
 9* 
 
202 ANDREAV JACKSON. 
 
 country, including five hundred cavalry from Tennessee. 
 In October, 1803, General Jackson was requested to 
 procure, witliout delay, a sufficient number of boats to 
 transport the troops to New Orleans, and to keep them 
 in readiness. The request was complied with ; the 
 boats were procured ; and the general tendered his ser- 
 vices to the government if they should be needed. 
 
 The firmness, caution, and prudence, of Jefferson, 
 rendered a resort to arms unnecessary ; and in Feb- 
 ruary, 1804, General Jackson sold the boats prepared 
 for the expedition down the IMississippi. After resign- 
 ing the office of judge, General .Jackson retired to a 
 plantation on the Cumberland, which he had purchased ; 
 to enjoy, what he had long coveted, the quiet scenes of 
 domestic life, its gentleness and tranquillity, and the 
 society of his devoted wife. His fortune was not large, 
 but amply sufficient to satisfy his wants. He de- 
 voted most of his time to superintending the labor on 
 his plantation, setting an example of methodical indus- 
 try, and carefiil economy, worthy of general imitation, 
 and often wielding the axe, or guiding the plougli, with 
 his own hands. Fond of society, and frank and gene- 
 rous by nature, ho was distinguished far and wide for 
 his hospitality ; and it was remarked of him, that, 
 " though he was a private citizen, he was the most 
 public man in Tennessee." 
 
 He was passionately fond of fine horses, and took 
 every pains to improve his stock, by importations from 
 the Atlantic States. Like other planters around him, 
 he brought his favorite animals out upon tiie race- 
 courses, and, though not a sportsman, in the ordinary 
 acceptation of the term, made many a venture upon 
 
HOSTILK MEETliNG W iT!l DICKINSON. 203 
 
 their relative speed. A circnmstance of this kind gave 
 rise to a most unfortunate affair : 
 
 A match race was agreed upon by hiin, and a Mr. 
 Erwin and his son-in-law, Charles Diclcinson, between 
 their two horses, for a wager of two thousand dollars, 
 with a forfeiture of eight hundred dollars, to be paid in 
 cash notes. Erwin and Dickinson subsequently chose 
 to pay the forfeit, and withdraw their horse. Some 
 difficulty arose in regard to the character of the notes 
 offered, but it was finally adjusted, to the apparent 
 satisfaction of all parties. But the enemies of Jackson 
 were anxious that he should fight a duel with Dickinson, 
 who was- reputed to be the best shot in the country. 
 Through them, the dispute was revived. Several pub- 
 lications appeared in the newspapers, Dickinson grew 
 more and more insulting, and at length made a direct 
 imputation of cowardice. Jackson could endure his 
 provocations no longer, and on the twenty-third of 
 PiTay, 1806, sent him a challenge. It was accepted by 
 Dickinson, and the meeting was arranged to take place 
 at Harrison's ?vlilis, Kentucky, on the thirtieth instant. 
 
 Dickinson spent the intervening time in practicing ; 
 frequently boasting how often he had hit his opponent 
 chalked out on a tree, and offering to bet that he would 
 kill him. This was reported to General Jackson, and 
 the effect on his excitable temperament may be imag- 
 ined. The parties met, as had been agreed on. At 
 the word, Dickinson fired, and the dust was seen to 
 fly from the clothes of his antagonist. Jackson fired 
 the next instant, and the other fell mortally wounded. 
 
 The steadiness of nerve exhibited by General Jack- 
 son on this occasion has often been the subject of com- 
 
204 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 mendation, even with those who condemned the prac- 
 tice, then not only tolerated, but actually encouraged, 
 by nearly all classes and parties, in the section of coun- 
 try in which he resided. It afterwards appeared, that 
 he was himself severely wounded, at the time he fired; 
 but his feelings had been so wrought upon, and the 
 ardency of his temper was such, that he was insensible 
 to physical suffering, and he declared to a friend, that 
 he would have killed Dickinson, if he had been shijt 
 through the brain ! 
 
 Several years later, — in the summer of 1813, — Gen- 
 eral Jackson was concerned in an affray with Colonel 
 Thomas H. Benton^, so well and widely known, for 
 many successive years, as a Senator in Congress, from 
 the State of Missouri. The former had acted as the 
 second of Governor Carroll, in a duel with a brother of 
 Colonel Benton, which, the latter tliought, was incon- 
 sistent with the friendly relations existing between 
 himself and the general. An angry correspondence 
 passed ; bitter recriminations were made on both sides ; 
 and they afterwards encountered each other, and in- 
 terchanged shots, at a public house in Nashville. In 
 the affray. General Jackson's left arm was shattered 
 by a pistol shot, and he v.^as confined to his room for 
 several weeks. The imbittered feelings engendered 
 during the progress of this controversy, were cherished 
 for many years after the encounter, but they were sub- 
 sequently entirely allayed ; and wh'en General Jackson 
 became President of the United States, he had no firmer 
 supporter, or warmer friend, than Colonel Benton. 
 
 These personal controversies and altercations have 
 been mentioned here, not because they afford valuable 
 
AARON BURR. 205 
 
 examples wortliy, at this day, of imitation, but rather, 
 for the reason, that they are not more iUnstrative of 
 Jackson's nice sense of lionor, his stern will, and his 
 indomitable courage, than of the rude state of society 
 in which he lived. If, like General Wavne, he mani- 
 fested " a constitutional attachment to the decision of 
 the sM'ord," he, too, had a warm and generous heart ; 
 and, though like the aroused lion, when he felt himself 
 the object of wrong or injustice, no man possessed more 
 of the gentler and softer affections of our natures. As 
 Sir Walter Scott said of the Covenanter : " His faults 
 were those of his times and associates, his virtues were 
 eminently his own." 
 
 Aaron Burr made his first appearance in the western 
 country, prior to the completion of his arrangements for 
 his mysterious expedition, in the spring of 1805, and, 
 on two occasions, during the summer, spent several 
 diiys in the family of General Jackson. The people of 
 Tennessee, like all the residents in the valley of the 
 Mississippi, were exceedingly hostile to the Spaniards ; 
 and so long as Burr was supposed to be concerned in 
 making arransfements for the invasion of Mexico, in 
 the event of a war with Spain, General Jackson, with 
 most of the influential citizens of that section, warmly 
 seconded his projects. In 1806, Burr returned to the 
 west and began his preparations. In the fall, the sus- 
 picions of General Jackson were awakened, and the 
 friendly intercourse between them entirely ceased. 
 Whatever may have been the designs of Burr, he dared 
 not reveal them to General Jackson, though he ever 
 entertained a high opinion of him, and always men- 
 tioned him in terms of respect. His patriotism was 
 
206 AXDREW JACK30^^ 
 
 much too earnest and sincere to be tempted ; and, not- 
 withstanding his previous intiraacy with Burr, the 
 speciiil agent dispatched by the President to secure the 
 arrest of the latter, was directed to 'call on him, with 
 instructions to order oat a military force, if necessary. 
 General Jackson promptly ordered out twelve compa- 
 nies, but Burr had already left the mouth of the Cum- 
 berland, and was on his way down the Mississippi ; 
 and on ascertaining this fact, he dismissed his troops, 
 and reported his proceedings to the government. 
 
 Not long after General Jackson retired to private 
 life, he entered into partnership with a merchant in 
 Nashville. For a time their business appeared to be 
 prosperous ; Jackson took no active j'sart in its manage- 
 ment, but trusted everything to his associate. Some 
 slight circumstances nt length aroused his fears, and, 
 upon examination, he found that the firm was not only 
 insolvent, but that their liabilities exceeded their as- 
 sets, by many thousand dollars. But one course — that 
 dictated by honor anJ right — could bo pursued. He 
 instantly closed the business, sold his fine plantation 
 wdiere he lived, paid off t'.ie debts of the firm, and re- 
 moved to a log cabin on another plantation, to begin 
 the world anew. By the exercise of strict economy 
 and prudence, in a few years he once more gathered 
 around him the fruits of prosperous industry. 
 
 In 1811, General Jackson had occasion to visit 
 Natchez, to bring up a number of negroes, who had 
 become his property as the surety of a friend, or be- 
 longed to a nephew; and, on reaching the station of 
 the Choctaw agency, along which the road passed, he 
 found seven or eight families of emigrants, and two 
 
■VVAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 207 
 
 members of the Mississippi Legislative Council, whom 
 the agent had detained, upon tlie pretence that it was 
 necessary to have passports from the governor of Mis- 
 sissippi Territory,' Justly indignant at this outrage, 
 Jackson demanded what right he had to stop American 
 citizens who were travelling on a public road. The agent 
 replied, in a sharp tone, by inquiring whether he had 
 a pass? "Yes, sir," said the general, warmly; "I 
 always carry mine with me : — I am a free-born Ameri- 
 can citizen ; and that, under the constitution and laws, 
 is my passport to go wherever my business calls me !" 
 He tjien told the emigrants to gear up their wagons, 
 and if any one attempted to obstruct them, to shoot 
 him down. He himself set the example, and proceeded 
 on his journey, utterly regardless of the threats of the 
 agent. 
 
 Upon his return from Natchez, he was informed that 
 the agent had collected fifty white men, and one hun- 
 dred Indians, and intended to stop him unless he pro- 
 duced a passport. On approaching the station, he 
 armed his blacks with clubs and axes, and directed 
 them to regard no order unless it emanated from him. 
 The agent was at first inclined to stop him, but, being 
 overawed by his firm and determined manner, made no 
 attempt to oppose him. He afterwards reported the 
 conduct of the oflicer to the President, and he was re- 
 moved from the agency. 
 
 The period now arrived which Jackson had long an- 
 ticipated. — War was declared against the enemy of 
 his country and his race, on the eighteenth of June, 
 1812. It is easy to conceive the emotions which the 
 intelligence must have awakened in his bosom. Recol- 
 
208 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 lections of the past came rushing and thronging into his 
 mind. The cycles of Time rolled backward. Again 
 he stood upon the threshold of his desolate home, — on 
 " the forest-clad banks of the Catawba," — orphaned by 
 the cruelty of British officers and agents. Let him 
 not be reproached, if motives of revenge quickened and 
 sharpened his patriotism. His desire for vengeance was 
 almost holy in its character — it was based on fraternal 
 a.ffection, on filial love I 
 
 When the tocsin of war was sounded, the glad, pro- 
 longed echoes, came up from every valley and hamlet ; 
 but in no quarter of the country was the response more 
 enthusiastic, than in the valley of the Mississippi. Gen- 
 eral Jackson immediately issued a stirring address to 
 his division, twenty-live hundred men of which volun- 
 teered to follovv^ wheresoever he saw fit to lead them. 
 A tender of their services was made to the President, 
 through Governor Blount, on the twenty-fifth of 
 June, which was accepted on the eleventh of July. 
 No immediate duty being required of the patriotic 
 volunteers belonging to his division. General Jackson 
 became impatient to participate in the struggle, and 
 solicited the appointment of brigadier general in the 
 regular army, which v/as conferred on General Win- 
 chester. Could President Madison have foreseen the 
 sad catastrophe that occurred on the banks of the Rai- 
 sin, in the following January ; or had he possessed any 
 correct idea of tiie military qualifications of General 
 Jackson, we may well sujiposo that the latter would 
 have been his choice. 
 
 An opportunity, however, was soon presented to Jack- 
 son, for taking the field. On the first of November, 
 
EXPEDITION TO NATCHEZ. 209 
 
 Governor Blount issued an order, in conformity with a 
 requisition from the War Department, directing him 
 to organize and equip fifteen hundred infantry and 
 riflemen, with whom he was instructed to descend the 
 river to New Orleans, and reinforce General Wilkinson, 
 then commanding that department. The necessary 
 j)roclamation was issued, and, on the tenth of Decem- 
 ber, upwards of two thousand men rendezvoused at 
 Nashville, many of whom had come miles upon miles, 
 through cold, and sleet, and snow, undaunted by the 
 rigors of the climate, and intent only on obeying the 
 call of their country. On the thirteenth instant, the . 
 organization of the command, which consisted of one 
 regiment of cavalry, not embraced in the requisition, 
 but enrolled with the consent of Governor Blount, un- 
 der Colonel Coffee, and two regiments of infantry, 
 under Colonels Hall and T. H. Benton, was fully com- 
 pleted. 
 
 Numerous diliiculties were yet to be encountered 
 before the troops could be put in motion. Arms had 
 been sparingly furnished by the government, and funds 
 fur tlie payment of the men had not been provided. 
 Discontents naturally arose, and a mutiny was threat- 
 ened. The firmness and determination of General 
 Jackson prevented any outbreak, and his energy and 
 perseverance ultimately overcame every obstacle. On 
 the thirty-first of De(5ember, Colonel Coffee commenced 
 his march with the mounted men, six hundred and 
 seventy strong, by the overland route, to Natchez. On 
 the seventh and eighth of January, 1813, General Jack- 
 son embarked on the Cumberland, in flat boats, with 
 the two infantry regiments, nurnlsering about fourteen 
 
210 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 hundred. Doscendincj the rivers slowly, — his pro!jrcss ; 
 being constantly impeded by large masses of floating 
 ice, — he reached Natciiez on the fifteenth of February, 
 near which he found the cavalry under Colonel Coffoe. 
 At this point, General Jackson was met by a request 
 from General Wilkinson, whose headquarters were at 
 New Orleans, to halt his command, and report io him 
 his force and instructions. Wilkinson held the rank of 
 brigadier general in the regular army, with the brevet 
 of major general ; and it is not unlikely, that he sus- 
 pected it was the intention of the government, that 
 Jackson should svipersede him. His request, doubtless, 
 was prompted by this apjirehension. As there was no 
 indication of an attack on New Orleans, Jackson cheer- 
 fully complied with it.' Natchez was a much more 
 salubrious position for his trooyjs, and having disem- 
 barked them, he marched to Washington, a kv/ miles 
 distant, where a cantonment had been previously estab- 
 lished by a corps of regulars. The troops vrere placed 
 in comfortable quarters, and a strong guard was de- 
 tailed to protect the boats at Natchez. 
 
 Camp regulations were now adopted, and strict orders 
 issued by the commanding general, to proceed with the 
 discipline and instruction of the troops. Becoming ini- 
 ])atient for active duty, he wrote to the Secretary of 
 War on the first of I\Iarch, suggesting the employment 
 of his force on the northern iron tier, if there was no 
 pro.spect of invasion in the south, or if Congress did not 
 authorize the taking pos.session of Florida. This sug- 
 gestion was repeated in a second letter written on the 
 seventh of March. Before these letters reached Wash- 
 ington, an order had been issued from the War Depart- 
 
RETURN HOME. 211 
 
 ment, directing him, on the receipt thereof, to consider 
 his force dismissed from the service, and to take meas- 
 ures for the dehvery of all articles of public property in 
 his possession, to Cleneral Wilkinson. This unfechng 
 mandate concluded with a cold tender of thanks to 
 himself and the corps under his command. 
 
 Jackson was fairly astounded at the blow. His 
 whole command, officers and men, joined in denoimcing, 
 in unmeasured terms, the Secretary of War, General 
 Armstrong, by whom the order was issued. He was 
 still more indignant, when he discovered the probable 
 key to the movement, in a letter from General Wilkin- 
 son, who suggested his encouraging the regular recruit- 
 ing service from the troops he commanded, " in an 
 appropriate general order." Jackson did no such thing ; 
 — but, when a recruiting officer made his appearance, 
 informed him that if he attempted to seduce a single 
 volunteer from the corps, he would drum him out of 
 the camp. 
 
 The patriotic volunteers who had accompanied Gen- 
 eral Jaclvson to Natchez were mostly young men — the 
 flower of West Tennessee — the sons and brothers of his 
 dearest friends and neighbors. The order he had re- 
 ceived, required him to abandon these men, who looked 
 up to him as a parent, in a strange land, five hundred 
 miles from their homes ; to deprive them of their arms, 
 their tents and provisions ; and to leave the sick uncared 
 for, and unattended. This he could not, and did not do. 
 He immediately wrote to the Secretary of War, de- 
 nouncing his order, in no very honied Avords, and to the 
 President, complaining of its barbarity, and giving his 
 reasons for partially disregarding it. The necessary 
 
212 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 orders were then given to provide wagons and supplies ; 
 the men were directed to retain their arms ; he borrowed 
 five thousand dollars of a merchant in Natchez, on his 
 own responsibility, to make up deficiencies ; and, as 
 soon as everything could be got in readiness, set out on 
 his return march with his whole command, — declaring 
 that not a single man should be left behind, " who had 
 any life in him." 
 
 Two hundred miles of the route lay through the 
 Choctaw and Cliickasaw country, and the only essential 
 service rendered by the expedition was this homeward 
 march, which overawed the Indians, and deterred them 
 from joining the hostile Creeks and Cherokees. — Jack- 
 son paid every attention to the comfort of his soldiers, 
 up to tl)e last moment, strictly fulfilHng his solemn 
 pledge not to abandon one of them. Frequently he 
 gave up his own horse to the sick, or exhausted .soldier, 
 and trudged along on foot, cheering all by his example, 
 and ever ready with a kind word, to encourage those 
 who faltered. 
 
 Deeply chagrined though he was, at the result of the 
 expedition to Natchez, General Jackson was still anx- 
 ious to take part in the active scenes of the war. The 
 disasters on the northern frontier in ISI'2, and the fail- 
 ure of the projected winter campaign under Harrison, 
 in consequence of the incautious advance of General 
 Winchester to Frenclitown, had produced a deep im- 
 pression on his mind. His proud spirit smarted under 
 the discredit of defeat ; and, on the eighth of April, 
 when on his way home, lie wrote to the Secretary of 
 War, informing him that he should be glad to execute 
 any orders of the government in Canada, with his de- 
 
CESSION OF LOUISIANA. 213 
 
 tachment, which conkl be auj^mented, if necessary. " 1 
 have a few standards," said he, " wearing the Ameri- 
 can eagle, that T should be happy to place upon the 
 ramparts of INIalden." 
 
 About the middle of I\Iay, the Tennessee volunteers 
 Fcached home and were discharged. The Secretary of 
 "War informed General Jackson that the order to dis- 
 miss his force was desimied to reach him at Fort Mas- 
 sac, near the mouth of the Cumberland ; it being sup- 
 posed that he had not yet moved down the river. Though 
 this explanation appeared inconsistent with the orders 
 at the same time issued to General Wilkinson, its sin- 
 cerity was not questioned by General Jackson. It was 
 sulHcient for him that his conduct was sanctioned by 
 the government, and that he was relieved from the pe- 
 cuniary responsibilities he had incurred. 
 
 Within a few months after his return from Natchez, 
 General Jackson was again called from his retirement, 
 to lead a large body of troops into the Indian country 
 on the southern borders of Tennessee. 
 
 By the treaty of San Ildefonso, concluded on the 
 first day of October, 1800, Louisiana was ceded by the 
 Spanish government to the French republic. The ter- 
 ritorial rights thereby acquired, were transferred to the 
 United States, by a treaty concluded at Paris, on the 
 thirtieth of April, 1803. Spain was highly incensed 
 iat the assignment of the territory, and threw every 
 [possible obstacle in the way of its occupation by the 
 authorities of the United States. For a long; time .she 
 'refused absolutely, to yield up a large tract of country 
 lying between the Perdido and Mississippi rivers, upon 
 the pretence that it belonged to Florida. 
 
214 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 During the war on the European continent, a com- 
 munity of feeling and interest was established between 
 Spain and England ; and it was only by the assistance 
 and cooperation of British fleets and armies, that Fer- 
 dinand VII was able finally to preserve his throne. 
 When hostilities commenced between the United States 
 and Great Britain, — though solemnly bound by the pro- 
 visions of a treaty concluded v/ith the former, in 1795, 
 to restrain the Indians on the frontiers of Florida, 
 by force, from attacking American citizens, — Spain, 
 through her officers, permitted British agents sent from 
 Canada, to establish themselves at the posts belonging 
 to, or occupied by her, and countenanced, or connived 
 at, their efforts to stir up the savages to begin an exter- 
 rainatino; warfare. 
 
 The principal Indian nations in the southern part of the 
 Union were the Cherokees, Creeks, Choctaws, and Chick- 
 asaws. The two last mentioned tribes, together about 
 thirty-five thousand strong, resided on the Yazoo, Pearl, 
 and Pascagoula rivers, in the Territory of Mississippi ; 
 and after the occupation of Louisiana, and the march of 
 General Jackson through their country, with his largo 
 army, on his return from Natchez, they could not be 
 induced to take up arms against the Americans. The 
 Cherokees, also, who occupied the mountainous coun- 
 try, where the two Carolinas, Georgia, Tennessee, and 
 Alabama, — the last a part of jMississippi Territory at 
 the time of which I am speaking, — adjoin, or approach 
 each other, with the exception of a very small portion 
 of the younger members of the tribe, remained on 
 i'rientlly terms with their white neighbors. The Creeks, 
 numbering near twenty-five thousand, inhabited the 
 
THE SOL'THERX INDIANS. 215 
 
 fertile and beautiful Auloclicwan country ; their set- 
 tlements extending from the Gulf of INIexico to the 
 Tennessee river, and from the Chatahoochee to the 
 Tonibigbee, in the centre of which was the famous 
 Hickory Ground, a rich tract of land lying in tlie forks 
 01 the Coosa and Tallapoosa, which its aboriginal occu- 
 pants, from time immemorial, held peculiarly sacred. 
 Besides these tribes, there was the Seminole band, an 
 olT-shoot of the Creeks, who had their homes, in the 
 swamps and hummocks on the borders of Georgia and 
 Florida. 
 
 The Creeks and Seminoles, from their situation, in 
 the vicinity of St. Augustine, St. Marks, Pensacola, 
 and Fort Conde, were rendered particularly liable to 
 be influenced by the British agents at those posts. In 
 the winter of 1811-12, Tecumseh visited the Creeks, 
 and exhorted them earnestly to dig up the hatchet. 
 After his departure, prophets arose among them, who 
 practiced the same rites and incantations with the bro- 
 ther of the Shawano Chief, and, like him, professed to 
 have received important revelations from the Great 
 Spirit.* The older and wiser Vv^arriors were exceed- 
 ingly averse to war, but, through the influence and 
 machinations of British and Spanish officers who at- 
 tended their councils, they were overruled by the 
 younger and more ambitious spirits of the tribe. 
 
 Soon after war vras declared, the Seminoles com- 
 menced their depredations ; but in the following winter, 
 I a body of Georgia militia, with two hundred volun- 
 teers from East Tennessee, followed them into Florida, 
 burned several of their towns, and returned home again 
 * See Memoir of Geaeral HarrUon. ante. 
 
216 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 in the spring of 1813. Matters were not yet ripe for a 
 general outbreak, althovigh it was confidently antici- 
 pated, as English vessels were known to be sent from 
 tiie Bahamas to Florida, laden with arms, clothing, and 
 ammunition, for the hostile Indians. In January, 1813, 
 President Madison requested autliority from Congress, 
 to take possession of the territory claimed by Spain, 
 lying west of the Perdido. After some delay, an act 
 was passed, and on the fifteenth of April, General Wil- 
 kinson appeared before Fort Conde, near Mobile, and 
 demanded its surrender. The Spanish commandant 
 made no resistance, and the American standard was for 
 the first time planted in the disputed territory. Other 
 prominent points in the vicinity of Mobile were also 
 occupied by the American troops. 
 
 Occasionnl outrages were committed during the sum- 
 mer of 1813, and the white settlers residing in the 
 neighborhood of the Creeks and Seminoles lived in a 
 state of constant alarm and agitation. On the fifteenth 
 of August, Governor Blount, of Tennessee, was di- 
 rected to detail fifteen hundred of the militia of that 
 state, and hold them in readiness for immediate ser- 
 vice. These troops were not called out, however ; and 
 as time wore on without the occurrence of any .serious 
 calamity, the border inhabitants began to fancy them- 
 selves almost secure from attack. They were soon 
 aroused from their lethargy, by the glare of burning 
 villages, and the rattling war-cry of the Indian warrior. 
 
 On the thirtieth day of August, 1813, Fort Mims, 
 about forty miles from Mobile, on the left bank of the 
 Alabama river, and a short distance above its junction 
 with the Tombigbee, was surprised by a party of Creeks, 
 
V/AR VmU Tire CRKEKS. 217 
 
 s&vcn hundred strong, under their chief, "Weatherford ; 
 the garrison, consisting of one hundred and fifty of the 
 1st Mississippi volunteers, under Major Beasely, and 
 twenty white families \yho had taken rqfuge in the fort, 
 with their negroes, in all about three hundred and fifty 
 persons, were cruelly massacred. But seventeen of 
 the whites made their escape. The perpetration of 
 tliis horrid tragedy excited tlie utmost consternation at 
 the forts and stations on the Tombigbee, of which there 
 were nearly twenty within a distance of seventy miles 
 above Fort Stoddart. Most of the forts were aban- 
 doned, and the affrighted fugitives fled down the river 
 to Mobile, which was itself extremely insecure. ^, 
 
 General Claiborne, and Governor Holmes of the 
 Mississippi Territory, immediately called out a small 
 militia force, — all that it was in their power to bring 
 into the field, — for the protection of the Mobile coun- 
 try. In Tennessee, the alarm was universal, and the 
 whole population were aKOUsed. But little aid could 
 be expected from the General Government, all whose 
 means and energies v/ere employed in the prosecution 
 of the northern campaign, and the defence of the At- 
 lantic coast from the ravages of the more civilized, but 
 not less brutal enemy. A public meeting of the citi- 
 zens of Nashville was held on the eighteenth of Sep- 
 tember, at which resolutions were passed, urgently 
 recommending the adoption, by the State Ijegislature, 
 of prompt measures for the invasion of the Creek 
 country. In accordance therewith, an act was passed 
 Oil the twenty-fifth instant, authorizing the governor 
 to call out tbirty-five hundred men, in addition to the 
 fifteen hundred already required by the General Goy-. 
 
 10 
 
218 AlVDREW JACKSON. 
 
 ernment, who were to be immediately put in service, 
 and pledging the faith of the state to pay them, if 
 Congress should refuse. A resolution was also adopted 
 on the twenty-seventh instant, directing the governor to 
 tender the services of the Tennessee troops to the United 
 States. 
 
 The public sentiment, with one accord, fixed upon 
 Andrew Jackson as the leader of this force. He was 
 still confined to his room, on account of the arm frac- 
 tured in the affray with Colonel Benton, which has been 
 mentioned ; but when his country called him to the 
 field, he was ready to obey her behest. On the twenty- 
 fourth of September, Governor Blount directed him to 
 call out, vvithout delay, two thousand men of his divi- 
 sion, to rendezvous at Fayetteville, — and to order Colo- 
 nel Coffee into immediate service, with five hundred 
 cavalry previously raised. The necessary instructions 
 were issued, on the same day, to Colonel Coffee, v,'!io 
 was further instructed, to incorporate with his regi- 
 ment any companies of volunteer riflemen that might 
 present themselves. He also ordered into service the 
 volunteers who had accompanied him to Natchez, to- 
 gether with one thousand militia from his division. 
 
 On the twenty-fifth of September, General Jack- 
 son directed a part of the cavalry to repair to Hunts- 
 ville, by forced marches. On the twenty-sixth, Colonel 
 Cofiee was ordered to move upon tlie same point and 
 wait further orders, and on the twenty-eiglith, he was 
 instructed to proceed to Fort St. Stephen's which was 
 said to be threatened by the enemy. Tiie state of his 
 health did not permit the general to appear at Fayette- 
 ville on the fourth, of October, the day appointed for 
 
TROOPS IN THE FIELD. 219 
 
 the rendezvous ; but he was represented on that oeca- 
 sion, by his aid, Major Reid, through whom he deliv- 
 ered to the assembled troops a most eloquent and 
 sjiirited address. On the seventh instant he reached 
 the place of rendezvous, with his arm in a sling, where 
 he found a dispatch from Colonel Coffee, who had 
 marched a short distance beyond Huntsville, with near 
 thirteen hundred men, informing him that the Creeks 
 had divided their forces,— one portion moving towards 
 the Georgia line, and the other advancing vipon the 
 frontiers of Tennes.see, — and that, in consequence of 
 this, he had not proceeded to Fort St. Stephen's. 
 
 It had been generally supposed that the next blow 
 would be struck at Mobile — more particularly, because 
 of the facilities which would have been afforded to the 
 Indians, by its possession, of communicating with their 
 British allies ; but the report of Colonel Coffee allayed 
 all the fears that had been entertained in recfard to the 
 safety of that post. Relieved on this point. General 
 Jackson commenced his preparations for taking the 
 field. Delay, however brief, was hardly admissible, as 
 he desired to terminate the campaign by a few bold 
 and decisive movements, but it was necessary, in order 
 to furnish the volunteers and militia, who had rendez- 
 voused at Fayetteville, with the requisite arms and 
 supplies. 
 
 The hostile Creeks, or Red Sticks, numbered only 
 about four thousand warriors, and they were now sur- 
 rounded by an American force large enough, had it 
 been properly provided, and directed by a single com- 
 mander, like General Jackson, to have driven them into 
 the Gulf of Mexico, or exterminated them in a very 
 
230 ANDREW JACKSOIf. 
 
 few weeks. On the wes^t of their settlements, there 
 were six hundred Mississippi volunteers, under General 
 Claiborne ; the 3rd regiment of regular infantry, six 
 huzidred strong, under Colonel Russell; and two hun- 
 dred militia, at Fort St. Stephen's. On the north, 
 were the Tennessee volunteers and militia, five thou- 
 sand in number, — twenty-five hundred from West Ten- 
 nessee, with General Jackson in person, and twenty- 
 five hundred from East Tennessee, under Generals 
 Cocke and White, — all under the orders of General 
 Jackson ; and in addition to these, there was a force 
 of two hundred Mississippi volunteers, near Hunts- 
 ville, under Colonel Perkins. On the east were 
 twenty-five hundred Georgia militia, commanded by 
 General Floyd. Besides the troops mentioned, there 
 was a body of Cherokees and friendly Creeks, some- 
 times with one party and sometimes with another, and 
 varying, at ditrerent times, from one or two, to seven 
 or eight hundred. 
 
 Had they not been grossly deceived and deluded by 
 their prophets, the Creeks could never have hoped to 
 accomplish anything against this formidable array. 
 Indeed, they seem to have been strangely infatuated 
 throughout ; for, instead of concentrating their whole 
 force in an attack on Mobile, or the Mississippi or 
 Georgia troops, neither of whom were yet fully pre- 
 pared for the field, they advanced with their main 
 body, weakened by a detachment sent towards the 
 frontiers of Georgia, against the column under Gen- 
 eral Jackson, who was ready to meet them at any 
 odds, and determined to defeat, when lie did meet 
 them. It is not probable that the British agents who 
 
DESIGNS OF THE BRITISH. 221 
 
 instigated the Creeks to hostilities, anticipated that the 
 latter would achieve any certain success. They only 
 supposed that the savages would hold the Americans 
 at bay, until a British army could be brought to suc- 
 cor them. The resistless energy and perseverance of 
 General Jackson, defeated any such project. Long 
 before England was able to dispatch a considerable 
 force to the Gulf, he had fallen upon the Creeks like a 
 thunderbolt, scattered their warriors, who escaped the 
 deadly aim of his rifles, like chaff before the wind, 
 spread terror and devastation through their settle- 
 ments, and forced them, as suppliants, humbly to beg 
 for peace. 
 
 About one o'clock in the morning of the eleventh of 
 October, an express from Colonel Coffee, — who had 
 crossed the Tennessee river south of Huntsville, at 
 Ditto's Landing, and posted his command on a high 
 bluff on the opposite shore, — arrived at Fayetteville, 
 with the information that the Red Sticks were rapidly 
 approaching his position. Jackson instantly replied, 
 that he woufd be on the march to reinforce him, in 
 two hours. It had been sometime before understood, 
 between General Jackson and General Cocke, that the 
 latter would send supplies down the river, from East 
 Tennessee, where provisions were abundant, to meet 
 the other column at Ditto's Landing. Hoping, rather 
 than believing, that he would be supplied with pro- 
 visions, in- sufficient quantities, if he advanced into 
 the enemy's country, Jackson ordered all his disposa- 
 ble force under arms, and left Fayetteville early in the 
 morning of the eleventh. 
 
 Rumors of Indian massacres and outrages reached 
 
222 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 the command at every stage of their progress. They 
 scarcely halted during the day, and at eight o'clock in 
 the evening were in Huntsville, thirty-two miles dis- 
 tant. Here General Jackson ascertained that the re- 
 port in regard to the advance of the Creeks was not 
 well founded ; and lie therefore concluded to rest his 
 men till the followinsr morninsr, when he resumed his 
 march, and in the evening eft'ected a junction with the 
 troops under Colonel Coffee. 
 
 From the positive assurances contained in letters 
 received from Generals Cocke and White, — the latter 
 of whom had concentrated about eight hundred and 
 fifty men, at Highwassee Garrison, in the Cherokee 
 country, on the fourth of October, — General Jackson 
 was led to believe that he should find ample stores of 
 provisions when he reached the Tennessee river. On 
 the thirteenth of October, he dispatched Colonel Coffee, 
 with six hundred men picked from his regiment, against 
 Blackwarriors' Town, on the Blackwarrior river, about 
 one hundred miles south of Ditto's Landing. Day 
 after day passed by, and still the supplies did not ar- 
 rive. The time was profitably spent, under the cir- 
 cumstances, in drilling the troops, but the delay was, 
 nevertheless, intolerable. Repeated messages were re- 
 ceived from Chenubby, Pathkiller, and other friendly 
 chiefs, informing him that they and their families were 
 liable to be cut off, at any moment, by the Red Sticks, 
 who were collecting in force near the Ten Islands, on 
 the Coosa River, and urging him to hasten to their as- 
 sistance. He at length determined that he would not 
 longer remain inactive. 
 
 As his contemplated route to the Coosa lay, for some 
 
ADVANCE TO THOMPSON'S CKEEK. 223 
 
 distanco, up the Tennessee river, he resolved to advance, 
 lioping to meet the stores which he supposes! were de- 
 scending the stream ; and so confident was he upon this 
 point, that he sent forward expresses to stop them at 
 Thompson's Creek. On the nineteentli of October, ho 
 commenced his march for that point, with scarcely a 
 week's rations on hand, having previously dismissed 
 the former contractors for his army and supplied their 
 places with others. 
 
 He was obliged to cut a road for the passage of his 
 wagon train through dense forests, and over almost 
 impassable mountains ; but he only smiled at obstacles 
 when he possessed the means to overcome them. On 
 the twenty-second instant, he arrived at Thompson's 
 Creek, but it was only to be again disa])pointed. No 
 supplies were to be found, and nothing could be heard 
 of any. Other generals would have given up in despair ; 
 but it was not in his nature to falter. Though envi- 
 roned by dilTicultics, which might well have appalled a 
 braver spirit, he formed the stern resolution to breast 
 them nobly and manfully. To retreat now, would be 
 to abandon the friendly Creeks, of whose danger he was 
 again reminded, by a message from Pathkiller, at Tur- 
 key Town, to their fate, — and to leave the southern 
 frontiers of Tennessee exposed to the ruthless ravages 
 of the savage enemy. Though the hideous monster, 
 Famine, stared him in the face at every step, he re- 
 solved to advance to the Ten Islands, and then sweep 
 down through the country where the hostiles, or Red 
 Sticks, as they were called, in allusion to the emblems 
 which they had adopted, were concentrating, to tlio 
 forks of the Cocsa and Tallapoosa. 
 
224 ANDREW JACKSOX. 
 
 He addressed earnest and importunate letters to the 
 governors of Tennessee and Georgia, to Colonels Meigs 
 and Mclvee, the Cherokee and Choctaw agents, to 
 General Flourney, the commander of the seventh mili- 
 tary district, to the friendly chiefs, and several private 
 citizens of wealth and influence, urging them to leave 
 no means untried to throw forward the necessary sup- 
 plies for his army, and pledging himself, if properly 
 furnished in this respect, to terminate the war in a very 
 fevv^ weeks. While at Thompson's Creek, he received 
 a letter from General White, who had increased his 
 force at Highwassee to about thirteen hundred men, 
 besides one or two hundred friendly Cherokees, inform- 
 ing him that no flour could be spared at that post. He 
 immediately dispatched expresses to Generals Cocke 
 and White, apprising them of the condition of his troops 
 in regard to provisions, and requiring them to join him 
 as soon as possible in the Creek country. 
 
 On the twenty-fourth of October, Colonel Coffee re- 
 turned from his expedition, having destroyed Black- 
 warriors' Town, and captured three hundred bushels 
 of corn, though he had not seen an Indian. The pro- 
 visions of his men were so nearly exhausted, that, 
 during the last four days of their excursion, they were 
 obliged to subsist on parched corn. In the evening of 
 the twenty-fourth, the preparations of General Jackson 
 for a forward movement were completed ; a depot was 
 established at Thompson's Creek, called Fort Deposit, 
 and means provided for forwarding such supjjlics as 
 miglit arrive ; and. on the morning of the twenty-fifth, 
 lie put his army in motion for the interior, marching, 
 as was his invariable custom, in three columns, so ar- 
 
BATTLE OF TALLUSCHATCHEE. 225 
 
 ranged that they could be instantly formed in order of 
 battle, if attacked in front or in rear, or on either flank. 
 
 In two days General Jackson reached Wills' Creek, 
 a tributary of the Coosa, where he encamped till tiio 
 morninir of tlie twenty-ninth, to collect corn from the 
 neighboring Indians, — his army being entirely out of 
 bread. On the twenty-eighth instant, Lieutenant 
 Colonel Dyer was detached with two hundred cavalry, 
 against the village of Littefutchee, which he attacked 
 the following night ; the village was burned ; twenty- 
 nine prisoners were taken ; and considerable corn, and 
 a number of beeves, were collected from the vicinity. 
 While at Wills' Creek, Jackson was again obliged to 
 remove his contractors, and employ others. On the 
 thirtieth instant, he reorganized his troops. General 
 Hall was placed in command of the first brigade, con- 
 sisting of the first and second regiments of volunteer 
 infantry, under Colonels Bradley and Pillow; and 
 General Roberts in command of the second brigade, 
 consisting of the first and second militia regiments, 
 under Colonels Wynne and M'Crory. General Coffee, 
 promoted from colonel, was placed in command of the 
 cavalry brigade, which consisted of the volunteer regi- 
 ment. Colonel Alcorn, and the mounted rifles, Colonel 
 Cannon. 
 
 The march was then resumed for the Ten Islands. 
 While General Jackson was cutting his way over the 
 Coosa mountain, General Coflee was ordered to cross 
 the river, at the fish-dams, with one thousand men of 
 his brigade, to scour the country in the direction of the 
 Ten Islands, and attack the Indian town of Talluschat- 
 chee, about thirteen miles distant, in an easterly direc- 
 
226 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 tion, where a large force of the enemy had collected. 
 The orders issued to General Coffee were gallantly exe- 
 cuted. On the morning of the third of November he 
 approached the town ; the savages in vain attempted to 
 oppose his march ; and they were driven rapidly back 
 upon their buildings, in and about which a fierce and 
 bloody contest took place, that terminated in their 
 complete rout and overthrow. Both men and women 
 fought with the utmost desperation. One hundred and 
 eighty-six of the enemy, including one of their prophets, 
 and a number of women and children, were found dead 
 on the field of battle ; and there were eighty-four taken 
 prisoners, all of whom were women and children. Gen- 
 eral Coffee had live men killed and fourteen wounded. 
 Having destroyed the town and buried his dead, he 
 rejoined the main army, at the Ten Islands, in the eve- 
 ning of the same day, with his wounded and prisoners. 
 Harassed by constant care and anxiety, — exposed, 
 at every turn, to vexatious delays and hindrances, that 
 fretted and annoyed him, — General Jackson never lost 
 that kindness and gentleness of spirit, which bloomed, 
 bright and pure, amid the intenser passions that burned 
 and blazed around it. Among the prisoners taken at 
 Talluschatchee, was an infant boy found clinging to 
 the breast of his dead mother. He was brought to camp 
 with the others, and General Jackson endeavored to 
 hire some of the captive women to take care of him. 
 They refused, saying, " All his relations are dead ; kill 
 him too!" — Jackson then caused him to be fed with 
 sweetened water, and afterwards sent him to Huntsville, 
 where he was nursed at his expense. After the close 
 of the campaign, he took the little orphan, who was 
 
KI.\D.\ESS TO THE ORPHAN. 227 
 
 named Lincoj'-er, home with liim to the Hermitage, 
 where he was reared and educated with parental care 
 and kindness. At a proper age, he was apprenticed to 
 a saddler in Nashville ; but he never lost his Indian 
 tastes. His healtli began to fail before he reached the 
 age of manhood, and he was removed to the Hermitage. 
 He sunk rapidly into a consumption, and soon died, 
 sincerely mourned and lamented by the general and iiis 
 wife, who had watched over his sick bed with untiring 
 assiduity. 
 
 At the Ten Islands, General Jackson established a 
 post, called Fort Strother, on the right bank of the 
 Coosa, opposite the mouth of Talluschatchee creek. 
 The prisoners brought in by General Coflee were forth- 
 with sent to Huntsville. No supplies had yet arrived ; 
 the armv could not be furnished with regular rations ; 
 and it was hardly known, one day, what they were to 
 subsist on the next. Once more the commanding gen- 
 eral appealed to the contractors, by every consideration 
 of humanity and patriotism, to forward the provisions 
 which could alone save his troops from starvation. He 
 likewise again wrote to General White, w'ho had ar- 
 rived at Turkey Town, twenty-five miles above Fort 
 Strother, to join him immediately. His dispatch was 
 written on the seventh of November, and, late in the 
 evening, before it was closed, a runner came in from 
 Lashly's fort, at Talladega, about thirty miles south 
 of Fort Strother, and a short distance east of the Coosa, 
 with the intelligence that a large body of Red Sticks 
 had encamped near that place, which was occupied by 
 friendly Indians, and were preparing to destroy it and 
 the inmates. General Jackson could not hesitate to 
 
22S ANDREW JACKSOIT. 
 
 grant the desired succor. He determined to march 
 fortlnvith ; the urgent circumstances which induced 
 him to advance, were mentioned in the dispat(;h to 
 General White ; and the latter Avas entreated to lose 
 no time in reaching Fort Strother, to protect his depot 
 and cover his rear. 
 
 Marching orders were issued in a few moments after 
 the arrival of the runner, and at midnight General 
 Jackson was on the march for Talladega, with his 
 whole disposable force, consisting of twelve hundred 
 infantry, and eight hundred cavalry and mounted rifles. 
 His sick, wounded, and baggage, were left at Fort 
 Strothcr. Crossing the Coosa in the night, he pressed 
 forward vrith such celerity — officers and men vicing 
 with each other in zeal — that, on the evening of the 
 eighth instant, he encamped within six miles of the 
 fort at Talladega, which was occupied by one hundred 
 and sixty friendly warriors, with their women and 
 children. About midnight the chief Chenubby arrived 
 from Turkey Town, with a letter from General White, 
 informing General Jackson that he had received an 
 order froin his division commander, General Cocke, to 
 join him at Chattooga, higher up the Coosa, and that 
 he could not, therefore, advance to Fort Strothcr. 
 
 Jaclcson's cup of disappointment was almost full. 
 Neither General Cocke, nor General White, wanted 
 in patriotism ; but they seem, more particularly the 
 former, to have been impressed with the belief, that by 
 remaining aloof from General Jackson, they would se- 
 cure a larger share of the honors of the campaign. It 
 seems almost painful to contemplate the struggles of 
 the proud and ambitious spirit constantly thwarted by 
 
BATTLE or TALLADEGA. 229 
 
 their unwise movements. Had they joined him at once, 
 the war would have been brought to a close in a few 
 weeks; but they preferred to linger behind, in safety 
 and security, eating up the provisions' better deserved 
 by those who were enduring the severest fatigues and 
 privations ; and when they recovered from their inac- 
 tivity, and advanced to strike a blow, it proved to be 
 the only unfortunate one of the whole campaign. 
 . The dispatch from General White made no change, 
 however, in the determination of General Jackson. 
 He resolved to dispose of the enemy in his front, ,and 
 then fall back, with all possible speed, to Fort Strother, 
 before the enemy would have time to profit by its de- 
 fenceless condition. The prospect before his troops was 
 disheartening in the extreme ; if they conquered, there 
 would be no food to refresh or rei'nvigorate them ; yet 
 his example inspired them with confidence, and they 
 obeyed his commands without hesitation or reluctance. 
 Long before daylight on the morning of the ninth of 
 November, the army was again in motion. Silently 
 threading their way through the luxuriant forests, 
 winding over the hills, and crossing the rich intervals, 
 that separated them from the enemy, they approached 
 their position. Within a mile, they were halted, and 
 formed in order of battle. The infantry brigades were 
 placed in the centre, — General Hall's on the right, and 
 General Roberts' on the left. They were flanked, on 
 the right, by Colonel Alcorn's volunteer cavalry, and, 
 on the left, by the mounted rifles of Col(jnel Cannon. 
 An advanced corps of riflemen, spies, and artillery, 
 was formed under Colonel Carroll, the inspector gen- 
 
230 
 
 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 eral, and a strong reserve of two hundred and fifty 
 mounted men, under Lieutenant Colonel Dyer. 
 
 At eight o'clock the attack was ordered ; and the 
 whole column moved rapidly forward, all full of ani- 
 mation and enthusiasm. Colonel Carroll preceded the 
 main body, with the advance, having received orders 
 to rouse the enemy from the thicket on the banks of a 
 small rivulet, in which they had concealed themselves, 
 and then to retire towards the centre. The sharp 
 quick report of his rifles, and the hideous yells and 
 screams, soon apprised the remainder of the column 
 that the savages had been started from their cover. 
 Meantime, the infantry regiments, which had pre- 
 viously advanced by heads of companies, had displayed, 
 in accordance with tiie orders of General Jack.son, 
 and tlie cavalrv were extendinii^ themselves, to the 
 right and left, so as to encircle the enemy. The orders 
 issued by the commanding general required the cavalry 
 to keep up their connection with the flanks of the in- 
 fantry. This was neglected on the right, and the plan 
 of attack, which was most skilfully formed, was par- 
 tially defeated by this untoward circumstance. Col- 
 onel Bradley, the otiicer commanding the infantry reg- 
 iment on the right, also halted his men on a rising 
 ground, before he came in contact with the enemy, 
 and the gap was thereby considerably widened. 
 
 When the fronts of the cavalry columns rnet on the 
 further side of the enemy, they faced inwardly, and a 
 general rush was made towards the centre. The In- 
 dians did not appear inclined to fly, at first, but made 
 a bold onset upon the right wing of General Roberts' 
 brigade. Three of the companies, after delivering their 
 
DEFEAT OF THE ENEMY. 231 
 
 fire, began to stagger, and finally fell back in the rear. 
 Colonel Bradley was then ordered to advance with his 
 regiment, and fdl up the vacancy. This he declhied 
 doing ; and General Jackson, much against his will, 
 as he designed the reserve to pursue the enemy if they 
 attempted to escape, was forced to direct Lieutenant 
 Colonel Dyer to dismount his men, and engage them. 
 Observing this movement, the retiring militia rallied 
 and did good service. 
 
 The action was not of long continuance. The sav- 
 
 CD 
 
 ages could not withstand the destructive fire poured 
 in upon them from every side, and in fifteen minutes 
 they commenced flying hither and thither, within the 
 circle, seeking some avenue of escape. Whichsoever 
 way they turned, they encountered the rifle and the bay- 
 onet. At length, they discovered the opening between 
 Colonel Alcorn's regiment of cavalry, on tiie right, and 
 the volunteers of Colonel Bradley. Through this num- 
 bers of them dashed, hotly pursed by both cavalry and 
 infantry, who followed them for nearly three miles, 
 strewing the ground throughout the whole distance 
 with tlieir dead bodies. The Indian force numbered 
 one thousand and eighty warriors, of whom two hun- 
 dred and ninety-nine were found killed on the field of 
 battle, and many more must have perished in the 
 woods. The Americans lost but fifteen killed, and 
 eighty-five wounded, some of the latter mortally. 
 
 The occupants of the fort thus timely relieved, crowded 
 around General Jackson and his brave troops, and 
 poured forth their tiianks in eloquent and impressive 
 terms. There were only one hundred and sixty war- 
 riors, with their women and children, and the arrival 
 
232 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 of the Tennesseans was most opportune, as the Red 
 Sticks were to have assaulted the fort in a few hours. 
 They had been entirely cut off from their supply of 
 water, and had suiiered considerably for want of it. 
 Their stock of provisions was also limited ; but on dis- 
 covering the condition of Jackson's troops, who had left 
 Fort Strother with but little over one day's rations, 
 they cheerfully furnished them all they had to spare, 
 which scarcely amounted to a single meal. 
 
 General Jackson complimented his troops, in tho 
 highest terms, for their gallantry in this action. All 
 the officers, with the exception of Colonel Bradley, who 
 was placed under arrest, but afterwards released, were 
 mentioned in his dispatches in terms of marked ap- 
 probation. 
 
 An instant retreat to Fort Strother was now neces- 
 sary. The horses were suffering for the want of forage, 
 and the men were half-famished, when they turned 
 their backs on the field of victory, and commenced their 
 retrograde march. Jackson was with the van of the 
 army, and on the v\'ay discovered a quantity of acorns 
 lying on the ground. T3ismounting from his horse, he 
 threw tlie bridle over his arm, and, having gathered a 
 few of tlie nuts, sat down on the roots of a tree to eat 
 them. He was thus engaged in satisfying his hunger, 
 when a soldier approached him, and demanded some- 
 thing to eat. " I never turn away the hungry," said 
 the general, " while I have anything to give them." 
 He then offered the soldier a few acorns, adding, " I 
 will most cheerfully divide with you such food as I 
 have." Mortified and surprised, tho man shrunk back 
 
DESTITUTION OF THE TROOPS. 233 
 
 among his companions, who thereafter repressed every 
 disposition to murmur or complain. 
 
 The army reached Fort Strother on the evening of 
 the eleventh of November, but it was only to be once 
 more disappointed. No provisions, except the limited 
 quantities forwarded by the contractors, had yet ar- 
 rived ; and the private stores of the general had been 
 ahnost exhausted, in order to supply the wants of the 
 sick and wounded. Still he assumed a cheerful and 
 confident tone, though sad enough at heart, and resort- 
 ing to the slaughter-pens, provided himself with tripes, 
 with which he made what he termed a comfortable re- 
 past. His example was imitated by the soldiers, Avho 
 seemed inclined willingly to endure the hardships of the 
 campaign. 
 
 But matters could not long continue in this situation. 
 The battles of Talluschatchee and Talladega had satis- 
 ficd, to a considerable degree, the desire for adventure 
 which had previously animated the troops in the midst 
 of the most embarrassing difficulties, and they soon be- 
 gan to pine for the comforts of home. Starvation was 
 far more terrible to them than " an army with banners." 
 They were brave, — this could not be doubted, — and 
 they would have gladly followed their general into the 
 very heart of the Creek country, if they could only 
 have been assured that a reasonable supply of food 
 M'ould be provided ; of the two enemies whom they met 
 in the wilderness, they feared the savage least ; and 
 was it not asking too much that they should encounter 
 both ? 
 
 Disaffection gradually gained ground, and, in a few 
 days, the whole army was on the verge of mutiny. 
 
234 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 The militia remments were the first to make known 
 their determination to leave the camp, and return to 
 Tennessee. Apprised of their intention, General Jack- 
 son ordered the volunteer brigade under arras, and 
 when the militia attempted to move otT, the former 
 were directed to fire upon them unless they returned 
 to their duty. This had the desired effect. The over- 
 awed militia retired to their tents, but, on the follow- 
 ing morning, they were themselves paraded, in a simi- 
 lar manner, to prevent the volunteers from deserting 
 their colors. This arraying of one species of force 
 against another was a bold and happy conception of 
 Jackson's ; but it would not bear repetition. No one 
 could be better aware than himself, that the men had 
 reasonable cause for complaint, even though he insisted 
 on a rigid compliance with his orders to remain at Fort 
 Strother. The horses were suffering so much, however, 
 for the want of forage, that the mounted men received 
 permission to go back to Huntsville, upon their pledge 
 to return promptly when required to do so. 
 
 Having been |X)sitively assured by the new contrac- 
 tor. Colonel Pope, in reply to his earnest and pathetic 
 appeals, that supplies would soon reach his camp. Gen- 
 eral Jackson made a most eloquent and animated ha- 
 rangue to his troops on the fourteenth of November, 
 exhorting them, by every consideration and argument 
 which should induence brave and patriotic citizens, not 
 to abandon the service, and leave the frontier settle- 
 ments exposed to the desolating incursions of the In- 
 dians. He also promised them, that if a supply of pro- 
 visions did not arrive within two days, he would him- 
 self lead them back where there was plenty. The. 
 
SUPPRESSION OF THE MUTINY. 
 
 ^35 
 
 militia consented to remain ; but tlie volunteer regi- 
 ments, forgetful of the heavy debt of gratitude which 
 they owed to their commander, for his refusal to desert 
 them the previous winter, at Natchez, when they had 
 been abandoned by their government, determined to 
 march forthwith to the settlements. Discovering that 
 it was useless longer to attempt compulsory measures, 
 General Jackson issued the necessary orders to Gen- 
 eral Hall, to conduct his brigade to Fort Deposit. 
 Before the march was commenced, the second regiment 
 wi.sely reconsidered their determination, and concluded 
 to stay with the general ; whereupon the first regiment 
 moved oif alone. 
 
 The specified time elapsed, and still no provisions 
 had arrived. On the sixteenth. General Jackson com- 
 menced his preparations for the abandonment of Fort 
 Strother ; but, on reflecting how much this movement 
 would re'inspirit the savages, he declared that he would 
 not leave the post, if only two men would remain with 
 him. Captain Gordon, of the spies, instantly volun- 
 teered to be one of his companions, and through liis 
 exertions, and those of some of the members of the 
 general staff, one hundred and nine men were found 
 who agreed to stay. 
 
 Feeling confident, however, that supplies were close 
 at hand, General Jackson marched with the militia, 
 apprising them, in advance, that they would be ordered 
 back if his expectations should be realized. Within 
 ten or twelve miles of the fort, they met one hundred 
 and fifty beeves. The column at once halted ; the cat- 
 tle were knocked down, and eagerly cooked and eaten 
 by the half-starved troops. But when the order to 
 
236 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 return was issued, none obeyed it. One company, in- 
 deed, had resumed the march, before the general dis- 
 covered the mutinous disposition which jirevailed 
 among the troops. He immediately dashed ahead of 
 the men who were moving ofT, and with General Cof- 
 fee, a part of the staff, and a few soldiers, formed a 
 line across the road, and declared that he would fire 
 on them if they endeavored to pass. Well knowing 
 that he was not the man to forfeit his word, they fell 
 back to the main body, who were soon discovered to be 
 likewise infected with the spirit of mutiny. Argu- 
 ments and entreaties proved of no avail, — the troops 
 all formed, and were on the point of continuing their 
 march to Fort Deposit. As a last resort, the general 
 snatched a musket, threw it across the neck ot his 
 horse, and placing himself in front of the column, de- 
 clared that he would shoot down the first man who 
 moved a single step in advance. 
 
 The piece which General Jackson had seized was 
 too much out of order to be fired, and his arm was so 
 weak that he could not aim it with any precision ; but 
 the men before him knew nothing of this, or, if they 
 did, thought not of it. They only saw his flashing 
 eye, and his determined look. General Coffee and 
 some of the staff took their places in silence beside him. 
 Two faithful companies also formed in his rear. All 
 were ready to fire when he gave the signal. For sev- 
 eral moments not a word was uttered. At length the 
 power of numbers quailed before the iron will, the 
 moral greatness of that one man. The mutineers sig- 
 nified their willinsrness to return, and in a short time 
 
 CD ' 
 
 tliey were retracing their steps to Fort Strother. 
 
DESTRUCTIOX OF THE IIILLABEE TOUTIS, 237 
 
 While General Jackson Avas engaged in quelling 
 the disturbances in his camp, the East Tennesseans, 
 under (jrcneral White, were proceeding against the 
 Ilillabee towns, the warriors from which iiad been 
 present at the battle of Talladega. Intimidated by the 
 result of this action, they had applied to General Jack- 
 son, on the thirteenth of November, for terms of peace. 
 On the seventeenth he replied, making known to them 
 the conditions upon which their request would be 
 granted. On the same night. General White, who had 
 been detached for this service by General Cocke, on 
 the eleventh of November, with all his cavalry and 
 mounted infantry, approached the principal Hillabce 
 village, having previously destroyed Little Oakfuskie, 
 Genalga, and Netta Chaptoa. At daylight the town 
 was surprised, sixty warriors were Ivilled, and two hun- 
 dred and fifty taken prisoners, without the loss of a 
 drop of blood on the part of General White's command. 
 
 This unfortunate movement — unfortunate, inasmuch 
 as the blow fell with crushing weight upon a people 
 already subdued, and anxious to make peace on any 
 terms — confirmed General Cocke in the oninion which 
 he had previously formed and communicated to General 
 Jackson on the fourteenth of November, that it was far 
 better to unite his forces with those of the latter, and 
 act in concert with him, than, by remaining separate, 
 to paralyze his efforts, and defeat his plans. Thereafter 
 he made no attempt to oj^erate independently of Gen- 
 eral Jackson, and on the twelfth of December joined 
 him at Fort Strother, with fourteen hundred and fifty 
 
 Meanwhile the Georgia militia, under General Floyd, 
 
238 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 though, like the Tennessee troops, much embarrassed 
 by the want of supplies, had been advancing from the 
 frontier of that state into the Creek country. Early in 
 the morning of the twenty-ninth of November, they 
 surprised the Indian town of Antossee, situated on the 
 left bank of the Tallapoosa, about twenty miles above 
 its junction with the Coosa, and which the savages had 
 been taught by their prophets to consider holy ground. 
 The force under General Floyd consisted of nine hun- 
 dred and fifty Georgians, and between three and four 
 hundred friendly Indians. Antossee, and another town 
 about five hundred yards lower down, were occupied by 
 large parties of the enemy. Both were attacked at the 
 same moment ; the houses were set on fire ; and a fu- 
 rious contest took place ami<l the surrounding flames. 
 The Indians were ultimately routed and dispersed, with 
 the loss of two hundred killed and wounded. General 
 Floyd was himself severely wounded ; and there were 
 eleven of his men killed, and fifty-four woimded. As 
 the principal Creek towns were within a short distance 
 of Autossee, he completed the work of destruction, and 
 immediately retired to the Chatahoochee, which he 
 reached without molestation. On the ninth of Decem- 
 ber, another detachment of Georgia militia, under 
 General Adams, consisting of five hundred and thirty 
 men. marched on a second expedition against the towns 
 on the Tallapoosa. They were unable to bring the 
 enemy to action, but destroyed two of their villages, 
 and then returned to camp. 
 
 While these operations were going on, east and north 
 of the Creeks, the regulars and militia on the west, 
 though cut off from all communication \yith the other 
 
ECCANAIlACA DESTROV£D. 239 
 
 columns, by the trackless forests which separated them, 
 were not inactive. On the thirteenth of December, 
 General Claiborne moved up the Alabama river, from 
 Fort Stoddart, with a detachment, in order to destroy 
 the towns above the mouth of the Cahawba. On the 
 twenty-third instant he attacked Eccanahaca, or Holy 
 Ground, a new town erected since the commencement 
 of the war, in the midst of tangled thickets, and almost 
 impenetrable swamps and morasses. This village was 
 the general depot of the Indians in this section, and 
 contained large quantities of property and stores of pro- 
 visions. It consisted of about two hundred houses, and 
 was occupied by a considerable body of the enemy, 
 luider the half-breed chief, Weatherford. General 
 Claiborne advanced upon the town, with his force 
 divided into three columns. The Indians were quickly 
 driven out, leaving thirty dead on the ground. Hav- 
 ing no facilities for removing the property or provisions, 
 the general ordered them to bo consumed with the 
 town. He also destroyed another village, containing 
 t sixty houses, eight miles higher up the river. 
 ; Among the slain at Eccanahaca were three Shawnee 
 i warriors, who had probably joined the hostile Creeks 
 ' after the terrible defeat of their tribe on the banlcs of 
 the Thames, in October previous ; and among the tro- 
 phies of the expedition, was a letter to Weatherford, 
 from Manriquez, the Spanish governor of Florida, dated 
 at Pensacola, the twenty-ninth of September, affording 
 ample and conclusive evidence of his connivance with 
 the Red Sticks.* 
 
 * r\Ianriqucz stated in hh letter, that he haJ requested the Captain 
 |6eneral, at Havana, to forward him a supply of anas and ammunition, 
 
240 ANDREW JACKSOjr. 
 
 The troops called out under the authority of the J 
 Legislature of Tennessee, were accepted by the Gen- 
 eral Government, and on the seventh of November, 
 General Pinckney, previously in charge of the sixth 
 military district, was ordered to assume command of 
 the seventh. His plan of conducting the campaign 
 contemplated the junction of the various corps opera- 
 ting in the Creek country, at the conHuence of the 
 Coosa and Tallapoosa; and instructions were, issued 
 by him to the different commanders, requiring them to 
 take possession of the country as they advanced, so as, 
 at all times, to keep open their communication in the 
 rear. 
 
 After allaying the mutiny in his camp, in November, 
 General Jackson visited Fqrt Deposit and Ditto's Land- 
 ing, to make arrangements for supplying his army, pre- 
 paratory to another forward movement which he had 
 in contemplation. Requisitions were issued for fur- 
 nishing a suitable number of rations at Fort Strother, 
 Talladega, and the junction of the Coosa and Talla- 
 j)oosa, together with wagons and ])ack-horses for their 
 transportation. He Ihen returned to Fort Stroth.^r 
 with the first regiment of volunteers. Shortly after 
 his return a new cause of disturbance arose. The 
 volunteers had originally engaged to serve for twelve; 
 months, and they claimed that their term of service, 
 would expire on the tenth of December. General; 
 Jackson, however, contended that the period which 
 elapsed between the time of their dismissal, after their,) 
 
 for distribution among the Indians. Tiiis was one of the circumstanc6a 
 vvliich justified the attack on Pcnsacola, by General Jackson, in the fall 
 
 of 1811, 
 
 i^.. Cj .j. 
 
ANOTHER MUTINY. 241 
 
 return from Natchez, and that of their subsequent rc- 
 muster, at Fayetteville, must be deducted. Each 
 party insisted on its particular view of the case ; and 
 in the evening of the ninth of December, General Jack- 
 son was informed by General Hall, that his brigade 
 were preparing to move off, with, or without permis- 
 sion, on the following mornina:. 
 
 General Jackson had become familiar M'ith scenes 
 of this character, and he immediately issued an order, 
 stating that an actual mutiny existed in the camp, and 
 commanding all officers and soldiers to unite in putting 
 it down. He further directed the volunteer brisrade to 
 parade on the west side of the fort ; the company of 
 artillerists were ordered to take post, with one piece in 
 front, and one in rear, of their line ; and the militia, 
 under Colonel Wynne, were instructed to occupy the 
 eminences in advance. These dispositions being made, 
 the general rode in front of the volunteers, and ad- 
 dressed each company separately, in eloquent and ani- 
 mated terms, informing them that he had submitted 
 the question in dispute to the governor, and that, until 
 his decision was known, or reinforcements joined him, 
 he could not dispense Vv'itli their services. He appealed 
 to every noble and worthy motive to induce them to 
 remain ; but declared, that he should do his duty, re- 
 gardless of consequences; and that they could not 
 leave him, without passing over his dead body. " Now," 
 said he, in conclusion, " argument is at an end ; and 
 you must choose, and that at once, whether you will 
 go or stay !" 
 
 Not a word was uttered in reply, by the volunteers. 
 He then demanded a prompt answer. Still there was 
 
 11 
 
242 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 no response. He now ordered the artillerists to prepare 
 their matches. Ere the order was obeyed, the obsti- 
 nacy of the men gave way before his unyielding firm- 
 ness. " Let us return," was whispered from one to 
 another, with trembling lips ; and the officers soon 
 came forward, and pledged themselves and their men, 
 to remain until the general should hear from the gov- 
 ernor, or the expected reinforcements arrive. 
 
 On the twelfth of December, General Cocke reached 
 the camp, from Fort Armstrong, with the East Ten- 
 nesseans. General Jackson then issued an address to 
 the volunteer brigade, ofTering to permit tliose who de- 
 sired to leave him, to return at once to Nashville, and 
 those who chose to remain, to organize themselves into 
 a separate corps, with officers of their own selection. 
 But one man in the \vhole brigade. Captain William- 
 son, consented to stay ; the remainder w^ere marched 
 back to Nashville, by General Hall, and soon after 
 discharged from the service. 
 
 The regiment of volunteer cavalry belonging to Gen- 
 eral Coffee's brigade, claimed the same indulgence with 
 the volunteer infantry, and the mounted rifles insisted 
 that they v/ere only bound for a three months' tour of 
 duty. About one-half the brigade abandoned the ser- 
 vice, at Huntsville, and the other half returned to Fort 
 Deposit, but they also subsequently deserted their com- 
 mander, — General Coffee exerting himself, in vain, to 
 induce them to remain, — and returned home. Tliese 
 defections, and tlie expiration of the terms of service 
 of a portion of General Cocke's division, reduced the 
 force under General Jackson, at Fort Strothcr, to six 
 hundred militia, two companies of spies, under Cap- 
 
LETTER TO GOVERNOR BLOUNT. 243 
 
 tains Gordon and Russell, one of artillery, under Captain 
 Deadrick, and a fow volunteers from the various corps, 
 wlio had been, " faithful among the faitidess found." 
 The militia demanded their discharge at the expiration 
 of three months, although it had been supposed they 
 were enlisted for six, and it was not thought advisable 
 to compel them to remain. 
 
 All these difficulties in keeping tlie troops in the 
 field arose from the want of sufficient supplies. Had 
 General Jackson been properly supported in this re- 
 spect, it is probable there would not have been a sin- 
 gle case of defection, and the first of January, 1814, 
 would have witnessed the complete subjection of the 
 Creeks. Still he was determined to prosecute the 
 campaign, as soon as he should be in a condition to 
 move forward. After the return of the militia, he was 
 left with only about one hundred men, and was, in 
 consequence, obliged to employ the friendly Cherokees 
 in garrisoning Fort Armstrong and protecting the 
 stores at Camp Ross. Generals Cocke and Roberts, 
 Colonel Carroll, and Majt)r Searcy, the aid of the com- 
 manding general, were at this time absent in Tennes- 
 see, exerting themselves to raise additional troops. 
 
 On being informed of the situation of General Jack- 
 son, Governor Blount advised him to fall back from his 
 advanced posts, and content himself with defending 
 the frontiers of the state, until he was placed in suffi- 
 cient force to carry on the war. On the twenty-ninth 
 of December, 1813, the general unburthened his whole 
 soul to the governor, 
 
 " In thoughts that breathe, and words that burn." 
 
 " What !" said he, in his letter, " retrograde under 
 
244 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 such circnmstancps ! I will perish first. "What ! a 
 governor of a ]iatriotic state, whose citizens pressed for 
 war, w!]o bawled for permission to exterminate the 
 Creeks, to poiise or hesitate at such a crisis as this ? 
 Such conduct cannot be justified, cannot be excused. 
 Hear the voice of a friend : If you compel me to retro- 
 grade, the awful responsibility must and will be as- 
 cribed to you. * * * I shall do my duty. I will re- 
 tain the post, or die in the struggle, unless ordered to 
 retreat by my commanding general !" 
 
 The earnest appeals of General Jackson, whose in- 
 trepidity of sj>irit and resoluteness of purpose appeared 
 only the more conspicious, when fortune smiled the 
 most unkindly on him, were not without effect. On 
 the thirteenth of January, 1814, he was joined at Fort 
 Strother, by two regiments of mounted men, eight 
 liundred and fifty strong, under Colonels Perkins and 
 Higgins, who had volunteered for sixty days. Previous 
 to this time, ho had ascertained that the hostile Indians 
 from several towns on the Tallapoosa, had concentrated 
 in a bend of the river, thirty-five miles south-east of 
 Talladega, near the mouth of the Emuckfaw Creek, 
 and were either preparing to attack Fort Armstrong, 
 or the Georgia troops. 
 
 The volunteer cavalry having been enlisted for so 
 short a period, it was necessary to act speetlily if he 
 desired to avail himself of their services. On the day 
 of their arrival at Fort Strother, he issued orders di- 
 recting them to hold themselves in readiness for the 
 inarch, and, on the fifteenth and sixteenth of Janviary, 
 crossed the Coosa with iiis whole force, numbering 
 seven hundred and sixty-seven men, though the official 
 
BATTLE OF EMUCKFAW. 245 
 
 reports, wliich were not corrected lest the army should 
 be intimidated by the knowledge of its weakness, 
 showed a total of nine hundred and thirty. 
 
 At Talladega, General Jackson was joined by two 
 hundred friendly Creeks and Cherokees. The march 
 was continued without intermission, and on the night of 
 the twentieth instant, he encamped at Enotochopco, one 
 of the Hillabee villages, within twelve miles of Emuck- 
 faw. In the morning of the twenty-first, the army 
 proceeded direct towards the bend of the river whore 
 the enemy were said to be fortified. About the middle 
 of the afternoon, the spies discovered two Indians, who 
 were pursued, but made their escape. Advancing a 
 short distance further, they came upon the main trail 
 of the savaijes. The srcneral then determined to en- 
 camp and reconnoitre the surrounding country, A 
 proper position having been selected, the army en- 
 camped in a hollow square. Pickets and spies were 
 thrown out on every side ; the sentinels were doubled ; 
 fires were built in a circle around the encampment ; 
 and every precaution taken to guard against a surprise. 
 
 Tliough General Jackson knew it not, as his spies 
 could obtain but little information, he was in the im- 
 mediate vicinity of the three principal, and most for- 
 midable, bands of the Red Sticks. Girded by the belt of 
 watch-fires which their vigilant and sagacious com- 
 mander directed to be formed, in order to prevent the 
 approach of an enemy undiscovered, his troops reposed 
 in security. All remained quiet till ten o'clock in the 
 evenin2f, when three of the savages were descried steal- 
 ing cautiously towards one of the pickets. They were 
 instantly fired on, an;l one of them was shot down. 
 
246 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 About an hour later, the spies came in, and reported 
 that there was a large Indian encampment three miles 
 distant, and that its occupants were whooping and dan- 
 cing, as if preparing to go ou^fc on the war-path. The 
 general was further informed by one of the spies, an 
 intelligent Indian, that the enemy were sending away 
 their women and children — a sure indication that they 
 intended to decamp, or attack him, before morning. 
 Orders were now given for the men to be prepared for 
 action, at any moment. 
 
 IMomcnts and hours passed by in anxious suspense. 
 From time to time the orders enjoining strict caution 
 and vigilance were repeated. The darkest hour of the 
 morning — the time usually selected by the Indians for 
 their attacks — ajiproached ; and when everything was 
 the most quiet and undisturbed, all at once there rose 
 a loud pealing yell on the left of the encampment, and 
 with it came a hurtling volley of rifle-balls. A deafen- 
 ing responsive shout went up, within that fiery circle, 
 like the wild pibroch of some Gaelic clan, rousing the 
 martial spirit of all who heard it. The enemy kept 
 up a rapid and unintermitting fire ; but they could not 
 approach near enough to effect any execution, without 
 entering the line of light which the timely precaution 
 of Jackson had thrown around his men ; and whenever 
 a single swart form, or painted visage, was disclosed, 
 the American bullet sped away on its sure errand of 
 death. 
 
 When the alarm was first given. General Coffee, 
 Colonel Carroll, and Colonel Sitler, the adjutant gen- 
 eral, — who, with a number of other officers previously 
 belonging to diflerent detachments, had remained with 
 
THE EiXEiMV REPULSED. 247 
 
 the commander to whom they were devotedly attached, 
 and formed themselves into a corps, without jjrivates, — 
 mounted their horses and rode to the left. Their pres- 
 ence inspirited and encouraged the troops, and the sav- 
 ages were held firmly at bay till the dawning light 
 enabled objects to be distinguished with precision. A 
 company of infantry was then ordered to that flank, 
 and thus strengthened, General Coflee, supported by 
 Colonels Higgins and Carroll, led the whole line to the 
 charge. The red warriors were driven from their cov- 
 
 CD 
 
 erts at the point of the bayonet, and pursued for more 
 than two miles ; the friendly Indians joining in the 
 chase, and marking their pathway with the blood of 
 the slain. 
 
 The enemy having been effectually repulsed, Gen- 
 eral Coffee was ordered to advance to the Indian en- 
 campment, with four hundred men and all the friendly 
 warriors, and destroy it. On approaching it, he found 
 that it was too strongly fortified to be carried by as- 
 sault, and therefore returned to bring up the company 
 of artillerv. Before he again set out, his services were 
 required at the camp. Within half an hour after hi? 
 return, a body of savages were observed on the right, 
 who opened a brisk fire on a party searching for tha 
 Indian shot by the picket on the previous night. Gen- 
 eral Coffee solicited the honor of attacking them. Ho 
 was directed to take two hundred men with him, but 
 through some mistake, he was followed by only fifty- 
 four men, all of whom belonged to the company of vol- 
 unteer officers which he commanded. With this small 
 force, he fell with such fury on the left flank of the as- 
 
248 ANDREW JACKSO.f. 
 
 sailants, that they were forced to take shelter in a 
 thicket on the bank of a small creek. 
 
 In the meantime, as had been anticipated by Gen- 
 eral Jackson, who supposed the demonstrartion on the 
 right to be a mere ruse de guerre, the main body of 
 the enemy came rushing like demons, with the most 
 hideous and discordant yells, on the left of the Ameri- 
 can encampment. lie instantly repaired thither in 
 person. His men always knew how to fight under his 
 eyes, and they stood their ground with veteran intre- 
 pidity and firmness. A few well-directed and effective 
 volleys were delivered, and resort was tlien had to the 
 bayonet ; the men advancing to the charge under the 
 ortlers of Colonel Carroll. Once more the enemy fled 
 with precipitation, and were hotly pursued some dis- 
 tance from the camp. 
 
 The savages were now completely repulsed on the 
 left, and Greneral Coffee and his little band, who had 
 been forced back into the open wood where the battle 
 commenced, were reinforced by one hundred friendly 
 warriors. General ColTee, though severely wounded 
 in the fierce conflict, which had deprived him of sev- 
 eral of his best officers, including his aid, Major Donel- 
 son, placed himself at the head of the united force, and 
 charged home upon the assailants. They could no lun- 
 ger make head against him, but retreated in confusion. 
 The pursuit was continued for about three miles, in 
 which forty-five of the enemy were killed.- 
 
 Victorious as he was, General Jackson was still in 
 a precarious position. His men had but fov/ rations 
 left, and the horses had not had corn or cane, for two 
 days. The main object of the expedition — a diversion 
 
BATTLE OF KNOTOCHOPCO. 249 
 
 in favor of the Georgia troops — had been accomplished ; 
 yet his small force was seriously crippled, and it was 
 to be feared, if he remained at E muck fa w, that the 
 Red Sticks would rally in greater nimibers, and attack 
 him once more, under all his disadvantages. He there- 
 fore decided to fall back to Fort Strother as soon as 
 practicable. The remainder of the day was spent in 
 burying the dead, in taking care of the wounded and 
 preparing litters for their transportation, and in fortify- 
 ing the camp. The mihtia sentinels were repeatedly 
 alarmed during the night, probably by their own fan- 
 cies, as no enemy was discovered ; and on the morning 
 of the twenty-third, without having been again molest- 
 ed, the army commenced the return march. 
 
 Not a solitary Indian was seen through the day, ex- 
 cept those attached to the command. They defiled, 
 without interruption, through a hurricane, covered with 
 the huge bolls of prostrate oaks and pines, with strag- 
 gling branches of trees flung in every direction, and 
 closely-matted weeds and brambles, in which there 
 were numerous hiding-places that might have afforded 
 shelter to an enemy ; and just before sunset, they ar- 
 rived at Enotochopco, where they halted for the night, 
 selecting a strong position, which they fortified, within 
 a quarter of a mile of the creek. 
 
 In the evening, small parties of the hostile savages 
 were seen prowling about the encampment, although 
 no attack was made. This circumstance, in connection 
 with the fact that he had not been molested during the 
 day, convinced General Jackson that the enemy had 
 got in the advance, and were lying in wait for him at 
 a dangerous defile where he had forded the creek on 
 
 11* 
 
250 ANDREAV JACK^Oi?}. 
 
 his outward march. He therefore sent out his pioneers, 
 who discovered another crossing, about six hundred 
 yards lower down, which was approached tlirough open 
 woodlands ; and, unlike the other, its banks sloped 
 gently down, and were tolerably free from reeds and 
 underbrush. The lower ford was, of course, selected, in 
 preference to the one above. 
 
 Presuming that the Indians would rush upon his 
 men, when they were engaged in passing the stream, 
 the general made his preparations with great care, and 
 issued his orders with unusual precision. Colonel Carroll 
 was ordered to take command of the centre of the rear- 
 guard ; Colonel Perkins of the right column ; and 
 Colonel Stump of the left. Captain Russell was directed 
 to bring up the rear with his company of spies. If at- 
 tacked. Colonel Carroll was instructed to face about, 
 display, and maintain his ground ; while the right and 
 left columns were to face outward, wheel back on their 
 pivots, and then attack the Indians on both flanks. 
 
 In this order the crossing proceeded on the morning 
 of the twenty-fourth. The front-guard, the wounded, 
 and a part of the flank columns, had passed over ; and 
 the artillery were in the act of entering the creek — 
 General Jackson being on the bank superintending the 
 movement — when an alarm gun was fired in the rear. 
 The instant after, the whole troop of Indians, who had 
 discovered the ellbrt to turn their position, came plung- 
 ing down upon the rear-guard. Captain Russell received 
 them gallantly, and fell back in good order. Colonel 
 Carroll had scarcely given the order to halt and form, 
 when the right and left columns, headed by their officers, 
 broke and fled down the bank. Colonel Stump was 
 
SUDDENNESS 01' THE ATTACK. 251 
 
 among the foremost, and as he approached General 
 Jackson's position, the latter attempted to cut him 
 down with his sword. 
 
 All was now confusion and disorder. The panic was 
 communicated to the rear-guard, most of whom followed 
 the example of their companions. Colonel Carroll, and 
 Captain Quarles, were left with only twenty-five men, 
 yet they sustained the unequal contest with unflinching 
 bravery. The savages were checked in their advance, 
 but the men were rapidly falling, and the iron hail 
 came thicker and faster. General Jaclcson fairly boiled 
 over with rage and indignation ; yet, smothering his 
 passion, he gave his orders coolly and calmly, but in a 
 tone that rang like the blast of a trumpet. Words of 
 encouragement were not wanting ; and when the fear- 
 less and intrepid Coffee sprang from his litter into the 
 saddle, he cried, " We shall whip them yet, my men ! 
 — the dead have risen and come to aid us ! " 
 
 The company of artillery, who were armed with 
 muskets, now rushed up the acclivity, and ranged 
 themselves by the side of Colonel Carroll and his little 
 band, while their commander. Lieutenant Armstrong* 
 — Captain Deadrick being absent — and a few of his 
 men, dragged up their six pounder. The gun had been 
 unlimbered at the foot of the height, and when they 
 prepared to load it, the rammer and picker were miss- 
 inw. No time was to be lost, as the savages were fast 
 closing upon them. One of the men instantly wrested 
 
 • Lieutenant Armstrong evinced the utmost bravery on this occasion. 
 He was shot down, when the action was at its height, but cried out to 
 his men, as he lay upon the ground, — " My brave fellows some of you 
 must fall, but save the cannon ! " 
 
252 ANDREW JACKSO:^. 
 
 off his bayonet, and rammed the cartridge home with 
 his musket ; another used his ramrod as a picker, and 
 primed with a musket cartridge. Twice was the gun 
 loaded and tired witli grapeshot. At the second dis- 
 charge, the enemy were thrown into confusion, when 
 Colonel Carroll pressed upon them with the bayonet, 
 and forced them to retire a short distance, though they 
 still persisted in the attack. 
 
 Meanwhile, Captain Gordon, whose company had 
 been in the advance, had moved round and thrown 
 himself upon the left flank of the Indians : and a few 
 moments later, General Jackson brought up a consid- 
 erable number of the rear-guard and flankers, whom he 
 had rallied and reformed, with, the assistance of General 
 Coffee, Colonel Higgins, and other officers. Finding 
 themselves baffled at every point, the enemy gave up 
 the contest and made a hasty retreat, throwing away 
 their packs as they fled, and leaving twenty-six of their 
 warriors dead on the field. 
 
 In this scries of engagements, at Emuckfaw and 
 Enotochopco, General Jackson lost twenty men killed, 
 and seventy-five wounded, four of them mortally. One 
 hundred and eighty-nine clcad bodies of the enemy were 
 counted ; but they removed all their wounded, and, 
 probably, many who were killed outright. 
 
 Important as were these actions in their immediato 
 results, they assumed additional consequence, as cflect- 
 ing a fortunate diversion in favor of tlie troops under 
 General Floyd. He was attacked by the savages, at 
 Camp Defiance, shortly before daylight, on the morning 
 of the twenty-seventh of January, three days after the 
 battle of Enotochopco. The furious onset of the savages 
 
A NEW ARMY RAISED. 253 
 
 was with difficulty resisted, and they were only repulsed 
 with the loss of seventeen men killed, and one hundred 
 and thirty-two wounded. Three hundred warriors, at 
 the least, were rendered hors dti combat in the several 
 contests with General Jackson, and many more were 
 intimidated from again taking up arms ; and had they 
 been present, the Georgia force might, not unlikely, 
 have been overpowered. 
 
 After caring for his dead and w^ounded, General 
 Jackson resumed his march, and arrived at Fort 
 Strother on the twenty-seventh of January. On the 
 twenty-eighth. General Coffee and his corps of officers 
 were directed to return home, and wait the orders of 
 the government ; and on the thirty -first instant. General 
 Roberts was ordered to conduct the volunteer regiments, 
 whose bravery and patriotism were highly commended 
 by th5 commanding general, back to Fayetteville, 
 where they were discharged. 
 
 The brilliant successes of General Jackson in the 
 Creek country now began to attract unusual attention. 
 The commander of the military district. General 
 Pinckney, referred to his conduct in terms of strong 
 approbation, and suggested his name to the Secretary 
 of War, for an appointment in the regular army. He 
 had fought himself into the confidence and alfections of 
 the public, and he had no further need to depend on 
 the reluctant services of a disorderly and half-mutinous 
 soldiery. 
 
 So far from being offended at the tone and language 
 of General Jackson's letter, Governor Blount properly 
 appreciated the feelings of the writer, and made every 
 possible exertion to send him both troops and supplies. 
 
254 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 Men were not wanting to enrol their names ; but there 
 were hundreds and thousands who longed to fight be- 
 neath the standard, and under the eye, of Andrew 
 Jackson. On the third of February, General Dohcrty 
 arrived at Camp Ross with two thousand men from 
 East Tennessee; and, shortly after, General Johnston 
 reported himself at Huntsville, with over seventeen 
 hundred men, from West Tennessee, Two regiments 
 of cavalry, one from each section of the state, under 
 Colonels Dyer and Brown, also appeared, and were 
 organized into a brigade, under General CofTee. On 
 the sixth of February, the 39th infantry, under Colonel 
 Williams, about six hundred strong, joined General 
 Jackson at Fort Strother, and about the same time, 
 the Choctaws took up the hatchet against the Red 
 Sticks, and ofl'ered him their services. 
 
 It was the intention of General Jackson to aclvance 
 as soon as possilAe towards the bend of the Tallapoosa, 
 near which the battle of Emuckfaw had been fought, 
 and where, he was assured, the main strength of the 
 enemy lay. The want of supplies, as usual, retarded 
 his movements. It was now the rainy season ; the 
 streams were very much swollen, and the bridges swept 
 away ; the roads were soaked with water, and terribly 
 cut up ; and, although he kept five hundred men at 
 work on the route between Fort Deposit and Fort 
 Strother, several weeks elapsed before he was able to 
 collect twenty days' rations at the latter place. 
 
 While the general was making his preparations at 
 Fort Strother, most of the detachments composing the 
 force under his command remaineJ in the rear, that the 
 supplies thrown forward to that post might not be too 
 
PREPARATIONS TO TAKE THE FIELD. 255 
 
 quickly consumed. During this period of inaction, the 
 spirit of mutiny again made its appearance, among the 
 West Tennessee troops. He felt tiiat he had so far 
 dealt too leniently with this offence, and determined to 
 visit it with summary punishment. A private belong- 
 ing to General Johnston's command was convicted of 
 open mutiny, and sentenced to death. This was his 
 second offence, and the general firmly refused to pardon 
 him. The sentence was carried into effect, and the 
 example thus presented exerted a most salutary influ- 
 ence on the whole army. 
 
 Early in March, General Jackson had finally com- 
 pleted his arrangements. Colonel Dyer was ordered to 
 scour the country between the Coosa, Blackwarrior, 
 and Cahawba, as low down as the old Coosa towns ; 
 the Choctaws and Chickasaws were directed to watch 
 the country west of the Tombigbee, and prevent 
 the escape of any of the Red Sticks beyond the Mis- 
 sissippi ; and the Cherokees received instructions to 
 range about the headwaters of the Tallapoosa. At the 
 same time, there was a large force of North Carolina 
 and South Carolina militia, under Colonel Pearson, w^ho 
 had relieved the Georgia troops under General Floyd, 
 on the eastern borders of the Creek country, in readi- 
 ness to cooperate in any simultaneous movement upon 
 the fastnesses of the hostile Indians. 
 
 Leaving a garrison of four hundred and fifty men at 
 Fort Strother, under Colonel Steel, General Jackson 
 commenced descending the Coosa, having embarked his 
 stores in boats, with the remainder of his force, on the 
 sixteenth day of March. Arrived at the mouth of Cedar 
 Creek, he established a depot at this point, and com- 
 
256 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 menced the construction of a fort, which he named 
 Fort Williams. The work on the fort being in a suffi- 
 cient state of forwardness, he took up the line of march 
 across the country to E muck fa w, on the morning of 
 the twenty-fourth instant, with about two thousand 
 men. A strong detachment was left at Fort Williams, 
 to protect the supplies, and continue the labor on the 
 fortifications. 
 
 Not far from five miles below the battle-ground of 
 the twenty-second of January, at Emuckfaw, is the 
 great bend of the Tallapoosa, called by the Indians, 
 Tohopeca, or Horse Shoe. At this place, the warriors 
 from the hostile towns of Oakfuskie, Oakchoya, Enfau- 
 lee, New Youca, the Ilillabees and Fish Ponds, had 
 concentrated tlicir forces, near one thousand strong, for 
 a last desperate struggle. Across the narrow neck of 
 land, or isthmus, by which the peninsula formed by the 
 crooked river was entered, they had erected a breast- 
 work of logs, from five to eight feet high, with double 
 portholes, arranged with no little skill and ingenuity. 
 Within the inclosure, there were about one hundred 
 acres of land ; the centre was high ground, covered with 
 brush and fallen timber ; and on the river bottom, at 
 the lower extremity of the peninsula, was the Indian 
 village. 
 
 On the night of the twenty-sixth of March, General 
 Jackson encamped within six miles of the Horse Shoe, 
 and early on the following morning, General Coffee was 
 detached, with the mounted men and most of the 
 friendly Indians, under instructions to cross the river 
 at a ford two miles below Tohopeca, and take posses- 
 sion of the high grounds on the opposite bank, so as to 
 
TOIIOPECA. 257 
 
 cut off all chance of escape in that quarter. General 
 Jackson then marched the remainder of his force to a 
 position in front of the enemy's breastworks, where he 
 halted his men, until the prearranged signal announced 
 that General Coffee had drawn a cordon of soldiers 
 around the elevated ground overlooking the river and 
 the hostile town and fortification. The main column 
 immediately moved forward ; the two pieces of artillery, 
 a%ix and a three pounder, were planted on a hill eighty 
 yards distant from the left of the enemy's line ; and at 
 half past ten o'clock in the forenoon, the action was 
 opened by a brisk fire, which was warmly returned by 
 the Red Sticks. 
 
 The firing on the American side was mainly con- 
 fined to the artillery, though a rifle or musket was oc- 
 casionally discharged, whenever the dark warriors in- 
 cautiously exposed their persons. For nearly two hours, 
 the cannonade was kept up, with spirit and activity, 
 though without producing any sensible impression. 
 Meantime the friendly Indians had advanced to the 
 left bank of the river, while General Coffee remained 
 on the high ground with the rest of his troops. Some 
 of the Cherokees now discovered that the enemy's ca- 
 noes, which were drawn up on the shore, near their vil- 
 lage, had been left unguarded. They instantly plunged 
 into the stream, swam across, and, in a few moments, 
 retnrned with a number of the "canoes. Means being 
 thus provided for passing over, the Cherokees. headed 
 by their chief, Richard Brown, and Colonel Morgan, 
 and Captain Russell's company of spies, crossed to the 
 village, set it on fire, and attacked the enemy in the 
 rear. 
 
258 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 Surronnded though they were, the hostile Indians 
 fought witii the utmost bravery iind desperation. Every 
 avenue by which they might have fled was occupied by 
 the American troops, and their habitations were in 
 flames ; still they refused to surrender, and success- 
 lully resisted every attempt of the spies and Cherokecs 
 to dislodge them. The soldiers with General Jackson, 
 clamored loudly to be led to the assault, but he hesi- 
 tated to give tlie order, till he became convinced tltat 
 the party in the rear were not strong enough to over- 
 come the opposition they encountered. The command 
 to storm the works was then received with shouts and 
 acclamations. General Doherty's brigade, and the 39th 
 infantry, under Colonel AVilliams, promptly advanced 
 to the attack. The result of the contest did not long 
 remain in doubt. A fierce stru2:gle was maintained for 
 a short time, through the portholes, muzzle to muzzle ; 
 the action being so close, as remarked in the dispatch 
 of the commanding general, that '' many of the enemy's 
 balls were welded to the American bayonets." Major 
 Montgomery, of the 39th infantry, was the first to 
 spring upon the breastwork, but was shot dead among 
 his comrades, who were rushing forward to sustain him. 
 A smothered cry for vengeance rolled along the line, — 
 and the whole column doi^hed over the feeble barrier, 
 like the avalanche, crushing and bearing down every- 
 thing before it. 
 
 CD 
 
 The Indians, fighting with tlie fury of despair, met 
 the shock with clubbed muskets and rifles, with the 
 gleaming knife and tomahawk. Some few attempted 
 to escape by swimming the river, but were shot down 
 in their flight, by the spies and mounted men under 
 
TlIE RED STICKS COMPLETELY ROUTED. 259 
 
 General Coffee. Most of them, however, fought and 
 died, where they stood — behind the ramparts which 
 tliey were unable to defend. The conflict — nay, we 
 may call it, without reproach to the victors, the butchery 
 — was continued for hours. None asked for quarter. 
 The Tallapoosa ran red with the blood of the savages, 
 and the dead were piled in mangled heaps upon its 
 banks. 
 
 ' Driven from the breastwork, a considerable number 
 of the enemy took refuge among the brush and fallen 
 timber on the high ground in the centre of the peninsula. 
 General Jackson sent them an interpreter, to offer terras 
 of capitulation, but they fired on and wounded him. 
 The cannon were brought to bear on their position, and 
 a partially successful charge was made, yet they were 
 not dislodged. Finally, the brush was set on fire. The 
 flames spread with rapidity, snapping and crackling as 
 they caught the dry bark and leaves, and licking up 
 everything in their way, like some huge, greedy mon- 
 ster. The Indians were now forced from their conceal- 
 ment ; and all who attempted to fly, or offered resist- 
 ance, were shot down. Night at length put an end to 
 the carnage, and, under cover of the darkness, a few of 
 the survivors of that fatal field escaped into the adjoin- 
 ing forests. 
 
 Five hundred and fifty-seven dead bodies of the en- 
 emy were found within the peninsula ; and there were 
 over three hundred taken prisoners, nearly all women 
 and children. The total loss of the Red Sticks, in killed 
 alone, must have been near eight hundred ; as a num- 
 ber of the dead were thrown into the river previous to 
 the final rout, by their surviving friends, or shot by 
 
260 
 
 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 General Coffee's men while attempting to make their 
 escape. Among the slain were three prophets, one of 
 whom, by the name of Monohoe, was struck by a grape- 
 shot in his mouth, out of wbich had issued the lies 
 which had lured his nation to their ruin. 
 
 General Jackson lost fifty-five men killed, and one 
 hundred and forty-six wounded. Twenty-three of the 
 killed, and forty-seven of the wounded, were friendly 
 Creeks and Cherokees. 
 
 After completing the destruction of the Indian forti- 
 fications at Tohopeka, General Jackson commenced his 
 return march to Fort Williams, where he arrived on 
 the second of April. He instantly began his prepara- 
 tions for scouring the country lying in the forks of the 
 Coosa and Tallapoosa ; and, on the seventh of April, 
 his army was in motion for Hoithlewalee, one of the 
 principal towns on the Hickory Ground ; — the men 
 being provided with eight days' rations, which they 
 carried on their baclcs. The campaign was now draw- 
 ing to a close, but its hardships were not quite ended. 
 The roads were flooded by the heavy rains, and the 
 streams scarcely fordable ; and, consequently, the march 
 was tedious and difficult. General Jackson was much 
 worn by the fatigues and privations which he had en- 
 countered, but his capability of endurance was not yet 
 exhausted ; and the strength of constitution he mani- 
 fested, though belied by the apparent weakness of his 
 frame, gave rise to the sobriquet of " Old Hickory," 
 which was applied to him by his soldiers, and adhered 
 to him through life. 
 
 The terrible vengeance taken at Tohopeka, for the 
 massacre at Fort Mims, and the other monstrous cruel- 
 
INDIAN TOWNS DESTROYED. 261 
 
 ties perpetrated by the Red Sticks, put an end to the 
 ^var. Tlie great body of the hostile savages fled in 
 dismay, before the advancing cohnnns of General Jack- 
 son. Many of the fugitives were killed by a detachment 
 of the 3rd infantry, under Colonel Russell, but numbers 
 effected their escape into Florida, on account of the re- 
 missness of Colonel Milton, the officer in command of 
 the South Carolinians, who were then on the left bank 
 of the Tallapoosa, not far above its junction with the 
 Coosa. McQueen, one of the most prominent chiefs 
 among the Red Sticks, was captured, but afterwards 
 escaped to the Escambia river, with five hundred ad- 
 herents. 
 
 Arrived at Hoithlewalee, General Jackson found the 
 town abandoned. On the fourteenth of April it was 
 destroyed, with several other villages in the vicinity. 
 The general then divided his command into two col- 
 umns ; one scouring the country on the left bank, and 
 the other, with which he remained in person, advancing 
 down the right bank of the Tallapoosa, to the conflu- 
 ence, where a fort was constructed, called by General 
 Pinekney, in honor of the gallant Tennessee comman- 
 der. Fort Jackson. At this point most of the Hickory 
 Ground chiefs came in and submitted to the conqueror. 
 Weatherford also voluntarily surrendered, and the great 
 prophet of the Creeks, Hillinghagee, was taken prisoner. 
 The only terms prescribed by the victorious general 
 were, that all who surrendered themselves should retire 
 to the country north of Fort Williams, where, if their 
 conduct was good, they would be permitted to remain 
 unmolested. In a few days after his humane and gen- 
 
262 ANDREAV JACKSOKT. 
 
 erons proposition _\vas made known, numbers of the fu- 
 gitives were on their way to the neutral territory. 
 
 On the twentieth of April, General Pinckney arrived 
 at Fort Jackson, and on the following day assumed the 
 command. General Jackson shortly after repaired to 
 liis home in Tennessee, to recruit his health and strength, 
 which had suffered inaterially during his long and ar- 
 duous campaign. The thanks of the government and 
 the applause of the nation followed him in his retire- 
 ment. An opportunity was soon afforded for rewarding 
 his services by an appointment in the regular array. — 
 On the resignation of Genei-al Harrison, President Mad- 
 ison nominated him as a brigadier general, and major 
 general by brevet ; and, a short time afterwards, he 
 was appointed a full major general, to fill the vacancy 
 occasioned by the retirement of General Hampton. 
 Both commissions were received at the same time, and 
 the latter was accepted. 
 
 In the summer of 1814, General Jackson was ordered 
 to take command of the seventh military district, and 
 established iiis headquarters at Mobile. Associated 
 with Colonel Hawkins, he concluded a favorable treaty 
 with the Creek nation, by which, with the exception of 
 a ."Small portion of the tribe who chose to remain in 
 Florida, they were prevented from again taking up 
 arms during the continuance of the war with England. 
 
 The hostile tribes were now entirely quieted, and a 
 chain of military posts established through the former 
 theatre of their outrages. No sooner iiad this been 
 done, than the attention of General Jackson was di- 
 rected to the alarming state of affairs at Pcnsacola. 
 He had long been convinced that the Spanish authori- 
 
THE SPANISH AUTHORITIES IN FLORIDA. 263 
 
 ties in Florida were lending their aid and assistance to 
 the English, in the prosecution of hostilities. Indeed, 
 the facts and circumstances which forced him to such 
 a conclusion, were so glaring and palpable, that it was 
 impossible to form any other opinion. It is barely prob- 
 able that 8pain was the passive agent of Great Britain 
 in this respect; but if so, her pusillanimity, in thus 
 tamely surrendering her neutral rights and character, 
 was equally censurable. If she was, in fact, the coad- 
 jutor of England, the measures adopted by General 
 Jackson were justifiable ; but if she was the creature 
 only, they were necessary. This is the only argument 
 that need be offered, in defence of the attack on Pensa- 
 cola, which, in after times, was so severely criticised 
 and censured, by his political opponents. 
 
 In the month of August, Captain Gordon, of the 
 spies, visite*,l Pensacola, and ascertained that a large 
 body of savages had been organized there by Colonel 
 Nicholls, of the British army, and were then being in- 
 structed and drilled by British officers, in tiie presence, 
 and with the knowledge, of the Spanish governor ; that 
 Fort Barrancas was occupied by between two and three 
 liundred British troops ; and that there were three 
 armed vessels belonging to the same nation, in the bay, 
 from which a considerable quantity of arms and provi- 
 sions had been disembarked. Another reconnaissance 
 was subsequently made by Lieutenant Murray, of the 
 Mississippi militia, which fully confirmed the report 
 made by Captain Gordon. On the twenty-ninth of 
 August, also, Colonel Nicholls issued a proclamation, 
 dated at his " headquarters, Pensacola," addressed 
 te the inhabitants of the southern and southwestern 
 
264 ANDREW JACKSO:^. 
 
 states, and inviting them to join his standard, in which 
 lie informed them that he was " at the head of a large 
 body of Indians, well armed, disci{3lined, and commanded 
 by British officers; a good train of artillery, with every 
 requisite ; seconded by the powerful aid of a numerous 
 British and Spanish squadron of ships and vessels of 
 war." 
 
 General Jackson was not disposed to stand idly by, 
 and see the rights of his country violated, and her in- 
 terests jeoparded. He forthwith dispatched an express 
 to the governor of Tennessee, requesting the whole quota 
 of tlie militia of that state to be brought into the field 
 without delay, and commenced his preparations for a 
 march on Pensacola. On the fifteenth of September 
 Colonel Nicholls appeared before Fort Bowyer, thirty 
 miles below IMoLhIc, at the entrance of the bay, with 
 four vessels, containing a number of siege pieces, and 
 several hundred sailors, mariners, and savages. The 
 heavy guns were landed, the fort invested, and a lively 
 cannonade opened upon it. Major Lawrence, of the 2nd 
 infantry, the commander of the post, with its garrison 
 of one hundred an'l twenty men, made a brave defence, 
 (ind fuially forced the enemy to retire, with the loss of 
 one of their ships, and over two hundred killed and 
 wounded. 
 
 Having been joined by about two thousand men fron 
 Tennessee, General Jackson took up the line of march 
 for Pensacola, with all his disposable troops. His whole 
 force consisted of upwards of three thousand men, but 
 a small part being regulars, and the remainder militia 
 from Mississippi and Tennessee, with a few Choctaw 
 warriors. On the sixth of November he arrived near 
 
CAPTURE OF PENSACOLA. 265 
 
 Pensacola, and sent a flag to the Spanish governor, to 
 communicate the purpose of his visit. The bearer of 
 the flag was fired on from the batteries in the town, and 
 forced to return. Dispositions were then made for car- 
 rying the fort by assault, which was discovered to be 
 defended by both British and Spanish troops, on the 
 following day. On the morning of the seventh, the 
 general entered the town with his troops, under a heavy 
 fire from the fort, and the British flotilla in the harbor, 
 and carried one of the advanced batteries at the point 
 of the bayonet. The governor now supplicated for 
 mercy, and surrendered the town and fort uncondition- 
 ally ; the British troops retiring to Fort Barrancas, and 
 their savages allies seeking shelter in the everglades 
 of Florida, whither they were driven by a detachment 
 from the American army under Major Blue. 
 
 On the morning of the eighth of November, just as 
 General Jackson was making ready to march upon 
 Fort Barrancas, the British spiked and dismounted the 
 cannon, blew up the works, and retreated to their ship- 
 ping. The object of his visit to Pensacola being thus 
 accomplished, and the enemy driven from the rendez- 
 vous, where they had been invited, or welcomed, by the 
 Spanish authorities, General Jackson restored the town 
 and fort to Governor INIanriquez, and immediately re- 
 turned to Mobile with his troops. 
 
 Intimations of an intended attack, or descent, on the 
 southern frontier of the United States, had been prc;- 
 viously given, and they were corroborated by the state- 
 ments of the pirates of Barrataria, who, with their 
 leader, Lafitte, had been solicited by Colonel Nicholls 
 1 to join the projected expedition, but were afterwards in- 
 
 12 
 
/ 
 
 266 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 duced, under a promise of pardon for their offences, to 
 take an active and important part in the defence of 
 New Orleans. It was for a long time uncertain at 
 what point the blow would be struck ; bnt, early in 
 September, it became known that formidable prepara- 
 tions were making for the invasion of Louisiana, and 
 the reduction of New Orleans. Governor Claiborne 
 promptly ordered the two militia divisions of the state, 
 under Generals Villere and Thomas, to hold themselves 
 in readiness to march at a moment's notice, and issued 
 a patriotic address to his fellow citizens, calling upon 
 them to turn out, in a mass, if necessary, in defence of 
 their homes and families. No immediate attack Nvas 
 then made, however, and the alarm subsided. It Avas ' 
 renewed again towards the close of November ; the ap- 
 prehensions of danger were evidently well founded, and 
 General Jackson at once hastened to the city of New 
 Orleans, giving directions, before ho set out, for his i| 
 troops to follow as rapidly as possible, and dispatching , 
 an express to expedite the movements of the Kentucky ; 
 militia, who were required to join him without loss of 
 time. 
 
 Important as was the position of New Orleans, as the . 
 great emporium of the southwestern part of the Union, 
 commanding the extensive trade and navigation of tlie 
 i\Iississippi and its tributaries, the means provided for i 
 its defence were lamentably insufficient. It had been i 
 understood for some time, that the expedition under | 
 Admiral Cochrane, baflled at Baltimore, but subsa- 1 
 quently reinforced by a largo body of troops, supposed, 
 after the conclusion of the Treaty of Paris, to bo no 
 longer needed in Em-npe, was destined, ultimately, to; 
 
THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS. 267 
 
 Operate upon the Gulf coast. Although New Orleans 
 was the most liable to attack, and the most vulnerable 
 pohit, in that quarter, few preparations were made for 
 its protection ; for the reason, probably, that the plun- 
 dering and harassing warfare carried on by the enemy 
 on the Atlantic shore, and the operations on the Niagara 
 frontier, furnished constant employment for all the men 
 and means at the disposal of the General Government. 
 Late in the fall of 1814, the new levies raised in Ken- 
 tucky and Tennessee, were ordered to proceed to that 
 city, and supplies of arms and ammunition were also 
 sent down the INIississippi. 
 
 New Orleans, at this time, contained about twenty 
 thousand inhabitants,* a great number of whom were 
 of Spanish or English descent, and, consequently, but 
 little reliance was to be placed on their fidelity to the 
 American cause ; so far from this, many were known 
 to be in correspondence with the enemy, and only wait- 
 ing for a favorable opportunity to act in a more open 
 and decided manner. General Jackson arrived in the 
 city on the second of December, and found everything 
 in confusion and alarm. The apprehended invasion 
 was the principal topic of conversation in every cafe 
 and boudoir. The opponents of the administration 
 there, as elsewhere throughout the union, confidently 
 predicted that New Orleans must fall ; and its friends 
 more than half feared that the prediction would be ver- 
 ified. 
 
 It was no easy task to reanimate those who had grown 
 faint-hearted under the influence of the pitiful Jeremiads 
 which were constantly sounding in their ears. The 
 
 * In 1810. the population was 17,2^12. 
 
268 ANDREW JACKSON, 
 
 American commantler was accompanied by but few of 
 his men, and liis presence alone could not go very far 
 towards the restoration of confidence. Yet he set him- 
 self vigorously to the work, and in a brief space of time, 
 his impulsive energy, his earnest zeal, and his deter- 
 mined patriotism had v/rought marvellous changes. 
 The timid were reassured ; the wavering were encour- 
 aged to remain steadfast ; and those who had never 
 doubted or faltered, derived new strength from his ex- 
 ample. As yet, there were but a few hundred regular 
 troops in the city, and the imminence of the danger was 
 such, that it was necessary to commence operations 
 without delay. The general was deficient both in the 
 personnel and the materiel of war ; but the exigencies 
 of his military career had long since taught him to rely 
 on his own unaided efforts. He was ever full of re- 
 sources, — but never more than now. 
 
 The geographical position of New Orleans was highly 
 favorable to its defence. It is situated on the left bank 
 of the Mississippi, around a bend of the river, shaped 
 like a crescent, about midway between the high ground 
 at Baton Rouge, and the Gulf. On either side of the 
 river, there is a strip of arable alluvion, protected from 
 inundation by levees, and varying in width, from three 
 hundred, to one thousand yards. Beyond this there are 
 dense cypress brakes and swamps, with here and there 
 a few acres of salt prairie, extending, on the east, to 
 Lakes Borsrne and Pontchartrain. The river debouches 
 into the Gulf through several mouths, which are ob- 
 structed by numerous sand bars ; and its ascent, at all 
 times difficult, is especially so in high water, when the 
 current is unusually rapid. 
 
APPROACH OF THE BRITISH FLEET. 269 
 
 Under the direction of General Jackson, the militia 
 were imbodied ; the defences of Forts St. Philip and 
 Bourbon, on the Mississippi, below New Orleans, were 
 cnlarsfed and strengthened ; batteries were constructed 
 at the Rigolets, and on the Chef IMenteur ; all the 
 numerous bayous and inlets, intersecting the lower 
 valley of the river, between the Chef Menteur and the 
 Atchafalaya, were obstructed, or guarded by strong 
 pickets ; and lines of intrenchments and fortifications 
 were traced, below the city, extending from the Missis- 
 sippi to the swampy grounds, and their construction 
 commenced. Commodore Patterson, the officer in com- 
 mand of the naval station, zealously cooperated with 
 General Jackson, in carrying out the measures of de- 
 fence which he projected. 
 
 Positive intelligence was received in New Orleans, 
 on the ninth of December, that the British fleet had 
 been descried standing oif the Chandeleur islands; 
 and Lieutenant Thomas Ap Catesby Jones was imme- 
 diately dispatched by Commodore Patterson, with a flo- 
 tilla of five gun boats, and one hundred and eighty-two 
 men, to watch the motions of the enemy. On the 
 twelfth instant, they were discovered in such force, oft' 
 Cat island, at the eastern extremity of Lake Borgne, 
 that Lieutenant Jones judged it safer to retire up the 
 lake and guard the passes leading towards the city. On 
 the following day, the schooner Seahorse, which had 
 been sent to the bay of St. Louis, to assist in the re- 
 moval of some public stores at Shieklsboro, was attacked 
 by three of the enemy's barges. These were driven off", 
 but they soon returned with four others. The crew 
 then abandoned the vessel and blew her up ; and the 
 
270 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 storehouse on the bay was set on fire. The flotilla 
 under Lieutenant Jones was attacked on the fourteenth 
 instant, while becalmed, by a detachment of seamen 
 and marines, twelve hundred strong, under Captain 
 Lockyer, in forty-two launches and barges. Lieutenant 
 Jones and his men made a brave defence ; but after an 
 obstinate contest of more than an hour, during which 
 the enemy lost two of their boats, and over three hun- 
 dred men, they were obliged to surrender, with the loss 
 of forty killed and wounded. 
 
 In the meantime, large appropriations had been made 
 by the legislature of Louisiana for the defence of New 
 Orleans ; but that body appeared extremely reluctant 
 to adopt all the suggestions of General Jackson and 
 Governor Claiborne. Many of the members were dis- 
 affected, and others had been led to believe, by the 
 British spies and emissaries M'^ho infested the city, that 
 all attempts at resistance would be unavailing, and that 
 it would be far wiser to propose terms of capitulation, 
 immediately upon the appearance of the British force. 
 General Jaclcson in vain urged the legislature to sus- 
 pend the liaheas corpus act ; and despairing of accom- 
 plishing anything, except by the adoption of rigorous 
 and decided measures, as a last resort, he finally ordered 
 martial law to be proclaimed in the city and its vicinity. 
 The functions of the civil authorities were only sus- 
 pended in part, however, and the legislature continued 
 its sessions. 
 
 This high-handed exercise of power, rendered neces- 
 sary by the temporizing and vacillating course of the 
 legislature, naturally provoked considerable comment. 
 Those who were really and truly devoted to the Amer- 
 
PROCLAMATION OF MARTIAL LAA\'. 271 
 
 ican cause had no feai\s, when they saw the general 
 wielding the authority which he had seized into his own 
 hands ; those only clamored against what they termed 
 this infraction of the rights of the citizen, who were 
 ])repared to surrender the city to the enemy, at the first 
 summons. The proclamation of martial law, though, 
 perhaps, scarcely warranted by the law and the consti- 
 tution, was one of those acts which are sometimes ab- 
 solutely requisite in great emergencies. The power 
 acquired under such circumstances, is, doubtless, liable 
 to abuse ; but in the hands of one whose patriotism, 
 like that of Andrew Jackson, is sanspeur, sans reproche, 
 there can be no danger. " Silent leges, inter arma^'' 
 is a maxim, as applicable to free, as to monarchical 
 governments. General Jackson was extremely loth to 
 assume any questionable power, until he became pene- 
 trated with the conviction that the safety of the country 
 demanded this step, and he surrendered it the very mo- 
 ment he felt assured that the crisis was past. His 
 course was subsequently approved by the General Gov- 
 ernment, and pronounced by the Secretary of War, botli 
 " just as it respected the responsibility of the command- 
 ing general, and safe as it respected the liberties of the 
 nation." 
 
 A new impetus was given to every movement, by 
 the active and energetic conduct of General Jackson. 
 The fruitful and varied resources of his great mind 
 were in constant requisition. His determined spirit, 
 manifested in his expressive remark to Governor Clai- 
 borne — that he would " defend the country, or die in 
 the last ditch !" — was communicated to those around 
 hiuL Treason shrunk abashed from his presence, and 
 
272 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 cowardice assumed the appearance of valor at his 
 side. 
 
 After the capture of the flotilla under Lieutenant 
 Jones, it became impossible to watch the movements 
 of the British spuadron ; and hence it was extremely 
 difficult to foretell what point would be first attacked. 
 Large requisitions were made by General Jackson, of 
 negroes to work on the projected fortifications, intended 
 to secure the different approaches ; and all those found 
 in the streets, together with the drays and carts, were 
 impressed for the same purpose. The militia were or- 
 dered out en masse, and disciplined regularly every day. 
 Orders were likewise again sent to hasten the march 
 of the reinforcements ; and to General Coffee, who was 
 rapidly approaching with his brigade of mounted men 
 from Tennessee, the commanding general said, " You 
 must not sleep until you arrive within striking dis- 
 tance !" The order was obeyed with characteristic 
 promptitude ; — General Coffee marched his command 
 eighty miles on the last day, and arrived near the city 
 late in the evening of the twenty-first of December. 
 
 All the arrangements of General Jackson for the de- 
 fence of New Orleans were made with consummate 
 skill. The batteries commanding the passes from Lake 
 Borgne into Lake Pontehartrain were well manned ; 
 the colored battalion, under Major Lacoste, with the 
 Feliciana dragoons, were ordered to take post on the 
 Chef Menteur, to cover the Gentilly road; INIajor 
 Plauche's battalion, with Lieutenant Wagner's com- 
 pany of light artiUery, were stationed at Fort St. John, 
 on the bayou of that name ; the Tennessee cavalry and 
 infantry, under Generals Coffee and Carroll, rejriaineJ 
 
LANDING OF THE ENEMY. 273 
 
 about four miles above the city ; the regular troops, 
 and the remainder of the state militia, occupied the 
 city, and the fortifications on the river below ; and the 
 schooner Caroline and brig Louisiana were moored in 
 the stream. 
 
 The watchful care and vigilance of the American 
 commander were frustrated, however, by the want of 
 due caution on the part of a picket posted near the 
 mouth of the bayou Bienvenu, which led up from Lake 
 Borgne. On the twenty-second of December, the picket 
 was surprised by a party of the enemy, belonging to the 
 division of General Keane, whose whole command, 
 about four thousand five hundred in number, with their 
 heavy cannon and stores, immediately proceeded, in 
 their small boats, up the bayou, and, at four o'clock 
 in the morning of the twenty-third, arrived opposite the 
 opening of Villere's canal, which connected with the 
 Mississippi. They halted at this point for a few hours, 
 and then continued up the canal. Early in the after- 
 noon of the same day, they gained the bank of the river 
 unmolested, and established themselves on the planta- 
 tions of General Villere, Colonel La Ronde, and Major 
 Lacoste, about eight miles below the city. 
 
 General Jackson did not wait to be attacked. 
 Within an hour after receiving the information that 
 the enemy had effected a landing, he put his troops in 
 motion. Anticipating that the city might be sitpulta- 
 neously threatened by way of the Chef Menteur, Gen- 
 eral Carroll was left posted on the Gentilly road, with 
 his command and the city militia ; and the remainder 
 of the troops, under General Jackson in person, con- 
 sisting of General Coffee's brigade, Major Hind's dra- 
 
 12* 
 
274 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 goons, a detachment of artillery and marines, under 
 Colonel McRea, parts of the 7th and 44th infantry, the 
 battahons of Majors Plauche and Daquin, and two six 
 pounder guns in charge of Lieutenant Spotts, moved 
 down the left bank of the river, to attack the enemy 
 who had landed below. The schooner Caroline, Cap- 
 tain Henley, with Commodore Patterson on board, and 
 the brig Louisiana, Lieutenant Thompson, also dropped 
 down the river. It was understood that the signal of 
 attack would be the fire of the Caroline, when she had 
 arrived opposite the position of the British troops. 
 
 At six o'clock in the evening of the twenty-third, 
 the different corps composing the main column, in all 
 not far from two thousand men, effected a junction at 
 the canal Rodriguez, withiu sight of the watch fires of 
 the enemy, which were discovered gleaming dimly in 
 the distance. The night was prematurely dark, owing 
 to the dense fog rising from the river. This circum- 
 stance, however, favored the movement, as it was 
 thereby concealed from tlie enemy ; and the very best 
 spirit pervaded the whole command. The troops were 
 now formed for the attack ; — the artillery and marines, 
 and the regular infantry, on the right ; the battalions 
 of Plauche and Daquin, both under Colonel Ross, in 
 the centre ; and the brigade of General Coffee, dis- 
 mounted, on the left. General Coffee was directed to 
 turn the enemy's right, and attack them in the rear : 
 while the rest of the colunui advanced against them in 
 front. 
 
 At half-past seven o'clock, the long looked-for sio-nal 
 was given by the Caroline. The first intimation re- 
 ceived by the enemy, of the approach of the Americans, 
 
NIGHT ATTACK. 
 
 275 
 
 was the raking broadside of the schooner, which com- 
 pletely swept their encampment. Before they had fairly 
 ]-ecovered from their astonishment, General Jackson tell 
 upon them like a thunderbolt. Though taken by sur- 
 prise, General Keane ordered his fires to be extinguished, 
 and finally succeeded in forming his men to beat off the 
 attack. Before order was entirely restored, General 
 Collee had forced his way into the enemy's camp, and 
 General Jackson was moving upon them in front with 
 equal darmg and impetuosity. 
 
 Notwithstanding the intense darkness, the American 
 soldiers were kept to their duty, and displayed the most 
 praiseworthy gallantry. The enemy were driven from 
 their position, and several successive charges were made, 
 with great success. At length, it was discovered that 
 the troops were falling into confusion, on account of the 
 thick mist which shrouded everything around, and 
 General Jackson thought it best to call off his men. 
 During the remainder of the night they lay on the field 
 of battle, and in the morning fell back to the canal 
 Rodriguez, about two miles nearer the city, where the 
 swamp and the ]Mississippi approached within a few 
 iumdred yards of each other. 
 
 The American loss in the engagement on the even- 
 ing of the twenty-third, was twenty-four killed, one 
 hundred and- fifteen wounded, and seventy-four taken 
 prisoners ; that of the British was forty-six killed, one 
 hundred and seventy-four wounded, and sixty-four miss- 
 ing. But the most important result of the action, was 
 the check given to the operations of the enemy. They 
 were taught to respect their antagonists far more than 
 they had done ; and, when they were informed by their 
 
276 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 prisoners, who designed to deceive them, that the Amer- 
 ican force was at least fifteen thousand strong, they 
 began to think the conquest of New Orleans woald not, 
 after all, be a mere holiday atfair. 
 
 General Jackson decided to make a stand at the po- 
 sition to which he retired on the morning of the twenty- 
 fourth of December, as it was ascertained that rein- 
 forcements were constantly arriving at the enemy's 
 camp. The work of fortifying it was instantly com- 
 menced. The canal Rodriguez, which was about four 
 feet deep, served the purpose of a ditch ; and, behind 
 this, a breastwork was constructed, stretching from the 
 Mississippi on the right, about one thousand yards, to 
 the cypress swamp on the left. The line extended 
 some distance into the marsh and then inclined to the 
 right, in order to prevent any attempt to turn that flank. 
 The underbrush and trees in this quarter were also 
 cleared away for a considerable space, so that an assail- 
 ing column could not approach without being exposed 
 to a destructive fire. Earth being scarce in this low 
 country, General Jackson had recourse to a novel ex- 
 pedient. Bales of cotton, in large numbers, were brought 
 from the city, which were placed in line and covered 
 over with dirt. Flank bastions to enfilade the works, 
 and strong batteries, were also constructed, at irregular 
 intervals. 
 
 On the right bank of the Mississippi, about half a 
 mile in advance of General Jackson's main position, a 
 line of intrenchments, extending frojn the river to the 
 low grounds, was also formed, and a heavy battery of 
 lifteen guns established, wliich enfiladed the whole front 
 of the position on the left bank. In addition to this 
 
SKIRAIISHING. 277 
 
 principal line of intrenchment?, there were others formed 
 in the rear, to which General Jackson designed to re- 
 treat, in succession, if the enemy forced Iiim to abandon 
 his first position. Another precaiitionury measure was 
 likewise adopted, to render his main line more secure 
 against attack. 81nices were opened through the levee, 
 and the plains in front flooded with water from the 
 river. The general was so carried away with zeal and 
 enthusiasm, and so deeply impressed with the great re- 
 sponsibility resting upon him, and the importance of 
 every step, that for four days and nights, while his 
 preparations were in progress, he scarcely took a mo- 
 ment's rest. No crisis seemed to be too great for him ; 
 his vigilance became more keen sighted, and his spirits 
 rose higher, as dangers thickened around his path ; his 
 resources grew more ample as the occasion required, 
 and his resolution hourly grew more stern and un- 
 bending. 
 
 Sir Edward Packenham, the Commander in Chief 
 of the British land forces, joined General Keane on the 
 twenty-fourth of December with heavy reinforcements, 
 and an additional supply of artillery. Frequent skir- 
 mishes took place between detached parties of the hos- 
 tile commands, and on the twenty-seventh instant, the 
 schooner Caroline, which had been prevented from as- 
 cending the river by a strong norther, was blown up by 
 hot shot thrown from a battery erected by the enemy, 
 on the night of the twenty-sixth. Fortunately, the 
 crew of the vessel had previously made their escape. 
 A similar attempt was made upon the brig Louisiana, 
 but her commander. Lieutenant Thompson, succeeded 
 
S78 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 in getting her up the river, and anchored her on the 
 right of General Jackson's position. 
 
 It was at first designed by Ihe British commander, 
 to commence regular approaches against the formidable 
 line of intrenchments occupied by the American troops. 
 On the twenty-eighth of December, a brisk cannonade 
 was opened from a battery planted near the levee, 
 within half a mile of the river. Showers of Congreve 
 rockets were also thrown, which, although a new im- 
 plement of warfare,* failed to excite either fear or as- 
 tonishment in the opposing ranks. The firing was kept 
 up for several hours without producing any sensible ef- 
 fect; and the attack was then relinquished. During 
 the night of the thirty-first, heavy batteries were con- 
 structed on the plain, directly in front of the American 
 position ; and the advent of the new year was welcomed 
 by a tremendous burst of artillery, accompanied by in- 
 cessant iiiiihts of rockets, which was continued till three 
 o'clock in the afternoon, when the batteries were effect- 
 ually silenced by the American guns. The casualties 
 on these two occasions were, — on the side of the Amer- 
 icans, eighteen killed and thirty-one wounded ; and, on 
 the side of the enemy, forty-eight killed, and eighty- 
 two wounded. 
 
 These repeated efforts having proved of no avail. 
 General Packenham decided to carry the works by a 
 coup tie main. For a number of days all his men 
 were employed in deepening Villere's canal, for the pas- 
 
 * Rockets were first used at the battle of Lcipsic, in October, 1813. 
 The English rocket brigade in that bloody engagement, was commanded 
 by Captain Boguc ; and, after playing ten minutes on a sohd square of 
 French infantry, they forced them to surrender.— Zyor(i Londondcrnj s 
 War in (jrcrmaivj, 17:2. 
 
DISAFFECTION IN THU CITY. 279 
 
 sage of the boats, by which a detaclnnent could be 
 thrown across the river to attack the fortifications on 
 the right bank. On the sixth instant, General Lam- 
 bert joined the main body of the enemy, already on 
 shore, with his division ; and the whole command was 
 thus increased to upwards of twelve thousand men. 
 Everything being in readiness for the contemplated as- 
 sault, on the evening of the seventh instant, it was di- 
 rected to take place at dawn of day on the following 
 mornins'. 
 
 o 
 
 Meanwhile General Jackson had been actively em- 
 ployed in completing his preparations. Near the river, 
 and in advance of the cotton embankment, he com- 
 menced the construction of a redoubt, with embrasures, 
 calculated to rake the ditch in front of the intrench- 
 ments, and the road down the levee ; but this was still 
 incomplete on the eighth of January. The line Dupre, 
 about two miles in rear of the main line, to whieh he 
 desisrned to retreat and make a second stand, if he 
 should be compelled to retire, was also strengthened as 
 far as practicable. Various devices were employed to 
 mislead the enemy in regard to his position, and the 
 strength of his command, which was daily rendered 
 more necessary, on account of the increasing disaffec- 
 tion in the city. The number of his men was repre- 
 sented to be greater than it was ; their deficiency in . 
 arms was carefully concealed ; and no intercourse was 
 ■ allowed between the lines and the city, except through 
 officers in whom he had the most implicit confidence. 
 
 In spite of all his precautions, the enemy were in- 
 formed by their agents of every movement that took 
 place, and the disaffection which they eagerly fomented. 
 
280 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 ultimately increased to such an extent, that it was 
 seriously proposed that terms of surrender should be 
 oft'ered by the legislature. On being apprised of this 
 treasonable design, General Jackson directed Governor 
 Claiborne, whenever such a proposition was made, to 
 close the doors of the state-house. The order was mis- 
 understood by the governor, who closed the doors forth- 
 with, and the members of the legislature were thus 
 prevented from assembling. The conunanding general 
 did not design to interrupt their ordinary deliberations, 
 but it was probably fortunate for the safety of the city, 
 that they were not allowed to convene. 
 
 On the fourth of January, the anxiously-expected 
 reinforcements from Kentucky, under Generals Thomas 
 and Adair, twenty-five hundred strong, reached New 
 Orleans. Tlicy were poorly furnished with arms, how- 
 ever, and, like most of the other troops, were nearly 
 destitute of clothing. The city was ransacked in 
 search of weapons, but a scanty supjily could be ob- 
 tained ; and the other deficiency w^as partially remedied, 
 by the patriotic exertions of Mr. Girod, the mayor, and 
 the ladies of New Orleans. 
 
 General Jackson now made a final disposition of his 
 troops. Governor Claiborne was posted on the Gentilly 
 road, with a portion of the Louisiana militia ; another 
 portion, under General Morgan, was stationed on the 
 right bank of the river, and the battery on that shore 
 was manned by the sailors and marines under Com- 
 modore Patterson. General Morgan was further rein- 
 forced, on the night of the seventh of January, when 
 it was ascertained that the enemy were opening a pas- 
 sage into the river, by a detachment of Ihe Kentucky 
 
THE EIGHTH OF JANUARY. 281 
 
 troops. On the left bank, General Jackson was posted 
 \vith his main column, consisting of about thirty-five 
 hundred men. There were eight distinct batteries 
 along the line, mounting, in all, twelve guns and two 
 howitzers. On the right, were the 7th and 44th infantry, 
 between whit^h were the battalions of Majors Plauche, 
 Lacoste, and Daquin ; in the centre was General Car- 
 roll's command, supported by that of General Adair ; 
 and, on the extreme left, were the Tennessee rifles 
 under General Coflee. The remainder of the Kentucky 
 troops, under General Thomas, remained in the rear. 
 
 The brave troops whom General Jackson had gath- 
 ered around him calmly awaited the approach of the 
 enemy, behind the breastwork of cotton bags which 
 their sagacious commander had provided, not as a shel- 
 ter for cowardice, but as a protection against the onset 
 of a superior force. Night after night they slept upon 
 .their arms ; the soldiers of Coffee lying far out in the 
 swamp, on heaps of logs and brush, half benumbed 
 vrith the cold, and covered with the moist ooze of the 
 morass ; yet all indifferent to the inclemency of the 
 weather, to hardship and suffering, and anxious only to 
 win new laurels for the general whom they loved and 
 honored. 
 
 The wintry dawn was just breaking, and the cold 
 silvery sheen of the early morning was rapidly spread- 
 ing over the plams of Chalmette, on the memorable 
 eighth of January, 1815, when the dark masses of the 
 British assaulting columns were discerned from the 
 American lines, as they emerged from the thick veil 
 of mist which intercepted the view of their encampment, 
 and rapidly pressed forward to the storm. At the same 
 
282 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 time, their batteries, planted on the previous night, 
 within eight hundred yards of the intrenchments, com- 
 menced an active foe, which soon deepened into a con- 
 tinuous roar, that shook the whole valley, and started 
 the inhabitants of the city from their slumbers. 
 
 Simultaneously wath the m.ovement on the left banlc 
 of the river, Colonel Thornton crossed the stream with 
 five hundred picked men, ascended the levee, and, by a 
 sudden charge, turned the position, and made himself 
 master of the battery, Vv^iich formed the strong point 
 of the line. General Morgan was at the head of a much 
 superior force, but finding himself unable to maintain 
 his ground, he fell back towards the city, followed slowly 
 by the British troops. 
 
 Upon the other shore, the most desperate and un- 
 flinching valor failed to achieve the least substantial 
 success. The main attack, on this bank of the river, 
 was made in two columns, sixty or seventy deep ; that 
 on the right, between eight and nine thousand strong, 
 led by General Gibbs, moving upon the centre of Jack- 
 son's position ; and the left, about twelve hundred m 
 number, under General Keane, advancing along the 
 levee road. The Britisli troops moved forward slowly 
 and steadily, many of them carrying scaling ladders 
 and fascines. " Beauty and booty" was the watchword 
 which inspired their zeal, and quickened their steps.* 
 A great number of them had served in the Spanish 
 
 * In 1833, a card was published by General Lambert, and four otlier 
 British officers, of high rank, wlio were engaged in the expedition against 
 New Orleans, denying, most emphatically, that this was the countersign 
 on the occasion alluded to m the text. An order-book was found, how- 
 ever, on the field of battle, which shows that the watchword was given. 
 It is very possible Ihnt the word may have been used by a different di- 
 
TERRIBLE SLAUGHTER OF THE ENEMY. 283 
 
 Peninsula ; and it is not to be wondered that this appeal 
 to the unholy passions that were suffered to riot un- 
 checked at the storming of St. Sebastian, produced its 
 legitimate effect. 
 
 Three hearty cheers rose from the American lines, 
 when the enemy came within range. Every piece was 
 instantly put m requisition. A well-sustained rolling 
 fire welcomed the assailants as they approached. Still, 
 the regularity of their array was unbroken. Torrents 
 of grape and round shot, hissing hot, swept through the 
 solid columns, rending them asunder like ropes of sand. 
 Yet they pressed on undaunted, through the driving 
 storm of missiles poured upon them from the different 
 batteries, whose converging fires smote them more and 
 more heavily at every step of their advance, and strewed 
 the plain with the dying and the dead. 
 
 Meantime the American infantry and riflemen had 
 remained at their posts, with their hands clenched about 
 the locks of their pieces, attentively watching the move- 
 ments of the enemy. General Jackson himself occa- 
 sionally rode along the lines, to cheer and animate his 
 men. It was, indeed, a critical period for his own fame, 
 for the martial reputation of his country. His chivalrio 
 courage, his proud and lofty self-reliance, rose with the 
 emergency. His eagle eye blazed with an almost un- 
 earthly light, and the shrill notes of his trumpet voice 
 jang hio^h above the roar of battle. 
 
 Making their way through the heaps of their com- 
 rades, who lay weltering in their gore, pale, distorted, 
 and stiffening in death, the British soldiers advanced 
 
 vision from that to which those officers belonged ; this is much more 
 probable than that they could be mistaken in their assertion. 
 
284 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 within reach of the American rifle and musket. In an 
 instant, a vivid stream of fire rolled down from the 
 whole line of intrenchments. The way was now blocked 
 by a glistening wall of flame. The bravest shrank back 
 aghast. Stout-hearted men, who had never faltered 
 amid the sea of carnage whose crimson waves dyed the 
 ramparts of Badajoz, trembled like the aspen. The 
 American fire was never for a moment interrupted, — 
 the western riflemen making their mark at every dis- 
 charge, and the men in the rear constantly loading and 
 exchanging pieces with their companions in front. At 
 the head of the glacis, the right column of the assailants 
 staggered and halted. Generals Pakenham and Gibbs 
 dashed forward, eager to retrieve the fortunes of the 
 day ere all was lost. In vain was every eflbrt to turn 
 the tide of battle. Both officers fell mortally wounded, 
 while hundreds were swept down around them, as the 
 grass before the mower. Some few pressed on, — on 
 and on, — to sure destruction ! 
 
 On the left, the advance of General Keane's column, 
 led by Colonel Rennie, gained the redoubt in front of 
 the line of intrenchments ; but it was only to find a 
 soldier's grave. A murderous fire was at once directed 
 upon them from the main fortification, and every man 
 who had entered the work, including the gallant oflicer 
 who headed the attack, was cut down. General Keano 
 made an ineffectual effort to rally the troops for another 
 onset, and was borne from the field severely wounded. 
 'I'he command now devolved on General Lambert, who 
 promptly led up the reserve ; but on discovering the 
 dreadful havoc which had been made in the shattered 
 
FINAL REPULSE OF THE ASSAILANTS. 285 
 
 and terrified column before him, he gave the signal to 
 retire. 
 
 At mid-day the battle was ended ; the bright sun 
 looked down on that red waste, everywhere marred by 
 the ploughing shot, and dotted all over with huge piles 
 of festering corruption ; and the cool breeze that mur- 
 mured among the acacia and orange groves, was loaded 
 with scents of slaughter, with the steam of the battle- 
 field. The appalling fire from the American lines was 
 most terrible in its efiects. The British lost two hun- 
 dred and ninety-three killed, twelve hundred and sixty- 
 seven wounded, and there were four hundred and eighty- 
 four taken prisoners. The American loss was trifling 
 in comparison ; there were but thirteen killed, thirty- 
 nine wounded, and nineteen missing, on both sides of 
 the river, during the day.* 
 
 General Lambert determined, on the day after this 
 bloody repulse, not to prosecute further the hopeless en- 
 terprise. The detachment thrown across the river was 
 recalled, and preparations commenced for the reem- 
 barkation. The ditches and field in front of the Amer- 
 ican line, were cleared of the debris of the assaulting 
 army, and a warm cannonade was kept up by the ar- 
 
 * There is one consideration not often noticed in connection with the 
 defence of New Orleans, whicli gives it additional importance. It is ex- 
 tremely doubtful, whether the city would have been surrendered to the 
 Americans, under the treaty of peace, had it been captured. Spain never 
 cordially acquiesced in the transfer of the territory of Louisiana from 
 France to the United States, and her minister at Washington, the Mar- 
 quis of Trujo. formally protested ajrainst it. At this time England was 
 peculiarly zealous in taking care of Spanish interests, and in a letter ad- 
 dressed to the American, by the British Commissioners, at Ghent, on the 
 8th of October, 1814, these facts were stated, and the right of France to 
 make the cession was seriously called in question. 
 
286 ANDREW JACKSON- 
 
 tillery for several days ; but, on the night of the 
 eighteenth of January, the enemy evacuated ail their 
 positions, and retreated to their shipping. Eight of 
 their heavy guns were abandoned, and eighty of their 
 wounded were left to the humanity of General Jack- 
 son, a duty which, in the language of a not too partial 
 historian, he discharged " with a zeal and attention 
 worthy of the ability and gallantry he had displayed in 
 the action."* About the same time, the British fleet, 
 which had ascended the Mississippi, and bombarded 
 Fort St. Philip, unsuccessfully, for about eight days, 
 from the eleventh to tlie nineteenth of January, retired 
 do^^^l the river. Having taken the land forces on board, 
 the squadron proceeded to Mobile bay and invested 
 Fort Bowyer, which surrendered after a short resistance. 
 This proved a barren victory, however, as a treaty of 
 peace had been concluded in December previous, which 
 was officially proclaimed on the eighteenth of.February. 
 
 All immediate danger having vanished, CTcneral Jack- 
 sun, and his victorious troops, entered the city of New 
 Orleans in triumph, on the twentieth day of January. 
 Fetes and rejoicings now took the place of the conster- 
 nation and alarm which liad prevailed. The hero of 
 Chalmette was " the observed of all observers," and no 
 festive occasion could be complete without his presence. 
 A procession was formed to the cathedral, in the midst 
 of which walked the gallant conqueror, ladies dressed 
 in white strewing his path with flowers. Te Deum was 
 chanted, and a solemn thanksgiving offered to Divine 
 Providence. 
 
 Treason and disaffection still lingered in the city ; 
 
 * Alison's History of Europe, chap. Ixxvi. 
 
FINED BY JUDGE HALL, 287 
 
 and anonymous articles appeared in one of the public 
 journals, designed to excite mutiny and sedition among 
 the American troops. These were traced to one Lou- 
 ail) er, a member of the state legislature, whom General 
 Jackson instantly ordered to be arrested. A writ of 
 habeas corpus was shortly after issued by Judge Hall, 
 the district judge, for the purpose of procuring the re- 
 lease of the prisoner. The order proclaiming martial 
 law was still in force, and the judge was promptly or- 
 dered into confinement. Two days later, intelligence 
 was received of the conclusion of the treaty of peace. 
 On being restored to his authority, Judge Hall sum- 
 moned General Jackson before him. The latter readily 
 obeyed the summons, and appeared with his counsel. 
 The judge, whose only title to immortality is this one 
 act of injustice, refused to hear either reason or argu- 
 ment, and, to satisfy his offended dignity, imposed a 
 fine of one thousand dollars on the general, for disre- 
 garding the writ of habeas corpus. A spontaneous 
 burst of indignation at once rose from the spectators, 
 but General Jackson magnanimously interposed to 
 shield the trembling judge from outrage. The fine was 
 paid, and when he left the court room the multitude 
 followed him in crowds. In a few moments, he was 
 waited on by a committee of ladies, who had already 
 raised the amount of the fins among the citizens of 
 New Orleans, and now entreated him to accept it. He 
 refused to take the money, and, at his suggestion, it 
 was distributed among the widows and orphans of those 
 who had fallen in defence of the city. After the lapse 
 of many years, at the session of Congress in the winter 
 of 1843-4, tardy, though merited justice, was done to 
 
288 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 General Jackson, by the passage of a bill directing the 
 amount of the fine to be refunded to him, with interest. 
 
 General Jackson remained in command at New 
 Orleans, until the month of March, when he was re- 
 lieved by General Gaines. He immediately retired to 
 the tranquillity of the Hermitage, though compelled to 
 witness, everywhere on his homeward route, the eviden- 
 ces of the respect and gratitude which thrilled the hearts 
 of his countrymen. The war with the Seminole In- 
 dians on the southern frontiers of Georgia as^ain called 
 him from his retirement, in the winter of 1818.* Shortly 
 after the breaking out of hostilities, he was ordered to 
 assume the command of the forces operating in that 
 quarter. On the ninth of March, 1818, he joined Gen- 
 eral Gaines at Fort Scott, with nine hundred Georgia 
 militia. Early in April, lie was reinforced by one 
 thousand volunteers from West Tennessee, and iifteen 
 hundred friendly Creek warriors, under their chief, 
 Mcintosh. 
 
 General Jackson now found himself at the head of 
 four thousand five hundred men, with whom he marched 
 to the Indian town of Mickasauky, which he laid waste. 
 The hostile savages fled into Florida, whither he fol- 
 lov/ed them, and took refuge in the neighborhood of St. 
 Marks, the Spanish authorities of which endeavored to 
 protect and shelter them. Accordingly, the American 
 commander took possession of tlie town, and sent the 
 garrison to Pensacola. On the sixteenth of April, he 
 destroyed the Suwanee villages, and then returned to 
 St. Marks, where two of the principal instigators of the 
 Indian outrages, whom he had captured, a Scotchman 
 
 ♦ See Memoir of General Gaines, ante. 
 
THE SEMINOLE WAR. 289 
 
 and an Englishman, whose names were Arbuthnot and 
 Ambrister, were tried by a court martial, sentenced to 
 death, and executed. Not long after, intelligence was 
 received that the governor of West Florida, at Pensa- 
 cola, in violation of the treaty with Spain, was affording 
 countenance and protection to the fugitive Seminoles. 
 General Jackson proceeded thither without delay, seized 
 Pensacola, on the twenty-fourth of May, and on the 
 twenty-seventh Fort Barrancas surrendered to his au- 
 thority. St. Augustine was also captured by a detach- 
 ment under General Gaines. The seizure and occu- 
 pation, by the American troops, of these places of refuge 
 for the hostile Indians put an end to the outbreak, and 
 in the month of June, General Jackson, whose health 
 had become seriously impaired by the unfriendliness of 
 the clLiuate, returned home, and subsequently resigned 
 his commission. 
 
 The Spanish posts in Florida seized by General Jack- 
 son were afterwards ordered to be restored, but his con- 
 duct was approved by President Monroe, and a resolu- 
 tion of censure, offered in the House of Representatives, 
 was voted down by a large majority. Any difticulty 
 with Spain that might have grown out of his proceed- 
 ings was obviated, by the cession of Florida to the 
 United States, in the winter of 1819. General Jack- 
 son was very appropriately selected by the American 
 Executive, as the commissioner to receive the territory, 
 and on the first of July, 1821, he issued a proclamation 
 at Pensacola, officially announcing its annexation to the 
 United States. His administration of the executive 
 affairs of the new territory, owing to the bad state of 
 his health, was quite brief ; during it, however, he came 
 
290 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 in collision with the Spanish ex-gcvernor, in an effort, 
 which proved successful, to protect the rights of several 
 orphan females. His firm and unyielding will, and his 
 determined purpose, were never exhibited in a more 
 characteristic, or more creditable manner. His health 
 continuing to grow worse, he transferred the authority 
 with which he had been clothed, to his secretaries, on 
 the seventh of October, 1821, and immediately set out 
 for Nashville. 
 
 The gallant soldier was not forgotton. Li August, 
 1822, he was nominated for the presidency as the suc- 
 cessor of Mr. INIonroe, by the legislature of Tennessee. 
 In 1823 he declined the appointment of minister to 
 Mexico, tendered to him by the President, and, in the 
 same year, he was elected to the Senate of the United 
 States. On becoming a prominent candidate for the 
 presidential office, he resigned Ills seat. At the election 
 in 1824, he received a plurality of the electoral votes, 
 but as there was no choice by the colleges, the question 
 was referred to the House of Representatives, by whom 
 his principal competitor, John Quincy Adams, was 
 elected to the office. In 1828, he was again a candi- 
 date, and received one hundred and seventy-eight of 
 the two hundi'ed and sixty-one electoral votes. In 
 1832 he was elected for a second term, by a still larger 
 majority. 
 
 It is not within the scope of this work, to notice in 
 detail the political services of General Jackson. A brief 
 recapitulation of some of the. most important acts of his 
 administration must suffice. On the twentieth of May, 
 1830, he vetoed the Maysville road bill, and on the 
 tenth of July, 1832, the bill to recharter the ITnited 
 
PINAL TERMINATION OF HIS PUBLIC CAREER. 291 
 
 States Bank. On the sixteenth of January, 1S33, his 
 celebrated nullification message, recapitulating the 
 facts, and many of the arguments, contained in his 
 proclamation of December previous, was issued. In 
 October, 1833, the public deposits were removed from 
 the United States Bank. On the fifteenth of April, 
 1834, he protested against the resolutions of censure 
 adopted by the Senate, wliich were afterwards, in Jan- 
 uary, 1837, expunged from their journal ; and on the 
 fifteenth of January, 1835, his warlike, but patriotic 
 message, in regard to the refusal of the French govern- 
 ment to pay the stipulated indemnity, made its appear- 
 ance. 
 
 His long public career finally terminated on the third 
 of March, 1837, when he issued a farewell address to 
 the people of the United States, and retired forever from 
 the harassing cares and responsibilities of an official 
 position, to the peaceful shades of his own quiet Her- 
 mitage. The wife whom he had so ardently loved, no 
 longer lived to bless him with her affection, and cheer 
 him with her smiles ; — she had been taken from his 
 side, by death, in December, 1828, — yet her memory 
 was ever a sweet solace throughout the closing hours 
 of his earthly pilgrimage. 
 
 General Jackson had gained a world-wide reputation 
 by the bravery and skill displayed in his Indian cam- 
 paigns, and in the war with Great Britain. Lafayette 
 was a guest at the Hermitage, on his visit to this country 
 in 1825, and, twenty years later, the portrait of the 
 general was painted, when almost in a dying condition, 
 to adorn the gallery of Louis Philippe, the King of the 
 French. He was known and honored by the great and 
 
292 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 good in every land. Whatever may be said of the do- 
 mestic policy of his administration, in his intercourse 
 with foreign nations he inspired or enforced respect, and 
 few, perhaps none, of our presidents, Washington alone 
 excepted, ever commanded greater consideration abroad. 
 A peaceful close was vouchsafed to the stormy and 
 eventful life, the prominent incidents of which have 
 been briefly portrayed in this sketch. The Imperial 
 prisoner of St. Helena died amid a raging storm, shout- 
 ing, in imagination, to his marshalled legions, while the 
 winds howled and shrieked above his head ; the words, 
 Tete (f armee ! were the last to leave his lips, as his 
 eye glazed in death, and his frame was convulsed with 
 the last agony. At the close of a Sabbath afternoon, 
 in the bright summer time, when Nature had spread 
 her richest garniture over her wide domains, and grove 
 and forest were vocal with sweetest melody ; in the 
 presence of his family and friends ; by his own fireside ; 
 on the eighth of June, 1845 ; Andrew Jackson calmly 
 yielded up his spirit. For weeks and months he had 
 suffered under a painful disease, yet not a murmur es- 
 caped him. His heart was stayed on a noble hope — a 
 hope sure, steadfast, and unfading — the priceless hope 
 of the Christian ! 
 
 " Serene, serene, 
 He pressed the crumbling verge of this terrestrial scene, 
 Breathed soft, in childlike trust, 
 
 The parting groan ; 
 Gave back to dust its dust, — 
 
 To Heaven its own !" 
 
 In person General Jackson was tall and thin. His 
 frame was well knit, but gaunt. He had an iron vis- 
 
HIS CHARACTER. 293 
 
 age, and a commanding look. His eyes were a deep 
 blue, bright and penetrating. He was frank and easy 
 in his manners, courteous and affable in his address. 
 
 His character was decidedly pronounced. It was 
 full of salient points, remarkable for their strength, and 
 the fitness and harmony of their combination. He was 
 kind and affectionate, benevolent and humane ; pure 
 and earnest of purpose ; inflexibly honest ; physically 
 and morally brave ; ardent and sincere in his patriot- 
 ism ; direct in his professions ; and resolute and un- 
 Hinching in determination. He possessed a firm will, 
 was clear in judgment, and rapid in his decisions. His 
 temperament was restless, though not mercurial. He 
 had an abundance of what the French call fortes 
 emotions. His passions were intense, and what he 
 did, he did with all his might. Like Cicero, he was a 
 ticio man ; and, by his own unaided exertions, raised 
 himself from comparative obscurity, to the highest dis- 
 tinction. He was a good hater, but he never forgot his 
 friends ; and there are many who still prize his friend- 
 ship, bestowed while in life, as a favor from heaven.* 
 
 All these traits and characteristics were strikingly 
 exhibited, both in his civil, and military career. His 
 style as a writer partook of his mental peculiarities ; 
 it was rugged and uneven as the mountain torrent ; 
 yet it had a nervous eloquence, that never failed to 
 produce a deep impression, and indicated a powerful 
 grasp of thought. As a soldier, he was fruitful in ex- 
 pedients ; he had the genius, perseverance and skill, 
 of Hannibal, — the indomitable will and energy, without 
 
 * "L'amitie d'un grand homrae, est un bienfait desdieux."— FoZ^aire's 
 Oedipe. 
 
 fe 
 
294 ANDREW JACKSON. 
 
 the selfishness, of Napoleon. He was persevering, cool, 
 and intrepid, — hardy in endurance, and gifted with rare 
 courage. In a word, as the historian remarks of the 
 French soldier of fortune, — " He was not a great man 
 because he was a great general : he was a great gen- 
 eral because he was a great man "!* 
 
 * Alison's History of Europe, chap. Ixx. 
 
^' "¥.'ftVft\C\\VT^'^°^* ' 
 
 ALKXANDER MACOMB. 
 Late General in Chief. 
 
ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 Alexander Macomb, late General-in-Chief of tho 
 Army of the United States, was one of the first fruits 
 of the military institution at West Point, suggested by 
 General Washington, and established during the ad- 
 ministration of President Jefferson. Like all the most 
 prominent offieers in the army, at the close of the war 
 of 1812, he was indebted, however, for his rapid pro- 
 motion, to that " exfoliation of veteran commanders," 
 which, says Mr. Ingersoll, in his Historical Sketch of 
 the second war with Great Britain, "was one of the 
 processes which the young army of that war had to 
 sutler, before becoming fit for action."* 
 
 He was born at Detroit, then a frontier garrison town, 
 on the third day of April, 1782. His father, whose 
 name was, also, Alexander Macomb, was of Irish pa- 
 rentage, though a native of the city of New York ; 
 he was highly esteemed as a citizen, and subsequently 
 became a member of the New York'^ legislature ; and it 
 is said, to his honor, that he furnished five sons for the 
 regular army and the militia, in the war of 1812. The 
 elder Macomb removed to Detroit, just previous to^the 
 American Revolution, and engaged in the fur trade, in 
 
 * Vol. I. p. -288. 
 
298 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 of his superior officers. With the permission of General 
 Hamilton, he visited Canada, to make himself acquainted 
 with the discipline and tactics in the British service ; he 
 was kindly received by the officers at Montreal, visited 
 the troops in their quarters, and was present at several 
 reviews for manoeuvre and inspection. 
 
 The American army was now reduced to a peace es- 
 tablishment ; a great portion of the troops were dis- 
 banded; and most of the officers returned to private 
 life. Macomb, however, was retained in the service, 
 and on the tenth of February, 1801, was appointed a 
 second lieutenant of dragoons. Upon his return to the 
 United States, he was ordered to Philadelphia, on the 
 recruiting service. While in this city, he eagerly em- 
 braced every opportunity to cultivate and improve his 
 mental abilities, by reading, and associating with learned 
 and scientific men. The valuable public libraries were 
 open to him, and he became a constant visitor. He 
 here met with a French officer of engineers, under 
 whom he passed through a course of instruction in for- 
 tification and military topography. He likewise formed 
 the acquaintance of Major Williams, of the 2d artillery, 
 the Inspector of Fortifications, an able and intelligent 
 officer, who was afterwards placed at the head of the 
 corps of engineers, and the Military Academy at West 
 Point. 
 
 Having raised a body of recruits, he received orders 
 to conduct them to Pittsburg, the headquarters of Gen- 
 eral Wilkinson. Being accompanied by a number of 
 subaltern officers of infantry, he cheerfully waived his 
 privilege of being mounted, and walked with them on 
 foot, enlivening tlie weary march by his sprightly con- 
 
API'OIATKX) A LIKLTKiNAM" OF ENGINEERS. 299 
 
 versatioii, his gay good humor, and his friendly attention 
 to the wants of those under his command. 
 
 Arrived at Pittsburg, Lieutenant Macomb was em- 
 ployed in instructing the recruits preparatory to joining 
 their respective regiments. He also renewed his inti- 
 macy with Major Williams, then on a tour of inspection 
 upon the Niagara frontier, whom he assisted in preparing 
 his drawings, calculations, and estimates. He was 
 subsequently attached to the military family of Gen- 
 eral Wilkinson," as an extra aid-de-camp, and accom- 
 panied him, in that capacity, to the camp of instruction 
 formed at Wilkinsonville, at the mouth of the Ohio, for 
 practicing the evolutions of the line. In August, 1801, 
 he was selected as the secretary of the commission, 
 consLstinj? of Generals Wilkinson and Pickens, and 
 Colonel Hawkins, appointed to treat with the Indian 
 tribes inhabiting the Southwestern territory. He was 
 eno^aofed in this service, and in other collateral duties, 
 until June, 1802 — spending the winter of 1801-2 in 
 the Creek nation — when he was dispatched to Wash- 
 ington by the commissioners, with the treaties and ac- 
 counts. During all this time, he kept a journal, in 
 which he carefully noted the geological and geographical 
 features of the country which he traversed ; and he also 
 constructed a topographical map of the Temiessee and 
 Mississippi rivers, which was deposited in the War 
 office, and noticed by President Jefferson in the most 
 commendatory terms. 
 
 Uj5on his arrival at the seat of government, he found 
 that the corps to which he belonged had been disbanded, 
 but that he had been retained, and attached to the 1st 
 infantry, with the rank of first lieutenant. At the same 
 
300 ALEXANDER MACO.AIB. 
 
 time authority had been given to raise a corps of en- 
 gineers, to consist of one major, two captains, two first, 
 and two second lieutenants, and ten cadets — which 
 corps, when organized, was to constitute the Military 
 Academy. Being dissatisfied with his new appointment, 
 he remonstrated with the Secretary of War ; Major 
 Williams, the head of the corps of engineers, seconded 
 his appeal ; and, in consequence, he was transferred to 
 that corps, as a first lieutenant, in October, 1802. 
 
 He now proceeded to West Point, to take his place 
 as a student, — the lieutenants, as well as the cadets, 
 being obliged to go through the course of study, — in 
 conformity with the provisions of the law organizing 
 the Academy. He was one of the first graduates, and 
 was then appointed adjutant of the corps. It was his 
 duty to instruct the cadets in their military exercises, 
 and he was the first officer who ors^anized them into a 
 body, and put arras in their hands. — This was the be- 
 ginning of an institution, which has since made the 
 world ring, with the heroism and daring of the gallant 
 officers whose military character and education were 
 there formed and acquired. 
 
 In July, 1803, Lieutenant Macomb was married to 
 liis cousin, Catharine Macomb, a young lady of rare 
 beauty, of refined mind, and highly-polished man- 
 ners. 
 
 So highly were his talents appreciated, that in the 
 autumn of the same year, he was appointed Judge Ad- 
 vocate of a general court-martial held at Frederick, 
 Maryland, for the trial of Colonel Butler. In discharg- 
 ing this duty he acquitted himself with such marked 
 ability, that the members of the court suggested to him 
 
MADE LIEUTENANT COLONEL. 301 
 
 the preparation of a treatise on the subject of courts- 
 martial, — a work which ho afterwards executed. 
 
 On the eleventh of June, 1805, in pursuance of the 
 strong recommendation of Colonel Williams, who was 
 ever warmly attached to his protege, he was further 
 promoted to the rank of captain in the corps of engineers ; 
 and, immediately thereafter^ was ordered to Portsmouth, 
 to oversee the repairs on the fortifications in that har- 
 bor. The next year he was appointed superintendent 
 of the public works, then erecting at Mount Dearborn, 
 on the Catawba river, thirty-six miles above Camden, 
 where it was designed to establish a national armory 
 and depot. While at this place, he prepared his trea- 
 tise on courts-martial, — receiving the benefit of the 
 advice and suggestions of C4eneral William R. Davie, 
 and General Charles C. Pinckney, both equally accora- 
 ])lished as soldiers and civilians. The work was soon 
 after printed, and submitted to the President and Sec- 
 retary of War, by whom it was adopted as the standard 
 for the government of courts-martial. 
 
 Captain Macomb remained at Mount Dearborn, until 
 
 1807, when he was instructed to take the general di- 
 rection, as chief engineer, of the works then in pro- 
 cess of construction for the defence of Georgia and the 
 two Carolinas. He made a careful reconnaissance of 
 the whole coast, from Ocracock inlet to the river St. 
 Mary's, and projected a complete system of defences 
 for all the principal harbors and inlets. In February, 
 
 1808, he was raised to the rank of major, and, in 1811, 
 was made a lieutenant colonel. He remained at 
 Charleston, and in its neighborhood, superintending 
 the fortifications on the coast, till the month of April, 
 
302 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 1812, when ho was called to Washington, to assist the 
 Secretary of War in organizing, arranging, equipping, 
 and providing supplies, for the new regiments ordered 
 to be raised, in anticipation of a collision with England. 
 
 War was declared in June following, and Colonel 
 jVIacomb promptly solicited a command in the line of 
 the army. Much to his chagrin this was refused, as 
 beini? incompatible with the existing rules of the ser- 
 vice.* Still he was not to be balked in his determina- 
 tion to take a far more active part in the approaching 
 contest, than as a mere cabinet and staff officer. He 
 now applied for an appointment in one of the new reg- 
 iments of artillery ; the delegation in Congress from 
 the State of New York endorsed his application ; and, 
 on the sixth of July, 1812, he received a commission 
 as colonel of the 3rd artillery, a double regiment, to 
 consist of twenty companies, of one hundred and eigh- 
 teen men each. 
 
 Colonel ivlacomb forthwith repaired to New York, 
 and by his own personal efforts and exertions, soon suc- 
 ceeded in raising the requisite number of men to com- 
 pose his regiment. The diflerent companies rendez- 
 voused at Greenbush, where they were completely 
 organized and instructed. Their fine state of disci- 
 j)linc, their soldierly appearance and deportment, and 
 ihe high character of their ofhoers for ability and in- 
 telligence, attracted general attention, and elicited 
 tokens of approbation in every quarter. In November, 
 the colonel marched his regiment to Sacketts Harbor, 
 
 * Colonel Williams, the chief of the corps of Engineers, resigned Lis 
 commission in 1812, for the reason that he was denied a command in the 
 line of the army, which he solicited. 
 
STATIONED AT SACKETTS IIARCOR. 303 
 
 with the intention of embarking it on board the fleet, 
 and making an attack on Kingston. On his arrival at 
 that post, he found that Commodore Cliauncey had 
 sailed in quest of the enemy, whereupon, in accordance 
 with the advice of a council of war, the contemplated 
 movement was abandoned, and the regiment went into 
 winter quarters. 
 
 During the winter. Colonel INIacomb was invested 
 with the command of the land forces at Sacketts Har- 
 bor. In addition to his own regiment, there was a 
 large body of militia and volunteers stationed there, to- 
 gether with a number of sailors and marines belonsfins: 
 to the squadron. All the troops were drilled with great 
 regularity and precision — being often paraded on the 
 frozen lake, to inure them to the cold, and to fit them 
 for a projected march, across the ice, upon Kingston. 
 This was ascertained to be practicable, by a reconnais- 
 sance made by Captain Crane, and in order to cover 
 the design, a rumor was set afloat, to the effect that 
 Sir George Prevost was concentrating his forces at 
 Kingston for an attack on Sacketts Harbor.* By some 
 means or other, the rumor reached the ears of General 
 Dearborn, the commander-in-chief, at Albany, in such 
 a shape, that he could not be induced to believe it was 
 a mere device designed to lull the suspicions of the en- 
 emy. He left Albany in a sleigh drawn by four horses, 
 reached Sacketts Harbor in forty-eight hours, and soon 
 after ordered up the brigades of Chandler and Pike from 
 Plattsburg. 
 
 * The post was attacked in May, 1813, (see Memoir of General Brown, 
 ante,) but not until after the withdrawal of the troops for the expedition 
 against York and Fort George. 
 
304 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 Kingston, therefore, remained unmolested, — and the 
 army at Sacketts Harbor continued inactive, till the 
 opening of the lake navigation in the spring of 1813, 
 when General Dearborn proceeded against York with 
 the greater part of his forces. A portion of Colonel 
 IMacomb's regiment took part in the expedition, but 
 their commander himself, much against his own inclina- 
 tion and wishes, was left at Sacketts Harbor, — it being 
 deemed of the highest importance that an officer of skill 
 and ability should be placed in command of that post. 
 
 Having made every possible preparation for the de- 
 fence of Sacketts Harbor, and received permission to 
 join General Dearborn on the Niagara frontier. Colonel 
 Macomb sailed up the lake, in company with Com- 
 modore Chauncey, with the remainder of his regiment, 
 and joined the main army on the twenty-fourth of May ; 
 passing, in the night, a schooner dispatched by the 
 gcneral-in-chief, with an otficer on board, bearing pos- 
 itive orders for him to remain at the post he had left. 
 The arrangements for the attack on Fort George had 
 previously been made ; but a sort of second reserve was 
 formed, under Colonel Macomb, consisting of his regi- 
 ment and the marines. The attack was made on the 
 twenty-seventh of May, and was eminently successful. 
 None of the troops participated in the action, except 
 the advanced guard under Colonel Scott, and the bri- 
 gade of General Boyd ; consequently. Colonel Ma- 
 comb had no opportunity to gather the laurels he 
 longed to win ; and, immediately after the battle took 
 place, he was ordered to return to Sacketts Harbor, 
 with four companies of his regiment. 
 
 Upon what tri/ling, and apparently unimportant cir- 
 
EXPEDITION DOWN THE ST. LAWRENCE. 305 
 
 cumstances, does the destiny of individuals, like that 
 of nations, depend ! — The temporary absence of Col- 
 onel Macomb from Sacketts Harbor enabled General 
 Brown, then only an officer of the militia, to distin- 
 guish himself, and to obtain a high command, followed 
 by rapid promotion, in the regular service ; while the 
 former, though equally brave and patriotic, was de- 
 feated in his most ardent hopes, by his impatience and 
 anxiety to meet the enemy in the field. 
 
 In the summer of 1813, General Wilkinson relieved 
 General Dearborn in the command of the Northern 
 army. Colonel Macomb accompanied him in the fruit- 
 less and unfortunate movement down the St. Law- 
 rence, in the autumn of that year.* He was placed 
 at the head of the corps cT elite, which consisted of his 
 own regiment, the 20th infantry, Forsyth's rifles, and 
 Major Herkimer's New York volunteers, numbering, in 
 all, about twelve hundred- men. On the march over 
 land, to avoid the fire of the British batteries at Pres- 
 cott, he led the advance ; and when the army resumed 
 its progress down the river, he was detached with his 
 corps, to remove obstructions from the stream, and 
 drive the enemy's skirmishers and light troops from the 
 line of the route. While on this service, several slight 
 affairs occurred with the enemy, in which he and the 
 officers and men of his command, displayed commend- 
 able zeal and gallantry. 
 
 Beino- in the advance. Colonel Macomb had no part 
 in the action fought on the eleventh of November, near 
 Williamsburg. After the death of General Coving- 
 ton, who fell on that occasion, Macomb succeeded to 
 
 * See Memoir of General Brown, ante. 
 
306 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 the command of his brigade, and conducted it to the 
 winter quarters of the army, at French Mills, where 
 he was placed in command of the artillery. 
 
 On the twenty-fourth of January, 1814, Colonel 
 Macomb was promoted to the ranlc of brigadier general, 
 and, on the receipt of his commission, was regularly 
 assigned to the command of Covington's brigade. In 
 conformity with orders from the War Department, the 
 cantonment at French Mills was broken up in Feb- 
 ruary, 1814, and the troops divided into two columns, — 
 one moving to Sacketts Harbor, under General Brown, 
 and the other proceeding to Plattsburg and Burlington, 
 under Generals Wilkinson and Macomb. The latter 
 was appointed to the command of the troops on the 
 eastern shore of Lake Champlain, and established his 
 headquarters at Burlington. 
 
 In the month of March following, General Wilkin- 
 son concentrated his forces at Champlain, on the New 
 York frontier, in order to make a demonstration, or at- 
 tack, as might be most practicable, upon the British- 
 outposts. General Macomb joined him with his bri- 
 gade, and proceeded, with the. column, to La Cole Mill, 
 on the St. John's, a strongly fortified position of the 
 enemy. An attempt was made to carry the work on 
 the thirtieth of March, which wholly failed of success. 
 General Macomb, who had opposed, to the last, the 
 order of attack laid down by the commanding general, 
 and suggested an entirely different plan of operations, 
 commanded the reserve, and displayed his usual ability 
 in covcrinij the retrosfrade march to Odletown. 
 
 Shortly after this affair. General Wilkinson was re- 
 called, and General Macomb assumed the command of 
 
INVASION OF NEW YORK. 307 
 
 the army, till the arrival of General IzarJ. Commodore 
 Macdonough was then actively engaged in constructing 
 and equipping his fleet, at Vergennes. Early in May, 
 the enemy's flotilla appeared ofl:' Plattsburg, on their 
 way towards the naval depot, intending, doubtless, to 
 destroy the vessels and stores. General Macomb in- 
 stantly penetrated their design, and dispatched the light 
 artillery under Captain Thornton, to man the batteries 
 which he had caused to be erected on Otter Creek, to 
 protect the depot. The British flotilla attempted to 
 pass up the creek, but were so roughly handled by the 
 American batteries, that they judged it expedient to 
 return to the Isle Aux Noix. 
 
 "When General Izard arrived at Plattsburg and took 
 the command. General Macomb resumed his position 
 at Burlington, till the departure of the former, on the 
 twenty-seventh of August, 1814, with the greater part 
 of his troops, to reinforce General Brown on the Ni- 
 agara frontier. 
 
 Meanwhile, the British force in the Canadas had 
 been largely augmented, by the arrival of successive 
 detachments from Wellington's victorious army on the 
 Garonne. At the close of the month of August, there 
 were, at least, sixteen thousand regular soldiers, under 
 the orders of the governor-general. Sir George Prevost, 
 — twelve thousand of whom were in the lower province. 
 This formidable force was designed for the invasion of 
 the United States, by the way of Lake Champlain, in 
 conjunction with the fleet then preparing to cooperate 
 with it, under Commodore Downie. At the same time, 
 a strong naval expedition, under Sir John Sherbrooke 
 and Admiral Griflith, was moving along the New 
 
308 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 England coast, landing at different places on their 
 route, and encountering but a feeble opposition, except 
 on the part of the regular troops or the navy. These 
 two movements were parts of a general plan, formed by 
 the Prince Regent and his cabinet — based, in all proba- 
 bility, on the well-known disaffection in the New Eng- 
 land States. But Sir George Prevost found, to his 
 cost, that the want of patriotism manifested in Massa- 
 chusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, was not 
 shared, to any considerable degree, by the yeomen of 
 New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York. 
 
 The preparations of the English commander for the 
 projected invasion were nearly completed, when Gen- 
 eral Izard set out for the theatre of General Brown's 
 operations. General Macomb, whose brigade was now 
 broken up, was left in command at Plattsburg, to which 
 he again removed his headquarters. His whole force 
 numbered about twenty-five hundred men, most of 
 whom, however, were convalescents, or new recruits 
 belonging to different regiments ; there was but one 
 organized battalion in the entire command ; many were 
 sick ; and, on examination, it was found that there 
 were only fifteen hundred fit for duty. This was, in- 
 deed, a dilemma ; and especially so, as there was no 
 time given to bring up new regular troops, — it being 
 announced, on the first of September, that the advance 
 of Sir George Prevost's army had that day crossed the 
 lines at Odletown, where he was issuing his proclama- 
 tions inviting the inhabitants to remain neutral, and 
 impressing wagons and teams — thus plainly indicating 
 his intention to sweep down the western shore of the 
 lake, in the direction of Plattsburg. 
 
DEFENCES OF PLATTSBURG. 
 
 309 
 
 General Macomb never paused to count the number 
 of his enemies, or to consider his own weakness, any- 
 further tlian was necessary for the defence of his posi- 
 tion, which he was determined to maintain at all haz- 
 ards. General JNIooers, of the New York militia, was 
 invited to consult with him, and to cooperate in the 
 obstruction of the enemy's advance, with all the troops 
 under his orders. Messengers sped ofl" in every direc- 
 tion, bearing spirited appeals from General Macomb, to 
 arouse the people of Vermont and New York ; and 
 every exertion was made, in the meantime, to reduce 
 the confusion prevailing at Plattsburg into something 
 like order, and to strengthen the fortifications prepared 
 to resist the " rushing onslaught" of the British legions. 
 A spirit of emulation was carefully fostered among the 
 officers and men, who were divided into detachments, 
 and placed near the different forts'; General Macomb 
 announcing, in orders, that each party must be the 
 garrison of its own work, and defend it to the last ex- 
 tremity. 
 
 The village of Plattsburg is situated on the north- 
 western bank of the Seiranac river, which flows into 
 Cumberland bay, an arm of Lake Champlain. On the 
 south-east, between the river and the bay, there is a 
 triangular peninsula, from four to six hundred yards 
 wide. The American works were constructed, under 
 the direction of Major Totten, of the engineers, on this 
 peninsula. There were, at first, three redoubts, and 
 two strong blockhouses. The principal work, called, by 
 General Izard, Fort Moreau, stood in the centre, — 
 having on its right, on the Saranac, Fort Brown, and 
 on its left, resting on the lake, Fort Scott ; so named 
 
810 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 by General Macomb, in honor of his gallant brothers in 
 arms. Fort Brown and Fort Scott were deemed in- 
 accessible, on their water fronts, as the banks of the 
 river and bay were high and precipitous. On all the 
 other sides, the several works were surrounded by deep 
 and wide ditches ; they were defended by capomiieres ; 
 and each glacis was covered with rows of abattis. The 
 blockhouses occiipied favorable positions for guarding 
 the river, and the ravines on the northern bank leading 
 to the redoubts. The general afterwards constructed a 
 fourth redoubt, which he called Fort Gaines, in advance 
 of the other forts, on the south side of the river. 
 
 All the works occupied by the American troops were 
 well supplied with artillery, and their position was fur- . 
 ther strengthened, by the presence of the fleet under 
 Commodore Macdonough, which lay moored in the bay 
 on the right of their position. Besides the regular gar- 
 risons detailed for the different redoubts, General Ma- 
 comb formed four small corps of observation, — placing 
 two hundred and fifty men under INIajnr Wool, of 
 the 29th infantry ; two hundred under Major Sproul, 
 of the loth ; one hundred rifles under Captain Gros- 
 venor, of the 26th ; and one hundred and ten rifles 
 under Lieutenant Colonel Appling. These corps were 
 thrown forward on the diflerent routes, to watch the 
 movements of the enemy. Most of the citizens of 
 Plattsburg had fled with their families and effects, but 
 a small party of young men remained behind, received 
 rifles, and organized themselves into a separate com- 
 pany. They also did good service as skirmishers. 
 
 The advance of Sir George Prevost was slow and cau- 
 tious. The example and fate of Burgoyne were before 
 
ADVANCE OP SIR GEORGE PREVOST. 311 
 
 him, and he desired to profit by the lesson. He wished 
 to penetrate into the country as far as Crown Point and 
 Ticonderoga, before the winter set in, but he did not 
 care to be caught in a trap. He therefore felt his way 
 at every step, repeatedly urging Captain Downie, how"- 
 ever, to hasten the completion and equipment of his 
 fleet. Without the command of the lake he naturally 
 felt that his position, far advanced into the enemy's 
 country, would be extremely hazardous and insecure. 
 On the third of September, the whole British army 
 entered the town of Champlain, and on the following 
 day moved forward upon Plattsburg. They found the 
 roads blocked up with felled trees, the passes obstructed 
 by chevaux-de-frise and abattis, and the bridges broken 
 down, — the corps of observation pushed out by General 
 ■Macomb having faithfully obeyed his orders, to impede, 
 in every way, the progress of the enemy's troops. 
 
 Tlie eloquent appeals of the American general to the 
 yeomanry of Vermont and New^York were nobly an- 
 swered. Hundreds and thousands of the brave Green 
 Mountain boys, and the patriotic militia and volunteers 
 of New York, daily poured into his camp. Those who 
 were destitute he furnished with arms, and all were 
 supplied with provisions. The militia were, of course, 
 organized and enrolled under their respective com- 
 manders, but the volunteers, at his suggestion, usually 
 separated into small parties, to lie in wait in the woods, 
 to fall upon detached parties of the enemy, to annoy 
 their flanks, to harrass them by every possible means, 
 and to obtain information and intercept stragglers. 
 
 On the fourth of September, General Mooers, with 
 feeven hundred militia, advanced about seven miles on 
 
312 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 the Beekmantown road, — which passes over the swell- 
 ing uplands overlooking the lake, and the lower, or lake 
 road, on its margin, — to reconnoitre, and obstruct the 
 approaches. Captain Sproul was then at Dead Creek 
 bridge, on the lake road, with his corps and twx). pieces 
 of artillery ; while Lieutenant Colonel Appling and his 
 rifles, who had been stationed on the Great Chazy, were 
 still further in front. When the enemy moved forward, 
 on the fourth instant, Appling retreated leisurely be- 
 fore them, tearing up the bridges, cutting down trees 
 and flinging them across the road, and throwing every 
 possible obstruction in the way of their advance. 
 
 Sir George Prevost halted his troops at Little Chazy, 
 on the fifth instant, and it was the same day ascertained 
 by General Macomb, that they would take up the line 
 of march on the following morning, in two columns, 
 on the Beekmantown and lake roads, which divided 
 below Chazy village. The general was urged by many 
 warm and zealous friends, to abandon Plattsburg to its 
 fate, to remove the stores while there was yet time, and 
 to retire higher up the lake. He was not the man to 
 follow such advice ; though a retreat, under the cir- 
 cumstances, could not justly have been termed dishon- 
 orable. He had already decided to dispute every inch 
 of ground, and he felt confident, that if the narrow 
 peninsula, between the Saranac and the Champlain, 
 should, indeed, prove the Thermopyloe of himself and 
 his gallant little band of regular soldiers, the sacrifice 
 would not be in vain. The militia and volunteers who 
 had flocked around his standard, or were operating in 
 the neighborhood, numbered from eight to ten thousand 
 men, and before the enemy could have improved any 
 
BATTLE OF PLATTSBURO. 313 
 
 advantage gained over his command, the forests around 
 them would have been filled with an overwhelmins: force 
 of citizen soldiers, burning with impatience to drive 
 back the invader. 
 
 In the evening of the fifth instant, INIajor Wool was 
 ordered forward with his corps, to support the militia 
 on the Beekmantown road. It was desisfned to rein- 
 force him with two pieces of artillery, before daylight ; 
 but the officer having charge of the guns did not join 
 him in season At early dawn on the sixth, the enemy 
 were in motion. The column on the Beekmantown 
 road, consisting of the divisions of Generals Power and 
 Robinson, pushed forward with great rapidit3^ JMajor 
 Wool and his men withstood them for some time with 
 matchless hardihood and bravery, killing Lieutenant 
 Colonel Wellington, of the Buffs, the leader of the ad- 
 vanced parties ; but the militia were seized with an 
 unhappy panic, occasioned, in part, by the red coats of 
 the New York cavalry, stationed as look-outs on the 
 hills, whom they mistook for the British soldiers. The 
 firmness and intrepidity of INIajor Wool and his com- 
 mand failed to encourage them, and their premature 
 flight soon compelled him to retire. 
 
 The right column of the enemy having approached 
 within one mile of Plattsburg, General Macomb dis- 
 patched his aid, with orders to Captain Sproul, to fall 
 back by the lake road ; and to Lieutenant Colonel Ap- 
 pling, to attack the British right. Appling retired just 
 in time to escape being cut off; as he soon after en- 
 countered the head of a detachment from the left col- 
 umn, which had made a detour through the woods for 
 that purpose. A destructive fire from his rifles, at rest, 
 
 14 
 
314 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 checked their advance, and enabled him to effect his re- 
 treat in safety. The different corps, under Appling, 
 Wool, and Spronl, now united, and slowly continued 
 their retrograde movement ; the field pieces were kept 
 actively playing ; the gunboats lying off the mouth of 
 Dead Creek, poured a lively and galling fire upon the 
 enemy ; and their advanced parties, were severely 
 handled. 
 
 Every road and lane leading into Plattsburg was 
 now full of British soldiers. The artillery, which had 
 supported the American advanced corps, was pushed 
 across the bridge in the town, where it was placed in 
 battery, to cover the retreat of the infantry, who re- 
 tired in alternate detachments. As the last platoons 
 reached the southern bank of the river, the planks of 
 all tire bridges spanning the stream were torn up, by 
 order of General Macomb, and breastworks formed from 
 them, to protect the parties left to guard the crossings. 
 The enemy promptly entered the town, flattering them- 
 selves that the victory was more than half completed. 
 The heavy artillery in the redoubts immediately opened 
 on them, and the staff officers, who ascended the roofs 
 and balconies to reconnoitre, were speedily dislodged by 
 the hot shot, poured upon them "like burning lava," 
 while the buildings of Vvdiieh they had taken possession 
 were set on fire. The British commander, discovering, 
 that his men were sufTering considerably from the fn*e 
 of the heavy metal, and not being prepared to force the 
 passage of the river, drew off the main body of his 
 army, — leaving only a few light troops to skirmish at 
 tlic dillrrent fords and bridges, — and encamped in a 
 semicircle, about two miles from the American forts. 
 
SKIRMISHING. 315 
 
 It was of the highest importtince that the weakness of 
 his army should be concealed from the enemy, and 
 General Macomb took extraordinary precautions to 
 prevent their obtaining any positive information, and 
 to deceive them in regard to his real strength. All the 
 troops were paraded at guard-mounting; and, as sev- 
 eral days elapsed before anything of moment transpired 
 on either side, a portion of the barracks constructed for 
 General Izard's army was burned every night, to pre- 
 vent the enemy from approaching the works unobserved, 
 and to march the troops through the light, as if they 
 were reinforcements just arriving from the opposite 
 shore of the lake. 
 
 From the evening of the sixth of September, till the 
 morning of the eleventh, Sir George Prevost was zeal- 
 ously engaged in planting his batteries, both open and 
 masked, and bringing up his heavy artillery. During 
 all this time he refrained from offensive operations, 
 though there were constant skirmishes between ad- 
 vanced corps of the two armies, at the bridges and 
 fords. The reason alleged for the delay on his part, 
 was the want of his battering train, that came up 
 very slowly ; but the absence of the fleet under Captain 
 Downie, which had not yet arrived, — and without 
 which, as appeared in the sequel, he dared not make 
 an attempt on the American position, — was, probably, 
 the main consideration that influenced him. 
 
 In the meantime, a lively and effective cannonade was 
 directed upon the enemy's lines from the American 
 forts, — the sullen thunder of their artillery echoing for 
 many a mile through the sweeping forests whose rich 
 foliage enamelled the borders of liake Champlain. The 
 
316 ALEXANDER MACO.MB. 
 
 repeated assaults of the enemy at the different cross- 
 ings of the river were repelled with ease and alacrity ; 
 and on one occasion, Captain M'Glassin, of the 15th 
 infantry, gallantly crossed the river in the night, with 
 fifty men ; attacked a working party one hundred and 
 fifty strong, constructing a battery opposite Fort Brown ; 
 defeated both them and their support, also one hundred 
 and fifty in number, killing seven of the enemy ; and 
 completely demolished the work. The regular troops, 
 besides performing regular tours of duty at the bridge 
 and fords, labored incessantly, in strengthening the for- 
 tifications. 
 
 On the night of the tenth of September, General 
 Macomb was apprised of the intention of the enemy 
 to make an attack the next day ; and, by his orders, 
 the roads and passes leading to the south of his posi- 
 tion, as he suspected they designed to turn it, were 
 covered with felled trees, and strewed with leaves, so 
 as to deceive them, and a new road was opened leading 
 towards Salmon river. 
 
 At the earliest dawn of day, before the welkin be- 
 gan to glow with the purple light of morning, a gen- 
 eral movement was reported, by the advanced parties, 
 to be making in the enemy's camp ; and when objects 
 could be distinguished from the main line, all their 
 different corps were observed under arms. Shortly af- 
 terwards, the British fleet rounded Cumberland head. 
 As the Confiance, the flag ship of Captain Downie, en- 
 tered the bay, she sealed her guns, — the signal agreed 
 on with Sir George Prevost for the commencement of the 
 action. A desperate conflict, of rather more than two 
 imurs' duration, now took place between the rival 
 
REPULSE OF THE ENEMY. 317 
 
 squadrons, at the termination of wliich Commodore 
 Macdonough obtained a signal triumph over his oppo- 
 nent, who fell mortally wounded in the action. 
 
 Nearly all the. enemy's vessels were captured or de- 
 stroyed, and their crews, with the exception of those 
 who were killed during the engagement, were taken 
 prisoners. 
 
 Sir George Prevost only waited to give his men their 
 breakfast, when the attack was ordered on the land. 
 Showers of bombs, shrapnels, balls, and rockets, were 
 hurled across the river ; and immediately after the bom- 
 bardment commenced, the enemy advanced to force a 
 passage across the stream, and assault the American 
 works, in three columns — one approaching the bridge 
 in the village, another the upper bridge, and the third 
 a ford about three miles above the forts — all of which 
 were provided with scaling ladders. The attack was 
 vigorously met by the American artillerists ; fire an- 
 swered fire ; and the ringing shot and shout resounded 
 far and wide. 
 
 The two columns of the enemy which attempted to 
 pass the bridges, were gallantly driven back by the 
 regulars ; the remaining column was led astray in tiic 
 woods — the artifices of the American commander being 
 entirely successful — and after spending a long time in 
 marching and countermarching to no purpose, wearied 
 and worn with fatigue, they arrived in sight of the 
 American works, only to hear the glad shouts of vic- 
 tory at the brilliant success of the brave Macdonough. 
 A further advance was no longer to be thought of; the 
 recall was sounded ; the scaling ladders were thrown 
 down ; and a hastv retreat was made. The volunteers 
 
318 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 and militia stationed in this quarter, pressed warmly 
 upon them, and succeeded in cutting off an entire com- 
 pany of the 76th foot, not a single man of whom es- 
 caped. The cannonade was kept up till sunset, when 
 the enemy's batteries were all silenced by the effective 
 fire from the American forts. 
 
 Before another morning dawned, Sir George Prevost 
 and his powerful army had all disappeared, like " the 
 baseless fabric of a vision." Their sick and wounded 
 were left behind, with a message to the American gen- 
 eral commending them to his kindness and generosity. 
 Vast quantities of provisions were also abandoned or de- 
 stroyed, together with large stores of ammunition, tents, 
 and intrenching tools. The retreat was made so unex- 
 pectedly, and with such extraordinary precipitance, 
 that it was not discovered till the enemy had nearly 
 reached Chazy, about eight miles distant. The light 
 troops, volunteers, and militia, were instantly detached 
 in pursuit of the flying Britons ; but a violent storm of 
 rain impeded their progress, and they were only able 
 to capture a few prisoners, and to cover the escape of 
 between three and four hundred deserters. Sir George 
 Prevost succeeded in effecting his return to Canada, 
 without further molestation, where he resigned the 
 command of the army and demanded a court martial. 
 Before the investigation took place, he died, as it is 
 said, of grief and mortification at the ill-success of an 
 expedition so well equipped and provided, and upon 
 which depended so many hopes and expectations. 
 
 The actual loss of the British army in this expedition 
 was only two hundred and fifty killed and wounded, 
 but there were over four hundred deserted in the re- 
 
RETURN OF PEACE. 319 
 
 treat. Of the Americans, there were thirty-seven killed, 
 sixty*t.wo wounded, and twenty missing. 
 
 The double victory of INIacomb and JMacdonough was 
 everywhere hailed by their countrymen with acclama- 
 tions of joy. The legislatures of New York and Ver- 
 mont were foremost in offering their thanks and con- 
 gratulations. The freedom of the city of New York 
 was presented to General Macomb, in a gold box, and 
 the State legislature voted him a magnificent sword. 
 Congress also passed a vote of thanks, and ordered that 
 a gold medal, emblematical of the victory, should be 
 struck and presented to him. The brevet of major gen- 
 eral was likewise conferred on him — his commission 
 bearing date on the memorable eleventh of Septem- 
 ber, 1814. 
 
 Upon the conclusion of the treaty of peace, the nego- 
 tiations for which were undoubtedly hastened to a close 
 by the disastrous result of the expedition under Sir 
 George Prevost, the army was reduced to the peace 
 establishment, which was fixed at ten thousand men. 
 Two major generals, and four brigadier generals, were 
 retained in the service ; among them was General Ma- 
 comb, who stood at the head of the brigadiers. He 
 was now assigned to the command of the 3rd military 
 department, and established his headquarters at New 
 York ; subsequently he was transferred to the 5th de- 
 partment, and removed to Detroit. While in charge ' 
 of the latter department, he established the posts at ■ 
 Fort Gratiot, Chicago, Mackinaw, Prairie du Chien, ' 
 St. Peter's, and St. Mary's. So highly was he esteemed 
 by the people of Detroit, that when he was called to 
 Washington, on the further reduction of the army, in 
 
320 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 June, 1821, to take charge of the Engineer Bureau, an 
 address, in their name, with a piece of plate, wa^ pre- 
 sented to him, by Governor Cass ; and the clergy, and 
 all the most prominent citizens, called upon him to 
 take their leave, and express their regret at his de- 
 parture. 
 
 General Macomb now removed to Georgetown, in 
 the District of Columbia, in order to enter upon the 
 duties of his ajipointment as Chief Engineer. His mil- 
 itary studies, his talents and experience, eminently fitted 
 him for this post ; and it is not strange, therefore, that 
 he should have received, as he did, the repeated thanks 
 of every head of the War Department, during his ad- 
 ministration of the affairs of the engineer bureau. 
 Millions of dollars were appropriated under his direc- 
 tions, not a smgle cent of which was unaccounted for 
 to the government. 
 
 In the first year of his residence at Georgetown, 
 General Macomb was called upon to mourn the loss of 
 his excellent wife, who had so long shared with him 
 the toils and dangers, the hardships and suflerings, of a 
 soldier's life. He was married a second time, in May, 
 1826, to Mrs. Harriet Balch Wilson, a lady richly 
 meriting the praise awarded to the possessor of so many 
 graces and accomplishments. 
 
 On the death of General Brown, in February, 1828, 
 General Macomb was raised to the full rank of major 
 general, and appointed General-in-Chief of the army. 
 His claims to tliis preference were disputed by Generals' 
 Scott and Gaines, the two brigadiers ; but President 
 Adams, and his successor, General Jackson, decided in 
 favor of Macomb, on the ground tliat his military ser- 
 
HIS DEATH. 321 
 
 vice was the longest, and that, even if this were not the 
 case, the Executive possessed the unquestioned right to 
 go beyond the pale of the army, if thought advisable, in 
 making the selection. 
 
 "While at the head of the army, General Macomb 
 devised and recommended various plans for its improve- 
 ment, and that of the military school at West Point, 
 many of which were adopted by Congress, or the War 
 Department, and all of which would no doubt materi- 
 ally conduce to the elevation of the military character 
 of the country. He was not again required to tai<e 
 the field, except that he was absent for a few months 
 in Florida, during the second Seminole war, and, in 
 1839, concluded a treaty of peace with the refractory 
 Indians, which proved to be illusory and deceptive. 
 
 As General Macomb advanced in years, he grew 
 somewhat corpulent, and became subject to apopletic 
 attacks. On the occasion of the funeral ceremonies of 
 President Harrison, in the city of Washington, he 
 commanded the funeral escort ; and his tall and manly 
 form, his noble and dignified presence, rendered him the 
 most conspicuous personage in that brilliant pageant. 
 But little more than two months elapsed, when he was 
 struck by the same relentless enemy of our race. He 
 died in a fit of apoplexy, on the twenty-fifth of June, 
 1841, universally lamented by his associates and breth- 
 ren in arms, and by his numerous friends and acquaint- 
 ances throughout the Union. 
 
 The personal appearance of General Macomb was 
 decidedly in his favor. He was above the ordinary 
 height, and, until a few years previous to his death, 
 was finely proportioned. His eyes were blue, and 
 
 14* 
 
322 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 
 
 beamed with intelligence and kindness. His look was 
 lofty and imposing, and his whole cast of countenance 
 indicated great decision and firmness, coupled with in- 
 tellectual ability of the highest order. 
 
 He was polished and easy in his manners ; at all 
 times accessible ; but never forgetting his own self-re- 
 spect, or losing sight of the dignity of his position. In 
 his military career, he evinced unusual promptness and 
 energy, appropriately tempered by wisdom and pru- 
 dence. He made no pretences to extraordinary cour- 
 age ; but a braver soldier, in the better sense of the 
 term, never lived. His scientific attainments in the 
 line of his profession, and in general literature, were 
 remarked, and admired, by all who had the pleasure of 
 his acquaintance. He was singularly accurate in his 
 judgment ; correct and exact in the discharge of every 
 duty ; patient and assiduous, but decided, in anything 
 he undertook. His disposition and character were 
 equable ; and he wore well, as a soldier and a citizen, 
 — as a friend, a father, and a husband. 
 
ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 
 
 .This gallant officer, whose fate so closely resembles 
 that of the chivalric, ardent, and romantic Montgomery, 
 was bred in a camp, lived a soldier's life, and died a 
 soldier's death. 
 
 " Brief, brave, and glorious, was his young career !" 
 
 Like Sidney before the walls of Zutphen, he per- 
 iished in the hour of victory, when he had just plucked 
 the coronal of his fame ; like him, too, rejoicing that his 
 death was for the honor of his country. 
 
 General Pike was descended from a family of sol- 
 diers. One of his ancestors. Captain John Pike, was 
 highly distinguished, according to the traditionary ac- 
 counts, in the early Indian wars of the colony. His 
 father, Major Zebulon Pike, entered the army of the 
 United States as a captain of infantry, in 1792, having 
 served, with liigh credit, in the levies of the previous 
 year, and was promoted to the rank of major in 1800. 
 His son, the hero of this sketch, was born at Lamber- 
 ton. New Jersey, the residence of the family for many 
 generations, on the fifth day of January, 1779. While 
 he was yet a child, his father removed to Bucks 
 County, Pennsylvania, and thence to Easton. In his 
 
324 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 
 
 boyhood, he was remarkable both for his spirit and 
 bravery, and his thoughtful and studious habits. He 
 enjoyed but few advantages, and obtained a knowledge 
 only of the ordinary branches of an English education. 
 
 At an early age, he accompanied his father to the 
 western frontiers of the Union, and served for some time 
 as a cadet in his company. On the third of March, 
 1799, he received a commission as ensign in the 2nd 
 infantry, and on the twenty-fourth of April, 1800, was 
 promoted to a first lieutenancy in the same regi)iient. 
 During the year 1800, he was transferred to the 1st 
 infantry. Unlike most of the young officers around 
 him, wlio contented themselves with going through the 
 customary routine of barrack duty, he devoted all his 
 leisure time to reading and study. Without the aid 
 of an instructor, ho became tolerably well acquainted 
 with the French, Latin, and Spanish languages, and 
 made considerable proficiency in mathematics and gen- 
 eral science. He Vv-as not indis^erently versed in polite 
 literature, though much could not have been expected 
 from him in this respect, as his reading and studies 
 were very desultory in their character. He possessed 
 an inquiring mind, habits of investigation and reflec- 
 tion, and was a nice observer of men and things ; he 
 was likewise patient and assiduous in his efforts to im- 
 prove his mind, — but all these good qualities did not 
 make up for the absence of a regular system. 
 
 In March, 1801, Pike was married to Miss Clarissa 
 Brown, of Cincinnati. Ho was tenderly and devotedly 
 attached to his wife, and had several children by her, 
 only one of whom, a daughter, survived him. 
 
 After the purchase of Louisiana from France, Mr. 
 
EXPEDITION UP THE mSSISSIPPI. 325 
 
 Jefferson projected several expeditions of discovery in 
 the territory newly acquired. Captain Lewis and 
 Lieutenant Clarke were selected to ascend the JMissouri, 
 to cross the mountains, and trace the Columbia river 
 to its mouth ; and about the same time, Lieutenant 
 Pike was ord'ered by his commanding officer, General 
 "Wilkinson, to conduct an expedition to the sources of 
 the Mississippi. On the ninth of August, 1805, he left 
 St. Louis in a keel boat, seventy feet long, with pro- 
 visions for four months ; his whole party consisting of 
 one sergeant, one corporal, and seventeen private sol- 
 diers. There was not a scientific man attached to the 
 expedition ; his men were totally unacquainted with 
 the country ; and Pike himself was required to perform 
 the duties, as he remarks in the Preface to his pub- 
 lished Narrative, " of astronomer, surveyor, command- 
 ing officer, clerk, spy, guide, and hunter." 
 
 lie was absent on this expedition nearly nine months. 
 He visited a great number of Indian tribes, attended 
 several councils, made treaties with them, and purchased 
 valuable tracts of land. On the sixteenth of October 
 lie erected a stockade, and established a winter station 
 for his men, two hundred and thirty-three miles above 
 the falls of St. Anthony. He was determined to pursue 
 his explorations still further, and accordingly commenced 
 his preparations as soon as practicable. While he re- 
 mained at the encampment, its tedious monotony was 
 relieved by the excitement of the chase. In December, 
 he contirmed his journey in canoes and on foot — his 
 men drawing their baggage on sleds over the frozen 
 snow. After visiting Sandy, Leech, and Red Cedar 
 lakes, and making his surveys and examinations, ho 
 
326 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY TIKE. 
 
 returned to liLs stockade, where he had left his sergeant, 
 and invalid soldiers, on the eighteenth of February, 
 1806. He was compelled to wait here till the breaking 
 up of the ice in the spring, when he descended the 
 river to St. Louis, arriving there on the thirtieth of 
 
 April. 
 
 General Wilkinson was so well pleased with the 
 manner in which Lieutenant Pike had conducted the 
 expedition up the Mississippi, that within four months 
 after his return, he selected him to undertake a similar 
 enterprise. On the fifteenth of July, 1806, he em- 
 barked at St. Louis, with his party, consisting of one 
 lieutenant, one sergeant, two corporals, sixteen privates, 
 and an interpreter, together with forty Osage captives, 
 who had recently been recovered from their enemies, 
 the Potowatomies. Dr. Robinson^ a professional gentle- 
 man, accompanied the expedition as a volunteer. 
 
 Proceeding up the Missouri river to the Osage country, 
 Lieutenant Pike restored the captives to their friends, 
 and then made his way to the Pawnee towns, with 
 whom he partially succeeded in cultivating friendly 
 relations. His efforts, however, were in a great meas- 
 ure frustrated, by their proxuuity to the Spanish settlers 
 of New Mexico, a large body of whom had lately visited 
 their country. 
 
 Having fulfilled the duties required of him in the 
 Indian country. Lieutenant Pike proceeded to obey his 
 further instructions, to explore the territory lying on 
 the headwaters of the Arkansas and Red rivers. After 
 leaving the Indian neighborhood, he and his party en- 
 countered the severest hardships and fatigues. On 
 reaching the Arkansas, he directed Lieutenant Wilkin- 
 
TAKEN PRISONER TO CHIHUAHUA. 327 
 
 son to descend the river to the military post on its lower 
 waters, with seven men of the party. He then held on his 
 way with the remainder of liis command, and, at length, 
 after days and weeks of toil and suftering — he and his 
 men being compelled for a portion of the time to carry 
 seventy pounds each on their backs — he arrived on what 
 he supposed to be the bank of the Red river, but which 
 proved to be the Rio Grande. 
 
 While encamped in the vicinity of the river, he was 
 visited by a detachment of Spanish and Mexican lanc- 
 ers, by whom he was conducted to Santa Fe. The 
 Spaniards were at that time extremely inimical towards 
 the people of the United States, and it was probably 
 supposed that Pike was connected with the expedition 
 of Colonel Burr. He was treated with great respect, 
 however, but was carefully watched, and shortly after- 
 wards sent, with his party, to Chihuahua, the residence 
 of the Captain-general of the Internal Provinces, under 
 a strong escort. All his papers, with the exception of 
 his private journal, were here taken from him, and he 
 was then permitted to return home, accompanied by an 
 escort, by way of San Antonio and Nacogdoches, — 
 though he was forbidden to take any notes, or make 
 any observations, on the route. He evaded this pro- 
 hibition, by making his memoranda on small scraps of 
 paper, which were concealed in the gunbarrels of his 
 men. On the first of July, 1807, the long and arduous 
 expedition terminated, by the arrival of himself and 
 party at Natchitoches. 
 
 On his return to the United States, Pike found himself 
 promoted to the rank of captain. His conduct received 
 the express approbation of the Secretary of War, and 
 
328 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 
 
 his zeal, perseverance, and intelligence, elicited a high, 
 but richly deserved encomium, from a committee of 
 Congress. He subsequently prepared a Narrative of his 
 Expedition, abounding in interesting and useful infor- 
 mation, and accompanied with valuable maps and charts, 
 which was published in 1810, 
 
 In 1809, Pilvc \vas raised to a majority in the 6th 
 infantry, and, in ISIO, was appointed lieutenant col- 
 onel of the 4tli infantry. Being engaged on detached 
 service at the southwest, he was not present at the 
 battle of Tippecanoe, in November, 1811, in which his 
 regiment bore so prominent a part. While holding the 
 rank of lieutenant colonel, he was appointed deputy 
 quartermaster general, the duties of which office he 
 discharged with commendable fidelity and punctuality. 
 
 On the twentieth day of May, 1812, Colonel Pike was 
 present at a numerous meeting of the citizens of Pliil- 
 adelphia, held in the State House yard, the object of 
 which was to embolden the government to declare war 
 against Great Britain. He took no part in the pro- 
 ceedings, but was not an uninterested spectator. His 
 whole soul was in his prufession ; his heart glowed 
 with the noble ambition of the soldier ; and he gladly 
 welcomed these expressions of the popular will, as the 
 certain indications that he would soon be summoned to 
 the field. He panted for action, for glory and fame. 
 His ardent wish was soon gratified, by the declaration 
 of war in June following, and on the increase of the 
 army, in July, he was promoted to the colonelcy of the 
 loth infantry. 
 
 Shortly after receiving his new commission. Colonel 
 Pike proceeded to the Champlain frontier, where he 
 
INCURSION INTO CANADA. 329 
 
 was stationed for some months, under the immediate 
 orders of General Dearborn, with a command consist- 
 ing of twenty-five hundred men. He found the troops 
 in great need of discipline, and labored earnestly and 
 indefatigably to correct the difliculty. No regular sys- 
 tem of tactics had then been adopted ; some officers 
 adhering to that of " Old Steuben," in vogue during 
 the revolution, and others adopting the more modern 
 French system. Pike was active in his temperament, 
 enthusiastic, ambitious to excel, and, perhaps, too fond 
 of innovations. He felt himself at liberty to choose for 
 himself, and therefore drilled his own regiment in three 
 ranks, according to the French mode ; the rear rank 
 being provided with short guns and long pikes. They 
 made a bristling appearance in the charge, but wei-e 
 not very serviceable, and soon became known in the 
 army as " Pike's regiment of pikesy After his death 
 the short guns and pikes were no longer used. 
 
 One of the innovations introduced l:)y Pike, was that 
 of drilling his men with snow shoes, in anticipation of 
 a winter campaign in Canada ; and there are many 
 amusing anecdotes related of the singular appearance 
 presented by his men when going through their ma- 
 noeuvres and evolutions on parade. 
 
 In October, 1812, Colonel Pike made a successful 
 incursion into Canada, with his regiment ; the northern 
 army being then stationed near the frontier, in the 
 town of Champlain. On the nineteenth instant, he 
 surprised a body of British and Indians stationed at a 
 blockhouse, destroyed a large quantity of public stores, 
 I and returned to camp without sustaining much loss. 
 In the winter of 1813, he was assigned to the command 
 
330 2EBUL0N MONTGOMERY PIKE. 
 
 of a brigade, and was ordered from Plattsburg to Sack- 
 etts Harbor, in consequence of a report that Sir George 
 Prevost designed to attack that post.*' 
 
 At the opening of the campaign of 1813, Pike was 
 promoted to tiie rank of brigadier general, and accom- 
 })anied General Dearborn in his expedition against 
 Yorlv. It was the great fault committed by our gen- 
 erals in the war of 1812, that no permanent lodgment 
 was made on the Canada shore, between Kingston and 
 Montreal. Had this been done, the two provinces 
 would have been effectually detached, and the upper 
 one must of necessity have submitted to the authority 
 of the United States. The instructions issued from the 
 War Department to General Dearborn, in the spring 
 of 1813, specified Kingston and York, Forts George 
 and Erie, as suitable points of attack. It was, of 
 course, designed that an attempt should be first made 
 on Kingston ; but the commanding general was de- 
 ceived by a false report- as to its strength, intended by 
 the enemy to produce that efi'ect, and therefore selected 
 York, the capital of Upper Canada, now known as 
 Toronto. 
 
 Pike was constantly employed at Sacketts Harbor, 
 in drilling the men intended for the expedition, which 
 was to be a secret one, — it being understood that he 
 was to have the actual command of the forces, though 
 General Dearborn decided to accompany him. The 
 troops, to the number of about seventeen hundred men, 
 were embarked on board Commodore Chauncey's fleet, 
 on the twenty-third of April, 1813, and set sail on the 
 
 * See Memoir of General Macomb, ante. 
 
EXPEDITION AGAINST YORK. 331 
 
 twenty-fifth instant. On the morning of the twenty- 
 seventh, they hove in sight of York, and the landing in- 
 stantly commenced, in the small boats, under the direc- 
 tion of General Pike, who had previously made all the 
 necessary arrangements, and issued the most precise 
 orders, which were directed to be read at the head of 
 every corps. 
 
 It was originally designed that the debarkation should 
 take place on the open shore, near the ruins of old Fort 
 Toronto, about two miles above York ; but the preva- 
 lence of a strong east wind forced the boats on a part 
 of the coast fringed with trees and underbrush, which 
 afforded an excellent cover to the enemy's sharpshooters. 
 Major Forsyth led the descent with his rifle corps. His 
 men cheered lustily as their boats skimmed over the 
 blue waters, and rapidly neared the beach. The alarm 
 had already been communicated to General Sheaffe, 
 the commandant of the garrison at York ; a strong 
 body of grenadiers, with the Glengary fencibles, were 
 paraded on the shore to oppose the landing ; a still 
 larger force of regulars and militia, at least seven hun- 
 dred strong, were observed in the rear ; and there were 
 five or six hundred Indians scattered through the woods 
 in detached parties. 
 
 As Major Forsyth approached the shore, a heavy fire 
 of musketry and rifles was poured on his command. 
 He at once ordered his men to rest a few seconds on 
 their oars, and return the enemy's fire. General Pike 
 was at this moment standing on the deck of his ship, 
 intently surveying the scene with his glass. Observing 
 what he thought a cowardly pause on the part of the 
 advance, he exclaimed to his staff, " I can stay here no 
 
332 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 
 
 longer, — come, jump into the boat !" As he spoke, he 
 leaped into the boat, followed by his officers, gave the 
 order to make way, and pushed into the thickest of the 
 fire. 
 
 Meantime, Major Forsyth and his men had gallantly 
 driven the enemy from the bank, and effected a land- 
 ing. They then sheltered themselves behind the trees 
 and bushes, and opened a lively fire. The first volley 
 of the enemy had killed their armorer, the best shot in 
 the corps, and they now made the woods ring with the 
 shrill report of their pieces, and their loud shouts for 
 vengeance. 
 
 General Pike soon landed, with Major King's in- 
 fantry, the light artillery under Major Eustis, the vol- 
 unteer corps of Colonel McClure, and Lieutenant Rid- 
 dle's rifles. The general placed himself at the head of 
 the platoon first formed, and ordering the rest to follow, 
 dashed up the bank under a fierce shower of bullets 
 from the grenadiers. His noble example ins]:)ired his 
 men with confidence. Willing hearts found ready 
 hands. At the word they sprang forward with the 
 utmost vivacity and fu'mness, and charged impetuously 
 upon the enemy, who almost immediately broke, and 
 retired in disorder towards their works in the town. 
 At the same instant, Forsyth's bugles pealed forth their 
 merry notes of victory. The effect on the Indians was 
 electrical ; they gave a loud yell and fled in every di- 
 rection ; but the Glengary fencibles still maintained an 
 irregular fire. A fresh body of grenadiers now issued 
 from the wood, and made a dash at Major King's reg- 
 iment ; at first, the latter faltered under the terrible 
 
EXPLOSION OF THE MAGAZINE. 333 
 
 crash of the bayonet, but they speedily rallied, returned 
 the charge with a will, and drove the enemy from the 
 field. 
 
 All the troops having landed, they were formed in 
 order of attack, and led on by General Pike in person, 
 against the enemy's works. Advancing through the 
 wood, they came within range of a twenty-four pounder 
 gun planted in one of the batteries. The battery was 
 stormed and cleared in an instant. A second work was 
 soon after entered, which had previously been aban- 
 doned. The assailants then moved forward, in columns, 
 upon the principal intrenchment, whither the enemy 
 had retreated. On approaching it, the barracks ap- 
 peared to have been evacuated. Suspecting some trick, 
 General Pike ordered a halt, and sent Lieutenant Rid- 
 dle forward to reconnoitre. 
 
 In the meanwhile, General Pike, ever as humane and 
 generous, as he was brave, had aided in removing a 
 wounded British soldier with his own hands to a place 
 of safety, and then sat down on the stump of a tree 
 with one of the enemy's sergeants who had been taken 
 prisoner. He was busily employed in examining him, 
 with the assistance of his aids, when the hill-side was 
 suddenly convulsed as if with the throes of an earth- 
 quake. The magazine in the main work of the enemy 
 exploded with a deafening roar. Huge volumes of 
 smoke darkened the air ; vast columns of flame shot up 
 towards the sky ; and large masses of fragments were 
 thrown into the air, where they hung suspended for a 
 moment, and then descended with a sharp hissing 
 •sound, crushing into the earth both friends and foes 
 
334 
 
 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 
 
 within a circuit of three hundred yards.* The maga- 
 zine was constructed of stone, and one of the heaviest 
 masses fell upon the group gathered about General 
 Pike. All, except one of the aids, were mortally- 
 wounded, — the general himself receiving a severe con- 
 tusion on the breast. 
 
 The American troops for an instant recoiled before 
 this terrible catastrophe ; but they were quickly re- 
 formed by Colonel Pearce, of the 16th infantry, who 
 now assumed the command, and his subordinate officers ; 
 the lively strains of martial music soon rei'nspired them ; 
 and they were again led forward to the attack, rending 
 the air, as they advanced, with their loud hurrahs. As 
 they filed past the suffering, but heroic Pike, whose 
 breast and sides were literally crushed in, he said, " Push 
 on, my brave fellows, and avenge your general !" — They 
 instantly dashed on with redoubled zeal ; though the 
 plume of their gallant leader was no longer to be seen, 
 his influence was still upon them ; and in a few hours 
 the victory was completed, by the capture of the town 
 and fort ; General Sheaffe making a precijiitate retreat 
 with his regulars, in the direction of Kiuijston. The 
 public buildings and barracks were destroyed, and the 
 
 * Some of the escapes made on this occasion were rather amusing; — 
 one officer saved himself by dodging under a gun. and another by spring- 
 ing into an empty pork barrel. It was for a long time supposed that the 
 explosion was the work of design, and the circumstance of finding the 
 lighted trains at Fort George, (See Memoir of General Scott.) in May 
 following, tended to strengthen this impression. General Sheaffe, how- 
 ever, repelled the dishonorable imputation, and declared that it was 
 wholly accidental. The most critical and reliable biographer of Genera! 
 Pike. (See Memoir of Pike, by Colonel Whiting, in Sparks' American 
 Biography,) adopts the opinion that it was a mere accident, and could 
 not have been designed. 
 
HIS DEATH. 335 
 
 military stores removed ; and the place was then aban- 
 doned. The enemy lost about two hundred men in killed 
 and wounded, and nearly three hundred were taken 
 prisoners. The loss of the Americans was three hun- 
 dred and twenty killed and wounded, principally caused 
 by the explosion of the magazine. Between thirty and 
 forty of the enemy were also killed and wounded by the 
 explosion. 
 
 After the advance of the troops, Pike was taken up 
 by some of his men, under the direction of tlie sur- 
 geons, to be conveyed on board the ship. As they 
 reached the shore of the lake, a loud prolonged shout 
 was heard, evidently proceeding from his brigade. The 
 cheering sound revived the dying hero. Like Wolfe 
 upon the plains of Abraham, he turned his head with 
 an inquiring look. This was noticed by a sergeant 
 beside him, who instantly cried, " The British union 
 jack is coming down, general — the stars are going up 1" 
 Pike struggled to speak, but the effort was vain ; he 
 heaved a deep sigh, and a glad smile lighted up his fine 
 features. He was then rowed to the Commodore's ship 
 and taken on board. He lingered a few hours in great 
 pain, being unable to articulate a single syllable. Just 
 before he breathed his last, as his eye was glazing in 
 death, the British standard was brought to him ; ho 
 jnade a sign to have it placed under his head, and 
 calmly breathed his last. 
 
 The personal intrepidity of G eneral Pike was not his 
 only good quality. He was devotedly attached to his 
 profession, and jealous of the preservation of its honor, 
 — as was evinced by the orders issued on the morning 
 of the fatal twenty-seventh of April. Among them 
 
336 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 
 
 was one, in which he prohibited any molestation of the 
 jjcrsons or property of private citizens, and strictly en- 
 joined upon his troops that they should refrain from 
 committing outrages of every character, however much 
 they might be provoked. He was pure-minded, frank 
 and ingenuous ; firm in danger, and resolute in adver- 
 sity ; blameless in life, and heroic in death, — exempli- 
 fying, under circumstances that required the exhibition 
 of unusual fortitude and resignation, the truthful sen- 
 timent. of the Roman poet — 
 
 " Dulce, et decorum est, pro patria mori !" 
 
 On the day previous to the embarkation at Sacketts 
 Harbor, General Pike addressed a letter to his father, 
 in which he said : "I embark to-morrow in the fleet 
 at Sacketts Harbor, at the head of a column of fifteen 
 hundred choice troops, on a secret expedition. If suc- 
 cess attend my steps, honor and glory await my name ; 
 if defeat, still shall it be said that we died like brave 
 men, and conferred honor, even in death, on the Amer- 
 ican name. Should I be the happy mortal destined to 
 turn the scale of war, will you not rejoice, O my father ? 
 May Heaven be propitious, and smile on the cause of 
 my country ! But if we are destined to fall, may my 
 fall be like Wolfe's — to sleep in the arms of victory !" 
 
 The hero's wish was gratified. The same breeze that 
 fanned his cheek, and cooled the aching forehead on 
 which the death-damp was rapidly gathering, unfurled 
 the victorious banner, welcomed, as it shook its star- 
 gemmed folds above the heads of his brave soldiers, 
 with a deafening shout that went up like the gush of 
 
HTS CIIARACTER, 337 
 
 many waters. He desired no highsr, or gi'eatcr dis- 
 tinction, in life, than to serve his country in the tented 
 field — he asked no nobler death than that which awaited 
 him, in the hour of his proud triumph : — 
 
 " He died, as hearts like his should die, — 
 In the hot clasp of victory !" 
 
 15 
 
WIN FIE ID SCOTT. 
 
 On learning the particulars of the defeat of Marshal 
 Ney at Dennewitz, says St. Cyr, in his Histoire Mili- 
 taire,^ Napoleon remarked, that " he knew of but one 
 general who had constantly gained by experience, and that 
 was Turenne, whose great talents were the result of pro- 
 found study." A similar remark might, not inappropri- 
 ately, be applied to Winfield Scott, the General-in- 
 Chief of the Army of the United States. For more than 
 forty years he has been in the military service of tlie 
 American people, constantly improving in reputation, as 
 in the knowledge appertaining to his profession, — the 
 experience of each year furnishing new and useful les- 
 sons to its successor, v/hich have not been permitted to 
 remain unimproved, — and he now stands before the 
 country and the world, occupying a high place among 
 the heroes of modern times, and towermg far above 
 his compeers, in stature and in fame. 
 
 Among the Scottish gentlemen who rallied aroun 
 Charles Edward, when he unfurled the banner of his 
 kingly race on the hills of Glenfinnan, on the nineteenth 
 of August, l74o, were two brotlicrs, by the name of 
 Scott. They adhered to " the young Chevalier" tln'ough 
 
 * Tom, iv.. {). l.'>0. 
 
GENL. WINFIELD SCOTT, 
 Commander in Chief. United States Army. 
 
BIRTH AND EDUCATION. 339 
 
 weal and woe, through good and evil report, till the for- 
 tunes of the Stuarts sank forever on the bloody field 
 of Culloden. The elder brother sealed his loyalty with 
 his life on that fatal day ; and the younger, being se- 
 riously compromised by his participation in the rebel- 
 lion, emigrated to America, and established himself in 
 the practice of the law, in the then Colony of Virginia. 
 His son William, a farmer by occupation, married into 
 one of the most respectable families in Virginia, and 
 died in 1791, leaving two sons and several daughters. 
 The elder son, James, commanded a regiment of Vir- 
 ginia militia, at Norfolk, in 1812 ; the younger was 
 "Winfield, the subject of this biographical notice, who 
 was born near Petersburg, Virginia, on the thirteenth 
 of June, 1786. 
 
 Within two years after the death of his father, young 
 Scott was also deprived of his mother, and, at the age 
 of seventeen, was left his sole master, possessed of but 
 limited means, to make or mar his fortune, as he him- 
 self decided to guide the little bark freighted with his 
 boyish hopes and aspirations. Happily, he had been 
 early accustomed to habits of self-government and self- 
 reliance. He was frank and ingenuous by nature ; 
 ardent, ambitious, and chivalric, in his temperament ; 
 gifted with a superior intellect ; industrious by inclina- 
 tion, as well as from a consciousness of its importance ; 
 quick to perceive, and ready to learn. Qualities like 
 these, properly improved and directed, are always sure 
 to reward their possessor a hundred fold ; for mind, like 
 water, will, sooner or later, find its own appropriate 
 level. 
 
 Scott was originally designed for the legal profession. 
 
340 WINFIELD SCOTT- 
 
 He pursued a regular course of instruction in mathe- 
 matics and the classics, in the High-School at Rich- 
 mond, then in charge of a distinguished teacher of the 
 name of Ogilvie, and afterwards repaired to William 
 and Mary College, where he spent between one and two 
 years, and attended a course of law lectures. His le- 
 gal studies were completed in the office of David 
 Robertson, a learned and able lawyer, and in 1806 he 
 was admitted to the bar. He spent the following year 
 in his native state, riding the circuit two terms in the 
 vicinity of Petersburg, and residing most of the time 
 with Benjamin Watkins Leigh, subsequently one of 
 the most eminent counsellors and advocates in Virginia. 
 In the fall of 1807, he visited South Carolina, intend- 
 ing to establish himself in practice in the city of Charles- 
 ton. Failing, for want of time, to procure the pas- 
 sage of a bill by the legislature, specially exempting 
 him from the statutory provision requiring a year's 
 residence in the state, he returned to Virginia. 
 
 This was, perhaps, the most fortunate disappointment 
 he has ever experienced. The whole country was then 
 in a complete ferment of agitation. The attack on the 
 Chesapeake took place in June previous, and a war 
 was confidently predicted as the inevitable result. 
 President Jefferson issued a proclamation prohibiting 
 British armed vessels from entering the harbors of the 
 United States, and bodies of militia were called out for 
 the defence of the coast, and the enforcement of the 
 prohibition. The first blast of the trumpet roused 
 young Scott from his siudies, and dissolved many of 
 his gayest and brightest dreams of future eminence and 
 distinction among the gentlemen of the gown and wig. 
 
APPOINTED A CAPTAIN OF ARTILLERY. 
 
 341 
 
 He enrolled himself as a member of a volunteer troop 
 of horse raised in Petersburg, and, in the summer of 
 1807, performed a tour of duty on Lynnhaven Bay. 
 
 Visions of military greatness and renown danced 
 constantly before him, while on his visit to South Caro- 
 lina, which more than half compensated for his disap- 
 pointment. He took a deep interest in the progress of 
 the dithculties with England and France, and his sym- 
 pathies were warmly enlisted in behalf of his country. 
 His voice and his pen were both employed in defence 
 of the administration of Mr. Jefferson, and of that of 
 his successor, Mr. Madison; and from the time of the 
 attack on the Chesapeake, till the declaration of war, 
 he was an active and energetic supporter of war 
 measures. . 
 
 Immediately after his return to Virginia, he deter- 
 mined to abandon his profession and enter the army. 
 Accordingly, he applied to the President, for a commis- 
 sion in one of the new regiments proposed to be raised 
 by a bill introduced in Congress at the session of 1807-8. 
 The bill lingered sometime on its passage, and, in the 
 meanwhile, Scott returned to his circuit. It finally 
 became a law in April, 1808 ; and on the third day of 
 May following, through the influence of his friend, the 
 Hon. Wm. B. Giles, then a senator in Congress, and 
 afterwards governor of the State of Virginia, he was 
 commissioned, by President Jefterson, a captain of light 
 artillery. Briefs and black-letter tomes, red tape and 
 parchment, were now thrown aside ; his company was 
 raised and organized ; and early in 1809, he joined the 
 army under General Wilkinson, at New Orleans. 
 
 The character of the connection of Wilkinson with 
 
342 AVINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 the intrigues of Colonel Burr, as indicated by the testi- 
 mony elicited on the trial of the latter, which took place 
 while Scott was in Virginia, had not produced a very 
 favorable impression on his mind. General Wilkinson, 
 however, was pleased with the appearance and talents 
 of his subordinate ; he mentioned him as a young man 
 " who could speak, and write, and fight", and made re- 
 peated attempts to attach him to his interest. Scott 
 calmly, but firmly, declined to meet his advances in a 
 similar spirit, and took no pains to conceal the opinions 
 he had formed. In the autumn of 1809, General Wil- 
 kinson was relieved by General Hampton, in the com- 
 mand of the southern army, — the main body of which 
 was stationed near Natchez. Scott was now more un- 
 guarded in his conversation, and on one occasion, perhaps 
 unwisely, though his sincerity cannot be doubted, in- 
 dulged in the strongest terms of reprehension. Charges 
 were soon after preferred against him,* and in January, 
 1810, he was tried and found guilty, of having uttered 
 disrespectful language towards his superior officer. 
 General Wilkinson. The sentence of the court was, 
 that he should be suspended " from all rank, pay, and 
 emoluments, for the space of twelve months." 
 
 The following year was spent by Captain Scott, at 
 Richmond, in the family of his friend, iMr. Leigh, who 
 
 * The charge was, in substance, that General Scott remarked at a 
 public table, that he had never seen but two traitors, viz. : Generals Wil- 
 kinson and Burr, — and that General Wilkinson was a liar and a 
 scoundrel. Whatever may have been the justice of Scott's sentence, 
 for violating the rules of military subordination, he had certainly strong 
 reasons for associating the name of Wilkinson with that of Curr, inas- 
 much as there were then weighty suspicions attachuig to the conduct of 
 the former which have never been wholly removed. 
 
PRO.MOTED TO LIEL'TENANT COLONEL. 343 
 
 tendered him the free use of his large library. The 
 opportunity thus afforded, for benefiting his mind, was 
 faithfully improved. The greater part of the period of 
 his suspension was spent in the careful and diligent 
 study of works on military science ; and he thus laid 
 the foundation of that vast and comprehensive informa- 
 tion, which subsequently embraced every department 
 of knowledge belonging to, or connected with, his 
 profession. 
 
 A further augmentation of the army, consequent 
 upon the declaration of war against Great Britain, was 
 made in the summer of 1812, and in the month of 
 July, upon the urgent recommendation of the Virginia 
 delegation in Congress, Scott was promoted to the rank 
 of lieutenant colonel in the 2nd artillery. He at once 
 proceeded to the Niagara frontier, with two companies 
 of his regiment, and took post at Black Rock, to pro- 
 tect the naval depot at that place. 
 
 It is well ]<;nown that the venerable Albert Gallatin, 
 whose varied learning, and great abilities, are so highly 
 honored and esteemed at home and abroad, was de- 
 cidedly opposed, as a member of Mr. Madison's cabinet, 
 to the war with England, or to a war with any foreign 
 power ; and the younger, and more ardent and ambi- 
 tious, members of the party to which he belonged, often 
 complained that he did not render that hearty support 
 to the administration, in the management of the affairs 
 of his department, necessary to the vigorous prosecu- 
 tion of hostilities. On one occasion he is reported to 
 have doubtingly inquired of Lieutenant Elliott, of the 
 navy, what they were to do for vessels on Lake Erie, 
 when they had none, and there was no money to bnild 
 
844 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 any ? " Take them !" said the lieutenant, in whose 
 patriotism calculations of dollars and cents had no 
 place. — The theory of the young officer was gallantly 
 put in practice on the night of the eighth of October, 
 1812, on the shores of the Niagara. The Caledonia, a 
 British brig of war, the next year employed in Perry's 
 squadron, and the Detroit, formerly the Adams sur- 
 rendered by Hull, were cut out from under the guns 
 of Fort Erie, where they were lying at anchor, and 
 brought oft' with their crews, by a party in two boats, 
 headed by Elliott in person. Captain Towson, of the 
 2nd artillery, and a portion of his company, belonging 
 to Scott's command, took part in the expedition. Scott 
 himself volunteered to accompany his men, but was 
 not permitted to go ; he rendered important assistance, 
 however, by the fire of his guns, in preventing the re- 
 capture of the Detroit, which grounded on Squaw 
 Island. It being found impossible to get her off", she 
 was subsequently burned, by order of General Smythe. 
 Early in the month of October, 1812, there were near 
 fifteen hundred regular troops at Buffalo and Fort Ni- 
 agara, under the command of General Smythe ; and 
 General Stephen Van Rensselaer, of the New York 
 militia, the commander of the united force, known as the 
 Army of the Centre, Iiad concentrated about twenty- 
 five hundred men at Lewiston. Nothing was talked 
 of but the invasion and conquest of Canada. The suc- 
 cessful enterprise under Elliott infused new zeal into 
 the breasts of the really patriotic, but raw and undis- 
 ciplined militia ; and all that was then required to have 
 terminated the campaign, and perhaps the war, by a 
 bold and successful stroke in the upper province, was 
 
ATTACK ON QUEENSTON. 345 
 
 the presence of resolute and energetic general officers. 
 General Smythe possessed few of the qualifications re- 
 quisite in a skilful and successful soldier, and there was 
 very little cordiality of feeling existing between him 
 and General Van Rensselaer, — when, had they zeal- 
 ously cooperated together, and made a vigorous irrup- 
 tion into the enemy's country, at the head of their com- 
 bined forces, the power of England in Upper Canada, 
 would have been at an end in three weeks. 
 
 General Van Rensselaer was high-minded and pa- 
 triotic, and not deficient in ability or personal bravery, 
 but he was, to some extent, jealous of the regular offi- 
 cers, and did not infuse that energy into his operations, 
 whicli, after all, is the gi'eat secret of converting militia 
 into reliable troops. Day after day passed by, and the 
 army still remained inactive. Action and excitement 
 are always necessary to keep up the spirits of a newly 
 organized militia force. Nothing was done in this re- 
 spect, until the men threatened to return home, when 
 an attack was planned on the British post at Queenston, 
 nearly opposite Lewiston ; it being understood that the* 
 greater part of the enemy's forces had been withdrawn 
 from the peninsula, for the defence of Maiden. 
 
 The morning of the eleventh of October was fixed 
 upon for the attack ; but on account of the violence 
 of the weather, and the want of a sufficient number 
 of boats, it was postponed to the thirteenth, when it 
 was arranged to take place in two columns, one of mi- 
 litia, and the other of regulars, each to consist of three 
 hundred men. Colonel Solomon Van Rensselaer, of 
 the New York militia, and Lieutenant Colonel Chrys- 
 tie, of the 13th infantry, were selected to command the 
 
 1.5* 
 
346 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 two columns. Lieutenant Colonel Fenwick was to 
 follow the movement with a force of two hundred reg- 
 ulars, under Major MuUaney. 
 
 The arrangements for storming the heights of Queens- 
 ton were completed on the twelfth of October, and late 
 in the evening of that day Lieutenant Colonel Scott 
 hastened to Lewiston, through mud, and rain, and 
 sleet, and entreated General Van Rensselaer to permit 
 him to serve as a volunteer with the attacking force. 
 His services were declined, but he was authorized to 
 bring his command to Lewiston, there to act as cir- 
 cumstances might require. He instantly returned to 
 Schlosser, where his men were posted, ordered them 
 under arms, and just before daylight arrived at Lewis- 
 ton, bringing with him two pieces of artillery which 
 were conveyed down the river in a boat, in consequence 
 of the bad state of the roads. The troops under Van 
 Rensselaer and Chrystie had already passed the river, — 
 though with not much regularity, on account of the 
 deficiency of boats, — under a heavy fire from the en- 
 emy's batteries ; and they were now warmly engaged 
 on the opposite bank. Colonel Van Rensselaer and 
 Lieutenant Colonel Chrystie were both known to bo 
 severely wounded, and Scott was finally ordered to 
 cross over and take the command. The detachment 
 under Major Mullaney, had previously attempted the 
 passage, but their boats being seized by the eddies, they 
 were driven below the point designated for the landing, 
 and directly under the British batteries ; the whole 
 detachment, therefore, with the exception of Major 
 Mullaney and a few of his men, who made their es- 
 
CROSSES TlIK RIVER. 347 
 
 cape, were obliged to surrender themselves as prisoners 
 of war. 
 
 Leaving his train in battery on the American shore, 
 under the command of Captains Towson and Barker, 
 who opened an effective fire on the enemy, Scott crossed 
 the stream, about eisdit o'clock in the morninsf when 
 he found that the British force, consisting of two flank 
 companies of the 49th, and a body of militia, had been 
 driven from their position ; that Captain Wool had 
 stormed the heights south of the town, with three com- 
 panies of the 13th infantry, and carried the enemy's 
 batteries ; and that the British commander. General 
 Brock, had been killed in an unsuccessful charge, which 
 he had gallantly headed in person. He also ascertained 
 that General Wadsworth, of the New York militia, 
 had reached the Canada shore, though without the 
 knowledge of General Van Rensselaer, and, of course, 
 was entitled to the command. General Wadsworth, 
 however, magnanimously waived all claims of superior 
 rank, and requested Scott to make sucli dispositions as 
 he thought proper. 
 
 Although the American detachments, who had made 
 a lods:ment on the Canada shore, remained for several 
 hours unmolested, it was not doubted that the enemy 
 would rally again before night. Scott arranged his 
 men, therefore, so as both to cover the ferry, in order 
 that he might be reinforced if necessary, and to repel 
 an attack. About the middle of the day, General 
 Van Rensselaer came over, and having examined and 
 approved of his arrangements, returned to superintend 
 the crossing of the remainder of the troops. But the 
 sight of the action in the morning had cooled the ardor 
 
348 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 and impatience of the militia. Some few parties were 
 induced to cross over, — though most of them might as 
 well have remained behind ; but the great body of the 
 command had entirely forgotten their former boisterous 
 professions of patriotism. General Van Rensselaer al- 
 ternately coaxed and threatened, but it was all to no 
 purpose. Every circumstance was calculated to dis- 
 courage them ; many of the boats, originally too few in 
 number, had been crippled, the current was rapid, the 
 stream one complete sheet of eddies, and the weather 
 cold, wet, and stormy. They would not, and they did 
 not go ; but they stood still, and with the utmost un- 
 concern and indifference, saw their countrymen sacri- 
 ficed on the opposite shore of the river, when their 
 presence would have changed the fate of the day. 
 
 Between two and three o'clock in the afternoon, small 
 parties of the enemy were seen hovering along the 
 slopes of the hills, and, shortly after, the action was 
 fiercely renewed by the rallied militia and grenadiers, 
 and about four hundred Indians, under Norton, who 
 had heard the previous firing, and had hurried down 
 from Chippewa. With a mixed command of regulars 
 and militia, not far from three hundred and fifty strong 
 — nearly four hundred of the militia being seized with 
 a panic, and refusing to take part in the action — Scott 
 boldly encountered the enemy.- A sharp conflict ensued 
 for a few moments, and the assailants were then driven 
 back, and put to flight, by a forward movement of the 
 bayonet. 
 
 The protection of the ferry rendered a pursuit impos- 
 sible. Scott therefore reformed his line, in readiness 
 for another attack. He had just returned to the rear, 
 
GALLANTRY AND INTREPIDITY. 349 
 
 to direct his men how to unspilce a captured cannon, 
 when the enemy ralUed again, and forced in the ad- 
 vanced picket. The main Kne, too, had commenced a 
 retreat ere he could reach them. Instantly springing 
 to the front, by great exertions, in which he was ably 
 seconded by General Wads worth and Lieutenant Colonel 
 Chrystie, he brought the retreating line to the right 
 about. His earnest enthusiasm produced a sudden 
 revulsion of feeling, and the enemy were soon a second 
 time repulsed. 
 
 Meanwhile, General SheafFe, who commanded the 
 troops at Fort George, had hastily collected all his 
 disposable forces, and the provincial militia in the 
 neighborhood, and was rapidly a]>proaching the scene 
 of action. About four o'clock, his column, numbering 
 rather more than eight hundred men, emerged into 
 open view just below the village of Queenston. Ho 
 advanced with much caution, though fnlly aware that 
 the Americans Vv^ere greatly inferior to his own force 
 in point of numbers, especially when he had effected a 
 junction with the light troops and Indians. Leaving 
 Queenston on his left, he took a wide circuit through 
 the woods, gained the heights, and opened the action 
 anew, with a rapid fire of musketry and artillery. 
 For half an hour, the little band headed by the daunt- 
 less and heroic Scott, manfully held their ground, and 
 breasted the volleys that met them on every side. All 
 that bravery and skill could do, was nobly performed, — 
 but performed in vain ! 
 
 Scott fearlessly exposed his person to the enemy's 
 bullets. His tall form, six feet and five inches in 
 height, was the most conspicuous object on the field. 
 
350 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 He was arrayed in full uniform, and was entreated 
 again and again to cover up or change some part of his 
 dress. " No, no !" said he, smiling ; " I will die in my 
 robes !" Others were constantly falling around him, 
 but he escaped unharmed. — After the action, when he 
 had surrendered himself a prisoner of war, an Indian 
 v>'arrior came up to him, and surveying him attentively, 
 said — " You are not born to be shot ; so many times — 
 (holding up all the fingers of both hands) — so many 
 times did I fire at you !" 
 
 The bloody and desperate contest was soon ended. 
 Overpowered by superior numbers, and nearly sur- 
 rounded on all sides, the Americans retreated to the 
 bank of the river, under cover of the precipice, where 
 they found the faint-hearted militia concealed in the 
 clefts and fissures. Retreat was liopeless ; the troops 
 were disheartened ; tliere were no boats in which they 
 could cross the river ; and the twilight was fast set- 
 tlina: over the field of combat. General Wads worth 
 and the other principal ofiicers now held a consultation, 
 and it was decided that they should surrender them- 
 selves to the enemy. Several messengers were sent 
 with a flag, but they failed to reach the British com- 
 mander, as they were shot down on the way by the 
 Indian rifles. Scott then volunteered to go himself 
 He attached a white handkerchief to his sword, and, 
 accompanied by Captains Totten and Gibson, made 
 his way to the enemy's rear, by taking a circuitous 
 route under cover of the precipice overlooking the river. 
 He and his companions had all the while been exposed 
 to a random fire from the Indians, and on approaching 
 the road leading up from the village to the heights, 
 
TAKEN PRISONKR. 351 
 
 they were suddenly beset by two warriors, who dis- 
 charged their rifles at them, and were preparing to rush 
 forward with their knives and hatchets, — spaying no 
 heed to the sacred character of the flag which they 
 carried, — when a British oflicer came up with a file 
 of men, and compelled them to desist. 
 
 The three officers were forthwith conducted to the 
 presence of General Sheaffe, and terms of capitulation 
 agreed on. The force surrendered with Wads worth 
 and Scott, consisted of one hundred and thirty-nine 
 regulars, and one hundred and fifty-four militia ; about 
 four hundred militia, who had taken no part in the en- 
 gagement, were afterwards included in the surrender ; 
 and there had been about one hundred killed during 
 the day — making a total of casualties, including the 
 two hundred regulars under Major Mullaney, who 
 surrendered in the morning, of near one thousand. 
 
 This disastrous action was the first, as it was the 
 most unfortunate, in which Scott was engaged. His 
 conduct throughout the day was worthy of all praise. 
 He was but a few years older than young Conde, when 
 the latter routed the famous corps of Spanish infantry ; 
 yet he exhibited the skill and intrepidity of a veteran 
 officer, and had he been supported by anything like an 
 equal force, it can scarcely be doubted that the setting 
 sun would have witnessed the American banners float- 
 ing in triumph on the heights of Queenston. 
 
 After the surrender, the American prisoners were 
 taken to the village of Niagara, or Newark, under an 
 escort, and the officers temporarily lodged in an inn. 
 While there, a message was brought in that some one 
 at the door wished to see the " tall American." Scott, 
 
352 AVINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 presuming, of course, that he was intended by the des- 
 ignation, went out into the hall, where he was surprised 
 to find the two warriors who had so cowardly attacked 
 him when bearing the flag of truce. Both were dis- 
 tinguished chiefs — one being the son of the renowned 
 P>Iohawk leader, Joseph Brant, and the other known by 
 the name of Captain Jacobs. They eagerly commenced 
 questioning him in regard to his wounds, and attempted 
 to examine his person. Scott bore with them for some 
 time, but they soon became angry and insulting, and 
 at lengtli Jacobs seized him by the arm to turn him 
 round. Scott promptly resented the indignity, and 
 hurled the savage from him, with ease, exclaiming, 
 " Off, villain ! — you fired like a squaw !" 
 
 The savages at once clenched their knives and toma- 
 hawks, and sprang towards him, crying out — " We 
 Idll you now ! — Vv'c kill you now !" P'ortunately, in 
 one corner of the hall, underneath the staircase, stood 
 the swords of the American officers. Scott darted 
 buck, caught up a long heavy sabre, turned upon his 
 heel, and in a breath stood on his defence ; with an un- 
 flinching eye and look regarding the dark warriors, 
 whose painted visages lowered fiercely upon him. At 
 this moment. Captain Coffin, a member of General 
 Sheaffe's staff, entered from the street ; he instantly 
 cried out for the guard, caught Jacobs by the arm, and 
 placed his pistol at the head of young Brant. This 
 had the desired effect. The Indians were intimidated, 
 and on the appearance of the guard, retired from the 
 inn. Their people, however, were so much excited, 
 that Scott could not venture out into the street, during 
 
INTERFERENCE IN BEHALF OF PRISONERS. 353 
 
 his stay at Niagara, even to dine with the British com- 
 mander, without a strong- escort. 
 
 General Brock was buried on Queen ston Heights, 
 immediately after the surrender of the American troops, 
 and at the request, of Lieutenant Colonel 8cott, who 
 so well knew what was due to the memory of the gal- 
 lant dead, minute guns were fired from Fort Niagara, 
 on the American shore, during the sad ceremony. 
 
 Scott was sent to Quebec with the other prisoners, 
 where he was placed on a cartel to be conveyed to Bos- 
 ton ; and in January, 1813, he was regiilarly exchanged. 
 When the transport was about leaving Quebec, a party 
 of British officers came on board, and commenced mus- 
 tering the prisoners, with a view of selecting those who 
 were ascertained to be Irishmen, by their speech, to be 
 sent to England for trial. Great Britain has ever de- 
 nied the right of expatriation in the subject, and hence 
 these men, if found in arms against her authority, were 
 liable, according to her laws, to be convicted of the 
 crime of treason. Scott was seated in the cabin ; but 
 hearing the tumult, he rushed upon deck. By this 
 ' time, the British officers had selected twenty-three men 
 from the detachment. On learning the cause of the 
 disturbance, he forbade the remainder of the prisoners 
 to utter a single syllable, when questioned. The men 
 readily obeyed him ; the British officers threatened to 
 use violence, but he was in nowise intimidated by their 
 menaces ; he felt, justly, that the honor of his country 
 was for the time in his keeping, and, in spite of threats 
 and frowns, persisted in the order he had given. 
 
 The British officers were finally obliged to retire with 
 the twenty-three prisoners, but before the latter left the 
 
354 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 side of the vessel, Scott pledged himself to secure their 
 liberation, if it were possible ; but if not, he solemnly 
 declared that he would retaliate, on the first prisoners 
 whom the fortune of war should place in his power. 
 He faithfully kept his word. On his return to the 
 United States, he made a full and faithful report of the 
 transaction to the Secretary of War, and in May, 1813, 
 at the capture of Fort George, selected twenty-three 
 prisoners to be held as hostages for the unfortunate 
 Irishmen. The British government persisted in their 
 determination to try the men and execute them ; con- 
 sequently, they ordered forty-six other prisoners into 
 confinement ; the Americans reciprocated their con- 
 duct, in kind ; but after venting a great deal of spleen 
 and ill humor to no purpose, the British ministry find- 
 ing their braggadocio of no avail, tacitly surrendered 
 their position, and shortly after the peace, the twenty- 
 three prisoners taken to England from Quebec, were 
 sent home to the United States. Twenty-one of them 
 — the remaininsf two bavins: <Jied natural deaths — 
 landed in New York, in July, 1815. Almost tlie first 
 object which they encountered, was the tall form of the 
 gallant Scott, upon whose brow the laurels were yet 
 fresh and green which he had won at Chippewa and 
 Niagara. They eagerly hailed him as their deliverer, 
 caught him in their arms, and nearly overwhelmed him 
 with theii" enthusiastic manifestations of gratitude. 
 
 At the opening of the campaign of 1813, Scott was 
 appointed adjutant general in the stafT of General 
 Dearborn, the head of the army, and the commander 
 of the ninth military district. It was stipulated, how- 
 ever, on his part, that he should bo entitled to his com- 
 
ATTACK ON FORT GEORGE. 
 
 355 
 
 mand in the line, on all extraordinary occasions. On 
 the second of Marcli, he was promoted to the colonelcy 
 of the 2nd artillery, a double regiment, consisting of 
 twenty companies. 
 
 The campaign of this year opened auspiciously. The 
 forests of Canada were scarcely robed in the bright ar- 
 ray of spring, when the American soldiers precipitated 
 themselves on her shores. On the twenty-seventh of 
 April, York capitulated to the surviving comrades of 
 the heroic Pike.* General Dearborn remained for sev- 
 eral days in the vicinity ; but on the fifth of May he 
 reerabafrked, and, having been joined by successive re- 
 inforcements, increasing his command to about five 
 thousand men, efiected a landing on the American 
 shore, at Four Mile Creek, on the evening of the eighth 
 instant. Colonel Scott joined the army shortly after 
 the capture of York. The duties devolving upon him, 
 as chief of General Dearborn's staff, were intricate and 
 multifarious, as the army was newly organized, or 
 composed of different corps recently brought together ; 
 but they were performed with untiring zeal and in- 
 dustry, and in a manner that gave satisfaction to all 
 parties concerned. 
 
 The next object of attack, was the British post of 
 Fort George, situated opposite Fort Niagara, at the 
 mouth of the river. The boats built for the occasion 
 were launched on the afternoon of the twenty-sixth of 
 May, and their stations a.ssigned ; and careful recon- 
 naissances were made of the Canada shore, in order to 
 ascertain the most feasible points for landing. The 
 movement in the American camp being discovered by 
 * See Memoir of General Pike, ante. 
 
356 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 the enemy, a severe cannonade was opened on Fort 
 Niagara and the adjacent batteries. The roar of the 
 howitzers was incessant ; and peal on peal of heavy- 
 ordnance reverberated along the beach, with a loud 
 crashing noise, and then died away, in deafening echoes, 
 among the distant hills and ridges. The fire was soon 
 returned from the American fort ; shells were rained 
 without intermission on the enemy's batteries, and 
 balls sent whistling through the lanes and streets of 
 the village of Niagara. 
 
 At three o'clock in the morning of the twenty-seventh 
 of May, all was in readiness for the expedition, and the 
 signal was given for the flotilla of boats to get under 
 weigh. The descent was to be made in six divisions 
 of boats, though, in consequence of the early retreat of 
 the enemy, all the troops were not landed. In the first 
 division was the advanced guard, or forlorn hope, of 
 five hundred picked men, led by the intrepid Scott ; in 
 the second was the field train, under Colonel Porter ; 
 and these were followed, in the order of attack, by the 
 brigades of Generals Boyd, Winder and Chandler, and 
 a second reserve under Colonel IVIacomb. Owing to a 
 strong wind then prevailing, the rapid current, and the 
 heavy surf, the landing on the Canada shore was not 
 effected as easily as had been anticipated. Under cover 
 of the guns of the fleet and of Fort Niagara, which 
 opened a terrible fire, that crushed down the walls 
 and batteries in and about Fort George, in huge 
 masses, at nine o'clock in the morning. Colonel Scott 
 gained the beach, and prepared to land. General Vin- 
 cent, the British commander, had previously disposed 
 his whole regular force, about nine hundred strong, 
 
CAPTURE OF THE FORT. 357 
 
 with five or six liundred militia, in a ravine near the 
 shore ; and as the Americans approached, they v^'ere 
 met by several warm volleys of musketry. 
 
 With shouts and cheers, the American advance leaped 
 into the water, and waded to the beach. They in- 
 stantly formed on the shingle, covered by an irregular 
 bank, from seven to twelve feet high, above which flashed 
 the bristling bayonets of the enemy. Colonel Scott 
 forthwith ordered a charge. The first attempt to scale 
 the bank was unsuccessful ; on the second, the men 
 clambered up in spite of resistance, — Scott himself 
 being among the foremost, and knocking up the British 
 bayonets with his sword. The enemy retired a short 
 distance, and stoutly maintained the ground for twenty 
 minutes ; but on the arrival of Colonel Porter and Gen- 
 eral Boyd, with their commands, portions of which par- 
 ticipated in the skirmish near its close, they commenced 
 retreating in haste, in the direction of Queenston, — 
 having already laid trains to their different magazines. 
 Scott pushed his column after them, without delay, 
 and, at the village of Niagara, was joined by the 6th 
 infantry, under Colonel Miller. 
 
 On approaching Fort George, one of its magazines 
 exploded. The sad calamity that befel the American 
 troops at York, had produced its probably natural ef- 
 fect ; and a similar mishap was the bete noire which 
 they always dreaded throughout the early part of the 
 campaign. Colonel Scott was struck by a piece of 
 timber, thrown from the horse which he had borrowed 
 from a British colonel taken prisoner, and considerably 
 bruised ; but he sprang to his feet in an instant, and 
 accompanied by a few equally brave spirits, forced the 
 
358 WINPIELD SCOTT. 
 
 gate, and entered the fort.* Captains Hindman and 
 Stockton extinguished the lighted matches, and Gen- 
 eral Boyd and Colonel Scott made tlieir way to the 
 flag staft'. The British standard soon fluttered in the 
 wind, — Captain Hindman being the fortunate individual 
 who first seized it, though the staff was cut down by 
 Scott, — and the stars and stripes speedily rose in its 
 place. 
 
 Colonel Scott continued the pursuit for some distance 
 beyond the fort, — Lieutenant Riddle, with his party, 
 following the enemy almost to Queenston, and picking 
 up a number of stragglers — but he was soon recalled 
 by General Boyd, in conformity with the directions of 
 Genera] Lewis, who had assumed the command on 
 shore. With the return of tlie advanced corps, the 
 battle terminated. The Americans had thirty-nine 
 killed and one hundred and ten wounded in the at- 
 tack : while the British lost one hundred and eiafht 
 killed, and one hundred and sixty wounded,-^and 
 there were one hundred and fifteen regulars, and five 
 hundred militia, taken prisoners. 
 
 After the loss of Fort George, General Vincent with- 
 drew all his forces from the peninsula, including those 
 previously stationed at Chippewa and Fort Erie, to 
 Burlington Heights ; and the Americans established 
 themselves in a solid manner on the Niai?ara frontier. 
 This lodgment would undoubtedly have been perma- 
 nent, had it not been for the inaction — the pest and 
 bane of the northern army during the campaigns of 
 
 * Close beliinJ Scott was Colonel Porter, who complained that the 
 long legs of the former gave him an undue advantage. 
 
 1 
 
EXPEDITION AGAINST DURLINGTON HEIGHTS. 359 
 
 '12 and '13 — which characterized the subsequent ojsera- 
 tions of our principal officers in that quarter. 
 
 It has been said that the campaign of 1813 opened 
 auspiciously. So, indeed, it did, — but it terminated in 
 disaster and disgrace. The bold stroke of Lieutenant 
 Colonel Harvey, which resulted in the capture of Gen- 
 erals Chandler and Winder, on the tliird of June, and 
 the defeat and surrender of Colonel Boerstler on the 
 twenty-fourth of the same month, were, in themselves, 
 affairs of no great importance ; or rather, they would 
 not have been considered such, had they been relieved, 
 as might, and should have been the case, by those suc- 
 cesses which it was in the power of the American army 
 to have achieved. Immediately after the surrender of 
 Boerstler, General Dearborn was recalled, and subse- 
 quently resigned his commission. General Boyd suc- 
 ceeded to the command, during the summer, but the 
 War Department refused to give him authority to act 
 offensively ; consequently, he remained cooj>ed vip the 
 whole season in Fort George, with four thousand 
 men, when General Vincent had very little over two 
 thousand. 
 
 General Dearborn surrendered the command on the 
 j fifteenth of July, and Colonel Scott then returned to 
 I his duty in the line, and toolv charge of his regiment. 
 ' In September, an expedition was projected against 
 ; Burlington Heights, and he volunteered to command 
 : the land troops. Embariving on board Commodore 
 Chauncey's fleet, he proceeded to the Heights, but 
 found neither enemy, nor stores, at that point. On his 
 ! return, he landed at York, burned the barraclcs and 
 E storehouses, and brought off a large quantity of pro- 
 
360 WINPIELD SCOTT. 
 
 visions, clothing, and ammunition, together with eleven 
 armed boats and several pieces of cannon. 
 
 Upon the resignation of General Dearborn, the com- 
 mand of the army was given to General Wilkinson, 
 under whose auspices the famous expedition down the 
 St. Lawrence, in the fall of 1S13, was conducted. In 
 the original arrangements of Wilkinson, Colonel Scott 
 was to be left in command at Fort George, which had 
 been considerably enlarged and strengthened after its 
 occupation by the American troops. At the urgent 
 request of the latter, who ardently desired to take part 
 in the great movement of the campaign, his orders were 
 made so far discretionary, that he was authorized to 
 give up the fort to General McClure, of the New York 
 militia, when it had been placed in a proper state of 
 defence, provided it was net seriously t!n"eatened by 
 the enemy. The works were soon completed, and the 
 enemy retired to Burlington Heights, and afterwards 
 concentrated at Kingston, which post they supposed to 
 be threatened by General Wilkinson. On the thir- 
 teenth of October, General McClure took charge of 
 Fort George, and Colonel Scott proceeded with the 
 regular troops, who had previousl3^ garrisoned the post, 
 to the mouth of the Genesee river, where he expected 
 to find transportation for his men. Disappointed in 
 this, he marched his column, with all possible expedi- 
 tion, to Utica, and then directed his course towards 
 Sacketts Harbor. A short distance north of Utica, he 
 met General Armstrong, the Secretary of War, who 
 informed him that the expedition had already set out, 
 but gave hiin permission to leave his command with 
 
SKIRMISH AT HOOPIIOLE CREEK. 361 
 
 Major Hindman, and to join Wilkinson, in person, on 
 the St. Lawrence, at whatever point he could. 
 
 Thirsting for distinction, Scott eagerly availed him- 
 self of the permission granted, and dashed off on horse- 
 back, through the rain and mud. On the sixth of No- 
 vember, he joined the army at Ogdensburgh, and 
 accompanied General Brown in the descent of the 
 river, with the flotilla, under the heavy fire of the 
 British batteries at Prescott. Beinsr without a com- 
 mand. Colonel jMacomb magnanimously surrendered to 
 him one of his battalions, which he had reserved for 
 himself in case the regiment was divided ; and, on the 
 seventh instant, he was regularly assigned to the corps 
 cf elite. He commanded the advanced guard during 
 the subsequent movement of the army down the river, 
 almost daily encountering and defeating large or small 
 parties of the enemy. He was not concerned in the 
 action on the eleventh of November ; but, on the fol- 
 lowing day, he engaged a detachment of the enemy, 
 under Colonel Dennis, about equal to his own command 
 in numbers, at Hoophole Creek, near Cornwall, routed 
 them with ease, captured a number of prisoners, and 
 hotly pursued the remainder of the enemy till dark. 
 The army now retired into winter quarters at French 
 Mills, — the young and ambitious officers, like Brown 
 and Macomb, Gaines and Scott, literally overcome 
 with mortification and chagrin.* 
 
 Not long after this memorable expedition terminated, 
 Colonel Scott was relieved from duty, and made a visit 
 to his friends in Virginia, and at the seat of govern- 
 ment. By the direction of the president, he spent a 
 
 * See Memoirs of Brown and Macomb, ante. 
 
 16 
 
362 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 part of the winter at Albany, engaged in making 
 preparations, in connection with Governor Tompkins, 
 for the ensuing campaign. 
 
 On the ninth of INIarch, 1814, when scarcely twenty- 
 eight years of age. Colonel Scott was promoted to the 
 rank of brigadier general, and immediately joined Gen- 
 eral Brown, then moving with his column from Sack- 
 etts Harbor to Buffalo. At the latter place, a camp of 
 instruction was established by General Scott, — Gen- 
 eral Brown leaving him temporarily in the command, 
 while he returned for a few weeks to Sacketts Harbor, 
 with authority to adopt such measures as he thought 
 proper, to secure the efiicient discipline and instruction 
 of the troops, preparatory to taking the field. 
 
 New officers,— more active, more ambitious, and 
 more enterprising, — were now at the head of affairs on 
 the Niagara frontier. General Brown properly appre- 
 ciated the skill and abilities of the talented Scott, and 
 gave him almost unlimited power. The latter infused 
 new spirit and energy into every corps belonging to the 
 army ; superannuated, infirm, or incompetent officers, 
 no matter how high in rank, were relieved from duty ; 
 the strict rules of military discipline were rigidly en- 
 forced ; and the whole command was daily paraded 
 for instruction. All were drilled, from the highest to 
 the lowest, officers as well as men, under the eye of 
 Scott himself, — first in squads, then in companies, then 
 in battalions, and, finally, carried through the evolutions 
 of the line. The brilliant, but practical genius, of tlie 
 youthful general, his unwearied efforts and exertions, 
 accomplished wonders. When General Brown crossed 
 
CAMP OF INSTRUCTION AT BUFFALO. 363 
 
 the Niagara on the third of July, he crossed it with an 
 army of soldiers, not merely of men ! 
 
 The fruits of the camp of instruction at Buffalo, es- 
 tablished and directed by General Scott, were witnessed 
 on the plains of Chippewa, — on the blood-stained heights 
 of Niagara, — when " Greek met Greek," when steel 
 clashed against steel, and the American soldiers stood 
 firm and unflinching as the rocks beneath their feet. 
 They may still be witnessed, in the wide-spread renown 
 and eminent glory indissolubly connected with the 
 achievements of the gallant army which Brown and 
 Scott led out to battle, — in the noble deeds and feats of 
 lofty daring, paralleled only on the brightest pages of 
 by-gone martial story. 
 
 The incidents of the campaign on the Niagara fron- 
 tier, in the summer of 1814, have been so fully detailed 
 in the memoir of General Brown,* that it seems unne- 
 cessary to recapitulate them here. On the third of 
 July, the American commander crossed the Niagara 
 with his whole army, little more than three thousand 
 strong, consisting of the regular brigades of Scott and 
 Ripley, — the former leading the van, — and the militia 
 under Porter. Fort Erie was reduced on the same day, 
 and, immediately thereafter, he proceeded against the 
 position of General Riall, at Chippewa. On the fourth 
 of July, General Scott had a running figlit for more 
 than sixteen miles, with the 100th British foot, under 
 the command of the Marquis of Tvveedale, whom he 
 drove at full speed across the Chippewa. 
 
 On the fifth of July, the battle of Chippewa was 
 fought, — mainly by the first brigade, under General 
 
 * Anie, p. 34, et seq. 
 
364 WINFIELD SCOTT, 
 
 Scott. " To him more than any other man," said 
 General Brown, in his official dispatch, " am I indebted 
 for the victory." This was high praise ; but it was 
 well deserved by the personal intrepidity, the chivalric 
 bearing, and the dashing and dazzling manceuvres, 
 which decided the result of the action. The day had 
 opened with skirmishes of light troops, but the main 
 action was brought on about four o'clock in the after- 
 noon, when Scott dashed across Street's creek, and en- 
 gaged the British army on the plain south of the Chip- 
 pewa. The light troops on the left of the field were 
 in the meantime warmly engaged, but the principal 
 struggle took place in the open field, which was as 
 brief as it was decisive. 
 
 Scott's brigade numbered onlv about fourteen hundred 
 men, consisting of three small battalions, and the bat- 
 tery of Captain Towson. After crossing Street's creek, 
 he continued alternately to advance, halt, and fire, till 
 he was not more than eighty yards from the enemy's 
 line. It being evident that preparations were making 
 to outflank him, he detached one of his battalions into 
 the woods on his left, to protect that flank. With the 
 remainder of his small force, he prepared to meet the 
 enemy, who were making ready to charge, — their ar- 
 tillery having been already silenced. Spurring his 
 horse through the dust and smoke, he dashed up to the 
 side of Captain Towson, who was posted on the Chip- 
 pewa road, on the right of the field, and directed him 
 to maintain his ground, and pour a raking fire into the 
 British columns as they came up. 
 
 This order being given, he returned to his place in 
 the rear of his two infantrv battalions. He now di- 
 
BATTLE OF CHIPPEAVA. 365 
 
 reefed them to throw forward their outer flanks, so as 
 to form a reenterins^ ansfle, but takinsr care to flank 
 the enemy on the left.* The two battalions did not 
 touch each other ; but the interval would be every 
 instant lessened by the movement which he contem- 
 plated. Having given the necessary orders, he cried 
 out to the battalion of Major McNeil — the 11th in- 
 fantry, which had not a recruit in it — on the left, — 
 " The enemy say we are good at long shot, but cannot 
 stand the cold iron I I call upon the Eleventh instantly 
 to give the lie to that slander !" — " Charge !" he added, 
 as the shot from Towson's guns ploughed through and 
 through the British ranks. " Charare ! — Charsfe I" he 
 repeated in thundering tones, rising up in his stirrups, 
 and waving his men on with his sword. 
 
 This masterly charge, so well conceived and executed, 
 put an end to the contest. The front lines of the enemy 
 staggered, and rolled back in a confused mass on the 
 reserve. Ail caught the infection of defeat, and the 
 slope leading down to the Chippewa was soon darkened 
 by a cloud of fugitives. The pursuit was ordered, but 
 was checked when the Americans reached the stream, 
 by the hostile batteries that frowned on the opposite 
 shore. 
 
 The bloody battle on the heights of Niagara followed, 
 on the night of the twenty-fifth of July.t General 
 Scott opened the action with his brigade, and for nearly 
 two hours gallantly sustained himself against the vastly 
 superior numbers of the British army. When the en- 
 
 * Captain Towson, with his three guns, was on the other flank, oppo- 
 site the enemy's left, 
 t Ante, p. 45, et seq. 
 
366 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 emy's batteries were ordered to be stormed, he piloted 
 Colonel Miller, who was directed to execute this daring 
 enterprise with the 2lst infantry, through the smoke 
 and darkness, and the iron shower that swept unceas- 
 ingly down the hill-side. Twice, during the height of 
 the engagement, after being relieved by the troops under 
 Ripley and Porter, Scott precipitated his brigade on the 
 British left and right. Two horses were shot under 
 him — one literally torn from its rider. Though badly 
 wounded in the side by a spent ball, he persisted in re- 
 maining on the ground, wading on foot through the 
 blood and carnage, and his clear ringing voice ever and 
 anon heard above the roar of artillery, as he cheered 
 and encouraged his men. At length, about eleven 
 o'clock, he was finally disabled by a musket ball, which 
 shattered his left shoulder ; and at midnight, just as 
 the battle closed, he was borne from the field, with his 
 aid, Lieutenant Worth, also severely wounded. 
 
 For more than a month it was extremely doubtful 
 whether General Scott would recover from his wounds. 
 Kind friends were not wantmg, to provide for the com- 
 fort, and to soften the pillow, of the gallant soldier. 
 He remained for several weeks, — suffering, in the 
 meantime, great pain, — at Buffalo, Williamsville, and 
 Batavia, and was thence borne, in a litter, to Geneva, 
 to the house of his friend, the Hon. John Nicholas. As 
 soon as he became able to travel, he proceeded to Phil- 
 adelphia and Baltimore, in order to procure the best 
 surgical and medical aid in the country. His journey 
 was like the triumphal march of a conqueror. Passing 
 through Prmceton on commencement day, he was 
 waited on by a committee of the faculty of the Col- 
 
COMPLIMENTARY RESOLUTIONS. 367 
 
 lege of New Jersey, who requested his presence at the 
 exercises. He complied with the invitation, and was 
 received by the large audience assembled, with the 
 most rapturous demonstrations of applause. Before he 
 left Princeton, he was also complimented with the 
 honorary degree of JMaster of Arts, bestowed upon him 
 by the authorities of the College. As he approached 
 Philadelphia, he was met by Governor Snyder at the 
 head of a division of militia, who formed his escort into 
 the town. 
 
 Being incapacitated by his wounds, which were a 
 long time in healing, from any active duty. General 
 Scott was prevailed upon, at the instance of the con- 
 gressional delegations from Maryland and Pennsylvania, 
 to take the nominal command of the troops collected 
 for the defence of Baltimore and Philadelphia. On the 
 sixteenth of October, 1814, he entered upon the duties 
 of commanding officer of the tenth military district, — 
 Ills headquarters being at Washington city. 
 
 On the third day of November, 1814, Congress 
 passed a resolution of thanks, complimenting General 
 Scott for his skill and gallantry at Chippewa and Ni- 
 agara, and for his uniform good conduct " in sustain- 
 ing the reputation of the arms of the United States." 
 A massive gold medal was also struck and presented to 
 him, by order of Congress, and he was breveted a 
 major general. Resolutions of thanks were likewise 
 adopted by the Legislatures of New York and Vir- 
 ginia, and splendid swordi? publicly presented to him, 
 in accordance with their directions. He was further 
 honored, by being chosen an honorary member of the 
 
368 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 State Society of Cincinnati in Pennsylvania, in the 
 year 1815. 
 
 After the ratification of the treaty of peace, in Feb- 
 ruary, 1815, General Scott was requested, temporarily, 
 at least, to take charge of the War Department. This 
 he declined, but solicited permission to travel in Eu- 
 rope, for the restoration of his health and professional 
 improvement. The request was granted without hes- 
 itation. Having assisted in reducing the army to the 
 peace establishment — being himself retained as one of 
 the four brigadier generals — he embarked for England, 
 and then crossed over to the Continent. While abroad, 
 he was honored with the notice of Kosciusko, who gave 
 him letters of introduction to the most distinguished 
 marshals of France. He attended several courses of 
 public lectures, in the most eminent literary institutions, 
 and visited all the principal fortresses and naval estab- 
 lishments in western Europe. He returned home in 
 1816, fully restored in strength and spirits ; and in tlie 
 same year was assigned to the command of the Eastern 
 Division, with his headquarters at the city of New 
 York.* 
 
 In March, 1817, General Scott was married to Miss 
 INIaria Mayo, a Virginia lady, distinguished alike for 
 rare beauty and accomplishments. By her he has had 
 several daughters, but no livuig son. 
 
 Shortly after his marriage, General Scott purchased 
 a residence in the village of Elizabethtown, New Jer- 
 sey, which he still regards as his -home. For nearly 
 
 * He visited Europe again in 1829, and made the tour of France, 
 Belgium and Germany — his principal object being to procure profes- 
 fiional information. 
 
PUBLICATIONS ON MILITARY SUBJECTS. 369 
 
 twenty-five years, from the fall of 1816 to the summer 
 of 1841, with brief intervals, he was continued in com- 
 mand of the Eastern Division, and his family, durinj^ 
 that period and since, have spent most of their time at 
 Elizabeth town. 
 
 The commanding talents, and extensive military in- 
 formation of General Scott — his whole life having been 
 spent in storing up valuable knowledge in every de- 
 partment of science connected with his profession — 
 have been of vast service to his country, even in time 
 of peace. In 1821, he published an octavo volume, en- 
 titled " General Regulations for the Army, or Military 
 Institutes," — a complete manual for both regular and 
 militia officers. In the winter of 1814—15, he was 
 president of a board appointed to prepare a system of 
 infantry tactics, similar to that taught in the camp of 
 instruction at Buffalo, which was afterwards revised by 
 another board, of which he was also president, and 
 published in 1825. In 1826, he presided over another 
 board, composed of regular officers and militia gen- 
 erals, ordered to convene by the War Department, and 
 to report — 1. A plan for the organization and instruc- 
 tion of the whole body of the militia of the Union — 
 2. A system of tactics for the artillery — 3. A system 
 of cavalry tactics — and 4. A system of infantry and 
 rifle tactics. 
 
 The reports made by the board, on the first and fourth 
 subjects, were prepared exclusively by General Scott, 
 and reflect high credit on his military knowledge and 
 abilities. They were published for the use of the army, 
 and the information of the country ; and in 1835, under 
 a resolution of Congress, he prepared a new edition of 
 
 16* 
 
370 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 his system of Infantry Tactics, in three small volumes, 
 containing all tlie improvements made subsequent to the 
 general peace of 1815. 
 
 On the death of General Brown, in February, 1828, 
 General Scott was a candidate for the vacant office of 
 General-in-Chief. His claims were founded, mainly, 
 on the fact, that his commission as a brevet major gen- 
 eral, which bore date July 25, 1814, was older than 
 that of Macomb or Gaines, both of whom were candi- 
 dates for the same station. It was decided, however, 
 by President Adams, and, subsequently, by President 
 Jackson, that brevet rank was merely honorary in its 
 character ; and the appointment was therefore conferred 
 on General Macomb, the oldest brigadier.* Pending 
 the decision of this question, a warm personal contro- 
 versy sprung up between the different parties concerned, 
 in regard to brevet rank ; and on the decision of the 
 government being made known. General Scott tendered 
 his resignation. Under the advice of his friends, he 
 afterwards reconsidered this hasty step, withdrew his 
 resignation, and resumed the command of the Eastern 
 Division. 
 
 On the fourth of July, 1831, the melancholy duty 
 devolved upon General Scott, of closing the eyes of his 
 esteemed and venerable I'rienci, Ex-President Monroe, 
 who expired at the city of New York on that day. 
 
 In the summer of 1832, General Scott was ordered 
 to assume the command of the troops sent to suppress 
 the disturbance with tiie Sacs and Foxes, under Black 
 Hawk, on the Illinois frontier.! He embarked at Buf- 
 
 * See Memoirs of Generals Gaines and Macomb, ante. 
 t See Memoir of General Gaines, ante. 
 
WAR WITH THE SACS AND FOXES. 871 
 
 falo, in July, on board a steamer, with two hundred 
 and twenty men ; Colonel Twiggs proceeding on 
 another vessel, with a detachment of four hundred ; 
 and a third detachment, of over three hundred men, 
 taking still another vessel. Bunches of cypress, rather 
 than wreaths of laurel, were the trophies of this expe- 
 dition. On the route to Chicago, the command was 
 overtaken by that terrible scourge, the Asiatic Cholera. 
 More than one half of the men composing the detach- 
 ments died of the disease, or were left in hospital. 
 General Scott paid every necessary attention to the 
 wants of his soldiers ; nurses and medical attendants, 
 suitable food and clothing, were provided ; and every- 
 thing in his power was done, that could assuage the 
 sufferings of disease,- or the pangs of death. After a' 
 long delay, he left Chicago, at the head of only four 
 hundred men. With these he pushed forward as rapidly 
 as possible, but did not come up with General Atkin- 
 son, the officer in command of the troops then operating 
 in that quarter, till the third of August, the day after 
 the battle of the Bad-Axe, which put a finishing stroke 
 to the war. On the twenty-seveiith instant, Black 
 Hawk surrendered himself to the American officers, 
 and in September following, advantageous treaties 
 were concluded with the Sacs and Foxes, and the 
 Winnebagoes, by General Scott, and Governor Rey- 
 nolds, of Illinois. 
 
 During the agitation of the nullification question, 
 when a conflict was daily expected to take place be- 
 tween South Carolina and the General Government, 
 General Scott was ordered to Charleston and Savannah, 
 to take command of the regular troops in that section, 
 
372 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 if a collision should become unavoidable. His firmness, 
 and manly and dignified conduct, were productive of 
 the happiest results. The state receded from her po- 
 sition, and the angry waters which discord had lashed 
 into fury, were hushed and stilled by the blessed influ- 
 ence of Peace. 
 
 Osceola, or Asceolah, " the black drink," — as the 
 name signifies, — and the hostile Seminoles of Florida 
 under his command, commenced their depredations in 
 the summer of 1835, and in the autumn the everglades 
 resounded with their shrill war-whoop. On the twenty- 
 eighth of Decetnber, Major Dade and his command v^re 
 attacked and massacred, when on the march from Fort 
 Brooke, and General Thompson, the Indian agent, and 
 several companions vrere waylaid and killed, in sight 
 of Fort King. On the thirty-first instant. General 
 Clinch encountered the savages, under Osceola, on the 
 banks of the Withlacoochee, and after a severe action, 
 though of brief duration, put them to flight. 
 
 Immediately on the receipt of the intelligence of this 
 outbreak, General Scott was ordered to take command 
 of the army in Florida. At four o'clock in the afternoon 
 of the twentieth of January, 1S36, he reported to the 
 Secretary of War, and was asked when he could set 
 out ? " To night !" he replied promptly. His instruc- 
 tions, however, could not be prepared until the follow- 
 ing day ; and, on the twenty-first instant, he left 
 Washington, travelling night and day until he reached 
 Florida. On the twenty-second of February, he ar- 
 rived at Picolata, and issued his orders forming the 
 army into three divisions.— Previous to this time. Gen- 
 eral Gaines had repaired to the seat of war and com- 
 
THE FLORIDA WAR. 373 
 
 menced offensive operations ; but he now surrendered 
 the command to General Seottf — The troops on the 
 west of the St. John's were placed under General 
 Clinch; those on the east of the river under General 
 Eustis ; and those at Tampa Bay under Colonel Lind- 
 bay. The three divisions then moved towards the 
 Withlacoochee, where they met, in M'hat was sup- 
 posed, with good reason — as this had been the theatre 
 of the disturbances — to be the heart of the Indian 
 country ; but they failed to discover the retreats of 
 the savages. 
 
 The object of this expedition not having been attained, 
 another movement was ordered. Six different corps 
 were organized, with which the whole country, be- 
 tween the twenty-eighth and tliirticth degrees of north 
 latitude, was effectually scoured. One of tliese detach- 
 ments was led by General Scott in person. Passing 
 the scene of the massacre on the twenty-eighth of De- 
 cember, he crossed the Ocklewaha, and ascended the 
 St. John's from Volusia, in a steamboat. Still the 
 •Indians could not be discovered, in any large bodies, 
 though very small parties were occasionally seen, with 
 whom the troops had several skirmishes. The soldiers 
 had suflered considerably by their long and fatiguing 
 marches through the sickly and malarious swamps in 
 the interior, the deadly exhalations of which brought 
 on severe diseases, and filled the hospitals with the 
 sick and suffering. It was now rendered certain that 
 the savages had retired among the dense live oak and 
 cypress forests, and the marshy hummocks, in the 
 southern part of the peninsula. To follow them, at 
 
 * See Memoir of General Gaines, ante. 
 
374 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 that time, was out of the question ; and General Scott 
 decided to suspend his operations' until another cam- 
 paign. He then repaired to the Creek country, in 
 Georgia and Alabama, where a number of outrages 
 had recently been committed. Here he had fewer dif- 
 ficulties of climate or country to contend with. He 
 arrived in Georgia, in May, and in less than one 
 month, nearly five hundred of the refractory Creeks 
 had surrendered themselves. 
 
 While General Scott was actively engaged in the 
 discharge of his duties in tlie Creek country, he was 
 unexpectedly recalled, and, on the ninth of July, gave 
 up the command to General Jesup. It being evident 
 that he labored under the displeasure of the Executive, 
 General Jackson, he demanded a court of inquiry, on 
 his arrival at Washington. The court assembled at 
 Frederick, Maryland, in October, and after a long and 
 tedious investigation, fully approved of Jiis conduct. 
 The finding of the court was sustained by the then 
 president, Mr. Van Buren, and General Scott soon 
 after returned to the command of the Eastern Divi- 
 sion. He requested- permission to be again sent to 
 Florida, but as the war was at that time being prose- 
 cuted by other officers, it was not thought advisable to 
 comply with his request, and thus disturb the arrange- 
 ments which had been made subsequent to his recall. 
 
 In the winter of 1837-8, General Scott rendered ef- 
 ficient services in the preservation of neutrality on the 
 northern frontier, and in preventing the war which 
 threatened to grow out of tlie outbreak in Canada, and 
 what was called " the patriot excitement." No collision 
 took place with the British forces, although General 
 
THE NORTH EASTERN BOUNDARY. 375 
 
 Scott was fully prepared for such an emergency. In 
 the summer of 1838, he was ordered to take command 
 of the troops in the Cherokee country, — in Georgia, Al- 
 abama, North Carolina, and Tennessee, — and to super- 
 intend the removal of the Indians west of the Missis- 
 sippi. This duty was discharged with so much prompt- 
 itude and humanity, that he received the grateful 
 thanks of the Cherokees, as well as the express appro- 
 bation of his own government. 
 
 Having terminated his mission among the Cherokees, 
 General Scott hastened to the north, where his almost 
 unbounded popularity had produced such a favorable 
 result the previous year, to take command of the troops 
 ordered to preserve the integrity of the territory of 
 Maine, a large part of which had long been in dispute, 
 and the subject of negotiation, between the govern- 
 ments of Ens-land and the United States. He found 
 in Sir John Harvey, the lieutenant governor of New 
 Brunswick — in the campaign of 1813, Lieutenant 
 Colonel Harvey — an old acquaintance, whom he had 
 known during the late war with England. The former 
 discovered that the militia of Maine were too numerous, 
 and too well disposed, to be attacked by his inferior 
 force, and he readily met the friendly, but dignified ad- 
 vances, of General Scott, in a similar spirit. A cessa- 
 tion of all hostile movements and operations, was mu- 
 tually agreed on between them, — which received the 
 approval of the Governor of Maine, the American Ex- 
 ecutive, and the British Minister. The dis]iuted bound- 
 ary was finally adjusted, under the Treaty of Wash- 
 ington, concluded in 1842. 
 
 Though taking no active part in the political con- 
 
376 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 tests of the day, and never solicitous to venture in 
 " the fiery chase of ambition," the opinions of General 
 Scott on all leading questions, were so v^^ell known to 
 coincide with those of the Whig party, that he was 
 warmly supported as a candidate for the presidency, at 
 their National Convention, held at Harrisburg, in De- 
 cember, 1839. He received sixty-two votes, on the 
 last ballot but one ; the choice of the convention, how- 
 ever, fell on General Harrison, who was elected to the 
 office in the autumn of 1840. In the summer of 1848, 
 General Scott was again proposed as a candidate for 
 the same high station, by his numerous friends in dif- 
 ferent sections of the Union, and received a highly flat- 
 tering vote in the Whig National Convention, which 
 met at Philadelphia in the month of June, — though 
 the nomination was conferred on General Taylor, also 
 a distinguished officer of the army. 
 
 General Macomb, the commanding general, died at 
 Washington on the twenty-fifth of June, 1841, and 
 General Scott, to the universal satisfaction of the Amer- 
 ican people, was elevated to the head of the army, with 
 the full rank of major general. The services performed 
 by him in this capacity Vv'ere chiefly those of a cabinet 
 officer, and nothing more need be said of them, than 
 that they were faithfully and appropriately rendered. 
 
 We now approach the most brilliant epoch in the 
 military history of General Scott, — his splendid cam- 
 paign amid the burning sands and lofty mountains of 
 Mexico — the land of the citron and the orange, of the 
 fragrant acacia and the s])reading banana ; whose val- 
 leys teem with the glowing vegetation of an unending 
 
THE WAR WITH MEXICO. 377 
 
 summer, and whose hill-tops are covered with eternal 
 snow ; 
 
 " where the stars, 
 In tropic brightness gleam," — 
 
 and the overhanging rocks and rough buttresses of the 
 sierras, intrenched by the " deep scars of thunder," look 
 down upon sweet Paphian bowers, blooming with the 
 fragrant shrubs and flowers whose soft intoxicating 
 odors lull the senses to repose, and bright with the 
 plumage of the parrot and mocking bird, and the scar- 
 let and purple blossoms of innumerable creepers, twin- 
 ing about the columnar stems of the tulip tree, or de- 
 pending in heavy festoons from the graceful palm. 
 Like the Alpine scenery, to which the reviewer* com- 
 pares the poetry of Milton, " Nooks and dells, beautiful 
 as fairy land, are imbosomed in its most rugged eleva- 
 tions. The roses and the myrtle bloom unchilled on 
 the verge of the avalanche I" 
 
 Repeated insults and outrages, for a long series of 
 years, were heaped upon the American people and the 
 American flag, by the authorities of INIexico. Her 
 weakness, and her position as one of the family of re- 
 publics on the Western Continent, alone shielded her 
 from attack. Injuries perpetrated by her were tolera- 
 ted, which, had they been committed by a monarchical 
 power, would have been promptly redressed. At length, 
 after the annexation of Texas to the United States — 
 the citizens of which had revolted from her authority 
 and achieved their independence — on the twenty-fourth 
 of April, 1846, a body of JMexican lancers committed 
 an unprovoked attack upon a small party of American 
 
 * Macaulay. 
 
378 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 troops, on the left bank of the Rio Grande, and within 
 what was claimed to be the territory of the State of 
 Texas. The Congress of the United States was at this 
 time in session, and on receiving official intelligence of 
 the transaction, an act was passed, with great una- 
 nimity, declaring that a state of war existed between 
 the two countries " by the act of the republic of INIex- 
 ico." Provision was made for filling up the regular 
 regiments, the President was authorized to accept the 
 services of fifty thousand volunteers, and the sum of 
 ten millions of dollars was appropriated to carry on 
 the war. 
 
 Consultations were immediately held between the 
 President, the Secretary of War, and General Scott ; 
 and the various staflf officers and heads of bureaus were 
 directed to prepare estimates, and furnish the materiel 
 for the large army about to be called into the field. It 
 was originally intended that General Scott, whose abil- 
 ities as a skilful and scientific officer were admitted to 
 be unequalled in the American service, should proceed 
 to the seat of war and assume the chief command. 
 An unfortunate misunderstanding, however, occurred 
 between him and the Executive, and he was directed 
 to remain at Washington. During the summer of 
 1846, nearly twenty thousand men were thrown for- 
 ward. General Taylor, the officer commanding on the 
 Rio Grande, was largely reinforced, and strong columns 
 of attack were directed upon Chihuahua and New 
 Mexico, under Generals Wool and Kearny. Previous 
 to this. General Taylor had driven the Mexicans from 
 the left bank of the Rio Grande, by a series of brilliant 
 victories, and taken possession of Matamoras. On the 
 
EXPEDITION AGAINST VERA CRUZ. 379 
 
 arrival of reinforcements and supplies, he proceeded 
 against Monterey, the capital of New Leon, where the 
 shattered columns of the enemy had rallied ; and after 
 a stout resistance, this town also surrendered to his 
 arms, on the twenty-fourth of September, 
 
 Before the close of the campaign, most of the 
 northern provinces of Mexico had been overrun, or oc- 
 cupied, by the American troops. Victory everywhere 
 perched on our banners. Still, the enemy made no 
 propositions for peace. Artful demagogues, availing 
 themselves of the dissensions which they had fomented 
 among the Mexican people, had obtained the control of 
 affairs ; and they hoped to preserve their influence and 
 authority, only by the successful prosecution of hostil- 
 ities. It was therefore determined to land a strong and 
 well-appointed column at Vera Cruz, and after redu- 
 cing the formidable castle of San Juan de Ulua — the 
 Gibraltar of America — to march upon the Mexican 
 capital. This service demanded the highest military 
 talents in the Nation, and, in accordance with the gen- 
 eral desire, the hero of Chippewa and Niagara was se- 
 lected to lead the American armies to victory and 
 triumph. 
 
 The expedition against Vera Cruz and San Juan de 
 Ulua, was planned by General Scott ; great pains had 
 been taken to procure the necessary information in re- 
 gard to the defences of the city and castle ; and he was 
 engaged for several weeks in making the necessary 
 preparations. A corps of sappers and miners, moun- 
 tain howitzer and rocket batteries, heavy ordnance, 
 large quantities of missiles and ammunition, transport 
 vessels, bomb-ketches, and surf-boats, to land the troops, 
 
880 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 were ordered to be organized and prepared, and dis- 
 patched to the Gulf of Mexico without delay. The 
 troops destined to take part in the expedition, who were 
 to proceed from the United States, were ordered to ren- 
 dezvous at the island of Lobos, lying just off the Mex- 
 ican shore, about one hundred and twenty miles north- 
 west of Vera Cruz — a lovely perfumed island, hanging 
 suspended in the waters like a basket of flowers. The 
 remainder of the force was to be withdrawn from the 
 army under General Taylor, and to embark for the 
 same point, at Tampico, or the Brazos. 
 
 General Scott received his final orders on the twenty- 
 third of November, 1846, and on the twenty-fourth 
 left Washington for New York, where he embarked for 
 New Orleans. From thence he proceeded to the Rio 
 Grande, and, having selected the troops to compose his 
 column, repaired to the general rendezvous. 
 
 It was late in the month of February, 1847, before 
 all the troops reached the island of Lobos ; the arrange- 
 ments were then speedily completed ; and just before 
 nightfall on the fifth of March, the whole fleet came 
 bearing down into the roadstead of Vera Cruz, under 
 a full press of canvas, and blocking up the bay with a 
 dense forest of masts and spars. The American naval 
 squadron, under Commodore Conner, previously em- 
 ployed in blockading the Mexican ports, was present to 
 cooperate in the expedition. Careful reconnaissances 
 of the enemy's coast were immediately made by the 
 Commodore and General Scott, and the debarkation 
 was ordered to take place on the ninth of March, oppo- 
 site the island of Sacrificios, between four and five 
 miles south of the city of Vera Cruz. The surf-boats, 
 
LANDING OP THE TROOPS, 
 
 881 
 
 sixty-five in number, were properly marked, and the 
 troops arranged in divisions, and transferred from the 
 transports to the vessels of war, so as not to crowd the 
 contracted anchorage with too many sail. 
 
 At eleven o'clock in the morning of the ninth, the 
 squadron weighed anchor, and at three in the afternoon 
 hove to abreast of Sacrificios. The arrangements of 
 Commodore Conner and General Scott were all perfect ; 
 nothing was amiss or in confusion ; and not a single 
 accident occurred to interrupt the movement. The 
 small boats, which had been towed astern of the larger 
 vessels, were ranged alongside, manned by the sailors, 
 and received their complements of men, all fully armed 
 and equipped, and their bright muskets and bayonets 
 glistening with sunbeams. The steamers Spitfire and 
 Vixen, with five gun boats, then formed a line parallel 
 with the beach, within good grape range, to cover the 
 descent. The regular brigade of General Worth, was 
 the first to land. As the signal gun fired from the 
 Massachusetts boomed over the waters, the line of 
 boats darted for the shore. 
 
 The day was highly favorable for the landing. It 
 was bright and clear, and a soft southeasterly breeze, 
 fresh from groves of balm and forests of citrori trees, 
 just rippled the surface of the bay, and died away in 
 gentle murmurs on the sandy beach. The harbor was 
 crowded with American, and foreign vessels of war ; 
 and every deck, mast and spar, were alive with anxious 
 spectators. But a few moments elapsed ere the boats 
 reached the shore, and the American flag was unfurled 
 amid the joyous shouts and loud hurrahs of the brave 
 tars and gallant soldiers. The remainder of the troops 
 
382 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 — the volunteer division of General Patterson, and the 
 regular brigade of General Twiggs — numbering, in all, 
 between ten and eleven thousand men, were landed by 
 the surf-boats, in successive trips, before ten o'clock in 
 the evening. 
 
 No attempt was made by the enemy to oppose the 
 disembarkation of General Scott's army. There were 
 between six and seven thousand men in the city and 
 castle, all under the command of General Morales, 
 Governor of the State of Vera Cruz ; but that officer 
 contented himself with remaining in security behind 
 his defences, which he might well have deemed almost 
 impregnable. The city was entirely surrounded by a 
 stone wall, with towers at irregular intervals,— the two 
 most important ones, the Santiago and the Conception, 
 being on the water-front, twelve hundred and seventy 
 yards distant from each other. The castle of San Juan 
 de Ulua, the reduction of which was the great object of 
 the expedition, stood on a bar, or small island, in front 
 of the town, one thousand and sixty-two yards from the 
 main land. The armament of the castle was very 
 heavy ; it contamed about one hundred and fifty guns, 
 of different calibre ; and there were over one hundred 
 guns mounted upon the fortifications of the city.' In 
 the rear of the town was a wide stretch of country, 
 dotted here and there with thickets of chaparral, origi- 
 nally a level plain ; but the loose sand had been drifted 
 into hillocks, from twenty to two hundred and fifty feet 
 high, by the perpetual blowing of the fierce nortcs. 
 
 General Scott landed on the morning of the tenth of 
 March, and made immediate preparations to invest the 
 town. He had rendered himself familiar with the to- 
 
LINE OF INVESTMENT. 383 
 
 pography of the country, and his columns moved as 
 regularly to their positions, as if they had been on 
 parade ; General Worth occupying the right of the line 
 with his command. General Patterson the centre, and 
 General Twiggs the extreme left. Though half blinded 
 by the whirling sand, the men cheerfully mounted over 
 the clumps and ridges, dragging after them their bag- 
 gage, tents, and artillery, and entirely indifferent to the 
 fire of the enemy's guns, which kept up a continued 
 and incessant roar. Several slight skirmishes occurred, 
 but the Mexicans appeared nowhere in force outside 
 their strong fortifications, frowning with cannon, and 
 bristling with bayonets. The investment was com- 
 pleted on the thirteenth of March, and on the same 
 day safeguards were sent to the foreign consuls in the 
 town. The whole line, extending from the beach op- 
 posite Sacrificios, to the hamlet of Vergara, on the 
 coast north of Vera Cruz, was about seven miles in 
 length, with an interval of from two and a half to three 
 miles between it and the city. 
 
 The plan of attack fixed upon by General Scott, 
 was, in the first place, to compel the city to surrender, 
 and then to take up battering positions near it, and 
 assault the castle. A succession of severe northers 
 cut off all communication with the fleet for several 
 days, and prevented the landing of the mortars and 
 heavy guns ; but in the afternoon of the twenty-second 
 of March, three batteries were finally established, within 
 eight hundred yards of the city, under the direction of 
 Colonel Totten, the Chief Engineer, and .seven mortars 
 planted. The city was then regularly summoned ; but 
 Governor Morales affected to regard the castle as being 
 
384 
 
 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 emhraced in the demand, and peremptorily refused to 
 capitulate. Orders were therefore given to open the 
 fire, and the squadron, under Commodore Perry, who 
 had relieved Commodore Conner, moved up to prevent 
 any further intercourse between the town and the 
 foreign vessels of war. The command of the trenches 
 was assigned to Colonel Bankhead, of the 2nd artil- 
 lery ; and shortly after four o'clock on the afternoon 
 of the twenty-second, the three batteries commenced 
 bombarding the town. A strong battery, manned by 
 officers and men of the navy, and mounting three 
 8-inch Paixhan guns, and three long thirty-two's, opened 
 its fire on the following day ; and early in the mornino 
 of the twenty-fifth, a fifth battery, with four 24-pounders 
 and two S-inch howitzers, added its deep-toned thunders 
 to the ceaseless din. The enemy returned the fire, 
 with considerable spirit, from their batteries in the city 
 and castle ; but little injury was done to the trenches, 
 and the Americans sustained but a trifling loss. 
 
 In the city, the horrors of a bombardment were soon 
 witnessed. The American fire was terribly destructive. 
 Deep channels were ploughed in the streets, and the 
 walls sunk in large masses. The air was full of blaz- 
 ing shells ; houses were set on fire, and the affrighted 
 inmates fled hither and thither, seeking, in vain, some 
 place of refuge and safety. The city resounded, in 
 every quarter, with the groans of the dying, the shrieks 
 of pale-faced women and orphaned children. On the 
 night of the twenty-fourth, the foreign consuls dispatched 
 a memorial to General Scott, praying him to grant a 
 truce to enable the neutrals to withdraw, with the 
 Mexican women and children. All the terrors which 
 
THE BOMBARDMENT AND CAPITULATION. 385 
 
 they depicted, had been foreseen by the American com- 
 mander, and they had been forewarned in time. They 
 had chosen to remain in the city till it was too late. 
 There could now be no alternative but a surrender. 
 The request of the memorialists was therefore refused, 
 and the siege pressed with increased vigor. 
 
 The firing was continued without intermission during 
 the day, on the twenty-fifth, and the following night. 
 Governor Morales resisted every appeal on the part of 
 the inhabitants of Vera Cruz, to surrender, and it was 
 only when the streets had become deluged with blood, 
 that he resigned the command to General Landero, who 
 immediately opened negotiations with General Scott, 
 which terminated in the capitulation of the city and 
 castle, with their armaments, and the surrender of the 
 garrison as prisoners of war. The American batteries 
 ceased playing on the morning of the twenty-sixth ; 
 and on the twenty-ninth, the Mexican troops marched 
 out and lay down their arms, while the victors entered 
 and took possession of the formidable strongholds which 
 they had evacuated. 
 
 There were but thirteen killed, and sixty-three 
 wounded, on the side of the Americans, including the 
 losses sustained by the navy, during the operations be- 
 fore the city of Vera Cruz, from the landing to the 
 capitulation ; except that there were a few casualties 
 occurred on the twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth of 
 March, in brief skirmishes with mounted parties of the 
 enemy, who made their appearance in the rear of the 
 line of investment, but were driven off by detachments 
 under the command, respectively, of General P. F. 
 Smith and Colonel Harney. The loss of the Mexicans 
 
 17 
 
386 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 during the siege was not ascertained, but was variously- 
 estimated at from one to two thousand. 
 
 Anticipating the speedy arrival of the dreaded 
 vomito on the low and sickly coast of Mexico, General 
 Scott hastened to put his army in motion for the in- 
 terior, hoping to find among the cool retreats of the 
 terra templada^ a refuge from the scorching sun of the 
 tropics. Lieutenant Colonel Belton, of the 3rd artil- 
 lery, was left in command of Vera Cruz and the Castle, 
 with a suitable garrison ; and, on the eighth of April, 
 General Twiggs took up the line of march for Jalapa, 
 about ninety miles distant. The remaining columns 
 followed in a few days. 
 
 Meanwhile, Santa Anna, the Provisional President 
 of Mexico, and Gencral-in-ohief of her armies, had 
 sustained a terrible repulse near Buena Vista, on the 
 twenty-third of February, when he had attacked the 
 American army under General Taylor, with a force 
 four times greater than that of his opponents. Escap- 
 ing from the scene of disaster, with the wreck of his 
 forces, — as the Americans did not design to penetrate 
 further into the country in that direction, — and aug- 
 menting their numbers by forced levies, together with 
 large additions from the National Guard, and consider- 
 able bodies of guerillereros, he proceeded to the heights 
 of Cerro Gordo, nearly thirty miles east of Jalapa, 
 and commenced fortifying his position. The National 
 Road, along which the victorious columns of General 
 Scott were approaching, here commences the ascent 
 from the tierra caliente, to the elevated table land of 
 Mexico. 
 
 After crossing Ihe Rio del Plan, the road winds uj) 
 
THE HEIGHTS OF CERRO GORDO. 387 
 
 among the hills — now scaling a bold sierra, and now 
 disappearing in the wooded depths of some dark ravine 
 — until, at the distance of two or three miles, it enters 
 a narrow defile, flanked, on the left, by three ridges 
 jutting out from the plateau above, — beyond which is 
 the impassable channel of the river, — and, on the right, 
 by the tall mountain peak of Cerro Gordo, crowned 
 with the Telegrafo^ a fortified citadel, or tower. In- 
 trenchments were thrown up on the eastern extremities 
 of the hills on the left, which terminated abruptly, and 
 upwards of twenty guns placed in battery. In addition 
 to the work on the lofty summit of Cerro Gordo, which 
 contained six guns mounted on carriages, there was a 
 strong battery, of six large brass guns, at the foot of 
 the height, which completely enfiladed the defile. 
 Breastworks for the protection of infantry were con- 
 structed in and about this chain of defences, within 
 which Santa Anna posted about one half of his army, 
 altogether consistinsr of not far from fifteen thousand 
 men. With the remaining half, he encamped on the 
 National Road, about half a mile west of the tower, 
 where he had, also, a battery of five guns. 
 
 The march of the American army from Vera Cruz 
 to the Rio del Plan was entirely unobstructed, — though, 
 on account of the deep sandy roads, very tedious and 
 difficult. For most of the distance, the wayside was 
 skirted with thickets of chaparral, with occasional 
 openings, through which glimpses could be caught of 
 plantations of maguey, whose bright clustering flowers 
 shed their rich golden radiance on everything around ; 
 of waving fields of corn and sugar cane ; of groves of 
 citrons, oranges, and pomegranates, — ^the trees bending 
 
388 ■\VINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 down with their luscious fruit, or loaded with rare 
 foliage ; or of sylvan nooks, where the waters of some 
 gentle streamlet trembled in the faint light stealing 
 softly down through the overhanging branches of the 
 majestic plane-tree, the dark-leaved banana, the lofty 
 cedar, or the gigantic arbutus. Now and then, too, 
 they passed the rude sheds, covered with green pal- 
 metto leaves, of the jarochada, — the humblest class 
 of IMexican peasantry, — who looked upon the advent 
 of these strange warriors, with emotions similar to those 
 with which the ancient Aztecs regarded the mail-clad 
 followers of Hernando Cortes. 
 
 General Twiggs arrived at the Plan del Rio, on the 
 eleventh of April, with his division, and encamped for 
 the night ; his advanced guard, under Colonel Harney, 
 having driven a party of JMexican lancers from the 
 ground. On the following day reconnaissances were 
 pushed in the direction of the enemy's position, which, 
 it was ascertained, could be turned on the right, by the 
 construction of a road leaving the main route some dis- 
 tance below the defile, and winding round to the north 
 of the heisrht of Cerro Gordo. The first and third 
 brigades of General Patterson's volunteer division, 
 commanded by Generals Pillow and Shields, came up 
 on tiie twelfth instant ; the second brigade, under Gen- 
 eral Quitman, did not arrive in time to take part in the 
 action. General Scott soon followed, and, on the six- 
 teenth of April, General Worth reached the ground 
 with his division. Dispositions were forthwith made 
 for carrying the whole Mexican line of intrenchments 
 by assault. The operations on the line reconnoitred by 
 General Twiggs, were pushed with great activity, and 
 
STORMING THE FORTIFICATIONS. 389 
 
 a road was constructed, extending for two or three 
 miles, through thickets of chaparral, underneath jutting 
 precipices, and across deep stony chasms. The fatigue 
 parties continued at work, until they came within range 
 of the enemy's batteries, and orders were then issued 
 to prepare for the storm. 
 
 The division of General Twiggs was thrown forward 
 on the new road, and in the afternoon of the seventeenth, 
 his advanced parties seized a commanding eminence di- 
 rectly below the frowning height of Cerro Gordo, upon 
 which several heavy guns were planted, that were 
 drawn up during the evening by the 4th artillery and 
 the volunteers of General Shields, who had been di- 
 rected to reinforce the regular division. The main 
 attack was now ordered to. be made' at sunrise on the 
 eighteenth of April ; General Twiggs being directed to 
 carry the works on the right of the road, with his di- 
 vision and the brigade of General Shields ; and Gen- 
 eral Pillow receiving orders to attack the intrenchments 
 on the series of hills on the left, aided by the fire of an 
 8-inch howitzer put in position on the heights, on the 
 opposite bank of the Rio del Plan. General Worth 
 was required to follow the movement under General 
 Twiggs with his division. 
 
 With the first light of dawn, the command of Gen- 
 eral Twiggs was in motion. The main height of Cerro 
 Gordo, from the sides of which the enemy's skirmishers 
 were driven by the fire of the mounted rifles, was gal- 
 lantly ascended by the 1st artillery,* and the 3rd and 
 
 * The artillery retriments in the Amcricsin sen'ice, are equipped, and 
 act, as infantry, with the exception of the detached companies serving 
 with batteries. 
 
390 ^vINFrELD scott. 
 
 7th infantry, headed by Colonel Harney, under a 
 plunging and withering lire of grape and musketry, 
 and the fortiiied work on its summit carried at the 
 point of the bayonet. General Shields crossed a ra- 
 vine, hitherto deemed impassable, further to the west 
 and right, with his brigade, and boldly attacked the 
 battery in the rear near the principal camp of Santa 
 Anna ; being desperately wounded, he gave up the 
 command to Colonel Baker, who promptly led on the 
 column, and, with the assistance of Colonel Riley, who 
 moved up with the 2nd infantry and 4th artillery, suc- 
 ceeded in carrying the battery and routing the main 
 body of the enemy. The private carriage of the Mex- 
 ican President, his baggage, and the military chest of 
 the army, were captured ; but Santa Anna himself, 
 and his principal ofhcers, succeeded in effecting their 
 escape. 
 
 General Pdlow was less successful in the attempt 
 to carry the batteries and intrenchments on the left of 
 the road. The fire of the enemy proved so destructive, 
 that he was obliged to call off his men ; but, nothing 
 daunted by one repulse, they were preparing for a 
 second and more determined effort, when white flags 
 were thrown out over the breastworks, — the Mexican 
 force in this quarter being completely in the power of 
 the American troops, who had carried the height of 
 Cerro Gordo and the battery in. the rear. A large 
 number of the enemy having escaped just previous to 
 the capture of the works, the way was cleared, and the 
 mounted men and light batteries, with portions of the 
 infantry, dashed after them in pursuit, mider Generals 
 Twiggs and Patterson. The intrenchments and forti- 
 
DEFEAT AND PURSUIT OF THE ENEMY. 391 
 
 fications were all carried before the sun had reached its 
 meridian, and at eventide the advanced corps halted 
 and encamped within sight of the white towers of 
 Jalapa. 
 
 The American force in this action barely exceeded 
 eight thousand men ; but the network of defences con- 
 structed by Santa Anna to impede their advance, 
 proved as frail and powerless as the gossamer's web. 
 Yet the victory was not achieved without a severe loss ; 
 there being four hundred and thirty-one officers and 
 men killed and wounded. The Mexican loss, however, 
 was much greater ; there were upwards of one thou- 
 sand killed and wounded, and over three thousand taken 
 prisoners, including five general officers. Forty-three 
 pieces of artillery, four thousand stands of arms, and a 
 large quantity of fixed ammunition, were also captured 
 by the Americans. 
 
 Jalapa surrendered to the victors on the nineteenth 
 of April, and on the twenty-second General Worth 
 took possession of the important castle of Perote. No 
 resistance was now made to the arms of General Scott. 
 Panic and dismay were visible on every side, and had 
 the American commander been in a situation to advance 
 immediately upon the IMexican capital, it is more than 
 probable that he would have encountered but feeble op- 
 position. But, when he arrived at Jalapa, the terms 
 of service of more than three thousand of his volunteer 
 force were about to expire ; and they returned at once 
 to the coast, to re^mbark for the United States before 
 the sickly season came on. Although his army was 
 thereby reduced to less than seven thousand efl'ective 
 men — a feeble band loft to maintain themselves in the 
 
392 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 heart of the enemy's country, whose communications 
 with the sea-board were soon after cut off by the gueril- 
 leros, who swarmed during the whole season on the 
 road to Vera Cruz — he determined, nevertheless, to 
 surrender not one of the advanta2;es which he had 
 gained, but to penetrate still further into the interior. 
 Accordingly, General Worth moved forward, in May, 
 to Puebla de los Xngelos — the City of the Angels — 
 with his division and the volunteer briafade of General 
 Quitman, in all but little more than four thousand 
 men. On the fourteenth instant, near Amasoque, he 
 had a slight skirmish with a body of lancers three 
 thousand strong, under Santa Anna ; but he drove 
 them before him with ease, and on the fifteenth instant 
 entered the city and took formal possession. 
 
 Like Jackson and Harrison, General Scott had no 
 sooner evolved his plans, than he found them counter- 
 acted by the orders or proceedings of the War Depart- 
 ment. The experience, oftentimes the bitter experi- 
 ence, of the Revolution and the second war with Great 
 Britain, — in which it was over and over again demon- 
 strated, that it was essential to success that there should 
 be as little interference as possible with the details and 
 incidents of a campaign^ — seemed to be forgotten by the 
 Executive authorities at Washington. The general 
 object of a campaign, or expedition, may, perhaps 
 should be, designated by the President, as commander 
 in chief of the army ; but it may be unhesitatingly af- 
 firmed, that no officer is fit to conduct either, to whom 
 a large discretion may not be safely confided. He will 
 find cares and vexations enough, without beino; fretted 
 
MARCH FROM PUEBLA. 393 
 
 by petty annoyances, or thwarted, at every turn, in the 
 most ti'i fling circumstance. 
 
 It was a long time before General Scott found him- 
 self in sufficient force to warrant him in continuing his 
 march upon the Mexican capital. On the twenty- 
 second of May, General Twiggs marched from Jalapa 
 for Puebla, with his division. General Scott followed 
 him on the twenty-third, in company with Mr. Trist, 
 the American Commissioner sent to confer with the 
 Mexican government, in case negotiations for peace 
 should be proposed. Strong garrisons were left at Ja- 
 lapa and Perote, under Colonels Childs and Wynkoop. 
 At Puebla another tedious delay took place ; but the 
 time was wisely and profitably spent in drilling the 
 troops. At length, the long-expected reinforcements 
 besran to arrive. Generals Pillow and Cadwalader 
 reached Puebla on the eighth of July, with over three 
 thousand men, including the command of Colonel 
 Childs ; and on the sixth of August, General Pierce 
 came up with twenty-five hundred men. Both col- 
 umns had repeated, and, in every instance, successful 
 encounters, with the guerilleros. 
 
 Arrangements had already been made for the con- 
 templated movement towards the far-famed halls of the 
 IMontezumas. The army, now consisting of ten thou- 
 sand seven hundred men, moved forward en echelon ; 
 General Twif^i^s marching on the seventh instant with 
 
 DO O 
 
 his division, preceded by the cavalry brigade of Colonel 
 Harney, and the remaining divisions, under Generals 
 Quitman, Worth, and Pillow, following on successive 
 days. General Scott left Puebla in person on the 
 eighth instant, and on the same day overtook, and then 
 
 17* 
 
394 WINFIELD SCOTT, 
 
 continued with, the leading division, under General 
 Twiggs. The line of march followed the National 
 Road, which ascends gradually through a rich rolling 
 country, to the tierra fria, the third of the great ter- 
 races into which Mexico is divided. — Elated with past 
 victories, and the brilliant promise of future triumphs, 
 the serried columns press on, through groves and gar- 
 dens decked out in the most gorgeous array, through 
 fields of maize and barley, and amidst towering cedars 
 and lofty pines : 
 
 " Through rocky pass, o'er wooded steep, 
 In long and glittering files they sweep." 
 
 Not an enemy appeared to obstruct their march, 
 until, on emerging from the pass of Rio Frio, they 
 commenced descending into the valley, in the midst of 
 which, like some bright vision of fairy land, lay the 
 city of Mexico, whose shining domes and sculptured 
 facades were bathed in the rich flood of golden light 
 that streamed down through the transparent atmo- 
 sphere. On approaching the hacienda of Buena Vista, 
 Major Sumner, of the 2nd dragoons, who commanded 
 the advanced corps, descried a party of Mexican lan- 
 cers apparently drawn up to defend the passage. Dash- 
 ing fiercely upon the enemy, without pausing to count 
 their numbers, he compelled them to make a hasty re- 
 treat. General Twiggs' division halted at Ayotla, fif- 
 teen miles from Mexico, on the eleventh of August, 
 and as the other divisions came up, they encamped in 
 the rear, about the head of Lake Chalco. 
 
 The Mexican capital lies about three miles west of 
 Lake Tezcuco, and six miles from the northwest point 
 of Lake Xochimilco. It is approached by six principal 
 
FOIlTIFiCATIONS OF MEXICO. 29-') 
 
 roads, which terminate in massive stone causeways, 
 elevated from ten to twenty feet above the low marshy 
 grounds that surround the city. On the east, is the 
 National Road, along which the American army moved ; 
 on the south, the Acapulco road, entering on the San 
 Antonio causeway ; on the south-west, the Tacuba3^a 
 road and causeway ; on the west, the San Cosme road 
 and causeway ; and on the north, are the remaining 
 two roads. 
 
 After his repulse at Amasoque, Santa Anna returned 
 to the capital, and began diligently to fortify it. The 
 National Road, which runs close to the southern shore 
 of Lake Tezcuco, was defended by El Peiion, an iso- 
 lated hill three hundred feet high, seven miles from the 
 city, on the south side of the road ; this was garnished 
 with twenty batteries mounting fifty-one guns, and 
 fifteen infantry breastworks ; and there was, also, a 
 strong battery on the road, or causeway, four hundred 
 yards in advance of the height, another by its side, and 
 a third about a mile from the gate of San Lazaro. 
 Between the National Road and Lake Xochimilco, is a 
 lateral road, leading to the San Antonio causeway by 
 way of the village of Mexicalcingo, which lies on the 
 outlet or canal reaching from the lake to the city. Tiie 
 bridge over the outlet was fortified, and flanked by 
 strong works, — there being, in all, eight batteries, with 
 thirty-eight guns, and one breastwork for infantry. 
 
 On the opposite side of Lake Xochimilco, upon the 
 San Antonio causeway, was a tefe du pont of heavy 
 mason work, at the bridge over the Churubusco river, 
 over two miles south of the city. To the left of the 
 bridge, were the church and convent of San Pablo, sur- 
 
o 
 
 96 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 rounded by a high wall and designed to be used for 
 purposes of defence. Between two and three miles 
 further south, at San Antonio, there were extensive 
 field works, containing seven batteries, mounting twenty- 
 four heavy guns, and two infantry breastworks. Five 
 miles northwest of the tete dii pont, on the Tacubaya 
 causeway, and distant only one and a half miles from 
 the Belen garita, or fortified gateway, was- the frown- 
 ing fortress of Chapultepec, situated on a rocky em- 
 inence in an oblong inclosure, the walls at the foot of 
 which, on the north and south, were formed by aque- 
 ducts extending into the city, over heavy arches, by the 
 Tacubaya and San Cosme causeways, which were thus 
 divided into double roadways. On tlie heights of 
 Chapultepec, there were seven batteries, including those 
 in the main fortification, which mounted nineteen guns, 
 and seven infantry breastworks. Beneath this fortress, 
 on the west, twelve hundred yards distant from the 
 acclivity, was El Molino del Rey — " the IVIill of the 
 King" — a long range of stone buildings now occupied 
 by the Mexican troops ; and four or five hundred yards 
 further to the west, on a retired line, was Casa de Mata, 
 an old square building, with thick stone walls, and sur- 
 rounded by ditches and bastioned intrenchments. 
 
 In addition to the exterior chain of defences, there 
 was an interior line equally formidable, A wide and 
 deep navigable canal, extremely diflicult, if not impos- 
 sible, to bridge in the face of an active enemy, girded 
 the city throughout its greater extent. There were 
 eight main entrances, at each of which there was a for- 
 tified garita ; and on the left and north of the Tacu- 
 baya causeway, a short distance in rear of the garita 
 
RECONNAISSANCES. 397 
 
 Belen, was the Ciudadela, or citadel, a rectangular 
 work, containing fifteen heavy giins. Batteries and re- 
 dans were constructed upon and near the causeways 
 and garitas, and preparations were made to connect all 
 the works of the interior line by a continuous chain of 
 redoubts. Guns could not be obtained in sufficient 
 quantities to arm all the works, but it was the inten- 
 tion of the Mexican commander to withdraw his pieces 
 from the outer batteries, whenever it became necessary 
 to take up a new position. For the defence of these 
 fortifications, and the protection of the city, he had col- 
 lected an army of over thirty thousand men, mainly 
 consisting of the battalions of the National Guard, but 
 all well armed and equipped. 
 
 From his camp at Ayotla, General Scott threw for- 
 ward several reconnoitering parties, through whom he 
 obtained definite and reliable information in regard to 
 the enemy's fortifications. He was able to break through - 
 the chain at any point, but his army was weak in num- 
 bers, and no reinforcements could be expected for some 
 time to come ; consequently, he decided to husband his 
 strength, and avoid the more important and stronger 
 works at El Peilon and Mexicalcingo, by making a de- 
 tour to the left, round Lakes Chalco and Xochimilco. 
 He had long had this project in contemplation, and on 
 the fourteenth of August, a reconnaissance was made 
 in that direction, which demonstrated its entire practi- 
 cability. Directions were forthwith given for the col- 
 umns to be put in motion. The order of march was 
 now reversed ; General Worth leading the van, with 
 Colonel Harney's brigade in the advance, and the other 
 divisions closely following the movement. ' 
 
398 
 
 VVINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 The enemy's light troops and skirmishers were re- 
 peatedly encountered while making the circuit of the 
 lakes ; the route was found to be low and uneven, some- 
 times crossing deep pits and marshes, and at others 
 running underneath overhanging scaurs which threat- 
 ened to fall down upon the heads of the soldiers ; but 
 the tedious march was terminated on the evening of ■ 
 the seventeenth of August, by the arrival of General 
 Worth at San Augustia, on the Acapulco road, — twen- 
 ty-seven miles from Ayotla by this circuitous route, and 
 nine miles south of the city of Mexico. In the morn- 
 ing of tlie eighteenth, General Worth moved along the 
 causeway, towards San Antonio, to allow the other di- 
 visions to close on him. 
 
 Reconnaissances having been made by the engineer 
 officers, it was found that the fortifications at San Anto- 
 nio commanded the causeway and the marshes on their 
 left, as far as Lake Xochimilco. West of the road 
 there was a vast field of volcanic rocks, called a pedre- 
 gal, utterly impassable for cavalry or artillery, and 
 nearly so for infantry, which extended some four or 
 five miles, to the San Angel road, leading from the fac- 
 tory of Magdalena, down the valley of the Churubusco 
 river, to the San Antonio causeway. General Scott 
 again resolved that the skill of the enemy should avail 
 them nothing. His plan — to gain the San Angel road, 
 and then move round to the attack of San Antonio in 
 rear — was soon formed, and the necessary orders given 
 to carry it into effect. A mule ])ath was discovered 
 running westward from San Augustin, and connecting 
 with the San Angel road, which the engineers reported 
 could be made practicable for artillery. On the morn- 
 
CONTRERAS AND CHERUBUSCO. 399 
 
 ing of the nineteenth instant General Pillow advanced 
 to open the path with his division and the corps of sap- 
 pers and miners, — the movement being covered by the 
 division of General Twiafsrs. 
 
 In the meantime, Santa Anna had moved his forces 
 to the southern side of the city. Eight guns were 
 planted in battery at the tete du pont ; the defences of 
 San Pablo were increased, and seven guns mounted ; 
 and General Valencia was thrown forward on the San 
 Angel road, with a corps of seven thousand men, and 
 twenty-four pieces of artillery, half of which were of 
 heavy calibre. In the morning of the eighteenth of 
 August, he had been directed to fall back to Coyoacan, 
 near San Pablo ; but he proceedad to the Hill of Con- 
 treras, situated in a bend of the San Angel road, opposite 
 the opening of the mule path leading from San Au- 
 gustin, where he intrenched himself and planted his 
 guns. 
 
 The working parties under General Pillow encoun- 
 tered innumerable difficulties, but they overcame them 
 all, with cheerfulness and alacrity ; and at three o'clock 
 in the afternoon, he opened a lively and well-directed 
 fire from a battery of field pieces, and a mountain 
 howitzer battery, which he had planted within nine 
 hundred yards of the Hill of Contreras. The fire was 
 answered with spirit ; and slugs, shot, and fragments, 
 were thrown from the enemy's guns with terrible eflect. 
 Meanwhile, Colonel Riley had moved round to the right, 
 with his brigade of General Twiggs' division, across 
 the field of lava, — officers and men, the latter divested 
 of their knapsacks, picking their way on foot, — to attack 
 the Mexicans in the rear. Strong detachments of the 
 
400 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 enemy's infantry, supported by heavy guns, being dis- 
 covered moving up the slopes west of the San Angel 
 road, General Pillow detached General Cadwalader, 
 with his brigade, to the support of Colonel Riley. 
 General Smith also crossed the 7?ef/reg"a/, with the 
 remaining brigade of General Twiggs' division ; and, 
 subsequently. General Scott dispatched Colonel Mor- 
 gan, with the fifteenth infantry, and General Shields, 
 with his brigade, in the same direction. 
 
 No serious impression being made against the heavier 
 metal of the enemy, by the American guns, they ceased 
 playing after nightfall. A violent storm of wind and 
 rain now came on, which served to heighten the anxiety 
 of General Scott and his officers, to learn the situation 
 and prospects of the troops who had crossed the pedregal. 
 Late at night, when all was uncertainty and gloom, 
 Captain Lee, of the engineers, returned from the op- 
 posite side of the bed of lava, with the information that 
 General Smith, who had taken the command of the 
 detachments, numbering altogether about thirty-three 
 hundred men, would storm the camp of General Va- 
 lencia at sunrise. Shortly after the day broke on the 
 twentieth instant, the intrenchments on the hill of Con- 
 treras were gallantly carried, as had been promised, 
 and the enemy driven from their position with great 
 loss. 
 
 General Scott immediately followed the mule path 
 to the San Angel road, with the brigades of General 
 Pierce and Colonel Harney, and ordered a rapid pursuit 
 of the retreating enemy, who were concentrating at 
 San Pablo and the tete du pont. At the same time. 
 General Worth moved against San Antonio in front, 
 
ROUT OF THE ENEMY. 401 
 
 with his division ; but the enemy evacuated their works 
 on his approach, and retired to the bridge, whither he 
 pursued them as rapidly as possible. 
 
 A general action, of more than two hours' duration, 
 which was hotly contested on both sides, now took 
 place in and about the tete du pont and the defences of 
 San Pablo. At length, the fierce onset of General 
 Worth compelled the enemy to give way on the right ; 
 the whole line soon staggered and broke, and a complete 
 rout ensued. At the request of Colonel Harney, the 
 way was cleared, and he was permitted to follow the 
 retreating columns of the enemy along the San Antonio 
 causeway, to the very gates of the city. His squadrons 
 dashed through and through the files of Mexican in- 
 fantry, smiting terrible blows on every side ; spurring 
 in upon the crowding fugitives, they cleft down all who 
 refused to surrender ; and up to the very garita, their 
 shouts and cheers, their pistol shots and sabre strokes, 
 spread terror and alarm. 
 
 In this action, the old war-spirit of General Scott 
 was fully aroused. When the clangor of the battle 
 was the wildest and the highest, careless and indifferent 
 in regard to the exposure of his person, he ventured 
 again and again within range of the enemy's guns. 
 In the course of the engagement, he received a slight 
 wound from a grape-shot, but he entered the church of 
 San Pablo soon after it was taken, and was received 
 by his brave soldiers with many a glad hurrah. 
 
 This series of bloody contests finally terminated at 
 sunset. During the day, the enemy lost four thousand 
 men in killed and wounded, and there were over twenty- 
 five hundred taken prisoners. Among the prisoners 
 
402 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 were eight general officers. . Thirty-seven pieces of ar- 
 tillery, and large quantities of small arms and amrau- 
 nition, standards, pack-mules and horses, were also cap- 
 tured. The American loss was far less in proportion, 
 yet it was very severe ; there were one hundred and 
 thirty-seven killed, eight hundred and seventy-nine 
 wounded, and forty missing. 
 
 It is not improbable, that General Scott might have 
 forced his way into the city, on the night after this 
 action ; but it was far too hazardous an undertaking 
 for eight thousand men to enter a hostile town, con- 
 taining a population of two hundred thousand souls, 
 whose convents and public edifices could be readily 
 converted into fortifications, and the azoteas, or flat 
 roofs, of whose dwellings, would afibrd a secure shelter 
 for thousands upon thousands of sharp-shooters. It was 
 not half so well provided for defence, when Guatemo- 
 zin, " the last of the Aztecs," resisted for three months 
 the utmost efforts of Cortes, though the latter was 
 aided by two hundred thousand Tlascalan allies. 
 
 On the night of the twentieth of August, while the 
 thunders of the battle were yet echoing among the 
 gorges of the Cordilleras, and ere the dark flocks of the 
 zojnlote — the voracious vulture of the country — which 
 hovered over the ensanguined plain, had descended to 
 their unhallowed carnival. General Scott was visited 
 by the British Consul, and other foreign residents of 
 the Mexican capital, at whose suggestion, in the spirit 
 of a magnanimous victor, he addressed a note to Santa 
 Anna on the following morning, proposing an armistice 
 with a view to negotiation. Previous to this time, on 
 the morning of the twenty-first, General Scott was 
 
THE ARMISTICE. 403 
 
 waited on by General Mora y Villamil, who came out 
 to propose a truce ; but the terms not beuig satisfactory, 
 nothing was agreed on. Upon the receipt of General 
 Scott's note, Santa Anna appointed commissioners to 
 confer with such as might be appointed on the other 
 side. An armistice was ultimately signed, and ratified 
 on the twenty-fourth instant. 
 
 Negotiations were instantly opened ; but the dupli- 
 city and bad faith of the Mexican government daily 
 became more and more apparent. Infractions of the 
 armistice constantly took place ; and on the sixth of 
 September General Scott notified Santa Anna, that 
 unless full satisfaction was made, before twelve o'clock, 
 meridian, on the following day, he should consider it at 
 an end from and after that hour. The reply of the 
 JMexican President was both insulting and evasive, — 
 and General Scott made immediate preparations to re- 
 new offensive operations. Having been informed that 
 there was a cannon foundry in El Molino del Rey, to 
 which a number of bells had been sent from the city to 
 be cast into guns — though this afterwards proved to be 
 a mistake — and that there was a large deposit of pow- 
 der in Casa de Mata, he determined to drive the enemy 
 from these works, and to seize the powder and destroy 
 the foundry. The performance of this service was 
 confided to General Worth, with his division, reinforced 
 by the brigade of General Cadwalader and other small 
 detachments. It was brilliantly executed on the eighth 
 of September, in spite of the opposition of nearly the 
 whole Mexican army, but with the loss of near eight 
 hundred men killed and wounded, out of thirty-four 
 hundred. 
 
404 WINFIELD SCOTT. 
 
 The capital itself still remained in the possession of 
 the enemy, who labored night and day to complete their 
 defences. Including the works at the garitas, there 
 were forty-seven batteries, designed for one hundred and 
 seventy-seven guns, and seventeen infantry breastworks, 
 constructed around the city. All the batteries, how- 
 ever, could not be manned at the same time, in conse- 
 quence of the deficiency in artillery. The most formid- 
 able works were at the garita of San Antonio, and on 
 the heights of Chapultepec. 
 
 After completing his reconnaissances. General Scott 
 made a demonstration before the southern gates of the 
 city, with the divisions of Generals Pillow and Quit- 
 man, on the afternoon of the eleventh of September, in 
 order to deceive the enemy ; but when it became dark, 
 he directed those officers to join him with their columns, 
 at Tacubuya, whither his headquarters had been some- 
 time previous removed. General Twiggs was left at 
 Piedad with his division, to threaten, or make false 
 attacks, on the batteries near the garita of San An- 
 tonio. 
 
 On the twelfth instant, four heavy batteries were plant- 
 ed, and opened, on the castle of Chapultepec, less than a 
 mile distant from Tacubaya, — while General Twiggs 
 directed a vigorous fii"e upon the batteries in the vicinity 
 of the southern gates. The cannonade was very effect- 
 ive ; the enemy were driven from their outworks on 
 the heights of Chapultepec, and the main fortification 
 was seriously crippled. On the night of tlie twelfth, 
 final arrangements were made for storming the castle 
 early on the following morning. Before midday on the 
 thirteenth, the works were bravely carried at the point 
 
CAPTURE OF MEXICO, 405 
 
 of the bayonet, by the divisions of Generals Pillow and 
 Quitman, — tlie former being supported by the division 
 of General Worth, and the latter by the brigade of 
 General Smith. Immediately after the reduction of 
 the castle, Generals Worth and Quitman followed the 
 retreating masses of the Mexican troops along the San 
 Cosme, and Chapultepec, or Tacubaya causeways. The 
 latter was the first to gain a foothold in the city ; the 
 garita of Belen being carried by his men shortly after 
 one o'clock in the afternoon. The route taken by Gen- 
 eral Worth was much longer, but he steadily advanced 
 on his way, driving the enemy from every redoubt and 
 battery ; and, during the evening, he securely estab- 
 lished himself inside of the garita of San Cosme. Be- 
 tween nine and ten o'clock, a few shells were thrown 
 from a mortar brought up to his column, in the direc- 
 tion of the National Palace, on the gi'cat plaza, in order 
 to obtain the exact distance. 
 
 Santa Anna and his ministers did not think it advisa- 
 ble again to encounter the American army, or to bring 
 upon the city the horrors of a bombardment. During 
 the night of the thirteenth, the Mexican commander 
 hastily evacuated the capital with all his forces ; and 
 on the morning of the fourteenth of September, Gene- 
 ral Scott entered and took possession with his troops, — 
 the civil officers making an unconditional surrender of 
 the town. For upwards of twenty-four hours, the 
 Americans were annoyed by the leperos, and lower 
 classes of the populace, who fired, and hurled missiles 
 upon them, from the roofs and windows. The vigilant 
 measures of General Scott speedily checked the emeute, 
 
406 WINFIELl) SCOTT. 
 
 and the American flag waved undisturbed over the Pal- 
 acio of Mexico.* 
 
 A rigid system of police was at once established and 
 enforced by the American commander, — whose watch- 
 ful care for the comfort and welfare of his men, whose 
 regard for the rights of the citizens, and whose respect 
 for his vanquished opponents, manifested at all times 
 and on all occasions, won golden opinions from both 
 friends and foes. 
 
 The brilliant campaign of General Scott, — especially 
 remarkable for the wonderful display of his military 
 knowledge and ability, his rapidity of decision, the 
 power and compass of his mind, the clearness of his 
 plans, and the strategical skill which so often rendered 
 all the labors of the enemy completely nugatory, — ter- 
 minated with the fall of the Mexican capital. Large 
 reinforcements were sent to join him, by the aid of 
 which his communications with the seacoast were ef- 
 fectually opened. For a few weeks, Santa Anna, who 
 had resigned his office of provisional president, attempted 
 to continue the war, but he eventually abandoned the 
 contest and quitted the country. The new adminis- 
 tration exhibited a more friendly and pacific disposition ; 
 the negotiations were resumed, and on the second day 
 of February, 1848, a treaty of peace was signed at 
 
 * The casualties consequent upon the capture of Chapultepec and the 
 retluction of the city, on the side of the Mexicans, were 1,000 killed, 
 1,500 wounded, and 823 taken prisoners. The Americans lost 130 killed, 
 704 wounded, and 29 missing. Among the captures of the latter, were 
 100 pieces of artillery, a number of colors and standards, and small 
 arms and ammunition in sufficient quantities to supply an army during 
 u campaign. - RD " 94 I 
 
RETURN TO THE UNITED STATES. 407 
 
 Guadalupe Hidalgo, which was subsequently duly 
 ratified. 
 
 On the nineteenth of February, General Scott was 
 relieved from duty in Mexico, at his own request ; and 
 shortly thereafter he returned to the United States, 
 where he was received with the most flattering de- 
 monstrations of respect. The thanks of Congress and 
 a gold medal were voted to him. Resolutions of con- 
 gratulation were adopted by a number of State Legis- 
 latures, and in the city of New York and other towns, 
 public processions and festivities were had, in honor of 
 the gallant commander and successful soldier. 
 
 The athletic frame and robust constitution of Gen- 
 eral Scott indicate that his life may be prolonged for 
 many years. While he is still living, and occupying 
 so high a place in the estimation of his countrymen, it 
 would, perhaps, be as unwise, as it is unnecessary, to 
 speak of his character more in detail. It may be, that 
 he is reserved for other and higher honors, — ^but what- 
 ever fortune befal him, it will ever be a proud satisfac- 
 tion to his friends, to point to his triumphant march to 
 the Mexican capital, as the most splendid achievement 
 recorded in modern history. 
 
 THE END. 
 
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